Here We Go Again

It's a sickness. With winter approaching, thus ending the season for the touring/commuting Trek (and beginning the season for the slush mobile), my thoughts turn to tinkering over the long winter.

Although I have been pretty happy with the high, oddly angled drop bars, they are very narrow (39 cm or so), which is not ideal for commuting. Starting from a red light or stop sign (which I don't stop for anyway, but sometimes I slow down) is awkward when on the tops (where the interrupter brake levers are), and I don't want to do the racer thing and grab the drops.

So I've been thinking maybe a set of trekking ("butterfly") bars, set nice and high. I couldn't get aero-low, but maybe I could get aero-forward. Well. I ordered one (or is it a set?), and maybe I'll get around to installing it/them.

The best solution probably would have been a 46 cm Nitto Noodle, but it costs three times more. And I would have wanted to put on aero brake levers instead of the old Mafac ones with the cables curved too sharply on their way to the interrupter levers. Tinkering isn't fun when you spend a lot of money on it.

Update:
The new bars are on, and I like them pretty well, especially for urban riding. The bike feels much more stable with the wider bars (much less noticeable shimmy), and the forward position (with the brake levers) is comfortable enough to ride all the time, which is good for sidewalks and bike paths. And, most important of all, they are quite fun. Butt-ugly, but fun.

Winter Is Coming

Today was the first day of winter temperatures (about 25˚). Since temperature dictates what I wear, I pulled out the winter gear: lined nylon wind pants over my regular pants, medium weight sweater over a long-sleeved (but lightweight) turtleneck, single-layer windbreaker, light polartec hat, wool neck gaiter, goggles (yes, I was wearing goggles in November--remember, winter temperatures, winter gear), medium heavy gloves (it would need to be closer to 20˚ for mittens), and (new this year) Tingley rubber overshoes over my dress shoes. (These overshoes are pretty nice, if dorky: 10" high, reasonably lightweight, totally wind and water proof, and inexpensive when you buy them here. They add lots of warmth. I got them for around $20, which is significantly cheaper than official biking shoe covers.)

Perhaps I was overdressed, but I was comfortable. That combination of turtleneck, sweater, and windbreaker is warm down to single digits. I probably should have worn a lightweight button-up longsleeve shirt.

I'm still riding the commuting/touring Trek, in all its dorked out glory. The Reelights are nice to have in the morning dusk. The B&M dynamo lights are nice to have at night. I'm getting Reelights for the slushmobile, too. They're a superior product.

I'm impressed with the Kenda Kwik Roller Holiday (stupid name) tires (38mm). They give a nice ride, and they're wearing beautifully, even after a summer of loaded touring and a fall of loaded commuting. So far, 2000 miles, no flats.