Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Evening Ride 10-28-08



I enjoyed the cool weather yesterday evening as I took a quick ride to one of the nicer shopping centers in town on University Drive just north of the river. I rolled up to Starbucks for a cup of coffee and relaxed for a while. Unfortunately there really aren't many decent coffeehouses in Fort Worth so the choice is usually limited to Starbucks or Panera.

I've been living with the Ostrich bag for several weeks. It is a well constructed bag and I load it full of extra gear on every ride. It is a little awkward to carry the bag off the bike. The large square shape and short shoulder strap are the culprits. I've been meaning to search the local military surplass stores for a matching replacement strap, something wider and much longer would help greatly. I am considering buying a Wald basket from Rivendell and zip tying it to my Nitto rack. I would still use the Ostrich bag but for everyday riding, but I think a basket and my old canvas military shoulder bag would be more practical. Plus I could carry my SLR camera along with my usual load of junk. I've been limited to using my compact camera and it runs through batteries at an amazing rate.

Speaking of baskets, I read in this month's Bicycling magazine that the basket on the Gary Fisher Simple City bikes will be available as an aftermarket item. I think they are good looking baskets and with five attachment points they should be nice and sturdy. I haven't found a price for them yet.

9 comments:

  1. Hot damn that's an attractive bicycle and basket!

    Sounds like an absolutely marvelous little outing!

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  2. that is a good looking ostrich bag. Ive been doing lots of monitor shopping (is that the web-term for 'window shopping?...) velo orange store... good stuff there

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  3. Velo Orange has got lots of really nice gear. Most of their name brand stuff is pretty inexpensive.

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  4. I would've thought you could fit an SLR in that bag. Too bad. I'm actually trying to figure out a good way to carry my SLR on rides. Any suggestions? I think I might be able to fit it in my Banjo Brothers handlebar bag, but I haven't tried yet. It could also go in a pannier, I suppose.

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  5. Apertome, I have carried my SLR in my bag before but then I have to pick and choose what to bring and what to leave behind. My cable lock probably takes up more space than anything else in the bag. If you're riding in the country that's one item that you won't have to deal with. Plus I've always had the saying drilled into my head "It's better to have something and not need it than to need something and not have it." I carry way too much stuff with me.

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  6. Makes sense. Do you put any extra padding in the bag to dampen vibrations, etc?

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  7. I usually have the bag full so the contents don't move too much. When I was using my old basket I'd line the bottom with a t shirt to keep things quiet. I think that would work with this bag as well.

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  8. Sometimes I wish I could easily remove my front bag like that. Mine is plenty stable, but isn't attached with quick removal in mind.

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