Conference noted::bicycle

Hey Gary, here's another victim we can trash at Mission!!

Seriously, I would gladly part with my bike for a day (since there ARE
other things besides biking one can do), but my one and only is a 52cm
Trek.

If you can't get your hands on a bike, I'd be happy to share info on some
good running trails around here, depending on where you're staying.

Biking around ZK??  Do they do that there??

AAA

re: Biking around ZK??  Do they do that there??

Are you kidding?  There's great biking around here.  Although is a bit hard to
find something that's flat.

There are "show-an-go" rides out of ZK every Tues and Thurs at 11:30am.  And
in April there are centuries every Wed morning at 8am, I believe.  Send me
mail when you get here and we'll see about getting some route sheets, or
riding partners, or both.

I can't help with a bike... all of mine are 52cm or less.

Kevin

	Hey, what's happened?  I thought ALL you guys were 6'2", and rode 62 cm
bikes fitted with 53x12's !!  I thought only us underprivileged Europeans had
frames as small as 52......      ;>)

Robin (1,79 but feeling much taller this morning) 

    	The "guest bike" seems to be my 60cm Cinelli.  If you are a
    different size I don't know what to suggest for the road.  The
    velodrome has lots of smaller sizes as loaners, but you have to fit
    their schedule.
    
    	Come join the "Matt Johnson Memorial hill climb" or the Mission
    College Butthead ride.  Butthead etiquette demands that you hammer
    away at the front, close gaps and cover breaks to ensure miserable 
    sprint performance.  

>   Come join the "Matt Johnson Memorial hill climb" or the Mission
    
    When you crest the top, look for the small gravestone off to the
    left.  My good reputation is buried under it -- may it rest in peace.
    
    MATT

    re: .4, Hey Matt, is that peace of piece???
    
    Rob,
    
    I may have what you are looking for.  I'm at TAY and have a bike that
    would fit you; that is if you don't mind riding a home-built with Nuevo
    Record components (Except Dure-Ace clipless pedals).
    
    Eric 
    
    DTN: 227-3969

    <<< Note 1881.0 by HERON::ROWLANDS "Rob Rowlands, TPSG VBO 828-5480" >>>
                          -< Looking for a ride ... >-

>I'll be visiting TAY/ZK 02-06 April, and Mountain View 07-12 April.
>I'd appreciate any opportunity for a ride plus a loan of bike (58-60cm)
>during that period ... otherwise Robin will get the better of me on the
>Bouquet!

>It'll be jogging otherwise - ugh!

	If you plan on using Pollard's Cinelli, be sure and bring your 
own pedals.  It has toe clips.   We took Matt out to a Mission workout 
and made him wear a pair of running shoes.    For some reason, Matt 
hasn't been back.  One of these days we'll start treating our visitors 
with some respect. ;)

	See you in April.

    Thanks to one and all for the offers - I'll be contacting you offline,
    and reporting back here with the war stories!

	I'd just like to thank those who took Rob out on his recent US trip 
and gave him a dose of his own medecin, although it was a bit mean to take him 
up 16% with only 42 x 24 - us weak Europeans need at least 32 on the front and 
the plans for Le Bouquet have crystallised at 32 x 26 for the big 'ill.  I got 
the prime at the Col d'Eze on Sunday; I'd like to be able to say it was due 
to: fantastic fitness, incredible hill-climbing ability, determination and iron 
wil..... - really it was because he (Rob) wasn't there.

	He also brought back some US mags, and I did a scientific contents 
survey(ie: I put my thumb on the edge and flicked the pages) and came to the 
conclusion I only found about 10% of interest to me.  Mind you, as you all 
know from my polite comments I don't have much to do with VTT's and 
Triathlons.  I believe we in France anyway are more than spoiled with the 
coverage for 9 months of the year from Equipe and especially for 3 weeks at 
Tour time, plus the TV live stuff.  The only positive thing I could say was 
that the price (3$ or so) was less than � of the comparable Le Cycle, Velo 
2000 or Miroir du Cyclisme etc...

	Paris - Roubaix was magic.....  I cannot believe how these guys just 
kept on going on and on over such terrain.  The TV gave you a wonderful 
impression with dust and close ups of riders chains and forks leaping about.  
They even put a small camera on Fignon's chainstays during a pre-race outing 
and you could just see how the cobbles were from a foot above, not to mention 
the twitching of the front wheel to avoid the worst.  In the event, the front 
men were on the grass at the sides where possible and still doing 45 kph !!  
It's said to be a lottery, but it still seems to me that the same strong men 
are there year after year so maybe there is a bit of skill as well....

    Having the read the previous I don't know if this is incredibly stupid
    or not but....
    
    Its my turn to be in ZK next week (21-26).  I don't think that I'm
    going to have much time (if any) but if I do get some time I'd sure
    like to borrow a bike and do some miles (otherwise its back to basics
    *again* when I get home). For the life of me I cannot remember my frame
    size but since I wont be doing (m)any centuries it wont be that
    critical -inseam 32" at 5:10 so if you're roughly that shape and have I
    bike I could borrow I'd appreciate it.
    
    thanks
    
    rod

    I'll be at MKO through the weekend of the 20th.  I'm bringing my bike
    and anticipate going on the Granite state wheelman ride on Saturday. 
    Does anyone here do those rides?
    
    Barry

    The GSW have several rides on Saturday, in which are you interested?
    
    ed

    	re: .9
    
    	Robin,
    
    		The magazines that you saw are part of the reason that your
    race reports are so valuable here.  They find their way out along
    public networks to riders at different companies and to at least one 
    bicycle shop bulletin board.   During July of last year, the shop began
    calling me every afternoon to find what TdF results and comments you
    (and others) had posted. 
    
    		We enjoyed having Rob out here.  I don't know what stories
    he told you, but he upheld Europe's honor.  We couldn't get him to make
    ANY whining noises or to complain - not that we tried, of course.  In
    fact, he kept shouting "where are the REAL hills?" and "hammer or get off 
    the front!"  - you get the general idea.   The real shame for Europe is
    that he accepted the offer of a helmet.  What would Laurent or Moreno
    say?
    

    After a final fling in Dublin I'm back in VBO and would like to
    thank Eric and John for helping keep my legs from decomposing
    whilst the other side of the brimy.
    
    Chasing Eric's fluo tandem was impossible until I learned never
    to leave more than 1/2" between his rear and my front wheel...
    Out west John, Gary and Artie were a handfull, I'd have whipped'm 
    into shape... if it had not been for Johns cheap wheels(!)
    
    Fortunately Matt, they didn't take me out to Mission.
    
    And if anyone ever asks you whether you'd like to take a shortcut
    up Redwood Gulch, refuse politely but firmly!
    
    Thanks once again to all and hope I get the opportunity to repay
    the service to any visitors to VBO. Robin's got the guest bike(s)
    until I get to buy my VITUS.

    Hey, My apologies to all you Mass/NH cyclist for this traditional
    Scottish weather I've brought over with me... :-(
    
    rod

    	For those of you not in New England, the weather yesterday
    	musta had some gale force winds.
    
    	I'm driving home from church, into the wind, wondering
    	why I can't accelerate as I usually do.
    
    	Rod's right. he musta brought this nasty weather with
    	him.
    
    	Maybe we oughta throw him back.
    
    	Scott

    
    That makes me feel a little better.  All day long (except
    during the tailwind segments :-)), I was groaning inwardly
    about the brisk winds down here - sounds like the same system
    had an even more pronounced effect up there!
    
    -john

	Hi, I've just found this notesfile and have recently become
	enthusiastic about cycling. Could someone explain more about
	the Granite State Wheelmen mention in an earlier reply. I 
	live in Nashua and am interested in finding someone to do some
	riding with.

	Thanks,

	Bill

    	Well, I just joined GSW, so I'll give you some general
    	info.
    
    	Granite State Wheelmen is a club of about 1000 riders
    	in the southern New Hampshire area. Yearly membership
    	is $15.00. For that you get a GSW patch, a booklet about
    	cycling safety, and the GSW newsletter (I forget the name).
    
    	The newsletter contains stories, info on rides outside the
    	immediate southern NH area, and schedules for weekday and
    	weekend rides. All of the weekday and weekend rides are
    	graded for speed and difficulty, so a new member should be
    	able to get with a ride that s/he can handle.
    
    	The president is Ed Fisher, who notes in this conference.
    	However, the person in charge of membership is K. Lacharite,
    	who lives in Pelham or Windham, NH. I'll send you the address
    	and phone number by mail when I finish this reply.
    
    	Other than that, I have no experience with the group since I
    	just joined. From comments in the newsletter and elsewhere,
    	they seem like a good bunch of people.
    
    	Scott

    Kathy Lacharite lives at 83 Londonderry Rd, Windham, NH 03087
    and is the membership chairperson.  Her phone no is 603-434-4773
    if you would like to have her mail you some info and a membership form.
    
    She has noted the enormous increase in the number of DCU checks
    received.
    
    The newsletter is the Pedal Talk.
    
    I'm not only a bike club member, I'm also the president,
    ed

    I heard that there was a GSW ride up the coast of Maine the weekend
    of the first of june.  I don't remember if the note was in here or if I
    it was talked about at our last club ride.
    
    My wife and I had planned on going to New Orleans that weekend, but
    58 hrs in the car is a killer.....  SOOOoooo
    
    Since we have both scheduled the time off we thought we may do this
    Maine coastal ride on the Tandem. 
    
    Mr. Fisher..... Do you have the data on this ride, or can some one point
    me to the correct note.
    
    
    John

    	John,
    
    	I can check tonight and let you know tomorrow.
    
    	Scott

    	Damariscotta, Maine
    	May 31 - June 2
    
    	Third annual exploration of the rocky coast of Maine.
    	Scenic wonders await you, especially when the weather is
    	kind! Rides of 30 or 50 miles are available or tailor
    	your own mileage to fit.
    
    	Contact: Meg Moore (603)623-6279
    
    	Scott

    I'm going to be in Palo Alto on Sunday 23rd, Monday 24th of June.
    Does some kind person with a spare bike feel like showing me
    how cycling should be done ? I fit about a 23inch (~57cm) frame.
    
    Thanks
    
    ---Alan
    

>   <<< Note 1881.24 by FILMS::PAXTON "Alan Paxton, VMS Engineering Ecosse" >>>
>                             -< Bring me sunshine >-
>
>    I'm going to be in Palo Alto on Sunday 23rd, Monday 24th of June.
>    Does some kind person with a spare bike feel like showing me
>    how cycling should be done ? I fit about a 23inch (~57cm) frame.
>    
>    Thanks
>    
>    ---Alan
    

I'll ask around and see what's available.  What kind of riding do 
you do?  Racing?  Touring?  Road?  Dirt?

What kind of bike do you currently ride?

    I should have said ! I like to ride on roads (call me
    old-fashioned...), but I don't do it fast enough to think
    about racing. The current machine is a halfway racer/tourer
    cheap CroMoly type thing with a power-sensitive gear-shifter.
    
       But if anyone wants to let me junk their Merlin... :-)
    
    ---Alan (Look no toe-clips)
    

    It's that time again...
    
    I'm going to DECUS in May.  Its at some place called Atlanta�.  After
    that I'm off to Nashua for a week. Since I'm popping around quite a bit
    (in theory I'm supposed to spend a weekend in Cleveland) I'd sooner not
    trust the bike to too much air travel...  Now the questions:
    
    - I'm pretty new to DEC and I've been to a DECUS before.  Is there any
    chance of getting some miles done duiring these things ?
    
    - If so is there decent cycling in and around Atlanta.  Or do I just 
    give up cycling for that week.
    
    - Any kind person wanna lend me some wheels for the week at Nashua
    (ed?).  I'm 58cm (23 in) centre of bottom bracket to top of tube...
    
    - Finally what will be the action at ZK around then. With a spot of luck I
    should be able to handle nice gentle centuries by this time...
    
    rod
    
    � This is called European Ignorance/Arrogance...

    	Rod,
    
    	I live in Nashua, just around the corner from ZK. However,
    	my TREK is 63cm (24.4 inches), so it might be too big.
    
    	If you want to get together for a meal or if you need something,
    	give me a ring.
    
    		DTN: 226-2525
    		Home: (603) 888-9024
    
    	Scott

    Rod,
    
     Atlanta is a great city and a very good place to cycle. I think DECUS
    is downtown and there are some in-town rides and if you go a little out
    of the city there are plenty of places to ride. None of my bikes will
    fit you, they are 52's. I know of some bike shops that rent bikes and I
    can supply you with address and phone numbers if you would like. The
    weather in May in Atlanta should be very nice. If you send me your
    address I can supply you with my club's mag. (a very nice one by the
    way) which list weekday and weekend rides.
    
     If you want more info offline you can send me mail:
    Joe Penn @GGO
    
    
    Joe                              

	Glad to see you are taking things seriously, Rod - remember how many km
you need before the Raid.  I'm told it's a bit flat there in comparison so I
suggest you either ride with flat tyres or screw the brakes on hard.  Of course
I know some members of the team who are swanning off to Japan for a couple of
bikeless weeks......

    
    Rod, I would consider bringing my bike.  (Obviously I did in coming
    to the UK.)  Joe Penn gave good info on Atlanta.  
    
    Did you say you *had* been to a DECUS?  When I went in 1990 (New Orleans)
    I had time in the morning before sessions, and around dinner time, for
    short rides, good for keeping the muscles in tune.  Apart from that,
    one tends to be very busy.
    
    You're welcome to drop by Charlotte (which you may be flying over on
    the way from Atlanta to Boston)!
    
    -john

    
    
    	Just coz the Scottish weather's lousy, he's got to jet set across
    the world trying to find the ideal climate to train in. Well it won't
    work! Once you've scoffed a few American steaks, you'll never get that
    extra weight over the Pyrennes. And yes, I am jealous...
    
    Graham.
    

    The current GSW membership chairpersons are:
    
Chris and Susan Jones
95 Pembroke Rd
Concord, NH 03301

603-487-3387
    
    ed

    
    On behalf of Robin Hemmings "old codger" (currently on holiday), who'll be 
    in Littleton as of 28 May for a week.
    
    Anyone willing to lend a bike/maybe ride with Robin on the 29th May?
    Robin rides a 56" but says can handle a 54" or 58".
    
    Please reply to IDEFIX::HEMMINGS and myself, or call Robin directly at
    (33) 93 42 72 95
    
    He's got shoes with LOOK fittings; he can bring the pedals if
    necessary...
    
    Many thanks in advance, Rob Rowlands

    >     Robin rides a 56" but says can handle a 54" or 58".
    

    Well, you see, in many of Robin's notes he makes mention of his great
    age.  Obviously the 56" refers to a penny farthing -- whose size is
    given as the diameter of the big wheel.
    
    :-)
    
    ed

My apologies in being so tardy in replying, things have been hectic of late.

I have been overwhelmed by kind offers to loan me a velo and I hope to be 
able to take them up, thanks in advance to all those who have offered 
particularly those who have taken the trouble to phone me at home.

The original plan saw me in LKG 28th May - 2 June, so knowing that the 29th 
was a US holiday, I tentatively arranged with Ed Fisher that we could go out 
together.  Like all things in Digital, it changed and the course is now put 
back 2 weeks, but I am hoping to steal away for a short time anyway on the 
velo, plus meet up with a couple of you.

I expect to know exactly by next week...   Thanks again everyone ...

PS I hope to move CYCLE_RACING this week to MOVIES
PPS Ed, that's Old Ordinary to you, now we've gone metric no-one understands 
pennies and farthings ...

    :-)

    ok, now, what would be a good route to give Robin?  He's from France
    so I presume a route through the nudist camp wouldn't raise an eyebrow
    :-).  It wouldn't be good to send him too far away because he'd miss
    his flight home and my French Visa request might get lost in
    retaliation :-).  SO what's left?  A right turn into Miller State Park
    (as a 'shortcut')?  A detour through the Harley crowd in Louden?
    Or just a Patisserie tour?
    
    ed

    If you are riding on Saturday a good place to start is from the 
    High Hopes balloon festival in Milford NH.  The balloons take off
    between 6-7am weather permitting.  Tons of great riding ... and yes
    you can even include Miller State Park !!  I am currently planning
    a 70-80 mile ride from there with some friends from work.
    -Larry

    He's starting from ZK, Friday 'bout 10.
    
    - his plane is out of Bahstun at 9:30 pm.
    
    ed

He ought to be able to ride to Boston & back at least twice in that time frame. 
Probably faster than driving too!
Tim

Well I made it, thanks to Ed.

Now, however am I going to explain I rode with tri-bars and Shimano 
throughout??  I just have to brazen it out I suppose ...

I went into Littleton to just touch base, of course this took longer than I 
expected so I didn't get to ZK until around 11, going R instead of L as Ed 
told me wasted more time.  Anyway he looked after and broke the news that he 
preferred going to see the new Batman film to coming out on the bike with me. 
Holy Values, Robin!!

Off into nice lanes where I only missed about 3 turnings, but it was OK 
seeing I was in no hurry and I had a pleasant ride through the trees.
I discovered that a "convenience store" is in fact a "8 � 8" or a "superette" 
and had a sandwich.
I probably set the cyclists cause in New England by taking a leak by the side 
of the road because there was no bathroom in sight.
The houses were what I had seen in the pictures and the roads were smooth and 
well-graded with not a lot of traffic and definitely no scares during a 50 
mile ride.

Back in ZK Ed had taken off so I had a major exercise to find the showers - I 
could have used one of the many available but I had left my clothes near Ed's 
desk.  The receptionist thought I was completely stupid, she was probably 
right.

Left ZK for the airport with a brief feeding stop at the Turkey Farm ...

I didn't even touch the position - had I kept the velo longer I would 
probably have put the saddle back and the bars down, but for a gentle Friday 
afternoon unwind after 4 days on GIGA/FDDI it was ideal - Thanks Ed!!

    Robin, maybe you can take a little of the embarrassment out of the
    tri-bar stigma by calling the aerobars... "tri-bar" is antiquated
    by the current standards of cycling (in the U.S. anyway).
    
    You can tell your cycling cohorts you were totally areo in the U.S.!
    
                                      :-)
    
    Chip

    Well, at least the Masi was European and I didn't make you ride a
    plastic saddle.  :-)
    
    ed

 >>   You can tell your cycling cohorts you were totally areo in the U.S.!

With a figure like mine, that will never be believed ...

O and I forgot to say I will be glad to offer the same treatment to any lost 
sould who come to the S of F.

>  <<< Note 1881.43 by HERON::codger.vbo.dec.com::HEMMINGS "Lanterne Rouge" >>>
>                    -< Codger sighted in US with tri-bars >-

>I probably set the cyclists cause in New England by taking a leak by the side 
>of the road because there was no bathroom in sight.

   Why do some cars always have a habit of coming around the bend whenever
   I have to do that :-)

   Isn't the real French way to pee while still riding (firing to the
   side, no doubt :-)  I had to do that once on BMB, since I'd have
   fallen off the back of the pack I was in if I'd actually stopped.

   - Jim

    One presumes you rode to the side of the pack first...
    
    DougO