Member: Society of Three Speeds

Membership has its privileges, much of which is fine hand-made art produced by President-for-life Shawn.

Huzzah! I received my membership packet to the Society of Three Speeds in the mail today. I'm honored to now be in the company of fellow 3-speeders, like this guy, this guy, and our intrepid leader. At present, the majority of my 3-speed riding is via the bikes of Denver B-cycle, but I am in the hunt for a large-frame Sturmey-Archer equipped bike of my own. Three is the magic number!

Lucky member number 48.

100 days and counting

In my past 100 days on a bike, I've ridden all of these and more.

Today marks the 100th consecutive day during which I've ridden a bike. It's really just an arbitrary number with arbitrary significance, but it does feel like some sort of accomplishment. This streak started with my participation in the Tarik Saleh Bicycle Club challenge at the end of last year, which I initially documented and sporadically provide updates.

Though I've ridden a number of different bikes for different purposes over the course of the past 100 days, my nearly constant companions in this endeavor have been my faithful riding partners: Scout and Pugsley. Without Scout, I may not have had the motivation to get outside and ride some days, and without Pugsley I may not have had as much fun.

I don't know how many more consecutive days of riding I'll be able to rack up, but I will of course write about it here. Happy trails.

My riding partners early in the current riding streak. 

Scout always wants a tummy rub after the ride... 

... followed by a nap in the sun.

Spring break

Little sister is happy about her first real ride on the Big Dummy.

As per usual, we didn't end up going anywhere for spring break this year. We had some tentative plans for a quick trip, but the girls of the household each ended up getting sick, so we decided to take it easy and stick close to home. The week started out similarly to many past spring breaks of my experience: with a snow storm. Though the storm was heavy at times, the snow it left was typical wet spring snow, and melted quickly. This has made for copious mud, which kept us off dirt trails for the most part.

This snow fort had a well-constructed foundation, but was no match for the onslaught of the sun. 

For a time, it was chilly enough to warrant the boots, but the snow didn't stick around long.

We stopped in to see some people at Denver Bike Sharing, and she sampled some of the newest members of the Denver B-cycle fleet. Those with a tri-geared fetish may be happy to know that all B-cycle bikes are 3-speeds.

At the History Colorado Center museum, she took me for a drive in a Model T Ford. It was the best type of car: non-emitting, simulated, immobile, and with spoked wheels.

Experiencing what it might be like to be a clothing-challenged super fan, also at the museum.

We did a little hiking at Daniels Park to enjoy the view.

Today, the weather couldn't have been more perfect. After a nice meal, we all saddled up and took a ride through the neighborhood and local park. It was lil' sis's first real ride on the back of the Big Dummy, and she seemed to enjoy the experience quite a bit. She spent much of the time giggling and babbling, while intermittently drinking from her new water bottle and pointing to scenery along the way. I have a few modifications in mind to revamp my homebuilt Xtracycle-based kid seat, which are of high priority in order to meet the needs of upcoming rides. I'm starting to piece together an overnight bike camping trip to include all of us; kids, dog, and parents.

Getting the hang of drinking on the move.

Oma was along for the ride.

Back seat passengers on my Surly Big Dummy.

Scout, my faithful riding buddy.

By midway through the ride, she had mastered the use of the bottle cage.

We took a riding break for some waterfowl spectating and walking practice. 

Proud of her newly installed BaileyWorks handlebar bag. It's pink, of course. 

Winter threw Spring a welcome party

Dressed like a rancher on my two-wheeled tractor.

Yesterday evening started with sprinkling rain, then progressed to sleet. By morning there were a few inches of snow on the ground. When Scout and I took our mid-morning ride, we were greeted with 6-8 inches of fresh snow and swirling blizzard conditions. Perfect bike riding weather.

I let air out of the tires until they were mushy and perfect for surface conditions.

The bottle cage on my new King Cage Top Cap Cage Mount makes a perfect glove holder when taking a photo. 

Falling, blowing snow over the lake.

It was business as usual for the geese and ducks.

I still can't get over how great fat tires roll in 6+ inches of new snow.

Unrelated bonus photo: Avery County Cycles sticker on a urinal at Wahoo's on 20th, seen a few days ago.

The riding of the green... and the red

Rolling on my green Surly Cross-Check.

Scout and I started off the day with a ride, per usual. It was only a bit more than coincidence that today, St. Patrick's Day, I was on a green bike. My Bean Green Cross-Check happened to be the closest bike to the door of the bike barn, so it was most convenient to be pressed into service.

A bit later, I was off for the fourth annual distribution ride to shuttle Denver B-cycle bikes into the system. About 300 people signed up to deliver bikes from the Denver Bike Sharing office North of downtown to the 56 stations currently operating in the city. While waiting for the official signal to go, I hung out with a lot of local bike people, took in some fine entertainment, and had some excellent food and drink, including the best kind of breakfast burrito: hot, tasty, serendipitous, and free.

Phil, Denver B-cycle's head mechanic, is always hard at work wrangling bikes

Proud B-cycle riders lined up for a photo.

Jared is an intrepid Denver B-cycle mechanic, elite bike polo player, and prodigious facial follicle cultivator.

This Worksman brand three-wheeled hauler is equipment for a new pedal-powered entrepreneurial enterprise, and owned by Jeff, another fine Denver B-cycle mechanic. 

This lucky lady was the winner of three hefty packs of high quality bacon as a door prize. 

After a while, everyone had been assigned a bike and a station to which it should be delivered. Following a bit of fanfare and some posing for the official photographers, we were off in a sea of dinging bells. The system opens for business tomorrow at 5:00 am. I, for one, am extremely happy to have the red bikes out and about once again.

If you live in the Denver area, get a membership here for a reduced rate until April 22nd. If you're going to visit Denver, a 24-hour subscription is simple to buy, and there is no better way to see the city. I hope to see you out there!

A crowd of people in red shirts on red bikes.

Yep. That's me.

Nearly under way.

Eric from Fort Collins, my riding buddy for the day, and I were the first ever check-ins at the brand-new Auraria Campus station. Along with many others, I've been working for nearly seven years to help Auraria become more bike friendly, so this station is a big achievement. 

Docked and ready for the next rider.

Lucky Number 234 was my steed for the ride. 

Unrelated extra photo: On the way home I saw this social media inspired sticker graffito.