follow the rabbit

A counter clockwise circumambulation of the Tungsten Hills outside of Bishop, California, Eastern Sierra Nevada, The Range of Light. Never does one sleep well before an event like this. Not really an event. A pilgrimage. A spiritual return to the land, the sacred. A repetitive perfect foot placement on the earth meditation. A circular prayer. Hands touch together at the heart in awe of mountains. Making up mantras along the way: follow the rabbit, balance and glide, follow the rabbit… Always does one sleep well after an event like this. 

keep your feet under you

Or, stay above your feet. It sounds like obvious knowledge for runners and walkers and ambulators of all kinds but although it's basic it needs repeated practice. And the more I think about foot placement while I'm running the more I come back to this same beginning. Whether it's running in conventional running shoes, fluorescent minimalist trend-setters, barefoot, or dress shoes… it's all the same starting point. Feet under and equal - if they're way out in front then way out in back but better yet just short and quick turn over without over trying - the feet, the legs the body knows what to do if you just get out of its way. The perfect stride lies somewhere between practice and instinct, effort and glide, one foot and the other, one foot and the other… A decade of running practice and I'm still practicing the first lesson… always practicing the first lesson. 

one less rain ride

I had a chance to get in one last rain ride for the season last night. I passed. I got in the car and rode home with "the ladies." It was a bit of a downpour. Unexpected. I could have just waited about several minutes and it would have mostly passed, leaving me to glide through scattered drops between bisected rosy and turbulent dusk skies. Might have been nice. A memory I'll never have but probably dream about. So today I'll run up and retrieve the Mule from one of its very rare nights away from the shed (she spent the night in luxury - dry and warm and safe) and ride back down the hill. 

1 cm up

Three handlebars went up one centimeter today - MM, T80's, and Masi. 

7 to 9

The Mule is undergoing a transition, a metamorphosis. She hasn't been able to shift gears in the back for a few years now. Finally, now that her rider is getting old, it's time to ease the pain and downshift on those hills and hauls. I don't care much about 9-speed in the rear exactly but I found a good 9-speed shifter and as 7-speed shifters have become increasingly rare I figured it was time to make the jump - not "the leap," though, as I've stuck with Shimano. I've been stockpiling parts for the operation for a few weeks now. 

I finally got around to going forward with the project the other day. It included: the newer right-side shifter/brake lever combo; a new brake cable and housing - the old housing was so shot; new 9-speed cassette - the hub was already 9-speed since we got the new rims a couple years ago - been running a spacer behind the 7-speed cassette; newer 9-speed chain - the one off the road bike after it got a new chain.  

Everything went on mostly smoothly. On the test ride, though, I realized that the middle chainring was not really grasping the chain as it went around the bottom. After further inspection I noticed that the chainring has become very sharky. Sharp, jagged teeth. So I'm working on getting lined up with a replacement for that too. In the meantime I can ride fairly smoothly on the Granny or Big ring. 

I didn't change the rear derailleur. I wasn't sure if it would work with the new setup. It does - almost. It won't shift into the largest/lowest gear so really it's only an 8-speed. Pretty good, though. Maybe I'll replace that someday, too. 

Man! That's the most work Mindful Mule has ever had done on her. She sure is getting expensive in her old age. But worth every penny. My Kingdom for a Mule…

SoCal boy terrified of 34 degree morning ride

I'm one of those cyclist that has chronically frozen feet at pretty much any temperature below 64 degrees and sunny. So I'm basically [doomed]. Because I'm going to Solvang for a cold all day ride this weekend (why is it so cold up there?). Now, to be honest, it's just the low that's forecast at 34 but we are planning a very early start and the first 30 miles or so appear to be mostly downhill. So my idea is to dress warmly (good thinking!). And just suck up carrying the extra layers all day as it warms up to low sixties. Does humidity help or hurt me in a situation like this? It's going to be pretty wet/coastal and windy most of the day. So like I said… Here's my secret voodoo. Let me know if you approve. A liner sock with an inside out wool sock over it. Why inside out? Hmm, well, because I figure all those nice little nooks and crannies for air pockets will be better as insulation just off the skin. And I figure inside-out-ed-ness must attract some sympathy from the gods. My backup plan is a few shots of something warm in my jersey pocket… 

currently reading

Off the Map: Bicycling Across Siberia
by Mark Jenkins, 1992.

don't you sit on my blue (faux) suede saddle

Mindful Mule has a new saddle. "It's a small world" or more specifically it's a "Mundialita." Just like the old one but blue which means Mindful is now officially the bluest mule around - exhibiting just about every blue shade in the spectrum. Kinda like Paul Bunion's Ox, I suppose... 

Unbalanced

I rode about five miles the other night with no seat or seat post… and it was rather enlightening. Most notable was that without a seat a bicycle, or my bicycle, anyway, feels extremely unbalanced. This is primarily due to the method that I use to carry my stuff - all in a right side basket. And on that night I was heavily loaded. But that's not unusual. I regularly ride around for dozens of miles with heavy right-sided loads. But I've rarely noticed this sensation… Now, though, the cat is out of the bag, so to speak, and, even though "a" seat is back on, I can't help but notice this imbalance almost constantly, even when unloaded. It took me a while to figure out what my original seat height was, though, and I, at first, installed it too low, but as it got higher and higher the perception of balance slowly returned. So, I guess, the seat really does a lot more than just providing a place to set your butt - it also seems to act as a, what would you call it? a rudder, I suppose. Soon we'll be hammering away again as usual and this whole "incident" will be forgotten…

all day bike path

Although I don't do a lot of bike path riding I spent most of the day yesterday on a path following two rivers through the area. It was particularly nice to just spin and spin and spin for long periods of time without having to stop for cross traffic or deal with cars in any way. It really allows you to cover a lot of ground with significantly less effort than riding on the street. And even though these rivers have long ago been cemented into their chutes it was great to follow their waters all the way to the sea and then look back and see the distant snow capped peaks providing the flow from far off in the hazy sky. 

currently reading

Roll Around Heaven All Day: A Piecemeal Journey Across America by Bicycle
by Stan Purdum, 1997

and 

Backpacks, Boots and Baguettes: Walking in the Pyrenees
by Simon Clder and Mick Webb, 2004

Just Outside Paris

I live just outside Los Angeles. But I'm tired of riding around LA. The other night I figured out a way to remedy the situation. I imagine that I'm riding around Paris. Suddenly everything I see, the streets, lights, cars, people, buildings - all are new to me. And my mind opens up at bit, releases from its rut. Ceci n'est pas Les Anges... 

salt to taste

I spiked my water bottle with salt on Saturday's run through the Arroyo. Just a couple dashes worth in a 20oz-ish bottle. The fist sip is expectedly salty. The rest are fine. I think it helped with overall fluid balance throughout the run. I'm going to keep experimenting with this. Maybe I'll use it on rides, too.

Oprah

Oprah is interviewing Lance Armstrong on January 17th. 

currently reading

The Secret Race; Inside the Hidden World of the Tour de France: Doping, Cover-ups, and Winning at All Costs.
by Tyler Hamilton and Daniel Coyle, 2012.

and just finished 

Why We Run: A Natural History.
by Bernd Heinrich, 2001.
(second time I've read this)

and recently read but didn't get around to posting

Lance Armstrong's War
also by Daniel Coyle. 

and

Rise of the Range of Light
The Places in Between
Sacred Summits
Walk in a Relaxed Manner
River-Horse
and others…
happy reading...

1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4

I'm just back from a short run up and down the street. My Easy-3, as I like to call it. A good rejuvenator at the end of the day. For the second half of the run, all the way back down the hill, I kept my breaths matched to my steps. 4 steps to breathe in. 4 steps to breathe out. 4 in, 4 out. 1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4…. The last couple of Easy-3s I've run have been pretty slow. I'm still trying to recover from the holidays, I guess. Today's run started out a little lighter and freer in step but by no means fast. I wasn't intending to push it at all. Just get the legs going for a bit. I actually fall into that 1-2-3-4 counting at the beginning of many of my runs and today was no different. Usually I get distracted from it pretty quickly and move on to more great philosophizing. But I learned today that, if you stick with it, it really helps you to stay focused on pace, which becomes speed. I didn't end up with my fastest Easy-3 or even come close but I think the counting, the matching of breaths to steps, took a couple minutes off my time. 

the road less travelled (by road bike)

I rode a short distance up this dirt road on the road bike this morning. It's a place I've been a lot on the mtb and on foot. But never on the roadie. It was a lot of fun to stretch the limits of the 23mm tires. Nice and slow. But oh so fun. A  winter morning ride along a forest road - wool sweaters and cold toes. I'll remember this short section of the ride more than most. One of those moments, you know… 

a note from her to me to you...

test: head light. "people are people so why should it be…"

I tested out both the rear facing helmet reflector (red) and the forward facing "head"light (I used one of those miner style headlamps popular with the hiking/climbing/camping crowd). I perceived an immediate positive difference in the patience and care of the surrounding drivers. And this was a Friday rush hour test when sometimes that patience can be lacking. I felt as if I had graduated to the standing of a pedestrian which in the eyes of the motorist is one step closer to being a human. 

I guess I was most surprised by the difference the rear reflector made. Especially since I always have a rear reflector and flashing red tail light. But somehow, putting a reflector on your head really gets the point across: human. 

The forward head light also made a big difference. In part because of its height above the level of parked cars so that it is visible even when a handlebar light would be blocked. The head light was not very bright. I've had it for a long time and the batteries were a little low. I've just never used it on the bike for some reason. I kept the light on steady mode. As I do with the handlebar light. I think flashing headlights are really annoying to everyone involved. The dimness of the light did not seem to be a problem, though, and it might even be better to keep it slightly dim so that you can look around at people without putting a bright spot light right on them. 

I'm immediately afraid to ride without either of these head mounted lighting systems. 

Of note and a twist: I don't think the head light and reflector made me more visible (except in a few special cases). Motorists always see me. They just don't "see" me. If that makes any sense. And that's the big hump out there - not getting people to see bicyclists (oh, you know you see me!) - getting people to see people. 

forty paces of solitude

There's a very short stretch of dirt between the sidewalk and the high school baseball field that I've recently been using as my own secret trail running route. It's mostly filled with weeds. There's no obvious reason to take this route as it directly parallels the sidewalk. And it only lasts a moment before one must return to the sidewalk. But I take it. I like it. It's far, far from a nature path. It's right along a busy residential street. And it's short. But it's there. It's earth. It feels good under the feet. It rained recently so the ground has been a bit muddy along this stretch. I saw someone's footprints and I followed them. He matched me stride for stride. My right hitting just to the side of his left and vise-versa. Then I recognized the tread pattern. I was tracking myself. So many footprints that we follow along the way, some of them our own.