Ebikes, baby!

Note:  Auto-correct is NOT happy about the word "ebike" and is fiercely fighting me each time I type it.  If you are also unfamiliar with it, it means electric bikes.  And we got some!  

In our previous life, Husband and I both rode regular bikes and had some glorious biking adventures.  We rode tandems and single bikes, hybrids and road bikes.  That all abruptly ended about 7-8 years ago with the acquisition of a motorcycle .... truly a happy event as far as the legs and Tush were concerned.   

Then, with the advance of lithium batteries, e b i k e s (take THAT, auto-correct!) exploded onto the scene with a plethora of different makes and models.  Back in the day (dang, that sounds old)  there used to be a manageable number of bike manufacturers .... Trek, Cannondale, Specialized, etc., and local shops sold many of them.  However, over months of researching e b i k e s, I kept encountering more and more brands.  And I'm talking dozens!  Test-riding them all was impossible.  Heck, without criss-crossing the USA and Canada, it was impossible to even SEE most of them before purchasing.  

About a year ago, a friend loaned us his Rad bike for a while, which is probably the most widely-known brand, and are only sold online.  But in the end, Husband chose the high-quality components of a Tern, and I wanted a lighter, low-step (think of the old girl-style bikes) and got a Magnum.  (I'll bet you never heard of either name.  See what I mean??)  We purchased both at local shops and both fold in half for easier packing into ..... you guessed it .... our van.  

In fact, the van was our main reason for getting e b i k e s.  We can travel to wherever, park, set up camp, and then ride the bikes to ... say ... go eat or explore, without having to undo all that setting up to drive somewhere.  Flawless plan, right?  

We figure it's best to carry them inside our vehicle, rather than on a rack, to avoid the sad possibility of them disappearing into the night.  And, as a nod to one of my previous posts about my delight in van mods, I installed straps in the van "garage" to keep the two folded bikes upright and separated, so they don't attack each other during transit.  

Speaking of mods ... on my bike I've added a front basket, different seat, and a mirror.  Husband tries to hold onto a semblance of his former youthful-biking-coolness but alas, I'm afraid, due to the big basket attached to his rear fender (for holding either groceries or dog) he will probably fall short of that goal.  I don't care how I look because, for me, this bike is not about appearances, it's about utility.   (Wouldn't matter anyway .....)  At least there are no more dreaded clip-in shoes (the cause of my two minor, previous-life bike crashes) nor any padded spandex whatsoever. 

My e b i k e (as do most) has two amazing features.  The first one is a throttle which I seldom use because the second feature -- "Peddle Assist" -- pretty much does it all.  I have the option of riding without engaging either of those features (nobody does that), or push a button and WHOOSH .... hills become a non-issue.  I still do enough peddling to get a respectable workout without rendering myself useless for the rest of the day.  (For those of you who know and care-- most of the time I'm in PA levels 1 or 2.)  The downside of this operation is that the battery must be recharged now and then, and for that, one must have the presence of mind to remember to do it.  Supposedly I should be able get well over 50 miles per charge, depending on how much peddling I do, but that remains to be tested.  One thing's for sure, you do NOT want to be caught mid-ride with a depleted battery because that would leave you with nothing but some seriously heavy slogging* to get home.  (*Impromptu term for manually pedaling an over 50-lb bike.)

My way of mentally dealing with the sticker-shock of a new bike is to ride it.  And that I have.  Well ... some.  The countryside where I live is decidedly dull and colorless and almost everywhere looks the same except for an occasional (and sometimes startlingly) massive canyon.  Not to mention, this time of year it's usually too hot to ride after nine a.m.  So far the Tush's limit is about 18 miles, but I have hopes that'll improve because there's a Dairy Queen in town that would entail a 30 mile round trip, give or take.  

This is at the Alvord Desert in SE Oregon which was on our Must Return list.  We first went there five years ago and I wrote about it here.  It was the perfect place (for me) to get used to a new type of bike because there is literally nothing (NOTHING!) you can run into.  The larger of those two specks in the distance is Husband on his bike, and the tiny speck is our dog in hot pursuit.  (Didn't have the basket yet.)

So time will tell.  All our former-life bikes are gone except for one (not mine) that hosts a thick layer of dust.   And hopefully this blasted heat wave will JUST STOP IT!  

STOP IT STOP IT STOP IT!!

......... (See previous semi-grumpy post.)

Somethin's burnin'

Where we used to live, until about three years ago, I never could see a reason to have a 72 hour kit.  (I know, I know.  Raised eyebrows.  Shocked faces.  Gasps.)  A better idea, in my opinion, would be to keep a few necessary items at one of our kids' homes, who lived nearby.  Everything else we might need was available at any number of local shops, grocery stores, or pharmacies.  In our Former Life, the only realistic disaster was maybe a house fire or ...... hmmmm.  Flood?  No.  Nuclear attack?  Pshaw.  We never did get around to leaving anything at anyone's house, nonetheless, the intent was there.  And (a very pertinent point) it rained a lot where we used to live.  I'll explain why I bring this up.  

We now live in the desert where it's very dry 3-4 months of the year.  Every year, the news ominously reports, is drier than the last, not to mention this heat wave from you-know-where.  Wild fires can spring up in an instant, especially in remote areas.  So a single lighted match or cigarette causes great consternation.  We are shamed into keeping our trees trimmed up and brush cleared with frequent reminders of potential calamity should we fail to comply.   Thunderstorms, unless accompanied by a fair amount of rain, are no longer innocent summer entertainment.  July 4th fireworks bring a lot of angst.  Alerts pop up on my phone with evacuation updates.

It's a different world over here.  (I fantasize about lawn sprinklers mounted on our roof.  Couldn't hurt, right?)  To put it briefly, I miss the rain.  

About ten days ago as we were driving back from town, we saw a mega plume of smoke coming from what looked like the area where we live.  (Fortunately it wasn't, although it WAS less than seven miles away and moving closer.)  

For the next couple of days, our local Facebook group was abuzz and cars were gathering along roads where there were viewpoints.  Husband and I sat on our patio and watched the fire-fighting planes flying to dump their load of red retardant then back to the local airport to refill.  

A helicopter heading back to refill the bag at the end of the cable with (we assume) water.

They named it the Grandview Fire.  Husband took the above two photos.  He sent them to a couple of local news stations and they were shown on TV.  

Our mountain view disappeared into the smokey haze ... which happens regularly here in the summer.  But by the third day, the haze disappeared and we began to read news reports that, thankfully, the level of containment was growing and the fire had topped out at just over 6,000 acres. The firemen were winning.  (No homes were lost.)

We live on a 10,000+ acre peninsula of land, surrounded on the west, north, and east by vast canyons with rivers running along the base of each.  I've come to really appreciate these natural firebreaks and this latest fire was on the other side of one of those canyons.  I also appreciate that our local fire department has never lost one house in our community to a wild fire .... thus far.   About twelve years ago, there was a wild fire close to where our home now sits, in fact there are a few charred stumps remaining on our property.  Someone apparently had lost control of their burn pile.  One neighbor said she saw an ember float up into a nearby tree which then erupted like a torch.   This fire burned about ten acres and, as the neighbors tell it, the firemen camped close by for a week, just to be sure it was out.  It burned mostly public land where, years later, it still looks ugly and scarred because no one is allowed to cut down the dead trees ..... (a moment to pause and, yet again, wonder about government bureaucrats).

So I now have a plan.  If we ever have to evacuate, Husband and I will each drive one of our cars, and I have a list of items that will go into each vehicle.  Instead of 72 hour kits, we have a 72+++ hour van that already contains a majority of the stuff we might need.  I also ..... get this(!) ..... organized (mostly) our 45-year-old monster nest of random family photos into albums.  Yes, it's true.  I'm awarding myself Big Points for this latest project that I completed a few days ago, because it's been nagging me for years.  (So, to my posterity, next time you come to visit, you will find all the albums in the den, awaiting your viewing pleasure.)  And rest assured, said albums are on the evacuation list.  I just hope we never have to use it.

Working out the bugs, AKA, projects are my sanity

We've now been on several outings in The Van, and the "bugs" are rising to the surface.  But other than the latest bug, which is the need to add a second drain in the shower pan (which falls under the jurisdiction of Husband) ... I see them as opportunities.  Another project!  For a few more hours, or days, I have a purpose and a mission!

The shower drain issue first became evident when we were in Utah, boondocking* on a dirt road somewhere near the town of Toquerville.  We were parked on a bit of a slant and the shower pan overflowed during my shower.  A recessed shower pan in a van floor is a challenge because the total depth of the floor, including vinyl flooring, subfloor, and insulation, is about 1.75 inches thick.  This translates to a very shallow shower pan, so level parking and efficient drainage are key.  

Sometimes level parking, as much as we try, isn't always possible, so then fast and free-flowing drainage becomes even more important and our one little drain isn't quite up to the task.  So Lucky Husband has a job.  Yay ....?  (Note:  2nd drain has since been added.)

I, on the other hand, LOVE projects (not to be confused with chores, which I dislike).  I love designing, planning, executing, and admiring the results afterwards.  Let me show you a few I've done since my last blog update, on my own, ofttimes using power tools.  

Sun shades.  No power tools this time ..... unless you count a sewing machine.  I follow a YouTube video called "From She to Me", by Debbie who also travels in a van with her husband.  Debbie is always doing little mods (modifications) to her van and is not the least bit intimidated by tools, mechanics, or pulling things apart and then putting them back together.  Add to that, she cooks and sews.  (I'm not sure what her husband does, other than hold the camera.)  She made sun shades for her van so I made sun shades for my van.  If Debbie can do it, I can too.  

Held on by magnets

I ordered the screening from sailrite.com (like Debbie did) and found the edging tape on Amazon.  We had shades like these for our motorhome which kept some of the sunlight and heat from coming though the cab windows, which are not tinted like the other windows.  

I also installed clips to hold our broom under the sofa, clips to hold the long-handled squeegee, and more clips to hold the wand that unfurls our ....... (drumroll) ...... awning!  Yes!  Here's the story ..... 

Months ago, Husband researched awnings and decided on a Thule model.  We found it on Amazon and ordered it.  A few days later, Amazon informed us it had shipped and gave a delivery date, but the shipping details were suspiciously vague.    A few weeks later when that date arrived, Amazon emailed saying that it had NOT shipped and do we still want it?  

Yes, we did.  

Repeat the several-weeks-long process of vague shipment details, stated delivery date, and same inquiring email.  

Finally we said No.  Cancel order.  

Husband contacted a dealer about 150 miles away who said they were getting the same runaround from Thule, so they had stopped selling that brand.  (Note: I blame Covid.  Thule, a Swedish company, has a good reputation for quality products.)  This dealer did have Fiamma brand awnings which are very nice.  Husband called them back and left a phone message saying we'd like one of their Fiammas.  

A few hours after that phone call, a long box showed up on our driveway.  Inside was a Thule awning.  From Amazon.

We opened the box to discover it was a different Thule model, which comes with brackets that do not fit our van .... in fact, this particular model is not even sold in this hemisphere!  I contacted Amazon to tell them that we did not order this awning.  Their answer:  We can keep it or dispose of it.  No charge.  (This is a $1200 awning.)

Now this would be a dilemma for anyone who doesn't have the resources to make custom mounting brackets.  (Insert Brilliant Machinist Husband here.  Ha!)  So the end result is we have a beautiful awning that fits our van and the total cost was about $15.   (score, score, SCORE!)

Back to my own little mods, which now pale after that last story.

I sleep on the side of the bed (in the van) that is against the back doors and needed a place to stick my phone, earbuds, and other necessities.  So I designed and made a wooden, felt-lined box attached to a board that slides under the mattress.  I call it my nightstand.

I pull it out when I change the bedding, then stick it back in.  

Also, I made another wooden box/shelf for holding small items .... along with key hooks, which I attached to one of our cabinets.  

Mind you, these involved: 

    1. a table saw 

    2. a power sander 

    3. clamps, and 

    4. a power drill  

No help from Husband.  In fact, he wasn't even home.  (Probably golfing.)   "I am woman, hear me roar ..."

I hung more hooks because we can never have enough.  And husband completed the trim pieces inside.  

All that's left before the van is deemed FINISHED are three outside lights.  (Mods, by the way, do not count.  May they live on forevermore.)

So back to those "bugs" .....

It would be an understatement to say the weather has been hot.  As you may recall, we installed an evaporative cooler in the van ceiling.  But apparently it requires not being parked in the blazing afternoon sun.  A few days ago we had to park in an unfortunate shadeless position, with the rear of the van getting the full brunt.  Husband, using one of those temperature-measuring laser gun thingies, (you point it at something and it tells you how hot it is.) measured the temp of the metal on the inside of our rear doors. 120 degrees!  (Hmmm.  I personally insulated those doors.)  Anyway, too much for our little ceiling cooler.  Soooooo, I'm now trying to design a way to shield portions of the van exterior (where the awning isn't) that may be exposed to a solar onslaught.  (Note:  We since purchased a second detachable and movable awning to cover in-the-hot-sun areas where the main awning doesn't reach.)

Another project!  My sanity will happily endure yet another day.  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

*Boondocking -- RV camping without plugging into electricity or hooking up to water.  Being completely off-grid and self-contained.