Now I can breath easy.
Latest bike news road mountain bike Sunday. Hot like a griddle out there. Broke my chain but fixed it fairly smoothly.

???

rOAd

Or

rode?

Road mountain bike? Huh?

I musta broke my engrish. I rode a mountain bike on a single-track trail in a wooded state forest.

that sounds really fun. I'd love to go for a ride with you sometime. You're patient, right? You don't mind relaxing at intervals while I carry my bike up the steep parts, right?

just kidding. I enjoy all the terrain, just not at high speed.

The thing people often don't get about riding single-track is that faster is easier. If you're pushing bigger gears you glide over short climbs and the gyroscopic effect helps your balance. If you go slow, you'll struggle more. It is fun and I am patient.

I've been on *some* forested tracks and I don't see myself hauling ass through them. The trail surfaces I've seen are often criss-crossed with roots, mined with rocks, everything covered in moss, usually wet. To me, a city mouse, this is tiptoe territory, trails riding style, not bombing downhill, powersliding through the sweeping gravel turns. I'll look for some pics of my greener rides for examples.

I totally understand that momentum is my friend when it comes to intermittent ups and downs. But on pavement or well groomed trails, yeah?

Here is a nice report by a hardcore bicyclist about Banner Forest, one place we like to ride. There are a bunch of nice pics; check them out. Are these the kind of places you'd gain and conserve momentum?

Speed will carry you over roots and rocks as well, but you have to be aware of the surface if you're turning or braking. My riding buddy has been talking about getting a GoPro camera. I would be nice to show the local rides as every locale has its differences. Our trails are almost as lush and rooty as yours in the PNW but rockier with a fair amount of mud, while up in NH and Me its a lot rockier but sandier. We don't really do much downhill stuff, sticking more to trails with some balance in descents and climbs.

Different stuff from all over ...
http://www.reddit.com/r/MTB/search?q...elevance&t=all

Yeah, that looks to be not unlike what we ride here. (I gotta get out there sometime.)

This is the next big trip I want to take, the Lake Washington Loop Trail. I live about three miles northwest of the starting point of this trail report, Gasworks Park. Want to come with me Griff? Let's go!

Nice. See you at the start Saturday morning! :)

When I start whining next February point me to this.

Wait, you want us to chastise you for not being stone crazy? :eek:

Funny guys. :)
I can ride comfortably down to about 20° F as long as my feet stay dry.

So I've got two offers of employment in San Francisco. Since there won't be mountains available to run during the week, so I am going to go to the ends of the earth to ensure I have a bikeable commute if I end up moving.

Any suggestions on commuter bikes? Any general bike commute tips? Any opinions on bikes with CVT? Are they user-serviceable at all or am I going to break the bank every X years?

One of the jobs has showers and indoor bike parking, which is pretty awesome.

Nice! I'm sure you already know this, but bike theft in San Francisco is HUGE. My friend has had her consumer-grade, double-locked, inside a garage bike stolen twice now. Take it all the way inside your apartment every night, know what I'm saying?

I've heard that bikes are basically currency among the street crooks there. No idea if that's true or media hyperbole, but after what Clod said ...

Congrats on the job offers though.

Just pack the top bar with C-4 and a remote detonator.

Well, eventually that should work, but you'd go through a lot of bikes before word got around.

Congrats on the job offers!
The bike really depends on what you're comfortable riding. If it were me, I'd ride a touring style bike like the Trek 800 (in my basement) or a similar bike. It has a granny gear for the hills and braze-ons so racks and packs fit conveniently and the tires are a bit wider than a regular road bike. If you'd rather sit more upright there are urban bikes out there which may give you a riding position you may be happier with. Mountain bikes would have the gearing as well and you can swap your stem for an angle you're comfortable with. Ride them all but remember you'll get better over time so you probably don't want to buy a piece of crap that will frustrate you and won't grow with your skill.

Faster than you'd think. ;)

Gears are good, because this isn't just a couple of picturesque streets, there's a lot of them like this.

Kick ass brakes also required!

A couple of things to ponder, first the theft issue.

You can keep dragging the bike to and fro and that mostly works, I'm not sure if your place of employ will let you bring your bike into your cube. The theft from the garage that Clod mentions indicates an inside job or at least someone on the inside tipping thieves off. I've worked with guys who could rationalize telling their friend where to steal something and feeling like they were doing nothing wrong because they, themselves didn't steal the thing. These guys had jobs with certain levels of responsibility, like the garage attendant you give your car keys to...

So, there are clearly people who make their living in stolen bikes and they'll be noticing you ride around town, going in and out of your house etc. as aware of you as a horny teenager is aware of women in short skirts and tight sweaters.

Bearing that in mind, I always assumed if I left my bike anywhere out of my sight it was going to be stolen, lock or not. My strategy in Burlington was that I had a shit commuter bike. A crappy three speed that was crappy looking but had a re-built three speed hub and a lower gearing for hill climbing. In a hilly place you are either going up or down. You don't need big gears on the downhill side, gravity will move you along fast enough.

Gear your bike for the climb and you can use a three or five speed internal hub with the biggest rear cog you can fit and the smallest front ring you can get. You can accessorize with a basket, rack, and fenders. And squirrel tails or streamers as you see fit. an Air horn is good too, especially one with a quick release holder.

No one will waste time with an ugly crappy bike. And if they DO steal it, they are cheap enough to replace.

That's my take.

amen to all of footfootfoot's sermon. only bet what you're willing to lose. consider insurance perhaps, if you have something that is expensive enough to want to recoup your losses. Or, integrate fully into the bicycle economy and be a grower and a consumer. maybe you could get a great deal on some new rolling stock...

Good advice all around. Thanks everybody.

One of the jobs has indoor bike parking (as in a room in the office dedicated to bikes) and showers for us sweaty folk. I wouldn't worry about it getting stolen there. But I plan to use the bike for most of my transportation needs, with a liberal dash of public transport and my car, when I really need to get out of the city.

I looked into a couple of bike builders and was a little surprised at how they source their frame stock. They seem to get it through bike-specific suppliers. I don't know what they pay, but I'd be surprised if it weren't more expensive than buying it closer to the source. Though I'm sure the price of the materials is nothing compared to the labor of building the bike and the more specialized components..

And the specialized tools. The frame finishing tools (for steel) are very pricey. Cutters, reamers, threaders. The Campy tool kit, for example:

http://www.jimlangley.net/wrench/campagnolotoolkit.html

Two thoughts:
Wire cable locks are easy to cut. Chain is tougher. Those hardened steel D-locks are monkey-fighting tough.

Or, just offer your local junkie $10 bucks a week to bring you a new bike every Monday morning.

I used to work with an old man that preached there's no advantage to a 15 lb bike, over a 25 lb bike, if you have to carry a 12 lb lock and chain.

Hardened steel U- or D-locks, like Kryptonite and derivatives, take less than a minute to cut with an angle grinder. These days, every major tool manufacturer sells a cordless angle grinder.

You can also break them apart with a generic scissor jack from a car, although that might take 3-5 minutes if you're being ginger about it.

That said, I rely on a kryptonite U-lock. All the bikes I've had stolen were someone taking advantage of my laziness. If it's going to be somewhere overnight, take the front wheel off and be sure you're locking both wheels + the frame. Otherwise, lock the frame + a wheel. Never ever ever lock just a wheel, unless you're at the neighborhood coffeeshop and you might be able to get away with locking the back wheel through the frame, since it's unridable and anyway you're sitting right there.

Probably the most effective lock is one of a size that you'll actually carry and use.

Probably not good for uphills, or down :mg:, but it solves the theft problem.

Good teens on bikes!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?featur...&v=L-QLcO-aw6A

Ely, Iowa to the Czech Village in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Linn County Trails Map
Ely is the small town southeast of CR. The Cedar River is on the right during the end of the movie.
My neck of the woods, though I have never ridden this particular section of trail. I have to now though.

Thought some of you might enjoy this. :-)

Hi rat. :hug:
Looks pretty flat, one gear to start and one gear to fly.

At $3200 you'd need a hefty lock.

And a good job.

Great ride this morning! Hit the trail at 7:30 ended about 11:15. It was very dry and fast. My fitness level is pretty good but I seem to be getting some arthritis in my left wrist, the one I broke, still I was plenty fast today with a lot in reserve. Some kind of event was starting just as we left. My buddy stopped to check it out but you know me anti-social... didn't want the humans to steal my buzz.

Anywho for your reading pleasure here is an ultra mountain biker's blog. It is worth a read.

http://leopershall.blogspot.com/

Tour Divide - 2745 miles along the spine of the Continental Divide !

I've read several accounts of walking the Divide... envy, envy, envy
but this is the first I've read of biking. double, double, double-envy.

I know of most of the places mentioned for Canada and Montana,
but only behind the steering wheel comfort of a car or pick up.
Fantastic country

... further south I imagine would be miserable riding.

Thanks for the link.

ETA: I found a link to the individual route histories of the riders... here is Pershall's

Yeah, the Southern end would get ugly. I can see riding it but not as a race.

Just bought a bike for SonofV. I got it from the local thrift shop, it's a Rockhopper by Specialized circa mid 90s-00s. It has a number of upgraded components, a new suspension fork by Bomber, front disc brake and front rim brake (and levers) by Avid, a new seat (Bell) and handlebars, etc. I replaced the brake cables and housings (the old ones were shift cable housings--totally inappropriate for brakes). I trued the rear wheel, bought a kickstand, cleaned it up, lubed it, etc. I spent $70 for the bike and about that much on cables and tuneup stuff (side note: I got a pair of dedicated cable cutters similar to these--they're the Real. Deal. I chastised Luke at the bike shop for not compelling me to buy them earlier.) It's a nice ride now. It will give him a way to get around town for short-ish trips so he's not burning up his bus card or my gas to get to the store or his friends' houses.

Sounds like a good deal.

For the record, the bike has a front disc brake and a rear rim brake.

D'oh.

OregonLive
Harry Esteve
9/10/13

The beer growler bike: Is there a better Portland ride?

Finally started resurrecting my bike today. Replaced the tubes and cleaned it a bit. I can never seem to get the rear tire on with the tread pointing the right way. Even dumber, I took it for a spin around the block and forgot to reconnect the rear brakes.

Exciting and dumb. This is why I probably shouldn't be a mechanic of any description.

As forgetfulness goes, on some newer bikes with full suspension, there are lockouts so the suspension doesn't bob on climbs. A guy shared that he locked out but then only turned on his rear suspension for the downhill... ass over teacup. Sometimes its best to keep it simple.

Now here is an innovation that really sounds ingenious...

Bits
NICK BILTON
10/21/13

Start-Up Reinvents the Bicycle Wheel
Now, if someone will just invent a smartphone app to stop the rider from doing stupid things in traffic.

.

Up and down? Back and forth? In and out?

That put a smile on my face!

Benny and I built trail today. I want to improve my home ride to the point where I feel bad if I don't do it at least weekly. Benny has a pretty good eye for flow so I let him make the call on a couple switchbacks. Check out this collie!

What is involved in building trail? I'm picturing saws, axes and shovels.

It depends on how much use it's going to see. It can be a big shovel job to avoid erosion and whatnot but for my purposes it's more hand saw and pruner work.

Damn, I love that video. :biggrinlo

Such a polite puppy, waiting for him to catch up when he couldn't cut it. :haha:

What's is it the kids say... YOLO?

Or dum yo.

This is more my speed.
http://vimeo.com/97675075

Hebe got a new bike (new to her). it has never really been ridden and is a Dynasty Free spirit 230SE ATB ;) Turns out it's a Sears bike, ten years older than she is, cost around $200 then and now considered a "10-speed classic" by some :lol: No wear on the tires or brake pads, looks like it will last her until she goes to college. Thanks to my ceramics teacher. (confirmed bachelor, huge house full of bikes and bike parts, even in one of the bath tubs)

A useful man. :)