Wheelsuckers Anonymous

Another ride over the Alex Fraser bridge into Delta today. This time I added a loop of Annacis Island to bring the total distance up to 101k.

On the way back I had my first encounter with so-called "wheelsuckers". These are cyclists who ride close behind you, essentially using you as a wind breaker. A guy and a girl sat on my wheel silently for about 10k. Even when I slowed down a bit, they didn't flinch. Actually I was flattered that they would want to ride my wheel for so long, but it was a bit odd that they never said anything, like "hello", or "mind if we sit on?" I'll assume that they were too exhausted trying to keep up to say anything. You've gotta find positive reinforcement where you can.

Today's track.

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A quick 20k today to test out the new tire and adjust my rear derailleur. It seems like every time I adjust cable tension it's a new adventure. It always gets much worse before it gets better. Bottom line, it's working beautifully now with no more backpedalling to coax it into that smallest cog.
Today's track

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Also, check out the badass German ladies on the tire box. I do find it oddly reassuring that my tire was handmade by these tough-as-nails women. Something to do with maternal instincts maybe?

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Special Delivery

A very soggy but satisfying 46k ride with a couple of hills thrown in today. Unfortunately I forgot to turn on my GPS so no track. I did take a picture from my favorite bridge though, the Canada Line bridge into Richmond:

As you can see, it's a typical Vancouver spring day and my ride was through almost exclusively industrial real estate. I kind of wonder how much the training benefit of this ride was offset by the soot and fumes inhaled from passing trucks.

In other news, I was delighted to receive a shipment of bike parts from Ireland.

I figure I might as well start the trip with fresh brake pads, cables, cogs and a new chain (and I'll probably want to replace the chain again before the end of the trip).

I also got a supposedly bulletproof Conti Gator Hardshell tire to go on the back. This is to replace a Bontrager tire I recently bought. The Bontrager seems to be durable enough, but I'm hoping the more expensive Conti will ride better. Either way, it's good to have a backup.

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Buntzen Lake

A hilly 94k today, through Port Moody ("city of the arts" says the sign) to Buntzen Lake. I think I am getting stronger, though I could feel the effects of yesterday's ride a bit.

My motivation today was the German documentary about the 1973 Giro D'Italia, Stars and Watercarriers. It has some really nice old footage, which you can see a sample of here. One random fact: they used to give the riders beer to drink on the bike. Although cycling is steeped in tradition, I don't think you'd see that today.

Today's track.

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