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16 <h1>Clinton's Bicycle</h1>
17 <div class="contents">
18<dl>
19<dt>
20<a href="#sec1">The Death of the Internal Combustion Engine</a>
21</dt>
22<dt>
23<a href="#sec2">The Birth of the Organic Oxidization Engine</a>
24</dt>
25<dt>
26<a href="#sec3">A Kind Emacsing Friend</a>
27</dt>
28<dt>
29<a href="#sec4">Metamorphosis</a>
30</dt>
31<dt>
32<a href="#sec5">The Night Is Friendly</a>
33</dt>
34<dd>
35<dl>
36<dt>
37<a href="#sec6">Portable Sun</a>
38</dt>
39<dt>
40<a href="#sec7">I Am the Moon</a>
41</dt>
42<dd>
43<dl>
44<dt>
45<a href="#sec8">North's Son</a>
46</dt>
47</dl>
48</dd>
49</dl>
50</dd>
51<dt>
52<a href="#sec9">In the Name of the Steel</a>
53</dt>
54</dl>
55</div>
56
57
58<!-- Page published by Emacs Muse begins here --><table class="image" width="100%">
59 <tr><td align="center"><img src="img/photos/bicycle/2006-10-25/front.jpg" alt="Greetings Friend" /></td></tr>
60 <tr><td align="center" class="image-caption">Greetings Friend</td></tr>
61</table>
62
63<h2><a name="sec1" id="sec1"></a>
64The Death of the Internal Combustion Engine</h2>
65
66<p class="first">In May 2006 and Camaro decided it was time to die and cost more than
67it was worth to repair (although in reality it cost more to repair
68than it was worth the first time it broke, but hindsight...). I
69travelled by foot for the remainder of the summer.</p>
70
71
72<h2><a name="sec2" id="sec2"></a>
73The Birth of the Organic Oxidization Engine</h2>
74
75<p class="first">In August I decided that I should get a bicycle as my <a href="http://umbc.edu">university</a> took
76about an hour to walk to on roads which did not have a terribly good
77sidewalk. What was initially meant merely to get me to school in a
78reasonable amount of time has now become a new love.</p>
79
80<table class="image" width="100%">
81 <tr><td align="center"><img src="img/photos/bicycle/2006-10-25/left.jpg" alt="It is good to be a bicycle" /></td></tr>
82 <tr><td align="center" class="image-caption">It is good to be a bicycle</td></tr>
83</table>
84
85
86<h2><a name="sec3" id="sec3"></a>
87A Kind Emacsing Friend</h2>
88
89<p><a href="http://emacsen.net">Emacsen</a> gave me his Spring 2003 Giant Iguana which was hardly ridden
90and merely needed a tiny bit of tuning to get riding again. Soon after
91getting it I added a rear rack with panniers, a tail light, and a
92cheap headlight (which, alas, was smashed to bits in a small crash).</p>
93
94<p>I rode the bike with its knobby and wide mountain bike tires for a
95month as I built strength. There are many hills in Catonsville, and so
96for the first few weeks lazy nerd me was defeated by the terrain. A
97mere two months after starting to ride, however, I achieved a level of
98strength I never thought I would. I could ride thirty miles in a day
99and <em>not feel it the next day</em>! A few months after that, even with a
100long interlude of no riding due to a broken bone, I found myself able
101ride seventy miles with a few thousand feet of elevation change.</p>
102
103
104<h2><a name="sec4" id="sec4"></a>
105Metamorphosis</h2>
106
107<p class="first">In late September I replaced the mountain bike tires with 26x1.75
108<a href="http://www.conti-online.com/generator/www/de/en/continental/bicycle/themes/tires/city/travelcontact/travelcontact_en.html">road tires</a> which nearly doubled my range, and improved the handling of
109the bike on pavement considerably. I chose 1.75 over 1.50 tires
110because I tend to ride with a fairly heavy load (textbooks and other
111type things), and enjoy the freedom of being able to go off road and
112not sink into the ground or get trapped in the grass.</p>
113
114<p>I <a href="http://unknown-lamer.livejournal.com/160217.html">fell</a> in October and bent my straight handlebar. I needed a new
115handlebar so I found a trekking style handlebar on the internet that
116gave me additional spots to put my handle, allowed for a slightly
117lowered position while riding, and was the same diameter as the
118straight bar so I could keep the shifter/brake combo (it being a bit
119expensive to replace). It now has cork tape covered in cloth tape (I'm
120hoping the cloth tape will take the brunt of the wear and I can extend
121the life of the expensive cork tape). I plan to try using heat shrink
122tubing to cover the ends of the tape in place soon (if it works it
123should look neater than duct tape).</p>
124
125<table class="image" width="100%">
126 <tr><td align="center"><img src="img/photos/bicycle/2006-10-25/handlebar.jpg" alt="It would seem that the amount of destructiveness to be found in individuals is proportionate to the amount to which expansiveness of life is curtailed. By this we do not refer to individual frustrations of this or that instinctive desire but to the thwarting of the whole of life, the blockage of spontaneity of the growth and expression of man's sensuous, emotional, and intellectual capacities" /></td></tr>
127 <tr><td align="center" class="image-caption">It would seem that the amount of destructiveness to be found in individuals is proportionate to the amount to which expansiveness of life is curtailed. By this we do not refer to individual frustrations of this or that instinctive desire but to the thwarting of the whole of life, the blockage of spontaneity of the growth and expression of man's sensuous, emotional, and intellectual capacities</td></tr>
128</table>
129
130
131<h2><a name="sec5" id="sec5"></a>
132The Night Is Friendly</h2>
133
134<h3><a name="sec6" id="sec6"></a>
135Portable Sun</h3>
136
137<p class="first">As the end of October 2006 arrived the days became shorter, but my
138desire to explore the world increased. This presented a bit of a
139problem, and so I spent time scouring the Wise Internet for
140information on headlights. After much futile poking around I settled
141on a <a href="http://www.cygolite.com/2-Products/1-DualCross300.htm">Cygolite DualCross 300</a> and was given one as a birthday gift. It
142is as bright as a single car headlight on the top setting and the
143batteries do actually last as long as the website says. I've ridden
144with it in the rain many times, and it even survived a nasty spill
145that broke my collarbone and bent my front rim.</p>
146
147<p>As of March 2008 the light still lasts a good three hours on full
148bright. This is with me using it at least once a week, and very often
149two or three times a week for extended rides (generally draining the
150battery entirely once a week) since late 2006 (excepting that winter
151because of my broken collarbone). I feared for a while that the
152battery strap was going to wear out and break, but it has yet to show
153signs of wear. All in all an <strong>excellent</strong> investment! This thing can
154handle heavy use and rain and all sorts of nasty stuff.</p>
155
156<table class="image" width="100%">
157 <tr><td align="center"><img src="img/photos/bicycle/headlight.jpg" alt="A beacon in the night" /></td></tr>
158 <tr><td align="center" class="image-caption">A beacon in the night</td></tr>
159</table>
160
161<p>The nicest part of the light is that it does seem to get its rated
162life of about four hours on the brightest setting. I'm not sure if it
163really gets nine hours on the dim setting as I've never ridden at the
164lowest setting for an extended period of time (I use it as dusk is
165setting in to make myself visible, and then increase to full
166brightness when night falls). It is about as bright as a single car
167headlight; an entire standard width car lane is illuminated with the
168light set to hit the ground about eight feet from the bike. I find
169this adequate to cycle around full speed at night.</p>
170
171
172
173<h3><a name="sec7" id="sec7"></a>
174I Am the Moon</h3>
175
176<p class="first">One day in late April 2007 I decided to cover my bicycle in reflective
177tape. It is very bright now.</p>
178
179<table class="image" width="100%">
180 <tr><td align="center"><img src="img/photos/bicycle/before_tape_upside_down.jpg" alt="The last time the bike will be naked" /></td></tr>
181 <tr><td align="center" class="image-caption">The last time the bike will be naked</td></tr>
182</table>
183
184<table class="image" width="100%">
185 <tr><td align="center"><img src="img/photos/bicycle/bicycle_post_tape.jpg" alt="Not quite strong enough to cause tides" /></td></tr>
186 <tr><td align="center" class="image-caption">Not quite strong enough to cause tides</td></tr>
187</table>
188
189<table class="image" width="100%">
190 <tr><td align="center"><img src="img/photos/bicycle/post_tape_nighttime_1.jpg" alt="Or perhaps it is a shining star" /></td></tr>
191 <tr><td align="center" class="image-caption">Or perhaps it is a shining star</td></tr>
192</table>
193
194<h4><a name="sec8" id="sec8"></a>
195North's Son</h4>
196
197<p class="first">In Early 2008 I decided to add a few stripes of reflective fabric to
198the rear of my panniers. I am not very good at sewing so I used
199Fabritac, and they have held on reasonably well since then. I wouldn't
200say that the bond was <em>permanent</em> though, but so far they have only
201peeled a tiny but on the edges (fixable with a quick dab of the
202glue).</p>
203
204<p>I am quite a bit more reflective in the rear now thanks to this. I
205also have a rear fender now (more to follow on this once I stop being
206lazy and install the front one too) which has a nice strip of orange
207reflective tape.</p>
208
209<table class="image" width="100%">
210 <tr><td align="center"><img src="img/photos/bicycle/rear-tape-white.jpg" alt="~200ft with my DualCross" /></td></tr>
211 <tr><td align="center" class="image-caption">~200ft with my DualCross</td></tr>
212</table>
213<table class="image" width="100%">
214 <tr><td align="center"><img src="img/photos/bicycle/rear-tape-red.jpg" alt="~200ft with one of my tail lights" /></td></tr>
215 <tr><td align="center" class="image-caption">~200ft with one of my tail lights</td></tr>
216</table>
217
218
219
220
221<h2><a name="sec9" id="sec9"></a>
222In the Name of the Steel</h2>
223
224<p class="first">I got a few patches from friends who were travelling about, and in
225July 2008 finally glued and sewed them to the bike. Now I am more
226metal, clearly.</p>
227
228<table class="image" width="100%">
229 <tr><td align="center"><img src="img/photos/bicycle/2008/bayern-patch.jpg" alt="Freistaadt aus Bäyern" /></td></tr>
230 <tr><td align="center" class="image-caption">Freistaadt aus Bäyern</td></tr>
231</table>
232<table class="image" width="100%">
233 <tr><td align="center"><img src="img/photos/bicycle/2008/blind-guardian-patch.jpg" alt="Blind Guardian is cool" /></td></tr>
234 <tr><td align="center" class="image-caption">Blind Guardian is cool</td></tr>
235</table>
236
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263
7404d4e1 264<p class="cke-footer">emacsen: "Like... windows are portals man...
265emacsen: Dude... let's yank this shit out of the kill ring"
2aff8b5c 266</p>
267<p class="cke-timestamp">Last Modified:
268 July 22, 2008</p>
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