Hello from across the pond

[matchbox]

Hello, I will keep this as an introduction about myself.

About my ebikes... I'm a lifelong cyclist/builder/wrench, over 40 years. Because of disabling pain I've been riding ebikes for 2 years, have built 4 of them now. Started small and *cheap* (nothing cheap about them, really) converting first my own bikes, then picked up a couple specialty bikes as my need for them increased. The latest include a full suspension mtb for road errands, and a basket trike for carrying things. I started with an ecruiser for dog walking and an old emtb for the wife to tag along.

For the past couple years I've been over at the primary US ebike site, got some help with the learning curve but have no use for the kiddy sand box atmosphere. Some of the help was from Brits and I think I recognize one or 2 screen names from over there. I'm aware of the supplier differences between our nations and the differing laws. I'm just here to learn and read about mutual interests, maybe soak up some culture.

As for cultural concerns we prefer videos of old British programs. BBC Shakespeare, Rumpole, Up/Down, Father Brown, As Time Goes By. We don't have a television connection, just old videos. We own a copy of Heartlands. I have an American degree in English which basically means lit, Dickens and Austen being what I remember most, and of course the Bard. I lived for a time in Germany and really liked being in Europe.

Anyway I'm sure I'll be asking questions when bike issues pop up on the appropriate pages. Thanks if you read this far. I apologize if I caused indigestion.

 

[cyberdyne_systems]

Welcome, interesting introduction, thanks for sharing.

Impressed that you started out by building your own bikes.

I'm sure your knowledge could prove useful here,

 

[yaffa]

Hello Matchbox,
You really should get hold of some more up to date British programmes to watch such as Inspector Morse(from the '90's)! The new version of Father Brown is brilliant. Miss Marples or Marples as the latest versions are called are very good. I think you can get most from Amazon.
Sorry not very bike related!
How bike friendly is Maine?

 

[Angelnorth]

Hello! You sound extremely knowledgeable on bikes so I'm sure I have absolutely nothing useful I can say there but you mentioned Shakespeare so I wanted to say hello! We're getting treated to lots of new BBC stuff at the moment because of the 400th anniversary celebrations - it's sure to make it over the Pond at some point.

As an aside - do you know that BBC radio is freely available to you? Unlike the TV iPlayer, the radio version is not region restricted. Last week's drama on Radio 4 was "School Drama", the story of a failing high school putting on a production of Romeo and Juliet. The first three episodes were the modern drama (but with plenty of Shakespeare dialogue as the kids rehearsed the play) with the fourth episode being a truncated version of the play itself. If this might appeal to the Anglophile in you, you can find it here (and maybe have a poke around the Radio 4 site while you're there - lots of great speech-based stuff to enjoy!).

 

[matchbox]

Hello Matchbox,
You really should get hold of some more up to date British programmes to watch
How bike friendly is Maine?

Well we just finished Emma from 2010 or so. newer and more "hollywood-esque" than we like but somehow digestable. Thanks for the tips, the wife just ordered Miss Marple. Also checked out the bbc4 radio site. We don't get that kind of thing in rural america any more, unless i'm missing something.
Maine and bicycles. On the one hand it's a summer tourist destination and the coastal "Route 1" gets a large amount of cyclists who ride loaded out to Mt. Desert Island (I assume).
On the other hand there's an annual "Treck Across Maine" cyclo-tourist event covering a few hundred miles i believe. Police guides in the towns, sanctioned campsites, posted signs and road guards, etc. Two years ago a semi-truck passed a Treck-king pack "out in the sticks" and clipped a cyclist while returning to his lane, killing the guy on the bike. No charges were filed. On the state's major newspaper Web page the comments section was mostly angry locals blaming cyclists for getting in their way while driving. There are no paved shoulders outside Rt.1 and a 3' passing clearance for cyclists that is rarely respected. So it's pretty redneck and anti-bike here, unless you're a loaded tourist on the wide shoulders of Rt. 1 grinding along with heavy summer traffic, having anticipated pockets full of credit cards and cash to lavish upon local business. It's all about the money here.
Back to more pleasant news I'm stuck in the past and just prefer seeing the fuzzy screens and longer hair that people wore in the films from last century, when it was less about the money and more about the ride....

 

[matchbox]

As for my knowledge, i'm ok with bikes, after 45 years something's bound to sink in. tho my first idea of a chain tool was a hammer, screwdriver, and pliers.
As for electric or battery-powered bikes i'm still learning. My knowledge is mostly limited to the us version, which is throw more power at it until it hauls your fat ass up the hill. still it beats burning gas and it gets me off the couch...

 

[Angelnorth]

Well we just finished Emma from 2010 or so. newer and more "hollywood-esque" than we like but somehow digestable.

We managed less than five minutes of that before my husband said "she's just not Emma" and declined to watch any more! Going back a bit, we recently bought DVDs of Barchester Chronicles and took them away on vacation - the series was made in the early 80s and left us sighing "Ah, they just don't make them like that anymore". Perfect casting, every character seemed freshly popped off Trollope's pages!

Maine roads sound a bit hair-raising for my tastes, hope you can find friendlier places to ride, too.

 

[yaffa]

I thought riding around town was scary but I don't think I'll by cycling in Maine any-time soon!
Let us know if you want any more programme tips from our side of the pond.

 

[Nealh]

The excellent ' Trevor Eve ' and superb ' Sue Johnstone ' are brilliant in ' Waking the Dead '.

 

[matchbox]

Thanks for the tips, will look into Barchester... 'they don't make them like that any more'... sounds like out thing... As for the one with Dead in the title we get saturated with that over here and prefer the old bucolic garden parties, etc... thanks
Lately we've been hanging in 1990's ireland, father Ted, ballyK, recovering catholics and all... .