All about bicycles

I'm using it more than I thought I would, maybe even too much, instead of getting better at stopping without using it. The gravel bikes I'm considering don't have droppers, which makes me wonder if I'll have trouble.

My mountain bike is an XL frame with 29" wheels, so I feel pretty high up, especially the few times I tried stopping and starting without using the dropper. (I'm 6'2" but apparently have fairly long legs). Over the summer I heard a small child yell, "Wow. That bike is HUGE!"
Mine's an L frame and 29er also. Love the 29er wheels.
 
I've taken a few 20+miles/35+km rides in the last couple of weeks, all on rail-trails. I stopped by a park with mountain bike paths yesterday and today, but both were very crowded, so I stayed with the nearby rail trails. (People were using RC cars on the pump track today).

Today I was riding past a group of people clustered around one of the covered bridges. A child said, "That is a cool bike!" I've never had a cool car, but I've got a cool bike!
 
Today I was riding past a group of people clustered around one of the covered bridges. A child said, "That is a cool bike!" I've never had a cool car, but I've got a cool bike!
People usually just look at me like I’m a weirdo
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A couple of photos of my daughter from the drone. It was told to follow from a specific angle. I pulled a couple of photos after it was finished. The shots are probably clearer than I could have done with a hand held.
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Follow is a bit loose - it will track from the front. She had slowed to about 30 km/hr at this point.
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An eagle eye might notice fixed gear, no brakes, hence the choice of a quiet road to test the follow algorithm.
 
Any of my forum friends into gravel riding? I'm giving up riding on the street in favor of bike paths and the dirt roads in the many nature preserves here in FL.

Going to get a gravel bike, but it's going to take a few months due to the crazy bicycle backorders going on.
 
Any of my forum friends into gravel riding? I'm giving up riding on the street in favor of bike paths and the dirt roads in the many nature preserves here in FL.

Going to get a gravel bike, but it's going to take a few months due to the crazy bicycle backorders going on.
Until last year, I had shifted a bunch of my riding to variations of gravel. Last year, trails were so crowded that I went back to the road for 95% of my riding. I’ll probably get back to more rail trails, most of which I have to drive to, but they are pretty quiet and very scenic.
 
Protein!
Oh, and nice ride!
Makes the story even better though!

I stopped and tried to get it out, as it was a bit painful, but no luck. I got some odd looks and used most of my water. Afterwards I rode further that I'd initially planned, so maybe it provided some needed nutrition?

And thanks!

Any of my forum friends into gravel riding? I'm giving up riding on the street in favor of bike paths and the dirt roads in the many nature preserves here in FL.

Going to get a gravel bike, but it's going to take a few months due to the crazy bicycle backorders going on.
Until last year, I had shifted a bunch of my riding to variations of gravel. Last year, trails were so crowded that I went back to the road for 95% of my riding. I’ll probably get back to more rail trails, most of which I have to drive to, but they are pretty quiet and very scenic.

Most of what I've been doing is gravel-type riding, although I'm doing it with a hardtail mountain bike. I've avoided riding on roads with motor vehicle traffic, as I had a few close calls when I rode back in the early 90s. (Also, a friend of my father's was killed while riding a little over a year ago. He used to ride with one of my former co-workers, who was also killed while riding. Both were killed by people driving pickups.)

I bought the hardtail as I planned on riding the dirt and gravel trails where I had been hiking, but they became very busy last year. My favorite trail area is also popular with equestrians, and I don't want to spook a horse. So I mainly turned to area rail-trails, especially for the longer rides.

I still mix it up, going on some more proper MTB trails if the parking lots aren't full, but I'm on a rail-trail most days. And sometimes I mix them in one ride. Today, for instance, I rode a bit on a fairly hilly gravel/dirt trail for around five miles and connected to a rail trail for around 17 miles.

Anyway, I'm looking at getting a gravel bike, too, when they're available (and I convince myself to spend the money on the ones I'm considering). For now, though, the hardtail works pretty well; I just have to make sure I don't stay in the top gear the whole time and wear out the cog, which I did last year.
 
Until last year, I had shifted a bunch of my riding to variations of gravel. Last year, trails were so crowded that I went back to the road for 95% of my riding. I’ll probably get back to more rail trails, most of which I have to drive to, but they are pretty quiet and very scenic.

I hear ya. Crowded trails & paths can take a lot of fun out of things. My favorite spots are definitely the more remote ones, which of course means a drive to get there. I have a lot of options if I'm willing to drive an hour fifteen, which is farther than I'd rather deal with, but small price for adventure I guess.


Most of what I've been doing is gravel-type riding, although I'm doing it with a hardtail mountain bike. I've avoided riding on roads with motor vehicle traffic, as I had a few close calls when I rode back in the early 90s. (Also, a friend of my father's was killed while riding a little over a year ago. He used to ride with one of my former co-workers, who was also killed while riding. Both were killed by people driving pickups.)

This really hurt to read. I had a minor, very low speed crash with a car a few years ago. Shook me pretty good nonetheless. Finally got my full road confidence back a few months ago, but then two weekends ago I was blindsided by a pickup truck. Lucky for me I'm alive to ride another day; it's just a matter of how far away that day is. And it will not be on the road.


On a more positive note, I opted for the State Bicycle Co. 6061 Black Label All-Road. I'm all about ballin' on a budget when it comes to bikes and the State looks like a winner. I went with their option to get a set of 650b as well as 700c wheel sets. Hopefully I'll be rolling and getting dirty this summer.

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I hear ya. Crowded trails & paths can take a lot of fun out of things. My favorite spots are definitely the more remote ones, which of course means a drive to get there. I have a lot of options if I'm willing to drive an hour fifteen, which is farther than I'd rather deal with, but small price for adventure I guess.




This really hurt to read. I had a minor, very low speed crash with a car a few years ago. Shook me pretty good nonetheless. Finally got my full road confidence back a few months ago, but then two weekends ago I was blindsided by a pickup truck. Lucky for me I'm alive to ride another day; it's just a matter of how far away that day is. And it will not be on the road.


On a more positive note, I opted for the State Bicycle Co. 6061 Black Label All-Road. I'm all about ballin' on a budget when it comes to bikes and the State looks like a winner. I went with their option to get a set of 650b as well as 700c wheel sets. Hopefully I'll be rolling and getting dirty this summer.

state_bicycle_co_6061_all_road_gravel_deep_pacific_11.jpg

Sorry to hear about the incidents and glad you're still around. I'm also sorry to bring up difficult memories.

On the upside, that bike looks awesome. I also like bikes in interesting colors, like that. So many motor vehicles are monochrome (including mine) I think bikes should be vibrant. (One of the gravel bikes I'm considering is the Cannondale Topstone 1, but it comes in "slate." Blah.)
 
Sorry to hear about the incidents and glad you're still around. I'm also sorry to bring up difficult memories.

On the upside, that bike looks awesome. I also like bikes in interesting colors, like that. So many motor vehicles are monochrome (including mine) I think bikes should be vibrant. (One of the gravel bikes I'm considering is the Cannondale Topstone 1, but it comes in "slate." Blah.)

Ha, yeah. I've looked at every bike imaginable over the last couple weeks. State has a color on their steel frame called "pigeon gray" and Giant has a color called "concrete". Uh yeah, way to get me excited about riding.

That Cannondale looks pretty good though. Nice build too, except I have my mind set on a 1x drive train.
 
Ha, yeah. I've looked at every bike imaginable over the last couple weeks. State has a color on their steel frame called "pigeon gray" and Giant has a color called "concrete". Uh yeah, way to get me excited about riding.

That Cannondale looks pretty good though. Nice build too, except I have my mind set on a 1x drive train.

I guess there are colorful accessories, and they know what sells better than I do. Still I was happy to get a green bike.

As my mountain bike has a 1x drivetrain I'm looking at 2xs for a gravel/endurance bike. I'm thinking a sleeker-looking bike should be capable of a higher top speed. The 1x on my Honzo is pretty nice, though.
 
Love it! Thanks for sharing this one. I owned a 1960 Caddy for a decade (this would be a take off on a 1959 which was almost identical to the 1960). It was my time machine. Hit a country road, some Sinatra on the AM radio and off we go. Loved that car!

As for bicycles, used to race a bit, and did plenty of "centuries". Did some touring as well and that was always a great adventure. Took up mountain biking after an accident in the mid 90's which stirred up my noodle quite a bit. Spent about 6 months trying to speak in full sentences again after that incident! But the trails did not help either as I did not come home without blood dripping from somewhere on my head or body from a wipe out caused by my aggression. This is why I have never wanted a crotch rocket motorcycle or an off road motorcycle. I know I would kill myself!

Had a Trek in their early years (when they still silver soldered their frames and used Reynolds 700 series tubing), had a couple of Cannondale's, but have always been a devote of Klein bicycles (well, until Trek bought them that is). As far as I am concerned, Gary Klein is the Paul Reed Smith of bicycles. That man not only patented dozens of bicycle innovations, but always produced product that looked like art and rode like a Ferrari. I still have my Klein Rascal mountain bike from before Trek ownership, with linear faded candy apple red to orange paint job. I have a Klein road bike as well (let's call it Mackenna Blue), but don't even know the model. Have not ridden either one of them in approximately 13 years or so. Bad Moondog, BAD! Same goes for my Harley's, have not ridden them in the same amount of time, but for different reasons.

Anyway, one of my goals this year is to loose some weight, so maybe before this year is over, one of those Klein's will see some spins from my lazy bones ;~))

Keep spinnin' and keep pikcin' Brothers~

Cheers~
MW

No knowledge and no affiliation - I just know this is cool.

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A couple of drone shots from earlier this week. I had the drone shoot video while following me. These are stills pulled from that video.
This is near the north end of a trail that runs by my back yard. This section doesn't get used a lot, in part because it doesn't always have a bridge. The previous bridge was a 2x6 plank. This is less intimidating to navigate.
PFatBoyBootlegBridge.JPG

If you look beyond the tree, you might notice a ridge. It isn't especially high, but it has a mix of rock, sand and sharp turns that make it a bit of a challenge, especially with oncoming traffic. Just don't think about the sharp drop off to the side of the trail - one side into the river, the other into scrub.
PFatBoyClimbing.JPG
 
A couple of drone shots from earlier this week. I had the drone shoot video while following me. These are stills pulled from that video.
This is near the north end of a trail that runs by my back yard. This section doesn't get used a lot, in part because it doesn't always have a bridge. The previous bridge was a 2x6 plank. This is less intimidating to navigate.
PFatBoyBootlegBridge.JPG

If you look beyond the tree, you might notice a ridge. It isn't especially high, but it has a mix of rock, sand and sharp turns that make it a bit of a challenge, especially with oncoming traffic. Just don't think about the sharp drop off to the side of the trail - one side into the river, the other into scrub.
PFatBoyClimbing.JPG

Wow! From Go Pros to drones in a couple of years. What is the range? Can it track you on a 100k ride?
 
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