Road Cycling · Public discussion

exchanging speed for utility

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Road Cycling
Published
3 January 2006
Last activity
5 January 2006
Original author
Andy Gee
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  1. I've been doing slow rides - way under my top speed -- for the past week.
    Long story short, I challenged myself to find and catalogue emerging
    artistic trends in graffiti in New York City to see what I really know
    about art and about opportunity. Looks like the answers will be "there
    aren't any" and "not much."

    But anyway. A bike is absolutely the ideal method for doing this. I can't
    even imagine trying to do it by car and it would take forever by foot. A
    bike is just right: being able to look all over, stop where I want, whip
    out the camera, and go on for the next few blocks or miles. But I haven't
    been getting the thrill and pulse pounding excitement of going faster than
    the cars. I feel satisfied when I get home, and my knees certainly aren't
    complaining, but I won't be able to tell till next week if i've done any
    thermodynamic/caloric damage.

    Anyone else trade training and speed for doing something "useful"?

    Any thoughts?

  2. "Andy Gee" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:

    I've been doing slow rides - way under my top speed -- for the past week.
    Long story short, I challenged myself to find and catalogue emerging
    artistic trends in graffiti in New York City to see what I really know
    about art and about opportunity. Looks like the answers will be "there
    aren't any" and "not much."


    [...]

    Quoted message said:

    Anyone else trade training and speed for doing something "useful"?

    Any thoughts?

    I've found that stopping to take photos of off-road scenery disrupts my
    ride. I can't think of a solution except for some sort of techno-geek
    helmet-cam contraption that would require more aptitude to construct than I
    possess.

    Can't really think of a good way to carry my camera [it isn't a small
    digital but a large 35 mm] that is both protected from trail mishaps yet
    easy and quick to access on the fly.

    Not much to do except make the choice between photo rides and 'real' rides.

  3. cycle-one said:

    "Andy Gee" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:

    I've been doing slow rides - way under my top speed -- for the past
    week. Long story short, I challenged myself to find and catalogue
    emerging artistic trends in graffiti in New York City to see what I
    really know about art and about opportunity. Looks like the answers
    will be "there aren't any" and "not much."


    [...]

    Quoted message said:

    Anyone else trade training and speed for doing something "useful"?

    Like shopping and errands, for instance?

    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:

    Any thoughts?

    Just do it.

    Quoted message said:

    I've found that stopping to take photos of off-road scenery disrupts my
    ride. I can't think of a solution except for some sort of techno-geek
    helmet-cam contraption that would require more aptitude to construct
    than I possess.

    Quoted message said:

    Can't really think of a good way to carry my camera [it isn't a small
    digital but a large 35 mm] that is both protected from trail mishaps yet
    easy and quick to access on the fly.

    A backpack works fine for me.

    Quoted message said:

    Not much to do except make the choice between photo rides and 'real'
    rides.

    How about both?

    No mile on a bike is a bad mile. Riding for errands, photo expeditions,
    etc., is good for you, whether or not it fits perfectly into a planned
    training regimen.

    I've found biking to be the best and most pleasant way to scope out real
    estate. I also enjoy the reactions of pompous, snooty agents when I
    arrive by bike!

    Matt O.

  4. "Andy Gee" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:

    I've been doing slow rides - way under my top speed -- for the past week.
    Long story short, I challenged myself to find and catalogue emerging
    artistic trends in graffiti in New York City to see what I really know
    about art and about opportunity. Looks like the answers will be "there
    aren't any" and "not much."

    But anyway. A bike is absolutely the ideal method for doing this. I


    can't

    Quoted message said:

    even imagine trying to do it by car and it would take forever by foot. A
    bike is just right: being able to look all over, stop where I want, whip
    out the camera, and go on for the next few blocks or miles. But I haven't
    been getting the thrill and pulse pounding excitement of going faster than
    the cars. I feel satisfied when I get home, and my knees certainly aren't
    complaining, but I won't be able to tell till next week if i've done any
    thermodynamic/caloric damage.

    Anyone else trade training and speed for doing something "useful"?

    Nope....speed is life.

    Even when I commute or run errands, I like to go fast. Guess I'm just not a
    "stroll along and smell the roses" kind of guy.

    GG

    Quoted message said:


    Any thoughts?

  5. "Andy Gee" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:

    I've been doing slow rides - way under my top speed -- for the past week.
    Long story short, I challenged myself to find and catalogue emerging
    artistic trends in graffiti in New York City to see what I really know
    about art and about opportunity. Looks like the answers will be "there
    aren't any" and "not much."

    But anyway. A bike is absolutely the ideal method for doing this. I
    can't
    even imagine trying to do it by car and it would take forever by foot. A
    bike is just right: being able to look all over, stop where I want, whip
    out the camera, and go on for the next few blocks or miles. But I haven't
    been getting the thrill and pulse pounding excitement of going faster than
    the cars. I feel satisfied when I get home, and my knees certainly aren't
    complaining, but I won't be able to tell till next week if i've done any
    thermodynamic/caloric damage.

    Anyone else trade training and speed for doing something "useful"?

    Any thoughts?

    Slowing down to "smell the roses" does work fine too. At least you aren't
    sitting on the couch or driving someplace.
    Just the effort you expend to take a easy ride does help. Sort of like
    taking a walk.
    I do this regularly with my son who doesn't like to ride hard and fast. I
    let him set the pace and my HR usually doesn't get out of the trash area.
    My shopping bike is a old 3 speed Huffy, with racks and front and rear
    baskets, and it doesn't want to go fast anyway.
    But I still get a decent workout from it. My recovery day rides are the slow
    easy rides.
    I keep a heavy single speed bike at work for "going out for lunch", it just
    doesn't go fast at all, unless you are going downhill.

  6. In article <[email hidden]>,

    Matt O'Toole said:
    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:

    Anyone else trade training and speed for doing something "useful"?

    Like shopping and errands, for instance?

    Especially (trading-off speed) when carrying a dozen eggs
    among other groceries.

    cheers,
    Tom

    --
    -- Nothing is safe from me.
    Above address is just a spam midden.
    I'm really at: tkeats [curlicue] vcn [point] bc [point] ca

  7. "Matt O'Toole" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:

    On Mon, 02 Jan 2006 23:21:19 -0500, cycle-one wrote:

    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:

    Can't really think of a good way to carry my camera [it isn't a small
    digital but a large 35 mm] that is both protected from trail mishaps yet
    easy and quick to access on the fly.

    A backpack works fine for me.

    Quoted message said:

    Not much to do except make the choice between photo rides and 'real'
    rides.

    How about both?

    That isn't possible as in order to take a photo I have to stop, unpack and
    click and this disrupts the ride. hence the distinction between photo rides
    and the rest.

    Quoted message said:

    No mile on a bike is a bad mile.

    I'm not saying it is. But some are better than others.

  8. "Matt O'Toole" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:

    I've found biking to be the best and most pleasant way to scope out real
    estate.

    I agree with this. I sometimes have the opportunity to view projects before
    we finance them at work, and I find looking at them by bike to be the best
    combination of efficiency and effectiveness.

    --
    Warm Regards,

    Claire Petersky
    http://www.bicyclemeditations.org/
    Personal page: http://www.geocities.com/cpetersky/
    See the books I've set free at:
    http://bookcrossing.com/referral/Cpetersky

  9. Matt O'Toole <[email hidden]> wrote in
    news:[email hidden]:

    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:

    Anyone else trade training and speed for doing something "useful"?

    Like shopping and errands, for instance?

    I love shopping trips! I'm going full speed between stops, plus I'm
    carrying cargo. The graffiti runs need a slower speed so I can see what's
    doing on the walls.

    --ag

  10. "Claire Petersky" wrote: (clip) I sometimes have the opportunity to view
    projects before we finance them at work, and I find looking at them by bike
    to be the best combination of efficiency and effectiveness.
    ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
    That would make some of your biking expenses tax deductble. I'm trying to
    picture the reaction of the IRS.

  11. GaryG said:


    Nope....speed is life.

    Even when I commute or run errands, I like to go fast. Guess I'm just not a
    "stroll along and smell the roses" kind of guy.

    I too have this problem. The few times I've ridden on organized rides it's
    difficult for me to pace with the crowd. Especially if it's a leisurely 11
    or 12 mph stroll. I'm a little better when I'm out getting groceries, but
    not much.

    --
    Dane Buson - z u v e m b i @ u n i x b i g o t s . o r g
    When you meet a master swordsman,
    show him your sword.
    When you meet a man who is not a poet,
    do not show him your poem.
    -- Rinzai, ninth century Zen master

  12. In article <[email hidden]>, Matt

    O'Toole said:

    I've found biking to be the best and most pleasant way to scope out real
    estate. I also enjoy the reactions of pompous, snooty agents when I
    arrive by bike!

    LOL! My experience is the reverse: every time I ride up for a viewing
    it's as if the Rockefeller's are moving in. Are your prospective homes
    mounted on wheels by chance? Matt, you'll be the envy of your neighbors
    with a rusting lugged steel relic in the front yard; they really
    accentuate the esthetics of double-wide Winnebagos - definitely a more
    stylish lawn ornament than the burned out hulk of a pickup truck.

    But if the residence is an Airstream, nothing less than a double butted
    7005 AL frame will do. One must keep up appearances.

    Luke

  13. Andy Gee said:

    I've been doing slow rides - way under my top speed -- for the past week.
    Long story short, I challenged myself to find and catalogue emerging
    artistic trends in graffiti in New York City to see what I really know
    about art and about opportunity. Looks like the answers will be "there
    aren't any" and "not much."

    But anyway. A bike is absolutely the ideal method for doing this. I can't
    even imagine trying to do it by car and it would take forever by foot. A
    bike is just right: being able to look all over, stop where I want, whip
    out the camera, and go on for the next few blocks or miles. But I haven't
    been getting the thrill and pulse pounding excitement of going faster than
    the cars. I feel satisfied when I get home, and my knees certainly aren't
    complaining, but I won't be able to tell till next week if i've done any
    thermodynamic/caloric damage.

    Anyone else trade training and speed for doing something "useful"?

    Any thoughts?

    Get a bike that better suits the purpose. I tried riding my "fast"
    bike for commuting, and errands and whatnot. I was trying to hammer
    all the time. So, I bought an old steel road bike, added moustache
    handlebars and brooks saddle. Old school style that is just right
    under 15mph.

    Added bonus: after 4-5 weeks of hauling back and forth on the steel
    bike, I picked up some speed on my fast ride.

    BTW, I used to follow graffiti trends myself a while ago. I'd be
    intersted in seeing your pictures. Got a link?

  14. Alternate between hi speed days and photgraphy days.
    Lots of slow days can reduce your peak speed.
    Having a slow day between high speed days gives the muscles a chance to
    rebuild.

    Andy Gee said:

    I've been doing slow rides - way under my top speed -- for the past week.
    Long story short, I challenged myself to find and catalogue emerging
    artistic trends in graffiti in New York City to see what I really know
    about art and about opportunity. Looks like the answers will be "there
    aren't any" and "not much."


    <delete>

    Quoted message said:

    Anyone else trade training and speed for doing something "useful"?

    Any thoughts?

  15. "OhioPlayer" <[email hidden]> wrote in
    news:[email hidden]:

    Quoted message said:


    Get a bike that better suits the purpose. I tried riding my "fast"
    bike for commuting, and errands and whatnot. I was trying to hammer
    all the time. So, I bought an old steel road bike, added moustache
    handlebars and brooks saddle. Old school style that is just right
    under 15mph.

    I'm doing this mainly on a 3-speed metro, an old steel street bike!

    Quoted message said:


    Added bonus: after 4-5 weeks of hauling back and forth on the steel
    bike, I picked up some speed on my fast ride.

    BTW, I used to follow graffiti trends myself a while ago. I'd be
    intersted in seeing your pictures. Got a link?

    I put up a blog for an arts group at www.graffitirider.blogspot.com. It
    looks better in video than in print, though.

    My long-neglected bike blog is www.andygeeon2wheels.com

    --ag

  16. i have lost 2 bikes in my school. there are too many theves in my
    around life.
    but i still very intereting in your long-neglected bike blog ! could
    you please just email your article to me?because i cant open the url.

  17. I don't know about the US IRS but the UK tax folks are cool with biking
    expenses.
    I claim mileage when I visit a customer, last time I looked it was 20p/mile.

    "Leo Lichtman" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:


    "Claire Petersky" wrote: (clip) I sometimes have the opportunity to view
    projects before we finance them at work, and I find looking at them by
    bike to be the best combination of efficiency and effectiveness.
    ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
    That would make some of your biking expenses tax deductble. I'm trying to
    picture the reaction of the IRS.

  18. "POHB" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:

    "Leo Lichtman" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:


    "Claire Petersky" wrote: (clip) I sometimes have the opportunity to view
    projects before we finance them at work, and I find looking at them by
    bike to be the best combination of efficiency and effectiveness.
    ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
    That would make some of your biking expenses tax deductable. I'm trying
    to picture the reaction of the IRS.

    Quoted message said:

    I don't know about the US IRS but the UK tax folks are cool with biking
    expenses.
    I claim mileage when I visit a customer, last time I looked it was
    20p/mile.

    I've already gone through trying to claim bike miles at work, and I've come
    to the conclusion that either you lie and say you drove, or forget it. The
    automobile reimbursement is 40.5 cents/mile, which I feel I can claim with a
    clear conscience for bike reimbursement. I just don't charge the extra time,
    if any, for the cycling vs. driving.

    I wouldn't bother the IRS, though. Get them interested in one thing, and
    maybe they'd rummage through our entire return, looking for trouble. No
    thanks.

    --
    Warm Regards,

    Claire Petersky
    http://www.bicyclemeditations.org/
    Personal page: http://www.geocities.com/cpetersky/
    See the books I've set free at:
    http://bookcrossing.com/referral/Cpetersky

  19. [email hidden] wrote in news:1136346753.828049.206450
    @f14g2000cwb.googlegroups.com:

    Quoted message said:

    i have lost 2 bikes in my school. there are too many theves in my
    around life.
    but i still very intereting in your long-neglected bike blog ! could
    you please just email your article to me?because i cant open the url.

    Sorry, that should have been:

    www.andygeeon2wheels.blogspot.com

    Thanks --

    --ag

  20. i often like to bike downtown to a railyard area and watch trains being
    put together from a few bridges - i do lots of photos, and on sunday
    afternoons many times just putter down there or to library going slow
    and meandering about

    completely opposite of my commute to/from work

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