Southwind Rail Trail

Iola Kansas, June 16, 2013

I was headed to Clinton, Missouri to ride the Katy trail and decided that I could leave a little early in order to ride the brand new Southwind Trail at Iola, Kansas. This extends south from the end of the Prairie Spirit Trail at the south end of Iola Kansas and extends southward to Humbolt, Kansas. Actual mileage is around 6.5. I didn't know where it started however, and drove up near the north end of Iola looking for a trailhead of sorts, didn't find one, so I started from a gas station that was nice enough to let me change clothes in their restroom and leave my car there. Took off from there, hit the trail and headed south. I was still on the Prairie Spirit Trail at this time, but before long, I came to the beginning of the new trail....

 

The paved portion is the end of the Prairie Spirit Trail, and the brand new unpaved portion is the Southwind. If you look at it close, you would think I was the first rider on it, but it wasn't so, I did meet a couple of other riders coming the other way that day. And besides, the trail had already been open for a couple of weeks already.

After I looked around....... Oh yeah.....there is the parking area! Oh well, I got parked somewhere and found the trail anyway. So, here I go! So cool to be riding on a brand new surface, still a little loose on top, but nicely packed, and it made for a wonderful ride.

Well shaded, and tree canopy for most of the ride, with some open spots to get a peek at the surrounding countryside.

One classic iron bridge on this trail is a gem, just about a mile south of Iola.

As you can see....the guard railings still look brand new.

Love the huge chain links supporting the bottom of the bridge.

And....a little further down the trail, I ran into a bit of a problem........

A large tree fallen over and blocking the trail. But just on the other side, help was already hard at work. And this was how I met Patrick, hard working trail maintenance guy who gave up his church this Sunday to make sure the trail was open.

He helped me through and when I got back here after turning around at Humbolt, all this was gone. When you have dedicated workers maintaining this trail like he is, it's bound to be a success. One more tree down a bit further south proved to be a "duck-under" and soon I was at the turn around point and the Humbolt trailhead.

There were convenient signs posting the "Rules Of The Trail".....

The return was easy, quiet, and uneventful. Very little traffic on the trail and very pretty scenery all along the way.

All in all, a wonderful trail extending on past the end of the Prairie Spirit Trail, nicely constructed and beautifully maintained. A must ride for anyone in the area. I wouldn't have expected less from Kansas, however! Get your trail on and ride this one!!!

Let the Heat Begin

Summer in Oklahoma ..... it was a long time coming this year. This was one of the coolest Springs I can remember here. It's over ..... 75 degrees and muggy at 6am this morning. Figured I had better get out for a ride early, or not at all. Waited a bit too long, but left the house at 8:15, already 82. Ride, sweat, ride sweat..... intervals, y'know! Still, there have been some hanger on-er's that are usually gone by this time of year..... wheat for example. Wheat harvest here is usually done, and the wheat's in the bin by the end of the first week in June. Not a combine in sight yet. Some is beautiful ...

Some was under water.......

And some, was just still here and very pretty, like these wildflowers that appear to be giant daisies, growing in several places in the ditches.

Or maybe these lillies growing wild in the ditch......

Or maybe the old milkhouse .....

Or maybe some wildlife..... honest ..... I couldn't find any, just some fox tails ....

Obviously, the foxes were just too fast for me.

This was just a short little ride, only 22 miles, but sometimes they are the best ones. I really need to go back to looking around more, and carrying my camera with me more often. I've been leaving it home most of the time anymore. I always liked this little place, they keep it up nicely, and it just looks like the kind of family farm that I grew up around.......

The windrowed grain is something else you don't see much of here either. This happens to be oats, a common crop where I grew up, but seen seldom here. So, all in all, it was a very nice day to get out for a bike ride, plus, I sweated buckets. Clean pores.....you bet! I had also made a few changes on the bike  because my right wrist has been bothering me lately and I wanted to see if my adjustments did any good. It seems they did. That's a good thing as my long five day ride is coming up in less than a week. For that though, you will have to wait........

My Junker Bike

I received this bike as a gift from a neighbor. His wife got a new fancy one, with all the bells and whistles, and this one had been sitting outside for a long time. He was going to just toss it in the trash, but I intervened and said I'd take it and do something with it. It was truly a well worn junker. Pushed it home on flat tires.

Everything was soooo filthy, and grease covered,

I really had no plans or desire at that time to restore, or repair said bike, so it sat in the back of my shop for a while. One rainy day, I was bored, so I went out and took it all apart for cleaning, right down to the bare frame, so I could see what I really had. I had a mess! Everything I took off and disassembled was worn OUT!
The crank is a good example. Notice the tears in the middle ring.... this was just the beginning.

So....I tried the shifters..... left one worked..... right one went to 7 and stayed there. Took the shifter all apart, and found it to be totally stripped out. Threw the bike back in the corner of the shop! It stayed there again for another few months. In the meantime, I got to reading about Balance Bikes, as I had never heard of them before. Turns out they weren't made very long, and were made by Balance Audio Technologies..... A stereo component manufacturer. What the heck does a stereo builder have to do with bikes? Well, it turns out that they made excellent bikes in their day. Highly sought after, and the frames still are. High tech aluminum alloy frame, stretches you out with it's geometry and it is extremely light for a mountain bike..... just 22 pounds with cheap components, I would bet that if I rebuilt it with top components, it might break 20 pounds. I really did not, however, need another high tech mountain bike, my Cannondale (25 pounds) is just fine for mountain biking, so I decided I might look into rebuilding it back as a seven speed and see what happens. So, I looked online at several locations, and found that seven speed parts are really cheap, less than $80 and I had all new replacement parts, shifters, cassette, and crank, as well as bottom bracket. The bottom bracket, it turned out, was the only thing the bike didn't need replaced, it was smooth and quiet. The front suspension forks were unlike anything I had ever seen before also. Light, but rather fragile looking. Elastomer front forks. Checked into rebuild parts....complete rebuild kit for $55 .... it can wait. You only get about one inch of travel anyway.  So, I went ahead and rebuilt it back into a 7 speed, no real improvements except new parts.
One of the first things I did was to replace the Schrader tubes with Presta, using this little bushing that fits in the rim. I did this because all of my other bikes and tubes and pumps are all for Presta valves



                                          

                                                               Schrader valve

                                                   Presta valve after conversion

Then, I noticed a slice on the sidewall of the front tire..... I had an old half worn small block-8 that I put on the front. If I keep the bike, the back will have one too. Love the small block-8's. Next on the list was crank replacement. Replaced the original Altus with an Alivio crank. Went from 46/36/26 to 48/36/26 .... I thought it'd be fine.

Then came the shifters, as I noted earlier, the right side shifter was history, but I could in no way find one that was the same, so I had to buy a pair. These were really cheap at $28 .... AND they came with a full set of brake and shifter cables and housings..... how could you beat that! Cheap little shifters, but still Shimano. 7 speed shifters aren't real common anymore, and there are no real quality ones.

Next up came the cassette..... the original one was worn to a frazzle, and the gearing was 13/26 .... I thought maybe a bit high, so I went with a 13/32 for the new one.

Running all the new cable and housing was a little time consuming, but if one is putting all this new stuff on, it would seem to be counter-productive to skip small items like that. Along with the new cables, I try to neaten things up a bit....... tie it with a wire tie, and snip it off.

As long as we're talking cables here, an indispensable tool for cable work is a cable cutting pliers. It doesn't crush the cable when you cut it, and it's easy to put it to service after cutting.

The right tools make all the jobs easier, and luckily, I have a well equipped bicycle shop.  At this point it was about time to replace the chain, which was so worn, I'm surprised it didn't break just sitting there.

First job is to determine the correct length of the new chain. Remember, I changed the gearing, so I couldn't just measure the old. The way I've always done this is what I feel is the simplest way. Wrap the new chain around the large chainring, and the large cog in the back.... don't put it through the derailleurs yet. Then, pull the two ends taut .... and don't forget to include the master link....

and pull it to the nearest inside-to-inside link match that you can reach. Then, drop down one full link, to the next inside link (remember, you can only connect two inside links if you are using a master link), and break the chain......

A word of caution here .... if you have the slightest doubt, and are doing this the first time, cut the chain a link too long, you can always take another out, but it's impossible to put one back in. One of those measure twice, cut once moments. Once you have the chain cut it's just a simple matter of putting the master link in and clipping it together.

Interesting note here about chains.... I use only KMC chains. They make chains for all the big name manufacturers. I've had excellent luck with them, and have gotten as good amount of mileage as any.

This is one of their cheapest chains at $8.00 The card of 6 master links was $9.00. It is still a quality chain. By comparison, the 10 speed chain for my road bike was $50.00 .... same company. I've got 5000 miles on that chain now, and still my chain wear checker says it still good. Ten speed chains are much more expensive than these seven and eight speed chains.
Now it's just a matter of putting the bike up on the stand, and doing a little adjusting and tuning so it shifts well. The saddle is the one that came as original equipment for my touring bike. It was a much better mountain bike saddle than a touring bike saddle, so, it's in it's proper element now. If the chain is the proper length, the rear derailleur should look like it does here when shifted to the middle of the cassette.

A little tweaking, and then I put the old pedals and grips back on for a test ride.

I might note here, that both the derailleurs were the ones I got with the bike, they were replacement items at one time and after checking them out thoroughly, I found they were really not candidates for replacement at this time. So..... jumping on the bike, and taking it out for a brief three mile test ride, I pronounce it .....well.......a pretty darn good bike. Especially for an $80.00 bike. I had to adjust the saddle a bit before I rode it. I shifted back and forth through all the gears several times, and everything worked smoothly, quietly, and it rode like a new bike. I was surprised a bit by the gearing......it felt too high geared. I thought maybe I should have gone to a 42/32/22 crank instead. Maybe it was just the 25mph wind blowing that made it feel that way.

Flower Power Bike Ride 2013

April 27, 2013

For four tries now, I have gone out to Muskogee to ride the Flower Power ride, so named because it coincides with their annual azalea festival, only to be discouraged by rain and cold temps. I was hoping this year would be the exception, but alas, it wasn't to be. Rain at the start, off and on drizzle and light rain throughout the ride, never really clearing off, never really raining hard, but not really stopping either. Add to that a chilly wind, and normally, this would be enough to keep me inside. Not to be today however, because if these 400 or so other cyclists can brave this kind of weather how can I not?

Besides, in the line-up, I found this fully loaded tourer, and in conversation found that they had left Pennsylvania en route to the West Coast and thought it would be fun to join our little ride. I believe they were visiting the winsome looking young lady in pink and black in the background, whether a relative, or host I don't know, but they were more or less together. I did notice though, that the young lady was no match for the power of the tandem team. Really a fun couple to talk to, and I kept running across them off and on during the ride.

So, your intrepid biker, joined the crowd and slogged off into the wilderness. Because of the rain, I really didn't take as many photos as usual, and to add continuity to the story, I'll add some from another year, same ride. After leaving, the first exciting thing to happen was a multiple bike crash right in front of me crossing the first set of railroad tracks. The tracks crossed the road at an angle, (one of several like this), and in a tightly packed group, plus the rain, this was a recipe for disaster. Sure enough, right in front of me and a little off to one side, one rider's wheels slipped out from under him, and down he went, taking several others with him. An exciting way to start the ride. Fortunately, I escaped unscathed.
After the initial excitement, we ventured north to downtown Ft. Gibson, OK, site of a frontier fort, and now National Cemetery. The town itself isn't much. Here's a couple of old photos

 

And, the old fort, now a State Historical Museum.

 

 

 

 

 

 

A couple more angled RR tracks to cross brought us to the Neosho River, and the old bridge that crosses it.

 

 

 

 

The Neosho River, from the bridge, Couldn't stop long because it's a one lane bridge, and people in cars were waiting patiently at each end waiting to cross.

 

 

 

After Ft. Gibson,  we trekked north through hill and dale, up to the dam that backs up Ft. Gibson Reservoir, just downstream from Grand Lake of the Cherokees. Because of all the large rivers and reservoirs in the area, this is a very hilly part of the state.

 

 

 

 

 

The trip across the dam was watched diligently by "The Watchers" up on the top of the light fixture, waiting for the possibility of a quick meal, but not with this bunch.  The haze, isn't haze, but light rain.

 

 

 

The ridge line on the other side was one that we had to climb over up one of the three Cat 5 climbs of the day. Halfway across the dam, I spied this noisy flock of pelicans in the release water, just having a ball ..... and probably finding lots of dazed fish from the trip through the dam. I don't know why, but I always find it strange to see pelicans and sea gulls, this far from the sea.

 

 

So, leaving the river and dam behind, we crawled up the slope on the other side, and topped over the ridge line to begin a series of rollers on to the north.

 

 



 

It was on the hill that I met this delightful young lady Who told me this was her very first organized ride. She said she had only ridden a little bit before, and all of this on the Tulsa bike path. Twenty seven miles was her furthest ride to date, and she had signed up for the 30 mile ride as she didn't think herself capable of doing anything longer. Meet Dayna...... Half Marathon runner, and now bicyclist ...........

 

 

 

She proved to be a lot of fun, and the miles melted away quickly to the next rest stop, where we arrived amid the hardest rain, and coldest wind of the day. I told her that this was where we had to part company as I was going on to do the 70 mile ride, and the 30 mile route turned off here. I suggested that maybe I could drop 20, and she could add 20, and we could do the 50 together. I told her, I needed to dash off to the little house on wheels, and she could think about it while I was gone. If she wasn't there when I returned, I would understand. She was! And so, we left on the 50 mile leg together. She was as much of a chatterbox as was I. We continued through the many, many rolling hills next to the lakeside (which you couldn't see for the hills and trees) on up hwy 80 to the little town of Hulbert. After Hulbert we left on what was to prove the most terrifying and dangerous part of our trip, the northernmost leg, eastward on Hwy 51. No shoulder, narrow, heavily travelled by cars and commercial traffic, it was indeed a harrowing experience. The route across the top of the 70 mile route, by comparison, has few cars. Nerves frazzled, 8 miles up the road, never seeing another bicyclist and beginning to think we had missed a turn somewhere and were hopelessly lost, we found a painted marking on the road indicating a turn ...... off that miserable narrow road. We pulled up for a bit to talk and let our nerves calm down and along came the rest of the little group that we started with, Alice, a lady rider from OKC and a member of the Oklahoma Bicycle Society, who I had met on other rides, our intrepid tandem team from Pennsylvania, as well as their friend, and a couple of others that we seemed to run across from time to time. It was here, while we were chatting that I told them about "The Wormhole"......... a horrible uphill that we would be facing on up the road. One that even I had to walk. Both Dayna and Alice had rather long faces at that time, as we had climbed a bunch by then. But,  on we went. Through some simply Idyllic countryside.

 

 

 

 

It was at this point that Alice became a regular part of our group, and stayed with us until the end, adding to the fun. The miles melted away quickly in spite of the cold and wet day. It was on this stretch that we had several delightful long 40mph downhills, smooth and wonderful. Dayna held back a bit on the downhills because the speed intimidated her a bit. I can understand that, especially on wet roads. Then we turned the corner and down the road a piece, we came to a sign painted on the road that said simply "The Wormhole"..... and I wished I had taken photos from the bottom as what I got doesn't do it justice. It is a brutal 1/2 mile uphill with (fortunately) a short break in the middle that had most riders walking. I myself, had walked that hill a couple of times in the past. Today though, I felt strong, so kept pushing the pedals on up the hill. It was tough..... push down, bike would stop, push down with the other foot, bike would stop ..... and so on, all the way to the top, where I was applauded by several riders waiting at the top. Yes, it was tough....... but it WAS conquerable. Must have been all the touring bike miles I've been putting on lately.

 

 

From there, the trip was only about twelve miles longer, and all the tough stuff was now behind us. We all felt pretty good, and chatted away merrily until the last rest stop where we had one of the rest stop crew take our pictures.     We Came, We Saw, We Conquered!!!





 

The Conquerors

 Left to right, Alice, Richard, and Dayna

 

 

 

From there, a short but pleasant, even if chilly, ride back to Three Forks Harbor, where we came to an end to our journey, 50.3 miles in the books. We changed clothes into something drier and warmer and went in to partake of their furnished lunch...... bar-b-qued hot dogs, this was definitely a two dog day, chips and lot of free beer and pleasant camaraderie. And so it ends, a day that I thought would hold no promise turned into a delightful day, made possible by good people becoming good friends through the wonderful world of bicycling.