The Bicycle Thread - April 2023

April 1, 2023 | The Bicycle Thread

[Berlin_Freeper]

Welcome to The Bicycle Thread. A monthly PING List for bicycle enthusiasts to share experiences, information and ideas. 🚴‍♂️👍

[Clay Moore]

I would think some of the cadmium plating and lead from babbit on the bearings might be rather toxic. (^;

[HartleyMBaldwin]

Monsieur Mangetout. Was he the inspiration for the novel Car, by Harry Crews?

[Bon of Babble]

I am very happy to see bike lanes being put in in my own city - not that they’re used much, they aren’t - even better are the barriers being put up to guard the bike lanes from errants cars - wish they were made of concrete, though, and not plastic, but that is better than nothing.

We have five e bikes in our family, including one with a front bucket for my SIL where the dogs ride - mine just hit 1200 miles (18 months old) with one tune-up and the battery in OK shape. We look like a traveling circus with the dogs in the bucket and one in a backpack.

Can’t wait to get on it today.

[qam1]

Question

I noticed on my trek mountain bike that my back tire is 29" x 2.00", while the front is 29" x 2.20"

Very small difference but I am wondering why? Is this typical and a good reason for it? Does it make a difference? You would think if anything the back tire would be a little wider.

My back tire worn down and needed to be replaced, and I must of looked at the front tire when getting the size & purchasing assuming they are the same, so now both the front and back are the same 29" x 2.20", so hopefully this won't matter.

[Paal Gulli]

On this date (April Fool’s Day) in 2007, the Cycling News website posted a story stating that Dubai had bought the rights to the Prologue of the 2009 Tour de France.

https://www.cyclingnews.com/news/dubai-to-host-uphill-le-tour-prologue-in-2009-1/

And I bought it.

In my defense, this happened shortly after another city in the UAE, Abu Dhabi, had bought the first annex to the Louvre Museum that was outside of France, and the whole of the UAE was making noise like they were investing for a future when they no longer would have plenty of oil to sell.

That catch was that, beyond the physical implications of racing in 120°F/49°C heat, Dubai is far too hot for bicycle racing in July because the heat of the roadway would melt the glue used to mount the tubular tires, so their idea was to stage the Prologue in the climate-controlled comfort of Mall of the Emirates.

The Mall of the Emirates’ greatest claim to fame is that it houses the world’s largest indoor snow skiing slope. And the mall itself is quite large, the ground floor’s ‘promenade’ being 3.3 km around. So the story claimed they were going to ‘melt’ the ski slope and the race would take one lap of the promenade, then race UP the (dry) ski slope, a total length of 4.2 km with an elevation change of 85 meters. A bit short, as prologues often are, but the final 600 meters was to be a quite challenging winding 600 meters with an average slope of 14%.

The thing is, I had been to the Mall of the Emirates. I knew the place was gi-normous enough to make a prologue plausible. And I knew Abu Dhabi already had cajoled the French into turning loose of some of their most cherished art. So how hard could it be to bribe the ASO into letting Dubai ‘buy’ a TdF prologue. Conveniently forgetting about what the date was, and the implication of the 7 hour transfer from Dubai back to France, much less whether a bicycle tire could hold traction in the corners on a polished marble floor.

So I swallowed the story hook, line, and sinker.

At least until later in the day when I saw someone get April Fools pranked and realized what day it was.

[Paal Gulli]

"Bicycle helmets are now 'mandatory' in Japan. Here's how people feel about that."

I have destroyed too many helmets in shunts to be comfortable riding without one, however, I have seen one study concluding the net health effects of mandatory helmets is negative because it discourages more people from riding than the riders it waves from injury.

There's a law in my state that kids 14 and under have to wear a helmet, but there seems to be absolutely no effort made to enforce it.

[Paal Gulli]

"... Well, he has put perhaps 50 miles on it. He found out that biking is painful. The seat hurts his butt (that usually goes away) and, he thinks, his bike is too long for his frame.

Point being, there is no--I repeat, no--substitute for miles in the saddle in determining if a bike is right for you....

You couldn't be more right. Even if you're fit, if you ride hard, ... it hurts. As Greg LeMond famously said, it never gets easier, you just go faster.

The pay-off is that if you ride long enough you reach a stage where you know you're hurting, you just don't care any more. I seem to lose that immunity every winter and get it back by March or April. In fact, in my case, the pain is the point. Persevering in its face makes me feel ... elevated.

RE: saddle pain, I loaned an acquaintance an older bike of mine with a Selle 'racing' saddle. The next time I saw it he'd put a padded seat cover on the Selle.

I told him that the problem wasn't the saddle was too hard but that his ass was too soft (= he needs to ride more). And I stand by that statement. As you note, there is NO SUBSTITUTE for saddle time.

A saddle has to fit and be adjusted properly. If it doesn't fit your bum, all the padding in the world won't fix it. My favorite saddle has a carbonfiber shell with NO PADDING that happens to fit me like it was made for me. I've done 100 miles non-stop several times (and a a few even further than that) on that saddle with not a hint of saddle discomfort.

But it took some doing to get there. I struggled with saddles when I started riding (the greats all were plagued by saddle sores from time to time) until I got radical with adjusting. I've got many tens of thousands of miles logged with the nose of my saddle so high that my cycling buddies have nicknamed me "Concorde," because my saddle resembles the supersonic jet in its landing attitude.

[bagster]

And riding a bike will never be the cause of approx. 80% of new HIV cases in men.

So YOU say.

[Yogafist]

Helmets are not just to protect your grape at speed, they are to protect you when you when your bike is knocked out from under you and you fall and hit your head. From a standing position, falling and hitting your head, unprotected, can cause catastrophic brain injury. Any responsible person would wear a helmet for their future.

[Fai Mao]

It is, I think, getting time for me to consider one of the E-Bikes like Greg Lemond sells.

The arthritis in the hip & feet is getting a bit much for a regular bike when trying to climb a hill.

[Fai Mao]

I have a Shimano allergy. With one exception none of my bikes have any of those parts on them. The stuff breaks, won’t stay in adjustment, and this year’s 105 doesn’t seem to interface with last years.

One of my bikes is mixed Campagnolo and the other was built up with NOS Suntour. The Campagnolo equipped bike has a Shimano Deore front derailleur.

[RoosterRedux]

I love Campagnolo but have never owned it. It is a thing of beauty.

That said, I have ridden 10's of thousands of miles on 105 (on various bikes) without any breakage. And all my friends with few exceptions (who rode Ultegra) have ridden 105 and I've never heard of a problem of any kind.

I think I know what you're saying about year-to-year interface with 105.

My 105 is a 10-speed. If I wanted to go to an 11 speed, I think I would have to change everything but the crank.

I will say with my chain jumps off from time to time when I move from the small chainring to the big one. If I knew what I was doing I could probably make an adjustment, but frankly I don't have the confident to mess with it. If you have any advice, I sure could use it.

[RoosterRedux]

I ride at a local state park and it is flooded with RVer's riding e-bikes. I rode with a guy the other day who had a new e-bike and he was having a ball (BTW, he didn't huff and puff like I did on the big hills but he was getting some great exercise). He said he rode 40 miles throughout that day.

I love e-bikes because it gets people out there who previously weren't getting any exercise. When I rode yesterday, there were at least 10 on the segment that I ride. Some were pulling their dogs in baby trailers (all the dogs had huge smiles).

[RoosterRedux]

I ride my mountain on trails during the cooler months and regularly crash (usually in the sand, but I have tumbled off into the brush, roots, and trees on many occasions). I wouldn't dream of riding without a helmet.

I had a wreck a few years ago that put me in the hospital for the better part of a week. 3 broken ribs and a punctured lung. Hit my head pretty hard but my helmet saved me.

[Berlin_Freeper]

I wish everyone a Happy and Blessed Easter Sunday tomorrow!

It occurred to me that I been doing The Bicycle Thread PING List since September 2021 and that maybe someone else who is currently on the List might like to run it for a while and add their own flavor, mojo, whatever. I'm a minimalist so this always worked for me:

Welcome to The Bicycle Thread. A monthly PING List for bicycle enthusiasts to share experiences, information and ideas. 🚴‍♂️👍

But of course that can be changed to what you like. I recommend PINGING once a month but twice a month could work too.

If no one wants to then I will continue with no problem.
This is an offer you can totally refuse.

Here is the current list:
Berlin_Freeper;KC_Lion;daniel1212;Bartholomew Roberts;IronJack;A Cyrenian;sphinx;DainBramage;Ronaldus Magnus;gbaker;Drago;SWEETSUNNYSOUTH;Zenjitsuman;Flick Lives;real saxophonist;KevinB;Uncle Miltie;Fred Hayek;free thinker 03;fatboy;RandallFlagg;4integrity;coaster123;gundog;RoosterRedux;qam1;golux;Sergio;Osage Orange;Be Free;fireman15;Ken522;SES1066;Yogafist;Truthoverpower;FoxInSocks;John O;Fai Mao;Deplorable American1776;Psalm 73;Eric in the Ozarks;Sirius Lee;BraveMan;Wonder Warthog;Gulli;steve86;Mariner;raybbr;Reddy;Gvl_M3;UnbelievingScumOnTheOtherSide;Natty Bumppo@frontier.net;Blue Jays;AUTiger83;Chuckster;Celerity;grey_whiskers;Eddie01;beerhunter0378;cyn;Chainmail;poindexters brother;Paal Gulli;Tucker39;Autonomous User;plsjr;SouthParkRepublican;ReformedBeckite;BudgieRamone;wintertime;Jonty30

[KevinB]

My friend who runs a bike shop told me that gay guys often come in and ask if it’s possible to buy a bike without the seat attached. (In the interest of full disclosure, I do not have a friend who runs a bike shop. :-) )

[steve86]

Happy Easter✝️ to use as well.

This may be inappropriate if the thread is intended to pertain to pure human propulsion only, but my new e-MTB arrived yesterday, full suspended and 750w mid-mount motor. I’m away from home or would have it assembled by now.

[Berlin_Freeper]

Thank you steve86! 🙏🏻🚴🏻

I think e-bikes are good here because using the motor is optional. Especially with a mountain bike because I don't imagine one would need the motor going down a mountain. I been meaning to rent an e-bike on the street just to check it out but I am so perfectly happy on my regular bike that I hadn't done so yet.

Enjoy your new ride. It is waiting for you! 😃

[Berlin_Freeper]

[Berlin_Freeper]

Pink Floyd The Wall painted on the famous Berlin Wall.

You can't see from the picture but in my basket I have a couple of books I found while bicycling. In Berlin it is common for people to place stuff they no longer want in boxes outside buildings. Mostly clothing, shoes, music CDs, books, drinking glasses, plates, etc, etc, etc. I sometimes stop to look at the CDs and books but I have also found some nice glasses and plates.

This morning I found these two hardcover books (books 1 and 2) that I will be reading. 😃

Was still freezing cold this morning. That has to change soon!