Team Yabani News

25 July, 2000 "Ubi est Comodium" Volume 2 Issue 2

After a cycle trip like today, it must really be documented.

I left my house and went south. This was good since there was a fairly substantial north wind. The weather was very nice and all was well with the world. The road that goes along the Tacoma tide flats was closed, so I had to go around via Hwy 99. No problem just more miles! I arrived at the Tacoma ferry dock just before the ferry took off. I had a nice ride over and mounted my steed for the trip up the ferry ramp. My shoelace on my right shoe hooked on the front gear and I felt like a crash was imminent. Luckily, the lace broke and all that was damaged was my pride.

I rode up the long hill from Tahlequah north and anticipated the best down hill ride in the Puget Sound area. It was glorious — long and just steep enough so you don’t have to pedal. I rode through the town on Vashon because I wasn’t hungry. I had just started down a very steep hill to the north ferry dock. Suddenly something was very wrong. I had a blowout on my front tire! Thanks to God I was able to stop before I crashed. It was very, very close. I found a small piece of glass imbedded in the tread and proceeded to patch the hole. I couldn’t wait to tell Dave "the animal" Manuel what a crappy job the tire liner had done! I pumped up the tire and BLAM! It exploded. My little pea brain stem had yet to engage, so I fixed the hole again. BLAM! Ok, ok my brain decided to figure out the problem. I discovered that the tire sidewall had small split in it. When the pressure reached a certain point the tube would blow out through the hole. I then regretted the bad thoughts I’d had about the tire liners and used a piece of the tire liner to line the split. It actually worked. I will always carry a small piece in my bike bag. I walked down the rest of the hill and rode gingerly to the ferry terminal.

As I waited for the ferry I glanced back at the back tire. There was a huge piece of tread missing with only the red Kevlar showing. I figured it must have happened when I stopped so suddenly. I then decided to ride carefully to a bike shop for a tire purchase. I asked for advice from a fellow biker and he said to try Aaron’s. I did so and what a great bike shop! The mechanic area is right by the front door and you can watch and ask questions as they work on your bike. I bought two very fine tires, Continental super touring, and they installed them and trued my wheels no charge. It is now my bike shop. Sorry Bicycles West. I then rode home on my new tires with a beautiful tail wind! What a day. {60.22; 4:27:55, 13.5, 34.0}.

Editors Note: Any time a member finds a bike shop like this, we need to pass it along and patronize them whenever possible. They have a cool web site (www.rideyourbike.com).

Hydration help: After a ride place the bladder from the Camelbak in a big zip-lock baggie and put it in the freezer. It keeps the bad stuff from growing. I read this and have tried it four times and it works great.

Ride News:

Tour de Pierce was conquered by Alan "Boom- Boom" Oyama and Alan "Rain Drinker" MacArthur. "Rain Drinker" took along a few family members and friends.

Flying wheels — Mat "The Flash" Metcalfe and Dave "The Animal" Manuel did the 100 mile jaunt. "The Animal" reports that he got sunburned, a rash from his jersey, lost count of number of times heart almost jumped out of his chest on the uphills, and had leg cramps in muscles not referenced in any known medical books. Also he reports it was the best ride ever (go figure). Meanwhile "The Flash" coasted through the entire ride.

A resident of our building has just make his first long bike ride. He transported his bike into work via van pool and rode 26 miles home. I think we should make him a full-blown Yabani Warrior. Welcome Dennis "The Menace" Cleary to the brethren.

Remember, "If its not a Yabani, its just another bike ride!"