Summer Riding; Dealing with Scarcity

A few photos from one of my rides this week. I took a trip down to the local nature preserve. We are very fortunate to have a beautiful, large nature preserve in our town. The roads in the area are a mixed bag: some are in decent repair, but a couple of them... not so good. Keeping your tires properly filled and keeping your wheels in good repair are a "must" on some of these roads. 

 

The bike on this ride is my 1957 Schwinn Traveler. It's a good bike: a bit heavy (as the Schwinn Travelers often are), but comfortable and steady. Everything is in good working order. The alloy shell 1957 Sturmey Archer AW ticks right along.

 We've had some good weather recently, at least for July. The days have been warm but not hot, and the evenings are calm and cool.

 

The birds seem to be enjoying the weather too...

On a somewhat more pessimistic note, it appears that, at least for now, white wall Kenda K23 tires for Schwinn three speed bikes (597mm bead seat, not the more common 590mm the English used) are out-of-stock. I see one or two sellers selling older stocks at very inflated prices (close to $100 per set with shipping included). The blackwall K23 is still commonly available, which is a plus. Tan wall is also available, though most of my Schwinn bikes pre-date Schwinn's use of tan walls on the lightweights. My experience is the blackwall tires last a bit longer than the whitewalls, but they all eventually need replacing. 

I've said it before, but will say it again: I wish Schwalbe or Michelin would make a tire in this Schwinn 597mm size. A Michelin World Tour would be perfect: affordable for casual riders, decent quality, and traditional in appearance. So far though, we just have the Kendas... we will have to make-do. Hopefully whitewalls will be generally available again, alongside the blackwall tires, soon, at halfway reasonable prices.

One a related note, while wandering through old Schwinn catalogues the other day, I noticed that they were actually relatively late to adopt whitewall tires as standard on their three speed bikes. The catalogues up through 1958 show blackwalls as standard on the Traveler. The start of the "third generation" Traveler in 1959 seems to be when whitewalls became standard. Of course, you could get whitewalls at the bike shop if you wanted to spiff up your Traveler even before 1959. It seems the Racer always had blackwall tires standard, based on the catalogues. Eventually the Deluxe Racer (replacing the Traveler) got whitewalls in the later 1960s. I'll update the Schwinn Traveler guidebook page...

 

 

Into the Heart of Summer

 

Summer is in full swing, with long days and hot weather. Temperatures are well into the 90s this week, with plenty of humidity. The summer sports are also going right along: plenty of kayakers, hikers, bicyclists, and golfers out and about when I take my rides in the evening. 

 

This 1960 Schwinn Traveler needed a headset adjustment and then was ready to hit the road again. The job was accomplished in just a couple of minutes, and then out for an evening ride. I love the green and the ornate graphics on this frame.  

The nice part about riding in a wooded area  is that the temperature is a bit cooler during these hot days. The shade is very much appreciated.

 

I also need to give to appreciation to the road crews who fix all the cracks and potholes in the roads here. Winters are hard on our roads and we have plenty of potholes that form each spring. One of the roads where I ride was being repaired last evening. I miss the trip down there, but I do appreciate having fresh pavement instead of numerous potholes in that area. These crews work in hot, difficult conditions during the summer. 

 

 

Not a promising place to lean your bike...

This time of year, it is important to watch where you park alongside the roads here. Above is trouble... don't go into these three-leaved menaces.

 

It is nice to find an area to pull off the road and park, both out of the woods and out of the road... 

 

 

Summer Riding - Schwinn Superior and Dealing with Thunderstorms

 

1950 Schwinn Superior

We're into the summer weather: relatively warm and humid, with the daily chance for thunderstorms. There is plenty of riding to be done, but riding this time of year means staying aware of the weather. I had the 1950 Schwinn Superior out this week. I love the color of this bike...

If you own a smartphone, one thing you can do is load a weather application and keep it on "alert" as you ride. I use WeatherBug, but there are other programs that let you do this. I have my phone set up to make a loud "chirp" sound when lightening is detected within a certain distance. I also have a quick-access icon to the weather radar showing storm activity in the area. It's important to have these tools this time of year because thunderstorms can develop quickly.

Trouble brewing...

Case-in-point is a powerful storm that struck near here last weekend. Over the course of about 15 minutes, the weather rapidly deteriorated and a powerful thunderstorm struck. This storm produced large hail, very strong straight-line winds, and extremely heavy rain. The weather reports say it was a "microburst" storm. Numerous trees were knocked over and a great deal of property damage resulted in the area where the storm hit. You don't want to be out on a bike when that happens, and it can happen rapidly.

 I love riding during the long, warm evenings of the summer. But doing that means keeping up with the weather. I recommend you keep a smartphone with you in the saddle bag and a reliable weather application/radar on "alert".