My Oregon Adventure / A Different Allure Libre

I have this idea. My opportunities for serious bike travel might be somewhat limited for the next couple years, for a variety of reasons. But that is not going to keep me from logging a lot of miles and seeing the sights. I am going to ride my bicycle to all of the cities and towns in Oregon.


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I am going to use my GPS unit to map the rides and hopefully have some good pictures for you here.

I am a somewhat asocial person. I used to think that there was something wrong with me, considering how much I just prefer to be by myself. I am not into group rides. There is only one person with whom I enjoy riding. And no, I am not just saying that because she reads this.

And that leads me to a thought that has been rattling around in my head. Why can't brevets be done any time? A real allure libre. Even permanents have their limitations. But we have the technology to track brevets electronically. Oh, sure, those uptight French don't even like permanents and won't accept them as qualifying rides, but we in America tend to be a little less stick-up-the-ass about these kinds of things. Brevets should be able to be ridden without checkpoints, ridden anytime randonneurs want, or are able, to ride, and can very easily be verified.

I suppose some people might think, "What's the point?" Some people think that riding brevets are all about the camaraderie. And who am I to argue with them? I suppose everybody brings their own reasons to the table for why they would subject themselves to such misery.

I personally see randonneuring as a test of the rider and the bicycle. Did you build up your platform properly? Did you train your body, mind, heart, and soul to pull off this ride? These tasks are hard enough in and of themselves. Now, scheduling my work life to coincide with the qualifiers in the series AND hope that nothing catastrophic comes up with a software project right before the only 1200km brevet I can attend? I suppose that is part of the trial, part of the test of one's mettle. But some of us have lives.

Now, there are indeed additioal requirements in riding unsupported. A GPS unit and/or a GPS tracker is necessary. In my case, I also want to carry a decent camera. Sleeping space, water, and other needs will now be solely the responsibility of the rider. But isn't living off the land part of the reason of allure libre? Everyone can be their own randonneuring governing body, but there would be a certain amount of "in the spirit" of it all.

What do you think? I am writing and gathering a set of software tools that will allow for translating and overlaying GPS tracks on Google Maps. If you have any feedback or ideas, sound off.

An Open Letter to Princeton Tec

Dear RC and Princeton Tec,

I will refer to you as RC here. Although you are a client-facing employee of Princeton Tec, I am not sure that you want the millions of my readers to know your name and therefore start harassing you.

I recently returned my broken Switchback lights, both an SB1 and SB3, for service. I am reasonably sure that my lights were out of warranty, but I wouldn’t know because my warranty card is probably somewhere in a landfill or, with a little luck, been recycled into somebody’s grocery bag. At any rate, my two lights both broke within a week of each other. I won’t go into gory detail for my readers because it really doesn’t matter. They stopped working, one in comprehensible fashion and the other in an unknown mysterious way. What matters is the level of service I received.

I like to think of myself as a rather picky customer, but even I find myself slipping into apathy when I receive crappy service. It’s not worth confronting some lame employee who obviously doesn’t care that the service meted rated barely a half-step above torture. Even the cranky, picky, curmudgeonly types such as me are being beaten into submission by customer service standards that are inexorably sliding into the tarpits of the special circle of hell reserved for people who bring their babies to evening movies. Sure, I talk a good game about being picky (and there’s no pretending about my crankiness), but I often just keep my mouth shut and sulk away, committed to taking my money elsewhere. Imagine my shock when I received from Princeton Tec service above and beyond any reasonability.

I returned to Princeton Tec an SB3 and SB1, along with their batteries, both reasonably well-used but no longer functional. I fully expected a bill or at least a “yer lights are broke, go away.” I went to the UPS depot to pick up my package yesterday. It was huge. Inside of this box were two brand-new, shrink-wrapped boxes containing an SB1 and SB3. WHAT?! Someone call 911! My old, broken lights were stolen and replaced with shiny, new ones! And how am I supposed to carry this package home on my bike?! And someone stole my bill!

Now, let me give a little background on the SB3. Shortly after I bought it, it somehow managed to take in water while I was on tour. In that downpour, I took in quite a bit of water myself. I had to open up the SB3 when I stopped somewhere dry in order to get out the water so that I could continue. Princeton Tec still replaced that head unit. Wow. Somebody at that company believes in their products. There's a lot of context that I am leaving out, but it's unimportant. What is important is that PT has bent over backwards to keep me happy about these lights. And I didn't even want them to be flexible.

How is it that a company that sells hard goods (good ones, at that) still dishes out shockingly good service?

In these difficult economic times, more companies would do well to learn from your lead. But then again maybe not. Customer service such as yours makes it that much easier to identify companies that care.

I am overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of your service. I noticed immediately that there are some definite improvements in the plug setup, which seemed to be a weak point. So Princeton Tec is clearly paying attention and improving their products. I am going through the entire Princeton Tec catalog as I write this, trying to find every item that has any utility for me. And I plan to buy every single one of them. You have a customer for life and I am going to chew off the ear of anyone who will stand still long enough for me to rattle off my spiel of the awesomeness of Princeton Tec. I seriously cannot say enough good things about Princeton Tec, so I will post this and just keep voting with my wallet.

Sincerely,
Wayne Myer