Reptile encounter

I initially perceived it as a stick and rolled right past, luckily just missing riding over the head of a big bull snake sunning itself in the middle of the trail.

Big Sis, following a little behind, saw what happened and was less than interested in making a close encounter. However, she was brave enough to provide a cautious smile and pose for scale. The snake was approximately as long as the girl is tall, which is quite a big snake for our little corner of suburbia.

We later saw a small garter snake (alive), another small garter snake (dead), and a shedded garter snake skin, but none left quite the same impression. In all, it was a good ride and a pleasant Memorial Day.

Familia de tres Xtracycles

Left to right: Xtracycle Schwinn Panther (big sis), Xtracycle Breezer Villager (mom), and Surly Big Dummy (dad and lil' sis)

After an Xtracycle on long term loan was recently returned, we now have three longtail cargo bikes in the bike barn. During the time the loaned Xtracycle was absent, big sister grew enough to be able to ride it. Since about the age of three, when she first started riding as co-pilot on the Big Dummy, she's been talking about having a longtail of her own. Now she does. There are not likely too many 10 year-olds in command of a cargo bike, so it will be interesting to see what sort of adventures it inspires.

In other news, little sister is on the brink of moving up from 12" wheels to 16" wheels. Out of storage comes our 16 inch-wheeled Schwinn Trixie, an old friend that has seen a string of riders in our family. This venerable steed is a great introductory dirt bike for our local suburban singletrack, and has logged hundreds of miles and scorched thousands of skid marks. With a little tune up, it'll be ready for many more.

DIY Longtail of the future: Xtracycle MegaRack

A Surly Krampus with a MegaRack and kid seat. Looks like fun. Images in this post are from Xtracycle.

I ordinarily post only photos and content that I've created, though I occasionally make an exception. This is one of those occasions. The images in this post came from a Google Hangouts video hosted today by Ross Evans of Xtracycle, in which he announced a replacement to the vaunted Xtracycle Freeradical bolt-on kit that was retired last year. I have long been a fan and DIY enthusiast of Xtracycle, and beside my Big Dummy, have owned two Xtracycle Freeradicals.

The new Xtracycle bolt-on looks to be an improved and more capable design, called the MegaRack. It is designed to be considerably more beefy and stable than the old Freeradical, with versions for multiple tire/wheel sizes, including 29+. For me, this is great news, as in the past few years, I've discovered that 29-inch wheels are more compatible with my height and preferred fit of a bike, and the larger diameter wheels excel for much of how I ride.

Functional though it may be, the Xtracycle Edgerunner never appealed much to me, with its 20-inch rear wheel. I understand that designing a cargo bike around a smaller diameter wheel lowers the center of gravity and makes for a stronger wheel, but small wheels are not ideal for the rough surfaces where I like to go, and make for a more jarring ride elsewhere. I've nearly maxed out the clearance on my Big Dummy with 26" x 2.3" tires, so the possibility of going much bigger has me cogitating. As a matter of fact, with a set of 29+ wheels, the new MegaRack would make an unsuspended 29er like my Monocog 29er quite a viable supersized cargo and passenger machine. It's hard to say when or if I'll get my hands on a MegaRack, but it appears to be more than worthy of consideration.

CAD images of the MegaRack design. Via Xtracycle.

A MegaRack on a folding bike. For this, 20-inch wheels make sense. Via Xtracycle.

Ross showing the new, more stout chainstay bridge connector. Welcome indeed. Via Xtracycle. 

Part 1: Home-built Xtracycle/Big Dummy seat

The rear seat as it has evolved after a few years and thousands of miles of use.

For a while, I've been meaning to put together a post showing how I built a kid seat for the deck of my Big Dummy. The thing is, I built it prior to the existence of this blog, so it was not well documented, and factor that by my inherent laziness. That 'while' has now stretched out into a couple of years. However, recently the rusty gears in the task completion part of my brain have been jarred loose, in no small part because fellow Daddy and Big Dummy owner bikewRider has inquired as to its construction. He is in need of a means to transport his little wRider, and, not too far down the road, a second co-pilot still in development.

That said, this presentation is for entertainment purposes only. I make no claims as to the safety or reliability of the cobbled together device pictured here, nor for the appropriateness of any use thereof. I am at best a middling craftsman and have been known to use materials and resources for purposes other than that for which they were originally intended.

If, against better judgement, you proceed to construction of something similar, any outcome, whether good or bad, is entirely of your own doing. I assume no responsibility. Know this: a healthy dose of common sense and constant attention to the safe operation of any machinery is paramount. You have been warned; proceed at your own risk.

Another view of the seat.

On to the show. This is Part 1 of what will likely be two, or if I get ambitious, three parts. The focus of Part 1 is to show how everything goes together. There are a total of four wooden elements in the following construction: 1 deck, 1 backrest, and 2 side panels. A key element that allows the deck to support a vertical backrest are deck wings. Don't worry, they'll become apparent in the following photos.

The underside of the deck, removed from the v-racks. The deck wings protrude from each side. Note that the Xtracycle Magic Carpet cover  doesn't interface well with the deck wings. That part at the top is for a second seatback that I added after initial construction. Just forget about it for now. We'll come back to it at a later date.

Side view of how the deck wing supports the side panel.

I added a bit of lateral curvature to the backrest. It's constructed of two 1/4" pieces of cabinet-grade oak plywood laminated together. I glued and clamped them to a form in order to produce the curve. 

From left to right: Magic Carpet cover, closed cell foam pad, seat deck assembly.

The basic shape of the deck and the SnapHook holes are traced from the standard Xtracycle Snapdeck. Again, the deck is comprised of two laminated  1/4" layers of cabinet-grade oak plywood. I used four Xtracycle SnapHooks for attachment. If I were to do it again, I'd use the newer SuperHooks, which were not available at the time.

Another view of the deck assembly. I would have preferred maple or ash to the oak, but it was what was available.  

Here's the assembly on the bike without the Magic Carpet. Notice the backrest is above the deck so that there is space to clear the closed cell pad. Note the side panels are from scraps of exterior-grade 3/4" treated plywood, not the laminated oak of the deck and backrest.

The backrest rises to about 12" from the deck. If I did it again, I'd go to 15 or 16 inches to better support sleeping, bobbing heads. I might also make actual armrests on the side panels. My philosophy was to keep everything smallish, so as to retain maximum usefulness of the deck without a passenger. However, a little larger wouldn't diminish any utility. 

About 10.5 inches across the back. This width seems good for a wide range of differently sized passengers.

Wingtip to wingtip is about 12" on the leading edge. I traced the original Snapdeck on some paper and sketched in the  deck wings, then transferred the design to the oak plywood for cutting. I based most of the dimensions on careful guesswork and measurements of various kid-sized devices with seats. 

The trailing edge of the wings are narrower, so that the effect is that the seat sides open toward the front. Note that the strap shown serves to more strongly connect the deck to the v-racks. 

I glued and screwed the backrest to the side panels, being careful to pre-drill pilot holes and apply glue to the screw threads. That sucker is there to stay. The backrest makes a great sticker board.

A view of the deck wings. Three glued screws per side. I think all the screws that I used were 1 5/8" exterior grade.

This shows the laminated layers of the deck. I cut each layer separately, glued them together, then sanded them evenly along the edges. A router to round the edges would have been nice. 

The length of each deck wing corresponds with the width of the side panel. I angled the side panels at about 10 degrees, so as to make the backrest a bit more comfortable than a right angle would have been. If I were to do it again, I might go for a 15 degree lean. My compound mitre saw was helpful for making these cuts.

Side panels are about 9" high. 

An overall shot with the ruler to show how far back the backrest is placed.

That's more or less it for the basic construction of the deck assembly. Pretty straight forward; just measure and cut carefully, and if in doubt, build a cardboard mockup. After the initial assembly, I sanded off any rough edges and applied four coats of exterior grade polyurethane to all surfaces. After four years of a lot of use and spending a fair amount of time outside, it's holding up well, but could benefit from a refresher coat or two.

Next up: Seat harnesses and cockpit amenities.

Beer for bike swap

Last night, I turned the above beer...

... into the above frame, through the magic of Craigslist.

That's right. In exchange for a six-pack of New Belgium's Red Hoptober, I am now the owner of a 1992 Trek 950 frame. For those in the know, this frame is a prime example of the short-lived era of production mountain bikes in which high-quality lugged steel was incorporated with a 1 1/8th inch head tube; True Temper OX II tubing joined with the pinnacle production of Trek's once iconic lugs.

The frame itself, at 16.5 inches, is too small for me. However, it is the perfect size for an Xtracycle project in the works. It is now just a matter of pulling together the right parts, and a cargo bike with a sturdy, dependable heart will be born–all thanks to American beer and ingenuity.

My co-conspirator Scout inspects the goods.

Weekend with the girls

Girls out for some fun.

Over the weekend, my human and canine girls were in the mood to get out and enjoy the sun, despite the wind. We made a big neighborhood loop of a couple of miles. The street was mostly dry, with a few scattered patches of snow and ice. They both enjoy the snow in slightly different ways. While our girl enjoys plowing through little piles of crusty snow, Scout savors snapping up crunchy mouthfuls. The girl human is an old pro on a bike now, and the girl dog is getting accustomed to being around bikes. I have a feeling that both of these girls are going to be ready for some serious off-road adventures this summer.

She enjoyed speeding past me, then skidding and giggling.

They both want to be the leader. Both benefit from learning to take turns.

Proof that I choose a more efficient line than my dog.

An Xtracycle Radish spotted in Cherry Creek.

Saturday errands

Snow capped peaks in the distance on a beautiful Colorado day.

It's always a treat to have a few errands to do by bike on a warm, sunny day. It's even better when the whole family is along for the ride, and time is no issue. Today was one of those days. We started off with some books to return to the library and took the opportunity to ramble past the museum farm along the way. Next, we took a familiar route to the center of town, taking in a spectacular view of the Front Range at the top of the hill overlooking the local business district.

Longtail family: Xtracycle and Big Dummy with Electra Hawaii stowed aboard.

We participated in a little bicycle enabled commercial activity, in particular to buy some tikka masala spices for some terrific Indian food Julie has slated to make for tomorrow. Our long tail bikes always seem to draw attention whenever we are out, but today the frequency of stares, questions and exclamations of interest by passers by seemed of even greater quantity than usual. Much of the time that the girls were inside shopping I spent talking with people who happened to walk past as I was locking up the bikes.

Apparently I emit a genial vibe, as people don't seem to be shy about approaching me when I'm around the bikes, and I always take the time to answer any questions. Even those people who appear unlikely to ride bikes seem genuinely interested, if only in that "Hey Honey, guess what weird thing I saw today?" kind of way. In any case, I feel as though I'm serving as a social intermediary, modeling good behavior while promoting bicycle diplomacy.

Bike riding is fairly good here, even on the street. We're fortunate enough to live in what was an actual small town long before it was absorbed as a suburb. This pic is for Jennie in chilly Minnesota.

While riding on the street several people in cars passing by eyeballed us, I'll assume in wonderment of seeing a small pink bike and pink clad girl riding on the back of an odd, elongated bike. This sort of attention is not an unfamiliar phenomenon for me, and likely not unfamiliar to anyone who rides a cargo bike. Even when riding on trails, only the most intensely focused weekend warriors lack exhibiting a puzzled look followed by a grin as we pass.

It was great to see the quantity of activity on the Platte River Trail, with no shortage of bicyclists, runners and walkers taking advantage of the day. However, the best viewing was of the wildlife on the river. She spotted a goldeneye duck, and there were also several widgeons and mallards feeding and bobbing around in the current. Flocks of geese flew overhead and alighted in fields nearby. Even though I didn't manage to get any wildlife photos today, upon reflection it's easy to forget how great the wild scenery can be even in a major metropolitan area.

Bikes patiently waiting while their riders fuel up.

At the apex of our ride, we stopped for an early dinner. For years Julie and I have lamented the apparent lack of a reasonably good, non mega-chain burger joint in our vicinity. It's not that we often eat burgers, but it's nice to have the possibility. While this is not a food focused blog and I'm certainly no connoisseur, Freddy's seems to fit the bill. Their burgers and fries are about the right size, aren't too greasy, and as a bonus they have great frozen custard. It also doesn't hurt that they are located just off the Platte River Trail.

Our little big girl almost finished a whole burger by herself. The photo on the wall is of Freddy as a kid with his bike, from sometime in the 1930s.

Even as the possibility of snowstorms always loom well into March and April, days like today are a little reminder that Spring is just around the corner. I can't wait.

On Oregon House Bill 2228

I never thought riding one of these would make me an 'outlaw biker.'

Note: This is an expanded version of a comment I left on the Xtracycle Every Day Adventurers blog concerning proposed Oregon legislation.

I know that this is ostensibly a blog about biking in and around Denver, but any implied geographic boundaries are loosened when issues of import arise. As such, a state representative in Oregon has proposed an ill-informed bill that could have a chilling effect on carrying passengers under the age of six on a bicycle. The bill would restrict any child under six from being a passenger on a bicycle or in a bicycle trailer. If passed, this policy could spread to other states, so it should be of concern to all of us who value family bicycling and car-reduced transportation.

I have a few thoughts on the value of having children under the age of six as passengers on bicycles based on my own experience. To begin, I'll present some background. I live in car-centric suburban Denver with my wife and five-year old daughter. In part because I found the design to be so appealing, and in part to reduce our car use, I bought a Big Dummy cargo bike in 2008, soon after they first became available. The effect was immediately transformational. Riding together as a family for recreation, errands and commuting to work and school has made us healthier and happier.

My daughter loves to ride the Big Dummy, although she is able to ride her own bike. She started out in a Burly trailer, and was overjoyed in moving to riding on the rear seat of the Big Dummy, or "our bike" as she calls it. Wherever we go, she happily informs curious people about how we use the bike and what it can carry. She enjoys arriving at school on the Big Dummy, which is usually mobbed by kids telling us how cool they think the bike is and asking if their parents can get one too. In no small part because of her experience riding from an early age, I'm confident my daughter will be physically active and a lifetime bike rider, both valuable to counter health risks prevalent in our culture. She is also more engaged with our community and the world around her; highly useful building blocks for creating good citizens.

We are now a two cargo bike family. This past year, I built an Xtracycle for my wife. Because we ride our bikes frequently, we now know more about our neighbors and neighborhood and are more likely to visit local restaurants and businesses than in the past. In a car, we tend to stick to standard routes around town, spending money at a relatively few number of places. On bikes we are more free to explore, spending money not needed for gasoline throughout our community.

To be clear, I am not an anti-car advocate, but instead in favor of using the correct vehicle for the job. Our family owns two cars, but we use them much less frequently around town than before. Like others in this country who are pioneering life with reduced car dependence, a law to restrict carrying young children by bike would be detrimental to our health, economics and quality of life.

December 24th

Yes, those mittens are as fuzzy and warm as they look.

Four years ago Denver was in the midst of a string of blizzards that brought deep snow that stayed on the ground for several months before melting, which is a quite an uncommon phenomenon around here. Today was quite different, with temperatures around 52F and not a speck of snow anywhere. We all had the day off, so we enjoyed a ride through our neighborhood and around the park.

We're a happy family.

Checking out the ducks and geese on the lake.

Whenever we ride through the park, it's tradition for us to fit in a couple of rounds on our little stretch of single track. As traditionalists, we did not waver from our duty to lay down some tracks on the dirt. She parked her bike for a bit and hopped on the Big Dummy to do the circuit.

Zooming down our favorite hill.

After our ride, we had a few preparations to tackle before going over to Oma's house for the evening. There would be cousins to play with and a birthday for Uncle Chris. Our girl never shies away from an opportunity to dress up, and Julie had assembled a perfect holiday outfit including a green velvet dress with red and white snowflake stockings.

All gussied up in her holiday dress and topped off with Daddy's Soviet naval officer shopka, in front of the illuminated B-cycle.

A bit later, just before bedtime she and I prepared a snack for Santa. She thought that he would have mostly had enough of cookies by the time he reached our house, so we opted to serve Santa some genoa salami, cheese, crackers and a small cookie. She carefully counted out eight carrots for the reindeer. For a change, it didn't take much coaxing to get her to go to bed tonight, and she was asleep quickly. I'm hoping that we get to sleep in until at least sunrise tomorrow.

The snack, which was accompanied by a question for the ages...

Dear Santa I want to know if there is a real Rudolph?