My new winter sport

Up until the last two or three years, the winters in Wisconsin had been mild enough that I had been able to keep riding my bicycle through the winter. It was cold, but the lack of snow kept the roads and trails clear. In fact I posted about it and some of the gear I used back in 2007. Since then the winters have been a lot snowier, so it was time I found an alternative sport for the winter. This year I found it, by taking up snowshoeing. The first weekend I rented a pair of snowshoes, and after that I was hooked. I ordered a pair of snowshoes the next day and had them in time for the next weekend. Getting them that quick was lucky, as here in the Midwest, we had some record snowfall (even a blizzard) during that week (Feb. 2nd). The next two weekends I was "shoeing" in my own pair of snowshoes.

Snowshoeing at Lapham Peak

This past week, we we had a pretty good melt, so snowshoeing was out, but my wife and I took our dog out to Lapham Peak and did some walking/hiking on the paved trail.

This week, we've had a little more snow, so snowshoeing might be back on the agenda for this weekend.

Fresh Cut Christmas Tree

This year I wanted a little more nostalgic Christmas, so my wife and I went to Riehle's Tree Farm (Dousman, WI) and cut our own tree. As a kid we always had a real tree, but I couldn't remember actually going out to a tree farm, so this year we made our own memories. The folks at Riehle's made it easy, with a huge selection and help getting the tree baled and loaded on the van. We went with a Spruce, for the shorter needles and a more "filled out" look. Here's some pictures once we got the tree home.

Still baled and ready to go in the house

I trimmed the branches at the bottom first, to attached part of the base of our tree stand. The stand is kind of neat in that it has a two piece swivel base so that you can attached part of the base to the tree and then just drop it into the floor piece of the base. The swivel allows you to straighten the tree by stepping on a "release" lever. This came in handy as you can see from the second picture.

In the stand, but a little tilted

After a little adjustment it was much better, the tree is straightened and some LED lights are applied.

Straightened, lit and ready to decorate

Now I just have to remember to water it regularly, so far it seems to be needing about a quart of water a day. I'm sure some of that is just evaporation, but so far it's not losing a lot of needles.

Century Rides that were like Night and Day

With summer winding down, I just participated in a couple of great cycling events. I usually try to do a couple of mid-summer Century rides, but with vacation and some other things that came up this summer I wasn't able to do the Heat Stroke 100 or Bay View Bicycle Clubs - Lake Country Classic.

These next two rides were only a week apart but they were like Night and day...

A little over a week ago I rode in the Cream City Cycle Club Century - Aug. 29th. This ride started out of Waterford Wisconsin and it wasn't bad at the beginning, but as the day wore on, the temperature and wind speed both started to increase. By the end of the ride I was close to "bonking". Not as bad as some, who required some medical attention, but I downed some fluids, ate the post ride meal (spaghetti dinner) and rested in the AC of the Waterford High School building before heading home. This was definitely a last ride of Summer with the heat, sun and wind to prove it.

Now fast forward exactly one week to Sept. 5th at Mt. Horeb, WI - actually Tyrol Basin Ski Lodge - to start the Wright Stuff Century (WSC). For this ride the temperatures were almost 35 degrees cooler (maybe 40 degrees at the start) and no wind for the first 3-1/2 to 4 hours. I followed a few tips on this ride that helped thru the day. Started with a 16oz sports drink about 2 hours before the start, I drank more during the ride (my hydration pack helps with that) and ate less at the rest stops. That's not to say I didn't eat, but I kept it to a piece of fruit and carbs with some protein; like a 1/4 bagel with peanut butter or I spread some peanut butter on a oatmeal cookie and then a banana or watermelon or orange slices. At the end of the day I had no cramping and felt a lot better. No doubt the lack of heat played a big factor it that, but the hills (and the number of them) are a lot tougher on this ride than the one a week early. The WSC was definitely the first ride of Fall (but not the last).

Safe riding all.

A walk at Old World Wisconsin

It's been a while since we last visited Old World Wisconsin. I'm pretty sure one of the kids was still in a stroller the last time. So this trip was a lot easier, and the trams helped with getting us from one cluster of buildings to the next. We got there around noon and headed over to Caldwell Hall.

Caldwell Hall
Education Center

The education Center also had a baby animal exhibit

Our next stop was the Crossroads village, where we went through most of the homes and shops, including a demonstration at the village backsmith.

Blacksmith Shop
- part of the Crossroads Village

From here we took the tram over to the Finnish area. This barn has some interesting construction with dove-tail joints (usually only seen in cabinet making) on the corners of the buildings.

Finnish Area Barn

The Rankinen farm was a little hike off the mail road, in the same Finnish area.

View of the Rankinen Farm House,
from the access road

It was a great way to spend a warm and lazy Sunday afternoon, in the midst of these 1800's era farms and buildings. We topped it off with somethings to eat and drink in the Clausing Barn Restaurant.

Vibram FiveFingers - a first run

I decided to try this footwear as physical therapy. My left arch is high but weak, resulting in a flat foot. I also have scoliosis that seems to be causing some sciatic pain in my left leg.


Here's a few tips, if you plan to buy a pair of the vibram FiveFingers;

• Go to a well stocked store so you can try some different models/styles and sizes. My ideal size was a 44, which was close to my cycling road shoe size (45). If they don't have the style you want, then at least you'll know your size for an online order.

• I was told that your toes should just touch the front of the toe-pockets. You don't want them so loose that your toes pop out while running or too tight either.
  

• I got the KSO's, but looking back, the Sprint or Flow might be a better choice for first-timers. Why? The KSO has a single top strap that loops through the back, but it's stitched at the back of the heal, making it a little harder to place on the foot. Where as the Sprint and Flow have separate top and heal straps, so they should be a little easier to get on.

I kept my first run short, I did about 1-1/2 miles on a treadmill, so that I could control the pace. My stride is still pretty much heal-toe, but I could feel times when I was making a more balance footfall. I didn't notice any unusual pain after the run, but I could tell that I was using calve and ankle muscles that I hadn't used in a while. I'm planning to take it slow at first, so I'll do my running every other day.

Completed Deck

First, a plug for our contractor, Decks By Milt Charno , they did a great job. They had the deck completed Monday afternoon.


Tonight we broke it in right, I moved the grill into place just outside the door and cooked up burgers and brats. Maybe it's my imagination but the cedar posts and railing seem to be keeping the mosquitoes at bay. We enjoyed our meal on the deck with only a minor annoyance, our mini dachshund, thought he needed a brat as well.

Re-Decking

The new deck is taking shape quickly, the framing is complete.

Step 2 (framing)

Deck'ed out

This project has been a long time coming, but it's finally started, the old desk is coming off and the framing on the new deck should start today.

Before

Step 1 (demolition)

More pictures to come as the construction continues.

LEDs and Cars, what could be more fun?

Here's one of the individual replacement LED "bulbs"

I just finished a quick project that was much easier than I thought it was going to be. All the dash bulbs had burned out in our mini van. The dealer wanted way to much (over $200.00) to replace them. So I decided to do it on my own and now I'm glad I did. Cost: $22.90 in parts (for LED replacement "bulbs") and ~20 minutes of my time. I documented the process as I went along and I just posted it on the Instructables website (here's a tiny url): http://tinyurl.com/led-instructable

Here's the dash, even in daylight the new LEDs shine bright.

Random 25 things...the other 20

06- I have a Raspberry patch in my backyard, it’s great to grab a handful of fresh berries on a summer morning for a bowl of cereal.

07- I've changed jobs twice in the last 3 years, it wasn't fun at the time, but I enjoy the job I'm doing now.

08- Ref. #2, I'm the webmaster for the Spring City Spinners Bicycle Club in Waukesha, WI -- http://www.springcityspinners.org and I just completed a total redesign of the site.

09- I met my wife Sue on a blind date, and we’ve been together ever since.

10- I have two children that I love very much, even though they seem to hate each other.

11- Ref. #2 again, I rode in 2 Century rides this past summer and 3 the previous year, I'm shooting for 4 this year.

12- We own a miniature Dachshund (he's been pictured here a few times), his name is Duncan and he may qualify as a third child.

13- I have a piece of brass shrapnel in my body (let the guessing begin as to the location).

14- I haven't had an appendix since 1969, but I've had the scar ever since.

15- Most people never notice (or don't believe) that I have scoliosis.

16- My wife and I have now lived in WI longer than we lived in IL, but we still refer to a trip to our parents and "going down home".

17- Photography is one of my latest endeavors, I got a nice DSLR last year add I'm still learning how to use it.

18- One of my favorite Sci-Fi movies is Forbidden Planet, it's very Star Trek like, but was made 10 years prior to that series.

19- I had several articles published in the now defunct “COMPUTE! Gazette” magazine.

20- I'm blessed (or maybe it's cursed) with an acute sense of smell.

21- My first personal computer was a Sinclair ZX-81 that I built from a kit.

22- My blog has suffered recently because I spend that time twittering.

23- My first job out of school was with GE Medical Systems where I spent 12 years, 15 years later, I'm back there again.

24- My ideal job would be to be part of a think tank, inventing, designing and innovating.

25- I'm really glad that's over, I couldn’t think of another thing.

25 Random Things about me (#1 - #5)

I recently got tagged with the task of coming up with 25 random; things, facts, habits, or goals about myself. Here are the first 5 of 25.

01- I started doing some serious yoga a little over a year ago and enjoy it very much.

02- My interest in biking re-started several years ago as a way to improve my health, now it's a passion (or is it obsession?).

03- I have drawings I did for an art class of a clamshell "communicator" / cellphone in ~1979, several years before the StarTAC was introduced.





04- I grew up on a farm in West-Central Illinois.

05- I enjoy cooking and baking, which I owe to my Mom for letting me help with baking as a kid.

More to follow...

Christmas' long long ago...

Well, maybe not that long ago, but it's kind a Christmas tradition on my blog to show one of the photos from my parents collection of 35mm slides that I had scanned a few years ago.

They don't make pedal cars like that anymore.
This one's a Murray "Holiday" Model from
around 1960

Looks like the drive up service was good too.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Blogs in the bike lane

There seem to be multiple "In the Bike Lane" blogs out there lately. I started posting to this blog a little over 2 years ago (Aug. 2006), but what's interesting is the name seems to be very popular lately.

Trek likes it with their Life In the Bike Lane blog.

Bicycling Magazine also likes it with their recent In the Bike Lane blog.

Blogging for me is a type of journaling, to get thoughts from the brain into "print". One of my early posts expressed it this way;

"Sometimes life is like being in the Bike Lane; watch over you're shoulder, keep pedaling, heads up, stay in your own lane, pedal harder up the hills and coast down them, drink plenty of fluids and take a rest day once in a while."

Currently I'm working on a re-design of the Spring City Spinners website, as the current one is getting a little long in the tooth.

Safe riding all (no matter which bike lane you're in)

Vote for the rock!

Another shameless plug, it's a chance to win some really great gear and a photoshoot trip, you can vote for the picture here.


Sell photos on photrade | By FullCarbonBike

This photo was taken while on vacation at Walt Disney World and I admit that the 3D effect was a total accident (I was trying for the gazelles).

A Silver Dollar Memory

It's just a silver dollar, but there's a story behind this one, from the time that I first saw it.


We have to set the WayBack Machine to around 1964, to the days when my sister and I would sometimes stay over night or over a weekend at my grandparents farm. Grandpa Bryan's farm was one of those self sufficient farms, that have all but disappeared these days, except for maybe the Amish. The crops that they grew, for the most part, went to feed the cows, chickens and pigs. They could then sell the milk, eggs and pork to make extra money. As a side story my wife and I may have met when we were children, long before we dated, when her grandfather bought milk and eggs from mine.

Anyway, back to the silver dollar, it was on one of those weekend stays, when I was getting ready for bed. I was sleeping in the spare bedroom during this stay and happened to open a drawer of an old dresser, that held all kinds of treasures, at least for a 7 years old. There were old pairs of glasses, small tools, a watch or two and a box full of old silver dollars. These dollars were bigger than the coins that I was used to handling and a few of them were pretty badly worn. After looking at them I carefully replaced them in the drawer and moved a few things around in order to fold my clothes and put them away.

I thought about those coins over the years and they are probably what led me to a brief period of coin collecting when I was a teenager.

Recently, after the death of my grandfather, those coins were passed down to my mother, but she in turn gave them to me. I cherish those coins because of the memories of those visits to the farm and I carry one of the coins with me today, as a reminder of simpler times.

Merry Christmas and a safe and Happy New Year

Things to be thankful for...

I have a lot of things to be thankful for, but in light of the Minneapolis bridge disaster there was one added to the list yesterday, and that was that my daughter was home for the summer. She graduated from UMN Minneapolis/St Paul this past Spring and she had driven that bridge many time as part of her part time job for the UMN Library system, picking up and delivering books in the metro area.

Also, Duncan seems to be making progress towards recovery without surgery. This morning the vet said that he had some improvement in his reflexes and that we should continue the kennel rest and medication through the weekend. The vet will then evaluate his condition on Monday to see how he's doing.

New bike shoes and pedals

The new shoes and pedals are working out great. I waited till this past weekend to make the change-over, and the only problem that I had was breaking the old pedals loose to remove them. Once that was done installing the new pedals was easy.

The new shoes take a little getting used to, since I've previously been using MTB shoes, which had the cleat buried in the sole of the shoe. The road shoes with the LOOK cleat are very different. I'll probably have to invest in some "cleat guards/covers" to wear when walking around during a stop. I should also mention that I removed the original shoe inserts and replaced them with Superfeet insert, to give my feet more arch support.

The pedaling experience has been well worth the investment to switch over. I've noticed an improvement in my leg stability during pedaling. With the old pedals and shoes I occasionally would have some pronation of my left foot (due to a 'fallen Arch') leading to a little knee pain afterwards. But so far I've done a 2 hr endurance ride, 1.5 hrs of Fast Pedaling intervals and a recovery ride and my knees have felt great afterwards.

Now if all this snow would just melt and the temperatures would climb a bit, I could get outside to ride.

I'm still not sure why my blog was flagged, last week by blogger, as a possible Spam Blog? It's made me a little gun-shy of putting links in to the body of the blog, but I'm sure I'll get over it.

Update on some previous posts

The http://becomeanmm.com site has some updates (or maybe options I didn't notice the first time), so I updated my m&m avatar.




Also, I've been getting some email with questions regarding the updated version of my steadicam bicycle mount. So within the next week or so I should have a new Instructables project posted with all the details plus some of the video that I shot over the summer.



Bicycle training progress. I mentioned before that I've been tracking my indoor cycling (on the trainer) on the POLAR website. Here's my 1st month progress report from their website (click on it for a larger view).

Merry Christmas

A few years ago, I borrowed my parents 35MM slides and scanned them, in order to save them digitally. I then made CDs with all the images, so that they would be easier to view and share. So, for the holiday season, here's a favorite Christmas picture of me and my sister.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Blogging in the bike lane

What makes a blog popular? Well first there's an interesting title, (a headline if you will) that grabs your attention. Giving a title to a topic can be as important as the topic itself. But what makes a good headline now a days? Is it something that grabs the attention of a real person or is it now formulated to be at the top of some search engine hash table? Hopefully it can be a little of both, especially if you want others to be able to find your content. Next comes good writing, because what good is a teaser, if the content doesn't deliver on the promise? Trust is also a key element, without it, you just don't get read, and of course the trust part takes time.

I tend to write about topics from daily life, although I'm a little limited in what I cover related to my work. I cover the topics that I feel close to, ones that are important or interesting to me, for instance bicycling, where I've written about the Ghostbike program and club rides, hobbies - such as the recent set of Picoo-Z postings and my Instructables projects. And since I brought up the topic of hobbies or interests I thought that I'd go into a short overview of a few that have occupied my time over the last 5 decades.

Geology - mainly through grade school science fair projects
Model rocketry - fireworks without the boom (unless you want it too)
Model building - plastic car kits and some scratch built, like a Star Trek TOS communicator
Electronics - various kits and gadgets, which later resulted in a career path in Electronics and then computers.
Model railroading - I have yet to complete the layout, but I keep getting a little closer each year, during the winter months. This one combines almost all the others
Computer programming - mainly on a C-64, with a few articles published in the old Compute!'s Gazette. Later, as a Sun UNIX System Admin. the programming was more in the form of sheel scripts.
Bicycling - most recently (in the last 6 years) I've gone from mountain bikes to road bikes
Blogging - this stuff at http://inthebikelane.blogspot.com