It's been a month

Wow, it's been awhile since I last rode. After just 3.75 miles I already felt like throwing up. It was probably b/c I didn't have much to eat for lunch and rode too hard. Lack of training made it a bit uncomfortable. But boy was it fun! I almost forgot how much fun it is to ride this thing!

Sped up to about 28 mph today on the asphalt. A couple slow moving cars ruined my speed though. Darn. Got the usual looks and kid's remarks,

"Wow, I haven't seen one of those bikes before!" shouted a little girl probably about 9 years old from her voice as I sped by.

Didn't see her face, but she was probably one of the most excited kids to ever comment on the trike. Sometimes I'm a bit hesitant to be too nice. Scared their parents might think I'm some guy from, "To catch a predator."

Just showered. Feels good.

Training success

My thoughts on how to best approach the ALC event as a recumbent rider is a lot more clear after experiencing this first training ride.

When I finally got to Mill Valley, there were about 25 people waiting there stretching and drinking coffee. Out of 100 participants for this particular training ride, that puts me in the first 1/4 of people to arrive. That's really great news.

There was also lots of space between riders. I was the first 5 people to take off from the starting line. Even after being warned by other riders, these first 4 people took the first wrong turn away from the Golden Gate Bridge. Not sure where they ended up b/c I hadn't seen them the rest of the day.

Immediately, riders would pass by me but it wasn't stressful. On the first hill, I made it to the top without getting passed up. Even on the bridge, people didn't really pass me up. One young rider did who later slowed down probably to get a better look at the trike,

"How do you steer with that thing."

"These handlebars," as I gestured using my fingertips to show him how it worked.

"That's sick." Later that day, another person would compliment with the same phrase.

For the remainder of the bridge ride, I was hanging with the group of 4 in front of me. No one else passed me. It was on the way back that loads of people - at least 10 people came up from behind.

When I reached the starting point, there were a ton of bikes. I think at least half the people were already on site.

CONCLUSION:
Although starting out in the first pack on this ride helped me and so did leaving the destination point to head back to the base, I'm hesitant to start in the front pack on day of the ALC. There will be over. This time there were 100 riders alongside me. On June 9th, there will be over 2,000 riders coming out of San Francisco. The front section will be insane.

To gain some distance over the course of the ride however, I have a couple strategies:

1. Leave early.
I am an early riser and I know most people don't want to start riding out at 6am. I'll sleep early the night before and start riding out from each of the camp sites early to give myself a head start while others are still resting, washing up or eating breakfast. This will buy me some more time if I need to rest later. It'll also give me more time to ride slower when I encounter hills. I'll also gain the benefit of less chaos. I'm guessing that around 9am, there will be a big group of riders leaving the campsites.

2. Take shorter breaks than the others.
Since I'm reclined the whole time, there's definitely less fatigue. I will take advantage of this and get an early start.

3. Don't take a break at the top of the hill.
I noticed people taking breathers after the hills. The hills are a pain in the butt, but it's either flat land or downhill that follows, I'm continuing. This worked for me during the training ride. While everyone took a break after the bridge, I kept going. They eventually caught up to me, but I needed the extra time to at least get a head start and maintain acceptable speed.


LESSONS LEARNED:

1. Take a break when I need it.
Though I'll be taking shorter breaks, I will need to take either the same number of breaks or more especially during hill climbing. I'll have plenty of people to accompany me. During this past training session, I developed a bad cramp on the inside of my thighs right before a big hill climb. It was killer. I knew if I kept going, I'd be in worse shape and regret it later. I took a good 10 minute break which was a great opportunity to check my tire pressure. By the time I was done, my cramp went away and I was ready to continue.

2. The lane's not too narrow.
My biggest concern for the ride is slowing other riders down. It's a single file line and I'm super slow on the climbs. Riders give me plenty of room as they pass me up which is great.

3. Support exists:
There really is support even during these training rides. One of the ride leaders kept his eye on me making sure I was okay. I'd catch up to him occasionally as he'd finish his breaks. For the long haul, I wasn't too far behind him. Another rider shouted,

"Good job rider!" as he saw me struggling up the hill. These few words do keep me going.

First training ride

ALC's having their first training ride for this next 7-day ride. It's tomorrow at 8am. After consulting with one of the staff earlier this week, I've decided to join the intermediate team for a 20 mile ride to Sausalito. It should be familiar territory, but I'm still a bit concerned about being able to keep up with the bicyclists.

I'll have a much better idea of where I stand with the upright bikes after tomorrows ride.

Red light traffic light changer mod

ACCESSORY 43: Red light traffic light changer $0 @ Reused junk

It's not what you think.

Although ambulances and police cars do have devices in them that literally change traffic lights from red to green in seconds to allow them to pass more safely through intersections during emergencies, this isn't what I'm going for. Having something like that in a non-city or government vehicle is punishable by fines and imprisonment.

Not worth it.

The device I'm looking for is to solve one problem. Small vehicles like bicycles, motorcycles, mopeds and tricycles are not detected at intersections where traffic lights change by under ground sensors. Our tiny vehicles are too small and the amount of metal in them doesn't trigger the traffic lights to turn green appropriately they effectively do for cars - a much larger mass.

Solution? Magnets. A company called Green Light Trigger sells magnets for $25. To keep $25 in my pocket, I looked for other sources.

Hidden inside computer hard drives are such neodymium (ultra strong) magnets. After watching some Youtube videos on where they are located and how to disassemble them, I took one apart from an old '80's computer and will be attaching it to the trike shortly.

This is how they look like. My old drive has four tiny ones. A newer drive from closer to the millennium will have two large ones equal to two of these.



Although I haven't personally encountered traffic lights not being able to sense the trike, I can imagine how frustrating it would be if I ever were to encounter such an intersection where the pedestrian button wasn't conveniently located or existing. As soon as I figure a nice clean place to put this, I'll pop it on and hopefully I'll never have to experience this traffic light issue. I'm tempted to put it on the bottom of the frame for maximum effectiveness, but I'm worried if and when I need to jump a curb, it'll scrape right off.

A Wet Sunday

It's supposed to rain again. This is the second time a Sunday Streets event will be rained out. The event goes on rain or shine, but last time time the weather was anything but dry, only 5 people showed up all wearing complete rain suits. I'm not up for that. The rotors have just been changed out. I'm not looking to get them or other components rusty again.

Looks like I'll be absent from Sunday's event. Fairly disappointing considering I was looking forward to trying those new brakes and riding around in a new neighborhood. Life goes on.

Brake Adjustment

Finished! All three wheels rotate freely w/o any friction from warped rotors and poorly adjusted calipers. The front wheel setup is in good shape and the rear wheel spins more freely than ever!

I had previously been adjusting the brakes incorrectly! No wonder it took me so long! I've finally figured it out. 10 steps to proper brake adjustment:

1. Remove the cable completely free from the caliper.

2. Loosen the caliper so that there's a bit of play with the trike frame.

3. Push the caliper towards the stationary brake pad. This is to ensure that the caliper is parallel with the pads. A gap will be made later.

4. Tighten the two screws to secure the caliper in place.

5. There should now be no gap between the rotor and the stationary brake pad. There is a gap between the rotor and the active brake pad. Slip a thick business card (credit card is too thick, 0.76mm) in this gap. I've found that placing a white sheet of paper as a background will help you see the gaps more clearly especially when working in a dark garage that has a dark colored floor.

6. Pull the active brake pad towards the credit card gently - not too hard.

7. While holding the active brake pad against the business card, reattach the cable and secure it with the screw. The business card is meant to maintain the gap. Securing it too tightly will not allow the wheel to spin freely. Nor will it allow you to remove the business card in the next step.

8. Slip the business card out. If it can't be removed, the cable is secured too tightly. Loosen it and try removing the business card out again.

9. Using a 5mm allen wrench (the same size used for the other adjustments) adjust the stationary pad so that it has a sufficient gap between it and the rotor. The closer the better. But spin the wheel intermittently to be sure the gap is wide enough and there is no friction. There should obviously be no friction before the brake lever is engaged.

10. There should now be a perfect gap on either side of the rotor. Test the brake lever. A full stop should occur before the brake lever touches the handlebar. If it touches, the gap between the rotor and the pads is too wide. Make necessary adjustments using the hand-tightening (w/o tools) the screw by the cable.

The only thing to worry about now is fine tuning any adjustments for brake steer. I haven't yet had a chance to take it on the road. Once adjusted, everything should be set and the efficiency should drastically be improved.

Rotor up

ACCESSORY 42: 160mm Avid G2 Rotors (3) $41.98 shipped @ Ebay

I can't believe these things normally sell for $35/each! Ebay's the best. The rotors came in! Though all the rotors are identical, they must be orientated correctly. They are directional. An arrow on the face of one side indicates the direction they're designed to spin in the forward rotation.

New vs. old. The stock Tektro rotor on the left was warped and I had been dealing with it by making brake adjustments to compensate. Once it started to rust though, it was time to swap them out for a new set.

This is the left front wheel. The original set required a T25 torx head to remove. The bolts were pretty worn out and at first it made me think they were hex screws.




The new set came with hex screws - size 3. They came with locktite already on them! How convenient! Again, the rotors are directional. After confirming that the rotors are in the correct orientation, all screws were secured.


Removing the front rotors also requires removing the wheel, but it's a bit more complicated to take off the frame than the back. An allen wrench is needed to hold the axle in place while the bolts are removed. The axle needs to slip out before removing the wheel. It took me about 20 minutes to figure out, but I'm sure I can do it next time in 5 minutes. I've learned that replacing it with traditional bicycle skewers is not possible due to the thickness of the axle.


Removing the front wheel isn't much of a chore, but it is more difficult than removing the back wheel. It requires a 17mm wrench and an allen wrench. I don't recall the size, but it's the third one missing from this red pack.

The axle looks like this. The right side has fatter threads and is orientated on the outside. After degreasing all the gunk, I put some new grease on it to keep it running smooth. I used locktite on the threads when replacing the nuts and washers.

I was in a bit of a hurry for dinner so I didn't clean the wheel, but this would be a good time to do it while it's off the trike. It's much easier to get into the grooves to clean it out from sand and dust that's collected. Brake adjustment is next.