Monday 29 April 2013

small world, isn't it?

Lately, for some reason, I have found myself having fun taking pictures of very small things.







Sunday 14 April 2013

this ride brought to you by garmin connect


Went out on a bit of a ride with Cedric and Rob today. Was a good one. The sun was out, it was a pleasant if chilly temperature. I had a good time. Soon, very soon, speeds will rise on this route as the collective gets their riding legs back under them.

Saturday 13 April 2013

more spring madness

I managed to get out with Martin today for some photo work and coffee. We travelled from Waterloo to Paris (Ontario, not the one in France) and took some pictures along the way.

Here is a selection of what we got on our travels today.

Found in the river at Glen Morris - this area is usually not under water at all. With the usual springtime melt, coupled with the heavy rains over the last few days, the river is running very high and much along its edge that normally is dry, is submerged.
Shot from the sidewalk, this collection of things out front of this stuccoed house struck both me and Martin as being worthy of a photograph.
The light today was that very muted light that comes with rain and heavy overcast.
Most of the bright colour came from unnatural sources thanks in large part to our delayed spring.
The barest hint of green is all that is out there, even along the shores of the river where you would expect to find more of it.
Excellent advice here - driving to the left of the sign would be a messy and rather wet experience.
Running high and not dry. Lots of water today over the dam in Paris.

Thursday 11 April 2013

ice see

Had some ice fall down from above today. Not much, but it looked (n)ice.

uptown ice sprinkles

entombed thorns

waiting for warm butts

icy forests

Saturday 6 April 2013

out for coffee

A good friend of mine and I spent a bit of time out for coffee today. We talked about cycling, photography, and life in general.

Talking about photography reminded both of us that it has been too long since we have done anything with the cameras. A short walk ensued.

single speed outside the coffee shop

alley windows

name a beer

working hard

from a later walk

schmuck truck
'twas a good time.

Wednesday 3 April 2013

a deflating experience

I am going to have to bite the bullet and get some real tires.

I was hoping to avoid spending the cash on some good ones, but I am left with no choice.

After winter, I found an old set of Bontrager tires kicking around the house, installed them with some Mr Tuffy tire liners, and used them for a while. They were an intermediate step from the studs to some proper commuter tires. They rolled so well I thought I might keep using them.

Then I got a flat.

Thankfully, I was not in a hurry. They are a pain in the arse to remove from the rim since they are old and stiff and feel a touch small. I could not find anything wrong with the tire or rim or tube. I expect the valve just let go. The tube still held air, but not a lot.

A few days later, I swapped out the old knobbies for a pair of 26x1.5 Continental slicks we have that used to be on my wife's recumbent. Great tires. Nice and fast. Used them twice.

Got a flat.

Hit a minor bump. Pinched the tube or something. The rubber is not that thick on these tires. Oh, and the bike was not loaded down at all. Again, nothing in the tire, nothing in the tube, no holes, nothing. But it would not hold air. 

You have to understand something.

I don't get flats. I just don't get them for whatever reason. I can go well over 15 000km between flats.
_____________________________________________________

This winter, spear of glass went through a tire.

One flat.

Bad luck. First flat in a year at least (had one two winters ago - someone threw flint on a bike path. Bad luck. Prior to that, last flat was a number of years of heavy riding ago.)

Add to that two flats in the last week...
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I have an old pair of Schwalbe Marathon tires. The original ones. They have seen over 5000km of use. Use that was partially loaded commuting, partially pavement, but mostly gravel and mud rail trail riding. 1000s of km of gravel use.

No flats.

They are about 3/4 burned out.

But no flats.

Ever.
_____________________________________________________

So tomorrow, I am to haul myself off to my LBS and get a set of 26 x 1.5-1.75 Schwalbe Marathon tires, which ever size they have of whatever Marathon they have in stock.

I should have known better.

Just use the Schwalbes.

Don't kid yourself.

Monday 1 April 2013

I just wish this was an april fool's joke

Really weather?
Really?
Snow?
Again?
REALLY?!?

This just about sums up how people around here are feeling about the weather.

Today, we had strong west winds, and white out condition flurries with patchy blue sky and cloud. Temperatures were a full 10 degrees Celsius below normal for April 1.

Sigh.

That said, I managed to get a lot of work work done on my day off, got some errands run, and rode around the city on the bike. Thankfully, the rain we got yesterday and last night washed most of the salt off of the roads and the city managed to resist the urge to salt again today.

Here is hoping that Spring arrives properly this week sometime.