I can't get over the moon boot covers. Hawt.

8/28/2012 8:23:50 PM

can I ride my bike on the sidewalk? i've heard that it's not OK

9/3/2012 10:55:12 AM

Neither the state of NC, Wake County, nor Raleigh have any laws against riding bicycles on the sidewalk. Other counties or local municipalities may have laws against it, so check with them first. I personally would advise against it for a few reasons like limited sidewalks, pedestrians who have right-of-way, and crosswalks and driveways.


http://www.ncdot.gov/bikeped/lawspolicies/laws/
http://www.ncdot.gov/bikeped/download/bikeped_laws_Guidebook-Full.pdf
http://www.ncdot.gov/bikeped/download/bikeped_laws_Bike_Laws.pdf
http://www.wakegov.com/ems/information/bikes/default.htm

9/3/2012 12:00:56 PM

i'm using a few roads as my cut through to Lake Crabtree that aren't mountain bike friendly. for my own safety, i think i'll stick to the sidewalks and get out of the way, should i encounter a walker/jogger

9/3/2012 12:51:38 PM

I went mountain biking in Fort Valley, VA this weekend in the George Washington National Forest from a nearby
horse riding base camp. My bike is covered in mud, and I landed on my ass a few times when I failed at bunny hopping, but at least I had a beautiful view from Spothorn Mtn or whatever hill that was.

9/3/2012 10:25:51 PM

My mtn bike is perpetually covered in mud. I can't have nice things

I was going to do a quick ride at Crabtree before work, but trails are closed because of the rain


Anyone have suggestions for an affordable platform hitch rack? I'm leaning towards the Swagman XTC (http://www.swagman.net/products/platform-racks/xtc-2/), but I'd love to hear other suggestions. I need to get the bikes off the top of the car as the new parking deck at work is going to have even less clearance than the current one.

9/4/2012 8:57:38 AM

I went through the same search earlier this spring and at the end of the day I decided to go with the Thule 990XT Doubletrack. Its not as cheap as the others but I am so glad I bought it now. The locks are much better than anything I looked at and it just feels like it holds the bikes better. Definitely not cheap but well worth it after the fact in my opinion.

http://www.thule.com/en-US/US/Products/Bike-Carriers/Hitch/990XT-Doubletrack#

9/4/2012 11:56:04 AM

^ Thanks, but I'm worried that a 48" max wheelbase isn't going to be long enough for my XL 29er bike. A rough tape measurement the other day put my wheelbase at around 53". I'll have to check it again because Niner's website says my wheelbase should be 46" with a 120mm fork.

9/4/2012 2:11:35 PM

Well damn you have a big ass bike. I have an 18" 29er and there is more than enough room to extend the wheel carriages 5 or more inches either way.

9/4/2012 2:54:52 PM

Quote :

"can I ride my bike on the sidewalk? i've heard that it's not OK"

You can in Apex. I ride sidewalks the whole way to the Tobacco Trail all the time and have passed dozens of police officers. Never had a word said to me.

9/4/2012 2:57:37 PM

^ The cops probably won't bust you for it in places where it doesn't succinctly say no bicycles on sidewalks. I think Chapel Hill definitely has some posted in the downtown area.

I wouldn't ride on them due to 2 reasons: it always takes longer than just being in the road, and you constantly have to watch for the intersections. People pulling out of driveways aren't expecting something fast like a bike coming down the sidewalk.

9/4/2012 9:25:11 PM

Quote :

"Well damn you have a big ass bike. I have an 18" 29er and there is more than enough room to extend the wheel carriages 5 or more inches either way."

So I measured again and I actually do have a 46" wheelbase from hub to hub. I guess I misunderstood that the max measurement on the racks were end-of-hoop to end-of-hoop when they're actually center-of-hoop to center-of-hoop. My bike should fit fine on the cheaper, shorter Swagman XC rack in that case.


I had a fun mnt bike ride this evening...

My expensive Enduro ceramic bearing bottom bracket shit itself towards the end of the ride



I'm really starting to see why people hate BB30/PF30 bottom brackets

9/4/2012 11:00:54 PM

^nice. I never had a problem with BB30 till I rode 60 miles in the rain and then rode a different bike for two weeks because I was to lazy to clean it. Mine ended up looking like that as well.

Got my new Felt in last night, only hand an hour to half ass put it together, pics will follow hopefully this weekend after I ride it.

9/5/2012 9:02:50 AM

The new bike 2012 Felt F6, best drunk purchase yet! Finally got it assembled, also drunk purchased a new saddle and black hoods for it. Commuted the usual 16 miles on it today what a difference! Finally got KOM on a segment I've rode over 30 times. Pretty sure all the gains were psychosomatic, but I am happy.

[Edited on September 7, 2012 at 7:47 PM. Reason : m]

9/7/2012 7:47:16 PM

^ It's probably just me, but that saddle looks uncomfortable as hell. I ride a Selle Italia SLK on the road bike, and a Specialized Phenom Comp (143mm) on the mtn bike. I like nice, flat saddles that support the sit bones.

9/8/2012 10:32:46 AM

^^woah, that's a pretty cool DIY bike rack, i might have to try that.

9/8/2012 1:47:16 PM

^^ It's a Selle X0 Flow. I've never ridden a saddle with a cutout, so I thought I'de try this one.

9/8/2012 2:55:36 PM

^ My best saddles have cutouts for the girl parts. You know, so I actually can feel down there after
spending hours on the saddle.

How do boys not squish their testicles on the bike? One of the great mysteries in cycling.

9/8/2012 4:37:49 PM

testicles go on the seat, not between you and the seat

9/8/2012 4:49:44 PM

Quote :

"^^ It's a Selle X0 Flow. I've never ridden a saddle with a cutout, so I thought I'de try this one. "

Oh, damn, guess I'm wrong. From the side angle it looked like one of those cheap saddles with a hump in the middle. Saddles with up-turned noses always look painful to me. My buddy bought a Surly Cross-Check earlier this year and decided to ride it on a 100k with us instead of his regular road bike, and he was in a lot of pain halfway through the ride. It comes stock with some WTB curved hump of a saddle.

I also meant to mention that's a nice looking bike, and I, too, like the stand. I really wish I had a garage. 4-ish bikes, storage stand, and repair stand do not fit well into an apartment.


I really like my SLK as it supports me just right and has room for my twig and berries

9/9/2012 1:08:05 AM

anyone want to ride 85m / 135k with me October 13th? From ECU to NCSU? More specifically Mellow Mushroom Greenville to the Mellow Mushroom on Peace St?

1st Annual NC State Fair Almost Century

9/9/2012 12:11:49 PM

Those cutout seats are about airflow and reducing the pressure on your taint. If you are putting your balls in the slots you are doing it wrong.

9/9/2012 9:13:40 PM

hey Mech is that an official ride? any links to a site?

9/10/2012 8:05:54 PM

It's official in the respect as I am officially going to ride it. But, no nothing sanctioned, just looking to see if anyone else that wants to cross off Greenville to Raleigh of their bucket list. Though it would be cool if I could get a bunch of people to do it rather than just by myself. Rather ride with other people breaking the wind for 80 miles than solo. I am going to the state fair in the afternoon and thought I'de put in some mileage before I at a bucket full of crap.

Not fast 18-20mph, not shaving my legs for it, no sag vehicle, may even stop at a gas station for a Gatorade. Would like to leave at 5am to be in Raleigh at 10ish though.

9/11/2012 7:01:53 AM

Rode 286/ORC for the first time today... it was like I went to fucking Disney World. I will never waste my time at Crabtree again.

Quote :

"anyone want to ride 85m / 135k with me October 13th? From ECU to NCSU? More specifically Mellow Mushroom Greenville to the Mellow Mushroom on Peace St? "

I'd be interested, but I'll actually be at the Tour de Cure MTB ride at CNF that day. I've done Durham to Greensboro before with a small group, and that was fun.

9/15/2012 3:57:31 PM

It's kind of an odd ride, still haven't had any takers. I just realized the first 2 hours will be in the dark too, o well...

Took the new bike out today, after a hard night of drinking at some friends. I had a dam bearing cup that started sqeeking about 10 miles into the ride. Then my right shifter started creeping down.



[Edited on September 15, 2012 at 7:03 PM. Reason : ]

9/15/2012 7:03:05 PM

9/30/2012 1:42:06 PM

I always said we needed to mount sawed off shotguns, crossbows, or some other projectile device
to bicycles. I'm only kind of joking.

9/30/2012 4:39:45 PM

^^I so want that! Haven't fired a gun yet, just mace, water, gel blocks, and some stinger waffles. I've quit with the water bottles though, they get to damn expensive to replace.

9/30/2012 5:42:34 PM

Have you guys ever have any luck tuning a rim that's really warped? Is this something easy to do on my own or should I take the rim to the lbs and have them tune it?

9/30/2012 6:34:08 PM

It's possible to do on your own with the right tools and depending on how bad it is. It's called truing a wheel and you can find YouTube videos on it.

9/30/2012 8:38:33 PM

Ehh...how 'warped' are we talking about? I use the following rule: a little wobble can be straightened out in the truing stand, but a serious taco or something >1 inch out of true probably means you have a bent rim, and should trash it. I've seen people come in and straighten out serious dents in our community shop, but the wheels end up failing sooner than later, especially if you're big, ride a lot, or are carrying a load.

I'm mainly referring to traditional steel or aluminum rims, but it's especially important if yours happen to be carbon.

10/1/2012 8:27:18 AM

It was less than 1 inch. I went to the lbs and bought a spoke tool. I was able to straighten it out while it was on the bike. I don't have a truing stand but I really didn't need one. Thanks for the help!

10/1/2012 10:43:07 PM

Which lbs is the best? I've been to a few looking for simple things, like an extra thick/DH inner tube.

"We have to order specialized items like that."

A DH tube is a specialized item that they don't have in stock? Wal-mart probably has stuff like that. I should check there. Still, it would be nice to know what lbs actually carries things people may want to buy.

10/2/2012 9:02:53 AM

DH tube? Not familiar with what that means.

The shops in Durham cater to different needs- Tip Top, Seven Stars and Bullseye carry basic commuter stuff, Durham Cycles has high end roadie stuff, and I'm not sure Grassroots carries anything. I usually only stop by one of the shops if I'm impatient and can't afford time-wise to order wholesale through the co-op (like I needed a pump the other day STAT).

If you need something specialized (like I went hunting for a 17-tooth fixed cog to no avail), realize that the shops are only catering to the lowest common denominator of the most common things.

10/2/2012 1:39:33 PM

Downhill. It's just a standard tube but about twice as thick to reinforce the sidewalls for running low pressure.

10/2/2012 3:03:41 PM

Quote :

"If you need something specialized (like I went hunting for a 17-tooth fixed cog to no avail), realize that the shops are only catering to the lowest common denominator of the most common things."

All-star bikes in Cary has a pretty extensive line of bmx parts--including cogs. I had to drive up there to get a couple sizes I was missing last year.

10/5/2012 8:45:40 AM

I was reading about tour de france and how demanding it is. Few interestin links:

https://theconversation.edu.au/suffer-score-how-demanding-is-le-tour-de-france-8040

...and how such long, strenuos execise causes changs in the body

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1724409/pdf/v035p00424.pdf

pretty cool stuff. they found decrease in basal testosterone in riders and increase in melatonin.

10/9/2012 5:39:47 PM

http://velonews.competitor.com/2012/10/video/must-see-martyn-ashton-freestyles-on-a-pinarello-dogma-2_256497

10/9/2012 6:13:23 PM

^I came to this thread to post that video, so allow me to help you with that.

10/10/2012 12:34:07 AM

^came in here to post that

10/10/2012 3:04:23 PM

^^ DAYUM!!!!

Crazy Aussies

10/10/2012 4:16:24 PM

I can't believe he put WD-40 on his bike!

10/10/2012 5:02:39 PM

He just wants as much dust and dirt to cling to it as possible.

10/10/2012 5:12:35 PM

How the stunt riding roadie never breaks his wheels I'll never know, unless Zipp is one of his sponsors or something.
But still...it's like Danny MaCaskill has an Aussie roadie twin. Cool.

10/11/2012 7:32:29 AM

Pretty sure he's British. He's also more likely a trials rider who rode a road bike to make that video, not a road rider who started doing trials stuff. Either way, respect.

10/12/2012 1:04:02 AM

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martyn_Ashton

10/12/2012 11:49:19 AM

^^ Turns out the Youtube description says it was filmed in the UK. I guessed Aussie because of all the sun and beaches, it didn't look like Britain to me!!

10/12/2012 5:45:08 PM

Anyone else go to the Tour de Cure MTB ride today? My friend and I were out there, but the chainstay on his bike snapped, so we had to cut the ride short. There was a much smaller turnout then I expected.

10/14/2012 12:27:19 AM

First one posted in this thread was better, but this one is still impressive.



Noticed he doesn't clip in.

10/14/2012 1:24:43 PM