Rescuing an old bike

circa 1978 ish

(not sure)

It is not easy finding a good used bike for a fellow 7' tall. My son lives in NYC and wanted a bike. My other son got on the Net and looked and looked and looked. Finally an old Miyata steel frame 69 cm was found. Above and below are before and after pictures of a phenomenal restoration done by a local bike enthusiast. Parts were found after scouring ebay and the Net and finally it all came together.

restored to its original glory with updated parts

new derailleur, new handlebars, seatpost, cables, tubing, tires, tubes, brake pads

headset, stem, shifters and a good clean job, hubs repacked

and the list goes on and on

REPEAT BLOG POST BUT TIMELY

just the other day I saw a dad with this kind of trailer and his daughter in the back as he made his way down a very busy narrow road, the dad is an idiot in my opinion!! read on for my repeat post

this style is just plain dangerous

this is better

I saw a post on Streetsblog.net talking about a problem a cyclist had with a motorist and his bike and child trailer. He has his daughter in the trailer and got buzzed closely at an intersection. The cyclist blamed the motorist.

I am taking the reverse position in this regards. I do not like to see bike trailers on roads. To me this is just too dangerous and not worth the risks to the child. There are other options, bike trails or roads in housing developments.

A better alternative is to get a good tricycle or small bike for the child. Walk with the child while she rides, more exercise and a better all around activity. I used to jog and my youngest rode his bike next to me. He loved it and we both got exercise.

Or if lucky like me, we had a large hospital parking lot near by, which was most times half empty and especially on weekends. We would bike together to the lot and then play bike games at the lot.

In the Philadelphia area we have many trails for parents to use with children and trailers. I do plead with those parents who think dragging a child in a trailer is safe to find something else to do with the child.

A trip to a park comes to mind. Swings, slides and climbers, way more fun for the child. But get rid of the trailes, just tooooooo dangerous.

Biking in Chester County in Pennsylvania

I live in Chester County, about 30 miles west of Philadelphia. My county is particularly suited for biking. What makes this county so unique is the amount of tertiary roads. This is not found in many areas. Most areas have roads and few secondary roads but not the spider web of little tiny side roads winding down along creeks and past farms and cows and horses and sheep and goats and herons and swans and foals. This is unparalleled in my opinion. I have biked in Santa Barbara, CA, Delray Beach, FL and Ann Arbor and I have yet to see an area that can duplicate the intricate maze of back roads.

The routes are endless that you can ride and not once repeat yourself. The wildlife and birds along the rides include foxes, deer, herons, eagles, bluebirds, red tail hawks and Baltimore orioles to name a few. The horse farms are almost uncountable. Mares and foals and riders on horseback dot the countryside. Creeks meander almost down each and every turn. Some back roads are so back, that nary a car passes.

If you live near or in Chester County and you are not biking, you are missing one fine pasttime. You can bike whether young or old, all you need is a good bike preferably a road bike. With the right equipment you have a life long sport to keep in you in shape as you age.

So what are you waiting for????

clean your bike you moron

Dirty Bike

Sorry about that, but if you do not bother to keep your bike chain and drive train clean, you are begging for trouble. If you spend some serious cash for your bike, then why would you not take the time to learn how to care for it?

Depending on the once a year modified cleaning your bike store will do for your $25 checkup is foolish. First of all, the bike store is not going to do much for $25. If you never clean your bike, ya'd better fork over some dough and get a full drive train cleaning where the bike parts are removed and cleaned in a solution. But even this is NOT enough.

It only takes a few rides for gunk to build up on your chain and in and out of your derailleurs. Your chain has to be cleaned and lubed frequently if you are riding once or twice a week. Some folks clean and lube chain after each ride.

Go out right now and look at your bike. Is the chain all black and covered with what looks like black dirt? Are your back small wheels that wrap your chain covered in grim? Are your brake pads clean? And the list goes on and on.

I ran a bike clinic yesterday and one fellow showed up with a bike covered in black grim. Plus he was also using his bike pump incorrectly therefore he had not put air in his tires since last October. The pressure in his tires was round 50 PSI and he did not even know it.

Why spend gobs of money on a bike and then ignore it??

It is not like I am some mechanical genius but I have taken the time to learn how to maintain my bike. I can change a tire, I can clean my bike and I can lube my bike. If I do not know something I ask someone who knows bikes to help me. How hard is that!

Take care of your bike!

the joy of the bike ride

Lots is written today on making our communities green, providing bike lanes and what not. But while many sit around and wait for ideal biking conditions, time is passing when you could be biking. Conditions are never going to be perfect unless on a bike trail. But bike trails are far and few between and are often crowded with families and children and dog walkers.

The best place to ride is ultimately the roads. Now many of you may not live in places that are conveniently located to great road biking. Nothing is preventing you from throwing your bike into the back of your car and driving a few miles to an ideal locale.

If you live on a busy highway or on top of a big hill, find a spot near by where you can park your car and hop on your bike.

Get a map or study Google Maps and plot out a nice ride. There are many sites online that allow you to make a map and print a cue sheet. But good old-fashioned map reading seems to be a dying skill. Try resurrecting it and you will be surprised what horizons open up for you.

Many of you are busy, busy and more busy. Still there is nothing stopping you from taking a few hours once a week and doing a short bike ride. When my children were young, I would get up on Sunday morning at 5 am and go out and do a 2 hour ride. I was home before they woke up. Once my kids were older, I took them on bike rides.

Find a way in your busy schedule to squeeze in one bike ride each week. Trust me, over time you will want to ride more and will start to plan more time for your rides.

A habit starts slowly, one ride at a time and over time more rides. There is nothing comparable to a solo ride to help you unwind or enjoy your own private thoughts whilst you meander along on a country road.

Google Maps Link to Meet ups for Biker Chicks

Follow link below to find directions to the start point for ALL CUES listed on the West Chester Cycling ride page. Maps below also include starting points for the Chester Valley Trail and the Schuylkill River Trail and Shaws Bridge Park. Now get out and bike!!

Google Maps

click link above

to hybrid or not

I just got another email from an excited lady who bought her first bike - a hybrid. Oh joy. Why has this become the bike of choice for ladies just getting into cycling? Why does this heavy bike become the bike of choice for women especially those over the age of 50?? I guess if you are biking in a city or on bike trails, this bike might make sense. For biking at the beach along the shoreline, a hybrid would work fine.

I rode a hybrid for years. Did not do much biking but I did bike and managed to bike hills and whatnot. But when I got a road bike, holy cow, what a difference. Lucky for me, I was given a road bike and once on one, I knew I would never go back to a hybrid.

I recently treated myself to a custom bike for my 60th birthday. To me, a worthwhile investment in my future health and well being. Now I bike often and biked 4500 miles last year. I also made a change in my gears and opted to get a triple crank. Again, the best decision for me. Since I cannot avoid hills when biking in Chester County, the triple has enabled me to tackle any hill. I drop down to my easy gear and spin my way up most hills. I now tend to tackle new roads more often and do not panic at the sight of a hill.

So old ladies - consider yourself a fit athlete and get yourself a great road bike.

now that's how you take up the sport of biking

I have been trying desperately for the last 5 yrs to get women past the age of 40 to take up biking. If, like me, you are past age 60, sports for girls in high school were nonexistent.

In my day, the only sport available was cheerleading. We had basketball but it was intramural and only one player per team could run past the center line. She was known as the rover. The rest of us stood behind the center line and hoped she made a basket.

I did participate in competitive swimming but that was at my local YMCA. Our team had a total of 10 girls on it. We swam in pools that would be deemed unhealthy today.

So for my generation, climbing onto a bike and touring around on roads is not that easy to do. I have had women come to one ride never to be seen again. When I tell other ladies that I bike on the roads, they all say, "oh I could never do it."

But this year I am hopeful. I had a new woman show up on a hybrid bike. Her first ride with our club was 33 miles with hills. Not only did she manage to stay with us she never once complained.

Lo and behold she came back for another ride. She is still on her hyrbrid and she brought her daughter as well. This woman has already improved and has not quit. She has not complained about the busy roads or cars. She seems fine with all of it.

Hats off to what looks like a woman getting serious about biking. I really do not care that much what you are riding, I just want to see you riding. Eventually if you stick with it, you will buy a better bike. And you will have a great way to stay in shape as you gracefully age into retirement. Anyone can ride a bike. You do not have to be particularly fit or athletic. You will get fit and athletic by just riding.

bike mechanics, please read

How do you maintain a chain? What lube works best? Is it necessary to use a chain cleaner and a degreaser? If I lube and wipe down my chain once a week do I need to drag out the clumsy chain cleaners and run the chain through it?

I have been told something different from every bike store I have asked about this matter. Each mechanic swears he knows more than the other guy. I have found bike store folks are very quick to make fun of other bike stores and have no trouble running down the mechanic at a competing bike store.

Kinda disappointing to see them do this. But as far as I can see, each bike mechanic or bike store owner does indeed believe their methods are the only methods and anything else is a poor imitation.

SO please post as to how you maintain your bike chain??

pay attention

Biking, just like driving a car, requires attention. Attention to the cars coming and going, attention to potholes and road debris, and attention to pedestrians and joggers are just a few things that can cause a cyclist to lose control of the bike.

I hear from so many people who say they are afraid to bike. Biking is safe if you are constantly paying attention. If you want to daydream while biking, then use the many bike trails available to cyclists.

I use a rear view mirror to help me monitor the roads.




This mirror attaches to your eyeglasses. Once you get used to using the rear view mirror, you will never bike again without one. You can easily see cars coming up behind you and cyclists passing you.

welcome new folks to biking

West Chester Cycling Club has a brand new webpage and Biker Chicks has a direct link. So I thought I would make a nice information page for those looking to try biking for the first time with a club.

To those clicking to this blog for the first time and looking for information on the Biker Chicks, read below for tips.

1. Biker Chicks is run by Libby and I post rides on the WCCC ride page. Rides are posted as C level rides. This means that our average speed is around 12 mph. That is the speed of the entire ride including hill climbing and the riding the flats. Other folks post C level rides as well and all leaders follow the same rules that the club encourages us to use. This will be covered further down.

2. C level rides stay together or regroup often. No one is left behind unless some unforeseen circumstance prevents the group from staying together. Always be prepared for this by bringing the cue sheet and having a cell phone with you.

3. Club rides are best done on road bikes. These are bikes with the curved handlebars and pedals with cleats. Hybrid bikes or mountain bikes are good bikes but not for riding in Chester County. They are too heavy and make for a very difficult ride when you have to climb a hill. The WCCC also has a ride leader posting D level rides and the hybrid bike would be fine for these rides. These are shorter rides with few hills.

4. Group rides require those participating to follow some basic riding etiquette. We ride single file when needed. We obey all road rules and use hand signals for turns. Group riding, despite its name, does require EACH rider to make his or her own decisions when turning or crossing a lane etc. Never just blindly follow the person in front of you.

5. Come to the ride prepared. Have the cue sheet (links are provided for the cue sheets on the ride page, download it and print it up, PLEASE). Have food and water with you on your bike. Carry a cell phone and carry a bike tube and a system for inflating your tire.

6. Download the non-member waiver if you are not a club member and bring it with you.

7. Check ride page frequently to see updates to posted rides. Weather, illness or emergencies can cancel a ride at the last minute. SO CHECK the page before heading out.

8. Finally, if you want to ride, DO IT. Don't wake up Saturday morning and chicken out. Get on that bike and do it. Don't wait till July. By then, the C riders are all riding and getting better. The time for newbies to ride is NOW.

9. See you on the road.

what you are missing

this is your future if your bike is still sitting in your basement

Today I had a ride up for my local bike club. It was a C level ride, so it was not a speedy ride. The ride was for less than 30 miles. There were other rides listed on the club page. When I checked the ride report page later in the day, all groups had large numbers of riders. One group had 26 riders show up.

The C group had 2 folks show up. Yes, I said 2 people. For the life of me I cannot figure out why some folks will get up on a Saturday morning and go biking and others just do not make the effort or plan for the time involved.

The faster groups never have this issue. These folks seem to find the time and make plans that include biking. There are men and women in these groups, and just about all of them have families and jobs.

But let me get back to my C riders today. One fellow was 78 years old, one lady was 67 years old. The fellow has been biking since 1972 and the woman has been at it for years and years. Both are married and both raised children and both worked fulltime jobs.

But when see these two folks, it does not take a genius to see the effects of a lifelong physical activity. These two cyclists are fit and healthy and quite happy. The 78 yo guy logged 3500 miles for last season, of course he did way more in his younger day. The lady has logged many miles as well and did it while working fulltime, raising children and now finally retired and biking whenever she wants.

But these older cyclists are now reaping the rewards of such a fit lifestyle. They can easily jump on a bike and do 30 miles and not even break a sweat.

So all of you NOT biking and finding so many other important things to do, think about these two cyclists, fit and healthy and not being a drain on our health care system.