Stan’s Obligatory Blog

Went riding again today. 41 miles to San Dimas and back. Stopped for a snack at Coffee Klatch. The new bike did well.

Took the new bike for a shakedown ride this afternoon. 25 miles to Duarte and back. Got a flat on the way back. The rim tape was slightly off-center, so two spoke holes were uncovered. Patched the hole and recentered the rim tape. The new Zefal pump was good. Got a good 80psi out of it pretty easily.

After I got home, I put the clipless pedals on the bike. Now that I’ve ridden it a bit, I’m ready to try them out.

Lucinda got her first flat tire on her bike today. It’s actually pretty remarkable. She’s ridden the bike enough to actually show visible wear on the tire.

Went riding again today. 39 miles. During the ride, I heard a new creak in my bike. So I had a look at it this evening, and I found a fatigue crack in the down tube. So, after 27 years, it’s the end of the line for my old Cuevas frame.

Had a Bad Car Day today. We were going out to dinner at Cafe Bizou when the car just coughed and died at Walnut and Raymond in Old Town. It was stone dead. Called AAA and they sent out a tow truck. The driver brought out the portable jump-start thingy just to try. He poked the battery and noticed that the hot terminal was loose. Then the car lights came back on. I tried it, and it started right up. We came home and I tightened the terminal down.

Went riding again on the Foothill ‘moderate’ ride. We rode through South Pasadena and Highland Park to Griffith Park and a snack stop at Priscilla’s in Toluca Lake. On the way back, we stopped off to watch a race in Glendale. I made a point to go up the announcer and donate a $20 cash prime for the race we were watching. The route home went through La Canada. 43 miles.

Riders sprint for the $20 prime I donated.

Rode with the Foothill club today. We went south down through Arcadia and Temple City to the Rio Hondo bike path. We took south, coming back on San Gabriel and Del Mar through San Gabriel. We had a snack stop at Il Forniao in Old Town. For the last part, we went by the Rose Bowl and then up Arroyo to Altadena Drive. 40 miles.

We went to the Natural History Museum today so Lucinda could see the Butterfly exhibit. We also went to the Discovery Center so she could see the Insect Zoo.