Brakes Replaced and The Trace

 Winter has come on a little stronger here in Pittsburgh as the calendar flipped over to February.  Since Sunday evening, we've picked up about 6-8 inches of the white stuff, due to a continuous light snowfall that went on for about 48 hours, or so.  Falling temperatures and wind chill conspired with icy and salty roads to keep me inside for the past 3 days but I managed to make some good use of the time.


The worn set of brakes prior to replacement

On Monday evening, the first task was to replace my rear brakes which were so worn that they could not stop the bike even when fully squeezing the rear braking lever.  As bicycle parts can be tough to find during the Pandemic, instead of the standard brake pads, only the mountain biking variety were available so I decided to try them.  The Jagwire brand of brakes are longer than what I had been using but they went on seamlessly and without much truing, which is usually not the case for me when replacing brakes.  


The new set of Jagwire brakes

The fronts were not as worn but needed some adjustment to allow for an appropriate level of braking to assist the rears when stopping.  Around this area, there are a lot of hills, intersections, traffic, and other road hazards.  These cause me at least, to wear out brakes relatively quickly.  So, I was happy to have completed this bit of maintenance without some of the usual complications experienced in the past.  Some of these are, brakes that do not want to spring back into place, persistent rubbing of the rims, uneven spacing, and sometimes extensive truing of the wheel.  Every once in a while, a break when replacing brakes is appreciated.

Today (Wednesday), a book about the Natchez Trace Parkway was delivered ahead of schedule.  It will give me some enjoyable reading and planning, during these Winter nights, for a future tour.  If you have been following this blog, you know that approximately a week ago, I saw a little bit of the "Trace" and became enthralled with its beauty and peacefulness.  A return trip for a longer tour is now compulsory for my continued bicycle touring edification.   


On these cold Winter days, planning for the next bicycle tour helps to pass the time.


 

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