taco_junkie

From someone who deals with a fair amount of virtualization: I know those feels bro.

TACX and Elite also make some of the best trainers out there. For reviews and information DC Rainmaker is a really good source. If you are comparing to a Peloton then you should be looking at direct drive trainers. Direct drive means you take the bike's rear wheel off and put your chain straight on the trainer. The others have rollers that your tire turns. Those are lame 😛 I got a 2nd cassette that matches the one on my rear wheel and can switch from trainer mode to real bike mode as fast as it takes to swap a wheel. I've tried a lot of training programs. It kind of depends on your goals and training style to say which one is the best. I like unstructured "natural" type rides so I mostly do Zwift. Other software might be better for structured training. I've never been on a Peloton but I like to put my road bike on the trainer and knock out a ride when it's dark or raining or 107 degrees. It's not wobbly, almost the opposite, you don't get the side to side movement out of the saddle that riding on the road gives. It's not going to fall over or anything. All the resistance is controlled by the software. Change gears and virtual speed or adjust the software for your constant effort training.

* Probably doesn't apply to Apple. But you already said no on those so no worries there.

From Amazon for $619.99 ASUS VivoBook Thin and Lightweight FHD WideView Laptop, 8th Gen Intel Core i5-8250U, 8GB DDR4 RAM, 128GB SSD+1TB HDD, USB Type-C, NanoEdge, Fingerprint Reader, Windows 10 - F510UA-AH55 Let's break this down: ASUS - Brand. Not Great. Not Terrible. The 3.6 Roentgen of computer brands. VivoBook - The line of laptops this one falls in. Thin and Lightweight FHD WideView Laptop - It's a laptop. It's thin and lightweight. If you don't give shits about thin and lightweight too damn bad because they all are. 8th Gen Intel Core i5-8250U - It has a processor or the brain. It's 8th gen. 8 is better than 7. i5 means you aren't getting charged more for the i7. This used to mean something but not really anymore. Just stay away from i3. 8GB DDR4 RAM - This is the memory that is used when you run a program. Not having enough of this makes your computer slow. 90% of laptops can be upgraded by a nerd with a screwdriver and $40 to double the RAM to 16GB. 128GB SSD+1TB HDD - This is the memory that keeps your programs and files saved on your computer after you turn it off. Run out of this and no more cat meme GIFs. SSD is fast but expensive. HDD is slow but cheap. This computer has a little of each. Nerds can also upgrade this. USB Type-C - It connects to things. As does every laptop. NanoEdge - ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ NFI. Fingerprint Reader - It sends your fingerprints to the Chinese. Windows 10 - It sends your fingerprints to Microsoft.

Shoot I've ridden that a hundred times and I still take a wrong turn now and then. All trails lead to adventure.

Oh FFS. Well at least we tried. Sorry it didn't work out.

Yup. I hope that works out for you. I did love that frame when it was running good.

I bet you aren't a millennial. They give bonus points if you pay in bitcoin.

Yeah Power BI does maps. Except its Bing ◔_◔ But yeah maps work. Between Tableau and Power BI I slightly prefer Tableau's visuals but working with data in Power BI is much easier. YMMV

Tableau? It's Power BI or nothing at all! I already broke the front half of the donor bike so maybe it's a match? Like bike frame Darwinism?

I have an alum Pivot 429 rear triangle. PM sent.

I thought that looked familiar. I took a picture at the same spot a few weeks ago.

Crowler storage.

Sounds like I should be packing extra beers to the C&D tonight. See yall there.

My controller is dying a slow death. I need to open it up again and fix it right or just upgrade. The Harrier is fun. It starts up quick and the computer bits are basic compared to the A-10. Very limited ordnance though especially if you are used to the Hog. The Hornet would be my choice for a 2nd module. It does everything. I snagged the UH-1 in a sale and it's great but yeah I'd trade that in a second for a Kiowa or an Apache. RIP Longbow 2.

Squishy bits, but not too squishy.

Nice! I've spent plenty of time in the DCS hog and half the other modules.

I feel like one of those unnamed trails should be called "Ether Way" or some other ether based pun now just to tie it all together.

Good stuff. That trail #4 looks fun.

I've done the ped bridge across 360 a few times and I got there and back via Southwest Parkway to William Cannon to Escarpment. Southwest Parkway isn't great for that first stretch. 3 lanes no shoulder and 50mph. There is a plan to make that better in a few years with the YBC trail assuming that's still a go. It should connect all that stuff from the bridge all the way to Oak Hill. Other road options involve Brodie or sections of the 290 frontage.

For exiting Austin and into Buda the SH45 SW toll road that just opened has a sidewalk/bike path that goes from the end of Escarpment to 1626. 1626 has been widened with a shoulder but you only have to make it to Lakewood Dr to sneak through Leisure Woods and the Coves to 967 and into Buda. If you were coming from anywhere W of Brodie that's the way I'd go but it's brand new so I haven't done it.

Isn't that missing a digit? DCS? BMS?

Same for me. It's been a while but I used to take roughly that route to 5 mile and back. I think we used to go down twin creeks road but I would not recommend that anymore. I rode the the livestrong challenge last year and did a lot of that same road to get out of Austin. It all seemed reasonable. There are a few people I follow on Strava that do that route at least down to San Marcos regularly. https://www.strava.com/activities/2415493641 (not me) I'm sure you could call and get advice from Buda Bike Co. They do a Saturday ride that I've been wanting to check out and I think they typically ride south starting in Buda. https://www.strava.com/clubs/budabikeco

I have a 2013 Pivot 429 with a crack in the downtube that's collecting dust. The rear end might have been a drop in replacement. 🤔

Yep. Trance custom build. It's been a blast. I went with the DVO Topaz shock on this build. Seems to work great but I had a HT before so you could have put a marshmallow there and I'd have been happy.