Biking: Catch-all

I believe my kids would love that hair cut. I hope you helmet covers the bare spots so you don't get too sunburned. Have fun and stay hydrated. It's going to be very hot this week.

Help me figure out what the hell I'm doing wrong with my seatpost. My seat consistently slips a little, so I went to tighten it a lot and ended up shearing the bolt. Exactly where am I supposed to position the collar and how much torque am I supposed to apply? This happens on every bike I own, so I must be doing it wrong.

edit: very nice haircut. Go with the sunblock. After I shaved my head it was at least two seasons before the previously covered skin was on par with the previously exposed skin.

Alien13z wrote:

edit: very nice haircut. Go with the sunblock. After I shaved my head it was at least two seasons before the previously covered skin was on par with the previously exposed skin.

And I'll bet helmet vents leave strange tanlines.

My kids are finally riding bikes! Financially I'm not sure this was a great idea.

$90 for a 20" kids BMX bike for the younger son.
$400 for a small-frame adult 20" mountain bike for the freakishly tall older son.
$90 for two kids helmets.
$60 for two pairs of kids gloves.
$20 for the "Pedal Magic" training video which apparently was worth it because I got immediate results with my kids.
$450 for a four bike hitch mount rack for the wife's car since I can only haul two bikes on my roof rack (or three if I remount one of my old fork-clamp mounts).

Uh... riding with the family: priceless?

LiquidMantis wrote:

My kids are finally riding bikes! Financially I'm not sure this was a great idea.
$20 for the "Pedal Magic" training video which apparently was worth it because I got immediate results with my kids.
Uh... riding with the family: priceless?

Did your kids have trouble before or was this the first time you've tried? My kids just don't seem to get it. I've tried various things and they get frustrated quickly. Now it's tough just to get them to try for more than a few minutes and then I get frustrated quickly.

Sounds like a very similar situation. My older son is extremely tall. He's 5'3" now and 10 years old. So it's been an issue of getting him on a proper sized bike and dealing with his gangly body having coordination issues from constantly growing. He's been really timid about biking for some time. My younger son is 7 and has been disinterested until just recently (I told them I'd pay them $20 if they could ride down the hill in front of our house, turn around, and ride back up). But in general it can be hard to get my kids to push themselves when something is challenging. I might get 15 minutes of effort and then they're done for the day. With my younger son we had a 16" bike still but he'd outgrown it really. I used it to do the technique of removing the pedals and letting him use it as a stride bike down a grassy hill. He made good progress and he was really encouraged about riding but I could tell it was going to be more sessions of that and probably just a slow process altogether to keep him from taking a real spill and getting spooked. So anyway, I figured what the hell, it's $20 and if it saves me time and prevents me from getting exasperated and my kids from getting turned off it's well worth it. I watched it and the next day I had my younger son riding unassisted.

My younger son finished shakily riding a strider bike to this the very next day:

My older son went from not riding at all to this on his second day of even trying to ride a bike:

Semi-random question: how often should helmets be replaced, really? (Assuming no crashes.)

I do mine every couple of years mostly because I've gone through a few sets of pads and I want the improvements of the newer models. I think the improvements are slowing down now though so that might reduce my frequency. I'd say four years to be on the safe side. We dug out my wife's helmet the other day which was probably about 8 years old (I didn't check the manufacturer's date) and the foam had hardened and the plastic shell had delaminated.

Sounds like mine is overdue, all right. Thanks!

LiquidMantis wrote:

Sounds like a very similar situation. My older son is extremely tall. He's 5'3" now and 10 years old. So it's been an issue of getting him on a proper sized bike and dealing with his gangly body having coordination issues from constantly growing. He's been really timid about biking for some time. My younger son is 7 and has been disinterested until just recently (I told them I'd pay them $20 if they could ride down the hill in front of our house, turn around, and ride back up). But in general it can be hard to get my kids to push themselves when something is challenging. I might get 15 minutes of effort and then they're done for the day. With my younger son we had a 16" bike still but he'd outgrown it really. I used it to do the technique of removing the pedals and letting him use it as a stride bike down a grassy hill. He made good progress and he was really encouraged about riding but I could tell it was going to be more sessions of that and probably just a slow process altogether to keep him from taking a real spill and getting spooked. So anyway, I figured what the hell, it's $20 and if it saves me time and prevents me from getting exasperated and my kids from getting turned off it's well worth it. I watched it and the next day I had my younger son riding unassisted.

I think my situation is very much like yours. Mine are 7 and 9 (in July), seem to have similar motivations, and are often moved by bribes. I'll try the tips you sent tonight and may also try the bribe. I know my oldest will enjoy biking if we can get him to do it.

Alien13z wrote:

Help me figure out what the hell I'm doing wrong with my seatpost. My seat consistently slips a little, so I went to tighten it a lot and ended up shearing the bolt. Exactly where am I supposed to position the collar and how much torque am I supposed to apply? This happens on every bike I own, so I must be doing it wrong.

Many seatpost binders are good at around 5nm. If you don't have a torque wrench, CDI (a Snap-On subsidiary) makes some really sweet dedicated-value T-handled torque wrenches where you can swap in metric bits. They cost about $30.00 and will save you from having to ever break seatpost and stem bolts (which are also typically 5nm) ever again. So for instance, you'd get the 5nm wrench and get a bit to swap in of the size for your seatpost binder bolt if the one with the wrench doesn't match it.

Of course, some binders vary in torque spec. Check to see if there's any printing on the collar indicating it, or check with your local [bike brand name] dealer. It's pretty rare to see a spec below 5nm, though.

If your seatpost is still slipping after that, try using some carbon assembly paste in lieu of grease. It's kind of grease-like, but it has little solid particles of stuff in it that help take up space between things and improve grip. I really like Finish Line Fiber Grip best, as it's very thick and not watery (which is what I hate about Tacx's paste - the stuff separates inside of the tube it comes in and thus you waste a lot of it).

As for position of the collar: you just need to make sure the part the compresses most in the collar (where the bolt goes through) is behind the notch in your frame's seat tube to compress that enough to hold your seatpost securely. It's not especially precise.

Good luck! Let me know how things work out for you.

ianunderhill wrote:

A former co-worker from the Previous Shop came by the Current Shop today to get his rear wheel checked out. He's got a job with a certain prestigious Italian bike company that has a Chicago office, and we both started at the Previous Shop around the same time. He had no idea I was working at the Current Shop. A big part of the exchange was "Whew, great we don't work THERE anymore!", but another part was, "Holy crap, do you know how rad this business is at times? I plan on being in the bike biz as long as possible and...wait, you too?" Very, very encouraging stuff.

This probably belongs in the "Random Thing You Love..." thread but I know you folks would appreciate it more.

Your passion for what you do really does shine through, Mr. Underhill. I envy that.

I just recently started riding. Running was my gateway drug into riding. I can ride when the pounding of running requires a rest. As I figured, riding is slowly threatening to consume my running time. I'm looking for advice on getting a trainer as it's difficult for me to get out of the house and on the road as much as I'd like. I have a ton of time in the evenings after dark though and I'd like to get on a trainer. I'm going to do at least one duathlon later this summer and want to be at my best.

My research has led me to Kurt Kinetic and CycleOps Fluid 2 as the best trainers out there. Does anyone disagree? I'd rather pay good money for good stuff than get something cheaper that leaks/doesn't work very well. Any trainer caveats? I'd love to hear good and bad stories about using trainers. I'll get on the road whenever I can, but I'd love to be increasing my fitness some evenings and during the winter when riding on the road is not an option.

The CycleOps is really good. Never heard of the Kurt Kinetic. Just be sure no one lives beneath you, no matter what trainer you get-- they make at the very least a low hum, if not a loud "motor whirring", that will reverberate through the floor and annoy the neighbors. Fluid trainers tend toward the low hum, though. Also, get a trainer tire. If you train vigorously with your regular tires, they're going to separate the rubber from the belt and bad things will happen. Best case you'd see bubbles in the rubber after a session or two. Worst case, your tire explodes during a hard turn or descent!

EvilHomer3k wrote:

I think my situation is very much like yours. Mine are 7 and 9 (in July), seem to have similar motivations, and are often moved by bribes. I'll try the tips you sent tonight and may also try the bribe. I know my oldest will enjoy biking if we can get him to do it.

If it doesn't have to be a cash bribe, and if you have a good rack/panniers on your bike to cart a tent and sleeping bags, etc., maybe you could bribe them with some overnight bike camping.

Finally back riding regularly after last summer just being nearly a zero mile summer (lots of running, not enough time, etc).

Been trying to do 20 a day, minimum, getting rid of some flab, etc. Wanted to share something.

I recently upgraded to an iPhone 4s. I haven't had any kind of electronics on my bike in 2-3 years, since my power meter stuff died. But, I bought a Lifeproof(.com) case and the bar mount, and then heartreat monitor from Wahoo, and I gotta say, it's a pretty freaking awesome combination.

The lifeproof case is totally waterproof (as in, underwater video, go swimming with it, etc) and has a little waterproof headphone attachment. The clip for your bars is SUPER simple and super sturdy. The Wahoo HR monitor is bluetooth and just worked flawlessly out of the box. The iPhone 4s, with SIRI, provides for awesome hands free interactions for things like getting new music or even answering and sending text messages.

I'm not saying I do a lot with it while im riding, as I'm pretty safety conscious. Mostly, i have the screen dark and let it collect data, but on a long, hot boring hill, I'm digging the distractions.

Linkage:

http://www.lifeproof.com/
http://www.wahoofitness.com/Products...

rabbit wrote:

Finally back riding regularly after last summer just being nearly a zero mile summer (lots of running, not enough time, etc).

Been trying to do 20 a day, minimum, getting rid of some flab, etc. Wanted to share something.

I recently upgraded to an iPhone 4s. I haven't had any kind of electronics on my bike in 2-3 years, since my power meter stuff died. But, I bought a Lifeproof(.com) case and the bar mount, and then heartreat monitor from Wahoo, and I gotta say, it's a pretty freaking awesome combination.

Congrats on getting back into things! The Wahoo stuff is fantastic; we've sold a lot of it at my shop both this and last seasons and people have been really happy with their stuff (cases, ANT+ accessories, and so on). I haven't seen any Lifeproof stuff in person. I'll have to ask my boss if he has - may be worth looking into carrying given your glowing remarks on it.

Just out of curiousity, what power meter device were you running previously, and what went south?

Thanks for the input. Having seen how the Kurts are put together and being someone who earns their living based on something that turns with seals and bearings, I like the complete lack of fluid seals in the Kurt unit A LOT. I'm going to have to do a lot of looking into trying to get one at a decent price in Canada.

Training tires. I'm looking at probably using the trainer during the months when I also ride on the road. I guess I'm looking at getting a rear wheel with a cassette on it as well to use inside with the training tire on it? How would that work with my current chain in terms of wear? The only other alternative I can see is changing the tire every time I want to hit the trainer, which sounds like a bit more than I really want to get into.

WipEout wrote:

The CycleOps is really good. Never heard of the Kurt Kinetic.

Agreed on the CycleOps, but you've never heard of Kurt? Wow, that's surprising!

The Kurt fluid trainers are great. A little bit louder than the CycleOps model, and a little bit heavier, but the fluid chamber design is superior. Instead of having an impeller on a shaft go through the fluid chamber (requiring rubber seals where it goes in), the fluid chamber is completely sealed. There's a disc with magnets inside the fluid chamber, while on the other side of the wall of the fluid chamber is another disc in a hollow chamber. This disc is outfitted with oppositely charged magnets, so it makes the disc in the fluid chamber move. This design is pretty much fool-proof and the only thing that can result in a failure is damage (throwing it down some stairs, maybe?) or defective manufacturing. If you're curious to see this, check out a Kurt dealer - Kurt usually supplies them with a chamber assembly that's got a cut-away so you can see it.

Granted, the seals in the newer CycleOps Fluid models are way more robust than the older ones and aren't as prone to leaking. I've honestly warrantied more CycleOps resistance units for issues with the bearings for the roller than I have for fluid chamber issues.

The other thing I like about the Kurt fluid trainers is that they're calibrated to a power curve, so that if you know your speed, you can approximate your power output without having a power meter (there's a chart on their site). This is useful if you're doing workouts based around power output, but not necessary if you're going to just get on and ride. Still, a useful option, and it can satisfy some curiousity about power output without requiring you to shell out tons for a power meter.

Homard: the bottom line is that both trainers are great. I'd go with whichever one you can find for less near you. Either's going to serve your purposes very well. Good on you for opting to invest in a fluid trainer, by the way - if you ever get into interval training, they're the best thing short of a CompuTrainer or riding outdoors.

Homard wrote:

Thanks for the input. Having seen how the Kurts are put together and being someone who earns their living based on something that turns with seals and bearings, I like the complete lack of fluid seals in the Kurt unit A LOT. I'm going to have to do a lot of looking into trying to get one at a decent price in Canada.

As someone else who makes a living based around things that turn with seals and bearings, these are my feelings as well, and exactly why I went with the Kurt myself when I was in the market for a fluid trainer.

Training tires. I'm looking at probably using the trainer during the months when I also ride on the road. I guess I'm looking at getting a rear wheel with a cassette on it as well to use inside with the training tire on it? How would that work with my current chain in terms of wear? The only other alternative I can see is changing the tire every time I want to hit the trainer, which sounds like a bit more than I really want to get into.

Yeah, a wheel/cassette/trainer tire combo is something we stock in my shop just for this purpose - we knock some money off the retail cost to encourage people to buy them as a package, because ultimately, it's just easier to have your other wheel all ready to go. The good news is you can go with a cheaper wheel and cassette than you'd bother with for actual road riding, because weight just doesn't enter into it with stationary training. If you have a trusted mechanic or are good with these things yourself, you can, if necessary, add some thin spacer washers onto the freehub body of either of your wheels so that the cassette sits in the same spot on both, freeing you of the need for minor derailleur adjustments each time you swap wheels.

Trainer-tire-wise, Vittoria and Tacx make excellent ones. Continental also makes one, but they had some production issues a few years back that led to bubbling in the rubber. Some of these may still be in stock at various shops and distributors, so it can be minorly risky to buy one - yes, you can get it warrantied, but you shouldn't need to bother in the first place. Shame, as I'm ordinarily a big Conti fan.

ianunderhill wrote:

Trainer-tire-wise, Vittoria and Tacx make excellent ones. Continental also makes one, but they had some production issues a few years back that led to bubbling in the rubber. Some of these may still be in stock at various shops and distributors, so it can be minorly risky to buy one - yes, you can get it warrantied, but you shouldn't need to bother in the first place. Shame, as I'm ordinarily a big Conti fan.

Yeah, Conti's trainer tire debacle happened when I was working in a shop. They contacted us to ship them back, though, and replaced them all with a fixed batch. I want to say I'd be surprised that other shops hadn't done the same thing, but then I remember how lazy/forgetful/uncaring some folks can be.

I had the chain tension version. Can't remember vendor. Kind of hinky and wired. After one long ride in the rain it just died. Never worked again. Put maybe 1500 miles on it though.

LiquidMantis wrote:

My kids are finally riding bikes! Financially I'm not sure this was a great idea.

Man, fees keep coming. My younger son was having a hard time on trails with the singlespeed BMX-style bike that my wife talked me down to so I convinced her that he really needed a geared bike since it'll probably be 2 years before he's ready for a 24" wheeled bike. After some research it seemed the Marin Hidden Canyon was the best option as it's a 2x7 bike with standard bits. A $320 visit to REI yesterday and we're back in action. But the stock brakes felt crappy so this morning I dropped on some Avid SD7s I had in my parts bin. WAAAY better braking and feel. But my son can't really work the super-crappy grip shifters that came on the bike. They've got crazy hard detents. So I ordered some SRAM X.3 shifters and an X.4 derailleur. Too bad the rear hub has a freewheel and not a freehub or I could've kitted him out with an XTR rear derailleur that's in my parts bin. I can get a 9-speed freewheel though so I might just yet as I find the idea of an XT/XTR kitted 20" bike to be hilarious.

Finally had a ride on my new wheels. About 20km of city riding, though I only logged 12.2 coming home the long way. First impression: wow. It's very light (4.something lb. frame) and the handlebar is broader. This makes torque on the front wheel both easier and more productive. I was a little skittish about accidentally turning expecting tank steering and flipping. I did not.

Gearing is a bit different. I haven't counted teeth but even with two chain rings and ten gears I don't seem to have the granny gear I'm used to.

It's hard to tell if I feel the frame fits better given it's properly sized or if it's rationalization, but I'll lean more toward the latter with the weight of the opinions of knowledgeable folks.

I just picked some generic platform peddles with it. Maybe by the end o' the year or next tax-refund season I'll pop for a clipless setup. Gotta focus on riding over accesorizing first.

I thought I wouldn't be riding as much as I have this summer. Hard to squeeze in rides with a 10 month-old and soon-to-be 4yr old!

Would a basic, standard Strava account grant me access to the GWJ Strava Biking group? Or does one need to upgrade their account to Premium?

brouhaha wrote:

I thought I wouldn't be riding as much as I have this summer. Hard to squeeze in rides with a 10 month-old and soon-to-be 4yr old!

Would a basic, standard Strava account grant me access to the GWJ Strava Biking group? Or does one need to upgrade their account to Premium?

Just do the free version. Its all you need

PAR

All of us are non-premium at this point. It mostly provides better analysis and comparisons.

brouhaha wrote:

I thought I wouldn't be riding as much as I have this summer. Hard to squeeze in rides with a 10 month-old and soon-to-be 4yr old!

Would a basic, standard Strava account grant me access to the GWJ Strava Biking group? Or does one need to upgrade their account to Premium?

Man, my kids are the exact same age as yours. And yes, it's very difficult. If I didn't ride to work every day (a measly 8 miles each way) and set my alarm for 6:30am on the weekends, I'd never ride at all.

Speaking of, those 16 miles a day of work riding really are not good prep for a longer ride if I miss a few weekends. Did a set on Saturday with a lot of vert and just felt blown out by the end of it. 21.12 miles and a bit north of 900 feet of altitute. Lots of steep, steep rollers (most over 15%, all over 10%). My legs, they were not happy with me.

Wow, you can wake up at 6:30 and your kids are still asleep? Mine are at the bedside at 6am on the dot every day. Though that beats the 5:30 wakeup they seemed stuck on for a while.

The free Strava membership gets you quite a lot. You can even "compete" in the timed routes thing that's on the site. As LiquidMantis said, the only thing that's missing these days is some advanced analysis of your ride. Maybe a year back you were limited to uploading only like 4 rides a month, but that restriction has been lifted.

Seems pretty much all of my riding these days is the work commute on days when I'm free from kids early enough to make it in on time. That should become a lot more frequent in the fall when everyone is in preschool. I'm also hoping to start riding with my 4 year-old to school on one of those trailer bikes. They're surprisingly expensive though.