Hey Rob, thank you... as I said your Letour luxe was what got me motivated. The bars I am using a a cheap pair of steelies I borrowed from a Huffy! They do allow for a very comfortable riding position. The other key was that the steel bars have an interior diameter that permit the use of par ends, most alloy bars do not.

 

Wald makes a very nice bar that is really similar in shap. It's the Wald 8095 touring bar, it sells for about $9.10 from most online retailers. I have some other Wald bars and the chrome on them surprised me, they actually look really nice. If you are after lighter alloy bars, niagaracycle.com carries some alloy pyramid north road bars for around 15 dollars.

Thanks for the info. I had googled North Road Handlebars but wasn't coming up with any useful links. It's the style my old Raleigh roadster has, along with a couple other of my old bikes. I never thought about scavenging some from a junker but that's a good idea. I'll also look into Wald.

I don't consider it a hot button issue. As I said, I remain vigilant, signal often, and am always prepared to reduce my speed and leave the trail when it's too crowded.

 

I totally agree, I don't see the controversy.  This is my thought:

 

Pedestrians are to cyclists as

Cyclists are to Automobiles.

 

We road cyclists spend a lot of hot air about our equal rights to roads.  Even though we may be slower we have a right to safely occupy a lane.  I really really really appreciate when drivers give me the courtesy of space or lower speeds when they pass.

 

MUPs are the reverse. Some cyclists seem to think that MUPs are for the sole use of cyclists.  They see peds and children as dangerous clogs that ought to stay away.  In fact, they have every right to the paths and they deserve as much respect as cyclists on the streets.

 

If I am on a MUP my goals are much much different than they are on a street.  And as Kingfish said, I keep my eyes open and act respectfully to anyone at any speed.  I think about all of the motorists that yell at me, honk and flip me off and try my best not to be that guy on a MUP.

Rob, as a small bonus Wald seems to be a decent company.  They have other bars with more rise as well.

 

Now, if you want something a bit fancier.... Nitto albatross bars are very pricey eye candy.  Velo-orange.com also has many interesting french inspired bends, some with a 90 degree sweep.  This is their Monmartre bar, it's not cheap at 42.00:

 

Biking is rough in this city.

Nah, I love it and the hills. Most people would wince climbing Gilbert, Vine or Clifton, but I look forward to it!

Most people aren't you, my friend.  There's nothing worse than showing up to work a sweaty mess.

^I ride in 15 miles in the morning. 10 minutes and a sponge bath and I'm fresh as a daisy. And yeah, it burns off insane amounts of weight.

Most people aren't you, my friend. There's nothing worse than showing up to work a sweaty mess.

 

I shower at Xavier's gym :) There was a day I biked and the gym was closed for cleaning that week (I missed the notice), but it wasn't that bad. My co-workers didn't seem to mind.

I probably eat as many calories in one meal than you do in a day :P

 

I just bike. A lot.

 

Umm humm.  Let you tell it.  I bet you could fit in man bag.  I would just carry your lil ass around!!  LOL  :)

Most people aren't you, my friend. There's nothing worse than showing up to work a sweaty mess.

 

I shower at Xavier's gym :) There was a day I biked and the gym was closed for cleaning that week (I missed the notice), but it wasn't that bad. My co-workers didn't seem to mind.

 

Do you work at Xavier?  If so, great, as I was referring to showing at WORK, and I don't know too many workplaces that have showers.

Most people aren't you, my friend.  There's nothing worse than showing up to work a sweaty mess.

 

I shower at Xavier's gym :) There was a day I biked and the gym was closed for cleaning that week (I missed the notice), but it wasn't that bad. My co-workers didn't seem to mind.

 

Do you work at Xavier?  If so, great, as I was referring to showing at WORK, and I don't know too many workplaces that have showers.

 

Lots of offices have them.

Most people aren't you, my friend.  There's nothing worse than showing up to work a sweaty mess.

 

I shower at Xavier's gym :) There was a day I biked and the gym was closed for cleaning that week (I missed the notice), but it wasn't that bad. My co-workers didn't seem to mind.

 

Do you work at Xavier?  If so, great, as I was referring to showing at WORK, and I don't know too many workplaces that have showers.

 

Lots of offices have them.

 

And many more don't. :wink:

Most people aren't you, my friend.  There's nothing worse than showing up to work a sweaty mess.

 

I shower at Xavier's gym :) There was a day I biked and the gym was closed for cleaning that week (I missed the notice), but it wasn't that bad. My co-workers didn't seem to mind.

 

Do you work at Xavier?  If so, great, as I was referring to showing at WORK, and I don't know too many workplaces that have showers.

 

Lots of offices have them.

 

And many more don't. ;)

How can I drop in a totally different thread, and hear the same things being argued about by the same people?

 

FACT:  Many offices have showers for employees.  Fast food restaurants do not!!

 

Sherman,  Let me know when you have peddled up Straight St.!!

I have, and it is a pain-in-the-ass! So is Ravine. I feel like I'm about to have a heart attack at the top of the climb.

I'll bet Cinci is the stretched-chain capital of the Midwest.

Can someone calculate the slope and distance of Straight St. from McMicken to Cllifton?

Here is a video I did today, which only took about 20 minutes to film, but took me hours wrestling with the video editing software, and it's still not really that good (Vine St. Hill starts at 4:05 and check out the suicide move at 4:40 [i've seen bikers blow through this intersection without checking for any cross traffic]):

 

Unfortunately my video quality regressed with this new one, since I used a handlebar mount instead of mounting the camera on the front post.  The handlebar mount catches the left-right action of hill climbing or any mild pedaling.  The front post doesn't have that problem, but the cables block the picture:

 

I'm going to the hardware store tomorrow to figure out a way to get the camera out in front of the cables. I'm anticipating lots and lost of duct tape. 

Did you attach it to the helmet for #1?

ODOT plans to straighten Ohio 44 where bicyclist Miles Coburn was killed last year

Cleveland Plain Dealer

 

Newbury Township — A short-yet-deadly stretch of Ohio 44 claimed its third life in seven years last summer when a crash killed an experienced cyclist. Now, the Ohio Department of Transportation says it will move earth to make the roadway safer.

 

READ MORE AT:

http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2009/09/_odot_plans_to_straighten.html

I have a big question for all you cyclists.  What do you worry about more when you are out cycling: cars, other cyclists, or pedestrians?

 

Shockingly, I'm going to say I worry about cars the least.  It seems like 95% of the time I bike in the city it's the pedestrians not looking.  They dodge out in front of you on streets, walk in the bike lanes, or block limited access bike paths. 

 

Most of the time in my life I'm a pedestrian, I walk to work, to stores, to restaurants etc, so I can understand the impatience of waiting at a crosswalk for the light to change.  I just wish they'd remember to look out for more than just cars when jaywalking.

Pedestrians absolutely, followed by cars, and then other bikes.

I worry more about cars.  I can dodge around a jaywalker pretty easily.  And I've never heard of anyone being clipped from behind by a pedestrian.

I have a big question for all you cyclists.  What do you worry about more when you are out cycling: cars, other cyclists, or pedestrians?

 

Shockingly, I'm going to say I worry about cars the least.  It seems like 95% of the time I bike in the city it's the pedestrians not looking.  They dodge out in front of you on streets, walk in the bike lanes, or block limited access bike paths. 

 

Most of the time in my life I'm a pedestrian, I walk to work, to stores, to restaurants etc, so I can understand the impatience of waiting at a crosswalk for the light to change.  I just wish they'd remember to look out for more than just cars when jaywalking.

 

For the most part, in urban cycling I worry about cars the least; I avoid arterial streets, and on the residential streets where traffic usually is light and more subdued, I can hear them coming.

 

On paths heedless pedestrians can be a nuisance, especially when it's a whole family out for an evening stroll. The spread across the entire path as if the whole world is their private back yard, and when they're walking dogs on those looooong retractible leashes ...

 

Often I can't hear other cyclists coming from behind and they pass too close and too fast without audible warning. As for the jocks who move at a training-ride pace on paths and intimidate pedestrians and slower cyclists, someone ought to shove a stick through their spokes.

 

How about skaters? They get that side-to-side motion going and eat up the entire width of a path. That's one of the things I like about unpaved trails; no skaters.

I should qualify that pedestrians are only a problem when I'm forced onto the sidewalk--almost exclusively when biking with my son. Pedestrians on the paths, too, need a serious primer in road-share. I'll signal to a group of pedestrians on the path and get absolutely no reaction--sometimes an oncoming group will look up and acknowledge my presence and STILL not alter their course. Amazing. The Olentangy path as it passes through the OSU campus is the absolute worst. It makes me question how much experience some of these young students have walking outside.

My biggest beef on bike & rec trails are my fellow bicyclists who don 't give you a warning when they are passing.  Too often, they are the Lance Armstrong wannabe's who.... even if I'm making a good pace at 13-15th MPH....pass me like I'm standing still and without so much as an "On your left".  I've got a rear-view mirror on my handlebars, but they still manage to appear without warning... I actually made a left turn hand signal once and damn near smacked one of these "Lance-Wannabees".

I make good use of my bell. It works better on cyclists than pedestrians, though. I only use it on them when the path is crowded and/or they've wandered over the center line.

>t makes me question how much experience some of these young students have walking outside.

 

I see this all the time.  It's the worst when you're headed in the opposite direction, toward a group. They surely can see you for 10-20 seconds, but somehow still don't see you. Seriously, I think some of these kids might be so heavily drugged they don't know what's going on. 

 

Once I passed a hillbilly and his 4 or 5 kids, all under 10, very slowly because it was early in the summer and I tired from a long ride and riding slowly and one of the kids ran up behind me and whacked me in the back with a little tree branch like a switch.  You're riding along, pass a group, then hear some little footsteps running full-speed behind you.  You figure the kid is just running full-speed for the hell of it, not wielding and intending to use an improvised weapon.   

 

 

^I definitely get harassed by poor whites more than any other group. Strange.

^I definitely get harassed by poor whites more than any other group. Strange.

 

Poor drunk whites, driving hoopties.

They begun adding express lanes to the bike paths here in the Chi for those who want to go blazing speeds.  Onramps that take cyclists down then beneath the path have also helped reduce accidents at congested points.  Pedestrians are SUPPOSED to stay behind the white line, but they rarely do.  The path gets very congested and the bike cops try to keep it flowing below 15 mph, but it doesn't seem to help much.  I ride up to the Northside once a week to check on my car, and I brush sleeves about 10 times.  So far no collisions.... but I've heard when it happens, just shake it off and move on.  Not much that can be done about it.

 

Interesting story jmecklenborg.  I really wish parents these days would do a better job keeping their kids under control.  There's really no excuse.  When I used to work in a hobby store I could really tell what kids were taught properly to behave in public and which weren't. 

Most people aren't you, my friend. There's nothing worse than showing up to work a sweaty mess.

 

I shower at Xavier's gym :) There was a day I biked and the gym was closed for cleaning that week (I missed the notice), but it wasn't that bad. My co-workers didn't seem to mind.

 

Do you work at Xavier? If so, great, as I was referring to showing at WORK, and I don't know too many workplaces that have showers.

 

Lots of offices have them.

 

And many more don't. ;)

 

But most will soon.  Every place I've ever worked from retail to professional jobs have had showers.  My current building has a fitness center and basketball court so I hope people choose to use the shower before returning to work lol.

>t makes me question how much experience some of these young students have walking outside.

 

I see this all the time. It's the worst when you're headed in the opposite direction, toward a group. They surely can see you for 10-20 seconds, but somehow still don't see you. Seriously, I think some of these kids might be so heavily drugged they don't know what's going on.  

 

 

Sounds similar to walking inside a walmart.  I hate going there, you would swear that you were invisible!  There is always some trashy type on their cell phone pushing their cart along... they may see you coming but they will still run straight into you somehow.

 

That story about the child and the branch, absolutely crazy...  a real shame.

They begun adding express lanes to the bike paths here in the Chi for those who want to go blazing speeds.  Onramps that take cyclists down then beneath the path have also helped reduce accidents at congested points.  Pedestrians are SUPPOSED to stay behind the white line, but they rarely do.  The path gets very congested and the bike cops try to keep it flowing below 15 mph, but it doesn't seem to help much.  I ride up to the Northside once a week to check on my car, and I brush sleeves about 10 times.  So far no collisions.... but I've heard when it happens, just shake it off and move on.  Not much that can be done about it.

 

I've contemplated bringing a bike to Chicago, but I've been intimidated by what I've seen there. I'm not sure there's a place for somebody my age who isn't and never was an athlete. Even though I ride steadily and predictably and stay to the right, I'm not fast (~12mph) and I like to take in my surroundings. I think I'd probably feel terrorized.

 

Then there's the logistics issue, anyway. Because of SRO loads even on many off-peak trips, the only bikes permitted on South Shore trains are folding bikes in bags, stowed on the overhead racks.

>I definitely get harassed by poor whites

 

Part of the reason why poor people stay poor for generations is because they perceive certain personality traits and behaviors as weaknesses that aren't. Bicycling by adults is definitely seen as a weakness. A lot of those people put their whole effort into looking strong, but it only looks strong to their people. It of course is a weakness to anyone who's educated and can hold a job.       

That's basically what I figured. It must be a big deal to be the only person in your family tree ever to have owned some sh!tty pickup.

Secretary Peters Says Bikes “Are Not Transportation”

from Streetsblog.org

 

We'd expect this kind of thing from some people, but on PBS' "NewsHour with Jim Lehrer" this week, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Mary Peters said that instead of raising taxes on gasoline to renew the nation's sagging infrastructure, Congress should examine its spending priorities -- including investments in bike paths and trails, which, Peters said, "are not transportation."

 

Some excerpts:

 

"You know, I think Americans would be shocked to learn that only about 60 percent of the gas tax money that they pay today actually goes into highway and bridge construction. Much of it goes in many, many other areas."

 

"There are museums that are being built with that money, bike paths, trails, repairing lighthouses. Those are some of the kind of things that that money is being spent on, as opposed to our infrastructure."

 

"Well, there's about probably some 10 percent to 20 percent of the current spending that is going to projects that really are not transportation, directly transportation-related. Some of that money is being spent on things, as I said earlier, like bike paths or trails."

 

http://www.streetsblog.org/2007/08/17/secretary-peters-says-bikes-are-not-transportation/

 

Oh, how times have changed.

Commentary

Bicyclist's death is a call for awareness

Friday,  August 29, 2008 3:14 AM

By Ann Fisher

 

Tracey Corbin couldn't afford to maintain the car he needed to commute to work, let alone buy the gasoline. So he bought a bike and outfitted himself as if he were the poster child for the pedal-to-work movement.

 

Full story: http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2008/08/29/ann29_ART_08-29-08_B1_V4B5TEG.html?sid=101

 

Came across this when I was cleaning up the thread. What is even more tragic about this accident is that the victim was killed no more than a half mile from the Alum Creek trail; I use that same trail further north to skirt some pretty dangerous roads on my morning commute.

Cycling map a safety guide

County's roads graded for biking suitability; public input sought

Tuesday,  March 10, 2009 3:15 AM

By Dean Narciso

THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

 

The head of a bicycle-advocacy group thinks a new color-coded map will shepherd more bicyclists onto Franklin County's safest streets.

 

Full story: http://dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2009/03/10/bikemap.ART_ART_03-10-09_B1_JND62C1.html?sid=101

 

Very cool. I'm planning on riding/busing to work tomorrow. I'll put their little map to the test.

Another post I came across while cleaning. As a post-script to my March comment, with this map in hand I bussed and biked--and then just biked--to work all summer long. 1400 commuter miles (and 40lbs later), I'd say the map worked.

This is a very rough edit of a ride from Cincinnati to Columbus. The video is presently screwed up because the camera records in 50 minute files but the conversion program I had only converted the first 12 minutes of each file.  So what you are seeing is 12 minutes of riding, a 38 minute gap, 12 minutes of riding, a 38 minute gap, and so on. Also, the camera died just two miles from downtown Columbus.  The battery was still good, but the camera itself geeked out and corrupted the last file. So if I had pedaled 1% harder throughout the ride you would be seeing the statehouse at the end, instead you're seeing Franklintown. So obviously I need to go back and refilm the last two miles.       

 

Also, I need to use Final Cut to turn the first two segments about 10 degrees so they are right-side-up.  You feel pretty stupid embarking on something like this and messing up something that simple.  Also, the final product will be higher video quality...what you're seeing was degraded so that it could be edited faster.   

 

 

The ride itself...I started at 7:30am and rolled in at 9pm.  If I had done this earlier in the summer it would have still been light out, but the sun went down around 8:15.  I took a grand total of about 60 minutes of breaks.  If I do this ride again I'm doing it on a road bike.  I'm sure I could get on a road bike and do this whole ride at least 2 hours faster, maybe more.   

 

The final video will be a lot more interesting than this one, since there won't be the breaks in continuity and you will be able to see the light change gradually. 

 

 

Love it Jake, keep it up! I love seeing these vids from a cyclists perspective. Do yo mind if I share this at http://www.cincyrides.com?

It's not ready yet. The fully edited version will be a lot better. 

Extremely cool. Makes me want to ride to Cincinnati.

Can someone calculate the slope and distance of Straight St. from McMicken to Cllifton?

Create an itinerary on www.Bikely.com and then use the "elevation profile" function to see a plot of the slope and the total distance climbed.

Thanks, I'll try it out!

Yeah, bikely is my favorite.  mapmyride.com is another decent one.

They begun adding express lanes to the bike paths here in the Chi for those who want to go blazing speeds.  Onramps that take cyclists down then beneath the path have also helped reduce accidents at congested points.  Pedestrians are SUPPOSED to stay behind the white line, but they rarely do.  The path gets very congested and the bike cops try to keep it flowing below 15 mph, but it doesn't seem to help much.  I ride up to the Northside once a week to check on my car, and I brush sleeves about 10 times.  So far no collisions.... but I've heard when it happens, just shake it off and move on.  Not much that can be done about it.

 

I've contemplated bringing a bike to Chicago, but I've been intimidated by what I've seen there. I'm not sure there's a place for somebody my age who isn't and never was an athlete. Even though I ride steadily and predictably and stay to the right, I'm not fast (~12mph) and I like to take in my surroundings. I think I'd probably feel terrorized.

 

Then there's the logistics issue, anyway. Because of SRO loads even on many off-peak trips, the only bikes permitted on South Shore trains are folding bikes in bags, stowed on the overhead racks.

 

Rob, in all honesty if you can't remain constant ABOVE 15 mph, do not bring your bike to Chicago.  It's the only speed I've found to be comfortable with in traffic.  Anything slower I'm up on the sidewalks doing 3mph so that I don't make pedestrians uncomfortable.  I've modified my bike to make traveling at 25-30 mph much easier.  I now use the left most lanes on Chicago streets.  Believe it or not, using the left lanes as opposed to the right lanes feels safer, though it probably isn't.  But you avoid buses and taxis, people parked, etc using the right lanes.  As long as you bike with the same speed of traffic you are fine.

 

You also need good acceleration at green lights.  Be sure you can accelerate just as fast as traffic, or it can create problems.  I bought really expensive sprockets for my bike that held up stronger than the last ones which I completely tore up.

 

Sure there are bike lanes where you could go slower, but from what I've seen as well, people move quick.

 

Overall, motorists in Chicago are respectful of cyclists.  At the same time, they trust that you are safe and know what you are doing. 

http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2009/08/cycologists_bicycle_band.html

In Washington, a Two-Tire Industry Goes Flat

Athletic rebels swathed in Lycra, zipping in and out of traffic to beat the delivery deadline, watch their livelihood evaporate.

By Steve Hendrix, Washington Post Staff Writer, Tuesday, September 15, 2009

 

Getting a meticulously prepared legal brief to a courthouse or federal agency on time used to require a bit of comic-book valor. Just before deadline, exhausted lawyers handed off the document to a character in the tight Lycra of a superhero, the shoulder bag of a Pony Express rider and the bulging thighs of an athlete. One of Washington's legions of bicycle messengers would then dart through perilous traffic and any weather to deliver the goods in the nick of time.

 

Now, as the last of the area's courts and agencies begin to allow electronic filings instead of demanding piles of paper, deadline dramas in many law offices are being reduced to little more than hitting the "send" button.

 

The courier business -- for decades a quirky by-product of Washington's No. 1 industry, paper-pushing -- finds itself in rapid decline. Tighter security restrictions imposed after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks have closed off many government office corridors to couriers, and the recession has dampened activity at law firms and lobbying shops, rendering the life of a time-sensitive document in the District a lot more boring.

http://www.flixxy.com/chinese-bicycle-acrobatics.htm