The biking thread

I had one in China, well, it was a stand but doubled as a work stand. It stood the bike freely. Wouldn't fit in my suitcase.

Now I rely on propping it against the wall for stability. I probably should bodge one from some PVC pipe but to be honest any gear or wheel work I need doing is done at the downhill biker's club across the road from me. They have all the gear and give me a full service for 100b (about £2).
 
Funny you mention that as in the same lot as the bike garage is a hand wash centre. The do our car but I'm sure for a quid or two they could do my bike. Like you say though, it's a labour of love and I'd never give up that pleasure.

Do I remember you saying you used Turtle Wax or Tcut on your bike? I might have to invest in some to protect my paintwork. I already have a few tiny chips and scraps (4 years old though) and the WD only offers a slight amount of protection.

Thinking about it, I wonder what my bike's mileage is. My computer says ~5k but I've only had that a few years and haven't always used it so it must be closing on 10k soon. Time for an anniversary parts shopping spree!
 
Any good car polish does the trick, helps with removing muck and whatnot as it doesn't stick to the paint very well.
I always use Meguiars polishes for the car so that's what the bike gets also. Plus that shine. :D

Go on treat the trusty steed to something special.
 
I'm wondering what though. I picked up my glove from a shop that is a treasure trove of road bike parts but I'm happy with the bike and don't need any new kit but have been tossing up the idea of a paint job. Still, I like the colour of my bike.

Man, if I had the money I'd go all out on a parts replacement and get a full high-end drivetrain but again, what I have is perfect right now.

A New Jersey would be cool but I'm switching to vests soon because I want to get more tanned. Got shoes, got gloves, got glasses and got spare of most things.

Suggestions?
 
Absolutely uber kit but even though the sale is currently on it's still freaking expensive.
I'm um quite guilty of having a largish selection. :scared:

Cheaper options how about fresh bar tape, bottle holder maybe.
If the bike has done 10k and still on the original shift cables a new set could very well smarten up the shifting also.
 
Actually my cables are in pretty poor condition; a kind on the cross bar cable and a slight fray on one of the cables that runs under the crank. Good call.

I really couldn't justify to the wife buying cycling gear at those prices, especially when my current jersey cost £3 (bargain basket find of the century) and stinks like old socks even the day after it's washed. :)

My grip tape is a bit worn but I like the feel and look of it and it hasn't started to unravel or look untidy yet.

I don't use a drinks bottle so a cage is unnecessary and I've even ditched the lights favouring to keep them in my bag rather than on the frame and ruin the clean look.

My tyres are in pretty good nick, few slices in them from previous punctures but holding up fine otherwise.

Chain has seen better days and I did mean to replace that when I arrived in Thai.

I think I'll pop down the bike shop tomorrow and have a good long browse to see what treats I can find.

Edit: posting this made me think how economical bikes really are. Even my motorcycle cost me several hundred pounds in parts after just a week of ownership, and the bills keep on growing!
The bike practically costs me nothing other than any new parts I want to treat myself.
 
Carlos
What do you want to do with the bike? And what do you think about fixies?
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I want my bike to go anywhere as it's my only form of transport. I want something like my chopper (quirky, tough and adaptive) however, something a bit bigger as I'm around 6ft and on my 15 mile runs I can get sore. I'm undecided about fixies as I live in a hilly area.
 
Fixtures are silly. ;)

A good 27.5 mountain bike should do you as an all purpose ride. Great on the hills, trail or road and can be bought new for a reasonable price.
 
W3HS
Fixtures are silly. ;)

A good 27.5 mountain bike should do you as an all purpose ride. Great on the hills, trail or road and can be bought new for a reasonable price.
Click to expand...

That would be a great option
But 27.5 can hardly be found on older bikes.
As sniperred is on a very tight budget I'm afraid he's stuck with 26.

I'd consider getting an old road bike with some sturdier rims.
And replace the older parts over time as you save up some money.

I commute on a Kona paddy wagon. (add a picture when I'm op my pc)
The older ones should be reasonably priced.

Edit:
As promised a pic of the Paddy Wagon.
1052783_479045472170531_1531499963_o.jpg

It's a 2013 model.
I guess a older one would cost around £100.

Or maybe look up an old Genesis bike.
They are made in the UK.
 
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Yes, true, only a new bike would come with the 27.5s.

I'm kind of at a loss as to what bikes cost in the west these days. After spending so long in China and seeing entry level Giant and Merida MTBs for less than $100 and having owned 2 Meridas, one of which costing £30, I often forget how much the price increases after shipping.

With a lot of good fortune I payed less than half the retail on my road bike and that was in China, I expect the same bike in the west would have been around the $1000 mark, perhaps more if it wasn't the previous year's model.
 
Awesome awesome awesome!
I just accomplished a milestone of sorts, for me at least, as I know you die hard types have undoubtedly done this many times over by now.
I got home from work after a long boring day of playing computer catchup from the weekend. I felt restless so I decided I'd go for a ride. On go the "comfy" clothes. While getting ready, I hear lot's of thunder rumbling off in the distance, but not too far.
I do my stretching warmups and take off.
10 minutes into the ride it starts to rain a little. Then a little more. And more.
20 minutes later I'm really in it now. No lightening, but man did it ever rain. I was completely drenched, but didn't have a care in the world as nothing I had on or with was going to get ruined so I just pedaled on.
Now the nicest part of the ride. It's summer here in Minnesota, and as such, many of these late afternoon storms dump warm rain water, not cold. This was one such storm.
Man, the temp was like a lukewarm shower. I rode by a guy on the trail hiking who said he loved it, that it was the perfect temp "to go streaking in"! hahaha. I immediately rode away from him in the opposite direction for fear he was going to strip down to his unmentionables and, well, you know, go!

So, my bike and I have now been officially christened in the rain.
Plus, I somewhat conquered the hill out front of my house. I've been having some troubles climbing it as it's always at the end of the ride no matter what, and it's got 2 different angles of ascent, the steepest being the last part right before I have to turn into my driveway. I did manage it, chugging the whole way, but I did it! Yay for me! Rule #5 indeed!

tldr: rode in the rain, climbed hill, rode away from freaky guy. yay for me!
 
Nice bike.
Are you some that get the big air and does all the cool stuff I watch on YouTube?
and I can only dream about doing my self.

Not going to attempt it now, starting at 39 with crazy things like that is a bad idea.
And since I broke my anckle last year mountainbiking the misses is not a big fan of it either. :D
 
So I snapped a spoke a week or so ago on my Trek. No biggie, just ring the shop and they'll get a new one in, since I don't know exactly what I'm looking for. A couple of days later they ring to tell me they have the wrong spokes. Not the end of the world, but now they have to order direct from Trek. So I've waited another couple of days, and today they ring and tell me the single spoke I snapped is so rare that the nearest stock is in the Netherlands, and it'll take two weeks to arrive.

Lesson is never snap spokes on Bontrager wheels :rolleyes:

Now I have to use my winter bike and the sun is shining, and I don't have to wear warm stuff. It's all so wrong :lol:
 
I've got Vuelta Zerolite rims which are hand built in the US. I'd imagine I'd have a similar headache if I snapped a spoke but after years of abuse they're holding up well.

I reckon replacing the whole wheel would be cheaper for me.

Could you consider a replacement, @Emptyone? Or is the price easier in the wallet for a replacement spoke?
 
Spoke is £1.99, it's just the hassle is a bit much. I might pick up a couple more just in case it happens again. It's because it's rear wheel hubside, which makes it a very specific spoke unfortunately.

Since my wheelset is this one I think I'll be keeping mine till I find some money in my life. Which is unlikely being a student sadly.
 
Do you have clincher rims? I've looked into those but for my purposes they were a bit overboard. And then there's the extra $200 something increase on the price of my existing rims.

Sounds like a nuisance but at least you have a backup bike. I'd be lumbered with a moped should my bike become out of service.
 
I'm guessing you mean carbon not clincher rims? I'm 99% sure they're not. I can't justify the investment at the moment. But you know, one day, woah carbon wheels :sly:

Yeah I am glad I have the backup bike, means I don't trash my nice one in the winter. Plus it's good for hopping about town and university.
 
I meant clincher, the link to your wheels in the post before states I'm the description thy they're tubeless. I assumed that meant they were clincher rim. My mistake.

But oh for a set of carbon rims! I'd be terrified to ride the roads here in fear of smashing them.
 
Ahh sorry, they're tubeless ready, much like my frame is 'ready' for a custom made sensor which doesn't come with the bike and costs 56 quid just to measure cadence :dunce: So they are clinchers.

Oh yeah any road where I live is a nightmare for carbon rims. I miss good roads. But climbing would just be so easy with them. One day.
 
Yep, not much else there. Tour of Britain has a stage finish there this year which I'll be there for, which will be good!

Speaking if such things, the Vuelta starts today, with Quintana and Froome as favourites as well as Contador miraculously starting despite breaking his leg in the Tour!

Oh and the LBS lent me a wheel so I can ride my bike in the meantime.
 
Emptyone
and today they ring and tell me the single spoke I snapped is so rare that the nearest stock is in the Netherlands, and it'll take two weeks to arrive.

Lesson is never snap spokes on Bontrager wheels :rolleyes:

Now I have to use my winter bike and the sun is shining, and I don't have to wear warm stuff. It's all so wrong :lol:
Click to expand...

How much are they worth to you? :sly: I'm sure I can deliver within 24 hours...

Me and a bunch of colleagues from the ride a week ago
 
alpacaflip
Put some new tires on my dirt jumper.
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Looking good, I love the chunkiness of those.

I realised earlier that it had been 22 days since I last went out on my bike due to work commitments and a trip away from home for a few weeks to sort out a family funeral, and since it was sunny today it would have been rude not to go back out!

I discovered a new 5k off road route that takes me down a closed road (only to motor vehicles) and past some abandoned buildings. Tie this in with the loop to the nearest village and back and it's up to just over 10k which is a nice daily ride. Here's the abandoned buildings on the route:

m3JazZ.jpg
 
So today I convinced my wife to take a bike ride with me at a very nice place. It's sort of a special out of the way place called Glendalough State Park. The reason it's special, as compared to other state parks around here, is that motorized vehicles are not allowed on the water or past certain designated checkpoints within the park. Camping sites can only be accessed by foot or bike. They rent these big carts with which you can haul your camp gear to the sites and back. This all makes for a very quiet and peaceful setting, and it's rather secluded and rustic.

This is a view of Annie Battle Lake from the old lodge side of the lake, which is also the trail head. The bike trail, completely paved and awesome, is nearly 10km around the lake, through dense woods to open fields and back. We spent a couple hours at it this afternoon. Then treated ourselves to a swim in the lake before heading back home for dinner. All in all it was a very excellent day.

WP_20140824_17_43_08_Pro__highres.jpg
 
turbolefty78
Glendalough State Park
Click to expand...
That's only an hour and a half away from me. Definitely going to have to check that one out soon. I brought my boys down to Itasca on Wednesday but due to some leg surgery I was in no condition to bike so, sadly, the bikes were left at home.
 

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