Month: March 2019

  • A couple of discoveries

    A couple of discoveries

    Following up on yesterday’s crankset replacement, I knew that I had to remove some chain links before going any further. In the process, I made a couple of discoveries. Because the new chainrings are four teeth smaller than the ones they replaced, that means the chain had four extra links. This showed in the rear…

  • Mechanical prep for a long ride

    Mechanical prep for a long ride

    After more than a month of gathering up various bits and tools, I was finally ready today to do some maintenance and upgrades on Kuroko. I’ve got a fairly ambitious ride coming up in less than three months, and I need to make sure everything will work together before sticking Kuroko into a bag and…

  • Yokohama in the sun

    Yokohama in the sun

    The Halfakid was ready to go this morning, and Nana had fixed up a mess o’ onigiri, so I didn’t have much choice about riding. Plus the weather was very clear — cold in the morning but warming up as we went. I was hoping to see some cherry blossoms today, particularly along the Tama…

  • Haneda half day

    Haneda half day

    I had a few constraints on my ride time today. First, Nana reminded me we’re having dinner at 5:30, and then the forecast called for rain in the afternoon despite it being a bright, sunny day. (There’s been no rain yet and the forecast has been revised.) So I decided on a quick jaunt down…

  • Tour de Tohoko 2019 preview

    Tour de Tohoko 2019 preview

    The routes and entry information for Tour de Tohoku 2019 have been announced. There’s been some reorganization: all rides are on Sunday now, and they’ve done away with the route I rode in 2018. I’m pretty sure I’ll be going for the Kitakami Fondo, a similar distance to last year’s ride but a bit less…

  • A little more …

    A little more …

    The forecast for this weekend was for fair and warm on Saturday and rain on Sunday. (It now looks as if it may not rain until Sunday evening.) So I contacted the Halfakid to let him know I’d be riding on Saturday, barring a change in the forecast, and he said he’d be at karate…

  • Must be round

    Must be round

    It was the rear hub totally seizing up that convinced the Halfakid it was time to retire Ol’ Paint in favor of a new bike. The mechanic we stumbled across that early Saturday morning did a very good job of cleaning and repacking the bearings, but he noted that the cups were probably damaged and…

  • March something something something Lion

    March something something something Lion

    The Halfakid joined me yesterday for a brisk run up the river. The moment we turned upriver, March starting living up to its reputation. “Good thing it’s not windy,” I joked, “because that would suck.” There was nothing for it but to keep our heads tucked down and our legs spinning. The Halfakid decided to…