Sam's First Bike Ride

We all have had a first bicycle ride. Most of us likely don't remember our own, save those few for whom it was a trauma. Fortunately for Sam, his first two-wheeled adventure was nothing of the kind. However, being dutiful parents, we recorded the occasion for posterity- and for the amusement of friends and family.

I got Sam a rear-mounted bicycle seat for his first birthday two weeks ago and this morning it- and he- had their maiden voyage. The seat is a Topeak brand and is very nicely made. It only fits onto one bicycle in our familial quiver- Kim's- so that's where it goes. My "grocery" bike- on which I had planned to mount the seat- does not have brazed on rack mounts. I pedaled Kim's bike (saddle adjusted) and she pedaled Anna's town bike.

First to get strapped in the seat. In you go, while Dad adjusts the straps.

Next, and decidedly unpopular, on goes the helmet. I'd rather not wear one either, but if you get on the bicycle, the helmet goes on your head. He got used to it pretty quickly. (It's a Giro model, and has built in visor and reflectors. And an amusing cops-n-robbers theme.)

Destination? On the Rise Artisan Breads! It's an easy 4.5 mile or so loop from home, and as we were dangerously broaching morning nap time (and the lad a bit fussy from teething or allergies or weaning or a combination of all three), it made for the perfect initial trip. He enjoyed it thoroughly, smiling most of the time while holding on tightly to the grab bar.

What could be better than a lad on the back of one parent's bicycle and a whole mess of fresh bread on the back of the other?

Next stop for Sam, Paris-Roubaix!

Bicycling geekery

This post is for those interested in bicycle geekery and data tracking. Although I'll see if I can sneak in a picture of a cute baby as well. What would a blog post be without one.

It's also for Grandpa Doug, who very kindly gifted me with an awesome new bicycle computer at Christmas time. This thing does it all but turn the pedals for you. Simple things like speed, time, elapsed time. Cycling specific stuff like cadence. Heart rate monitor. With the addition of GPS, it handles routing as well as display grade.

I've been playing with it while pedaling on the trainer inside. This morning was sunny, gorgeous... and 20 degrees F. Inside again.

Fortunately, I have some video distractions. I've been watching the recon video of the 2009 L'Etape du Tour, an organized ride that lets you try out one of the stages of the Tour de France. In 2009 the route included the Giant of Provence, Mount Ventoux. The recon video produced by Cyclefilm was filmed in the autumn of 2008 and the scenery is just gorgeous. Makes it a little easier to bear pedaling in place, inside.

I've got a half-dozen or so rides on the computer, here is just a small bit of the data from the computer:

As you can see, I need to tweak the cadence sensor. I was actually pedaling the whole time but it seems to drop out as I go along. The display would also show a map of my route, but since I wasn't actually moving (save for through the hills of Provence in my mind's eye) I took that bit out. I'm looking forward to using the computer once I actually hit the roads this spring.

And here's an outtake from the recon video:

And a gratuitous tip o' the hat to the small lad.

Sufferfest

For some reason, the word suffering is one often used in discussions of road cycling. You'll hear the talent using the term when doing voice-over on tele-broadcasts of professional cycling races. "Look at the face of Hushovd and you'll see he's really suffering up this climb!" You'll hear it from ardent roadies as they get passed by pros. And you'll hear it from shlubs like me after a long weekend ride: "oh, man I was really suffering on that climb up Old Mill Road."

Just last evening I was driving Middle Child home from her violin lesson, which is held right along one of my standard cycling routes. Of course this time of year our fair city is blanketed in darkness for most of the hours of the day, and there is a foot-deep coating of various consistencies of water- snow, ice, slush. Which means that cycling is but a memory in January. But it's a memory that prods, right into my softening midsection.

And it's usually about now that I cave in and pull out the trainer. It's an odious thing for me- what could be worse than cycling in place, indoors? Perfect waste of an hour if you ask me, but my legs, waistline and lungs disagree, so now it's time. And thanks to one of the blogs I follow, I've found a televisual stimulant to help me stay motivated: Sufferfest. For ten bucks, I get a paced workout nearly guaranteed to induce quivering legs and tossed cookies. I can hardly wait.

Bike as transportation

Yesterday Anna and I made our way on our bicycles from our home near the intersection of Cedar and Lee to her mother's home in the northern reaches of Cleveland Heights, by way of the Heights main library. Anna has a part time job at the library shelving books and being generally helpful (hey, it runs in the family!) and will be doing some commuting by bicycle in the next few weeks, so we thought we'd get the route planned out on a quiet Sunday morning. From our house, it's an easy walk or ride, but it's a bit longer and not nearly as easy from her mother's house.

Sadly, bicycling from south to north in our fair city is not the easiest thing to do. The main routes (Coventry, Lee, Taylor) do not lend themselves to bicycling, and there are few side-street alternatives. So we chose Taylor, which makes for fewer miles riding west-east on other bicycle-unfriendly roads. It was not pleasant, even on a Sunday morning. It's not a long ride for Anna, perhaps 15 minutes, but that stretch of Taylor, particularly from Severance shopping center to Cedar Road, is particularly unpleasant and full of perils for a cyclist.

I suggested to Anna that she make use of the sidewalk on her ride if need be. Normally, I bristle when I see cyclists on the sidewalk. Riding a bicycle on the sidewalk is only appropriate if you are under the age of 10. But in this case, it might be the choice between that or being taken out by a pothole or a parked car suddenly opening its door.

On my solo ride back home, along this very stretch of road, I mused on how different this location is from where I'd last been riding- along a stretch of sand on Hilton Head island, straddling a beach cruiser. Still, my mid-route destination here at home was On the Rise bakery, which was bustling with customers on a Sunday morning. Felt great to say hello to the kind faces there, and to fill my pannier with carbohydrate goodness. It also felt great to ride home with my haul of fresh bread in the cool, dry, 72 degree air, another difference from coastal South Carolina.

And now, a gratuitous picture of a baby.

Bicycling Caps

I'm a big fan of bicycling caps, the simple cotton head wear cyclists have been wearing for decades. I wear one under my helmet on all but the hottest of days.

On a bright day, the short brim is just enough to shade my eyes from the sun. On a rainy day, the brim is equally useful for keeping the worst of the rain from my eyes and face. On the all-too-common cool days, the cap provides a simple, thin layer of insulation on the noggin.

When I'm not cycling, I frequently wear them while doing chores around the house. Part of the reason for this is so my kids will think I'm impossibly dorky- something I don't have to work too hard to do. Mostly though, I'm just keeping myself a little warm or hiding the inevitable weekend bed-head look. And the cap serves as a bicycling reminder, even when I'm not clipped into the pedals.

I don't have a lot of caps, just a few favorites: one with the Castelli logo, one from Cervelo Test Team, and one that I've had for many years from the French racing team Brioches La Boulangère (now Bbox Bouygues Telecom). That one has a cool red poppy right on the forehead. I like to wear it when I go to the bakery, for some reason.

The one in the picture above arrived in the mail today from the folks who create the interesting and wonderfully produced Embrocation Cycling Journal. I really like this publication, but I really like their logo even more- a Bialetti Moka coffee pot right on the front.

Maillot Blanc

Just like Andy Schleck this summer at the Tour de France, Anna now wears the maillot blanc (awarded at the Tour for the best young rider), at least in our family.

In the last few months, she has asked for a road bike so she could ride with me. Who am I to discourage such a request? So I found an inexpensive, small frame bike for her to start out on, a Dawes Sheila. The only thing Canadian about it, I think, is the shape of the leaf on the sticker. But it seems to be a sturdy and reasonably lightweight ride for her to start out on.

We've taken two spins so far, one down to the lake and back through University Circle, which wasn't as pleasant as it sounds due to rough roads and a lot of traffic. Today's was a much more pleasant 12 mile loop to the east of home and back again.

We're both looking forward to many more rides together!