The Test Ride
Once I had my first setup attempt in order, it was time for a test ride! Last Thursday, I rode about 8.5 miles and was pleasantly surprised.
My bike wasn’t loaded with the actual things that I needed for my trip because I hadn’t yet got my act together to dig everything out of the closet. Instead, I threw in the weights and kettlebell that were laying around in my office - at least I finally got some use out of them. The setup was good enough, i.e. nothing fell off of the bicycle, and the ride wound up being so much easier than I anticipated. The Pack Rat handled the weight really well and it still felt easy to ride and maneuver.
Oh, I also tested out my new Tifosi’s for the first time. I purchased a pair with interchangeable lenses and gave the AC Red lenses a shot since I would still be out riding around dusk. Do I look cool?
On Friday, I finally got around to installing those fenders that had been mocking me, as discussed in my last post. This was made a lot easier with my fancy, new torque wrench set:
Doesn’t it seem like I know what I’m doing?!
I was able to install the fenders seemingly without issue but it took me a pretty long time. Either way, I got it done!
After spending so much time on the Pack Rat, it was only fair that I got in a ride on my road bike! Saturday morning was looking like a beautiful day so I got up early to ride along the waterfront in Brooklyn before taking the Williamsburg Bridge into Manhattan.
I did a quick 20 miles before getting to the point where I really needed to use a restroom. So, I stopped at my office to use the bathroom and then decided to grab a coffee and enjoy some time in the sun.
Then, since my friend was in midtown and was heading back to Brooklyn, I threw my bike in the car and got a ride home with him, hehehe.
Sunday was just as beautiful so I took the Pack Rat to Prospect Park for a picnic and to do a test run with the newly installed fenders. Sometimes I’m smart and so I’m glad I did this test ride - the tab attaching the fender to the fork crown was rubbing on the lower part of the headset when I would turn the handle bars. I was able to use a pair of pliers to bend the tab away and everything was looking great after that!
I spent the rest of the day in Prospect Park and was able to make use of my handy cooler from SAIL, which has done nothing but surprise me with its usefulness over the last eight years that I have had it.
If you know, you know.
