AustinBike

I swear by them, but I don't do crazy shit. Ergon grips are great for longer rides. My arms do not get fatigued and It helps me maintain a better hand position.

Nope, definitely alive. On the NWCT a couple weeks back.

What is this?

If you do them separately you can dial them each in on their own. Changing both at the same time makes the dial in a little more difficult.

Got in 14 miles yesterday on the trails. Even though we had rain, getting there early was the saving grace. I was stunned at how dry the trails were, but eventually we opted to head back because the light rain was starting to make the loose dirt cake up on tires, so we rode the concrete path back.

I approve of this strategy

That cloud is the hero dirt maker 😉

I will be heading there from the vet, not the house. Gotta take Lucky in for his yearly stuff.

I’ll be there about 4 to do an early lap, if anyone wants a social lap ~5 chime in.

You are 100% correct. It is no different than tires. When Kenda Blue Grooves first hit the market everyone was in awe of them, oh my god did they grip. Six months later we had all moved on because they wore out so fast. Grippy but durable is like coming up with something that is wet and dry at the same time. Not a physicist, but working with different sole materials for years, you either had soft and grippy or hard and durable.

Just found this: "Trails are good now. Point 6 is completely dry. Inner Log Loop is completely dry. Out Log Loop has one small puddle, otherwise completely dry. The dam is completely dry. CharDog Up is completely dry. Tangle of Trails has a few wet puddles and two downed trees. Didn’t try Marks Art. The chain link fence line has a few small puddles. Main Creek crossing is flowing pretty good. I’d avoid and use the bridge." Sounds like WC is a go tonight, planning to be there.

According to Charlie the trail was way too muddy today. I am going to do something urban instead because there is no reason to mess with the trails. Show them some love and let them dry out for a few more days.

Finally, something I can actually speak about with real knowledge - I was in shoe repair for years. Basically today's shoes are vulcanized to the soles (as well as being glued). Replacing a sole on a bike shoe pretty much requires a new sole that comes from the manufacturer and is custom fabricated for that exact model and that exact size. This is why a manufacturer will replace warranty claims vs offering to repair it. Odds are high that the repair will not be perfect and it will probably come apart on you (repair machinery is far less efficient than some manufacturing lines...) I would hit up the manufacturer on the shoe, there is a good probability of getting a replacement. If you do take it in to have it repaired, they are not going to look as nice and will not last as long. Take a look at the shoe itself, there is a sole and a side - these are a single piece and you can see where the stitching on the side is (upper edge of "sidewall".) This is actually where they go together because this is all one piece. To repair it a shoe repair would grind down the sole so that it is uniformly flat, glue on a new sole, then put an edging on there to hide the layers and hold it together. This will be glued, not sewn and will end up making the shoe look more like a Chuck Taylor basketball shoe. Basically you don't want to see the side layers because this is where they start o come apart. The new sidewall is not decorative, it is functional, holding the new sole to the rest of the shoe. My professional advice is go after the manufacturer. If they say go pound sand, get another shoe and stay clear of 510.

Chuck, that does not look anything like your gravity bike....

Slightly different. At least I'm hoping...

Got a visitor this weekend, so I am off the bike anyway. Time to do some hiking.

I have something like that. I believe (seriously) that the dog might be autistic. He did not enjoy being strapped onto a person.

That thing looks great, I’m going to keep my eye out for one of those

Sweet trailer, much better than the one I have now, but want something with the cargo up front in case Señor cabeza de papa decides to jump out and make a run for it. Yeah, a leash will stop him, but only while I drag him. The front makes monitoring the situation a lot easier.

Yeah, those look nice. But at $2K+ for the frame, outside of my ballpark. Hoping to stumble over something under $500 (and assuming it needs a lot of work).

Of course, he doesn't have to walk places, he's carried around like a goddamned prince. I should be that lucky.

yeah, the garage space is limited, but I might be able to store it where the current dog trailer is stored.

I have a trailer already (see below). Dog is not wild about it. My wife also takes him in her basket, but not for long distances. A cargo bike would solve that and give me the ability to haul things like groceries. I guess I could use the dog bike for that...

If anyone comes across something like this, I'd be real interested in buying one: Looking for the 2 wheel version, not the 3-wheel version. Saw a bunch in France but when I got home and started googling it, they appear to be several thousand. Looking for one that is gathering dust and needs to be disposed of; perfectly happy if it has not been tuned up in a while. For a few hundred I'd be willing to take it on as a project. Looking for both a dog carrier and maybe even groceries as I use my car less in retirement.

Yeah, great ride. Light rain meant that the air was cool and the dust was tamped down. Nothing was slick and conditions were perfect. Anthony was right, always ride. Got done and over to Red's Porch before the deluge hit. Overall win-win!