dud speed 3
Wed Sep 2 15:00:00 2015
I removed the zip ties holding the speedo sensor on the bike, and tried mounting it with packing tape. I couldn't get it snug around the sensor, and it looked like it was going to collect a lot of dirt. I decided to try using the zip ties again, and using the tape to keep the zip ties from sliding up (or down - but the fork tapers going up, so that's the direction things would slide to be looser.
I got the first decent readings in two weeks(?) coming to work today. 9.73 miles (15.659km), typical for my route. (I think I pumped them up last week, though.) 46:18 moving time? Faster than I would expect, but consistent with earlier commutes; I have been getting to work faster on this bike. I didn't notice any dead readings on today's commute.
The last major change before the readings got crappy was changing my route to go down North Glebe Rd all the way to Chain Bridge. I was hitting 30mph (48kph) there riding the brakes. (Speed limit 25mph (40kph), warning signs for 15mph (24kph) and then 10mph (16kph).) It's good pavement, so not nearly as rough as riding less than half that speed on the C&O Towpath, but maybe the vibration did move the sensor. I've stopped riding down that hill this week until I can check the pads on my brakes, and I don't want to take the brakes apart until the replacement pads arrive. (On order since Sunday night.)
I'd love to know how fast a bike would go down that hill if you could know there was a green light at the bottom and no traffic back-up on the bridge. [Yes, another hill with a frickin' traffic light at the bottom.] Last week the woman coming down the hill behind me (and too close for my comfort) pulled up next to me at the light and asked "Where's the motor?" I just pointed at my thighs. Although once the road starts its plunge into the Potomac's gorge, there is no point in pedaling. (I max out my gearing around maybe 20mph (32kph)?)
It's like a luge run - except it's a 2-way road. Not for the faint of heart. (We got a new Arlington County Bicycle Comfort Level Map county biking map rating streets for "comfort". This bit of road is rated "route strongly discouraged.*") You can't drift left, because that's oncoming traffic. There's a guard rail on the right, which you wouldn't want to hit at any speed, and if you went over it, I have no idea what the drop-off is like - I've never had time to look. Being lower, on a recumbent, it should be harder to go over a railing. But hitting one still wouldn't be fun - and certainly not at 30mph.
*There are several "strongly discouraged" roads on this map that I ride routinely - including the road my house is on. There aren't many alternatives to riding on the street you live on - although we live on a corner, so we have a 2nd street available.
I wish all the local jurisdictions would get together on their bike maps and agree about what the colors mean - off-road trails, bike lanes, low-traffic streets, streets to avoid, roads off limit, etc.Arlington, VA
Virginia DOT
Alexandria, VA
Fairfax County, VA
Montgomery County, MD
Washington, DC
Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA)
BikeWashington.org
Prince Georges County, MD (the remaining county bordering DC, served by Metro, and containing part of the DC Beltway) is conspicuously absent from this list....☹
Wednesday 22:38
Final numbers for today's commute: 19.47 miles (31.334km) in 1:40:16. Normal. Will the sensor stay in place?
Thursday 22:38
I really like having the bike computer working again. I like knowing how fast I'm going. I like knowing how far I've gone.
My commute routes are remarkably consistent, within 1 or 2 hundredths of a mile day-to-day, so it's not like I don't know how far I've gone on a normal day. (I can tell from the daily mileage whether the tires are getting soft. That consistent.) There are occasional detours, but those are consistent routes too.
But when I'm pushing hard, and going 18mph (29kph) under the Whitehurst Freeway, that's exciting. (It's also amazing/amusing how many drivers who don't know where they are will follow a fast bicycle. Canal St, under the Whitehurst, is a dead end for cars. It leads to a car-free route to Pittsburgh for the cyclist.)
Sunday 14:00
Out of curiosity I went looking for that triathelete bike shop that's closing in a few weeks, Tri360. There were some things in the store that would be useful for the general cyclist, but the bikes were (very-)high-end road bikes. Clothing was pretty pricey too. I didn't see any disc-brake pads, although some of the bikes have disc brakes. (Maybe they've sold out their pads, and you don't replace stock when your going out of business.)
Maybe they were understaffed and busy, and I don't look remotely like an ironman, but no one working there greeted me.
Maybe they deserve to go out of business. If you're not welcoming to the people who don't look the part, you don't grow your tribe. If you're selling to a niche market, and you're not converting me into the kind of person who wants needs what you sell, you're not growing your customer base. If you think I'm not worth the effort, you may be right. But if that's the case for most of the people who walk in, maybe you've picked the wrong business. (And again, your business is not sustainable.)
[This entry was originally posted as https://syntonic-comma.dreamwidth.org/764643.html on Dreamwidth (where there are
comments).]
I removed the zip ties holding the speedo sensor on the bike, and tried mounting it with packing tape. I couldn't get it snug around the sensor, and it looked like it was going to collect a lot of dirt. I decided to try using the zip ties again, and using the tape to keep the zip ties from sliding up (or down - but the fork tapers going up, so that's the direction things would slide to be looser.
I got the first decent readings in two weeks(?) coming to work today. 9.73 miles (15.659km), typical for my route. (I think I pumped them up last week, though.) 46:18 moving time? Faster than I would expect, but consistent with earlier commutes; I have been getting to work faster on this bike. I didn't notice any dead readings on today's commute.
The last major change before the readings got crappy was changing my route to go down North Glebe Rd all the way to Chain Bridge. I was hitting 30mph (48kph) there riding the brakes. (Speed limit 25mph (40kph), warning signs for 15mph (24kph) and then 10mph (16kph).) It's good pavement, so not nearly as rough as riding less than half that speed on the C&O Towpath, but maybe the vibration did move the sensor. I've stopped riding down that hill this week until I can check the pads on my brakes, and I don't want to take the brakes apart until the replacement pads arrive. (On order since Sunday night.)
I'd love to know how fast a bike would go down that hill if you could know there was a green light at the bottom and no traffic back-up on the bridge. [Yes, another hill with a frickin' traffic light at the bottom.] Last week the woman coming down the hill behind me (and too close for my comfort) pulled up next to me at the light and asked "Where's the motor?" I just pointed at my thighs. Although once the road starts its plunge into the Potomac's gorge, there is no point in pedaling. (I max out my gearing around maybe 20mph (32kph)?)
It's like a luge run - except it's a 2-way road. Not for the faint of heart. (We got a new Arlington County Bicycle Comfort Level Map county biking map rating streets for "comfort". This bit of road is rated "route strongly discouraged.*") You can't drift left, because that's oncoming traffic. There's a guard rail on the right, which you wouldn't want to hit at any speed, and if you went over it, I have no idea what the drop-off is like - I've never had time to look. Being lower, on a recumbent, it should be harder to go over a railing. But hitting one still wouldn't be fun - and certainly not at 30mph.
*There are several "strongly discouraged" roads on this map that I ride routinely - including the road my house is on. There aren't many alternatives to riding on the street you live on - although we live on a corner, so we have a 2nd street available.
I wish all the local jurisdictions would get together on their bike maps and agree about what the colors mean - off-road trails, bike lanes, low-traffic streets, streets to avoid, roads off limit, etc.Arlington, VA
Virginia DOT
Alexandria, VA
Fairfax County, VA
Montgomery County, MD
Washington, DC
Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA)
BikeWashington.org
Prince Georges County, MD (the remaining county bordering DC, served by Metro, and containing part of the DC Beltway) is conspicuously absent from this list....☹
Wednesday 22:38
Final numbers for today's commute: 19.47 miles (31.334km) in 1:40:16. Normal. Will the sensor stay in place?
Thursday 22:38
I really like having the bike computer working again. I like knowing how fast I'm going. I like knowing how far I've gone.
My commute routes are remarkably consistent, within 1 or 2 hundredths of a mile day-to-day, so it's not like I don't know how far I've gone on a normal day. (I can tell from the daily mileage whether the tires are getting soft. That consistent.) There are occasional detours, but those are consistent routes too.
But when I'm pushing hard, and going 18mph (29kph) under the Whitehurst Freeway, that's exciting. (It's also amazing/amusing how many drivers who don't know where they are will follow a fast bicycle. Canal St, under the Whitehurst, is a dead end for cars. It leads to a car-free route to Pittsburgh for the cyclist.)
Sunday 14:00
Out of curiosity I went looking for that triathelete bike shop that's closing in a few weeks, Tri360. There were some things in the store that would be useful for the general cyclist, but the bikes were (very-)high-end road bikes. Clothing was pretty pricey too. I didn't see any disc-brake pads, although some of the bikes have disc brakes. (Maybe they've sold out their pads, and you don't replace stock when your going out of business.)
Maybe they were understaffed and busy, and I don't look remotely like an ironman, but no one working there greeted me.
Maybe they deserve to go out of business. If you're not welcoming to the people who don't look the part, you don't grow your tribe. If you're selling to a niche market, and you're not converting me into the kind of person who wants needs what you sell, you're not growing your customer base. If you think I'm not worth the effort, you may be right. But if that's the case for most of the people who walk in, maybe you've picked the wrong business. (And again, your business is not sustainable.)
[This entry was originally posted as https://syntonic-comma.dreamwidth.org/764643.html on Dreamwidth (where there are
comments).]