Tree Magnet

Forget that this dude is a 75 yo bad ass for a minute and consider this. He admitted to falling over because he couldn't un-clip. That's cool right there. I looped out doing a wheelie in the WC parking lot one time and I had to pretend I was looking for something on the asphalt while I caught my breath. Also, I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that he didn't need any motor assist to pedal around for 30 minutes after being bitten. I predict that e-bikes will come with a 'snake bite' mode where you don't have to pedal so you can return to the trail head without getting your heart rate up.

This came across my google feed this afternoon: https://www.kxan.com/news/local/austin/austin-police-investigate-robbery-at-north-austin-bank-monday/1825750165 Several things popped into my head: Did someone attempt the EB ride over the weekend and need some cash? I wonder if the thief was running STRAVA at the time? The best description of the bicycle is that it's 'blue'? This story would be cooler if there were some trained dobermans or something.

Impressive technology transfer. I'd propose that you jump all over getting a patent on this and watch as Hobie offers you six figures to create a new class of water craft.

I don’t like ebikes because I see them as closer to a motorcycle than a bicycle. If we can use a 500 watt while on the trail, why can’t we use a 750 watt electric motor cycle? Why not a 75 cc yamaha? I get why hikers don’t like bicycles on trails because the speed differential adds danger. It’s how you feel riding city park and you hear a 400 cc KTM coming up behind you. My simple philosophy is that mixing motorized and non-motorized on the same surface is a recipe for trouble. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Jackhammer the concrete and charge Cedar Park to repour it. I checked it out from the main concrete path to where they had stopped pouring it and everything was dry. Their trail blockage took more time and effort than putting up a sign or tape. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I was kidding by the way. Age is just a number. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Isn’t this why they invented e-bikes? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

If you only want to race to win some money, you might be right. However, I think it’s really more about pushing yourself to see what you can do. It’s 3 laps cumulative time so I’m not sure my 35 yo self would be patient enough to pace properly and not blow up on lap 3. I think it’s going to be a wild time riding some fun trail and you get to see some really fast riders. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

You think we can add a 'wet concrete road gap jump' in to the time trial race? It would definitely hurt your time if you take the B line.

Aren’t reflectors required to ride Spider Mountain? You should leave those bad boys on there! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I'm a mechanical engineer by trade and I love beautiful mechanical solutions to complex problems. That being said, these linkage forks make me cringe when I see them. I'm not even sure you could put one of those on some slick super-bike and make it look good. I need to put on my blinders and ride one and then perhaps the performance would blow me away.

I love my Pike. I will say that the newer generation of Fox forks really had to step up their game after the Pike came out. If you were to blindfold me and put me on a Fox or Rockshox, I have no doubt I couldn't tell. I had a Talas Fox that shit the bed but that was WAY back in the days of 26" wheels.

That Revel looks sweet. Not sure about the ENVE carbon layup but I dig the geometry. I have a 160 SC Nomad Gen 3 and it absolutely destroyed Winter Park including the gnar so I suspect it will work fine at Spider Mountain. I think the platform pedals great, climbs fine, and makes drops and jumps smooth and confidence inspiring. That being said, nothing beats travel when it comes to soaking up a trail full of braking bumps. I've been pushing all that travel around Austin area trails for a long time and it's good to have a closer venue to really take advantage of it.

I don't care what they say about you Seth...your videos are fun as hell to watch. You show the crashes and the random shit that really make a bike trip memorable. Good on ya man.

I just want to know who I have to talk to so I can go by my first, middle, and last name. "Jeff Kendall Weed". It's not like he's John Smith and needed another name in there to differentiate himself. Is "Kendall Weed" his last name? I see this causing a serious PITA to some IT guy out there trying to set up his e-mail.

Such a waste. No excuse for this idiocy. If a deer walks across it tonight are they going to rip it up again? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I saw a dude flying down Parmer on one of these. He was seriously hauling ass with lights all over it. Cool looking thing.

It was the right call. When you have the safety of the riders and the trail to consider, how could you make any other decision? If it had gone down and all those riders had ripped up 50 miles of BCGB, there would be no going back. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I have never found this to the be the case unfortunately. If it's a trail on public land, everyone is going to assume that it's there for them and we have to share it responsibly. If it's on private land, the trail is there for whomever the land owner wants it to be. I'd say that the same rules apply that we should use on every trail. Just be careful and pay attention. Just consider what you'd do if there was a three year old playing in the trail around the next corner.

Use a dropper, don't use a dropper....that's totally your call and no one should care but you. I'm just asking if you've tried using it and investigated if it benefits your riding style. For me, it gives me more confidence and comfort which translates into more fun on my bike. I rode without one for a long time and did the same trails so it won't suddenly change what you're able to do. That being said, I'd happily take my bike out if someone cut my shift cables. However, if my dropper is not working, I'm going to have a maintenance day.

If you can hold off cutting down your bars, you might give the wide ones some time to see if you adjust. I hated my wide bars when I first got them but I resisted the urge to cut them because I didn't want to cut too much and then have to buy new bars. After a few rides, I started getting used to it. Now, if I get on another bike with smaller bars, it feels weird. There are all sorts of benefits to wide bars that you might like if you can handle the change. Big question....have you tried the drug that is a dropper post?

I've done a 50 mile trail race and it was an experience that I will never forget. My suggestion would be to find a race on a trail that you enjoy and don't be afraid to travel. When you're deep in the pain cave, having amazing views burned into your head will be worth the trip to get there. Your body only has so many of those type of efforts in it so make them count. My wife has done a 100 mile race and several ultras. She works at Austin Trail Running company and if you have any questions or want to talk to some people that know what you're getting into, swing by there and hit them up.

Is it just me or is anyone else glad to see the jogger footprints so this can't be labeled a 'damn bikers' event?

I hate the invasive species but I have to give them credit for being the superior survivor. They out compete the native plants and we kill them for their success. Poetic justice. I was up in Seattle this summer and the locals were complaining about the ‘non-native’ orca pods. Apparently they were thriving while the native pods were dying because the natives couldn’t figure out how to eat anything but salmon. I was stoked to see a killer whale and didn’t care. Some people are stoked to see a tree instead of concrete so they don’t get why we want to kill invasive species. Strange world. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I would think they’d want to have someone sitting there to keep the random penis drawing or puppy love proclamation heart from being carved into the wet concrete. Seems like a small investment to protect for that tiny window of time that its vulnerable. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk