The Never-Ending Quest To Identify A Second Bike

When I take rides like the one today through the neighborhood I dream about having a second bike that's purposed for this type of rambling, grocery store runs and coffee shop trips.

Dont' get me wrong. I love my Allez. For fitness and everyday training rides, this is the perfect bike. It's already feeling like an old friend, and now that I have cycling shoes and clipless pedals, I really feel at one with the bike. It gets better every time I ride it, and the carefully considered tweaks like new Continental GP Four-Season tires just make it all that much better.

In a pinch, this bike can do other things. I could put a rack on the back of it, I suppose. I could also buy a platform kit for my pedals and use it for these short runs.

Ultimately I want a casual bike, though.

Lately I've been combing the Web sites, visiting the shops and reading online reviews. I don't really need a dedicated commuter, but something more suited for this purpose would be nice. I suppose I could also just throw a messenger bag over my shoulders and take the Allez to classes, though. A flat-bar fitness bike or a comfort bike might fit the bill, but they seem kind of boring.

A few bikes from Trek have caught my eye. One is the Belleville. It has a lot of features I like. It's steel. It comes with racks and lights. It looks fantastic. In fact, I think it would look awesome with a pair of wood fenders and accessories from Brooks: A B17 saddle, roll up panniers and a tool roll. I found a company that makes cool crates that fit this bike complete with cup holders. Does it get any better? The downside is that it's only a three speed. But it's an internal hub, and I could switch out the hub for a seven.

 

Another bike I like from Trek is the PDX. It's also steel, is rack and fender compatible and is cheep - about $600. It would make for an excellent grocery-getter, tow vehicle and even commuter. I suppose this bike is more practical, but I just like that styling with the Belleville.

At the end of the day I like the fact the Belleville, which is about $200 more, is a complete package. I also think the mustache bars will be more comfortable. I am not sold on the flat bar concept on the PDX. I do like the fact that this bike is pretty non-descript and has every-day ride written all over it. 

A Ramble around the neighborhood

It's easy to forget how fun it is to just get on a bike and ramble around the neighborhood. I rode over to my sister-in-law's house and back, a trip of about six miles total.On the way back I was feeling pretty chippy so I rode down Sommerset Drive, which is more traffic than I like.

I need to do more of this riding around the neighborhood. I felt a little bit of that joy of discovery that I felt when riding with dad and our neighbor down the street all those years ago.

Plus, those little trips add up.

Best TIme To Ride - If You Are Diabetic

I find the best time for me to ride is about an hour after a meal. Lately I've been riding late in the afternoon, and I just don't seem that into it. I've noticed my blood sugar drops faster this far out from a meal as well.

This time of year, the best time for me to ride is probably one or two in the afternoon during the heat of the day. In the morning it's just too cold.

I see guys out really early, which is a great time to ride because of the absence of traffic, but I don't know how they do it in this cold. Cold and dark is a lot different than cold and sunny. Either way, five miles is still a pretty good after meal ride, and it's not long enough to get really cold.

Anyway, riding about an hour after a meal is probably the best way to maximize the exercise benefit in relation to blood sugars. That's when I'm going to be highest, and riding cuts down on these spikes. Of course the flip side is that you have to be careful to monitor your blood sugar in the next few hours so you don't have a low. By monitor, I mean be in tune with the signs that your sugar is dropping. For me, I get a dull headache about half an hour before I feel that low sugar flush.

I have come a long way. Five miles would have killed me in June. Today it's nothing. The human body is pretty resilient and it's pretty responsive to even a little bit of activity.

Warm Fall Days

I love these warm fall days. It was 65 degrees today, and although it was overcast and I was a little cold at first, I warmed right up. I chose not to wear the beanie under my helmet, but I think would have ended up taking it off mid-ride if I had chosen to do so. I wore my L.L. Bean fleece zip jacket, which is a great garment for this temperature.

I wore my leg warmers and I think I like these better than bib-tights at these temps. It gives you the option of taking them off if you start getting warm. It's much more important to keep your trunk and arms warm. The legs warm up just fine because of all the heat generated by muscle action. The arms and trunk are just sitting there not doing any work, so they tend to get cold.

I rode about a half an hour from 107th and Roe to Watts Mill. I'm consistently amazed at the effect riding has on blood sugar. It was about four hours since lunch, and the ride dropped my blood sugar about 100 points.

Short ride due to time issue.

Riding For Fun

If I had to classify my riding, I'd say about 90 percent of it is training rides. Training for what? The next group ride, event ride, whatever.

I need to do more riding for fun. Instead of firing up the Ford, I should be hopping on a bike and riding up to Quick Trip or down to the coffee shop. I used to do these quick runs on the scooter (Note to self, get the scooter running). Riding instead of driving is a lifestyle choice. These short rides are just the kind of thing that makes you healthy. Kind of like taking the stairs instead of the elevator or parking at the far end of the parking lot. Right now I have my wife's voice in my head chastising me for parking two spaces from the handicapped parking. Hey, I can't help it, I've always been lucky that way.

I suppose a fixie is the best sort of bike for this thing. There are no hills between here and the grocery stores, Starbuck's, fast foot joints, bike shop, convenience store, etc. I liked the Townie, but I always wanted just one other gear. I suppose if you have 21 gears, there's always a 22nd that you would like.

A Globe Daily or a Trek Belleville would be the hipster alternative. Pretty cool looking bikes and functional too.

I think back often to those rides I used to do with dad and Mike Smith, this guy down the street. We would ride up to Avila College or The Barstow School. What a sense of freedom. There is nothing better than a dad asking his child "where do you want to go?" and then going there. I love that feeling of freedom when you get on the bike and just go wherever your mood takes you.

Glad I did it

I've been off for a while. It's been a crazy busy week. I didn't feel like riding very far, but I slogged my way through it and I'm glad I did.

I cannot believe I've been off for 10 days. I was starting to feel the effects of not exercising both mentally and physically. I felt it a bit in my legs and core today when I was on the bike.

It is easy to lose conditioning, but it's also easy to get it back thankfully.

I did 8.62 miles in 42 minutes today.

Next Year's Goals

This year I have enjoyed doing the 15-mile routes on the event rides such as Sunflowers to Roses and Tour de BBQ.

In 2012, I want to up my participation to the 30-mile routes and I want to add a couple of rides.

Of course, Tour de Cure is close to my heart being a diabetic for almost a year now. The event is in June and starts out at the Kansas Speedway. I want to do some major fundraising for this event and get a Red Rider jersey.

I suppose Sunflowers 2 Roses will have a place in my heart because it was my first event ride. It's in August and they have a cool jersey.

The big event is Bike MS is September. This is a two-day event, and I think there is a 37-mile route each day starting in Olathe and ending in Lawrence the first day and coming back the second. I'd also like to do fundraising for this one.

October is the fun event. I did Tour de BBQ (another cancer ride) and enjoyed it, though I didn't get much BBQ on the 15-mile route.

There are a couple of other things I want to accomplish. I want to do a couple of rail-trail rides - maybe 30 miles on the Prairie Spirit Trail and two days on the Katy Trail with the family, maybe 30 miles each day. I also want to do a long ride on the Johnson County Streamway. Maybe an out-and-back loop along Tomahawk one way and Indian Creek the other.

Finally, I want to do my first half-century. A 50-mile ride, perhaps to Lawrence in Back. This would be a good thing to do in July, with event rides in June, August, September and October.