2 strikes, haven't learned yet.
If any of you have traveled down Central expressway in mountain view, you have no doubt encountered the curb at the Moffet/Castro intersection. You've noticed it's gentle slope, and pleasing angle. You've no doubt never pondered it's tretchery. You see, it's that gentle non-threating slope that seems to say, "Hey! Ride up me, it'll be no problem! I'll get you where you want to go." I fell prey to this once about a month ago, and again today. This time however, I kinda ate it. My bike shorts and shirt must be made of some sort of Teflon coated depleted uranium because I slid, quite handily, into the gravely dirt. My body and mind had decided I was going up the curb in question, and my front tire suddenly slipped back down it to run parallel. Thanks to Mr. Newton and his blasted theories on momentum and energy I was well on my way toward impact with a forward velocity of about 10 mph.
A word on clipping peddles. They are quite possibly the best thing to happen to bikes since symmetric wheels. The ability to deliver continuous power to your drive train is amazing. Consider that your car's engine is a four-stroke machine: Air in - Compress - Exploding power - Exhaust out. It can only exert force for 1/4 of it's strokes. Well if similar technology were developed for the internal combustion engine it would look more like this: Power, More power, Power, Even more power. So it makes a dramatic and immediately noticeable difference, just like your little 100hp econo-box suddenly able to put down 400hp, you're confused by the foolishness of not having this technology. The draw back being, in the case of bikes, that your shoes are clipped into the peddles and resistant to moving. Great for making power, bad for trying to put your foot on the ground for balance suddenly.
Anyway, I twisted my foot wrong or something and it didn't come out fast enough. Somehow I earned minor scraps only, I owe it all to the Teflon coated depleted uranium spandex. My right shoulder, side, knee, and hip took most of the damage of my forward momentum. I'm really not clear on how my clothing remained undamaged, as I've put holes in blue jeans with similar force, though I submit to you that Professor X may have had something to do with it.
24 miles today, mostly flat sadly, but the bay trails in the salt water marshes are pretty cool, if only for the wildlife and interesting habitat. The wind is really not that cool, though. At one point I was begining to wonder if I was going to end up in Foster City, so I figured I turn back. Which is when I noticed that I had been traveling with a considerable breeze. If I ever do the Trans-America trip, I'm going to go the right way - with the wind. Just as Paul suggested.
Though at the time I believe I said, "Who cares, it's just wind man."
A word on clipping peddles. They are quite possibly the best thing to happen to bikes since symmetric wheels. The ability to deliver continuous power to your drive train is amazing. Consider that your car's engine is a four-stroke machine: Air in - Compress - Exploding power - Exhaust out. It can only exert force for 1/4 of it's strokes. Well if similar technology were developed for the internal combustion engine it would look more like this: Power, More power, Power, Even more power. So it makes a dramatic and immediately noticeable difference, just like your little 100hp econo-box suddenly able to put down 400hp, you're confused by the foolishness of not having this technology. The draw back being, in the case of bikes, that your shoes are clipped into the peddles and resistant to moving. Great for making power, bad for trying to put your foot on the ground for balance suddenly.
Anyway, I twisted my foot wrong or something and it didn't come out fast enough. Somehow I earned minor scraps only, I owe it all to the Teflon coated depleted uranium spandex. My right shoulder, side, knee, and hip took most of the damage of my forward momentum. I'm really not clear on how my clothing remained undamaged, as I've put holes in blue jeans with similar force, though I submit to you that Professor X may have had something to do with it.
24 miles today, mostly flat sadly, but the bay trails in the salt water marshes are pretty cool, if only for the wildlife and interesting habitat. The wind is really not that cool, though. At one point I was begining to wonder if I was going to end up in Foster City, so I figured I turn back. Which is when I noticed that I had been traveling with a considerable breeze. If I ever do the Trans-America trip, I'm going to go the right way - with the wind. Just as Paul suggested.
Though at the time I believe I said, "Who cares, it's just wind man."