Finally got the perfect tent for our family of four – Eureka Sunrise 9. I love the dome design. Screen window on all sides. Good ventilation – 2 in roof and 1 with high/low on the door. It has plenty of storage and very roomy inside. Our king bed fits just fine with more room for our stuff. Not to mention, Eureka is one of the best out there when it comes to camping tents and they stand behind their products. The materials they use are heavy duty and will last for many years. I also like the supplied 11mm fiberglass frames. I love this tent! Can’t wait to go camping in it.

Features:

• 2 pole square dome tent
• Durable fiberglass frame, clips, and ring and pin/rod pocket assembly
• High/Low door vents top and bottom to aid air circulation
• 2 mesh roof vents provide excellent ventilation
• Fly is hooded on all four sides to maximize air flow for all weather venting
• 4 large zippered windows allow the option of excellent visibility and air flow or privacy
• Includes hanging tiered storage shelf, 2 built in water bottle holders, corner floor organizer, and wall organizer with mirror
• Heavy duty 210D poly oxford floor

Specs:

• Seasons: 3
• Sleeps: 4-5
• Floor Size: 9′ x 9′
• Pack Size: 7.5″ x 28.5″
• Center Height: 6′
• Weight: 16 lbs 14 oz
• Wall: 75D polyester taffeta, 1200mm
• Fly: 75D StormShield polyester, 1200mm
• Floor: 210D polyester oxford
• Mesh: 40D no-see-um

I don’t think many people knew or have heard about the LightSpeed tents being sold exclusively at Costco and Sam’s Club. I learned about their products when I was looking for a lightweight canopy that we can use at the beach. When I saw one at Costco, I was immediately amaze on how light, quick and easy it was to setup. It uses a drawstring hub system that allows for quick setup and tear down.

Earlier this year, I was in the market for a camping tent to replace our old and trusty Eddie Bauer Sport Dome tent that my wife and I used to camped in before we had our kids. Again, I saw another LightSpeed tent at Costco online (not available in store). It’s called the LightSpeed Ample 6 that can sleep in up to six person. I was trying to decide between this tent and the Coleman Instant Tent 6. Both boast a quick way of setting up their tents. What I didn’t like about the Instant Tent was first of all, its cabin style design which is prone to being knocked down when hit by a gust of wind. This tent also doesn’t incorporate a rain fly which means that the roof is not well ventilated and can become hot during the summer. On the other hand, the LightSpeed sits nicely on the campsite. I like the large side mesh windows and the huge mesh roof which does a very good job for ventilation. On a hot summer night, you can take the rain fly off and stargaze with the kids or your significant other

Our first experience with this tent was at Big Basin last May. It was still pretty cold, probably in the high 40′s. Setup was a breeze, it took me less than 10 minutes for my first time (without looking at the manual). If it weren’t for the rain fly, I was done with the whole thing in 2 minutes. We brought in some thick blankets but it turned out we didn’t need them. It was warm enough inside the tent. My wife and my kids slept comfortably throughout the night. Tearing down the tent the next day wasn’t bad either, it was quick and painless. I just made sure I let all the air out and it rolled in easily and fit perfectly back in the bag. There’s one thing I didn’t like about this tent though. With its 13′x7′ footprint, I felt like we were cramped inside. The 7′ width does not give enough clearance between the door and the sleeping mats. Another problem with this tent is, the width is not a true 7′ end-to-end. The two ends of the tent kind of wedges in so you lose about a foot or two. We were able to place two hide-away mat (we bought from Costco) but it had to be positioned lengthwise giving us no clearance at all by the door. Last camping trip, we used a queen size air bed and same situation. Now the problem is, the queen size is small for our family so my wife and I decided to get a king size. Guess what, king bed barely fits inside the tent.

Don’t get me wrong about this tent, it’s very well made and looks nice. It just doesn’t satisfy our needs right now. To give more credit to the LightSpeed tent, last week, we went camping in Portola Redwoods and we got rained on. We got a pretty good amount of rain and some wind. The tent stood still and kept us dry, no leaks or anything. I like this tent if it weren’t for the small sleeping area. I went to their website to check if they have a bigger size. They in fact do have one and it’s called Ample 8. The problem is, the LightSpeed Ample 8 has the same width but longer.

So the other day, I returned it to Costco for a full refund. Gotta love Costco’s return policy!!! Now, we’re shopping for a bigger tent that can fit a king air bed with more room for our stuff.

Would I recommend this tent? Definitely! I’d even give it 4.5 stars. But if you are looking for a roomy tent, you need to look somewhere else.

I have three options – repair the loose wire, replace the cable (yes it can be done and the cable is available on ebay) or cough up the cost for a new power adapter. Unfortunately, I opted for the latter. But fortunately a non-OEM (of course it’s from China, where else!) version is available on Ebay for a much lesser price. Compare a price tag of $80 for an Apple brand to a non-OEM one for $21 with the shipping included. I know with that low price, you’d think twice before making a purchase. Specially with the apple fan boys (definitely NOT ME), who like to overspend with anything that has the Apple name on it. I’m a guy who likes to venture out so I don’t mind investing $21 to test a product.

I’ve been using the Ebay power adapter for two weeks now and no complaint so far. It looks and works just like the OEM version except that it’s a lot cheaper. Well, actually there’s just one minor difference. The little knob where the AC cord and wall adapter slides onto is metal on the Apple brand while it is plastic on the Ebay one. Oh and one more, the Ebay adapter doesn’t have the big apple logo engraved on it, which is fine by me.

So $80 vs $21, of course I’d go for the less expensive one unless Steve Jobs can convince me that the apple brand is really worth that much.

Here is my current setup:

Garmin Forerunner 305 with Heart Rate Monitor:
This comes with a heart rate monitor strap, USB cradle for charging and data connection, and training software to track your activities

Garmin Forerunner Bike Mount:
I never like wearing watch on my wrist (heck, the last time I had a wrist watch was like 20 years ago) so I bought one of these. This bike mount will work with all the forerunner watches. It’s better than the quick release mount for the 305 as I’ve heard horror stories about the watch popping off the mount when you hit a bump or crash your bike.

Garmin Foot Pod:
This is optional if you are not going to use the watch for running or you always run outdoors. I run mostly on my treadmill and I wanted to keep track of my distance so I got this one as well. This is the latest model so make sure this is the one that you buy. It’s smaller than the previous model and what I like about it, the sensor is the same size as the Nike + iPod sensor so it fits perfectly on my Nike + shoes. Don’t worry if you don’t have a Nike + shoes, the mount that it comes with can be used with your shoe lace.

Garmin GSC 10 Speed/Cadence Bike Sensor:
I don’t have this yet but I’m planning to get one (or two) to monitor my cadence when I use my road or mountain bike.

And lastly, it’s not a hardware but I just wanted to recommend SportTracks for tracking your activities instead of the Garmin software that comes with your device. It has better features and different plugins are available to be used along with the software. Although for online tracking or sharing your rides/runs with your friends, I use Garmin Connect. All you have to do is setup an account on the link I gave you, download the Garmin plugin for your browser and you can automatically upload your activities online by a push of a button.

Overall, I am happy with my Forerunner 305 and SportTracks. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who is serious about fitness training or simply just wanted to track their riding and running activities.

After weeks of product comparison and contemplation, my wife and I decided to pull the trigger on the Croozer 535, a 3-in-1 bicycle trailer. It seems like the market for bicycle trailer is very small. So you will either get something good or worthless. Anything in between is still questionable. I’m not saying you have to spend hundreds of dollars to get a good one. But you have to be careful in your selection because some manufacturers claim a bunch of features on their trailer but don’t work in the real world.

When we decided on a bicycle trailer, we said that we would require a few things from it. First, it must accommodate two kids without them being cramped inside. It should be able to attach to our bikes without any hassle, unlike the old one that we got for $5 from a garage sale. I know it’s only $5 but it works except for the trailer arm. The trailer should also be able to handle rough terrains when used as a trailer and a jogger. That means, the trailer must come with a front jogger wheel. We also wanted to ditch our bulky tandem stroller so the trailer must be able to convert and function as a stroller. Since it’s going to be used as a stroller most of the time, it should look like one and not as a trailer. It should be easy to fold and load in the van.

I know that we are asking a lot from our wish list above. But guess what, there are actually a couple of bicycle trailers that feature what we wanted. When we were looking for a trailer, there are only four brands that we considered as they were the most popular ones and most reviewed. They were the Burley, which is the Britax of bicycle trailers, Chariot, Schwinn and InStep. The Burley D’Lite is the most expensive one but it’s built to last. The Schwinn Joyrider is the first that we considered buying because it almost has all the features that we need except that it doesn’t come with the jogger wheel and I wasn’t too excited about the overall look and design. Then the InStep trailers, which are the most affordable ones and they’re not bad looking either. But  the saying you get what you pay for holds true with this brand. There are some bad reviews specially when converting to a stroller. I think the InStep is the best bang for your buck if you just wanted a bicycle trailer.

While reviewing the Schwinn Joyrider, I saw the Croozer 535. They offer the same features but the Croozer has a better built and design. It comes with a jogger wheel which is perfect for my wife when she wants to run. The separate bucket seat is also nice so my two kids will have their own space inside the trailer. There are not too many reviews and videos but I was sold on the demo video from Croozer Designs. It has everything that we were looking for and it looks very nice on the video.

So the bicycle trailer was delivered in our door on Friday. I was happy to see it because I didn’t expect it will get here on time for the long holiday weekend. It comes in a big box like a regular bicycle would. The only things that needed assembly were the front bumpers, the wheels and the handlebar. I didn’t even need to read the included manual to assemble the whole thing. A phillips screwdriver, a small hex wrench and allen wrench are needed to attach the front bumper and two reflector lights. The rest are installed via the lockable pins. My favorite is the side wheels which are easily attached and detached by pushing a button, no need for skewers! My only gripe is the handlebar which is a pain to attach. They made it look easy on the video though so I’m guessing I might have gotten a bad one. After the assembly, my 2 1/2 year old daughter jumped inside and settled her self on one of the buckets. She likes it. There’s plenty of room for her. Then my wife seated our 10 month old and they both looked comfy inside. I only tried pushing the stroller inside our house and it seems smooth and easy to push. Folding is easy but storing it in the garage or the van is too much hassle just like any other bicycle trailer because you have to take of the wheels (or you can just leave it if you have plenty of room).

Overall, my wife and I are very happy so far with our purchase but the real test is when we bring it in the park/trail. From how it stands, with all its lightweight aluminum materials and durable fabric, I have no doubt that it will perform as it was advertised.

This day calls for a toast. I just became an official Ducatisti today! I picked up my new Ducati 848 at Moto Italiano in Santa Cruz. My wife took a few hours off so she can drive me to the dealership and take my pictures as well . When we arrived in the dealership, my bike was still in the stand and being worked on. They put in some fresh oil and cleaned it up too. After an hour of waiting all the paper works were done and the bike was ready for me to take home. You could see the grin on my face while I put my gears on and started the bike for the first time.

Getting out of Santa Cruz from Highway 1 to 17 was a pain. We were sitting in mad traffic for half an hour just to get to 17. The underseat exhaust of the bike was getting too hot and it was burning my hiney. I couldn’t split lane because I had to guide my wife on our way back home.

Here’s my first impression about the bike:

My ride home was about 40 miles from the dealership so it was a good distance to put the bike into test. When it comes to power and torque, there’s no doubt that the 848 is more than capable on the street. Leaving the dealership, I was able to gun it and to be honest, it scared the bejesus out of me. Although, I didn’t feel the surge up until 4K RPM. This is my first V-Twin or L-Twin so I don’t really know what to expect from it. I also noticed the rev limiter and the engine backs off just right pass 10K RPM. I’m used to revving my 636 close to the red line before I shift, that’s about 12K to 13K RPM. I don’t like shifting early. I’m a little bit disappointed with the narrow RPM range of the 848. I’m probably not used to the V-Twin yet but I kinda miss the smooth delivery of power from an Inline-4 engine.

The handling of the 848 is superb. I’ve ridden the zig-zag of highway 17 before with my 636 and I thought that bike handled it well. To my amazement, the 848 made it even easier for me. It’s a very well balanced machine. The steering feels kinda heavy but once you start leaning the bike, it just glides. It’s very stable and I could tackle every corners with ease and confidence.

When it comes to ergo, the 848 has the worse body positioning for street riding. It is very agressive and was more designed for track use. I felt it very uncomfortable but it is something that needs getting used to. It puts a lot of pressure on my wrist and it does hurt after a while. Like I mentioned above, the underseat exhaust gets too hot when the engine temp reaches 180 degrees. But once the bike is moving, it doesn’t seem to bother me anymore. A lot of 848/1098 owners complain about the side mirrors too. I can see why but it doesn’t really affect me. I have problems with the 636′s mirrors being unusable too. What I do with the 636 is, I have to move my elbows inward to check the mirror while in the 848, I have to move my elbows outward.

In spite of some of the negative feedback I have about the bike, the 848 is still a keeper for me. The bike is just stunningly beautiful. I just need to get used to the V-Twin power and I should be set. Oh, did I mention that I stayed in 3rd gear all the way down to San Jose. I just couldn’t get a chance to shift it up to 4th gear. I always run out of road. The 848 has plenty of power between first and third and it’s more than enough for street use.

As for my parting words, THE 848 IS AN AWESOME BIKE AND IT ROCKS!!!!

We found this Bumbo Seat at Target today while shopping for her toys. She’s 4 months now and able to hold her head up. She can also get up on her feet now while I hold her hands. I was skeptical with this product at first because I’m afraid that she might not be able to support her body and tumble forward. But it works! And the most important thing is, she’s enjoying this seat. I would definitely recommend this product but with caution. Make sure that your child can support her body on this seat or else it might cause them injury than good. I also recommend getting the tray. I don’t know why you have to buy this separately. It should have been included. Also, don’t get comfortable with this seat and place it on your counter top or on a table while your child is sitting on it. I have read some horror stories about this and I think it was a stupid thing to do in the first place, sorry. I think this product is cool and I am giving Bumbo an A+ for this innovative seat.

ETY•Plugs™ (ER•20 High Fidelity Earplugs) were developed to provide low-cost, one-size-fits-most high fidelity earplugs that can be used in a variety of noisy environments.

The goal of the ETY•Plugs™ design was the same as for Musicians Earplugs: to reduce noise but preserve sound quality; in effect, to turn down the noise but not muffle voices, environmental sounds or music.

Technical Information:

ETY•Plugs use a patented tuned resonator and acoustic resistor that replicate the natural response of the open ear so that sound heard with these earplugs is as clear as the original, just quieter.

The ETY•Plugs are the highest fidelity ready-fit earplugs available.

The Package:

The bike came in a big box. It has Motobecane’s name on it and instructions on how to stand it up. There’s a small rip on the side but when I checked, it didn’t look like it damage anything inside. I give bikesdirect an A+ for a very well done packaging. All the parts are securely and nicely arranged inside the box. I didn’t see any scratches on any of the parts. The brake and shifter controls are already mounted to the handle bar and the cables are also wired up. The quick release skewer for the front hub is zip-tied to the detached front wheel. The seat is also detached but its already mounted to the seat-post. The small box contains the free pair of Gravity clipless pedals and a white reflector. The box also comes with a bunch of parts manuals and a generic owner’s manual that I didn’t bother to use.

Inspecting The Bike:
Before I began assembling the bike, I thoroughly inspected the bike first because some parts are zip tied and locked. I didn’t need to do this yet but it’s easier to work on something when everything else is freely moving. Besides, I might even forget about them and who knows, they may do some damage to the bike.

Plastic caps on front wheel hubs

Plastic cap on rear wheel

Plastic cap on rear wheel

Crank arm is zip-tied to the wheel

Plastic fork stand

Assembling The Bike:
As you can see from the picture above, the bike is about 90% assembled. All that’s left to be done is mounting the hydraulic brake to the fork, attaching the front brake rotor to the wheel, mounting the handlebar to the stem, installing the seat post and the pedals. Bikesdirect made it really easy for online customers to assemble the bike. It’s almost RTR (ready-to-ride). You don’t even need to set the hydraulic brakes because it’s already bled and set unless you want to adjust it to your own taste. It’s really that easy to assemble this bike. But if you prefer a fully assembled bike without putting any labor on it, you can take it to your local bike shop and they’ll do it for about $50 to $70. To those who wants to get their hands dirty, you might find the following instructions useful.

Tools Needed:

• Allen Wrenches
• Torque Screw/Nut Driver (required but I say its optional)
• Pedal wrench
• Cutter (this is really just for cutting the zip ties)

Assembly

1. Start by removing all the plastic caps, zip-ties, paper wrap and rubber bands.

2. Mount the handlebar

Use a 4mm allen wrench to loosen all four bolts
on the faceplate of the stem clamp.

Position the stem clamp directly in the middle of the handlebar.
Rotate the handlebar until you achieve a relax position of your wrist.
Once set, secure it with the front plate and four bolts.

3. Remove the quick release skewer from the front wheel.

4. Attach the brake disc/rotor to the front wheel.

The disc package comes with 6 bolts and 2 zip ties
for securing the brake cable to the fork.

Lay the disc to this side of the hub. Left side of the wheel when mounted.

Make sure that the disc facing up has the markings on it.
You’ll also notice the directional arrows on the disc.
This is how the disc should be rotating when the bike is moving.

The bolts are applied with the blue thread lock coating
so that they don’t come loose during bouncy rides.

If you have a torque driver, torque the bolts at 55in-lbs.
Or you can just do it by feel

Try to use a criss-cross pattern when tightening the bolts
for best equal torque distribution.

5. Install the quick release skewer. The cam can be positioned on either left or right.

6. Mount the front caliper to the fork

Remove the red plastic tab and save it for later
when you need to service the caliper.

The caliper already comes with the right bracket for the fork.
Loosen the two bolts on the caliper and bolt it to the mounting tabs on the fork.
Torque the bolts to 80 to 90-lbs.

7. Mount the front wheel and make sure that the disc seats properly between the caliper’s pad. Tighten the skewer and lock the cam by pushing it towards the wheel. Secure the brake cable to the body of the fork by using the provided zip-tie.

8. Install the seat post and adjust according to your height or your desired position. You can also adjust the seat by loosening the bolt underneath. I found the top tube on the fantom elite to be short for me so I slid my seat backwards.

9. Mount the pedals and your bike is now complete and ready to ride. Make sure to check if the brakes are all working properly. You may also need to inflate the tires. On-road, I normally inflate my tires between 50 and 60 psi and for off-road, it’s between 35 and 40 psi.

First Impression:
Honestly, when I first saw the bike on the website, I wasn’t too impressed with the frame’s design. I also wasn’t digging the black frame. But now that the bike is in front of me and fully assembled, my pessimistic view about this bike all went down to drain. The 16″ frame actually looks better than the larger ones. The gap between the top tube and down tube when they meet on the head is not apparent anymore. And the matte black finish… it’s gorgeous. I really love this bike now. The welds are beautifully done. I just wish they spend more time in smoothing it out. The pre-assembled parts looks pretty good to me. It seems like they were put together well except for the stem which I have to align, but this is minor.

Now for the cons. Let me start it off with the front brake cable. Out of the box, the cable is kinked. This is not something that I can ignore because this is a hydraulic cable. It actually affects the braking. It’s inconsistent and seems to lose pressure every time I squeeze the brake lever. I already emailed bikesdirect about this and I’m just waiting for their reply. The top tube is also short for my taste. I had to slide the seat backwards so I can get a better seating position. The free pedals are ok but I would definitely get something better. Oh well, it’s free! And lastly, this bike is quite heavy. It weighs approximately 29.5 lbs on my bathroom scale. I’m sure there is still room for improvement but I need to loose my own baggage first before I put this baby on a diet.

Overall, it’s not a bad bike for under $1000. But the real test has yet to come. I’ll probably just break her in on a smooth pavement for now then we’ll make her eat some dirt later.

If you are not picky about brand names, I suggest to check this bike out from bikesdirect.com.