Category Archives: Article

I know I am breaking my rule of one post a day, but this info is so hot I just can’t hold on to it.

I just got done talking to a great guy named Bill Anslow who is the Project Manager for Albany County. He filled me in on the current construction going on on Fuller Rd.

Currently we are in Phase 2 of the construction project which spans the length between I-90 and Central Ave. This phase is going to last 15 weeks and should be done by the end of September. Going north there are going to be two lanes and going south there is going to be one lane with a turning lane in between them.

When I asked about the bike lanes he said that they were not putting them in. Rather they are opting for a situation much like on Western where the lanes are just a bit wider to accommodated both bikes and cars at the same time. He called it “Shared Travel.” Weather this option is better or not is for you to decide, and maybe for a future article, right now it is just good to be informed.

Thanks again to Bill Anslow for the information and for returning my call so swiftly.

Written by Chris Belsole

Okay, vacation over. Time to start churning out some content.

While my dream of taking a bike tour around Europe may be a ways into the future it never hurts to plan for it now. For this reason I have chosen my first stop on my grand cycling adventure, the Madonna del Ghisallo.

“According to the legend, the Medieval count Ghisallo was being attacked by bandits when he saw an image of Virgin Mary at a shrine. He ran to it and was saved from the robbers. The apparition became known as the Madonna del Ghisallo, and she became a patroness of local travellers. In later times, Madonna del Ghisallo (the hill) was made part of the Giro di Lombardia bicycle race.

A local priest, Father Ermelindo Vigano, proposed that Madonna del Ghisallo (the apparition) be declared the patroness of cyclists. This was confirmed by Pope Pius XII. Nowadays the shrine of Madonna del Ghisallo contains a small cycling museum with photos and artifacts from the sport. There also burns an eternal flame for cyclists who have died. One particularly notable artifact is the crumpled bicycle that Fabio Casartelli, a native of the region, rode on the day that he died in a crash in the Tour de France.”

–Wikipedia

Written by Chris Belsole

As I write this I am at home in Westchester sipping some tea with my mom and relaxing on the mandatory vacation I was made to take. Poor me. I wanted to tell you about an experience I had yesterday that really showed how far I’ve come as a bicyclists.

In my earlier, fatter, lazier days I still liked to ride my bike. I would take it up to the local Suncoast, a three mile trip, and buy a copy of Dragonball on VHS. Now I am dating myself. The thing is back then I would not be able to make it up the hills. I would walk my bike the part of the way that I could not climb.

Yesterday I went out to buy some groceries with my brother, hence the title, and I really got to see how far I have gone. First mechanically, I found an old bike in our garage, assessed it, and made it rideable for my brother. Thanks Mary Lou. Then structurally, I was able to climb those hills without incident. I wasn’t even in a low gear. Lastly, if my brother symbolized me when I was younger while he was wheezing and struggling to get up hills I wasn’t even breaking a sweat.

So I’ll leave you with these parting words, look back from where you’ve come so that you can appreciate where you are. Just remember to keep strait on the road.

Written by Chris Belsole

I couldn’t resist that one. From Bike Hugger:

The c-clip on the internal hub dislodged and suddenly Robert was unable to pedal or brake. We had a ride to do so I pushed him to Mellow Johnnys where they fixed the hub and we drank good coffee. Not shown is how I also pulled him back to stop. We looked like a couple of stooges at each intersection.

Of course this is not the first time a bike was used to tow something:

Written by Chris Belsole