Hungry Cat Alley Cat Race

I've had a few questions about the course and the rules for the Hungry Cat Alley Cat Race next Friday the 15th, so let me take this opportunity to explain a few things, while still retaining an air of mystery...

The Winner
The Winner will be the first person to reach the finish with receipts from the 4 checkpoints and all 8 food items.

Distance
There's no set course, but expect to cover 8-10 miles to reach all 4 checkpoints.

Checkpoints
Now I'm not going to spoil the fun and tell y'all where each checkpoint is, but suffice it to say that they will all be supermarkets located around Ghent, Downtown Norfolk and South Norfolk. That's right, I said, South Norfolk...Get ready for some climbing, kitty cats!

Food Items
I'm not gonna say what's on the shopping list, but each participant will get the same shopping list. There will be 8 items on the list (no meat, no dairy). Now depending on whether you buy name brand or generic, you'll spend $10 or $15.

Bags
If you want to be all ghetto & hang plastic bags off yer handlebars...
Fine, go right ahead.
Me?
I'm bringing my trusty messenger bag.

Locks
If you want to be all ghetto & leave yer bike lying unlocked in front of the store...
Fine, go right ahead.
Me?
I'm bringing my trusty Kryptonite.
(course, you could tag team it with a buddy...)

Helmets & Lights
You'd Look Hotter in a Helmet.
As for lights, well, they're pretty useful for avoiding the beer bottles on the Berkley Bridge footpath!

Sheldon Brown is Dead...Long Live Sheldon Brown!

So this is the opportunity for all of us to mumble platitudes to the effect of,

"Sheldon Brown isn't dead as long as he lives in the hearts and legs of cyclists anywhere!"

or

"Sheldon Brown isn't dead as long as friction shifters are still sold on new bikes!"

or

"Sheldon Brown isn't dead as long as helmet mirrors save your ass from the overloaded dump truck coming up the shoulder!"

But Sheldon Brown is dead.

I never met Sheldon myself. The closest I got was a few years ago when I stopped by his shop, Harris Cyclery, in the Boston suburbs. I was waiting for a prescription to get filled for my infant daughter at a nearby pharmacy, and figured I'd see if I could see the legend. Unfortunately he'd just stepped out, and now I don't suppose our paths will cross again.

Sheldon became a crazy, beloved uncle to me through his website. It was probably four years ago that I first stumbled upon it when I was building up my first singlespeed mountain bike. (I'm now on my fourth SS frame, but that's another story.) I devoured Sheldon's site, learning all I could about (in no particular order) singlespeeds, fixed gears, eccentric bottom brackets, hub brakes, disc brakes, caliper brakes, Brooks saddles, internal hub gears, tandems, tandem touring, tandem drivetrains, and spoke theory. The fate of Sheldon's website is unknown, so check it out now, while you still can.

The only thing that Sheldon seemed to love more than cycling was introducing that passion to others.

Thank you, Sheldon.

You Can Count me as One of Your Posse.

The Race Is On

Can you handle it?

Reckless Riding

My favorite Norfolk bike cop hasn't hit me yet with the reckless riding charge that he's threatened me with, but one cyclist did get busted up in Newport News to the tune of $1,050.

Now if Kajuan Cornish was riding with traffic through the intersection, then it doesn't sound like an appropriate fine. But if Kajuan was illegally crossing the street & forcing cars to slow down for him, then yes, he deserved to get a ticket. Maybe not a thousand dollar ticket, but a ticket nonetheless.

Oh yeah, and Pungo drivers are getting fed up with cyclists, too.

"Get on the F**kin' Sidewalk!!!"

Yup, that's exactly what some young chicana yelled at me yesterday as I was making my regular ride home from work.

Alright, if someone screams that at me and I'm on Virginia Beach Boulevard or Tidewater Drive, I'd probably be in agreement that yes, the sidewalk would be safer.

Unfortunately for Miss Hot Stuff, I'd had a pretty frustrating day at work, and as she rode away laughing in the passenger seat of a late-model gray Toyota sedan, I decided to chase her down.

I shifted up and took off after the obscenity-spewing and caught up with her on 21st Street.

"Get on the f**kin' sidewalk!!!" I screamed at her when I caught up with them at the next stoplight. I kept pace as her friend pulled away, and followed them down the street to the nail salon at the shopping plaza. When they got out of the car, I stared down Miss Hot Stuff and told her again, "Get on the f**kin' sidewalk!!!"

"What the f**k is your problem?" she asked me in her best Jerry Springer,

"You! Why are you hanging out your window screaming at me?"

"Because you should be on the sidewalk! That's where bikes belong!"

"You're wrong! It's illegal to ride on the sidewalk in Norfolk! I'm supposed to be on the road!"

"Get your nerdy ass off the road!"

"Honey, I've got the same rights to be on the road as any car!"

"Well you'd better watch out, 'cause we'll run you down!"

"Fine! My lawyer is bigger than yours, and I will sue your ass!"

"Oh, bring it on! I ain't afraid of your lawyer!"

We stared each other down outside the nail salon. She accused me of being a stalker, while I just kept my headlamp pointed at her eyes. After a few more minutes of dialog worthy of Judge Judy, Miss Hot Stuff headed into the nail salon, and I headed home.

Maybe I could've handled it better, but I think I made my point.

Timelapse Road Trip

A little more fun with interval photography...I'm trying out blip.tv- it looks like the image quality is better than youtube.

Click To Play

Recycled Bikes for the Street

Liz will tell you that I don't talk much about my "bike ministry." It's just something that I do.

For about four years now I've spent a morning or two every week on the streets with the Norfolk Catholic Worker when they feed the homeless. While Steve and Kim and a host of volunteers ladle grits and fill coffee cups, I fix bikes.

I load up my BOB trailer with bike tools and parts, an apron to keep the grease off my office clothes, and even a workstand. I'm usually working on crappy Walmart bikes, but occasionally I'll see a Schwinn or a Diamondback, maybe a Raleigh or a Peugot.

It's really basic stuff- adjust brakes, true wheels, trim derailleurs, tighten seatposts, and patch flats. Always patch flats. I try to keep at least 4 spare tires and tubes in my trailer.

I also give away bikes. People like Liz and a host of Tripower folks give me older bikes to overhaul. I try to get them to the point where the bikes are simply working, and working simply: no need for 21 gears around Tidewater, so I usually just convert the bikes into ad hoc singlespeeds.

Now here's the part where you come in- in order to secure the blessing of a bicycle for a guy who doesn't have bus fare to get to his job site, I need bike locks. It used to be that I just went to the hardware store & bought chains and padlocks, but the bike thieves are getting too active in Norfolk for that to work anymore. So I'm upgrading to U-locks. Preferably Kryptonite U-locks. $25 will buy a U-lock that will deter all but the most well-equipped bike thieves. I've got four bikes sitting in my garage right now that I could have out on the street this week, but I don't have U-locks to go with them.

So if you've got a few extra bucks you could invest in some bike security, head on over to PayPal and send me some. My PayPal account is friendwes_at_mac.com (You'll have to replace _at_ with @. Sorry, but I'm trying to avoid spambots...)

So back to Liz...Liz passed along a sweet little Bianchi 'cross bike for me to build up. I stripped off the old bar-end shifters, rebuilt the front chainring, converted it to a singlespeed, installed some old fenders & a rack I had laying around, and put some good reflectors on it for good measure. I also added a U-lock. So soon enough Liz should be seeing her old bike being put to a new purpose around town.

As I get the other bikes out of my garage, including a sweet little Giant mountain bike from Crazy Mike, I'll post the pictures online.

Thanks, folks!