This is a shameless attempt to save the the most advanced civilization in
history from imminent self destruction by eliminating carbon emission,
dependence on foreign sources of fuel,obesity, hypertension and diabetes.
Cycling accomplishes all those things at once and helps us develop a better
understanding of ourselves, each other and our relationship to the cosmos.

Oh, horse puckey!
I like to ride bikes, have been doing it all my life.
The rest of that crap is just a fringe benefit,
and the blogosphere gives me a chance to share my interior
monologue with virtual rather than imaginary friends.

Wednesday, April 11, 2018

Yeah, I took a few days off.

      I've been working on a larger project for a bit and took a few weeks off from the blogosphere, but you realize that  winter commuting gets a bit routine on the bike.  My life, as exciting as it sounds, is just about as routine during the winter as a spandex hamster during the ride season.  Now the snow is going away I started noticing the vague signs of danger I was so confidently wandering through each day.  
      Finding my way through the frozen muck of the north on a daily basis I tend to get very comfortable with my route.  Riding the same way, the same time each day it's pretty easy to take things for granted.  I don't really notice the drivers that much and assume that I'm seeing the same motorists in the same cars at the same time each day.  Such is life embroiled in the grid.     
Now I'm beginning to see the damaged 
signs of the danger I was navigating
on street corners where I had grown so comfortable in my daily commute.  I have to wonder what made a driver go so far over the curb.  Do they know what they are doing is dangerous?  I've been driving for 50 years and never lost that much attention in a day.    It's just a rude reminder that we have to look out for our own safety, if they can't see a street sign that's protected by a curb they are not too save on the road.
    In the meantime the "All Powerful Bike Lobby" has struck again!  Yeh US!!!  Our Michigan legislature has finally passed a law requiring motorists to yield 3 feet of distance when passing cyclists.  We don't expect rampant enforcement but it is a general step forward to educate the public about vulnerable road users.
Take that Dorothy Rabinowitz!
     In the meantime I have been doing a little wrenching on the Hunq.  Spring is time for cleaning and I took it step farther.  I was getting stressed at the damaged paint  from all the back road traveling I do.  I could no longer get a reasonable touch up color and the bike was starting to look like crap. 
So I had it stripped, and there below two top coats and a coat of primer I found a photo shadow of the original decal.  That's some pretty serious UV light.  I'm not forgetting my sunscreen.  Onward.  I polished up the frame with a sanding sponge and coated it with a super duty epoxy/polymer something or other that is made to bond, seal and protect bare metal from rust.
I love the way it turned out and the brass brazing material highlights the lug work beautifully.   The good people at Rivendell provided new decals at a modest price and it looks like something from a mad max episode.  More about this in a much later post, don't jump in and try it without research.   I tested some other rusty metal before I did, and the substance itself is really nasty to work with.  I opened the can, my cats ran under the bed,  and  I was fearing brain damage, but everybody needs a hobby right? 



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