Ride for Saturday, 16 September
Went downtown on the hybrid to go to the Farmer's Market downtown on Kayte's recommendation. Only what was in season was available, and of course I already had lettuce, broccoli, cabbage, celery, etc, but not english cucumbers (out of season) or red and yellow peppers (out of season) which were the main things I was going for. I saw some Portobello mushrooms and picked up a bag - $3, which would have been about $10 at Sobey's. I also picked up some Gravensteins, $3 for a 5lb bag - again, much cheaper than Sobey's (I think they're around $6, and then tax on top of that).
After that I went over to MEC and picked up a new tyre, and a couple of Continental inner tubes. I've finally capitulated to Presta valves, since it's a real pain having to shove 34-42mm tubes into 28mm tyres. I prefer Schrader valves since if I get a flat tyre and my pump dies, I can go to the nearest gas station to get going, or even ask at houses for a pump (since lots of people have foot pumps and the like for inflatable toys of some description). Presta valves are only used by people with higher end bikes, so the chances of me finding a Presta pump owner 40km from the nearest town is pretty remote. I have a Presta/Schrader adapter, but I just know I'm going to lose the damn thing sooner or later...
Distance logged: 22.656km
Time: 70:41
Average speed: 19.2km/hr
Max speed: 48.7 km/hr
Temperature: 13C-20C, sunny
Cumulative distance: 5725.789km
Cumulative cost per km: $0.43
Monthly distance: 444.500km
Monthly cost per km: $0.33
After that I went over to MEC and picked up a new tyre, and a couple of Continental inner tubes. I've finally capitulated to Presta valves, since it's a real pain having to shove 34-42mm tubes into 28mm tyres. I prefer Schrader valves since if I get a flat tyre and my pump dies, I can go to the nearest gas station to get going, or even ask at houses for a pump (since lots of people have foot pumps and the like for inflatable toys of some description). Presta valves are only used by people with higher end bikes, so the chances of me finding a Presta pump owner 40km from the nearest town is pretty remote. I have a Presta/Schrader adapter, but I just know I'm going to lose the damn thing sooner or later...
Distance logged: 22.656km
Time: 70:41
Average speed: 19.2km/hr
Max speed: 48.7 km/hr
Temperature: 13C-20C, sunny
Cumulative distance: 5725.789km
Cumulative cost per km: $0.43
Monthly distance: 444.500km
Monthly cost per km: $0.33
posted by steve at 9/17/2006 10:01:00 am
1 Comments:
Steve, my last three bikes have had Presta valves, and I thought it would be a huge hassle when I first started using them. Now, however, I keep my Schrader-to-Presta adapter screwed onto one of my valves at all times. That way, I don't lose it, and I'm always sure to have it with me in case I need a fill-up away from home. It's a bit of a pain having to unscrew the adapter, then unscrew the Presta nut, but it's 30 seconds of my life, so I try to remain calm and hold it together.=)
That being said, I have lost my initial delight at having weird tyre valves, and wish more bikes still came standard with Schrader. I've lost count on the number of those dinky little valves I've snapped simply trying to reinflate a tube. My former carry-along pump was the worst, always breaking the valve when it was sure I had no more tubes to spare. I finally gave it the ol' heave-ho one day, and it lives now in a field of tall grass. It certainly made the walk home a little sweeter.
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