Saturday, May 19, 2012

2012 SMR 18

Just JB and me.  There were two guys ahead of us and when we caught them I went for a long flyer but then faded - stayed ahead of the two guys but JB passed me near the Ranger House.

Also saw Peter at the Junction.

Roadkill Report:  Snake somewhere, I forget.  See related story below.






Side Story #1
I don't remember when I bought these shoes, but it was 2009 or earlier.
Sidis are just the best and worth the extra cost.  



But those little heel pads are worn off and I looked around to find some replacements.  Nice of Sidi to offer this feature... not sure why they don't make them out of titanium or something though.  


New pads came in the mail.  Didn't realize they were so hazardous - could cause birth defects.




I waited a little too long though, and couldn't get a screwdriver into the screw.  Got one out with my screw extractor






The other one I couldn't get at all, so I just cut the pad away leaving the screw head exposed so I could grab it with a pliers.

Here's what the shoes look like without the pads.


There's a couple different versions of the heel replacement pads, mine came with some little nubs that my shoes don't accommodate so I cut off the nubs with a utility knife... no prob.


Finished product!




Side Story #2
Blog Reader Curtis took some great photos of the AToC Stage 3 on Diablo; and gave me permission to add some funny captions.








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Side Story #3
This is awesome... researchers want cyclists to inventory road kill FOR SCIENCE!

Cyclists can now help scientists by reporting animals flattened by automobiles.


An organization that pairs data-collecting outdoor enthusiasts with researchers launched a roadkill-observation project this week. Adventurers and Scientists for Conservation is calling on everyone from commuters to expedition cyclists to record information about wildlife carcasses on their route and enter the data online.

























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Side Story #4
OK, this is awesome too: a video on teaching a robot how to ride a bike.


1 comment:

Curtis Corlew said...

Brilliant! I did hear the riders asking about you on the way up.
Sidi s are like your feet having sex. They are great. But the heal pieces are made that way so they don't slip. I had other shoes with hard heals that I was scared to walk in they were so slippery. So, no ti heals is a good thing.