Front-Loaded

A couple of projects have come together lately including front fender, front rack, front basket and yes even a front dyno headlight!  This week I've been riding with my work clothes/rain gear up front as opposed to in my trunk bag/pannier setup.  The bike definitely feels different, I like the ride just fine but I'm having trouble getting used to how much attention the front wheel needs when I'm off the bike or moving it around to get it locked up.  I'm wondering if tightening up the headset would help me out any and I'm also considering trying one of those Velo-Orange front end 'dampener' setups.  More to follow.

Gorgeous ride in this morning, so much so that I had to dally on the SE waterfront and get a couple shots of the upgrades!

Routine...

....a one word summary for what biking to work has become over the 2 short months I've been doing it. And I mean it in the very best sense of the word.  In large part because I started concurrant with moving homes it seems utterly natural to ride to work, and completely foreign to drive.  I pretty much average 4 days a week at this point with work travel and afterwork plans sometimes forcing a variance.  There's been alot of noteworthy things in the past several weeks that I would love to catch up on in the blog but I'm just  not sure I'll get to them individually.  So I'm just going to dump a bunch of photo's with captions from the past month or so on two wheels.... I also need to update on my gear projects particularly the 650B wheel build and some new acquisitions!

San Diego County Administration Building at night... my hotel was very close to this place and it made for a great landmark as I was riding around the city.

Sunset off of Point Loma in San Diego.

Erika's new mountain bike (I got one too), we made a short outing during our April campout in Winchester... fun but super-physical!

650B LIVES!  My new rim, taped up and showing the Shimano 105 road hub through the valve hole, this project was a long time in coming but totally worthwhile. More coming on this for sure!

The Trek wearing it's new 'shoes', 650B wheels with a front dyno hub and brand new 9 speed cassette, new rear derailleur too!

After years of driving past the IHRT headed to Dahlgren, VA I finally had the opportunity and equipment to stop and 'smell the roses', I had a lovely fast ride through about 10 miles of this park.

Just another day crossing S. Capitol St SE/SW...

Over the rainbow... wow, last thursday I got DRENCHED and finally stopped as the rain was hard enough to make seeing where I was going difficult. The stop was well worth it for this double rainbow over the Four-Mile Run mouth and Potomac River.

Another view of the deluge, check out that rain!

My first coffee stop with the new PDW coffe mug holder. I unfortunately have to report that if the lid isn't completely sealed you are in for a hot spill but it is still a fun addition. Also note the sneak preview of the new handlebar tape - GO HOKIES!