Month: September 2018

More Pucking Functures! Five Fixes for Frequent Flats Free From Frustration

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 7 Comments

Lately I’ve had a string of bad luck with holes in my tires. It’s like Jack Alehurst of Life Behind Bars said, if he were Jerry Seinfeld: “Doncha hate it when you’ve been off your bike for a while and finally decide to go for a ride, only to find it has a flat tire?” Or maybe Robin would say to the caped crusader: “Holy holes, Batman!” Well that’s been a factor for me this last week. Some mysterious, one my fault, and well, it gets frustrating and expensive. So here’s a little recap and then a little advice.

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Fast & Furious Fun: Ethan’s Going Away Alley (Oops!) Night Ride

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 1 Comment

 

This post was going to be about an open house held by the City of Austin Transportation Department which I attended.  It was about the redesign of a nearby street to have bike lanes, sidewalks, trees and parking.  Not terribly exciting, yet pretty interesting at the same time.  But then this happened.  So I’ll save that for another day (or not), and tell you about this crazy, wild-ass, scary, dangerous, and fun ride.

Check out this ride on Strava.

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40-Mile Charity Ride for Breast Cancer: No Need to SAG

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 9 Comments

Oops!  I did it again.  Rode my bike for charity.  The 10th Annual Texas Mamma Jamma Ride to Beat Breast Cancer, to be precise; my third participation.  While the ride was many things, the most important thing is that I have so far raised $1,554 for the seven area non-profits benefiting from this event.  The money will go to provide services to women living with the disease.  And, I’m still hoping to raise more.  You can help at this link:

Give here:  https://Fundraisers.MammaJammaRide.org/ADude-Abikes

Before anyone gets up in arms about the title, SAG stands for Support and Gear.  (I almost said panties in a wad, but decided it was in poor taste.)  SAG is the vehicle that roams around the course in a bike ride with extra tubes, tires, food, water and first aid.  And while the day featured rain, wind, sun, loose dogs, crashes, tutus, and longhorn cattle (not the miraculously currently 3-1 winning University of Texas football team), and even a flat tire that the SAG car did help out with a little (so I wouldn’t get my hands oily), A Dude Abikes has a clean sheet so far of never having to SAG out.

So here’s the low down on the non-SAGging breast cancer charity ride.

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I Raised $1,364 in Two Days for the Mamma Jamma, and I Haven’t Even Biked 65 Miles in the Rain and Wind Yet!

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 8 Comments

Well, apparently the hordes have spoken, and there is support for me to ride this event, and then some!  It will be my third Mamma Jamma Ride.  n fact, two generous souls even put in for the whole minimum amount of $300.  It’s all for a good cause, to help women in my area (Central Texas, USA), survive and thrive after a diagnosis and treatment for breast cancer.  I’ve also raised $100 for my registration and bike(s) repair and had help from friends and two bike shops.  I say bikes, because I don’t even know which one I’ll ride yet!  So there’s lots to do and not much time, but below are a few more details of what it’s like doing a charity ride.  And a way for you to donate if you can.

Give here:  https://Fundraisers.MammaJammaRide.org/ADude-Abikes

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Hey WordPress & Internet, Do You Want Me to Ride the Mamma Jamma for Breast Cancer Charities This Saturday?

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 11 Comments

As I alluded to Monday, I have the opportunity to participate in my third Mamma Jamma Ride to Beat Breast Cancer this Saturday, September 22. Previously I have ridden 57 miles in 2015 and 65 miles in 2017, raising over $2,500. But this time I have waited to the last minute to decide, so I need your help. What do you think? The important thing is that if you are interested in pledging your support to let me know that, and how much, ASAP, today, because I can’t do the ride without raising a minimum of $300 by Friday. Leave a comment [which provides your email], or send me an email, which is on the About page. Thanks for your interest. More information is included below, so I hope you’ll read on.

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A Random Rest Day Potpourri Post After a 153-Mile Week on the Bicycle

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 7 Comments

It’s blog deadline time again.  Usually I have no problem coming up with a topic.  Tonight I kind of did.  I notice my posts tend to fall in several categories:  a status report on my biking / walking / yoga / dieting / blogging / book-writing; something educational, entertaining or informative about bicycling; something off-topic but tangentially related to riding a bike; and then the totally random rave, rant or other piece like a movie review.  This one is kind of a mix of the first and last.  I’m as curious to see where it goes as hopefully you are, and  I hope you like the smell of potpourri! Continue reading →

How to Safely Ride Your Bike in the Rain

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 3 Comments

The Carolinas are getting pummeled with Hurricane Florence, and clearly no sane person is biking in that.  There’s not much to do from here about it except to watch the news and just hope that people, pets and stuff make it through.  Perhaps donate if you’re a person of means.  Meanwhile, although it’s nothing like Hurricane Harvey that hit Houston and the Gulf of Mexico coast last year, we’ve been having a wet September here in Central Texas.  I am grateful because of the lower temperatures and the relief to drought-stricken lakes, rivers, plants, pets and people.  Biking is delicious when it’s not 100 degrees!

But rain does make riding a bike tricky, if not actually more dangerous than it already is.  Some people won’t do it at all.  A Dude Abikes however loves to ride in the rain on his Fairdale Weekender Archer named Sophie, because she’s got wider wheels and a heavy steel frame that make her more stable.  I thought it might interest all tens of my readers to hear what I do to keep the rubber side down.  Hop on!  (Actually, don’t.  I have enough weight to carry already.) Continue reading →

Massage Is Good for Cyclists and Other Humans

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 2 Comments

Back in May I blogged about a massage in One Fine Day: Free Massage, Bike to Work Day, Deadpool 2.  I still have some free passes left so I returned today.  And boy did I need it!  It may be obvious to those of us who have had massage, not everyone has had a massage.  So here’s a little post about massage that you might enjoy, whether you ride a bike or not.  The ending is uh, joyful.

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My August 2018 Biking and Walking Stats on Strava

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 3 Comments

This post is a brief review of my walking and biking in August through pictures, courtesy of the fitness tracking application, Strava.  Check ’em out, and enjoy all my sweaty efforts!  I’ve added alot of additional fun facts about my riding for those of you who geek out on numbers, or are just curious what a month of disciplined, diligent bike riding looks like.  Hopefully you had a few accomplishments too, and feel free to share them in the comments.  All images are Copyright Strava 2018.

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Who Will Be Our Role Models, Now That Our Role Models Are Gone? Deep Thoughts on My 25-Mile Bike Ride

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 3 Comments

Although this is predominantly a blog about biking, it’s also about anything excellent (raves) as well as things I think suck (rants).   Sometimes it’s chocolate, movies, or soccer.  Sometimes it’s racism, jerks in cars, and politicians.  Definitely in the rave column, a while ago, I went to see Paul Simon on his farewell tour, naturally called Homeward Bound, which I blogged about here.   In thinking about what to write for this blog while on tonight’s 25-mile bike ride, I used title of a song from “Rhymin’ Simon’s” highly influential world music-infused album Graceland.   If you guessed that this post is a rant, you win!  (Your prize is continuing to read this post.)  Let’s dig into the mind of A Dude, shall we? Continue reading →