Grocery shopping by bicycle with the Burley Travoy!

“Cool!  What is that?!”

That’s a typical response I get when riding my bicycle with the Burley Travoy attached.  The Travoy is an attention getter both because of it’s unique look and it’s uncanny ability in a manner of seconds to add cargo carrying utility to nearly any bike.

I have used my Travoy to:

• Carry all the equipment I need to facilitate a bicycle safety presentation including laptop, projector and handouts.
• Transport groceries (Tip: Just take your Travoy bags into the store and load groceries into them so you can maximize how many groceries you purchase without exceeding your carrying capacity)

A lot of thought went into the design and operation of the Travoy, including:

• The “twist and fold” system makes it easy to quickly fold the Travoy into a compact size that can be carried with you like a small piece of luggage.  It also makes it easy to store your Travoy when not in use.
• The latching mechanism used to secure the Travoy bags to the frame is intuitive and easy to use
• The seatpost attachment system means you can use a Travoy on virtually any bicycle – you can leave the Burley collar on your bicycle at all times and then quickly attach or detach the Burley Trailor when you need cargo capacity on your bike.

The biggest challenge the Travoy may have to overcome is its price.  I’ve had more than one cyclist cringe at the ~$280 price tag.

If you consider, however, that the Travoy has serious potential for introducing you to a whole new world of transportation & utility cycling then this price of entry becomes much more reasonable.

More grocery shopping by Burley Travoy (and Trek Soho S)

Burley Travoy loaded with projector, computer and other accessories for my bicycle safety class

Tour de Cure 2011 finish with my biggest fan!

In 2011, riding my bicycle to/from work helped me avoid purchasing 100 gallons of gasoline which put just over $300 back in my pocket.  Thank you, bicycle!

Thanks to Garmin Connect it’s easy to look back and analyze my 2011 bicycle mileage:

• Transportation:  1,190 miles (commuting, errands)
• Training:  607 miles (prep for cycling events like Tour de Cure)
• Fitness:  240 miles (usually solo rides about an hour in length)
• Touring:  225 miles (overnight tours to Comfort, Blanco, etc.)
• Recreation:  29 miles (easy rides with family)
• Events:  225 miles (Tour de Cure, Hammerfest, Rock ‘n Roll Bike Tour)

Total Mileage:  2,516 miles

Highlights of 2011 include:

• A full year of commuting on my Trek Soho bicycle purchased December 2010
• I purchased a CoMotion Americano touring bicycle – an American, handmade bicycle I look forward to racking up some serious mileage on
• I co-taught six Traffic Skills 101 bicycle safety classes (that’s about 54 hours of teaching people how to be safe on their bikes!)
• I presented my first of hopefully many FREE bicycle safety presentations at San Antonio Public Libraries.
• I completed three overnight bicycle tours to Seguin, Comfort and Blanco, TX
• I participated in three events I’d never done before: Tour de Cure, La Vernia Hammerfest and the San Antonio Rock ‘n Roll Marathon Bike Tour.

Looking back on 2011, I can honestly say it was definitely a “Year of the Bike” for me and 2012 is already lining up to be another banner year!

Deborah (left) is all grins as she rides her bicycle home for the first time

I was born a bicycle commuter in June 2008 when gas prices flirted with $4 a gallon.

Nearly 6,000 miles later, I’m still trying to make the 21 mile roundtrip bicycle commute at least twice a week.  What has held my interest in bicycle commuting over the past three years?  Time for a Top 10 list!

1. The “never stops amazing me” efficiency of getting a workout and getting to work in one activity
2. The money savings (currently about $6 saved for each commute)
3. The 500-700 calories burned for each roundtrip commute
4. The continued fascination of using a bicycle as transportation
5. The experience of soaking up the sounds and smells of the world around me on the bicycle
6. The health benefits and elevated mood provided by nearly two hours of cardiovascular exercise for each commute
7. The quality of sleep on bicycle commute days and the amazing ability to fall asleep in seconds once head hits pillow
8. The interaction with people I meet along the route – joggers, walkers, the old, the young
9. Introducing bicycle commuting to a cyclist and joining them on their first, usually awe-inspiring ride to work
10. The example I’m providing my daughter that human-powered transportation is viable and fun

What are your top 3, top 5 or top 10 things you love about bicycle commuting?

Rechargeable with 2-watts of power, the Hot Shot delivers!

The “HotShot” is an appropriate name for this impressive new bicycle tail light.  It is quickly becoming my favorite light.  That speaks volumes given some of the incredible new lights on the market like the Radbot 1000 and Planet Bike’s Superflash Turbo.

What makes the “HotShot” such a contender is that it offers:

• An industry leading 2-watts of power at a time when 1-watt lights are just now picking up steam.
• An escape from constantly changing batteries since the light incorporates an integrated, rechargeable lithium-ion battery
• Easy USB charging with an included cable
• An ability to alter the speed of more than 5 different flash patterns

With 2 full watts of power, this light is incredibly bright and includes integrated reflective elements that allow it to provide some minor measure of protection if the light were to quit working (similar but not as effective as the full reflector in the Radbot 1000).

This light is currently mounted on the seatpost of my CoMotion Americano touring bicycle and recently performed very well on an 85-mile roundtrip bicycle tour I completed.  Since I usually already have a device or two that uses USB charging, I just throw the USB cable included with this light into my touring bag and charge it along with my iPad, iPhone and other electronic gadgets.

I’ve also found the ability to alter the speed of the different flash modes to be a nice touch.  With a little time you can come up with some very eye-catching flash patterns.

The HotShot is hopefully only the beginning of a trend towards high-powered, rechargeable bicycle tail lights that will increase your safety on the road.

Crossing the Guadalupe River on Edge Falls Road

“Really!?!  C’mon!”

That’s what I shouted as the road ahead once again climbed skyward.  I was amazed at how much time I spent spinning, spinning, spinning at a speed of between 3-5mph.  The hills were taking me to school and reminding me that my calculation of a 10mph average speed was a foolhardy gesture.

Somehow by the grace of God and the engineering of Rohloff, I survived the 85-mile roundtrip, overnight bicycle tour to Blanco, TX with some shreds of dignity intact.

Now that you know how I REALLY feel about those hills, I should reveal the fact that this quick overnight bicycle tour – Tour #7 to be exact – was quite enjoyable.  Several factors contributed to this including:

• It was my first tour on my new CoMotion Americano touring bicycle and new Arkel touring bags – both performed splendidly
• The Blanco County Inn and it’s owners Ralph & Deborah de Leon were simply amazing - the room was super clean, the nice quilt on the bed had that “you’re home” feel and the moment I arrived they offered to let me put my bicycle in one of their vacant rooms to give me more space.  Wow.  That’s what I call a “bicycle friendly” and “cyclist friendly” establishment!  I of course declined having my bicycle in a separate room since I had yet to pay homage to it for getting me over all those hills (I know, I’m mentioning the hills…again)
• Blanco, TX was a charming destination – everyone I met was friendly and welcoming
• Live Music with local musician Stan Gillespie at the Redbud Cafe was a really nice way to end a long day of cycling (and a bottle of Corona helped, too!)
• The Buffalo Enchiladas at the Zocalo Eclectic Cafe sent my taste buds to high heaven
• The church fund raiser in Kendalia – which happens once a year - saved my life when I discovered they were selling BBQ sandwiches at a time when I’d run out of the nonexistent snacks I’d packed and found myself hungry and tired
• I ran into Brian & Pat Garnett – real bicycle tourists – heading east as they complete an AZ to FL cross-country tour along the famous Southern Tier route.

I created a photo gallery to capture the essence of this tour in pictures and my route while presenting some vertical challenges (a total elevation gain of about 4,600 feet)  proved to be relatively car free.  Tour #7 will go down in the books as one of my most physically challenging overnighters but also as one of my most enjoyable!

Center of the lane at an intersection waiting for the red light to proceed straight. Conspicuous and predictable.

Here’s the situation.  You’re riding your bicycle on a road with a narrow lane (by law in some states this is a lane less than 14ft in width).  Most city streets meet this “narrow road” criteria as well as many rural roads with no shoulders.

The key to safety is to maximize your visibility to motorists by being on a location on the road where they have the greatest chance of seeing you.  Hugging the white line at the road edge can result in you “blending in” with the environment (trees, sidewalks, etc.) and can send the wrong signal to drivers that you feel its OK if they “squeeze by” you in the same lane.

You objective is for the driver to a) detect you from as far off as possible, b) recognize that you’re a cyclist and c) provide sufficient time for the driver to react to your presence.  If you always keep in mind that your objective is to be seen by the motorist, the following guidelines are easy to remember.

• Choose your route carefully – some roads really are just not as friendly for even experienced cyclists (e.g., a rural road that isn’t very rural – has high volumes of traffic, etc.) so additional caution is wise

• Use those ears – You can usually hear every cars approaching long before you see them.  By listening you shouldn’t be “surprised” by a car approaching on a rural road.  On windy days you often can’t hear cars coming up behind you, so regular checks in your mirror and shoulder checks become crucial.

• On straight segments of roads, ride in the “primary” position – at LEAST 3-5 feet from the edge and usually the best position is in the center of the lane.

• When you’re approaching a curve to the right, move slightly to the left part of the lane so that you maximize the time that a driver perceives you as you make the turn (think about this, it makes sense).  When you’re actually in the curve, move over to the right side of the road (since you’re already in the turn and it is physically impossible for the driver to see you).

• If you’ve just crested a hill, move to the right edge of the road (same situation, if there’s no chance a driver can see you, you need to react accordingly).

• Wear clothing that makes you conspicuous (bright colors that provide a clear contrast against the road’s gray environment), use headlight/tailights at night (and during the day – like daytime running lights on cars).

• Use a mirror.  In today’s world where a distracted driver is a possibility, a mirror can give you signs that a driver is not reacting to your highly visible road positioning which may require you to take necessary actions (or even evasive actions in some cases).

• As a gesture of courtesy and to let a driver know that you’re aware of them (which is important to some drivers), consider moving slightly over to the right as the driver gets closer but only if it is safe to do so (e.g., a pot hole or segment of raised pavement on the right section of the lane you might be moving into).

I have taught these guidelines and apply them every time I bicycle commute or am out on the open road for a bicycle tour.  Thousands of miles have indicated that the key to safety on the road is riding in a predictable manner and giving road users as much time as possible to see you and react to your presence accordingly.

"Taking the lane" to make a left turn - one of many exceptions provided by law for cyclists to NOT ride "as far right as practicable".

A cyclist is riding in the center of the lane, she’s doing this because:

a) she has the legal right to do so, b) she wants to be seen by the cars behind her, c) she’s being a “road hog”, jerkette, etc.

Drum roll…

The answer is B!

Option A is a good answer – she DOES have a right to be in the center of the lane based on the fact that many transportation laws, including those in Texas, allow cyclists to “take the lane” when the lane is less than 14ft in width (most lanes are 11-12ft in width).  Option C may be a perception of some motorists since they’re unfamiliar with the laws that govern bicycle usage on roads.

Option B is the BEST answer because in order to be safe when riding your bicycle in traffic, your #1 priority is to be SEEN by motorists. When you consider that a driver is physically positioned on the LEFT side of the vehicle they’re driving, a cyclist is more conspicuous to drivers in the center of the lane versus hugging the right edge of the road where they risk not being seen.

In my next update on this series of posts, I’ll provide some specific guidelines to use when operating your bicycle on narrow streets or rural roads.