RidingAgain

Big man... I wasn't referring to your riding prowess... I was speaking to your poor dishonest disposition exposed in your comment about me. As to what you "...distinctly remember..." about how I dealt with a curb... Having been riding for some 25 years, I've confronted many curbs and therefore have a whole lot of experience with them. And for sure, even if I stopped to deal with one, I certainly would not have dismounted "...off [my] bike climbing over the curb...". I would have simply stopped, put my feet on the ground while still straddling the bike, and lifted the bike up, as I've done many times in the past, and will do many times in the future, especially where crossing streets is concerned. So here we have you again being dishonest in your suggestion. Try and get this clear... I don't have anything to prove to me, you, or anyone else about my bike riding skills. So if I feel like stopping and lifting my bike up on a street curb, I'll do exactly that. If it bothers you, that's your problem, not mine. Thing is, your dishonesty is in your suggesting that I don't have the skill level to ride my bike over a curb... That's just you speaking ignorantly, and in doing so, speaking dishonestly. As for this other stuff... "...scolded me for not warning you about that feature..."... You must be off your meds my brother. "...Unfamiliarity shouldn't translate into an f'n guided tour of a beginner trail."... I wasn't there for a guided tour... I was there to have fellowship with a brother in Christ. But it seems you've conveniently forgotten how exactly we came to have our ride together my brother. And this... "...Brotherhood? Let's talk about that. I've ridden countless hours with people who have made me a better rider at the expense of their own enjoyment. In all of those instances, I've expressed my gratitude for their willingness to make sacrifices on my behalf. You on the other hand? I can't even describe it. You seem to want to portray yourself as something you are not. Posting jump videos and asking for critiques? Are you seriously considering getting air? Please do it on that antiquated bike - you'll be my hero! If you are sincere about honesty / dishonesty, let's just get it out in the open. An Austin Mountain Biking Skills challenge for all to witness." "...An Austin Mountain Biking Skills challenge for all to witness."... LOL... What are you... 13 years old? "...my brother..." is related to you coming to me and telling me that you're a Christian. Remember that... You telling me how much you appreciated my speaking openly about my being a Christian? "...In all of those instances, I've expressed my gratitude for their willingness to make sacrifices on my behalf."... But I never asked you to sacrifice anything for me... You asked me if I'd like to go ride with you. My brother — in Christ — it never once crossed my mind that there was some sort of sacrifice being made on your part to teach me how to ride better, as I never asked you to. The most I thought you might do is show me parts of the trail system that I wasn't familiar with, which you did, and for which I appreciated your time and effort and thanked you for. What more were you expecting... Should I have sent you a flower arrangement? As for "...Posting jump videos and asking for critiques? Are you seriously considering getting air? Please do it on that antiquated bike - you'll be my hero!..."... I have no desire to be anyone's hero. But I certainly am thinking about trying to do higher jumps than I do now... And maybe I will, or maybe I won't... Who knows... But honestly... For you to get all emotionally twisted about a middle aged man riding an "...antiquated bike..." inquiring about what it takes to jump 2 or 3 foot jumps... Dude... Come on now... Surely there's more to your life. "...Out!..."... Honestly... You should never have come in in the first place. My brother... Holding to your offended feelings is surely poor form before the Lord. Perhaps one day, when you get over them we can have fellowship on how to take them captive so as not to let them rule you. Stay safe my brother... And as I've said before... Try just riding instead of whining.

You surely are desperate to save face, throet... Even willing to go deeper into dishonesty. But I understand why. Are you not better than this my brother?

Come on now... No excuses... Just setting dishonesty straight. But maybe you can't handle the truth. That aside... Novels are good.

LOL... Shoot... And here I was thinking I was just out for some uncompetitive riding.

I know the feeling... Although this part of Brushy may not be so high in elevation... It does gas you, no doubt about it. And for me, this means the possibility of making errors. Which, when you're riding something unfamiliar, is increased. Take your time... It ain't no race... Or a matter of skill level.

Did you note the part where I said that my wife said not to bring her back to the trail she was annoyed with... That's code for having to be careful as to what trails I take her to. With one caveat... I took her to Brushy once and she rode the trail that I think is Deception... Starting from the soccer fields side... She had to walk some sections, but she thoroughly enjoyed the hill climbing. Surprised me... I wasn't going to take her on it but when she saw it she said she'd like to try. And this is one way riders build their skill level. Taking on challenges at their own pace, according to their own choice. And that's kind of what a B line can help with. Rather than just close off an entire trail, a B line may allow you to ride most of it, even if with some difficulty, and not be frustrated with having to walk some parts. It's a balance that a trail builder needs to find... And some trail builders will lean one way, others will lean the other way... But hopefully not just take the position of saying screw low skill riders... "...NO B LINE FOR YOU!"

Not good man. What if he had heard your bike coming up quickly and stepped off to His right off the pavement... You would have maybe taken him out... And yourself too. Is it worth it? As Cafeend said... Just slow down man.

Whoa my brother... That was sure intended to be an ouchie for me. I forgive you man. Brotherly love aside... How about a little honesty... The one time we rode together we did so from your house, and approached the trail from the west, which was different from the one time I rode the trail before, which was from the east. And the part of the trail you started us in was some section that immediately hits an uphill section that's alongside a steep drop off, which also has some large, tight G-out feature and some wonky wood bridge thing... Sorry, but when I ride trail for the first time, and that I consider dangerous, I prefer to walk it. Bite me for being wise. The rest of the trail wasn't much of a problem as far as I remember. And about the only section of the Deception part that I haven't attempted to ride is the part that I've been told has some kind of steps. And yes, there's another place that has some large rocks that kind of step up, it's part of a section that has some switch backs. But other than those three sections, I can't say I was "...dismounting [my] bike on virtually every climb and baby feature...". Now... Not riding hills much down here on SATN trail, even the little extended climbs on Brushy trail can test my lungs, and I will stop if I feel the burn... But that has nothing to do with skill level... Which is what you're trying to diss. When we went riding, it was before your fall and you'd said you were riding for hours almost every day, maybe even twice a day... On Brushy trail. Me, I was getting out maybe once or twice a week for maybe an hour... On the SATN trail around where I live, which is pretty much flat and not much like Brushy trail. And I'd only ridden Brushy trail once before. But I guess your dishonesty is good for the laughs you desire. Unfortunate, but I get it. As for my wife... She's who I ride with most often, and her skill level is different to mine, so I use her as a reference point when speaking about matters related to less skilled riders. Now that might bug you, but that's on you, not me. Now... Let's get this away from your personal attack... And back to the actual subject... B lines are a part of trail building for public use... That's a fact. And only an ignorant person would try and argue otherwise. I advocate for the use of B lines. And since B lines are a part of trail building, what needs to be considered is how/where B lines should be incorporated into public use trails. Which I also advocate for. Contrary to the silly dishonesty you were suggesting in your above comment, I've never advocated for B lines to be a part of every difficult feature on a trail. Never. What I do advocate for, and has been proven useful/beneficial on many public use mtb trails, is for B lines to be incorporated in places where the difficulty level of a feature makes it dangerous for lower skill riders to try and ride, or maybe even walk, and possibly dangerous for other riders who may be going fast and not expect to encounter a dismounted rider in the feature... AND... There is the terrain to include a B line without hindering/changing the integrity of the trail section (meaning, it doesn't create a conflict with the other trail feature). And this is being done all of the country on very popular, highly considered, mtb trail systems. And I'd just like to point out... I've never built a B line on any trail I've helped build, maintain, or ridden. And I don't think that anyone should do so, apart from official approval by the official trail builder/authority. Now... To the matter of "...there are plenty of trails around to suit everybody's skill level." No doubt about it... BUT... Public land is just that... Public land. And anyone who pays local taxes has the right to use and enjoy public land. And you, nor any other private citizen has the right or authority to dictate what and how a tax paying local citizen enjoys their right to use public land. But perhaps you think you're some sort of little god who should be able to dictate how public land is used by others, throet. And really... WTF are we talking about... Brushy has how many miles of trail... 10? 15? 20? More? And how many B lines are being discussed... 5 yards? 10 yards? 20 yards? More?... That make up maybe a 50 yards of trail... If that? 50 yards of trail that would help a lower skill rider have more enjoyment when they're out riding trail. And you want to deny them of this. What are you, a fricking buzz kill... A whining Debbie Downer. Grow the frick up man. Honestly, it just amazes me how insignificant a matter this is in the whole scheme of local public land trail building/useage in Austin... But people like you, throet, want to spend time whining about it over and over again. Okay... In the words of ATXZJ... Rant over. And hey my brother, throet... Be safe, and keep on riding, not whining, man

That frame looks a lot like my old Scott Racing frame. Nice photo too.

Your "...And here we go..."... Is the kick off.

Love it. Regarding not being trail use selfish... Because I'm always seen working on bikes out of my garage, which led to my apartment complex manager and assistant manager asking me to get bikes for them... Which I did... And then asking me to get bike racks for them... Which I did... As well as speaking with them about the joys of riding trails, and where locally they could ride... I got this (pre-COVID-19 invitation from them. And when I thought about it, I also wondered if this could be done in all apartment complexes that had office/clubhouse facilities. Here's the email invite content... Good morning, The Park at Monterey Oaks would like to invite you to participate in our Community Resource series, as a speaker and share your knowledge and love about bikes, safety, local trails, etc. We are sure you have lots of knowledge about how to pick a right bicycle and a helmet. We would love to hear your stories and teachings about safety on the roads and trails, as well your recommended hike and bike trails in our area. We are finding that this events are creating a wonderful sense of community and a great opportunity to enrich our lives with great knowledge and interaction with others. We are trying to build a Calendar for the month of March and April, here are the dates we have open in March: March 5th and 19th-April is open Please let us know which will work best for you! We would love to have you! Kind regards,

🙂

I know... I'll get blowback on this... But no, Morris... That's not "...what it's about...". Now, as I've said before... I'm a big fan of yours... But riding isn't about trying to get more skilled to do harder sections... Riding is about enjoyment... And different people have different measures regarding what enjoyment to them is. Right here on this board we have different people saying that they will do so much and no more. So if you go further than them are going to accuse them of not doing "...what it's about..."? If you're a pro then you gotta make the grade and do what pros do. But if you're just an amateur rider you only have to do what you feel comfortable doing. And should be able to do so without having to be confronted by some people looking down on you. A few days ago I went riding with my wife on the section of SATN that runs from the cave to Brodie Lane (I don't know the name)... She's ridden it before and enjoyed it, but for whatever reason, on this day she just wasn't into it and even made a comment that she didn't want me to bring her back on it in the future. I just smiled and said sure. And then I reminded her that Slaughter Creek trail, which she loves, is harder. Some days people are motivated to do harder stuff... Other days people aren't. And no, this isn't about putting in B lines for every possible harder trail section... Walking sections is a normal part of riding... It's about the opinion that taking a B line is somehow always a cop-out to not putting in the work... Which it isn't.

So... With this unexpected boom taking place... On top of the growth that was taking place before the virus hit... What is needed in order to keep trail environments from becoming a stressed out experience?

https://www.singletracks.com/mtb-news/national-study-americans-are-riding-bikes-more-and-want-to-continue-after-pandemic/

https://www.singletracks.com/mtb-columns/the-trails-are-more-crowded-than-ever-should-they-be-closed/

Taiwan... Just off the coast of China... Yet... https://time.com/collection/finding-hope-coronavirus-pandemic/5820596/taiwan-coronavirus-lessons/

And now... The heart issue... https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/heart-damage-in-covid-19-patients-puzzles-doctors/?fbclid=IwAR1cgyDD1NwYUT4qQ2QUYnaGN0oXjyPlqb1qlXt4apCjsUKPT1MkTBmuIrY

https://blog.trekbikes.com/en/2020/04/national-study-reveals-u-s-cycling-behaviors-during-coronavirus-pandemic/?fbclid=IwAR0D54joXSQWeIhvlqFhlZQBPK4KOTigzj_hSe3-f0Y2ZkCsLBTflml6gG4

This might sound really trivial... But man am I bugged with my switch from a SRAM 9-speed drive to a Shimano 10-speed drive... But only in the shifter paddles design (length/angles) getting in the way of my thumb/index fingers. I've tried moving it around but it still feels odd. Never thought that it would feel so different moving from SRAM to Shimano... And I actually used Shimano only before buying the bike with the SRAM back in 2016. Can't say I remember feeling the SRAM shifter felt like it got in the way of my fingers when I first started using it, but I do remember having to get use to how they worked, which was a bit different to the Shimano shifter. Shifter aside... 1x10 is great... I'm using a SunRace 11/46 cassette with Raceface NW 30t chainring and shifting has been excellent so far. But in riding SATN trail, I'm not getting out of my high gears much at all. I haven't gone to Walnut Creek (and won't be for the foreseeable future unfortunately), which is far more hilly. It's kind of funny... Even when I was riding 3x8 and then 3x9 drives, because most of my riding was in South Florida (meaning flat) I pretty much only used my middle ring. So for me, having one chainring is kind of normal. But these damn shifter paddle lengths/angles...

I can see how a pump track would be helpful in learning how to manipulate your weight/suspension/body movement for creating the additional energy/pop needed to hit jumps (flat jumps, not drops, as someone pointed out in an earlier comment) properly. Although I learned to ride mtb on mainly flat, tight singletrack, on a twitchy (steep steerer tube) old school bike that required fast reactions and body/weight movement, I also use to surf, which required learning how to use the power/shape/condition of a wave to move you forward. I think this is why I've always preferred flow trail to technical trail (also, I'm 6'4" and often find that technical trail has been built to suit shorter/smaller bodies, which can be frustrating). Because I've always enjoyed riding flow trail, when I started seeing jumps as being a normal part of mtbing I started doing it too. But small jumps, not big jumps... Nothing more than 12"-18"... And even then, not trying to "...pop..." off anything, but just using speed/momentum... And unfortunately my riding clipless... To just kind of get some air between me and the ground. There was no real technique in what I was doing, maybe other than just trying to make sure that I landed properly — meaning, in control and not crashing. Today I can see that its become an art of sorts and is considered normal in mainstream trail riding. Not sure that at my age I'm going to teach this dog new tricks, but I like to learn about stuff... And who knows, maybe in a limited measure try a small jump or two. Regarding clipless... It became second nature for me as I went clipless within months of beginning mtbing. That was 25 years ago. So I've been doing lipless for a long time and it has kind of part of the way I ride. But two weeks ago I put a set of Chester flats on my bike and have been riding them since. So far so good... Except for the occasional bounce situations where my feet get separated from the pedals. No falls/crashes... But my feet have come back down on the pedal in ways that were not good... The worst of which is when a foot hits the pedal in a way that makes it spin. Also have caught a pedal in the back of my ankle a few times... Which made me wonder why no one has come up with a back-of-the-ankle protective pad. Overall though, my initial experience with flats has been good... And I'm not using special flats shoes (like 510s)... I play squash and have been using my indoor court shoes that have soft gum soles but are still fairly firm, so I guess my experience could be better with more mtb flat specific shoes. If I decide to stick with flats I'll get a pair.

It was happening before this pandemic and its lockdown... And is happening even more now. So what will things look like after it all gets back to some semblance of normality? I'm thinking some will stop riding; maybe even a large majority. But I'm also thinking that some will have discovered how great trail riding is, and will stick to it. Meaning... Even more riders on local trails. Yesterday evening while out riding SATN trails I came across maybe four families out riding the trails. On average the kids were between maybe 5-6 and 12... A great age range to get kids interested in a sport longterm.

In 1974, the government of Michael Manly, who in 1978 was given a standing ovation at the UN after his speech, in 1974 built a detention facility named The Gun Court. It was suppose to be for people related to gun crimes, but it became a political detention center as well. And this was done just two years into the four year election cycle Manley had won. Along with the "...indefinite detention..." law (implemented after a national State of Emergency was enacted), The Gun Court became an iconic symbol of political oppression. Here's a link to a Jamaican's view on the matter of "...indefinite detention..."... And a photo of the Gun Court. Being dropped off at high school, I would drive pass it five days a week. Funny how some 40-odd years later I can still remember it clearly. And FYI... At that time Jamaica had rich people making money as usual. http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/opinion/are-permanent-detentions-the-way-forward-_162471?profile=1444

Actually, that's what some were saying in the videos I watched. I'll see if I can find them and give a link.

Yeh, I saw that, and another one... But even then, the compression is before he face.