Avocet Touring Mod II

These are vintage touring shoes by Avocet. At size 8 they are really small but definitely keepers. They remind me of indoor soccer shoes, soft and supple. The soles are a nice thick rubber that reminds me of an eraser.

Kyokuto Pro VIC II - Vintage Pedals

I found these pedals in my junk box. They are vintage Kyokuto pedals from the late 1970s. I'm going to use these for my SS Road Bike project. They have a fairly wide platform and will look great with some stainless steel cages.

In a previous post, I said Yin & Yang design scheme but now I think a Piet Mondrian color scheme on the frame would look great. When it comes to design, I like the bold colors of Red, Yellow and Blue and Piet Mondrian's use of the primary colors and angular lines really captivates me. The only deviation for me would be all black wheels.

My Single Speed/Fixed Gear Road Bike Project

I my getting a little bore and need a new project. I've been toying with the idea of putting together a SS Road bike for awhile and talking with Ron put me over the edge. I have collected a number of spare parts over the years and it looks like I have enough to build a SS speed road bike. We'll see what happens ...

Last year I built a Black SS Mountain Bike and its my favorite ride on the mountain. I would like to build a white SS road bike as an homage to Yin and Yang.



Here's a sweet Austro Daimler similiar to the one I have. Someone did a great job converting it to a fixie/SS. I kept mine 95% original. I just don't have the desire to convert it. For me its too nice. Picture from: (http://velospace.org/files/bike_1325.jpg)

Ron on a SS, Coyotes, Two Flats, Daryl, Motorcyclist Down and no Trip to Mt. Baldy

The day started early, I was on my bike by 6:30 am and headed to GMR for a Mt. Baldy ride. I met up with Annette and it was a nice and easy ride to the Maintenance Shed. I commented on how the weather was cool and how light the traffic was. Few cars, motorcycle and luge racers crossed our paths to the Maintenance Shed.

At the shed we met three riders from Riverside Bicycle Club and they were headed to Crystal Lake. As it turns out they are fans of www.glendoramtnroad.com too, and all the more reason to keep Annette posting (I had commented earlier to her that she is slacking on her posts)!



We also met Ron at the shed. Ron sports an orange Mercier single speed. I met him briefly two weeks ago on my ride to Baldy with the guys from BikeForums.net. At 46 X 16, Ron is a monster pushing that gear ratio to Mt. Baldy. We talked a short while and looks like he's going to build a cyclocross bike. I asked if it will be a SS and he said no, probably a 1 X 9. He's looking at 42t up front and 12-32t in the rear.




Here is Annette with her signature red handkerchief. She's calling herself the Squirrel Magnet now.



At about Fork plus 2 we spotted two coyotes walking up the middle of the road. I sped up shouting to get them off the road. The cub took off for the bushes but momma barely moved. She looked sick, maybe poisoned. It was both sad and a little scary as mamma really wasn't spooked by me. Annette noticed mamma approach me as I pulled out my camera. Mamma probably thought I was going to feed her. You should never feed wild animals!



I got two simultaneous flats at Fork plus 3.75. Darn, one tube, two flats, thankfully Annette had a spare. There were many concerned riders who stopped to lend a hand. With a close inspection of my tire I didn't notice any thorns or goat heads. I think what punctured them was a very sharp rock. Specialized Armadillos maybe the solution to this problem.



Daryl and Rick (I think that's his name) came riding up GMR as I changed my tube. Daryl is back from riding the Pyrenees in France. He used GMR as training for the Pyrenees, so If you can conquer GMR you can conquer anything! Rick was riding a custom Seven.



After the coyotes and flat tires, I decided I should turn around and save Mt. Baldy for another day. On the way back we crossed paths with Adobo Velo riders. These guys ride GMR to the Mt. Baldy ski lifts.

Annette and I also encountered a total idiot Motorcyclists who came really close to hitting us. I was so taken back by his total lack of Road etiquette/courtesy and Annette had a few choice words for him. Note to self, never let your guard down when riding GMR.

At about the Banana Tree, I witnessed one motorcyclists lay his bike down. On an inside turn his tires picked up some debris and caused his bike to slide out from under him. He went down and was more pissed off than hurt. Many expletives came out of his mouth.

The second half of my ride was wrought with much traffic. Speeding Motorcyclists, Cars and other Bicyclists who started the day later.

Never Easy, Always Rewarding - MTB on a Single Speed

Up early and on the road by 7:00 am, today I road my single speed to the Claremont Wilderness Trails. Getting there was hard because it was my first day back on the SS after a four week Mt. Baldy Binge. You see on my road bike I have 20 different gears to choose from. On my Single Speed, you guessed it, I only have one.

Immediately heading up Garey Ave., my mind played tricks on me. "Okay Jason, switch gears," and I did a ghost shift with my right thumb. Nothing there, no resistance, darn! "This is going to be tough," I think to myself and as I ride Thompson Creek Trail to my destination.

Once I entered the wilderness trail I headed up Burbank. The ride up was hard but the trick of SS riding it to pace yourself. I get to the top of Burbank, tired, and I decide to head down jump trail. From Jump trail, I headed to Yellow Gate and down Cobol. At the bottom of Cobol, I headed back up for another loop. Two hours thirty minutes, and 22 miles later, I'm back home. Ride finished.

I felt good and was glad I did it. Riding my single speed is unusually rewarding. Maybe its the simplicity, with no gears, no suspension, and no disc brakes that keeps me wanting more. I don't know but when I ride the SS I feel connected to my bike and nature. Weird.

Carl working on his bike

Bicycle friends riding thru Fullerton

Working Hard or Hardly Working?

A Tribute to Bicycling, Glendora Mountain Road and Piet Mondrain

Although not the most accurate representation of a Piet Mondrian, I did enjoy creating this piece from MS Paint. I cheated and used grey in addition to Black and the three primary colors.

I have a vintage bike jersey, La Vie Clair that introduced me to Piet.
I call this one, Primary Plus Black and Grey AB


One more, Jamie doesn't really like this one. I call it Primary Plus Black.

New CANIDAE Racer

Keep an eye out for this gal, Maggie May, on the trails and up Glendora Mountain Road! Carl picked up Maggie May as a puppy and she is growing up sooo fast!

BikeForums.net, OC Rebels, A titanium GT and a custom Seven

Lots of riders on the road today. As I approached the Base of GMR, a group of riders were heading up too. This group came from bikeforums.net and consisted of 8 - 15 people. I rode up with Victor, and Hans until about Fork plus 6. After that Victor dropped back and Hans picked up the pace. I caught up to Mr. Beans and together we rode to Mt. Baldy Village.

OC Rebels were out on the mountain too. Great riders and hopefully I can hook up with them and the people from bikeforums.net as well.

Meme, I came across a SWEEEET titanium GT road bike that is just up your alley. The guy was part of OC Rebels and owned a few titanium GT's. I snapped a picture for you.

There was also a woman from OC Rebels who has a custom titanium Seven that was completely tricked out.

Bikeforums.net had a support vehicle and I was able to refill one water bottle at the maintenance shed.

This is my fourth trip to Mt. Baldy and it gets easier every time. On the way down I had a scare with some tumbling rocks falling onto the road. One of these rocks was about the size of a soccer ball and it tumbled down in front of me while I cruised down the mountain at excess of 40 miles per hour. I missed it but it scared the $h!T out of me.

It was nice seeing both Annette and Matt at the maintenance shed and there were not many motorcyclist out this morning.

Riding with Bicycle Friends and a Solo trip to Mt. Baldy

Picture: Byran and Carl gearing up for a long ride.

Today it will be Fork plus 4 for Byran, Carl, Annette and Matt. We met at 7:15 am and soon after started up GMR. It was particularly busy with Motorcycles, Street Luge Riders and Car Clubs. I'm not sure who is more reckless the Motorcyclist or Street Luge Riders.


Again Carl makes it to the Maintenance Shed, in a few months he'll be ready for a Mt. Baldy Ride.


This is Byran at Fork plus 4. He did really well and took the lead from East Fork to this point.


Watch out! Street Luge Riders and Motorcyclist coming really close together. These guys are insane! I wonder who made it down the mountain first?


I made it to Mt. Baldy today. Unlike last week, I felt stronger and did get leg cramps.


Mile Marker 12.00. I made it!

The Night Before a Ride

Cervelo off the wall, tires filled, water bottles cleaned and placed on the kitchen counter, CLIFF bar next to bottles, cyclocomputer charging, sunglasses out of car, jersey, base layer, bike shorts, socks in the closet ready and in order. Drinking lots of water, eating a tad better than the night before and checking tomorrow's weather report, 65 degrees by 6:30 am, 75 by 9:00 am. Good, drink more water. Into bed early for big day of riding.

(Picture shamelessly stolen from Glendoramtnroad.com)

Glendora Mountain Road - Extreme Panorama Shots

Ah the beauty of PSE and online tutorials!

Made it, "Too" Mt. Baldy Village (Part Deux, "Too")

Today I was prepared to back up my first ride to Mt. Baldy with another trip. I knew the day was going to heat up quickly, so I headed out on my journey by 7:00 am. Damn, it was already warm.

Rather than "stage" at GMR and Sierra Madre, I chose to start from my house. I made good time and reached GMR by 20 minutes. On the way up, Annette and I crossed paths. She had a Breakfast Date with neighbors and started much earlier. We talked a short while about photographs, insulated water bottles and the Tour De France.

At about the first saddle, Matt was coming down GMR. He too started earlier and we rode up together for about 1 mile before Matt turned around to finish his ride.

By the maintenance shed I was feeling okay, not great, not too tired. I stopped for a few minutes then headed to East Fork. From East Fork to Fork plus 4, the ride was nice and easy. I cruised through the rolling hills, with the sun on my back and a slight pleasant breeze.

IIRC, after Mile Marker 4.25 there is a slight downhill then you start climbing for the next four miles. By Fork plus 6, I was getting tired and between 7 and 8, I was wearing down fast. I stopped a few times to take pictures and stretch. Fork plus 10 or 11 something, my legs started to cramp pretty bad and I was so close to Cow Canyon Saddle. I tried to hold off the much needed dismount, but I had to stop and stretch.

Mt. Baldy. I made to Mt. Baldy in about 3 hours. While there, I stopped at the Post Office to refill my water bottles. I bought two Iris Bulbs for a dollar each and met up with a guy named Larry. Larry rode 43 miles to Mt. Baldy. He started somewhere near the 60 fwy. Me and the ladies selling the Iris' asked Larry if he's sick in the head for doing that ride. He was filling up his water bottles and setting out for his ride back! That's 86 miles round trip. Larry is the king!

One thing I learned on the way to Mt. Baldy, hydration is essential. For this trip I brought three water bottles. This was sufficient for the ride, but I could have drank more prior and during the ride. Usually on long rides, I'll start drinking tons of water the day before and up to the ride. Friday, I drank sufficient amounts of water. It was this morning where I failed. I really should have paid more attention to my water consumption this morning, especially since I knew today was going to be hot. I attribute my cramping to improper hydration.



Somewhere on the way to Mt. Baldy, I stopped to stretch. I dismounted, stretched then looked up. In its magnificent beauty, Mt. Baldy stood in front of me.



I was so happy to see the Cow Canyon Saddle Sign! All downhill from here. Yipee!



I love this sign!



"Larry, you're killing me!" 43 miles, Larry rode to get to the Mt. Baldy Post Office.



I bought two Iris bulbs to support the Mt. Baldy community club.