National Bike Month

Yes folks, May is Bike Month , time to get on your bike and ride! The weather here in Phoenix has been fantastic for bike riding. Go ahead you can do it - pick a day and try it out. Hey if I can do it anyone can!


BTW lots of changes since the last post - here's the super-condensed summary, I'll make more detailed reports when I get a chance.

1) Ragnar was really great!
2) Did a mini Triathlon in Pima Arizona
3) Now working in Chandler, 38 mile bike ride is challenging and fun!
4) The fat I lost found me again

Let me know what you want to hear about and I'll write about it first.

Ready for Ragnar?

I'm feeling pretty good about my preparation for the 203 mile Ragar Relay Race this weekend. I have run a few hills and done a few miles - so far everything still works and doesn't ache, throb or cramp. I had a great run with my brother Scott last Saturday in Fountain Hills - we practiced his final leg of the race. Whew! some of those hills were pretty steep. He finished in good form and posted a respectable time. He only started running a few months ago and has been very persistent with his training - I'm proud of you Scott!

Our team is called "Can somebody please...CALL ME A CAB!"I have been staying up way to late and obsessing over the decorations for our vans - but they will look awesome! (don't get me started on my costume) I made some flashing lights and speaker mounts. One of the other team members came up with the logo and lettering - we will have a cape for the van too. Here's an artists conception of what it might look like...



I appreciate my family supporting me in this, especially my fabulous wife. I know I keep my insanity under control most of the time, but every once in a while I get carried away, this is definitely one of those times. She is a really good sport and will be volunteering at exchange 23 as one of the race officials. Come out and cheer us on!

Go run a hill

Holy cow! It's been over a month since the last post, lots to report - here goes...

Bike - I was just 70 miles short of my goal of 5000 miles last year, but I feel pretty good about it. I know it helped me get in shape and feel better - the saving on gas and vehicle costs was a bonus.

Running - Since the start of the year, I've gotten more serious about running and gotten off the bike more or less. I'm in training for the Ragnar relay at the end of February. Our team has gotten together a couple of times to plan and run - we have a great group of 12 (6 men, 6 women) Our team name is "Can someone please...CALL ME A CAB!" Watch for us, our costumes and vans will be sporting a taxi cab motif. Pam has also signed up as a volunteer race official. She will be working one of the exchange points early Saturday morning.

I have been running some hills to make me speedier. My new favorite is North Mountain - it is steep! I have been working on it a while and can report that I was able to jog all the way to the top today for the first time. I have noticed that running on flat ground is much easier since starting the hill training. Give it a try!

Bike Service Project - Part Deux

Here's the belated report on the fun bike service project we helped with a couple of weeks ago.

By the time we got there Saturday at 8:30 AM, most of the first 1500 bikes were already put together! I had never seen so many bikes at one time, it was like a sea of boys and girls bikes. We were able to help do a final check on the assembled bikes and tightened the seats and handlebars as well as checking the tires to make sure they had enough air. Ryan was a test driver and rode the bikes down the hill to where they were set up for the give-away. I was impressed at the hundreds of volunteers who showed up early to make this happen. We made some new friends including Roger and Sandy who were fun to work with.

There were another 35oo bikes that would be delivered later that day, but we couldn't stay and wait. The sight of that many bikes would have been awesome. Almost as awesome as seeing the thousands of happy kids riding them away.

Bikes + Service + Christmas = Happy Kids

Here is a great opportunity to put together some bikes for some needy kids in the Phoenix area this Saturday, December 19 at The First Assembly of God in Phoenix. An anonymous donor bought 5000 new bicycles from the manufacturer, but they all need to be assembled. The Wipalawiki Scout lodge and the Phoenix Dream Center are working together to get this project done, but they need lots of volunteers. If you can come for the whole day or just a couple of hours, we need you! Click here for more details. Our family decided that it would be a fun way to work together in the Christmas spirit - we hope to see you there!

Planet Bike Blaze 1W (10 Month Review)

When I first started commuting via bike earlier this year, I knew I would want a good headlight (and tail light) so that I could be seen by traffic. I didn't want to spend a fortune on a HID or Halogen light or one with a proprietary battery, but I did want something that would work well and be durable. I also wanted to find a set of lights that used good old-fashioned AA (or AAA) cells, there are lots of options out there including Alkaline, re-chargable Nickle-Metal Hydride (NiMH) and a new re-chargable one based on Nickle Zinc chemistry. I did some research, read some reviews and selected Planet Bike Blaze 1W headlight paired with the Super Blinky tail light.

So after 10 months of nearly daily use, what do I think of the lights now?

First the good -
1) These lights are bright! - be careful not to point the headlight directly at on-coming traffic, you might freak some drivers out - but they will see you! The battery life is great, especially on the rear-blinky light. I use re-chargable NiMH batteries and they work OK. I am considering switching to Nickle Zinc batteries because they have a higher voltage that might work better.
2) I liked the look and operation of the lights so much I bought a second set for my son's bike.
3) Mounting the lights was very easy. The Quick Cam for the front light is pretty nifty, it adjusts to a variety of handle bar diameters and holds the light steady most of the time, but...

Now the not-so good.
1) The Quick Cam is designed to stay on your bike while the light unit can be easily unlatched so it doesn't get stolen when you lock your bike up outside. Unfortunately, the plastic on the light housing on both my son's bike and mine cracked and the light would not stay secured to the quick cam. The plastic latch for the light on the Quick-Cam is a bit flimsy and wears out over time. Once in a while when I'd hit a bump the light would fall off and smack the road pretty hard. I had to pick up the pieces on several occasions but was able to get it working again holding it together with some duct tape. A few more hits and the lights would be permanently ruined.

I sent an e-mail to Planet Bike's customer support, Mark LaLonde responded in a matter of minutes and said he would send me 2 new housings for free! Now that's speedy customer service. They came in a couple of days ago, along with 2 replacement Quick Cam mounting brackets that I ordered for $5.00 each. It was like an early Christmas (for me anyway:) Thank you Mark and Planet Bike!

Bottom line: Nothing lasts forever, but Planet Bike would rather help you get your equipment repaired, rather than chucking it into the land-fill. I think that's pretty cool.

Drop and give me 20!

Or just drop 20 - woohoo! This has taken me all year to get to this point, lots of riding, less eating. This will make Ragnar easier because I won't have to drag that extra 20 along for the run.