First Rides

Got in a couple of solid "first rides" this weekend - on road and off!

Friday night took the single-speed mt. bike out for it's first trail ride. My sister had mentioned Olson Park on the north side of town as a great place to start. Close to home, so off I go. Great place to start with the new bike! And I couldn't be happier with it's performance. Handles great, disc brakes are excellent, and big 29er wheels roll over everything in their path. No crashes, either! I'll definitely head back to that location as I only rode one of several trails. Now that I've had it off-road, I decided that 31-16 gearing is just a little tall. So I've ordered 18th freewheel and should be all set now. When you only have one gear, getting it right is critical!

Saturday morning I headed out with my neighbor for a quick ride to Dexter. I was a little apprehensive -- my first road bike ride of the year, and Mike's been out a lot this year. Our little Saturday ride was a triathalon warm-up for him! But I held my own. Hills were rough, but it felt SO good to get back out. Bike rode really well and everything worked flawlessly. I'm glad I he nudged me to get out. As a sidenote, Mike's riding a new Cervelo tri bike. What an amazing piece of gear. Not super-fast, but you can tell it was designed for one thing -- efficiency.

Enjoy!

-Sean-

Here Fishy, Fishy...

After yesterday's deep topic, I thought a few more photos from early May UP fishing trip could be fun! Starting at top left - Big Murphy Creek in western Schoolcraft County, fly rods in the toaster, fishing on Big Murphy Creek (turns out they were suckers...), me in the morning on Bear Lake, Black River just north of US 2 in western Mackinac County, and outside my favorite up north watering hole/dining spot. Enjoy!

Chuckle

A friend of mine today described shooting sporting clays as, "Really, really cool golf...". That description made me laugh. No plaid pants allowed! Hoping to get out tomorrow if all aligns.

PULL!

-Sean-

Curious Times

Ordinarily I am NOT one to support the "gun nut" viewpoint. These folks often strike me as conspiracy theorists who are overly paranoid.

But, there's a sudden and real shortage of ammo available. A friend noticed it last weekend on a visit to a local gun shop. Then last night I went shooting at an indoor range and there were "one box per customer" signs up all over. Even the reload I generally shoot wasn't available in 9mm or .45.

A chat with the owner provided some insight. Evidently the issue is a shortage of primers. No primer, no ammo. And this primer is mostly hung up in customs (as most of it comes from China these days).

Like most problems, I'm sure there's no one simple cause. I know a few gun nuts who stockpiled ammo right after the election. That likely sucked a good deal of inventory out of the supply chain and set up the situation. But it wouldn't be hard to imagine the anti-gun folks influencing a customs slowdown.

If this is the case, that's unfortunate. Whatever their position on guns, I find most folks agree that most of the problems likely don't stem from legal owners. So, why punish these legal owners who follow the rules, store and handle their firearms responsibly, and use them to hunt or sport shoot? Especially when the problem is with the $50 Saturday Night Special bought on a streetcorner complete with 50 rounds.

But, maybe it's not a conspiracy, but only a coincidence. Will be interesting to see if the trend continues.

-Sean-

AMMENDED: Had an interesting chat with friend who's shot competitively for years, told me some more stories of gun nut stockpiling that make that seem an even more compelling than previously. This one may be an interesting example of really skewed supply-and-demand economics.

Muscle Memory

Back at the gym this week on regular schedule after slacking off for a bit (and drinking more craft-brewed beer than I should...). Definitely sore and surprised how fast things fade. That got me to thinking about the importance of practice and muscle memory in so many things I do.

Fly casting -- learned from Chuck Hawkins that practice casting just 15-20 minutes a few times a week will work wonders within only a couple of months. Sure enough, when I practice cast more, I cast much better. Improved distance, control, and no Rowdy Yates whip crackin' on the back cast.

Cycling -- having to re-learn how to ride a mountain bike after several years only on road bikes. It's weird and surprising how different it is. Fortunately, my balance is solid, so that helps. Still can't believe people ride those in clipless pedals. INSANE.

Skiing -- every year I start out slow and can feel myself improve through the year as the movements become instinctual, rather than conscious. In recent years as I increase frequency, that time is shorter, but it's always there.

Sporting Clays -- a couple of years ago I was shooting clays pretty regularly. I quickly found that the more I did this, the better I was. On first time out this year I had to re-learn some things -- like "don't aim, POINT".

Well, I suppose the old, "practice makes perfect" adage may have some truth to it.

-Sean-

Clever Engineering

I'm always impressed by the large and small innovations I stumble on. The latest is the White Industries ENO Eccentric hub.

If you're building a single-speed where the frame has vertical (road) style rear dropouts, figuring out how to tension the chain becomes a real issue. You can't retrofit an eccentric bottom bracket, so if the manufacturer didn't think of that, now what? From everything I read, most chain tensioners suck - they skip, slip, or otherwise malfunction at the least convenient moment. So, now what?

Enter White Industries. The ENO Eccentric has the axle bolts mounted off-center. Rotating the axle moves the hub fore and aft and tensions or loosens the chain. Elegantly simple. And, as the bike shop owner who suggested it said, "Well, you really dont' have any other choice...".

In addition, it's a great hub. Cartridge-style bearings, great finish. Seems every bit as good as the more pricey Chris King or Phil Wood hubs -- and they don't offer the eccentric configuration.

Plus, the move to a dedicated single-speed hub (instead of converting a geared hub with a single cog and spacers) moves the flanges outward for a wheel that's 40% stronger. Bonus!

Still dialing in the gearing -- I think at 31-16 it's too tall. When you've only got one gear, it seems to put the pressure on getting it right! Once I figure it out, White makes a freewheel that's supposed to be IT. Hoping to hit the dirt this weekend.

-Sean-

Hunting the Little Orange Disc

Got our Friday afternoon with buddy Jon for the year's first round of sporting clays. Beautiful day, had work finished up early and we both wanted to get outside a bit.

First station was EMBARASSING -- we both went 0 for 6. Not even close to hitting anything. Ugh. But then at second station we both stopped aiming and started pointing. By the end of the round I was hitting 40% and Jon was up around 50%.

This was also the inaugural round with the Remington 11-48 autoloader. I've hunted with this gun a couple of times and it did very well. Equally solid for clays. Shoots where you point it, feeds reliably. Of course it's inertia-driven, so it's got some solid kick to it. Was really nice to have the speed of an auto on tough pairs.

Great day to be outside and an all around pleasant afternoon. Now I'm eager to get back out. Since my waders went back to Orvis on Saturday, looks like I'll be out of the water for a bit. More time for clays!

-Sean-