Hills, Glorious Hills

There's an article in The News Tribune today about the benefits of training on hills.  I found the article interesting because I absolutely love riding hilly routes.

One of my favorite hills to climb in Tacoma is North Carr Street.  The view from the top looks like this:

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It's a short climb, but quite steep.  (Turn sideways with streetview above and you can get an idea of the pitch.)  The road surface has a brick pattern which gives it an Old World feel.  It's a total lung-buster on any bike, especially this one:

Yes, I really did it and I had a witness.  This is a recently-acquired Worksman Cycles Industrial Newsboy that's maybe a few decades old.  You can stand up and pump the pedals really well with those tall bars.  Admittedly, it's not the best bike for climbing hills, but the feeling of accomplishment when you reach the top on a simple machine like this is one comparable to climbing Everest (I'm guessing.)  

[I might have been on my way home from a Tacoma MOB Ride when I did this and I might have Yahoo!'d loud enough at the top to wake a few neighbors.  Beer is a very powerful bicycle fuel.]

Speaking of conquering mountains, I'm riding the Courage Classic Bicycle Tour this weekend to raise money for child abuse intervention.  You can DONATE HERE and be entered to win some sweet Tacoma swag.  Just a $5 donation gets your name in the hat.

Freedom Ride

The Tacoma MOB Riders are taking over the Tacoma streets once again...

via lordrocktober

Another Tacoma MOB Ride!

Watch out! These Tacoma MOB Riders are getting organized...

Zeit-Bike Tacoma

Mrs. TBR and I went downtown to see the locally-made Zeit-Bike bicycle sculptures on display at the Tacoma Art Museum.  Our timing was perfect and we found the artists riding their artistic contraptions around Tollefson Plaza during a break in the drenching rain showers we've been having all day.

Two of the three artists even offered test-rides to the by-standers.  I rode one with a trailer wheel-powered fan that inflated the large plastic wind sock on the back.  Brilliant.

There's still plenty of Bike Month left.  More Tacoma events here.

Cabin Fever Grindout - April 24

A cryptic message was received on the wires today:

CABIN FEVER GRINDOUT

Bicycle Booze Cruz

Saturday, April 24th

7:00pm

Meet up at: MAGOO’S

Spread the word! 

We Own the Streets!!!

I think by now you all know what to do...Get Thy Velosteeds Ready!  Meanwhile...

Pump the Pool

Former Tacoma resident Karl, booze-croozin-bike-wrenchin-frame-builder extraordinaire, sends this update of his new life back east:

"The Church of Higher Flow was in session last Sunday at 8 AM as usual.  This time the pump was not the location.  Check the commitment on Dan's face.  That pool is at least 10' deep and we got the speed daemon on the vert!"

Glad to see things are going swimmingly for you, Karl!  Gives new meaning to "ridden hard, put-away wet." (ok ok, that's enough of that...)


Not knowing of this correspondence, my wife walked in this morning and asked if I knew where a tandem could be rented in Tacoma.  WOW...the stars are aligned today, my friends.  Harness your opportunities and pedal hard.