One Less Minivan

I’m still here. Promise. My old man got hit by a car a few...

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 19:36:41 -0500

I’m still here. Promise.

My old man got hit by a car a few weeks back and I’ve been Florence Nightingaling the hell out of him. I’ll fill in this story with actual details after our litigation.

thar be waffles at the finish line

Tue, 05 Feb 2013 10:44:00 -0600

We got our first measurable snowfall of the winter on Friday and with the frigid temperatures we’ve had over the last several days, it didn’t immediately melt into a sickening brown/gray slush. My family has been waiting months for a winter wonderland weekend so we took full advantage.

On Sunday morning I sent the old man and big kid off to a friend’s birthday party on the tandem so the wee one and I could attend Dottie’s monthly Women Who Bike brunch. The snow was heavily packed by now but the roads were still a big old mess and the 13F temperatures had frozen the slush that was piled in the bike lanes. Thanks plow guys for only clearing the car paths and pushing all the run off into where I ride. That combined with bone chilling winds made for some seriously burning calf muscles as I pushed the Joe Bike through the muck for 4 miles on the way to brunch.

Photo by Megan Kearney

Luckily, I had some company to bookend both sides of my journey. After taking a 6 week hiatus from riding I’ve been feeling self-conscious about my abilities and speed, which, on that beast of a bike was never above 12mph anyway, but my friends were sweet as can be and didn’t abandon my corpse on the side of the road once.

After stuffing my piehole full of mimosas and Belgian waffles and doing some much needed catching up with the gals it was time to bid our farewells. I popped over to Comrade Cycles next door to smash my face into their display window and ogle all the shiny new bikes and accessories but we’ve been pinching our pennies lately and there’s no extra dough for impulse buys this month. I loaded the wee babe back into the bike and hit the road, now heading directly into the wind.

The sweat on my brow when I got home put my mind at ease about the thousand calorie carb load I’d enjoyed earlier that day.

much easier than teaching drivers to not kill people

Thu, 31 Jan 2013 20:12:48 -0600

much easier than teaching drivers to not kill people

coldest day so far

Mon, 21 Jan 2013 20:27:45 -0600

Me and the babe hunkered down indoors today, staying cozy in our snuggies and slankets while the old man and heiress to the OLM fortune headed out to the aquarium via bike. A reporter at the Chicago Sun Times thought the act of riding a bike in single digit temps was newsworthy enough to snap some photos as they coasted through the Loop.

My better half relishes riding in bitterly cold temps. I can’t say the I feel the same but when faced with waiting 15 minutes in the same temperatures for a bus, cycling is the better option.

and it's not even a death trap

Fri, 18 Jan 2013 12:25:53 -0600

Subtitle for “How I Rigged a Baby Seat into my Bike”. Well, it might be a little bit of a death trap. I won’t know until we’ve done some 5+ mile expeditions.

I was hoping for some more unseasonably warm days before shuffling out to the garage with my newborn to photo document this set up. Today was supposed to be 44F but hey, I guess meteorology isn’t an exact science.

Sorry for the frost bite little baby, but my life’s work comes first.

As an aside, rigging this seat into the box of my bike was one of the first projects I tackled when I found out I was pregnant. I don’t want to go so far as to say putting a baby in a bike was why I got pregnant in the first place but I am thinking it. So, without further adieu, let’s document the steps, starting with a trip to Pep Boys for a bench seat belt and ending with Child Protective Services knocking at my door.

I’d drilled into the box of the bike already (as well as the bucket of the Madsen many moons ago) so I had no qualms about keeping it intact for preservation’s sake. Which is a good thing since I didn’t take any measurements when I started drilling to add a belt and buckle to the floor of the box and ended up having to drill two more times. I don’t learn from initial errors, dammit. The first time I drilled on the non-drive side of the box the bottom of the screw and nut interfered with the mechanism for storing the center kickstand. I tried just riding with it dragging across the asphalt but though the sparks were festive, it slowed me down considerably. So, I needed to move the holes further to the outside of the box’s interior. But hey, guess what, lack of foresight struck again. Once the holes were drilled and I proceeded to add the tie down pieces I realized the holes were too close to the box walls and would have to come inward significantly.

We’ll say those extra holes are for drainage. So, after the initial hiccups with power tools, we were ready to install the belt. Ten bucks from the auto store by the way, well worth the price after explaining to a teenaged clerk what my plans with it were and watching the expression of sheer horror on his face.

I knew I’d need some shock absorption for the bottom of the box so I took a box cutter to a foam letter tile. Just the first of many ways that the “new baby” was to ruin the toys belonging to the “old baby”. Lessons in sharing. I may need to reiterate that lesson shortly if I decide that a single layer does not provide enough bounce proofness for baby’s tiny head and more importantly, non-existant blood brain barrier.

See, fits like a glove.

After that comes installing the base. Be sure not to cut off any extra slack from the nylon belt since you’ll need to play around with lengths and adjustment in order to get the base strapped down snugly. I just got an infant seat and base for <$10 from the thrift store since I wasn’t sure which brand had the smallest profile for our tiny, single capacity bucket. As you can see the box begins to angle toward the front of the base so it does not sit flush against the box’s floor. I’ve strapped it down tight enough that there is still no lateral movement whatsoever despite the angle. In a couple of months when the babe is more sturdy she’ll appreciate the more upright seating position that the angling allows for. Better views, yo.

Now for clicking in the seat.

Ta da! I added that wooly seat liner dealie yesterday since the crappy fleece blanket I was using previously was not working out. This Bundle Me combined with the wind protection of the rain cover should provide for a toasty ride.

Due to the angle of the front of the box the seat sticks out about two inches further than where the rain cover normally sits. I went around this problem by lowering the handle of the seat over the top of the fork/head tube. It doesn’t interfere at all with steering though it does prevent the rain cover from being totally weather sealed. I don’t foresee it being an issue though, even in blowing slow or rain conditions because the backing of the carrier will shield the babe from direct exposure to the elements.

As we expand our riding radius in the coming weeks I’ll continue to update on how this set up is working out.

I disagree with the argument entirely -and support different...

Wed, 16 Jan 2013 17:06:00 -0600

I disagree with the argument entirely -and support different laws for different modes- but darn, if that isn’t a convincing pyramid diagram.

easing into the saddle

Mon, 14 Jan 2013 20:24:28 -0600

After I dropped the big girl off at school this morning, (via car -boo hiss- I still haven’t gotten my act together enough to get both out of the house in bikeable time) the wee one and I ventured out in the brisk 10F air for a short trek to a near-by breakfast joint. She’s still such a peanut that none of the winter bike gear I thrifted fits yet so she had to hang in there in a fleecey footie PJ and blanket combo. But, that ensemble paired with my cargo bike’s glorious rain cover kept her snug as a bug in a rug. What a trooper.

I plan to write up a little post about the way I rigged the infant carrier into the bike but that will have to wait until I can hang in my garage without seeing my breath. With the way this FakeSpring(TM) season is going, that will be any time now.

overachievers

Mon, 14 Jan 2013 19:23:27 -0600

overachievers

and we're back

Sat, 12 Jan 2013 18:03:00 -0600

The new little peanut was hatched two weeks ago yesterday and I’ve finally been given the all clear by my midwife to get back on the bike. We’re taking it extra easy for now and were really lucky that this morning was Kidical Mass. What better way to ease an infant into the joys of loafing as a bike passenger than a ride where we never reach speeds beyond seven miles per hour?

The wee one handled the ride quite well. She essentially slept through the entirety of it, except for the bits over speed bumps and rough terrain and even then she didn’t wail, just mean mugged at me pretty good.

Chicago’s unseasonable warmth is on its way out this evening and we’re expecting temps in the 20s tomorrow. Since I’m still pretty smitten with this baby I’ll be kind enough to not subject her to that shock quite so soon. But, as soon as the pendulum swings back toward 40, we’ll be out there relearning how to ride together.

This Christmas Santa brought our family of atheists some much...

Tue, 25 Dec 2012 11:42:08 -0600

This Christmas Santa brought our family of atheists some much clamored for snow. Baking more Festivus cookies and sledding are in today’s outlook followed by dinner in Chinatown.

‘Tis the season for Asian Santas on bicycles

Mon, 24 Dec 2012 17:33:30 -0600

‘Tis the season for Asian Santas on bicycles

Photo

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 08:58:46 -0600

I’ve been laid up with bronchitis (+bells palsy+ear...

Wed, 05 Dec 2012 19:05:10 -0600

I’ve been laid up with bronchitis (+bells palsy+ear infection+pregnancy) since Thanksgiving and have completely neglected all other obligations. Hoping to feel a little less like death in the coming days and return to some fine bike blog bitchin’

That’ll buff right out

Sun, 18 Nov 2012 16:07:17 -0600

That’ll buff right out

bike bin warehouse find of the month

Fri, 09 Nov 2012 17:16:17 -0600

In the market for a 35lb 20” kid’s bike? Who isn’t!? Did I mention it’s a single speed and since it’s a Japanese import it’s likely geared for someone with Lou Ferrigno’s brutish strength? This bike sells itself!

All impracticality aside, this is one cute kid’s bike. Aesthetically, the chain guard makes even the most trudging uphill climbs look like grease lightning. The custom tires are adorned with tiny pink hearts and it’s got an integrated front basket and rear rack for toting dolls or tiny designer pooches.

The real selling feature though, is the drum brake equipped rear wheel which gives no pause for concern in even the wettest and sloppiest weather. Combined with the fenders and skirt guard, it would make a great year round ride for a fashionable 6 year old. My heart skips a beat every time I see a bike fitted with a roll-back center kick stand. I blame it on my Totoro obsession.

If some sucker hasn’t already snapped up this find, it’s available at Working Bikes for $115.

remember remember the fifth of november

Sun, 04 Nov 2012 18:46:05 -0600

Or in this case, the tenth of November when Chicago’s British Bicycling Club will be hosting the annual Guy Fawkes Bonfire Tweed Ride. I felt compelled to post a reminder about the event when I saw this excellent photo from Tokyo’s tweed ride on Simply Bike. Just look at that time traveling tweeder with the DSLR camera. Anachronism at its finest.

I’ve been searching for some maternity tweed apparel for the better part of a month and am still coming up empty. I foresee a burlap sack in my future for Saturday’s ride if I don’t strike gold at the thrift store this week.

Today, some gal pals (gag!) and I whipped up some fresh fleece balaclavas and gaiters care of Bike Winter so make sure to grab one from me at the ride to keep those ears toasty before the booze kicks in.

Joseph Smith take the wheel!

Fri, 02 Nov 2012 19:07:49 -0500

Joseph Smith take the wheel!

want to hear something horrifying?

Wed, 31 Oct 2012 16:04:39 -0500

As of yesterday, I hadn’t ridden my bike in ten days.

Luckily, today’s errands were based in the neighborhood and despite the 38 degree weather, the wind was no where near as brutal as it has been recently. I had an inkling that my riding would taper off the closer I got to D-day but I thought it would be due to my increased weight and awkwardness, not the weather. The colder temps and bone chilling wind have really wreaked havoc on my joints making outdoor exercise particularly brutal. I’ve been doing a twice weekly yoga class in the hope that my muscles and core strength were the problem but nope, this seems to be an issue I’ll be stuck with for a while.

The plan is the keep on riding for trips under 2 miles each way and on days when the wind is less than 15MPH but we don’t get many of those in our blustery autumn. Maybe the weather gods will smile on Chicago this year. Ha, doubtful.

Wow, this guy isn’t too bright. Don’t try this at...

Tue, 30 Oct 2012 16:50:50 -0500

Wow, this guy isn’t too bright. Don’t try this at home, kids. (by jvoorh01)

bike preservation during hurricane Sandy

Tue, 30 Oct 2012 16:46:30 -0500

bike preservation during hurricane Sandy