Ya gotta laugh at yourself. I can't imagine getting through life without that skill. My inquisitive nature, combined with my tendency to take risks often leaves me in predicaments that can only be laughed at. Yesterday I decided that I was gonna take the chain off my bike and clean it. Of course the only way to remove the chain is to actually separate one of the links. They make special tools to do that, and since I had left my back in St Thomas I bought another one in Canmore. I opted for the cheaper of the two available, since they looked of equal quality to me.
So I applied my new (inexpensive) tool and despite a bit of early resistance it did indeed pop the rivet out and as they say 'break' the chain. Except this time it seemed to literally "break" the chain. The rivet tool had a nice little piece of circular metal still attached to it once I reversed it out of the chain!! Oh, Oh!
So down to the bike shop to see what they can teach me, and if necessary buy a new chain. On the way there on my tandem Sears special I hear that bike starting to squeak....a funny kind of chirping sound as if something was rubbing on the tire. So I pull over but can't find anything wrong. Off I go again only to hear it a minute or so later. I realize this time that it was not coming from my bike at all, and instead seemed to come from overhead. Then I knew right away what it was, because I often have the experience at home. Blackbirds in particular seemed to be aggravated by cyclists and can hang over head and chatter away in an effort to protect their territory. Ya gotta laugh!
So I make it to the bike shop and after much explanation and not much advice, I get a new chain but no new tool to install it. I have to go to the other bike shop down the street but sure enough I manage to get one there and back to the RV I go. On the way back the blackbird was at me again except this time it sounded like a different bird??? It took me 2 or 3 more intersections to figure it out. Have you? The city of Penticton is friendly to the visually impaired . As well as the usual pedestrian crosswalk signals they provide a variety of audible tones, some of which sound like birds....or apparently a bike tire rubbing. Ya gotta laugh!
Anyway, to make a long story short I had not really damaged my chain at all. I had to learn through trial and error but now I think I understand. The factory rivets on the type of chain I have actually have a very fine flange on each end which shears off when you push the rivet out. That is why they supply a special connection rivet with new chains. Anyway, all is well and I learned something. It only cost me 80 bucks!! Ya gotta laugh!
And that was just yesterday.
Today....I finished the reassembly of my bike including a complete clean and polish, and headed out for the obligatory combination, test and final bike workout. Since I had replaced my little seat bag with an even "littler" seat bag for race day I did not take my phone with me as I usually do. I did make sure to bring a spare of course, a spare that I happened to buy in Canmore.
Well everything went well except of course for the fact that I felt sluggish and out of shape. I say of course because that seems to be the norm for me before big races . Fortunately it is usually my head that is the culprit, not my legs.
Everything went well until.... I got back to town when guess what? Holy shit! I got a flat! No way! I just put new tubes on, and even a new rim tape on the back, which coincidentally is the one that went flat. I must have done something wrong. No worries though, since I had a spare. And how convenient...right near a sidewalk bench. So I pull out the tools and the spare, removed the old one, found a nice little metal sliver in my tire that caused the problem, and proceeded to install my new 700C X 18-23 mm tube with the 60 mm stem. Oh No!! Apparently 60 mm means something different in Alberta since the stem was too short for me to get any air into it once I had it installed. Ya gotta laugh!
But what the hell am I gonna do? Start walking I guess. Fortunately I knew I was only about 2 kms from the RV so I began. But wait! Where exactly am I? Yaaaah...isn't this about where the bike shop is? Ha Ha! Fifty metres down the street! Ya gotta laugh!
Of course I don't have any money but the guy decided to trust me and after installing my new tube (80 mm stem) I headed back to the RV. Apparently 60 mm's means different things to different manufacturers and the only way to be safe is to go with the longer ones.
One more quick trip back to pay the bike shop guy and then back 'home' again to finish my tuneup.
And here she is... in living colour! Ain't she a beaut!
Speaking of colour, and of laughs, check this out. This is next door to our RV site. When do you suppose this sign was last updated? Ya gotta laugh!
Despite some nerves I fell pretty decent. I do have bouts of wondering what the hell this is all about, but they generally pass. I am determined to have fun damn it!!!
Run day tomorrow. Thursday is registration as well the day I will do my last little transition practice with every bit of race gear. Then Friday is the banquet and pre-race meeting, and Saturday bike check-in. The big day will be here before I know it.
(ride 37 kms)
To truly laugh, you must be able to take your pain, and play with it!"---Charlie Chaplin
Among those whom I like or admire, I can find no common denominator, but among those whom I love, I can: all of them make me laugh.---W. H. Auden
So I applied my new (inexpensive) tool and despite a bit of early resistance it did indeed pop the rivet out and as they say 'break' the chain. Except this time it seemed to literally "break" the chain. The rivet tool had a nice little piece of circular metal still attached to it once I reversed it out of the chain!! Oh, Oh!
So down to the bike shop to see what they can teach me, and if necessary buy a new chain. On the way there on my tandem Sears special I hear that bike starting to squeak....a funny kind of chirping sound as if something was rubbing on the tire. So I pull over but can't find anything wrong. Off I go again only to hear it a minute or so later. I realize this time that it was not coming from my bike at all, and instead seemed to come from overhead. Then I knew right away what it was, because I often have the experience at home. Blackbirds in particular seemed to be aggravated by cyclists and can hang over head and chatter away in an effort to protect their territory. Ya gotta laugh!
So I make it to the bike shop and after much explanation and not much advice, I get a new chain but no new tool to install it. I have to go to the other bike shop down the street but sure enough I manage to get one there and back to the RV I go. On the way back the blackbird was at me again except this time it sounded like a different bird??? It took me 2 or 3 more intersections to figure it out. Have you? The city of Penticton is friendly to the visually impaired . As well as the usual pedestrian crosswalk signals they provide a variety of audible tones, some of which sound like birds....or apparently a bike tire rubbing. Ya gotta laugh!
Anyway, to make a long story short I had not really damaged my chain at all. I had to learn through trial and error but now I think I understand. The factory rivets on the type of chain I have actually have a very fine flange on each end which shears off when you push the rivet out. That is why they supply a special connection rivet with new chains. Anyway, all is well and I learned something. It only cost me 80 bucks!! Ya gotta laugh!
And that was just yesterday.
Today....I finished the reassembly of my bike including a complete clean and polish, and headed out for the obligatory combination, test and final bike workout. Since I had replaced my little seat bag with an even "littler" seat bag for race day I did not take my phone with me as I usually do. I did make sure to bring a spare of course, a spare that I happened to buy in Canmore.
Well everything went well except of course for the fact that I felt sluggish and out of shape. I say of course because that seems to be the norm for me before big races . Fortunately it is usually my head that is the culprit, not my legs.
Everything went well until.... I got back to town when guess what? Holy shit! I got a flat! No way! I just put new tubes on, and even a new rim tape on the back, which coincidentally is the one that went flat. I must have done something wrong. No worries though, since I had a spare. And how convenient...right near a sidewalk bench. So I pull out the tools and the spare, removed the old one, found a nice little metal sliver in my tire that caused the problem, and proceeded to install my new 700C X 18-23 mm tube with the 60 mm stem. Oh No!! Apparently 60 mm means something different in Alberta since the stem was too short for me to get any air into it once I had it installed. Ya gotta laugh!
But what the hell am I gonna do? Start walking I guess. Fortunately I knew I was only about 2 kms from the RV so I began. But wait! Where exactly am I? Yaaaah...isn't this about where the bike shop is? Ha Ha! Fifty metres down the street! Ya gotta laugh!
Of course I don't have any money but the guy decided to trust me and after installing my new tube (80 mm stem) I headed back to the RV. Apparently 60 mm's means different things to different manufacturers and the only way to be safe is to go with the longer ones.
One more quick trip back to pay the bike shop guy and then back 'home' again to finish my tuneup.
And here she is... in living colour! Ain't she a beaut!
Speaking of colour, and of laughs, check this out. This is next door to our RV site. When do you suppose this sign was last updated? Ya gotta laugh!
Despite some nerves I fell pretty decent. I do have bouts of wondering what the hell this is all about, but they generally pass. I am determined to have fun damn it!!!
Run day tomorrow. Thursday is registration as well the day I will do my last little transition practice with every bit of race gear. Then Friday is the banquet and pre-race meeting, and Saturday bike check-in. The big day will be here before I know it.
(ride 37 kms)
To truly laugh, you must be able to take your pain, and play with it!"---Charlie Chaplin
Love
Peter
Awesome blog today! I enjoyed reading it. I'm glad you're focused on having fun - that's what is important! I hope you have a good run today, love you!
ReplyDeleteMike