Comrades

What are these 'bike trails' you speak of? In Mississippi, you ride on the road, or you don't ride at all. As well, I rode 110 miles in the past four days, and I was the only cyclist I saw. Maybe a gay guy would eventually pull over?

Anyway, I spent like an hour fiddling with the damn brakes, and I just went on an hour long ride and clocked in at 8mph, like usual. Perhaps it's just because I'm exhausted from all the riding.
 
Darla said:
This has been an interesting thread. I am nearly mechanically handicapped I guess. It's really bad. But as a point of pride I have really wanted to take one of those bike repair classes that good bike shops give. I just haven't gotten around to it. I really don't know if it would help, that's how bad I am. But until and if I ever get better, the head-tilt is classic, and that damn move always works, every time. Do you know why? It's because you look slightly puzzled and they can't pass up an opportunity to mansplain!
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Given the number of flats I have had, I am very good at replacing tubes! Useful skill to have.

But when the tandem had a couple flats and we ran out of tubes... luckily we were only a few miles from home and there were a couple guys nearby with a pickup truck who were willing to take us and the bike the rest of the way... didn't even take money, think they just liked having a story to tell!

Did have something major happen while on an organized bike ride re brake cables; got sag'ged back to last rest stop, they had someone who could fix it, and I finished the ride...

There was one time the husband's chain did a major delodge/frame scarring/breaking thing and we had to call a friend to come take us home... so keep some phone numbers handy! On his beautiful YFoil too...
 
Guan Yu said:
What are these 'bike trails' you speak of? In Mississippi, you ride on the road, or you don't ride at all. As well, I rode 110 miles in the past four days, and I was the only cyclist I saw. Maybe a gay guy would eventually pull over?

Anyway, I spent like an hour fiddling with the damn brakes, and I just went on an hour long ride and clocked in at 8mph, like usual. Perhaps it's just because I'm exhausted from all the riding.
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Bike trails are usually too slow due to all the pedestrians; I prefer roads. BUT - there was one place we used to ride thru where the roads were just too dangerous, so we went on the bike trails through that section.

Pretty funny - we were riding in a red-neck section of town and a couple guys called my husband a fag because of the bike clothes...he was riding with me, so not sure what that made me... people are sure weird! He just laughed.
 
Guan Yu said:
What are these 'bike trails' you speak of? In Mississippi, you ride on the road, or you don't ride at all. As well, I rode 110 miles in the past four days, and I was the only cyclist I saw. Maybe a gay guy would eventually pull over?

Anyway, I spent like an hour fiddling with the damn brakes, and I just went on an hour long ride and clocked in at 8mph, like usual. Perhaps it's just because I'm exhausted from all the riding.
Click to expand...

Oh Mississippi sucks even worse than I thought! No bike trails!
 
tekkychick said:
Given the number of flats I have had, I am very good at replacing tubes! Useful skill to have.

But when the tandem had a couple flats and we ran out of tubes... luckily we were only a few miles from home and there were a couple guys nearby with a pickup truck who were willing to take us and the bike the rest of the way... didn't even take money, think they just liked having a story to tell!

Did have something major happen while on an organized bike ride re brake cables; got sag'ged back to last rest stop, they had someone who could fix it, and I finished the ride...

There was one time the husband's chain did a major delodge/frame scarring/breaking thing and we had to call a friend to come take us home... so keep some phone numbers handy! On his beautiful YFoil too...
Click to expand...

Yep, if worse comes to worse, you call someone.
 
tekkychick said:
Bike trails are usually too slow due to all the pedestrians; I prefer roads. BUT - there was one place we used to ride thru where the roads were just too dangerous, so we went on the bike trails through that section.

Pretty funny - we were riding in a red-neck section of town and a couple guys called my husband a fag because of the bike clothes...he was riding with me, so not sure what that made me... people are sure weird! He just laughed.
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Oh I avoid roads at all costs, I've had nothing but problems on them. I don't think there are safe roads for biking. Not here anyway. Maybe rural areas.

Yeah, it's so weird how people just hate cyclists. And the man riding bike = gay thing is even weirder.
 
Darla said:
Oh Mississippi sucks even worse than I thought! No bike trails!
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Bike trails are for urban pansies! Out here, the entire world is our bike trail, we don't get segregated off into some short, pre planned trail that goes nowhere. There's hardly any cars, so we get most of the transportation system basically to ourselves. Bike trails are the opiate of the bicycling masses!

Then again, there is US-49. One day, I'm going to feel brave enough to ride on that road. Today, however, is not that day.
 
tekkychick said:
Bike trails are usually too slow due to all the pedestrians; I prefer roads. BUT - there was one place we used to ride thru where the roads were just too dangerous, so we went on the bike trails through that section.

Pretty funny - we were riding in a red-neck section of town and a couple guys called my husband a fag because of the bike clothes...he was riding with me, so not sure what that made me... people are sure weird! He just laughed.
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In modern parlance being a fag has nothing to do with being a homosexual.
 
Darla said:
Oh I avoid roads at all costs, I've had nothing but problems on them. I don't think there are safe roads for biking. Not here anyway. Maybe rural areas.

Yeah, it's so weird how people just hate cyclists. And the man riding bike = gay thing is even weirder.
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Yeah, but you live in NYC. I get somewhat nervous riding on Caesar road on Picayune, where the traffic density was high enough that sometimes I'd have to pull over and let cars pass me because there would be cars on the other side preventing them from safely passing. I also rode on MS-29 once, for about an hour - it wasn't so bad at first, but it was approaching rush hour, and by the end of the route I was almost spending more time letting people pass than I was biking. As I mentioned before, I'm also right next to US-49, and while it at least has shoulders, they disappear in overpasses or bridges. I've yet to get the bravery to take a lane as necessary to ride over the bridge crossing a river to the North, so it's effectively kept me out of the northern part of the county, unless I want to take detours of an hour or more.

One thing that helps is a rear view mirror, I've got one mounted on my glasses that lets me easily see behind me. But in general, how fun a route is is inversely proportional to the traffic. Ideally, you only see one car every five minutes or less. I couldn't imagine riding on NYC.
 
Darla said:
Oh I avoid roads at all costs, I've had nothing but problems on them. I don't think there are safe roads for biking. Not here anyway. Maybe rural areas.

Yeah, it's so weird how people just hate cyclists. And the man riding bike = gay thing is even weirder.
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There was a road near us with nice wide lanes, including the parking lane. The traffic guy in that city wanted to eliminate the parking lane because "too many" cyclists were using it; he wanted us on the bike trails - which were limited to 15 mph, and that's assuming no people were walking on them. In the road, at that particular area, we could FLY. We moved, so don't know what happened, but I couldn't believe he wanted to make the trials less safe just because he didn't like cyclists on the road... It was a great road for cyclists, and with the parking lane (which was rarely used) we could fly along safely.

oh well, everyone has their preference. Sadly where we are now and with various "life happens" things, biking just doesn't work well for us anymore. I miss it.
 
Oh well, I tried camping out solo tonight at my mom's. Camping solo is, of course, necessary if I'm going to get to California on my bike. Surprisingly, I wasn't that scared of the dark, which was what I was expecting. I just couldn't go to sleep. Then I discovered I had a splitting headache, and I remembered that I'd somehow forgotten to take caffeine today. When I went in to get a coke and Tylenol, I just didn't feel like going back out. So, make sure to drink caffeine, and pack Tylenol, and the dark isn't so scary but a tent just isn't that comfortable, it's impossible to camp next to your mom's house with the constant temptation to go inside where the AC is.

The outdoors: 1
Watermark: 0
 
Well, I'm planning a bike ride sometime this week up to my brother in Starkville, 200 miles away. I'm planning to make one century (one hundred mile bike ride) up to Bienville national forest, a convenient midpoint where I will sleep, and another century up to my brother the next day. This will prepare me for my eventual trip across the nation.
 
Guan Yu said:
Well, I'm planning a bike ride sometime this week up to my brother in Starkville, 200 miles away. I'm planning to make one century (one hundred mile bike ride) up to Bienville national forest, a convenient midpoint where I will sleep, and another century up to my brother the next day. This will prepare me for my eventual trip across the nation.
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Good luck! I have never been that adventurous, I am a creature of comfort.
 
Guan Yu said:
Oh well, I tried camping out solo tonight at my mom's. Camping solo is, of course, necessary if I'm going to get to California on my bike. Surprisingly, I wasn't that scared of the dark, which was what I was expecting. I just couldn't go to sleep. Then I discovered I had a splitting headache, and I remembered that I'd somehow forgotten to take caffeine today. When I went in to get a coke and Tylenol, I just didn't feel like going back out. So, make sure to drink caffeine, and pack Tylenol, and the dark isn't so scary but a tent just isn't that comfortable, it's impossible to camp next to your mom's house with the constant temptation to go inside where the AC is.

The outdoors: 1
Watermark: 0
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Sleeping outside is easy when you're drunk. Whenever I go camping, I rarely even use my sleeping bag. Hell, I've slept outside my tent more than a couple times (also invest in a Thermocell to repel insects).
 
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