Cycling Thread 2

[Bill Bumface]

Originally Posted by Fuzz

The trusty beast has been with me for 22 years, I'll keep riding her until she disintegrates.

I just threw my whole bike out after 20. I had repainted it myself at one point, which meant the frame started to rust like crazy as well (old steel mtb).

I gave up on maintaining chains and just put a cheap one on every spring. There was a few times I had to whack a chain with a hammer just to get it off my bike. WD-40 works great to squeeze some more rides out of a seized chain until the weather warms up enough to throw it out. It's fun watching your bike chain stand up on it's own after you take it off.

[Bigtime]

6 for 6 days of commuting in this extreme cold snap. Feeling pretty good about it.

[Fuzz]

Well done. Your legs must be like oak trees!

[Kybosh]

So today my rear brake (mechanical disc) completely seized up in the braking position. I had to sadly walk my bike home and drive into work instead. I'm assuming water or grime got into the cable housing but I'm a novice at this. Any tips or tricks from you experienced winter cyclists?

[Fuzz]

I picked up the TRP Spyke mechanical calipers this year. They are absolutely fantastic. They have a plastic grime guard which probably helps. They are, as far as I know, the only dual pull mechanical around. This means you don't have to adjust them nearly as much. Just add some cable tension as the pads wear.

You can find them for cheaper on Ali Express, they mountain bike version (Spyke, roads are Spyre) are really hard to find in Canada. If you already have discs you can just order the caliper.

Highly recommended. Didn't have one issue in the bitter cold, though when I was shredding some gnarr pow earlier this year I think they got some snow somewhere, and I lost some performance briefly.

Of course, you need a solution now, so I'd pull whatever you have apart and see if you can get it moving again. If it is just the cable that's an easy fix. Disconnect the cable from the caliper and see if you can get it moving. A new cable is cheap and easy to replace. If you need a temporary one I've got a POS Clark mechanical you could use in the meantime.

[Northendzone]

went for a 15k spin last night. it was flawless outside with no wind.

also gave me a chance to test out a new light setup I purchased from amazon. for $25 it was a worthwhile spend - although i'd likely change my mind if i bought a $300 setup.

Looking forward to getting in some decent mileage this weekend

[I-Hate-Hulse]

Originally Posted by Kybosh

So today my rear brake (mechanical disc) completely seized up in the braking position. I had to sadly walk my bike home and drive into work instead. I'm assuming water or grime got into the cable housing but I'm a novice at this. Any tips or tricks from you experienced winter cyclists?

My Avid BB7 mechanical disks have have held up remarkably given my zero maintenance philosophy over the last 10-15 years on my winter warrior . I think the pad adjust knobs even still work.

[KTrain]

Speed Theory is closing up on March 1. Everything in the store is 40% off.

[Fuzz]

The pathways through Confed were treacherous this morning. The dusting of snow hiding all the icy patches didn't help, wither. Going to need to explore an alternate route until it gets cleaned up...

[Bigtime]

That may have been one my worst rides in ever. Even with cleared pathways the chunks of ice and rutted areas were brutal, then throw in that light sheet of pure ice and I almost bailed three times. Not really looking forward to the ride home. Heck I think the conditions won't improve until we get some positive temperatures to get rid of that ice.

[Fuzz]

Ya, I just put in a request for Confed to be gravelled, I'm not even sure what kind of conditions would make this all better, but it doesn't look like anything in the next week will make that happen. I might have to stay on 4th st to avoid the park for now.

[KTrain]

I stopped by Speed Theory to see what the sale was like. Lots of higher end road bikes available at 40% off. All clothing as well. I picked up a new chain (I'll need one eventually) and a couple jerseys. A new bike would be fun but that would likely put a strain on my marriage.

Apparently their landlord jacked their rent is from $15,000/month to $30,000 and it's just not viable anymore.

[Ryan Coke]

I looked at their website but there weren’t any bikes that caught my eye. And speaking of straining a marriage.....

I’m toying with the idea of getting an aero bike, something like a Trek Madone. Anyone have any experience on that style, and any thoughts or suggestions?

Respect to all you winter bikers while I just am waiting for spring to arrive.

[kermitology]

Originally Posted by Bigtime

That may have been one my worst rides in ever. Even with cleared pathways the chunks of ice and rutted areas were brutal, then throw in that light sheet of pure ice and I almost bailed three times. Not really looking forward to the ride home. Heck I think the conditions won't improve until we get some positive temperatures to get rid of that ice.

Nose Creek was brutal, but it got better for the southern part of the Bow River path South of Blackfoot. But there were some sections where you'd just hit some hidden black ice and studs didn't do anything to help. I had a few close calls.

[Fuzz]

Zee studs! Zey do nothing!

[habernac]

How was the snowbank situation for all of you guys a little farther south than me? Nose Creek at Laycock Park was full of drifts.

[Northendzone]

on monday night i went for a spin in the singletrack in the bow bottom area.

everything is always so different in the dark. there were several times where i felt very disoriented.

i bought a $35 dollar light setup from amazon, that so far has performed reasonably well.

my buddy bought a really nice gemini titan that is a claimed 4000 lumens. really lights things up almost feels like riding in daylight

had my earbuds in, so i was unable to hear the holwing 'yotes.

trail conditions were pretty good

[kermitology]

Originally Posted by habernac

How was the snowbank situation for all of you guys a little farther south than me? Nose Creek at Laycock Park was full of drifts.

I didn’t notice any drifts between 8th ave and the zoo, but the ice ruts are so bad.

I submitted a 311 request for the pathway between the calf robe bridge and Ogden bridge because it’s sheer black ice and so slippery. Once again studs did absolutely nothing.

[Fuzz]

They managed to very lightly gravel the pathway by the baseball diamond in Confed, but skipped the rest of the park, including the very steep access paths. So good job guys.

They have been absolutely awful this year.

[stone hands]

newbie bike repair question:

last year my season ended due to a hard crash that bent my rear derailleur hangar, so i got a hanger adjuster tool and re-aligned it, great!

however in re-installing the drailleur, it won't screw in tight with the hangar, if that makes sense. if i try to tighten it against the hangar, it sort of slips back to being 2-3 turns looser

i noticed when putting the adjuster tool in, it pushed out a lot of black rubbery stuff, do i need to buy some locktite or grease or something to secure it in there?

as well, the cogs kind of...bounce? for lack of a better word - is that normal? it doesnt look like the wheel is out of true or anything, just the cogs sort of rhythmically pulse while the wheel is spinning. i dont remember seeing that before, but i'm really new at this