Well, it’s been about three months since I bought my MEC Hold Steady so it’s time for a review.
My route is a combination of pathway and roads, flats and hills, and at this time of year means riding on some roads covered in winter gravel. It also means that on my rides I’m alternatively being buffeted by insane winds, bashed by ice pellets, soaked with rain or scorched by the sun.
For the past month or so, I’ve been using the Deuter Dry Shield Bike 18 backpack on my daily rides to work.
For years, I’ve been searching for a good waterproof backpack that will keep my stuff dry during the nasty wet Calgary winters. While a good drybag, or even a garbage bag, can usually keep things dry inside a regular pack, the pack itself will still end up soggy and smelly, and it’s a pain to dump everything into a drybag.
The Dry Shield line from Deuter is a waterproof line, which includes a cycling-specific pack — the DS Bike 18.
If you’re the kind of person who values warmth and doesn’t care about fashion, the Outdoor Research (OR) Windstopper Gorilla balaclava will make an excellent addition to your outdoor gear wardrobe.
Most of the time I wear this, it’s underneath my bike helmet when I’m cycling in cold weather. Not just any ol’ cold weather — really cold weather. -25C cold, usually with nasty cold wind on top of that…
If you’re looking for a good pair of cycling shoes for riding in cold snowy conditions, you don’t have many options. I chose a pair of Lake MXZ300 winter shoes and this will be my third winter riding in them.
These shoes are comfy! The neoprene internal liner is a nice snug fit, without being too tight or constricting. You should get a pair that are a size or size and half larger than you would usually wear. This will let you wear a pair (or two) of thick warm socks. Trying to cram your foot into a shoe that’s too tight will work against you by constricting the blood flow to your foot. Less blood flow means colder feet.
I have to admit, it’s rare that I come across a product that I’m completely satisfied with.
Usually, there are at least a couple of things I’d have done differently or that I think could be improved upon.
So, imagine my delight when I came across a backpack that seemed to have been designed specifically for cyclists. I also have a feeling it was designed, not by the marketing department, but by people who actually USE a backpack when cycling. Gadzooks!
Woodworkers probably have more tools (toys?) to choose from than any other hobby or craft. The range of jigs and tools designed for a specific need are mindboggling. They’re not cheap, either.
So, needless to say, I hummed and hawed about buying a pocket hole jig for close to a year. When I finally bought one, I wished I hadn’t waited so long.
I looked at several different pocket hole jigs, and decided on Kreg Tool’s K2000 model.
This model comes complete with everything you need to very easily and very quickly do pocket hole joinery.
This was the first time I’d ever attempted pocket hole joints, so to have the jig set up, and a cabinet face frame assembled in less than half an hour was very impressive.
Granted, pocket hole joinery is never going to replace the aesthetics of perfect dovetails or even finger / box joints, but for a solid, “behind the scenes” joint, it’s tough to beat.
And, while you don’t necessarily NEED a jig to create pocket holes, the Kreg K2000 lets you create the holes and joints extremely quickly and accurately. (And I need all the help I can get with the accuracy…)
