Help Save Pacific Leatherback Sea Turtles

I got this in my e-mail this morning, and just on the off-chance that someone actually reads this I thought I would pass it on here. It’s from Oceana.org:

Pacific leatherback sea turtles need your help right now.

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), the government agency responsible for fisheries management, is considering allowing hundreds of miles of fishing lines and baited hooks to be set inside the Pacific Leatherback Conservation Area off California and Oregon under what is known as an “Exempted Fishing Permit.” The permit would be for the catch of swordfish, but would also allow for the catch of up to five endangered leatherback sea turtles, a short-finned pilot whale and other marine life as well.

Take Action!
Take action: Protect Leatherback Sea Turtles

Pacific leatherback sea turtles are among the ocean’s most extraordinary creatures. They can weigh as much as 2,000 pounds, grow to nine feet in length, and travel thousands of miles from nesting beaches in Indonesia to feeding areas off California and Oregon each year. Though they have managed to survive for millions of years with only their shells for protection, leatherback sea turtles are in serious trouble. In the last couple of decades Pacific leatherback populations have declined 95 percent, and to survive the challenges of today they need a lot more than just their shells-they need help from all of us.

This proposed government permit would allow pelagic longline fishing inside an area currently being considered by the federal government for designation as “critical habitat” for leatherbacks under the Endangered Species Act. Due in part to concerns about the risks to sea turtles, this type of gear is currently prohibited off the U.S. West Coast. Putting deadly hooks and lines into vital turtle habitat is clearly a step in the wrong direction, and may well open up the door for a larger such fishery off California and Oregon.

Unfortunately there’s not much time to act on this one, apparently they will only accept comments through tomorrow, May 27, 2008. If you don’t mind signing a petition the turtles and I would appreciate it. As usual there’s a form letter, which you are free to edit and add any additional comments you’d like.

More cycling

I’ve been on two spiffy rides around town now on the new bike. I’m still debating about the straight handlebar, my wrists get a little sore after awhile, but overall I’m really stoked. I’ve followed the same route both times now, just under seven miles which takes right around a half hour. Much of it goes through neighborhood streets with stop signs at every corner so that slows me down but I did that deliberately to get in some (relatively) safe practice with the clipless pedals. So far, so good. I haven’t toppled over at a corner although I’m still fairly certain it will happen eventually. Sooner or later I’m going to forget to twist my foot at the crucial instant and over I’ll go. Ah well.

As so often happens when you take notice of something, or take some new hobby up, you begin to see mention of it everywhere. Today I ran across this little gem about women, bicycles and emancipation. Who knew? I’m still reeling over the idea of SEVEN POUNDS of underwear. If women were toting around that much under those skirts, they were in better physical condition than they thought.

And I am finding that after these rides, I get home feeling completely refreshed, upbeat and energetic. I park the bike, take off the shoes and go to town around the house. It’s fabulous. Today I went jogging on my lunch hour as I try to do, weather permitting, and I can’t say I get the same rush from running. I have yet to experience the much-talked-about “runner’s high”. I feel a little cheated. But then I don’t run too far, and not fast. I think the cycling is going to win out. If I do manage to work out the bike commuting thing the running may go by the wayside.

New Ride

Well I did it. I got the Trek FX 7.5 (WSD). (NOTE: I removed the link since the Trek page now shows their 2009 model, and I bought the 2008).  I guess it’s what they call a “hybrid”, since it has road capabilities but the frame is such that I can hook racks and panniers to it. If you’re not familiar with what panniers are, they’re essentially saddlebags for bikes, and they make all kinds.

So, yes, I went with a Trek, and for those not up on bikes and the cycling world these days, Trek is what Lance Armstrong rode to his seven wins in the Tour de France. In short, they are very nice machines, and not as expensive as you might think. Many many years ago when I was still married, we bought the cheap mountain bikes that Toys R Us sells, and ya know what? I never rode it. It still sits on my back deck, minus the back tire which Kenny cannibalized for his bike, seat chewed up by squirrels for the stuffing for their nests, rusting. I may yet fix it up and use it around town a bit, but we never actually made it out onto the trails with them. They’re not good for long distances on the road, the fat tires give you too much rolling resistance (you’re gonna work a lot harder). This new beast has twenty-seven gears, and the slickest little shifters, I didn’t even realize what they were. I took it for a test ride in the road behind the shop, and went up and down a couple driveways, and when I downshifted to a hill gear, it was nearly effortless pedaling. I was in awe. Bikes have come a long way in the seventeen years since my ex and I bought those cheap bikes at Toys R Us. Helmets are very different now too, much more aerodynamic and better venting to keep your head cool.

I also went with clipless pedals. These are slick little creations that you have to get special shoes for. The pedal itself hardly looks like a pedal, small chunks of metal with an opening that the cleat on the bottom of the specially designed shoe clicks into. This is more efficient for pedaling, as it allows you to both push and pull as the pedal goes around. Sounds scary at first, the tendency is to think you won’t be able to take your foot off the pedal if you need to. It’s going to take a little practice, and I have been assured by a friend who rides with them, and the salesman (I hesitate to call him that, he’s more just a bike enthusiast who works at the store to help others get into biking) who worked with me that I will in due course not pull my foot out in time and fall over. They say everyone does it, you feel like a dork, but it’s like an initiation ritual with these things. So Parker (the salesman) put my bike up on the trainer at the store so I could sit on it and pedal and practice getting my shoe in and out of the pedal. It’s really simple, you just twist your ankle to the outside and your foot pops right out. It’s really very cool. I’m sure it will become second-nature, like shifting a car, and no doubt easier than.

I had to get all the gear since I had nothing: helmet, small tools, portable tire pump which is now strapped to the bike, water bottle and holder. I haven’t gotten panniers yet, or a bike rack for the car. Unfortunately the only bike racks they had were for designed to hold three bikes. I was hoping for a two-bike model, but this shop doesn’t even carry them (and they have six stores in the Portland area, the company as a whole does not sell them). Parker showed me how to remove the wheels and put the whole bike into the car. It’s very cool to know how to do all this, I want to know everything about how this machine works, but I think eventually I will get a bike rack. I may even cave and go back for a three-bike model.

Over the course of the next six months I was told I should probably plan on bringing the bike in around four times for tune-ups/adjustments. I get six months free service at this shop. They also have free classes and clinics on basic maintenance, how to change a flat, biking basics, etc. They installed the special pedals, cleats on the shoes, water bottle mount, and portable pump for me before I left the shop. Now all I need to do is figure out the ride to work, and find time to ride other times. What an education I’ve had in bikes over the last couple weeks!

Bicycle Commuting

I’m heading out shortly to shop for a new bike. Yes, this is prompted in large part by the minute-by-minute increases in gas prices. I’m seriously looking into bike commuting, but haven’t worked out all the logistics yet. I have a long commute, 24 miles each way, so this is no small thing. What I’m hoping to be able to do is to drive to within 10 miles or so of where I work, drop the car, and bike the remaining distance. It’s not so much really, I can jog 3 miles in half an hour so 10 miles on a bike shouldn’t really take much more than that (hopefully much less). I realize this is something I’m going to have to work up to, jogging and bike riding use different muscles. I’ll also have to try out the route on a weekend, and see exactly how long it takes. Then I have to factor in time at work to shower and change clothes which I anticipate being a necessity. Luckily, there are several shower facilities at my company so that’s no problem. I’ll probably bring stuff in and leave it there (shampoo & soap, towel, make-up, hair dryer, etc.), restock when needed. I’m thinking about only doing the bike thing a couple times a week, but that would save me 40 miles of driving, in effect like not driving in one day a week. It may not be much, but everything helps. If I lived closer I’d probably do it more often. Maybe once I really get into it (perhaps I should say “if”) I could do it more often. I’ve been reading blogs and bike commuting Web sites for tips and help on how to do this. Surprisingly, there are a lot of sites out there about this. I’m still just working out the logistics, it may turn out to be more than I can work around. The biggest obstacle at this point is just where to drop the car. The way I drive now is on the backroads, past farms and private homes, no shopping centers or strip malls or large parking lots anywhere nearby. If I can get up the courage I may stop at one of the houses on the way, right about at the 10-mile point, and ask if they would let me leave my car in their lot (these folks have a large lot where they sell Christmas trees in December, so it’s not like they don’t have the space). We’ll see.