The rides went fine, otherwise. The way there I wasn't huffing and puffing so I wasn't wheezing or out of breath like the first time. The ride home I pedaled up the first hill, Laurel Street, without stopping. The second hill, Alta Street I pushed the bike till I reached the top, then pedaled home. I was sweaty, but not half dead. My fitness is improving. That is something worth doing once a week, but not every day.
For ages now, I've wanted a scooter, but the wheel sizes are wrong, and the gear you're supposed to wear is sweaty. If I'd been wearing that gear on my bicycle, there would be my bruised shoulder but no road rash. In the summer heat? All that gear will stink and it won't be much fun. Now that I know I can fall over, and keeping in context I'm injured every 10 times I get on a two-wheeled vehicle, I have to worry about the dangers of something faster. There's compromise vehicles, of course, like sidecars or leaning trikes like this:
But I have to wonder, in this context, if I might be happier with a jeep than a motorcycle. One with the roof down, doors off so I can enjoy the pavement whizzing by, yet has four wheels to deal with gravel, is obvious about being there, and 4WD for all those roads I want to drive on in the boonies, and I can wear light clothes rather than a helmet etc.
And if a jeep, how I can go about making it more fuel efficient and lighter weight so its fun to drive. With a latchable locking cover over my radio, for example. I think I need to look into this. Maybe swap the engine for Diesel someday. I don't know what it would cost, and I don't like the new ones. They're too obsessed with comforts and safety features and are hugely overweight. A proper jeep needs welding to stay together, an upgraded suspension, anti-sway bars, progressive shocks, and reinforced mounts, and big knobby tires. Those things are available aftermarket but probably expensive.
I suspect if I go that route, I will have to buy a proper TIG welder, argon bottle, cooling system, vacuum vent, and fan to keep the fumes off me. Upside is it would be MINE. And a good reason to learn how to work with carbon fiber, building replacement fenders and doors and body panels, replacing the frame with tubes of cromoly steel. Gradually, of course. As I understand it, Subarus aren't really serious offroad vehicles, and I know that jeeps are. They are light enough, which is really important. I need to do a lot of research. There might be a better open-door open top option than a jeep. I wish I was a structural engineer so I could design a reasonable frame and avoid the inherent flaws an amateur makes. And I need to learn 3D CAD of some kind. One that takes a stress test plug-in so I can figure out where the stressors are and design the frame to deal with them properly. Screw up and you get cracks and failure.
Maybe I'm overreacting to the fall, but both places are stinging right now, and its going to be another hot and sweaty day, followed by a warm and muggy night. I am already using my fan to allow me to sleep. When its muggy and the air is still, its too miserable to fall asleep. An open top and light clothes are a lot more comfortable than stinky sweaty leathers in 100'F heat. Or road rash from my bicycle. With no health insurance a bad crash would prove quite expensive.
Yep, lots to figure out. Around the time these scabs finish healing and fall off, I should have something to report.
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