The Tip

All the more reason to not have the back up light sitting unused in the backpack.

Absolute truth. Also wanted to comment that I think that any backup lights would be better served on your handlebar rather than in your pack. ALL your lights will not fail at the same time. Why not use that "backup?"

I had a funny thought. A bike shop could have a rack of these and sell them for $40 because the sign would say, "Only 80 grams!"

True dat! And speaking of Home Depot, I feel like a genius wearing my $3.50/pair gloves ($9.88 per 3 pack):

On the first helmet that I did this on (now cracked and retired) I put the lights too far forward. So they did indeed block some peripheral vision. On this current helmet I set them further back and it's not a problem. I thought maybe the light would be a distraction, but it's far enough back that I don't see the light on the side of my eye either. And the straps are attached in such a way that the lights still swivel for adjusting the aim. The only downside is I look like an alien or at least someone that battles aliens. But I am definitely a function over form kind of guy. As demonstrated by the florescent tee shirts I wear. lol

I use four Niterider lights. Two on my handlebars, two on my helmet. I initially rigged one light's handlebar strap to the side of my helmet with some zip ties. I did this because I hit the top of my helmet all the time on rides. I didn't want a light on top catching and ripping my head backwards. But the weight on one side made my helmet slide to one side. "If I can only come up with some counter weight..." Duh, it finally dawned on my dumbass...another light! So here's my rig. With my four lights blazing I joke that I could film a movie! I use to think that people that rode at night were crazy. But when I finally did it I felt the same way I did after I finally got lasik surgery; why did I wait so friggin long?

Not only are we going to have hero dirt because of the rain, but we are going to have another good citizen sponsoring post ride dining for Tuesday's Crank and Drank. Our fellow riders Curtis Storm and Janie Glos have convinced their company, Commerce Bank, to sponsor a PIZZA PARTY for us after tomorrow's ride. Commerce National Bank is a Texas Community Bank that has had a presence in Austin for the past 20 years, providing commercial and consumer loans, along with deposit services. They were recently acquired by Amarillo National Bank which is a 127-year-old family-owned Bank and huge supporter of the of the communities in which they operate. Sponsoring this ride is one way they are giving back to this community and saying “thank you.” A rider of our trails needs to give back to the community. There are several ways to do this. Trail maintenance is a big one. Being a ride leader or sweep is an easy one. But if you, or your company, gives us free stuff, that's a GREAT one! So thanks Curtis. Bring a chair, bring a beverage, and bring an appetite. 6 pm behind ATX Bikes. About 15 miles this week. Combination of SATN Social's south beginning and north's ending.

Ohhhh! So the GOOD and COOL riders wear earbuds. Especially in the city streets. Gotta get me some I guess. Seriously though, I am amazed at what equipment can withstand. I saw one video where afterwards they listed the amount of rims and stuff that they trashed during the shoot, but still, like a 40 foot drop onto flat concrete, and not totally taco-ing a rim? Amazing.

No. Like Mack Turtle said, the harder one is going south out of Slaughter Creek. I do get a sense of accomplishment doing it. My problem is that I'm usually pretty tired by the time I tackle it. And speaking of Crank and Drank (what?! we weren't?) this week's is going to be another special one. Not only will be "practicing" the SATN Social's north route (18 miles), but we've been promised post ride chicken and sausage jambalaya to go along with our dranking, courtesy of a good member of our community. Put next week on your calendar too. We've been promised a pizza party by yet another good member of the community.

Who says there are no climbs in the SATN?!

I posted this in the thread under events, but putting it here too Google map with all three routes on it: https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?hl=en&mid=1uW17XVqKni7OhNBs-iZfFjq84wvng9H9&ll=30.19231555044796%2C-97.87136449999997&z=13

Me too. Got my Trance with those 780mm bars. I rode with them a lot trying to get use to them, thinking that they must know something, there must be a reason for these wide bars. But I finally gave up and cut them down to 730mm. I have not regretted that decision for a second. Now I can ride the trails I know like I know them. The 2 inches does make a big difference with the tree gates I negotiate.

Just buy one quickly. We need the rain.

When I do something like this. I mean, IF I were to do something like this I always I mean I think that I would walk away laughing just picturing the reaction.

I feel like this at Slaughter Creek Preserve. What they need there are more signs because six or seven of them are just not enough. Yes, I suppose there is a lot to convey, but I just laugh at this microcosm of societal need to regulate. Like McDonalds now; "Caution! The coffee may be hot."

I was hoping it was where all we MTBers got a badge and could give out tickets. But alas, I don't think so. I think it's for pet owners, out with their badged up pets, gently admonishing other pet owners when they are seen doing something wrong. Not a bad idea actually. I'm sure 75% of the training will be how to be non-confrontational when doing the admonishment.

Crank and Drank tonight is starting with some SATN SOCIAL practice. The length of each of the three SOCIAL segments will work well for Crank and Dranks. But tonight's ride is going to be a hybrid of the south and east routes.

A lot of the SATN is smooth as satin. It's true. People say it's a good way to get smile miles in. And there's a little bit of climbing available, there's a little bit of tech, but there's a lot of flow. And it's so big that it's rarely busy. I can put in 20 miles on a weekday and never see another person. On the weekends, on a pretty day, I do have to keep my head up because there's more of a chance of seeing someone else.

LOL, I was informed that you aren't the only one! See, The Social is already doing some good. 😁

An FYI, SATN is pronounced SAT-N, as in smooth as satin.

The SATN SOCIAL Fall, 2019. A celebration of the South Austin Trail Network. Saturday, October 26th. 8:00 am - 5:00 pm-ish ATX BIKES parking lot, Slaughter Lane @ Beckett Sponsored by ATX BIKES and GIANT Bicycles. What is it? It is not a race, it's just a big social ride. There are three routes that all start and return to the ATX Bikes' parking lot. The north is 18 miles, the east is 15, the south is 25. Do all three for a 58 mile ride. This ride will be 90% dirt. The rest is a little road, a little sidewalk. The routing is trying to use as much of the SATN that is not in a gray area. A gray area is one where the landowner is tolerating limited use of it so far, but it's not officially been sanctioned. This ride avoids all of those. ATX Bikes and Giant Bicycles will be providing food, beer, and some prizes. Prizes will be in a drawing. Tickets will be earned by completing a route. So if you only do one route you will get some tickets. Do all three, get more. Do bonus mileage, get even more. Giant Bicycles will be bringing their demo trailer. Oh yes, this event is an actual thing! Get there early to pay your registration, sign your waiver, pay your donation to charity, get your bike number, and get your start time assigned. KIDDING! There will be none of that. This is all free and it's all for fun. It's a SOCIAL ride! It's a social ride that will educate people about the South Austin Trail Network and to make it a more legitimate thing. The more it is recognized the more of it that can be sanctioned and appreciated by the landowners. "Hey! We have a cool thing here." Perhaps one day we will be able to have a ride that uses all 90 miles of the SATN. So mark your calendars and tell your buds about it. Look for routes to be posted soon so you can practice and get them down. Recruit a group to ride with on the day of The SATN Social too. Just pick photogenic people though because you will be taking pictures of yourselves in the far reaches of the SATN as proof that you rode it all. The routes: https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?hl=en&mid=1uW17XVqKni7OhNBs-iZfFjq84wvng9H9&ll=30.19231555044796%2C-97.87136449999997&z=13

The SATN SOCIAL Fall, 2019. A celebration of the South Austin Trail Network. Saturday, October 26th. 8:00 am - 5:00 pm-ish ATX BIKES parking lot, Slaughter Lane @ Beckett Sponsored by ATX BIKES and GIANT Bicycles. What is it? It is not a race, it's just a big social ride. There are three routes that all start and return to the ATX Bikes' parking lot. The north is 18 miles, the east is 15, the south is 23. Do all three for a 56 mile ride. This ride will be 90% dirt. The rest is a little road, a little sidewalk. The routing is trying to use as much of the SATN that is not in a gray area. A gray area is one where the landowner is tolerating limited use of it so far, but it's not officially been sanctioned. This ride avoids all of those. ATX Bikes and Giant Bicycles will be providing food, beer, and some prizes. Prizes will be in a drawing. Tickets will be earned by completing a route. So if you only do one route you will get some tickets. Do all three, get more. Do bonus mileage, get even more. Giant Bicycles will be bringing their demo trailer. Oh yes, this event is an actual thing! Get there early to pay your registration, sign your waiver, pay your donation to charity, get your bike number, and get your start time assigned. KIDDING! There will be none of that. This is all free and it's all for fun. It's a SOCIAL ride! It's a social ride that will educate people about the South Austin Trail Network and to make it a more legitimate thing. The more it is recognized the more of it that can be sanctioned and appreciated by the landowners. "Hey! We have a cool thing here." Perhaps one day we will be able to have a ride that uses all 90 miles of the SATN. So mark your calendars and tell your buds about it. Look for routes to be posted soon so you can practice and get them down. Recruit a group to ride with on the day of The SATN Social too. Just pick photogenic people though because you will be taking pictures of yourselves in the far reaches of the SATN as proof that you rode it all.

I will share a story that I am telling to help you decide. I played intramural hockey in college. I played for awhile and couldn't decide whether to wear a mouth guard or not. After catching a puck in my teeth that required stitches inside my lip and cracked my tooth, I decided, "yup, I should get a mouth guard." So while I'm at the store getting it I look at helmets trying to decide to get one or not. This was back in history when not many people wore helmets. Hard to imagine, right? But I decided, "naw, don't need it." About three games later, WHAM! I went down hard, on my head of course. I got a helmet after that! So the moral might be to not be as adept at closing that barn door after the cows are gone as I was. Because you will really feel dumb if indeed you do crash now and that full face could have helped.

SAVE THE DATE! Saturday, October 26th. Something BIG is happening. This is an exclusive Austin Mountain Biking forum announcement. Stay tuned for details.

I don't enjoy this kind of video. I've seen too many out takes of fail by riders like Danny MacAskill so I know that even the great riders mess up.