Friday, June 28th. Also known as the first day of summer here in BC for anyone who is or has a kid. School is out until September and the plan is to ride bicycles, a lot. The Clairebarian and I put in some proper miles today riding from home to Fromme and back again. You know, if you can’t ride from home ride from somewhere. but, if you can ride from home… 

Anyway, riding from home would have been top of my six this week, but Claire called shotgun on writing about it, so the Squidulous Toucan grabbed the biggest step on the podium. I guess I could have been nice and just made it look like he earned it? Hahaha.

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This is a friendly reminder for North-Van-adjacent folks that tomorrow (Saturday, June 29th) is the very last day to go by Comor North Vancouver and drop off a bag of Haribo for the Squidulous Toucan AKA Duncan before our many-month parental leave truly begins. 

It’s common knowledge that if you capture a leprechaun in Ireland you get three wishes in exchange for letting them go. It’s less commonly known, but the Scots have something similar where if you gift any bag of Haribo to a Scottish bike shop employee they have to answer any three bicycle-related questions for you at the time of your choosing. 

If you want to have a taste of that universal power, just grab some gummies and head down to the shop between 10am and 6pm. Wish Toucan an awesome experience with his grom and remind him to check his phone, e-mail, ‘gram, carrier pigeons, mailbox, etc. in case you have a question while he’s out of the shop. 

The Clairebarian and I bumped into ‘Old Man Pete*’ today on our Fromme ride. I know that’s a huge surprise. Get ready for this shocker, he was working on trails. I attempted to give him a hand moving one big f***ing rock with no success, so I’m 1 for 2 for helping Pete with proper stones this year. Luckily I bump into him all the time so I should have a few chances to get back to a winning record. Hey, don’t judge me, it was f***ing heavy.

*{It is crazy that Peter was introduced to me almost twenty years ago as ‘Old Man Pete.’}

This all predicated a nice chat about the strongest North Shore trail builder of all time and we both nominated Slawek who used to work on Pipeline for the title. I came upon Greg and Slawek working on Pipeline one day in maybe 2008 and Slawek was carrying a massive boulder like it was a prop in a Star Trek episode (where the boulders were just big chunks of foam with rock-esque paint). 

Anyway, thank you, Pete. You’re a legend.

(Above Photo: NSMBA)

I have written quite a bit of copy about buying used bikes (Buyer Beware!, Buy The Bike You Already Own, Secondhand Postilions, etc.). I have helped other folks purchase used bikes. I have ridden previously enjoyed bikes for review purposes – a Kona Process 134, a Marin Rift Zone, a Devinci Chainsaw, and the Transition Spire I am on right now.  But, this is the first time I have actually purchased a used bike for myself. 

I know that’s a bit of a tease, but I am not planning to say much more until I have ridden the thing and it’s going to be a few weeks or even a month before it’s disassembled and reassembled. So far, off the used market, I have picked up the bike, new-to-me wheels for it, and an NOS chainring 

There are enough folks who actually want to sell their stuff and have recognized that it is a buyer’s market and that there are some real deals to be found. But, with all the shipping issues that are apparently coming up that is apparently going to swing back the order direction, so if you have been thinking about a project now is the time. 

I think The Clairebarian’s next commuter bike (26″ wheels) will also be a used rig. There are so many great bikes around from twenty or thirty years ago that are solid, have great gravel geometry, and a little extra je ne sais quoi over buying a new bike. 

Wow, it’s been a great week for eats. On Tuesday, Jac, Mr. Lungtastic, and I feasted on the largest Salmon Berries I have ever seen. Then today, The Clairebarian and I ate at least 1,000 huckleberries each. The mind-blowing thing is that in each case we did not even make a dent in the available fruits! 

Huckleberries are my all-time favourite berry. My grannie used to have several bushes on her semi-rural property and my brothers and I would race to eat the most like they were the last huckleberries on earth. Each one I eat is a sour and sweet gateway into cherished childhood memories. 

At least 1,000 huckleberries each.

This season is short in BC, so get some while you can!

I do not have much to add that was not in my overly long(?) write-up on BikeMag. The action is sweet. The quality is as I would expect from WTC. The storage is handy, but I feel like in-frame-storage lockers on bikes it is maybe oversold? Buy the best bike or pump for you first and then worry about how many spare jerseys fit in the downtube? 

Anyway, these are rad. And, the EnCase chain tool is rad too, so I am really happy it fits in the pump handle whether it is the 40cc or 85cc model. But these would be rad even if they didn’t. 

The 85cc model is always in my pack, and the 40cc version is always with my commuter, so if I bump into you and you want to give one a try, just ask. I know it is always nice to put your hands on anything in the buy-once-cry-once price point before throwing down your own treasure. 

This photo is actually from Colin’s Guinness ride in March, but really, who’s counting? When the going gets hot, I like to get going early. But other than Crash Test Kevin, I don’t have any friends who like to be on bikes at the crack of dawn. 

I mean, I have friends who say they like to get a properly early start. But the evidence is measured in feet-on-pedals. 

The alternative is, of course, riding at night once things cool down a touch. Many riders I know have even less interest in night riding in the summer than they do in the winter when it is a weekday ride necessity for most folks. But I seem to be able to get out at least once a week in the summer months with friends who keep their lamps charged. 

Luckily we have not experienced a string of hot days, or any sweltering (for the coast) days yet. I haven’t even set up the fans in our place yet. We had some lovely rain all last night and the dirt today was beyond skookum. 

But my lights are charged for the too-hot days we all know are coming. Summer night rides are amazing.

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