M Squared

The Eugene Yacht Club hosts the Memorial Day Regatta every year the lake has water ... With a brand new dam , the regatta was back on after being cancelled the last two out of five years for lack of water. This year there was no shortage of water! The lake was full and the weather provided plenty of moisture from above. Despite the rain, twenty six Santana 20 teams came out to compete in the much anticipated Western Regionals . The Boa Boys struggled a bit early on but took advantage of three good races (all seconds) to finish the regatta in second place.

"Wet ride?" Well it started out pretty dry (relatively). It wasn't really raining (even my my standards of humidity). Then it started raining about half way but not too bad. I didn't wear my "rubber pants" and stayed dry (again relatively). No rooster tail up the back side. Trevor's fender works as expected... I gotta get me some of that. I've ridden almost 130 miles and saved about $19 (just in gas)... but I've spent a little bit more than that on bike lub., tire levers and a pump... and obviously fenders are next. Still it saves gas and mileage on the ve-hicle (the four wheeled vehicled and internal combustion engine vs. the two wheeled vehicle and internal digestion engine). DAY Date Time Distance Cumulative Distance Savings Total Savings Weather 8 5.24.2006 0:41 7.96mi 118.96mi $2.35 $18.73 EUG 7.96mi 126.92mi

It's all about fenders... Well more of the same type of light rain today. Given my experience yesterday, it was easier to decide I could ride in this stuff today. Calling it rain is a little misleading. It's OR rain which is to say it very light, small drops… or heavy humidity as I call it. It's not that it rains heavily here... it just that rain logs a lot of hours. This time I borrowed my son's rear fender and donned some waterproof shorts (kinda like short rain pants). That did the trick in preventing the rooster tail. It was actually double protection. With my Kokatat paddle jacket and added protection from the waist down, I was actually a little too warm. We'll have to see how well my water sports top crosses over to a more aerobic activity like cycling. Fortunately, it's been cooler on these wet rides. No time information these days. I'm just trying to pick my way through all the debris dumped on the trail by the rain and wind (from a storm over the ...

Sailing and WFH last Thursday and Friday. Back to typical OR spring weather this week. Wet! I picked up some gear over the weekend… none of it help prepare me to ride in the rain. I'm now equiped with a tire pump and levers. I had a patch kit but now I feel a bit less anxious about getting a flat. I also bought some White Lightning ... which I really like so far. My son, on the other hand, bought a rear fender... smart! And he's not riding to work... Very few other bike commuters out in this weather... a few and I guess I have to say they're the committed ones. I didn't really mind the light rain and with a little more preparation it should be now trouble at all. It was actually nice to be out and see Amazon Creek and the Willamette River with higher flow rates. The ducks seem to enjoy it. The weather also made me think of the guy I met a while back who was starting a cross country trip. I had the choice to ride today. With such a long trip ahead of him, I'm sure...

This morning, I was riding for time. I was just trying to get a better idea how fast I could push it. Certainly one of the limiting factors (besides me) are all the stop signs along 15th Ave. It's part of the city bike route and typically has many bikers. However, it's a pain to stop of couple of blocks (sometimes more). At any rate, I was moving pretty well and it appear I was going to be significantly quicker than norman (by about 5min or more). I was determined not to stop for pictures or clothing adjustment (which wasn't necessary). I was into the sixth mile and see a strange site in front of me... What the... That guy (in front of me) is wearing chest waders... and oooh, they're breathable ... and he's carrying a fly rod with a fighting butt . Well, I couldn't resist. I ask him if he's heading to the McKenzie but he's says he's heading home from fishing the Willamette . Is this a great place to live or what? Turns out he caught an 8-10 lb. stee...

Another warm day but if this is on the hotter end of the scale, I don't think I'll mind the summer heat. This was my first time commuting on consecutive days. It didn't kill be to get in the saddle this morning but I noticed... Meanwhile, back to my hybrid commuting solution. No, I'm not talking about riding a hybrid bike . It's my creative use of a Park & Ride location where I drop off my kids at school. I'm pretty sure this isn't exactly what LTD had in mind but I leave my vehicle there ( Willamette Christian Center ). As far as I know, I'm the only one who implements the Ride portion of this concept on two wheels... (at least from this location). So if you need to transport others part way to work, find the distance to work too much or want to avoid certain traffic areas, consider the hybrid Park (your vehicle) & Ride (your bicycle) solution. DAY Date Time Distance Cumulative Distance Savings Total Savings Weather 4 5.16.2006 79min 15.92...

Things are starting to heat up. The 9AM temp is already 63 ºF and it's supposed to reach 90! [SUNNY AND UNSEASONABLY WARM WEATHER IS FORECAST FOR THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST TODAY...WITH RECORD HIGH TEMPERATURES EXPECTED IN MANY LOCATIONS. HIGH TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED TO EXCEED 90 DEGREES IN THE NORTHERN HALF OF THE WILLAMETTE VALLEY AND THE INTERIOR VALLEYS OF SOUTHWEST WASHINGTON TODAY...] I feel like I'm starting to get somewhere. I know my way pretty well so that doesn't slow me down. I had to stop a bit this morning to shed a layer. Even with that zero VMG I was about a minute under my usual time. I'm not keeping real accurate time but it seems like I'm getting faster. It's intriguing how you start noticing things once you begin to take more interest. I've started noticing cyclists and their machines. There are many students biking around campus. They're not very interesting. But I did see what might have been a professor on a goofy looking chopper typ...

I took a couple days off (had a noon-ish meeting and then sailing ). This morning an older guy with a trailer asked me about the Fern Ridge bike path. We were at the end of the trail where it joins 15th Ave. I said the bike route continues but on the surface streets. He was looking for High St. Since it was about a half dozen blocks east and I was curious, I rode with him. Turns out he's riding across the country. He was towing a trailing and had paniers. I also noticed a solar cell on the back of his trailer. He said it charges a gel cell which he uses for his cell phone, GPS and camera batteries. He said he started near Portland and rode out to the coast, down to Florence and then started his "coast to coast" trip. He said it was just a childhood dream he was realizing. Pretty cool. This morning was just a little warmer than last Tuesday and I had an extra layer (wind shell). So I was dressed just right. The route was a little different as I continue to experiment. Afte...

This was my first day bike commuting in Eugene . I've ridden my bike to work before but that was when I worked at Purdue or when we lived just a few minutes from work. Now we live 20 miles away from where I work. Our kids go to school about 10 miles from home and I'm the morning bus service. So, this morning after dropping them off, I hopped on my bike and headed for work. The downside is I got to work later than if I had driven... but that's about it. The upside includes exercise, fresh air, scenery (Amazon Creek, ducks, geese, a green heron, other birds, Willamette Rive r) and gas/$$/environment savings . It was a little cool this morning (46 ºF) but I was dressed just about right. My hands were cold a bit but everything else was fine. I was a little cool but that's better than being a little hot. I'm gonna get a few more trips under my saddle before I start concluding what things I need to tweak for future trips. DAY Date Time Distance Cumulative Distance Savin...