My Bicycle.html

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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>
  64 The 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
  67 it was worth to repair (although in reality it cost more to repair
  68 than it was worth the first time it broke, but hindsight...). I
  69 travelled by foot for the remainder of the summer.</p>
  70
  71
  72 <h2><a name="sec2" id="sec2"></a>
  73 The 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
  76 about an hour to walk to on roads which did not have a terribly good
  77 sidewalk. What was initially meant merely to get me to school in a
  78 reasonable 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>
  87 A 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
  90 and merely needed a tiny bit of tuning to get riding again. Soon after
  91 getting it I added a rear rack with panniers, a tail light, and a
  92 cheap 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
  95 month as I built strength. There are many hills in Catonsville, and so
  96 for the first few weeks lazy nerd me was defeated by the terrain. A
  97 mere two months after starting to ride, however, I achieved a level of
  98 strength I never thought I would. I could ride thirty miles in a day
  99 and <em>not feel it the next day</em>! A few months after that, even with a
 100 long interlude of no riding due to a broken bone, I found myself able
 101 ride seventy miles with a few thousand feet of elevation change.</p>
 102
 103
 104 <h2><a name="sec4" id="sec4"></a>
 105 Metamorphosis</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
 109 the bike on pavement considerably. I chose 1.75 over 1.50 tires
 110 because I tend to ride with a fairly heavy load (textbooks and other
 111 type things), and enjoy the freedom of being able to go off road and
 112 not 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
 115 handlebar so I found a trekking style handlebar on the internet that
 116 gave me additional spots to put my handle, allowed for a slightly
 117 lowered position while riding, and was the same diameter as the
 118 straight bar so I could keep the shifter/brake combo (it being a bit
 119 expensive to replace). It now has cork tape covered in cloth tape (I'm
 120 hoping the cloth tape will take the brunt of the wear and I can extend
 121 the life of the expensive cork tape). I plan to try using heat shrink
 122 tubing to cover the ends of the tape in place soon (if it works it
 123 should 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>
 132 The Night Is Friendly</h2>
 133
 134 <h3><a name="sec6" id="sec6"></a>
 135 Portable Sun</h3>
 136
 137 <p class="first">As the end of October 2006 arrived the days became shorter, but my
 138 desire to explore the world increased. This presented a bit of a
 139 problem, and so I spent time scouring the Wise Internet for
 140 information on headlights. After much futile poking around I settled
 141 on 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
 142 is as bright as a single car headlight on the top setting and the
 143 batteries do actually last as long as the website says. I've ridden
 144 with it in the rain many times, and it even survived a nasty spill
 145 that 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
 148 bright. This is with me using it at least once a week, and very often
 149 two or three times a week for extended rides (generally draining the
 150 battery entirely once a week) since late 2006 (excepting that winter
 151 because of my broken collarbone). I feared for a while that the
 152 battery strap was going to wear out and break, but it has yet to show
 153 signs of wear. All in all an <strong>excellent</strong> investment! This thing can
 154 handle 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
 162 life of about four hours on the brightest setting. I'm not sure if it
 163 really gets nine hours on the dim setting as I've never ridden at the
 164 lowest setting for an extended period of time (I use it as dusk is
 165 setting in to make myself visible, and then increase to full
 166 brightness when night falls). It is about as bright as a single car
 167 headlight; an entire standard width car lane is illuminated with the
 168 light set to hit the ground about eight feet from the bike. I find
 169 this adequate to cycle around full speed at night.</p>
 170
 171
 172
 173 <h3><a name="sec7" id="sec7"></a>
 174 I Am the Moon</h3>
 175
 176 <p class="first">One day in late April 2007 I decided to cover my bicycle in reflective
 177 tape. 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>
 195 North's Son</h4>
 196
 197 <p class="first">In Early 2008 I decided to add a few stripes of reflective fabric to
 198 the rear of my panniers. I am not very good at sewing so I used
 199 Fabritac, and they have held on reasonably well since then. I wouldn't
 200 say that the bond was <em>permanent</em> though, but so far they have only
 201 peeled a tiny but on the edges (fixable with a quick dab of the
 202 glue).</p>
 203
 204 <p>I am quite a bit more reflective in the rear now thanks to this. I
 205 also have a rear fender now (more to follow on this once I stop being
 206 lazy and install the front one too) which has a nice strip of orange
 207 reflective 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>
 222 In the Name of the Steel</h2>
 223
 224 <p class="first">I got a few patches from friends who were travelling about, and in
 225 July 2008 finally glued and sewed them to the bike. Now I am more
 226 metal, 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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 264 <p class="cke-footer">emacsen: "Like... windows are portals man...
 265 emacsen: Dude... let's yank this shit out of the kill ring"
 266 </p>
 267 <p class="cke-timestamp">Last Modified:
 268     July 22, 2008</p>
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