Annual Road-Find Thread

[[email protected]]

First of all, for those who recall that I was in a nasty crash three
months back, I'll announce that I rode a bike last week! Just down to
the corner and back, and I was kinds wobbly, but I'm getting better.
I'm also back on to work at last.

Now on to business. My only useful road find this year was a rather
nice pair of pliers, complete with interesting indentations in the jaws
for holding -- something -- in place while squeezing it.
That, plus of course the usual sockets, towels, and inexplicable
cutlery. In three successive days this spring I found a spoon, a knife,
and the proverbial Fork In The Road.
How did the rest of you do?


Bill

__o | You never know what is enough
_`\(,_ | until you know what is too much.
(_)/ (_) | --William Blake

[[email protected]]

someone wrote:

> My only useful road find this year was a rather nice pair of pliers,
> complete with interesting indentations in the jaws for holding --
> something -- in place while squeezing it. That, plus of course the
> usual sockets, towels, and inexplicable cutlery. In three
> successive days this spring I found a spoon, a knife, and the
> proverbial Fork In The Road. How did the rest of you do?

Lots of road money, cents, nickels, dimes, and quarters. No tools
lately. I guess the number of folks who work on cars and leave tools
under the hood is declining. However, people who lay things on the
roof of the car and drive away seems to remain constant... clothing
and occasionally wallets.

Jobst Brandt

[rms[_2_]]

> However, people who lay things on the
> roof of the car and drive away seems to remain constant... clothing
> and occasionally wallets.

I found a nice piece of luggage, likely from the above scenario, on a
mountain road shoulder. No identifying marks in it tho.

rms

[Ryan Cousineau]

In article >,
wrote:

> First of all, for those who recall that I was in a nasty crash three
> months back, I'll announce that I rode a bike last week! Just down to
> the corner and back, and I was kinds wobbly, but I'm getting better.
> I'm also back on to work at last.
>
> Now on to business. My only useful road find this year was a rather
> nice pair of pliers, complete with interesting indentations in the jaws
> for holding -- something -- in place while squeezing it.
> That, plus of course the usual sockets, towels, and inexplicable
> cutlery. In three successive days this spring I found a spoon, a knife,
> and the proverbial Fork In The Road.
> How did the rest of you do?

Slim pickings this year. But locally, learning and new drivers are
required to sport a magnetic placard about 4"x6" (it's an "N" on a
reflective green background or an "L" on a reflective red background).

I find about one of those a month, usually lying face-down.

There was a dime, inconveniently located in a busy intersection, that I
rode past for days on end.

Also, a nice big hook with a carabiner closure and about 4" of webbing
still attached to it. Haven't decided what to do with that.

--
Ryan Cousineau http://www.wiredcola.com/
"In other newsgroups, they killfile trolls."
"In rec.bicycles.racing, we coach them."

[Ted]

On Nov 30, 12:39*pm, wrote:
> * *First of all, for those who recall that I was in a nasty crash three
> months back, I'll announce that I rode a bike last week!

Glad to hear you're back!
About all I found was a piece of vinyl siding laying diagonally across
the side of the road. The road crew knew it was not part of their job
description so they painted over it. Other than that the usual
skunks, porcupines, raccoons, frogs, and a few pennies.

Ted.

[landotter]

On Nov 30, 11:39*am, wrote:
> * *First of all, for those who recall that I was in a nasty crash three
> months back, I'll announce that I rode a bike last week! *Just down to
> the corner and back, and I was kinds wobbly, but I'm getting better. *
> I'm also back on to work at last.
>
> * *Now on to business. *My only useful road find this year was a rather
> nice pair of pliers, complete with interesting indentations in the jaws
> for holding -- something -- in place while squeezing it.
> * *That, plus of course the usual sockets, towels, and inexplicable
> cutlery. *In three successive days this spring I found a spoon, a knife,
> and the proverbial Fork In The Road.
> * *How did the rest of you do?

I found an inflatable dinghy by the Harpeth, started to roll it up,
but decided against dragging it thirty miles home. Got a couple water
bottles that I sterilized, a soccer ball, and a woman's watch.

[Tom Keats]

In article >,
writes:
> First of all, for those who recall that I was in a nasty crash three
> months back, I'll announce that I rode a bike last week! Just down to
> the corner and back, and I was kinds wobbly, but I'm getting better.
> I'm also back on to work at last.
>
> Now on to business. My only useful road find this year was a rather
> nice pair of pliers, complete with interesting indentations in the jaws
> for holding -- something -- in place while squeezing it.
> That, plus of course the usual sockets, towels, and inexplicable
> cutlery. In three successive days this spring I found a spoon, a knife,
> and the proverbial Fork In The Road.
> How did the rest of you do?

Not very well this year.

As the weather becomes colder, I shall, as per usual,
find numerous halves of pairs of gloves -- wet, sodden,
and nowhere near my size.

However, I /did/ find a couple of specialty shops.
One sells various cheeses, and the other sells board &
tabletop games. I obtained a nice set of double-12
dominoes from that one.


cheers,
Tom

--
Nothing is safe from me.
I'm really at:
tkeats curlicue vcn dot bc dot ca

[bluezfolk]

On Nov 30, 12:39*pm, wrote:
> * *First of all, for those who recall that I was in a nasty crash three
> months back, I'll announce that I rode a bike last week! *Just down to
> the corner and back, and I was kinds wobbly, but I'm getting better. *
> I'm also back on to work at last.
>
> * *Now on to business. *My only useful road find this year was a rather
> nice pair of pliers, complete with interesting indentations in the jaws
> for holding -- something -- in place while squeezing it.
> * *That, plus of course the usual sockets, towels, and inexplicable
> cutlery. *In three successive days this spring I found a spoon, a knife,
> and the proverbial Fork In The Road.
> * *How did the rest of you do?
>
> Bill
>
> * *__o * | *You never know what is enough
> *_`\(,_ *| until you know what is too much.
> (_)/ (_) | * * * * * * * * --William Blake

My best find ever was a wallett with $72 in it. Only ID was a piece
of paper with "mom's cell phone #" on it. I tracked it down and
returned it to the kids sister. She asked for my phone # so the kid
could call and thank me, but he never did.

Eric

[Tom Keats]

In article >,
bluezfolk > writes:
> On Nov 30, 12:39*pm, wrote:
>> * *First of all, for those who recall that I was in a nasty crash three
>> months back, I'll announce that I rode a bike last week! *Just down to
>> the corner and back, and I was kinds wobbly, but I'm getting better. *
>> I'm also back on to work at last.
>>
>> * *Now on to business. *My only useful road find this year was a rather
>> nice pair of pliers, complete with interesting indentations in the jaws
>> for holding -- something -- in place while squeezing it.
>> * *That, plus of course the usual sockets, towels, and inexplicable
>> cutlery. *In three successive days this spring I found a spoon, a knife,
>> and the proverbial Fork In The Road.
>> * *How did the rest of you do?

I've been on the lookout for interesting and useful places to stop.

One is a grocery store that sells Dole Sparklers[tm]
Pink Grapefruit Cocktail. I've developed a taste for
the stuff, and this store is the only source I've
found for it. I also (rather too easily because
these are not too far afield) came across yet another
specialty cheese shop, and a shop that sells board &
tabletop games -- I bought a nice pleather-bound set
of double-12 dominoes from that one.

I'm currently keeping an eye open for a source of
Barritts Stone Ginger Beer. I probably won't find
such a source, but what the heck. I've been
serendipitied before.

I also keep a weather eye open for neighbourhood
corner grocery stores when riding through areas
in town I'm less familiar with. They used to be
practically a Vancouver tradition, but they're
now an endangered species. And sometimes it's
nice to haul into a quiet backwater neighbourhood,
and know exactly where to buy a Coke and whatever
confections tickle your fancy to enjoy (like
Twizzlers,) while you cool yer heels for a bit.

I think the early 80's Recession plus the
contemporaneous cocaine trade killed our
corner stores 'cuz they just got robbed so much,
so the corner store proprietors decided to just
close down. It's a regrettable loss to society.


cheers,
Tom

--
Nothing is safe from me.
I'm really at:
tkeats curlicue vcn dot bc dot ca

[It's Chris]

I found a brassiere (B-cup) on a ride a couple of weeks ago. I left it
there, it was of no use to me.

- -
Compliments of:
"Your Friendly Neighborhood Wheelman"

If you want to E-mail me use:
ChrisZCorner "at" webtv "dot" net

My website:
http://geocities.com/czcorner

[[email protected]]

On Dec 8, 7:56*pm, (It's Chris) wrote:
> I found a brassiere (B-cup) on a ride a couple of weeks ago. I left it
> there, it was of no use to me.
>
> *- -
> Compliments of:
> "Your Friendly Neighborhood Wheelman"
>
> If you want to E-mail me use:
> ChrisZCorner "at" webtv "dot" net
>
> My website:http://geocities.com/czcorner

Lately just tools for me. Screwdrivers, pliers, cutters... nothing
else sticks out. I ride past gloves and random clothing often, but
never stop for it. I did, a week or two ago, leave something for
someone else to find - my water bottle. Considering my commute is all
off-road, and very rarely traveled, I expected to come across it
again. I have not. The only people I see out there are the
environmental police in trucks, and hunters. Must be one of them
picked it up. Oh well, it was a cheesy bottle anyway, and it gave me
an excuse to buy a Polar insulated bottle. i have other bottles of
course, but it seems they all start to leak around the spout after a
bit, and the one I lost was the only one that hadn't started to do
that yet. The Polar is my first bottle that cost more than a buck or
two, it'll be interesting to see how it holds up. I like this enough
(and paid enough for it) that if (when) this one starts to leak around
the spout like the others I may try to open it up and find the o-ring
or seal that would need replacing to fix it.

[Peter Cole[_2_]]

wrote:
> On Dec 8, 7:56 pm, (It's Chris) wrote:
>> I found a brassiere (B-cup) on a ride a couple of weeks ago. I left it
>> there, it was of no use to me.
>>
>> - -
>> Compliments of:
>> "Your Friendly Neighborhood Wheelman"
>>
>> If you want to E-mail me use:
>> ChrisZCorner "at" webtv "dot" net
>>
>> My website:http://geocities.com/czcorner
>
> Lately just tools for me. Screwdrivers, pliers, cutters... nothing
> else sticks out. I ride past gloves and random clothing often, but
> never stop for it. I did, a week or two ago, leave something for
> someone else to find - my water bottle. Considering my commute is all
> off-road, and very rarely traveled, I expected to come across it
> again. I have not. The only people I see out there are the
> environmental police in trucks, and hunters. Must be one of them
> picked it up. Oh well, it was a cheesy bottle anyway, and it gave me
> an excuse to buy a Polar insulated bottle. i have other bottles of
> course, but it seems they all start to leak around the spout after a
> bit, and the one I lost was the only one that hadn't started to do
> that yet. The Polar is my first bottle that cost more than a buck or
> two, it'll be interesting to see how it holds up. I like this enough
> (and paid enough for it) that if (when) this one starts to leak around
> the spout like the others I may try to open it up and find the o-ring
> or seal that would need replacing to fix it.

The Polar insulated has been my favorite for years. During the winter
it'll keep water from freezing a lot longer than a plain bottle. I use
mountain bike cages even on my road bikes since they have a positive
engagement. A handy trick is to put the bottle in upside down to prevent
the spout from freezing early. Of course that eliminates the positive
engagement feature. Another tip, Nashbar occasionally sells the Polar at
50% off.

[[email protected]]

On Dec 10, 7:49*am, Peter Cole > wrote:
> wrote:
> > On Dec 8, 7:56 pm, (It's Chris) wrote:
> >> I found a brassiere (B-cup) on a ride a couple of weeks ago. I left it
> >> there, it was of no use to me.
>
> >> *- -
> >> Compliments of:
> >> "Your Friendly Neighborhood Wheelman"
>
> >> If you want to E-mail me use:
> >> ChrisZCorner "at" webtv "dot" net
>
> >> My website:http://geocities.com/czcorner
>
> > Lately just tools for me. *Screwdrivers, pliers, cutters... *nothing
> > else sticks out. *I ride past gloves and random clothing often, but
> > never stop for it. *I did, a week or two ago, leave something for
> > someone else to find - my water bottle. *Considering my commute is all
> > off-road, and very rarely traveled, I expected to come across it
> > again. *I have not. *The only people I see out there are the
> > environmental police in trucks, and hunters. *Must be one of them
> > picked it up. *Oh well, it was a cheesy bottle anyway, and it gave me
> > an excuse to buy a Polar insulated bottle. *i have other bottles of
> > course, but it seems they all start to leak around the spout after a
> > bit, and the one I lost was the only one that hadn't started to do
> > that yet. *The Polar is my first bottle that cost more than a buck or
> > two, it'll be interesting to see how it holds up. *I like this enough
> > (and paid enough for it) that if (when) this one starts to leak around
> > the spout like the others I may try to open it up and find the o-ring
> > or seal that would need replacing to fix it.
>
> The Polar insulated has been my favorite for years. During the winter
> it'll keep water from freezing a lot longer than a plain bottle. I use
> mountain bike cages even on my road bikes since they have a positive
> engagement. A handy trick is to put the bottle in upside down to prevent
> the spout from freezing early. Of course that eliminates the positive
> engagement feature. Another tip, Nashbar occasionally sells the Polar at
> 50% off.- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

Thanks for the tip. I've wanted one of these for a while now, and I'm
definitely loving it. It's been keeping my water or iced tea from
freezing, as well as keeping the occasional hot cocoa warm longer. It
also seems to be better at not holding on to flavors than the cheap
bottles. I've been using iced tea, water and hot cocoa in it and it
has yet to hold on to the taste of one of these to contaminate the
taste of plain water on following rides. I clean it right after the
ride if I have anything but water in it of course, but even doing that
some of my cheap bottles seemed to hold on to the iced tea flavor. It
got to the point where I had a bottle for just water, and a separate
bottle for iced tea. If this one does end up starting to have that
issue I'll scope performance for a second and go back to a water-only
bottle. Actually, if I see one @ performance for 1/2 price, I'll
probably grab a second anyway.

I have mountain cages on all but the road bike, which has 1 mountain
cage and 1 road cage. I've yet to try this in the road cage, but
likely will once it gets a bit warmer since I use the mountain cage to
stash my windbreaker. Does it not hold well in a road cage?

Also, thanks for the tip on putting it in upside down. I think I read
that long ago, but had completely forgotten. Handy bit of knowledge
to have.

[Peter Cole[_2_]]

wrote:
> On Dec 10, 7:49 am, Peter Cole > wrote:
>> wrote:
>>> On Dec 8, 7:56 pm, (It's Chris) wrote:
>>>> I found a brassiere (B-cup) on a ride a couple of weeks ago. I left it
>>>> there, it was of no use to me.
>>>> - -
>>>> Compliments of:
>>>> "Your Friendly Neighborhood Wheelman"
>>>> If you want to E-mail me use:
>>>> ChrisZCorner "at" webtv "dot" net
>>>> My website:http://geocities.com/czcorner
>>> Lately just tools for me. Screwdrivers, pliers, cutters... nothing
>>> else sticks out. I ride past gloves and random clothing often, but
>>> never stop for it. I did, a week or two ago, leave something for
>>> someone else to find - my water bottle. Considering my commute is all
>>> off-road, and very rarely traveled, I expected to come across it
>>> again. I have not. The only people I see out there are the
>>> environmental police in trucks, and hunters. Must be one of them
>>> picked it up. Oh well, it was a cheesy bottle anyway, and it gave me
>>> an excuse to buy a Polar insulated bottle. i have other bottles of
>>> course, but it seems they all start to leak around the spout after a
>>> bit, and the one I lost was the only one that hadn't started to do
>>> that yet. The Polar is my first bottle that cost more than a buck or
>>> two, it'll be interesting to see how it holds up. I like this enough
>>> (and paid enough for it) that if (when) this one starts to leak around
>>> the spout like the others I may try to open it up and find the o-ring
>>> or seal that would need replacing to fix it.
>> The Polar insulated has been my favorite for years. During the winter
>> it'll keep water from freezing a lot longer than a plain bottle. I use
>> mountain bike cages even on my road bikes since they have a positive
>> engagement. A handy trick is to put the bottle in upside down to prevent
>> the spout from freezing early. Of course that eliminates the positive
>> engagement feature. Another tip, Nashbar occasionally sells the Polar at
>> 50% off.- Hide quoted text -
>>
>> - Show quoted text -
>
> Thanks for the tip. I've wanted one of these for a while now, and I'm
> definitely loving it. It's been keeping my water or iced tea from
> freezing, as well as keeping the occasional hot cocoa warm longer. It
> also seems to be better at not holding on to flavors than the cheap
> bottles. I've been using iced tea, water and hot cocoa in it and it
> has yet to hold on to the taste of one of these to contaminate the
> taste of plain water on following rides. I clean it right after the
> ride if I have anything but water in it of course, but even doing that
> some of my cheap bottles seemed to hold on to the iced tea flavor. It
> got to the point where I had a bottle for just water, and a separate
> bottle for iced tea. If this one does end up starting to have that
> issue I'll scope performance for a second and go back to a water-only
> bottle. Actually, if I see one @ performance for 1/2 price, I'll
> probably grab a second anyway.
>
> I have mountain cages on all but the road bike, which has 1 mountain
> cage and 1 road cage. I've yet to try this in the road cage, but
> likely will once it gets a bit warmer since I use the mountain cage to
> stash my windbreaker. Does it not hold well in a road cage?
>
> Also, thanks for the tip on putting it in upside down. I think I read
> that long ago, but had completely forgotten. Handy bit of knowledge
> to have.

Yeah, I've noticed that the Polar bottles don't seem to have either a
plastic taste or pickup tastes. Perhaps they use a better plastic for
the liner. I have like 6 of them. I had bought just 2 for hot weather
long distance, but then everybody started fighting for them on family rides.

The cages I was talking about have a cylinder that engages the detent in
the water bottle. I don't know if they're still made, but they don't
bounce out.