Shed Building Plans

The GP stands for General Purpose. The Ti GP bikes main purpose is a commuter. And it has been outstanding in fulfilling that role for a decade now.  Last winter I got serious and upgraded the creature comforts in particular the seat and handlebars.  These changes prompted me to spend even more time on the bike and while comfortable and happy soon my mind turned to other ways to fully integrate my bike into my daily life. 

For many years I got by just fine with a backpack for my daily commuting needs.  For a while I used the handlebar basket which worked great but once I removed it I found I liked the crisp handling of an unencumbered front end. 

 Back in the 1990s I had a Schwinn mountain bike with fenders and a rear rack that was my commuter rig.  Back then I was of limited means so I made due with an inexpensive rack trunk.  That arrangement worked good for carrying my lunch and wallet and keys but during the seasonal transition when I might have a heavy jacket and gloves in the morning I found myself stacking a bungee corded Tower of Pisa of gear onto the rack when the afternoon temperatures warmed.

My goal when setting up the Ti GP was to have a solid city bike built with quality components on a sturdy, corrosion resistant titanium frame; a blend of performance and utility.  For a long time I have resisted bolting on things that add weight. After a lot of thought and another season of hot humid weather just around the corner Ive decided to do the right thing and ditch the backpack and get the cargo onto the bike where it belongs.

   

The conundrum I faced was how to incorporate cargo hauling capability into a performance oriented "racing" bicycle frame that unlike my old Schwinn has no braze ons for mounting a rack.  Luckily Im not the first person to wonder about this and I discovered Old Man Mountain racks.  This company has been around a while and has created a good reputation of filling a unique niche in the bikepacking world.  

There is some cool history of how OMM came to be thats worth the read.  As a small business owner myself I love the opportunity to support another small American company.  I purchased OMMs latest model called the Pioneer.  Its the biggest rack they offer.  Probably overkill for me but its always better to go big and have a little in reserve than go into a fight under gunned.  

OMM racks are well designed with a number of ways to bolt onto bike frames with no threaded eyelets.  I chose to bolt the upper supports to the rear brake bosses. Easy peasy.  The lower attachment is where this rack really shines.  The rack comes with a long skewer which bolts through the real axle.  Very sturdy and secure!

The panniers I just received today.  They are by Ortlieb made in Germany. What sold me on them is the excellent retention system.  The set comes with several inserts so the latches can be precisely fitted to the diameter of the rack tubing. 

The Pioneers stout 1/2" diameter tubing and wide width provide lots of clearance between the wheel and the panniers. Another feature I thought made perfect sense was a was a second tube welded about two inches below the top of the rack specifically as a pannier mounting point to get the load even lower down for stability.

This is my first venture into the world of panniers and I decided to run front panniers instead of full sized rear bags.  They are the Front Roller Plus model so are extra large capacity versus the standard front panniers.  For my purposes they will provide plenty of room so I will use them and as time goes by Ill see how they work.  I have no doubt that grocery stops, beer runs and an occasional bike picnic is in the future.

Spring is in full swing here in Ohio so when dawn broke cool and clear I knew I was going for a recumbent ride.  I decided to ride the B & O Trail which is my local trail and a staple in this blog.  Early on it was cool and almost fair to say cold.  I wore long tights with my jacket and even a thin helmet liner.  Spring has been a bit late here in these parts but things are finally shaping up.  Over the last couple weeks weve had a load of rain and the trees have all sprouted their greenery.  Next to the crisp days of autumn it is my favorite time for bike riding.

Ive been up and down this bike trail at least a hundred times but I never stopped to read this sign posted along the trail in the small town of Bellville, Ohio.  Today I wasnt interested in racing the clock so I pulled over to check it out.

 Thats pretty cool.  The United States was only 32 years old at that point. Ohio was indeed the wild frontier.

The log cabin is not in existence anymore but I bet the view out front of the McClure brothers cabin looked a lot like this 200 years ago:

I continued on from north to south covering all 18 miles of the trail as it warmed up and I could shed my extra layers.  When I rolled into Butler at the end of the trail it was too nice of a morning to just turn around so I decided on the fly to add a loop and tour through the Mohican State Park which lies about 7 miles to the east from Butler.

I know a route that uses seldom traveled rural roads so I can avoid the busy state highway that leads to the park.  For a short while the country lanes follow the Clear Fork valley and the steadily flowing river.  

Within a mile or two from the end of the bike trail I get to the hill country.  My recumbent bike climbs just fine and I actually like the experience pushing off the firm seat back putting 100% of my effort into the cranks.  The loop circles around to the north of the park.  The views are nice.

Eventually the Clear Fork River flows into Pleasant Hill Lake which was formed when the Army Corps of Engineers built a damn.  

The level of the lake is maintained at the damn and excess water is directed through a spillway and continues on its path through the valley.  A glimpse of the water can be seen just above my bike in the picture.  From this point on the stream is called the Black Fork.  It flows roughly east through the Mohican-Memorial State Forest for a few miles until its confluence with the Mohican River at Loudenville, Ohio.

In the above photo is the pump house and spillway.  In the background is the end of the 850 acre lake.  Continuing on the loop took me into the state park and down into the gorge along the park road.  Ive rode in this area and photographed the natural beauty of the gorge from my mountain bike on the 25 mile single track circuit.  It is fantastic on a knobby tire bike.