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I walk out the door of my house, on the way to the kids' middle school to return athletic clothes and get their shoes from the gym locker, and I see a full on EF kitted guy, with a guy wearing some kind of US cycling jersey. I should have yelled at them, but I was sure it was Lawson Craddock. I was more excited about this than the thunderbirds. So, seeing a pro riding on my street during what would be the pro season is my strangest covid sight. https://www.strava.com/activities/3455463582

I'd rather ride when it is actually 104, after the humidity has burned off. There's no such thing as "real feel" or "feels like"; only hot, gross, or hot and gross.

Sorry, we're closed today, Gone fishin

Pierogis are typically potato and cheese filling. I think Empanadas are usually meat. Something else my wife and I make are Jamaican patties those are very similar to Empanadas but damn they're good!

Summer Wildflowers are here.

Walnut Creek

Ok. First ride with cush core is completed and the verdict is in....I have no freaking idea if it made any difference. Problem is in addition to the cush core install, I also threw on a set of tires I have never used before. Went with the tried and true Minion DHF 2.5/DHRII 2.4 combo. I was previously running a Schwalbe Nobbie Nic 2.6 front and rear. Quick aside...NN makes an awesome rear tire from cradle to grave. NN is a decent front tire when new and a below average front tire with a 1,000 miles on the clock. The DHF/DHRII set up has grip for days. Also lowered both the front and rear pressure down to 16PSI halfway in the ride. Very little tire slip on 1/4 in places i typically loose traction. Not sure whether to attribute that to the minions or the lower pressure afforded by cush core. Anyways, I bought cush core not to improve the performance of the ride but to protect my poor wheel set against rim strikes...which I have done many a time. See pic for the carnage. I have a total of 5 dings on the rear rim and 1 ding on the front rim. All have been straightened out using a crescent wrench. I am amazed this wheel set is still holding air and has not imploded on me.

Yeah, there are a handful of things that I can cook well, but this one was not on the list - homemade pierogis. If you had a polish or Eastern European grandma, you had these sometime growing up. I was craving them so I found a recipe and made some this morning. Let's just say that this was a 2-3 hour labor. When I looked it my Fitbit I burned as many calories as riding. Basically these are potato, cheese, onion, garlic and bacon pierogis and when I was done I had ~72 of them. Had to eat a few after cooking just to make sure they were up to par. The cool thing is you can cook them, then either do the final pay fry step or just freeze them and cook them later. This is pretty similar to gyoza, might try that next. The final ones pictured here had some overly cooked onion on them, that is what at the black specs are. If you are interested I am going to write up the recipe and post it later.

I mentioned a while back that I had ordered an AF and a couple of folks asked if I would post a review once I had put some miles on the bike. It's been two weeks since I picked it up and I've got 5 rides under my belt, which seems like enough to post some early impressions. The rides have been at Reveille Peak, Spider Mountain, Crystal Falls/Travisso trails, and Suburban Ninja/Christ Church twice. My previous bike was a 2017 Salsa Horsethief with 130mm of travel up front and 120mm in the rear. I really liked the bike, but I wanted to get something with a bit more travel, the ability to run wider tires (2.4 was about the max the Salsa could handle), and more modern geometry (slacker HTA, steeper STA, etc.). I got the NX build, but have since replaced the stock stem and bars with an Anvl Swage stem and Chromag BZA carbon bars (cut down to 760mm). I bought some Anvl Tilt pedals because they match the stem, get great reviews, and were $40 less than most other anodized pedals out there. I should also point out that my first 2 rides (Reveille & Suburban Ninja) were on "skinny" tires. When my bike was built up, it was inadvertently fitted with 2.35s instead of the spec'd 2.6s. A quick email to Wes at Velorangutan got that sorted out, but not before my first couple of rides. I can definitely say I'm a fan of the wider tires (Hans Dampf up front, Nobby Nic in the back, both 2.6). I feel like traction and overall ride feel are improved, and I honestly haven't noticed a difference in rolling resistance or how heavy the bike feels (it's not particularly light to begin with). Not surprisingly, the bike feels great going downhill. Whether doing the enduro runs at Reveille or any of the stuff at Spider, I instantly felt more confident and comfortable on the AF. It handles drops like a champ and really smooths out the rough stuff. I still haven't ridden the big rocky staircase at the bottom of Stinger, but it handled everything else out there with ease. I set the suspension up according to (mostly decent) instructions on the DVO and Ibis sites and I really haven't changed them much other than letting a few PSI out of the fork because I wasn't getting full travel after my rides. I'll probably tinker with it a bit, but to be honest I'm more of a set-it-and-forget-it kinda guy, so don't expect a deep discussion of suspension tuning from me... The AF has really surprised me in a couple of areas. First, it climbs like a champ. To be fair, some of that might have to do with going from 11spd with a 42t big cog in the back to 12spd Eagle with an 11-50 cassette. But even without the benefit of the gearing, it just feels more efficient when climbing. Pedal bob is almost non-existent and the rear wheel stays hooked up even when on pretty chunky terrain. The steeper STA is really noticeable and puts me more over the bottom bracket instead of shifted toward the back wheel, which also helps keep the front wheel planted when climbing. The other thing that surprised me was how poppy and playful the AF is. It's quite a bit longer than my old bike (~85mm) so I was expecting it to feel less responsive and playful. But that hasn't been the case so far for me. After getting used to the new feel of the front wheel being farther in front of me, I feel like my jumping is better on this bike and I have found myself hitting new features or old features in different ways. I haven't really faced any super-technical climbing or tight switchbacks going up or down, so I can't really comment on those aspects. Having said that, based on my experience so far I'm optimistic that the AF will handle those things well. There are some fairly chunky, twisty climbs out at Travisso and I did struggle with them at first. I realized it was a timing issue, as I wasn't used to having to lift my front wheel as early on my old bike. Once I got the feel of the new bike, I was able to clean most everything out there. All in all, I'm extremely happy with the new bike. I was a little worried about the NX drivetrain, but so far I have no complaints. For me, the AF has (thankfully) lived up to the hype.

I'll take 92°F at 50% humidity over 70°F at 85% humidity. I just can't stand it. I also don't mind hotter and drier but it means carrying a lot more water for me.

100% agree. I'll take Phoenix at 105 deg with 20% humidity vs Houston at 95 deg with 90% humidity.

A perfect practice ride for when its 104 in a few months.

That excitement may wilt in a hurry!

Empanadas are close to pierogis which are close to gyoza which are close to dim sum dumplings. basically the world loves any kind of dough-based delivery system.

Pockets of food goodness have different names throughout the world, but seem to be comfort food universally.

In Mexico we have sweet empanadas. In northern Mexico some are yeast dough and baked with pumpkin, pecan and other fillings. Elsewhere it's the more traditional pastry dough with sweet or savory fillings. We also have the fried kind made with wheat flour, but we also have these awesome corn masa fried quesadillas. The two traditionals I've had are huitlacoche (mushroom that grows on corn) and squash blossoms with cheese. Man, I've been on a bland diet for days and have a few more days left. I'm torturing myself.

I used regular SG on my sport bike a while back but so many people have said it hastens aluminum corrosion(my swingarm, wheels, rearsets, etc) so I stopped using it. I never noticed any issues after using it for about a year but I'm also a nazi about thoroughly rinsing. It's my baby though so I stopped using it.

Bingo. I lived in Mesa for a few years after growing up in Huntsville and Houston, then moved back to Austin in August... then visited my parents in Houston a couple weeks later... it was an eye-opener. Preheat your oven to about 200, then run your dishwasher to the dry cycle, then open each with your face near the opening... Feel the same? Nope, there's your difference. Summer humidity in Phoenix is usually below 10%, and I've seen the "feels like" go backward below 5%... "real feel", lol.

Unfortunately with the repeal of net neutrality, the ISP can just hand over whatever info they ask for without you ever knowing. Worse yet, the unchecked subversion that will take place by giving the authorities ability to"find" illegal pictures on opposition leaders computers and arresting them. Were they legit or planted and who are you gonna believe? Not a good time

I recently got a Synology router and setup all sorts of safety stuff on it. Do y'all realize facebook is watching? I get several pings a day on it from facebook. We don't use facebook on this machine, it's basically locked down for social media.

If you're running Maxxis, the white writing goes on the drivetrain side (not the disc brake side) makes it pretty easy. but yes, when installing my conti road tires, it take me like 20 minutes to get the direction correct. although there is probably a similar easy cheat on those. i just don't install them often enough to know.

I got in a good couple hours this morning. Trails are primo. I pedalled from the house before 7 and was on singletrack before 7:30. I was surprised how many folks were out that early but it was way better than the other times I have gone.Get you some!

Yep, it sure is a Bike. That it is. But, a $650 bike? I think he accidently added a zero to the price. https://austin.craigslist.org/bik/d/austin-bicycle/7118145449.html

Those guys made bike racks too?!?! Da-de-be-dip d-d-dip-ba-dip ba-dabo-deebo-dobba-dobba-dobba-dobba...

The wife and I do pierogis from time to time. They are a labor of love, but so delicious!

Awesome, this is starting to sound like the "stone soup" story 🙂 2x4's would be good

What do you need? I have been collecting spare lumber for just such a use. Mostly 2x4 of various lengths.

I can come up what we need. Is that a go?

My mullet is shaping up.

@Yosmithy you have a PM regarding the rebar.

Waffles are also an excellent delivery system for fried chicken. Also with real maple syrup. Waffles can also be spectacular on their own. @Jessica has a Belgian waffle maker, and quite a few different batter options. When she does the quick batter, it makes excellent waffels. But that overnight batter is amazing without even adding a topping of any sort. But you still want to put real maple syrup on it, of course. We're no heathens. I mean we are, but not like that. I also enjoy the parmesan crisps. But something odd happens when you have them with whisky. They become more like parmesan chewing gum.

I thought I was the only one. I've been doing this since I started riding in college. My percentage has improved over the years, but I started closer to 50/50… so it's still not good.

Guilty. Someone here called me out on it during a ride and my stomach sunk. I told him it was intentional to test traction.

First world problems. But I'll be damned if this isn't the single most frustrating thing in cycling. I'll check, and double check, and still 1 of 10 times, I install the tire in the wrong direction. Makes me want to delete Strava put my bike curbside for about 0.2 seconds. Then I calm down, have another drink (realizing that's likely the problem anyway) and re-do it. Given the size of our stable, and how quick we burn through tires, at some point, I am likely to mess up on the second install and go backwards twice. And...

Gotcha thanks, I thought it was one of the Karen’s that have decided to move logs on picnic and etc. struck again

While some Lefty forks don't do this, I think most Leftys have their axle in-line with their stanchion, instead of in front of their stanchion. So in this case, the Lefty has to get all of its offset from the top crown.

I have been inside a grocery store ONCE in the past two months. the HEB in Circle C was not very busy last week and EVERYONE was properly masked. a few people were being obstinate about clogging the isle but most people were cool about it. Be sure to share this so we can MAGA!

I would say similar riding level, but as Antonio suggests its a different kind of difficult. Just a bit of warning, it is really confusing the first 3-4 times until you figure out which way to go. I could possibly give you a tour. (and you'll still be lost the second time you go out there.)

It's so different that it's hard to compare. Less step-ups/downs more up and down and lots of switchbacks and off-camber sections. Lots of g-outs. I think it's a harder workout.

Nobody would be struggling if everyone was able to make enough money to live and to be able to save some. Everything we need and purchase keeps going up exponentially but our wages remain stagnant. Meanwhile corporations use their profit to buy back their own stocks to bonus the CEO and executives, the people in my opinion who do the least to benefit the company. I hope/think this event is going to change a lot of things that we just excepted in the past. I don't know about anyone else but it enrages me when I'm being pissed on and they tell me it's just raining.

Personally, my vitriol is not at the people who have to go back to work. It's at our leaders who told us to stay home, gave away OUR money to the banks and big business and then told the serfs to go back to work and die of covid, or stay home and die of starvation. F@ck them. Also the data shows that not just the elderly are suffering as minorities are severely at risk of this virus. Just looking at the Travis county tracker illustrates this with the amount of covid cases per zip. Governor ironsides decided to "reopen texas for business" with NO backup plan. I'd be on board with limited business openings as I understand that people are struggling but have a f@cking plan for if/when it starts going bad and share that with the public. Hell, not ONE state in the 40 that opened has even met president cheeto's outline of a two week decline in cases. Also before you think this is a political party rant, it's not. The dogshit dems all voted for the handouts to the banks as well. F@ck them too. It's not what happens to you, it's how you handle it. This country is handling it about as good as my teenager would.

Lincoln National Forest, Weed, New Mexico. 1989 or 1990.

This is whats happening while we're focused on covid. Is it strange? The timing certainly is. At this point, nothing happening in the US surprises me any more. https://9to5mac.com/2020/05/14/access-your-browsing-history/