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About

For half a century, Tamia Nelson has been ranging far and wide by bike, boat, and on foot. A geologist by training, an artist since she could hold a pencil, a photographer since her uncle gave her a twin-lens reflex camera when she was 10, she's made her living as a writer and novelist for two decades. Avocationally her interests span natural history, social history, cooking, art, and self-powered outdoor pursuits, and she has broad experience in mountaineering, canoeing, kayaking, cycling, snowshoeing and skiing.

Don’t BUY Upgrades. Ride. Up. Grades. by Tamia Nelson

We’d all like to be stronger and faster. But none of us—at least no one I know, notwithstanding the appeal of 50 Shades of Grey—really gets off on pain. Which is why cyclists are always suckers for the newest New Big Thing. The implicit contract between seller and cyclist is simple: Buy this [saddle, crankset, brifter, wheel, bike] and you’ll go farther and faster than you’ve ever gone before, without having to work any harder. And the argument is almost impossible to resist. That’s probably a good thing. After all, bicycles last just about forever, are easy to maintain, and require little in the way of costly consumables. (For instance, I can outfit my bike with enough chains, tires, and brake blocks for several years and many thousands of miles, all for less than the cost of a single fill-up for an SUV.) So local bike shops often depend on component upgrades to pay the bills, and the world would be a much poorer place without those shops.

Nonetheless, the promise implicit in … Continue reading »

Feeling a Little Flat Lately? Then Eyeball the Place Where Your Rubber Meets the Road

Are your tires letting you down more often than you think they should? Then you’ll want to read this.
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by Tamia Nelson | August 17, 2013

The bicycle started out as a rich man’s toy. Before too many years had passed, however, it evolved into efficient and economical transport for the working man. The pneumatic tire was one of the innovations that made this transformation possible. A very good thing, in other words. (Then again, it also helped to pave the way for the automobile. The jury’s still out on that.) Of course, everything comes at price. The pneumatic tire gave us low rolling resistance and an easier, less jarring ride on broken pavement. But it also gave us flats. And that problem is still with us today, more than a century after Michelin began selling the first practical pneumatic bicycle tires. Despite the recent proliferation of sealants, puncture guards, and tire liners, the diminuendo PPPFFFFFTTTT of a rapidly deflating tire remains a recurring coda in the music of the road.

Sometimes, however, a … Continue reading »

Tamia Nelson’s Rules of the Rural Road

The pleasures of cycling are so alluring that it’s easy to forget important things, so Tamia has drawn up rules to help guide her when she rolls out the driveway. They’re not for her alone, though. You’re welcome to use them too.
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by Tamia Nelson | July 12, 2013

It’s easy for me to get carried away when cycling—pushing on till I’ve ridden a bridge too far in the morning, say, and then regretting my exuberance as I slog the many weary miles home against a strengthening headwind. So, in order to temper my tendency to excess and insure I always finish a ride in at least as good shape as I started, I’ve developed a set of guidelines. They’re ten in all, and they mostly apply to riders who venture off the beaten track. Having yielded to the blandishments of egotism, I’ve unhesitatingly christened them “Tamia’s Ten Essentials, or, Rules of the Rural Road.” Adopt any or all of them for yourself. And here they are:

1. Don’t Sneak Off Without Telling Self … Continue reading »

Ready, Set, Go! The Birth of the Bug-Out Box

Making the most of unexpected holidays is one of life’s happier challenges, and none of us likes to see golden opportunities lost for want of preparation. Which is where Tamia’s getaway pack comes in. Yet it’s not the whole solution to the problem. Paddlers, hikers, and cyclists, like soldiers, travel on their stomachs, and good meals are pleasant interludes in camp life. That’s why Tamia assembled a bug-out box of ready-to-go entrées and staples. Does this whet your appetite?
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by Tamia Nelson | June 18, 2013

Cooking is a dying art. As people spend more time in their cars, driving ever greater distances to and from their jobs (at every slower speeds), there aren’t many hours left for making meals. Which means that—on most days, at any rate—harried moms and dads pop precooked frozen dinners into the microwave and then sit down to eat a hasty meal, one eye always on the clock. Maybe they’ll watch a celebrity chef on the TV while they’re scraping the last crumb of Yummy Lasagna from its plastic-lined tray, but … Continue reading »