Topics

1

Gear Talk / Water bottles and bisephenol-A

« on: May 26, 2008, 10:43:19 pm »

What are peoples thought on bisephenol-A and other chemicals leaching from your water bottles into your drinking water while on the road?  Is it a concern or do people even care?  I was searching for a new bottle online and REI had 2 or 3 pages of bisephenol-A free bottles prominently listed.  This plastic additive, which seems to be in lots of plastics we come in contact with every day, may have some pretty serious health effects.

I was looking for a Sigg 1.5 liter bottle and found Sigg is pretty much backordered to Switzerland on many of their products.  Sigg seems to have caught the publics attention in a big way on Oprah where Julia Roberts held up a Sigg water bottle for all the world to see. Sigg claims 0.0% leaching of any chemicals on all of their bottles.

I use a Soma Crystal water bottle for around town riding.  For longer rides I add a Swiss Katadyn Micro Filter water bottle, which pretty much turns tap water from most any source into store bought taste and will filter stream water for bacteria and cysts.  It can even be upgraded for third-world use.  If you normally buy bottled water while on the road it pays for itself, and keeps a lot of plastic out of the landfills.  Both of the above bottles claim to be bisephenol-A free.
As a note my wife uses stainless steel water bottles for her bike.


Western Flyer

A wheel spins in a circle.
The still point at the center
gives it direction.
Be still.

   "The Parents' Tao Te Ching"

2

General Discussion / Bike fitting and injuries

« on: June 13, 2008, 11:48:53 pm »

Here is the APTA (American Physical Therapist Association) website.  www.apta.org/consumer   Look in the Cyclists Corner on the right hand side of the screen.  It has basic advice for bike fitting, stretching, and how to prevent injuries and deal with them when they occur.

My wife is a PT so I get regular doses of this advice.  I still get injured from time to time, but there is some good sports medical advice available on the site.

Do Forum member know of other websites with bike fitting and cycling injury prevention information?


Western Flyer

A wheel spins in a circle.
The still point at the center
gives it direction.
Be still.

   "The Parents' Tao Te Ching"

3

General Discussion / Sun protection

« on: May 11, 2008, 11:07:43 pm »

It is the middle of May and spring is finally arriving in the Northwest so I assume the sun must be shinning everywhere else.  So my question is what do riders do for sun/UV protection while riding?

For me who has spent a lifetime biking, surfing, kayaking and sailing, it is a very real question or so says my dermatologist.  

I of course use a SPF 30 or greater.  My daughter who knows more than I about such thing says to use sunscreen with a zinc oxide base, but the ones I have tried leave a ghostly white shadow on my face and are hard to apply.  I wear long sleeve riding shirts and tie a bandana around my neck on long rides.

What do others do or dont do?


Western Flyer

A wheel spins in a circle.
The still point at the center
gives it direction.
Be still.

   "The Parents' Tao Te Ching"

4

General Discussion / Mosquitoes repellents?

« on: November 06, 2007, 05:06:43 pm »

What to people do about mosquitoes while bike camping?  I really don't like using DEET based repellents.

Does anyone have any magic natural formulas for repellents, and how effective are they?

Once while camping on Molokai Island in Hawai'i a local Hawaiian man told me to drink a six-pack of beer to keep the mosquitoes away.  The two of us proceeded to put it to the test.  It seemed to work well enough, but I don't recommend it if you are planning to get on the road early the next morning.

If it is appropriate I find a small wood fire near the campsite does an excellent job of keeping the mosquitoes away.

Western Flyer