In honor of the old CicLAvia route downtown, heck just in honor of yummy food, let’s pedal our way down to Mercado La Paloma. If you’ve never heard of the space, it’s a converted garment factory-cum-gathering space. Several restaurants have stalls located within and there are neat little shops, too. You may be familiar with Jonathan Gold’s ravings over Ricardo Zapate and Mo-Chica Restaurant perhaps? Well, Zapate began with a stall in Mercado and still keeps it running. Yeah, now we’re on to something. GOOD FOOD!

There is something for everyone at Mercado, and it’s a bit more lunch-y than brunch-y so we’re starting the ride at 10:30am instead of the usual 10am. So maybe have a snack before you hop on your bike. But the ride will be fun, easy route through Silver Lake into downtown, along the tall sparkling buildings and by the parks. The meetup spot is the Sunset Triangle Plaza on Sunset at the end of Griffith Park Blvd. It’s the new (and green!) pedestrian plaza/parklet where the Silver Lake Farmer’s Market is held. Email me to RSVP – brakingthelimits(at)gmail(dot)com!

JOIN ME (AND MY NEW BIKE) FOR LA BELLA PREME!

I just registered for a cycling event. More specifically, I just registered for La Bella Preme Women’s Cycling Challenge. Here’s the thing though: I don’t own a bike. I know how to ride one, I just don’t own one. And even though I’ve run several marathons over the last few years, this will be my very first cycling event. Ever. But that’s okay at La Bella Preme.

On June 1, 2013, women of all cycling abilities will toe the starting line together at La Bella Preme’s inaugural event in Malibu, California. (Do cyclists even say “Toe the starting line” or do they say “Wheel the starting line”? I guess I’ll find out when I become a cyclist). La Bella Preme was designed for women cyclists, by women cyclists, and welcomes beginners and pros alike.

Riding right alongside me at La Bella Preme will be Sue Fish, a pioneering female motocross racer and cyclist who was recently inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame.  With a nickname like “The Flying Fish”, Sue is not someone I would typically have any business riding against. But that’s the thing at La Bella Preme – I’m not riding against Sue, I’m riding with Sue. In addition to challenges that level the playing field and give me a flying chance to beat the Flying Fish, cycling professionals like Sue and her B4T9 Women’s Cycling teammates, Jill Gass and RaeLynn Milley, will be on hand to mentor novice riders like me.

As if that wasn’t enough to convince me to register, the event starts and ends at Triunfu Creek Vineyards in the heart of the Santa Monica Mountains. Instead of eating stale bagels and washing them down with tiny cups of sports drink while being rushed out of the post-race area as I’ve experienced at countless marathons, we will celebrate and be celebrated after a long day of riding at La Bella Preme.  We will change into clean clothes and relax in real chairs while enjoying good food, fine wine and the company of new friends.

So how did a non-cyclist like me (or rather a “soon-to-be cyclist” like me) hear about La Bella Preme? I heard about it at work. It’s an Event 360 produced event and we are partnering with local non-profits. La Bella Preme participants have the opportunity to fundraise on behalf of I Am That Girl, Little Bellas and Girls on the Run of Los Angeles County; three organizations that are making a difference in the lives of young girls across the country and around the world.

Now you’re probably starting to understand why I signed up for La Bella Preme without even thinking about the fact that I don’t own a bike. Making new friends, making a difference, getting some exercise and following all of that up with good food, fine wine and camaraderie sounds like the perfect way to spend a Saturday (or, really, any day). You, too, can register by clicking here. My new bike and I will see you in Malibu on June 1, 2013. .

Suzanne Mooney is a Fundraising Consultant at Event 360. Please send her a note at smooney@event360.com.

In many circles, this tool is also called the Cable Stretcher but “4th Hand Tool” is its more common moniker. This tool handily pulls the cables for the derailleurs (the shifters) and brakes in order to free up a hand of your own to tighten nuts and bolts. As one reviewer on Amazon writes, “When your bro’s paw is wrapped around a cold one and you need another hand…,” essentially this tool gives you the extra hand you need when you need to tighten a cable. I especially find that this tool offers me the strength that my simple tug won’t deliver to make my brake tension that much more responsive.

While the handle is loose, slide the cable through the grooves at the top with the flattened arm butted against the brake or derailleur (the part that shift your chain). When you clamp the handles, the tool grabs the cable and pushes off the brake or derailleur, pulling the cable taut. While one hand holds that tool, the other is then free to tighten the nuts or bolts to lock the cable down. There is a handy little video where you can see the clamping and pulling action of the tool on eHow.

Now I live in Los Angeles and I have a 10 mile commute to work (and 10 back) which I do about 2-3 days of the work week. I try to do my small errands on bike and take it to the red line when going into Hollywood or Downtown. I even sometimes bike in fancy clothes when I am going to an event which calls for it. Being a cyclist in this city is not easy and not always pleasant, but I feel great about it. Commuting by bicycle helps me save money, reduce my stress, increase my physical activity, and perhaps most importantly – be ONE LESS car in Los Angeles. I feel great about being a female cyclist and being able to fix everything on my bike and help other people do the same. Cycling for me is an empowering activity – both physically and mentally.

A set of chrome-vanadium metric wrenches, open at one end, box/ring at the other. This type is commonly known as a “combination” wrench.

Fixed Wrenches are made of a single piece of metal, and only fit specific sizes of fasteners.

Combination wrenches, like the picture above, are chrome double-ended wrenches with an open end and a box end that are the same size bolt on each end. This is the most useful and most common general-purpose wrench style. The box end tends to be stronger that the open end and are the best side to use for high torque uses, because it can contact more than two or three corners of the bolt. They are sized by metric millimeters.

Nuts and bolts have a six-sided shape which is usually spoken of as a hexagon. Stripping of the sides will occur if you do not use a tightly fitting wrench. The length of each wrench is related to the amount of force needed to tighten each size nut, so the force needed on your part should be the pull of three fingers. If the amount of effort required to tighten a nut or bolt increases, stop immediately as either you will break something or you are pulling the thread out.

Common uses of these wrenches are a size 15 open-end for pedals or a size 15 box-end for axel bolts (instead of a quick release skewer) to remove tires (commonly on fixed gear or mountain bikes). Sizes 8 and 10 are also the most common for various bolts and nuts on the bicycle.

This month’s ride will be on Sunday, February 24. The ride will start at the corner of Fletcher Drive & Crystal Street. Crystal Street is called Ripple on the west and Crystal on the east. There is a light at this corner so it makes turning on Crystal easier. Crystal ends in a cul-de-sac, where we will all meet to hop onto the River Path and head up to Burbank. We will be brunching at Sweetsalt Food Shop on Riverside Drive. Menu and restaurant info here: http://www.sweetsaltfood.com/

Ride starts at 10:00am and we’ll be happy with food in our bellies by 11:00am. If you can’t make the ride, meet us at the restaurant!

Once again, our beautiful graphics provided by Nicole Smith.

Multi-Tool

Tire Levers

Patch Kit

CO2 & Pump or Mini Tire Pump

Spare $20

Tubes!

1) Multi-Tool – If you need to adjust any nut, bolt or screw on the bike. A basic one shouldn’t be more than $10 or $15 and will have the most common sized hex wrenches, socket wrenches and screwdrivers. You can go up in tool count from there, but beware it gets heavier too. Two of the best brands are Park Tool and crankbrothers.

2) Tire Levers – Carrying a set (typically 2, sometimes they are sold as 3) will help you remove the tire from the rim to change a flat. If you have the room, carry 2 so that one can hook around the spoke while you use the other to slide under the beading of the tire all the way around. They are made out of nylon or steel. You can guess that one is slightly more expensive, but another thing to consider is size. The steel levers are usually longer and this may affect how you have to cart them around while on the bike. You can find these at any bike co-op or your local bike shop.

3) Patch Kit – Ideally, you want to find one that has several patches, a small square of sandpaper and glue. Glues can widely vary in quality but make sure it at least says self-vulcanizing. You can also find self-adhesive tube patches, but I still prefer the classic system of glue and patch. The self-adhesive tube patches are lighter to carry because there are simply less pieces, but I doubt that it would last as long as a glue-patch system so I would ride to a bike shop within a day or so to check out the tube.

4) Air – Can’t use a tube with no air in it! There are two ways to solve that problem. One is carrying a mini-pump that you can attach to your frame or throw in a bag. The other is to use CO2 cartridges and an inflator trigger pump. “Roadies” tend toward the CO2, as do triathletes and anyone else whose motto in life is ‘lighter is faster’. A pump can attach to your frame and be just as easy for everyday cycling. I have both – the CO2 in my small saddle bag for faster club riding and training, the pump on my commuter bikes. Be sure to practice with the CO2 before you encounter a problem on the road! Make sure the mini-pump has the ability to fit both schrader and presta valves.

5) Money – If you are close to a bike shop, you can buy a spare tube. If you’re near a pay phone, you can cash in to get a quarter or two. You can call a cab. You can rent a car. Kidding, just wanted to see if you were still reading. Point is, Mom always told you to have an emergency fund. This almost counts.

6) Tubes! The key element to making a tire a complete wheel. A tube should really never cost more than $5 anywhere. When I have a busted tube and I use the one from my kit, I buy two at a shop as soon as possible. One for home and the other to replace the kit spare. Maybe that math doesn’t work out so well, because I have 7 tubes at home. OK, don’t follow me word for word. But I will say that the fastest and easiest thing to do when you get a flat is to just throw a new tube in, patch the old one at home, then use the old one as a spare in your kit. So I always have a new tube somewhere, even in the car. Man, I am really not making sense. No one’s going to follow my advice now!

Finally, consider the different options that are out there to carry your repair kit. A small bag that wraps around your seat stem and tucks neatly under your saddle like this, or a tool roll (like Mopha or Burrito Roll) that can do that but also be tossed in a pannier or messenger bag. Lots of styles abound so have fun choosing something that makes you happy! And safe riding!