A while ago I bought some new bike stuff that seemed to be pretty useful. Recently I pulled out my credit card for another go at shopping.
My helmet is over ten years old. The visor, which comes in handy when the angle of the sun is low, broke off a couple of years ago. I liked the helmet that my 50-States-posse friend Kevin has so I bought one. It’s visor can be rotated up when not needed so my neck will be happy.
I bought a large sized helmet but it was too big so I returned it. (REI’s return policy is great). I had to order a medium online as there were none in stock at the store. Lucky me, the helmet was now selling for 40% off.
I switched to MKS Lambda pedals on the Tank about a month ago. They work great with my winter footwear but my feet do slide around a bit on them.
I decided to go all in and buy some Catalyst platform pedals. They cost about twice what I paid for the Lambda pedals. These babies are quite a bit longer than my old touring pedals and have wee screws around the edges to keep your foot from sliding off. (They come with a set of longer screws in case you need to tweak the set up.) I haven’t decided which bike to try them on yet (they came in the mail only yesterday).
Last week I returned to the massage therapist for another deep tissue massage. She recommended I do some passive stretching on my psoas muscles. Basically you lie face down with something under your hips. I had been experimenting with a foam roller (too hard) and a rolled up yoga mat (too soft) but the therapist suggested using these half dome exercise thingies. These have nubs and go under the inside of your hip bones.
My wallet hasn’t yet caught on fire so I have my eye on a few more bicycling things. watch this space, y’all.
A Few Spokes Shy of a Wheel 
I’m considering switching from “clipless” pedals to flat pedals for touring, then riding in lightweight hiking shoes, or something. I’ll look forward to your review.
I am no fan of clipless pedals. I’ve tried a couple of styles that were supposedly wonderful and I hated them. Easy on the knees? Not mine!
Toeclips and straps have worked reasonably well for me but I keep seeing mountain bikers, bike tourists, and others using platform pedals and loving them. One big advantage is that they can be used with non-biking shoes and winter shoes.
As I think I mentioned, Mat Ryder put over 6,000 touring miles on his lambda pedals and seems to like them a lot. He wears low rise, lightweight hiking shoes on tour.
The Catalyst website has some pretty convincing testimonials. I searched a bike tour journaling site and discovered a rave review by an east bound transam rider I happened to meet in North Dakota.
Beth, a mountain biking mechanic that I know, has MKS Monarch (or King, same thing) pedals. They are Lambdas with retention pins. She loves them.
Nice helmet! I think Duncan has this one too. I find it interesting a foam roller was too intense for your psoas, but the spikey ball things aren’t.
I tried the spiky balls. They are surprisingly comfy. The foam roller spans the width of your body but the spikey ball things seem more targeted. Also the black foam roller I have is hard as a rock. Very uncomfortable..
I’ve had good luck with MKS Gordito pedals for wide platform and good grip, if you find you need another alternative.