Category Archives: Bicycle commuting

Tired

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2016-08-24 011

While sitting around in my back yard staring off into space and listening to the birds, I suddenly got the urge to turn my Panasonic winter bike upside down to take a look at the bottom bracket and the frame from underneath.  Every now and then, it’s a good idea to get a different perspective on your bike, especially with an older frame, and one such as this that has so many cosmetic challenges.  Once I had the bike upside down, the afternoon lighting suddenly illuminated something I wasn’t actually looking for:  huge sidewall cracks in my 6 year old bullet proof commuter tires.  As I looked more carefully, I also saw that the tread (which still shows no wear) is also separating from the sidewall casing.  Uh oh!

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These are Nimbus Armadillo 26 X 1.5 inch tires, and they are aptly named.  I have never had a flat during the entire time I have used them.  They are not particularly comfortable tires, but the trade-off in commuting reliability has been worth the sacrifice to comfort.  The front tire had fewer sidewall cracks than the rear tire, as one would expect, but I decided not to take any further chances of a blow-out and replace them.

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On hand, the only 26″ tires I had were some Panaracer Pasela folders which are the extras I carry when I am using my Terry on tours or longer rides.  They are 26 x 1.25, so are about  6 mm narrower than the old Nimbus Armadillos.  But, they will have to do for now, and they are perfectly decent tires. I didn’t have any Schrader valved tubes which would fit these narrower tires.  But, it’s really no problem to use Presta valves with Schrader rims.

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While you can purchase special grommets which will adapt a Schrader rim to a Presta valve, I have always just used a boot made from a small piece of rim protector, as shown above.  I’ve never had a problem with this approach.

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While the bike was upside down, I looked at the bottom bracket, the brakes, and the chainstays.  The bike is getting some rust in the area where it experienced some massive chain suck, so I’ll need to file that down and paint the area to keep it protected.  I also like to look at the U-brakes from this perspective.  The straddle cable is very fiddly and difficult to access when the bike is right side up. You can see how narrow the straddle cable has to be to accommodate this design. Otherwise, everything looks good!

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The narrower Pasela tires look a bit odd with the wide Planet Bike fenders, but the ride quality will probably be nicer, and the bike will be faster (fun!).  Meanwhile, I have ordered a set of Compass’ 26 x 1.5 McLure Pass tires.  I look forward to trying them out on this bike.  The tires will be much lighter than the old Armadillos, and should provide for an amazing ride in comparison.  Flat resistance will probably be not as good, but I am hopeful.  I have been using Compass’ 650b Loup Loup Pass tires on my Meral and have been amazed at their comfort and performance – and I’ve had not a single flat on those tires.

Cycling Bags & Panniers

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2016-06-12 033

Carradice Long Flap saddlebag

I have used quite a few cycling bags over the years.  But, bags and panniers can be tricky.  How well they work depends not only on the mounting system designed for the bag, but also on what kind of rack system you have, or whether you have racks at all.  And, for saddlebags, the question of whether they will work for you depends a great deal upon your bike’s rear triangle geometry, as well as whether or not your are using fenders. In order to use front bags and panniers you need not only to have a front rack, fork braze-ons, and handlebar or stem mounting system, but the success of carrying a front load also hinges on whether your bike has the right front end geometry to carry a load there.

I have always had a special obsession with bike bags, which started back in my touring days when I would load up my 1976 Centurion Pro Tour and head out to explore my surroundings.

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I was happy that my handlebar bag and rear panniers were purchased from REI – a consumer cooperative being somewhat radical back then (even though REI was founded decades earlier).  The handlebar bag mounted with a removable rack which rested on the handlebars and stem.  The lower part of the front bag was secured to the front dropouts via a stretchy cord, which as you can see in the above photo, got overstretched so that I had to tie a knot in the cord to keep tension on the bag while underway.

I liked the rear panniers, but didn’t like the front bag so much.  It interfered with the beam of my battery powered head light. And, probably the Pro-Tour’s geometry was not ideal for carrying a front load.  However, one nice feature was the map case on the top of the bag.  In those pre-iPhone days, having my maps at the ready proved invaluable, although I will say that often my maps were totally wrong!

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Velo Orange Handlebar Bag

Eventually I stopped using front bags altogether until I began building up my 1980 Meral as a 650b Randonneur, a few years ago.  Even so, I am not all that thrilled with front bags, finding them fidgety, noisy, and irritatingly intrusive on my hands.  Perhaps a decaleur could solve these problems.  But, for now, I only occasionally use this really nice Velo Orange front bag.  I have not used low rider front panniers, but have occasionally used small panniers mounted to the front racks of various bicycles I have ridden.  Mastering a front load requires a bit of saddle time.

Below is a list of some of the many cycling bags I have used over the years, as well as my comments on their utility.  If you have been searching for the right bag for your bike, perhaps this highly personal list will be of use:

Jandd

IMHO, Jandd is the gorilla manufacturer of cycling bags.  Their bags last forever.  They never wear out.  They are intelligently designed and reasonably priced, given their longevity.  They are not particularly pretty, but offer the best in bike bag value and utility.

Here are the Jandd bags that I have used over the last 35 years:

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Grocery panniers – large, securely mounts to most racks, holds an actual grocery bag, unlike other competitors which are much smaller and less robust.  I have a set of Jandd grocery bags that I purchased in the early 90’s and they are still in use.

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Hurricane panniers – These are the grocery panniers on steroids.  Excellent mounting, total weather protection, tons of visibility.  But, there are also very heavy weighing about 2 lbs each, unladen.  I use these on my Panasonic winter/errand bike.  A perfect utility bag.

Jandd Trunk rack bags – I used a Jandd trunk bag for many years.  It never wore out, and I finally gave it to a friend, as I don’t use trunk bags any more.

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Jandd Throw-over small panniers – I am using these “small” panniers on my 1980 Meral.  They are deceptive in nomenclature and appearance – I have managed to jam all kinds of stuff into these bags.  Lightweight, fits any rack.

Brooks

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Brooks Roll Up Panniers – who can say anything bad about a Brooks bag?  These are beautiful bags, with appropriately lovely packaging.  They are NOT waterproof, and they do not have any attachment at the base of the bag.  I am using these on my 1950 Raleigh Sports Tourist, which is perfect for what they are designed for.

Ortlieb

Terry Symmetry in Ashland

Various “roller” models – Ortlieb bags are the perfect Portland commuter bag, being totally waterproof, easy to mount on any rack, and with a lot of visibility.  Newer models have internal organizing pockets.  These are my commuting bags of choice.  I have these smaller panniers, pictured above, as well as an older set of larger panniers.  The smaller model is actually able to carry quite a bit of stuff, and I have successfully loaded these panniers with way more than I would have anticipated, so I use the smaller bags pretty much all the time.

Electra Ticino

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Electra Ticino Large Canvass Panniers – I hate these bags and have them sitting in my shop – awaiting some kind of disposition that I haven’t thought of yet.  The bags are narrow, heavy, and feature the worst mounting system I have ever seen.  After having these bags pop off the rack while riding at speed, and thankfully not crashing as a result, these bags are on my s$#t list.

Detours

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Detours seatpost mount quick release bags – I own three of these bags.  These are excellent bags for bikes which cannot take rear racks.  However, based on a recent search it looks like these bags are no longer offered by the company.  That’s too bad as I find these bags quite useful.  They are not as big I would like, but can still hold enough stuff for a day’s adventure.

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Sackville Bags from Rivendell   For awhile I used these Sackville front and rear rack bags, which I purchased from Rivendell.  The color scheme went well with my 1973 Jack Taylor Tourist.  However, these bags have no internal pockets, are not expandable, and so are of very limited utility.  They do have visibility, as you can see from the above photo.  Because of their limitations, they are sitting in my shop now awaiting some purpose in their lives which I haven’t thought of yet.

Other Bags I Have Used:

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While too numerous to list here I have tried out many different kinds of cycling bags.  Trunk bags, which I used for a time, put the weight up high and also make it difficult to throw a leg over (depending on how tall your rack is).  I no longer use trunk bags at all.  Saddlebags often interfere with your thighs while pedaling, and can also swing from side to side while you are climbing.  Mostly, I only use saddlebags on bikes that I will not ride vigorously, and where I can position the bag to sit far enough away from my legs – mostly this would be on larger bicycle frames.

For most riders, carrying weight on the rear of the bike will feel the most stable and natural, but it is is a good idea to think about your bike’s geometry and purpose before embarking on a new bag/rack experience.  You can measure your bike’s angles by using an angle finder, and you can take a rudimentary trail measurement of the front fork rake by following instructions which are readily available on the internet.

Portland Bike Share – 1st Ride on the 1st Day

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2016-07-19 010

With Portland’s typical giddy fanfare for anything bicycle related, the city’s bike share program went live today.  I had tentatively planned on attempting to test ride one of these bikes today, and as it turned out, all of the day’s mishaps led to my first ride on one of these orange monsters.

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I was down at South Waterfront awaiting an annual doctor appointment which went awry.  My physician’s schedule got seriously backed up so after waiting for too long, I had to reschedule and move on to my next appointment.  But, while I was cooling my heels in the waiting room I had time to download the Biketown app on my iPhone and go through the steps to set up an account and review the process of renting the bike, which at first seemed kind of daunting.  Thankfully, the app worked perfectly so that when I exited OHSU to the street level to feast upon the orangeness surrounding me, it was very easy to enter my codes into this solar powered key pad and unlock the bike from the rack.  Unfortunately, the bike I unlocked turned out to be unrideable.

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The bike’s quick release for the seat post binder bolt would not hold position because the nut on the bolt could not be turned to tighten it.  Lacking any tools, and knowing that I was not willing to damage (further) my knees with a too low seat height, I put the bike back into its rack and forfeited my $2.50 rental fee.  Then, I checked the seatpost QR’s on all the other bikes in the rack and found that they similarly could not be tightened adequately to hold the seatpost, until I finally spotted my ride – an orange monster parked askew with the seat post jacked way up.

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So, I entered my codes again – a very easy process that involves an account number plus a PIN, unlocked the bike, slung the lock into its holder on the left side, tossed my brief case into the front basket (which is very narrow), and started to get underway.  During this process, several cyclists approached me and asked about the steps involved in renting these bikes and how the system works.  I did my best to educate them with the tiny bit of knowledge in my head at the time.

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Then I mounted the 45 lb. machine, which involves pushing your leg above the lowered top tube rather than throwing a leg over and which actually seems harder to do.  Immediately I noticed the terrible handling – a result of ill conceived frame geometry for a bike which is designed to carry its weight on the front.  The bike wobbled around as I got underway, and I felt like a novice cyclist rather than the experienced rider that I am.  Once moving, I was okay, but anytime I put my foot down the bad geometry kicked in and the bike weaved from side to side. But, as with any bike, you can adapt to strange handling characteristics with enough saddle time.  I’m not sure I really want any more saddle time on these bikes, though.  My 1950 Raleigh Sports Tourist, which also weighs 45 lbs is an absolute gem in comparison, being well balanced, easy to handle, and with an amazingly comfortable, if upright, riding position.

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These bikes, provided by Social Bicycles, aka SoBi, are equipped with a shaft drive and an internal Nexus 8 speed hub.  Having not ridden a shaft drive before, I was curious if I would notice any particular differences as compared to a chain drive.  And, I hadn’t tested the Shimano 8 speed internal hub, so I was also curious how this component would perform.  Since I needed to head over the to east side of Portland, that meant taking the Tilikum Crossing‘s mild but long hill in my work clothes.  These bikes have no bottle cage, so even if I had a water bottle, it would not be readily accessible.  Riding east over the bridge, I was passed by ALL cyclists, and a few called out to ask me how I liked the ride.

I found the shaft drive to feel fairly normal, but the Nexus hub seemed to have a lot of inefficiency in the lower gears.  I only engaged the 4th and 3rd gears of the hub, but those gears felt so compromised that I ended up stomping up the hill in a higher gear so I could avoid the sluggish feeling that the hub offered in the lower gears.

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The Kenda tires were fine and seemed to absorb some road shock, but the High Nelly upright position made my back hurt right away.  The drum brakes required a lot of force to stop the bike quickly, making me think “whoa, Nelly!”.  At least there would be no danger of doing an endo on one of these machines.

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By the time I got to the east side of Portland, I couldn’t wait to scan the horizon for the first orangeness I could spot.  I ditched this bike at a Bikeshare rack along the Max line, and continued the rest of my journey via public transportation, having spent a total of $3.60 to rent the bike, and now spending another $2.50 to continue on my journey.  While on the bus, I sent an email to customer support to alert them to the seatpost QR issue.  A few hours later I received a response letting me know that if you encounter any mechanical issue with a bike, put it back in the rack and hit the “repair” button on the keypad and the bike will be taken out of service until the issue is resolved.

Who are these bikes for?  Well, maybe Nike can answer that question.  Portland is unique in that its Bike Share program is not funded with taxpayer dollars, but rather relies on the millions received from corporate sponsors.

Possibly, these bikes could be useful for inner city users who need a quick jaunt to areas not covered by public transportation.  The apps provided by SoBi worked extremely well for me, so the barriers to use involve not technology, but lack of access to technology.  And that will be my final criticism for this program.  Who is it helping?  Those who don’t really need help at all.