Giant Sedona

Giant Sedona

Yet another Giant bike.  This is one of two bikes I bought at a garage sale in Florida; for 50-bucks each including about 4 spare tires and tubes.  It has the wide tires, so it is a cruiser but not a racer.  It is comfy, though, and I can burn up the city streets and light highways pretty well on it.  I spent a week in Florida in late Sep to fix a broken yard fence (wind gust) and clean up a very green and algae infested pool (neglect by the company I hired to maintain it).  It was 92 or so most of the day, but after dark, I cruised around my usual short route along Lake Dora.  A little dicey on the two busy minor highways, but I gutsed it out without problem.  I ride this  bike a lot in the winter when I am away from my Wisconsin fleet of junkers and relished a chance to get on it a little early this fall.

The Norwalk ARea, short hill standard route

Norwalk Area Hills- Short Standard Route

The hill route started with going down the road and over to the next valley, then up it and up a long horseshoe hill almost to the top and then turning around and rocketing to the bottom and returning.  It evolved into the beginning of my 3 standard hill routes.  The shortest, I travel all the way up on the ridge and then down the first opportunity to the valley below, over and around, walking up the big hill behind my place, and coasting down to the finish.  This route is 13.3 miles, measured today on the ZED.  It's a good workout.

ZED F2 Sport Mountain bike

ZED F2 Mountain bike

This is the only non-junker in my fleet!  I bought it from a close relative and didn't want her to take a bath on it. Paid about $150.  It's got the wide tires, the shock absorbers, and can climb pretty well, but leisurely.  I am of the opinion that the Univega is an easier climber because it is lighter with the narrower tires, etc.  This bike is built to withstand some bouncing around, and on the country courses I do to keep in shape, it hums along like a mid=size car.  I don't think it's going to break speed records but it is very comfortable and secure.  I rode it around the short hill course, the AA roune, on Sep 9th prior to what is predicted to be a 98 degree day. 

21-speeds, the shifters are motorcycle-type, twist the hand grips.  I'm not really so crazy about that...when your hands get sweaty, its hard to turn them.  Anyhow, great ride.

Norwalk Area Town Short Route

Norwalk Area Town Short Route

The Town Short Route was measured today with the Giant Option and is 13.6 miles long, starting down the road and continuing on it all the way to 71, then through the commercial district and on out the highway and eventually up the big hill, usually walking.  I believe the Univega is the only bike I have actually ridden up the big hill, just to prove I could do it, by tacking a lot.  It takes 4 to 5 minutes to walk a bike up the hill and then it's coasting to the finish, of course.  The Town Medium and Town Long routes will be merely an extension of this route, as is the case always. 

Giant Option

Giant Option

The Option is a 10-speed with a little wider tires than some of the speedier bikes.  It is not a particularly good climber but it is very comfortable to ride.  I would not try and keep up with a bike club ride on it but it is very good on the flats.  Nice shifting, very smooth.  It will not set any records on my standard courses because of the wider tires, I think, but so what.  I broke it in while on the farm, on the short city route, putting off the hills and ridges for a little later. It was humid and windy and was a fine ride.  Walked it up the big hill, of course.  Took about 4 1/2 minutes to do that. Did the course in 75-minutes.

Starkweather Creek Short Standard Route

Starkweather Creek Short Standard Route

This is the spinner that crosses East Washington.  My airport short standard route takes me up to the crosstown bike path, but I drop off right away at the Goodman Center and head up the Starkweather Creek path, over this spinner and another one over highway 30; then along the creek to the airport, where I jump off and go straight up to the Nat'l Guard Air Armory, turn right, cross Hw 51 and cruise down through the eastern neighborhoods to East Wash, cross it, and buzz down past Aldi's and all those east town places to the roundabout south of Dick's Sporting.  I head up Thompson Road as far as I can, going through the two Hw 30 roundabouts as well.  Then down through the neighborhoods to Cottage Grove Road, down it to the cross town bike path again, and home via that. 

I measured it today with the Fuji S-12-S and it is 12.17 miles long.  It took me 55:49, the fastest I have done it, of course.

Lake Wingra Intermediate MadLakes Route

Madison Lakes--Intermediate Standard Route--Lake Wingra

My Standard Intermediate Route on Madison Lakes is down the bike path 3 miles to Willie St and the beginning of John Nolen and out under the convention center and crossing John Nolen at the boat club, proceeding down to St. Mary's Hospital, through their campus and onto the little bridge over Wingra Creek into the Arboretum.  Then around the lake clockwise and back the same way.  I measured it with the Fuji 12-S-12 and it is 16.3 miles, done this time in 78-minutes, my best so far.  The Fuji probably cannot be beaten by any of my other junkers.  It is a great ride, dappled sun and shade and only a few rolling short hills, hardly worth noting.