6/6/2023: Owen Egerton’s Last One Page Salon

~ A Dude Abikes ~ Leave a comment

Owen Egerton founded One Page Salon nine and three-quarters years ago. Now he’s leaving for greener, cooler, and less politically conservative pastures than Texas. From Austin to Boston, to be exact. I wrote about this monthly series where writers read a page of a work in progress two months and two days ago here at this link. (You know you want to click and go read it and then come back. Be my guest.) But since this was his last OPS, it’s worth another post. It was a fitting tribute and send-off with some special guests. Let’s just say we all got a little verklempt from all the feels, as the kids say.

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Biking and Other Goals — When Will Power Isn’t Enough

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 3 Comments

Five months of 2023 are gone with seven to go. One may wonder–quite reasonably–where has the time gone? What have they accomplished thus far, and what’s to come? The year is almost half gone, so what is there to show for it? Only you can answer for yourself (and only YOU can prevent forest fires). In my case, it’s the usual, which is more than nothing, but it’s less than I’d like. Reflection can be good up to point (not great if you’re a vampire looking into a mirror). Action is what propels us forward. Into what, though? The breach? Good trouble, or the other kind? We can hope for the former, be realistic, and remain vigilant that bad luck may find us despite our best efforts to avoid it. We humans try to keep reevaluating and chipping away at our goals. But sometimes will power isn’t enough. Spoiler alert:  I don’t have all the answers, but I think it has something to do with doing your best.

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The 2023 International Annual Ride of Silence in Austin, TX

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 12 Comments

The third Wednesday in May is designated an international commemoration of those people who lost their lives while bicycling. It began in Dallas, Texas, where A Dude was hatched, after one man’s friend was cyxling and got hit and killed by a car. It has expanded to hundreds of cities and countries (222 and 14 respectively this year). It’s called the Ride of Silence, which I wrote about in “5/5/23: 5 Things You *May* Want to Do for Bike Month.” Here’s a recap.

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5/5/2023: 5 Things You *May* Want to Do in Bike Month

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 7 Comments

It’s that time of year in the USA when the sun has come out, the snow has thawed, and the flowers have bloomed. Basically, it’s the best time to, as Queen sang, “Get on your bikes and ride!” In Austin, Texas, it felt like 97 degrees thanks to the humidity coming up from the Gulf of Mexico. Your dude just managed to ride eight miles to the post office before a storm blew in some lighting, thunder, and rain. Summer in Austin often feels like you’re wearing a hot, wet blanket while you bicycle, but sometimes it’s nice after the rain with a breeze. Regardless of weather, biking is what we do here at ADudeAbikes.com, every damn day for over 3.5 years. Like they say, a rolling stone gathers no moss. By now, you MAY have gathered that National Bike Month is here, so here are five things to do in Austin but also beyond, if biking is your jam–or you want it to be. (Mmm, jam.)

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Frankenbike: Helping to Keep Austin Weird

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 10 Comments

I attended my third Frankenbike on April 30th. This roving swap meet for bicycle people was held at Clown Dog Bikes in Austin, Texas. It was fun and interesting, like the first two, and also not very profitable for this dude. (I previously wrote about it here.) That’s ok. And oh yeah, some of the people who were there or who came by were weird. “Keep It Weird” is the slogan of Austin, the cool, anti-commercial, countercultural one at least. Contrast that with the so-called “Live Music Capital of the World” and place where Calfornian tech bros come to spend their First World money to jack up the damn rent. But at Frankenbike, cool things happen, namely connection and community. Which, in a post-pandemic-ish world, is still kinda weird. Allow me to explain.

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3.5 Years of Daily Cycling & 2023 1st Quarterly Report

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Way back B.P. (Before Pandemic), I started riding my bicycle every day. Today marks three and a half years, or 42 months, or 182 weeks and five days, or 1,278 days in a row. Also, I’ve walked daily with very few misses and many extra miles in five plus years, and I’ve done yoga daily (moreso nightly) over nine years. I continue to reflect on that, and it’s time to review my Strava activity stats for January-March 2023. Let’s take a look.

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4/4/23: Chillin’ at One Page Salon on a Breezy Tuesday

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I’ve been owin’ Owen Egerton a debt of gratitude for some time. He has been a creative force in Austin for a long time, starting out with Comedy Sportz, and hosting One Page Salon “the best reading series in Austin” per the daily rag, for going on nine years. As a published author, comedian, screenwriter, and many other hyphenates, he begins each OPS with a funny opening and a reading from an author who can’t be there… because they’re dead. I started attending at the new venue last month, so it was good to be back again. And here’s an accounting of tonight’s episode on the anniversary of MLK’s death. I learned that from a U2 lyric. Which is a fancy word for music words.

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Spring, Sprang, Sprung: On Biking, Cleaning, and Living

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 4 Comments

Monday was the first day of spring, in the northern hemisphere, that is. How do I know this? Well, I have a goatee again. But I have the goatee because it’s the first day of spring. The seasonal facial hair regimen has been going on for a long time. Which is neither hair nor thair, but it does make me think about the changing of the seasons. Turn, turn, turn. Winter is leaving, spring is here. “Like sands through the hour glass so are the Days of our Lives,” went the tag line for an old soap opera. As mentioned in an earlier post, with better weather comes better bike riding and any number of outdoor activities. Maybe you didn’t come here to here my talk about the weather. Except I’m going to for a bit more.

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3/3/2023: Spring Is Coming — Good Bicycling Weather

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 3 Comments

After last month’s crippling ice storm, and some 90 degree days, winter has reasserted itself in Central Texas. After a cold front with some rain, it’s cooled off a fair bit, is sunny, with little wind. In other words, it’s just about perfect for biking and all manner of outdoor activities. Things are already starting to bloom, spring break is coming and with it the South by Southwest juggernaut, March madness basketball if you’re into that sort of thing, and just lots of stuff going on outside before it gets too hot and humid and then just hot. For A Dude, that means ditching the home trainer and getting out there more on Sommar the Fuji Finest bike.

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