Cycle South ♾

Here’s some cool news.
I’ve been a longtime fan of the musician Azam Ali. She was born in Iran and has an unbelievable voice and writes beautiful melodic music. Years ago my friend Frank, who owns a bicycle shop in Shaker Heights Ohio, turned me on to her music, listening to her for hours after the shop was closed, doing repairs and building new bikes for the floor. Frank and his wife even traveled to Toronto to see her live and got to go backstage and meet her.
So fast forward to a year or so ago. After a particularly beautiful day riding high in the Andes in Peru, I posted some pics in my FB page and said that I had been listening to a Spotify playlist of her music all day, and how much it added to the experience. Shortly thereafter her and I became online friends.
Today she gave me permission to use her music for the background of a video I have planned from ride footage and still shots from that day.
Part of the title credits will say “music by permission of Azam Ali”.
How cool is that??
BTW, if you haven’t heard of her you should check her out. Plenty in YouTube. Here’s one of my favorites, a traditional Indian song, with over 20 famous Indian musicians helping in the background.


And something more mellow

That's the coolest thing I've seen and heard all year! Wow! Music grabs you and don't let go. Good things happening.

Small world, I think I bought about half a dozen bicycles from Frank, not to mention the maintenance and repair work he did for me, including hauling my broken tandem to a friend of his to do some welding when the manufacturer couldn't replace it (No longer made tandems).
I'll check out that artist.

Enrique Davilacobos has a varied and unique style. Impressive. Thanks for posting that. I can't find a lot about him. I won't go to Facebook.

Thanks for the Azam Ali music too. "How cool is that??" . . . Really cool!

Re. Azam Ali. Oh yeah, going to listen to more of that. Great music for riding through awesome country. Will refer wifie to her music too. Wifie plays keyboard.

The last human freedom is to choose one’s own way

howdy Dan! Your getting close to riding again.I would say past the half way mark( to riding not healing). Once those bones are done knitting all you will need is some Good mx boots and knee braces and off you go. Pain,numbness,etc.. can all be managed. Adaptation is the key. I rode on two wheels today for the first time in three years. Been on a goldwing trike. It took years but Im now able to hold up a bike again. To treat myself I bought a new bike today and traded in the trike. My ride home and about afterwards was sublime. My head hasnt felt so clear in a long time. This is what awaits you Dan. EUPHORIA

Congratulations on the two wheel milestone. And the well wishes. The last week’s been rough. Mostly due to new meds. Hopefully it’ll level out soon.
Some more pics to while away the time

That sidewalk the three girls are walking away on would be a challenge after one too many cervezas.
I can relate to the changes in meds issues. It will settle out, just no fun until then. Good luck in it happening soon.

Dan, How's the leg?

The leg is fair. While bone repair continues, not much noticeable progress on nerve repair. And that’s my biggest worry. Soon I get custom orthotics made to hold the foot in a more “normal” position, which should, I am told, assist in nerve repair. I also start soon a series of nerve tests. Shortly after getting the orthotics I’ll begin physical therapy.
Today Woody took Sunny into the shop and began looking at her front end closely for damage from the accident. What was found:
Frame is straight
Front rim is tweaked, but appears to be from a rock impact at some time. Seeing as how I had a million rock impacts on Cycle South, who knows when it happened. Wheel is still true and completely rideable.
Front rotor is bent pretty bad. And has long javelina hairs sticking out all over from the impact (see pic)
Handlebars are twisted. Easy fix.
And that looks like it. I’m lucky.


Hairs of the javelina



Rotor bent pretty well

^^Recently knocked down by a careless hit and run driver, but my injuries are much less severe than yours. All the best for a speedy recovery.

That IS a damn sexy bike!

The Sunny Shall Ride Again.

Glad to see that the work we did on 11/10 remains still true. A new rotor, pads and a bleed and it should be good to go.

If only bones and nerves were so easy!

Wow, the force it takes to bend a brake rotor is pretty impressive.

All the best Dan for a continual and progressive recovery.

"I'm lucky." Well, Sunny was lucky. For the most part you are too, but good luck with that nerve damage. I've had countless broken bones, but never never had to contend with nerve damage, so I guess I'm lucky. Yeah, it was just 2 years ago that I walked away from a bike that was demolished underneath me. My oh my, the brotherhood of the injured. Stay positive! Heal well!

I was doing a good 50mph at the moment of javelina impact (and keep looping that endlessly in my head, unable to stop the playback at times at night) and I didn’t go down.
Partly my top case is why. It kept my left leg from continuing on a wild path off the bike and kept me seated, which in turn allowed me to contain the tank-slapper that the javelina impacting the front wheel started. I did not crash.
And, considering my leg was already crushed, had I come off the bike at that speed, I guarantee you myself and Sunny would be in far far worse shape.
So yeah.....I’m lucky as Hell.

I'm guessing the kinetic energy created from your inertia at speed is what helped you keep the bike up. A slower speed may have resulted in a much different and likely more injurious outcome.

Dan A few years ago in Panama I had a Buzzard fly up off the road with a snake in its mouth and fly head on into my F650, broke the windshield and headlight assembly clean off the bike and just grazed my helmet. I to had that play over and over in my head for a while. I was lucky with no injury but a good story! So now when I pass a Zopilote I always yell Damn you zopilote!!!!