Wednesday, August 31, 2005
JUST BECAUSEI am broken, doesn't mean I am dead. I went to lift weights today and everyone seemed mortified. I BROKE A BONE IN MY TOE. Not my arms, legs or torso. As long as I don;t put weight on that toe, I am ok. That means I can do most workouts, and I just have to be careful.
No way am I going to sit around and do nothing.
Now, to softride, or not to softride? That is the question
I am thinking about buying a softride frame. ULTRBKR, any suggestions?
Tuesday, August 30, 2005
DAMN I WISHi had a better story for how this happened. I broke my proximal phalanx of my fourth right toe today. Stubbed it on the coffee table and broke it. Like a big clutzy nerd. It wasn't broken for non-payment of a gambling debt, or as a result of some sweet stunt. It wasn't even a fall from anything high. Just stubbed it and broke it.
I suck.
Monday, August 29, 2005
BEING THE BOSSis a shitty, thankless job, most of the time. I don;t think I am making big news here, by saying this, but I had to put that in print somewhere, if only to validate it in my head.
I took a weekend off to go camping (that will be a separate post), and left the house in it's usual state. I was not gone for more than THREE hours before I had my first phone call from the house. Three friggin hours! I would receive three more before the night was out, and a total of 6 through the two days I was gone.
But, oddly, that's not the part that really gets me. What REALLY gets me is that all my staff members, to the last one, are gossipy women. Only two of them think for themselves, and only one of THOSE asks questions when all the above has failed her. That means, when I am out of town for a weekend, and things don;t go exactly as they are supposed to, I come back to hear all the THEORIES as to why that is.
This weekend was a new low for them. Let me set up the story. The old supervisor used to shop for the whole month, all at once. Inevitably, that would mean the shelves got less and less full, and the meals less and less appealing, as the month went on. Further, and more importantly, it meant no food or money at the end of the month. When I got here, that was the first thing I changed. I go shopping weekly, so that by Sunday night there is a mini drought in the house on rations. The idea here is two fold: first, the employees must stick to the menu (because other items do not exist to substitute), which means I am assured my clients are getting a meal properly planned for and prepared, and second, I can plan each week so that money DOES NOT run out, just in case something should come up. It has worked, the past three months, without failure.
This weekend, however, I forgot to buy hotdog buns for a meal; Chili dogs, onion rings, and mixed veggies. One of my workers decided that meant I was being negligent. Worse (her thoughts escalated) the quality of food had decreased since I have been the supervisor, because this had NEVER happened before, and there was ALWAYS something in the fridge before, if some meal didn't fit HER standards. Who eats chili dogs for dinner, anyway? Oh, Josh MUST be stealing the money he is saving by giving the guys slop to eat.
JESUS CHRIST! I want to scream. First, let me say that the quality of food, all other employees agree, has gone UP. I like to make sure the guys have variety as well as nutrition, and my mealplans reflect that. The reason for the chili dogs was simply most clients are gone on the weekends, and the one who sticks around LOVES chili dogs. Loves them. So that;s a good time for him to get them, since he is bored and alone in the house. Also, if another client comes back early, it is very easy to make more. It just makes sense to me.
Of course, that employee cannot understand that the accusation she made COULD COST ME MY JOB. I get a budget of 600 dollars a month, for food, household items, and anything else the guys don't directly pay for. That's 600 bucks to pay for four full grown men to eat 3 meals a day, and two staff members to have dinner with them, each day. 50 bucks comes right off the top for petty cash, so the staff doesn't have to pay for taking the guys to do fun things. Now, for example, take that we use 5-6 gallons of milk a week. At 3 dollars a gallon, 5 gallons a week for four weeks costs 60 bucks. 10% of the budget, right there, on milk alone. Now think of all the items it takes to feed just lunches of sandwiches, snacks, and veggies for four guys, and to make balanced meals for 6 people for dinner. The money just isn't there. The idea of me stealing some of that is laughable. There just isn't anything to steal. Most months I end up picking up items out of my own pocket, just because I have to run to the store for this and that and I don;t feel like the hassle of getting the money from the money drawer, or separating my items from client items during checkout.
Of course, that worker could not have known about that. She couldn't know about the regulations that say I have to save EVERY receipt and prove I am spending 90% of our budget on food each month. She couldn't know how damned much it hurts to hear that someone could think so low of my character they would assume because we had hotdogs one night I must be stealing.
She can't know this, even now, because I am a boss, and I can't explain myself every damned time someone has a stupid notion, because I have to set a standard that I expect from my workers, because I cannot afford to lose her as a worker when I try to explain it and she takes it the wrong way, and thinks I am attacking her.
So I will smile, and keep providing the service I am paid to provide. And I will stay friendly with my staff, even when they hamstring me behind my back. And I will keep filing my reports and ledgers happy in the knowledge that some idiots musings about the way things should be have nothing to do with my job.
But I won't be happy about it.
Sunday, August 28, 2005
THERE IS A LOTI want to talk about, and even more I feel like I want to bicth about, after this weekend.
1) The camping trip, both good and bad
2) My job, bad and good
But I choose to post only this, for now:
The other side of the coin
Thursday, August 25, 2005
Seriously?Check this shit out.
The quote is exactly how I felt:
"It's bizarre, absolutely bizarre," police Lt. Richard Siemasko said. "I can't even imagine what was in his head. This is just a whole new level of weird for me."
Do they even have a name for such a weird crime?
Wednesday, August 24, 2005
LANCE ARMSTRONGIs being accused of doping, again. Again, it is by L'equipe, a french paper that has villified Armstrong since the begining. Once again, I have my doubts. I will start by saying this in no way means I think Lance did or didn't dope. It is just saying that the "evidence" collected is suspect, at best.
The laboratory that held these samples, and suqsequently tested them 7 years after being submitted, has stated that there is no way the urine samples can be linked to any rider. That's the lab that did the tests, mind you.
L'equipe says NON NON! We CAN link it to a rider, and that rider is LANCE ARMSTRONG. (Pause for dramatic music) Here, take a look at these PHOTOCOPIED reports, and then compare them to these other PHOTOCOPIED lab results, and finnaly, to these PHOTOCOPIED documents with lances name on them.
Josh Murray once used a computer to put himself on the Rosie O Donnell show. I think he was at the Nazi trials, too. A photocopier makes it even easier. A scissor and a gluestick can make any document say anything you want.
Raisins Aigres?, maybe. But Until we have some proof, sumbitted by a reputable source, we can only take what facts we DO have. Lance has been tested more than ANY OTHER professional cyclist, possibly more than any other athlete (though I doubt it, with the olympic testing policies) and has never failed a test.
Ever.
THE WINDY CITY
I think Chicago only gets that nickname because the people who use it have never been to Bemidji.
Seriously, every damned time I want to go kick out a nice 25 on the bike, the wind comes up and tells me to reconsider. I do, but I still end up riding anyway.
Today we had SSE 20-25 with gusts. Ehough wind that the weather forcast gets rid of the suns and clouds and just types "windy" in fast looking letters. Enough wind to blow you off course while pedaling.
Still, 25 miles today at just over 19mph. Not bad. I saw my boss in her SUV, so I had to race her. I got it up over 30 with the wind in my face on a flat before she turned off a side road (chicken). I also raced a Fed-ex delivery truck (because they have the open side doors and can see people, and he thought it was just as funny as I did.
He won, by the way.
Tuesday, August 23, 2005
When and Where"JM" (I would want to keep my anonymity, too, if I lived that close to North Dakota) brought up a good point.
What is the appropriate, effective way to voice discontent with something political? Really, anything you don't like at all.
We have all seen the "rallies" that go on in Bemidji, and the picket lines here, as well. I think we all know how effective those are at slowing traffic and annoying passer-bys. But they don't seem to have much effect on any of the issues they discuss.
Similarly, these events on a larger scale seldom have an effect. Even the million man march failed to do much more than take up a few lines in social commentary for awhile. No one could link what they did to equality. It just didn't work.
Getting the media on your side seems to be a requirement, but they are so damned fickle that your cause won't even be half started before they have dropped you for another, newer story.
How do we, then, voice our discontent? And how do we do the same without being lumped in with the aforementioned groups?
I am seriously asking here, because I don't have a clue.
Monday, August 22, 2005
Enough alreadyOk, I am DONE with Cindy Sheehan. That's right, I said it. Everyone is getting behind her "cause" and using it as another excuse to bash President Bush.
First, let me say I don;t agree with over half the shit Bush pulls. But I think the Media has created an image of our President that is unfair and untrue. He is not some lazy, war mongering, country boob. He is intelligent, quite compassionate, and DAMMIT he is OUR president.
What Mrs. Sheehan has done is put Bush in an indefensible position. If he does nothing, he looks like an uncaring oaf. If he addresses her comments in the public, he looks like he is attacking a hero and ducking a concerned mother.
But what if he talks to her? Obviously (given the "war is not the answer T shirts she wears) the two of them do not agree on the agenda or significance of this war. Nor do they agree on the position of the military. So what are they going to talk about? She wants answers he cannot give, and an apology he may or may not mean. And she wants him to admit he is wrong. Whether he is wrong or not doesn't matter, of course, because he cannot admit to being wrong in the middle of a fucking war.
Just the fact that she has Michael Moore on her side should be the legal equivalent of hiring Johnny Cochrane; you know you are wrong, but you need the press. Beyond that, this woman has had a political agenda FAR longer than her son has been dead, and even longer than he has been serving in the military. But now she is USING her son's death to gain press and make someone she doesn't like look bad.
I say using her son's death, not because I think she doesn't mourn, but because she has turned an all too private moment of tragedy into a public spectacle. Further, her son may not have wanted it this way. He is, after all, a soldier. He signed up knowing full well the potential consequences of his actions, and believed enough in what he was doing to sign up. It is a fucking harsh thing, but dammit, sometimes people die in war. Good people, bad people, and every damned person in between.
We honor their deaths by staying the course they believed in, not whoring their memories for airtime and public brow beating.
Cindy Sheehan, you make me sick.
Saturday, August 20, 2005
MORE BIKINGToday I went to walker and back, solo.
The trip there was awesome. I wanted to get a good read on my ACTAUL time, so I didn;t let the bike over 30 on the downhills. The way there I averaged just over 21mph. The way back went well, again, until the last 17 miles. I had just better get used to the wind always coming from bemidji, and coming hard. Today recorded gusts of 25mph. I came in at 18.5 mph, so that should show you what fatigue and wind do together.
Still, with the new MP3 player, it wasn't that bad of a ride. The sun spent enough time out to add to my tan lines around my biceps and wrists.
The new shorts were great. I can sit down without groaning, so that's a plus.
The new goal is to make this trip at 20mph. I really AM going to have to go solo for that to happen, I am just not good enough to match someone else's cadence.
Thursday, August 18, 2005
TIMEI just wanted to write this somewhere, so I could refernence it. Today I went around the lake run at OVER 20mph. I had been trying to break 20 for some time, and I finally did it.
SO:
Total distance: 20.0
Total time: 56:55
Miles Per Hour: 21.08
20mph=crushed. That number is significant for me, because 20.0mph is teh fastest split in the tinman triathlon I am looking into for next year. If I can get my time up a little higher, I can make up for my poor running skills (which I will work on this winter).
I am pretty stoked.
Wednesday, August 17, 2005
TIGER WOODSPerhaps the greatest golfer of all time, and people are trifling over his leaving the PGA after Sunday. Rain delayed the tournament, and he was already in the clubhouse, two back of the leader, who was still playing, along with three other people.
He ended up tying for fourth. People say, though, that he should have waited around in case Phil faltered, two other golfers did just as badly, and they needed a 4 or more way tiebreaker round. Give me a break.
More importantly, give Tiger Woods a break. This is one of the nicest guys in golf, and THE best mind in golf. If he thinks his tournament is over, it is over. Nostradamus could not predict a golf game better.
More importantly, people are engaging in a damned "what if". Well, you know what sports writers, IT DIDN'T HAPPEN. That means he did nothing wrong. The end.
It's time we stop attacking our most beloved sports figures, or risk them shunning us, and becoming less accessible. The love of the sport comes from the interaction with the players. Treat them like people first, players second, and stories last.
HOIBERG
The Timberwolves released Fred Hoiberg under the amnesty clause of the new CBA. That means they are still obligated to pay the remainder of his contract (one year-1.3 million) and he is free to sign with another team. However, that salary does not count against the cap, so the team can sign a free agent to 1.3 million more.
It is a shrewd business move, but one that has the potential to backfire. First, since Hoiberg is recovering from surgery on his heart, he would not be available to play most of this year, if any at all. Since he was in the final year of his contract, that would mean signing him and sitting him. However, he had a fine year for us last year, and shows signs, with more minutes, of becoming a hell of a bench player. Another team could sign him for league minimum and sit him for a year, so they could have him for next season, and for cheap. Since he is already collecting on the final year from the Wolves, that would all be money in the bank.
An added incentive is that if he signs with another team, his medical bills stemming from recovery will be paid for. Since he is not on a team now, that is coming out of his pocket. Anyone who has ever done any outpatient knows how much the bills can add up to.
So the Wolves need to show him some sort of loyalty, by moving him to a bench position coaching job, or they risk losing him for good. That would be a shame and a black amrk on a franchise that prides itself on a family atmosphere.
BOREDUMB
Bemidji, she is a stupid stupid town. I have nothing to do today, and it is raining. THis means I cannot ride my bike, which makes me even more bored. I have about 300 channels, but nothing is on during the day. Computer games are all the same. Carly is at work.
I have been riding again, after my 83 mile exodus. The first day my legs were, as expected, a bit sore, and reluctant to move at all. But I coaxed them into a nice 20 mile ride, and have done so for the last three days. 20 miles seems a bit pedestrian now, so I am going to bump it to 25 by taking the road up to Wal-Mart and back before heading home.
I will be going 80 miles again this weekend, alone, to see if I can go without stopping. The trip will be one hundred, and everyone is debating how many stops we should have. I think two is appropriate: one at Walker and one halfway between walker and brainard. Mike thinks one, 50 miles in. I think TJ would opt for none.
I think the reason I was able to stay in the lead the whole time was I was better rested, and better fed. I munched on powerbars the way there and back, and I took the time off the bike to stretch and massage, instead of sit and mope. Maybe TJ can go 100 miles non-stop, and maybe I could too. Mike, though, struggled his way in from the last 20, because he was going too fast and not in rythme, and refused the powerbars offered him. Two 50 mile stretches of road would not be good for him.
Because the real test here comes on day two, when we saddle up and ride BACK 100 miles. And dammit, I don't want everyone pussing out on it and taking a car ride back, and me riding alone for 6 hours.
Monday, August 15, 2005
BABY ON BOARDIt is about time they did something about this.
I, for one, feel safer flying knowing these terrible menaces are being stopped and checked.
Sunday, August 14, 2005
TIMBERWOLVES UPDATEAn interesting trade happened over the weekend, with the Timberwolves shipping Sam Cassell out for Marko Jaric. I am not sure of the value of Jaric, but what the wolves did was get SOME trade value for a dimishing talent in Cassell. WE rented him for a year, paid interest on him on the court for a year, and now we get a return on the investment. Overall, I think that puts us even for the transaction. Jaric has s ome upside, with a good shooting range and passable defense, but he looks asleep on the court sometimes, and not just in his just-woke-up hairstyle.
The rumor mill says Derek Anderson may be excepting the midlevel to play for the Timberwolves, too. This is a better development than I thought we had in us this offseason. DA has a good upside, and caught a bad rap sharing a lousy backcourt in portland. Being a feature backcourt guard would boost his numbers, and help the inside out game. The question mark is on the ball defense.
And it looks like Sprewell is finally gone, heading to our old coach Flip. It's too bad we didn't pull the trigger on this one last year. Now he is a free agent, and we won't get a thing from him.
Additions this year are looking like this:
Rashad McCants
Nikoloz Tskitishvili
Dwayne Jones
Marko Jaric
and possibly Derek Anderson, and Earl Watson (but most likely not both)
and we resigned:
Mark Madsen
and Eddie Griffin
And lost:
Sam Cassell
Latrell Sprewell
Ervin Johnson
Saturday, August 13, 2005
BIKING UPDATEI will say this, right off the bat: my Dawes lightning DLX is the match of any LBS bike by trek, cannondale, or specialized, in the under 700 group.
Today we went on an 83 mile bike trip through three counties. I had two friends with me, one of whom has a specialized allez. The component group was the same, and the bike seemed to weigh the same, so we just decided they were about the same. Again, my price, 330. His, 700.
I had no trouble setting the pace for the whole group, and spent most my time out front. I am very pleased with this bike.
The trip itself turned out to be a bit two sided. The way there was great, and the trails, although not fully groomed, were pretty nice. Good open tar, rolling hills, plenty of scenery. I enjoyed it, and so did my two friends.
The way back, though, was hell. One of my friends starting dropping out the back, so we had to keep slowing down for him (which KILLS the muscles) and then the wind just starting gusting right in our faces. That slowed us down considerably, but worse, it ruined morale. The sun wasn't shining, the wind was beating us back, and then is started to drizzle. Soggy and windy is a hell of a one-two punch.
I feel good. 83 is a hell of a lot of miles to bike, and we did it without complaint. (I am complaining now, but such is life). I feel like, with a bit better weather, we could have done the 100 mile trip today. We still have a month to go.
Wednesday, August 10, 2005
T.O. (totally obnoxious)This it what's wrong with sports right now. Both sides need to be forced to honor contracts they sign, like the rest of the world does.
Is Terrell Owens worth more money? Yes. The performance he gave int eh playoffs, on one leg, was one of the gut performances of all time. 122 yards from a gimp is no small matter.
But he signed a contract. His contract does not reflect what other top recievers are making, but he signed it. No one put a gun to his head, and he had the option of not signing it. But he signed it. Now it's time to man up and play it out.
Meanwhile, NFL owners should not be exempt. They should not be able to pull contracts out from under players, either. Both sides agree to nulify a contract? Fine. That's the way the law works for Average Joe, that's the way it shoudl work for Athlete Joe.
This situation makes what the Vikings and Daunte went through all the more special. T.O. is blowing hard in the media, and Daunte Culpepper said NOTHING and got paid.
Tuesday, August 09, 2005
Haloscan commenting and trackback have been added to this blog.BASKETBALL RUMOR
So, I came across this in the rumor mill. Initially, I was very skeptical. We are talking about trading Kevin Garnett, quite possibly the best forward of the modern basketball era. There just isn't enough trade value out there.
Or is there? The truth is, as much as he is a fan favorite, he costs A LOT of money, and it is hard to build around him. The trade bait this time isn't exactly the Bulls front line, either (see earlier posts for THAT crap). Ben Wallace, Rasheed Wallace, and two first round draft picks. The timberwolves would reduce their salary by 20% on that trade, and in three years unload 'Sheed for another hefty boost. Meanwhile, if one of those two draft picks even becomes a good 6th or 7th man, the timberwolves are in a pretty good spot. Ben Wallace has not piqued yet, Rasheed has three good years left. And Detroit did pretty well with the two of them underneath. Add an improved Wally Szczerbiak, re-signed Eddie Griffin, a more offensive minded Trenton Hassell, and some bench players, and that is actually a pretty good squad.
That all being said, it is a stupid trade. Not because we couldn't get anywhere with those players: we could. It is just we would get to THE SAME PLACE. We can already make the playoffs with the squad we are building, and KG is too big a part of that. And the fans would NEVER, I mean NEVER forgive the Timberwolves for a trade like that, even if they went all the way with the new squad.
FOOTBALL
It is almost upon us, and I wanted to talk about something that finally speaks well for the Vikings organization. Zygi Wilf just gave Daunte Culpepper a much needed raise. The new deal is worth about 8 million more in guaranteed money, with the same incentive laden deals it had previously. The two sides negotiated this without a hold out, a media shouting match, or as much as a rumor article published.
It is a step in the right direction, as Culpepper has stated. I am inclined to say more should be done, given the performance over the past few years by Daunte, but the incentives in the contract should take care of that. And that may just be the way contracts should be, anyway: a fair market value based on past performance, and incentives to do better.
BASEBALL
I am just about done with the whole steroid scandal. Rafeal Palmeiro testing positive for steroids is a huge stain on the game. We are talking about the guy who sat in front of congress and stated "I have never, in my life, taken steriods. I do not know how to make it any clearer than that." Apparently, it wasn't;t that clear in the first place.
His excuse was horrible. He didn't know he was taking it? Give me a break. Everyone busted for anything has said the same thing, and it is bogus. Athletes are such control freaks when it comes to what goes into their bodies, there is NO WAY he took it without knowing. We aren't talking about a supplement here, this is an injected steroid. When I see a needle, I am asking ALL SORTS of questions to whomever is trying to put it into me.
Rafi could have been a better spokesperson by saying he did take it, was sorry, and was willing to work towards educating people about it. I am not sure what I feel about steroids, but as long as they are banned in baseball, players cannot be allowed to take them, and have nothing more than an article written about them. EVERYONE in this era will be suspected, clean or not, so outing a few people won;t make a difference.
BIKING
The university of Minnesota, Morris, puts on a tinman triathlon every year. I was just looking at the results from this year, and my time around the lake (19.8) is good enough to earn me second place for the bicycle split. That is, right now, no more training. I feel pretty good about that. The split for the running, on the other hand, scares the hell out of me. I am not sure I can run 6.2 miles to begin with, and I KNOW I cannot do it in splits of 6:30. That's about 9 miles per hour, for six miles. OUCH. I am not sure what my swimming is, as it has been some time since I have been in the water.
Still, depending on what I have going on this winter, I can easily train indoors for the two weak spots, and I am fairly confident in my biking ability. I think this is a goal for next year.
PERSONAL
I am not sure why I am even writing this here, as I don't know most people who read this, and most of those people are randoms who wander in looking for sports things. Maybe I just want to write it down.
My grandmother died on Saturday. I knew it was coming, as it was cancer, so this isn't such a shock to me. I guess I have been dealing with it for some time, in my own way.
But the thing is, I don't feel anything about it. Not a thing. Some people will (and have) called me cold for this, and I am not sure they are wrong. Things like this don't really affect me like they do most people. I feel bad for my family, especially my sister, who is not taking this very well. It is a great loss to the whole family, she was a Matriarch, and a personality. Everyone will miss her.
Understanding all that, though, is not feeling it. I can understand why people feel that way, and I cannot understand why I do not. I won't say I have tried to make myself feel any different, because I am not sure it would work. I can say I feel empathy for everyone involved, and I feel more for them than I do for myself. I don't want that confused with selflessness, though. I am very sure that if I could feel something about it, those feelings would come first.
I just don't know what to make of all of it. I really don't
Friday, August 05, 2005
Bike ReviewI know I need to write more about other things, but I am having such a good time with this new bike, I am going to write one more thing. A lot of people have been searching for a review of the Dawes Lightning bike line (my tracker gets at least one a day), so I will give you the ups and downs of it, as best I can.
This is my first road bike, so some comparisons will only be made to the few others I test rode before buying this one.
First, it does not come ready to ride. The site on eBay (where I imagine most of you are looking) says you just need to slap on the wheels, handlebars, seat and pedals, and away you go. That is False. Be ready to tune the shifting before riding, inflate the tires, and adjust the brakes. The adjustment of the shifter, if you are not familiar with it, can take some time, as it is a lot of fine tuning.
It is also a bit heavier than you would expect for a road bike. I weighed mine in at 26lbs. Compare that to a standard low-end Trek or Specialized at 24.5. If you are racing, that might make a difference, but if not, I promise you won't care. In fact, the extra weight means less stress on your back and arms, and less road "noise". The Bike feels very good underneath you, and descending feels smooth and safe (a common complaint of most riders is descending is scary).
The tubes that come with the bike are junk. That is a common problem with most low-end bikes, because the company has to cut cost somehow. Your local bike shop will have much better tubes, for a very good price. They will also make the bike ride better.
The Wheelset--tires, rims, and hubs--is gorgeous. Alex rims are true and light, maxxis treads, while a bit cheap, look and feel good on the road, and the hubs were packed tight and smooth. I already got a compliment from my neighbor (who rides a 1200 dollar bike) on the wheelset. He took a full 15 minutes looking it over and was all smiles.
For anyone contemplating STI shifting over downtube, let me tell you, STI is the way to go. Again, it is going to weigh a little more, but you make up for it in comfort. It took me about 5 minutes to get used to STI, and now I don;t know how I lived without it. Smooth, fast, and very little hand and arm movement. Don't save the 50 bucks on the cheaper Dawes, get the STI. Sora is bottom of the line, but it is what you will get on every entry level bike you purchase.
The seat is great, it is very comfortable. I would have preferred a seat with the cut-out, but other than that it is soft and forms well to a backside. The seat post is rigid, and I like that. The clamp, though, was a joke. It is NOT quick release, it is very flimsy, and the bolt inside it snapped when I tightened it. I replaced it with a quick release right away. That is important to me, because I plan on riding long distance, and adjusting the seat is a must.
Crankset is normal. RPM is a little known brand, I think, but it compares favorably with most other bikes. It looks great, too. The high gear is wonderful in front, and the low gear in the rear just soars. I can reach 25 on a flat without pumping hard. I coast downhill at about 35.
The paint is far less basic than the pictures show. It is a much brighter, more candy red, and the decals are far less plain. It really does pop, and looks good going down the road. Don;t get the green, it is hideous. I wish she would have had more yellow to try out, but I like the red.
Overall, this is a nice entry level bicycle. Compare it to a Trek 1000, or a Specialized Allez. Those cost 650-700 and have the same component set. In fact, as I mentioned earlier, the Allez has the EXACT same set up. I paid, with shipping, 330, and put another 30 bucks into accessories. If you are not serious about racing, just want to do some riding or long distance, you will NEVER notice the difference in the three, and the price will allow you to upgrade later if needs be.
I would recommend this bike to a friend, and that is saying a lot.
Thursday, August 04, 2005
I got to ride my new bike for the first extended trip today. I went the usual 20 mile trip, and it took me 66 minutes. Yup, that's 18.2mph. With winds up to 25 mph today, I had to fight a bit for the first 3 miles and the last 5 miles (it's a big circle, folks), so that's a pretty respectable speed. In fact, I am fairly happy with it. Add to that my legs don;t feel like I rode at all, and I am positively giddy about my new bike.I hope Sean wants to ride today, I want to go out for another loop.
Wednesday, August 03, 2005
MY NEW BIKE
It came today, around 1:30. I had a hell of a time putting it together, and getting it to shift properly, but it is and it does, so life is good. I will have to ride it tomorrow and get a feel for it before I can fine tune it, but everything seems to be working well.
I got my old bike fixed up, too, and it is pretty sweet. I added a carbon ramhorn and just got that taped up today. Sean should like it, and it should make him go much faster.
No riding today, but tomorrow I plan to hit it hard.
Tuesday, August 02, 2005
August 2ndNo Sean today. Tried to make up some time on the bike, but I just couldn't get my legs going today. I ended up going the same 20 mile route at 74 minutes, or 16.2 mph. Not really much of an improvement over yesterday. I want to make excuses, but I don't think I have any. Three days of riding, 90+ miles, and my legs just gave out. I will punish them tomorrow.
On the update: my new bike is in Eagan today, so it will be delivered tomorrow to Bemidji. The handlebars are here for the old bike, and I still have no idea where the tape is.
Yestderday
Biked 20 miles with Sean. Our average speed was 14.8, which is a pretty good imporvement for the tandem. He is still on a Huffy, so I imagine his speed will increase when he gets on my old bike.
And speaking of which, one of the new parts arrived today for the bike. I just need handlebar tape now, and I will get it ready for him. And my new bike is in transit: it left KS today at 1am.
I don;t know what I am going to bike today, I feel very tired (not my muscles, my head). I should still be able to get 20 in sometime today, though.
