Comments on: Just Riding Along

By: Isa

Isa — Thu, 15 Dec 2005 20:02:09 +0000

Fatty,I adore your blog, read it all the time! You’re not chopped liver ;)Let’s face it though, Kenny is such a hottie!Isa

By: Tyler

Tyler — Thu, 15 Dec 2005 03:26:09 +0000

What are you kids talking about? What kind of gear are you running on your fixies?Riding a my fixie, an 80’s roadbike conversion with 63 inch gears, is far easier than riding my race bike — whether for 1 or for 4 hours. Sure, I can’t coast, but I also can’t decide it’s a "good idea" to play Time Trial of the Week on a random stretch of road and slap it in the big ring and go to town. Likewise, I usually decide discretion is the better part of valour and climb the 1000 foot hill on the shallow, 5% side, not the 12% "short way." Maybe your fixies are massively overgeared, so every short rise tears your knees off.Maybe your pedal strokes are so bad that you’re bouncing your junk off of your saddle every time you pedal.Or, maybe you’re all just massive wimps.

By: Tom

Tom — Wed, 14 Dec 2005 07:24:08 +0000

I don’t ride this time of year. I weigh the same that I did in September, but my gut is bigger and I drink and eat and lay on the couch more. I suck. And I’m kind of enjoying it. I’ll start making deposits in the bank of pain in early Feb.

By: Unknown

Unknown — Tue, 13 Dec 2005 18:18:05 +0000

Fatty,Johan would only let Lance ride a fixie for two hours max. That’s Lance, Fatty. Two hours. Max. Fixed gear bikes take it out of you for sure. If you did three hours it would be expected to hurt. Meandering is great for learning the area and discovering new wrinkles in established routes. My best routes are a result of meandering over the years and once you start to meander, an occassional look at a map will help connecting the new dots you discovered while you were out having fun. Meanwhile, you are gonna spin like crazy with all the fixed gear time you are logging. Like butta.

By: Tom Stormcrowe

Tom Stormcrowe — Tue, 13 Dec 2005 14:07:19 +0000

Alas, I just wear thermal socks and crosstrainer shoes. It helps. Of course, I’m old school and ride with clips and straps, no clipless pedals. I can’t tell you anything about any modern hi tech stuff. The best suggestion I have if you can fit them in your cycling shoes is wool thermal socks, they keep your feet warm even when wet. Woolen leg warmers help as well, keeping the blood warmer as it circulates to the feet.

By: EricGu

EricGu — Tue, 13 Dec 2005 04:03:40 +0000

Alas,To keep your feet warm try:1) Neopreme (sp?) booties are pretty good. 2) Make sure your shoes aren’t too tight.3) Make sure your legs are covered.4) Keep your core warm (but not too sweaty)Phatty,You detrain a bit in 10 days, but it takes a while to lose base fitness. Just don’t worry about it, riding at all in the winter is your focus. Oh, and ride with me, because I’d love to be out when you’re detrained.Oh, and it’s the Apple-Cinnamon that you want to rock.Lowephat.

By: Gillian

Gillian — Tue, 13 Dec 2005 02:38:34 +0000

I feel you. I don’t ride, I run – well, ran. After a couple of months off while doing a play (a musical even, there was dancing, and aerobic exercise involved), I can barely motivate to get out of my chair. I wheeze like an asthmatic after thirty seconds, and a thirty minute run is like torture. After 11 years of running regularly. It sucks. Bring on the spring!

By: Unknown

Unknown — Tue, 13 Dec 2005 00:59:09 +0000

We’ve been doing quite a bit of riding & have found the way to keep our feet warm – check out the Hotronics ski-boot heaters. It’s basically a shoe-liner that replaces the one in your shoe, that has an integrated heat pad that’s attached to a rechargable battery pack. On low, it’ll last up to 12 hours, & on high, about 4 hours. We’ve ridden 5-6 hours at level 2 in 30 degrees, & no frozen feet.

By: Big Guy on a Bicycle

Big Guy on a Bicycle — Tue, 13 Dec 2005 00:37:58 +0000

T.S. Eliot said that April is the cruelest month, but that just tells me that he wasn’t a cyclist. My fitness took a real beating this fall due to injury, and now I have to try to regain it during a time when I can’t go for long evening rides due to darkness (the light helps me see, but not be seen from behind so well), it’s coldcoldcold, and I have the temptation of holiday food all around me.Saturday’s mountain bike ride was truly humbling.

By: Zed

Zed — Mon, 12 Dec 2005 21:50:51 +0000

What’s up with Washingtonians and not liking eggnog? Okay, so it’s probably responsible for the vast amounts of mucous in my throat, but it sure does taste good. BTW, I had a lunch-hour ride, and I now have evidence of my out-of-shape-ness. Whew, I got killed. At least you get to commute every day.