exhaustion? this thing has a motor! doing it on a road bike would be a solid ride what with the hills and traffic, but on the scooter it was a piece of cake. it's really nice to be able to carve corners while going uphill.
Toshi's thread
- Thread starter Toshi
- Start date
heh I thought as it was in here and not the "Alternative transport" thread that you'd be on the pushbike.
My bad.
My bad.
ah, i try to not fill that thread with too many of my own personal travels since it's in the lounge and all vs. tucked away in the forgotten northeast forum. for those who use "view new posts" it doesn't matter much but there are a fair number of people out there who only read the lounge or the downhill forum.
i've now had my scooter for a week. keep in mind that i spent the last year without a car, instead jetting around town on foot, on the bus, and on my electric bicycle. as you might guess, this meant that i didn't do much at all in the way of recreational driving. thus, once i got the scooter i was off and running, riding on curvy roads and in parking lots alike for fun: all in all i've put 377 miles on it in the first 7 days.
let's start off with what i like about it:
- it's genuinely fun to ride even at "around town" speeds. it's much more fun to lean into turns around town than drive around in a car, and riding is sublime when the temperature is just right, the sun is out, and there's just a hint of fresh air across one's face from a slightly cracked-open faceshield.
- having a range of 150+ miles at freeway speeds with refueling only limited by my credit limit offers tremendously more freedom than the electric bike, which travels 15-25 miles at around 20 mph with a multi-hour recharging time. practically, this means that i can visit jessica during the week!
- it's just small enough to fit through my apartment's doorway with the mirrors folded inward
- the seating position is basically bolt upright, which is good for one's posture and is pretty comfortable around town
- i can legally take the express lanes and ride solo in HOV lanes
- filling it up usually takes less than $5 of gasoline
- lots of people from pedestrians to hayabusa riders come up to me and ask questions about it
- about half of the motorcyclists to whom i "biker wave" wave back
not all is perfect, however:
- temperature control is much more involved than cranking up the heat in a car. in particular, when the temperatures hit the upper 30s it's really unpleasant without the proper gear on, and getting the proper gear on once started involves changing clothes on the side of the frigid road.
- riding in the rain involves wiping mist off of my helmet's faceshield with a rubber mini-squeegee on the thumb of my gloves. this means that i periodically must ride one handed in the rain on the freeway, exactly the place where i wouldn't want to be doing that. windshield wipers far outclass this system!
- while it's zippy around town it's out of breath on hills on the freeway, with it only maintaining 60 mph up some grades when ridden flat out
- i think it might be too large and heavy at ~31" seat height and 450 lbs for jessica to manage comfortably on her own, or at least for her to desire to ride it on her own
- that bolt upright seating position leads to a ton of wind noise and buffeting at freeway speeds even with a full-face helmet with faceshield and -15 dB earplugs. i have already ordered a (much) larger windscreen that will hopefully alleviate this problem and make temperature regulation an easier task.
- it is mildly unnerving to zip by stopped traffic while going 45 mph in the HOV lane, checking every car for a signal, head turn, or angled front wheels that might indicate that it is going to pop out in front of me imminently
- fuel economy, while good in the grand sense at 52-65 mpg observed, is not so great when compared to a prius. for comparison i wrung 57.9 mpg out of a (zipcar-ed) prius today over 90 miles, and that's on regular fuel as opposed to the premium that the scooter drinks. when you consider the relative size, weight, and utility of each vehicle it makes the prius's feat even more incredible. (that said, this has its perks and is about a quarter of the price.)
- about half the motorcyclists to whom i "biker wave" ignore me, probably because i'm on a decidedly non-harley looking beastie and am wearing all high-viz gear instead of pseudo-bondage black leather
in an ideal world i'd commute in a prius on roads free of traffic, and would have enough free time and money to indulge in hobbies that would satisfy my need for fresh air and adrenaline independent of my commute. in this real world this isn't possible for many a reason, and zipping along on my scooter in the HOV lanes, on twisty roads, and to work will just have to do.
let's start off with what i like about it:
- it's genuinely fun to ride even at "around town" speeds. it's much more fun to lean into turns around town than drive around in a car, and riding is sublime when the temperature is just right, the sun is out, and there's just a hint of fresh air across one's face from a slightly cracked-open faceshield.
- having a range of 150+ miles at freeway speeds with refueling only limited by my credit limit offers tremendously more freedom than the electric bike, which travels 15-25 miles at around 20 mph with a multi-hour recharging time. practically, this means that i can visit jessica during the week!
- it's just small enough to fit through my apartment's doorway with the mirrors folded inward
- the seating position is basically bolt upright, which is good for one's posture and is pretty comfortable around town
- i can legally take the express lanes and ride solo in HOV lanes
- filling it up usually takes less than $5 of gasoline
- lots of people from pedestrians to hayabusa riders come up to me and ask questions about it
- about half of the motorcyclists to whom i "biker wave" wave back
not all is perfect, however:
- temperature control is much more involved than cranking up the heat in a car. in particular, when the temperatures hit the upper 30s it's really unpleasant without the proper gear on, and getting the proper gear on once started involves changing clothes on the side of the frigid road.
- riding in the rain involves wiping mist off of my helmet's faceshield with a rubber mini-squeegee on the thumb of my gloves. this means that i periodically must ride one handed in the rain on the freeway, exactly the place where i wouldn't want to be doing that. windshield wipers far outclass this system!
- while it's zippy around town it's out of breath on hills on the freeway, with it only maintaining 60 mph up some grades when ridden flat out
- i think it might be too large and heavy at ~31" seat height and 450 lbs for jessica to manage comfortably on her own, or at least for her to desire to ride it on her own
- that bolt upright seating position leads to a ton of wind noise and buffeting at freeway speeds even with a full-face helmet with faceshield and -15 dB earplugs. i have already ordered a (much) larger windscreen that will hopefully alleviate this problem and make temperature regulation an easier task.
- it is mildly unnerving to zip by stopped traffic while going 45 mph in the HOV lane, checking every car for a signal, head turn, or angled front wheels that might indicate that it is going to pop out in front of me imminently
- fuel economy, while good in the grand sense at 52-65 mpg observed, is not so great when compared to a prius. for comparison i wrung 57.9 mpg out of a (zipcar-ed) prius today over 90 miles, and that's on regular fuel as opposed to the premium that the scooter drinks. when you consider the relative size, weight, and utility of each vehicle it makes the prius's feat even more incredible. (that said, this has its perks and is about a quarter of the price.)
- about half the motorcyclists to whom i "biker wave" ignore me, probably because i'm on a decidedly non-harley looking beastie and am wearing all high-viz gear instead of pseudo-bondage black leather
in an ideal world i'd commute in a prius on roads free of traffic, and would have enough free time and money to indulge in hobbies that would satisfy my need for fresh air and adrenaline independent of my commute. in this real world this isn't possible for many a reason, and zipping along on my scooter in the HOV lanes, on twisty roads, and to work will just have to do.
Simple pleasures, right?
Speaking of simple pleasures, and getting rid of them when they start to accumulate in your basement, I'm selling my old superlight frame. Forward widely: Ebay Listing
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good luck on the sale. i'd bid on it but i'd have to put 20" wheels on it to get enough standover clearance.
hmm… 20" electric hub motors? 
in all seriousness, however, my interest in things electric that was once piqued has now peaked and is on the decline. electric cars still aren't a practical reality. electric motorcycles aren't very useful with 45 mile ranges. my electric bike works fine but i have no desire to tinker with it more now that it is working reliably. instead my obsession has turned towards powered two wheelers now that my conscience is clear with regard to emissions standards.
the next purchase, a giant windshield. it's absurdly large. i think it is awesome.
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today was my last day of vacation for this year. i took advantage of it by hunting down the windy roads of suburbia. my route of just over 100 miles including some side jaunts, starting and ending at point J (A is hidden), traveling clockwise:
after crossing the SR-520 floating bridge i headed up through Kirkland. Kirkland (which you may recognize as the name of the Costco house brand as Costco started in Seattle) is suburban hell, in my opinion. it's a very image conscious neighborhood and the roads are filled with people in mercs, audis, and range rovers talking on their cell phones. i personally would love to see all those cars repossessed, but i suppose i'll have to wait at least a few more weeks for that.
a random monument of sorts found along the shores of Lake Washington in Kirkland:
next up was a cruise through the Juanita area, south of Kenmore between A and B on the map. Juanita has several parks with mountain bike trails, and the mildly curvy road would have been quite pleasant without the steady commuter traffic. point B is a store in Woodinville, an otherwise unremarkable place that happens to stock Brillianize, a plastic cleaner that i plan to use on the ginormous windshield that i have ordered.
looking downwards at my unshaven mug:
point C is where things get fun: that's the Old High Bridge Road. it's well known to sports car and sportbike pilots alike, and i used to cruise down it in my car at 1 AM to clear my head. on a (slow) bike it's a different experience, with its twists and turns are much more visceral and rewarding and the straights less important.
fast forward to E and we've reached Lake Sammamish. it's another sedate cruise that's favored by some local riders for a few miles of relaxation. unfortunately most of the good views of the water are on private property. i did manage to get to the beach, albeit only at that green segment on the map at the very southeast corner.
a glamour shot of the MP3 with Lake Sammamish peeking through the trees in the background:
finally, G, H, and I map out the boundary of E and W Mercer Way on Mercer Island. Mercer Way is a fun, very twisty road that is much more suitable for a reasonably sedate cruise on two (er, three) wheels than four as it is densely populated with road bicyclists.
a shot of the I-90 bridge looking towards Seattle from Mercer Island at the end of my day:
you all can breathe a sigh of relief now: there will be no more ride reports for a bit as i'm headed back to the daily grind then moving to new york at the end of june.
after crossing the SR-520 floating bridge i headed up through Kirkland. Kirkland (which you may recognize as the name of the Costco house brand as Costco started in Seattle) is suburban hell, in my opinion. it's a very image conscious neighborhood and the roads are filled with people in mercs, audis, and range rovers talking on their cell phones. i personally would love to see all those cars repossessed, but i suppose i'll have to wait at least a few more weeks for that.
a random monument of sorts found along the shores of Lake Washington in Kirkland:
next up was a cruise through the Juanita area, south of Kenmore between A and B on the map. Juanita has several parks with mountain bike trails, and the mildly curvy road would have been quite pleasant without the steady commuter traffic. point B is a store in Woodinville, an otherwise unremarkable place that happens to stock Brillianize, a plastic cleaner that i plan to use on the ginormous windshield that i have ordered.
looking downwards at my unshaven mug:
point C is where things get fun: that's the Old High Bridge Road. it's well known to sports car and sportbike pilots alike, and i used to cruise down it in my car at 1 AM to clear my head. on a (slow) bike it's a different experience, with its twists and turns are much more visceral and rewarding and the straights less important.
fast forward to E and we've reached Lake Sammamish. it's another sedate cruise that's favored by some local riders for a few miles of relaxation. unfortunately most of the good views of the water are on private property. i did manage to get to the beach, albeit only at that green segment on the map at the very southeast corner.
a glamour shot of the MP3 with Lake Sammamish peeking through the trees in the background:
finally, G, H, and I map out the boundary of E and W Mercer Way on Mercer Island. Mercer Way is a fun, very twisty road that is much more suitable for a reasonably sedate cruise on two (er, three) wheels than four as it is densely populated with road bicyclists.
a shot of the I-90 bridge looking towards Seattle from Mercer Island at the end of my day:
you all can breathe a sigh of relief now: there will be no more ride reports for a bit as i'm headed back to the daily grind then moving to new york at the end of june.
i rode my scooter into the hospital yesterday since my apartment was being inspected by my landlord, and, uh, i don't think my indoor parking job would be too kosher in his mind. this meant i had to scrounge for parking: the pay lots don't allow motorcycle parking at the medical center unless one wants to pay $12/day (!), and almost all street parking is limited to 2 hours.
there is one pull-out area that is unmarked, however, so it's almost always full of cars. i snuck the scooter in at the end of the row early on thursday morning, and was a bit worried that it'd still be there, upright and unmolested when i returned to it at 11 am on friday post-call. it turns out i had nothing to be worried about: when i left it it was the sole powered two-wheeler (er, three-wheeler) at the end of a 50 foot long string of tightly packed cars. when i returned it had made friends, and this doesn't include the 2 motorcycles parked 20 feet farther forward!
heh:
there is one pull-out area that is unmarked, however, so it's almost always full of cars. i snuck the scooter in at the end of the row early on thursday morning, and was a bit worried that it'd still be there, upright and unmolested when i returned to it at 11 am on friday post-call. it turns out i had nothing to be worried about: when i left it it was the sole powered two-wheeler (er, three-wheeler) at the end of a 50 foot long string of tightly packed cars. when i returned it had made friends, and this doesn't include the 2 motorcycles parked 20 feet farther forward!
heh:
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Is $12/day expensive for parking in Seattle? It sounds very reasonable to me.
It would cost a lot more than that in Boston, depending on the garage.
it's not expensive if one was parking in downtown... but this would be a six days per week expense at my place of work. that's real money! parking the bike on the bike rack for free (and much, much closer to the building itself than the garages!) or even parking the scooter in free street parking that's about a 5 minute walk away is preferable to me since i'm nothing if not cheap in things like this.
when i installed this ginormous windscreen on my MP3 people said that it'd be a handful in the rain, as it has no windshield wiper.
the astute reader will also note that i currently live in seattle. thus, by freak occurrence i was able to test out my new windscreen in everything from brisk, freezing rain to light mist tonight, at speeds ranging from stop and go and stoplights to 115 kph on the interstate.
what did i do to prepare for this? first, the windscreen was clean, and i had cleaned and polished it further with Brillianize. Brillianize is a plastic and glass cleaner that's reputed to be superior to Plexus, which in turn is reputed to be superior to the standby, Lemon Pledge. i also have RainCoat Water Repellent around but haven't applied it yet. furthermore, i'm a bicycle commuter 95% of the time so am used to riding in the rain with poor visibility (no faceshield, no windscreen, and rain on my sunglasses or eyeglasses). with that said, let's get on to how the windscreen performed:
situation 1, freeway speeds in light mist: when treated as above (Brillianize, no RainCoat) mist forms small beads of water that streak to the side thanks to the wind at freeway speeds. thus the view is relatively clear. there is some glare when passing under sodium street lamps but once used to this phenomenon it isn't too bothersome.
situation 2, freeway speeds in frank rain: again, water beads up, albeit in larger droplets, and streaks to the side thanks to the wind. another pass for the screen. i did find, however, that my Scorpion AXO-700's faceshield is quite useless in these situation: when wet there are several streaky, thin, vertical bars right near the center portion of the faceshield, likely due to its manufacturing process.
these streaky bars are annoying when riding a bike with no windscreen as they can't be wiped away with the squeegee on winter gloves, but they are more than annoying when combined with a windscreen with droplets on it, as in this situation. i found that i was much more comfortable riding with the faceshield up, looking only through the windscreen. (thanks to the enormous size of the windscreen my face was just fine in terms of wind blast and buffeting).
situation 3, slow speeds in mist or light rain: the worst situation of the bunch, and the one that i encountered right as i wheeled out of my doorway into the alley. the light rain formed multiple small beads of water and the slow speeds kept these from being swept away. i could still ride but it admittedly was distracting.
overall i'm still happy with the screen as it has greatly reduced noise, buffeting, and keeps my hands quite a bit warmer. furthermore, i don't feel that it has reduced performance perceptibly. i definitely am going to give the RainCoat a try before my next trip in the rain (likely after my 1000 km service next week), as it seems to be just the product indicated for this kind of situation. note the right side of the helmet's faceshield treated with RainCoat, with the helmet's left treated with auto polish:
the astute reader will also note that i currently live in seattle. thus, by freak occurrence
i was able to test out my new windscreen in everything from brisk, freezing rain to light mist tonight, at speeds ranging from stop and go and stoplights to 115 kph on the interstate.what did i do to prepare for this? first, the windscreen was clean, and i had cleaned and polished it further with Brillianize. Brillianize is a plastic and glass cleaner that's reputed to be superior to Plexus, which in turn is reputed to be superior to the standby, Lemon Pledge. i also have RainCoat Water Repellent around but haven't applied it yet. furthermore, i'm a bicycle commuter 95% of the time so am used to riding in the rain with poor visibility (no faceshield, no windscreen, and rain on my sunglasses or eyeglasses). with that said, let's get on to how the windscreen performed:
situation 1, freeway speeds in light mist: when treated as above (Brillianize, no RainCoat) mist forms small beads of water that streak to the side thanks to the wind at freeway speeds. thus the view is relatively clear. there is some glare when passing under sodium street lamps but once used to this phenomenon it isn't too bothersome.
situation 2, freeway speeds in frank rain: again, water beads up, albeit in larger droplets, and streaks to the side thanks to the wind. another pass for the screen. i did find, however, that my Scorpion AXO-700's faceshield is quite useless in these situation: when wet there are several streaky, thin, vertical bars right near the center portion of the faceshield, likely due to its manufacturing process.
these streaky bars are annoying when riding a bike with no windscreen as they can't be wiped away with the squeegee on winter gloves, but they are more than annoying when combined with a windscreen with droplets on it, as in this situation. i found that i was much more comfortable riding with the faceshield up, looking only through the windscreen. (thanks to the enormous size of the windscreen my face was just fine in terms of wind blast and buffeting).
situation 3, slow speeds in mist or light rain: the worst situation of the bunch, and the one that i encountered right as i wheeled out of my doorway into the alley. the light rain formed multiple small beads of water and the slow speeds kept these from being swept away. i could still ride but it admittedly was distracting.
overall i'm still happy with the screen as it has greatly reduced noise, buffeting, and keeps my hands quite a bit warmer. furthermore, i don't feel that it has reduced performance perceptibly. i definitely am going to give the RainCoat a try before my next trip in the rain (likely after my 1000 km service next week), as it seems to be just the product indicated for this kind of situation. note the right side of the helmet's faceshield treated with RainCoat, with the helmet's left treated with auto polish:
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i'm really tempted to put a fairing on my e-bike! ahha, i'm sick in the head
http://www.zzipper.com/products.php
http://www.zzipper.com/products.php
i'm at the 997 mile mark on the e-bike, effectively 1000. it has done its job, something that i wasn't quite so sure about myself when i set out on this lark. here's my energy use over its life: one can see how i initially rode it like a bike at bike-like speeds with assist only at exceptional times, and now have settled in on a riding style that hovers right around 30 Wh/mile.
these last few miles were racked up on my commute home. (yes, home at this hour: i was on call last night.) i used REI's BikeYourDrive iPhone app to map it out: you turn on the app at the start of your commute and leave it ticking away as you ride, and then at the end of your ride it plots out GPX coordinates with elevation and such. much nicer than gmaps-pedometer... here's the commute from UWMC to my house, in any case:
http://www.everytrail.com/view_trip.php?trip_id=213976
note that most of the year was spent at a different, closer hospital.
these last few miles were racked up on my commute home. (yes, home at this hour: i was on call last night.) i used REI's BikeYourDrive iPhone app to map it out: you turn on the app at the start of your commute and leave it ticking away as you ride, and then at the end of your ride it plots out GPX coordinates with elevation and such. much nicer than gmaps-pedometer... here's the commute from UWMC to my house, in any case:
http://www.everytrail.com/view_trip.php?trip_id=213976
note that most of the year was spent at a different, closer hospital.
so i have a 5d mkii to play with for the extended weekend, and no experience using canon cameras ever.
tell me your secrets?
tell me your secrets?
coolness. i shoot in Av with auto ISO the majority of the time. capture in RAW so that you can play around with the files afterwards. otherwise it's just like any other camera...so i have a 5d mkii to play with for the extended weekend, and no experience using canon cameras ever.
tell me your secrets?
enable the hidden AF points at the center, using one of the custom functions. these only work in AI Servo, but i can't think of a good reason to not use them.so i have a 5d mkii to play with for the extended weekend, and no experience using canon cameras ever.
tell me your secrets?
likewise, you can choose ISO expansion but really, the 6400 ISO is native and is very good; needing to double or quadruple that is unlikely.
if you shoot RAW, you will need to either use DPP (canon's RAW converter) or to convert to DNG to edit the files if you don't have CS 4.
you can use Live View to get an instant histogram which is neat. otherwise as Toshi said, it's just a camera.
have fun!
yesterday's turnout with the camera:
5d mkii - a set on Flickr
i don't think i'm going to give it back...
5d mkii - a set on Flickr
i don't think i'm going to give it back...
i rode a similar but not identical route in reverse today. just shy of 130 miles on the scooter under the bright, blue sky. good times, and i wasn't the only one with the same idea, judging from how many other riders were out and about!today was my last day of vacation for this year. i took advantage of it by hunting down the windy roads of suburbia. my route of just over 100 miles including some side jaunts, starting and ending at point J (A is hidden), traveling clockwise:
[/img]
no pics from the ride: did it without stopping save for getting costco gas right at the end.
intern year stats
one day left. assuming i work a typical amount that day here is how this year has played out:
64.33 hours per week if you count my 3 weeks of vacation and 1 week of one day per week technical skills training. 68.48 hours per week if you only count my 11 true rotations. 69.96 hours per week if you don't count the alternating 12 hour night and day shifts of the ER.
only four break violations, but all of them of the 10-hour rule: here later than 7 PM one night and earlier than 5 AM the next, for instance.
1.36 days off per week on average if ER and vacation are excluded, 1.46 if ER is in the mix. (this would be lower except i had awesome seniors who gave the team extra days off around thanksgiving and new years.)
average call cycle: q9.54 days all said and done, with the only catch that 5 weeks of my year were spent as the night float resident that makes this all happen. while on ortho for two solid months this winter i was q3d, and on one of my neurosurgery months i was q3.5d on average.
times my program director threatened to fire me: 1. times that the underlying charge was actually valid: 0. the saying is that "**** flows downhill" in general surgery programs, and my R5 completely dumped on me for what turned out to not be a valid reason.
overall, looking at the numbers things don't look that bad in the grand scheme. despite this, i still would not recommend a UW gen surg prelim year in good faith. oh well, live and learn, and onto the next starting this thursday...
one day left. assuming i work a typical amount that day here is how this year has played out:
64.33 hours per week if you count my 3 weeks of vacation and 1 week of one day per week technical skills training. 68.48 hours per week if you only count my 11 true rotations. 69.96 hours per week if you don't count the alternating 12 hour night and day shifts of the ER.
only four break violations, but all of them of the 10-hour rule: here later than 7 PM one night and earlier than 5 AM the next, for instance.
1.36 days off per week on average if ER and vacation are excluded, 1.46 if ER is in the mix. (this would be lower except i had awesome seniors who gave the team extra days off around thanksgiving and new years.)
average call cycle: q9.54 days all said and done, with the only catch that 5 weeks of my year were spent as the night float resident that makes this all happen. while on ortho for two solid months this winter i was q3d, and on one of my neurosurgery months i was q3.5d on average.
times my program director threatened to fire me: 1. times that the underlying charge was actually valid: 0. the saying is that "**** flows downhill" in general surgery programs, and my R5 completely dumped on me for what turned out to not be a valid reason.
overall, looking at the numbers things don't look that bad in the grand scheme. despite this, i still would not recommend a UW gen surg prelim year in good faith. oh well, live and learn, and onto the next starting this thursday...
i find myself drifting further and further from the biking community. for this upcoming year i'm not even going to be a bike commuter! (my commute will be walking for less than 5 minutes across a lawn, basically.) fewer of the threads on RM are interesting as i get further away from the age of the young groms, and more of the regulars are drifting away as well. finally, the new layout, specifically text and image wrap, is pretty horrid…
Have you moved yet?
yup. moving truck came on the 19th. finished work on the 24th. flew out on the 25th and started orientation immediately. first "real" day of work is today time to see if reality meets up with expectations for radiology. i blogged about my initial NY/LI impressions: http://toshiclark.xanga.com/
Do you even have a bike anymore other than your electric? If so we should ride 
K and I were talking about doing a weekend at Diablo if you guys are interested. I could probably use the advice of someone who knows what they're doing.
K and I were talking about doing a weekend at Diablo if you guys are interested. I could probably use the advice of someone who knows what they're doing.
Last year I sold the road and xc bikes, and the evil and the dh rigs were sold a year or five before that. You are correct in your arithmetic: the only one left is the commuter e-bike. We were talking about building Jessica one, with or without assist, but I just don't see her riding around on these roads and with this heat and humidity.Do you even have a bike anymore other than your electric? If so we should ride
K and I were talking about doing a weekend at Diablo if you guys are interested. I could probably use the advice of someone who knows what they're doing.
K would ride diablo? Wow. I'm pretty confident that that's not up Jessica's alley. I'd be game, however, and my schedule this year should be pretty decent!
we've been out in long island for a few weeks. we're still waiting for the moving truck but thankfully have been able to move out from the $125/night extended stay hotel and into our own apartment. it was one of the better apartments in the spectrum of this particular hospital's on-campus resident housing but still was pretty shabby.
my wife's father flew out this weekend, however, and we all pitched in to patch this place up. we spackled and sanded like mad, then repainted everything save for the kitchen cabinets. trim, ceilings, everything. it was quite the extravaganza. on the upside we now have quite a nice looking little place and our repairs are very difficult to pick out without prior knowledge.
living in a relatively small one bedroom is going to require some adjustment. i'd been in a one bedroom last year… by myself. when the moving truck finally arrives we're going to have a lot of stuff. the bike may still be able to live inside, but the scooter is definitely banished to the street! heh.
the upside to this place, of course, is that my commute is unbeatable: it's a 1/4 mile walk. i can mosey out the door at 7:50 AM and be there in plenty of time for 8 AM morning conference. yeah, that's radiology hours for you: an 8 AM start to the day. much better than rounding at 5:45 (with prerounding and thus me being there at 5:15) as was the case for much of last year! (the days are much shorter, too! this basically rocks.)
anyway, if we find this place to be acceptable in the long term, as in for my four years that i'll be here, then the e-bike and scooter will see scant use save for errands, and that'll be quite alright.
oh, if anyone's still reading at this point:
1) if i continue to use my scooter then jessica has given me the ok to trade in my MP3 250 when the MP3 Hybrid is available!
2) if her 2001 corolla dies within 2 years then we'll upgrade it to certified pre-owned 2004-2008 prius. if it dies after 2 years or makes it to 2013-2014 then we'll strongly consider upgrading to a new Lexus HS250h, their prius-based new model.
3) chrismartenson.com, home of the crash course, has a second part to their article on electric bikes. it basically outlines the same train of thought as espoused by yours truly in the first several pages of this thread. note that the author of this article and i came to different conclusions. this is because i am, or was, a "real cyclist" who doesn't like super-upright seating positions, and because i had incentive to stick with a normal-wheelbase bike so that it'd fit on the seattle buses' bike racks. anyway, the article links:
part 1 of 2: http://www.chrismartenson.com/quiet-revolution-bicycles-recapturing-role-utilitarian-people-movers-part-i
part 2 of 2: http://www.chrismartenson.com/quiet-revolution-bicycles-recapturing-role-utilitarian-people-movers-part-ii
my wife's father flew out this weekend, however, and we all pitched in to patch this place up. we spackled and sanded like mad, then repainted everything save for the kitchen cabinets. trim, ceilings, everything. it was quite the extravaganza. on the upside we now have quite a nice looking little place and our repairs are very difficult to pick out without prior knowledge.
living in a relatively small one bedroom is going to require some adjustment. i'd been in a one bedroom last year… by myself. when the moving truck finally arrives we're going to have a lot of stuff. the bike may still be able to live inside, but the scooter is definitely banished to the street! heh.
the upside to this place, of course, is that my commute is unbeatable: it's a 1/4 mile walk. i can mosey out the door at 7:50 AM and be there in plenty of time for 8 AM morning conference. yeah, that's radiology hours for you: an 8 AM start to the day. much better than rounding at 5:45 (with prerounding and thus me being there at 5:15) as was the case for much of last year! (the days are much shorter, too! this basically rocks.)
anyway, if we find this place to be acceptable in the long term, as in for my four years that i'll be here, then the e-bike and scooter will see scant use save for errands, and that'll be quite alright.
oh, if anyone's still reading at this point:
1) if i continue to use my scooter then jessica has given me the ok to trade in my MP3 250 when the MP3 Hybrid is available!
2) if her 2001 corolla dies within 2 years then we'll upgrade it to certified pre-owned 2004-2008 prius. if it dies after 2 years or makes it to 2013-2014 then we'll strongly consider upgrading to a new Lexus HS250h, their prius-based new model.
3) chrismartenson.com, home of the crash course, has a second part to their article on electric bikes. it basically outlines the same train of thought as espoused by yours truly in the first several pages of this thread. note that the author of this article and i came to different conclusions. this is because i am, or was, a "real cyclist" who doesn't like super-upright seating positions, and because i had incentive to stick with a normal-wheelbase bike so that it'd fit on the seattle buses' bike racks. anyway, the article links:
part 1 of 2: http://www.chrismartenson.com/quiet-revolution-bicycles-recapturing-role-utilitarian-people-movers-part-i
part 2 of 2: http://www.chrismartenson.com/quiet-revolution-bicycles-recapturing-role-utilitarian-people-movers-part-ii
so the moving company decided that putting a big ol' scrape in my scooter's windscreen would be a good idea. photos of the damage:
it looks fine as you walk up to it given certain lighting…
… but then you notice that there's an odd hazy pattern.
yeah, that's not good. is it in the line of sight, however?
why yes, it's right at eye level. gah.
one final shot illustrating the texture of the scratch. and no, it doesn't buff right out…
it looks fine as you walk up to it given certain lighting…
… but then you notice that there's an odd hazy pattern.
yeah, that's not good. is it in the line of sight, however?
why yes, it's right at eye level. gah.
one final shot illustrating the texture of the scratch. and no, it doesn't buff right out…
crossposting:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110418578435
i just listed my electric bike for sale. my commute this year is a five minute walk, and the drivers here in long island frankly scare me in a car, let alone on a bicycle. riding on the sidewalk isn't all that fun and i've been neglecting my beast…
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110418578435
Get the a mountain bike again so we can hit the trails! I haven't found any crazy long island drivers there yet...
then i need to suck it up and get a parks passport, i guess. having entry fees at county and state parks is bizarre!
Yeah, it varies. Out here some of them need a green pass and others need a DEC permit. Others nothing. The trails right by school are Town of Brookhaven and need nothing.
Scuttlebutt is that nobody actually cares about the permitting, but I just got my DEC. Was really easy. Just filled out a form and they gave me a 30day while the real one gets sent to me... Lady said to just say all applicable areas for all activities, even though i'm not likely to falcon
Oh, and evidently both of you need your own if you're going to be hiking or anything together...
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i'm contemplating rollerblading about 10 miles to pick up my scooter tomorrow. jessica is in the city for the weekend and the bus/train combo would take me over an hour. i figure i might as well get some exercise, provided the dealer has my scooter ready for pickup.
(it's in the shop for a sticky horn button, a minor but annoying warranty issue. instead of going "bleep" it goes "BLAAAAAEEEEGP" when i hit the button, at least until i pry it to the off position.)
ignore the jog upwards as google maps has no option for cutting across (paths that cross) a golf course:
(it's in the shop for a sticky horn button, a minor but annoying warranty issue. instead of going "bleep" it goes "BLAAAAAEEEEGP" when i hit the button, at least until i pry it to the off position.)
ignore the jog upwards as google maps has no option for cutting across (paths that cross) a golf course:
i'm never going to do that again. my feet are killing me, as is my left palm from where i got some road rash by virtue of a homeowner who "disposed" of his excess landscaping dirt by dumping it in the street. long island has really poor sidewalks: narrow, bumpy, and often covered with sand or glass. in a few places i was actually forced to rollerblade in the traffic lane, on 40 mph limit roads, no less. as much as i could i cut across parking lots and took residential streets, but the insane layout of the island is such that these residential streets never go anywhere.
all in all it took me about 1:45 to cover 10 miles. overall it was a pretty horrible experience. ugh. at least i have my scooter back, and can use the car in a pinch.