Wordless Wednesday :: Another Icelandic Sunset

Near Keflavik, Iceland. Summer of 1973.Copyright © 1973/.. by Rebeckah R. Wiseman

Redefining "Shoe Tree"

Wednesday, October 13th - - Several times in southern Oregon I saw trees like this one - out in the middle of nowhere, miles from any town, with shoes strung through some branches and dangling from others. This “Shoe Tree” happened to be situated near a pull out so I could safely stop. It was about 50 miles east of Fallon, Nevada along U.S. 50 midway between the junctions of Nevada highways 361 and 372. Proclaimed on billboards in Austin and Eureka - the only towns in the 250-mile stretch of U.S. 50 between Fallon and Ely - as “the loneliest highway in America.”

The significance of it all? I haven't got a clue... but it sure is lotsa shoes! And, aside from the two towns, it was the most interesting thing along the way...

Sunrise & Morning Glories

From a different perspective

This afternoon I noticed a hummingbird flitting through the lilies. I grabbed my camera in the hopes of capturing it enjoying the nectar but by the time I got to the window it was gone. Perhaps it will come back tomorrow and I'll be a little quicker. Since I had the camera at the window, I played around a bit with the zoom capabilities and got these shots. I like how the out-of-focus grass enhances the color of the lilies. I'm still amazed by how many blooms are on each plant and am really enjoying them. When we lived at our previous home, the flowers were in beds on the side and at the back of the house and we had to actually go outside to look at them. It's much nicer with them right outside the front window, especially with the high temperatures and high humidity we've been having lately.

So what does this have to do with family history research? Not anything, really, but seen from a different perspective, these views of the lilies are quite different from those taken two days ago. Sometimes (quite often), when I'm stuck with a research problem, it helps if I look at the problem from a different angle. Reviewing the information already found could help in rediscovering information previously overlooked. Talking with someone else and getting their input can also be helpful. Since they aren't emotionally attached to the problem they can take a step back and possibly offer new insight or recommend other areas of research. Regardless whether the problem is resolved or not, it almost always helps to take another look, from a different perspective.

Wind Beneath My Wheels

Cycling in New England,I've had my share of encounters with strong winds. Or at least, what I considered strong winds. Here in Northern Ireland they are on an entirely different scale. Part of it is the open landscape. Much of the time, you are cycling through glens (undulating grassy hills), without much in the way of trees for cover. Even the mountains tend to be all grass and rock, with only the occasional clump of forest.This quality of the landscape is part of what makes cycling here so special - the open, panoramic views are ever-present, encouraging on climbs and breath-taking on descents. But on windy daysthere is little in the way of shelter. Cycling in a group, the riders can shelter each other. Cycling alone, you are exposed to it all.




And the windy days can be unpredictable. I have gone out on a calm morning, only to battle violent gusts mid-ride. I have cycled down a straight road in what alternated between headwinds and tailwinds - confused, erratic currents.




One day last week, a headwind grew so strong and steady that, as I rode down a long steep hill it insistently pushed me back up. I could not have imagined such a slow, strenuous descent:It was as if some invisible giant had casually put his hand up against my handlebars.




But most disconcerting of all are the cross winds. I've had the least experience with these so far, but here they are common. Winds blowing sideways and on the diagonal can be strong enough to push the bike around the road. When the wind is steady, I find ways to either lean or position myself against it to reduce the impact. But when it is gusty, a sudden push against the side of the bike, or worst of all, the handlebars, can rattle my nerves. Faced with this, I try to keep simultaneously loose and hyper-ready to react to the blows with quick tiny counter-movements. And if the gusts get really bad, I wait it out: The weather is changeable; the pattern will morph into something else before long.




But the wind is not all bad. One night, I was cycling home along a 10 mile flat stretch. A tailwind picked up - so strong and so close to the ground, it felt as if the current settled in between my tires and the road, transporting me all the way home on a magic carpet ride.

Pink Morning Glories

Deteriorating Dress Guards

I've had my Raleigh Tourist for close to 3 years now and, not counting the brake pads, the only wear on the bike over the course of that time has been to the aftermarket dress guards. These dress guards were acquired new old stock from a connection in Portugal. They are very simple - essentially a bunch of elasticised cords. And I love them: the simplicity of the design does not detract from the elegant form of the iconic loop frame, while being sufficient to do its job. Unfortunately, over time the cords seem to have lost their elasticity and are now kind of saggy. Some have even begun to disintegrate and I've had to cut them off. I am surprised that they've lasted such a short time, and it's a bit of a pain because the number of holes they require in the fender is unique to them. I will have tobother the person who gave them to me for another set, or attempt to make my own.




Assuming that my experience is not a fluke, it might explain why so many vintage bicycles are found with holes in the fenders but no dress guards: Possibly, this accessory had an inherently short life span due to the elastic degrading.I assume the elastic is natural rubber, which would make it sensitive to heat and humidity - same reason it is so rare to find intact original rubber grips.




Those who are making dress guards today (I know there are a few of you out there now) might want to keep this in mind. I'd be curious to know what types of cords you use and how they have held up. If I make my own dress guards, I would like them to last next time!

Summer Flowers

The best of the few flowers that have bloomed in my yard this summer in this drought. Blanket Daisies, wild sunflowers, wild 5-o-clocks (pink), white daisies, gourds, golden rain tree.

Awesome Ice!

Let the sun shine! Today was such a nice day, that I went for a walk on the ice for about 2 miles down the shore from my house. The ice is about 2 feet thick now, which means its plenty safe to walk on and what an interesting way to explore the shore! Not to mention easier. Most places along the lakeshore its difficult to walk because of all the rocks and boulders. The ice makes it much easier, because right next to shore its very smooth. About 30 to 50 feet from shore, there are ice piles here and there. Today I just wandered with the camera and when something caught my eye I snapped a picture of it.

(Above: Ice cave ceiling)

Microburst

Wednesday's forecast predicted thunderstorms, and after a sunny humid day a rapid downpour descended on our neighbourhood in the afternoon. Later we learned that the next town over had experienced a microburst - an intense storm similar to a tornado, only with wind patterns in the opposite direction. Over 100 full grown trees were uprooted in the storm in the course of very little time. No one was hurt, but property was damaged.



The next morning I went on a ride and found the Minuteman Bikeway impassable, with huge toppled trees in close succession blocking the entire path. As municipal workers in neon vests surveyed the area, confused bicycle commuters wandered around looking for alternative routes without having to ride on the high-traffic main road which the Bikeway parallels.






The side streets were blocked. Municipal vehicles were gathering from all directions - those huge machines where you feed them pieces of tree and they mulch it up. Finally, I went on the main road and competed with a procession of buses in mid-day heat until my nerves had worn raw. Drivers were especially out of sorts that morning, behaving aggressively and honking at cyclists for simply being "in the way" - probably not realising that we had all been displaced from the adjacent bikeway and had nowhere else to be.



Riding under these conditions, I realised how spoiled I've gotten lately - forgetting how stressful cycling can be when drivers behave like this and there is no alternative route. I was getting honked at continuously for trying to take the lane. But as busses kept cutting me off and car doors swung open with abandon, taking the lane was the only safe option. Eventually a few of us formed a cluster: me, a woman in a yellow sundress on a cruiser, a teenager on a mountain bike, and an older man on a time trial bike. The cars went wild, but at least there was safety in numbers.






The pièce de résistance happened on my way home. I was already back in Cambridge and riding on a quiet MUP when around the bend a municipal carcomes charging at me head-on, taking up the entire width of the path. The guy slammed his brakes when he saw me and I slammed mine, feeling a huge surge of adrenaline. We stopped within inches of each other and I had one of those not-quite-but-almost crashes that I am so talented at. I kept the bike from hitting the ground, in the process contorting my body unnaturally and twisting my elbow. Ouch. But who cares about a little ouch; I am just glad he did not run me over. We had words, if you can call it that. Me: "You could have killed me!" He: "Sorry sweetheart, I didn't see you coming!"



I suppose the take-away lesson here is to stay off the roads after natural disasters? Easy enough for someone doing a training ride, but what about those who commute that way? I don't think the city even announced anywhere that the Minuteway Bikeway was impassable, whereas they certainly would have announced it had a major road become unavailable to drivers. Maybe when there are more of us, things will be different. I hope so.

Camp Patriot

The LA Times interviewed Incident Commander, David Gottlieb, regarding the most recent tragedy on the Muir Snowfield. The details are heart wrenching.

On a much more positive note, wounded veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan are aiming for Rainier's summit. Backpacker Magazine did a story (Shock and Awe) about last year's achievement. That extraordinary effort put a blinded Army Captain on the summit. Look for the team from Camp Patriot on the Disappointment Cleaver later this July.

Speaking of routes, folks are climbing them. We've updated the route conditions page, and posted information about successful attempts on the Emmons and Gibraltar Ledges. Have a great weekend.

Wordless Wednesday - One of the Joys of Summer!

August 1998. Digitized ...Copyright © 1998/.. by Rebeckah R. Wiseman

Revisiting Captain Cave Man M7+

Several days ago I heard from Joel Torretti. Joel is a talented PA ice/rock climber that moved away for several years and recently returned to PA and is living up near State College. He was looking to get out and do some tooled climbing. He was excited to be making his first outing of the season. He made the 2.5 hour drive down to our neck of the woods to see what we could do. We checked out the conditions at several of the local areas, SCII and the So. C'ville rod and gun club. Both being not of great condition, we opted to go check out Lower Meadow Run in Ohiopyle. Not to my surprise, the ice was dismal for pure ice climbing. Not a big deal, we opted to get on the great mixed lines. We started on Anger Managment M5 as our warm up. After pumping on that one, Joel tried the obvious "project" line out the center of the cave. Still a project and to all who have tried it, you know why... The next climb we go on was Captain Caveman M7+ a new line that I TRed at the end of last season in much fatter conditions. Joel went first solving the near iceless start to the line. He made it up through the opening moves only to have a crampon slip of and send him into the air. He passed the rope and I tied in for my attempt. I was happy to see Joel smooth the bottom moves (I was a little uncertain that it would go with so little ice). I moved up through the opening making it to the large ledge on the left. I was happy to throw a heel and get a rest. I proceeded to make my way up through the overhanging rockband to the much appreciated ice. The top posed the problem that it was delaminating from the rock like mad. I gently made my way through this section using various dry moves as well as several very insecure ice sticks. I was glad to get it first go. It took me several days of work to get it last year (in much fatter conditions). Joel tied in and took a second go working through the moves and getting a good pump in the process. After our goes on CCM, we went over and did a few laps each on the ever fun Season Finale M6. It was a blast revisiting Captain Cave Man with Joel. Since getting it no falls, first go on TR, I'm really motivated to give it a whirl on the sharp end before it gets wired. Possibly this upcoming week I'll grow a set and do it. I'll be sure to post how it goes. It was a great day climbing with an old friend, I look forward to many great days out this season.

New Beginnings

Earlier this week I finally made it to 12 Channel Street in South Boston - the new home of Royal H. Cycles, Geekhouse Bikes, Hubway Bikeshare and a number of other local bicycle-related ventures.





Organised by the intrepid Marty Walsh of Geekhouse, HQ Boston is a new collective space in an industrial waterfront area dubbed the "Innovation District," and its acquisition has been the talk of the town among bikey people. It is big news. The space is big (24,000 sq ft), the commitment is big (10 year lease), and the scope of the project is big. The move shows there is growth in the local small scale bicycle industry, and implies a collective faith in this growth continuing.






Seeing the venue for the first time - an entire second floor of a warehouse-type building, still mostly open floor space - I was overwhelmed by the sheer blank canvas potential of it. Anything could happen here. Many things will, soon.







All morning long there was energy, movement. Planks scattered, walls going up. Men at work. At the same time it was oddly peaceful for a place with so much going on. The size of the space diffuses the construction noise. The light coming in from the outside casts a soft white glow over the debris.






The floor space occupied by Geekhouse and Royal H has been set up and operational for months.There are beautiful machines, jigs, tools, frames and wheels suspended along the walls.





The presence of the framebuilders is there.





Oh yes.






Walking through the space, I admit to feeling some nostalgia. The new venue lacks the personality of the oldGeekhouse shack in Allstonwith its famous graffiti mural. It lacks the charm of the tiny old Royal H workshop in Somervilleby the railroad tracks, just minutes from my house. There is no small neighbourhood feel here. Huge industrial buildings greeted me as I looked out the window, blocking the view of the Harbor. But even as I thought these things, I knew that it was the sentimentalist in me talking. Any place can become a neighbourhood once filled with neighbours, and the Innovation District is attracting new creative small businesses every day. Murals will be painted in due course. The personality of a space takes time to develop.





This place has the potential for growth and collaboration that was not available to either of the occupants beforehand, and the excitement of this is almost tangible.







The spirit of working together is in the air. Though I came to meet with Bryan of Royal H., I later encountered Shane - the man behind BostonBiker. I've corresponded with Shane in the past and I thought that we'd met before, but obviously we haven't because this was a totally different person. It took me a bit just to wrap my head around that and readjust my mental image of him, but soon we were giddy with talk of joint projects involving Shane's skillz and mine.






But back to the main purpose of my visit: I am working on a new mixte prototype with Royal H. Cycles. I sold the mixte Bryan made for me in to finance this, and although this was difficult I don't regret it. The new collaboration will be my design and Bryan's framebuilding. If the prototype works out and is cost-effective, the idea is that it would become a model available to order. I am not thinking of this as my personal bike and not getting attached to it. Very possibly I will sell the prototype, particularly if we end up having to make another. There is so much to say about what I hope this bicycle will be, but in these early stages I am too nervous and excited to talk about it too much. As far as form, I can say that it will be a low-trail 650B mixte with curved twin lateral stays. Fully lugged, with lots of modified lugwork. As far as function, my hope is to make a bike that will be suitable for both urban and long-distance transportation, including over hilly terrain, optimised for women who ride in their everyday clothing. There are lots of details regarding what this involves in my mind and why, and I look forward to sharing them.






In the meantime, it looks like I will be paying these gentlemen more visits over the summer, which is certainly not a bad thing. It will be wonderful to watch HQ Boston develop. If anyone local is interested in joining, there is space available and rent is cheap. Things are happening in Boston. Here's to new beginnings.