In Which City Bikes Suddenly Appear

City rental bike at U bike rack near the library.

Suddenly there is a city bike behind Warde Hall.

I am glad to see the sudden appearance of new bicycles at MMU. It helps with a funk that bikes have put me in lately.

It has not been a good summer for the bicycle program at Mount Mercy University. Over the past few months, between May and August, most of the campus bicycles were either checked out and never returned or directly stolen.

Bummer. Bike Club hasn’t met or called a ride this fall, since most MMU riders had to borrow bicycles for club rides. It remains to be seen how we will recover from this blow. We could try to purchase bikes or get more bicycles through donation—but it’s not clear how the university would maintain better control over the bike inventory to prevent the bicycles from again rolling away.

It makes me sad on many levels—I really did like sharing bicycle rides with students, for one. And another reason is that I had donated a bike to the university in spring to replace one that was destroyed while it was locked overnight on a bike trail. And the donated bike is among the gone ones. I wish more students had had a chance to enjoy it.

Still, I have some hope that the bicycle program, which was popular for several years at MMU, may be revived. There is certainly student demand for bikes, which were often in use for the several years they were on campus.

And the city is indirectly helping. Cedar Rapids recently started a Bike Share program, and met with the university this month to inquire about putting some rental racks on campus. It seemed like the next day, suddenly green city bikes and racks sprouted on campus like mushrooms.

It’s good that a two-wheel transit option is again available at MMU. I don’t know yet what the future may be for the student Bike Club, or university-owned bicycles, but at least there is some good bike news on The Hill.

Aug. 21--My ride at MMU on first day of class. Being careful to keep it locked.

Early morning ride from home Aug. 23--7:30  a.m., pond on C Avenue at Collins Aerospace.

In Which I Reflect on Cedar Lake

Friday, April 16, 2019—the summer is over, for me. I’m at work full-time, and went to the office today to work on syllabi and faculty reports.

Sunny, pretty morning Aug. 16, 2019, at Cedar Lake.

On the way there, however, I took time to swing by Cedar Lake. It was a peaceful interlude before the chaos of the semester sets in.

Bird on shore of Cedar Lake.

The lake is one of my favorite places to ride, and is particularly pretty in either the morning, when I was there today, or afternoon.

Reflection of sky on Cedar Lake.

In Which Summer Concludes With 30 Quick Miles

Clouds over Cedar Lake this afternoon.

Cloudy, humid, warm and quick—that was my bicycle ride today.

Today is the unofficial end of summer, for me. Next week there is a “coming back” picnic on Wednesday and a full-day retreat on Thursday, so even though classes have not yet started, the academic year is gearing up. I’ll be busy Monday and Tuesday prepping for the fall.

I’m not putting away the bicycles, of course. During the academic year, I’ll ride a bicycle to campus most days—this blog refers to my daily two-wheel journey.

But today was the final long ride of my summer even though summer is neither astrologically nor meteorologically over.

The day began with church and some playtime with a young grandson. Then came nap time. Naptime is almost as holy on Sunday as church time. By the time I wheeled my road bike out of the garage it was around 3 in the afternoon. It had been sunny midday, but was turning cloudy, with the clouds looking a bit ominous. But I checked the radar before I left, and it was clean, so I decided to forge ahead.

I headed north on the Cedar River Trail. I planned to circle the city park loop in Robins, and then take stock.

View from bridge in Robins. Despite rain last night, streams are still running low, but everything has greened up.

The clouds seemed to be growing greyer, so on the bridge coming from the city park in Robins I paused again to check the radar. And decided it was OK to do the ride to Lafayette. I rode out there and rested a few minutes. It was a very humid 80s, and felt warm After some dizzy spells this summer, I want to take care. I had been going rather quickly, for this old, slow biker, and wanted my body to be able to rest.

So, I sat and drank and felt like I was melting. The humid air was still, and honestly, I think it felt a bit more comfortable when I was biking.

I headed back south, taking the Cedar River Trail. I was going to go home after a while, but wanted a bit more of a ride, so I decided to head down to Cedar Lake. The day continued cloudy, but no rain fell.

There was a large pelican on the lake, and it was a fine sight. Along today’s ride, I saw numerous cardinals, a goldfinch, many butterflies—despite the warm humidity, it was a pretty ride.

Birds on Cedar Lake.

I rode surprisingly fast. I finished a 30-mile ride in less than three hours. At that pace, I should have been able to ride a day of RAGBRAI in six hours. That logic is a bit faulty, because the trail miles were flat, the day, while warm and muggy, was cooler than RAGBRAI—and I was riding “all out,” not attempting to save any energy for more distance.

Still, the pace was hopeful. On this final ride of summer, the training for next year’s summer bicycle rides went well.

In Which I Almost Rescue Teddy

Image from Wikimedia Commons by Fir0002/Flagstaffotos. The pink bear I almost rescued was plainer, no bow, but looked a lot like the one on the left.

As I noted on one of my other blogs, I recently watched “Toy Story 4,” and I do recommend it.

Today, I enacted a scene idea for Toy Story 5.

Picture a small lake in a midwestern city, maybe Cedar Lake in Cedar Rapids Iowa. An old man is seen pedaling a bicycle, newly equipped with a bike rack, on a bike/pedestrian trail by the lake.

Something on the trail catches his eye. It’s a fluffy teddy bear, pink. “Aw,” he thinks sadly to himself, “a lost toy.” (Told you I had just been to a Toy Story movie).

Our biker continues his ride, being passed by a young bearded man on a bike who is headed the other way. Up ahead, he sees a woman and a man walking on the trail. She is pushing a double-wide baby buggy.

Generally, our biker says “bike on your left” as he approaches walkers. But in this case, he says “hey, did you guys have a pink teddy bear?”

Why, yes, they did.

“It’s on the trail back there.”

The couple slows, prepared to turn. Our biker is made of more heroic stuff.

“Oh, don’t bother to go back,” he says. “I’ll go get it and bring it to you, I can move a lot faster, you keep on walking.”

The couple agree, and our biker turns around. But as he pedals, he is passed by a familiar figure. It’s the young biker who had been going the other way, passing in the opposite direction with a pink teddy bear in his arms.

He gives it to the couple. The old man reverses direction again, and this time says “bike on your left.” As the old man passes them, the woman still says, “Thank you so much.”

Mission almost accomplished. Heart still warmed.

Anyway, before I rode my road bike to campus this morning, I thought of the old back rack that Cate used to have on a bicycle. She let us have the bike for our daughters to ride, and sadly it was stolen—but the back rack had been removed shortly after we got the bike. And we still have it.

And I was thinking, after RAGBRAI this year, that a back rack would make sense on the road bike so that I could eliminate the under cross-bar bag I currently use. I don’t like that bag because I have to stuff it, and it presses against a brake cable—it’s never caused a problem, but it still worries me.

So today I decided to put the old, new rack on the road bike. It’s only good for 20 pounds—in contrast, the rack I have on my hybrid bike is rated for 40 pounds. I have to be mindful not to use this rack for my briefcase, for example, but for a lunch box or a light RAGBRAI bag—I’m thinking it will do the job nicely. And whether it does that, it already does give me a better place to hang a rear light from.

This morning--put Cate's old back rack on my road bike. The stolen bike lives on in this rack and on the pedals of my hybrid bike.

The bear almost rescue took place on the ride home late this afternoon, where I took the longer trail route and swung down to Cedar Lake.

After I got home, and after supper, my wife and I got the tandem out and rode another few miles.

It was another beautiful Iowa biking day. And even if I didn’t rescue the lost toy, I’m glad the biking community came to the aid of a teddy in distress.

Tandem time! Actually, post tandem time-I am just about to put away the bike after an evening ride.

In Which I Climb Mount Trashmore

Looking back from top of drive on Mount Trashmore.

For the second time, I’ve been to the top of Mount Trashmore.

While I was riding RAGBRAI, my winter bike was in the shop getting a new drive train—derailleurs, cassette and chain. On a sunny, warm Saturday afternoon, I decided to take it on a ride.

And I checked online. Mt. Trashmore was open.

I had been there when the trails first opened, and decided to go back. There was a fair amount of bike traffic on the trail on this pretty summer afternoon. When I crossed the Cedar River, there was a bit of a detour to get to the landfill site, due to levee construction.

At the base of Mount Trashmore, a tent was set up. There was someone in front of me signing in, so I had a brief wait, put in my information, and then circled the gravel lot to get my bike into granny gear.

Mount. Trashmore is best experienced on a day that isn’t too hot—on the long climb, there is no shade. I think I was at the limit on this day, but not past it. I was glad of a water station at the base of the hill, because I did need the hydration. I took it easy on the climb. It’s not steep, but it does go on and on, and is on a gravel drive. I was glad to be on my mountain bike, and would not ride up the hill on a road bike. I might on a hybrid.

There is also a walking trail, although I’ve never used it.

At the top, I stopped to take a selfie, and then sat in the sheltered seats to rest for a few minutes and each some snacks.

My Saturday selfie on top of Mount Trahsmore.

There is a mountain bike trail to head down the hill—definitely a mountain bike trail. I took it. I also slipped at some turns, and found this hill to be rather scary on the way down.

It was a fun ride, and part of a weekend of fun rides. After I got home, my wife and I went on a bike ride on the Boyson trail. We rode again today to meet grandchildren at Noelridge Park.

But the main ride of the weekend was up the local mountain.

Mount Mercy, on extreme zoom, seen from Mount Trashmore.

And the other way, Kirkwood.

Bike parked, right before I leave top of Mount Trashmore.

The mountain bike trail down.

Tent to sign in at base of Mt. Trashmore.

Detour on C Avenue to avoid levee work.

Deer on Boyson Trail during late afternoon ride Saturday--camera is not on zoom at all, this deer is right by the trail.