OOTNDITHOD

One should be careful in using that post title as it really isn't an acronym that should be thrown around willy nilly. But, come on, nearly 80, bright blue sky, very light winds, October 3? Come on, one of the nicest days in the history of days.

But it wasn't a really nice ride. I had almost 40 miles on the odometer since leaving the bike shop hoping the repair had taken when a downhill just outside the Fairgrounds produced some hub noise. It was much less, how to put this, full throated?, than previously, but it was there. As has been the case on every ride the first appearance of the noise caused me to brake in panic. Slowing down stops the noise but does nothing to diagnose the problem.

I rode on but changed my plans to circle back towards home at the first opportunity. I got hub noise again within 2 miles. This time I let it play out and it stopped on its own.

And never returned.

Boy, what to think. The unrealistic optimist in all of us hopes for self cure but the hard realist knows that mechanical issues self heal never.

So I was on my way home riding through the Fairgrounds. Here is something not ever seen by Fair goers. The Playland Arcade takes the facade off the building and stores it all inside except for the period of time during and immediately around the Fair. Today they had it taken down with the doors open preparing to move it all inside.

I got home to discover that my ash tree is shamelessly continuing to surrender. Here is what the sky looks like (note that you can see lots of it) through an increasingly bare tree.

Once home I set about preparing for the mechanical trauma ahead. I am a dunderheaded lummox but I intend to try to ride that bicycle again and to do so until I have very clear evidence that the noise is back and WILL NOT go away. I want very persistent whining. At that point I will try another front wheel to identify once and for all if this thing is the current front or the current back. My first task was preparation of the back up wheel, it is the wheel currently on the Crown Jewel.

So if I do that, I could be faced with a day when I want to ride when to actually do so would involve switching bicycles in mid-ride including switching front wheels.

Too much hassle.

I pumped the tires on FirstLOOK, swapped out the pedals from the Crown Jewel to that it only has 20,000 miles on it why wouldn't I ride it some more bicycle, replaced the battery in the bicycle computer and pronounce that bicycle ready to ride.

It was and still is, despite the mechanicals, one of the nicest days in the history of days.