New Beginnings

Earlier this week I finally made it to 12 Channel Street in South Boston - the new home of Royal H. Cycles, Geekhouse Bikes, Hubway Bikeshare and a number of other local bicycle-related ventures.





Organised by the intrepid Marty Walsh of Geekhouse, HQ Boston is a new collective space in an industrial waterfront area dubbed the "Innovation District," and its acquisition has been the talk of the town among bikey people. It is big news. The space is big (24,000 sq ft), the commitment is big (10 year lease), and the scope of the project is big. The move shows there is growth in the local small scale bicycle industry, and implies a collective faith in this growth continuing.






Seeing the venue for the first time - an entire second floor of a warehouse-type building, still mostly open floor space - I was overwhelmed by the sheer blank canvas potential of it. Anything could happen here. Many things will, soon.







All morning long there was energy, movement. Planks scattered, walls going up. Men at work. At the same time it was oddly peaceful for a place with so much going on. The size of the space diffuses the construction noise. The light coming in from the outside casts a soft white glow over the debris.






The floor space occupied by Geekhouse and Royal H has been set up and operational for months.There are beautiful machines, jigs, tools, frames and wheels suspended along the walls.





The presence of the framebuilders is there.





Oh yes.






Walking through the space, I admit to feeling some nostalgia. The new venue lacks the personality of the oldGeekhouse shack in Allstonwith its famous graffiti mural. It lacks the charm of the tiny old Royal H workshop in Somervilleby the railroad tracks, just minutes from my house. There is no small neighbourhood feel here. Huge industrial buildings greeted me as I looked out the window, blocking the view of the Harbor. But even as I thought these things, I knew that it was the sentimentalist in me talking. Any place can become a neighbourhood once filled with neighbours, and the Innovation District is attracting new creative small businesses every day. Murals will be painted in due course. The personality of a space takes time to develop.





This place has the potential for growth and collaboration that was not available to either of the occupants beforehand, and the excitement of this is almost tangible.







The spirit of working together is in the air. Though I came to meet with Bryan of Royal H., I later encountered Shane - the man behind BostonBiker. I've corresponded with Shane in the past and I thought that we'd met before, but obviously we haven't because this was a totally different person. It took me a bit just to wrap my head around that and readjust my mental image of him, but soon we were giddy with talk of joint projects involving Shane's skillz and mine.






But back to the main purpose of my visit: I am working on a new mixte prototype with Royal H. Cycles. I sold the mixte Bryan made for me in to finance this, and although this was difficult I don't regret it. The new collaboration will be my design and Bryan's framebuilding. If the prototype works out and is cost-effective, the idea is that it would become a model available to order. I am not thinking of this as my personal bike and not getting attached to it. Very possibly I will sell the prototype, particularly if we end up having to make another. There is so much to say about what I hope this bicycle will be, but in these early stages I am too nervous and excited to talk about it too much. As far as form, I can say that it will be a low-trail 650B mixte with curved twin lateral stays. Fully lugged, with lots of modified lugwork. As far as function, my hope is to make a bike that will be suitable for both urban and long-distance transportation, including over hilly terrain, optimised for women who ride in their everyday clothing. There are lots of details regarding what this involves in my mind and why, and I look forward to sharing them.






In the meantime, it looks like I will be paying these gentlemen more visits over the summer, which is certainly not a bad thing. It will be wonderful to watch HQ Boston develop. If anyone local is interested in joining, there is space available and rent is cheap. Things are happening in Boston. Here's to new beginnings.

Rothwell - airfield - Desborough - Rothwell

Led by Barry, with me and Gordon. Across fields and along tracks. Early sun, then cloudy but dry. Snow underfoot and most mud well frozen, apart from a boggy patch near where we crossed the Ise in Desborough. 8.5 miles approx.

The sun's early promise is fading

We set off along a footpath from the road
out of Rothwell towards Rushton, just after the bend where Shotwell Mill Lane
goes to the left. A few yards further on
the footpath sign indicates the path, which crosses the field to the middle of
the opposite side.




It continues diagonally over the next
field, then takes you over a stile and follows the edge of the field. Over another stile, and we
turn right, following the hedge to the corner, and then round to the left. After this and another field we cross the
Ise, via a decent bridge. Then uphill to the road from Desborough to Tresham’s
Triangular Lodge. We don’t turn right
to visit this, but carry on and over the railway. The path leads uphill
again and we soon reach the road from Pipewell to Rushton.

Mysterious brickwork in a spinney near the Ise

Here we turn left and follow the road
past Hilton’s End Spinney to the lane towards White Lodge Farm. This lane crosses Pipewell Road and carries on
in the same direction until it peters out. We cross a small field to join the
roadway round Pipewell airfield. We turn left, past a building used by
lorries and go as far as another left turn, by some concrete blocks, along a
footpath leading south west, then south to Desborough.




There's a relatively new development of
houses, where we follow a path across a park and a wooded cutting, before meeting the
Pipewell Road into Desborough. A left turn takes us to the railway bridge. We cross this and turn left along Rushton Road. Soon after the cemetery we turn right along Broadlands, and then the Hawthorns, past the Leisure Centre. The bridge over the Ise is in the diagonally
opposite corner of the field, over to the left.




Once we cross the river our troubles
begin. The boggy ground is frozen, but only in
parts! We're aiming for the left hand end of the spinney on the hill.
Easier said than done. Keep moving, aim for the snowy bits, and hope not to sink. Star trekking comes to mind – “We’re only going forward ‘cos we can’t find reverse”. I
make it without going knee deep, though my socks are muddy. Barry and Gordon are a little less lucky. Even so, no one loses any footwear.

Barry and Gordon are well-wrapped up. Desborough in the background

After this it's plain walking, clear
paths and tracks, until we arrive back at our starting point, along Shotwell
Mill Road, past Grange Farm, and then the pond where we see these birds, in search of titbits, perhaps. Hard luck, guys, we've eaten it all.

Hopeful birds

Wordless Wednesday :: Wiseman, Arkansas

Wiseman, Arkansas ~ September 1994
Copyright © 1994/.. by Rebeckah R. Wiseman

No relation, just thought it was neat that there was a town named Wiseman!Although, I think the town has seen better days...

Sketchy Cycles: the Talk of the Town

I first mentioned Sketchy Cycles last summer, when I went on a ride with Jim and he rode his new custom bike. Since then I have been curious to try one, and now I finally have.



This pink Sketchy belongs to Susan, who works at Harris Cyclery and also writes the blog Twelfth Bike. She has had it for exactly a year now, and has used it for everything from commuting to the D2R2. Susan is an experienced cyclist, who has ridden many other nice bicycles over the years, and she likes her Sketchy the best and has a review of this bicycle here. Susan's bike has a pink, white and black colour scheme going, which I find very pleasant.



Sketchyframes are steel and handmade by Mike Salvatore, who is a welder at Seven Cycles. There is no website yet, but you can get in touch here. What intrigued me about Sketchy, was that some pretty knowledgeable local bike people started getting them: mechanics, bike shop employees, even other frame builders (Brad of Geekhouse Bikeshas just had one made). What is it about Sketchy that has made it the "it" bike for those in the know?

Well, here was my chance to find out. I was able to try Susan's bike, because not only are we the same height, but she uses Campagnolo ergos (my hands don't work with Shimano STIs, which really limits the roadbikes I can competently test ride).

Threadless stem and modern compact drop bars, the feel of which I quite like. I've been trying to get a feel for whether I prefer handlebars like these to the likes of Nitto Noodles and Grand Bois Maes, but really can't decide. Possibly it depends on the bike.

Is it normal that I find brazed-on brake cable hangers "pretty?"

Paul's cantilever brakes.

A J-Tek adaptor to make the non-Campy drivetrain compatible with the Campagnolo levers.

Carminacrankset and a very cool chainguard.

Velocity wheels with wide tires (usually 35mm) that change based on season and the type of riding Susan is doing.

At the moment they are Schwalble Marathon Supremes.



Dynamo lighting.

Lezynepump mounted next to the waterbottle cage, which I thought was a neat idea.

Berthoud saddle (which Susan is not quite sure she likes yet).

SKS fenders and Tubus rear rack (which may get replaced with a custom-made rack at a later stage).

And this very cool Nokon beaded cable housing.

In order for me to ride the bike, we had to lower the saddle a bit, and Susan switched her clipless pedals to MKS Touring pedals. Everything else remained the same. I rode the bike with the handlebars just about level with the saddle (though maybe a tad higher) and no foot retention.

My ride was short and did not do justice to what this bicycle is meant for - which is long, spirited rides while transitioning between road and trails with ease. That's the problem with riding somebody else's vey nice custom bike - I just wouldn't feel comfortable taking it on a 40 mile ride on and off road. Still, trying the Sketchy for a few miles along the back roads allowed me to get acquainted with the bicycle's feel and handling - both of which I quite liked. Because the bicycle fit me well and I could comfortably use the levers, I was comfortable on it immediately. I rode from West Newton to Belmont and back, trying to choose hilly streets. In some ways, the handling felt similar to the Seven I rode earlier this summer: the easy acceleration and maneuverability, albeit with wider tires and a more "grounded" feel to it. I can see how it would do especially well on trails for that reason.

The ride was comfortable over bumps and potholes, though in a completely different way that the titaniumSeven had been. On the Sketchy I could feel the road more, but that feeling was springy and cushioned and therefore not painful. On the Seven it was as if I could not feel the road in the first place. I don't know whether that description makes sense, but it is the best comparison I can think of. I felt very natural riding the Sketchy and can readily imagine it as my own bike, with the one exception being that I'd prefer a slightly longer top tube and lower handlebars - this felt a little bit too upright. But otherwise I would not change much about the frame or Susan's build.

I feel privileged to have tried a Sketchy bicycle and give my sincere thanks to Susan for trusting me to ride hers. I hope you enjoyed this introduction to one of Boston's latest custom builders.

How I measure insulated down jackets?

I've looked at a lot of down jackets here at Cold Thistle. Synthetics I generally use the weight of the insulation, 60g per square meter as an example or 100g per square meter.



Down jackets I want to know a couple of things.



Construction? Fully box baffled or sewn through. There can be a lot of different combos along with that. But that is the first. What is the construction?



SecondI want to knowwhat the quality of the downused. The fill rating? 750 cu inch per ounce or 800 fill or 1000 fill?



How much actual down fill, as in ounces used? And the jacket's size. Most importantly how that size fits me personally.



Three additional measurements matter to me. Cana full size climbing helmet EASILYfit inside the hood?



Length of the jacket's back from shoulder seam, @ the base of the hood to the hem.











And finally the height of the insulation measured 1/2 way between the neck and the point of the shoulder with the jacket laid flat and completely zipped up. It means little other than as a comparison of loft in the jacket one to another. This number could easily be fudged to gain or loose insulation depending on your bias and sway the charts.( even the pictures are difficutlt to read accuratly so I don't post them intentionally) I know that and try to make a consistent and realistic measurement so that I show no favorites here. It is also why I don't go smaller than 1/2 inch in differences.






Close up of the height of insulation at the shoulder. This jacketactually has 3" of loft Although the angle of the camera shows almost 3.5". You have to be consistent on every measurement and honest when you postthe numbers.









Shoulder between point of shoulder and the hood on ajacket

First Storm of the Season

Today California is being hit by the first storm of the season. After five months without rain, the wet season has finally begun. The powerful storm impacting the state today has the potential to drop up to eight inches of rain in spots. Here in San Luis Obispo, the rain is falling in drenching, wind-blown sheets.

The photos here show colorful poison oak leaves in Poly Canyon and the now-flowing Brizzolara Creek.

A Day with a Distant Cousin!

Towards the end of October, I received an email from a gentleman who happens to be my fifth cousin or fourth cousin once removed – or something like that! A distant relative to be sure. He found me through the blog, or rather, his brother found me and told Jesse to contact me!

Jesse is a descendant of John Bray and his second wife, Elizabeth Coones (or Cooney or Coonie or Coonies or Coonis) through their daughter Sophia. I am a descendant of John and his first wife, reported to be Nancy Morgan, through their son Samuel Bray. John and Nancy are my 4th great grandparents.

Anyway, Jesse said he'd like to meet with me sometime. So, since I was headed south and Vevay was more or less on the way, I said I could stop by on the 9th. That also happened to be the only day this week he had free! Great timing, eh?

Me and my cousin, Jesse. November 9, ...The Markland Dam and Ohio River in the background.
We spent a couple of hours at the Switzerland County Library in Vevay comparing information then took a drive to McKay Cemetery where John Bray is buried.

Jesse had a copy of the marriage record of John Bray and Elizabeth but it was difficult to read. The county seat of Gallatin County, Kentucky is Warsaw, which happens to be across the river a short distance east of Vevay. It was a beautiful day (sunshine and 70 degrees! In November!!) and the drive took just a few minutes.

The marriage records were in the office of the County Clerk located in a building behind the courthouse. The earliest marriage records were in a binder whose back had separated so all the pages were loose. Each page had also been laminated. The record for John Bray and Elizabeth is at the bottom of a page numbered 59. Rather than try to make a paper copy, I used my digital camera... (double click on the image to see a larger version).

Elizabeth's last name is in the middle of the fifth line from the bottom...
After examining the full page containing this and two other records, I think her last name is Coonis. The word directly beneath her name is Licens and is written the same way on the other two records on that page. It is definitely not Cooney, which is how it is transcribed in the published book.

At any rate, how it is spelled is probably a moot point, since what Jesse really wants to know is what is her maiden name! Elizabeth would have been about 18 years old and a widow when she married John Bray. There is no record of her first marriage in Gallatin County, Kentucky and we don't know what happened to her husband. John was 12 days shy of being 60 years old when he married Elizabeth. His youngest daughter by his first marriage was 16 years old – but she had been married the year before when only 15 years of age. So, John was an “empty nester” and perhaps didn't like living by himself...

John passed away on June 10, 1832 at age 71 – the three youngest children by his wife Elizabeth, were Amelia, George and Sophia – age 11, 9, and 3, respectively. Elizabeth was married for a third time to Robert Bakes on October 4, 1834. He passed away in 1847. Elizabeth died in 1876. The 1850 and 1870 census records show that she was born in Kentucky about 1798-1800, though Jesse has her birth year as 1802.

After a short visit to the library, Jesse and I stopped at Jewels, a little restaurant on Main Street in Warsaw, for a late lunch. The place was full with no empty tables, but a lady waved us over to her table saying we could join her and her husband. Turns out they were friends of Jesse! A rather nice coincidence. The food was good as was the company.

All in all, it was a delightful day. Thank you, Jesse, for inviting me to visit! It was a pleasure meeting you.

Patchwork Quilt

The problem of translating sensation and experience into words. Or any communicative form for that matter. Human have struggled with it since... well, since always it seems like. We've dedicated entire disciplines to it. We approach it with art. We approach it with science. We approach it with philosophy, and all manner of things in between. And still we cannot simply show our inner world to others.




Know what I mean?




Arguably, the answer is no. Always no, even if we say yes and believe it. We never, ever really know what somebody else means. We are clever and we guess. Or we model it on ourselves, try thoughts, ideas, images and even emotions on for size. But in the process it becomes once again our experience, not the other's.




Maybe now I've confused you and you feel comfortable saying no. "No, I have no idea what you mean."




Good.




Look. We all need to make sense of experience.And in doing so, it's tempting and convenient to plug it into a template -a template where the experience is transformed into an archetypical story.




Like - OMG I was all unsure of myself. Can I do a 200K? I mean it's so hard, I don't know. But wait... I trained and I did it! Yay!




Although that's a little brief. Let's get the village involved.




So I trained, and my friends were like "We believe in you!" and I was like "Aw you guys!"




Okay, but still a little thin. So hang on, let's add some uncertainty.




Oh no, it's the week before the ride and I overtrained?..




Yes, like that. But perhaps more panic.




Oh no, it's the week before The Ride and I overtrained!




Enter the comments, that post-post-postmodern Greek Chorus.




Chorus 1: You overtrained, oh no!

Chorus 2: You overtrained, I told you so!

Chorus 3: Now you must rest before you go!




Oh gosh, whatever will happen? Will I make it? Be sure to read tomorrow and find out!




I have a bad feeling...




Whenever I say or think that now, Carmela Soprano appears in my head. She wears a tight beige cashmere sweater. Her hair is in a French twist.




I've got a bad feeling (New Jersey accent, thick mascara, eyes full of meaning). Yesthis is what I mean.




Carmela: Tell me, what is this bad feeling?




OMG you read my blog?




Carmela: No, not really. But you know, I was thinking of getting in shape, being more active. Biking to the hair salon.




Oh but that's wonderful! ...Have you tried a Bella Ciao Neorealista?




We hug and share a delicious pastry. Then she rides away.




That feeling of being in a pre-determined script.My inner experience forced into training-diary vocab and follow-along storylines. It's all wrong.




Know what I mean?




Chorus 1:Yes

Chorus 2: No

Chorus 3: Will you ever review a budget bike?




Huh?




Chorus 3:Oops, wrong post.




Oh ok.




Cycling.Something is changing. There is wilting and blossoming and quiet and explosions of sound. I try to think of a better way to explain.

The Residence of John Brubaker

I'll admit it. Oftentimes, as I've perused the old county atlas books, I've been somewhat envious of the beautiful engravings of family farms within their pages. I always thought it would be "neat" to have one of my families included but they just weren't there, at least not in the books I've looked at! Several years ago, my uncle gave me some of the pictures and other papers that he had gotten when his mother (my grandmother) died. There were pictures I had never seen before, at least not that I remember having seen before. Among them, the image below, which shows the residence of John Brubaker, my 3rd great grandfather.


Yellow and faded, securely attached to a piece of heavy cardboard, it just barely fit on the flatbed scanner. How and when did my grandmother come into possession of this picture? Well, that's a good question. In that box from my uncle, there were also some pictures of Thornton Brubaker and his family as well as several of the children of Samuel Brubaker. They were John's sons and half-brothers of my 2nd great-grandfather, William Brubaker. My guess would be that whomever gave her those pictures also gave her the picture of John's residence. Wherever she got them, I'm sure glad she kept them!

I've seen the "Combination Atlas Map of Huntington County, Indiana" published in 1879, but I don't recall seeing this image in it. Yesterday, I decided to see what other atlases had been published in the late 1880s. The first thing that came up on Google search was a hit on the David Rumsey Collection! Turns out, the image above was printed on page 125 (center of page, left side) of the "Illustrated Historical Atlas of the State of Indiana" which was published by Baskin, Forster & Co., Chicago, 1876. Engraved & Printed by Chas. Shober & Co. Props. of Chicago Lithographing Co.

What is great about it being in the David Rumsey Collection is that you can zoom in and enlarge the pages. The detail in the images on the Rumsey site is incredible. A map of Huntington County is on page 66 of the atlas. The "homepage" of the atlas shows that there are 187 images covering all 92 counties of the state.

Thanks to an unknown benefactor many years ago, my grandmother, and my uncle, I have a very nice piece of my family history. One of these days I'm going to make the trip to Huntington County (it's only about a 40 minute drive) and see if I can find his farm. I doubt that the house is still standing, but it's possible...

Trail to the Sun

Trail to the Sun, originally uploaded by ParsecTraveller.

Waiting for sunset on Poly Mountain in San Luis Obispo, California. The other shots I took were marred by pesky dust particles...time to clean the sensor.

The hills appear to be brown in the photo, but close examination of the earth along the trail revealed thousands of tiny seedlings coming up due to the 7.5 inches of rain we received the other day.

Happy new year

Laura on approach to climbing this morning!