I wish we have that in Canada with regards to the reimbursement.
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Bicycle age
- Thread starter elrechazado
- Start date
I wish we have that in Canada with regards to the reimbursement.
Thanks guys. Just went for another relatively short ride (1 hour). This time alone in the pouring rain. Had a lot of fun going through the bike trail in the dunes. Went off-road a couple of times (mostly driving on gravel) which was a ton of fun. However, near the end of my ride I noticed a bunch of cracking noise coming from both my disc breaks. I suspect some sand and gravel might have gotten in them. I just cleaned them of with some water and soap and a towel and the noise appears to be (mostly) gone. However, I can't imagine this would have been good to keep riding with. Any tips for dealing with this issue mid-ride?
Psychotext
Member
I've not, but I know a lot of people that have. I believe it's why there's a ton of bikes which come in at the £1000 price point.
You don't. If you find it's wearing out your pads too quickly then you'll just have to swap to sintered pads when you replace.
If you're not already, get into the habit of cleaning off the bike after a ride and mopping up any moisture, especially after being out in poor conditions. Stuff starts to rust pretty quickly if it goes unnoticed. And be aware that depending on the type of lubricant used on your chain, you might need to re-apply after a bout in the rain. Dry lube tends to wash away, wet lube sticks around a bit longer but everything also sticks to it.
Alright. I think I have resin pads, but I'm not sure. The grinding noise while driving in rainy/muddy conditions isn't out of the ordinary? For your information. The grinding noise occurred while simply rotating the wheels, not (just) when braking.
Yeah, I will try to clean the bike every 1 or 2 rides, depending on the conditions and length of the rides. Sadly I don't have a garden, so I have no access to a garden hose. I will have to make do with a bucket of water and soap, as well as brushes and towels. This is my set up in my basement apartment storage:
I'm going to get a gear brush today as I find that cleaning the gears and cassette with a dishwashing brush isn't very effective. As for the lubricating the chain. I have bought lube for the chain, but any tips for when to lube up the chain? I just checked and it's still pretty sticky/greasy. Would a chain cleaner be worth the investment?
I'd recommend cleaning after every ride, but I don't mean the full works. Just get a cloth and make sure to wipe off the worst of the dirt and mop up moisture. It should only take a minute or two. Pay attention to stuff like spokes, bolts, moving parts of the gears, just so that nothing has a chance to build up and start the rusting process. Pick any bits of grass out of the rear derailleur - stuff always tends to get in there!
A chain cleaner would probably be a decent thing to have, but a brush would be fine. I've never used a cleaner tool; instead I just get a clean lint-free cloth, spray some degreaser on the chain and leave it for a few minutes, then put a bit on the cloth, loosely grip the chain with the cloth and pedal it through to take the worst of it off.
As long as it's running smoothly, you probably don't need to re-apply; it's really only necessary after a major cleaning or if the rain has washed away the old stuff. And when you re-apply, you don't need much - just pedal the chain all the way around running a fine dribble of lube between the links. No need for any on the cogs.
Edit: The bike looks great btw, and that work stand will be so handy. I still haven't gotten around to getting one and it's a pain in the ass doing work on it!
Psychotext
Member
Perfectly normal, some brake systems are more susceptible than others..
Nice looking bike. Needs some mud on it though!
Road bikes loves mud as well, especially the white ones
Psychotext
Member
What's up with that one particular spoke?
It's red. No point in having a premium Mavic wheel sets unless everyone else also knows you have one (the wheels came with the used bike)
Just got back from my cycling tour of Sicily. It was AWESOME! Sicily is a great place to visit and a fantastic place to bike around in. I found out that I am absolutely terrible at going downhill (everyone in our 32-person group passed me every time), but I'm pretty damn good uphill. And there were lots of hills.
The organizers had prepared really good cycles for us. All kinds of brands. I got a Massi racing cycle with a carbon frame. Following us was a guide and three mechanics. One of the mechanics was the guy who actually designed and built the very same bike I got, which was really cool. He always asked how I liked this and that, if it felt good, and so on, and took great care of it. Now I want a bike like that, but it's a tad too expensive...
Here are the trips we took:
Day 1: Noto - Pozzallo - Modica. 75,4km (really around 80, since I forgot to start the timer on my Garmin until well underway... oh, and my previous record was 35km).
Easy riding at first on good roads in flat terrain. Then very windy near the coast, but still good roads. Long lunch in Pozzallo. The last part to Modica was brutal. It was on a wide, good road, but it went up, up, up for maybe 20kms. Not steep, but going up all the time. Wasn't as liberal with sunscreen as I should, so I got a nasty sunburn. Modica is spectacular, and they make great chocolate there.
Day 2: Modica - Marina di Ragusa - Scoglitti - Vittoria. 74,49 km (again forgot to start it until getting out of Modica, so the real number should be around 76).
Downhill trough great scenery all the way to the Mediterranean Sea. The coastal part was windy and very sandy. Many scary, sudden sandbanks out on the road. Stop for ice cream in Marina di Ragusa, then more coastline until lunching in Scoglitti. The last part up to Vittoria went on pretty bad side roads, but still easy. Vittoria didn't look very nice, but we stayed at a fancy spa/resort hotel on the outskirts. Got a massage in the evening.
Day 3: Part 1: Vittoria - Caltagirone - Mirabella (the Garmin shut off at Mirabella, and I couldn't get it to continue on the same route, so this day has two parts on the map) Part 2: Mirabella - Piazza Armerina. 51,9+10,55+ maybe 5 lost kilometers in the middle, so around 67 in total.
This day was touted as the hardest, so we were quite nervous. First, lots of up and down in a rural landscape before going through a very desolate, more mountainous region with a few poor towns in between. Then a long climb on a good road up to Caltagirone where we had lunch. After that, loooong and fast downhill sections in scary winds before starting the scenic 10 km climb up to Piazza Armerina. That was really tough, but I got into a great rhythm and surprised everyone (and myself) by just powering up. Finally reaching the top was such a great feeling! And the dinner at Peppito's was amazing, definitely the best of the whole trip.
Day 4: Piazza Armerina - Sicilia Outlet Village - Assoro - Regalbuto. 94,5 kms.
This was supposed to be a 50 km "rest-day" going straight from Piazza Armerina to Regalbuto. But our guides decided to throw in a surprise, and made it much longer. Also, it started raining and got pretty cold. First, a horribly scary, slippery 20 km downhill section in rain and cold down into a big valley, then another 15 or so km to a place called Sicilia Outlet Village. It's just what it says: a "village" in the middle of nowhere with lots of outlet shops. I bought a Nike neck warmer. Then, we got another surprise: lunch was in Assoro, which is where our guide's family comes from. It lies on top of a mountain. The climb was excruciating. Much steeper and more draining than the one the day before. Quite a few people didn't manage to get up to the town. I did, which I'm really proud of. But it wasn't over yet: to get to the restaurant, which was of course right at the top of the town, there was another, even steeper climb. But it was luckily pretty short. We got around 50 pizzas as a reward. A crowd of young guys gathered outside to gawk at our bikes, and they waited all through or lunch to see who we were when we got out again. I felt like Mark Cavendish or something. Pretty sure they were disappointed. After lunch, a long downhill section into a lush valley, then through a town called Agira which had one or two hard climbs. The weather had cleared, and we got a beautiful, rolling landscape the rest of the way to Regalbuto. Almost, but not quite, 100 km that day. I regret not taking an extra route or two. That night, the hotel was hosting a local party with lots of people from babies to well over 80. All the locals came, and everyone danced to very silly music and had a great time.
Day 5: Regalbuto - Bronte - Castigliano di Sicilia. 78,7 km.
Started with another long downhill section into the valley at the foot of Mount Etna. A woman in the group fell going down. One of the guys is a doctor (luckily!), and examined her on the spot. He didn't see signs of a concussion, so she didn't have to go to a hospital, but got to ride the support car that day. While the rest of us waited, we stole and ate delicious oranges that hung over the fence. I never knew that freshly picked oranges were that much better than store-bought ones. Continuing, we followed the valley a bit to the north, before we were sent onto a side road that just went up and up and up. Probably the steepest climb on the whole trip. And it was a bad road and a dreary place with angry stray dogs, lots of garbage lying around, dead animals everywhere and so on. Not a nice place. Of course, I got a puncture just where the angry dogs were, but they wandered off and I had to push the bike up and wait a while for a new tire. When we finally got all the way to the top, we reached a highway. It started raining, but we got to a town called Bronte without more trouble, and had some ice cream there. Then, downhill into the valley floor again, following it to a little place where we had lunch. It wasn't very good, to be honest. Then we got a long climb, and got to a high-lying featureless mountain plateau with endless road sections. Lots of wind and rain. Quite miserable, but we got through eventually, and went down into an absolutely delightful valley that felt almost English, with long stone walls following the narrow, winding road. Then a final climb up to Castiglione di Sicilia, which is a small, labyrinthine town that it's impossible to navigate successfully.
Day 6: Castiglione di Sicilia - Giardini Naxos - Taormina. 30 km.
The last day. We could choose between two routes: one long, grueling climb up the sides of Mount Etna, or a leisurely roll down to the beach. I felt I had proved myself enough, so I chose the easy way. Just rolled all the way down. The weather was great, and the landscape beautiful. Got to Giardini Naxos and was at the beach for three hours before the Etna-climbers showed up. By then, I had visited at least two gelaterias, but I still had room for the big lunch. Lastly, the climb up to Taormina. Just a few weeks ago, I would never even consider cycling up that road. But now it was pretty easy. Hard and tiring, but still easy. Had a few great hours in town before an epic last dinner, then one hour's sleep before taking the bus to Catania airport.
Fantastic trip. I'm so glad I went. It was such a success that we'll try to make it yearly. But in different places. Next year, possibly Sardinia or the Italian Marche-region.
The organizers had prepared really good cycles for us. All kinds of brands. I got a Massi racing cycle with a carbon frame. Following us was a guide and three mechanics. One of the mechanics was the guy who actually designed and built the very same bike I got, which was really cool. He always asked how I liked this and that, if it felt good, and so on, and took great care of it. Now I want a bike like that, but it's a tad too expensive...
Here are the trips we took:
Day 1: Noto - Pozzallo - Modica. 75,4km (really around 80, since I forgot to start the timer on my Garmin until well underway... oh, and my previous record was 35km).
Easy riding at first on good roads in flat terrain. Then very windy near the coast, but still good roads. Long lunch in Pozzallo. The last part to Modica was brutal. It was on a wide, good road, but it went up, up, up for maybe 20kms. Not steep, but going up all the time. Wasn't as liberal with sunscreen as I should, so I got a nasty sunburn. Modica is spectacular, and they make great chocolate there.
Day 2: Modica - Marina di Ragusa - Scoglitti - Vittoria. 74,49 km (again forgot to start it until getting out of Modica, so the real number should be around 76).
Downhill trough great scenery all the way to the Mediterranean Sea. The coastal part was windy and very sandy. Many scary, sudden sandbanks out on the road. Stop for ice cream in Marina di Ragusa, then more coastline until lunching in Scoglitti. The last part up to Vittoria went on pretty bad side roads, but still easy. Vittoria didn't look very nice, but we stayed at a fancy spa/resort hotel on the outskirts. Got a massage in the evening.
Day 3: Part 1: Vittoria - Caltagirone - Mirabella (the Garmin shut off at Mirabella, and I couldn't get it to continue on the same route, so this day has two parts on the map) Part 2: Mirabella - Piazza Armerina. 51,9+10,55+ maybe 5 lost kilometers in the middle, so around 67 in total.
This day was touted as the hardest, so we were quite nervous. First, lots of up and down in a rural landscape before going through a very desolate, more mountainous region with a few poor towns in between. Then a long climb on a good road up to Caltagirone where we had lunch. After that, loooong and fast downhill sections in scary winds before starting the scenic 10 km climb up to Piazza Armerina. That was really tough, but I got into a great rhythm and surprised everyone (and myself) by just powering up. Finally reaching the top was such a great feeling! And the dinner at Peppito's was amazing, definitely the best of the whole trip.
Day 4: Piazza Armerina - Sicilia Outlet Village - Assoro - Regalbuto. 94,5 kms.
This was supposed to be a 50 km "rest-day" going straight from Piazza Armerina to Regalbuto. But our guides decided to throw in a surprise, and made it much longer. Also, it started raining and got pretty cold. First, a horribly scary, slippery 20 km downhill section in rain and cold down into a big valley, then another 15 or so km to a place called Sicilia Outlet Village. It's just what it says: a "village" in the middle of nowhere with lots of outlet shops. I bought a Nike neck warmer. Then, we got another surprise: lunch was in Assoro, which is where our guide's family comes from. It lies on top of a mountain. The climb was excruciating. Much steeper and more draining than the one the day before. Quite a few people didn't manage to get up to the town. I did, which I'm really proud of. But it wasn't over yet: to get to the restaurant, which was of course right at the top of the town, there was another, even steeper climb. But it was luckily pretty short. We got around 50 pizzas as a reward. A crowd of young guys gathered outside to gawk at our bikes, and they waited all through or lunch to see who we were when we got out again. I felt like Mark Cavendish or something. Pretty sure they were disappointed. After lunch, a long downhill section into a lush valley, then through a town called Agira which had one or two hard climbs. The weather had cleared, and we got a beautiful, rolling landscape the rest of the way to Regalbuto. Almost, but not quite, 100 km that day. I regret not taking an extra route or two. That night, the hotel was hosting a local party with lots of people from babies to well over 80. All the locals came, and everyone danced to very silly music and had a great time.
Day 5: Regalbuto - Bronte - Castigliano di Sicilia. 78,7 km.
Started with another long downhill section into the valley at the foot of Mount Etna. A woman in the group fell going down. One of the guys is a doctor (luckily!), and examined her on the spot. He didn't see signs of a concussion, so she didn't have to go to a hospital, but got to ride the support car that day. While the rest of us waited, we stole and ate delicious oranges that hung over the fence. I never knew that freshly picked oranges were that much better than store-bought ones. Continuing, we followed the valley a bit to the north, before we were sent onto a side road that just went up and up and up. Probably the steepest climb on the whole trip. And it was a bad road and a dreary place with angry stray dogs, lots of garbage lying around, dead animals everywhere and so on. Not a nice place. Of course, I got a puncture just where the angry dogs were, but they wandered off and I had to push the bike up and wait a while for a new tire. When we finally got all the way to the top, we reached a highway. It started raining, but we got to a town called Bronte without more trouble, and had some ice cream there. Then, downhill into the valley floor again, following it to a little place where we had lunch. It wasn't very good, to be honest. Then we got a long climb, and got to a high-lying featureless mountain plateau with endless road sections. Lots of wind and rain. Quite miserable, but we got through eventually, and went down into an absolutely delightful valley that felt almost English, with long stone walls following the narrow, winding road. Then a final climb up to Castiglione di Sicilia, which is a small, labyrinthine town that it's impossible to navigate successfully.
Day 6: Castiglione di Sicilia - Giardini Naxos - Taormina. 30 km.
The last day. We could choose between two routes: one long, grueling climb up the sides of Mount Etna, or a leisurely roll down to the beach. I felt I had proved myself enough, so I chose the easy way. Just rolled all the way down. The weather was great, and the landscape beautiful. Got to Giardini Naxos and was at the beach for three hours before the Etna-climbers showed up. By then, I had visited at least two gelaterias, but I still had room for the big lunch. Lastly, the climb up to Taormina. Just a few weeks ago, I would never even consider cycling up that road. But now it was pretty easy. Hard and tiring, but still easy. Had a few great hours in town before an epic last dinner, then one hour's sleep before taking the bus to Catania airport.
Fantastic trip. I'm so glad I went. It was such a success that we'll try to make it yearly. But in different places. Next year, possibly Sardinia or the Italian Marche-region.
Psychotext
Member
Kinell. I'm no roadie but I'm still fairly jealous!
I bought two of these mounts and just put two powerful cree flashlights when biking at night. Probably not the best solution, but they're super easy to charge and I can use them in other situations.
http://www.dx.com/p/brinyte-nylon-plastic-small-cross-flashlight-bike-mount-black-261629
On my bike with 1 light.
Does anyone have a garmin 510? I'm considering one because my 4s battery gets it's ass kicked by strava when out for a little more than 2 hours.
I'd never used a chain cleaning tool before either (always favouring hand-cleaning) but spotted this Barbieri tool for just £4 at Lidl (complete with degreaser and better lube bottle than shown in this pic, one with a proper screw cap and nozzle) so took a punt. RRP is supposed to be £20 according to some retailers.
I just used It after a very muddy ride this evening and am quite impressed with the results. It was quick to use and did a pretty good job of de-clagging the links. Not sure I'd want to use degreaser in it every time but a weak soap solution might do a decent job. A bloody bargain at £4 I reckon. The lube will be OK for summer use.
I have one. I used it on the trip, and the longest day ride had over 5 hours of biking (and the Garmin was on for over 9 hours). I think the battery was at around 40% afterwards. Highly recommended, although I wish I had the 810 with maps instead.
sharkmuncher
Member
From the same group that does the wirecutter.com, there is a lengthy review of all you'd ever want to know about bike lights.
On another note, I need a new saddle for my dirt cheap Kilo TT and have been eyeing the Brooks B17 narrow for a while. I am really temped to just pull the trigger and grab one from Amazon since the only place I can buy one locally marks it up ~$50. Worth it? Anyone with experience? Reviews are overwhelmingly positive, but I'm afraid how much of it is conformation bias based on the rather steep cost of entry.
I'm struggling to figure out the size of this bike at Walmart. Can anyone help me?
All I have are the product dimensions 70"L x 25.5"W x 43"H
Are the wheels and frame are large enough for a person who is 5'6 tall with an in-seam of 28 inches?
All I have are the product dimensions 70"L x 25.5"W x 43"H
Are the wheels and frame are large enough for a person who is 5'6 tall with an in-seam of 28 inches?
Psychotext
Member
Wheels are a standard size and there's literally not enough information there to work out the answer of if it'll fit.
Thanks, I'm completely perplexed. How could Walmart leave out such vital information?...smh. Thought I was going crazy.
Awesome! Thanks
I'd never used a chain cleaning tool before either (always favouring hand-cleaning) but spotted this Barbieri tool for just £4 at Lidl (complete with degreaser and better lube bottle than shown in this pic, one with a proper screw cap and nozzle) so took a punt. RRP is supposed to be £20 according to some retailers.
I just used It after a very muddy ride this evening and am quite impressed with the results. It was quick to use and did a pretty good job of de-clagging the links. Not sure I'd want to use degreaser in it every time but a weak soap solution might do a decent job. A bloody bargain at £4 I reckon. The lube will be OK for summer use.
Jeez, for that price I might pop down and get one.
Psychotext
Member
It's a real bike now.
Be quick. It's occasional stock.
Those dimensions are of the box the bike comes in. It's probably a medium and would work fine. If you can afford it you should go to a bike shop and get a bike there instead. Something like this Giant below will be better quality but more important put together better than a bike from Wal-mart.
http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-US/bikes/model/cypress.w/14853/75685/
Thanks Laekon. This purchase is for an occasional rider that would have a fit if I spent $300! I always had a fondness for Schwinn, so I'm going to go for it!
Psychotext
Member
Try four in one ride. I actually threw my bike in a stream in anger...
...then had to go get it because I'm poor.
...then had to go get it because I'm poor.
Throwing a bike into a stream??
Man, I lost a fictional bike to a body of water once and was devastated.
Psychotext
Member
Everything was going wrong, I was pretty angry. Lol
Had six punctures in the same tyre last summer, all at the same time.
Got a flat in the woods, shit happens, changed the tube for my spare and carried on. Submerging the tube in a bucket of water back at the ranch was like dunking it in a jacuzzi.
Guess I must have ridden over Spiny Norman or something.
Got a flat in the woods, shit happens, changed the tube for my spare and carried on. Submerging the tube in a bucket of water back at the ranch was like dunking it in a jacuzzi.
Guess I must have ridden over Spiny Norman or something.
It's easier to bring a spare tube or two, swap out and repair the punctured one at home.
I'm probably going to jinx myself now, but I haven't had a puncture on my road bike since fitting a new pair of conti gp4000s in December (just a little over 1000km since start of January). I'm dreading the day I do get one when I'm out. They were an absolute nightmare to get on the wheels in the first place.
I'm probably going to jinx myself now, but I haven't had a puncture on my road bike since fitting a new pair of conti gp4000s in December (just a little over 1000km since start of January). I'm dreading the day I do get one when I'm out. They were an absolute nightmare to get on the wheels in the first place.
Psychotext
Member
Was at bespoked (handmade bike show) in the UK yesterday. Saw some really cool stuff.
Singletrack had a lot of good shots of the mountain bike related bits: http://singletrackworld.com/2014/04/bespoked-ukhbs-2014-heres-what-caught-our-eye/
Singletrack had a lot of good shots of the mountain bike related bits: http://singletrackworld.com/2014/04/bespoked-ukhbs-2014-heres-what-caught-our-eye/
Went MTB'ing with a friend on the Dutch isle of Texel this morning (which is just of the coast from where I live). There's a 7km MTB track there that runs through the woods. First time there and man, so much fun! Had an absolute blast. Some great climbs and fantastic declines. Can't wait to go there again!
I'm not sure how safe it would be going alone (there were certainly some great falling oppertunities on the track), but I'd love to go there on my own some time, early in the morning, and bring my DSLR with me.
Buddy of mine
I'm not sure how safe it would be going alone (there were certainly some great falling oppertunities on the track), but I'd love to go there on my own some time, early in the morning, and bring my DSLR with me.
Very nice! I wonder if Pipedream were there (pipedreamcycles.com)? One of the owners lives around the corner from me and their workshop is a couple of minute's walk from where I work but I haven't caught up with him for a while. Seems like the type of show they would do.
Isn't it lovely when you find a new playgound within your locality?
Right, I'm inspired: quick mow of the lawns (all seven of them) then time for a blast before the footy.
Psychotext
Member
They're not on the exhibitor list, so I guess not.
Looks busy. I'm always glad my commutes are before/after rush hour.
lol I remember when I road one for the first time in ages...down hill got a lot of bruises on the back of my legs and it took me a minute to remember how to stop.
Any roadies here have experience with moving to a compact crankset? I've been looking at either 52/36 or 50/34 given that I'm spending a lot more time in the hills and I've realized that near the end of my ride and facing a brutal climb I'll be riding 39/25 and struggling to hit 80rpm. Not only that, but recovery is bad. These are cat climbs (usually 5 to 3) so I'm aware that these aren't your typical hills, but still. I'm planning on spending more and more time in the hills so I'm wondering if I'm better off with a compact to not only power up hills quicker and more efficiently, but also sparing some energy.
Obviously, I would lose some top end speed but I rarely ever use the 53-11 or the next closest cogs. Of course, in the back of my head I also wonder if I just keep at it and integrate intervals that I'll eventually get over the need to use a compact.
Thoughts? Experience? Definitely appreciated!
Obviously, I would lose some top end speed but I rarely ever use the 53-11 or the next closest cogs. Of course, in the back of my head I also wonder if I just keep at it and integrate intervals that I'll eventually get over the need to use a compact.
Thoughts? Experience? Definitely appreciated!
Even professional cyclists compete with a compact 34/32(!) set up. It's not a question of adapting to a tough gear - if you tackle ~10% climbs regularly with a 39/25 and a low cadence, you'll sooner do serious damage to your knees than improve your fitness. So yes, I recommend going the "easy" route and switching to a 50/34, if not also switching the cassette.
Psychotext
Member
Not a roadie, so can't be of much help... but, if you do run out of gears at the top end you can always do the whole 120prm windmill thing.
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