Coffeeneuring ride #4: Kaldi's Coffee

I took my Raleigh Sports on a ride around town today and stopped by Kaldi's Coffee. Dedicated bike parking is nonexistent but there are some railings and signs where you can lock a bike. Inside, it's an expansive, modern space with a dark industrial metal, wood, and leather decorating scheme. They serve coffee, pastries, local Denizen's beer, and food (which I didn't try). Great. I'd never been in before but I'll be back.

Coffeeneuring ride #2: Peirce Mill

I took my Raleigh Sports on a longer ride for the first time. I got a bottled Vietnamese coffee, a banana, and a croissant to go from Whole Foods, stuffed that all in my purse, and rode down to Beach Drive. It was a beautiful ride on a perfect fall day. Beach Drive winds along next to Rock Creek and for much of the way it is closed off to cars, so it's just shared by cyclists and pedestrians. About five miles south of Silver Spring is Peirce Mill, built in 1829. The National Park Service oversees the mill, and you can tour the inside, although I didn't do that today. I had my coffee and snacks at one of the picnic tables, then looked around took some pics. There's a small waterfall close to the mill. This is one of the most beautiful spots that I've seen in the DC area.

I have my Raleigh Sports set up in a way that is very comfortable. I angled the handlebars down and for some reason that helped immensely with eliminating my chronic elbow pain while I was riding. This bike seems like the correct size for someone of my height (I'm almost 5'7"). The ride was smooth and silent when rolling along. When I coasted there was the tick tick tick from the hub. The gearing is still a higher than I would like it to be, even with the 22-tooth cog, but it's acceptable for getting up  hills. The shifting is smooth and reliable--pretty impressive for a 42-year-old hub. I'm looking forward to putting a rack on the bike and installing a replacement rear reflector.

Coffeeneuring ride #1: Bump 'n Grind

I found out about the Coffeeneuring Challenge and thought it looked like fun.

I wasn't feeling well today but got myself out of the house to take a trip to Bump 'n Grind. They made a decaf latte topped by a lovely latte leaf.

There's a Capital Bikeshare stop right outside the shop, but I didn't see any bike racks. I locked my bike to a stairway railing. Getting to the shop isn't the easiest because the traffic on East West Highway is very fast. I had to do some sidewalk riding, which isn't ideal either. I combined the trip with a ride to the grocery store. A woman told me that she used to have a bike like mine in Germany a long time ago. The Linus seems to bring out comments, compliments, and stories from passersby.

Oh, and butterfly handlebars I put on the Linus didn't work for me, so I'm back to the original bars. I'll be experimenting with a few stems of different heights and extensions and working on being mindful about not locking my elbows, to try to get rid of the elbow pain.