I woke up on Friday morning feeling great and mostly recovered from the previous day’s hills and the previous evening’s Caesar salad, pizza, beer, and chocolate (in that order, of course, because the rules of fine dining just cannot be broken). I had a lazy morning waiting for my cousin, Melanie, to drive down to […]
SP2M Day 8 – Fulton, IL to Galena, IL
I left Fulton bright and early because I knew that it was going to be a hard day. I needed to cover 49 miles, one of my longest of the trip, and I also had to climb 1,880 feet. Pretty much all of the climbing was packed into the last 15 miles. First stop was […]
SP2M Day 7 – Moline, IL to Fulton, IL
Day seven dawned with more beautiful weather. I briefly considered delaying my departure from Moline so that I could ride over to the Rock Island Arsenal to see the atomic canon. I lost so much time on the previous day’s flat tire that I had not gotten to see it. Grown up responsibility kicked in, […]
I Did It! St. Peters to Minneapolis by Bicycle
With a gentle right turn onto the Stone Arch Bridge this afternoon, I completed my bicycle tour from St. Peters, MO to Minneapolis, MN. It has been quite the adventure. I pedaled for 15 days and took rest days in Nauvoo, IL; Galena, IL; and La Crosse, WI. I saw the Mississippi River from both […]
SP2M Day 6 – Muscatine, IA to Moline, IL
After two days of cold, grey skies and headwinds, I was singing out loud as I headed northeast out of Muscatine to mostly sunny skies and calm winds. Nothing could possibly go wrong on a day as perfect as this. Temps were cool as I left the hotel but forecast to warm up promptly. I […]
SP2M Days 4 & 5 – Nauvoo, IL to Oquawka, IL to Muscatine, IA
Day 4 – Nauvoo to Oquawka Fun though Nauvoo was, I had to leave and head north or I would never find either Minneapolis or a third restaurant. The day started cold, grey, and windy. Mother nature decided that three days of tailwinds was more than enough (thank you very much) and it was time […]
SP2M – Visiting Nauvoo, IL
I spent a rest day in Nauvoo, IL. I had hoped to learn some about Mormonism and about history. There seem to be at least two parts of the town, Historic Nauvoo and the actual modern city. I think that Historic Nauvoo would be a magical place to visit, if you are a Mormon. There […]
SP2M Day 3 – Quincy, IL to Nauvoo, IL
Imagine traveling north on one road for three hours and not passing through a single town. Sounds like something from the lightly populated ranchland of the West or some foreign country, right? I just did that in western Illinois, riding north out of Quincy to Warsaw. Intellectually, I knew that there were no services in […]
SP2M Days 1 & 2 – St. Peters, MO to Louisiana, MO to Quincy, IL
I am writing this in Quincy, IL, 114 miles into my bike tour from St. Peters, MO to Minneapolis, MN. So far, the trip has been almost all smiles. The roads have been smooth (except where they weren’t) and level (except for the hills). The drivers have been amazingly courteous, compared to the folks back […]
Revised Route – Skipping Madison
I have revised my bike tour route, following the Mississippi River Trail (MRT) all the way to Rosemont, MN and skipping Madison, WI. I had been planning to swing northeast from Galena, IL and visit my cousin in Madison. From there, I wanted to visit Devil’s Lake State Park and then follow some gorgeous bike […]
Replacing Parts
I gave my bike a pre-tour exam and found that the chain was near the end of its life at 0.7% worn out. In English, that means that the chain is 0.7% longer than it was when it was new. This “stretch” happens because the rivets and rollers wear so each connection gets a little […]
Last Bits of Preparation for My Bike Tour
I am into the last few bits of preparation for my bike tour from St. Peters, MO to Minneapolis, MN. I took a long WINDY ride today, with breaks similar to what I plan while on tour. First was a 21 mile ride to Clayton for lunch with friends. Then an 11 mile ride to […]
Hidden Problems with Phone Cameras
We read a lot about how great the cameras in phones have gotten. When we take pictures with our phones and look at them on our phones, they do, indeed, look fantastic. Here is one that I shot yesterday. The only postprocessing that I did was to crop it and boost the vibrancy. I encourage […]
Safety on My Bike Tour
“You’re meshuga!” Stan proclaimed the other morning as I was describing my upcoming bike tour to Minneapolis. I had just explained to him that I, a 64 year old retiree who only started biking seriously two years ago, am truly planning to ride my bicycle from Saint Peters, MO to Minneapolis… solo… unsupported… camping much […]
Planning a Bike Tour from St. Peters to Minneapolis
Just over a year ago, I bought my Masi Giramondo touring bicycle. I have clocked over 2200 miles on it, mostly doing errands around town and using it for local transportation when I am going somewhere alone. I did manage a couple of short trips last year including an overnight to Robertsville State Park (temperatures […]
I Sold My BD-4C
Those of you who have followed my blog for the last decade or so may be shocked to read that I just sold my Bede BD-4C airplane. I am 90% delighted and only 10% sad. Yes, I will miss flying it. The BD-4C is an amazing airplane and it was everything that I wanted it […]
Thank You, Blaine Luetkemeyer
I sent a message to Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer. (I even wrote it myself, without the help of ChatGPT. ?) I received this letter back. I have rarely felt that my opinion was so heard and that I was so valued as a constituent. Thank you, Rep. Luetkemeyer and your staff, for modeling thoughtful communication.
Cycling Power with the Velocomp PowerPod
I am cycling through data nerd heaven. Winter weather “forced” me to buy a Zwift Hub indoor bike trainer so that I could ride in icy, wet weather that normally keep me out of the saddle. The trainer tells me how much power I am pumping through the pedals, info that I have never had […]
So Much Software in Digital Cameras!
I recently compared my Nikon camera to the camera in my Pixel phone. (See Comparing Nikon and Pixel Cameras.) In trying to respond to a comment on that post, I realized that there is so much software in any modern digital camera that I needed to write a whole blog post about it, not just […]
Comparing Nikon and Pixel Cameras
It is a cloudy morning and Scarlett is sitting next to a window. I decided to take advantage of the diffuse natural light to compare two of my cameras, a Nikon Z 5 and a Google Pixel 7 Pro. Let’s start with a side-by-side of the two with the Nikon Z 5 on the left […]
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