Category found things

Having to deposit a check, after eating some breakfast I hopped on my bike and rode up to the bank, but brought along enough water and food (Clif bars) to go on a longer ride, which I did. I ended up heading down 22 Mile to VanDyke to 23 Mile to Dequindre, to the east end of the Clinton River Trail, through Rochester, then along the Paint Creek Trail, turning back when I was seeing signs indicating that Lake Orion was only five miles away. By the time I got back home I’d gone (per the computer) 36.5 miles. It wasn’t logged because the rechargable AAs for my GPS are dead. Oh well.

The riding itself was pretty unremarkable, but I saw a couple rather nifty things. My wheels seem to be failing (spoke popping noises developing towards the end and a constant slight wobble on both), but nothing went wrong, and my head was protected from more weird sunburn by a recently acquired white CoolMax® Headsweats. The trails were relatively empty and people who were out there were generally friendly and knew how to share the trail.

Now, the interesting things: First, while heading home along the Paint Creek Trail I noticed a small dog-sized animal with very spindly legs start to slowly walk into the brush. Stopping to see what it was I saw a fawn, no more than 18″ tall, standing between the path and the creek, shaking. While standing there, just after getting my phone out, it came over to me and sniffed my leg, then my bike, then just stood there for a few minutes before going back into hiding along the path. I hadn’t realized that wee deer have such cold, wet noses, but this one did. Unfortunately the path at this point is bounded by swamp (with standing water) and river on each side, and there were no other big deer around. I’m afraid that it’s mother may have been hit by a car or the two were somehow horribly separated.

A few people had stopped to see what I was looking at, and they were wondering out loud if there was someone who could be called to take care of the deer and be sure that it’s all right, but I imagine that the DNR or Humane Soceity or whatnot wouldn’t do much, since baby animals getting separated from their parents and dying is a (rather unhappy) part of nature. When I rode away the fawn was standing in some brush between the path and river, shaking and shivering, but otherwise perfectly still.

There were also some guys in a small inflatable yellow raft slowly making their way down the Paint Creek right in downtown Rochester along the River Walk. They were going particularly slowly and were occasionally getting stuck on the rocks, but it looked fun and they seemed to be enjoying themselves.

Here’s the photos I grabbed today with my phone:

· An SBC can spilling wires along the north side of 23 Mile, just east of Dequindre.
· The Soccer City dome on 23 Mile has been deflated.
· A fawn sniffing my bike after sniffing my leg.
· Another photo of the fawn, poorly framed.
· Two guys in a yellow raft heading down the Paint Creek.
· The same two guys on the Paint Creek as they are going over some of the more rocky areas.

Yes, I know the quality on them is pretty bad. I’m seriously considering picking up one of these Olympus shock / waterproof pocket cameras to take on bike rides or when wandering places too risky for my DSLR, but I haven’t felt like spending the $230 or so yet.

Now it’s time to shower, scan some photos and edit them a bit, do a bit of layout, then head out to IPM. I should probably eat somewhere in there too.

While checking the mail after work today I found this sheet of labels for VeraTron-brand VHS tapes sitting in the middle of the parking lot. If I remember correctly this is/was one of the Meijer house brands.

Due to work being kinda crappy today (poor scheduling, yay!) I was unable to take my bike wheel in. When I got home I took a look at the rear wheel and it too has a bit of wobble, but nowhere near as much. I ended up removing both wheels, pulling the tires/tubes off, and cleaning them up (including the rear cassette) before putting them in the car. I also took the time to remove the chain and give it a quick wash in some citrus-based degreaser. I’m really amazed at just how much crud was on there. Everything from dirt to little (dust-like) sparkly metal bits, which I presume wore off of the brand new chain.

Washing the chain was done by putting it in a juice bottle with a couple ounces of solvent, alternately shaking it around and letting it sit for 10 minutes before fishing it out, giving it a quick rinse in hot tap water, and spinning it dry outside. I then let it sit on a paper towel while working on the wheels, then applied some ProLink Chain Lube. Then I alternately lifted one end of the chain then the other, working the lube in, and now it’s sitting on the washer. I figure the light solvent which carries the heavier grease will evaporate as it sets there, and it’ll be ready to go back on my bike tomorrow or Wednesday.

Tomorrow I’ll (hopefully) get the wheels sorted out, then clean the mud off my bike from Saturday’s rainy ride, clean off the dirty parts of the other drivetrain bits, then get my bike back together. This week’s forecast looks to be just beautiful, so I’d like to try and get in at least 50 miles by the weekend. Come the weekend I’d like to try and top 30 miles in one go; likely by trying to ride from my house to the end of the Paint Creek Trail, or maybe to work and back.