I could just tell this ride was going to be rough after the first turn.
Background: I finally got my P3C built up and fitted on Tuesday after it had come in a couple of weeks ago. So I take it out for a test ride and that bike is an absolute rocket. Nevermind what people say about the engine, that bike is freaking fast. I was a happy with my purchase right away ;-).
So fast forward to today and my first real ride. I have a launch ramp for a driveway so out I go and get up to speed right away and I am hauling down the road and happy as a kid in a candy store. I eventually get to a major intersection where I make a left turn and notice the bike started making a sound and I looked down to see if there was anything I could see but to no avail. I kept moving and the sound went away so no worries. Eventually I get to another quick right and left turn and the sound comes back and the bike slows down considerably. I get off the bike and try to adjust the QR several times as I see the tire is rubbing the seat tube (I had checked this before I left home and it was fine). I get on the bike and it happens again, adjust QR, rubs again. I then see that the adjustment screws are at completely different lengths. Therefore, the tire is settling up against the chain stay. I walk to a Kayak shop on Mission Bay called Windsport http://www.windsport.net/rentals/ The guys there let me barrow a phillips screwdriver and I make the adjustment.
After so many stops and starts I decide today isn't my day so I head straight home on Mission Blvd. which connects Mission Beach and Pacfic Beach. Soon as I get on Mission a girl from Minnesota (a ton of tourist this time of year) makes a U-Turn right in front of me and I have to take some defensive manuvering in order not to get hit. Woooh that was close but OK I'm on my way home...not a minute later a Fed Ex van turns right onto Mission right in front of me with barely enough room to be safe-"Geez this just isn't my day". About a block down from where he entered Mission he makes a right turn-no signal-right in front of me-this time he hits me as he is turning and keeps going with the turn. I managed to hit the van with my shoulder and manage to turn with the van. I yelled out to stop and eventually he does. I ofcourse was mad as hell but have had enough run ins with vehicles that I know that going RecordCarbon10 on him isn't an option (no offense Chip ;-) ). I pulled around to the driver side and ask him if he had seen me at all and ofcourse he did not. I explained that he had two chances to see me-when he turned right the first time as well as pulling into the driveway the second time. He asked if I was on the sidewalk-I say no ofcourse not as you are not allowed to ride on sidewalks in San Diego, though at you will see plenty of beach cruisers on the sidewalks at the beach. He then tried to say to me, "well there are just so many bikes", I told him that was ridiculous because if there were a million cyclist and you hit one than that's one to many. I go on to explain how careful he needs to be especially at the beach because there are so many people everywhere and so many distractions. I also explained that cyclist have no defenses from getting hit. The FedEx dude was very apologetic the whole time and by the end I could have gotten the him to get out and do dog tricks for me but I just tried to get across how dangerous it was for "us" and how careful he needed to be at every moment.
So all is well with me and more importantly the new P3C. If the bike had been hurt I must admit this might have ended differently, but it wasn't plus the guy was in his fifties and looked like baby-huey so violence wasn't necessary and hopefully it never is as it really doesn't accomplish anything, as I know from experience.
Folks, be careful out there and as usual expect the unexpected.
Background: I finally got my P3C built up and fitted on Tuesday after it had come in a couple of weeks ago. So I take it out for a test ride and that bike is an absolute rocket. Nevermind what people say about the engine, that bike is freaking fast. I was a happy with my purchase right away ;-).
So fast forward to today and my first real ride. I have a launch ramp for a driveway so out I go and get up to speed right away and I am hauling down the road and happy as a kid in a candy store. I eventually get to a major intersection where I make a left turn and notice the bike started making a sound and I looked down to see if there was anything I could see but to no avail. I kept moving and the sound went away so no worries. Eventually I get to another quick right and left turn and the sound comes back and the bike slows down considerably. I get off the bike and try to adjust the QR several times as I see the tire is rubbing the seat tube (I had checked this before I left home and it was fine). I get on the bike and it happens again, adjust QR, rubs again. I then see that the adjustment screws are at completely different lengths. Therefore, the tire is settling up against the chain stay. I walk to a Kayak shop on Mission Bay called Windsport http://www.windsport.net/rentals/ The guys there let me barrow a phillips screwdriver and I make the adjustment.
After so many stops and starts I decide today isn't my day so I head straight home on Mission Blvd. which connects Mission Beach and Pacfic Beach. Soon as I get on Mission a girl from Minnesota (a ton of tourist this time of year) makes a U-Turn right in front of me and I have to take some defensive manuvering in order not to get hit. Woooh that was close but OK I'm on my way home...not a minute later a Fed Ex van turns right onto Mission right in front of me with barely enough room to be safe-"Geez this just isn't my day". About a block down from where he entered Mission he makes a right turn-no signal-right in front of me-this time he hits me as he is turning and keeps going with the turn. I managed to hit the van with my shoulder and manage to turn with the van. I yelled out to stop and eventually he does. I ofcourse was mad as hell but have had enough run ins with vehicles that I know that going RecordCarbon10 on him isn't an option (no offense Chip ;-) ). I pulled around to the driver side and ask him if he had seen me at all and ofcourse he did not. I explained that he had two chances to see me-when he turned right the first time as well as pulling into the driveway the second time. He asked if I was on the sidewalk-I say no ofcourse not as you are not allowed to ride on sidewalks in San Diego, though at you will see plenty of beach cruisers on the sidewalks at the beach. He then tried to say to me, "well there are just so many bikes", I told him that was ridiculous because if there were a million cyclist and you hit one than that's one to many. I go on to explain how careful he needs to be especially at the beach because there are so many people everywhere and so many distractions. I also explained that cyclist have no defenses from getting hit. The FedEx dude was very apologetic the whole time and by the end I could have gotten the him to get out and do dog tricks for me but I just tried to get across how dangerous it was for "us" and how careful he needed to be at every moment.
So all is well with me and more importantly the new P3C. If the bike had been hurt I must admit this might have ended differently, but it wasn't plus the guy was in his fifties and looked like baby-huey so violence wasn't necessary and hopefully it never is as it really doesn't accomplish anything, as I know from experience.
Folks, be careful out there and as usual expect the unexpected.