Cycling Coast to Coast

Tell all your Boston-area friends!  As another fundraiser, Devon, Jess and I are organizing a bike swap on Saturday, May 3 at MIT.

What: Come buy, sell, or trade new and used bike gear (and bikes)
Where: Walker Memorial - Morss Hall, MIT
142 Memorial Drive, Cambridge
(http://whereis.mit.edu/map-jpg?selection=50&Buildings=go)
When: Saturday, May 3, 10am-2pm

Why: It’s a chance for you to sell some of your old gear that’s been lying around, or to pick up some bike gear for cheap.  Also, it’s for a great cause!

$5 general admission
$15 to sell (tables provided, setup from 9-10am)

Parking: There is limited street parking on Memorial Drive and Ames St.  Your best bet would be to park in the Hayward Lot (http://whereis.mit.edu/map-jpg?selection=P5&Parking=go) or in the Cambridge Center garages on Ames St. & Broadway (see http://web.mit.edu/facilities/transportation/parking/visitors/public_parking.html).

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I also came up with a cool design for a bike shirt that I’ll be screenprinting and selling at the swap.

Devon had her bike stolen today.

She was in Harvard Square, locked her bike outside of EMS using a cable lock, and was gone for only about 15 minutes. When she got back, the cable had been cut, and the bike was gone. She’s filed a police report, but unfortunately, there’s nothing else that we can do. Just really sucks.

So, be careful with your bike. Keep your bike with you, and if you have to leave it somewhere, lock it up with a good U-lock to a secure, fixed object in a high-traffic, visible area. Make sure you lock the frame and rear wheel, and if you have a second lock, lock your front wheel to the frame too. Also, don’t forget to remove things like lights and cyclocomputers that someone could easily walk off with.

I’ve ridden about 100 miles so far this week, which is more that I rode the entire month before. It’s so much fun, and after the clinic yesterday, I’m feeling a lot more confident and comfortable on my bike. I’m also sporting the beginnings of a cycling tan, with distinct tan lines on my upper arms, lower thighs, and from my sunglasses. I also got rather sunburned yesterday, after spending 6.5 hours on the bike without sunscreen (oops).On Friday, Kyle, Jorge and I biked out to Wells Ave and back, about 22 miles round trip, including getting lost. Wells Ave is a looped road in Newton, MA — a suburban office park with lots of parking lots and open space. The Boston Road Club uses it as a training race course, and that’s where Sunday’s on-the-bike portion of the clinic was held. Having never ridden there before, I wanted to make sure I knew how to get there before Sunday, so that’s where we went on our Friday afternoon ride.

Saturday morning I decided to sleep in some, and skipped the MIT Cycling Club group ride. Devon, Jess and I biked to Belmont Wheelworks and back for the first half of Nicole Freedman’s clinic. The clinic ran a bit late, and we also spent some time looking around Wheelworks. The MTB shoes I’ve been using so far I bought for $10 at a bike swap last fall. They’ve been perfectly comfortable on the bike, but as soon as I get off and start walking round, my right foot feels really pinched and painful. I asked about this at Wheelworks, and they thought that it could be due to poor cleat placement, or that the shoe was too narrow for me. They measured my feet, and turns out the pair I was using was way too small for me, so now I have a new pair of MTB shoes that are very comfortable.

With the clinic running late and our additional shopping, we made it back to MIT campus a little past 7, and so were late for the Bike & Build dinner. Dani, Kristi, and Jose were all in town this weekend, so a bunch of us got together for dinner.

Sunday, Devon and I met up with Becca, a 2 time Bike & Build alum, and we biked out to Wells Ave for the 2nd half of Nicole’s clinic. I’ll go into it in more detail in the later post, but suffice it to say, the clinic was awesome. It was 20 miles to get to Wells Ave and back, and then we spent about another 10 miles on the bike during the day for the clinic. By the time we got back to campus, Devon and I were really tired, and really hungry. We went to Fire + Ice for dinner, an all-you-can-eat Mongolian BBQ-style restaurant, and for the first time, I think I really ate my money’s worth. Just a preview of what’s to come this summer, I guess.

Today, I admit my crotch is a little sore from all that riding. I’m not sure if it’s because I’m still not used to putting in many miles on the bike, saddle position, saddle fit, or what. I’m sure I’ll figure out the right set-up for me though before we leave this summer.

Jane, Devon and I are going to go on a shorter ride this afternoon, probably on the Minuteman, and we’ll decide later if we’re still up for a Walden Pond ride tomorrow.

I have a four-day weekend coming up, and it is finally warm in Boston. The weekend forecast?

If you need me, I’ll be on my bike.

Seriously though, I do plan on spending most of my weekend biking. Kyle (one of the B2SB trip leaders) is trying to organize a training ride on Friday for all B&Bers in the Boston area, and the MIT Cycling Club is having a group ride Saturday morning. Saturday afternoon, I’ll be attending a cycling clinic. Nicole Freedman, coach of the MIT Cycling Team, is giving an intro to riding/racing clinic for women. It’s a two-day clinic, and I’m really looking forward to it as a chance to gain more experience and learn from a pro.

Then Monday, being Marathon Monday, will be my rest day, and I hope to head down to Copley to watch the end of the marathon.

On Tuesday, Devon, Jess and I are biking to Walden Pond. Maybe it’ll even be warm enough for a dip. : )

While I’ve posted about biking and fundraising, one very important aspect of Bike & Build that I’ve neglected so far is our cause — affordable housing.  When I first signed up for B&B, I did a lot of cursory reading on the topic, and got very interested and excited about it.  Sadly, I haven’t done much research since then.  Even though we’re all really excited about the cause, B&B realizes that many of us may not be very well-informed, so they created the Affordable Housing (AH) Curriculum.

The AH curriculum is the second part of our sweat equity (the first part is volunteering with an affordable housing organization) that we have to complete before the start of the trip.  Ever week on the road, we’ll have group AH meetings to discuss and educate everyone on AH issues.  To help guide those discussions, everyone is assigned a specific topic and two cities (of the ones we’ll pass through on the trip) to research beforehand.  The six main themes for discussion are:

1. What is the affordable housing crisis?
2. History of housing practices in the US
3. Social Influences
4. Statistics & recent studies
5. Nonprofit organizations devoted to the cause (like B&B!)
6. The government’s role in addressing the problem

I’ve been assigned the subtopic of HOPE VI, which falls under Theme 6.  I’m also responsible for finding out more about Las Vegas, NV, and Baker, CA.  As I learn more about the topics, I’ll post some interesting facts and articles here.