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Odds ‘n Ends

11.07.2010 by Ray Niekamp // 5 Comments

Re-energized

Not me -- but the right idea.

After a week off the bike because of the derailleur situation, I went out for a 26-mile ride Saturday morning.  I wondered if the time off would make it harder for me to climb hills and maintain a strong pace.  I needn’t have worried.  My hill climbing was stronger.  Higher speeds came easier.  The week-long layoff did me good.

That got me wondering — what’s the point of diminishing returns?  How much time does it take before being off the bike translates into a noticeable loss of power and endurance?

Riding without a cell phone

I was making preparations to leave on my Saturday morning ride, but I couldn’t find my cell phone.  It wasn’t anywhere in the house that I could see.  It wasn’t left in the car.  Then I remembered.  At work Friday, I plugged it into a charger.  I must have left Friday afternoon and forgotten to take it with me.

Saturday was the first day in forever that I had ridden without a cell phone.  Funny how important those things have become.  Always, in the back of my mind, I was thinking: “What if I crash?  What if I need help for some reason?”  It was an extra careful ride.

Sunday, I rode with my wife, who had her own phone with her.  But when she finished, I decided to head back out for another 12 miles or so.  It was a little easier for me this time, and I wasn’t constantly thinking about the missing phone.  But you can bet I’ll make sure it’s with me when I leave work from now on.

Funny — it wasn’t that many years ago that we rode anywhere without them.

Christmas wishes

While riding with my wife this morning, she said, “For Christmas, I’d like a pair of those biking capris.”

“Huh?”

“You know, the bike tights that stop just below the knee.”

“Oh, those are called knickers.”

“Yeah — I want some.”

“I thought you wanted new cycling shoes?”

“Oh yeah — I want those too.”

Looks like it’ll be a cycling Christmas around our house.

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Categories // Odds 'n ends Tags // cell phone, clothing, training

We need a pre-ride checklist!

02.22.2009 by Ray Niekamp // 2 Comments

My wife has ridden in the Hill Country Ride for AIDS the last two years, and has started training for the ride again this year. Today, some friends were planning to ride some hills near Dripping Springs, about 15 miles west of here. Since it’s our favorite area ride, we said we’d come along.

But the day dawned sunny and cold. Cold in Central Texas in February is in the mid-30sF. Our friend Scott, who was organizing the ride, called to suggest we hold off until 10 a.m., when the temperature was supposed to get a bit higher. We were all for that.

I dressed and started loading up the bikes around 9, but we were still on the fence about a ride. Then our friend Susie called. She said she would be on the ride this morning, and wanted to know if we would be, too. We haven’t seen Susie for months, and since this was a good way to catch up, we said yes! and bustled around the house and garage, getting everything ready.

The bikes were on the car. The shoes and helmets were in the back. Our water bottles were filled. I even remembered to bring the floor pump. We hopped in and drove off.

About five miles from home, Pat said she would call Scott, and let him know when we would arrive at the starting point. She looked around, then started rummaging around the car. “I can’t find my phone!” she said, with some urgency.

stormThe phone was a brand new Blackberry Storm we’d just bought on Friday. Pat tried retracing her steps.

“I had it in my hand in the kitchen,” she said. “I think I must have put it down on the counter when I went to get my protein shake [her usual pre-ride meal].”

Since we always ride with cell phones, I pulled over to the side of the road for a more thorough inspection. We looked between the seats, under the seats, in the back, on the roof. But if it had been left on the roof, it could be in the road anywhere between here and back home. I called her number with my cell. Couldn’t hear any ring. We hopped back in the car and I did a U-turn.

Back at home, it wasn’t in the kitchen. Pat was now sure she’d left it on the roof of the car, and was walking back up the street, searching in vain. I did another check of the interior of the car, continually calling her number with my cell.

Finally, I heard the notes of “Fur Elise” coming faintly from somewhere inside the car. It took two more calls, but I finally found it wedged between her seat and the transmission hump. A very relieved Mrs. Noob got back in the car, and we headed for Dripping Springs again.

She tried calling Scott, to tell him we’d be late. But she’s still having trouble with the fancy new 3G phone. She couldn’t read the icons on its screen. Then, she had problems reading the list of contact numbers she’d stored.

“I left my reading glasses in the house,” she said.

“We’re not going back again,” I replied.

Eventually, she left messages for both Scott and Susie, telling of our predicament. But it turned out Susie was running late, too. When we got to the parking lot, there she was, just getting her bike off the car rack. “Scott left ten minutes ago,” she said.

The three of us set off. The temperature had climbed to the upper 40s, and there was no wind. We had a very nice ride, but when it was over, we made a resolution.

We’re going to come up with a checklist to make sure we don’t leave anything behind.

Is this something you’ve ever tried? If so, what items are on it? And where do you keep the checklist so you don’t forget it?

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Categories // Odds 'n ends, Rides Tags // cell phone, checklist

Leaving cell phones behind

02.13.2009 by Ray Niekamp // 1 Comment

Whenever I prepare to head out on a ride, I grab a plastic sandwich bag, wrap my cell phone up in it, and stick it in my middle back pocket. Normally, I’m not much of a cell phone user. I never use up all my monthly minutes. But I consider it to be a piece of “must” equipment on a ride.

Even so, I manage to forget the thing once in awhile. It’s not a problem if I don’t discover that it’s missing until after the ride, but if I reach back to check the pocket during the ride and it’s not there, it puts a damper on the entire time on the bike. If possible, I’m likely to cut the ride short in a situation like that, simply because I find that being without a cell phone is unsettling.

A couple of weeks ago, I was on a ride with Mrs. Noob. A typical ride with her goes something like this: I ride 15-16 mph, she rides 10-11 mph, and I stop to wait for her every two miles or so. On this occasion, I was at a stoplight just a mile into the ride. Another rider pulled up next to me. Mrs. Noob was lagging behind, hoping the light would turn green before she got to the intersection. She hates to unclip, because that means she has to clip in again. And she really hates that.

When the light changed, the other rider shot across the road. I stood on the pedals and kept pace. He shifted into a harder gear, and started a long gentle climb. I stayed on his wheel, then passed him just before the next stoplight. We rode together and chatted for another mile, and then I told him I was at the usual “wait” spot, and wished him a good ride.

When Mrs. Noob caught up to me, she was in high dudgeon. “You can’t just take off like that,” she said. “I forgot my cell phone, and I have no way to tell you if I get into trouble.”

“Sorry,” I replied. “When I’m around another rider like that, I have to see what he’s got.”

“Oh, swell. Act like a little boy, and leave me high and dry.”

Hm. Didn’t know you’d forgotten your phone until just now. And I did wait in front of the school, just like I always do. But in her mind, I was clearly at fault. Suitably chastened, I started off slowly with her again. We decided to take a Mopac loop. It starts with a short downhill, where I usually reach 28-30 mph. This time I kept it down to about 20. After a mile, I heard her call, “Speed up! I’m not dead, y’know.”

For the rest of the ride, we stayed close enough together that we could have talked via tin cans and string. If we had them.

Then there was the time I crashed. If ever a cell phone could come in handy, it would be at a time like that. I rode a sore 15 miles after the crash, but finally decided to pack it in. I reached for my cell phone to call Pat — for Mrs. Noob really does have a name — and it came out of my pocket in three pieces. Turned out that I’d landed right on it. Luckily, I wasn’t the only rider in the group who felt unequipped without a cell phone, so I borrowed one from one of the other guys, and she was there in 25 minutes, to give me the ride home.

My cell phone is parked on the counter between the kitchen and living room. If I ever need it, I know it will be there. The plastic bag is in a drawer just below it. With that kind of organization, I’ll never be without the phone on a ride again. Until I am.

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Categories // Accessories Tags // Accessories, cell phone

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