The Metro F and City Handlebar Bags

I've been looking for an uncomplicated and secure way to carry a camera, phone and a few personal items on bike rides. A rack trunk was out if only because I had to dismount and park the bike before opening the trunk. As a cycling photographer, my philosophy is simple: I want to be able to reach my camera from the saddle.

I had tried a few handlebar bags. The large ones came with a superstructure of struts and braces that extended to the front wheel. Some sat trunk-like on a front wheel rack, well below the handlebars. Others had no internal dividers which meant that cameras and phones--and snacks--were free to beat on each other during a ride. The smallest ones simply hung from the handlebars by straps and flapped freely while I rode. I couldn't see trusting my Canon S95 and iPhone to a flapping case with no dividers.

The Detours Metro F is exactly what I've been looking for in a handlebar bag. It mounts in seconds to a simple handlebar clip and comes with two carefully thought out compartments, each of which has padded compartments that fit snugly around both my camera and phone. Inside, I found a rain cover that was able to protect the whole bag in seconds. This is a nicely designed little bag with excellent ergonomics throughout!

One quibble, the red graphic doesn't go with my bike, nor would the alternative blue. But the bag itself is such a pleasure to use that I simply leave it in place for all my rides. Unlike many of the bags I've tried, The Detours Metro does not effect my bike's handling.

The same clip that hold the Metro in place also supports a much larger bag, the City, shown here with just a jacket inside. I daresay you could fit a LOT more stuff in a City. This would be the bag for weekend trips. Swapping bags requires no tools and takes less than one minute.

If even the City, bulges at the seams— say, you plan on hauling firewood, whiskey and a set of pipe wrenches on a trip to Patagonia—you'll want to join the struts and front rack crowd. However, if you actually are heading for Patagonia—you do need to ask yourself this question: am I still having fun riding this bike?

I'm in it for the fun so I'll stick with the Metro F for most rides and add the City for light touring.

Entrance, Wildberries Market, Arcata

Meanwhile on the Eureka waterfront...

Aleutian Geese are back in town

For the next few weeks the Aleutians will fatten themselves up in our pastures. Then on a morning in early March they take off over the Pacific to return to the Aleutians. It's 2,000+ miles over the Pacific, no islands, no stops. Make it or die.

Nobody knows how they do it. Do they sleep with half the brain at a time, as some scientists have suggested? Our local ranchers aren't allowed to shoot them, but they do sometimes shoot near a flock to keep them off cattle grazing land. These birds can put away a lot of grass!

While the Aleutians are here they make great cycling companions, shouting with joy/alarm/curiosity and some intelligence when you go by. I arranged a trip back to Eureka on an Easy Racers 'bent (Nice!--A tip of the helmet to Steve Sipma, who kindly loaned me his beautiful bike for the day.)

Noreen O'Brien, my riding companion for the day, and I shared a tasty lunch in Eureka's Old Town.

Beyond the Bay

Eureka is connected to the Samoa peninsula by a series of three bridges. All of them have narrow bike paths along the guard rails. Cars and trucks to your left, a guardrail on the right. It can be dicey on a windy day.

Building on the far Pacific Coast, Eureka's founders attempted to emulate Victorian England--but couldn't resist overspending. Not content to frame with "common" local woods The Carson Mansion imported hardwoods from Central America, the Philippines, and East Asia for the interior. Both Mr and Mrs Carson used the tower to keep an eye on their waterfront holdings. Now it's a private club, whose main membership requirement appears to be a willingness to contribute money towards the mansion's upkeep. Wouldn't this place make a great set for a Vampire movie?

Cycling on the narrow Samoa Peninsula gives you a great view to the East over Arcata Bay.

2011 COMING ATTRACTIONS

Interview with Rich Lesnik, Rivendell's Wheel Builder, Reviews of Detours Handlebar Bag and RAM iPhone mount.

Bike parking--Groningen, Holland

You'll see bike parking lots like this at every major Dutch railroad station. This one accommodates 10,000 bikes.

For my American readers: how many bikes can park at your railroad station (assuming you still have a railroad)?

Rain ride

Sunday morning. It was raining and then it wasn't. I decided to go for it: Bayside to Trinidad round trip, my traditional Sunday ride.

Out on the Arcata bottoms, I wasn't alone. These intrepid souls are Latte Warriors, my weekend cycling group.

By the time we reached Trinidad the sun had peeked through--and there were too many Lattes to fit inside The Beachcomber. So we ordered out.

So yes, we got a little bit wet. So did the plants along Scenic Drive.

"He saw the ocean-shadow;
If he looked down, the endless seas
Lay green as summer meadow."

Charlotte Bronte

Remembering the Arcata Summer

The Arcata Farmer's Market transforms our Plaza every Saturday from May to November. Generally, Americans don't do Fiestas that well, but this is Arcata.

Duane Flatmo's creation was featured in last year's Kinetic Bike Race at the end of May, a great time to visit us.

There's really no excuse for NOT riding a bike in Arcata.

Meanwhile, back in Winter, the storms are lined up to the west of us halfway across the Pacific.

After the Rain

After three days of driving rain, the Arcata Bottoms looked green and inviting. I had the new Canon S95 onboard.

I wasn't the only one in an HPV

To the east the hills were shrouded in clouds. Later I saw snow up there.

These old barns, now home to owls, live forever.

The bottoms does have its antiques.

Scenic Drive, south of Trinidad, lived up to its name.

Surfers patrolled the road all day scouting for breaks. Note: Trinidad Head and the town itself at the top of this photo.

BIKING HALL OF SHAME

See the right sidebar. Your nominations are welcome.

The Ideal Cycling Camera (November 2010)

Back in August I recommended the Canon S90 with the Richard Franiec grip as an ideal cycling camera. Without the grip the camera handled like a wet bar of soap. And the rear dial spun like a top at the slightest touch.

Apparently, a lot of people agreed that the S90 needed work because when Canon released the S95 a few weeks ago they heralded it as "the upgrade you've been waiting for."

The Canon S95 incorporates an improved rear dial, HD video, a handful of photo processing features and substitutes a finely pebbled plastic body for the shiny plastic body. Yes, the new body does make the camera easier to hold, about 1% easier. It's the difference between a wet bar of soap and a damp bar. Happily, Richard Franiec has come to the rescue again with an updated grip for the S95.

I'm not a fan of planned obsolescence but that rear wheel on the S90 was slowly driving me mad. I bought a third party shield for the wheel, which turned it from loose to hopelessly sticky. So when the S95 appeared I upgraded and added the new--and still essential--Richard Franiec grip (below) on day 1. Later I added a Lensmate polarizer and wrote about it here.

One caveat:

This is still not a camera to hand to a well-meaning stranger who offers to photograph a group. Yes, the new rear selection wheel is improved but don't push your luck. Last Sunday I set up a wide angle shot of about a dozen cyclists, handed the S95 to a kindly woman, and joined the group. The moment she took the photo the group sped off. Alas, my volunteer photographer had managed to jog the ISO dial and what was supposed to be an ISO 80 shot turned out to be an ISO 3200 shot. My group looked like it was standing on the surface of the sun.

We are still a long way from an ergonomic camera that would operate like a fine hand tool—with say, a rubberized body and color coded, tactile controls. We could, of course, have such a camera tomorrow, if we simply demanded it. Meanwhile, when it comes to cycling cameras, the Canon S95 is competing in a field of one. Everything else out there is either too big, too heavy or offers much lower photo quality. And nothing in the S95's class can touch the gorgeous color saturation you get right out of the camera.

DA: No felony charges against hit-and-run driver because it might affect his job

DA Hurlbert won't press felony charges against hit-and-run driver because it might affect his job | SummitDaily.com

As for the cyclist who got hit, a lifetime of pain--which also "might affect his job" as an emergency room physician.

A tip of the helmet to Mike Swire for the link to this appalling story.

Roger's Market on the Hammond Trail

On the Hammond trail less than a mile north of the Mad River, you will see Roger's on the West side of the road. If you are rushing through Humboldt County on a bike tour and don't have time to stop in Arcata (!) this would be a good place to pull in for basic supplies, a hot or cold drink and some quality time on the internet (bring your own laptop or phone). Roger's is run by Carol, a kindly and capable woman. So who is Roger? I asked the clerk at the register and discovered that, "Roger was a guy who was here a long time ago."

Carol of Rogers

Roger's features a hand painted mural on the East wall, facing the Hammond Trail. Note the bike, cow and ocean, which are nearby features. The parking lot is large enough for a whole tour full of bikes, making this a good rendezvous spot.

Inside, Roger's has a few aisles of groceries and a mini cafe with a few table near the window.

Should you cycle down from Alaska to hang out at Roger's? Only you can answer this question. If you did, you could enjoy a lunch and perhaps a Monopoly game. Nobody would ask "are you still working on that sandwich?"

Carol of Roger's features local delicacies, such as these lovely hand picked mushrooms.

New at Rogers--and perhaps one of its most outstanding features--huge, all-organic, handmade sandwiches which Carol makes daily. Having raised five kids, this woman knows how to make a sandwich.

You could ride halfway across Oregon after a sandwich like this.

80% chance of rain...

But on Sunday I awoke to this--and headed north on my Rivendell.

It was a beautiful morning on the Arcata bottoms.

But when I looked to the south near Roger's Market in McKinleyville I was reminded that Humboldt County is at the southern tip of the Alaskan rain forest, where anything can happen. In minutes.

One hour from home I turned back, stopping only to photograph the base of the old Mad River Bridge, our essential bike link to the north. Since it would cost more to repair the bridge than to rebuild it, upkeep is a thing of the past. We'll have to depend on our brave graffiti artists to save the bridge for posterity and cyclists. Stranger things have actually happened.

Another mile or two and I knew I had made the right decision. Just two minutes after I got home, the sky fell on us.