Tandemania

New Back to Back Tandem

2010-05-11T19:51:00.012-05:00

My friend Uwe Anderseck and his son Martin attended Spezi 2010 in Germersheim and wrote me the other day about the new back to back tandem to be produced by Zox in the near future. Martin snapped these pictures:

Captain power is conventional twisting chain with tubing to protect against chain rub. Rear drive appears to be a simple reversing chain with more tubing to protect against rub. While the stoker has a full set of gears in back, there are no handlebars, just a pair of grips on either side at hip level.

The bike will be offered in three frame sizes.

The bike weighs 55 pounds and is a little over 9 feet long. Bottom bracket height is 23 inches and seat height is 15inches, exactly the same as my Barcroft. The seats appear to be stock Zox seats. The bike rides on two 20 inch wheels.

Like all other Zox bikes I've seen, the frame is a monotube. Unfortunately, that means it will probably not break down for transport like my Barcroft or the Flevo BTB. It does appear to have a mid-tube kick stand. That's a nice touch as I could never find a spot to add one to the Barcroft. The seat recline angle looks like it's going to be limited to a fairly upright angle. That's too bad, because that's going to limit speed.

According to Sergio Gomez at Zox, the bike will retail for about $5265. You're probably going to have to add shipping from Germany on top of that, so this is a rather pricey bike.

I can't wait to try this bike out!

Carbon Back-To-Back Cancelled

2009-12-24T09:16:00.003-06:00

It was a nice dream, but I reached the conclusion this week that a one of a kind carbon fiber back-to-back tandem is not in the cards for me anytime soon. I got an estimate to build the CF frame from scratch and from that I figured the whole bike would have cost me around $10,000. That's alot of money for a small increase in speed over the Barcroft back to back tandem. I don't mind spending it for a unique product like this, but I am also mindful that it is unlikely I would be able to resell the bike and get my money back. So, it looks like I will begin the kitchen redo that my stoker has been pushing for in the alternative.

The Perfect Back to Back Tandem

2009-12-07T21:03:00.018-06:00

With the onset of standard time, winter and the rainy season here in Houston, my thoughts turn to next year and a new, improved, back to back tandem. I asked myself what features I'd want if I could design a ground up back to back tandem. I'm not a builder or a technician, so this entry won't be about technical specs for a new bike. rather it's just a musing on what I like and don't like about the two back to back's I've owned so far and what I would keep or change in a new one.

My first back to back was the Flevo. It was fast and comfortable. It's speed probably derived from the recline angle of the seats. On the other hand, it was very long, very heavy and fairly unwieldy. It's 26" wheels made for a pretty high ride and this could be unsettling when riding backwards. It wasn't a technically advanced bike. The bar on which the bottom brackets travelled, for instance, was composed of solid metal stock. The bike came apart in the middle by backing out two large screws. I trailered the bike so disassembly wasn't necessary. The connection joint did allow for a bit of flex between the two halves. Even allowing for it's plywood frame covered with aluminum, the bike still tipped the scale at over 70 pounds. Still, the bike was an eye catching beast. I sold it this year after my stoker broke her hip and declared she just didn't want to be that high off the ground anymore and risk a fall.

Next came the Barcroft California. I'm still riding this bike, of course. It was and is a significant improvement over the Flevo in several respects. Being low to the ground it's easier to start and stop. It's almost as fast as the Flevo was. I suspect it would be even faster if we could recline the seats more, but they are so close together at the top now that more recline is impossible. Like the Flevo, the California comes apart at the middle. I've never disassembled the bike. The connecting joint is rock solid, however, so there is no possibility of Flevo flex there. The biggest drawback of this well designed innovative bike is it's weight. Like the Flevo, it tips the scale at around 70 pounds.

The obvious answer to the weight problem is a carbon fiber tandem, like the M5 Double D here. It's not for sale though, so I am left to imagine building a new CF bike of my own.

As I mentioned above, I like smaller wheels since they keep my stoker close to the ground and make the bike easier to start and stop. Independent front and back drive makes sense from a number of perspectives. It eliminates the need for a long chain to the back wheel and the power sucking idlers it requires. In addition, my stoker is completely sold on the independent cadence that we enjoy on the California. This is possible only with separate drives. A CF frame would result in a substantial weight savings. Lastly, to get the the additional speed we had on the Flevo, we need a seat recline of around 20-25 degrees.

With all of these thoughts floating vaguely around in the back of my mind, I came across this photo of John Morciglio's CF M2 mid racer. I realized that I could be looking at the front half of my dream back to back tandem. The size is about right. The seat recline is right. The CF frame is right. It only remains to contact a skilled craftsman and builder to explore the possibility of bringing this concept to life.

Stay tuned.

Thundervolt M1 Review

2009-11-24T08:41:00.022-06:00

Like most riders, I've always been attracted to beautiful new bikes and the prospect of going faster. I'm way past my biking prime so any advantage I can find is welcome. I felt a strong attraction when I discovered the Velokraft Nocom, but alas the price, at $8-10,000, was just more than I was willing to spend to indulge my speed lust. I considered a used Nocom, but there just aren't many of those bikes around.

Then I discovered John Morciglio and his line of Thundervolt CF bikes, hand made in Waterford, MI. The bike is available from John as a frame kit for $3700. This includes fork, carbon/aluminum tiller, front and rear brakes, headset and front wheel. That's an amazing price for a bike that gives Nocom performance and a responsive, available builder right here in the USA.

When I contacted John he was already working on a team order for 5 of these beauties so I would have a 6 week wait for mine. John sensed my eagerness and offered to sell me his personal M1 which was set up and basically ready to go. He threw in his gorgeous, custom CF wheel covers and a rear wheel. All this for a smoking hot price, not much over what the frame set would have cost me.

The box arrived from Michigan safe and sound. John packed it so well that cutting the box open and actually getting the bike out was a major chore. It was pretty much ready to ride when I got it. John and I just happen to be the same height so the bike was a perfect fit.

One of the reasons I bought John's personal bike as opposed to ordering one was that I was intrigued by the machine gun handlebar set up. John tells me this design is more aero. That makes sense since it tucks your arms in while riding. On the other hand, it does make the bike very twitchy at low speeds until you're used to it. With 150 miles under my belt, I am now able to start and stop easily. While cruising with these handlebars, the slightest steering input brings immediate results. It took a bit of concentration during the first 50 miles or so to adjust to this characteristic. On one ride I reached up to scratch my forehead and was immediately off the road. These issues disappeared as I gained more experience on the bike. Now I ride with comfort and confidence. I'll be clipping in soon.

People who have seen the bike ask about visibility. It turns out that the view from this cockpit is perfectly adequate. This brings up another issue. Since the bike is so aero, there really isn't anywhere to mount a mirror. I've experimented with a helmet mirror, but I am still looking for a better solution.

There is storage space in the hollow chains stays. I will soon be using a bladder for hydration. I fit a couple of spare tubes and basic tools on the other side. Wallet, phone and car keys fit into the integrated storage compartment in the seat.

Now for the good stuff: this bike flies like nothing I've ever ridden. I can cruise easily at 20+ and so far have had the bike up to 27. Acceleration is smooth and once the bike reaches the desired speed, it wants to stay there. The ride is a little bumpy on chip seal pavement (I try avoid it), but nothing to complain about. The bike is best, of course, on smooth, straight roads where you can really unwind it. I like riding the Memorial Park Picnic Loop, but there are so many turns it's hard to get going faster than about 20. Nevertheless, it's exhilarating to lap DF riders.

The riding position is extremely comfortable. It reminds me of lying in bed with my head propped up with a pillow to read a book. My weight is evenly distributed and there is no soreness or aching after an hour in the cockpit. Mounting and dismounting is a bit of an effort for an old, fat man like me, but I'm getting better at it.

The bike is rear wheel drive and there can be some chain rub on the front wheel. This hasn't really been a problem since there is seldom an occasion to deflect the front wheel enough make contact. Perhaps one day John will come up with a front wheel drive version.

Since I broke my femur in January of last year in a fall on wet pavement, I've made it a rule never to ride in the rain. Last weekend I did get caught with Jim on wet road at George Bush Park on the M1. It has drizzled earlier, but was not raining when we started the ride. As soon as we were up to speed I had the impression that it had started raining hard. It was difficult to see with the rain on my shades so I took them off. I had to squint with the rain hitting my face. As soon as I stopped, the rain did too. I thought that odd. As soon as I resumed, so did the rain. It finally occurred to me that the rear wheel was throwing water up over my head and onto my chest. I was making my own rain. That is not to detract from this bike as it is not meant to be ridden in the rain or even used as a road bike for that matter. There's no way I'm going to fool with fenders either. I will just reserve the M1 for great roads and good weather.

The bike rides so low that I've been concerned about being seen by other riders and motorists. For George Bush Park, I've mounted a blinking white strobe for oncoming traffic. For road riding I plan to find a good spot for a tail light.

The bike has a weight limit of 230 pounds and, happily, I'm well below that now.

John has been a dream to work with and very responsive to all my questions and concerns. He's asked that I check both wheels and the frame before every ride and I've done that religiously. No defects found. Both wheels remain perfectly true and the frame is perfect. More than once he has offered a replacement frame if there are any issues at all, but I am pleased to say there haven't been any.

If you're interested in acquiring one of these rocket sleds, contact John at kmorciglio@comcast.nospam (replace nospam with net).

Thanks, John, for an amazing bike!

Bike Around the Bay 2009

2009-10-14T06:12:00.021-05:00

Turn out was disappointing this year. When I rode this ride in 2007 (the 2008 ride was cancelled by Hurricane Ike) I thought it was the best ride of the year. According to my notes about 450 people showed up back then. The crowd was smaller this year. Perhaps it was the overcast skies threatening rain on Saturday morning. A ride official said that a hundred people or so had registered but had not shown up. I would guess that maybe two hundred people showed up this time.

Aimee and I had mechanical problems right of the bat. That was my fault, not the bike's. In any case, two nice guys from Bike Barn helped us out and we were back on the road in about 40 minutes. Unfortunately, that put us at the very back of the pack.

A ride marshall informed us that we'd be followed by the "Turtle" SAG truck. This honor is given to the very last rider in the ride. I don't like being last at anything and I certainly don't like being followed by a truck 100' behind us for the whole ride. Aimee and I pedaled a little harder hoping to catch someone and drop the Turtle. With a 40 minute delay at the start, that wasn't going to be easy. Nevertheless, we pushed hard for the first 10 miles or so and finally drew up to rider who had pulled over to the side of the road with a motorcycle ride marshall. Aimee and I were jubilant since this was our chance to shake the Turtle. Our smile faded when we saw that it was none other than Jim with a flat on his Bachetta. We stopped and loaned him some air before pushing off again. Since he is faster than we are, we had no intention of rejoining the Turtle posse. By the first rest stop we were out of danger. There were 10-15 riders there and we left ahead of all of them.

The route for Day One is unchanged from the original ride, but Day Two had an alteration at the end to avoid the horrible traffic and narrow winding road on the last 10 miles. As it turned out, we were not to see the new route.

In spite of the overcast and threat of rain, Day One was a pleasant ride. The only climb on this leg is the High Island Bridge. The Seavo handled it easily.

Lunch was a variety of sandwiches and several different kinds of chips served buffet style int he back room at the "Big Kahuna." Not bad, but not as good as Chick Filet last year.

The route on Galveston Island was the same as last year, but this time we got our own lane, cordoned off with red cones, all the way to Moody gardens. Nice.

We were fortunate enough to spend Saturday night at David's beach house on Galveston and to have a private SAG wagon. Aimee and I took a dip in the Gulf and went to bed early.

I rose early on Day Two and checked the weather. The forecast was for 12mph headwinds and 70% chance of rain. I love this ride and I love spending the day on the bike, but since I broke my femur last year on a wet road, I'm a bit more conservative about inclement weather. No more wet roads for me. David, Jim, Aimee and I conferenced over coffee and breakfast and all decided to skip Day Two. Judging from comments made by friends who rode Day Two, alot of other riders decided to skip it as well. Perhaps the weather will cooperate next year.

The only minor peeve I have about the ride is this: when ride marshalls on motorcycles pull up to assist a rider who has stopped on the side of the road, they pull their hog up alongside the ride, thus taking up the entire shoulder and forcing other riders into the traffic lane. More than once we had to stop behind the them because of traffic. Why not just pull up behind them instead of blocking the whole shoulder?

My gastric sleeve keeps working as intended. This morning I am down 43 pounds. That's 5 pounds in just the last 2 weeks.

Progress Report

2009-10-02T21:59:00.007-05:00

It's been two months now since my gastric sleeve surgery and I am down 38 pounds and two pants sizes as of this morning. The weight is just melting away. I've had immediate benefits in my cycling as well. Aimee and I took the Seavo out a week or so ago. We hadn't ridden it since my surgery. When we rode it this spring I actually thought about selling it because it just wasn't comfortable any more. Although I was loath to admit it, the trouble was that my stomach had grown so big that my thighs were hitting it when I pedalled. Riding the bike since my weight loss was a revelation. With my stomach gone (literally) pedalling the Seavo was the way it used to be: easy and comfortable. Our speed picked up as well. I'm glad I didn't sell the Seavo. Aimee and I will be using it for the Bike Around the Bay this coming weekend.

This morning I met Jim and David for the maiden run of my new Mocon low racer. I spent last night with the final details of getting it set up and practising getting on and off. This another example of the benefits of my weight loss. Frankly, I doubt I would have been able to mount and dismount this bike, much less ride it.

We found a quiet country road for this test. I didn't want to have to worry about traffic as well as trying to ride this beautiful bike. My first challenge was starting the bike. The machine gun handle bars make for poor handling at low speeds so it's fairly important to get up some speed right off the bat. While puzzling how I was going to get both feet up on the pedals as I pushed off, I realized that I could put both feet on the pedals with the bike standing still. All I had to do was steady the bike with my hand on the pavement (yes, the bike is that low). After 5 or 6 tries I did get the bike started. It accelerates quickly and handling improves with speed. Nevertheless, it took 15-20 miles before I could take turns with confidence. I easily moved up to 20 mph with a couple of gears left unused. I decided, though, to save a speed run for another day when I had a little more experience on the bike.

By the end of today's 30 mile ride I felt at home on the bike. I have a little tinkering to do before the next time I ride it. I couldn't get my computer to work properly. It's new and suspect it may be batteries. I might get a new seat pad and perhaps trim the chain stays a bit to fit my shoulders. I'd also like to mount a red light on the back of the bike since it's ultra-low and easy for drivers to miss.

Fortunately, I am exactly the same height as John, who made the bike for himself, so no BB adjustment was needed. The bike is very comfortable and after 30 miles I had no recumbent butt or foot numbness. I can't wait for the next ride.

Hotter N' Hell Hundred 2009

2009-09-01T07:21:00.021-05:00

Aimee and Jim and I headed north last week for the 2009 Hotter N' Hell Hundred. It was just a month since my gastric surgery so we opted for the 50 mile route, even though the weather promised to be mild.

The first few years I did this ride we stayed in Duncan, Oklahoma. It's just 60 miles from the ride and hotel rooms are plentiful and cheap. Of course It does require getting up an hour earlier and driving back to Wichita Falls in the dark. Last year we had a chance to stay in WF and loved the convenience so I don't think we'll being staying in Duncan in the future.

In previous years we've either ridden singles or the Rans Seavo on this ride. This year Aimee chose the Barcroft California back to back for the ride. I had some misgivings about bringing the California to the HHH, primarily because we transport the bike on a trailer. That means everywhere we park in crowded Wichita Falls we would need two spaces. It all worked out though. We found a good spot at the hotel and arrived early at the ride on Friday morning to find a perfect spot on the street. The bike even fit in our hotel room.

This bike is alot of fun, of course, everywhere we ride it and the HHH was no exception. We were chased by several photographers at the start line who wanted info on the bike. Almost everyone who passed us asked us the usual questions:

"Did you build that?

"Don't you get car sick?"

"Does it go both ways?"

At every rest stop we would get water and refreshment and return to find our bike surrounded by admirers. This bike is a good will ambassador!

The last 5 or 6 times I've done this ride, it's been on a recumbent and usually a tandem. We were always started in the front at the start line. This year tandems and recumbents were started with their mileage groups. I didn't like this much when I heard about it since the California is a little twitchy at low speeds. It turned out to be an improvement. We started at the back of the 100k pack. Since we were in back we were not surrounded by bikes and were able to maneauver freely. We crossed the start line by 7:20 or so.

The first ten miles of the ride, although flat, are my least favorite. The road surface is chip seal. It's rough and slows the bike down. This road makes regular asphalt seem like glass.

The California affords the stoker an excellent platform for photography.

Turnout this year was 14,205 riders according to the HHH websire. It showed at the erst stops where, for the first time, I saw long lines for food and water.

Like most recumbents, the California is fast on flats and descents, but slow to climb. It's definitely not a hill bike, at least for me.

This is probably the easiest HHH I've ever ridden. The high was 88 when we finished compared to the 103 we endured a few years ago. Winds were light and favorable. Sag and rests top support was, as usual, simply awesome. I'm looking forward to next years HHH.

Since my weight loss surgery on July 28, my biking has been getting easier by the day. I've now lost 30 pounds as of this morning. Who knows what I'll weigh then? My plan is to do the century on a new low racer.

Saving Weight

2009-08-24T20:35:00.004-05:00

How many times have you heard someone say, "If I really wanted to save weight on this bike I'd lose some weight"?

I've said that to my riding friends many times. My weight has been steadily rising over the years, taking me from a sleek 166 when I got out of the Marine Corps all the way up to 282 this July. Things were getting to the point that there were several bikes I just couldn't ride because I was over the weight limit. I've tried many diets and found that i could lose the weight, but I just couldn't keep it off. Exercise wasn't the answer either. I consider myself an active person and I love being on the bike, but the more I exercised, the fatter I got.

So, on July 28 I had a sleeve gastrectomy here in Houston.

The surgery was laproscopic. I had it on a Tuesday, was home on Wednesday and back at work on Monday. I was riding again about 10 days after the surgery.

80% of my stomach has been permanently removed. What remains is the size and shape of a banana. I feel stuffed after eating only 4 ounces of food. So far I've lost 27 pounds in the last 4 weeks. I look forward to dropping another 70 pounds or so. I feel great and only wish I had done it sooner.

My stoker and I will be heading up to Wichita Falls on Friday for the Hotter N' hell 100. I can't wait.

Gearing Up

2009-08-09T08:19:00.004-05:00

I had a little minor surgery in July so I've been away from this blog for a while. I'm recovering nicely and was able to get in a short ride on the Oregon over the weekend. It felt good, but i don't have all my strength back yet. During my hiatus, it occurred to me that this would be a good time to make a change on the back-to-back that I've been thinking about for the last few weeks.

The bike has 3 speed Sachs hubs on both ends. My stoker and I have noticed that we typically spend all our riding time in 3rd gear unless we're climbing. Then we drop down to 2. Neither of us have ever used 1. When the bike is going downhill, we can't keep up with it and are unable to apply power, even in top gear. On flats our speed is limited not by leg power, but by our ability to spin fast enough to keep up with the bike. In short, the bike is geared too low for us. The other problem we've noticed is that in top gear, my stoker is always spinning a little faster than I am. No, I can't see her back there, but at times, I can see her shadow on the side of the road and observe her cadence.

So I decided to run the bike over to Danny, the Cycle Genius, to see if he could up gear the bike for us.

As usual, Danny came up with a solution. He removed the old drive chain rings above the derailleurs and replaced them with larger ones. This isn't as simple as it sounds. The old chain rings were 48 teeth in the front and 46 teeth in the rear. This explains why the stoker spins faster. Both chain rings are now 54 teeth. As a practical matter it may be necessary to fit a floating idler on the front (ala my Oregon)to be sure the chain aligns properly in all gears.

In back it was necessary to raise the rear idler so that the chain would clear the new, larger chain ring. This meant taking the idler off of it's frame mount and moving it up to the rear handlebar stem. The height has to be adjusted carefully since these are flip-it handlebars.

This new configuration should provide better utilization of the gearing rage of the bike. It should also allow for better speed. I can't wait to get the bike back out on the road, but that will be at least a couple of weeks.

Tour De Braz 2009

2009-06-15T07:31:00.006-05:00

I wasn't planning on doing this ride this year, but David told me he was doing it few weeks ago and asked if Liz and I were riding it. David hasn't ridden much with us this year, so what could I say? That, plus Liz loves organized rides when she can sit on the back of a back to back tandem and talk to riders as we pass them.

I wasn't sure Liz would be okay with getting up at 5am and leaving the house by 5:30, but she didn't bat an eye. So we saddled up and headed to Alvin.

We planned to register at the ride, but I am usually able to print off a registration sheet the night before and fill it out ahead of time. I couldn't do that with this ride since I was unable to access the forms once online and mail in registration closed. That ought to be changed.

The crowd at the start looked to me to be about the same as last year: 400-500 riders. We parked in a satellite lot and set the bike up for the start a little ahead of the start line. I did notice that there were no ride photographers on the route as there were last year.

I sold the Flevo a month ago so we were on the Barcroft this year. Weather conditions were about the same as last year...windy. The Flevo was an excellent bike in wind and the Barcroft is as well. The routine is pretty much the same. In downwind or crosswind legs of the ride we can hold our own and pass many DF's. On the upwind legs, however, we are able to pass most DF's without really trying. The ride was upwind for the first half and basically crosswind and tailwind for the last half. That's a perfect setup!

There were a couple of glitches with the route, but for the most part, it was well marked. There was certainly plenty of sag support and I don't think we went more than 15 minutes without being passed by a sag wagon or a ride official on a motorcycle. Just as last year, ride registration bought you lunch of Sloppy Joe's, chips, drinks, and Popsicles.

We completed 47.4 miles and crossed the finish line around 10:30 before it got really hot. We enjoyed this ride and will probably make it a regular part of our season.

Nocom

2009-05-22T07:31:00.004-05:00

It's been a few weeks since my last post. The Flevo is gone and I'm down to just two tandems now. I had been looking at the Longbikes Jetstream to replace the Flevo, but decided that the high price tag of the bike, though perhaps justified by the quality of the bike, was not worth it to me since it would not result in a significant improvement in performance over the Seavo. The fact is that I love speed. That's the real reason I sold the Screamer, the V2, and the V2 Formula 26. Each bike I've purchased has been faster than the last. That's not an uncommon evolution for cyclists. So, I'm not going to buy a Jetstream.

That brings me to the Nocom.

I didn't know much about this bike until I saw a "for sale" posting for one on BentRiderOnline. I was taken by it's beauty and the feeling the bike was in motion when it was standing still. The price was excellent, but I was about an inch too short to fit the bike. Having done a little research, however, I was hooked. Now I just have to find the cash to get one.

Sold

2009-05-04T07:09:00.003-05:00

My beloved Flevo is going to a new home this month. I'd been edging towards selling it ever since I got the Barcroft back to back and I guess Liz breaking her hip and feeling nervous about getting on the Flevo was the last straw. It's going to a good home, but I'll miss it.

With this infusion of cash it's time to do what comes naturally: buy a new bike. I'm looking at a Longbikes Jetstream. It's a stylish looking thing, but I know going in it's not going to be as fast as my back to back or my Seavo. I've had some trouble finding out how much the bike weighs. The manfacturers website does not list the weight in the specifications. I need to do more research.

Flevo for Sale?

2009-04-28T21:20:00.003-05:00

Since I got my Barcroft back to back tandem, Liz and I haven't ridden the Flevo back to back as much as we used to. It's not that we don't enjoy it immensely when we ride it. We do. It's not that it isn't a great bike. It is. It's just that since we got the Barcroft Liz decided to start clipping in. She felt more comfortable doing this on the Barcroft since it's so low to the ground. She's closer to the pavement and I can hold her up easily on the Barcroft when we stop. Eventually she gained the confidence to clip in on the Flevo too, but for some reason, she always felt more comfortable on the Barcroft.

Liz had a hip replacement last month from a non-biking fall. She's talked to the doctor about getting back on the bike and he gave her the okay. She worries, though, about breaking the other hip in a bike fall. Given her additional comfort level on the Barcroft it seems unlikely that she'll ever get back on the Flevo, at least not any time soon. A bike like this needs to be out on the road, not hanging in my garage. I'm thinking about selling it.

Tour de Houston March 2009

2009-04-13T07:40:00.019-05:00

I missed this ride last year because of my broken femur so I was anxious to do it this year. My lovely stoker was still recuperating from here hip replacement and couldn't ride so I took my new Barcroft Oregon. I picked up friends Jim, Danny and David and we loaded all four bike on my Tahoe and headed downtown.

Three bikes went on the Draftmaster and my new Oregon fit neatly in the back of the truck. I work downtown so our first stop was to see if I could edge the Tahoe into my parking garage three blocks from the ride start. Unfortunately we were too tall by an inch or two. We opted for a pay lot right next to Discovery Green.

Packet pick up the day before the ride had been disappointing. I seldom sign up for organized rides in advance but I did so for this one because I wanted the T-shirt. Danny and I stopped at a Guaranty Bank branch (Guaranty sponsors this ride) on Saturday to get our packets. There were no T-shirts at this location. Oh well.

There were at least ten Porta-Potties on Discovery Green. Nevertheless, David and I stood in line for a good 15 minutes to get into one. Right after I reached the head of the very long line someone pointed out that there were public bathrooms just a few feet away with no lines. The story of my life.

Someone told me at the start line that 5000 had signed up to ride. Looking at the crowd I could believe it. The start was well planned. Start times were staggered by route distance. Riders were further staggered by starting in limited groups to reduce congestion. I had no trouble pedaling on my SWB single recumbent right from the start. There were so many riders, however, that I never really broke clear of the pack for the whole 40 miles ride.

I enjoyed the ride route since it took us through the heart of Houston. Leg One was up through the Heights with the first rest stop at Reagan High School. I realized after the first few miles that I was on the wrong bike for this ride. The Oregon rides on 451 wheels inflated to 100 lbs. The frame on the Oregon is, of necessity, pretty stiff. This bike on these wheels is fast, but the combination is not conducive to a smooth ride on city streets like these. This ride was a tooth rattler! If I do the ride again it will be on more forgiving tires.

This brings me to accidents. I personally saw two wrecks happen and passed several others that had already happened. I watched one young lady go down about 100 feet ahead of me for no apparent reason. She was riding in the open and fell as we passed over Memorial Drive. I could see no reason for the crash except that one of her wheels must have dropped into a crack. It seemed to me that more people were crashing on this ride than other rides I've been in. I'd be interested in the numbers. My theory is that it was due to the city streets and the fact that there were so many bikes that riders never really broke free of other bikes. There were bikes all around me for the whole ride. With the bike traffic and city streets, constant vigilance was required.

At Reagan High we bumped into Paul and Cyndy with their homebuilt Bilenky type tandem.

Leg Two took us down through Montrose, over the Southwest Freeway on the Mandel Street bridge and through Mid Town and Montrose down to North Braeswood and then up Weslayen to Rest Stop Two.

This leg of the trip took us along the north side of Rice University and then down Main Street to Braeswood. There were police blocking traffic at all busy interections and the route was well marked. Indeed, there were so many bikes on the road it would have been virtually impossible to get lost on this ride.

Rest Stop Two had a forest of Porta Potties. There was no wait!

The remainder of the ride was consisted of retracing our steps back over the 20 miles we had just traveled.

There were festivities at Discovery Green at the end of the ride. A free lunch from Antoines was included in the price of the ride along with free beer. Not bad. All this was followed by live music.

I will do this ride again next year, but on a different bike.

My Stoker is Back!

2009-04-05T08:14:00.002-05:00

Liz has been recuperating fast from here broken femur and total hip replacement. This past Monday, four weeks to the day since her surgery, she was back on the bike with me in the park. This afternoon, after the morning ride in Fulshear, I took Liz to the park and she made 16 miles with no pain. She's able to articulate her new joint with no problems.

For the first 10 miles or so we flew, reminding me how fast we are together on this bike. I think Liz tired a little for the last few miles and we dropped down to a more sedate pace. She's just a little deconditioned from the rigors of surgery and not riding in a month. This confirms my own experience with my broken femur. Riding the bike was the first real exercise i was able to do after surgery with no pain. She'll be back up to full speed in no time.

Naturally, Liz is a little nervous about reinjury and I can't say that I blame her. She says she'll never get on the Flevo again because she feels so much more comfortable on the XBike. I'm thinking about selling it, but haven't made up my mind yet. Stay tuned.

Another Back to Back

2009-04-01T20:46:00.003-05:00

I found out about this unique back to back through my friend Martin on YouTube. This tandem was built by Jan Friedl (on the captain's seat) and Jirka Hebeda, both from Czech Republic.

Jirka provided the following information about the bike:

The design and frame were mostly done by my friend who is piloting it in that picture (with the rest of his family on board). The basic idea is this: a cross between racing and touring configuration easily converted between the two.

The frame was designed to be simple yet effective and tolerant to manufacturing imperfections. Front geometry is done so that the head tube and main frame tube are perpendicular - for easy building.

The rear end is designed to be stiff under load of baggage. The ride is rather harder as a result of the sporty configuration, but still quite ok. It is reasonably fast and we did beat Martin's tandem in that 24 hour race :-). The wheelbase is 2300mm (about 7.5 feet) and front wheel trail 70mm. Seats are movable in large range via several holes in the main frame and clamp on the seat stays. Pedals are mounted by a bracket onto the main tube and can be adjusted finely to the millimeter.

What's intriguing about this bike is it's apparent simplicity. I can't see any curved tubing, only angles. If Jan and Jirka are willing to share the plans, I'd like to try to build one of these.

Bad Breaks (Part 2)

2009-03-27T07:02:00.005-05:00

Regular readers of this blog know that I broke my right femur in a fall from my Seavo tandem a little over one year ago. My stoker, Liz, was uninjured. She also saved my life by dragging me off of the metro railroad tracks, moments before a metro train came around the corner. I have recovered fully.

In an incredible coincidence, Liz fell down a hill and onto some concrete three weeks ago and broke her right femur. Now we both have broken right femurs. Her break was within an inch of the location of mine. Unfortunately, it is too high to save her hip joint so, unlike me, she's getting a total hip replacement instead of a rod and screws like me. One of the benefits of the hip replacement is that she can be full weight bearing from Day 1. I couldn't put weight on my leg for 6 weeks.

She has been anxious to get back on the tandem so we will try a short test ride this afternoon.

Fog Ride

2009-03-25T06:37:00.011-05:00

Contrasted to last week's cold rain ride, we had a crowd in Fulshear this past Saturday. First of all, my friends from Austin, Phillip and Frances, brought their new Seavo down for a run with us. It's a beautiful build from Hostle Shoppe. In addition, Marty, his friend Harry, Ben, Steve, Danny, Debbie and Pat also showed up. We've had some pretty thin ranks so far this year, but as the weather improves that seems to be changing.

The fog in Fulshear on Saturday morning was as think as I've ever seen it. We decided to stay off the main roads until the sun made an appearance.

Once the fog was gone we headed up to Fulshear with a nice tailwind and then back south to the parking lot into the wind. This gave me a chance to really let the Oregon loose. Like most low racers, this bike loves a headwind. I was able to easily drop the entire group, including Harry on his DF. I love this bike!

Thanks to Deb for the pictures.

Cold and Wet

2009-03-15T08:12:00.014-05:00

Whether we would ride at all this past Saturday morning was in question. The forecast was 50% rain (I try to stay away from wet roads since I broke my femur on one last year) and temps in the low 40s. Nevertheless, it was not raining when I got up at 5 and the weather radar looked good so I met the group out in Fulshear. Jim rode with me and Debbie and Pat and Robert met us at the parking lot in Fulshear.

This was the first real road test for my new Barcroft Oregon. Bill Cook shipped the bike almost ready to ride. All I had to do was attach the handelbars and tighten up the headset and I was ready to roll. Right off the bat I found that the handlebars were too narrow for me. I wrote Bill and he shipped me a set of Volae bars that arrived a couple of days later. I've had the bike about 2 weeks now. I logged 40 miles in the park during the past week to get the seat dialed in, but this was the first real road test. I have no complaints. I thought that maybe the 451 x 1.2" wheels might make for a rough ride, but I hardly noticed the bumps. The bike is very smooth and quiet. I'm still building muscles to pedal on this particular bike, but I can see already that it's going to be really fast. Headwinds are no problem.

The skies threatened rain all morning and there were a few rain drops around mile 11, but we ignored them.

We had an extended break at the half way point because Robert had a flat. While watching him repair it Debbie remarked,"I've never had a flat since I've been riding out here." We all froze and then patiently explained to her that saying such a thing was very bad ju-ju. Naturally she had a blow out about 30 minutes later.

Fortunately, Jim and I had pulled ahead so we were blissfully unaware that everyone else had stopped to help Debbie change her tire. We called back for them at the next break point and learned of the blow out. As we were only 11 miles from the parking lot and the rain was picking up a little, Jim and decided the best thing we could do was push on to the truck in case we needed to come back and pick anyone up.

As we pulled into Fulshear, the rain looked like it might get serious so we pushed on toward the parking lot with numb hands and feet. The skies really opened up just as we got the bikes loaded back in my truck, with everyone else still 10 miles behind us out on the road. We doubled back in the truck for Robert, Debbie and Pat and, in spite of the cold rain that was now falling in earnest, no one wanted a ride to the lot. I learned later that Debbie had used the hand dryer at the Shell Station break point to warm her hands and feet. Jim and I turned on our heated seats and headed home for lunch and a nap.

Thanks to Debbie and Pat for the pictures.

The Amazing Bikes of Axel Ewen (Part 1)

2009-03-01T09:55:00.004-06:00

Several weeks ago I posted a picture of this bike and asked about the storage bag. First I got a reply from Craig and Vicky with pictures and info on their tandem trike. This weekend I received an interesting letter from Axel Ewen who actually built this Flevo back to back:

The "Flevo"B2B with the yellow bags on your page is made by me. I made the bags too. There is a zipper under a water resistant flap .There is enough space for camping gear for 2 people. If we use it for traveling, we put a daypack or, better yet, a sleeping bag on top of the yellow bag.

The steel frame parts are made by chrom moly. Some friends tried to copy my idea to configure the rear chain without pulleys, but it didn´t work, because of the a small difference in the stock Flevo rear wheel mount. (Axel is right. I never noticed it before but if you look at the original picture I posted of his Flevo you will see that the rear chain reverses without pulleys!)

I am not realy happy with this bike. There is a lot of conversation nessesary, because of the independant cadence.

The suspension can only catch the half of the bumps, so it needs 26"wheels, to give more comfort. For people like me with short legs, a frame on 20" wheels gives better ground control and feels much stiffer and safer.

Axel has sent me information on his other amazing bikes and I will be posting them here soon.

Back to Back Trike

2009-02-19T20:14:00.005-06:00

In an earlier post I pondered whether there were any good suppliers for racks or panniers for the Flevo back to back. I received an email from Craig and Vicky from California suggesting that I try Radical for custom panniers. They attached pictures of their rig with the Radical custom bags on board. I will follow up with Radical since the bags look well made and are a perfect fit for the trike. I was more taken, however, with the back to back trike itself. I've only seen one tandem trike before and never a back to back set up.

I asked Craig about the history behind the bike. I'll let him tell the rest of the story:

We used to ride folding bikes (lived afloat a good portion of our lives and they seemed a sensible solution to space requirements) but we shifted to recumbent bikes in 1997 or so. Gradually fell in with the trike world starting in 2000 and got our first recumbent tandem trike a couple of years later. We enjoyed the tandem aspect but that particular machine was too heavy and too slow, so after a year, we sold it. When the fellows at ICE in Falmouth, GB developed their B2B, it was a custom job for a pair of serious randoneers who had already logged 35,000 miles of riding. That pair’s requirements for a lighter, more aero machine nicely synched with our thoughts and when the resulting machine was shown at one of the European bike shows, it re-kindled our interest in having a tandem. We questioned whether Vicky would find the stoker’s position enjoyable, so we arranged for some cheap seats on a flight to London and then took the train to Falmouth to try the prototype. As it happened, we were seated facing aft during much of the train trip and Vicky found herself getting queasy!

That did not seem like a good harbinger for this machine. However, once she was riding – out in the open – there was no problem and she quickly became quite enthusiastic about having one built up for us. We have had it almost 4 years now and have particularly enjoyed touring with it in such locales as Mendocino, Death Valley, Central Oregon and British Columbia. It *just* fits in our Honda Odyssey van, rear wheel forward between the front seats and the captain’s crank boom removed.

the ICE folk have ceased building custom machines in lieu of their very successful production trikes and bikes. I have seen a photo of another Greenspeed-clone B2B trike in the NY area, however AFAIK, the total in existence of trike B2Bs is only 3.

Thanks for the tip and the history Craig and Vicky! It's great to hear from other back to back tandem couples, no matter how many wheels are involved. We hope to meet you out on the road someday.

Uwe Anderseck's Back to Back Tandem

2009-02-11T17:50:00.007-06:00

I found Uwe's back to back tandem on YouTube and wrote his son Martin asking about the design and construction of this interesting back to back. You can see videos of taken from the bike on YouTube by searching for "Flevomartin."

He wrote me back and said:

The tandem in the video is a homebuilt one by my father (who filmed btw. while I was on the captain's seat). You can see it on my webpage http://radseiten.die-andersecks.de/lieger.php (Rücken-an-Rücken-Tandem).

We had the building instructions of the Flevo-BTB here but eventually it had some disadvantages for us:

-big wheels are less stable-the suspension in the middle doesn't bring the wished effect anyway, therefore we chose mesh seats and wide tyres

-the Flevo-BTB is not very stiff when doing fast changes of left and right corners. It bends somewhat in the middle. Our tandem doesn't do that so extremely.

-once built you cannot modify so much at the Flevo-BTB, no easy luggage carrier in the middle and that stuff. Therefore the simple steel tube (50x50x1.5mm btw.).

The BTB concept isn't very popular because recumbent cyclists are "strange" people. And for a tandem you need two of them cycling together regularly. Our tandem was mainly thought for my parents but of course it's much fun to go on it with two strong cyclists. I've done a 24h race together with a friend of mine which was really great fun.

This is the second person with a Flevo BTB who reports that the frame has too much flex in turns. Dustin Anderson reported that the Flevo he bought used had this problem but that it was caused by the fact that many of the small rivets in the aluminum skin on his bike had backed out or failed. He replaced all the rivets but I don't have any ride reports from him so I'm not sure I fixed the problem. I've never experienced the problem on my Flevo, but I bought mine with very low mileage.

I do have to agree with Martin that the smaller wheel size makes the bike much handier to start and maneuver.

FrostBike50

2009-01-27T18:51:00.008-06:00

Liz and I did the Frostbike50 on Barcoft back to back a week ago Sunday and, on the whole, had a great time. I've done this ride a time or two in past years, but not recently. There have been a few changes.

Although I never pre-register for charity rides, I chose to do so online this time. A few days later I received an email from the ride folks telling me a route map was attached. It wasn't. This wasn't really a problem because when we picked up our packet on the Saturday before the ride, a map was included. In addition, the route was well marked on the road and we could have done the ride with no map at all.

Liz and I rode the back to back in Fulshear on Saturday before the ride. The temperature at the beginning of that ride was in the mid forties. That wasn't so bad, but the winds were 15-20 and that made for some cold riding. We only managed to squeeze out 30 miles before retreating to the warmth of our Tahoe. The Frostbike ride was on the following Sunday and it was even colder at the ride start at about 38. The was virtually no wind, however, so the cold wasn't a problem.

The ride started at Cy-Fair College just south of 290. Someone working one of the rest stops told me that there were 1100 riders signed up, but there was plenty of room in the parking lots. Parking is a special issue for us since we transport both of our back to backs on our trailer. That means we need two spaces. The college building was open for late registration and warm bathrooms were available.

The ride started promptly at 8am with none of the endless announcements I've come to expect at rides like this. Sometimes people get ahold of the microphone and enjoy their 15 minutes of fame a little too much when all the rest of us want to do is ride. Not so this time. The ride start was staggered to avoid accidents. That was especially appreciated on our long tandem.

There is something about starting with the pack that makes you pedal a little faster than normal and this morning was no exception. In what seemed like no time at all we had racked up the first ten miles. Most rides place the first rest stop at 10 miles out or so, but it was at the 18 mile mark on this one. Here we encountered the first problem with the ride. Although there were 8 porta potties at the stop, the lines were long and interminable. Liz needed a potty break and it took here almost 30 minutes to stand through the line. This was just long enough for us to cool off completely. I don't know if it would have been practical to put more potties at the stop, but there must be some better way to accommodate this issue. Perhaps a rest stop at 10 miles with porta potties would have cut down on the lines at this stop. Anyway, this stop cost us alot of time.

After doing the extension for the 55 mile route we crossed back up over 290 and headed east to Fairfield on Mason Road. This is where our second issue surfaced: traffic. Up to this point the traffic had been light to non-existent. All major intersections were protected by police cars and officers. Nevertheless, once we turned south on Mason Road, the traffic was heavy and continuous. It only got worse once we turned east on the 290 feeder. We were lucky enough to have a SAG wagon pull in behind us and follow us, protecting us from passing traffic. He stuck with us on 290. The turn off of the 290 feeder to go down Barker Cypress for the last leg of the ride is on top of an overpass. An officer had parked his car at the top at the light, right in the middle of one of the two narrow traffic lanes. When we passed he was sitting in his car, backing up traffic all the way up the overpass. Clearance between the backed up cars and the concrete curb was minimal. I heard many riders grumble. Traffic on Barker Cypress was even worse.

We arrived back at the lot in one piece and had a good work out, but the traffic ruined the last third of the ride. I'm not sure I'd do this ride again if the route remains the same.

My New Bike

2009-01-18T08:24:00.014-06:00

Jim and I met Ben for the ride Saturday in Fulshear. We haven't had large groups lately. I guess that's because of the weather.

We found some DF ride was already getting started when we got there at 7:30. The parking lot was full. I mean absolutely full. There were so many wedgies getting ready to push off that I couldn't even get into the lot. We checked the other side of City Hall and there was no parking there either. We finally parked and set up behind the new strip mall opposite the Shell station. Ben found us by cell phone.

After a wonderful high speed run with Liz on the XBike last weekend, I found yesterday that I couldn't cruise the V2 faster than about 12mph. It was hell and I can't blame the bike. I'm simply not used to the relatively low bottom bracket on this bike anymore. Jim pulled way ahead of us for the whole ride. After this last year or two I never thought I would see the back of Jim's bike again. Shame! The whole ride, between gasps for air, I kept bitching to Ben, "I'm never riding this bike again!" "I'm putting this thing on Craigslist this very afternoon!" "If I get $500 for this thing I'll throw a party!"

I thought about turning around and waiting at the truck, but somehow managed to struggle up to Brookshire and back through Polo Fields with Ben and Jim. Conversation was limited as I was mostly too winded to speak and pedal at the same time.

Back at the parking lot after 25 miles, Ben disappeared. Jim spotted him making multiple withdrawals at the ATM across the street. He walked back over and stuck $400 in my hand and said, "Deal?" I told him I wanted to keep my Rans seat bag, but otherwise the bike was his. We dropped it off at his house on the way home. We also got to meet Mrs. Ben.

The V2 has been a good bike for me for the last few years, but that was BB (Before Barcroft)

I've decided I'm tired of changing bikes and having to get used to different pedaling positions. So, I'm ordering a new Barcroft Oregon from Bill Cook. He has one frame in stock so I'm just in time. His back to back tandem has changed my feelings about small wheels and low racers. I'm very comfortable in the cockpit of the tandem and I remembered what Bill told me about it's cockpit basically being that of the Oregon. It is, in most respects, a clone of the Barcroft back to back, except that I can enjoy all the speed and comfort without having to round up a stoker.

So, I had quite a Saturday. I cleared some space in the garage and got a down payment on the Barcroft Oregon.

Flevo Accessories

2009-01-12T07:20:00.002-06:00

Here's a grab from the net showing what appears to be a factory accessory for the Flevo back to back tandem. It's a storage bag that also doubles to fair the area between the opposing seats for better aerodynamics. It looks handy. The best we can do on our bike is to hang a bag between the seats. If anyone knows about this bag or any other Flevo accessories, I'd appreciate a note from you with details.

I notice a few other differences between this Flevo and mine. First, different handlebars. Second, the rear chain reverses without pulleys. I'll have to study this one as it may be a chance to simply the drive train on my bike.

First Ride of the Year

2009-01-01T15:16:00.010-06:00

I've never been much of a partier on New Year's Eve. I'd rather go to bed at the normal time and do something the next day other than recover from a hang over. I posted the usual email to the group and only got three takers for a ride on New Year's Day: Orin, Ben and David.

The ride was memorable right from the start. About half way out to Fulshear it occurred to me that I hadn't loaded the Flevo seat pads in the truck. On further reflection I remembered that the last time I had seen the seat pads (last night) they were sitting on the seats. Although I've had the seat pads covered, I've never gotten around to getting some velcro and sticking them to the seat. I could see in my rear view mirror that the seat pads were no longer on the bike. I suddenly realized that I had driven off with the seats just sitting on the bike and that they had undoubtedly been blown off the trailered bike and onto the freeway. After calling Z to tell him what happened and that, at best, we'd be late for the ride, we turned the truck around and headed back to the house to retrace our route and look for the seat pads. To my immense relief I found one of them in our neighborhood. The second one was lying on the Southwest Freeway at the Chimney Rock exit. With a little coaxing I got Liz to dash out and grab the seat cushion. It's wasn't as dangerous as it sounds as there was no traffic at all (remember, this is early New years Day).

The ride itself was uneventful compared to our freeway search. There were literally no cars and no bikes anywhere on the roads around Fulshear. I guess their drivers were all in bed with hangovers. All of us had suited up for the cold weather and Liz had a chance to try out her new earmuffs. We rode the "Neighborhood" route. I felt so good after we completed the route that I asked Liz if she felt up to doing Polo Fields as well (another 15 miles or so). She has a sore back from working on the new bathroom, however, and declined. So, we reluctantly ended the first of what I hope will be many fun rides this year.

Last Ride of the Year

2008-12-31T08:30:00.007-06:00

After hearing my friend Crawford talk about his rides in River Oaks on the way home from work, I decided to go out and try the route a couple of days ago. With Crawford's emailed map in hand I parked at the intersection of Lazy lane and Kirby Drive. I expected to see "No Parking" signs here, but there were none so I pulled over on Lazy lane and unlimbered the bike. I took the Seavo for this trip since it has 1.50 tires and can handle rough pavement a bit better than my other tandems. We shoved off and it seemed that we made the first 5 mile loop in no time at all. There are speed bumps along the route but the Seavo handled them with ease. On this particular day, the Saturday after Christmas, the neighborhood was full of huge garbage trucks and power company trucks so we had to slow frequently. Nevertheless, we quickly made three loops and then reluctantly racked the bike since I had errands to run. This route is safe for the Flevo and I'll use it next time I ride here. I liked this route and will use it next year to add miles on the way home from work.

View Larger Map

Tandem-Bicycle-Central

2008-12-24T12:09:00.001-06:00

Check out Jeff and Sherry Spahn's tandem website "Tandem-Bicycle-Central" . It promises to be a great resource.

A Short Ride in Fulshear

2008-12-22T07:02:00.009-06:00

Liz and I pulled ourselves out of bed Saturday morning and drove out to Fulshear for our usual Saturday ride. It was a pretty close call between that and staying in bed, but I wanted the mileage. After I broke my femur in January I set a goal of 2500 miles this year. I don't know if I'll get there, but I'm fairly close so far and decided to keep it going. Danny, George, Jim and the two of us on the Flevo decided on the neighborhood ride. The winds were forecast to be fairly strong and this out and back ride provides some cover and a nice tailwind finish.

View Larger Map

I've had consistent rubbing noise from the rear fender on the Flevo ever since I bought it about a year ago. There is no bolt or screw solidly attaching it to the frame. Consequently it can slide 2-3 inches around the wheel in either direction. I can adjust it at home but somehow it always ends up moving again. Danny had a look at it at our 16 mile break point and confirmed what I already knew: no amount of adjusting is going to fix the problem without a hard attachment to the frame. So I took the fender off.

On any other bike, storing the fender for the trip home might be a problem. Not so on the Flevo. The space between the back to back seats provides plenty of storage space. It was no trouble at all to sling the fender and be on our way.

The skies were overcast for the whole ride and we had a sprinkling of rain, but nothing serious. We saw plenty of DF riders along the way. The ride was followed by another great lunch at Blake's.

The Tandem Link

2008-12-16T20:41:00.012-06:00

Liz and I along with one of our bikes recently showed up in The Tandem Link, a helpful compendium of tandem links and frequent blog posts by TandemGeek who is also a poster at Bike Forums. I put up a couple of pictures of the Flevo on Bike Forums and TandemGeek picked us up in his recent update to the Tandem Link:

"Back-to-back recumbent tandems - OK, let me confess that I'm not the most open-minded guy when it comes to everything cycling. I'm something of a traditionalist who eschews things like "Critical Mass" as well as the transient cults and fads that seem to comprise a small segment of the cycling community. Recumbents have always been something that I've had more or less a passing curiosity in as they do appear to have their merits, particularly for folks who might not not otherwise be able or have any desire to ride a "wedgie" (aka, an upright bicycle with a saddle wedged into your tweeners). However, someone's going to have to help me out with the back-to-back recumbents. I think the first one I ever saw was a variation of the Opus Counterpoint called the "Waltz" that added a third rider facing backwards in a recumbent posture and, well, Ok that really was weird. Of late, I've seen several others including one couple from Texas who has a Barcroft and a Flavo and more recently a home-built showed up in the news that you can see HERE. I recently joked to the Flavo owners... so, are you coming or going when they posted this photo to one of the forums I frequent. Hey, as long as you're riding together, that's all that matters since it really doesn't matter what you're riding so long as you ride!!"

I think the last sentence sums up my philosophy nicely. If the only bike available to me was a wedgie I'm sure I'd ride it. The fact is, however, that Liz I are fortunate enough to have a choice and we choose to ride in perfect comfort on a fast back to back machine, drafting almost perfectly on each other, each enjoying a wide angle unobstructed view. At the end of every ride we've made lots of new friends and, best of all, we feel great. We may be tired, but we aren't numb, sore or aching. How can you beat that?

Brazos Bend State Park Ride

2008-12-07T17:51:00.033-06:00

Liz and I thought about dropping out of the Saturday ride out of Brazos Bend Park Saturday and staying in our warm beds instead. We're glad we didn't as it turned out to be the best ride we've had this year. The temperature was forecast to be in the low 40's so we dressed warmly. The Flevo back to back tandem was already on the trailer in the garage, so that's what we decided to ride. It has the biggest cargo carrying capacity of my three tandems and I figured we'd need somewhere to stow all our cold weather clothing if it warmed up as we rode.

Brazos Bend State Park is about 30 miles southwest of Houston and covers 5000 acres. Three miles of the Park front on the Brazos River.

We formed up at 8am just inside the western entrance to the Park. There is a $5 admission fee per person to enter the park. Liz and I were joined by David, Debbie, Patrick, Robert along with Jim and Lena and three of their friends.

It was pretty chilly when we pushed off from the Park, but after an hour or so it began to warm up rapidly.

Robert planned our route well. From the Park entrance we headed south on 762 a mile or so to 1462. This took us to Damon, Texas, population 647. From Damon we cruised south on back roads paralleling the west side of the Brazos river all the way to West Columbia. From there it's a short jog east on highway 35 to the Bar X Ranch. For all but the short stretch on 35 there was virtually no traffic. There were wide paved shoulders for 95% of the trip.

Here's Robert, our ride captain. Robert has joined us on several of the Fulshear rides and did Oklahoma Freewheel with me and Aimee last year. He did an excellent of leading the ride yesterday. He kept us well informed of each leg of the trip and took care to see that everyone was following.

At our first real rest stop Liz and I shed most of our clothes.

Debbie and Pat generously volunteered to furnish food for a picnic at the end of the trail. Why does food always taste better at the end of a good ride?

In addition to leading the ride Robert brought a keg of his home brew for us to enjoy. Here's David filling a bottle.

We need to do this ride again soon.

Back to the Flevo

2008-11-30T08:39:00.004-06:00

After logging a few hundred miles on the Barcroft back to back, Liz and I decided to get a few more miles on the Flevo for comparison purposes. We haven't ridden the Flevo in a few weeks so we did a few short refamiliarization rides before heading out to Fulshear this past Saturday. We were joined by Ken, Danny, George, Marty and his friend Harry on a DF. It was chilly and a healthy wind was blowing.

Liz has been clipping in as tail gunner on the Barcroft. That bike is low so it's pretty easy to hold her up for starting and stopping while she's clipped in. She prefers clipping in now and decided to give it a try on the Flevo. The Flevo is higher and much longer so I wondered how much of a challenge it would be to balance Liz while she was clipped in. In fact, it wasn't much of a problem at all. Thanks to our practice on the Barcroft B2B, we were able to push off on the Flevo with Liz already clipped. We didn't have one false start all day.

The cool temps and the northerly wind made for a chilly ride. I had my windbreaker on, but I neglected to use my gloves. They were in the pockets of my windbreaker, but I took them out and stowed them in the truck before we left the parking lot. Big mistake!

I'd forgotten how much the Flevo likes headwinds. Pushing north on 359 and later on 1489, we pulled away from everyone with ease. It makes me wonder what this bike could do with fairings between the riders or perhaps a nose fairing. I had some discussion with Karl at Zzipper a few months ago about a custom fairing. I think I'll explore that option further.

We only logged 30 miles. Liz and I felt great and could have gone further. We decamped with the rest of the crew, however, so as not to miss the group lunch at Blake's, the best burger joint in town, in my humble opinion. I don't know what makes them so good, but they are unbeatable.

Mass In Motion

2008-11-27T08:57:00.008-06:00

Most recumbent riders know that while their bikes may be a little slower than DF's while climbing, they are faster on the descent. The downhill advantage is greater on a tandem and even greater on a recumbent tandem. Check out this video from FlevoMartin illustrating the point. The Effendi lowracer has the advantage until the descent begins:

Hybrid Flevo Tandems

2008-11-21T07:01:00.007-06:00

John Vrielink's remarkable Flevobike gave rise not only to a host of variations in single bikes, but also to several experimental tandems. I've never seen a Flevobike, much less one of these interesting tandems. My friend Adam down at Planetary Cyles is the only person I know who's tried to ride a Flevo. I gather that even the most accomplished cyclist needs lots of time to acclimate to the Flevo leg steering system. Adam gave up after half an hour. The difficulty must be compunded on a tandem. Here are a few Dutch homebuilt tandems using a Flevo front end:

Soaring with HATS

2008-11-08T21:31:00.014-06:00

I've been a member of the Houston Area Tandem Society (HATS) for two or three years, but my stoker and I have never managed to get together with them on one of their rides. So, when the HATS newsletter announced a Saturday ride in Fulshear, I though we'd give it a try. After all, Fulshear is our usual riding venue on Saturday. This wasn't to be an ordinary ride though. Kevin Shaw of HATS is a soaring instructor and flies regularly out of the soaring filed near Wallis, Texas. Kevin arranged introductory glider rides for any HATS member who wanted to go up.

Since Teambent was riding from the City Hall parking lot at 8am and the HATS ride didn't start until 8:30, we unlimbered the XBike at the City Hall lot and said hello to David, Danny and Ken. Then we cruised over the HATS ride start. There we met, Hugh and Becky, Kevin and Jo, and Mike. All rode beautiful upright machines.

It's a quick 13 miles over to the Greater Houston Soaring Association field just outside of Wallis. I am a licensed pilot but I haven't flown in 20 years or so. The last flying I did was a few glider rides. I decided not to go up, but did convince Liz that she might enjoy the ride.

Jo, Becky and Liz watch while Kevin gives us a tour of what's in the hanger.

It's close quarters in the glider.

Here's the Soaring Field seen from 3000 feet.

Wallis, Texas seen from the air.

We had great fun on this trip and enjoyed meeting new tandem friends. I'll probably follow up with Kevin, our instructor, for a few lessons and maybe certification. We did find that our DF friends suffered under the same misapprehensions as most DFer's. One of them remarked that "One day all Boomers will end up on recumbents." Maybe we can change their perceptions if we continue to ride with them from time to time.

Advantages

2008-11-04T07:18:00.010-06:00

As we get the XBike more dialed in for our riding preferences we've discovered a few other advantages of this wonderful "back to back" machine. For one thing, it's an excellent camera platform for the stoker. With her 180 degree view in the back, Liz has unparalleled opportunities to grab some great shots. Here are just a few of the shots she made this past Saturday in Fulshear. The weather was foggy and cool, but that just made the pics more interesting.

The "Belik Bicycle"

2008-10-31T06:43:00.005-05:00

I found a few photos of this interesting home built carbon fiber tandem recumbent on the net. It was designed and built by Paul Velik and reminds me of the Double Vision recumbent tandem. These pictures are eight years old. I wonder what became of the bike and whether it's still around. For more info and pictures, go here.

Saturday Ride - X Bike Review

2008-10-25T18:09:00.013-05:00

I was really excited to be riding this morning for a couple of reasons. I didn't get to make the usual Saturday ride last week, so I was anxious to get back on the road and stretch my legs with my friends. This is also the first opportunity Liz and I have had to really unlimber the new Barcroft XBike Back to Back Tandem and see what it could do on a really good ride.

For a change of pace, we met near Richmond, Texas just south of US 59 where Wayne led us on a ride on his turf. We were joined by Danny, Ken, Jim, David, Robert and Bobby.

This was also the first really cool morning we've had on any of our rides this fall. Temps were in the high 40's - low 50's, but warmed up rapidly as the sun rose.

Here's Bobby's new Optima Baron. I want one! the Optima no longer comes with Flip-it handlebars so it was interesting to watch Bobby trying to dismount.

Now to the bike. The first thing you notice on this new tandem is the seat height. It's much lower than the Flevo. The bike rides on 20" wheels. With my feet on the ground, my thighs are parallel to the ground. This makes for effortless, more solid starts and I can easily hold the bike steady while Liz is clipped in and ready to pedal. She can also remain clipped in for intersection and traffic stops. The only disadvantage of the low profile is that it can be hard to see around other bike in front of and behind us. The bike is equipped with comfortable Euromesh seats. This is a more upright pedalling position for me, but it should be an easy adjustment once I get used to it. Liz sits at more of an incline because we had to move her seat all the way to the stop to get her feet to the pedals. Bill Cook also helped by shortening the rear end of the frame a bit so the boom had a little more travel towards the stoker. The bike is considerably shorter than the Flevo and handles beautifully. It has dual wheel drive and the front wheels drive system uses a twisting chain. This system works very well and I could pedal through turns without heel interference.

Steering is quite a bit different from the Flevo. The handlebars on the Flevo are right at eye level and obscure forward vision. This is because of the high bottom bracket and the recline angle of the seats. This is also one of the reasons the Flevo is fast. The handlebars on the XBike are well down and right over the front wheel, resulting in full forward vision and no tiller effect. Like the Flevo, this bike offers fully independent cadence so that Liz can pedal at her most comfortable pace.

I was a little concerned that the 20" wheels would mean a rougher ride. I quickly discovered that the braced monotube frame flexes just enough to take the edge off of most bumps. The ride was quite comfortable. The bike is fast. We didn't push to see how fast it would go, but I found that we could accelerate through 20mph without too much effort at all. I had the feeling that this bike accelerates from a stop much faster than the Flevo. This is probably due to the smaller wheels. I think I'd like higher gearing on the bike. Danny is looking into it.

We were relieved to find that this bike fits perfectly onto the trailer David built for the Flevo. Overall, I am very pleased with this bike. It has several distinct advantages over the Flevo and I think Liz and I will be enjoying it for many more miles in the future. This makes three tandems for me: the Seavo, the Flevo and the XBike. The Seavo still fills a role in my riding. I'll be using it on most of my Sunday rides in town and as a change of pace from back to back riding. I doubt I'll ever sell the Flevo. It's just too unusual and rare to part with, at least right now. Liz is in love with the XBike right now so it's going to be hard to get her to ride anything else.

We had a blast on today's ride. The traffic was a bit challenging for the first 10-15 miles, but once we got out into the countryside, the riding was great. We had nice shoulders most of the way.

Miles Ridden This Year: 1682

Miles Today: 51.8

Check Lists

2008-10-23T08:00:00.006-05:00

Have you ever driven out to a ride and found that you've forgotten your pump? Ever forgotten your front wheel? Helmet? All these little comedies have happened to me at one time or another. I've told myself for quite a while that I need a checklist so that I don't forget essential items when I ride. One day a couple of months ago I finally made one. My Flevo back to back has it's own pre-ride check list and one of the most important items on the list is to check the two main connecting screws that hold the frame together as well as the screws that hold the movable cranks onto the frame. The bike was made in Holland and I've never seen screws quite like these. I wouldn't want to lose any of them because I have a feeling that they'd be difficult if not impossible to replace.

Since I transport the Flevo on a trailer, there is lots of vibration and the screws do tend to loosen during the trip. My check list requires me to check all screws before I leave the house and tighten them before we actually ride. This past Saturday we drove to Fulshear for our usual morning ride with the gang. I failed to use my checklist. The weather was beautiful and the ride was a joy. Something was nagging at me in the back of my mind though. At the 10 mile rests top I realized I hadn't checked frame screws. "I'll just tighten them up," I thought as I dismounted. You can see what I found in the pic below:

The bottom frame screw wasn't just loose...it had fallen out. Our ride was over. There was no way we could ride the bike with one of the main frame screws missing. The rest of the group pushed on to finish the ride while Ken headed back 10 miles to Fulshear to get my truck.

This story has a happy ending though. We found the screw on the trailer and I use my checklist religiously these days.

The X-Bike Has Arrived

2008-10-17T07:24:00.002-05:00

The new Barcroft back to back tandem has finally arrived. It's taking shape over at Danny's (world headquarters of Cycle Genius Recumbents). Bill Cook had the bike powder coated for me before he shipped it. I couldn't be happier with the layered purple over silver my stoker picked out. It's gorgeous! I took a few measurements of the assembled bike last night and I don't think it's going to fit in the Tahoe. I'll find out for sure today. I've taken the day off so I can give it a road test.

A City Ride

2008-10-13T07:00:00.007-05:00

The older I get, the more conservative I've become in my riding. Since my accident in January I've avoided riding in wet conditions and have been extremely cautious going over railroad tracks. I've never liked riding in traffic, but the last few years I've avoided it almost all together. When I bought my first recumbent, my Tour Easy, I hooked up with other riders for an in town ride. Looking back at the traffic and potholes we braved I can only marvel and shake my head. I'd never consider such a ride these days. So, when my stoker suggested that we ride through town over to some freinds house for morning coffee I was dubious. Nevertheless, the weather for Sunday was forecast as cool and still. I figured if we rose early we could miss most of the traffic. Using lightly traveled side roads we could try to avoid most of the bumps and potholes.

We shoved off around 7:45 and headed for Hermann Park and then up to the Museum District. Traffic was indeed very light. We were able to cruise through usually busy intersections without stopping. Within 45 minutes we were sipping coffee on the porch of our friends house. After this delightful break we pushed off for Rice Village for breakfast at La Madelaine. More coffee, great food and the Sunday paper. This city ride was growing on me.

After breakfast we turned west again and pointed the bike back towards the house. We meandered through West University and Bellaire, enjoying the view. Lots of people were out walkng, picking up the paper or tending to their yards. Most all of them smiled or waved when they saw us roll by on our our tandem.

The Seavo is the ideal tandem for this type of ride. It's 1.5" tires glide over ruts, bumps and gravel without much trouble. It's steady and stable even at the slower cruising speeds we use on these city streets.

We ended up with 20 miles although we hardly ever looked down at the computer. The quiet morning city sights were our entertainment. What a way to start a Sunday!

Post Ike Rides

2008-10-07T21:47:00.010-05:00

We've had fine riding weather the past couple of weekends. It's been getting cooler so we've moved our ride starts in Fulshear from 7:30 to 8am. Danny has ridden with us and has, as usual, provided invaluable technical assitance, from adjusting Z's seat on his V2F to fixing a broken spoke on the Flevo.

There was quite a crowd in the Fulshear area this past Saturday and I can't account for it except for the glorious weather. Here's Liz explaining the joys of riding backwards to a couple of DFers.

George Bush Park
Aimee and I decided to check out George Bush Park this past Friday for the first time since Hurricane Ike.

All went well until we turned south to traverse the body of the Park. We didn't get very far before we came to a screeching halt at the water's edge. Apparnetly the storm dropped lots of water in the park and it hasn't drained off yet. We turned around and with a couple of double backs, got 20 miles for the ride.

Cancelled

2008-10-02T07:18:00.002-05:00

Hurricane Ike did this ride in. From the Bike Around the Bay website:

We are saddened to announce that because of conditions resulting from Hurricane Ike, we are cancelling our bike ride scheduled forthis October 18-19. Conditions will simply not allow us to go forward with a safe ride this year. We have explored several options ofgoing forward with only a portion of the ride, but ultimately decided it would be best to pass for this year. We are very committed to LyondellBasell Bike Around the Bay and look forward to offering the ride again in 2009. However, we are very excited to invite all riders to join us in Galveston the weekend of October 18-19 for a “Bike Around the Bay” volunteer event. Instead of simply cancelling our bike ride, we’d like to have a large group of riders/volunteers join us to assist with Hurricane recovery efforts in Galveston. We are in the process right now of setting up specific activities on which our volunteers can work, but we anticipate having a full day’s worth of activities on both Saturday, October 18, and Sunday, October 19. We invite you to join us for one or both days and if you can, spend the night at Moody Gardens. If we have enough participation, we will plan to go forward with our dinner and beach party that evening as a way to thank all our volunteers. Lunch will also be provided both days for all volunteers.

I think it's great that the ride organizers are sponsoring a relief event in Galveston in lieu of the ride. This is a great tour that I will definitely do next year.

Cycling Photography

2008-10-01T07:22:00.003-05:00

Before I was really into tandem cycling, I took pictures. I remember the thrill of developing my own negatives and then staying up all night making black and white prints in the darkroom. Those days are gone for me now, but I still love taking pictures, especially if they relate to my cycling. The problem is that to take a picture while riding, I have to take one hand off of the handlebars, fumble the camera out of the front bike bag, turn the camera on and then try to get the shot. The problem with this method is that it's an accident looking for a place to happen. A tandem captain can't afford this kind of distraction when he is repsonsible for the bike and the safety of his stoker. That's why my stoker takes all of the pictures while we're rolling. She doesn't have the view that I do up front, however, so alot of neat shots are missed. Jeff at tandemride.com came up with a handlebar mount for his Nikon Coolpix 4500 that solves the problem.

Another nifty solution is offered by GoPro. This lightweight digital camera is waterproof and can shoot 56 minutes of video and 2 hours of "photo every 5 seconds" shots. For $169.99 it's hard to pass up.

Meanwhile, I'm waiting to see what the organizers of the "Lyondell Bike Around the Bay" are going to do about this years ride. It's set for October 18-19, a little over two weeks from now. The first evening of the ride is in Galveston and many of the roads on last year's course are washed away or heavily damaged. In addition, there are reported health hazards on the island. I loved this ride last year, but for the safety of all, I'm hoping it's pushed back until next spring.

Jeff and Michelle at Tandemride.com

2008-09-28T13:46:00.003-05:00

Check out the tandem adventures of Jeff and Michelle at their interesting and informative website. Don't miss his handlebar camera mount!

Post Ike Ride

2008-09-23T14:56:00.013-05:00

This past Saturday saw our first look at Fulshear and the surrounding area after the hurricane. Gas is becoming more available in Houston by the day so none of us were too worried about burning the fuel for the 60 mile round trip ride to Fulshear. Frankly, I did not know what to expect. I packed an extra tube in addition the the two tubes I ordinarily carry. I was fully prepared to find roads blocked by trees and littered with other hazards. I needn't have worried.

While many trees, including some really huge ones, were down, none of them were blocking the roads. Most of the fallen trees had already been cut up and were awaiting pick up and disposal. We saw several burning brush piles in the fields we passed. This is apparently a quicker disposal method than waiting for pick up. On the whole though, the roads were just as they've always been: smooth, quiet and free of debris. Not a single flat in the group for the whole ride.

My stoker was glad to get back on the road.

Our pack consisted of me and Liz on the Seavo, Danny, Ken, George, Jim and Wayne. We rode the "neighborhood" route. 38 miles in all.

Most of the large trees that succumbed to the storm were hollow at their core, like these above. This must be some disease process and, no doubt, contributed to their demise.

The New Back to Back

2008-09-17T14:20:00.006-05:00

Hurricane Ike has made me count my blessings lately. I and my family and friends have come through the storm without any injury or significant inconvenience. We don't have power yet, but the gas lines are getting a little shorter and the weather has been unseasonably cool. I've slept with the windows open every night. The other bright spot on the horizon is my new back to back tandem.

I'm buying Bill Cook's back to back prototype racing bike. It wasn't actually for sale, but Danny gave him a ring and asked if he would be interested in letting it go. Bill is one of the founders of Barcroft Cycles and has designed and built some really elegant, fast and comfortable bikes. Bill's tandem racing partner, Chris Burkhardt, designed the Barcroft Columbia tandem. It seems that Bill and Chris Burkhardt were planning on building a new tandem anyway and decided that this might a good time to get the project started. So, I am the happy and excited buyer of Bill's one of a kind, prototype back to back. Bill's getting it repainted for me and doing some other tweaking and I can't wait till it arrives. I'm also delighted by the fact that my stoker is just as excited as I am about our new arrival.

The bike sits significantly lower than the Flevo and should be easier to mount and dismount. That's going to add to the confidence factor of my stoker. My healing right leg will like it too. The bike is also shorter and lighter than the Flevo. Twenty pounds lighter. That will make for easier starts, especially on uphills. Since the bike is lower, I expect it to be faster than the Flevo. In addition, as Bill says, "Low bikes look cool."

That's Bill in the yellow wind breaker in the stoker seat. The bike rides on 20" wheels.

Here's the bike in the foreground with Ray Brick's carbon back to back right along side.

I'm not sure how much shorter this bike is than the Flevo, but I always have the Flevo trailor if I need it. Like the Flevo, this amazing bike comes apart for transport if necessary.

By the way, my friend David had told me what a pleasure it was to do business with Bill. Now I have first hand experience and I couldn't agree more. Who knows? Maybe one day I'll be in the market for a Barcroft Columbia.

No Ride Today - Closed for Ike

2008-09-13T10:35:00.004-05:00

I'm writing this morning from Conroe, 50 miles north of Houston. We are sheltering at a friends house. There is no power here. We have a generator so we have coffee, radio and some lights. I'm typing on a laptop running on batteries. When we came here Wednesday it was on the assumption that moving this far north would afford a little protection, but that was a vain hope. Just outside the patio I can see a huge oak tree that came down during the night. It landed on and crushed our neighbor's garage and three cars. It could have been alot worse. The radio is telling us that the Houston water supply may be contaminated and that water should be boiled. Fortunately, I have alot of bottled water laid back.

My daughters remained in Houston and they have texted me that they are fine.

With any luck we'll be back on the road in Fulshear next weekend. Stay tuned.

A New Back to Back

2008-09-09T19:01:00.005-05:00

I can't think of adding another bike to my stable without thinking of my friend David who has so many bikes he has to warehouse them. Right now I have two tandems, the Seavo and the Flevo, and I ride them almost exclusively. For me, the Seavo is probably the perfect conventional recumbent tandem. It's sturdy, relatively easy to transport, comfortable, stable and fast. The Flevo introduced me to the world of back to back tandeming and I haven't looked back (pun intended). It's a speed machine compared to the Seavo and certainly draws smiles and comments wherever we ride it. It does have some things characteristics I'd like to improve on, however.

First, it's heavy. At almost 70 pounds, it can be tricky to start uphill. A lighter bike would be a better climber and easier to start. Second, it's long. At 13 feet, it won't fit on any rack. My transport choices are either to break it down every time I ride it or trailer it as I have been doing the last few months, thanks to David. Part of that 13 feet is due to the sliding cranks that can move to fit the size of the captain and stoker. That's a convenient feature, but beyond the cranks there usually a good 2-3 feet of unused boom. So, I like to have back to back that's shorter. That means a design that adjusts for the rider by moving the seats, not the cranks. Here's an example:

I'm working on closing a deal on a new back to back that will solve these problems. If I find the right bike, I might put the Flevo on the market to pay for it. More this week when the deal is done.

Paul's New Tandem

2008-09-02T20:35:00.003-05:00

I've been following the construction of Paul's new semi-recumbent tandem for a few months now. He bought the one of a kind frame on ebay and then went to work. He ordered some of the parts and fabricated others. This past weekend I convinced him to bring it out to Fulshear for a demo ride. The first surprise was when he pulled up in his car with no bike rack. I thought maybe he had forgotten the bike or had decided just to come out and watch the ride. In fact, he had tucked the whole bike in his trunk. That has to be a first for a tandem and a two door!

I met Paul and Cyndy when they rode the Tour D' Houston earlier this year. They had rented and EZ Tandem but had no way to get it to and from the ride. I was recovering from my broken femur. I could drive and hobble around, but I wasn't riding yet so I volunteered the Tahoe and Draftmaster to transport them. They completed the ride, but Paul wasn't crazy about the EZ Tandem. Later he tried out my Seavo. Eventually he settled on the semi-recumbent configuration. After looking at the Bilenky and the Harmony tandems he decided to build his own. This is the result.

Ken, David, Wayne and Marty joined us for the ride.

Back to the Doctor

2008-08-28T20:37:00.002-05:00

As most of you know I've been seeing doctors alot more than I'd like this year. I broke my femur in January and now carry a titanium rod and a couple of screws in my leg. I feel I've recovered fully from that and I've been back on the road logging as many miles as I can work into my schedule. I thought I'd seen the last of doctors for the rest of the year, but I was wrong. While on vacation in Canada earlier this month with my daughters I noticed a new growth on my face an inch or so under my left eye. Since I have a cousin who died from melanoma, I watch my skin carefully and go to the dermatologist once a year. I've had many skin tags removed over the years, mostly on my face and neck. I know what the harmless ones look like and this new growth was different. As soon as I got back home I saw my dermatologist. He removed it and told me to call back in ten days for lab results. Ten days came and went and I didn't hear from him so I began to assume as was well. On the eleventh day, reason prevailed over my assumptions and I forced myself to make the call. The doctor called me back within five minutes to tell me that the growth he removed was a squamous cell carcinoma. The next day found me back in his office where he enlarged the original wound with some additional cutting, scraping and burning. I must return in six weeks.

Squamous and basal cell carcinoma are the two most common skin cancers and rarely spread. Squamous cell carcinoma is the more dangerous of the two since it can metastisize if not treated. Both of these skin cancers are most common on areas exposed to the sun. I've been using sun screen these last 10 years that I've been riding regularly, but the doctor tells me my skin cancer is the result of 60 years of sun damage. I'll be fine, but I worry about my riding friends who don't use any sun screen at all.

For more information on skin cancer go here. WARNING: some of the pictures are graphic.

HHH Pics

2008-08-27T08:35:00.001-05:00

See some pics of the 2008 Hotter N' Hell Hundred from the Times Record here.

Hotter N' Hell

2008-08-26T20:16:00.011-05:00

Another Hotter N' Hell is over. This year was quite a different experience for us. We usually get a room in Duncan, OK for the ride. It's 60 miles from Wichita Falls and rooms are plentiful and cheap. This year Z was unable to attend the ride and offered us his room in Wichita Falls. We accepted. The room was affordable at $113, even with the two night minimum.

Aimee and Liz and I shoved off around 9am Friday morning and had lunch at Woody's in Centerville. I remembered the smoked pork chops from last year and had them again. Delicious! Ken, Jim and Danny were about an hour ahead of us so we didn't see them until the trade show.

My plan had been to ride the Flevo this year, but in the end I opted for the Seavo. With three of us in the Tahoe, it would have been a stretch to load the Flevo into the back of the truck. I could have trailered it, but I was concerned about finding parking the morning of the ride since I would need two spaces.

The trade show was alot of fun, as usual. We had a quiet dinner at the Olive Garden with just a 45 minute wait. the last time I tried to eat at an Olive Garden during Hotter N' Hell, the wait was 2 hours, but that was 7 years ago. We were in bed by 10pm. The Fairfield Inn kindly let us stow our bikes in their break room which is locked at night, so i didn't have to worry about them getting ripped off.

Since we didn't have to drive the 60 miles in from Duncan on Saturday morning we were able to sleep a little longer and still arrive at the parking lot by the Civic Center almost an hour ahead of start time. We had both bikes on the start line by 6:30 for the 7am start. Starting positions were changed this year. Early registrants had the location of their starting point printed on their bib number. We registered late so we didn't have this. We managed to get to the front of the start line since we were on a tandem. Nevertheless, a group of 100 milers lined up on the block ahead of us. They started early so that we had empty road ahead of us as the national anthem started and the usual 4 jet flyover thundered overhead. Before the anthem had finished the ride starter told us to shove off so we did. Being old school, I would have preferred to wait until the anthem was over, but I did not want to be caught in a sea of riders on the tandem, at least not on the start line.

The weather was as good as I've ever seen it for a Hotter N' Hell. Moderate temps and light winds.

Our ride was great headed for rest stop one. For some reason we always ride faster on this stretch. I guess there's a certain crowd psychosis that makes you pedal faster in a fast moving pack. There was an awful accident on this stretch last year involving multiple DF's and we saw the same thing happen this year. Three or four bikes went down in front of us and as we passed the wreck site another bike went down on top of them. Aimee saw this biker make an unsuccessful attempt to get up after he fell. I try to stay on the right edge of the road to avoid this danger as much as possible.

Our ride came to an end at mile 7. I felt my seat give way a little to the left. We stopped and found that the sprint brace for the captain seat had cracked right at the weld. As much as I wanted to continue the ride, we were done. We turned around and limped back into town at reduced speed. It's difficult to describe how disappointed we were. Still, I suppose we were lucky that this happened on level ground and not on a climb or on a fast downhill run. What's infuriating is that this is not the first time a weld has given way on this bike. Last year the same sprint brace gave way at the same location but on the other side (see below). I returned it to Rans who told me it was a bad weld. They replaced the brace and sent me an extra, but I never dreamed it could happen twice. I'm writing Rans tomorrow.

Liz, who was riding her first HHH and her first organized ride on a single, finished the 50 mile route as planned and in great time.

As for me and Aimee, well, there's always next year.

Fulshear Weekend

2008-08-18T07:35:00.009-05:00

This is the last weekend before the Hotter N' Hell 100 in Wichita Falls next Saturday so all of us were intent on getting a good long ride or two to warm up for the big ride. Liz and I trailered the Flevo out to Fulshear for what we thought would be a 50 mile+ ride this past Saturday morning. It was not to be. As soon as we mounted up and shoved off I heard an odd noise coming from the front wheel and got off to check it out. My heart sank when I saw the problem...a broken spoke. Master builder and mechanic Danny was with us and said he could save the ride for us by removing the broken spoke and retruing the wheel. Alas, we had no spoke wrench so the ride was over for us before it began. Lesson learned. After getting the broken spoke replaced, I bought a couple of extra spokes and added a spoke wrench to our tool kit.

Aimee and I got 30 miles in today with Liz, David and Joni. We sighted Ken and Mary Ellen on their tandem trike. I'm going to try and ride some more this week.

Below are a few of Debbie's pics from Saturday's ride:

Derek's SUT (Sport Utility Tandem)

2008-08-16T19:34:00.009-05:00

I discovered Derek's very cool Electra Tandem with Xtracycle Conversion over at Bike Forums. Check out the awesome night lighting. For more info on this bike and the rest of Derek's stable, go to Bikerubbish.com

"She's not pedaling in back"

2008-08-13T22:48:00.004-05:00

Anyone who rides a tandem around other people has gotten this comment or something similar hundreds of times. Some of my friends over at Bike Forums have suggested a number of witty responses:

"Who? There's someone on the back?"
"She has to. We're chained together."
"She better, because I'm not."
"Your bike is missing a motor."
"I steer. She pedals."
"Whatever route I take, she's right behind me."

Then there is this sign, which nips the "she's not pedaling" comment in the bud:

Seavo Travel Case

2008-08-12T08:02:00.005-05:00

When Aimee and I did the Oklahoma Freewheel last year we looked high and low for a container to ship the Seavo back to the start point of the ride. I found a cardboard box designed for DF's and was told the Seavo would probably fit it, but I decided not to take a chance. In the end, my GF stayed for the whole ride and followed us each day.

Now Angletech has listed a Seavo travel case:

According to Angletech:

Designed for the Rans Seavo TR tandem, the Angletech Seavo TR Transit case is meticulously hand made and designed to protect your Seavo TR in your travels on the planet.
An attractive Tuba case look, the Angletech Rans Seavo TR Transit case features heavy duty Cordura fabric outside with ballistic nylon in areas of greater impact. A solid floor with fork anchor, removable casters to roll your Case along in the airport with detachable pulls for maneuvering. Nice rubber external handles, business card/ID sleeve, and large shipping document sleeve. An assortment of protective envelopes for your seats, wheels, handlebars, and S&S Coupler sections. Sacks for pedals, chain, casters. This semi hard case design is fully padded and lined w/ reinforced zones like the rigid floor, yielding a more stowable case at your destination. This philosophy of Transit Case design has proven less likely to be tossed or buried at the bottom of the stack.
Dimensions: 57" long, 16" wide, 27" high.
Due to the hand made nature of this item, allow up to 4 weeks for delivery.

2008-08-11T07:48:00.003-05:00

Photo by Gregg Bleakney

Here is a beautiful little back to back tandem recumbent I found on the web. It's obviously set up for touring. The stoker position has interesting reverse gearing. If anyone knows anything about this bike, I'd love to hear about it.

My Graduation

2008-08-01T07:19:00.004-05:00

It's been almost seven months since my broken femur. Since then I've ridden more than a thousand miles. Today my handicap tag expired. The recovery is complete.

Fleavo vs. Seavo

2008-07-29T20:05:00.007-05:00

Having finally put enough miles (600+) on the Flevo back to back to get a real feel for the bike, I thought it would be interesting to rate it against my trusty Rans Seavo. It's mostly an academic exercise though since the Flevo is generally unavailable on the market now. I'll rate them both on a scale of 1-10 for comfort, speed, transportability, maneuverability, cost, and stoker satisfaction.

Comfort

Flevo: This is the most comfortable bike, tandem or single, I've ever ridden. After a 50 mile ride there are no sore body parts and no recumbent butt. This is due no doubt to the fact that my stoker and I are basically riding on our backs. In addition, the suspension piston at the top middle of the frame smooths out all but the biggest bumps. Rating: 10

Seavo: As comfortable as the Screamer and most other single recumbents I've ridden. I do get recumbent butt on this bike after about 30 miles. Rating: 7

Speed

Flevo: It's performance is a quantum leap over any recumbent I've ridden. It easily cruises in the high teens with little effort and can cruise in the twenties with a bit of push. It's oblivious to headwinds. We easily pass almost every DF in sight in a headwind. Rating: 9

Seavo: The Seavo was a performance improvement over the Screamer, enabling us to cruise at 15+ for the first time. Headwinds are a problem though, as with most other bikes. Rating: 6

Transportability

Flevo: At a little over 13 feet long, the Flevo presents some transport issues. I'm not aware of any rack that will hold the Flevo. The bike breaks down easily into two pieces and set up is straightforward, so it can be broken down and carried in the back of a truck or SUV. For a Saturday ride, however, that means breaking down and reassembling the bike twice each. I solved this problem by acquiring, with the help of friend David, a trailer that holds the Flevo securely. Transport and set up are a breeze now, but I do have a large trailer taking up half my garage. Rating: 5

Seavo: This bike is easily transportable on most tandem racks. I use the Draftmaster with no problems. The bike also has SS couplers and breaks down into to halves without much trouble so I can stow it in the back of my SUV when necessary. Rating: 9

Maneuverability

Flevo: While the Flevo is swift and very stable, it doesn't exactly turn on a dime. I find that on winding bike paths, like those at George Bush Park, things can get a little dicey, particularly when there are pedestrians to cope with. My friend Damien in Australia owned a Flevo and comments,"It's not stiff enough...after applying some steering lock, it takes a second or so for the frame to wind-up and actually start turning the corner." I've never noticed this on my bike. Rating: 5

Seavo: Very stable and agile. The bike turns easily and quickly. Rating: 8

Cost

Flevo: I picked up the Flevo with on online WTB ad. It was in perfect condition with only a few hundred miles on it. $3000 plus shipping ($150) plus the cost of the new trailer ($300). Total: $3450. I think that's a steal for such an unusual bike that is long out of production. Rating: 8

Seavo: I bought the Seavo early last year for a little over $6000. Not a bargain but we've ridden it 2500 miles so far, so I'm getting my money's worth. Rating: 6

Stoker Satisfaction

Flevo: After getting over the initial nervousness involved in riding backwards and building trust, most stokers who have ridden this bike any length of time find that they actually prefer it to conventional tandems. The view back there is pretty much unrestricted. On organized rides conversations with other riders are possible. Rating: 9

Seavo: While the ride is comfortable the view is restricted. The stoker seat is set lower than on the Screamer. Rating: 5

And the winner is.....the Flevo with 46 points to 41 for the Seavo. They're both great bikes, but I find myself mostly riding the Flevo on weekends. I suppose that will change down the road once the novelty wears off. It's hard not to fall in love with a bike that dramatically boosts your speed and enables you to pass everything in sight, particularly at my age. And, as I've commented before, this bike puts a smile on the face of everyone who sees it. The Flevo never fails to garner a crowd.

"On your left...on your right...whatever"

2008-07-24T19:40:00.007-05:00

"On your left...on your right...whatever." I actually heard this call from an overtaking rider at the Katy Flatland this past weekend and it represents one of the interesting twists in riding a back to back tandem. The passing rider meant, of course, that he was coming up on my left. Then he made eye contact with my stoker who was in the back facing him. Although he was passing on my left, he was passing on her right. On the Flevo, or any back to back tandem for that matter, all directions are reversed between the captain and stoker.

This phenomenon wouldn't be a problem except for the fact from the stoker's perspective riding backwards and blind requires a good deal of trust. One of the things a good captain must do on a back to back, at least initially, is to keep the rearward facing stoker informed of the road ahead. This means announcing bumps, gravel, turns, slowing, stopping and any other significant event accurately and well in advance. Announcing a left or right turn on the back to back takes on another dimension. The captain's right is the stoker's left and vice versa. On our first few rides the stoker just tried to make the mental adjustment and reverse all the turn directions I gave. It didn't always work. Often the stoker was distracted or focusing on other things and didn't take time to make the mental translation of right into left and left into right.

It was only after I asked Danny over at Cycle Genius to work on the bike that he came up with the perfect solution. The front and rear chain rings are both on the same side of the bike. So if I signal my stoker that we are turning towards the crank, it needs no translation at all. The same for turning away from the crank. This system made sense immediately and has served us well ever since. Now we use it not only to announce turns, but to point out things of interest while riding the bike, such as "Check out the cool tandem dropping back on the crank side."

Thanks Danny for another great idea!

Katy Flatland Report

2008-07-20T16:27:00.008-05:00

Another Katy Flatland is on the books. This was our first Flatland on the Flevo and my first Flatland in the last few years. Last year was rained out, at least for Aimee and me. This year the weather cooperated. Liz and I were up by 5 and on the road by 5:45. David arrived at the start line early and phoned in a route change to avoid the heavy traffic at Katy Mills Mall where the ride started. Setting up the bike from the new trailer is a breeze compared to having to yank the two halves out of the back of the truck. Now we just take it off the trailer, load it up and go. I'm getting spoiled.

The ride seemed well attended. I haven't ridden it in a couple of years but attendance doesn't seem to have dropped with higher gas prices.

The start was staged by distance and limited to groups of a hundred or so. Tandems were placed in the first group so we were able to avoid the trouble of negotiating the Flevo in a solid mass of bikes. Instead we launched with a group of tandems before anyone else. Sweet. We saw Danny, Ken and David in the lot before the start and Tim and Vic in the first few miles.

As usual, the Flevo got lots of attention. Even though we passed or were passed by at least a thousand bikes, we didn't get a single "She's not pedaling in back" comment. We did get lots of other friendly comments though and Liz had a chance to talk to many riders as we cruised down the road. I think she enjoyed it. There's something about riding in a group that raises bike speed. We cruised at 19-20 on the leg to the first rest stop. The weather was perfect: a few clouds and very little wind. I thought temps were moderate for this time of year and it really didn't get hot until the end of the ride.

The route was well marked with color coded signs, but the color coding was not put on the maps. You either had to listen carefully to the starter or figure out the color coding while underway. We didn't have any problem. Rest stops were every 12-13 miles. I thought they were small, considering how many riders were on the road. There were long lines for the porta-potties and even longer lines for water and Gatorade. I can understand the logistical problems of positioning porta-potties, but it seems an easy matter to have more than 3-4 coolers available at the rest stops.

All of the riders we met were courteous and fun to talk to. I was surprised, however, to see several people on the open road who just refused to move over for cars. I just don't understand that kind of behavior. It reminded me of something my Dad, who was a pilot, used to tell me about flying: There are old pilots and there are bold pilots, but there are no old, bold pilots.

We passed several wreck scenes with ambulances in attendance. There were lots of SAG wagons and most of the busy intersections were flagged by local police. Just as with the Pedaling the Prarie ride in June, we started and ended at Katy Mills Mall. This is an okay place to start the ride and I guess it draws traffic into Sun and Ski Sports, but it's a horrible plave to end the ride. The last few miles featured lots of high speed auto traffic. Back in the day when I did this right on a DF, the ride started and ended at Katy High School. I don't know why it moved to Katy Mills, but moving it back to Katy High would be a distinct improvement.

We planned on doing the 60 miler, but opted to shorten the last leg of the ride for a total of 50 miles. This is Liz' longest ride of the year and I didn't want to push it. It was a smart choice because it really got hot in that last hour.

Thanks for a great ride!

Katy Flatland

2008-07-15T21:59:00.003-05:00

The Katy Flatland is on for this Sunday and the weather looks like it might be pretty decent. Aimee and I had plans to do the Flatland last year, but it started raining as we pulled into the parking lot. This year Liz and I plan to do the 60 miler on the Flevo. I'll be posting a ride report. For reviews of a few past Flatland rides go here.

My regular Saturday ride and the Flatland this weekend should put me over the 1000 mile mark for the year. I's still optistic about getting the 2500 miles I set as a goal after I broke my femur in January.

The Morris' Seavo

2008-07-14T21:33:00.003-05:00

The only other Seavo owner I've ever spoken with is Dennis Morris of Tulsa. Dennis and Verlyn are dedicated tandem riders and were most helpful in sharing what they knew about setting up a Flevo when I was building mine. They have a great web page with lots of Seavo pictures. Be sure and check out their "Bike History" page as well as their "Seavo Q&A". Lots of good info there.

An Amazing Tandem Family

2008-07-07T08:11:00.006-05:00

I spotted a mention of this amazing tandem family on EZ Biker's blog and can't help doing the same here. Have a look here for their story. Like EZ, I wish I had been born into a cycling family like this!

Aimee and I rode with this crew in the 2006 Hotter N' Hell in Wichita Falls. Here we are at the start line:

Independence Day

2008-07-04T16:40:00.002-05:00

Happy 4th to all my biking friends out there! This is America's 232nd birthday. Let's never forget those who made it possible.

Flevo Trailer

2008-07-02T21:36:00.006-05:00

Regular readers of this blog (if there are any) know that my ride of choice this year has been the Flevo back to back tandem. The bike is a joy to ride, but not easy to transport. It won't fit on my Draftmaster rack or any other rack I know of because of it's length. End to end, the bike is just shy of 13 feet long (12'10"). It comes apart in the middle for easy transport. This means unscrewing a couple of connections, taking the rear hydraulic brake lever off of the front handle bar and unclipping the brake line. Then the two halves are stowed. Even the two halves are so big and unwieldly that it's easy to inadvertantly damage them. Taking the bike out to Fulshear for a Saturday ride means breaking it down for loading, setting it up in Fulshear, breaking it down for loading after the ride and then unloading it at home and setting it up again. That can become tedious.

Solution: a trailer with a mounting system long enough to hold the Flevo. Good friend Z has found me a trailer and designed and built a mounting system.

We hope to have this unit up and running in the next few days. This means no more breaking down and setting up the bike. Hooray!

Stay tuned.

Danny on the Flevo

2008-07-01T21:43:00.003-05:00

Here's a short demo video shot from the back seat of the Flevo. That's Jim behind us on his Ti Aero. Notice that the stoker (Danny) is able to pedal normally even though he faces backwards. Like the Seavo, the Flevo offers the advantage of totally hands free stoking.

Fulshear Saturday

2008-06-29T13:36:00.010-05:00

Only three of us rode in Fulshear yesterday: Danny, Jim and me. I loaded the truck Friday night so I could sleep until 5:30 Saturday morning. I picked up Danny and Jim as planned and we were unloaded and set up in Fulshear by 7am. Danny and I rode the Flevo. He brought a pedal wrench and installed his own stoker pedals so that he could clip in. Brave soul.

We had a surprise visit from John Bosco in the parking lot. Jim had a flat before we got started. I happened to have a tube that fit and Danny did the repairs. We shoved off. By the time we got to the Shell station in Fulshear John had a flat too. Damn. Unbeknownst to us he did not have a tube that fit and ended up going home without riding. See you next time John.

This is probably the best run I've had on the Flevo. The bike ran smoothly. Danny and I pushed up into the high 20's several times and cruised comfortably at 20 for extended periods.

One thing I've figured out about Danny on this ride: the title of stoker doesn't really apply to him. I would say he's actually more of a co-captian from the back seat. All of Danny's advice, however, was top notch and I learned from him on this ride.

Total miles Saturday: 41.6

Total Miles This Year: 854.3

2008 Goal: 2500 (It's still doable if I start bike commuting.)

HH100

2008-06-24T07:56:00.003-05:00

It's almost Hotter N' Hell time again. This year's ride is set for Saturday, August 23, 2008 in Wichita Falls, Texas. There were 11,205 registered riders last year and I'm sure there'll be a crowd this year too. This ride just keeps getting better. Last year saw a new phased start that got all the riders on the course in 20 minutes. It took and hour the year before. 35 sag wagons last year. 15 sags the year before.

See you there!

"Stoker Wanted"

2008-06-21T09:03:00.003-05:00

"If you are an experienced tandem stoker, or always wanted to give it a try, please contact me"

"Anybody out there want to ride on the back seat of one of my tandems ? I have got two lovely tandems in good working order. All they are doing now though is sitting in my garage gathering dust beacuse I have no stoker to ride them with. Please contact me if you would like to go for a ride or two with me by tandem.Sighted or unsighted stokers welcome, Female or Male, any height catered for. "

"I am always looking for a stoker so my tandem sits against the wall way too much. If you would like to go for a ride let me know. I am thinking about selling my Cannondale s/m size simply due to lack of use."

"Captain looking for a stoker to share a morning or afternoon outing. It's fun...just be sure to follow safe cycling rules, and always wear a helmet!"

It is an irony for the unmarried tandemist that the one thing about tandeming that makes it so rewarding is also the thing that can make it impossible to ride a tandem: it takes two people. Most tandem teams are husband and wife. Others are families on triples or pairs of recumbents. The unmarried tandemist must find a stoker without the benefit these ties.

I am not married. I rode over 2000 miles on tandems last year. For most of that time my stoker was my 22 year old daughter. She was never much into riding upright bikes, but once I got a tandem recumbent she was hooked. We rode most weekends out in the country with my friends and did most of the organized rides in the Houston area over the years. I treasured the hours spent in the open air with my daughter. That's over now, for the most part. She has a job that requires her to work Saturday's. Oh, she may come back for a Saturday or two or the Bike Around the Bay, but I fear the days of riding with her 2-3 times a week are gone for good.

So where does that leave me? I have a girlfriend, but she rides with me intermittantly at best. Several of my friends have volunteered to stoke for me and we've had a blast, but none of these volunteers are going to morph into a regular stoker for me. They have bikes of their own. There is a tandem club in town, but their members are complete teams, not stokers looking for captains.

The best of tandeming comes when a captain and a stoker become a coordinated team through shared experience. There is an intuitive form of tandeming that can only be achieved by learning the movements, cadence and thinking of your tandem partner as the miles slide by. This magic is unavailable to the tyro tandem team or the seasoned captain or stoker riding with a new team mate.

Can a high milage tandem team exist without the marital of family relationship? Can two people with lives of their own come together on a regular basis to enjoy the pleasures of tandeming? Frankly, I doubt it, but I'm interested to hear opposing views or experiences.

Carbon Recumbent Tandem

2008-06-20T07:52:00.003-05:00

Rick Steel at Gold Country Cyclery in California has announced he will be building and marketing a carbon fiber tandem recumbent:

"It’s been a dream of mine to create a lightweight carbon fiber recumbent tandem. My luck was improved when a very good customer wanted the same, and provided much needed funds to get the prototype started. With the hard work from a respected CF tandem frame builder in Arizona, we finally have a rideable prototype that feels very dialed-in from the get go. Low speed stability was one of my main concerns, but test rides to include low speed climbs eliminated my worries.

Another goal of the tandem was to acheive a mid 30 lb weight. This tandem which includes 2 Ti S&S couplers and minus pedals weighs 35 lbs. All production tandems will be custom sized, and offered with or without couplers. First big test for the new tandem will be this years RAGBRAI.

We are applying for a trademark name for our new product line which will include CF single recumbents as well."

Rick tells me that the production model will be a pound or more lighter than this prototype. The frameset will include the Wound-Up all CF tandem fork. Apparently the S&S Couplers will be standard on these bikes, not an option.

I thought the Seavo was my ultimate bent tandem purchase, but Rick's beautiful creation, when it becomes available, will likely make me cash poor again. It's time to start saving!

Fulshear Saturday

2008-06-17T21:14:00.012-05:00

My regular stoker, Liz, is moving so she's been unavailable for rides for the last couple of weeks. Fortunately, my friends have stepped up and offered to stoke for me. Two weeks ago it was Debbie, last week Coleman and this past Saturday Ben's grandson D. Also joining us for a 7am meet in Fulshear were Danny, George, Ken, David, Jim, Wayne, Debbie and Pat and Ben. Debbie took all the pictures since I forgot my camera. 37 miles in all.

Wooden Flevo

2008-06-14T18:31:00.006-05:00

I ran across this interesting variation of the Flevo tandem on the net. The all wooden construction has to save alot of weight. It lacks some of the advantages of the standard Flevo however. No independant cadence, no suspension strut, no mid-body joint for easy break-down and small wheels.

The World in a Better Light

2008-06-09T21:26:00.006-05:00

"Every couple on a tandem soon makes the same discovery - people actually smile when they see you. Whether riding across town or around the globe, the universal acceptance of couples on tandems means everyone, including strangers, becomes uncommonly friendly. And while it's been said that getting there is half the fun, on a tandem, getting there is the fun. Besides the benefits of cycling on singles (the intimate scale of travel, an unhurried pace, the immediacy of the elements and a landscape absorbed by all five senses), tandeming also offers the subtle rewards of teamwork - easy conversation, shared discovery and mutual accomplishment."

Bill McCready, President, Santana Cycles, Inc.

Tour De Braz

2008-06-08T16:33:00.025-05:00

Since I didn't have my regular stoker this weekend, I was relieved when Debbie agreed to stoke Saturday and Coleman on Sunday for the Tour De Braz. I thought Coleman wanted to stoke on the Seavo, but when he showed up at 5:30am as planned and saw the Seavo on the rack I realized that maybe we had had a communication failure. Coleman admitted he wanted to stoke the Flevo Back to Back, which is the bike I prefered to ride anyway. That made my day. We unracked the Seavo and quickly loaded the Flevo which was already disassembled in the garage from yesterday's ride. We left only a few minutes behind schedule to pick up Danny. We arrived in Alvin about 6:30 with plenty of time to set the bike up and register.

This is the first organized ride I've done on the Flevo. This bike always draws a crowd. Everyone wants a picture of it. Most people today asked if the bike is homemade. I told one young lady that Coleman and I were Siamese twins joined at the head at birth and that this was the only bike we wanted to ride now, even though we had been surgically separated. "For real??", she asked. During the ride we heard only one or two, "He's not pedaling back there," but many "You're going the wrong way" calls as we passed bikes along the way.

Although he'd never ridden it before, Coleman took to the Flevo immediately. He seemed at ease right from the start. This bike can be a challenge to get rolling, but our first push off from the start line was smooth and steady.

The weather today was the same as yesterday: windy. The Flevo, however, was untroubled. This bike eats headwinds. I passed more DF's on this ride than I have ever passed in my life and it was a great feeling. I'm not used to reaching rest stops ten minutes ahead of my friends, but I think I can live with it. Coleman is a strong rider so I'm sure that that had alot to do with it, but there has to be a huge advantage in having the power of two riders and the wind resistance of just one.

I used to do the Tour De Braz regularly in the 90's but I haven't done it in the last few years. It's about the same size as in previous years. It looked to me like 400-500 riders in the parking lot. It still starts in the Alvin Community Center parking lot. The four of us (me, Coleman, Danny and David) selected the 50 mile route and all of us but David chose to register the morning of the ride. By this time they were out of the 50 mile route maps. Almost all of the critical intersections on this ride, however, were manned with uniformed officers to stop traffic. Even though there was a last minute change in the route because of a train derailment we had little trouble finding our way. There was, however, one turn in the last 10 miles of the ride that was totally unmarked. I was lucky enough to see a group of riders taking that turn, but others, including Danny and David missed it. They showed up at the finish line 10 or 15 minutes after we did.

The T-shirts were pretty disappointing. Plain white with a small Tour De Braz logo on the front and the back filled with the usual ad. They bore no art work, no year and no ride date.

The Danbury Fire Department provided a misting for riders hitting the rest stop in Danbury. This was probably the best rest stop of the ride.

The Danbury rest stop was well stocked, including David's beloved pickle juice.

Here's Danny taking a break. It's a great feeling to have your technical advisor accompany you on the ride!

The last 10 miles of the ride from Danbury were all tailwind. Coleman and I cruised easily at 20-21mph all the way to the finish. We had a little rain outside of Danbury, but it didn't amount to much. It was enough to cool us off a bit but, of course, it stopped as soon as we pulled over to put our cameras in the storage bag to keep them dry.

At the end of the ride we passed on the Sloppy Joes at the finish line, but did have a few Blue Bell popsickles.

This is the most fun I've had on a ride in quite a while.

Field Test

2008-06-07T20:26:00.003-05:00

This morning marked the first field test of the Flevo since Danny worked on it. I am delighted with the results. Ken, Ben, Debbie and Pat and I met in Fulshear at the usual spot at 7am. Liz, my regular stoker, is buying a new new house this weekend and cannot ride. Debbie, brave soul that she is, volunteered to fill the stoker seat even though she had never ridden on the Flevo. She once told me on another ride, "I'm game for anything," and now I beleive it. We had 10-15mph winds out of the southeast, but the Flevo didn't mind. This bike seems impervious to headwinds and we quickly dropped the group everytime we had one.

Debbie adjusted beautifully to the bike and furnished plenty of power when I called for it. I still haven't installed mirrors so I relied on her completely to call cars approaching from the rear. It wasn't a problem.

The new flip-it handlebars worked perfectly, allowing me to stand as we stopped. The new kickstand was a pleasure, but I have to figure an easier way to carry it. I stuffed it our cargo bag. It fit, but it was a pain maneauvering it in and out each time we stopped. The relaced wheels were silent; a marked improvement over my last ride. All in all, the bike functioned flawlessly and was blazing fast. At one point we cruised at 21 with only moderate effort. I had the rare pleasure of seeing the front of Ben's bike instead of his tail light.

The ride itself was a fun. There was some cloud cover so there wasn't much heat. A few drops of rain fell, but not enough to get us or the road wet. We headed north toward Brookshire on Jordan Rd and then reversed couse to P Wall. From there a short leg down to Simonton and then back up north, then east and finally south back to P Wall. From there back to Fulshear. 37 miles in all.

I am warmed up for the Tour De Braz tomorrow morning. Coleman will be stoking with me on the Seavo.

Fulshear Heat

2008-05-31T19:12:00.006-05:00

We've backed up our meet time in Fulshear to 7am to beat the heat. 34 miles today. Eric, Ben, Liz, Harding, Robert, Henry, David, Ken, Wayne, Danny, Coleman and Jim rode. Blake's Bar-B-Q & Burgers afterwards.

The "Flea Bike"

2008-05-30T16:42:00.012-05:00

Now that my recovery is nearly complete, my thoughts turn to riding my favorite tandem, The Flevo back to back or, as Z-Man calls it, the Flea Bike. It's the only bike in my stable I haven't ridden since I broke my femur almost 5 months ago. That's partly because I didn't think I could handle the very high bottom bracket until now and also because I felt the bike needed some minor adjustments.

It wasn't long after I got the bike that I decided it needed headrests. That was an easy fix and improved riding comfort considerably. After getting a few miles under my belt, I noticed a couple of other issues. First, the handlebars got in my way when I stopped the bike and tried to stand. I could get my feet from the pedals to the ground quickly enough, but standing up meant wriggling out from under the handlebars first, and that's not a good feeling. It's even more of an issue since my accident. I wouldn't say I'm jittery now after the fall, but when I want to stand up on the tandem I WANT TO STAND UP. So, my first priority was getting a flip-it handlebar I can push up and out of the way quickly when stopping the bike. Enter Danny Savitsky at Cycle Genius. He installed the flip-it attachment and then had me try out several different handlebars. I wanted something low and sleek that wouldn't hit my knees in turns. I settled on the arrangement below. Problem solved.

Next we faced an issue that seemed unsolvable: a kick stand. The Flevo is long and unwieldy when it isn't moving. On long rides, particularly when the bike is stopped out in the open where there is nothing to lean it against, the bike must be held up by the stoker or captain. That can be very inconvenient, especially during repairs. Mounting a conventional kickstand presented some problems. First there is nowhere on this elegant but unconventional frame to attach a mount. We considered several attachment points but each one involved drilling through the aluminum skin of the frame plywood interior. Danny felt that those materials would not stand up to the weight and leverage the bike would put on it. Finally, Danny had an idea. He found a piece of steel rod that fit tightly into the end of one of the female pieces on the bottom joint of the bike. Then he took the aluminum handle bar we had just discarded and slipped it onto the rod. Viola!

It may not be the prettiest kickstand around, but it's light and very functional. When it's not in use we'll sling it on the outside of our equipment bag that hangs between the seats. I think this can be refined a bit, but I'm very pleased with this solution since I was convinced that a kickstand just wasn't going to happen on this bike. I told Danny he was a genius. He shrugged modestly and said, "I'm not a genius...just a cycle genius." He is indeed.

I hope to put some miles on the bike this weekend.

A Seat On My Tandem

2008-05-20T08:22:00.006-05:00

This well written, plucky piece by Colin Nissan sums up in a few tight paragraphs everything I've ever wanted to tell my stokers over the years.

GOOD NEWS: A SEAT ON MY TANDEM BICYCLE JUST OPENED UP.
BY COLIN NISSAN
- - - -
It's somebody's lucky day. There's a free seat on my tandem bicycle, so saddle up! Soon you will experience the feeling of four male legs moving together in perfect synchronized harmony.

First, let's go over some rules every tandemist needs to know prior to mounting the "long bike," as we say, things that will help ensure your safety while maximizing what I like to call your tandemusement.

Just as with dance partners, someone has to lead, and that person is me. The front rider is commonly referred to as the captain, the pilot, or the steersman. Other names I'm fine with are El Capitan, Mule Calves, and Lance.

From this point forward, you will be referred to as my "stoker." I may also call you Tail Gunner, Backdoor Pilot, or Rear Admiral. I will switch up these names throughout the ride to keep things festive.

As captain, I will be controlling the bicycle's balance, steering, shifting, and braking. I know what you're thinking: What's left for me to do? Well, there's plenty left. And, frankly, that's exactly the kind of insolence I don't need from my stoker. So let's nip the credit mongering in the bud.
There's plenty I need you to do back there, and even more I need you not to do.

The first thing I require is your trust. I need you to trust me like you would someone who didn't just ride up to you and ask you to get on his tandem bicycle. There may be things I ask you to do in the heat of the moment that you're not altogether comfortable with. Well, guess what? I'm not comfortable dying—which is exactly what will happen to both of us if you second-guess me.

The second thing I need from you is communication. Remember I can't see you, so when I ask "How are we doing back there?," I need an answer. A clear answer. Either verbally or through one of the physical signals I will teach you. A simple squeeze of my hips, for example, means "I'm good."

For your first few rides, I will be paying very close attention to how you're doing—listening to your breathing, reaching around to take your neck pulse, and rubbing your hamstrings to feel for the beginnings of a dreaded leg cramp. As the one seasoned tandemist on this bicycle, I will take it upon myself to make sure you're OK back there. Your vision of the road will be slightly limited, so, as captain, I will warn you of all obstacles up ahead. I will say things like "Pothole at three." By "three," I mean 3 o'clock on the dial of a watch, and by "pothole" I mean a cavity in the asphalt. I need you to familiarize yourself with watches and terms like "asphalt."

In the realm of physical responsibilities, I will need bursts of power from your quads during climbs. I will need this power to be smooth and uniform. I will need you to hold my hand during these climbs. Pumping through a hill requires impeccable coordination of movements and clasping each other's fingers will facilitate this coordination. I don't expect you to understand how at this point—you're too new to the tandem world.

This brings us to fake peddling. If you're wondering why my stoker seat is open in the first place, there's your answer. I will know if you're fake-peddling and I will find a new stoker without batting an eyelash. I can be the most loyal tandemist you've ever met or a real son of a bitch of a tandemist. Just try me.

It is very important that you don't disturb the equilibrium of the bicycle. If you're shifting your weight, you should do so very carefully. If you're taking a drink, I need you to say, "Drinking, El Capitan!" At which point I will say, "Roger that." I might not always reply so militarily, but sometimes I will.

I will be calling out gear shifts, as well as initiating sing-alongs. It's all part of the free-spirited enjoyment that tandem riders experience on a daily basis all over the world. I'll warn you now to watch for clever lyric shifts along the way. For instance, instead of "Row, row, row your boat," I may change it to "Ride, ride, ride your bicycle." These changes will be whimsical, to say the least, so stay on your toes.

As we log more and more miles together, we will be well on our way to forming a special bond—communicating without words, shifting our weight and maneuvering our two bodies as one. Before long, I will be your Fred and you will be my Ginger. I will be your John and you will be my Yoko. I will be your George and you will be my Weezie. It's time for you to see the beautiful sights of our country through the eyes of a tandemist: Things will look different and, dare I say it, twice as beautiful. Things like mountains, oceans, fields, urban environments, deserts, ponds, lakes, forests, and suburban environments.

So welcome aboard and buckle up, Stoker! It's going to be a wild, non-gender-confusing ride!

"Pedaling the Prairie"

2008-05-18T16:14:00.039-05:00

Liz and I rode the "Pedaling the Prairie" ride in Katy yesterday while the rest of Team Bent headed to Angleton for a Brazoria County ride with Robert. "Pedaling the Prairie" is an annual ride benefitting the athletic department of Faith West Academy. I was excited about this ride. I haven't done an organized ride since the accident and Liz hasn't done one ever, at least not in daylight (she and I did the "Moonlight Ramble" a couple of years ago, but that ride starts at 2am). I considered riding in Angleton with the rest of the crew, but 55 miles seemed like pushing it at this point, so we opted to do the 45 mile route at "Pedaling the Prairie."

Debbie forwarded her pictures from the Angleton ride and they appear at the end of this post.

The ride started at 7:30 so we were on the road by 6am. The weather was cool and overcast. The skies threatened rain, but by an unusual stroke of luck the downpour didn't start until half an hour after we finished the ride. It was just cool enough that once we got the bike rolling I wished I had brought my wind breaker. Liz felt the same way.

One of the primary sponsors of this ride is Sun and Ski Sports at Katy Mills Mall. We registered the morning of the ride and were given tag number 531. I expected more riders. The start was staggered by ride distance, although with such a small number of riders it's hard to see how it made any difference.

This has to be one of the world's smallest bikes!

My happy stoker, glad to be getting back on the road.

The route for this ride was mostly familiar territory: Winner-Foster Road, Bois D'Arc Road, Poole Hill Road etc. These are all weekends haunts of Team Bent on our Saturday morning rides. I was impressed with ride support on this ride. Officers were at almost every intersection with traffic to wave us safely through.

Since we were riding the tandem we got the usual "Did you know she's not pedaling back there?" from 30-40 riders. Once I get the Flevo up and running I want to make a sign for my stoker to flash at bikes behind us saying: "Yes, he knows I'm not pedaling."

Rest Stop No. 2 in Fulshear by the barbecue place on 1093. The stops were well stocked with the usual fruit, Oreos, Chex mix and even homemade cookies and brownies.

My stoker-navigator checking our position and the route ahead.

We sighted a Cruzbike. This one looks a little awkward to me.

We made a stop at P Wall. I don't think I can pass this spot without getting off the bike.

Here we see some in-flight refueling. This is one of the benefits of the tandem recumbent: the stoker can enjoy hands free riding. Thus she is free to answer the phone, map read, eat, drink, take pictures, etc.

The last leg of our ride was down Old Katy Highway from Brookshire to Katy. This was the worst part of the ride with lots of traffic and rough shoulders. Not that bad though.

I would do this ride again.

Debbie's pics:

Tandem Talk

2008-05-10T14:33:00.008-05:00

All things considered, I prefer tandem riding to solo riding. I love the teamwork, camarderie and just plain quality time spent with my stoker. All of those things require good communication between captain and stoker. For the first few years after I discovered tandems, we communicated by voice only. This meant having to repeat things, some yelling and a few scares. If I told my stoker we were slowing or stopping or coasting and she didn't hear me, the bike could easily become difficult to control or, worst case, we could take a tumble. This is especially true on the Seavo which has IPS. (the stoker cannot tell whether I am pedalling just by looking). Also it was impossible to have a private conversation when riding in a group.

A couple of years ago I stumbled across Precision Tandems and the Tandem-Com intercom system. I bought one and was immediately sold on the benefits of an intercom system. Now we talk in a conversational voice or even a whisper with no need to repeat anything. By simply lowering our voices we have private conversations that passersbys can't share. We are hooked and wouldn't think of riding without this system.

The unit is small and light. There are ports for headphones for the captain and stoker and individual volume controls for both. There is also a port for an outside input such as an ipod or bluetooth. The unit takes two AAA batteries. Our rides in the country usually take 3-4 hours and this intercom typically lasts 15-20 rides on a pair of batteries. The headsets are very light and comfortable. I often forget that I'm wearing them when I'm riding. One drawback to this unit is that it's wired. Everytime you get off the bike the headsets have to be unplugged. We've forgotten to do this a couple of times, only to have the headsets ripped off our heads as we got off the bike and walked away. We usually carry the unit in the seat bag behind the captain. The stoker is in charge of the unit and responsible for unplugging us both when we stop. The other drawback to this system is that, unless you adjust volume before you get on the bike, one rider must make adjustments for both crew members, since the unit is stowed behind the captain.

This year I decided to upgrade to the wireless Tandem-Com Digital Wireless System. The system comes with two headsets, two chargers and two comm units. There were issues right off the bat. This system uses rechargable internal batteries. When I tried charging them, they would not charge. I returned the units to Mark at Precision Tandems and he found that the battery packs were not plugged in to the units. Problem solved. After fully charging the units, we took them out for a field test. To our disappointment we found that the volume level was very low, even at the "Max" setting and there were frequent cut outs, such that communication was impoossible. I contacted Mark again and he suggested we try our old headsets. I was skeptical, but it worked. Volume was restored and communication was great. I am shipping the bad headsets back to Mark for a new set.

Having said all that, I can recommend the wirelss units. We'll keep our old setup for backup.

Return to Normal

2008-05-06T08:08:00.015-05:00

Aimee and I logged a great 20 mile ride at Memorial Park last night after work. This was my first chance since getting back on the Seavo to do some real cruising. The Memorial Park Loop is closed to traffic and contains no intersections. This is what I need at this point in my recovery since the most awkward operation for me on the Seavo is getting the bike started (and that operation is improving rapidly as well). We were able to maintain good speed for the whole ride and even passed a few wedgies. I can't wait to get the Seavo back out to Fulshear on Saturday.

Meanwhile, a large group rode in Fulshear this past Saturday. I didn't ride because the winds were pretty strong. As usual Debbie took lots of pictures and I've posted a few of them here:

Debbie and Pat sported new tail socks on their bikes. I'd be interested in figuring out if these add any speed

Back on the Tandem

2008-05-02T19:35:00.008-05:00

Almost 4 months to the day from my accident, my stoker and I took a short, tentative ride on the Seavo. I haven't ridden it since my fall since I haven't been able to. The captain on this bike sits high off the ground and the bottom bracket is higher. I've commented here before about the incredible speed with which muscles atrophy from disuse. When I came home from the hospital after just 5 days in bed, I was utterly unable to lift my leg while lying in my own bed. I have memories of my in home therapist working with me for a couple of weeks before I could get it even an inch off the bed. That's been steadily improving over the past weeks and months with rehab.

The first bike I rode after the accident was the Tour Easy. Even with the low bottom bracket, it was a bit tricky to get the bike going. From there I worked up to the V2 and now the V2 Formula. The Seavo, however, has been my Mt. Everest on the road back from my accident. I sat on it about a month ago and found it impossible to lift my right leg high enough to pedal. Tonight, however, it was different. After seeing that I could now control my leg and get it up to the pedals, we slowly pushed off.

It only took a couple of miles for me to remember how much I love this bike. I had forgotten how stable, fast and quiet it is and how comfortable the cockpit is. It was like coming home.

I'm back tandeming and loving it. Thanks, Liz, for getting back on the stoker seat.

Fulshear Saturday

2008-04-20T08:40:00.021-05:00

We had a large group this Saturday: Jim, Robert, Robert's friend, Ben, Danny, John, Henry, David, Ken and Pat. This was a beautiful ride, as always, but my speed and endurance were disappointing to say the least. Once again I managed to keep the group in sight most of the time, but I suspect some of my fellow riders were being charitable. I'm really not sure if it's my leg or my new bike. I'm going to try some faster tires for my next ride and see if it makes a difference. Right now I'm on 26 x 1.5's, not exactly greyhound tires.

Fulshear and the surrounding area are growing rapidly. There are new subdivisions sprouting west and east of town and now to the south. I wonder how long it will be before we have to find a new quiet place to ride. We are encountering more and more traffic these days.

John and Jim weren't speaking for some reason.

We had an extended break in Fulshear after riding 20 miles on Bois D'Arc. Pat had some chain problems at our first break point and somehow we all pulled out without noticing he wasn't with us. He made it back to Fulshear where we were waiting and then we all (sans Ben and Henry) shoved off for the Polo Fields.

Ben dropped me easily on his Actionbent trike.

A Visit to the Doctor

2008-04-14T19:38:00.002-05:00

I had my 3.5 month post surgery check up today at the medical center. All is well and my leg is healing as expected. I don't have to return until mid December when the doctor thinks I should decide whether to have the hardware in my leg removed. I'll make the decision then, but I'm certainly reluctant to have another surgery, particularly an elective one like this.

Meanwhile I am enjoying cycling again. I finished therapy at 4 pm and couldn't resist heading out to Memorial Park for an afternoon ride. I'm getting accustomed to my new bike and loving being outdoors on the bike after a three month hiatus.

Miles Today: 20.2
Miles This Year: 246.6

A Beautiful Saturday

2008-04-12T16:09:00.012-05:00

Each weekend while I was housebound with my leg, I imagined riding strong in Fulshear with my friends in cool, crystal clear spring weather. Today the dream came true. Okay, maybe I wasn't "riding strong", but I did finish with everyone else and the weather was as good as it's ever been. Ken, David, Debbie, Pat and Ben joined me at the City Hall parking lot at 8:30. It was a little brisk so we all had jackets or windbreakers. This is the weekend for the MS 150 so the gas station parking lot across the street, usually packed with wedgie riders, was deserted. Typically, we'll see 300-400 wedgies on a Saturday morning ride. Today we saw just 3.

The spring scenery was breathtaking. Brilliant greens and wild flowers were in evidence all around.

Here is the group just 5 miles out of Fulshear. We don't usually stop here, but my out of shape legs and butt needed a short break, probably more so since this was my first outing on the V2 Formula.

This was my first attempt at a regular Fulshear ride. My rides out here last weekend were only abbreviated runs. My bike performed well and I had no problems with it. My bad leg is sufficiently strong now that I can lift it to the pedals to get started. That's something I couldn't do just a month ago. I noticed today while riding that I can actually see the difference in my legs. My right thigh is still atrophied and slightly less developed than my left one. While I had the stamina to finish the ride, I was the slowest rider of the group. That's a place I hate to be. My lack of conditioning was particularly evident on the last leg of the ride from Wallis to Fulshear. I could keep everyone in sight, but only just. Ben hung in there with me for a few miles and Ken and David circled back for me in the home stretch. By the time I reached the parking lot, I felt I had just finished the Hotter N' Hell Hundred. More miles will fix that.

This is why it's called P Wall. Nice shot Debbie.

Miles Ridden Today: 34.5

Miles Ridden This Year: 211.1

My New Ride

2008-04-10T19:22:00.002-05:00

My goal since my injury in January has been to get back to tandem biking. I've logged a hundred miles or so on my venerable Tour Easy, mainly because of the comfort afforded by the low bottom bracket. Now that I have gained some strength and flexibility, it's time to move up to a higher bottom bracket. That step is essential to getting back on the Seavo. I found this new Rans Formula 26 on the Bentrider message board from a dealer at a fantastic price so I jumped on it.

The first test ride was this evening. All went well and I felt very comfortable on the bike. I'll go ahead and add a computer and tail light. Saturday I'll try to put some miles on it and get it dialed in.

Back in Fulshear

2008-04-05T17:41:00.015-05:00

Almost three months to the day after my injury I was finally able to ride in Fulshear again. I'm still on the Tour Easy for the time being, but my V2 Formula should be ready for next weekend. Debbie, Pat, Ben and I rode 22 miles this morning. That's not much for them, but it was just right for me. I felt I could have gone a little farther, but I'm taking things slow and will try to extend the distance next Saturday.

There were lots of bikes on the road today. The MS150 is next weekend.

Ben has to think about how to get out of his new trike.

We saw a Bilenky tandem at the store on our break.

Spring has Sprung

2008-03-29T17:40:00.010-05:00

The wildflowers are blooming in Fulshear this weekend so I guess that means spring has officially arrived at our favorite riding spot. Liz and I loaded the biked early this morning and met Ken, Danny, Jim, Orin, Debbie and Pat for a ride in Fulshear. This was my first trip there since my broken femur and I was excited to be going. We had a little drizzle on and off during the half hour ride to the Park and Ride lot, but I was undeterred. As long as the roads were dry where we planned to ride it was still a "go" for me. I'm still not ready for the traffic in Fulshear so, after stopping at the lot to say howdy to the gang, Liz and I drove back into the country back roads to unload the bikes and get a few miles in. Unfortunately, the roads were still wet. Reluctantly, we decided not to ride, at least in Fulshear, today.

The rest of the crew did ride and Teambent photographer Debbie forwarded these shots. Left to right: Jim, Orin, Ken, Danny and Pat at P Wall.

Ken's beautiful carbon fiber Bacchetta.

Danny, one of the owners of Cycle Genius, designed and built this beauty. It's a prototype right now. I haven't ridden it, but it's so stable I've watched Danny ride it a mile or two with his hands laced behind his head.

After Liz and I got back to town we hooked up with Paul and Cyndy who had been wanting to try my Seavo. Their prior experience on a tandem was a ride on a rented EZ Tandem. We saddled them up on my Seavo while Liz and I rode chase on singles. They seemed to like the bike and I think Paul may be in the market for a tandem recumbent soon. I managed to get 10 miles in, which is a good thing.

Tour De Houston

2008-03-22T21:00:00.013-05:00

The 2008 Tour De Houston was last weekend. This 20, 40 and 70 mile ride starts and ends in downtown Houston. This ride has been around for the last few years, but it's one of the few I have never ridden. I gave a passing thought to riding it, but I knew that I'm not nearly ready. I still have very little speed or endurance on the bike and the thought of riding on darkened streets in downtown Houston was not something I wanted to risk. I do miss riding terribly though and I considered driving down to the ride just to see and greet old friends. Then I saw a letter on the newsgroup from Paul, a new rider to the group, who was renting a tandem and needed a way to transport it to the ride. I happily volunteered. It turns out that Paul and Cyndy live just down the street from me.

The EZ Tandem Paul rented is probably the longest tandem I've transported on the Draftmaster. It took some adjustment of the tray and we only had about 6" clearance between the back wheel and the pavement, but somehow it worked.

Although I didn't ride, it was still alot of fun to rise in the dark, drive to Paul's and rack his bike. I guess the ritual of the ride prep is part of the pleasure of riding for me. Plus, I made a couple of new biking friends in the balance! The pictures below were taken by Debbie on the ride.

Paul and Cyndy on the EZ Tandem.

The City closed the Hardy Toll Road for the ride so there was no traffic on this leg.

I've seen this rather unique bike on other rides around town although I've never talked to the owner. It looks pretty uncomfortable to me.

Our ride photographer, Debbie.

The Ride Back

2008-03-05T17:02:00.004-06:00

The weather was so fabulous this afternoon that I decided to take it off and see if I could pedal the Tour Easy around the neighborhood. I've put in some miles on the V2 on the trainer and on the recumbent machine at rehab and my leg feels fine. The problem with the V2, at least right now, is the high bottom bracket. I don't quite have my full strength back and it takes a bit of an effort to get my foot up to the pedals. The Tour Easy doesn't present any of these issues. I can get my feet to the pedals and I can get on and off the bike with ease.

So, with a little anxiety and a watchful sag driver behind me, I pushed off down the street. I needn't have worried. The bike felt stable and comfortable and the wind and sun in my face was wonderful. Bad weather is moving in tomorrow, but I will be out at Fulshear on Saturday to try it again.

Steps

2008-03-02T22:50:00.009-06:00

It is two months to the day since my accident and I've come a long way. I've progressed from the wheelchair to the walker and now to one crutch. I can actually walk a few steps without the crutch but it's not pretty. I'm going to out patient therapy twice a week at TIRR now and look forward to the day, hopefully in a few weeks, when I can walk like I used to. It's amazing how quickly all those important walking muscles atrophy when not in use.

Debbie, Pat and Ben had a beautiful ride in Fulshear yesterday in good weather. I wish I could have been there. Apparently no one can open the pictures Debbie mailed to the group so I'm posting them here.

Miles Ridden Last Year: 3200

Miles Ridden This Year: 69

Time Since My Last Ride: 2 months

This Year's Goal: 2500