Commuting

Since my job change in August, I have been commuting to work by bike. I've had the desire to do so for quite some time, and since I had been spending $50+ on gas per week at my previous job, this has turned out quite nicely. It's not much of a ride really only 6 miles each way, but I absolutely love it.






What surprises me most and the part I want to instill into all of the minds that are curious about it is how little of a deal it is. I mean, it really is no big deal to ride to work. I'm not in that great of cycling shape thanks to having two in diapers and a wife with a great career. Not to mention I can't seem to turn down a cookie or a donut these days and you all now how I feel about beer. The bike that comes off the hook every morning to get me there is not a super sleek sexy titanium time machine. All it takes is a decision to do it, and to stick it out regardless of weather conditions. Once you're in the routine, it's just no big deal.

The ride: Mostly side streets. I take off down the 27th Ave from my house going west and see the same nice lady from a street over walking her Shi-Tzu. Nice lady. When I'm outside with the kids, she always get's a smile from Ellen. Then it's left on 31st street. Rolling hill up to McGowan then flat to 8th Ave. Right on 8th Ave to downtown Marion. A couple stop signs and a stop light at 8th Ave and 10th st. This is about when my ol' RAGBRAI buddy Blaine goes past me in his Ford Expedition. One time he rolled his window down and asked me jokingly if I owned a car. I replied "Don't you own a bike?" Then it's down a hill and up a hill to Lindale Ave. Then up another hill to Blairs Ferry Rd. Blairs Ferry is a busy, busy road. I take the streets when stoplights lull the traffic a bit, but the wide sidewalks are fine with me when the flood gates open. Blairs Ferry takes me all the way to the warehouse I call home. I cut behind a couple of businesses to stay off Blairs Ferry and to make the ride a little more interesting. All in all the 6 miles takes me a little less than 25 minutes. I obey traffic laws as to keep motorists from wanting to kill me. I do my best to blend into traffic but I always have my wits in case someone in a hurry hasn't had their morning coffee. It takes me 20 minutes to drive it, so I really can't justify not riding unless I'm cutting it that close to being on time. I hate being late. Just looks bad when you're in charge.






The Rig: My Surly Crosscheck. Purchased the frame from my friend Rich in Aurora, IL. No bling on this bike at all. This bitch is all business. I wanted her to be somewhat aggressive, but not to the point of being completely uncomfortable. I wanted her to not be tempting to thieves, so kept the black theme going with no shiny bits. Most of all, I wanted her to be able to take a beating. So for you fellow bike geeks, I'll run it down for you, but don't get too excited:

• 2005 Surly Cross check frame and fork


• Bontrager seatpost straight out the spare parts bin


• Azonic stem: A freebie from Rich that I had on another bike a few years ago (out of the bin)


• Surly F/R hubs Freewheel flip-flop. No fixie's for me. I like to coast down hills. (Out of the bin)


• Velocity Deep-V rims 32 hole 3x pattern with straight 14 gauge spokes


• Circa 1973 Wrights Brother's leather saddle. Surprisingly comfy and adds a little style. (Out of the bin)


• One-One Midge bars


• Dia-Comp V brake road levers


• Paul Components Touring Canti's. Sweet brakes for Canti's, but I freakin' hate Canti's. Rich sold them to me cheap with the frame though, so I bought them.


• Continental something or other tires I had on my touring bike. 700x28.


• Plain ol' black bar tape
• Specialized Strongarm II cranks (out of the bin)
• 44t Salsa Chainring (Ebay)
• Sram PC 58 chain (I always keep a couple of these around)
• 16t Shimano Freewheel (Out of the bin)
• Crank Bros Candy pedals

Alright Already

I've been under heavy scrutiny to update my blog more often. Now that I know Grandma Thompson is checking it, I may be more apt to update it more. Me and the girls went up to Clear Lake this weekend to see the family. Mom had a rough week last week with her business partner passing away and all. She wanted to see the girls so I headed up there. Grandpa and Grandma Thompson (my Mom's side) are making there yearly migration to their house in Kissee Mills, Missouri. For those of you who have never been to this booming metropolis, it's really close to Branson and a stone's throw from the trails of Syllamo Arkansas. Strangely, I've never been to the Syllamo trails. Anyway, the whole fam damily was there from the Thompson side. We had prime rib and put down a few frosty beverages. Brandon (aka Pudge) spent a little time with Ellen.

Stacey stayed home this weekend to work on projects both at work and at home. I'm sure she got done what she needed to at the office. I was hoping she would get our foundation painted too, but she ran out of paint at the final hour. Oh well, there's not much left to do there.

I don't think she'll be too anxious to let me take the girls on my own again for a while. We weren't in Clear Lake for 2 hours before the first injury occurred. Mara tipped her chair backwards at the table at lunch. She pushes her feet against the table in her booster chair. At our house the chair will slide backwards, which she thinks is pretty funny. At Mom and Dad's, the chairs don't slide so good, so she tipped backwards and banged her head pretty good on the back of the chair. She didn't think that was very funny.

Next up was Ellen. Both girls were having fun playing on the deck. Ellen was doing a good job all afternoon of crawling from one level of the deck to the other. The last time she did it, she slipped a little and face planted. Busted her top and bottom lips open and bled like a stuck hog. For those city folk checking this out, stuck hogs bleed a lot. She took it like a champ though, cried for a few minutes and then we got the old Ellen back pretty quickly.

Most of the rest of the night went on without incident. Mara just doesn't like crowds. I can understand that, since I don't either. She's content to do her own thing and is actually most happy with just a few familiar people in the room. She got to see her cousin Trenton again which was cool. Trenton is the son of my cousin Missy. He's a good kid, and I must say Missy is doing a great job raising her on her own.

Dad is busier than hell with work, so we didn't get to see much of him. Mom is coming down in a couple of weeks when Stacey is in Dallas. Maybe Dad can join us then. We'll see.

Roughing it

Went camping and riding in Decorah last weekend with my buddy Ken. We drove my POS truck up with Josey (my dog) with all essential gear, and then some, our bikes, and a cooler full of beer. It was a beautiful weekend up there. What a beautiful area too. I remember being there on RAGBRAI, but didn't remember how scenic it was. Friday night was clear and cold. Got down to about 42 degrees. Great sleeping weather. There was nearly a full moon. We hiked up a ledge and got a great pic of the moon over the town.

The riding was awesome. Extremely hilly, which made singlespeeding a bitch but the trails kicked ass most of the time. Ken is a great rider. Very smooth and great technical rider.

We rode pretty much all day on Saturday, and a little on Sunday morning. Setting up camp is okay. Being in camp is awesome. Tearing down camp sucks ass. I have every contraption imaginable in my camping bins. It's hardly roughing it. Coffee pot, iron pots for cooking. No burgers and weenies for me man, we're talking gourmet in camp food terms. I have this breakfast casserole I make in my iron dutch oven. A full greasy cure your hangover and get you ready to hammer singletrack breakfast all in one pot. Something about eating it outside makes it so much better.

Can't wait to get back there sometime. Though I'll try to be in better shape when I do. Those hills really whooped me. Either need to gear down a notch or bring a better pair of legs with me.