I see London (Ontario that is)

I was fortunate enough to go biking at Fanshawe Lake Trail in London, Ontario last week! What a great ride! This trail is located on the Upper Thames River, and does have a $5 entrance fee. The fee is well worth the ride. Here is the entrance:


Driving through the complex is easy, with good signs and directions to the trailhead:


I ended up riding over 16 miles, with some great singletrack - and some fun technical stuff.

Here is a fun technical section in the woods that gradually built up some height.


There was a river crossing that was a good 4 feet in the air that was 2-way traffic.


Two pictures of a really fun suspension bridge out in the open to ride over:





Ok.. I have to admit... I chickened out and didn't ride this... There was some wicked parts that didn't have warnings, so I knew this was gonna be sick.

Picture of the front:


And the back:


The final picture of the ride was as the evening fell over Fanshawe Lake.




On to New York!

On the road

First stop on my next biking trip was for lunch in Imlay City, Michigan. Stopped at Lucky's Steak House, and grabbed some great grub. Lucky's had some great bread that they give ya while ya wait for your food. I had a Lucky's Ale, and a Black and Blue Burger. Fantastic!

Scottish Plaid Saddle

I couldn't resist the unique Fizik Flash Saddle.
The description said the sides were made of "squared scottish fur". What the hell is that? Regardless, I really like the plaid color scheme that matched the bike setup I am building. Here is a pic of the saddle:


Mounted this sucker on a Sette APX Alloy Seatpost clamp -


Putting the two together, and ya get....




The next Biking Wino Episode? Maybe a Tony Hawk Helmet Cam Review.... OR a local bike trail ride, OR the info from an upcoming trip to NY or Canada...

Good Nacht!

"Tired"

The bike build is progressing along.
Rims and tires have been purchased and installed (ok, rear wheel - still no fork).
I purchased Forte Terra Max rims,



and switched the skewers out to Sette Wicked White ones!

Clearance Parts, Clarence

Finally picked up some clearance parts for for the Sette Reken frame. Here is a picture of the frame prior to the build.


The FIRST issue I had was that the Handlebars that I wanted to install were a funny sized diameter (old school). I was able to find a very good price on a stem that was a wicked white! This worked out great, since the frame was a flat black with the same white color lettering as the stem. Here is the stem mounted to the handlebars:




No fork yet! This will have ta wait for a bit!

Ultimate Pro Workstand for a Novice

So being a cheap-o, I have always resorted to flippin my bikes over onto their seat to do maintenance. That's no big deal... Until you spend some good ca$h on a saddle and don't want it torn up from the concrete and stone in your driveway. Also, the age factor has been kicking in. The ole back gets sore when ya hunch over a bike for an hour.

I finally bought a workstand.

I read a bunch of reviews, and decided on the Ultimate Pro Workstand.



I chose this workstand for a number of reasons.

First - The stand has quick release and fastening abilities with a quick flip of the wrist.
Second - The reviews for the stand all had really high ratings, and many websites referred to it as a "best buy".
Third - The red color is badass.
Fourth - The stand converts from a very stable and sturdy setup, to an easily portable one in mere minutes.

Picture of stand opened up:


and the stand folded up:


Man, does my shadow in the picture above make me look tall....

The negatives of the stand are that there were a small number of complaints that the clamps were cheaply made, and the paint was subject to scratching easily.

There is the rub..... Every stand had issues... Can't have everything.
Hopefully, this will turn out to be a good purchase AND this stand will play an important role in my next bike build!

Mac City Looper

Took a nice ride on the Mac City Looper.
26 miles on crushed limestone and local roads that incorporated the Top of Michigan Trails, which is a Northern Lower Michigan Recreational Trail Advocacy. A portion of the ride occurred on a rail trail from Mackinaw City to Cheboygan.


Here is a website chuck full of info and maps:
www.trailscouncil.org

The day was nice temperature wise, but the wind and bugs were a butt kicker.
The trail was really wide, and had a good stone foundation. Definately for Cruiser or Mountain Bikes.. A road bike would have had a hard time.

Pictures of the Mighty Mac I shot before the ride-




Final Pic is the lighthouse at Mackinaw City