Velomoon - May 2016, Bike Month Recap

What began in 1956 as "American Bicycle Month," initiated by the Bicycle Institute of America - an American manufacturers' group - (or possibly the Cycle Trade Association?) is now the League of American Bicyclists' National Bike Month. This is an entire month full of events designed for raising awareness of cycling. For me, every month is bike month but in May I have national-level support when I say, "hey, you should ride your bike!"

For those who can't focus for an entire month, there was bike week. And if a week is too much, there was bike to work day - which was basically just two hours in the morning as far as I could tell, with free coffee cake.

Previously, I participated in a bike challenge called Errandonnée - using your bike to run errands. This became my stepping stone towards mostly eliminating a car from my daily life. This month, I did some organized challenges and events as well as some that I made up myself, just goals really.

National Bike Challenge,
State of California Rankings

1. National Bike Challenge (nationalbikechallenge.org): This is a competition against others to ride the most miles. There are teams (by company, by advocacy group, by club, etc.) as well as state level and community rankings. The challenge was very convenient for me because I simply linked it to my Strava account once and everything else happened automatically.

Team Bike Challenge

2. Team Bike Challenge (bikeeastbay.org): The challenge was almost identical except that it was a regional competition for the East Bay communities. It required manual effort to log each "commute" ride and has some drawbacks which annoyed me but I did it all month. I suspect from watching the leaderboards that other cyclists gave up logging rides at some point.

3. Personal Goal, Only Drive When Necessary: I never drove alone. I only drove a car in situations where someone else was with me - e.g., going out for dinner with my wife. That meant riding my bike to get groceries, to work (or the train station), to other errands. There were rainy days and hot days and challenges like how to bring eggs home from the store.

4. Brewvet Challenge (not online this year): This is a beer-themed adaptation of the randonneur community. To complete the challenge, one must take five rides and drink at least one, unique beer each time and accumulate at least 50 miles. As with the randonneur events, documentation is required - an Instagram photo is sufficient. I completed that challenge, too.

5. Bike to Work Day: This is how cycling went from one of many recreational activities for me, to a defining theme in my life. A few years ago, I would ride about 50 miles per week and drive my car at least 250 miles per week. That year, I rode my bike to work because of Bike to Work Day for the first time. Little by little, it increased to the point where I now ride at least 250 miles per week and probably haven't bought gasoline in close to two months. So, Bike to Work Day 2016 is more about me being an advocate, trying to help the new cyclists and simply being a good example. We had a nice group of about 35 riders do the ~30 mile commute from Pleasanton to San Jose.

6. Bicycle, Pedestrian and Trails Committee (City of Pleasanton): In April, I applied to be on a committee for our City government dealing with bicycle and pedestrian trails. I interviewed with the Mayor and was appointed. This will be a four-year commitment. Hopefully, I can do some good in what is already a pretty good community for cyclists, walkers and hikers.

7. Global Bike to Work Day (strava.com): While the regional Bike to Work Day was on a Thursday, other organizations claimed either Tuesday or Friday. Strava is a website where cyclists, runners and other types of athletes log their activities and get kudos from their friends. Occasionally, they create challenges to motivate the users. One of these was Global Bike to Work Day. I clicked the icon to join the challenge and, since I rode on that particular day, I completed the challenge. Kudos for me.

According to Strava, I rode over 1,250 miles in the month of May.


NOTES:

"A brief history of National Bike Month", Dr. James Longhurst, University of Washington Press blog, May 14, 2015, https://uwpressblog.com/2015/05/14/a-brief-history-of-national-bike-month/  (Bicycle Institute of America)

"National Bike to Work Month– hatched 56 years ago this May,"   April 25, 2012, https://swanislandtma.wordpress.com/2012/04/25/national-bike-to-work-month-hatched-56-years-ago-this-may/  (Cycle Trade Association)

Errandonnee Part 2: Going Car-Free (bike build begins)

It doesn't take much for me to get excited about building a new bike. I have a traditional road bike. Thinking that it wasn't quite appropriate for taking on the train or riding around town, I built a single-speed. Steel frame, belt drive, disc brakes but otherwise, it's a normal urban bike. But it's not quite right for many of my errands because the only real cargo capability is my backpack.

Thus begins my next bike build. I started by thinking about what I wanted to carry and how. Pizza, beer, groceries and bulky, heavy stuff from the farmer's market - that's what I need to carry. I decided I would prefer to have a front rack. It seemed better for awkward and heavy cargo. Buying local, I ordered a porteur style rack from Pass Stow (passstow.com). Recycling (or re-using) an old 26-inch Trek Navigator 200 from 20 years ago seemed appropriate. The rack will work well, so the project gets the green light.

Of course, this is still the middle of the Errandonnee Challenge.

March 11, 2016, Errandonnee #7

Doctor's Appointment (category 1. Personal Care)

I took a vacation day to do a few errands. I probably would have done this even if I wasn't planning to bike to them all. First up was a doctor's appointment for a routine skin cancer check. I didn't have any particular concerns but I'm in my mid-fifties, have fair Scandinavian skin, burned all the time when I was a kid, and spend a fair amount of time outside. So I have risk factors, but no family history. I got a thorough check and everything is fine. 11.5 miles round-trip, including coffee where I happened to meet an old co-worker from 25 years ago. Yet another uncounted "social call" errandonnee.

Observation: Apparently, you can detect skin cancer on your forehead by the roughness - even before you could see anything. I have a large forehead, but fortunately, it's smooth.

March 11, 2016, Errandonnee #8

Powder Coating Facility (category 3. You Carried WHAT on Your Bike‽)

I didn't want this new cargo bike to simply be my old bike with a rack - which it is - so it needed a fresh coat of paint. But paint that isn't baked at the factory and sealed afterwards tends to chip easily. Powder coating is super tough but it is more of a specialized thing. Fortunately, there is a powder coating place about 12 miles away (23.6 miles, round trip to be exact). As you can see, it's not exactly easy to transport a bike frame on a bike! I used a bungee cord and my backpack, with the fork inside the backpack. It was surprisingly secure and well-balanced. Next time, I'd attach it sideways because it kept bonking me in the head! I got surprisingly little attention or commentary along the way. It probably happens all the time. Meh. Whatever, it's not like I crave the attention.

Observation: It hadn't rained on the way over, but my luck ran out on the way back. It poured and the wind howled. So, the return leg of the trip was much more difficult than the outbound. Second observation: rain pants and waterproof socks - good choice.

March 11, 2016, Errandonnee #9

Pick up new rack (category 5. Non-Store Errand)

Errandonneering encourages you to buy local. When I built my previous bike, I had a custom fork made by a local bike builder in San Francisco. I follow him on Instagram (coffeeandeggs). On one of his photos, I commented about shopping for a rack and he responded with a comment about his friend's company. He's in Oakland, so on that recommendation alone, I ordered a rack and offered to pick it up so I could see his shop. Pass Stow Racks is not a store, for sure. There's no sign, no front door, really. It's just a couple guys in warehouse space a block from the BART station (our rapid transit system). Today, since it continued to rain, I was happy to get on a train! I biked across town to our BART station and got off at his. He met me on the sidewalk and guided me through the labyrinth to where the magic happens. I'm a big fan of metalworking and truly appreciate good welding. We talked about bikes, racks, bags, commuting, fountain pens, to-do lists - you know, guy stuff. He showed me an unfinished rack and then gave me mine. It's gorgeous (if you're in to that sort of thing) and amazingly light. It's 4130 cromoly steel, so you could carry a person on it - but don't.

Actual non-train distance worked out to be 11.9 miles. When I first loaded my ride on Strava, it was 57 miles. But Strava doesn't give you tools to edit out the middle. So I wrote to Strava and within a few hours they had fixed it. Wow! So many observations on this trip, but...

Observation: A lady on the train thought I was funny for taking photos of my rack.

March 12, 2016, Errandonnee #10

Breakfast with Goats (category 9. Wild Card)

A half-mile from my house is an area that hasn't been purchased by developers and converted to suburban housing, thankfully. Along one paved emergency vehicle access road are a couple of little goats. My wife started feeding them carrots on her runs. So I grabbed a few carrots and went to see them. "Wild Card" almost works as a category - if they were wild goats, it would be perfect.

Observation: Goats have really crazy eyes.

March 12, 2016, Errandonnee #11

Future Blog Research (category 2. Personal Business)

I use this blog for many topics, but mostly cycling stories. I also like history and sometimes I write posts about the history of cycling. A surprisingly popular post was about a particular hill that we call "The Wall". And I included a few tidbits about the person for which one of the side-roads was named, Downing. I continue to be intrigued by the pioneer Downing family and know that they lived in my little town of Pleasanton. So I rode over to the Pioneer Cemetery and found their family grave site. Lots of Downings there along with the dates that might help me write a future blog post. Distance: another half-mile.

Observation: Judging by the prominant location and the size of the main headstone, I'd say they were moderately important people back then.

March 12, 2016, Errandonnee #12

Farmer's Market (category 5. Non-Store Errand)

I know these two posts are long, but the trip to the Farmer's Market was key to this whole "Errand Bike" idea. Yes, it undermines my whole rationale if I can take any old bike there and bring fruits and vegetables home. But what if I wanted a watermelon and a dozen funny-colored eggs? That would not work out well with a backpack. Today, of course, it's still late-winter or early-spring so there's not much at the market. I bought oranges, almonds and cauliflower.

Distance: about three-quarters of a mile.

Observation: Fruits and vegetables can get heavy.

That completes the Errandonnee Challenge. As short and simple as many of these errands were, a few of them were difficult. And if the rules committee throws out any of them, I went from the Farmer's Market to a coffee shop. And I commuted all week (an additional 150-some miles). And I went to the LBS to check on my road bike (routine maintenance before a Brevet in Utah, need a new chain and a lot less gravel in the bottom bracket). So I've got several back-up errandonnees. But again, I opted out of riding to the SPCA. This time it was the elements, a tight time schedule and the possibility that I would need to pick up our college student from the train station. Perhaps next week.

In my quest to go car-free, I've proven that living in the suburbs doesn't mean that you need to drive (solo). The bike in combination with mass transit works very well in all kinds of weather. I've proven that most short errands are easier on a bike. I've proven that "...it's awkward to carry..." is an excuse that can be eliminated with a little planning (and the right bike). And I've proven that cycling is simply more fun than running errands by car. Well, I've proven these things to myself.

This is where I say "your mileage may vary" with just a touch of irony.

Coffeeneuring / Commuter Bike at the Local Bike Shop ...no, there is not a tandem in my future.

Errandonnee Part 1: Going Car-Free (Lite)

Michigan, in the 1960s, was all about the automobile. Gasoline was $0.30 per gallon when I was born. Living in farm country, we actually had a 200-gallon tank on our property and a gas truck would come out periodically and fill it up. No thought was given to burning gasoline - even just for fun! Before I was old enough to drive, I owned five cars. The economy revolved around the automobile. And so I went to General Motors Institute to be an automotive engineer. I only say this to underline how deeply the automobile is ingrained into my being.

After a few years of increasing annual mileage on my bike in the past decade, it dawned on me that it might be possible to eliminate the car from certain aspects of my life. Is it possible to completely eliminate it? Let's examine some of the problems:

• Commuting - from the suburbs to Silicon Valley, 55 miles round-trip per day
• Errands - grocery store, dry cleaning, volunteering (the shortest trips, but awkward to carry stuff)
• Dining Out - ~10 miles, but always with my wife who does not bike
• Going Places - vacations, day trips, movies (varying degrees of difficulty and luggage)

Enter the Errandonnee Challenge. Mash up "errands" and "randonnee" - meaning long, self-supported bike ride, take a photo and hashtag it. The challenge is 12 errands in 12 days and it's made slightly more challenging by specific categories to enforce some diversity of the errands. Of course, it's possible to do all 12 errands in one day. But what fun would that be‽

March 4, 2016, Errandonnee #1

Multi-Modal Commute (category 7. Work or Volunteering)

Short bike ride to the train station; train ride down to the Valley; five-mile bike ride from the train station to work. Then the opposite back home that afternoon. About 20 miles of actual bike riding.

I've been doing this a couple times a week for a couple years. There are lots of cyclists doing the same thing.
Observation: If it's raining and snails invade the bike path, there will be collateral damage.

March 5, 2016, Errandonnee #2

Haircut (category 1. Personal Care)

About two miles downtown. No big deal. I tried to take it easy to keep my head from sweating.

Observation: They open at 8am! Okay seriously, I noticed that it's so much easier to park a bike - right at the front door - than a car.

March 5, 2016, Errandonnee #3 (same day)

Coffee (category 6. Social Call)

From the barber shop to the coffee shop was less than a mile. The rules allow this, so I did it.

Observation: Kouign-amann (pastry); resistance is futile. 

March 5, 2016, Errandonnee #4 (same day, but I went home first)

Dry cleaning (category 2. Personal Business)

This was a bit of a challenge and has always been a hurdle for going car-free. It's possibly the shortest errand for me, 0.7 miles. How do you transport a few dress shirts on hangers to and from the dry cleaners? I've tried this before. It's rather dangerous to have a shirt on your back. 

Observation: The tip from packing experts is to roll your clothes, so I tried this. I left the shirts on their hangers and precisely rolled them up and put the roll in my backpack. Success!

March 5, 2016, Errandonnee #5 (same day, same shopping center)

Groceries (category 8. Store)

The grocery store is two doors down from the dry cleaners in the same shopping center. I rode my bike but probably didn't pedal more than a couple times - slightly more than zero miles.

Observation: Rolled up dry cleaning is useful padding to keep potato chips from getting crushed.

Then the rains came and I opted to drive across town to my volunteering gig at the SPCA. It's not that I won't ride in the rain. But I need to put more thought into packing. Maybe next week. This is something I need to resolve on my car-free quest.

March 6, 2016, Errandonnee #5
Coffee and CycloMonkey Chaperone (category 6. Social Call)
As I am apt to do on Sundays, being a Devout Coffee drinker, I rode down the canyon to Devout Coffee to drink coffee. After that, I visited my friend to drop off a certain stuffed animal. CycloMonkey has been to two corners of the globe and Andrea is going to take him to a third (New Zealand and Australia). The ride home made the whole trip 31.7 miles.
Observation: The short-cut from Andrea's house, through the sports park, leads right to Rusty's house. (True observation: I can barely recognize my cycling friends without their helmets on.)


Clearly, I can eliminate the car for commuting and most errands. Stay tuned for more Errandonnees and more serious changes in my transportation habits.

Catching Up with CycloMonkey

I recently sat down with CycloMonkey in between trips. It was a rare chance to reminisce and share a cup of coffee. These days, his travel schedule is too hectic to share in-depth stories and thoughts on each trip but he was happy to answer a few questions before the limousine shuttled him off to the airport again.

Steven

TN: So, where are you headed this time?
CM: Oh, this is just a couple days in Austin, Texas, with Steven for business. I've never been to Texas. I hear it's big. And I hear they have funny accents but they can't be worse than Scotland!

TN: For our infrequent readers, why don't you tell us where you've been recently?
CM: Okay, sure, let me think. Okay, after Steven took me to Scotland, then I hung out with Dave and Dedi. They took me to see the Lion King at the theater in San Jose and then we went to Big Sur on the coast and slept in a yurt. That was great! You and I went to Yosemite after that.


TN: Yep, that was cool.
CM: Yeah, and then John took me on a bike ride where I met Jens Voigt. I think that guy was a monkey in a previous life; he's hilarious! And then John took me to Japan - wow! Very intense place, very exciting. And then John took me to Italy - whoa! How come you never go to cool places like that?

This is the life (Venice).

TN: And then where?
CM: Sorry. Okay, Damian took me down to Baja, Mexico. That's all off the record, okay? It's fine. Nothing happened, really. But after that, he took me skiing in Colorado. Snow! Tons of snow! And cold, really cold. And you've gotta get one of those fat bikes. They're a riot.

TN: I've ridden them; I agree! But I've got too many bikes.
CM: You need one more. Anyway, Patty took me to Minnesota for the U.S. National Figure Skating Competition. She knows a lot of famous people. So that brings us to this trip to Texas.

TN: Okay, great. We better speed things up; your ride will be here soon.
CM: I travel light.

TN: Alright, let's go to the speed round. You ready?
CM: Fire away!

TN: Best bar?
CM: Harry's Bar in Venice.

TN: Best bike ride?
CM: Fat bike in Colorado

TN: Worst food?
CM: Minnesota, no comment. Next question.

TN: Worst flight?
CM: Spain, but I didn't lose my stuffing so it's all good.

TN: Favorite travel companion?
CM: Will they be reading this? I mean, it's you, man, it's gotta be you.

TN: Nice try. Bucket list destination?
CM: Mars. But don't leave me there.

TN: Where would you go back to?
CM: Easy, I'd go back to Santa Cruz. I'd go back to where we met and find my old friend who lost me. Sorry about messing up your speed round. I love me life and I wouldn't change anything, but I'd just like to check back in and let them know I'm alright. That's all.

Where we met, on Columbia St., off Cliff Drive, just north of the Lighthouse in Santa Cruz

TN: I'm working on that. But I need some help. Since you are so busy, how can your fans keep up with you?
CM: I've got my own Facebook page now! I'm a "public figure" - ha ha!

TN: Yes you are. Oh look, you've got a plane to catch. Thanks for spending some time with me today.
CM: Anytime. You're like family. But not the super-close family that I'd share the details of Mexico with... just sayin'. Hey, can we go to Vegas?