Now 6000+ miles on the Surly

The commuter bike surpasses 6000 miles just the other day. Thought I should take a picture and post the picture on the blog.

Punk Bike Enduro

Dirt Rag held its annual Punk Bike Enduro at the beginning of December. It's basically a moving party on two wheels, equipped with outlandish costumes and some, just some tasty beverage consumption. It is still racing (if you choose). The Punk Enduro offers 11 stages of varying difficultly and skills. One such is the bike derby (complete with a ghost bike).
Other stages include a steep run up, and then a steep descent down a chute. This is the steepest chute I've ever attempted, and unfortunately washed out toward the bottom because I chose the wrong chute.
Two other stages had massive road climbs. So the first 7 guys and girls up the road one Punk points.
Yet another stage was an incredible descent down singletrack that ended with this off-camber rocky section where on-lookers could view the action.

I ended up finding a Punk and winning one stage so I did score some points which got me a nice jersey during the free reception. Good times. Looking forward to it next year.

New Pittsburgh bike lane

It's one of a kind here in Pittsburgh. The first partitioned on-street bike lane near Homestead and the Waterfront. The bike lane is separated from the street with white lines and pylons. These types of bike lanes are very common in Europe. It's good to see that they are making a presence in the US. The second picture is the bike sign and trail that is the GAP. Trail goes all the way to DC. Hopefully get to do that next summer.

Pittsburgh's Dirty Dozen ride

http://player.vimeo.com/video/32720991?autoplay=1
This video is from the Dirty Dozen's Canton Ave., hill #9 of 13 (baker's dozen). It's a 37% grade, evidently the steepest paved road in the world. This year, I could only make 4 of of the hills since I had to work. I did all 13 hills the previous year, and fortunately all on my first attempt. This year, 300+ riders came out for the event which was the biggest in the history of the ride. Good stuff!

Cross season sadly coming to close

Unfortunately, cyclocross season is almost over. However, it's been a great season with ABRA racing making for some excellent courses this fall. Favorites were Amity and Bruceton Mills. Amity because of how technical the course was, and Bruceton Mills because of how well I did and the open sprint sections. Just a few more related pics for the blog.

Cyclocross season in on!

I've been racing a lot lately, both mountain bike and cyclocross. Cross races have been fun and exhausting. Typical cross races with muddy, wet conditions. Here are some recent pictures from the Monster Cross race in Morgantown.

GAP trail ride 2011

5 Pittsburghers took part in the 2nd annual Great Allegheny Passage Trail ride. Sarah and I rode the 68 miles to Confluence; James accompanied us for 34 miles of it. We met up with friends, Scott and Jeff to camp in Confluence that night. The next day, we rode from Confluence to near the town of Meyersdale and back. It was a 60 mile day. All in all, it was a great trip. Highlights of the trip: peacocks and windmills.

Just surpassed 3000 miles on the road bike

3000...Not bad considering that I've only had the bike for 2 years. Also, that I have two other bikes that I ride, one of which logs a lot of the commuting miles. With the Surly commuter and Cannondale road bike combined, I am now at 8,200 miles. That's like going for NYC to San Francisco, back to NYC, and then another 8/10 of the way across the USA (we'll say Denver, 'cause I like it there). Plus, I've saved at least 2 tons of CO2 from being emitted from my car. Go by bike! It's more healthy, more environmentally friendly, and simply more fun/exciting.

One of these things is not like the other

Can you guess the European vehicle and the American vehicle? Dumb question? So if you haven't been to Europe, then you may not know the answer. During my recent trip to Germany for a study abroad, I found it amazing, comparatively speaking, the difference between motor vehicles in the two continents. Small, compact vehicles are the norm in much all European countries. Hummers, suburbans, large pickups, and large SUVs are quite common in the USA. (Fortunately, the Hummer product was sold, so Americans may see fewer of these of the city streets...thankfully.) These larger American vehicles are sucking the gas out of the pumps for the V8 or Hemi or whatever term these manufacturers are using to indicate unnecessary power. So why are these vehicles needed in the USA? Families? No, I don't think a family needs a suburban or Hummer (they aren't going to war). They could get by just fine with a small SUV and mini van. Prestige/power/masculinity? Frankly, I don't recognize this prestige when you are standing at the pump for the 2nd time in a week. In fact, I find that gas stations smell terrible. Safety? Car manufacturers are making mid-size and compact vehicles just as safe, if not safer than larger, less fuel-efficient vehicles.
In a 2007 MSNBC article entitled "US 'stuck in reverse' on fuel economy," a national poll indicated that US consumers would welcome more fuel-efficient vehicles in the US market. 9 out of 10 said they US consumers should have access to higher mpg vehicles. Therefore, the demand is there. Additionally, in the article, it compares vehicle mpg. In 2007, 113 European vehicles were getting a combined 40mpg. The same year, in the USA, 2 vehicles (the Toyota Prius and Honda Civic hybrid) were getting this combined 40mpg. In fact, for the last two decades, fuel-efficiency standards have remained stagnant at 27.5mpg. This all concerns me. According to the poll, the US demand is there, yet more fuel-efficient vehicles are not being released to the public. Are the oil companies having an influence as to what vehicles are released to the public?
I write this because it concerns me. While in Germany, I would ride up to a stop light and be surrounded by at least 4 other cyclists. Usually to my left would be a smaller, compact vehicle that is likely achieving the 40mpg. Additionally, a public transit train/tram would be traveling along the street to take the masses to their destinations. Timely, efficient buses were also common in the city. This is all very progressive and very environmentally friendly. It made me smile. I would like to encourage others to consider their mode of transportation. How are you getting to work? How are you running errands? And, are there other environmentally-friendly and healthier options? Always consider the bike.
By the way, as of the writing of this blog post, I am still on track with my wife's wager. I still have not driven myself to any destination within Pittsburgh city proper. In Germany, I used bus, carpool, train, tram, and bicycle. In Pittsburgh, I have used primarily bicycle, but some carpool and bus. Only 3 months to go for my win!

Rhine valley, Cologne, and Amsterdam by bike

During my 5-week stay in Europe, I was able to get in a little cycling. I rented an upright Dutch bike in Bacharach and cruised down the Rhine river to St. Goar where I tour the Rheinfels Castle. In Cologne, I utilized the Bulls mountain bike that my host family was nice enough to provide me (given they had several other bikes of their own). I used the bike primarily for commuting purposes to and from the university. However, I did tour around Cologne with the bike and made an attempt of making it to Bonn via the riverside trail. This complete trip was prevented through a few wrong turns near a nuclear power plant and a fast-moving thunderstorm that forced me to seek refuge at the train stop for a return trip to Cologne. Oh well. Last, I rented a bike in Amsterdam and went on a bike tour with Mac Bikes. Informative tour with even more entertaining participants. I think 1/4 of them needed bike-riding lessons. In general, cycling success in Europe even though the bikes were much different from those back home. I was happy to get back in the saddle of my Surly, Fisher, and Cannondale bikes.

Make that 5000 miles on the Surly

In early September, I posted that my commute/touring/do-all beloved Surly surpassed 4000 miles. I'm proud to announce that as of last week, it is now 5000 miles. Not to boast, but the 1000 miles between September and May is rather impressive in itself. Pittsburgh experienced a cold winter and we got several good helpings of snow. This decreased my bike commuting miles, as I chose to drive instead. However, for the most part, I was good about choosing reasonable days to commute during December, January, February, and March. Ever since April and the looming $4/gallon of gas, I have made it a personal quest to bike commute as much as humanly possible. This has been successful. I filled up the tank on my vehicle on April 7th and didn't put more gas in until yesterday, May 15th. So, I went a little over 5 weeks on one tank of gas! Normally, I would have to fill up my tank every 2-3 weeks, so I figured that I saved about $120 in gas during that time period. Cost for the bike = couple of flats ($5 per tube), chain lube ($7), and the occasional bike clean (time). Not to mention the exercise and the liberation of being on two wheels versus four. Bike commuting at its finest. Go bikes!

From surf to snow

It's been a crazy fun March for me. Sarah and I went on our long-awaited honeymoon finally in Puerto Rico. Spent 5 days and 6 nights in beautiful San Juan. We explored Old San Juan, zip-lined and hiked in the rainforest, kayaked in a bioluminescent bay, and just relaxed on the beach and beside the infinity pool. This last weekend, I ventured off to Salt Lake City, Utah for the annual ski/snowboarding trip with my buddy from California. Friends in Salt Lake took us in for the weekend and showed us around the city and Snowbird resort. We fortunately received 8 inches of fresh powder overnight, so we had an excellent second day of snowboarding. We got in some amazing backcountry runs with all the pow! Great times!

Surly Cross Check takes on the Pittsburgh snow

I had the opportunity of doing some snow riding while returning home from class. Surly handled pretty well in the wet stuff, but what helped was the weighted-down rear panniers. Only headache was the leg-burning climb back up to Squirrel Hill from the jail trail. Hopefully living on the hill will help my climbing ability come spring. First race is set for April 17th.

Incredible video of cycling in Copenhagen

http://www.streetfilms.org/feature-1/
If only more US cities could be as progressive as Copenhagen. They really have quite the system there. Would love to check it out on a trip sometime.

Dirty Dozen video released!

http://www.wqed.org/tv/its-pittsburgh/watch/
I managed a brief cameo at the 12:40 mark. Sad that I wasn't even on the bike.