Let There Be Lights

Fall is here. Tis the season of in between, where cyclists struggle to find that perfect combination of clothes that will keep us somewhere between freezing and roasting. The time of year when the air turns crisp and the leaves turn beautiful colors and fall to road where they get wet and become potentially life threatening.

The days are shorter and by next weekend most of us will be biking home in the dark. For me it's also time to make sure my Nite Rider still holds a charge. As well as a pension for misspelling (something I excel at) Nite Rider also makes some pretty ding darn good lights. I bought the NR extreme helmet light as well as the fancy Digital Pro to do the first 24 Hours of Snowshoe back in 2000. It uses a non LED bulb which bathes everything I see in the soft yellow glow of waste and inefficiency.

The helmet light has been more resilient than most things I own. Every year it comes back to life to help me get home through the winter and for that I have fallen deeply in Man/Gear love with it.

Ok so maybe that's a little creepy but as long as it works I don't care who knows. The battery doesn't hold as much of a charge so I charge it every day just to be safe thanks to an Outlook reminder.

POST SCRIPT:

http://cyclejerk.blogspot.com/2009/01/battery-turgidity.html

Tim and Cindy Back In The States

For almost 2 years I have been following the adventures of Tim and Cindy Travis who 7 years ago sold everything they had to live a cycling nomadic lifestyle. They have biked through Central and South America, China, South Asia, New Zealand, Australia, and after coming down the coast from Alaska they are back in the lower 48. 

They did a very indepth interview with KGNU in Bolder Colorado on everything from healthcare to the upcoming elections.

Take a listen 

A New Waterfront Park, Tomatoes, and Sexyness

Last weekend I went to the taste of Georgetown and was pleasantly surprised to find the nearly completed Georgetown Waterfront Park. This seems like a nice way to enter the city via the Capital Crescent Trail. Instead of a crappy parking lot made famous by that movie with Cher you get this...

A great place for the GW kids to get baked!

Also a fine place to serve your master.

and this thing!

This is money well spent by the city. I am pumped to see the finished product.

Afterward I did what any red blooded American cyclist would do... I ripped up all my tomato plants and made fried green tomatoes. Since the long summer days are over my tomatoes have been lacking in the yummy department. Not one to prolong the inevitable figured I would make do with what I had.

And lastly the nice people over at The Saftey is Sexy Campaign sent me some stickers to help me with my sexyness.

Wednesday OUT!

The Brilliance Of Google Continues

This was lunch at Google NYC's cafeteria to celebrate the birthday of the head of the cafe staff...

I had one.

It was excellent.

ccaviness

Achieving The Impossible

Many have tried (probabaly not) to attach a front fender to a bike that rocks the Girvin CrossLink. So many have faltered with bloody knuckles and broken resolve to tackle the complexities brought on by a fork that puts the front tire miles away from the head tube. My friends the sun has returned and the long cold night is over. I present to you the Girvin with a newly installed front fender.

Actually it was pretty easy. I used the SpeedEZ ATB fenders from Planet Bike. It took about 20 minute to finagle the whoziewhatsis but after that is was a breeze.  It is supposed to rain tomorrow so we will see how it works.

Zeitgeist:

Philosophies of any kind need to be scrutinized and this one is no different. That said there are some interesting points mixed into the goofiness. I know it's 2 hours long, I just put it on in the background at work.

Biker Bonus In Bailout Billions

I don't pretend to know much about the complexities of our financial system. All I know is what I can piece together from headlines and sound bites. After the the first round bailout proposal was shit canned I decided to take a closer look when the second round came out. It has grown over 300 pages, most of which again I don't understand. There is one little gem that peaked my interest though, Section 211 - Transportation fringe benefit to bicycle commuters (page 205). Basically it says that if you bike commute on a "regular" basis, your employer can write off $20 a month stipend for your commuting expenses.

At first I thought that it was a silly thing to include when we are in such a dire financial crisis. What the hell are they doing trying to cram unrelated garbage into this bill that we are apparently so desperate to pass. Then again, it would give a boost to bike commuting, the local economy and help me get that down low glow I always wanted for the Girvin. So hell yeah, I'm all for it.