2 Wheels Maybe

(Getting it out of my system) The Scrambler Jones It happens more often than I want to admit. I go through a season of jonesing for a motorcycle to ride. It doesn't make financial sense, it doesn't make logical sense, and I know that if I had one, I would not ride it much. But I dearly miss the feeling of riding a motorcycle along a windy road on a beautiful day. The latest jones has been slightly different - it's still retro and it's still electric, but this time it's dirtier - I'm jonesing for a scrambler. When I look at what's commercially available, there's not much other than one very desirable bike - the Fly Free Smart Desert. Yes, I straight up want one. The Fly Free Smart Desert But they finished the pre-sale and haven't started the post-sale (and I could not afford either, snagit!) Subtract the surfboard, the ocean, the cool helmet and jacket and goggles - that could be me! What else is out there? I've ...

Matt and I try to meet for coffee once a week. We like to sit outside at J&B coffee to talk about life and literature, teaching and religion, and the need for people to treat others with compassion and understanding. We also talk about things with wheels. We both really like things with wheels. But there're times... Find J&B here This week, we met on Saturday afternoon. It was beautiful outside. We sat on the corner facing east. My favorite parking spot at J&B Unlike most Lubbock coffeehouses, J&B isn't situated on a major road. It's in a mostly residential neighborhood near the university. While there's a lot of traffic, there's no high-speed traffic, and the traffic is vehicularly diverse. Everything from Citibuses to Lime scooters rolls past J&B all day long. More so than usual, this week's conversation was filled with long pauses, but they weren't dramatic pauses or reflective pauses, they were noisy traffic pauses....

[Happy first day of the National Bike Challenge ! May you pedal healthily and joyfully, and may your bike haul all you need!] When I think of cargo bikes, two brands automatically pop into my brain - Xtracycle and Yuba. These are the two companies that have been there designing and selling longtail cargo bikes for several years and they have stayed focused specifically on cargo bikes and cargo-bike kits. In my mind, these two are the cargo-bike kings of the hill. For the last few years I've had my eye on one model - the Yuba Mundo Classic. At $999, it has continually been the best bang for the buck if you want high quality and low price. While it's not as high-tech (or light) as the more expensive Mundos, it's a beast that's capable of hauling 440 pounds and has a reputation for lasting year after year. If you're cheap like me, you know this is a great way into cargo biking. The page for saving 20% on the Mundo Classic I had not been on the Yuba s...

Woohoo! It's that time of year again! nationalbikechallenge.org The National Bike Challenge begins next Wednesday, so this weekend is a great time to dust off the old bike, borrow a bike, buy a bike, or create a really clever disguise for your car. What's that? You're not planning to join? Oh come on! Haven't you been saying you need more exercise, more sunshine, more optimism, more stamina, and nicer legs? Haven't you been complaining about the rising cost of gasoline? Didn't I hear you say you don't want to pay for a gym membership? (Oh, come on - surely something in there struck a chord for you.) So, let's talk about the challenge's virtues: It's free to join. You can win prizes. It can truly pedal you to a healthier place. There's no minimum or maximum - it's encouragement to get out and ride. You don't have to ride every day (but you can.) If you are competitive, it's a great place to find people...

It's a good thing I'm not independently wealthy; otherwise, this announcement might have started a whole new obsession or at least cost my family a whole lot of time and money! (No worries, Honey, I keep chanting my "No new projects!" mantra.) Yes, I know I'm an eco-dork. I fully realized it a few years back when I started wanting an electric car - a very specific electric car - the Vanguard Citicar. Until the Tesla came around, the Citicar was the most successful electric car created on American soil. (It's not as impressive as it sounds - we Norte Americanos have had little love for electric cars.) To this day, I get excited when that distinctive wedge shape pops up in any media. Recently, the little-car-that-barely-could popped up on Jalopnik in an article about the 24 Hrs of Lemons . So I clicked on it immediately. There was a little disappointment when I realized that there was no actual Citicar in the article, but I was still excited to see the...

[I'm resurrecting Fossil-Free-Friday over here on 2Wheels Maybe. I hope you enjoy the posts!] As a guy who loves old vehicles but hates the environmental damage they do, I love seeing cool EV conversions, and some of my favorites are the air-cooled VWs. They convert pretty easily, they're light and simple, they're a blast to drive, and they're fun to look at. One company that has excelled in converting old VWs (and Porsches) is Zelectric in California. I've followed their feed for a while now - they build some gorgeous machines and they use high-end AC motors and components. These cars perform as well as they look and accelerate a whole lot faster than a stock VW. Yep, I'm a big fan. But I'm none too wealthy. And their conversions start at $56,000. So, while they're incredibly cool, they're unobtainium for regular Joes, Joseys, and Mesquite Huggers like me... Find out how to win on Electrek.co ...unless someone decided to raffl...

It's only the 11th and I already have excuses rather than results. I've ridden seven days and not ridden three. Don't adjust your screen - it's just dirt flying at 50 mph. Once I was thwarted by a thunderstorm, once I was thwarted by blowing dust, once I woke up with a sore throat and decided not to pedal, snagit. See, there's more to Lubbock than basketball riots. But the riding days have been good. They've been better than good. And that's what it's all about, getting out and feeling better about the world on the days you choose a bike over a car. Our shoes and tires got wet! The little guy and I did a 4-mile park loop on Saturday. After Friday night's storm, we actually had a water crossing!  We had a mandatory "rest" stop at the jungle gym.     The klunker and the jeep The rides to work were good too. The days I ride, I show up at work more relaxed and more focused. I get more accomplished. I e...