Cycling Thread

[bossy22]

Did Merlin's View again on the weekend. It's now officially open. Awesome ride. But man was it busy out at West Bragg.

[Northendzone]

i also rode at west bragg on monday - was not busy when we got there, but when we got back tot he vehicle, the lot was getting close to full.

i'd like to send out a special thanks to the tool that felt the need to back into several trail marker signs in the parking lot - must have been his first trip into the back country since they clamped down on all the crap going on at waipros on the may long weekend....

heard guys raving about merlins view - which trails does a fella need to get to this piece of heaven?

[bossy22]

Originally Posted by Northendzone

i also rode at west bragg on monday - was not busy when we got there, but when we got back tot he vehicle, the lot was getting close to full.

i'd like to send out a special thanks to the tool that felt the need to back into several trail marker signs in the parking lot - must have been his first trip into the back country since they clamped down on all the crap going on at waipros on the may long weekend....

heard guys raving about merlins view - which trails does a fella need to get to this piece of heaven?

The easiest, most direct route is to take Bragging Rights all the way to Merlin's on the Northern Flow loop. Where you'd normally take a sharp right to ride reconnect to long distance, there is now an intersection. If you go right, you ride Reconnect. if you go left, you ride Merlin's view. Merlin's can be ridden both ways, but most people are going counter clockwise. That seems to be the chosen route.

[Bring_Back_Shantz]

Originally Posted by cracher

Took the morning off to squeeze in a final ride for the season. Did the Highline loop in Canmore. Very fresh bear turd everywhere (the fresh kind that sticks to your tire and clumps on the crown of your fork) at the trailhead that's just below the nordic center in the parking lot.

How do you all keep your cardio through the winter? I'm thinking of joining that Peloton place downtown.

Buy warmer clothes and follow rules 5 & 9.

[cracher]

Originally Posted by Bring_Back_Shantz

Buy warmer clothes and follow rules 5 & 9.

I already have the one FB profile pic of me holding my muddy Ibis over my head on top of a mountain to give the illusion of compliance with rules 5 & 9. That's all I need. I'll continue to commute on my heated leather seats and use my Peloton 10-punch pass (well priced, classes at decent times, all bikes have SPD pedals) to stay in shape lol.

[Northendzone]

Originally Posted by bossy22

The easiest, most direct route is to take Bragging Rights all the way to Merlin's on the Northern Flow loop. Where you'd normally take a sharp right to ride reconnect to long distance, there is now an intersection. If you go right, you ride Reconnect. if you go left, you ride Merlin's view. Merlin's can be ridden both ways, but most people are going counter clockwise. That seems to be the chosen route.

how much climbing to get to the start of merlins view.........i always find the riding at west bragg tough thanks to the climbing.

for whatever reason i think there is less climbing at the canmore nordic ctr.....or perhaps it is easier to side step the really difficult climbs

[bossy22]

Originally Posted by Northendzone

how much climbing to get to the start of merlins view.........i always find the riding at west bragg tough thanks to the climbing.

for whatever reason i think there is less climbing at the canmore nordic ctr.....or perhaps it is easier to side step the really difficult climbs

Not much climbing at all. Bragging rights is the easiest singletrack out in west bragg. The toughest part being the first 0.8km. It's 100m of climbing over 3.6 km. Merlin's view is a little tougher at the start. It is 154m over 2.5km of climbing

[CaptainYooh]

Question to you, bike nuts. This past weekend, we were driving behind an SUV with a pair of the coolest bikes I've ever seen. The iPhone snapshot is below. I don't know much about bikes at all, but both my wife and I thought these were simply beautiful - everything, the colours, geometry, gear disk, tires, accessories, saddles etc. The brand/name is Specialized Roubaix. Not sure if all the accessories are selected separately for these bikes or part of the package. What's the word about them within those who know bikes really well? Are they the absolute best/top of the line in the road bike market? Or are they just simply "good-looking"? What would be your best guess on the cost of this setup for two, including the rack and locks?

[bossy22]

those are specialized roubaix disc expert ultegra with di2 bikes. Not their top of the line, but still a $7200 bike. I know of someone with that exact bike in a 56cm you could get for $3200. PM me if interested.

the bike rack is a swagman you can get at mec for $209.
http://www.mec.ca/product/5018-825/s...ack/?q=swagman

[CaptainYooh]

$209 for a great-looking rack like this one???? I remember paying $1,500 for the rack that came with our XC90 a few years years ago and it wasn't nearly as good. [cue in the rant about Valentine Volvo]

[Northendzone]

that $209 rack has a weight capacity of 31 kg or a little over 60 lbs. Two average all mountin full suspension bikes would put the hitch close to it's posted limit - although i would assume that it's real limit is somewhere around 100 lbs.

to me this rack is perfect for a couple of road bikes. for mtn bikes I'd look for something burlier

I paid around $450 for our 4 bike rack which is also made by swagman

[Bill Bumface]

I much prefer racks that don't touch the frame.

My friend has the Thule version of this, expandable to 4 bikes:

http://www.mec.ca/product/5032-763/s...tch-bike-rack/

[cracher]

^ This is a similar idea to the above, but for under $200 (bought the wife one on sale for 165 shipped)... works just fine.

http://www.canadianhitches.ca/curt-h...ke-rack-18084/

16 degrees saturday and 18 degrees sunday in Bragg. May have to check out this Merlin thing you are all talking about.

[Northendzone]

despite having some rubber on the frame mounts, my swagman did rub the paint a little bit on the frame of my mtn bike - solved the issue with a pool noodle.

Given my druthers, I'd rather have a unit with a wheel mount.

I'd love to see one of thsoe north shore racks up close and give it a little try.

[Hack&Lube]

Originally Posted by Northendzone

that $209 rack has a weight capacity of 31 kg or a little over 60 lbs. Two average all mountin full suspension bikes would put the hitch close to it's posted limit - although i would assume that it's real limit is somewhere around 100 lbs.

Yep, two Specialized Roubaix bikes (or any carbon road bike) together weigh less than a single average mountain bike.

[Bill Bumface]

I will continue to vouch for 1upusa.com:

[squiggs96]

Originally Posted by hulkrogan

I much prefer racks that don't touch the frame.

My friend has the Thule version of this, expandable to 4 bikes:

http://www.mec.ca/product/5032-763/s...tch-bike-rack/

I also have the Thule T2. It is awesome. Here's what I wrote a few months ago.

http://forum.calgarypuck.com/showpos...postcount=1667

[Bill Bumface]

^It is pretty great.

I prefer the 1 Up for it's faster load times (no wheel straps) and lack of plastic, but the Thule is about as solid as you can get, and the integrated locks are really nice to have too.

[taco.vidal]

For those that may be further south of Peleton there is One Cycle on 4th in mission.http://www.one-cycle.com
Remember though that spin class is good training for more spin class.


c

Originally Posted by cracher

I already have the one FB profile pic of me holding my muddy Ibis over my head on top of a mountain to give the illusion of compliance with rules 5 & 9. That's all I need. I'll continue to commute on my heated leather seats and use my Peloton 10-punch pass (well priced, classes at decent times, all bikes have SPD pedals) to stay in shape lol.

[bossy22]

I really like the 1up. I just found out about them last week because I'm looking for a rack that can accommodate a fatbike.. They make a bigger one now for fat bikes which is nice. With the Thule, you can buy a fat bike adapter, for $40.

I've looked at the northshore racks and ratrack, which is made here in Calgary. Both very similar. I like you can get a rack that will take up to 6 bikes. Richard (ratrack guy) is big into snow biking so he's adapted his latest versions of the ratrack to also accommodate fatbikes.