olddbrider

You might have to ask for it at a local shop. Believe it or not, it's considered a potentially abuse-able substance so I think there are some restrictions about just having it out in the open where someone could just snag it. At least that's my recollection from when we used to keep it in the shop years ago...

I'd agree with the above posts but also add that my bike came with an NX drivetrain. At the time I thought I'd ride it until it broke and upgrade. Almost 2 years later it's still going strong. Shifting is crisp, but I will agree with the above statement that the NX doesn't have the rigidity and solid feel of the GX.

Cut yourself some slack. That bike was like 2 sizes too big for you.

Has anybody ever used the Quarq Shockwiz? https://www.amazon.com/Quarq-ShockWiz-Black-Standard/dp/B06WVH6PPS/ref=sr_1_2?gclid=Cj0KCQiA8vSOBhCkARIsAGdp6RTNIiddFxkW5BW7qVl381-GwJ0YhO5VguCc2lRzGEotgNn_cdmrC7waAk2bEALw_wcB&hvadid=190506809683&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=9028226&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=8549475455013021125&hvtargid=kwd-300217993631&hydadcr=2395_9913971&keywords=quarq+shockwiz&qid=1641924115&sr=8-2 I've seen a couple of videos and I'd love to try it to get my suspension dialed, but the price is kind of outrageous. It would be great for a shop to rent these out. I'd happily shell out $40 for a day.

You're not one of those people that ride with a bluetooth speaker, are you?

A few days ago a post from east_austin_bike_trails popped up in my Instagram feed. It looked interesting, so I followed them, but I can't find any info about where these trails are. I've tried the googles and trailforks, but nothing that matches that name comes up. From their recent posts, it looks like they are working on a jump line, but I'm not sure what else is out there. Does anyone here know about these trails?

Maybe we should just leaf it alone...

I know you said you didn't want to send it off, but I will give a plug to these guys - www.traillabs.com They are in Springfield, Missouri, but their turnaround time is amazing because they actually schedule your service appointment before you send them your component. I sent my fork and shock to them last summer and had them back within a week. That might actually rival turnaround time for a local shop. Their prices were very competitive too. Full disclosure: I did have an issue with my shock leaking oil after it was serviced. They were really good about it and fixed it quickly with no extra charge to me, but it did mean I was without my shock for a few more days.

Totally agree. The email I received only mentioned that the event was being canceled, but the posts above indicate it might be rescheduled. Can you provide some clarity on this?

There's rain in the forecast for Saturday and RPR is famously quick for shutting the trails down if it's wet. Any idea what happens if it rains?

A lot of lights either come with a helmet mount or have one you can buy. For the NiteRider I just bought I had to buy the helmet mount separately. I have a buddy with a Bell helmet that has a built in light mount as well. Pretty nifty.

Great timing! You saved me $20. Thanks!

My MagicShine (circa 2010) finally died on me last night. Thankfully, it was at the end of our ride, so I didn't have to suffer through much trail with just my helmet light. Christmas is coming early for me and I'm getting the NiteRider Lumina Dual 1800 for my handlebars and the NiteRider Lumina 1000 Boost for the helmet. I have always run my light and battery pack strapped to my helmet, so I think going this route will actually be lighter than my current setup. I have a friend who has the exact same combo and it throws a crazy amount of light on the trail. I've also had good success with NiteRider products and they have a solid warranty.

I can say with 100% confidence that I experience far more pedal strikes now than I did years ago - before the "long and low" geometry trend. I'm not going to go out and replace my perfectly good 175mm crankset, but if I ever do replace it I'll strongly consider going shorter (maybe 165mm) and going a bit smaller on the front chainring (maybe from a 30 to a 28?) to compensate for the shorter crank arms.

Any idea about the distance of each lap? Just curious...

Based on the maps, it seems like a lot of the existing SN trail might be spared. Sure, the long, straight section that runs along the creek looks like it's history, but to be honest that part of the trail is relatively flat and featureless. When I first saw the post, I thought this might be the end of SN altogether, but hopefully that's not the case.

So, you're the one who brought on this rain?

I'm confused... Is the spacing on an 8 speed e-bike cassette the same as on an 11 speed cassette? Otherwise, the setup you described shouldn't work, right? And if the spacing is the same, that would mean the 8 speed cassette would have to be narrower, right? Meaning you'd have to add some kind of spacer on the freehub body to account for the narrower cassette. Are we dealing with a "bees shouldn't be able to fly, but they can" type situation here?

Can somebody show (or tell) me where this new trail is on the map above? I ride Suburban Ninja almost every week but I don't think Boat Trail is on my normal loop.

In that case, I'll take 2!

Yeah, I'll take it if you don't need it. I'll PM you.

To your first point, I think it depends greatly on where you look. If you zoom in on Burnet or Boerne I'm guessing you might find more miles of trail open to ebikes. Sure, if you focus on Austin you won't see much because the trail networks are primarily located in city/county parks. I don't ride as much as you, but mine would be closer to a 50/50 split between public and private trails. I typically do a mid-week ride in town on public trails (Brushy, Ninja, Walnut, Lakeway) and a weekend ride on private trails (Spider, RPR, Flat Creek, Flat Rock, etc.). My riding these days is less about miles and more about smiles. Riding downhill makes me happy, so I'd rather do more of that. That's why I'm at Spider just about every other weekend. At places without a lift, an ebike would give me the opportunity to double the number of laps on any given day. Again, I don't have one. But I see their place and I am definitely not ruling out the possibility of owning one in the future. I resisted dropper posts for a long time. Hopefully, I've learned from that experience...

I realized recently that my index finger hits around the middle of my brake lever. The problem with moving my brakes inward is that it makes it much harder to reach my shifter. Guess I'll have to tinker with my cockpit setup a bit and see if I can find a better way to arrange things...

I know ebikes are still not allowed on federal land, but I feel like "vast majority" is a stretch - especially in a state like TX where many of the trails are on private property. You mentioned Brushy. Are ebikes not allowed on Brushy? I haven't ever seen that posted anywhere, but maybe I'm just not paying close enough attention since I don't have one. I totally agree that I wouldn't want an ebike as my only bike. At least not yet. As I get older, the technology improves, the weight penalty decreases, the cost comes down, and more trails get access (may or may not happen) my opinion might change. I probably do 90% of my riding at Spider Mountain, Reveille Peak, Brushy/Suburban Ninja, and Lakeway. I'll take the occassional trip to Flat Creek when it's open and Flat Rock. I usually do 1-2 out of town trips per year. I wouldn't want to take one to Spider for obvious reasons and probably not Brushy/SN because that's where I get my exercise. But for places like RPR, Flat Creek, Flat Rock, and maybe even Lakeway it would be awesome to have an ebike. More laps = More fun! Based on what I'm seeing in person, it feels like the ebike thing is here to stay. I'm not saying traditional bikes will go away, but the trend in MTB is toward the gravity scene and ebikes open up lots of possibilities there.