Waffle Bike

Complete construction and operating instructions are provided in the video.

RUSA 10th Anniversary Ride, 8/16/08

One couldn't have asked for a better day to ride than Saturday when I participated in the St. Louis Randonneuring 200K brevet in Edwardsville, IL. The ride, like others across the country, was held to celebrate the ten-year anniversary of Randonneurs USA. John Jost, the RBA, sent the nine riders off at 7:00. The route out of Edwardsville is along a paved trail, but we quickly broke out into the cornfields of Illinois. I have never ridden in this area this late in the summer, and the corn was quite high. Although, there is not much to see at other times of the year except endless fields.

I did not match up well with any of the other riders, so I rode most of the time on my own. We would usually connect at the checkpoints and visit for a while. On the way out of Okawville, my right knee began to bother me and I began spinning more so as not to aggravate it too much. I am not sure what the problem was, but I had spent the prior two days sitting in very uncomfortable chairs at a workshop. I finished the ride at 16:31, loaded my bike in the car and headed home to Springfield.

The Start















Along the Trail















Into the Corn Fields

Summer Streets 2008 (NYC)

The New York City Department of Transportation held its first Summer Streets event on Saturday, August 9, 2008, by opening 7 miles of city streets to pedestrians and bike traffic only. From 7 AM to 1 PM, roads were car-free from 72nd Street to the Brooklyn Bridge with Park Avenue serving as the backbone of the route.

New Southwest Missouri Randonneuring Website

I have not been posting lately because I have been putting my time into developing a website, Southwest Missouri Randonneuring. I am applying to Randonneurs USA to bring brevets to the Springfield area, hopefully starting this November. Until then, you can ride one of my three Permanents if you are a RUSA member. Stay tuned.

2008 MS 150 Poster

For the last two years, I have provided a poster to people who help me raise funds for the MS 150. This year's poster is shown on the right with a link to my MS 150 web page for donations. If you donate $25.00-49.99, I will send you the poster printed on 8.5" by 11" paper (80 lb.). If you donate $50.00 or more I will send you the poster printed on 11" by 17" paper (also 80 lb.). If you prefer to send a check made out to the MS Society, send me an e-mail for my address. Let me know if you need a receipt for your tax records.

Multiple sclerosis is a chronic, progressive, often disabling disease of the central nervous system, MS can impair mobility, sight, speech, balance, and most frequently strikes between ages 20 and 50. Approximately 200 new cases of MS are diagnosed each week in the United States. At this time there is no known cause, cure or effective treatment for multiple sclerosis. The programs provided by the Mid American Chapter include support groups, counseling, an information and research center, medical equipment loans, and funding for national research into the cause and cure for MS.

My daughter produces the posters based on classic cycling posters. This year's poster is a knock off of a Brillant Cycles poster. Posters from prior years are shown on the right at the end of the page.

Boating in the Ozarks

Yesterday morning, Doug, Tom, Rae, Neil, Charlie, Tony and I rode out to Ash Grove to have breakfast at Willy B's. In a couple of places we could have used a boat. There were nice ponds over FR 104, between FR 103 and FR 115, and over FR 94, between FR 53 and FR 61. It looks like the ponds may be there for some time, particularly if it continues to rain every other day. We had to back track a few miles to get around the ponds, but no one really cared because it was a lovely day to ride. The sun was out and the wind was minimal, which was refreshing considering the constant headwinds we seem to have had this spring.

FR 94















Posts to the blog have been sparse lately, but we have been riding. I rode the Ride of Silence on May 21. The ride started from downtown Springfield and looped through the center part of the city. There were about 15 riders.

Ride of Silence















Tom and I rode the 50-mile route of the Breast Cancer ride on June 14. I rode down from the house and crossed bridge over the Lake Springfield dam. The water on the downstream side of the dam was close to the same level as the upstream side. I rode back on the greenway trail through the nature center. There was some minor flooding on the trail, but I was able to ride through because it was shallow, standing water.

I also rode with The Pedal Group a couple times. They ride from Praise Assembly Church, on North Glenstone, at 1:30 PM on Sundays. They generally ride east to Strafford (about 21 miles round trip), but some times go on longer rides. Buck Van Hooser is the organizer. Riding from the house, it is about 32 miles.

Sheila's Place in Fair Grove

The Red Ribbon Ride was this past Saturday, but it did not start until 8:30AM and some of us needed to be back by noon. So, Rae, Doug, Tom and I rode to Fair Grove and had a late breakfast at Sheila's Place. Sheila's is on the west side of US65. just north of CC Hwy. We left Doug and Rae's at 7:00AM, and I was back home by 11:40, even though service was a little slow at Sheila's. It was about 46 miles round trip.

Downtown Fair Grove
Sign on the door says "Keep Out"















Minor adjustments after breakfast















Fellows Lake