mack_turtle

my arms were sore for a few days! so much "rowing".

I got Pfizer for the first and second round, Moderna booster. While I know I am not bulletproof, this gives me peace of mind that if or when I get it, it most likely won't kill me. It's going to suck and I'm more worried about "long covid" and spreading it to others if I don't know I am contagious. still not messing around in public: masks whenever possible, not going to crowded bars and such. while I like to curse our hot climate here, I'm enjoying the mild winter so far. Several family members in other states have gotten covid. one died in October from it. the one who died refused to get vaccinated for stupid reasons. everyone else just had what felt like a really crappy flu.

Just watched Pee-wee's Big Adventure. HBO has it and this movie stands the test of time. Tim Burton's debut as a film director delivers! 1980s Murray BMX team, car chases, clay-animated VFX, Texas humor, a love story about a man's relentless devotion to cycling, a fantastic soundtrack with Twisted Sister, and a script written by Phil Hartman. It's an under-rated classic for sure. If you have not seen this movie as an adult, give it a shot.

I'm going to explore this on my own bike. I just became aware of how balanced I feel on my gravel bike and I am not sure how it feels on my mountain bike. https://www.mtbr.com/threads/weight-distribution-is-ok-why-is-the-front-of-the-bike-so-heavy-and-how-to-make-it.1153521/page-4#post-15014657

I've seen people actually test this by putting scales under a stationary bike to see how the front and rear weight bias plays out. some say there should be about a 60/40 balance rear/front, but there's really not a single approach that suits everyone, nor is there consensus on this. it is helpful to play with wheelbase, front and rear, on bike design to change this dynamic. but as far as I am concerned, the distance between your feet and your hands and your saddle height should not change much. that leaves chainstay length and the elements that make up front-center length as variables.

I was just noticing on my gravel bike, with it's slack seat tube angle and offset seatpost, that fitting is a package deal. the front-center of a drop-bar bike is much shorter than on a mountain bike due to the short, rigid fork and steep head tube angle, but the effective reach is must longer when you consider the forward bend of the handlebar and the way the hoods stick out. you might think that one should move the saddle forward to shorten the effective reach, but the opposite is true. shifting your saddle forward would throw off your balance and you'd slide forward on the saddle, bracing your arms to prevent that, and the result would be too much pressure on your hands. sliding the saddle back cantilevers more of your weight over the center of the bike and that's what it's all about. I like John Weirath's approach to saddle position, which is similar to Steve Hogg's. you body weight should be mostly in the pedals. I can pedal my bike with my butt just barely touching the saddle and my hands only loosely holding the bar on both of my bikes because I figured this out. on a modern mountain bike with a longer fork and resulting long front-center, a steeper seat tube angle helps to center your weight between the wheels. dropper post or not, this helps you keep the front tire down without the old school "sit on the nose of your saddle" approach, which might not ever be enough on a bike with a long, long front-center. also relevant: https://www.handbuiltbicyclenews.com/c23-bicycles/328-nakeds-framebuilder-notes-on-a-prototype If sitting on a bike with the saddle further forward doesn't work for you, you need to consider the other dimensions of the bike because forward geometry is a whole-bike deal, or the bike is just not designed for the way you are used to riding. It might also not be designed for the kind of terrain we have here, which is likely when you consider how PNW riding is fettishized everywhere. You can chose to adapt or just ride a different bike.

relevant https://www.pinkbike.com/news/not-so-fast-how-dropper-posts-created-steep-seat-tube-angles.html

STA means nothing in isolation. Bike geo and fit is a package deal.

I don't understand the question. when I am climbing, my butt is almost never on the saddle. (JK, I get it. I'm odd and most people ride a bike with a wide range of gears that allow seated pedaling. I just have nothing helpful to add.)

Nevermind, got it covered.

I have not used one, but that seems like one of those things that tons of people buy, use a few times, then allow to gather dust in the house for years before posting on Craigslist for a few bucks.

I appreciate it, but that's basically what I am using now. the light came with a nice mount that warps around a 31.8mm handlebar (and nothing narrower than that). I'm trying to extend the light up and out so it's not directly on my handlebar, where the brake hoses and front tire cast shadows on everything. I tied my hoses and dropper cable together and used a strap to get them somewhat out of the way, but the shadows are still there. I was hoping that, with the popularity of action cameras and computers, someone bought something around here that they ended up not using. actually, a spare Garmin "out-front" mount would work too. I am aware that there are a few adapters and special mounts available from retailers that I'll buy if needed, so no suggestions are needed there. just wanted to see if I could try something that someone else already has lying around.

anyone have any GoPro- or Garmin-type spare mounts? my handlebar light has a Garmin interface on the bottom and came with this GoPro adapter. I'd like to mount the light higher and further forward on my handlebar, so a Garmin or GoPro interface on an extension would work. I have a spare Wahoo mount, but that makes the light point 90° to one side, which is not very useful. the tabs on the bottom of the light head unit can be replaces with a Wahoo-oriented unit, but it cannot be rotated 90°.

I kind of wanted to hate-watch it because I wanted to see Austin on TV. I guess I can just ... go outside if I want that. doesn't seem to be worth my time because it's so flagrantly trashy. if you really want to see Austin on TV, wait a few weeks for Queer Eye season 6. If the past five seasons are any indication, will not be trash.

If you want to hate-watch something horrible, check out Twentysomethings Austin on Netflix. I hate it so much that I can't not watch it.

Do most cyclist have tight hamstrings? I don't think I've even been able to bend at the waist and touch my toes for my entire life.

The holidays, 20-30 pounds... I think there's a connection there.

chiropractors can be good if they focus on physical therapy. IME, most of them are not quacks, but they are fighting an old reputation as such. Brad Holden at Health First is a cyclist and a lot of his clients are among the ASS crew. I can't justify going to him any more because he doesn't deal with insurance, so you pay full price for services. I've had good experiences with Endeavor for physical therapy. I'm still nursing a left shoulder/ neck issue but I could barely ride at all this time last year.

make your back stronger! drugs and stretching are not enough. hit the floor and do crunches, planks, deadlifts, bridges, lunges, and squats until you can't do any more. then do it again the next day. I learned this by going to several chiropractors over the years when it would flare up, until Dr. Brad Holden got ahold of me and mostly just made me work out in the gym at his office three days a week. before that, I got to the point that I could not ride for 30 minutes without paralyzing pain sending me home.

https://communityimpact.com/austin/lake-travis-westlake/environment/2021/12/06/travis-county-celebrates-purchase-of-more-than-3000-acres-for-conservation-in-the-hamilton-pool-road-area/ Not sure if this means access for even more trails out there, but it's a nice development.

I thought about it, but I didn't.

yeah, I don't feel the need for anything super sophisticated on my Karate Monkey. it just has to work (not be a flexy pogo stick) and not cause drama in the maintenance department. boost spacing, 29er, 120mm travel is enough for my needs. Pike sounds like a good option as well.

I contacted Velorangutan and their tech, Adam, sent me a super detailed response. I have not actually worked with them, yet, but I appreciate the professionalism. I will take suspension to them if and when the time comes. I think my fork is still working. the damper is probably WAY past when it should have seen some attention, but I am going to ride it and monitor it to see if I've blown a seal in the damper. rebuilding it is going to cost about $200. I've read opinions about this that range from "you should tear down the fork every six months and replace everything" to "just bleed it" to "just ride it until it stops working." for now, I put the fork back together with fresh bath oil so I can ride. thinking long-term, I don't like the idea of a part on my bike that costs that much to maintain. for $520, I could replace this fork with a Marzocchi Bomber Z2, which is made by Fox with a lot of the same parts. the main difference is that the Z2 uses an open-bath damper. that means that, like my previous Rockshox forks, servicing the damper doesn't require so much drama. open the damper, dump out the oil (and dispose of it properly), maybe replace some seals, refill, and button it back up. I'll ask Santa for that Bomber, or get a Tandell rigid fork and say goodby to fork maintenance drama forever!