2 Wheels Maybe

 If any of you have been hanging out hoping I'd write about longtail cargo bikes again, well, that is really sad. However, here it is! I received an email from Mongoose a few days ago taunting me with the promise of cheap closeout mountain bikes. And, I've been jonesing for a mountain bike with which I might have a slightly better chance of keeping up with my coffee/riding buddies (something built in this century). So I clicked on the email. When I reached the sale page, I spotted two hardtails that were a bit tempting, but then... I saw what was hiding in the bottom right corner!      A few years ago I drooled over the long 'goose and waited for it to become available in the US - it started out in Canada. And I watched the price go up. I saw the KevCentral Review  and it contained a discount! And I watched the Chris Akrigg video.  And I continued to drool. And time kept passing, and the Envoy became less and less visible on the Mongoose website. Finally...

I got to sneak in a 3.5 mile ride last night and wanted to share the view. Last night was an amazing evening to ride The Mae Simmons parking lot when I left Since it's out of focus, let's call it artistic . Yeah, that's it. May you get out there and enjoy the world, friends! Be well and joyful!

This past weekend we were fortunate enough to stay at a friend's lake house on Possum Kingdom Lake. And, of course, we took a few bikes. We took off from the PK Trailhead and rode parts of the Redbird Loop. The HuffKlunk at Possum Kingdom For those of you worrying that I'd join the fully-suspended dark side , you can rest easy. (However, budget was a bigger factor than fortitude or grit .) But the old Huffy held up well. Anything we weren't able to ride over can be blamed on donuts rather than bike parts. No bicycles were harmed and very little blood was spilled. In truth, it's a better diet I need - not a fancier bike. Find the map here I've had the PK trail map on the wall in my office for a few months - my Walter Mitty wallpaper. D and I rode the section circled in red. It may not look like a lot, but this was a sidebar on a family getaway, and a very good one! Spider moon at the trailhead gate Besides the spider, we saw several spec...

(Another lunch-time lesson in dirt and humility.) I raced BMX as a kid. It was only four decades ago. I should still be good at it. Right? The local weatherman told me a cold front was passing through -  it wouldn't reach 90 degrees until lunch. My brain instantly dreamed up the next micro-adventure: BMX, baby! Flora and Fauna Report Local Flora Local Fauna: I'm gonna need a longer lens, a longer lunch, and more patience to post fauna pics, but I did see two great blue herons, one great egret, two burrowing owls, a few dozen prairie dogs, a black-tailed jack rabbit, and a half-dozen kids on Razor scooters (at the skate park). How about the ride? Four laps on the BMX track Did I get air? No. Did I need oxygen? Absolutely. It's been a dry summer, so all of the low ground is sand trappy and killed any speed I built up from berms and backsides of jumps. I spent the whole time in second gear pedaling hard. Bring your fat tires. Bring your vi...

after the storm there must be a calming                                        Desmond Dekker and Leslie Kong I've never really understood why people listen to the blues to get over their blues, but this week I've come closer. Yes, I know that upbeat music can be annoying when you're down, but depressing lyrics and minor chords, they don't lift me. So I decided to compromise a bit - how about depressing lyrics combined with some upbeat reggae music. (Yes, I am weird - reggae does not make me want to fire up a doob, but it sure makes me want to dance.) So, here's your soundtrack for 2WM Bicycle Distraction Day - Toots & the Maytals with "Time Tough": Time Tough Now that you have the tunes rolling, let's jump into this.  Distraction #1: Jeepers, it's a Junto! Cargo Bikes - you know how I love them big bikes. Today I learned about another cargo bike, but this on...

This past week, a rare opportunity presented itself. I went riding strictly for fun! I built the Huffy Klunker specifically for riding the bike trails at Lubbock's own Mae Simmons Park and I finally got to try it out. (It says, "I'm stumped".) I headed west on the faster trails, but the gravelly uphills were more challenge than I was up for, so I headed east where the trail is more level, has great curves, gentle berms, and a plethora of mesquite trees, prairie dogs, and seven-lined skinks - all great stuff for a mesquite hugger like me. What did the fish yell when it swam into a concrete wall? There were lots of birds out too. My favorite was a snowy egret stalking the mossy shallows below the dam. Ignore the finger and check out the view - water, windmills, and trees! The riding was a blast. There were a couple of jerseyed guys my age out there on 29" fully-suspended rigs. I hope they were having fun and getting away from thei...