The New MegaBike 4000

Riding on the back

my daughter calls out to me

look yellow roses

The newest addition to the stable is finished - I call it the MegaBike 4000. Actually it's a '94 Bridgestone MB-4 ("MB" for Mountain Bike) but like the Six-Million Dollar Man, it's become something better, stronger, slower because "we have the technology," courtesy of the Xtracycle Free Radical kit. Thanks to this kit, an old & outdated (but sturdy & well built) MTB has been given new life as a modern SUB (Sport Utility Bicycle).

I first became intrigued by the idea of a "longtail" conversion when former team mate Charlie Wicker showed me the rig he had built up for his fledgling coffee business, Trailhead Coffee Roasters. That started the wheels turning (so to speak). Hmmm, I could haul lots of stuff, put kids on the back, maybe even go bike camping... the "X" extends the possibilities of all kinds of bikey fun. So T and I started planning and budgeting for it. - they're not exactly cheap (but compared to this, it's a bargain.) Just about any bike will work for building a longtail - you could even build an Italian fixed X. But ideally, the Free Radical should be built on something solid, sturdy, and stable, which means a good old steel mountain bike. It also means bike shopping which, next to riding, is one of my favorite pastimes. But here's the slightly embarrassing part of the story. The MB-4 was not the first bike I bought for the conversion; it was the 4th. See, the problem is that , like a mini-van, the X was intended to be a family vehicle, meaning something my wife and I can both ride. But like most mini vans, in reality, it's more her rig than mine - which is fine with me. It's just that, apparently, it took me 4 tries to learn that whatever frame was to form the base of the X, it Must Meet Her Approval.

The first candidate was a bike I picked up at a garage sale while T was away for the weekend - a 1986 Miyata Terra Runner for $25. Of the 4 bikes considered, this is my sentimental favorite. Maybe it's because of the price, which sort of implied the old owners were putting it out to pasture. But I also have a soft spot for lugged frames & forks, which are rare for MTBs. And the "Holy Terra" (yes - I kept it) just oozes character with all those silvery alloy friction shifting shiny bits. I thought T would be thrilled. Her opinion? "Too purple" and "it has a dumb name." Huh? It's Latin! What could be better for an English major?

The second candidate was a newer, Taiwan-made, TIG-welded Voodoo Hoodoo I found on Craigslist for $100. It's a solid bike in great condition, with a lemon-yellow metal flake paint job and a really cool skull logo on the seatpost. I had approval on this one, but after a day of deliberations, the verdict was something along the lines of "It hurts my eyes."

So bike three was kind of the opposite, a subdued & practical workhorse in a dark gray/blue matte finish. It's a rigid-fork 1996 Specialized Rockhopper. This was also a Craigslist buy and this time T was with me for the test ride. She liked it fine, especially compared to the earlier experiments, but it was more like the way someone might like a burger after a couple meals of brussels sprouts and tofu. it doesn't necessarily mean it was a good burger, but just that it was a step in the right direction. I think we payed $50 for it. It joined the others in the

basement, waiting for the kit and the final decision - who will be the Next American Longtail?!?

And then the MB-4 popped up on Craigslist. Now, I'm not a card-carrying BOB, but I have an affinity for the Bridgestone/Rivendell aesthetic, and the old catalogs are admittedly great reading. And when T and I were dating, I helped her parents buy her a bike - an MB-6 (which by the way is still rolling as a cow-bike on sister-in-law Tami's ranch.) Plus, T's main ride is a sweet little 1985 Bridgestone T700 touring bike whose restoration was a delightful labor of love for me. The girl selling the MB-4 knew it was a nice bike and despite my feeble attempts at dickering, she knew she had no reason to sell it for less than the $100 she was asking and I knew it too. The smile on T's face when I brought it home was all I needed to know that I was done searching.

Getting the kit, however, took awhile. If you couldn't tell by now, I'm kind of cheap. My sisters claim it's the McKee in me, refering to my maternal grandpa who was a notorious coupon-clipping, horse-dealing "dabbler" in real estate. It's true that I hate paying full price, especially for big purchases. The short version is that it took a couple phone calls and 3 visits, but I was able to parlay my team membership & the "special team discount week" into 25% off the kit.

After sitting in the basement through spring, my vacation - including no teaching summer school for the first time in 5 years - gave me the time to jump on the build. I started by stripping and rebuilding the bike, including new bearings, chain, BB, cables and housing. I also did a little upgrading. The original rear cluster was a 7-speed freewheel, which would have been fine, but a peculiarity of the Xtracycles is the prohibition on cantilever brakes - which this bike had. The reason for this is apparently that, because canti's stick out horizontally from the seatstays, they c ould interfere with the bags and supporting "V-racks." Eyeballing the bike now that it's done, I doubt this would be a problem. But the "required" V-brakes or disc brakes also have better stopping power than canti's, which might come in handy when you hit the downhill stopsign carrying 150lbs of groceries and a 3-year old on the back. Because the stock components included integrated brake/shifters, and because canti brake levers are generally incompatible with V-brakes, it meant I was going to need new brake and shift levers anyway. So when I had the opportunity to get a set of 8-speed shifters & nearly-new cassette for $20 (Craigslist again) that made my decision to upgrade from 21 to 24 speed.

Sidenote: the guy I bought the shifters from was kinda interesting. He sort of runs a bike mechanic business with his housemate in a trailer park in Gresham. When I showed up at 4 PM they were both drunk, with Hendrix blasting from the stereo. The seller was asleep on the couch and after his housemate told me to go in, I had to shout to wake him up, and I scared the crap out of him. He literally jumped, then staggered around saying "dude! dude! You scared me, dude!" Then laughed hysterically at himself. But he dug out the shifters and cassette, and even threw a new chain in, wishing me luck as I pedaled away.

Since the new shifters didn't incorprate brake levers, and I knew I needed V-brakes, that was next on my list, and I scored. Performance Bike was opening a new store downtown, and for

the grand opening was offering a $20 store card to the first 100 people in the door Saturday AND Sunday. Of course my son and I rode down and were in line early both days. In addition to the $20, they also had "spin the wheel"where you could win more store money (or other stuff like water bottles, "big prize," etc.) Saturday my son and I each spun $5, and Sunday he scored another $5 and I hit $10. Plus, they were also giving $5 cards for bringing in recycled innertubes. I could only dig up a couple Saturday ($5 each) but scrounged several more for Sunday for the maximum $15 each. Our grand total: $145 store credit, plus some schwag like snacks, chain lube, and sunscreen. The only hitch? It had to be spent that weekend. Of course, V-brakes just happened to be on sale, so we got a full set for the X, plus some sunglasses and a tailight for my son, a bell, new shorts, a clear jacket (for cyclocross) and a couple new tubes. It felt like bike Christmas.

I had avoided opening the Xtracycle box until all my ducks were in a row,

but once vacation started and all the parts were lined up, I hauled everything out to the driveway and spent the better part of the weekend on the build. The FreeRadical is a pretty well-designed kit and marketed as a lifestyle item, kind of like an ipod or a BMW I guess, but cooler. Included in the box are all the practical bits and pieces, including such welcome items as an extra length of chain, longer rear cables & housing, and a kickstand.

They also include a great sheet of stickers

and a packet of business-size cards titled "Eleven Answers" to hand out when asked the inevitable questions you get when you roll with an X. Examples: "Light! As little as 5 lbs." & "Yes, but you won't want to."

The final construction was actually easier and quicker than I had anticipated. I've learned from experience to anticipate glitches and problems that need solving, and the free radical didn't really present any. The extension attaches at three points -to the rear dropouts and the chainstay bridge with special doodads designed to hold it secure.

Once the FR was on and the new V-brakes mounted, it was just a matter of installing a new chain, routing new cables and housing - (using the included rollamajig to reduce rear derailleur friction), putting the wheels back on and getting everything fine-tuned before sliding on the V-racks, strapping on the Freeloader bags, and snapping on (literally) the Snapdeck.

When done, the girls were begging for a ride, so after a short run up the street to make sure nothing fell off, we were ready for a loaded test ride.

Success.

The only thing needed was a stoker stem and bar for carrying a passenger. You can get fancy with this if you want, but most folks find a cheaper solution. Mine included a used stem, shim, and mtb bars (which I chopped down) from the CCC. Total cost around 20 bucks. I topped it off with purple sparkle grips and streamers, a Hello Kitty bell (plus a red pepper bell for the pilot), and now it's fully customized and fit for both girls. Eventually I'll probably get the Footsies if I can find a deal on them, but since Lil' C couldn't reach them anyway, I bolted a pair of bar-ends I had lying around to the front of the V-racks and she's now got somewhere to put her feet.

The following weekend was the 2nd of three Sunday Parkways events - the NE Portland version, and after riding a loop as a roving mechanic with the MegaBike 4000, I met up with my family and we took another lap together. I think this bike is a keeper.

Three Good Days

I needed this three-day weekend. Feeling stretched thin and dog-tired. Fighting the bug that laid my poor girls out for a week. Dug out a couple ancient rhododendron stumps out to make room for fruit trees. Flowers are nice, but I want to grow something I can eat; we're thinking maybe a fig and an Asian pear? I also went for a long run, and joined a team mate for a couple hours on a mountain bike in the mud of Forest Park. It felt good to do some riding that was out of my usual element. I'm still too tentative on downhills, but the practice was good and he was patient with me.

I've recently found myself uninspired by my bike commute. Normally, this time is precious to me, when I clear my head, fill my lungs, and get tuned into the weather of the day, or coming home when I unwind from a day spent with hormonal and awkward adolescents. Maybe it's the Coho, which seems worse this winter. Or maybe the cold rain we had last week, or the weeks or riding both ways in the dark, shoulders tensed by traffic and icy patches. Even my bike seemed weary, groaning and creaking pitifully. I suspected some drivetrain malady and took it in for a diagnosis. "Your chain is beyond stretched." was the verdict. So another thing I did this weekend was some bike doctoring. I installed a new chain, recycled a pretty decent Shimano 600 6-speed freewheel. overhauled the hubs, and replaced the cables, housing, and brake pads. Now it rides like a new bike, but cheaper. And the past two days have been glorious; clear and windless, frosty in the morning, and just a hint that any day now the sun will crest the horizon before I get to work. My bike is purring happily as well.

As I pulled around the back of the building this morning, looking down at the football field I saw this:

Daybreak, gulls face east

gilded by the sun's first flame

in a frost-bound field

I also got out for a Valentine's day date with T for brunch at the Country Cat, and our own little economic stimulus pilgrimage. Now I know I've recently been preaching the virtues of saving and I'm not backing away from that. Indeed, part of me wants to see the economy tank even further in the belief that, like an alcoholic who has to hit bottom before he can begin recovery, our economy is not yet at a place where those in charge will acknowledge the folly of a system dependent on consumer debt. However, the government cut us a check last week. Or rather, returned the part of our taxes owed back to us, and we spent part of it on a new camera. The old Canon died on us just before Christmas, and T has been talking for over two years about getting a "real" camera that takes better pictures than the dinky point & shoot we've relied on. I think we made a good decision.

It's been a revelation how much we've been missing. Colors are vivid and skin looks alive, not pasty or washed out, and we can capture motion instead of complaining about blur. With three kids who are growing up too quickly, it's a purchase I don't feel guilty about making. It helped that we were able to get a good deal from a local company instead of going the online or big-box route. I'm trying to keep my money close to home, even if a bunch of it eventually goes to a Chinese camera factory.

I also tried to get one of these so I could make one of these. Almost pulled the trigger because I thought I had a big team discount at River City, but it turns out the discount I hoped for didn't apply to "bikes and frames" which the xtracycle apparently is - because you attach a wheel to it. And feeling cheap and stubborn, I balked at the lesser discount they offered. I'm regretting it, a little, but we're getting closer to the transformation from THIS

To THIS

Finally, as February wears on, the allowance envelope was getting thin. I was down to my last $14 and was unsure if it would be enough for the new M Ward which was released Tuesday. So that night, after washing up the dinner dishes I did what any desperate music fan would do - scrounged up some cans and headed to Safeway. 4 dollars richer I figured I could swing the purchase and skip the lattes until the end of the month. Even better, MM had it on sale, (My 30+ year love affair with Music Millennium, and my regrets for straying in search of better prices at Best Buy/Target/Amazon I'll save for another post) so I took a look through the used bin and found this. T and I had just been talking about Tapestry at dinner - how it's one of those seminal albums that I never actually owned, probably because in my younger days I just wasn't into "chick" music. Now that I have a wife and 2 daughters who are big fans of the Gilmore Girls, and I listen to the lyrics more than I used to, so I've developed an appreciation for some music that I used to ridicule. Rumours by Fleetwood Mac is another example - I can remember in high school how much the music nerds I hung out with hated them (though I'll bet more than one had a Stevie Nicks poster in his bedroom.) Now I see Rumours for the masterpiece it is, and though I still don't much care for Stevie Nicks, I have to admit that "Dreams" is a pretty decent piece of writing for a 28-year old heartbroken coke-head. And Lindsey Buckingham was - and is - a genius.

Another Thing I Don't Understand

I read this morning that the senate thinks Americans should get a tax break for buying a new car. This is part of the "bipartisan" agreement on the ever-evolving economic stimulus plan. Republicans have been insisting that in order for them to sign on to a plan that includes all kinds of spending for infrastructure and job creation, they want to see the plan include more tax cuts. I'm having difficulty seeing the logic of cutting taxes as part of a package that is, in essence, a enormous tax bill. Keep in mind, this is a bill that we, and our children, and probably our grandchildren, will be expected to pay - the 900 billion dollars (last count) has to come from somewhere. So the senate has decided to kill two birds with one stone. By giving Americans a tax deduction for sales tax and interest on a new car, they can "help" consumers and aid the auto industry.

I truly am sympathetic to the plight of auto workers being laid off. These are hard working folks who were fortunate enough to have decent living-wage jobs and most have families to support. The last thing I would wish on anyone doing an honest day's work is for them to lose their job. The trouble is, the companies they work for put quarterly profits ahead of long-term viability and backed themselves (and their workers) into a corner by producing vehicles that no one wants to buy. They knew this was coming, but apparently the "big 3" were watching each other and waiting for the other guy to blink. They kept on producing inefficient and wasteful vehicles when they should have been investing in the tooling and technology that would create vehicles that made sense. I know I'm over-simplifying, but apparently the best solution our lawmakers can come up with is to throw some money at them and dangle some carrots that will get "consumer[s] into the showroom" so they can unload some more of those SUV's and "stimulate the economy."

This kind of says it all:

This is one consumer who won't be visiting the showroom. I'm saving for a bike. A locally made one.

I did find it encouraging to hear Obama come out swinging in response to the Republicans insistence that tax cuts produce wealth (ala "trickle-down economics") when he flatly stated he rejected that theory, as did the American people when they cast their ballots in November. Exactly. For what it's worth, both of Oregon's senators were in the minority when they voted against the auto tax break. Thank you Senators Wyden and Merkeley.

And is anyone else annoyed when government spokespeople refer to the rest of us as "consumers," like our primary responsibility as patriotic Americans is to "consume?" You don't hear the word "citizens" nearly as much these days, do you? And it seems we're "fellow Americans" only when someone wants something from us, like our vote.

On a closely related note, I was listening to Marketplace this week and the commentator was talking about the "danger" of thrift becoming a habit. Apparently, saving money is a good thing. But when everybody cuts back and starts saving, that's bad. It becomes a habit because people who stop buying stuff realize the stuff they were buying was unnecessary and pretty soon lots of people figure out they can survive just fine without all that cheap plastic crap from Walmart. As a matter of fact, many find their lives becoming richer in ways they hadn't imagined. The next thing you know they're planting gardens, raising chickens, making meals from scratch, blogging about shopping locally and sustainability, and choosing to ride bikes instead of drive. It starts looking like an anti-consumption revolution. Fortune magazine (of course) calls this "the trouble with virtue."

At this point I realize I'm bordering on violating the Baiku code - to focus on beauty and keep it simple. So here's where I wanted to go. Our economy - and therefore our culture - are changing in ways the history books would describe as revolutionary. Each of us gets to choose, every day, what that change will look like and how we will personally participate in it. I believe this. My wife and I recently made the choice to set a strict budget for ourselves. This was too long coming, but wasn't done out of desperation or, thankfully, unemployment. I have $100 to spend on myself every month. It's in an envelope. If I want a latte and a scone, a CD, a race registration, or a new saddle for the bike, it comes out of the envelope, and when it's gone, that's it. The point wasn't so much to save as it was to spend more thoughtfully. Instead of whipping out the debit card, my purchases have to be deliberate, and that has made ALL the difference. I believe spending is a form of voting. If I choose to spend my money at the Academy Theater, that's a vote in favor of a local business I think is good for my community. Conversely, if I chose to spend my money at Walmart (I don't), I'd be casting a vote in favor of their business model and labor practices. This kind of spending - and not spending - is empowering. I even kicked my Craigslist bike paraphernalia habit - I haven't visited the site since early December. As my wife said, there's always a good deal; the question is not whether I want it, but whether I need it. I'm slowly learning the difference. I'm also finding this type of thinking is spilling over into other areas of my life, like whether I choose to buy new or used, or what I want to grow & serve & eat, or what I watch & read, and most importantly, how I spend my time. Because like money, time is also finite and can be spent recklessly and thoughtlessly, or with deliberation and care. These lessons are good. It feel like I'm not the only person learning them.

Read. Ride. Repeat.

Winter Commute

A final kiss goodbye

A prayer my family sleeps safe

Layered gloved and helmeted

I step into the dark, latch the door mount up and

Ride into the final days of winter

Into the lees of the last snow

Treacherous gravel and wet grime curb to curb

I take the center in the fog until overtaking headlights

force the drift and skate of the shoulder sandbars.

Arrival the postponing of a skirmish

Resuming in the evening through quartering wind

cars hissing rain, following my feeble arc of light

Home, back knotted with work and road rudeness to

Uncoil the hose and flush muck and oily grit

Into the thawing earth.

Above, the slimmest shard of the new moon

rattles in the winter wracked limbs of the old dogwood

curved arms of light

reaching for the nearness

of the one star in the sky.

Read, ride, repeat.