Official Mountain bike Thread!

^^^ Cool stuff, let us know what you think when you've watched it.



New year, new ride. I did Turnbull Canyon/7th Ave loop on Tuesday. Was a beautiful day for a ride.

I have some work to do to be able to ride this entire route, though. The uphill switchbacks required more sustained power output than I could muster. So I've got some stamina building to work on. There were also a few short descents that were too bumpy/rocky/loose for me to tackle.

Looking forward to taking a few more cracks at it.

Few min into it. Pretty sic and the sound and pic quality are amazing.

Sent from my HTC One X using Bimmer App

Originally Posted by RossGuy

Few min into it. Pretty sic and the sound and pic quality are amazing.

Sent from my HTC One X using Bimmer App

You could invite us over to watch, you know. Sure looks like you've got a big enough bottle of booze. We'll bring ice. And snacks.

It's so cold lately, I'd ride but don't wanna get sick!

It has been cold, even down here.

I've used base layers and my jacket more this year than most. And I bought leg warmers and a fleece beanie for the first time this year.

Mom got me a Nike rain jacket from Nordstrom Rack for xmas. Needed a different size, so I went to exchange yesterday. I was really surprised at the amount of Nike, Adidas and Under Armour stuff they had. Got a UA mock t-neck long sleeve shirt to use as a cold weather base layer under jerseys for riding.



Gonna put the slicks on the mtb this am and ride down to the beach to join a beach cruiser Meetup group ride. Bike always looks goofy with skinny slick tires on it.

The UA stuff is supposedly very nice, but dang the prices are more than anything else.

Originally Posted by kuksul08

The UA stuff is supposedly very nice, but dang the prices are more than anything else.

Agreed, although I tried on a $130 base layer from some Swiss mfg at my lbs earlier in the day just for giggles. It was like being wrapped in velvety butter. LOL. But for that money, it should help pedal.

The UA shirt I got is this one, I think:
http://www.underarmour.com/shop/us/e...pid1232652-600

Was $60, bought for $35. Its nice, but not $60 worth of nice. We'll see how it does, supposed to be cold a few days next week.

Hoping you guys can help... I have a Trek 1000 road bike (used to ride when I was 7-10 years ago). It hasn't been ridden in about five years.

I now live in a city and would like to use the bike for A) exercise/fun (Chicago Lakefront paths are awesome) and B) commute to work every once in a while (1.5 miles).

Do any of you guys know if I can fit wider tires on this? If I'm riding on city streets (not terrible streets, we have bike paths, but still city) are the wheels going to be an issue? Any other suggestions...is it a better idea to get a bike made for city riding? I've considered a single speed, but I'm not sure it'd be great to have a single speed for the lakefront riding.

It's, I believe, a 2005 model. Looks like the one in the picture.

What size tires are on it?

There are different width road tires (700x21 vs 700x23 for example). It seems to me that road wheels are pretty standard widths, so I think the limiting factors will be the brakes (tire has to fit between the pads when the calipers are released for putting the wheels on/off) and the front fork.

Trek or your local lbs could prly tell you. Lbs might even be willing to fit check a wider tire for you.

Maybe also post your question in the thread thats more about road bikes: http://forum.e46fanatics.com/showthread.php?t=830630

the wheels and tyres won't be an issue when riding city streets. As long as it's hard road and not gravel.
You can't fit wide tyres because the brakes don't provide the clearance.

http://player.vimeo.com/video/45913666?title=0

Oh how I wish I could ride on trails like this.

^^^ So much awesomenicity.

Do want:

http://worldbikeadventures.com/eng/i...p/tours/canada

http://www.mountainbikeworldwide.com/bike-tours/ecuador

What do you guys use for a tire pressure gauge?

My mtb has Schraeders. I was having trouble with leaks in tubes that didn't seem to be related to any identifiable puncture. So I compared the gauge on the floor pump to (what I thought to be) a pretty accurate hand-held gauge and decided the floor pump gauge was reading low (I was overinflating).

So I started using the hand-held gauge, but lately I think its reading high. It's quite old and maybe has just been bebopping around in my trunk for too many years to have it's readings still be accurate.

I'm considering just getting another good automotive gauge like a Longacre 50400. It would work for the car, and for the mtb.



But my roadie has Prestas. So I'm also considering a Schwalbe Airmax Pro or Topeak SmartGauge D2. I've read a ton of reviews of them both and as usual, they have their fanboys and their haters.





It's tempting to get one that works on both bikes. Also both my dad's bikes both have Prestas and if I find one that works well, I'll get one for him too.

What do you guys use and what do you like/not like? It would be great to have one that fit both stems, but honestly, I'd rather have two gauges than one that did a crappy job of fitting one stem or the other.

I use the "push on it and feel how much it compresses" method. For anything mountain bike it works for me! I've switched over to Presta's for everything and don't have a presta gauge.

Originally Posted by kuksul08

I use the "push on it and feel how much it compresses" method. For anything mountain bike it works for me! I've switched over to Presta's for everything and don't have a presta gauge.

I feel you, but I'm not sure your method works for me. I'm trying to creep my mtb pressures downward as I search for that magic zone where the psi is as low as practical without pinch flatting all the time. And for that, I just don't trust the "smush test" method. I'd like to be more precise than that. Or maybe my internal biological smushmeter just isn't as accurate as yours.

So I got a Topeak D2 ($24 from Amazon). It's a nice gauge, more compact than I thought. I don't intend to carry it riding, so it wouldn't bother me if it was bigger. But if one desired to, this gauge could certainly ride along in a backpack. Not sure about putting it in a normal saddle bag, it's a little big for that and it would likely get too beat up.

So far, it works fine on both Schraders and prestas. Using it on the presta requires the valve to be not-quite-all-the-way unscrewed, and you have to line it up and make a smooth, quick, deliberate push onto the valve. But once you get the motion, it's easy enough.

I have two floor pumps, a Topeak JoeBlow Pro that's about 4 y/o and an Avenir AirSource Sport that's about 6 y/o. The JoeBlow's single hole head is supposed to work on both kinds of valve stems, but I've found it's great for presta, sucks for Schrader. So it gets used on my roadie. The Avenir has a two-hole head, the Schrader hole works great, the presta hole doesn't work at all. So it gets used on my mtb.

I also have an old Ford Motorsport hand held dial gauge (0-60 psi) and just got a Longacre 50400 gauge of similar spec.

A completely unscientific comparison of the pumps gauges and hand held gauges:

Mtb tire inflated with the Avenir pump to 40 psi according to the gauge on the pump = Ford gauge says 53 psi, Longacre gauge says 54 psi, Topeak gauge says 52 psi.

Roadie tire inflated with the JoeBlow pump to 110 psi according to the gauge on the pump = Topeak gauge says 115 psi.

For the time being, I'll inflate the roadie tires using the JoeBlow pump gauge and just know that the gauge is probably a little low.

For the mtb, I'll continue to inflate using the Avenir pump but always check the pressure with one of the other gauges, likely the Topeak D2 since that's what will be closest at hand.

I may look into swapping the JoeBlow's head (snicker) for their two hole head.


In other news, I also ordered this book, am about 35 pages into it and am finding it an easy read and fairly informative so far. Haven't got to riding techniques yet, but there's been some good info about bikes, geometry and gear so far.

Question for people with thule racks.......I'm getting a rack for the TL and I was wondering what the best thule tray for the aero bars is?

Is one that grabs the frame or the front wheel better?...I would like to get one that I don't have to take the front wheel off.

My bike is a Trek 29er.
Thanks.

I use the Thule Big Mouth Carrier, no need to remove the wheel...clamps the Down tube

That book is fantastic! I've recommended it earlier in this thread....every MTBer MUST read it.

If you buy a good floor pump (I got the more expensive Bontrager after going through a few cheap ones) the gauge should be accurate. If I'm on the trail and get a flat, I do go with the "close enough" method until I get back.

I run tubeless. Much more comfortable and you can run lower psi, plus it weighs less at the most critical point. You should try it!

Farmdog... I have the Echelon and the Sidearm... the Echelon is much quieter and less intrusive when I'm not carrying a bike. The big mouth wasn't out when I got mine... but it looks good!