Multitasking

I was out dual-tasking today. First, I wanted to go for a ride. I was annoyed to almost the hilt because sickness, namely, sinusitis (which I get reliably 4-5 times a year) and sciatic pain (which is a new development now) kept tripping me up for the last several weeks. Today I decided that nothing would stop me from a valiant attempt at some climbing.

I virtually sped home from work (by taxi and on foot), changed into my cycling gear and munched down on an ice cream sandwich before heading out.

I did well on the ride. There were times when I wanted to quit, but I kept pushing and pushing until I reached my goal. I wondered for a while if I'd overdone it, because my stomach developed an intense pain, almost nauseous-like, but I recovered and perhaps one day soon I'll read something about exercise and understand what happened.

Having taken care of the first goal, I turned my attention to the second task at hand — using the Pedco Ultra Clamp Assembly. What a fine little instrument this is!

Here it is clamped to my bike's handlebar supporting a lightweight digital camera.

This camera mount can comfortably hold small camcorders and cameras. The top part which secures the camera is also a pivoting ball head type of attachment, so you can adjust the tilt of the camera in any direction. In addition to the pivoting head, the section directly underneath can also adjust. The part that fastens onto the handlebar has a convex shape so that, when the opposite side is screwed in, the mount becomes solidly fixed onto the bike.

This mount set back my wallet by $21.49 and set forward my videomaking by some leaps and bounds. I'm thrilled over the footage that I envision capturing in the months to come. Here is some footage recorded using the mount. The frame rate is less than what you'd find in a good videocamera so that accounts for the slight jitter. I also stabilised the footage in the editing program for easier viewing. Aside from those two things, this little mount is quite capable of contributing to some really nice footage in many rides to come.

CameraMount from Microchip on Vimeo.

Unusual Bikes – The Yike Bike

Imagine that! You can re-invent the wheel[s] — a New Zealand engineer certainly has!

Take a look at this very, very nice folding electric bike with anti-skid brakes and weighing only 22 pounds! View all the videos about this bike, they're just a few minutes each. It's bound to catch your attention!

The Discovery Channel short feature on it:

http://www.yikebike.com/site/gallery/video/yikebike-discovery-channel

And here's an advertisement:

See how it performs riding over a grill, up a steep gravel hill and road, across wet grass and more.

A point to note: Do always wear a helmet.

Bicycle—The History

Bicycle—The History is a fine book, if I ever read one. It would make a great addition to your bookshelf. The author traces the origin of the bicycle, its development into the two-wheeler we know today, different types of cycles and the various purposes they served, for example, use as a utility-type vehicle and also for recreation and competition. And it's chock full of fascinating pictures, sketches and posters.

The book shows that the early efforts of inventors—and the responses they received—were quite comical at times. When a determined German inventor named Karl von Drais displayed his design in France, a newspaper reported that "it was no more practical than the mechanical wings" which another German inventor exhibited the previous year. The Journal de Paris concluded that it was of no practical value. I wonder what they would say if they could see it now.

When things are in the early stages of development, they tend to be clumsy and awkward. The early bikes were very heavy, weighing over 50 pounds, since the frame was made of wood and the wheels were iron. I can't imagine the kind of ride that would give!

What surprised me most, is that the bicycle is really a recent invention. Quite recent. The very first design that set the stage for the bicycle was made 192 years ago. The real turning point though, came 50 years later, when mechanical parts (pedals and cranks) were applied to make riding more effective. And the rest of its development from there is easy to imagine.

For a vehicle which is so popular in sport and useful in everyday life, I find it surprising that it began really taking shape as recent as, what, 1867.

Another interesting thing I learned from the book is that there was a longtime interest in producing a vehicle that would not necessitate the use of animals, such as horses, to provide the power. The early sketches show what look like the beginning of the automobile, and not a bicycle. It seems as if it simply did not occur to the earlier inventors that a human could remain balanced on a vehicle with two wheels that were not side-by-side. So the designs were always so that the vehicle would stand on its own.

Karl von Drais was the one who presented this new design—that of a machine with one wheel directly in front of the other with no other support on its sides. Interestingly, it mentions that it isn't clear how von Drais came up with his idea.

Although it has struck me that it's a late invention, what surprises me even more is that the ancient Egyptians hadn't been the ones to come up with the original bicycle design. What with their being such masters of engineering with some of their accomplishments still puzzling present-day experts, I would have thought that if there was anyone to design something with two wheels lined up one behind the other, that balances and carries a human being forward with little effort, it would be the guys from Giza.

But that's all in the past now. I'm just mighty glad that when my parents thought me up, the bicycle was already perfected.

Book rating: 6 Treks! (Oh wait, it only goes up to 5!)

Custom-Designs

Happily, there's a love of cycling in our gene pool. My cousin sent me an email this week:

I just purchased a custom road bike — a Waterford RS-14, made to fit, choice of color, and built to my specification of parts. It took about six weeks to get the frame, and a week or so to get the parts and to build it. I really like it alot, its kinda built with performance and comfort in mind, with an emphasis on durability.

The wheels were custom built at the bike shop where I ordered the bike and came out real nice. Its not lightweight by any means at just over 20 pounds. But it's quicker off the line and maintains a good speed, so far I have been able to average 2-3 mph faster than the previous bike.

Handling is top rate, it's especially more stable on descents at high speed. I've already put 170 miles on it in less than two weeks. I plan on doing a 62 mile (or metric century) this coming Saturday with Alan and 2,000 other riders, called "the Tour of Poway".

Looking forward to how it does.

Mirror, Mirror ...

A Useful Addition

An addition I've always found necessary when riding is a rear view mirror. You're continuously aware of what's ahead of you and what's behind—all in one glance.

There are a number of mirrors which mount in a variety of ways. Some fit into the hollow handle bar, or clamp on somewhere at the front of the bar.

The one I have on my bike attaches with a velcro strap and it seems the manufacturers chose the strongest velcro ever invented, to ensure this mirror stays attached. It has become part of the handlebar and is neither cumbersome nor intrusive. I've found them all to be like that.

What To Wear?

I decided to purchase a cycling jersey, for the first time in my life. Up 'til now, the customary T-shirt or polo jersey was the standard riding wear, however, when I began to make plans to participate in a 50-mile ride, I sought to prepare myself to be as physically comfortable as possible. This suddenly made Tees and polos unsuitable.

Following this year's Tour de France made me aware of a Colorado-based company called Pearl Izumi, which manufactures cycling apparel. I looked them up on the Internet and noted the type of material used — 100% Polyester. Great! Everybody on the planet makes and sells these so I figured once I got a sports jersey that was 100% polyester, I'd be a happy cyclist. Not so. I quickly learned that not all 100% polyesters are created equal.

All of the jerseys in the sports stores I visited were marked 100% on the little white label, but they were all remarkably different in texture. One of them made me drip with perspiration by just looking at it on the rack! They were also very inexpensive, suspiciously too inexpensive. So I went back to the Internet and looked at the variety from Pearl Izumi on Amazon. I chose this one:

This is the Women's Symphony Cycling Jersey. I loved this colour and ordered one. In fact, I got another type of blue, not as gorgeous as this one, but still very nice-looking. This one's also marked "100% Polyester" on the little white label, but unlike the others in the stores, has a soft breathable texture. It's very well made and fits perfectly. It really does wick perspiration away from you, keeping you cool as you concentrate on battling the hills.

The Symphony cost me US$25.00 — this was pleasantly surprising because I made a trip to a couple bike shops and the jerseys there cost US$63.00 and up. Of course, they were all printed up like mad, with logos and team names.

Speaking of teams, Izumi also has this one:

I love it! This design belongs to my favourite team. Ironically, I particularly like that their name and sponsors' logos do not appear on the jersey. I'd be somehow very reluctant to wear a replica of a team's exact outfit. Compared to the Symphony I bought, this design costs US$89.95!

These days I've been wondering how come it costs more than three times as much to buy a garment with a team's design on it. Unless this comes down by 70% in price, I'm not sure I could afford it coming anytime soon to a mailbox near me.

(Note: The manufacturer's sizes and Amazon's "Merchant's Sizing Chart" are different. For the correct fit, order using the manufacturer's sizes.)

The Trek 7100 Hybrid

A hybrid is a cross between a road bike and a mountain bike. The wheels are large like a road bike's but it's designed to travel on trails, which customary road bikes cannot handle. So the hybrid tyres are not pencil-thin and the handlebar's angle is movable.

The 7100 is a super bike! There are a million things right with this bike. Let's consider them all.

The saddle is very comfortable - no need to elaborate there. The suspension (called Rapid Suspension Technology — RST) is smooth, making for a fine ride and the location of the handlebar in relation to the seat is perfect. My previous bike is a Trek (820) but the seat and handlebar are not placed apart ideally so I spend most of the time feeling that I'm reaching out for the handlebars.

The handlebars on the hybrid are also angled perfectly, unlike my experience with the Trek 820, which gives the wrists a twisted sensation.

The ride from the 820 is still a good ride but now that the 7100 has showed up, it is really quite a contrast. It's also lighter in weight and the root-beer-and-white colour scheme is beautiful.

I'm looking forward to traversing many miles on this bike.