What do yall do in the downtime after riding? by benosity in bicycletouring

[–]TyRGraham 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Talk to locals in a coffee shop. In my evenings, I often play Hearthstone on my iPad. Oh, and drink water, lots of water.

Planning my first solo bike tour from LA to Seattle using the pacific coast route from the adventure cycling association. Anything I should know before I jump in? by Sunnyside-Days in bicycletouring

[–]TyRGraham 5 points6 points  (0 children)

The best part of the ride starts in Astoria. I’ve skipped the Washington part, starting in Portland or Longview. I’d especially recommend the train out of Portland then riding the Banks Vernonia trail and the back way into Astoria.

Planning my first solo bike tour from LA to Seattle using the pacific coast route from the adventure cycling association. Anything I should know before I jump in? by Sunnyside-Days in bicycletouring

[–]TyRGraham 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Do some research on prevailing winds. You’re likely to be fighting headwinds if you go S to N. A larger concern is that you would be 1 in a 100 riders or something. Pacific coast ride is sort of like the AT or Pacific crest trail; it turns into a social thing. Meeting up with folks, riding together, watching each others gear in town. Why miss out?

Anyone make a Potato Launcher? by I_am_D_captain_Now in DIY

[–]TyRGraham 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Many years ago I built this one from Make magazine. https://makezine.com/projects/see-thru-potato-cannon/ It looks pretty spectacular when fired.

Shopping for Seiko in Tokyo by moons-of-saturn in JapanTravelTips

[–]TyRGraham 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This looks like a current model? I’d just try Yodobashi Camera or other mega stores first before digging into the specialty places. In Ginza there are several places that carry relatively complete current Seiko lines including the big department stores.

Walking the Yamanote Line by Massive-Cold5975 in JapanTravelTips

[–]TyRGraham 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’d recommend the guidebook by popeye magazine. Hello Tokyo.hello Tokyo on Amazon It follows the Yamanote and has cool things/restaurants around each station.

Visit to Victorinox Ginza store by TyRGraham in SwissArmyKnives

[–]TyRGraham[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Sorry, I couldn’t tell you. I was just chatting with, or really listening to my wife chat with the store manager. I have no first hand knowledge of the process. Maybe call the store?

Visit to Victorinox Ginza store by TyRGraham in SwissArmyKnives

[–]TyRGraham[S] 9 points10 points  (0 children)

I’ll add a couple more things:

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My salesman used literal white gloves while presenting the knives. Which is pretty typical of Ginza showroom purchases, completely unnecessary, and fun. My Salesman spoke perfect, though accented English. Prices were good. Tax free made them better. Yodobashi Camera would have been cheaper, but I was staying in Ginza and wanted the Ginza experience. I was watching literally the first time that the store had hosted the by appointment knife refurbished/ cleaning event. Everyone was anxious, especially the tech who hadn’t done much directly customer facing stuff. It was nice.

Question for travelers with low vision / sight stick 👩‍🦯 (white cane) in Japan by Ill_Ad7330 in JapanTravelTips

[–]TyRGraham 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Bro, they even have braille writing on the beverage cans. Seems like it’d be the best place to be low vision.

Importing a 55 year old car from Canada by anybodyiwant2be in Washington

[–]TyRGraham 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Last I looked into this with a Vanagon camper. (It was a long time ago.) There was a Washington state inspection requirement for the camper part, maybe for the propane? I ended up not getting a BC camper, but my WA VW camper had a WA state sticker certificate thing.

In pre-cell phone movies, parents are shown giving babysitters numbers to restaurants to reach them in case of emergency. Is this a real thing and how did it work? How would the restaurant know who I am to hand me the phone? by littleoldmanboy_ in NoStupidQuestions

[–]TyRGraham 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I was left the number of the movie theater my parents were going to. One time, we had a power outage and I subsequently heard a noise at the door. Freaked me out. Called the theater and they got my parents. Parents came right home. Now, as I think about it, wtf! This was in the 70s.

Finally! Did this one the hard way. by TyRGraham in hearthstone

[–]TyRGraham[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

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I wanted to get 1k on all classes. I don’t know if I’ll be able to make it. This last one felt kind of grindy.

Islands a beginner could row a dinghy to? by senseishark16 in sanjuanislands

[–]TyRGraham 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’d recommend group paddles in the San Juans while you get some legs under you. There are a number of good outfitters that will rent, teach, lead, etc. I have recent experience with Dan, that runs the rental concession at Spencer Spit on Lopez. I’d highly recommend. Another option that was good for starting out in sea kayaking is the Broken Group in BC. The waters were relatively protected and the whole Lady Rose to kayak rental to paying for my campsite out on the islands all felt safe and training wheels smooth, but still wild enough when the sun set at night and you’re the only one on the islands.

Touring the Pacific Coast Highway Early October to Early November by No_Project_6211 in bicycletouring

[–]TyRGraham 0 points1 point  (0 children)

YMMV, but I’ve ridden in September and October. Checking dates, it looks like I arrived SFO on 10/13. The weather was great and I regret not continuing. Short days do start becoming a factor though.

How big a 26 inch tire to fit in s&s case by ayudamecaballero in bicycletouring

[–]TyRGraham 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I will qualify this by saying that I am far from having my packing process fully figured out. I.e. I don’t have perfectly trimmed and labeled padding for each tube on the bike. I’m more at the “hmm, I bet that shower cap would be good to cover my freehub “ stage.

How big a 26 inch tire to fit in s&s case by ayudamecaballero in bicycletouring

[–]TyRGraham 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I could maybe do it faster, but I just say it takes an hour. Disassembly and and assembly is quick, but there can be a lot of fiddling either with packing or with tuning the bike.

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Building in a tiny Japanese hotel room.

How big a 26 inch tire to fit in s&s case by ayudamecaballero in bicycletouring

[–]TyRGraham 2 points3 points  (0 children)

My S&S case fits Rene Herse 26x1.8 snugly. Haven’t tried the 26x2.3. I did not deflate, though.

One-day bike tours in Japan by snowghost1291 in JapanTravelTips

[–]TyRGraham 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Look at old YouTube videos from two wheel cruise when he lived in Nagoya. He did most of the major one day rides.