#threespeedoct2017

[urbanadventureleague]

Half-way through #threespeedadvapr2020 Week Four: Three Speeds Carrying Stuff. For today's entry, I go back to my #threespeedcamping trip I did with The Boulanger during #threespeedoct2017 We packed our three speeds (Todd: @bromptonbicycle Me: #raleighsuperbe ) and rode up to Battle Ground Lake State Park in Clark County, Washington. It was a fun trip. This was the only time I tried the #pseudobikepacking setup on the Superbe: A nice small saddlebag by @treetopgoods on the front, and the classic Camper Longflap by @carradicebags on the back. It worked! Now longing for the time to go #bikecamping again, #threespeed or no.

[briangwitt-blog]

Ready for the Oct Challenge!  

[urbanadventureleague]

Three speed camping bikes: Todd B's Brompton, my Raleigh Superbe. #threespeedoct2017 #threespeedbikecamping #bikecamping #touringbike #campingbike #threespeedtouring #raleighsuperbe #threespeed #societyofthreespeeds (at Battle Ground, Washington)

[urbanadventureleague]

The obligatory palm tree of this morning's commute. #threespeedoct2017 #threespeed #threespeedcommute #raleighsuperbe #palmtreesofportland (at Portland Hawthorne Hostel)

[urbanadventureleague]

A moody Saturday morning self portrait on the way to work. #selfportrait #threespeedoct2017 #threespeedcommute #threespeed #societyofthreespeeds (at Laurelhurst Park)

[urbanadventureleague]

Clark County bucolia. #threespeedbikecamping #threespeedoct2017 #threespeedtouring #societyofthreespeeds #threespeed #bikecamping (at Brush Prairie, Washington)

[urbanadventureleague]

Here I go again? This time...Three Speed bike camping! To Battle Ground Lake!🙌⛺ #threespeedoct2017 #threespeed #bikecamping #threespeedbikecamping #societyofthreespeeds (at Interstate Bridge)

[urbanadventureleague]

Yep, the Three Speed October Challenge starts tomorrow, Saturday October 1st! Ride your three speed three times a week for three weeks, each ride at least three miles. Full details via link in profile. Remember to tag your entries #threespeedoct2017 (at NE Portland Area)

[urbanadventureleague]

These cool October mornings mean sweater weather is back! #threespeedoct2017 #selfportrait #raleighsuperbe (at Portland Hawthorne Hostel)

[urbanadventureleague]

Fall is falling. #threespeedoct2017 (at Irvington, Portland, Oregon)

[urbanadventureleague]

Three Speed October is GO! Wearing my appropriate Three Speed shirt and riding the Raleigh Superbe. #threespeedoct2017 #societyofthreespeeds #threespeedmafia #threespeed #raleighsuperbe #selfportrait (at Farragut City Park)

[urbanadventureleague]

I'm wearing a #harristweed jacket not just because I wish I was at the Tweed Rides in either Bellingham or Kansas City today. No, more because a Tweed jacket is pretty darn practical when it's 45F/7C out!😀 Also, celebrating the penultimate day of the #threespeedoct2017 challenge with the Raleigh Superbe! #raleighsuperbe #tweed #tweedrideeveryride #threespeedoct2017 #tweedridebellingham #kansascitytweedride #selfportrait (at Woodlawn, Portland)

[urbanadventureleague]

The unintentionally dramatic self portrait. #selfportrait #threespeedoct2017 #societyofthreespeeds (at Peninsula Park)

[urbanadventureleague]

#threespeedoct2017 Week 1, Day 3: Tuesday October 3

This week is looking beautiful in these parts: sunny, with highs in the high 60's to low 70's. Nice for October. And while I ride in most kinds of weather, there is something about riding on a nice sunny day, especially when you know that winter is coming.

I had to work the PM shift at the hostel, which starts at 3. I spent the morning at home working on stuff. I hit the high road around 1:30 PM and hopped on the Raleigh Superbe. I opted to take the "longer route" which takes N Vancouver Ave south to the waterfront, where I hook up with the Eastbank Esplanade and then work my way through inner SE.

N Vancouver is definitely expedient with its nice bike lane, and consistent downhill from the summit of N Alberta St. But it's not the most scenic ride, and the lights are poorly timed for bikes (I seem to hit every red light.) The scenicness starts when I get to the Steel Bridge, where I can take the Eastbank Esplanade along the Willamette River for about a mile and a half. It's a popular place to bike, run, walk, and there was definitely a bunch of people using it. It doesn't hurt that there's a nice backdrop!

From there, I headed east through Southeast Industrial, stopping by the P O Box for mail, and the market for food. I managed to get to work right on time.

The commute in was 7.4 miles, not too shabby! (Please note: my commute from work tonight is very short, so I'm not counting it as part of the total ride.)

[3speedseattle]

First day of October! (and the first day of the October Three Speed Challenge)

The weather is starting to get a little crummy here in the Pacific Northwest, but a little rain doesn’t get me down. Especially since I picked up this awesome rain cape over the summer ($10 at a used sporting goods place, and it folds into a neat little carrying case too :D )

Much of my riding happens on my daily commute. Today, that means 2.5 miles each way from Fremont to South Lake Union (using the new Westlake Cycletrack) for a total of a 5 mile trip. 

Weather isn’t too bad yet, just a morning drizzle followed by sunshine, but we’ll see what the rest of the month throws at me. 

[3speedseattle]

(My bike in it’s usual place at work nestled against the offshore line)

Ride Report 10/19

I started my morning bright and early with a doctor’s appointment. I caught a bus to go 10 blocks uphill from my place (because if there’s one thing a 3 speed doesn’t do very well, it’s climb hills. Or maybe it’s just me), then rode over to the clinic and back home afterwards. 

Then it was my commute to work, and a detour to the grocery store before heading home. (If it seems like I go to the grocery store a lot, I do. Not because I carry all my groceries on my bike, but because I have a very small fridge. My bike can hold more groceries than my fridge can)

My main challenge today was the rain. A lot of it. Seattle is getting pounded pretty bad with our first fall storm. This is when all the modifications done to my bike come in real handy. There was a time when I had to pedal while holding my brakes to try and dry my rims after splashing through a puddle. Now that I have drum brakes, no more of that!

So far my rain cape is also doing it’s job wonderfully of keeping me dry even in the heaviest of weather. The only downside is if the wind picks up. A small price to pay for staying dry, however. 

Total miles: 10