Posted
by chrys anthalbee
July 18, 2005 at 8:56 a.m.
Confession of a Bike Slut
I'm an unabashed bike slut. When you pass by me on any bike I will check out your gear. From your headset to your seatpost I'll check out the curves of your frame. There's been more than one person that thought I was checking them out. The [Lawrence River Trails][1] have been my old standby for the last decade. The [Clinton Trails][2] and the [Perry Lake Trails][3] provide some good singletrack that, when dry, give me a bit of challenge. But a lot of those epic rides I used to be able to take are, at least for now, not available to me. I use my bike time as family time so whenever I go out now I have one or the other kid in tow.Don't get me wrong, it's great to get out with my family and ride. We all really enjoy our biking time together. My not-quite-a-year-old son has been riding since he was 3 months old and my 5-year-old daughter now has pedaling duties using her trailercycle.Instead of hitting hard packed dirt and dodging logs we launch an urban assault. I enjoy finding those places in town where the ride is not in a straight line. For example, the alleys in town provide an off the beaten path route if you can stand the garbage stench and other (ick!) refuse. I've seen a lot of Lawrence I might not have otherwise seen because we decided to take a right instead of our usual left.Lawrence is a bike friendly town. There are well-marked bike lanes and a number of signs urging motorists to share the road with bikes. For the most part drivers are considerate but I try to avoid high traffic areas and streets.Currently one of our favorite rides is a route that takes us up 11th and 12th streets to campus. Up on Jayhawk Boulevard we cruise behind Wescoe Hall to Hoch Auditoria Drive. Then we take a route that goes through East Lawrence and through Oak Hills Cemetary. A final stop at [Free State][4] for a brew before going north across the river to home is always nice. The kids like the cookies from [La Prima Tazza][5].What is your favorite little known areas in Lawrence for riding a bike? Any path will do without respect to difficulty. And it doesn't have to be kid friendly either, just some place that you particulary enjoy or suspect others will not have encountered.I would motivate you by saying this is a contest but I don't have access to the chest of lawrence.com schwag that [other bloggers][6] do (if I did I'd be riding around town in a lawrence.com shirt). But helping me and other readers out by sharing your wealth of knowledge is reward enough, right?
[1]: http://content.mtbr.com/cat/united-states-trails/trails-kansas/trail/PRD_167979_4548crx.aspx [2]: http://content.mtbr.com/cat/united-states-trails/trails-kansas/trail/PRD_167976_4548crx.aspx [3]: http://content.mtbr.com/cat/united-states-trails/trails-kansas/trail/PRD_167977_4548crx.aspx [4]: http://www.lawrence.com/places/free_s... [5]: http://www.lawrence.com/places/la_pri... [6]: http://www.lawrence.com/blogs/mathis/
Comments
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leslie (Leslie vonHolten) says…
I feel like a biking newbie; though I have had a bike my whole life, last year I saved my pennies and bought a Specialized that I LOVE with my whole heart. Then our cool neighbors gave us their old Trek trailer for the kids, and this has become the centerpoint of our summer.
I haven't done much exploring on the bike beyond East, Old West, and downtown Lawrence, mostly running to kids' activities. Joel and I ride and talk books-n-blogs on the levy trail once a week. In September, I'm riding the MS150. Consider my ass kicked!
Does anyone have a basic bike repair bible they would recommend? I don't even know where to start.
rpk (Robert Kerley) says…
Good timing! I just got my bike back in working order over the weekend and am eager to hit the road. In NW Lawrence we have a big sidewalk on Peterson, but that's not interesting for too long. I imagine for a family outing we'd trek out to the Southwind trail (starting at the theater). Safe, paved and easy, although the end of your trail is a bit more appealing than the options on south Iowa...
rpk (Robert Kerley) says…
Leslie: I don't have a book to recommend, but Sunflower offers repair clinics. I've never inquired, but I'm sure they're reasonable, if not free.
chrysanthalbee (chrys anthalbee) says…
leslie: the book i like is called "zinn and the art of mountain bike maintenance". it's written well with lots of good pictures and diagrams.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/...
rpk is right about the sunflower clinics. the sunflower site didn't have any updates on when the next clinics would be, but i'm sure a call to the store would get you dates/times etc. they also have tools and a bike stand available to anyone.
the trailers are fabulous. the trailercycles are even better. you can have a look at one at sunflower. tell them i sent you and they'll say, "who?"
cfdxprt (anonymous) says…
I haven't checked on the Sunflower repair clinics other than seeing that they were available on their site. They are supposed to be free. Before I found they offered that, I had even debated taking a part time job there to learn the trade. I'm an engineer, I can fix anything, but my bike still confounds me occassionally...
For my 2c on a ride of a life, go to Lone Star lake. It's 37 miles round trip, so a bit of a haul, but on the road bike it's FUN. BTW, for those of you out there who haven't had the experience, I rode mountain bike for 5 years and just bought a road bike this year, and man they're fun. You move!
Make sure to watch the tour, it's Lance's last time!
liz (Liz Weslander) says…
Are those bike lanes on the new portion of east 6th St.? I hope so. Now if we could get some on Mass, 9th (where a biker was hit and killed a few years ago), 19th, Kentucky, Tennessee, etc., we'd really be in business.
There's a big loop around the Haskell campus that's pretty in the morning or evening and there's also the rail trail east of their campus.
reticentscrivener (anonymous) says…
"Bike slut" -- that is a dandy one. It's going on the List of Transportation Jezebels. Previous entries include:
Tandem tarts
Segway beards (formerly "kidmans" now "katies")
Big Wheel queens
Hatchback hoochies
Gondola trollops
Monorail strumpets
Barge hags
Boxcar skanks
Steamboat coquettes
In the interests of gender equity, there probably oughta be a list of Carrier Cads to cover people like the Amtrak gigolo and the zepplin rake, but that's not my department.
leslie (Leslie vonHolten) says…
No matter how much I love my bike, at heart I will always be a barge hag.
Thanks for the book tip. I've taken a Sunflower clinic; my problem, however, is how little I retain as time goes by. A handy reference is what I need.
Speaking of the Haskell track, I think now is the time of year for the Cycleworks Twilight bike races, yes? Have they started yet? They're free and used to be on Thursday nights. There's a kids' race, too, Liz. It's a great time.
ichikuo (Hanluen Kuo) says…
I really want to start riding my bike to class since where I'm moving requires me to walk. The problem is I'll feel like an idiot riding around on the two choices of bikes that I have (they're both from my childhood):
Dyno Air
Huffy Blades
LOL
trainyardzero (anonymous) says…
i like heading south on mass from 6th to 14th or 15th and taking a left and heading to connecticuit, where i loop back north and head from 15th to 6th and over the bridge. i like to either take the levee trail out of town, or the direction that takes you to the I-70 bridge. from there, i basically turn around from either direction and head back to HQ. it doesn't exactly go anywhere, but i get my downtown ride, my sunny east lawrence ride, my over-the-river scenic ride and a nice quiet levee ride all in one with my route.
liz (Liz Weslander) says…
To do the "Haskell loop" you just take Mass south past 23rd. It will lead you around the campus with the backdrop of some nice fields (which are good for cross-country running). The road dumps out somewhere east of Leanard.I think our local newspaper did an article on the Twilight races recently. I might walk over and check it out.
chrysanthalbee (chrys anthalbee) says…
ichikuo: definitely go with the dyno. i'll take it if you don't want it, i don't mind looking like an idiot : )
leslie: thanks for heads-up on the Cycleworks Twilight bike races. i found more info at http://www.revolution-racing.com/
liz mentioned the haskell rail trail. it's not much more than a quarter of a mile but it adds a nice little seque to a longer ride. heading south on learnard towards 23rd, take a left down the hill before 23rd. it'll curve around under 23rd until you can head south on the trail.
there's another nice little stretch of singletrack beside the river between burcham park and constant park. it's usually pretty hardpacked with little in the way of obstacles except the two bridges. we manage to get the kids in trailers out there, and it's another half mile seque between street riding.
someone is holding back on a gem. there are endless places to bike to and through in this town.
chrysanthalbee (chrys anthalbee) says…
cfdxprt mentioned the lone star ride. the lawrence bicycle club muffin ride goes out there.
http://www.lawrence.com/events/ongoin...