Bontrager panniers pushed to the limits

Well, I don't exactly know what the limits of the panniers are, but I put a 21-lb jug of cat litter in one, and it held but I think that's the max weight I would put in it.  In the other pannier I had a bottle of laundry detergent and assorted other things.  Certainly I had 35-40 lbs of stuff in the panniers.   One thing for sure, it is hard to balance the bike while packing it, especially when something heavy goes in, because then it just wants to fall to that side.  Sometimes I take the panniers into the store with me if I've ridden my bike to the store, but today I rode the bike to work and took the boss's car to the store.  In this particular case, I kept my panniers attached to the bike because wrangling a pannier onto the rack when it is packed with 21-lbs is a bear.  So far I don't see any wear or stress on the panniers, but I don't carry heavy loads for long distances.  3 miles is max.

Still nice to know that I can cycle just fine with all that weight back there.  

Two bike errand runs today

Okay, so I'd been putting off going to Smart & Final because... well, I don't want to drive the car (not that there's anything wrong with it except that it guzzles fuel - and I'm only putting $25 in it this month and that needs to last the whole month.  So... NO driving except for emergencies and loads too large to carry on the bike.) and sometimes I just get nervous about locking the bike in places.  So, I thought I'd be a real smartie and make a video on how to properly lock the bike... HA HA!  Well, it wasn't until I got home and looked at the footage that I realized my own big FAIL - didn't get the frame inside the U-lock.  Duh!!!  Here's the proof!  Otherwise it would have been perfectly locked. Proof below!!!  However, both wheels and the seat we locked down with heavy cables all tied into the U-lock which was locked only to the metal railing.  So, I will make a proper video and post it eventually.

The Bontrager panniers in the pic are full of groceries and each weighs about 20 lbs.  I always tell them at Smart & Final that I have my own bags and will pack them myself.  Here's what I hauled:

3 - 4-lb bags of powdered sugar
1 pint lemon extract
3 lbs tangerines
4 beefsteak tomatoes
1 ginormous container of spring lettuce
1 containter of mild fresh Rojo's  salsa (the best!!!)
8 oz of Mexican shredded cheese

The panniers were pretty full but I could have squeezed in a few smaller items too.  Then when I got home, there was a check in the mail, so after I unloaded I quickly biked down the opposite direction to the bank where as always I take the bike in with me and right up to the teller window.  They know me well in there!

So, about 6 miles of biking.  Not much, but I faced the bike locking demons yet again.  Gosh, if someone ever stole my bike, I would be so distraught.  I would be less distraught if my car were stolen!  And I don't even have an expensive bike!  I may have paid about $350 for it on sale (think it was originally about $500).