• More Repairs, More to come.

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    New Rear Wheel

    Over a month ago I trashed my rear wheel (with my leg). The leg healed, the wheel did not. So I had the wheel rebuilt. The old wheel was a DT Swiss XR 4.1 rim with straight gauge DT Swiss spokes, an XT hub and a SRAM 990 cassette. The hub and cassette remain, the rest is new. The rim was replaced with another DT Swiss XR 4.1. The spokes are now double-butted black/silver with black bronze nipples. The pattern on this wheel is different than the cross wheel set. This one has silver spokes on the drive side and black on the other.

    Those who are observant, or possibly everyone who bothered to look at the above photo, would notice that the wheel is not mounted on a bike. There is a good reason for this. The M2 still needs a new crankset and chain. So, until I get around to replacing both, the M2 will remain stationary. You would think I’d learn after trashing the last set of wheels, drivetrain and fork. Oh well.

    Dropping the Accord Exhaust

    In other biking news: The hitch and Yakima Kingpin 4 rack are now installed on the Accord. Here is a slightly amusing shot of Eric and me dropping the exhaust in preparation to mount the hitch. I ended up with a Hidden Hitch model #60953. This hitch mounted without any drilling* into the body or frame rails and looks as nice as a thirty five pound piece of black steel bolted to the bottom of a sedan can look. The V6 models with dual exhaust require the heat shields over the mufflers to modified (with a hole saw) for the mounting hardware. As you can see in the photo, the bumper cover is already notched for a hitch, which is a nice touch. Another benefit is that the overall weight distribution on the Accord should now be 85/15 instead of 90/10.

    It is not really that bad, at least the motor has an aluminum block and heads. Since were on the subject, the rear anti-sway bar is about the same diameter as a toothpick. I’m not sure what Honda was going for here, but I’d imagine it was something along the lines of “who cares”. I don’t think this one will ever see an autocross course. How did I get from a GTI 16v to an Accord V6? I have no idea either, I think there was a Jetta VR6, an Acura CL and a Subaru powered Vanagon involved. Oh well. The Accord is actually very entertaining and does not require frequent cooling system maintenance, a steady supply of window regulators or a bilge pump during rain storms. Running 87 octane gasoline is a nice benefit as well.

    Real biking news: Eric and I did a training ride last Sunday. Thirty three miles on gravel, 95-100° heat, 2:10 total ride time. The MS 150 will only be 5.7 times longer, so we should be in good shape. And no, my math skills are not as bad as they appear. If you’ll recall, I am doing the 200 mile option. Sorry, no photos. Just imagine a hot, dusty, sunny and crappy gravel trail.

  • 2006 MS 150

    MS 150 Stuff

    Ok, I’ll spell it out: GIVE ME MONEY! (for our MS150 team)

    I am the team captain for team 86753O9 in the 2006 Gateway chapter MS 150 bike tour. For those who are not familiar with the tour: The MS 150 is a fundraiser for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. It involves me, and a lot of other people riding their bikes 80, 150 or 200 miles. Oh yeah, it also involves the support of Klunk Cycles. You may have seen Klunk Cycles mentioned before on my blog. This is good, because Klunk Cycles not only provides new and used bicycles, parts and service, but much appreciated support for our team. The part where you come in is the fundraising. So, you give me money, I ride the bike, both of us feel warm and fuzzy. Got it?

    Not convinced yet, eh? Fine, I am going to match any donations I receive with my own money. Thats right, you donate $10, I donate $10. You donate $1000, and I eat mac and cheese for a few months…

    Alright, here we go:

    For those keeping score, I am doing to 200 mile “double century” option. Also, please support our team sponsor, Klunk Cycles. Buy a bike, buy some tires, how about a stylish Klunk t-shirt? Do it.

  • July Update

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    July Summary
    Total distance (July): 171.77 miles
    Total distance (Cumulative): 857.55 miles
    Total time (Cumulative): 70 hours, 23 minutes

    There are quite a few other updates as well. First, Rachel picked up a 700c urban/cyclocross/road/commuter bike. It is a flat black Specialized Sirrus from Klunk. We put on some Michelin knobby tires and it is set to cruise the hardpack trails. This example has a triple front crankset, flat bars and a cushy suspension seatpost (I’m pretty sure these are all original). See for yourself:

    Sirrus Detail

    Sirrus

    Sterance, the commuter bike, is doing well. The tan saddle is holding up well and there are no real problems to speak of. Here is Sterance transporting the shipping carton that Apple sent so I could return my PowerBook for a new optical drive:

    Sterance

    Hmmm, oh, we also bought a new car. We needed an automatic to share in once we move, so the Acura found a new home and an ’03 Accord V6 with a slushbox took it’s place. So, why an ’03 Accord? Well, we started looking at the ’07 Fit and ’06 Civic, but they are both hard to find and if you do find one the prices are not that great. I considered a VW for about 30 seconds, but then remembered the last six I’ve owned… Anyway, the Accord gets reasonable mileage, is inexpensive to own, and most importantly not boring to drive. Honda notoriously under specs tires fort their cars, and the 240 HP V6 is a lot of fun with the woefully inadequate OE 205s. Luckily this Accord came with traction control. The Accord will be getting a class I hitch, which is surprisingly rated for a 200 lb. tongue capacity. That means I can run a Yakima Kingpin 4 and carry almost all of the bikes.

    I think that is about it for the updates. The repairs to the M2 are progressing slowly and Sterance has remained unmodified since the head badge upgrade. I finally got around to setting up a team for the MS-150. I’ll post more later…