• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Bicycle age

J

Jobiensis

Member
Psychotext said:
Just looking at this again and I'm giving some serious consideration to the 500... but there are three things I'm particularly interested in which you might be able to help with.

1: Does the latest firmware have the ability to set the device to 1 per second recording? I've read around and think that's the case, but can't tell for sure.

2: If you input a course, can you get it to show you directions with an arrow / compass, or is it via that annoyingly small triangle and breadcrumb trail?

3: You probably can't help here, but I'm a little concerned about durability. Have read a couple of posts by mountain bikers saying they've had the screen crack. Hopefully that's something they've refined on newer models.

Thanks. :)
Click to expand...

1) Yes
2) I don't use courses, but from what I can tell from instructions it is an arrow and a tiny map, from what I've heard the 800 is vastly superior in this respect, I decided it wasn't important enough to me.
3) Don't know, It is plastic, I've dropped it without issue, doesn't seem overly fragile.

The speed sensor however, broke because it got pushed into brushing the spokes. It physically looks ok, only got close enough to the magnet to start making noise, but the sensor no longer registers. Not sure I've ever seen a sensor so delicate, perhaps just a manufacturer defect.
 
P

Psychotext

Member
Thanks. I've been reading up a fair bit about the 500 and it seems to have entered some sort of firmware hell. Some people suggest staying on the older firmwares and it seems that each one changes the way the computer works in both good and bad ways (course, altitude and GPS drift related). Blech.

I do like the idea of how it works with the cadence / speed sensor to increase the accuracy of the recording though. That's pretty cool. Though I'm not overly encouraged by your tale of woe.

Seems like there's no way to win.
 
J

joevigilante

Neo Member
Jobiensis said:
1) Yes
2) I don't use courses, but from what I can tell from instructions it is an arrow and a tiny map, from what I've heard the 800 is vastly superior in this respect, I decided it wasn't important enough to me.
3) Don't know, It is plastic, I've dropped it without issue, doesn't seem overly fragile.

The speed sensor however, broke because it got pushed into brushing the spokes. It physically looks ok, only got close enough to the magnet to start making noise, but the sensor no longer registers. Not sure I've ever seen a sensor so delicate, perhaps just a manufacturer defect.
Click to expand...

Courses are basically a triangle following a pre-drawn arrow with no map in the background. It'll tell you distances before turning and a compass direction. I've only experimented with it and it's too much pre-planning and loading to be convenient. the 800 has full colour maps with touchscreen and I think on the fly direction mapping. However it's at least $200 more than the 500 and even more if you want the heart-rate monitor, speed sensor and extra maps.

I'm a roadie so don't know how it handles with mountain bikers but I also think it's durable enough. the gps mounting mechanism works really well and have never considered it insecure enough to fly off. I've also tossed it in my pocket while hiking and trail running and still works flawlessly.

people seem to complain every time a new firmware comes out and that made me hesitate a bit too before buying but i think it's way overblown. i've always updated to the latest firmware and has been rock solid aside from one occasion but i just redownloaded the firmware and all was well.
 
P

Psychotext

Member
joevigilante said:
Courses are basically a triangle following a pre-drawn arrow with no map in the background. It'll tell you distances before turning and a compass direction. I've only experimented with it and it's too much pre-planning and loading to be convenient.
Click to expand...
Can't you just upload a course / track / route to the unit (loads available online) and go? That's what I do on my old Garmin Quest. When I'm on it it basically does this...

garmin_quest_compass.jpg


...for each via point in the route.

Edit - I've just seen the course view for the 500. Not massively impressed (it's the same as the track view on the Quest):

garmin_edge500-page-mqnyuq.jpg
 
H

hillsighed

Member
Rode around getting some errands done yesterday, and during the ride was thinking "man, I swear it feels like I'm having to pedal harder today. Whatever, my legs are just getting tired I guess."

Got home and realized that my back wheel had somehow become misaligned was rubbing against the frame. :/ Easy fix, annoying though.
 
L

Le-mo

Member
I need advice on how to go uphill on my road bike. Do I want my back gear to be all the way up and my front gear all the way down? And a little curiosity. On my first day biking to school today a guy behind me started honking at me and when he passed by me he looked back at me with some kind of hand gesture, he wasn't flicking me off. There were two lanes and I was on the left. Granted I didn't have my helmet on because I was only about a minute to school. Did that play a role? I'm confused.
 
M

muu

Member
Knees finally recovering. Feeling better about going a little faster than zero effort, only have short period of strange muscle tightness at the start of the ride. Still going to wait it out before I do much more than my commute, hopefully this gets better in 2 weeks and I can ride one more 200k for the year.

Le-mo said:
I need advice on how to go uphill on my road bike. Do I want my back gear to be all the way up and my front gear all the way down? And a little curiosity. On my first day biking to school today a guy behind me started honking at me and when he passed by me he looked back at me with some kind of hand gesture, he wasn't flicking me off. There were two lanes and I was on the left. Granted I didn't have my helmet on because I was only about a minute to school. Did that play a role? I'm confused.
Click to expand...

If you want to make going uphill easier, yes. Where do you live and which side of traffic do traffic flow? If you're in the US and you're sitting on the left lane of a 2lane road, of course you're going to get honked at -- unless you're turning you're putting yourself in danger if you don't follow the Far Right As Practical rule (not Possible, since that'll get you thrown into the gutter if shit gets real). If you live where traffic goes on left side of the road, chalk that up as an encounter with one of the 99%.
 
G

gillty

Banned
Yes stay as far as right as possible, exception being the lane is so narrow that cars attempting a pass would be unsafe then take the entire lane.

Bike Sense BC is a good guide for the road and should apply to most places in Canada or the US as it was sourced from multiple jurisdictions.
http://www.bikesense.bc.ca/manual.htm
 
Quote

Quote

Member
Le-mo said:
I need advice on how to go uphill on my road bike. Do I want my back gear to be all the way up and my front gear all the way down? And a little curiosity. On my first day biking to school today a guy behind me started honking at me and when he passed by me he looked back at me with some kind of hand gesture, he wasn't flicking me off. There were two lanes and I was on the left. Granted I didn't have my helmet on because I was only about a minute to school. Did that play a role? I'm confused.
Click to expand...
Smaller chainring in the front, bigger ring in the back. You probably want to be in the 80-90 cadence range, where it feels like your spinning with just the right amount of resistance. You'll find you'll have more stamina spinning faster rather than pushing harder.
 
L

Le-mo

Member
muu said:
Knees finally recovering. Feeling better about going a little faster than zero effort, only have short period of strange muscle tightness at the start of the ride. Still going to wait it out before I do much more than my commute, hopefully this gets better in 2 weeks and I can ride one more 200k for the year.



If you want to make going uphill easier, yes. Where do you live and which side of traffic do traffic flow? If you're in the US and you're sitting on the left lane of a 2lane road, of course you're going to get honked at -- unless you're turning you're putting yourself in danger if you don't follow the Far Right As Practical rule (not Possible, since that'll get you thrown into the gutter if shit gets real). If you live where traffic goes on left side of the road, chalk that up as an encounter with one of the 99%.
Click to expand...
It was a 4lane road with two lanes on each side going the opposite direction and I was on the left with oncoming traffic on my side. I was about to turn left in less than a minute so I made the lane change so I have no idea why I got honked at.

Valru said:
Yes stay as far as right as possible, exception being the lane is so narrow that cars attempting a pass would be unsafe then take the entire lane.

Bike Sense BC is a good guide for the road and should apply to most places in Canada or the US as it was sourced from multiple jurisdictions.
http://www.bikesense.bc.ca/manual.htm
Click to expand...
Yah, I stayed on the right until I had to turn left so I made the lane change.

Quote said:
Smaller chainring in the front, bigger ring in the back. You probably want to be in the 80-90 cadence range, where it feels like your spinning with just the right amount of resistance. You'll find you'll have more stamina spinning faster rather than pushing harder.
Click to expand...
Thanks, that's what I assumed. I had the back gear at the lowest level so I couldn't even pedal going uphill. Not to mention the heavy backpack I was carrying.
 
B

Brera

Banned
Further to my last post, it's been next to impossible for me to source the cube I posted above in my size. I managed to get the last one in size 17" at Leisurelakes...the last one they had in the country!

It's anodized black, not my favourite design and not as distinct and flashy as other cubes....


29-ltd-pro.jpg


I'll be sticking one of these on as soon as I can:

s780_saintpedal.jpg
 
P

Psychotext

Member
Giving some thought to buying a supermarket bike to put on my turbo trainer. Seems like it would be easier than messing around swapping wheels or buying a fixed fork for my missus's bike.
 
P

Psychotext

Member
Just got back. Good day on the whole... not too many stops and my nephew is getting a bit fitter. Still whines like a great big whiny thing though.

Today apparently his hips were in "agony" and he couldn't push the pedals at any speed (it's really odd, he actually slows down to rest up and it genuinely looks like it's even harder for him). Still, did the usual, started well, got tired and then bitched for about a full hour before just getting on with it.

I'm hoping next time out it's just 45 mins, and that it keeps reducing. :D

Strava: http://app.strava.com/rides/22799531
 
D

Discusguy

Member
Well after months of searching for the a road bike I finally bought one. I love it. Its feels so perfect. The same feeling I got when I test road the '12 Pinarello FP Quattro. My buddy has FP Quattro fully decked out pretty nice. Electronic shifters, zipp 808 firecrest and so on. Long story short I went to buy a '12 Fuji SST 2.0 and came home with a '12 Fuji GranFondo 3.0 with shimano 105 and saved a grand. Now with that grand I could invest that into better wheelset. I really love the feel of this bike.

1__45143_zoom.jpg
 
W

Wax Free Vanilla

Member
i'm making the transition to a filthy roadie

i stopped using my mountain bike about 6 months ago and have been tackling the roads of the peak district on my ancient semi-slick equipped giant in preparation for my planet x carbon

untitled-1qjkxw.jpg
>

imag0076kbank.jpg
>

FBPXPRORIV12-BLK_P1.jpg


:D


anybody use www.cycling-monton.com is it reliable and good quality stuff?
 
D

Discusguy

Member
I was mtber that took the season off to do triathlons with my mtb. I must say I was slower when I just went back to mtbing this past few weeks. It really made me miss how fun the single track trails just were. Also just how tougher mtbing is compared to road cycling.

Now I'm gonna do group rides Tues. and Thu. and do mtb on the weekends. This should help me throughout my triathlons also.

I'm so pumped for next yrs triathlons now that I have a proper enough bike for it.
 
S

SmokyDave

Member
Brera said:
Further to my last post, it's been next to impossible for me to source the cube I posted above in my size. I managed to get the last one in size 17" at Leisurelakes...the last one they had in the country!

It's anodized black, not my favourite design and not as distinct and flashy as other cubes....


29-ltd-pro.jpg


I'll be sticking one of these on as soon as I can:

s780_saintpedal.jpg
Click to expand...
Yum yum. I love anodized black. That's a tasty looking hardtail.

Those Saint flats look pretty damned hot too. I need to change the ones on my FSR, I'm currently running some Club Roost beartraps that I've had for a decade or more!

Edit: Woah, those Saints are really reasonably priced. Nice.
 
S

SmokyDave

Member
Psychotext said:
Aren't Saints downhill gear? What are you doing sticking that stuff on a lightweight XC hardtail? :p
Click to expand...

Flats aren't really 'downhill', any more than a riser bar is. They're just an alternative to SPD's. I run flats (and a DH bar) on my XC bike for comfort and shredding reasons.
 
P

Psychotext

Member
It's not about flat VS SPD (most downhillers use flats, but that wasn't really the point)... Saint is literally Shimano's downhill groupset, everything about it is aimed at downhill bikes.
 
S

SmokyDave

Member
Psychotext said:
It's not about flat VS SPD (most downhillers use flats, but that wasn't really the point)... Saint is literally Shimano's downhill groupset, everything about it is aimed at downhill bikes.
Click to expand...

Ah, I getcha. I guess I just wouldn't worry about labels like that. I don't know if my FSR is 'XC' or 'All Mountain'* and what difference it'd make anyway. Hell, with 5" front and rear travel it would've been a downhiller in the early 90's!


*Well, it's 'XC' in brochure chat, hence the 'FSR XC' on the top tube!
 
S

SmokyDave

Member
Psychotext said:
I'm pretty convinced I'll buy a nukeproof frame one of these days just because of the name. :D

/is scared of downhill runs
Click to expand...
The new GT Team Fury is my 'bike I'd own if it wasn't for the fact I know it'd be wasted on me'.

/is also scared of downhill runs

Jill Sandwich said:
I don't get on with SPDs at all. Flats (and flailing legs) forever!
Click to expand...
I used to use XT SPDs on my GT Karakoram but no matter what, I never go used to them either. They were fantastic for putting power down but even after months of use, I'd pull up at the lights and topple over. Had a few nasty spills on the trails due to SPD abuse too. Now I'm flats all the way even if my shins bear the scars of that decision.

I have plastic flats on my P1 and I'm really not sure how I feel about it. They're holding up fine so far though!
 
P

Psychotext

Member
J

Jobiensis

Member
Psychotext said:
Unrelated - This is quite informative for roadies: http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/animations/lane-control/
Click to expand...

Yep, even in a bike lane I'll be on the left edge now when going through business parks. Right hooks are not fun.

Anybody try road tubeless? I'm thinking of giving it a shot, I'm sick of pinch flats. Seems I need to run at +120PSI or I'll pinch on the rougher roads. Had to walk 2.5 miles in my socks on Thursday to the nearest bike shop.
 
V

vidcons

Banned
Today is the last day I have to climb Flagstaff for astronomy homework. I can finally start riding to other places and being on the road earlier.

Didn't tally up the numbers yet but I'm just going to say Jobiensis won the week long comp.
 
D

Discusguy

Member
The_Inquisitor said:
Been using my old MTB w/ SPD pedals on the road. Yes, it's a bit unorthodox, but I don't have the money to buy a road bike at the moment.
Click to expand...

Nothing wrong with that. Also look into a touring crank if you're more than a yr away from buying your road bike if you want to be faster. you might even be satisfied that you won't want a road bike.
 
P

Psychotext

Member
On the road or on trails?

For trails I use those cheap Chinese CREE XML T6 LED torches with a battery pack. The light they put out is beyond epic.

This is based on a similar principal: http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/categ...review-magicshine-mj-816-front-light-11-45301

For roads you wouldn't need anything like those though (nor would you want to as you'd blind drivers).

Something like this works for commuting: http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/categ...ont/product/review-smart-2w-front-light-35728
 
B

Brera

Banned
SmokyDave said:
Yum yum. I love anodized black. That's a tasty looking hardtail.

Those Saint flats look pretty damned hot too. I need to change the ones on my FSR, I'm currently running some Club Roost beartraps that I've had for a decade or more!

Edit: Woah, those Saints are really reasonably priced. Nice.
Click to expand...

Cheapest I could find anywhere! Not sure how they are £10-15 cheaper than everywhere else! They really match the bike as well so I have high hopes!

I was hoping for a silver crank like the show room bike had but it's boring black! off to Cannock Chase in an hour to test it out!
 
B

Brera

Banned
Psychotext said:
Aren't Saints downhill gear? What are you doing sticking that stuff on a lightweight XC hardtail? :p
Click to expand...

Saint is downhill orientated but I've always preferred flats to SPD or the disposable ones you get.

My previous pedals were Wellgo MGS1 and they're ridiculously light and grippy but have high hopes for the Saints. They look awesome in black and white!
 
B

Brera

Banned
The superstars flats are rebranded. Not sure who makes them, probably wellgo?

But you can find them for £100+ with a different logo if you look around so £30-40 is a great price!

The Vaults look epic but so expensive! I compromised and went with the Saints :D
 
P

purg3

slept with Malkin
Does anyone in here ride DH? Looking to get a dedicated DH bike for next season. Road and XC are starting to get a little old, so I'm looking to switch it up a bit. Luckily I'm in a pretty good location where I have at least 2 bike parks within a couple of hours drive, along with a freeride trail about 15 minutes from where I live. Figured I would be able to get some reasonable use out of the investment.
 
S

Shiggie

Member
This is my baby.
HTyGJ.jpg
Click to expand...
I ride mostly everywhere. I dont ride into the city too much (Manhattan) but I do treck to school in Long Island City 3 days a week. Thats about a 15 mile treck back and fourth. I work up a sweat and I love it.

Im on Strava too. How do I add people?
 
C

Chris R

Member
MrGame&Watch said:
I've never rode a bike before and I feel I may need one now. Is it hard to learn at my age(22)
Click to expand...

Really easy. In fact, the faster you are going, the harder it is to fall. Granted you probably will fall a few times as you learn, and falling in public can be an embarrising thing for some people.

What I'd do is just take a bike to a local park with some small grassy hills. Take the bike to the top of the hill and ride the bike down, NO pedaling. Get your balance down before you worry about pedaling, because once you have your balance getting your feet to work is easy. That way if you fall off you will only be falling onto some grass instead of onto a street like I did learning with my training wheels as a kid :|
 
P

Psychotext

Member
Taught a friend of mine in about half an hour. Takes a while longer to master, but it's really not hard to get in the first place (as long as you don't mind falling a little).
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

AMD now gives 3 months of Xbox Game Pass for PC with Ryzen CPUs, Radeon cards
0
625
CyberPanda replied
Bloodsport is free to watch on Prime Video, but only for 4 more days.
2
50
4K
G-Bus replied
Cyberpunk Edgerunner Patch Now Live
2 3 4 5
241
25K
-Zelda- replied
  • Locked
Welcome to Your Bland New World of Consumer Capitalism
Opinion
25
7K
Mossybrew replied
  • Locked
Astronomy-age?
25
3K
Log4Girlz replied
Top Bottom