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Bike Trail Blog I
Bike Trails, Bike Stories
and Articles - Archive 1
5/20/2003 - 2/28/2004
This page is dedicated to bike trail
information, cycling articles and casual bike stories, comments and articles...
2/28/2004 - First Ride! Riding season starts...
Spring is in the air! Yep,
it's getting much nicer out (here in Chicagoland) and today was one of those first
beautiful spring days... (a little cool and wet, but still really nice).
Well, I had a break in the action today, and dug out the orange bat (my bike). I remembered that my bike was just
about shot and figured I would need to replace it this year, but I forgot what was wrong
with it until I dug it out and started riding... Well, the biggest problem is that the
front derailer broke off (due to a bent pedal assembly)... I really don't think that it is
worth fixing this time (I know... I've only gotten about 25 or 30 years out of the bike,
but... :-) ) So basically, I now have a 5 speed (it may actually just be four, I'll have
to check)...
Anyway, I did my maiden ride for the season today (11.2 miles) and it
really felt great! (even on a 4 or 5 speed)...
11/15/2003 - Probably the End of the Bike Season...
I guess I've just about hung up the old bike pedals for the season. I am
just not real inspired to get out in the colder weather and ride... besides, I've got a
new record to beat for next year already. I'm back to the walkin/runnin routine again
(just walkin so far).
10/26/2003 - End of the season FREE Ride!
Well, the time change (back to daylight wasting time) usually marks
about the end of my bike riding season and since I am starting work again tomorrow (for 3
months anyway), I had to get in at least one last ride as a FREE
man! I also just wanted to click past the 1300 mile mark, since I was so close...
My front Derailer just broke on my last ride so that may be about it for the old Orange
Bat... I believe that I may be raplacing the Bat for next season...
I may still do a few more late season miles if the we get another great
indian summer day (on a weekend) or if I get inspired or something, but that is probably
just about it for this year... It's been a great season!
7/25/2003 -
Bike Horns vs Bike Bells
OK, this is just a follow-up to the bell
article below. Some people actually prefer a horn... Personally, I am still looking for
some small bike size electrical device that plays short tunes for a warning :-)
Article Contributed by: Dale Kiffel
Well after my usual ride this morning, I
finally bought an ooga horn. I was on the path in the park and an adult with 2
kids saw me but didn't move the kids, and I had to go off path. I kept making noises
but noone seemed to hear. The kid was swinging his back pack and almost hit
me. I tried to grab it just to wake him up but missed...
So I went to Target and bought an ooga
horn. The deluxe model with the wrap in the bell that makes it look like a
bugle or a french horn. $4.99. The other cheaper kids model was $2.99.
After using it for awhile, it has been
working great. I honk it about a 1/2 a block away and there's plenty of time for
people to react. Even little kids hear it and instinctively turn around and get out
of the way. People stop with their dogs, turn around, grab the leash tighter and stand off
to the side. Some people actually appreciate the warning rather than sneaking up and
scaring them. In a populated area where there's tons of walkers with kids, it has
been great. As someone told me recently, loud pipes on a Harley equals
safety. Maybe a loud horn equals safety also, as long as you're not too
much of a jerk.
Actually the "incredibel" or one
like it might be better, since it is lighter and less wind resistant, but I have not had
the opportunity to test it out.
6/30/2003 -
Vernon Hills Bike Paths
I have just recently found
some nice bike paths in the Vernon Hills area (Illinois). Unfortunately, I did not bring
my camcorder (for the still pics) when I took the bike path tour (with a friend of mine as
the guide) and I don't have any real specific bike path, intersection and park names, etc.
I am planning on doing an update before the season is over though.
Here's what I can tell you...
There are some really nice bike paths in this area, if you know where to go and how to get
around... Very wooded and scenic. We did about 12 miles, but this included a lot of legs
off of the main trails.
The bike path that we were on
borders the Vernon Hills golf course and also goes right to the Vernon Hills train
station. there is a little underpass that connects to the Sullivan Woods bicycle path
(which is right around the Sugar Creek subdivision).
If you go to the metra train
station in Vernon hills, as a starting point, you will have a couple of options... Go
through the underpass and do the Sullivan Woods bike path or cross the highway (60 or 45?)
and go up to the Deerpath Park path and area. Both are very nice.
I really must get better info
to explain this... Like I said I'll try for the pictures and better directions on my next
update...
6/10/2003 -
Mile 419 (for 2003) Major Repairs...
I just did a little 15 mile
trip yesterday and had a major breakdown at about mile 14! Wow, was I lucky that I was
almost back home... One of the major bolts on my crank shaft assembly broke! The whole
pedal assembly was just wobbling back and forth... It was partially rideable but the chain
kept coming off and after a while it just wasn't worth it anymore.
I did discover though that if
your tires and wheels are still OK, you can glide along or use the bike as a scooter! It
is actually quite a bit faster than walking and is great down hills, of course. The only
problem with this is the leg that you use to stand on the pedal with can get pretty tired
after a while (it's a good thing I was about a mile from home when this happened).
OK, now it came to the point
where I was wondering if it was worth it to repair this old antique (10 speed) bike or
just go out and get a new one. As for myself, I have already pretty much decided that a hybrid
bicycle would be my next purchase. I do more distance than off the road riding,
but I will occasionally go off the road on to some pretty rough trails one in a while. I
like the mid sized tires and comfortable ride.
Anyway, I shopped around a
little (online and off) and have found the kind of bike that I would select and the
features that I like, but finances are a little bit tight right now, so I decided to hold
off a little (maybe I can get a great end of the season deal...). The hybid bikes that I
liked the best (with the 700 mm tires, front and rear anti shock suspension, etc) were
$250 to $300 and the parts to fix my crankshaft assembly were $6.00... I choose the $6.00
option for now and am pushing ol faithful (my batavus bike) a little longer...
5/20/2003 -
To Bell or Not to Bell...
OK, I'm going to kick this off
with a little note (just my own opinions, observations and preferences) on bicycle
bells. This is mostly bike trail related, although it really applies to biking in
general.
I bought daughter a bike bell
last year and picked one up for myself while I was at it. As you probably know, most (but
not all) bicycle bells are really pretty cheap (you can find a good selection online and
cheap)... Anyway, I got the bell mostly because on bike trails you are often passing
people and, when coming up from behind, it is usually a good idea to let the people that
you are passing know that you are there.
When passing people on a trail
(or where ever...), you have a couple of options... If the trail is wide enough, and it is
an individual person (walking for example) there is usually no problem... just ride on by.
If you have two or more people walking side by side and possible taking up much of the
trail, you need to let then know that you are coming, which usually means a vocal warning
(i.e. yelling out "on your left"... or "excuse me"... or "get off
the *$#@!"... :-) or whatever your favorite notification is...), using a bell or in
some cases just trying to make a little noise so you are noticed (stop pedaling for the
clicking noise, switch gears, etc.)
Anyway, I'm kind of a quite
person myself and just prefer a friendly ding on the bell. This can actually be a little
bit of a skill to develop... kind of like honking a car horn (you can lay on the horn for
a few seconds to make an irritated sounding honk or just tap out a friendly beep beep
sound)... anyway, with the bicycle bell you can do a little ch-ching back aways or wait
until you are a few feet behind them and lay on a bunch of chachings... (OK, I know that I
am rambling on about this... but I wanted to make the point and there will be some of you
out there that know what I mean :-) ). I always prefer the friendly way, but you need to
be sure that you are heard... which is actually the trick... being heard and not scaring
the @# out of the people that you are passing.
Bicycle Bells for Safety
OK, enough on the art of
bicycle bell ringing, the other important point that I really wanted to make is that a
simple bicycle bell can really be a good bicycle safety device.
The big advantage here with
bike bells (for kids and adults) is that you can use them when you are approaching
a blind corner or speeding down a steep hill. I do this very often. It is just
common sense to let people know that you are coming. Yes, if you are on a low traffic
trail, 99% of the time no one will be there anyway... BUT... it's that 1% (just like seat
belts in a car). It just takes that one time, and if you avoid a problem or accident...
well there you have it...
If you are a parent, don't
forget to mention using your bike bell while going around tight corners, or down steel
hills, to you kids.
It's pretty easy to do a few
rings on the bike bell speeding down a hill, whereas most people would probably feel
pretty stupid trying to yell out a notification (although, I'm sure that some people may
really like yelling "yip, yip, yippie!", "kowabunga" or something like
that in that situation.
OK, I guess that I have made
my point and kicked off this page... As you can see this is intended to be a casual (but
possibly informational and helpful) forum.
Thanks for dropping by... stop
by again...
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