New savings milestone set!

I ended up taking the long way home today and according to my worksheet, I've saved over $200 USD in fuel costs since owning the Brompton!  It's been about about a year and 3 months since I've had the Brompton, and I would have reached this milestone earlier but I had to take some significant time off of it this summer.

I know that I've got quite a ways to go to recoup the money that I used to buy the Brompton, but at least I'm having fun and that's worth something.

Gary Fisher is back (2013)!

Gary Fisher, The Godfather of mountain biking, is coming back to Tucson for another ride benefitting the Living Streets Alliance.  The ride will once again start at Trek of Tucson on Ft. Lowell Rd. this time will end at Mercado San Agustin, where they will show the BMX classic Rad.  Borderlands Brewery will be offering their tasty brews there as well!

Thanks to Tucson Velo for the head's up!

Commuting by necessity

So, my car has been in the shop for the last couple of days for some major maintenance (water pump and timing belt), so I've had to ride the 17 miles each way on the Brompton.  Having the Brompton has been very handy in this situation... I was able to drive to the auto shop, then bike away.  And I'll be able to stuff my bike into my co-worker's Camaro when the car is ready to be picked up.

However, I gotta say that I've feeling pretty beat, primarily because it's been really chilly in the mornings (mid-30's F is chilly for Arizona).  That, and my knee's been bugging me... I've changed my setup a little bit, so I wonder if that has anything to do with it.

My car should be ready to pick up after work tomorrow.  As much as I like to ride, it'll be nice to take a few days off.

Great cycling advice from Rivendell Bicycles

During my roam of the interwebs I somehow came across this Learn About Bikes section from Rivendell Bikes.  It had lots of quality (and very realistic) info on it.  I haven't read all of it, but here are some of my favorites so far:

Commuting by Bike

Tips for happy riding

A kit for one night out (camping)

1000 MILES!

The virtual odometer rolled over today and I surpassed 1000 cumulative miles ridden on the Brompton!!  It was quite a chilly ride this morning, with the temperature at 36 degrees Fahrenheit.  I was noticing new squeaking sounds on this morning's ride... wonder if it's the cold, the need for a tune-up, or even the Brompton toolkit (kinda doubt it).  The squeaking disappeared and reappeared several times, which was odd.

Anyone done a tune-up to their Bromptons?  What kind of schedule should I be following?

First $100 saved!

According to my "back of the envelope" calculations and records (visible here), I've saved my first $100 worth of petrol!  I've got a ways to go to recoup the cost of the bike, but as they say it's about the journey, not the destination.

I'm not alone!

Finally found another Brompton in the wild at the Tucson Meet Yourself Festival.  My ride is on the left.

I could walk 500 miles...

I could walk 500 miles, but I'd much rather bike them on my Brompton.  And I just did tonight!  Well, I surpassed 500 miles since I've gotten the B.  I've been keeping track of stats on my handy dandy google doc spreadsheet hopefully viewable with this link.  I hope to make this spreadsheet a sticky on the front page somehow... gotta figure that out.

Anyway, here's some pics of today's momentus ride into downtown Tucson.

The beautiful Santa Cruz Church

One of my favorite signs... so real!

Believe it or not, this is a newly renovated sign.

MetroGnome Music

Today I rode to one of my close friend's business, MetroGnome Music. They specialize in used musical instruments, but they also have DVDs, music cd's, vinyl, and video games. They also drive around in a cool old Metro van that has been restored.

The Long Way Home

Today was the first real commute to work (to & from).  Not much different in the morning... rode at about the same pace.  But I was super tired on the way home... and hungry!  It was much more of a cruise on the way home, and since I wasn't in a hurry I took the opportunity to snap a few pics for you all to enjoy!

These pics were taken just off of the Aviation bike path.

The following pictures are taken outside of the Boneyard at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base.  A bit of trivia... this is where some scenes from Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen were filmed.  Yes, Megan Fox was 2 miles from my house!

The first commute (sort of...)

I took the first ride into work this morning. I loaded up the C-bag with my work clothes plus soccer gear for a little pickup after work. Here is the bike loaded up:







Fortunately the weather was ideal this morning and the ride was pleasant. Having the bag off of my back was really nice.

I wasn't too much slower on the Brommie compared to my other road bikes... Maybe about 5 minutes slower.


After I got showered up I rode to the building that I work in and was able to fold up the bike, attach the C-bag and was easily able to roll the whole unit down the hallways. I wasn't able to take pics of the unit while I was at work, so I took some when I got home.









I had lots of co-workers ask about the bike and check it out. They definitely dug it!

By the way, I did get a ride home after soccer, hence the title.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Out and About

I took the B out this morning.  First, I rode to breakfast at my favorite place, Poco & Mom's (green chile sauce to live for).  This place is typically packed for breakfast, so space is at a premium.  I was eating alone today, so I was able to pack the B under my table and by C-bag in the open seat.

After breakfast I went to Target (a department store for those outside of the US) to pick up a few things.  When I arrived, I was able to pack the B into the shopping cart while I was picking up my items.

Even though it was a pretty warm day, I gotta say it was pretty nice not driving the car around today.  It was a lazy Sunday, so I was able to take my time getting around.

So I've put about 50 miles on the bike since I've gotten it.  Here are some observations I've made:

• The Brooks saddle is definitely starting to break in.  It's happening a little sooner than I've anticipated, so it is a happy surprise.
• The Brompton luggage system is worth the price of admission.  It's so nice to not have to carry your bag on your back, especially on a hot uncomfortable day like today.
• The SON hub dynamo give great piece of mind.  The beam lights up the road rather well, and it's great peace of mind since most of my commutes will be before dawn or after dusk.  Not having to worry about batteries rocks.
• I'm a couple of MPH slower than on my road bike.  I think this is due to the type of tire I'm using (Schwalbe Marathons with Flat Attack injected) rather than the wheel size or gearing.  I could also be out of riding shape.