New Panniers

I have a shot of Eselin with the Cherry Pine pannier. I will do a review soon.

Bling!

The Cherry Pine Pannier, my prize in Trisha & Dottie's Summer Games, has arrived. I'm thrilled!
It is a lovely brown colour (I was expecting something pinkish given the name) and it has a lovely scent, tho' I don't know if it is intentional. And much bigger than I was expecting.
Tomorrow I get to try it out!
And the Geek, who is on the quest for a new helmet, picked up these socks from Mountain Equipment Co-op. They are so cute. The ones with the daisy wheels are mine!
Some people laugh at my love of wool socks, even in the summer, but it has to be pretty warm before my feet stop being cold.
Fun, fun, fun.

I'm Noticing a Trend

A few years ago, most people riding bicycles, including me, were on mountain bikes. Given Winnipeg's rather...interesting...streets, they seemed like a very good choice. And I enjoyed off-roading and playing in the mud as well. My knees liked the geometry of a mountain bike while increasingly, my neck did not. So, while I can still think when my knees hurt, I am totally bazooey when my neck hurts. Enter Eselin.

While perambulating about the neighbourhood on my lunch hour the last couple of days, I noticed that there is a shift happening. While it may well be that I am ambling around the granola parts of town, there are many more classic bikes than mountain bikes.





















What do you think?

The Cargo Bike Part 2

Yesterday the Geek put on the steering attachment and the platform base. The bike, however, has a great deal of flex. A great deal too much.She is now mulling over the situation and hoping for inspiration.

Under a Sunny, Blue Sky

Last summer, I took an up-close look, for the first time, of the Bishop Grandin Greenway when I rode it to explore the Bois-des-Esprit.
The Greenway runs under the hydro lines along Bishop Grandin Boulevard in south Winnipeg and provides a good east/west route separate from cars.
Today I found I was missing the key ingredients for supper and I took the long way around to the grocery store to avoid the Sunday drivers.
A small portion of the trail runs through a treed area,
but for the most part it is prairie.
You can't enjoy the sky and imagine shapes in the clouds if you are riding in traffic.
And as an additional bonus, this ride counts toward Trisha and Dottie's Summer Games.

I have it good!

The Cargo Bike Part 1

Today at a garage sale we found the last piece needed for the Geek's planned cargo bike. She found the other bike during Free Giveaway Weekend and the angle iron was rescued on garbage eve a few weeks ago.
The Geek had a wonderful day of tool therapy cutting things apart,
welding them back together,
and grinding off the rough spots.
She progressed to this point before supper, when she came in and checked her plans based loosely on this site.

And she is still playing outside now. It may well be finished by tomorrow.

I Love Loop Frames

I'm stopped at a red light, right foot on raised right pedal. The light changes and traffic starts to move. I push slightly with my left foot while pushing down with the right, lifting myself into the saddle. Suddenly the car in front of me swerves to the right and stops in my path. I twist the handlebars sharply to my right to avoid his bumper.
I am always amazed at how fast thoughts race through my mind. Urk! Uh oh. Going over!! (**anticipated pain**) Get your foot down....and then I am standing on both feet on the sidewalk. I drag Eselin up after me and breathe a sigh of relief. My left foot on the then raised left pedal has just followed the rest of me through the frame.
Having experienced similar events on a diamond frame, I know that had I been riding a similar bike this afternoon I would have fallen and, at best, had road rash. I'm so glad there will be no scrubbing of wounds with antiseptic today.

Il Pleut!

The sky had been growing ever darker in the west but no rain had started when I left work.
A few drops fell as I headed south, but thankfully nothing major.

At the corner of Staffor and Taylor, the wind suddenly came up -it almost blew me off the bike. Dirt and trash blew everywhere, including my sandals. As I was crossing Pembina, the rain started, turning the dirt in my shoes instantly into mud. I hurried into the Jubilee underpass to waited out the worst of the storm, but the wind drove the rain everywhere and there was very little dry space to be found.
After about 15 minutes, the wind had died down slightly, and I gave up the quesionable dryness of the underpass to continue home. I thought it was better to get wet from the rain than the splashing from any puddles which were increasing in size.
By the time I reached St Vital, the rain had slowed to 'steady' from 'deluge' but once you are wet, you are wet.
I went straight downstairs and threw all my clothes in the wash- thankfully I had a white load that needed attention- and the sandals and I went immediately into the shower. Their was an amazing amount of mud in those shoes -and on me. The white clothes are white again too!
If that is the worst that ever happens to me, I am doing well.

Happiness is a Red Bike

The nephews and their parents dropped in this evening.

The red chopper has been hanging in the garage for a few weeks now, and N2 was thrilled to be able to finally take it for a ride.

He was thrilled, but was more than willing to share and allow N3 to have a turn (so sad not to have a picture of a three year old trying a chopper0.
The bike was loaded up for the trip home and my sister hopes this will encourage him to ride more. He really is not keen on his bicycle at home.



Let the smiles continue.

LATE NOTE: Sister C called July 5 to report that while all three boys are quite taken with the chopper, and take turns riding it, N2 is especially proud because it is his.

Happy Canada Day

We were in town for Canada Day this year and we did the rounds of Winnipeg's three main Canada events this afternoon.
Eselin and the Geek's bikes sport Canadian flags to keep the spirit.
I have never seen so many bikes at The Forks. I guess if you have to pay $5 for 'parking' to even enter the area from any street encouraged people to arrive by bicycle.
Osborne Street was also closed to traffic and here bike parking was at a premium. People space was also at a premium, so we didn't stay long.
As we continued on toward Assiniboine Park, Wellington Crescent, the most direct route, was also closed to vehicle traffic, as it is on Sundays and all statutory holidays that fall in the summer months.
And because we are such a melting pot of nationalities, we stopped for sushi on the way home.
Happy Birthday Canada!