Three Bicycling Maintenance Tasks for you to Consider Before Your Next Workout

 With inline skates, it's pretty straightforward.  If the wheels have steel bearings, and they won't spin for more than about 30 seconds when you move them quickly by hand, replace or refurbish the bearings.  

I had done that frequently and on my 100 mile weeks, I would do it every week.

I did not expect Cycling to be that frequent or complex.

Complex, yes.  Frequent, not really.

But I had done a major refurbishment of my bicycle back in March.  It is now June, and I have put on 1000 miles since then.  I'm getting close.

There are two ways to tell.  

First, when I push down on the power stroke, I'm getting sound.  Not a lot, but some.  If you get sound on the bike, it means some of your effort is not going into putting you forward and it is time to hunt that part down.  

Everything that spins should spin easily and almost silently.  Things that roll should not creak.

I suppose that the bike is getting old, I have 10,000 miles on the clock, it's been used and abused on trails since I got the thing.  In every sport I participate in, my own method is as an endurance athlete.  I'm not in it for speed, I am in it for distance.

Secondly, if you have the wheels up in the air, give them a very gentle 'flick'.  If they don't swing freely, they need servicing.  By this I mean that it should swing effortlessly like a weight on a string.  A Pendulum.  Mine does for the most part.

A bicycle wheel is rarely balanced perfectly so that it will just spin until balance and friction stops it.  Mine is no different.  My front wheel will spin and then come to a stop at a specific point where a reflector is at 8 o'clock on the dial. 

I am fine with that, and the imbalance is so slight that I would never feel it under power.

But the spinning is slowing down.  The rear wheel, the one with the chain drive will do the same thing until it begins to reverse, then the chain will take up the slack and try to turn the pedals.  Again, not a problem, I can run the pedals against the force and try to analyze the motion.

I had installed a new chain and gearset myself back in March and kept everything clean and lubricated.  The gearset is where the seven sprockets sit on the one side of the back wheel stacked in a pyramid shape.

Since the teeth on each sprocket, especially the gears that are used most, are not worn into a shape resembling a Shark's Tooth, I don't need to replace them.

In my specific case, the problem was that the brake pads were making contact with the brake disc very gently.  This would slow down my forward momentum and make the workout more difficult.

Replacing the brake pads on a bike are a simple affair, especially with mechanical disc brakes.  Remove the caliper with two Allen nuts, remove the cotter pin, and the retaining spring can be gently slid out.  I generally can sand the surface of the pads until clean two different times, and replace them within the caliper to get rid of the road grit and dirt from their surface.  Clean off the discs with alcohol and replace the caliper making sure that the disengaged brakes are not making contact with the discs.  

You can tell when you look down through the alignment gap, this is where I get the dog's flashlight and make sure it's clear.

Make sure you don't get grease from any source on the discs.  That would be why your brakes are making moaning or chattering sounds.

I did manage to cycle 27 miles today on the new pads and they stop me like they did when the bike was new, a couple years and 10,000 miles ago.

16,000 km I guess.

Brakes do need to be clean, so if you are caught out in a cloud burst or are fording a stream or puddles, it isn't a bad idea to give the discs a good cleaning before taking the bike back out yet again.  The brakes are important and will last longer with proper maintenance.

This all does not take long, about 15 minutes for both brakes if I am quick about it, double that if the dog wants to get involved.

Rack In Rim Or How I Can't Get Anything Done Without Supervision

I was out on the bike over that weekend.  My normal marathon was cut short, in fact, by half.

I have a goal.  If I ride 28 miles, 6 laps of the big gas bag, parked in the barn, in the middle of the park, I can call it good.

Oh sure, it tires me out and I end up having a nap in the afternoon, but after burning about 2000 calories in 2 hours, I am entitled.

Inline Skating the same amount of time is about 3000 calories, so I have this mindset that I'm slacking or cheating myself when I am on that contraption.

I knew this morning that there was a chance of rain.  I have a habit of taking that chance and running with it.  I need that workout, I don't even feel 28 miles in cooler weather.  Or at least what passes for Cooler Weather here in the steam bath and furnace that is South Florida.  

I measure workouts in how far I go past a marathon.  If I get rained out and it is less than a solid 27 miles at least, my records on the spreadsheet take the entry and display them in black instead of green.  Since the workouts are getting easier, that half workout of 13.38 miles was just a Lark in the Park.  Didn't even burn 1000 calories.

That's important because a normal day for me is taking in about 3200 calories.  Or more.  Afterburners are on, and I'm pretty much hungry during my waking hours.

Want that chocolate cake that I have recipes for?  Try to keep up.

I got home and after lunch I was feeling very relaxed but I remember that once I got back to the trailhead and my Jeep, stopping was a bit more "leisurely".  The brakes had gotten wet and leeched trail grit and oil onto the discs and pads.  It needed a servicing.

Luckily I have this down to about 5 minutes of active work once the tools are in place.   It makes me consider working on the Jeep's front disc brakes and whether it is a doable activity.

Probably.

Getting home, tracking mud onto the floor and setting myself up in the dining room floor, I was able to unmount the brake calipers.  Bending the cotter pin, freeing the two pads and the retaining clip.  A few strokes of sanding the pads, cleaning the disc with alcohol, and replacing the parts, I was able to get the rear brake in place.

Rear brakes get more use on a bicycle.  It was that way on my motorcycle as well.

Moving to the front wheel, My Supervisor was sleeping on the job.  Rack, The McNab SuperDog(TM) was sleeping on the job.I was able to get the job done without disturbing him.  Rack is 14, has three active cancerous lesions within his body, so he needs his rest.  I'll let you know when he slows down because he takes me for 5 miles of walks per day.

Buttoning the bike together quickly, that task was finished.  Rack snoring, I was able to get the bike task out of the way and ready for the next trip out.

Oh, and that rain?  Happened again on the next workout.  Wet Season seems early this year.  Must be an El Niño thing.

Jeep TJ Horn Repair - For when the horn sounds on its own or the button is "soft"

Ok! Let me get the warning out of the way:

Standard Internet Warranty Applies - you follow my instructions at your own risk.  Ramblingmoose will not be responsible with any damage you do to your car, your self, or anything else.  If you do not feel comfortable with these instructions, or your capacity to follow them, don't do them. 

OK?

This is written as instruction to my future self because I don't see myself getting rid of the car any time soon and I expect to have to do this again.

I gathered my own process by reading forums and looking at pictures and drawing conclusions.  I will say that there are rarely one set of instructions with repairing my own 23 year old Jeep.  I love the car but little issues are getting tiresome to track down and new parts are getting more scarce.

This is a "hack".  I fixed my horn by flipping the horn button actuator pad and replaced it within my horn button assembly.  I do not expect this to be "permanent" but I do expect it to give me some time. Many parts for the car are "Unobtanium" and you simply can't find "new" any longer.  Dorman makes a lot of fine reproductions of parts, and may be a good source but not for this repair.

The horn button actuator pad is two sheets of metallic material on the back of some sort of plastic.  When you flex them, they make contact and can be tested with a continuity tester. 

Other people's repairs were successful by cutting the sheets apart and putting a bead of silicon around the edges to hold them apart as they were put back into a parallel sheet.  Fortunately I did not have to re-manufacture the actuator (yet) by going that far and if I do, I will document that process later.

To complete this you will need multiple tools. 

8MM Socket.
10MM Socket.
11MM Socket.
Socket wrench driver.
Leatherman style multi-tool, although I only used the knife blade.


1:  Disconnect the battery from the car.  Really.  No.  Do this first.  Don't take a chance.  Let the battery be disconnected for at least 5 minutes before proceeding.  I used an 11MM socket to loosen the terminal, but your size may be different.  This is why I listed three socket sizes above.

2: Remove the horn button cover in the middle of your steering wheel.  There are two bolts holding the cover down.  They are 8MM and readily accessible from behind the sides of your wheel.  Remove the bolts and set them aside.  The entire horn button assembly with the air bag will easily come loose.

3: Disconnect the wires from the horn button assembly and the air bag.  If you did not disconnect the battery, this is why.  Your Air Bag will be very difficult to replace if it blows up in your face.  So will your nose.  DO NOT CUT ANY WIRES.  The air bag is connected by a tan connector that easily snaps off the back of the air bag.  The red positive wire has a spade connector that is covered by a plastic or vinyl sleeve.  Slide the sleeve back and separate the wires at the connector.  Your horn button assembly will now be free for you to take into your work area.

4: Remove the Air Bag from the mounts on the back of the horn button assembly.

• DO NOT CUT ANY WIRES.
• Remove the plastic clip that retains the wire in place.
• The Air Bag is held in place with four 10MM(?) nuts. 
• Save and set them aside. 
• There are two metal mounts that hold the air bag in place.
• Remove the mounts from their slots and set them aside.
• Free (to lift from the mount screw) the ground wire from the back of the air bag mounting plate.
• Bend or flex the vinyl so that you can free the air bag from the horn button assembly.
• Set the Air Bag aside.
  
  
  

5: Free the horn button actuator pad from the plastic shield on the inside of the horn button assembly. 

• The horn button actuator in my TJ is about the same proportions as those in the/some XJ Cherokee. 
• The round version of the horn button actuator is for those cars that have cruise control or automatic transmission.  Or are just older and "different". 
• Your mileage may vary. 
• I had to use my Leatherman's Tool knife blade to trim the rectangular posts to create room to work on the "top" side of the assembly. 
• There was a clear bit of plastic that was welded at the factory under the posts that I had to cut on the top row. 
• This created enough room to work to gently slide the horn button actuator pad out.
• Before reassembling the pad into the assembly, I strongly suggest testing your continuity on the pad with a tester.  This is just enough work to be annoying to have to repeat.
  

6: Flip your horn button actuator pad and reinsert it under the clear plastic window.  In my case, this was enough to get everything working again (for now).  Push the rectangular posts back through the holes in the plastic sheeting to hold everything in place.

7: Replace the Air Bag assembly within the horn button assembly and reverse the steps so that the assembly is SECURELY snapped into the vinyl assembly and then bolted back in place.  Your wires will be reversed for the horn button actuator pad but there will be enough wire for connections to be restored.

8: Reconnect the Air Bag connector on the back of the assembly, and the red wire for the horn button.

9: Place and Bolt in place the horn button assembly with air bag back in the steering wheel. 

10:  Reconnect the battery to the car.  Test the horn.  The hack should have worked and you should have a horn that works now.

11: Resetting the dash gauges.  After reconnecting the battery, my Tachometer was not working.  Closer inspection showed that the needle had dropped below the pin at the Zero RPM point.  To reset the tach, follow these steps.

• Get in the driver's seat and place the key in the ignition.
• Press and hold the trip set reset button.
• Turn the ignition key to accessory.
• The lights will cycle on one after another, and all of the gauges will activate.
• If this does not get your tach to be functional, the following Percussive Maintenance might be needed:  Whack the side of the instrument cluster with the heel of your hand while the tach is cycling.

Seriously, I had to do this and my tach is now working.  This link will show you the process, but not how I managed to hold the button while whacking the cluster.  This was done on the upper left corner of the cluster while the Tach was vibrating during the self-reset.

This is a link to the process that I derived my own process from.  You will notice that the steps are similar.  It is here in case my own steps are not helpful.

23 Years, 55555 Miles, Third Jeep Wrangler

Yes, I still have that Jeep.

23 years later.  It finally hit a milestone number on the clock.  55555 miles.

89407 km for the Imperially Impaired.

I was sitting at a stop light in Pompano Beach.  Southbound on Federal Highway, US1, and Mc Nab Road.  Seems like that's been my history for quite a while.  Always heading south on US1. Always carving a groove in US1. 

I got into Jeeps back when AMC was a going concern.  I had a friend who was influencing me.  I commented that I was tired of "Fussy Cars" that had problems.  I wanted something I could fix if I had to but had to be well supported.

He took me out into the NJ Pine Barrens with his own CJ 7.  I was hooked. 

I got myself a CJ 7, charcoal with a hard top.  I had that car for about 3 years and enjoyed it until I drove it to Indianapolis.  It ruined my back.  So I got a small car and drove that back home. 

That was a mistake.  I never stopped missing that CJ. 

So after I wrecked the small car and had a mistaken flirtation with a Ford Taurus, I got a Chevy Nova.  Mind you that was basically a Toyota Corolla and it fit me well for 10 years.  It started having issues with rust and someone who I was seeing was being cranky about being in a small car so I was pointed to the new Jeeps.

"It's a Jeep TJ.  The Wranglers.  They are actually comfortable unlike your CJ and you never stopped talking about that one."

So I test drove a TJ.  Bought it that day.  Only draw back was it was an Automatic.

I don't know why anyone wants a Jeep with an Automatic.  It's just not... Jeeplike.

I need to "Row My Own".  I need to be in touch with what I am doing. 

Three years later, I got this one.  5 speed.  4 liter inline 6 motor.  One of the last indestructible engines that was made.  Still AMC designed but built by Chrysler in the Toledo Ohio plant. 

It has the nicest sound when you drive it on the road.  Between 30 and 50 it sings to you in third gear, purrs in fourth.  I should know, I put it in that gear myself.

It's also a thirsty beast, and has always been.  16 MPG is a good time for me.  The best I ever got was 23 mpg and that took a tail wind and a trip to Key West, FL to do it.

Pro Tip is if you ever are going to Key West, plan your trip to hit the Seven Mile Bridge at sunset and make sure you have a convertible car.  Put the roof down and enjoy that ride.  One of the most beautiful rides you can ever have, I did it both in that Jeep and a Honda GoldWing Interstate motorcycle.  If you plan your timing right the stars come out like someone threw glitter in the air.

No, really, it is truly that beautiful.

I'd even consider driving you there, if you talk nice to me, and pay for gas, food, and lodging.  I may be nostalgic and a bit of a travel romantic, but I am not stupid, Key West is damn expensive!

If we do go, you had better be comfortable with my choice of music.  My Jeep, My Rules.  No country, none of that "Album Rock" crap.

But let me get the old boy serviced.  23 years is a long time and the hoses are starting to crack.  That's why the engine light is on the dash board.  It has been for about 10 years.  I suppose I should get that looked into, but the code is the gas cap code, and I am tired of buying new ones.

For the most part, it's been a good friend.  Mechanical friend that only let me down once.  Ironically at that self same intersection, the clutch master cylinder failed on me.  I limped to a dealer and they did repair the clutch.  I told the advisor what was wrong, and after a week they found the part and replaced it.  It's been good ever since.

I pulled in and the service advisor said "we don't have a loaner or a driver for you".  I had just come south from the park and a workout.  Pointing at the bike on the back of the Jeep I just said "You are only 6 miles/10K from my house and I just finished a marathon, a little bit more will be fine".  It was the look of astonishment from all the service advisors that convinced me that remaining in shape all these years and being able to ride 38 miles in one day on a bike was well worth it.

Yes, that old dusty Jeep is a friend.  A good ride.  They don't make them like this any more.  They got big just like every other car on the road.  They are transitioning to hybrid which would be nice.  That 16 MPG is tough to take but I have been told to hold onto my old boy.

I do talk about it like a cowboy talks about his horse.  Funny thing about all that.  I see a lot of cars on the road but nothing really catches my eye.  Prices have tripled and quadrupled.  But I still have my old Jeep and I'm comfortable in it.  Nice not to have a car payment for the last 20 years.

I may even be convinced to take it in for service to have that gas cap code looked at.  I know what has to be done and I am not finding the idea of lowering a gas tank for an inspection to be attractive in my own carport.

More than I would like to attack.  I did replace the stereo more than once and made a bezel and a mount for the speaker out of a laundry detergent bucket.  I am still picking up bits of blue plastic in my kitchen that flew off the Dremel from that day.

Better to make your own microplastic waste than absorb it from the environment I guess!

If I can find a truly good mechanic who knows old cars, I may be able to relax enough to trust my old friend to.

Whack-A-Mole on a 23 year old Jeep Wrangler is never fun. Maintaining your old soldier Jeep is important.

Whack-a-mole.

It's the game you get to play when your car gets older.  My car, well, it's practically ancient.  Almost Antique.

I'm still enjoying the thing, I do like driving it.  I may be the "Little Old Lady" Driver who only goes to The Park three times a week, but I do enjoy the daylights out of the Jeep.

I must.  I've only driven Jeep Wrangler TJs since 1996.

But this one is a 2002.  That makes it, what, as of this writing?  23 model years old.

If I am off by a bit, it won't matter, I'm not replacing the thirsty beast.

It's a simple machine, as far as a vehicle goes. 
I've had 4 car stereos in it. 
Replaced the tires twice. 
I prefer to do my own oil changes, and besides, it gives me something to keep me honest when I do.

The rubber hoses can be old and cracking but I know where to look. 

If you have an old car, you will need to open your hood and look very closely at your hoses.  If you see any kind of cracking on them, the hose should be replaced.  When I did, I put a zip tie on the end to make sure it's "Good And Tight".

Last year I did a LOT of maintenance.

After an oil change:

I replaced almost all of the vacuum hoses under the hood and came back and did more later.

I replaced the "Oxygen Sensors".  There's a truly strange tool that looks like a socket wrench socket with a notch cut out of it for the wire to be avoided as you turn.  They're not easy, all the heat on them tries to weld them to your exhaust system.

I replaced the Fuel Injectors.

I replaced the "Coil Rail".

I replaced the Clutch Master Cylinder at the dealer since I was stranded at the dealer after a workout.  It was another 10K to ride the bike home since they couldn't get me here.  Turns out, that's a plug in replacement on a 2002 Jeep Wrangler.  Could have done that one myself if I had the part, and they didn't.  I had to wait a week without a car at home.

There is a bag waiting for me to replace the bearings in the driver's seat so it rolls back and forth smoothly.

I replaced the gas cap.  Twice.

I am sure there are other things.  I'm about to replace the roof and windows since they're held in by zippers and velcro.

There is no such thing as Security in a Soft Top or Convertible.  Period.  I had to remove the alarm years ago when it shorted out and blew one of those weird plastic fuses.

Mind you, this is over the years.  Not just "right now".   Maybe since 2015 or so.

I don't drive a lot.  The car rides great though, new tires help that.  I went from 10mpg to 16mpg which helps after all that maintenance.

Being bored on Covid Lockdown and "Peak Summer Workout Pause" helped.

This time it was the battery.  I got stranded this morning.  I was going to go to The Park to do my usual Maintenance Workout of 23 or so miles on the bike.  Got everything together and went to start the car.  "Rrrrr" said DJ the TJ.  Then "CLICK CLICK CLICK". 

What I said is unprintable.

We took Mr Dog for his second walk around town.  When I came back I had put the charger on the car and ignored it for 3 hours.  That gave me enough charge to get to Walmart for a warranty replacement.

A repeat also implies that I have a charging system problem or a "Parasitic Drain".

We will see.  I have a brand new battery in the car now.  If I get the "Rrrrr... CLICK" problem again, I'll have the portable jump starter under the back seat after Friday and will have to replace the alternator.

That's what it is right?  Alternator not charging?

*sigh* I have my appointments, Darth Jeep.  Better behave.

Silencing your bike's disc brake in about 15 minutes. Basic Bicycle Maintenance.

Yes, I am wordy.  This needs either a video which there are plenty of them on youtube, or a lot of words.  I do words...

The time to do this is after you got caught out in the rain, or you are trucking your bike out to where you want to ride.  The bike now sounds like a screaming baby or a goat or some other animal.  Time to fix that!

If you followed the post on how to lube the wheel hubs on your bike, you probably have done exactly what I did.  Basically, I have a heavy hand when it comes to oiling things, so as you rode, your oil spun out of the hub and got on the brake disc.  Now your brake pads are "contaminated" with oil and stopping is more a matter of just how much grip strength you have in your hands rather than in the braking system on your bike.

Old school caliper brakes would most likely not be effected.

The overview is simple, braking surfaces have to be clean and free of grease, grit, and oils.  If there is oil, you slide.  That's why we use the stuff. 

To clean your braking system, there are steps and you can do it in your own home.  It takes me about 15 minutes once I have everything assembled.

Remember that anything you remove from the bike will be put back on the bike or you will need new replacements for future use.  Since most of these items are specialized, make sure they don't roll "under the couch" and are guarded for later.

First, get your equipment.

• Rubbing Alcohol or Acetone (Remember perform this with adequate ventilation!)
  
• Paper towels
• Pliers
• Optional light strength thread locker (Permatex Blue)
  
• Sand Paper (I used 100 grit or "Medium" but a 200 or 320 grit might be better)
  
• Sanding block or flat work surface to sand on
• Towels or Cardboard sheet to protect the floors
• 5mm Allen Wrench
  

Second, Lay the bike on its side on the floor.  Brake Disc side (left side) up.  You can do this on a bike stand if you have one, but I have found that it is just easier to do this with the bike on its side so the brake mechanism can rest on the spokes while you work instead of it dangling in the air.

Third, Locate the two Allen bolts that hold the brake mechanism to the frame/fork of the bike.  Use the 5mm Allen Wrench to remove the bolts from the bike and set them aside.  When removed, your brake mechanism should gently pull from the mount and the bike.  Note: if you are experienced at performing this work, and you have clearance on your bike, you may be able to get away with not removing the brake caliper from the bike.  I can't, you might.  Consider your situation first.

Fourth, using your Pliers, Bend back the end of the cotter pin so that it is straight.  If you

shear that end of the pin, you will need to make a trip to the hardware store to buy another one so be aware that it is possible to snap off the end, and that would be bad, mmmkay?  It will push back out of the mechanism, easily.  Set your pin aside with the bolts that held the mechanism to the bike.

Fifth, remove the brake shoes and the spring that holds them together and in place.  My own mechanism slid out of the brake mechanism easily.  Set the mechanism down so that it does not get damaged.

Sixth, using your Rubbing Alcohol or Acetone, clean the brake disc and the brake pads.  The disc and the brake pads must be free of oil and dirt when you complete these steps, and that includes the oil and dirt on your fingers. 

Seventh, cleaning the pads will leave some Rubbing Alcohol or Acetone on them.  This

will soften the old pads and the dirt.  Using the sandpaper and sanding block or flat work surface, sand the dirt and grime from the old pads.  I used 50 strokes per pad.  Clean both pads with Rubbing Alcohol or Acetone to remove the remaining dirt and create a smooth braking surface.

Reassembly:

First, clean everything again.  Brake ring should be shiny and clean.  Brake pads should be clear of dust, grease, and grit.  No grit on anything, you will pick enough of that up on your nest workout, I am sure

Second, Make a Brake Pad Sandwich.  Best way to describe it.  Without touching the actual pads, the brakes are assembled to be put in the brake mechanism.  Pad, Spring, Pad.  Squeeze them together gently but firmly so the sandwich can be inserted into the mechanism.

Third, insert the Brake Pad Sandwich into the Brake Mechanism.  The holes in the two pads and spring must line up.  They are to be inserted into the mechanism with the holes lining up with those in the mechanism where you removed your cotter pin.

Fourth, Lock everything in place with the cotter pin.  The cotter pin should be lined up with the loop on the wheel spoke side of the brake mechanism.  Slide it in to the hole so that it extends out on the outside of the brake mechanism.  Everything must fit in easily, it will not take a lot of force.  Bend the end of the cotter pin in place.  The cotter pin will be mobile and able to turn.

Fifth, mount the brake mechanism back onto the wheel over the brake disc.  I do this by putting it on top of the mount and inserting the Allen Bolt into the screw holes then finger tightening the Bolts down.

Sixth, you are effectively done at this point but you do need to align your brakes.  Find the sight corridor within the brake mechanism.  The disc should be as close to evenly placed within that gap as possible.  When you spin that wheel, make sure that the brake does not engage at any point within the travel of the wheel.  If you are at that point, then you will tighten the Allen Bolts down using the 5mm Allen Wrench.  Test the wheel again to make certain you are not rubbing.

Finally, when you are out and riding your bike, you should break in or "bed" the brakes by GENTLY applying then releasing them.  Enough to stop your travel from about 6-12 MPH (10-20KPH) gently but firmly.  Everything should work "as it should".  If you are rubbing, then align the wheel to fit the brakes and repeat the alignment procedure as needed.

If that Goat has not been banished to the barnyard, or it's still squealing like Screaming Baby Airlines, repeat the process.

Remember, any noise and you're losing speed.  Take the time to align the wheels within the brakes so they may spin as freely as possible.

Yeah, it's a lot of words.  Get to work, it's not as hard as all this text.  I'll shaddap!

Cycling? Make sure your brakes don't rub. Truly basic maintenance.

Any noise means you're losing speed but that's easily solved by chasing the source with a drop of oil and or some adjustments.

I'm coming at Cycling as a Skater.  I would call myself an intermediate distance biker, two workouts a week in an urban/suburban setting in Fort Lauderdale and Wilton Manors, Florida.

I was out yesterday having an awesome workout.  Limiting myself to 90 minutes of actual motion, plus water stops and red lights and so forth, I managed a pleasant 23 miles.  Tomorrow is another cycling day and Friday is expected to be a Skate day.

Enough of that background nonsense, the thing is that if you go along long enough, you notice a few things.  My own bike is lit up like a xmas tree, and I have enough bio feedback going on that it is pretty obvious when "something changes".  Being that steady state kind of guy, I start looking.

I came to a conclusion that it pays to watch your disc brakes. 

You can see my own disc brake assembly on the picture.  The placement of the disc is highlighted by the sky blue from outside.  Nice little accident of photography there, huh?

If I am chasing a squeak like a cricket in the bedroom at 2 AM when you are trying to sleep, you know that I watch what's going on.  After about 5 to 10 minutes of active workout, you might do your best to have a look at your equipment.

Don't roll your eyes at that comment, it has served me well more often than not.  5 minutes is enough time for your heart rate to climb into the 100 beats per minute.  It's time for the chain and the cassette (that gear thing on your back wheel) to warm up.  It's also time enough for things to slip or flex if loose.

Oh sure YOU don't need to look, but maybe it's that other person on the trail that you're coming up on and sounding out "On Yer Left!" to.  Bear me out.

I have Runkeeper giving me stats and telling my speed every two minutes (more is annoying, less is pointless).  Strava will report all the final info to my health insurance company and I'll get points that are able to be converted to cash.  I have my watch feeding all of that, and a spare bike computer on the handlebars.  Basically I tell people I have a 47 pound aluminum alloy motorcycle with a 184 pound and 6 foot 4 inch motor shouting at trucks to get out of the bike lane. 

"Trail Hogs" deserve no respect, no matter the sport.

About that time, I glance down.  I'm on a straightaway and plugging along.  Finally warmed up.  Speed is increasing.  On my bike, with my frame, I can look down along the seat tube toward the back and see the brake assembly.  Here is where I make a strategic decision. 

Since all the equipment has warmed because of friction and sunlight, and found its groove, if that disc on the brake is not nicely placed between the brake pads, adjustments are needed.  It should never ride the pads, and it should be flat so that it won't brush against the pads at one point in the spin.

Remember, if it is brushing against the pads, it is slowing you down.  My own brakes work incredibly well, but I don't want them negatively impacting my workout.

Flip the lever on that wheel (front or back) and release the hub.  Here is where finesse is required.  Make certain the hub is sitting in its groove and mounts.  Then finesse that wheel so that it looks like the disc is balanced evenly between the pads like in the picture.  Finally clamp that lever back into place and verify nothing has drifted.

What happens with me is that at the one hour water stop, I will inspect everything again.  Pads must not be rubbing, wheels spin free, tire pressure is reasonable.  Then enjoy the carbs you brought and that bottle of ice water on your frame.

You did bring your supplies, right?  I highly recommend my own ginger cookie recipe.

Hey... On Yer Left!

Zen and the Art of Sprinkler Maintenance

At 515AM I ran into a neighbor and started talking about two of my favorite things.

Dogs and Sprinklers.  The dogs were doing their own thing, watering the ground when I casually mentioned

that I had to be back before the irrigation started at 6AM.  We spotted a random rogue sprinkler head in a strange spot and I wanted to look for fountains.

It was at that time that I ended up going into a reverie of sprinkler geekdom.   It's really rather simple technology but it needs a lot of maintenance.

You see, when I was a wee brat, on the open Prairie land of South Jersey, a sprinkler was an entertainment device.

You would use it on those days that the temperature was up into the 90s, sometimes nudging up to 100, and go run through it.  Kids everywhere know what I mean.  They'd see you had yours out, wait until the grass got good and wet and then join you for a good splash.

You never really used them to water the grass.  The only time you'd consider it was when you had just planted seeds and wanted them to sprout.  Then the International Sign for Do Not Cross would appear - small stakes and some white cotton string.  It would draw a boundary around the area and you knew that you just were NOT allowed to be there.  The sprinkler would then get dragged out, usually with the green hose crossing the sidewalk somewhere, and get turned on so that every prospective grain of grass seed would get a drop.

New Jersey got 40 inches of rain each year, and the only real time you felt it was "dry" was in August.  Even in August you'd get the Thunderstorms rolling in from the west down the street in a battleship grey cloud.

South Florida gets 50 inches of rain.  Or so they tell us.  It falls mostly in the "Wet Season" of May to December.  You may get a storm here and there in the other months but they're the exception.  This is also the land where you don't need an umbrella because if you get caught out in it, you're drenched.   If not, you just huddle under an eave somewhere for 15 to 20 minutes and it's done.

The other six months or so - welcome to the dry season, also known as the Desert.

In order to keep those lawns green so that the people from other places like New Jersey, and other places in the country would expect, we have to water frequently.  It's illogical.  The British Habit of keeping rolling hills of green grass work because it rains practically every day and is cooled by clouds and never really gets what I'd consider warm.  Our winter temperatures are a good warm day in Britain.

So how do we do it?  I'm considering a degree in hydrology next.  Really.  Because in order to keep our grass as green as we do, we do a dance of watering, timing it just so, and three separate zones of plastic pipes, fittings, tubes, and bubblers of all shapes and sizes.

But it all is fairly simple, even if it is annoyingly "fiddly".  There is a well that goes down into the higher ground water aquifer.  I know we don't suffer from salt intrusion because the other day when I was adjusting a sprinkler head, it flew off at full speed into my left eye, and sprayed directly into my mouth.

Mmmm tasty, tasty ground water!  Full of things like Iron, Monsanto produced garden chemical "leechate", and bacteria!  Yay! Bacteria!  Right in my mouth!  Ugh, never mind that.

Also sand gets brought up.  I know that because my mouth crunched some after that little shower.  It also collects in the low spots along with all that slop that gets in my precious bubblers and sprinkler heads.

The water goes into a manifold that shuttles it between the three zones, and then into a distribution system that each zone is more complex than what it takes for my house to give me that daily shower.

The first two zones are full flow - all out watering so they're restricted.  Water the grass in front, hedges and grass in the rear.  As such I can only use them twice a week during set hours.  We do it in the morning on those days since the grass is most thirsty then and it keeps the roots from rotting in water that sat in the beach sand that passes for top soil here, 2.5 miles from the briny Atlantic Ocean.

Zone 3 is the pots and flowers.  Everything there is on drip feed.  My farmer relations out in Nebraska would know exactly what I'm talking about.  Each "drip" is limited to 1 gallon per hour.  Zone 3 runs only 30 minutes a day so each pot gets two quarts of water, roughly.  There are currently 18 pots in the backyard, along with a perimeter soaker hose that spot waters the hedges.  All of that puts water exactly where it is needed.

Everything has joins, unions, and elbows.  Reduced down to smaller than a drinking straw, all that wonderful bacterial water has a nasty habit of slowly plugging up.  I have a precision tool made up of a piece of copper telephone wire, 24 gauge I think, that I run through each head when they plug to knock out the collected plug of bacterial muck, ground water chemicals, and general ooze.  After that it's soaked in white vinegar to get more of it out and returned to duty.

All of this so I can remain scrupulously legal in my watering and keep things green.

But all of this requires maintenance.  The faster the water moves, the less maintenance it requires.  The large "Golf Course" sprinklers in the front yard will knock a small woman over with the flow, but they rarely need attention.  The midsized ones under the hedges need rather a lot.  The pot bubblers?

Every morning coffee time with Rack.  We go outside to the backyard while they're running.  He runs around the yard, I look at sprinkler heads.  Every blasted one.  Or rather the ones that aren't blasting water all over my Mango, Ruellia, Milkweed, and Banana trees.

All so that we can have it nice for the Monarch Butterflies that munch on the Milkweed, the random Bananas that I used to get before the plant got overgrown, the deep purple Ruellias I'm starting in that pot.

Yeah, it's a lot of work but I like it.  So if you have a problem with the sprinklers, just ask around.  It's pretty simple.  But skip the cotton thread.  We've got turf here!