Dinotte 300R and a Bentup Bag

After a long hiatus, I thought I'd start this up again.

It has been a cold and windy spring of 2013, and today continued that trend. Although not too cold, but still in the mid 50's at the end of April. I did get my first 30+ mile ride of the year in today. I went out Drinkwater Road on my way to Hampton Falls. It did get noticeably cooler as I got closer to the coast, especially with the fairly strong wind coming from the East.

I did stop to take a picture at one of those places I always just ride past because it is so close to home.

 

End of Watson Road

You may notice the new Bentup Cycles bag on the Aero. It has a sleeker look and can hold two water bottles. Now I can ride the Aero without using a bladder for the water. I am still having a little trouble with reaching the water bottle. I am one of the more challenged people when it comes to flexibility. The bag tends to slip down lower when loaded because it has an opening on the top for a headrest.

Bentup bag lower on the seat

I tried using some velcro to hold it up higher, but the velcro didn't hold and slipped down. I will continue playing with it. That extra inch or so higher makes it much easier for me to get to the water bottle.

Higher on the seat

While riding in last years Granite State Wheelmen Century, I noticed a tail light up ahead that made all the other tail lights appear dim. I caught up to the rider and of course it was a Dinotte light. I have been aware of the superior brightness of the Dinotte lights for years, but the price and the fact that they use external batteries always made me decide not to buy one. After seeing the light on the century, it made me decide to get one. Plus they had come out with the 300R which has the battery built in. It is still pretty expensive, but a driver will have to be very distracted to not notice me on the road now. The light comes with a plethora of mounting hardware. I have been using a PVC T fitting mounted in the loop on the back of my bags. This has worked well with the 300R also. I add a tie wrap, just for a little extra security. In case something wiggles loose. The 300R has a quick release to remove it, for charging via a USB cable. I've been running it in slow flash mode and the charge has been great. I charge it every 2 or 3 weeks. Perhaps that will increase when my riding picks up during the summer, but I doubt I will have to charge it more frequently than once every 10 days or so.

300R on PVC fitting

This years beach ride

Thought I'd post a ride I've been doing about once per week. It takes me past farms, horse ranches and along most of the NH coast. I start in Newfields and go through Exeter, Kensington and Hampton Falls on my way to the coast. I ride north along the coast so that I'm on the same side as the water.  There are a few one half to one mile long hills on the route, but overall it is flat to rollers type of terrain. A fun ride that provides miles of cruising at a good speed along the coast and inland hills/rollers that let you hit the upper 30's mph.
Google map of the ride

And some pics of my new ride, the sweet Bacchetta Carbon Aero 2.0

Drinkwater Road

Drinkwater Road

Just North of North Hampton Beach

Looking North

Acadia: Dirt and Pavement

I took the Giro to Acadia National Park, where I road it on the packed gravel carriage paths and the Loop Road.

For the carriage paths, I put on the 24" (520) front wheel that I built, with the Intense Micro Knobby tire. Luke at Calhoun Cycles was a big help in selecting the parts for the wheel. Changing from the 26" (559) to the 24" (520) had no effect on the handling of the bike and lowers the bottom bracket slightly less than one inch. The rear wheel was a Mavic Crossride UB with a Nashbar  Accelerator Mountain Tire. I was hoping the first wheel I built wouldn't collapse into a pancake and the bike would have enough traction so I wouldn't slide out in the gravel and crash. We started at the Bubble Pond parking area, and headed out over rolling hills to the Around the Mountain loop. I got the usual recumbent stares, since I was the only recumbent on the carriage paths. I have ridden the carriage paths many times, but have never seen a recumbent on the paths. The bike worked flawlessly, no skidding at all on the fast twisting downhills and great traction while climbing the couple of one or two mile climbs on this ride. On one fast downhill I coasted past Amy on her mountain bike and she said "Dad, your crazy". I didn't think I was going that fast, just letting the bike slip through the air. Lot's of fun. Here are a couple of pictures at the highest point on Sargent Mountain.

Sargent Mountain on Around the Mountain Loop

Sargent Mountain on Around the Mountain Loop

I put on the wheels and road tires that came with the bike for Thursday's Loop Road ride. I also filled up two water bottles and brought along a cable lock in case I wanted to go into the souvenir store on top of Cadillac Mountain for some food. I started at the Visitor Center and headed up the climb that leads out onto the Loop Road. That is always the hardest part of the ride for me. It takes me awhile to get going, especially after four days of hiking and biking, so starting with a long climb is not fun. The Loop Road has a 10 mile one way section with two lanes. The rest of the ride is on narrow roads, but the cars are mostly courteous. There are many great views along the way.

Acadia Loop Road

I was deciding whether to go up Cadillac Mountain, as I was climbing from Bubble Pond. The Loop Road has much more climbing than I'm use to and it is a pretty good climb from Bubble Pond to the road up Cadillac. I turned onto the road and took a break at the turnout just as you get onto the road. I felt better after the quick break and figured I don't get this chance very often. So, up I went. Soon I was wishing I hadn't brought the extra water bottle, lock, sunscreen .... but just kept turning the pedals. I made it all the way up, sometimes just doing 5mph, but didn't have to stop the rest of the way.

Top of Cadillac Mountain

River Rides

The Giro26 has turned out to be a nice bike. The handling is different than the Ti Aero. The Giro26 has steadier steering and with the wider handlebars it is easier to make a turn when starting. Not as fast as the Aero though.

A couple of times I just felt like going out for a relaxed pace ride or should I say cruise.  I rode the Giro26 to Packers Falls on the Lamprey River one day at lunch, hung out on the rocks at the falls, road back via Campground Road and ended up with a nice 25 mile ride.

Another night I road down to Exeter and road through Swasey Park along the Exeter River. Next time I do this, I'll have to check out the new ice cream shop in town.

Yellow Bike

I've always liked yellow bicycles. Maybe it has something to do with my first 10 speed, a yellow Schwinn Varsity.

For a few years now I have been thinking of buying a Bacchetta Giro26 ATT frameset and building it up using some spare parts I have. It seemed like it could easily switch between a good rails to trails path bike and a decent road bike, by having two sets of wheels and tires. It would work out well for trips to Acadia and other places with a mix of road and trail riding. And it happens to be yellow! Looking through the classifieds on the web I saw a Giro26 ATT for sale ..... large frame ..... and in Dover NH. I held out for a couple of weeks, but it was still there. I couldn't resist any longer, went over, saw that it was in great condition and brought it home with me.

Picture from the previous owner

 I've only had a couple of rides on it. It came with the Recurve seat which I just couldn't get use to. It was hurting my butt, so I leaned it back more, but it's wider bottom is designed for a more upright position. I have had a Euromesh seat around for awhile. I put that on and it feels much better. Reduces the weight by a pound or two also. I added a Planet Bike computer that I already had and some Crankbrother Mallet pedals which I also had. 

Catching Up

Catching up with posting on here and trying to catch up with lost miles. The spring continues to be wet and cool, while the "good" days have continued to have some strong winds. I did manage to ride 50 miles on one of the last Sundays of April. I think that is the earliest in the season that I have done 50 miles. I rode to Dover and back with a break to visit and get some food at a family gathering. I was feeling good on the way home and my odometer was approaching the 20,000 mile mark. So, I skipped a turn and took a route that would add an extra 5ish miles to get the odometer to 20,000 miles. It turned on my way home on Route 87 in Newfields, just west of the Bear Hill Road Junction.

Lee Hook Loop

This ride takes you past farms, rivers and through the woods on mostly lightly traveled roads. If you start at the Newfields Town Hall, you will go through "downtown" Newfields with all the hustle and bustle of a country store. The country store is across from the Town Hall and offers coffee, muffins, sandwiches, soups and more.

Head west on Route 87 (Piscassic Road) and you will pass Piscassic Ice Pond on the left. Route 87 does not have much of a shoulder and usually has 2 to 4 cars per minute. Often fewer cars than that. Turn right onto Bald Hill Road which is has very little traffic and is mostly residential, with a few small farms and fields along the way. You can follow Bald Hill Road to the end and take a right onto Grant Road, but I like to turn right on Johnson Road just before reaching Grant Road. Grant road has more traffic than Bald Hill, and no shoulders, but usually not too many cars pass me while on Grant. There is a short climb shortly after turning onto Grant. Follow Grant straight through the 4 corners intersection with Ash Swamp Road, and all the way to the end. Then left onto Route 152 which has more traffic, but does offer a shoulder most of the way until you reach Lee Hook Road. You will then pass by picturesque farms and have some fun on some rolling hills. The last hill at the end will get your heart rate up. Be careful when making the left onto Route 155. The view of cars coming is not very good. The speed limit on Route 155 is higher and there isn't a shoulder, but you are only on it for a short run down a fun hill. I am almost always able to make the left onto Tuttle Road at 30 mph. Once in awhile I have to hit the brakes and let cars go by. Tuttle Road is very lightly travelled and goes through a forested tract of land. Wadliegh Falls on the Lamprey River is at the intersection of Tuttle Road and Route 152. Go left on Route 152, over the Lamprey, then a quick right onto Campground Road, which is also very lightly travelled. Campground Road takes you to Jacobs Well Road which ends up back at Route 87, a little further west of Bald Hill Road.

View Lee Hook Loop in a larger map