Blogger out of Exile

I’m sure many of you bloggettios have been wondering: “Where has our humble narrator danced off to?” Getting sick of the loon on the front page, the saccharine sentiments regarding a baseball club from Chicago that could actually pull it off? (oh say it ain’t so, Joe… where’s the eternal optimist now?) And I’m sure a few are wondering” “hey, what happened to ‘Misty’ that sweet and fragrant and blue WordPress theme that you had (somehow) grown so attached to?” Well, Coraline came along and just won my heart. So I clicked and that was that.

The Bike Wisconsin Wrecking Crew: Me, Gregory Goodness, and Brennan (don't mess with him, he has a knife)

Anyway, it’s been a lovely, hot, frustrating, exhausting and foot grinding summer out on the road working the bike tours. We’re like carnys but with a bachelor of arts degree. I must say I had a great time working with the three criminals above. Brennan could’ve been my son, but we treated each other like equals (which is nice considering B. finagled lots of beer outta me). If it wasn’t for Greg’s muscles, we never could’ve gotten those motel bags delivered. The tent service was a huge ordeal, but Brennan made it work, and the staff and volunteers pitched in big time. Hats off to everyone.

Hey, Brennan is up in Seattle now, making his way in their school system, either as a PA or PE instructor. best of luck to the young man. Greg H. starts a course in visual something or other at MATC this fall. He latched into some government program that pays him to go to school. Go stimulus package!

Hey I’m getting into my studio more, doing some lino-cut printing and maybe a drypoint prints too. I got a new toy – a small printing press. it’s it totally cool. Now I can REALLY make some impressions. I promise to get some pics up cause I know everyone loves pictures.

Hey Mindy continues her Yoga Teacher training and is queued up to visit India late this fall. Too cool! They will hit lots of sacred locales like Dar es Salaam, Delhi, and some places way way up high in the north. With luck she’ll bring back one of those tunicky things for me.

Hey The cats are terrorizing the bird lady and her loony spouse across the street. I’m sure it’s nothing more than the occasional cat dookie in the garden. Hey, if she stopped feeding peanuts to the squirrels, I might do something about it… but those damn squirrels just come over and start digging up our garden, and our seedlings, trying to bury their stupid peanuts. The occasional cat-slain chipmunk? Hey, some collateral damage occurs in every conflict. What’s a headless grinny in the grand scheme of things. Hey There are WAY TOO MANY chipmunks in the world.

Hey I couldn’t resist this Gibson in the last year. A real tone monster and fun as hell. It has chased all the others out of the house. It’s fun as hell and makes me feel like an old folksinger… which I am! Did I say it’s fun as hell? I did? What the hell’s that all about, Hey!

Gibson J-185

Oh and as far as the Cubs go… Starlin Castro Rocks!

Hey, let’s make it a short blog this time. Later!

What’s that fat tire bike? My 650B Convert

Okay, I’ll get this out of the way.

Here are some details on the bike I am currently riding around town (the one seen on my header pic). The 650B wheel size has a bit of history going back to the Porteurs of Paris in the 50’s and 60’s – work bikes hauling stacks of newspapers and such around town. A slightly smaller wheel size with lower pressure (50PSI) and wider girth for a nice cushy ride. It’s smaller than 700C (typical Road bike/hybrid) but larger than the 26″ mountain type wheel. Plus the tire offerings are far more agreeable than 26″ knobbies.

Rene Herse Porteur from 1960

Of late tweakers have been converting old 80’s steel frame roadies (japanese bikes of this period are perfect) because they work. With the smaller wheel, you can clear the chain stays and fork for the fat (PHAT!) tires — 38-44MM! There are a few web pages dedicated to this bike type like 650B Wheeled Bicycles.

Takara Drive Side

I was lucky to fall into a set of 650B rims, mounted to serviceable hubs, with some okay Kenda tires – for $40! New builds are usually 150-200 bucks or more. I then scored a good Takara Medalist frame for not much more. To manage the longer reach to the smaller wheels, I bought some long reach Tektro R556 caliper brakes, a new chain, and I was off. I added some Planet Bike Cascadia fenders, old bar-end shifters, a Nitto Technomics (tall!) stem I had in my bin, an old Blackburn rack, a water bottle cage, one of my reserve Brooks B-17 saddles, and some drop bars. I didn’t care for the drop bars, so I mounted some Velo-Orange porteur-like upright bars for a more… upright ride (and they were a bargain to boot!). Most of the bits were just kicking around the shop.

Velo-Orange Porteur Handle Bars

Currently I’m using a Brooks B68 sprung saddle, but it’s just a bit too bouncy and squeaky, so I’m going back to the 17. The Carradice Pendle bag adds a bit of class, eh? got it used too at Bike forums

Carradice Pendle Bag and Brooks b.17 saddle

Overall, it’s a comfy bike, not as fast as my 700C bike, but speed is over-rated. It takes the buzz out of the road bumps, is a bit grippy-er around corners and plows through leaves nicely. It feels very civilized. I like being more upright as the years go by – being able to see more is a comfort.

Now all I need to do is tune up my snow bike and I’ll be ready for winter. Onward Biking soldiers!

Would love to hear about other riders who have done 650B conversion and have the bikes in an everyday rotation.

UPDATE: I’ve replaced the Kenda tires with some Panaracer Col de La Vie’s. Very nice and a nice price! I’ve also pulled my Cetma porteur rack out of retirement and mounted it out front (stabilizes the bike a bit). She’s a steady roller.

UPDATE:  Well, I decided I’m more of a pannier guy, so the Carradice came off. Also, the CETMA Rack, as cool as it is, is more suited for messengering, so I’m presenting it to Dylan, the one true crazy messenger I know (plying the
Chicago Loop!). I’ll find some other smallish front rack to hold the odd lunch or bottle of beer.