Maintenence

Today, I spent some quality time with the bike. I feel that it's important to do this on a regular basis. There had been quite a few bike tasks that I had been putting off for some time. Tomorrow I'm doing a long ride, so I probably should have done it earlier so that I could get used to the changes but que sera sera.

Firstly, I did my regular chain cleaning and oiling. Since I bike in all conditions, I'm worried about my chain getting rusty. What I do is oil the chain, clean it off, and then oil it again. It doesn't take much oil at all. I also just use an old teeshirt cut into rags for my cleaning. It always makes me feel really good to see all the grime left on the rag.

I also wipe down the bike and get gunk off of other parts. I like my bike to look pretty.

Today I added an extra layer of bartape to my handlebars. This gives me something bigger to grip so that my hands don't get tired on long rides.

I also went ahead and swapped out the seat for the one on my old bike. The seat that came with the bike had some serious squeaking sounds. It feels good to ride quietly.

I also took off my lock mount. It really gets in the way and I think it will be easier to just thread it though my rack.

In addition I mounted some lights on the bike to use in addition to my helmet lights. I'm going to be a disco party wherever I go.

Speaking of discos, I also did some experimenting with installing a radio on my bike. I found a little battery powered radio and I'm thinking it will be good to get my NPR on during my commute. The little radio fits nicely in the frame of the bike, but I need to figure out some ways to make it a little more secure. I'm working on it, and it's going to be the most awesome thing when I finally get it figured out.