Decal Decision, Night Herons, And A Hopping IPA

Thanks to everyone who added their two cents to my last post and to those who posted to the Google Group. There were a ton of great comments and viewpoints. Some of which were for decals but most were against. As for my decision I had to go with the majority. I set to work on removal which started with my fingernail at a stop light on the way home on Friday. These stickers come off with remarkable ease. When I got home I used a credit card to finish the job in about ten minutes. My only suggestion is to put paper towels down before you start. The decals come off in flakes and end up sticking to the floor and everything else the touch. I haven't taken the head badge off yet but I will. Maybe down the road I will get a cool custom piece for the head tube.

Nekid or Naked?

Next up are the Yellow Crowned Night Herons of Sligo Creek. If any of you have been around the creek this season you may have noticed scenes like this...

or maybe this...
You have this fine feathered specimen to thank. The yellow Crowned Night Heron has taken up residence in the park in abundance. Last season I would see one every once and a while but now a days I see them every morning. Mostly in their nests with 4 to 5 you ones pooping up all day long. I can't complain too much as they are a beautiful and I get to see them hunting in the morning which is pretty cool.

Photo: Don Olsen

I took a few shots of the young ones in their nests this morning. Click on the image to see a larger grainy version. I need a better camera for this sort of thing.

Lastly, I tried a delicious IPA from Dog Fish Head yesterday and I thought I would pass it along. It's continually hopping after all.

LHT: Decal Or Not Decal?

So I have been wrestling with this since I go the new LHT. Do I remove the decals for the classic look or do I rock out with the brand recognition? I have nothing against the Surly decals but with this frame and the Brooks B-17 special it might look super classy without them. I need your help. Please comment with your, well, comments.

Here is the LHT with decals in all it's Surly glory.

With some quick photoshopery, here it is sans decals.

What say you dear sweet reader?

PS: Thanks to BikeBlogs.com for the props

Richard Pryor Wednesday

Today is Richard Pryor day for no particular reason.

Is it irony that John Belushi is playing the sober one?

A roast retort in two parts.

Best Father's Day Ever

A great breakfast,

a bike ride to the Takoma Park farmer's market,

a bike ride to the park for a picnic,

a bike ride to a good friend's house,

and a bike ride home,

all without a drop of rain.

My first father's day was amazing thanks to my girls
and my trucker.

Product Review: SKS Fenders

I picked up some SKS P45 fenders from Silver Cycles (LBS) for the LHT yesterday and I must say they are a pretty good solution. I researched several of the higher end, fancy pants fenders and figured I would try these first. They are cheap enough that I can always upgrade if I didn't like them. I also didn't want to mess around with drilling, measuring, and getting leather washers and the whole thing.

The biggest competition for the SKS are the Planet Bike fenders. I had these on the Cross Check and I liked them too. They are durable and the price is right but overall I am liking the SKS a lot more. The installation was easier than the Planet Bike fenders and took a lot less time.

I like the multi layer chromo plastic. The stripes gives some depth to the LHT. Time will tell if it can hold up to a beating.

I really like the Secu-Clips. The idea is that when a stick gets caught up in the fender the fender arms will pull out of the clip rather than the fender shattering or causing a wreck. Another use I found last night was that you can simply pull them out to put the bike on a fork mounted roof rack. When I put the LHT up on the rack the fender was hitting the tray blocking the fork frown lowering down to the fork mount. After popping out the arms from the clips there was no problem. Afterward I just popped them back into place and was ready to go.

During the installation of the front fender I realized that the black plastic tabs (guides) that hold the arm in place didn't allow for adjustment I took a knife and cut the plastic halfway up the arm. This kept the plastic on the ends of the arms keeping them safe from poking or snagging (and they look good). I know I could have just removed them but I'm lazy. I had no problem with the rear tabs, the fit was perfect.

The only other issue I had was that the directions provided were pretty vague and didn't specify which bolts went where. It's not rocket science though, I got through it.

Other than that that installation was very smooth. Over all the Planet Bike and the SKS fenders offer a great solution for an inexpensive easy to use fender. That said, having worked with both recently I would recommend the SKS.

This photo makes me very happy. An LHT in every kitchen!

Have a kick ass weekend.

UPDATE:
Adding a mudflap DIY

Missy Giove - Watcha Gonna Do?

It's not the fact that Missy Giove (object of everyone's early 90's obsession) was caught with marijuana. Don't all extreme sports super stars compete with a little weed on them for good luck? No, it's that she was caught with 400 pounds of it that boggles the mind. (Via VeloNews) "Former world downhill champion Melissa “Missy” Giove and two alleged co-conspirators were arrested in New York Tuesday, charged with plans to distribute some 400 pounds of marijuana."

"Giove, also known as "The Missile," earned a total of 14 NORBA national downhill titles, 11 UCI World Cup victories, two overall World Cup titles and the world championship in 1994."

Never missing an opportunity for laughs, DEA agent John Gilbride dropped this little zinger, “drug trafficking can lead you downhill fast." Rimshot!

It's unfortunate that Missy may be spending the foreseeable future behind bars because she kicks so much ass.



I'll choose to think of her thusly, or like this, or this, or any of these, ok and sometimes like this.

Affluent White Boy Street Gangs and Traffic Monsters

There is a video out there that is tearing around the internet like a pack of mud covered raccoons in an Apple store . I think this video has exposed the true ugliness of white boy gangsta douche bags everywhere.

At first I thought it was satirical, then I saw this on a soon to be demolished McDonalds in the ever so rich heart of Bethesda MD.

Kinda makes you Wunda, doesn't it?

This comes from the dudes over at DudeCraft. Some kid was kick ass enough to make a monster out of traffic barrels and when anything this kick ass happens the police just have to get involved. Read the full story here.

I want one of these for the random use on the Capital Crescent Trail