The Bantam Rambleneur: Lucky 7

The Bantam, loaded for camping. On the Historic Columbia River Hwy, 15 June 2022. Ricohflex Dia/Kodak Gold 200 On this day back in 2015 I finally received my Bantam Rambleneur custom bicycle. It's the only bicycle I've ever owned that was specifically handmade for me, no other bike in the world is exactly like it....

Night biking deserves a quiet song: A photo report of my first two Midnite Bicycle League 2022 rides

Belmont Library, 18 Jan 2022. Camera: Minolta SR-T 101 Lens: MC Rokkor PG 50mm f/1.4Film: Cinestill 800T We're more than half-way through this year's Midnite Bicycle League Challenge. Ninety people have signed up so far. I haven't received my first completed journal, though I know at least one is on the way. And I've seen...

My bike touring year in review, and plans for 2022

The Bantam at Women's Forum, from my May Ainsworth/Columbia Gorge Overnight. Olympus 35 RD/Kodak TMAX 100. As another year wraps up, it's natural to want to reflect back on what happened. There's one thing this year that I am thankful to reflect on when it comes to bike touring: that I could reflect on bike...

A state of the bike fleet at the end of 2021, and what the future might bring

The current fleet What a year for my bicycles. What an unexpected year. When I filed my "Looking ahead to 2021" post at the end of last year, my take on the fleet was this: My fleet of bikes is as good as it’ll ever be, so no major upgrades. And probably no new bikes...

Coffeeneuring 2021, Ride 6: With the Bantam and Coffee Outside, 20 Nov 2021

Ascending Powell Butte, 20 Nov 2021. Olympus 35 RD/Kodak ColorPlus 200. I've ridden my Brompton A LOT since I got it in the middle of October. It makes sense: I want to become familiar with it, and the only way to do so is by riding it a lot. Plus, it's a fun bike. Oh...

The Return of the Bantam, and thoughts on October camping

Well, that took awhile. I dropped off my Bantam Rambleneur at the bike shop on September 3rd. My kludged-together drivetrain was not working properly, and I didn't want another quick fix, since the same thing could happen again. I needed a new shifter in order to drop the stupid Wolf Tooth extra pulley, the thing...

On the number of bikes I own

You may have noticed that over the past few months I reduced the number of bikes in the stable by two. First, realizing that after almost nine years of tweaking, my Raleigh Crested Butte was never going to fit, so I sold it. Then the issues of using a "donor" frame bore bad fruit with...

Westside Explorations

My view of the "west side", the suburban land-mass of Portland that starts in the West Hills (Tualatin Hills) and continues westward until it peters out before the Coast Range, has definitely evolved over the years. I was definitely in the "hater" territory when I had a holiday temp job in Hillsboro in 2005. But...