I Dig Riding in the Snow

Let's face it - around here you will be very miserable for a few months if you do not embrace winter.  That means finding ways to get outdoors as much as possible.  More folks are riding fat bikes these days, but they are still best suited for groomed trails or packed snow.  Sheer ice and varied conditions still demand studded snow tires.

I am running 700x38 Schwalbe Winter Marathon tires with 240 carbide-tipped studs per tire on the Superfly.  These hook-up well in snow up to 3" and on compact snow and ice.  Today the roads became worse the closer I rode to the south hill.  The tires are great until hitting uneven tire ruts or severe side slope where they want to drift a bit as they are pushed laterally.  The other issue is that of hills and curve where cars ooze on the inside shoulder and you have to transition between the soft stuff and the tire ruts and then back.  That is a challenge for any studded bike tire.

57th Avenue was nothing but ice and I had better traction for moving than most of the 4x4 rigs rolling by me.  The best conditions for this setup is frost on pavement, unpacked snow or ice with no more than moderate side slope - everything else requires some finesse.  Good studded tires are not cheap, but they do represent a good value in that they will last 5 or more years with proper care.

Finally, despite how controlled you and the bike are, cars seem to be ill prepared for winter driving and encountering a bike on snow and ice. So if you do ride on winter roads be very aware of your surroundings.

Drivers seem genuinely perplexed on how best to negotiate a bike on the winter roads.  Today, the majority slowed and moved over more than normal - others were unsure whether to pass or stay back and then passing at awkward times.  This was fairly early on a Sunday morning where drivers appeared to be slightly more patient.

It looks like we are going into a pretty snowy weather pattern so I may need to transition inside for a while.  Today was a chance to stave-off the trainer a little longer and hone some skills for when I am sick of the trainer and savor riding outside again.

Update on Browne's Addition Bike Thefts

As we posted in Despicable Thieves Never Take A Holiday, several bikes were stolen from Steve's on Cannon Street on Friday.  Unfortunately the report of 3 bikes stolen was lower than the 5 actually stolen.

Here are the bikes/frames to watch for:

White BMC 57cm Race Machine
Silver BMC Urban Challenge
Black/Red/White Lapierre 46 cm Sensium Frame
Steel Raleigh 16" XXIX+G

The MASI reported stolen is hopefully recovered.

If you suspect you have located any of the above, please call Steve's at 747-5220

Thanks for your help.

Despicable Thieves Never Take A Holiday

We received a disturbing call at the shop yesterday from a concerned apartment manager wanting to do the right thing with a new bicycle she found in a shrub on her property.   I did not recognize the name of the apartment complex so I looked nervously around our showroom for a conspicuously empty spot. I saw none as she spelled the make of the mystery bike to me - "M - A - S - I".

I felt a guilty sense of relief upon hearing it was not a TREK and then worried about from where it may have come.  The complex is located in Browne's Addition so I had a hunch of the potential source but had not heard of any recent thefts. Usually if a bike is stolen the bike shops hear about it from the dealer experiencing the loss, but had not yet received such a call.  We have both made and received that call in the past and the voice on the other end is always sympathetic and disgusted but offering little hope of recovery.

I got the name and number of the good Samaritan and started making calls to some other shops open at the time.  None reported any bikes missing.so I thought I would wait a bit to see if a call came in from another shop.

Unfortunately the call came from Steve's on Cannon Street.  He reported being contacted by SPD at 4:30 am at his residence - which is a particularly inhumane way of starting your day.  They were reporting a break-in through the front window of his shop where 3 bikes were stolen. Been there done that - we know that sick, kicked-in-the-gut feeling when you get that phone call.  You never forget the crunching sound of walking on broken glass while surveying the damage with police radios chirping in the background.

As  a shop owner, you feel sympathy for the other shop because we all have been victimized by property crimes. A natural disaster is more damaging in terms of property but can be reconciled intellectually as an act of living in a natural world.  Theft is a deliberate human act with complete disregard for civility, morality and the families who depend on the business for a living - this is personal and cannot be reconciled intellectually. Anger is the other emotion - for the same reason.  Even with insurance the financial, emotional, energy and business costs are all too real and significant.

It sounds like two of the 3 bikes are still at-large thanks to the good Samaritan. Please be on the lookout as you are out and about for a shiny bike with a not-so-shiny rider or craigslist.  We will provide an update as soon as we have the exact make and model of the other two bikes.  Thanks for your help.

Over the River and Through the Wood

If you are like most people the holidays come with traditions - something to look forward to that is special to you or your family.  Thanksgiving brings two to mind for me - first is the over eating and second is a bike ride outside.  The two go hand in hand because if I can get a good ride in before gorging myself it helps alleviate some guilt about gorging myself.

If I am really fortunate, I can ride to the Thanksgiving feast -today was such a day.  We were going to have dinner at my dad and stepmother's house and the weather was clear and low 40s.  Nice given the storms we have had the last week.

We live down by Hangman Golf Course and my folks live near Whitworth University which is about 18 miles via the most direct route.  My folks act as if we live on the dark side of the moon when it comes to driving to our house. But 18 miles is too short and not very scenic for tradition so I have discovered the long-way so I can get more riding and eating in the same day.  My wife and kids come up by car with my clothes so I leave about an hour earlier than they do.

The route involves riding up Hwy 195, over to Government Way, through Riverside State Park to 9 Mile Dam, to Rutter Parkway, then along the Little Spokane River, to Waikiki then south to my folks for a total distance of 32 miles.  Today was perfect for a ride with clear sky and light wind.  As I rode I could not help but think of the the Thanksgiving (not Christmas) song "Over the River and Through the Wood" by Lydia Maria Child though she did it in a horse-drawn carriage and not a Trek Madone with Dura Ace Di2.

My Carriage

Truth be known, my song went more like: Through the Wood, Over the Creek, Up the Highway, Through the Wood, Along the River, Over the River and Along the Little River to Grandfather's House I Go - but that doesn't make a very good refrain in a song.

Through more wood

7 Mile Bridge

From the Bridge at Deep Creek

9 Mile Reservoir 

9 Mile Dam (Over the River)

 

Grandfather's House

Upon arriving, I was greeted by wonderful smells, my boys grazing in front of a football game and my dad opening a growler of an IPA he was very enthusiastic about - now that is what I call a tradition. Oh and yes there was pumpkin pie.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Spokane Southie.com and Spokesman Review Stopped By

Tuesday was our first day of business at our new home in the South Perry District.  As you can imagine, it was a day filled with both energy and relief at being able to open our doors to customers again.  Bruce and I cannot thank the employees and volunteers who helped make the move possible enough.

The owner of Spokane Southie Blog and Pia Hallenberg of the SR stopped by to check-out the new digs.
Spokane Southie is a blog about happenings on the South Hill whether they be community or business related and a good way to keep up to date on the area.

Pia  Hallenberg lived just a few blocks south on Perry Street for years and still has an interest in and a historical perspective on the area.  She does a great job on covering community related stories throughout the Spokane area.

We appreciated their taking the time to stop by and do the following write-ups:

Spokane Southie

Spokesman Review

Also a shout-out to fellow cyclist Dan Pelle, for his time and photography for the SR.

We are OPEN at 817 S Perry St!

Thanks again to everyone for their help and patience during our move this weekend.  We are offically open for business and working-out a few kinks.  The main focus was on getting the retail area set-up and all of the employees and volunteers did a great job.

Here are some photos, but come down and check-out the new space in person.

Temporary Signage

Temporary Entrance

Retail Space With Temporary White Wall

More Retail

Bikes

Bikes and Retail

 

Move Weekend Update - Sunday PM

It has been a pretty humbling few days.  So much work to do and so many people showing up to lend a hand.  Not with just the fun stuff, but the truly hard stuff like heavy lifting and bringing all of the garbage up from the basement. We are very blessed by all of you - thank you.

Things are happening fast at our new home!  We have some fine-tuning to do tomorrow and we open our doors on Tuesday at 10am. See you then.