Archive for November, 2007

BikeCommuters profiles Bike Snob NYC

Here’s an excerpt from his commuter profile:

We’ve tried injecting some humor into various posts here on Bikecommuters.com, but it is VERY hard to do successfully. How do YOU keep it fresh and humorous 5 days a week?

Uh, you guys can offer me all the panniers, pant cuff retainers, and blinky LEDs you want–I’m not giving you my secret.

Of course, the truth is some days are less fresh and humorous than others. But I just try not to think about it. It’s like riding for me–it’s something I look forward to every day and it’s fun for me.

Read the (in)famous BSNYC’s commuter profile by clicking here!

Le Tour De Tryptophan: 24 Hours of Fullerton

Somehow, RL convinced me to join him and Lance and ride the “24 Hours of Fullerton” at the Fullerton Loop. I’ve always been intrigued by endurance races, but to do a 24 Hour ride solo, it wasn’t part of my cycling goals. The race/ride is supposed to be ‘underground’, but it has been gaining popularity. This year, the entry fee will benefit the Tara Llanes recovery fund. I’ll post an update later on my experience riding a 24 hour ride.

Ride and Donate to the Fourth Annual Tour de Tryptophan/24 Hours of
the Fullerton Loop
Spread Some Hoilday Cheer for the Tara Llanes Recovery Fund

Fullerton, CA – November 14, 2007 – - Did you hear that Tara Llanes
moved her left leg yesterday? For those who don’t know, Mountain Bike
legend and sweetheart Tara Llanes was injured in a racing accident at
the beginning of September, resulting in what is hoped to be a
temporary paralysis. A fund has been set up to help in her
rehabilitation, and this year’s Tour de Tryptophan is a benefit for
the Tara Llanes Road to Recovery Fund.

From high-noon on Friday the 23rd of November until high-noon on
Saturday, riders from far and wide will be donating to the cause and
doing fun laps on the legendary Fullerton Loop in Fullerton,
California.

Fourth Annual Tour de Tryptophan Benefit Ride The Fullerton Loop is an
11-mile network of suburban trails that pass through city parks, horse
trails, hidden pathways and creekside wilderness. Originally pieced
together by Richard Cunningham of Mantis Bikes and Mountain Bike
Action fame in 1983, hundreds of people ride and train on the famed
loop every week.

One of the people that has graced the loop is the inimatable Tara
Llanes, and many riders are getting stoked to help her cause this
Thanksgiving weekend.

T-Shirts, Silent Auction and Raffle The ride will start and end at the
Brea Dam Park, which is approximately 1 mile north of Chapman Avenue
at 1700 North Harbor Boulevard in Fullerton. You can show up at any
time to donate $40 and receive the Conmemorativo T-Shirt. When the
original order of shirts runs out, we will print more as needed.

If you cannot attend and want a shirt, send a check for $40 made out
to Tara Llanes to: Tour de Tara, 414 N. California St., Orange, CA
92866 before Thanksgiving, please state shirt size and quantity.

Donate Directly to the Tara Llanes Road to Recovery Fund If you are
NOT interested in a shirt, and just want to contribute to Tara’s
recovery fund, you can send a check to Tara Llanes – Tour de Tara;
4068 Green Avenue, Los Alamitos, CA 90720. Paypal donations can go to
tlroad2recovery@aol.com…

Product Donations Still Needed If you can send products for the silent
auction and raffle, that would be most appreciated. Send product to
arrive at Tour de Tara, 414 N. California St., Orange, CA 92866 by
Wednesday the 21st (i.e. Ship ‘em Today!)

Give it up for a friend in need… What you give will come back to you
tenfold. Peace. CFE PR+
Steve Boehmke

Disc Brake Squeal

One reason disc brakes squeal is because they are ditry. Here’s a quick tip on cleaning Disc Brake Pads.

1. Get some Brakeleen (or any Brake cleaning product) from your favorite automotive parts store
2. Take the pads out of the brake calipers
3. Spray the brake pads with Brakleen
4. Wait for the pads to dry (2-3 mintues)
5. Reassemble
6. Spray some brake cleaner on a clean rag or paper towel
7. Wipe the rotors with the rag
8. Go for a short ride and test the brakes

Do NOT use a citrus degreaser instead of brake cleaner. Brakleen is made for using on disc brake parts and air dries almost instantly and leaves no residue.

Nashbar 853 Signature Build

Inspired by Moe’s KHS Alite… Here’s my newest toy. A Nashbar Reynolds 853 Signature Frame, 90% complete. After riding a full suspension ’05 Rocky Mountain Slayer 70 for the last 2 years I felt like I needed to go “retro.” I wanted a good ole’ steel frame. After some research, I found the Nashbar Signature frame. From what I read, it’s made in the same Taiwan factory as the Rocky Mountain Blizzard and is pretty much identical. So I waited for a 20% off coupon and ordered it.

The frame is pretty darn nice for mail-order bike. I got the 15.5 inch and on my fish scale it’s 5.0 lbs. A cool feature is that the dropouts are Tom Ritchey dropouts.

Here’s the buildlist so far.

• Bike Nashbar 853 Signature Frame (15.5″)
• Nashbar Deluxe Seatpost Collar 31.8
• 2006 FOX Float 100 RL OEM Fork
• Cane Creek S-3 Headset (1 1/8″)
• Truvativ XR Mtn/Road Stem, Black, 100mm, 82/95 Deg, 11/8″
• Truvativ XC-XR 31.8 Flat Bar, Black, 5 Degree
• SRAM PC-991 9 Speed Chain
• Hope Mono Mini Disc Brake (Front 51mm mount)
• Hope Mono Mini Disc Brake (Rear 51mm mount)
• SRAM X.9 Front Shifter
• SRAM X.9 Rear Derailleur
• Truvativ Stylo Single Speed Cranks with BB 175MM
• Wheels (Mavic 717, Hope Hubs, DT Swiss Spoke, & Alloy nipple) taken from the Slayer.

So far as pictured the bike weighs in a 20.7 lbs. I’m “Hope”ing once completed it will weigh in at a hair over 24 lbs. I just have to be wait until the cranks arrive and it’s ready to hit the trails.

Awesome gift

My birthday was a couple of weeks ago, yesterday, The Policar family gave me my gift:

Yeah, it’s a photo album. What is so awesome about it? The nice leather cover? No. The nice quality pictures? No. What makes this gift so special is all the memories that are inside that album. I’ve met a lot of friends thru cycling, some still ride, some have stopped riding and some have moved to other states.

Memories like the City of Angels Ride:

Riding with my wife (first time) and my best riding buddies:

And of course, the Livestrong century that I rode in memory of Bobby Granger:

There’s plenty of other memories on that album that RL and Priscilla gave me. I’m really greatful to my family for letting me live my cycling dreams and of course, to RL and Priscilla for their friendship.