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Back home! 

8/10/2015

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To wrap up the week, here's the short version: the bike trip was amazing, I'm home and tired now.

After our long day of riding, we had hills, rain, and some headwinds. The trip was still perfect. Everyone was in great spirits despite the added minor challenges. We were all well-fed and entertained by each others' and our own company, and had some great riding in between.
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Paul and I are besties now.
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Lucette, Paul's sweetie.
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Soggy tent on the outside but cozy and dry on the inside.
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Crossing the Mississippi River one last time.
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Finished! Look at all those happy bicycles!
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Starting the packing process again, sans video and in a tinier space.
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Closed on the first try! See where the wheel nut poked out? This time I added some extra padding to cover it but next time, I'll have a better buffer.
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Because my "budget" flight home has a weight limit of 40lbs instead of 50 for checked baggage, I decided to ship Bluebell home. Quite easy with the prepaid shipping label that I printed at home (but forgot and then had to have printed again). Looking forward to her arrival home as it will take about 5 days. Fingers crossed for a safe journey.
I can't wait to join in another Adventure Cycling trip! I worked with some wonderful folks, hung out with really fun participants, and explored a beautiful bike trail.
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Fearless event director, Tammy, with whom I tied for second place. Arrgh, matey!
After a super fun minigolf game at Pirate's Cove in Brainerd, I flew to Portland the next day. Spirit Airlines wasn't quite as terrible as I had expected and the ground crew seemed much more lax about baggage restrictions than what their website threatens. The timing for the flight was frustrating as I didn't have very many options when purchasing the flight and had more unknowns about timing and packing to make an efficient decision. So instead, I had a long wait in the airport and a very late arrival to Portland to get the kids who had been spending the week at "Farm Camp" at Fiddlehead Farm with visiting family for a reunion.

I was able to visit with my family very briefly before I packed up my munchkins and started the arduous trek back to Sacramento. The boys were great travelers, as usual, and I had some help driving back from my cousin. Still, the 12-hour day in the car was exhausting. It's wonderful to be home but it will take a few days to recover from all the adventures we've had over the last few months.
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My favorite people in the whole wide world!
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Pictural updates

10/19/2014

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Next Kidical Mass marks our 1-year anniversary of Sacramento's monthly KM rides!
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Sometimes we scoot to school.
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Fun fact, no one in town stocks these brake pads. I ordered a second set and now I get to learn how to install them. Fun times ahead!
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Oh the things we see whilst not stuck in a car.
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Testing out the Large and Small Beinn from Islabikes. We're lucky enough to have a contingency of Islas in town. Soon, there may be one more...
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Meeting of the Kidical Mass Board Members brings out some awesome bikes to our backyard. Check out the gorgeous Cycle Truck Flatbed! Comes complete with matching mermaid princess.
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Bike Camping Gibson Ranch, part 2

10/6/2014

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Last week was exhausting. I ended up driving to work more days (have I mentioned that I have a car sitting out front for the next month while my parents are away?). The 38 mile days were getting to me and the boys were both up frequently through the nights as they were both still feeling the effects of their colds. The incident with the van driver really threw me off, too. One of my readers sent me a message with some info based on the email address on the van, along with all the great online support from other bike riders, which gave me the confidence to report the guy to the police. They took my report seriously and sent an officer to my house to document the "assault." I wish I had had more information about the guy or the van but I reported what I could. Thanks, awesome community! 

Since my boys couldn't go on the Gibson Ranch Kidical Mass Overnight last weekend, I had told them that I'd take them when they could. Another of our friends couldn't make it with his son, either, so they joined us. They'd never been bike camping before. 

Our friends took the HaulaDay, which is a fantastic cargo bike for newbies because it fits everyone with its OSATA adjustments, light weight, and easy maneuverability (however, my friend did manage to drop with kids on the back on his first attempt but they were on the grass so it didn't count. Everyone drops a kid now and again). 

I took two of the kids' bikes along with much of the other gear because the Bullitt is way too easy to overpack. Now that I have the Cycle Truck Caddyrack, my cargo capacity has doubled! It's so easy to tow bikes. 

Big Brother was forced to ride on his own because I ran out of room for him on the bike and because I thought he could. The route is mostly bike trail, except for the first four miles and last 2 miles. 
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We're going on a HaulaDay!
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Once we were on the bike trail, our friend's son got on his bike, too. This was his longest ride and he did really well! There are quite a few intersections along the Northern Bike Trail (which is probably why it's not too popular with the roadies). Both boys on solo bikes did a great job on listening to my directions and making good judgements while they were riding. 
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Tamale stop!
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It took us about 4 hours to get to Gibson Ranch. We were told to set up in the grass around the cabins. It was nice and grassy but a little close to the cabins and their occupants for my liking. 
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The boys had a fantastic time riding around the site and the playground. After dinner we ran around in the dark until the boys passed out. I was exhausted about 4 hours before they finally were. 

In the morning, we packed up fairly quickly, as quickly as one can with children present (we finally left around 9:45am). One of those children decided he was hungry every 30 seconds and we ran out of food. 

None of the boys wanted to ride on their own and since I hadn't really planned on carrying Big Brother, I had to do some quick (relative to me) thinking to arrange everything between the two cargo bikes--three bikes, three boys, everyone's camping gear, and all the toys. 
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That's where Big Brother sat for the entire 17 miles home. He was really squirrely by the end of the trip but he held up incredibly.
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More happy bike campers!
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Three bikes, two boys, too much camping gear!
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Our crew.
It was a long, hot 17 miles back home but we managed to get there at about a 7mph pace--just about half our arrival time! It is great to know there is such a convenient bike overnight, especially for having the kiddos ride much of it on their own. The last .5 to Gibson Ranch is on a busy stretch of road without much shoulder. There are many "Share The Road" signs but it is still unnerving, especially for less-experienced riders. Our friend's kid was back to sitting on the HaulaDay deck by that time on our arrival while Big Brother, who has more road riding experience, rode on the street with us in traffic. On the way home, he was too tired to navigate and maneuver that same stretch of road back to the trail so I was glad he had chosen to hitch a ride. 

Another successful camping trip! During this busy time, I'm so glad to have been able to escape for a few days and get in some rejuvenating adventure. 

I'm looking forward to our next bike trip! 
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2 bikes, 2 boys, 1 Haul-a-Day! 

8/12/2014

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Big Brother didn't ride quite as far today. He rode about 6 miles to a friend's house where we spent almost the entire day. About a mile into our way home, he was ready to hitch a ride. Here goes our first Haul-a-Day towing test: 
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The bike tracked perfectly and despite the Little falling asleep and wobbling the bike around, we still managed to ride home. Big Brother sat side saddle because Little Brother's Strider bars took up a lot of the deck. Both kiddos were really tired on the way home and it was nice to have them well contained in the Hooptie. 
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One down and one half-awake.
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The Bike Friday Haul-a-Day

4/6/2014

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We drove all the way up to PDX to test ride this bike. After about a month of back-and-forth emails with our friend, Kidical Mass co-creator, and Haul-a-Day beta tester/consultant, Shane MacRhodes, I had some pretty high hopes that this bike could help fill the gap in transportation needs--a multimodal cargo bike. Being able to take the train or bus with the children and still have a way to get around when we arrive would be incredible. Our big summer adventure is coming up and there's still the issue of getting to our starting location and getting back home at the end. To take the Mundo on Amtrak would mean totally stripping the bike of everything removable so that it would fit in the generously-sized box AND be under 50 pounds. Also, with the local tours I'm planning for my starting business, my trips don't always start in Sacramento. If I could take the train or light rail to begin the trip, I'd be much happier and not feel like a big fake by driving to the starting point. 

So without further ado, the big reveal: 
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Midtail Haul-a-Day with Bike Friday's version of a half-Hooptie. I love this design!
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Shane's personal Haul-a-Day longtail. It has a standard Xtracycle deck on the back, usually equipped with a full Hooptie for his three wee ones. A new addition is the custom Burley Piccolo mount on the back.
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This blue HaD has a frame mounted basket in front like the Mundo's Bread Basket.
And the action shots: 
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Rez tried to explain the frame-mounted basket to me. He didn't realize I was already a pro :)
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Little Brother got a ride and cackled the entire way. He definitely gave it a thumb's up!
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Little Brother followed the two-hand rule and didn't even take his hands off to wave at the camera.
My thoughts: 

This bike is great! It's light and easy to ride. Unloaded if feels like a standard bike, loaded it's even more stable. The little front wheel takes more attention than I'm used to and it felt a bit wiggly. The ride was an upright, comfortable position but that can be adjusted with the OSATA telescoping tube. The blue bike was closer than I would choose. The standard gears are just an 8-speed cassette and although that would be just fine for Sacramento riding, for longer tours, I'd want a double or triple chainring added. I did notice that riding around the shop and the little hills I encountered were fine to pedal through at the highest two gears, even with my little passenger. It was nice to have a low deck that Little Brother could climb up and down off of but the kickstand wasn't stable enough to allow him to sit unattended. 

The standard build up comes with a rear disc brake but only a front v-brake, I'd probably choose to add a front disc as well. The Bike Friday handlebars were very comfortable for upright riding and I noticed a range of widths so they're probably easily customizable. I like that it includes a flag mount for my usual pinwheel flag. The side bags were on the small side on the midtail whereas the longtail would have the Xtracycle freeloader bags. I think if I were to get the bike, I'd have to get another set of Carsick Design slings to fit. Sadly, the Mundo's would be too long. The midtail deck also fits an Xtracycle deck and all the accessories. It would be interesting to see how it would work because the deck would hang a little over the back of the frame. 

To continue the fantasizing, I would probably need to add their half Hooptie design and a Yepp Maxi for Little Brother. I think that I'd be able to fit the seat directly onto the new Xtracycle deck with the optional cutouts. I'd also want to get the stationary front rack since that's been such a bonus with the Mundo. One of the bikes also had a couple of quick releases mounted near the rear axle that turned out to be a new towing mount. They still haven't done much testing but it's possible that it could be a trail-a-bike option to allow for a second bike and pedaler. If it even just tows a bike easily, that would be great because with the Peanut Shell on the back of the Mundo, it keeps me from easily towing regular-sized bikes or adding a trail-a-bike. One final addition that I might consider would be a trailer hitch since my dad has a couple of Bike Fridays and a suitcase trailer. That would solve my one worry that a midtail would be too little space for our touring. We could add soft, bulky gear in the trailer without feeling cramped on the bike. 

This all leaves me with so many things to consider. The bike would fill a great void in our fleet but I would feel a bit excessive having the two big cargo bikes already. I'm not sure if I'm ready to totally give up the Mundo but I'm happy that it's being used and loved at the moment. One option would be to keep both cargo bikes and add the Haul-a-Day but allow for one or two of the cargo bikes to be rented out for the bike tours or borrowed by visitors and friends. The other option would be to sell the Mundo and add the Haul-a-Day so I don't feel so greedy. The other option, of course, is to not get the midtail at the moment and see how often we miss out on bike riding opportunities because we end up having to drive or leave the bikes then decide if it's something we really need. We'll be heading over to Bike Friday tomorrow on our way back home to follow up and chat about options and pricing, hopefully getting an extra test ride or else how will I fit in a day of riding for 30 Days of Biking? 

What would you do? 
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