Tag Archives: Surly

Posted on January 23, 2014 | 1 comment

I have been thing about starting to post again on my site.

Until I figure out how to work WordPress again, and I find things to write about. Here is a video Angel made during the first new back in the beginning of December, Enjoy!

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Posted in BIKE, Day Ride, News, OTHER

Tagged bicycle, bike, eugene, Fat Bike, LHT, Long Haul Trucker, Oregon, Puglsey, Snow Bike, Surly, video, winter

When I Wasn’t Posting

Posted on December 11, 2012 | 1 comment

I haven’t been posting a lot lately, not because I haven’t been doing anything. If anything it’s because I have been doing too much. With the winter months coming, the day light is getting short, but I still find lots to do. Here are some photos from things Angel and I have been up to, but haven’t had time to post.

Spent some time trying to make my grandma’s recipe for pizzelle vegan for Angel. It worked out alright, although they ended up a little more crunchy then they should be. I still need to spend some time tweaking it. I ended up making 2 batches, the first batter failed miserably. *reminder to self, don’t use the solid fat from coconut milk, It just melts everywhere, and doesn’t work.

I got some new rain gear for this winter season. Showers Pass makes great rain gear, the Club Convertible 2 Pants, and Club Shoe Cover are the new addition with my rain cape. The pants and shoe covers work awesome. My good old rain cape on the other hand, hasn’t ever really held up to heavy wind and rain. Maybe someday I will replace the cape with something nicer, but until then my rain cape is great for shorter rides around the city, and my rain pants and booties will do their job well.

We spent some time hiking around Mount Pisgah Arboretum. With a nice break in the weather that day, we spent a couple hours exploring around. You can watch a video of the trip in my post from yesterday, or here on YouTube.

The days around Thanksgiving were spent cleaning and setting up our Christmas tree. My mom sent me all my ornaments so we had something to hang on our tree this year. And we just lazed around a bit.

I had some time to organize my work space, hang out with friends a little, meet new friend, play with tesla coils, and go to the library. What could be better?

Angel made some great baklava! It was the first time I ever had it, it was delicious, so tasty and sweet. I don’t normally eat too much sugar, and after having a bit I felt a little rush. *After writing that last sentence, I must go to the fridge and eat some more. **reminder to self, don’t eat more then one piece, again, too much sugar.

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Posted in BIKE, Day Ride, FOOD, OTHER, Trips

Tagged anise, bicycle, bike, bike commute, camera, Christmas, Club Convertible, Club Convertible 2 Pants, Club Convertible Pants, Club Shoe Cover, Crate and Barrel, eugene, falling sky, Falling Sky Brewing, food, Hacker Space, leaf, leaves, LHT, Long Haul Trucker, Maker Space, Mount Pisgah, Mount Pisgah Arboretum, Mt Pisgah, nature, Oregon, Ortlieb, outdoors, photo, Pizzelle, Rain Cape, rain gear, Showers Pass, Smith Family Books, Surly, tesla, Tesla Coil, Thanks Giving, tools, transportation, vegan, winter, Xmas, Xtracycle

Halloween and Moonlight Monster Mash 2012

Posted on November 1, 2012 | Leave a comment

Yesterday was Halloween, Angel and I carved some pumpkins. Nothing fancy. I prefer a classic jack-0-lantern. We re-used some past costumes, Angel went as a fox and I went as a Frog.

So every month here in Eugene there is a gathering of cyclists who ride under the full moon. The Moonlight Mash is always fun with music and friends. This month the full moon was actually on the 29th but the ride was held instead on Halloween (Wednesday the 31st) so that it would be a lot more fun. We got to ride through the neighborhood streets of Eugene, entertaining the kids and parents as they were trick or treating. We got a lot of hooting and hollering. It was a great ride. Sadly, though there were many great costumes out there tonight, due to the darkness and riding, there is not much to share in the realm of photos, but there are a couple from before it got too dark, along with the jack-o-lanterns Angel and I carved this year and carried on our bikes as we rode.

We put some spare rear red bike lights inside the pumpkins to make them glow; it worked out wonderfully.

If you are interested in joining the Moonlight Mash for a ride you can find out all the information on their Facebook Page Here.
Here is a previous post about the Moonlight Mash.

As alway, it’s nice to stop at Falling Sky Brewing for some great microbrew sodas, Watermelon Fizz, Carrot Ginger,and Strawberry-n-Spice(my favorite of the night).

I hope everyone had a good Halloweeen last night.

Photos From August

Posted on September 2, 2012 | Leave a comment

It has been a while since my last post. I have been really busy lately, with some trips, visitors, work, moving into a new place, and Angel’s birthday. Here are just a couple photos from the past couple weeks.

July Bike Camping with Friends

Posted on July 24, 2012 | 2 comments

Last week Angel and I went on our first camping trip of the summer. We haven’t had enough time since she got done with the school for summer. We went with two of our friends Tuesday night until Wednesday morning. This was a quick bike camping trip we spontaneously decided to do just days before. It was super fun. The weather called for some rain and thunder, and that is what we got. Even so, it was fun.

Due to the secret location of where we camped, I’m only going to post the elevation of what we did. There were some great hills with some gravel logging roads on the way home.

We left Eugene late in the evening, just a couple hours before sunset. It was a nice ride through the country with some nice hills between here and where we camped. Right before we arrived at the camping location we started hearing some thunders. And right when we got there it started sprinkling, although that ended really fast and it didn’t rain anymore that night.

The next morning one of our friends had to leave early to get back to work on time. So it was just 3 of us on the way home. We took our time because none of us had anything to get to that day. We took a longer way home, featuring some long down hill gravel roads where Angel ended up getting a rear flat tire at one point, which got patched up quickly. We got a nice strong bout of rain at one point, which let up quickly. And we only had a couple very small spouts of rain after that. We ended up coming across one of Oregon’s many covered bridges.

Here is a 360° Photo from a clear cut along our route.

Overall it was a great trip and ride. Angel did super well riding her Linus Mixte 3speed, climbing most the hills with no or very little (at least verbal) complaints. Hopefully soon we can get her something with more gears. I’m just trying to figure out what frame would be great for her right now. Hopefully doing an internally geared hub again like a Nexus or Alfine 8 or maybe even an Alfine 11. I’m sure she would appreciate it. It was a great trip, and I hope Angel and I can go on more trips like this before the end of the summer.

Here are Angels Photos:

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Posted in BIKE, Day Ride, Events, OTHER, Trips

Tagged bicycle, bike, bike camp, bike camping, bike packing, bike tour, bike touring, camp, camping, eugene, LHT, Linus, Long Haul Trucker, mixte, Oregon, photo, Rivendell, Surly

Is Krampus here to eat your children, or to just go for a bike ride?

Posted on July 21, 2012 | 1 comment

First there was the Pugsley

Featuring huge 26×3.7-3.8 tires, it was the birth of the “Fat Bike”. Named after Pugsley Addams if I were to guess.

I would hope it might have been named after something cuter like this.

Then there was the Moonlander.

Featuring even wider 26×4.7 tires allow you to float over everything you could imagine. More likely named for the Lunar Rover because of the massive tires, & not the Moon Lander (Apollo Lunar Module).

Now they have a new one.
Introducing the Surly Krampus!!

Bike is features 29×3.0 tires, This is not a “Fat Bike” according to Surly(HERE), to them it’s a “29+“. I could imagine it might be known as a “Chubby Bike”. This tires are wider than any other 29in tires(larger sizes can be 2.1-2.3). This will be great for people who want a wider tire, but don’t want a truely “Fat Bike”, or want a a 29er with fatter tires. This one is nicely named after Santa Claus’s helper Krampus, this lovely fellow.

Hopefully the bike won’t be carrying you off and eating you for Christmas dinner.

Here are more photos of the Surly Krampus: One, Two, Three

I’ll admit I don’t mountain bike, but I love the idea of the Pugsley and would really like one for myself. I do tend to explore dirt and gravel trails with my LHT, 26×1.5 tires aren’t great for that, it would be a lot easier with wider tires & why not get a “Fat Bike” Maybe someday I will treat myself to one of these bikes.

1 Comment

Posted in BIKE, News, Reviews

Tagged bicycle, bike, Fat Bike, Krampus, lunar lander, lunar rover, moon, moonlander, mountain bike, news, pug, Pugsley, Pugsley Addams, Surly

Photo: Mid June – Early July

Posted on July 11, 2012 | 2 comments

Here is a collection of photos I haven’t posted from Mid June to Early July. There are a lot of photos in here I like including fresh cookies, new bike tools, fun trips, and fireworks. Enjoy!

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Posted in BIKE, Day Ride, FOOD, OTHER, Trips

Tagged belt drive, belt drive bike, bicycle, bike, bike path, camera, carbon drive, carbon drive bike, cookies, eugene, fire truck, fireworks, flower, hanafuda, homemade soda, ice cream, iPhone, KEEN, LHT, Linus, Long Haul Trucker, Mario, mixte, MKS, MKS Pedals, Nintendo, Nutcase, Nutcase Helmet, Oregon, park, Park Tool, Park Tools, photo, Playmobil, soda, Stein Tools, sunset, Surly, vegan, vegan cookies, vegetarian, watermelon

Biking McKenzie Pass

Posted on May 30, 2012 | 2 comments

On Memorial Day, Monday the 29th, I got the chance to ride Scenic McKenzie Pass (Highway 242) for the first time. Being my first year in Eugene, I really wanted to do this ride. I had seen a lot of photos of other cyclists on the ride before, with the high packed snow walls; it just seem incredible. Also, last October, Angel and I had a chance to drive it while going to the OHBS in Bend, it made me really want spend more time there and revisit the Pass.

They close off Hwy 242 during the winter months due to snow. They open it back up in May for a couple weeks only to cyclists, which is a great time to venture out, because you have no fear of cars coming up the hill behind you. The pass is about 4o miles from the turnoff at 126 to Sisters, OR. I chose only to ride up to the Dee Wright Observatory, (22miles) the summit of 5325 feet elevation. 3600 feet of climbing with great views throughout of the Willamette Nation Forest, Mount Washington Wilderness Area, Three Sisters Wilderness Area, and into the Deschutes National Forest (if you continue or start in Sisters). Up towards the top there are amazing lava fields, it’s kind of crazy to think about the lava fields, and how much volcanic activity Oregon had just a couple thousand years ago. At the top, like I mentioned, is the Dee Wright Observatory where you can look out at all the amazing mountain and land formations.

It was a super fun ride. I tend to ride a little slow, taking about 4 or 5 hours on my way up, but that includes a lot of stops for photos, food, making a couple snowmen, and just enjoying the view. It then only took about 45mins to get back down to the bottom. An incredible descent after riding that same route up. I totally recommend this ride for anyone who ever gets a chance. Just be prepared to climb a lot. Here are my photos from the ride.

Along the way I decided to made a couple snow men just for fun. I thought other cyclists would like the encouragement while going up and down the pass. The one in the road has 2 faces. I had to climb the snow wall to get his features, but that was really cool itself.

360 Degree View along Highway 242

360 Degree View from atop Dee Wright Observatory

Here is a 360 Degree View from atop Dee Wright Observatory from the first time Angel and I drove the pass last October on our way to Bend for the OHBS. We took a lot of photos that day. I’m really glad I got a chance to ride the pass, hopefully I get to do it again.

History of McKenzie Pass – HERE

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Posted in BIKE, Day Ride

Tagged Bend, bicycle, bike, bike tour, eugene, LHT, Long Haul Trucker, Oregon, Surly

My Surly LHT Turns 2 Years Old

Posted on May 10, 2012 | 3 comments

I have had my Surly Long Haul Trucker for 2 years now, and I have never doubted myself for choosing it over a different bike. The love story between me and the LHT began long before I got her. For years I knew I wanted the bike. I would try out other bikes at shops and never be happy with how they felt or how they were set up. I knew I wanted to do long rides and touring so why not go with a full out touring bike such as the LHT? The one thing was I already had a decent amount of bikes and not a lot of money. Also, I didn’t like the colors it was offered in for a couple years. They were dull colors: Utility Blue, Olive Green, Truckaccino Tan, I wanted something brighter, and then they showed off the new color at Interbike in October 09, Blue Velvet (also known as Hill Street Blue) and I knew I really wanted it.

I moved to Oregon in late March of 2010. A month later, on April 25th, I bought my Surly Long Haul Trucker. I was so happy that day, finally getting a super comfortable bicycle to ride for a long time.

This year on April 25th I happily was able to do a nice 20mile ride with a friend in the morning. Then after he left to go home I kept going, ending up riding just over a metric century that day, 67.58miles in total.

Last year on Surly’s birthday I got him the Surly Rear Nice Rack, and this year I got him the Surly Front Nice Rack to Match. This rack is massive, and will certainly see a lot of use. Now I just need to get myself a set of Ortlieb Front-Roller Panniers to match my Back-Roller.

Happy Birthday Surly!!!

3 Comments

Posted in BIKE, Day Ride, Events, News, Reviews

Tagged bicycle, bike, bike commute, bike tour, eugene, LHT, Long Haul Trucker, Oregon, photo, Surly

Velo Cult, Pedal Nation, & Great Portland Food

Posted on March 26, 2012 | 7 comments

Yesterday Angel and I got a chance to hang out in Portland after taking her sister back from a visit. We started out the day by going to the newly opened Velo Cult Bicycle Shop. Started in 2006, the shop originally is from San Diego, but decided to move the entire shop to Portland, employees and all. We visited them Sunday, on the morning after their Grand Opening Party. (They were still cleaning up after it). The shop caters to commuters, tourers, randonneur riders, and other subcultures of cycling with refurbished and new bicycles, but this is not just a place to sell and service bikes, but a place where all “bicycle culture” gets to meet. There is a large and open floor plan. They have some amazing mechanic work stations, with benches for customers to talk with their mechanic right in front of them; a bar offering local beer and food, a photo booth (which sadly was shut down when we were there), and even an authentic castle drawbridge (which doubles as a stage) in the shop!! I believe the drawbridge is from Canteburry Castle, after it was demolished in 2009. This is a really cool shop and you should check it out if you have a chance. They plan on hosting shows, and screening movies there in the future, as well as putting on other fun events for cyclists.

Also while at Velo Cult I got the chance to check out the Complete Surly Troll. I wouldn’t mind getting one of these as my first mountain bike. I also think it would make a great touring bike for Angel. It would be a good companion to my LHT. If only the Troll came in some color other than orange (her least favorite).

Before we went to Pedal Nation, we stopped by the Off The Griddle food cart. With super nice staff, they offer amazing veggie burgers from their solar-powered cart. Angel went with Vegan Cheeseburger, and I went with O.T.G Burger (no lettuce, tomato) just grilled onions and added BBQ sauce; I like my burgers simple. It’s always fun waiting for your food to come out while you read through some Trivial Pursuit games.

After we arrived to Pedal Nation, I spent a lot of time talking with different people about their products and learning whatever I could. There were a lot of cool things there. The spectrum of booths was across the board, with everything from wooden helmets, a fat tire recumbent, to an upcoming indoor mountain bike park (The Lumberyard) and other great cycling groups. Full list of exhibitors HERE. One thing I thought was really cool is that Nutcase is coming out with 4 bell designs based off of their helmets, which will be available for purchase in the near future (possibly June), along with a new visors to attach to their helmets and even cycling jerseys to match the helmets. Those should all be great. I’m sure Angel will want a watermelon jersey.

Before leaving Portland we had to get our favorite pizza at Sizzle Pie. I went with 2 slices of cheese, and Angel got a rabbit salad. There was no Spiral Tap in the case, (our favorite) so we got one to go that we could eat at home. It was a super great idea. Angel wanted the pins, and I thought I might put the patch on my safety vest. This is truly good pizza.