On tae the Fitton Green (said in my best Scottish accent)

Whew, boy. Getting fit today kicked my ass. Here I am sitting at home after 4 hours on the trails, drinking my Heartbeet juice (mainly carrots, apples, and red beet root), trying my best to recover. We did that nice Dimple Hill hike yesterday, so I thought we'd go it a bit easier today, but it was not to be. We've really wanted to check out an area west of Corvallis beyond Bald Hill called the Fitton Green. And boy, did we do that, even getting lost a time or two. Our 5 mile bike and hike turned into a 9.4 mile adventure, most of it hills upon hills.

Because of the hills, this was by far the hardest workout I've had to date, although Pedal Popper's 21.3 mile journey the other day still tops it. There are new hiking trails through the Fitton Green forest, so I had to map this out on Photoshop as best I could. The blue is the route we traveled before deciding to head back home. From that point on, the route is in pink. If I were to compare this to another hike, the closest I could say this comes to is the loop around all of the ten falls at Silver Falls near Sublimity and Silverton, Oregon - but there would be no biking on that route. Since the bikes made the entire journey with us, being ridden or pushed up the steepest of trails, this kicked up the difficulty level of today's route a notch or two.

Reaching the summit of the Fitton Green is higher than Bald Hill just east of this, and you can start from one of the same parking lots used to access Bald Hill. Unlike Bald Hill, the Fitton Green is not just one trip to the top. You climb to what appears to be one summit, then up and down rolling hills to another, and then another. Just when you think you have it kicked and can coast downhill, you find yourself going the wrong direction and circling back around and up that giant hill you just rode down! Adding an extra mile of hill at the end of the trails is what had me nearing exhaustion. And I poorly rationed my one bottle of water, never believing we would be gone half the day. So, while maps are fun and can really surprise you in terms of total area covered, the pictures are a million times better. Have a look.

First summit area resting, and having fun with our old friends - the trees.

Second summit-like area. Another resting spot. Thought we were at the top - the view said so, but the trail knew better...

Baby trees popping up everywhere.

Funny little lichens.

 Up, up, up...

Gotta love the old dead trees that are still alive with ferns and critters.

 The spooky milestone tree and.... MORE TRAILS!

Always neat little finds in the great outdoors. The snail seemed to have moved out.

 And there's the real summit!

An Oregon Iris in full bloom in February? Hmmm, the Audubon Society says they bloom from April to June in the grassy lowlands. These two flowers were the only ones on the whole hill, so it was a real treat to spot them. Our February has really felt more like sunnier and warmer April. I'm tempted to get the spinach planted soon. Suppose I'd invite a late winter snow then.

 The view - those clouds did drop a wee bit of rain on us, but hey, we're on the Fitton Green!

Riding through the Mojave... eh... just a dry dirt road toward the end of the trail - but we have not had much rain at all this month, and as an old Oregonian gardener and landscaper who remembers February as one of the wettest months in the valleys, I'm a bit perplexed.

One of the trailhead signs with our reflections, but we still had a few miles to go. This was our last trail pic though for the day, Strangely, we had the whole trail to ourselves the entire length of it. Once we left the Bald Hill area, we never spotted another person until we got back to the roads.

So that was our exercise outing today. I got my rims and brakes hot descending these hills, but it was FUN!

Hope to catch you all later.

-Sprocket

To the top of Dimple Hill

Trying to make the same 21 mile bike journey that Pedal Poppers took a few days ago is still too much for me at this point, but I wanted to see Dimple Hill. So today, we set out at noon, drove up to the Lewisburg Saddle, and began our hike there. There are lots of trails and old logging roads around here, but reaching the overlook opening on top of Dimple Hill was our goal.

It's a 2.5 mile hike from the sign here, starting at 900 feet and heading up to about 1500, which was a good three hour hike up and back for us (5 miles round trip). Pedal Poppers was surprised how much quicker this was on a bike, even when taking the entire route from home and back again. Here are some pictures from our hike. As you can see, the good weather continues to hold out, and still it is only February. There are several opportunities along old route 600 to skirt off into the forest on other well-marked paths, but we stayed on the main trail all the way to the top. 

About a half mile up is a bench after the first long hill, so we rested a bit there. You can see the steep grade at the beginning from the Lewisburg Saddle side, but this evens out pretty quickly and the grade is steady, and never as steep following this. It's a hike that can be fairly easily done at your own pace.

Here we are at the top. What a wonderful hike!

And, once again, we saw a little creature to make us smile...

 A little turtle bug at my feet...

And the trail back

We got back to the trailhead at Lewisburg Saddle after 3 hours then headed home. 

Here is a Google Map of the hike and terrain elevations. Clearly we're not as quick as Google thinks we should be, but we're out there, we're doing it, and the comments and thumbs up we get from people in much better shape are always reassuring. Corvallis is a fit friendly place even for those of us just starting to get there.

One of the things I really wanted to tell you about is the type of boots we've been wearing for these hikes. When we decided to get in shape, we picked up two pair of Danner Vicious 8" Brown NMT (non-metal toe) boots at our local Wilco in Corvallis. While Danner is no stranger to classic strong hikers, these boots, according to the Danner website, are work boots. But with the Vibram soles, and nice tall ankle support, they have been more amazing as hiking boots than anything we've had in recent years, and that includes much more expensive Mammut and Reichle boots we've bought in the past. We absolutely love these boots. The list on the Danner Vicious 8" NMT is $200, but Wilco had them for a bit less. They are rigid enough for excellent support, are Goretex lined, and are like the heavier (and more expensive) boots you might expect for longer hikes, but there is almost no breaking in time on these. Out of the box, they are incredibly comfortable, and we were off on trails right away with no blisters and no sore feet! I expect them to last a long time. 

To preserve them and keep them waterproof, we use a product you can also pick up at Wilco - Obenauf's Heavy Duty Leather Protective or LP. This is a bee's wax product that was developed by a firefighter to keep his expensive firefighting boots protected from water damage. It works great, fills in the seams and bends in the boot, and the water rolls right off.

For better hiking comfort, we also had to address something Pedal Poppers refers to as "chub rub." To me, this is basically like biking saddle sores, but from walking. Let me just say, this is painful and makes it less possible for anyone to keep exercising each day. If you are looking to start hiking or biking, but don't have the money to shell out for chamois biking shorts or spendy walking pants right away, or are hesitant to spend money on clothes you will be too small for in just a couple of months, one of the absolute best inexpensive purchases we've made are boxer-brief style underwear that have a polyester (90-95%) and spandex (5-10%) base. If you're sold on cotton, we've also discovered some incredible Jockeys that use 95% cotton and 5% spandex, which are unbelievably breathable and work just as well as the new polyester ones I've pictured below (not sure how Jockey does that to cotton, but it's the only type of primarily cotton undies I'll buy now). 

Often, these briefs are billed as "cool" somewhere in their description. They are much more breathable and wicking than 100% cotton. I am not sure whether or not there is something similar for the ladies, but I certainly hope so, as these are inner-thigh savers. Here are two new pairs we picked up today (the Adidas are called "Stay Cool" and the others have the word "Cool" right on the waistband). Hoping this is not too much info, these types of briefs have really helped me a ton while walking and riding any distances day after day.

Lastly, I thought you might all enjoy a picture of Pedal Poppers in that new helmet. 

A perfect fit! Hope it makes you laugh like it does me.

Catch you all later.

-Sprocket

Bikes, bikes, and more bikes... and a helmet for Pedal Poppers!

Great news! Just when we were down to our last few bucks at the end of winter term, facing a larger electric bill than we expected, we got a refund on our recent vision exams and spectacles purchases at Eyecare Associates in Corvallis. This was a refund we were not at all expecting, and it was several hundred dollars. I can't say enough how happy I am overall with the folks and eyecare service from front reception, to the eye exam, and finally to the eyeglass fitting at Eyecare Associates.

Of course, the electric bill is now paid, and we have everything we need for the next month to get us through winter term, and we even had enough left over to get Pedal Poppers that much needed biking helmet! We found a good deal on the Specialized Max with visor, which looks something like this, although the one we bought for Pedal Poppers is a lighter high-reflective silver. The XL is a great fit! We'll get pics of the actual helm on Pedal Poppers' head soon, but currently we have it put away while Pedal Poppers gets dinner going on the grill, so I hate to interrupt that process.

Jake at Peak Sports was also kind enough to have Pedal Poppers sit on a bike with very similar geometry to that of the Specialized AWOL Elite for fitting, saving us gas, time, and money from a long day trip up to Portland. It was the humorously titled the Salsa Fargo which conjures images of a large Texan living in North Dakota trying to ride a bike in the snow while eating a bowl of chili (Maybe you'll understand this imagery looking at the pic of this bike below with its giant tires, which is nothing like the touring bike Pedal Poppers will get, other than having nearly matching geometry).

Maybe you can imagine this guy riding this bike...

Gives the yellow jersey entirely new meaning, but at least he matches the bike...

After adjusting the seat for height, it was a good fit for Pedal Poppers, and we'll hopefully order the Specialized AWOL Elite during spring term so long as we can save up for it. For now, our little old commuter bikes are doing the job, even though getting up to speed to tackle some of the hills we've tried can be difficult on big fat tires and a fifty pound bike like mine (maybe not that heavy, but it sure feels like it). Although we won't be able to purchase both of our bikes right away, I too am excited about getting to that point where I can move to a touring bike for better riding.

So, I hopped on the Salsa Vaya 3 (that spicy green bike I showed in an earlier blog) at Peak Sports - what an amazing bike - and that's likely to be the one for me. It's a great looking bike, and it will worry me to leave it locked up anywhere I can't see it, but they do have bike lockers at OSU (see pic below), which, according to Best Colleges Online is one of the 10 most bike friendly campuses across America. Another of these top ten campuses is Portland State University, and quite conveniently for the new avid bicyclist, I applied to both for my doctoral program next year, so it looks like no matter where I go, I'll be in good shape.

The 57 cm Salsa was a perfect fit for reach and standover. I am 5'8" with a longer torso than legs, so I have to match that 30 inseam to a bit longer reach, but my reach is not way out there. Pedal Poppers is 5'10" with almost the same inseam as mine, but a much longer reach, so that is why the Specialized AWOL Elite works best there.

I tried the Surly Disc Trucker (which I really thought was going to suit me best up until today). But surprisingly, it was just not quite right for fit as far as standover and reach on the 54cm. A size smaller (the 52cm) was OK on standover, but too small on the reach and bent knee position, and everyone around said the bike looked way too small for me. However, trying to go larger, the 56cm was just too tall for me on the standover. While most say you'll only be standing stopped 1% of the time and that standover is not all that important, being unable to stand safely has to be a consideration for me, since I don't want to crunch myself on the bar, nor do I want to have trouble taking off from the stopped position.

Doggone! I really grew fond of the Disc Trucker, but no size fits me very well on this bike. Wish I had eaten more veggies as a youngster, I might be 2 inches taller today...

The Salsa Vaya 3 is a bright veggie green, reminding me of what can be if I eat my veggies now! This bike is a perfect fit and will likely be carrying me on to my goal to tour Oregon and beyond. Can't imagine a better fit on a bike. Now I can barely wait to get this bike, put some gear on it, and head out. But first, we are saving up for Pedal Poppers' bike - the Specialized AWOL Elite.

Look at that skinny little seat! Pedal Poppers will be riding this bike in about a month and a half if all goes as planned!

If looking to get a new touring bike and not knowing much about where to start, hopefully this blog can help a bit. The internet has been my friend. My bike fitting experience can perhaps at the very least also tell you something about bike sizes from different manufacturers. You can start with a number of your own measurements and bike geometry specs from manufacturer websites to get some estimates on the right fit. I read up on a bunch of bikes then narrowed down my options to affordable (to my specific budget) touring bikes easily accessible from bike shops in my area. If you're not on a grad school budget, trying to buy two bikes for two adults, maybe you can be more selective.

But wanting the best entry-level touring bang for the buck, I've spent many hours researching in order to narrow our combined choices down to five strong bikes to try for size based on what we're looking to do. Trying out these bikes for size before making the final purchase decision is also your best bet, as has been advised at a number of bike shops in town and online, and at manufacturer sites as well. Blogs by much better bikers than myself also advise riding a bike before making your final decision. If you can only purchase your preferred bike online, try what we did - go to a local bike shop, and try the fit on something with similar geometry. Your bike specialist should be able to help with this. Actual fit is very important, as shown in my own experience, since the 57cm Salsa Vaya fit great in every way (which I would not have guessed), while the 54cm Disc Trucker was slightly taller on me, but not quite long enough in the reach. I would not have guessed this from the geometry specs alone. And it's going to be different for everyone, obviously.

All that serious bike fitting business aside, one thing we did want to share was some very funny biking videos we found on You Tube that had us rolling in laughter. They are on the Global Cycling Network on You Tube. The Top 10s are the best ever. So, check those out, especially the top 10 things not to eat and top 10 things not to wear while cycling. And we'll catch you later.

-Sprocket