Ride to Kailua…

For some folks Honolulu to Kailua and back is not a long ride; it’s really only about 60 miles. But until this weekend, 35 miles is about the most I’ve ridden in a day. I ride about 10 miles a day regularly and often will ride 25 on weekends, but this was a step up. My total for the day was actually about 70 miles as I live a couple of miles away from Kapiolani Park and I added some distance running errands on both ends.
I’m not a “fitness” rider, a racer, or anything even remotely close; I stop a lot and take pictures or simply take in the view. The most proper description of me is “commuter” as I ride to and from work and most everywhere else in town.
I left my house around 6:00am riding my Green Gear Green Dual Drive NWT. Recently, thanks to help from the list, I lowered my slightly too high handlebars and swapped out my stock saddle for the Brooks B-17 I acquired a couple of months ago. I’d broken it in on my “I’ll live if you steal it” commuter bike. The commuter bike now sports a Brooks B-68 useful for sitting even more upright in city traffic than the B-17. The B-17 was the right choice for this ride though, never giving me any reason to wish I had something else.
After slow warm-up to the University of Hawaii area I was joined by my riding partner and off we went around Diamond Head.
I really should give kudos to the aforementioned Cam (a list member) who gave me some route tips for the ride. We followed most them and had a great time.
The morning was a bit grey and we had a few showers along the way. Nothing major or even soaking, more of a cool mist which was really quite pleasant.
When we got to Hawaii Kai we stopped for refreshments, coffee, muffins, and bananas, before heading off towards Sandy Beach and Waimanalo. Avoiding “Heartbreak Hill” (Hawaii Kai Drive over a saddle between a ridgeline and Koko Head creater) we opted for a longer but less steep side street. I don’t do hills, but the NWT is geared low enough that it wasn’t a problem. Dog walkers were passing me, but I was on my bike and heading up. 🙂
Okay, no dog walkers actually passed me.
Then it was down to Sandy Beach followed by another climb up to the Makapu`u lookout. Here’s an image of me there doing my best Gal from Down Under imitation there (the BF site has a shot of Lynette at the same location: http://bikefriday.com/sites/default/files/images/lyn-mokapu-fence.preview.jpg):
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3307/3666957431_01ececd1d5.jpg
There’s a wee bit of road without a shoulder headed down from the lookout to the entrance to Sea Life Park. It pays to wait till there are no cars coming and then hit it. Given that my center of balance is above the restraining wall I was a little leery of riding close to the edge there. It’s over quickly though.
Then it was off down the road to Waimanalo Beach Park where I had the only trouble of the day. There is, sadly, quite a bit of broken glass on the shoulders here on Oahu and I guess I picked up a piece because I had a flat on my rear tire as we were fronting the park. I’d brought spare tubes and my pump, but to my chagrin I’d left a 15mm wrench at home; I had no way of removing my rear wheel. The Dual Drive is bolted on so unless I could find a wrench I was out of luck.
As we say here, “lucky we live Hawaii.” I’m happy to report the aloha spirit is alive and well. There was a local family setting up shop with sun canopies, grills, and more and every one of their pickup trucks had a big toolbox. I had no trouble borrowing a wrench and getting the wheel off. It was the first time I’d dealt with fixing a flat on the Dual Drive and I expected it to be far more difficult then it was. In fact it was really no problem at all except for the missing wrench.
The folks I’d borrowed the wrench from were amused that we were biking from Honolulu to Kailua, even though it’s a fairly normal event out. They asked all the usual questions about the NWT’s 20″ wheels. “No,” I explained, “I don’t have to pedal twice as much.” 🙂
After thanking them profusely, and making a note to buy a wrench for the return trip, we were off for the back roads of Waimanalo. It’s nice to get off the main highway as the traffic on weekends is somewhat relentless. It’s safe enough, but I’d rather not look at the tail end of hundreds of cars if I can skip it.
Reemerging from the cool green of the Waimanalo countryside after too few miles off the main track, we were back on Kalaniana`ole and off to Kailua. After the final hill we turned on to Keolu Drive and headed down to Kailua Beach Park. The area of Kailua we were going through is having a lot of work done on the roads, so there are detours and many steel plates, but the sun was coming out and it was dry so we didn’t worry too much about slipping or falling into bottomless puddles.
Even given our frequent stops and my flat we’d made good time arriving on time for the picnic we’d planned on attending. The weather had cleared up, the Sun was out, and the ocean was warm and inviting; I’d brought trunks and even a towel. As you might guess, I don’t worry too much about weight, I’ve lost about 70 lbs. since I started biking just over a year ago, so believe me, a towel, fresh socks and such for the return are nothing.
The ride back was uneventful, no more flats or other drama. We did detour into Kailua proper to pick up a wrench for the return, but it was, thankfully, unneeded.
It seemed to us that we made better time overall on the way back. Perhaps it was the wind at our backs, but agreed we were faster. Of course I’m only speaking about the time we were actually riding. We still stopped along the way more than once to take in the view, get some cold drinks, and once back to Hawaii Kai, visit one of my aunts for a few minutes.
Aside from the flat tire, my NWT worked beautifully the entire time. The gearing, a stock 24 gear Dual Drive setup, was perfect for me. And now that I’ve got the geometry tweaked a bit more, the bike is even more comfortable than it was when I got it back in October of last year. Mine is a custom for a heavier rider (though I’m now about 35lbs lighter than when I got it last October) and I’d measured my other bike for the fit. But that bike has been tweaked as well since I ordered the NWT so they are both moving targets.
After taking my NWT to Mexico City and the Bay Area, I can finally say I’ve given it a good workout at home. It won’t be the last either, I’m already planning to do it again soon.