Mechanical Difficulties Continue, and A Couple of Rides With Friends

You've heard me say that riding a bike is the best way to see the Eastern Shore.  So it's fun to organize rides with friends who visit us in Easton.  In mid-August, my Western Shore riding partner Gail joined Kathy, my Eastern Shore riding partner, and Rob, the brother of a good friend of ours, for the now-standard Oxford/Island Creek Loop/Trippe 35 miler.  (For you long time readers -- whoever you are -- you'll recall Gail from a posting, with photos, last year).  Gail and Kathy did the "I've heard so much about you" thing, because it was true -- I spoken (fondly) about each of them to the other.  Rob was a nice addition too. 

I rode the Trek because (1) the IF still hadn't made it back from the Midwest (very frustrating); and (2) my string of mechanicals continued.   The previous weekend I started a sole ride on the Basso -- having had the tires changed at the Bike Doctor -- and the left pedal unthreaded from the crank.  Never had that happen before.  Of course, should be an easy fix, right -- simply screw it back in.  Wrong.  Just like tires on a 30 year old rim can be tough to change, threading a pedal spindle into a 30 year old crank can be difficult impossible.  So, after doing a single-leg drill back to the house, I shlepped the Basso back to Takoma Park and brought the old Trek to the Eastern Shore.  Of course, the Trek proved far from flawless -- one of the pedal spindles was bent, making for an odd ride.

Finally, the IF returned from its Midwestern tour, and  College Park Cycles was able to torque the pedal back into the Basso crank (never to be removed again).  So it was back on the IF for the Labor Day Weekend.  We had two couples as guests -- Roz and Joel, and Cris and Carol Sue.  Cris brought his bike, and Joel was able to ride Susan's Specialized.  We did the 20 mile Oxford tour, at a slow pace, in part because -- another mechanical: a slow leak in the Specialized rear tire.  Fortunately Cris carried a pump so I avoided having to change the tube.

Both of these were late Summer rides:  the cornfields were brown, and a few had been cleared; the soybeans were still green; and almost all of the wildflowers were gone.  Another Summer coming to an end.