Chief

Already hit more 100* days by this time than 2011. In 2011 we had 22 days of 100* by this time, this year we're at 27 days so far. Upside is we only have about another three months to go🤣

59 minutes ago, JRA said:

So you think that clamp job is perfectly ok because the jaws are rubber?  Carbon fiber bikes should never be clamped by anything but the seat post. Does not take much clamp pressure to crush a tube, especially if you have no idea what you're doing. I know of at least 1 member here who can vouch for this, he worked at a bike shop too.

Wow you really didn't get it.

Ahhh...possibly the beginning of the covid buyers remorse program?

Anyone taking that bike to a pawn shop either stole it or can't afford it.

Oh, and the jaws of that stand are coated with rubber so nothing to see here🤣

That's just some random picture of a current hipster that's furnished his house retro🤣

1 hour ago, mack_turtle said:

 (hardtail, no silly derailers, preferably without a sissy fork.)

 

Good luck with that when you get fifty plus years old.

Although I guess my gravel bike hits two of those requirements😆

3 hours ago, Barry said:

 But I like spreadsheets. And instead of trying to remember various points of various bikes, the spreadsheet allowed me to not constantly refer back to 2 score+ websites when I wanted to compare bikes. 

Try here. I thought it was a helpful tool when comparing geos.

https://geometrygeeks.bike

Steeper ST angle is better for climbing than a steeper HT angle. People complain about slack head angle causing the front wheel to lift and wander when climbing. A slack seat angle combined with a slack head angle will definitely cause the front wheel to wander. I understand what you're saying about the steep seat angle feeling wierd because it puts your body more over the bottom bracket but you do get used to it. Your Occam gets good feedback from people who have them, good choice.

1 hour ago, AustinBike said:

A demo ride beats a spreadsheet. Every goddamn time.

I agree to a certain point. A geo chart if correct can get you close to the geo of a previous bike that fit well. Unfortunately in the MTB world there are too many factors involved in sizing, head angle, seat angle, reach, stack, unlike with road bikes which are basically just TT and ST length .

I honestly couldn't tell you the last time I demo'd a bike. I bought my last three MTB's as frames sight unseen with no demo just comparing what I knew was the geo of the current bike against what I was looking to get . I have a pretty good idea of what will and what won't work for me as far as sizing and then I adjust from there as in stem, seat post set back, saddle length, width etc... 

A demo is great for someone getting into the sport for sure but as you progress farther into the sport and start to understand more about it I think we get analysis paralysis with all of the available choices. My opinion on demoing bikes is choose two or three that tick the boxes you're looking for and go with the one that feels best.

Like already mentioned in this post about the Ripmo, I rented a bike in Durango and had a choice between a Ripmo and a Ripley. The Ripmo in med was too cramped in the cockpit and the large was too stretched out and just didn't feel right to me so I went with the Ripley which was the closest fit to the bike that I was riding at the time which was a med Evil Following and it felt pretty much the same.

We also ned to keep in mind that what was hot shit 5-10 years ago is a dinosaur now. For instance try finding a current MTB with a front derailleur mount.

I think comparing bikes and their Geo numbers on paper is an act of futility. Mostly due to manufacturer Geo numbers being wrong or measured at some obscure point in the bikes sag/travel. Evil is notorious for this, their numbers are so far off of what they should be it's ridiculous. You need to ride the bike and not just around a parking lot to get the real feel of it's characteristics. We are much better at adapting to how a bike feels than trying to adapt a bike to how we think it should feel. I've progressively gone more low, long and slack over the years and when I first get on a lower slacker bike my first thought is I don't know about this, but I eventually adapt to how the bike feels and I like it just as long as the TT and wheelbase aren't too long. The one thing I will say for the local trails is that any wheelbase beyond 1200mm is like trying to drive a big rig through the trails. My Rascal is 130mm rear and 150mm front with a 44mm offset fork and just shy of 1200mm wheelbase and I love it. With that said a bike that was developed with PNW trails in mind is most likely going to be a dog in Centex trails. All I can say is if it feels comfortable to you then it's probably a good fit. Let's not overthink things "KISS".

4 hours ago, ATXZJ said:

The biggest change with modern bikes is the speed you can ride these trails. 

 

The newer Geo of todays bikes really does let you go faster with less consequences. 

26 minutes ago, ATXZJ said:

IMHO, you'll get used to steep STA after a couple rides. Same with slack HTA.

My bikes always feel super slack when I first build them, then after a few rides I can't even tell I'm riding around on a 63-64* HTA bike.

Last thing you want is a slack STA with short chainstays. Especially if you're tall/have long legs.

 

^ 100%

7 hours ago, Cafeend said:

I have gone through a couple products from

Prestacycle and have tried to cobble together some combo of fittings to use my compressor with my presta valves for inflation. 

I don't recommend Prestacycle products and cobbling fittings together hasn't proved successful 

 

So what do yall use? I am thinking I am gonna shell out for the spendy Park inflator just to have a reliable and working tool.

It cannot possibly be this hard 

Thanks

I use one of these. I have a couple if you want one.

On 6/2/2022 at 9:48 AM, mack_turtle said:

in case it has not been stated enough, Airrosti is amazing. I've been tolerating foot pain—plantar fasciitis —for over six months. I tried some stretches and exercises with little relief. early on, a podiatrist wasted my time by just telling me to put arch supports in my shoes. as of two weeks ago, I could barely walk some days.

after my first visit at Airrosti (Brodie Lane), they got medieval on my sole and lower legs. it was really painful but in a good way. a week has passed and I'm doing the exercises they recommend with videos in a phone app and I feel 99% better. I'm also addressing some severe pain my my little toe that only shows up after about an hour on the bike, regardless of terrain or footwear. They're mitigating and fixing that as well.

with insurance, it's $25 a visit, and I'll probably be 100% back in shape after four visits.

 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

 

If you go to the south location, get something at Crema Bakery afterwards.

Do yourself a favor and get a night boot. I've worked on my feet all my life and have had my fair share of dealing with Plantar Fasciitis in both feet. I've had to deal with it for years at at a time it sucks! My podiatrist gave me exercises and recommended a night boot, the night boot really helped. When you go to sleep at night your feet naturally point down allowing the fascia to contract and when you get up it's so painful to take those first few steps the boot keeps your foot at a 90* angle not letting the fascia contract. Inserts only made things worse for me, walking barefoot is actually one of the best things for your feet. We were never meant to wear shoes. I hope it goes away it sucks.

I have a bunch of 14g nipples. Are you sure you need 15g? 

6 hours ago, ATXZJ said:

Appropriate for current times!🤣

23 hours ago, throet said:

Last one of these beauties! Not sure I want to pay another $16 for a sixer, but they sure are good. 

$16 for a sixer !? that's a bargain if you like it. Most of what I'm drinking is $15-20 for a four pack.

This is a good one for any of you out there that enjoy a proper Belgium Trippel. Brewed using blue agave nectar. Very well balanced, not too sweet not too hoppy nice maltiness, and is as good warm as it is cold (for you room temp drinkers)😉 Found this at Total Wine Lakeline.

22 hours ago, mack_turtle said:

Yikes! Has the manufacturer acknowledged that problem? Seems like a major oversight to me.

Yeah, I contacted Revel and they responded that the fork was spec'd for a center lock hub with an internally splined lockring. I swapped the hub to center lock and found a TRP lockring that works.  Yeah I was a little bummed when I discovered all of this. I thought this build would be an easy parts swap, instead it turned into a complete new build. So anyone looking to get a Revel Rover frame be aware that it requires center lock hubs or at least the front one.

4 hours ago, ATXZJ said:

1300 grams each....jesus man!!!

His bike is so light he needs weight to meet UCI regulations🤣

Is that a Vittoria tire? Goma maybe?

13 hours ago, TAF said:

Chilled glasses are heresy from the shitty yeller beer industry. If it needs a chilled glass, it‘s not coming out of the tap at the right temp.

If it needs to be chilled it's probably not worth drinking. Both my wife and I prefer our beer on the warmer side. But we also don't typically drink anything below 10%. I feel the bigger beers are much better warmer than cooler, for me the cold actually takes away from the flavor profile. I've taken the philosophy of drink better, drink less.

3 hours ago, The Tip said:

But does the rain curse happen with a gravel or road bike?

Seeing as the previous gravel rig saw a fair amount of trail time i'd say that rain can definitely happen with a new gravel bike, maybe not so much with a road bike. Haven't built up a road bike since 2007.

This one is not 100% complete yet. I'm waiting on a center lock front hub to swap out the 6 bolt. The 6 bolt hub doesn't work with this fork, the rotor bolts just hit the mounting bosses for the caliper.

That Utopias is very good. I like to start with my beer chilled and as it warms you get to taste all the different profiles. Boozy beers are usually my go to.

I may or may not have been the cause of recent rains, but I have no regrets. This is why.