monkeymartian » day-to-day

Mobile posts?

Andrew — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 02:44:52 +0000

I’m going to try and post a little more often now that I have a mobile device that I can post from. I’d like to post shorter entries with photos from my rides.

stratus

Andrew — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 13:07:55 +0000

I had a foggy, misty ride up Bayview early yesterday morning. I planned on riding further to help prep for the Tour de Greenbelt, but the fog got thicker as I went. I climbed the hill on Bayview and turned around. The water droplets condensed on the fibres of my wool jersey and eyebrows. I cut the ride short when it became apparent that visibility was getting worse.

lost something? i found it!

Andrew — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 01:44:32 +0000

Missing something? On my ride home today I found a still blinking LED tail light on the sidewalk in the Leslie & 16th area of Richmond Hill. If you think it’s yours, drop me some email. andrew [at] monkeymartian [dot] com. I hope you made it home okay, it was pretty overcast this evening.

atlantis lost?

Andrew — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 14:19:27 +0000

I saw via bikelovejones that Rivendell is discontinuing the venerable built-in-Japan Atlantis framesets. Photos of this bike re-ignited my interest in cycling, and gave me a whole new appreciation of classic steel lugged bikes. In 2005 I purchased a Rivendell Romulus that uses cantilever brakes instead of sidepulls (hence it’s known as a Canti-Rom). I bought the bike as a present for myself for finishing my Masters degree, and because the Canti-Rom was a bit of an accident, it was a smoking deal. However, the lure of the Atlantis has remained with me. The frameset price has increased over the years to the point where custom prices for touring machines/all rounders are looking reasonable (exactly the reason why Riv is talking about discontinuing the frame). Now I’m torn: get one of the last Toyo-built bikes or save the money for another project? I’ve been thinking more and more about mountain biking, and I’ve been waiting for MEC to open their bike shop to see what they offer. Buying a $2000 plus frame would mean I would not be able to build it up for a while, and it would preclude me from other toys. Hmm…

Grant’s article mentions that Riv might have the Atlantis manufactured in Taiwan, but they’ve had a great relationship with the Toyo shop in Japan. Either way, it’s the end of an era.

some new links

Andrew — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 13:36:12 +0000

Well, we’re back from vacation from Bon Echo. This was our second trip there, since 2007 and it didn’t dissapoint for car camping. We still don’t have the means to transport our camping gear and bikes, so I had a little vacation from riding, too. It’s nice to be home and back on the bike! I’m still itching to get a backcountry type trip in however. I’m trying to convince the family that a long weekend canone trip into the interior there would be a Good Thing. We’ll see.

I added a link to R A N T W I C K, a bike blogger in London ON. Check out the latest post on goofy bike lanes around UWO. For your reading pleasure, I’ve also added a link to Urban-Crawl. There is a very interesting post regarding cycling, kids and parenting.

update on railway crossings

Andrew — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 14:03:36 +0000

As an update to the post “public service announcement,” I’m pleased to report that the work at the level crossings of the railway between Yonge & Bayview are complete. Crosby, Centre and Weldrick have new, smooth pavement. I’m particularly pleased that the rubber mats have been removed from the Weldrick crossing and replaced with ashphalt. The old mats were buckled up an peeling in places, and were no fun to ride over when wet.

it’s official, i’m a bike commuter

Andrew — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 15:52:11 +0000

I’ve been keeping a log of the rides that I’ve done this year mostly for a lark. I’ve learned a couple of things:

I’m a bike commuter.
I don’t ride as much as I thought I did.
I don’t use my bike for many errands.

The first is no surprise, but the second is a little. My friends and family figure that I ride “lots” just because I ride to work most days. I don’t ride for very many errands either. It’s mostly because it’s hard to lock up your bike somewhere in suburbia, and because it’s tough to haul kids & stuff like groceries, even with a trailer.

when bicycle commuting becomes routine

Andrew — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 14:34:44 +0000

Here are some random thoughts on a lazy Canada Day morning. I’ve been a “bike commuter” since 2004. When I first rediscovered cycling after a long lay off, I was amazed at the volume of traffic in my stomping grounds in York Region. I’ve written about it now and then, and used to focus on the bummer encounters with motorists. I suppose I’ve matured a bit and only write about the more egregious stuff that happens out there.

It’s strange that the more cycling becomes part of my day, the less I have to say about it. On the other hand, perhaps it’s not all that strange. New drivers probably gush about their new found skill and ‘freedom.’

In other biking news, I’m following the Tour Divide mountain biking race from Banff, Alberta to Antelope Wells New Mexico along the great divide. The race has been decided with a winner, but it’s far from over. I’m always in awe of what these riders can do. I’ve been thinking about mountain biking a little more seriously over the last few months. I’m not sure that I want to spend the money on a rig right now with job security being so much up in the air. Besides, I never seem to get much time to ride on the weekends. However, after completing the Toronto City Chase a couple of weeks ago, I feel hooked on the ‘adventure racing’ kind of thing and I’ve been looking around at some of the more outdoor oriented events. Of course, these events feature mountain biking! I guess I must be getting close to 40 or something…

In other news, I saw today that Steve at Bikining in Halifax, NS is blogging again after what appears to be a long illness. Welcome back!

what have I got myself into?

Andrew — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 12:57:22 +0000

I got an IM the other day from Phil the “Cheetahman” asking me if I was interested in doing the City Chase this year. Phil is a fan of the TV show “The Amazing Race,” something I’ve only watched perhaps an hour ever. He described the City Chase as a kind of watered down version of the show. At any rate, the weblink to the details looked interesting , and I figured Phil would be good for a pint or two after the event so I agreed to team up with him. It looks like the transport modes are either by foot or on public transit. I was bummed to learn no bikes were involved. I’m not a runner by any standard, while Phil runs the occasional 10 or 15k race. I’m hoping to be in decent shape from bike commuting for this race come June.

operator, give me the number for 911

Andrew — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 22:32:38 +0000

On Monday as I rode around to the back of the building where I work to park my bike, I was greeted with the stench of burning plastic. The dumpster beside our unit was smoking, and there was a pool of burning plastic oozing onto the pavement. Nice way to start the week. I called the fire department and they dealt with it. The flames were out by the time they came. This is what things looked like after they were done. (Click for bigger)