All rides are good rides...some rides are outstanding. I had an unexpectedly outstanding one today.
Our temps and weather have been wavering the super cold / super nice line seemingly every other day so when it's nice, I try to take advantage. Even if it's just for a short jaunt. Well the forecast looked good for this morning so I planned to run my errands on the bike today. GOOD call that. First off, I headed down to my local cafe to answer the call of the Aeropress. I had seen them in the shop a while ago and the owner and I have discussed them several times. For whatever reason I never took the plunge. (see what I did there?) Recent events have my wife drinking decaf, so lately I have been brewing solo cups, or firing up the espresso machine. This paired with the recent talk of the famous coffee syringe pushed me over the edge. I hit the shop, purchased my wares, drank a cuppa, and headed out to the next stop. After 2 quick stops picking up shipping boxes and supplies for the ACW mugs, I started for home. On a whim, I decided to take a small detour to check out one of the dirt trails to see if it was close to dry from the recent snowfall we've had. First off I discovered a cool spillway I had ridden past a couple dozen times and never noticed. Then, as it turned out, the trail was totally dry and rideable...and I was already there...and it seemed a shame not to partake....so I took off! http://www.flickr.com/photos/42027576@N00/12822717885/in/photostream/lightbox/ A few miles in, the dirt canal trail has a few single tracks that shoot off into some denser wooded areas that I usually romp around on. Where the main trail gets steady traffic, I'm lucky to see one or two people on the singletrack. Today, I was rolling along through the twists and turns when I decided to stop for a photo where the trees opened up. http://www.flickr.com/photos/42027576@N00/12824281034/ As I was getting back on the bike, a gentleman walking his dog approached me. He said hello with an accent, and asked how I liked the VP-001 pedals on my Rambler. He said he had the same ones on his bike. Well as you can imagine we started geeking out on cycling for a solid 40 minutes. Pedals, gearing, climbing, steel frames, racing, cyclocross, Dutch Womens Field Hockey. You know...the usual. During the conversation I learn the following: his name is Fons, he is from the Netherlands, he lives a couple streets away from me, and he enjoyed watching cyclocross racing in europe....and he mentioned his brother was a "pretty good" cyclist. As I left, I asked his brothers name so I could look him up. "Peter Post" he says..."you'll see I look just like him!" And he does...but he failed to mention his brother was “De Keizer van de Zesdaagse”!!!! The name rung a bell, but I couldn't place it till I got home. HERE'S a link about Peter <http://www.flandriabikes.com/heroes/peter-post> I know this isn't the most race-centric crowd, but I very much enjoy the old tales of the spring classics. As I was near home on my bike, he drove by with his dog and tooted his horn waving out the window. I made a new friend in my hood! I'll hope to toast over a pint some day and weave verbal tapestries of cycling stories! So once home and settled down from the excitement, I decided to fire up the Aeropress and see what the fuss is about. There are plenty more in-depth reviews than I'll give here, but I will say the thing is impressive. http://www.flickr.com/photos/42027576@N00/12823290384/in/photostream/lightbox/ The things that stood out: - I never realized it was made by the Aerobie people! I LOVE their flying rings and have been playing with them for well over ten years! Glad to continue support of the company. - I assumed, but was happy to confirm it's a USA made product. - I also did not know it came with a bag, scoop, funnel, and holder for the filters. Very nice kit indeed. - They say it's simple...but holy cow...it's REALLY simple! I don't know if I got lucky with my grinder setting, or the thing is just forgiving, but following the directions my plunge took right at 20 seconds with what seemed like appropriate pressure. I was VERY pleased with the cup it made. To clarify I was using the same beans I drip or pour over brew with and this method sure brewed a smoother, sweeter and very enjoyable coffee. It's also comically easy to clean up which is bonus for on the bike brewing. When you leave the house on a bike things have a way of becoming magical. I like that. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
