Just Missed the Fire

May 14, 2005 by Eric Richardson

So apparently this afternoon there was a fire in Elysian Park. I'm trying to figure out exactly what time I would have been through there, 'cause it wouldn't have been much before the 1:55pm time the report mentions. I had probably been through the area mentioned less than a half hour beforehand.

And no, I didn't start the fire. I think I might have seen the smoke later, though.

Update (just a minute later): I just noticed that you can see the smoke in this picture I took at 2:07pm. I also see from timestamps that I came across the 110 just after 1:30pm, so that confirms the half hour or so time difference I had guessed. I would have come across on the Park Row Drive bridge, just above Academy.

A Not So Short Ride

May 14, 2005 by Eric Richardson

My plan to take an easy 5 - 10 mile ride today as a warmup for tomorrow's LA River Ride didn't quite happen. Instead I got a little carried away and rode from Studio City to Downtown -- the long way. I rode Moorpark over until it ended at Riverside, then Riverside east past Disney and through bits of Burbank and Glendale before wandering into Griffith Park. I bought a smoothie and a bottle of water at the Pony Ride Refreshment Stand, and watched little kids ride ponies and trains. Then I got back on the bike and rode the rest of the way through the park, and continued along Riverside until it ended at San Fernando. I took that to Pasadena Ave, which put me on the North Broadway bridge, and right back on my normal route home from work.

But instead of just making the easy ride home through Chinatown I got the bright idea to check out Elysian Park. I pass the North Broadway entrance all the time, and I'd heard of the park but never been in it. I had no idea that it was close to 600 acres. I also had no idea that it went up so far. And yet, I rode most all the way to the top, even stopping to buy a snack and check out an inning of Little League at Elysian Fields.

Coming down was easy. The road wound down to Stadium Way, and then from there I hit Elysian Park Dr. down to Sunset. A left on Sunset took me to Beaudry, which quickly connected me to 2nd St. and the tunnel under Bunker Hill.

bikemetro puts the direct route from my start to finish at 13.5 miles, but I'm pretty sure the way I did it had to be 20. No matter which is technically correct, my unofficial mileage count for the week has now just crept over the century mark.

50 more tomorrow...

More Bike Fun

May 13, 2005 by Eric Richardson

I'm still on track for the bike miles I mentioned earlier this week. I rode to work and back four times this week (20 miles each; 5 there -- with a train -- and 15 back). Then today I rode home from Hollywood and Highland, which I think is just a touch under eight miles. I'll take a similar ride tomorrow just to keep limber, and then should set me up to be feeling good for Sunday's LA River Ride. All told I should end up with around 150 miles this week.

While I was in Hollywood today I bought an Arkel Tail Rider from Hollywood Pro Bicycles. Very cool shop just a block off the Red Line station, and they carry a wide range of Arkel bags. I've had the Arkel Briefcase for a couple years now, and it's held up perfectly. I got the Tail Rider for those instances where I don't need all the space from the briefcase, just enough to carry tools, my lock, and maybe some snacks and water. Check out the features page -- the rain cover, the vertical shape, and the expandability really sold me. I told Alan Thursday that there was no shopping around -- the Tail Rider was what I wanted. Hollywood Pro Bikes had one, and now I have it. I'm happy.

Disposing of Electronics

May 10, 2005 by Eric Richardson

A while ago now I upgraded both Kathy and my computers. Mine I replaced just guts; new CPU, motherboard, memory, etc, but still the same case. Kathy's computer, on the other hand, was in a tiny Dell minitower that had the motherboard connected into the the frame. Seeing as the motherboard was fried and the case wasn't even normal size for a mini motherboard, we ended up buying her a new case and ended up with the old one as junk.

I knew that it was bad to throw computers away thanks to their various heavy metals, but I wasn't exactly sure where you were supposed to take them. As a result, I did nothing, and for a while now the old case has been in the back of her Explorer.

Turns out the City of LA has an E-Waste program, so we just need to take it to one of their collection centers. That's really easy, and it makes me feel pretty dumb for not figuring that out a while ago.

Photographing the Arroyo Seco Bike Path

May 10, 2005 by Eric Richardson

Yesterday, riding home from work, I took it a little slower and stopped to take pictures on the Arroyo Seco Bike Path. When I first wanted to ride the path I had no idea where exactly it started or ended, and even when I found it a lack of marking made me unsure I was in the right place. Hopefully someone in my situation will see these pictures and have a littler clearer idea what they're looking for.

The path starts (on the north) back behind a park (Arroyo Seco Park?) off Marmion Way just east of the river and the 110. It ends in Ernest E Debs Park. There's one other access point in the middle. Nothing's marked, so just look for a ramp down into the riverbed.