This little guy is a head-turner. The Low Down Type 1 Light Mount from Velo Orange is a versatile way to neatly mount a Planet Bike (or the like) headlamp. Try it as a wheel skewer nut thingy or attach it to your front touring rack… which I prefer because this position helps eliminate wheel shadows. Either way, you unclutter the handlebar, and it looks quite cool. So much so that you’ll just leave your light on your bike and will have it the next time you’re caught out after dusk. Be safe. Look cool. Buy one.

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About this time last year, Krystal and I began fanning the flame of an old friendship by riding bikes together. She had her ultra cool and retro Trek 520 with tweed Rivendell lil’ loafer and country bag, which carried books, sandwiches and just the right tool to fix a squeak on my plain old Schwinn mountain bike. We cruised around talking about old times, current statuses and dreaming about the future… cottages, kitchen gardens, spacious porches, successful children, premenopausal crazies, how to be a better wife and mother, cyclotouring and randonneuring.

As Krystal waxed on about all things bicycle, I spent way too much super fun time looking at adventure options. By January I bought a ’91 Trek 520 on ebay. “It’s purple. I can’t believe it’s purple,” I exclaimed upon opening the box. Well, I’m over it now and have grown to LOVE MY BIKE since I’ve made it my own. Nitto campee racks, Nitto 44cm handlebars, Velo Orange Campagne Handlebar Bag and fluted Honjo fenders are the standard fare. I even love the little Low Down Type 1 light mount from VO. It makes folks in a cycle shop gawk as much as they did at my husband’s leg after being bit by a dog.

Over the past year we have put in some miles together… on bikes and in our friendship. We’re graduating children from homeschooling and dreaming about the “what next?”… it’s the Northern Tier summer of ’11. Our kids just look at us with big eyes, and our husbands talk about what a cool wife they have. I guess they’re glad we’re not just sitting around the house getting fatter. And besides… absence makes the heart grow fonder. I’m gonna really love my husband next August.

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But here’s the deal, it simmers, and just for you non-believers here is a picture of just how low it can go. Click image for biggness.

What it is:

• Loud [I'm not kidding now]
• Stable [rock solid pot support]
• Multi-Fuel [I've only used white gas]
• Easy to Operate [don't be scared 'cause you need to prime it - it's nothing]
• Fuel saver [it's a sipper not a heavy drinker]
• Dial it way down ['cause it simmers at any level]
• Robust [I'm not afraid of breaking it]

I also use it as an oven. I bought another windshield and a Scorch Buster, did a little creative folding, and turned the stove into an oven.

The extra windscreen and scorch buster weigh 5.3oz total. It’s NOT ultra light – but I am committed to doing my own cooking on this trip. Baking and roasting will add so much variety.

The thing about the Dragonfly is it really is fuel efficient. I can simmer soups, roast veggies and bake and not use much more fuel then I do basic boiling with my Trangia. I light the stove for my first cup of coffee in the morning and I don’t turn it off – I turn it to a candle flame – and it’s ready [primed and "on"] through the morning for coffee, baking, and cooking. The fuel loss leaving it at a candle flicker is negligible.

The stove is ideal for using as an oven because of the precise flame control. The oven walls are not heavy duty – but I’m not hard on my things, and replacing a windscreen is a $14 fix. This is just my solution to being able to eat well on a long tour.

I’m getting quite good with it now. I’ll continue to update as I change/improve it.

I’ll be leaving in May of 2011. I’ve decided to waff-on here about gear and preparation for the trip.

So – more to follow…

I finished up the Xtracycle build a few months ago, sorry about the delay in this final build post.

I swapped out my canti breaks for V-breaks. I really prefer the V-breaks – the canti’s were hard to adjust and were starting to become a real pain, but the “V’s” are a pleasure and have great stopping power. I’ve listed my setup for the Xtra below.

Xtra-Set

• 1990 Trek 520 [Trek's touring bike]
• 700c Xtracycle FreeRadical
• Shimano Deore V-brakes
• Tektro Road V-brake levers [curved and comfy handle, great for the Moustache bar]
  
• Nitto Moustache bar
• Cork Handlebar tape [tan with Bullseye amber shellac]
• Hemp Twine [wherever I felt like putting it, so OCD]
• Old Shimano Deore DX Triple Cranks and Derailleurs [drive train]
• Shimano Bar-End Shifters [don't leave home without'm]
• Grip King pedals [the most comfy/stable pedal I've pushed]
• Brooks Saddle
• Bontrager Hardcase tires [BUT I want Pasela TOUR GUARDS]
• Velo-Orange 45mm smooth fenders
• Velo-Orange Retro WB Cage [mounted on handle bar for coffee]
• VO Handlebar to Water Bottle Cage Mount
• Low Down Type 1 Light Mount
• Blaze™ one-watt LED Headlight
• SuperFlash tail light
• Nitto M12 Front Rack
• Wicker Bike Basket

That’s my set-up and I’m stickin’ to it. As soon as the Xtra was complete it was pressed into daily use. I loved using it for my commute because the bags are so cavernous. Laptop, books/files, clothes, lunch and any other incidentals just get dumped in and I’m out the door. This was one of the main reasons I wanted the Xtra. I was tired of trying to find the space for the things I needed to take on the bike. I was equally tired of the time it took to carefully organise everything in the bags so it would all fit. I really love the “dump factor” that came with the Xtra. It’s never full. There is always room to stop by the grocery store (or anywhere else) on my way home instead of heading to the house to drop off my commute stuff first.

We did all the usual Xtra stuff right off the bat; bargain “curb side” shopping, brought home the Christmas Tree, loaded it down with $200 + in groceries, etc… whatever came up we had the Xtra. My daughter started taking the Xtra to the library [never enough books] and we were jumping on it for just about any reason.

I have to admit that as Spring crept in I started riding my other bikes more. Long country rambles, brevets, and quick lite-load commutes saw me reaching for the lighter bikes. Now the Xtra has become just what it was intended to be. My cargo bike – “the truck” fun to ride and endlessly useful. It’s the easy choice when I’m headed out the door with an armful of stuff.

Follow the Build

• Xtracycle Build PT1
• Xtracycle Build PT2
• Xtracycle Build PT3
• Xtracycle Build PT4
• Xtracycle Build PT5

Problem is I’m slow. I have a heavy touring bike. And I’m over weight. The truth doesn’t look very glamorous in black and white does it?

Each spring I loose a little more weight, add more miles and ride harder. Sometime around April or May [when I'm still averaging 13 - 14 mph] I give up on “going faster” and resign myself to just getting out there and riding. This is fine – and comes to me through several juicy rationalizations about what’s really important – why am I out there anyway – and “no really – I like to ride alone”.

The trouble is seeing things like this video, and riding brevets, and dreaming about the feeling of freedom I believe is attached to being able to “keep up”. Anyway – that’s how I feel about it.

Rapha Rides The Tour of California from RAPHA on Vimeo.

I often refer to my DH… [dear husband] on my blog and as we were out riding this weekend I formed the idea of having him make a guest appearance here:

The original goal  was a 200k out of Santee State Park

My wife and I planned to use a friends cue sheet for a 200k on the 21st of February 2009.  We had the bikes loaded and were aiming for the local Starbucks by 8 am.  It took us about 90 minutes to get to the park and by the time we actually began our trek it was 9:30 am.  My mind auto-calculated that it would be just a few hours before midnight  before we would see this park again.

I am not as accustomed to cycling as my wife is so for me a big ride is anything over 40 miles.  This ride was to be 125 miles and adding darkness to the equation began the head games I often face on long rides.  As with many things in life, I like to know when I will be done, how much is mine and whether or not I can make it.  The fact is that I can make any ride but the unknowns can make the first half of the trip as much of a drag as low tire pressure or a rubbing wheel.

I took my first Hammer Gel at the parks entrance, only 2.2 miles into the day.  I also took my second stretch there too.  I adjusted my seat height and my third stretching session at less than 4.7 miles cumulative.  It was probably about this time that my wife realized that she was not going to be completing her second 200k today.  One more seat adjustment and the fourth stretch was in the bag by about 10 miles.  I was still not warmed up to anything.

According to the cue sheet there were four stores on our route, these to me were and always are like Mecca.  My mind is is always focused on the next store for the first half of any bike trip.  We wound through a little town which could not support a coffee machine and then pushed on to the first official “store” on the route and it was a doozy.  It had a McDonalds and a convenience store.  We sat down and had a meal and filled our water bottles and pouches with road snacks.

With 17 miles, a meal and a fresh coffee under my belt I was ready to just ride.  We enjoyed the farms, swamps, quiet roads and scenery for the next 20 miles.  It was slightly after noon by this time and my wife graciously began to map out a shorter route.  I did not want to be the kill joy and mention that we would be on this trip into the night, but my heart was grateful that she could read my mind.  It took a while but we whacked off a large loop and re-embarked on our abbreviated tour.

Now knowing that our trip was within my abilities I was able to enjoy the ride both physically and mentally.  It’s funny, I remember more details on the first leg of our journey than the second.  However, the entire trip was very enjoyable and I re-learned a couple of things I had forgotten.  I stayed in my second chain ring on my front sprocket the whole day.  This caused me to have a much faster cadence than my wife.  I also realized the importance of posture, wind resistance and stretching on a daily basis.

The sun was at the horizon as we wheeled into the park again.  We had only logged 68 miles but having to drive 90 minutes each way it made for a full day.  Krystal and I walked the pier on Lake Marion before we called it a day.The Santee ride was very enjoyable for a February day.  It was Sunny and 61 with alternating 10 mile an hour head and tailwinds.  I am looking forward to our next ride; both for the exercise and the great company.

Somewhere in there they even ride a bike.