Transportation

After being stuck in outer-SE Portland, fixing a flat, during a dark freezing midnight downpour...and then solicited from a tweaked-out overweight older man (musta been the bike shorts) :o ...I turned to airless tire solutions; I've always hated flatting, and found it silly that a good chunk of my randonneuring kit was in pumps, tubes, tires and patches. My first venture was ordering one-piece tires from AirFreeTires.com, my first order arrived with no issue, and while the tires were a bit quirky, they were alright. My second order took months, and a series of public/online complaints before arrival. The third order never arrived...and that order was placed in October of 2008.
Continue reading "Experiences with Airless Bike Tires - www.airfreetires.com is just a scam site now"

Yes, in today's world it is still possible to travel over 200 miles on a single gallon of gasoline.

My trip took me from downtown Portland Oregon, into Astoria Oregon, then Seaside, down to Tillamook, and then back into Portland. To get an idea of my average speed, the Portland to Astoria leg took roughly 4 hours...and I pedaled the entire way

My Bike & the route:

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58 miles, 1/4 a gallon, over ~3 hours...WOOT!

The route roughly consisted of... Continue reading "Hi, I'm Gregg, and I'm addicted to ICE... :-)"

It's dirty, but it feels oh-so-good!!

The short-story, is that over the past few months, while the electric setup continues to make progress. Waterproofing the electronics is proving far more challenging than I bargained for. This is the pacific-northwest, so one can hardly ignore the chance of rain! So, with a 300-mile solo ride planned for late June, I needed something better-tested. I swallowed a bit of pride, and as a part of me withered away...the idea of a gas motor was solidified. Only ~$350 + a weekend, and the deed was done...and yea, it works great in the rain, no waterproofing necessary.



I just completed the 1st test ride tonight, and while going /uphill/... Continue reading "Gas...it's so dirty, but oh so much fun!"

Awesome! I knew I wasn't crazy; a guy I used to work with, who trains police, competitive racers, and other professional drivers, once explained a mirror adjustment technique. Since them, I've used it to effectively eliminate blinds spots. Until today, I didn't know what it was called... Continue reading "BGE Mirror Setting"

I think I finally figured out a decent use for my blog, at least for another six-months or-so.

Lately, I've received a steadily-increasing volume of questions regarding my "simple" electric bike setup. While the wiki details the "final" product...or, more accurately, the project's /current/ state. The design continues to evolve...and improve. There's just not much room for commentary, or quite-simply, folks to ask the questions I value so much (as they help me better-explain details, and force me to think about possible design revisions...and have great ideas themselves!).

So, here it goes... Continue reading "The Recchetta - my eBike project"

I've been using a Yakima rack on my G&K imported 2006 Smart ForTwo Passion (glass roof) for ~8 months, and have been very happy with it.

It was installed by RackAttack in Portland OR, and these guys already had installation instructions (including which clips were needed, etc...) in their internal database. Though one source for me was ClubSmartCar.com (search their site for "Roof-top Yakima Rack").

In summary, use #34 Q-Clips, and make sure its installed TIGHT, and I mean so tight that when a 200lb guy yanks on them, they don't even hint at budging. I went with the steelhead "fork mount" bike holder, and recall needing to sign a waiver - as the rack is not approved by Yakima or Smart. Speeds upwards of 80MPH were no issue, though I personally would avoid putting a box up there for anything above ~60MPH.

Crashing your bike on a recumbent often means a sore tush, not a broken collarbone...I'd post a picture, but instead just imagine a palm-sized road rash on my butt. :-/

Yep - the car's not even a month old: