The Royce Files

Watching a steady stream of runners push on through to the end of the race can be a bit monotonous. What is good is that at the heart of the Fargo Marathon route is a great big neighborhood party going on. This year those neighborhoods along 9th, 8th, and 7th St S were abuzz with activity. It is a fantastic atmosphere.  Even the dead were grateful for the good weather for watching runners. Then there was this interesting item on the boulevard. Appears to be some representation of Dr. Who's TARDIS sending encouragement to runners. Of course there is lots of music. I think I saw maybe 5 bands within a the mile I strolled. Another thing I should have marked as missing this year was the list of bands and music on the route. The regular reggae band on 9th near the 21st mile seemed to be missing too. However, Elvis was still on 9th south of 13th with about 4 speakers cranked. Band at the Temple. Not Klez. Unusual bikes seem to crop up a lot. This one reminds me of...

Way back in July 2010 the Man of 3 Names and I set out from Grand Forks, ND on bicycles to sojourn to the Center of North America (Rugby.) I do not recall much from this part of the trip except my rear tire was causing me problems endlessly. However, now the conclusion of our journey. Barn in ND countryside Waking in a hotel was not my intention but it felt good. Moreover they did have breakfast- and what the construction workers did not devour earlier in the morn, I ate. I think 3 Names had some too but I am not sure. Before heading out we stopped at K-Mart a picked up a patch kit for my tire. They did not have a replacement tube for a 700x35 presta. Back on US-2 we made good time until I had another flat. I repaired the flat next to a round bale and we were on our way again. The shoulders were wider this side of Devil's Lake but the traffic was much heavier. We lunched in Michigan City and I noted that they grocery store was part of a complex that included a c...

Way back in July 2010 the Man of 3 Names and I set out from Grand Forks, ND on bicycles to sojourn to the Center of North America (Rugby.) I continue this story as we head east on US 2 from the cairn in Rugby, ND. changing size shoulders on US 2 From the Center of North America 3 Names and I got on US Highway 2 and headed east towards Devil's Lake. Little did I know that this would be the longest part of any journey I have ever taken on 2 wheels. As we leave Rugby we meet a lady and her family that are doing a cross country bike tour. She had a support van so we knew we were really the hardcore ones out on the wide shoulder. We were doing good time since we had a strong tail wind pushing us. Not long after I experienced a rear flat. Luckily we were close to a wayside rest where I was able to repair it in about a half hour. Back on the road we began to notice our large shoulders diminish to less the a foot of usable space. Pretty scary since cars and la...

Way back in July 2010 the Man of 3 Names and I set out from Grand Forks, ND on bicycles to sojourn to the Center of North America (Rugby.) It has been while since I have written about it so the details will be sketchy, but I felt I needed to complete this one before I move onto the latest bike trip.    Near Rolette, but not quite  Here are the previous posts for you to catch up on Part 1: Leaving Grand Forks Part 2: Towards the border Part 3: From Hoople to Walhalla Part 4: Out of the Gorge and a change of plans Part 5: Independence in Munich Part 6: Night at the Hawk Museum I continue this story as we leave the Hawk Museum and head towards the center of North America in Rugby.  Old farm machinery  I cannot say enough about the Hawk Museum camp we made. It was cool. We were surrounded by tons of old iron. There was a shower. And it was cheap. I think we may have paid just $5 for both of us. What a deal! With still a chill...

 The Huffy in the garden  My first bicycle was a Huffy Dragster- an early entry in the BMX market for Huffy. Although it could have been a pieced together monster with parts from the Huffy high-rise style bikes. I don't see many Huffy bikes these days although they were the 3rd largest bike manufacturer in the US during the 1960s. I suspect Schwinn was tops back then. Both companies appear to have produced similar models of bikes through the 1960s to the 1970s. Huffy started out as a sewing machine manufacturer in 1892 formed by George Huffman. The Huffy name did not really come into existance until the 1950s. Prior the bikes carried the Dayton name- because they were made in Dayton, OH. The name Huffy came from the name of company- Huffman Manufacturing- which the sewing machine manufacturer turned into in 1925. While on holiday in Nisswa, MN I spotted this Huffy. The bike pictured here is what I believe to be a vintage 1970s men's Huffy 5-Speed Regatta with...

I think I am must be on a series here of vintage bikes of yesteryear. Here are some pictures of bikes I have seen around town First we have an orphaned bike that just showed up at work. It is a CoastToCoast Medalist 12 Speed road bike. Coast to Coast was a hardware chain. In fact some still exist. However, Coast to Coast was absorbed into the True Value brand. From my research on the webs this a brand may have been made by Schwinn but branded Coast to Coast. I doubt that this model was one of those Schwinn made however I like the semi-full fenders.  Coast To Coast Medalist 12-Speed   Wandering through the neighborhood I spotted this one- a Schwinn Breeze 5 speed with an added front wire basket. Might be 1970s vintage but could be earlier.  Schwinn Breeze ~1970s  

I was scouring through my photos and found an image of a refurbished green Schwinn Suburban . It is a 10 speed. Looks like a Brooks saddle and original bag. I believe it is a pre-1974 model. Back at my parent's home we have a 5 speed yellow Schwinn Collegiate Tourist which I got back into working order many years ago. The most recent bike craze has brought back a lot these to the streets again.   Schwinn Suburban  Below are 2 golden bikes that are part of the University of Minnesota Morris' bike share program. One is a non-descript store brand mountain bike and the other could perhaps be a late model Raleigh Sport. I notice what looks like a Sturmy Archer on the rear. But look at that Brooks saddle! I cannot believe it. Back in the day there was a guy- we'll call him Mark- who one day pulled up with a trailer of multiple types of yellow painted bicycles to the University of Minnesota at Morr...

Once again it is bike month . But nearly every month for me is bike month. I think I rode in every month this past year. It was a mild winter so riding was a bit easier in the normally chilly months. One of the goals of the sponsors of National Bike Month is to get bicyclist to ride safely. With many using bikes in the community as a way to get around I see plenty of safe and unsafe practices. Probably the most irksome is when those who ride at night do have proper lighting or light colored clothing. Riders become virtually invisible unless there is some cue for motorists to know you are there. I especially recommend hi-vis vests or shirts for day or night riding. You can find some as cheap as $5. Now for a bike safety video from ages ago. It might be old but it goes over most of the safety rules which are still recommended today. Notice too that the bicycles are ridden in the streets. Bikes can ride there. The only odd piece of advice in this video is the way they tell you to ...

Way back in July 2010 the Man of 3 Names and I set out from Grand Forks, ND on bicycles to sojourn to the Center of North America (Rugby.) I continue this story as we head west towards our destination and spend the night amongst old things. It was a bit chilly the morning of July 5th. Dew had settled upon our tents. The bathrooms were still closed. We ate a bit then torn down camp. We stopped at the local watering hole to use the facilities before heading out. By then the sun had come up and it was getting a bit warm.  What we failed to realize was Munich was the birthplace of Quentin Burdick, former Senator of North Dakota. No plaque enlightened us to this fact. We headed south a bit then west along a rail road which happened to hold a lot of rolling stock. Not sure why these cars were stored here but we encountered quite a few spots along the tracks where there were a mile of cars.  We passed Calio which just looked like one big farm. We stopped at Egeland to have a rest. ...

Experienced the 2nd Streets Alive ( http://www.fmstreetsalive.org/ ) event this weekend. I rode the entire route with my friend. I wasn't sure what to expect for an event of this type. However, I was surprised. The only drawback was the few kids who got in the way on Broadway otherwise Streets Alive was like a leisurely tour around the community. Afterward, Cindy, my roommate, and I made the most delicious hamburgers I have ever made. They were the most delicious morsels we had ever had. The memory of them lingers on as does the roasted corn on the cob, guacamole, and beer. So far on the blog, I am right in the beginning stages of detailing my annual bike trek. I just left off as I went to sleep in a park in Walhalla, ND. A real street party had been going on with a live band and it made trying to sleep a little harder. The next morning we would hit a remarkable natural feature that would prove challenging. But I'll leave that for the actual post about the trip. However, if ...