Sunday, August 30, 2009
Sunday, June 14, 2009
World Naked Bike Ride - Portland
The world naked bike ride, what can I say but, wow! I was not a hundred percent certain I would attend, but at 9:30 last night I wheeled out the door and headed to the industrial area north of downtown Portland. It was a bit chilly and windy out, but I met up with some other riders headed the same direction along the way. We could hear the music from about a quarter mile out and there was no turning back.
On arrival I was struck by the sheer volume of bikes locked up outside. There were people from every walk of life wandering around outside. Some were in costume, some were partially clothed, some were neither. Once inside, the scene was unbelievable. Great beer, live music, and a thousand sweaty dancing bodies to boot. About a half hour before the ride kickoff, the Last Regiment of Syncopated Drummers marched through the warehouse and definitely kicked things up another notch (if that were at all possible). That led to the mass exodus to the bikes.
Once I had my bike and "prepped" for the ride, I headed out to the street where I was simply awe struck by the number of people. The cue went on as far as I could see. It was truly inspiring. The ride took off and headed through NW Portland and then down Burnside. The further we went the more the crowds of spectators grew. There were cheers and high fives all around along with the occasional bit of ass slapping. The sound of bicycle bells ringing constantly. We cleared the Burnside bridge out to Sandy and down to the Hawthorn bridge. --Just a thought here, riding a bicycle naked over a steel grated bridge creates a very interesting sensation--. We turned and headed back up toward Old Town where the ride ground down to the naked bike walk (--note: I heard that the rear portion of the pack was cut off from the bridge loop and forced in with the rest which caused the jam up). Once through the jam it was a smooth roll back to the party.
The people were amazing, and not just the cyclists. Props to all the bystanders that decided to make a show of solidarity by losing there clothes while standing on the side of the road cheering. It should also be noted that there was a HUGE amount of appreciation for Portland's finest for blocking traffic at the major intersections. All in all it was an amazing experience which I will definitely repeat.
There is a great write up at Bike Portland (probably NSFW due to the pics).
See you there next year!
On arrival I was struck by the sheer volume of bikes locked up outside. There were people from every walk of life wandering around outside. Some were in costume, some were partially clothed, some were neither. Once inside, the scene was unbelievable. Great beer, live music, and a thousand sweaty dancing bodies to boot. About a half hour before the ride kickoff, the Last Regiment of Syncopated Drummers marched through the warehouse and definitely kicked things up another notch (if that were at all possible). That led to the mass exodus to the bikes.
Once I had my bike and "prepped" for the ride, I headed out to the street where I was simply awe struck by the number of people. The cue went on as far as I could see. It was truly inspiring. The ride took off and headed through NW Portland and then down Burnside. The further we went the more the crowds of spectators grew. There were cheers and high fives all around along with the occasional bit of ass slapping. The sound of bicycle bells ringing constantly. We cleared the Burnside bridge out to Sandy and down to the Hawthorn bridge. --Just a thought here, riding a bicycle naked over a steel grated bridge creates a very interesting sensation--. We turned and headed back up toward Old Town where the ride ground down to the naked bike walk (--note: I heard that the rear portion of the pack was cut off from the bridge loop and forced in with the rest which caused the jam up). Once through the jam it was a smooth roll back to the party.
The people were amazing, and not just the cyclists. Props to all the bystanders that decided to make a show of solidarity by losing there clothes while standing on the side of the road cheering. It should also be noted that there was a HUGE amount of appreciation for Portland's finest for blocking traffic at the major intersections. All in all it was an amazing experience which I will definitely repeat.
There is a great write up at Bike Portland (probably NSFW due to the pics).
See you there next year!
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Monday, March 16, 2009
Lotus 3000R Update
I made a couple changes to the Lotus over the past week or so. The big one is that I swapped out the handlebars for the drops that were originally on my Salsa. The 'Short and Shallow' bar is wider and more comfortable than the drop bar from the Lotus. What can I say... I have a wide stance. The width caused an unexpected issue with the brake cable length, so those got swapped out too.
So far: tires, tubes, cables, seat (re-use), handlebars (re-use), clipless pedals, and a seatpost bag for spare and tools. (Not too bad overall)
If I could change one thing that I did on it so far, I would have put tires with reflective sidewalls on it.
I think I am done working on this one for a while. It has been a pretty fun bike puttering around the neighborhood, but now I need to take it out on a longer ride.
Back to the other bikes...
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