The Adventures of SeaFoam
I've named it SeaFoam. I don't consider it a "him" or "her", b/c then I would be riding "him", which is not my thing. And if I were riding "her", that would seem a bit inappropriate, so I'll just go with SeaFoam.
Dave and I met up for not terribly early coffee and a plan to do the 50-mile or so Riverwalk/Levee full loop. Patrick had hatched plans to ride to in his in-laws in Danville 90m away and did his best to incorporate me for part of the trip to Taylorsville before I would turn home. Problem is, as of last night I just didn't feel it. He knows a bit more but I'll just keep it at "not feeling it". Our coffee ride would include a shorter route and far fewer hills to contend with, and it could get me back to civilization for L's soccer and the remainder of Saturday. To get ready I awoke pretty early and hit the garage: mounted IQ CYO (easy, no rack to contend with), mounted RBW Banana bag, mounted flashie on bag loop, mounted top tube "bento" bag for sundries, taped cable housing and wrapped bars. It wasn't/isn't my best job ever, but it does the trick.
The short ride up to Breadworks suggested that SeaFoam- a little big but well within the RBW philosophy- fit nicely. The mileage later in the day would sort things out there. We left to become enveloped in a very foggy landscape, something quite unusual for this part of the world. Having dynos and flashies made traveling all a bit easy and assuring that we were making out best effort. Our route took us via Audobon Park, Floyd St along UofL and then a dismounted cut-through off Hiawatha over the train tracks. That has been the standard 'Out' route that I use to travel to places southern. Dave knew of it before I, but they're closing Hiawatha and building a large wall, thereby blocking off future access. Bummer.
Shortly thereafter I suggested a stop at the Woodlawn Sunergos, and shortly thereafter suggested we bail on the full 50 because I wasn't feeling it. SeaFoam was good, the weather nippy-but-good, the company good, but I'm a little physically low so "cut short" was the plan. The day was helped by what I believe was one of the best cafe au'laits on record. Merci Sunergos! After our second coffee stop we meandered towards Iroquois where we ran across the remnants of the Saturday morning LBC ride. A bit up the hill we encountered a gentleman struggling with a tire change. I have a sneaking suspicion he really didn't know what he was doing, but, of course, the club had left him. Shock. Funnily, while waiting there (Dave is the one who helped), I heard a "Hi, Son!", and there on the Iroquois Hill was my mom on a jog with a friend. She's training for the Mini-marathon, so it was good to see her out there.
We goofed around the top of the hill as the fog burned off and then descended where Dave took a bit of a flyer. As we headed north on Southern Parkway he remarked that his tempo was *easy*, but I wish I could've said the same. I refuse to blame SeaFoam and just say that I was tired and weak, but I was certainly enjoying the bike and the finally warm weather, enough that we headed west at Algonquin for more "dumb", "empty" miles. At Shawnee Park I/we sat on the concrete bench at the water fountain and I just relaxed and soaked things in; I could've taken a nap. Maybe I should have. From there we worked out way back east on Chesnut instead of through Portland b/c I was ready to be home. I had just enough time for one more stop before heading home for soccer so we stopped at Quills for a third cup. I rested a second and then decided to meet the fam at the soccer complex, thereby freeing up time for a snack and a cup (decaf, all decaf at this point).
I had to turn east for Mockingbird Valley and stopped by OYLC for a short spell where I talked to the boys and to a gentleman I had met months ago who toured SE Asia with his girlfriend on his IF Independent. Good stories there. From there I arrived at the soccer establishment feeling it in my legs and glad to get a ride only only to find that the wife hadn't driven the bike-rack car but rather her own, which made perfect sense. Subsequently I tagged on another 8 miles or so taking it easy on the way home to total just short of 45 on the day, a tiring day, but a good one on a good mount. Now I'm keen on some fancy lighter tires for SeaFoam. The Marathons are great for commuting and touring; the Compass 1.75"s would be very juicy on such a sporty touring bike.
More to come on the Adventures of SeaFoam.
Dave and I met up for not terribly early coffee and a plan to do the 50-mile or so Riverwalk/Levee full loop. Patrick had hatched plans to ride to in his in-laws in Danville 90m away and did his best to incorporate me for part of the trip to Taylorsville before I would turn home. Problem is, as of last night I just didn't feel it. He knows a bit more but I'll just keep it at "not feeling it". Our coffee ride would include a shorter route and far fewer hills to contend with, and it could get me back to civilization for L's soccer and the remainder of Saturday. To get ready I awoke pretty early and hit the garage: mounted IQ CYO (easy, no rack to contend with), mounted RBW Banana bag, mounted flashie on bag loop, mounted top tube "bento" bag for sundries, taped cable housing and wrapped bars. It wasn't/isn't my best job ever, but it does the trick.
The short ride up to Breadworks suggested that SeaFoam- a little big but well within the RBW philosophy- fit nicely. The mileage later in the day would sort things out there. We left to become enveloped in a very foggy landscape, something quite unusual for this part of the world. Having dynos and flashies made traveling all a bit easy and assuring that we were making out best effort. Our route took us via Audobon Park, Floyd St along UofL and then a dismounted cut-through off Hiawatha over the train tracks. That has been the standard 'Out' route that I use to travel to places southern. Dave knew of it before I, but they're closing Hiawatha and building a large wall, thereby blocking off future access. Bummer.
Shortly thereafter I suggested a stop at the Woodlawn Sunergos, and shortly thereafter suggested we bail on the full 50 because I wasn't feeling it. SeaFoam was good, the weather nippy-but-good, the company good, but I'm a little physically low so "cut short" was the plan. The day was helped by what I believe was one of the best cafe au'laits on record. Merci Sunergos! After our second coffee stop we meandered towards Iroquois where we ran across the remnants of the Saturday morning LBC ride. A bit up the hill we encountered a gentleman struggling with a tire change. I have a sneaking suspicion he really didn't know what he was doing, but, of course, the club had left him. Shock. Funnily, while waiting there (Dave is the one who helped), I heard a "Hi, Son!", and there on the Iroquois Hill was my mom on a jog with a friend. She's training for the Mini-marathon, so it was good to see her out there.
We goofed around the top of the hill as the fog burned off and then descended where Dave took a bit of a flyer. As we headed north on Southern Parkway he remarked that his tempo was *easy*, but I wish I could've said the same. I refuse to blame SeaFoam and just say that I was tired and weak, but I was certainly enjoying the bike and the finally warm weather, enough that we headed west at Algonquin for more "dumb", "empty" miles. At Shawnee Park I/we sat on the concrete bench at the water fountain and I just relaxed and soaked things in; I could've taken a nap. Maybe I should have. From there we worked out way back east on Chesnut instead of through Portland b/c I was ready to be home. I had just enough time for one more stop before heading home for soccer so we stopped at Quills for a third cup. I rested a second and then decided to meet the fam at the soccer complex, thereby freeing up time for a snack and a cup (decaf, all decaf at this point).
 |
| That damn floppy top-tube bar will never be on this bike again! |
I had to turn east for Mockingbird Valley and stopped by OYLC for a short spell where I talked to the boys and to a gentleman I had met months ago who toured SE Asia with his girlfriend on his IF Independent. Good stories there. From there I arrived at the soccer establishment feeling it in my legs and glad to get a ride only only to find that the wife hadn't driven the bike-rack car but rather her own, which made perfect sense. Subsequently I tagged on another 8 miles or so taking it easy on the way home to total just short of 45 on the day, a tiring day, but a good one on a good mount. Now I'm keen on some fancy lighter tires for SeaFoam. The Marathons are great for commuting and touring; the Compass 1.75"s would be very juicy on such a sporty touring bike.
More to come on the Adventures of SeaFoam.
Comments
Bikes are girls. At least, my ikes are. They told me so.
Your bike wants seafoam bar tape.
As to tires, I now see that the Pasela comes in a 26x1.75, but none seem to be readily available on the interweb. Food for thought, though.
SeaFoam also looks fantastic. By eyeball measurement of bar, stem, and saddle placement, it appears to be a pretty good fit from here. I hope you get it dialed in perfect for the long haul. I'll bet a tire upgrade will transform the ride.