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Bicycle age
- Thread starter elrechazado
- Start date
I'm in Bristol, so about an hours drive from BPW. I don't get the chance to go as much as I'd like what with family commitments etc.
Goals for this year are to get my fitness up a bit. I've not done the uplift yet, I've been preferring to get to the top under my own steam (get me fitter and save the £35) so working on my general fitness will make this a more enjoyable prospect...and also try and get out there more often. At the end of the day last time, I was just pootling very slowly back to the car park and both my thigh muscles cramped out, locked my legs straight and I wobbled off, it was hilarious. Luckily no one was around to see and I was able to disguise it as me just having a little sit down in the verge until I was able to bend my legs again after a minute or so.
YT are indeed phenomenal value. I was all set to get a Giant Reign 2, but in the end I couldn't ignore the savings on the Capra.
Goals for this year are to get my fitness up a bit. I've not done the uplift yet, I've been preferring to get to the top under my own steam (get me fitter and save the £35) so working on my general fitness will make this a more enjoyable prospect...and also try and get out there more often. At the end of the day last time, I was just pootling very slowly back to the car park and both my thigh muscles cramped out, locked my legs straight and I wobbled off, it was hilarious. Luckily no one was around to see and I was able to disguise it as me just having a little sit down in the verge until I was able to bend my legs again after a minute or so.
YT are indeed phenomenal value. I was all set to get a Giant Reign 2, but in the end I couldn't ignore the savings on the Capra.
I'm just over the estuary on the Chepstow side. PT lives down a mine in deepest darkest Clwdyyddrchbiscuitdimdom.
Bristol's got some great biking right on your doorstep, but you probably know this. Ashton Court has custom-cut trails which are fun (but lacking a little elevation) but you can also go off-piste in the surrounding grounds (and nearby woods) to find some hills. A short ride from there is Ashton Hill Plantation (Belmont Woods) which has decent loops and massive jumps and serious elevation. Then of course there's Leigh Woods, which is superb. All these areas are pretty close to each other.
Psychotext
Member
Only problem with the BPW climb is that it's BORING. I can actually do it in a similar sort of speed to the uplift now, but that's a crazy sort of pace that I can only do a couple of times.
Did you try Bonneyville? That one scares me a bit, and the new drop into A470 line.
Did you try Bonneyville? That one scares me a bit, and the new drop into A470 line.
jakonovski
Member
I learned a great trick yesterday: reusable chain connectors like KMC's Missing Link can be detached by using a length of old gear or brake cable. Simply wrap the cable around the link and pull it tight.
TarpitCarnivore
Member
Yo, mountain biking folks got a technical question for you
When on a steep climb (13%) I notice I'll tend to lose all weight over my front tire at a certain point. What's the best way to go about dealing with this? Should I get up on the seat before I get into that part of the climb, bigger gear, what.
When on a steep climb (13%) I notice I'll tend to lose all weight over my front tire at a certain point. What's the best way to go about dealing with this? Should I get up on the seat before I get into that part of the climb, bigger gear, what.
jakonovski
Member
Lean forward and sit on the tip of the saddle.
If racing or otherwise crazy about climbing, have a low front end.
If racing or otherwise crazy about climbing, have a low front end.
TarpitCarnivore
Member
So get up on it early?
My thighs tend to blow up big time on climbs so I always tend to spin and be back, but I'll try to just get that way from the beginning.
My thighs tend to blow up big time on climbs so I always tend to spin and be back, but I'll try to just get that way from the beginning.
jakonovski
Member
Pretty much everything has to be timed beforehand or there will be trouble, at least for me.
I forgot to add, have a low enough gear for spinning. I have this one climb (21%) where I almost invariably get spooked by lack of gearing and the feeling of falling over. So I end up pushing the bike.
I forgot to add, have a low enough gear for spinning. I have this one climb (21%) where I almost invariably get spooked by lack of gearing and the feeling of falling over. So I end up pushing the bike.
TarpitCarnivore
Member
I learned the gearing thing quick. I try to get into something as I make the turn into the hill, but it also sucks because I feel like I expel so much energy before I get to it.
TarpitCarnivore
Member
The local trails are like 150:1 male to female ratio. I'm also married so that wouldn't look good.
Psychotext
Member
Always change into the gear you're going to end up needing as early as possible. If your front is lifting often then you may be doing climbs that your bike just isn't built for (there's a reason full on XC bikes have steep geometry and long stems).
Being on the rivet will help, as will keeping your core locked to enable the most efficient / smooth power delivery... but there's a limit.
Just checked, steepest (avg) climb I've done is 30.7% without walking. Bastard tough though.
Being on the rivet will help, as will keeping your core locked to enable the most efficient / smooth power delivery... but there's a limit.
Just checked, steepest (avg) climb I've done is 30.7% without walking. Bastard tough though.
jakonovski
Member
Oh man, it's snowing! Fat bike fun starts again, although the eventual -20C days might put a damper on it.
TarpitCarnivore
Member
Getting my yearly bonus in a month and it's pretty much spent out already:
Mountain Bike
Wahoo Kickr
Ritchey Cross Fork
New wheelset (really just a duplicate of what I have so I can quickly swap between 32 & 42s)
MAYBE converting from 2x to 1x
Mountain Bike
Wahoo Kickr
Ritchey Cross Fork
New wheelset (really just a duplicate of what I have so I can quickly swap between 32 & 42s)
MAYBE converting from 2x to 1x
Psychotext
Member
There are probably worse things to spend money on. 
Nope, I'm back down to one bike again now* and am all the better for it.
*not including the GT hung on the wall as art.
jakonovski
Member
Being a one bike person is impossible unless under duress. You need at least a proper mountain bike and a curly whirly road machine.
I don't think I'll ever own a road bike again. It would involve riding on roads, which is just plain daft.
Psychotext
Member
I could give away my road bike tomorrow and I wouldn't lose any sleep over it.
I can cover the exact same terrain, just at a time penalty.
I can cover the exact same terrain, just at a time penalty.
And you'd be fitter by the end of it than if you took the Jimmy.
In all seriousness, the neighbour I regularly MTB with blames his deteriorating fitness on use of his road bike. When he just had the MTB he was a lot, lot fitter.
Psychotext
Member
And you'd be fitter by the end of it than if you took the Jimmy.
There's definite truth to that. The terrain I did over the holiday would have been pretty easy on a road bike. But 375 miles with 350,000 feet of climbing definitely wasn't easy on a 26" wheeled mountain bike with 2.4" knobblies on.
Edit - The argument could of course be that I'd have done more. But that wouldn't have been the case as my primary motivation was the 500km between Christmas and New Year.
TarpitCarnivore
Member
I find on the road bike I take a lot more coasting breaks, while on the mountain bike I can't stop pedalling or I'll get dropped
I still plan on having two bikes; 1 mountain bike and 1 do-it-all gravel grinder
I still plan on having two bikes; 1 mountain bike and 1 do-it-all gravel grinder
Been faffing around with YouTube's image stabilisation, and for the most part it works pretty well. It can get a bit janky and artifact-heavy sometimes and seems to fuck up the 60fps more often than not, but it makes bumpy footage easier to view. This is some footage of one of the Cwmcarn Cafall descents from December (can't remember which section). In the original footage the helmet peak at the bottom of the screen is in a rock-solidly fixed position, so you can see by its movement now just how much stabilisation is at work. The audio was fucked so I dropped some Bizet in because... well, if you don't like Carmen then there's no hope for you.
Click for footage
Click for footage
frontieruk
Member
Psychotext
Member
I have semi slicks available to me on my 9kg race mountain bike...
...but no, you're not having my road bike.
Edit - Funnily enough, I think my mountain bike actually weighs less than my road bike.
...but no, you're not having my road bike.
Edit - Funnily enough, I think my mountain bike actually weighs less than my road bike.
Psychotext
Member
Vaguely related; I was just looking at the qualifiers for the Leadville 100 (I've been told that you don't want to be in the final starting zone unless you want to be pushing up hills you could ride).
Closest is 9.5 hours away from me and would cost me somewhere in the region of 2000 GBP / 2500 USD. Blech.
Closest is 9.5 hours away from me and would cost me somewhere in the region of 2000 GBP / 2500 USD. Blech.
jakonovski
Member
Why not go for the Rovaniemi 300?
Local boys, nice.
Yep, it was Ashton Court where I face planted on the Capra. It's fun, as is Leigh woods. Ashton Court has had the trail surface by the quarry resurfaced recently which was great, it's a lot better flowing now. On the older unsurfaced stuff it's all down to exposed rocks which make for super slippy surface in the winter.
Both are good for a couple of hours on a summer evening but both are lacking a bit of elevation (as you say) which can make them feel a little tame (but still able to catch me out, ha)
It can be a drag. I don't want to pay for the uplift so I'm stuck heaving my fat arse up. I tend to avoid beast of burden as it's still a lot of effort and a lot slower than simply pushing on up the firetrack. I can prob do it in maybe 20-25 minutes perhaps. The first time. More like 30-40 minutes on subsequent ascents....That first bit just outside the centre though, I have to push the bike up there, way too steep for to ride up, stupid hills.
I've not tried Bonneyville yet. It's on my list. A470 is brilliant though, love the new biggish drop at the start and another cheeky one in the woods, then it's all jump territory, woooooo. I need to work on my jump technique though, I need to improve my confidence to get some proper air and clear all the table tops as oppose to just a couple of them.
So I'm aiming to improve some of my technique and then dabble in the black runs. Anyone know which one would be the 'easiest' one to tackle? Dai Hard perhaps?
Psychotext
Member
Have a look at the sign at the top. It shows the trail progression (oddly I can't find this online).
What you really want is one of the flow blacks to start with as they'll be a lot easier than the tech blacks.
Edit this is a bit like it (though it's missing a couple of their newer trails):
What you really want is one of the flow blacks to start with as they'll be a lot easier than the tech blacks.
Edit this is a bit like it (though it's missing a couple of their newer trails):
Belmont has jumps galore. If you ride at Ashton Court then Belmont is probably less than a mile away by bike if you cut through the hole in the big stone wall at the top of one of the trails. A mate used to live equidistant between Ashton Court and Belmont so we'd often do a few loops of AC then head to The Plantation. To give you an idea (also has Ashton Court footage from the main grounds, not the official trails):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1KZUK7jDrwp://
That video is a few years old, I'm sure the 'bike park' bit has been extended greatly since then with more jumps and bigger gaps.
Edit: yep, here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jP60j-YnraQ#t=53.601865
and
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=666Au1ULHbw
Psychotext
Member
Nice.
Lots of work going on out there in trail land right now: http://www.moredirt.com/article/Trail-Build-Heros/6403/
Lots of work going on out there in trail land right now: http://www.moredirt.com/article/Trail-Build-Heros/6403/
The Swinley update reminds me I must get back down there as soon as my current injuries are healed. It rides perfectly well in the wet.
I've been three weeks off the bike now and it's driving me insane.
Psychotext
Member
I've had four days off since my Christmas adventures and I feel REALLY strange about it. lol
This is great, thanks! I had no idea Belmont existed. From the footage, some of those gap jumps are a bit outside my abilities/confidence, but I'll head down there as soon as and see for myself.
Psychotext
Member
I need to learn how to jump, full stop. I do sometimes get air, but I definitely don't enjoy the experience most of the time.
I think the trails there normally close for the winter to prevent damage, so you'll need to check when they open. Lots of the structure is just hard-packed dirt.
Psychotext
Member
In short, yes.
If it's a road ride, most likely not all that huge of a disadvantage, unless your roads are like cobbled or something. I'd almost guess that the availability of speedy tires in that size would be a larger issue.
frontieruk
Member
Is late, but as promsied, here's the bicycle with the 16'' tires.
Anyone know where I can find some quality 16'' rims!?
Looks a legit road bike to me,perhaps your gearing is wrong for the roads they're riding?
Psychotext
Member
Seriously? That thing is as quick as a 700c wheel shod road bike?
I can tell the difference in speed between 26er mountain bikes and 29ers, so I'm utterly astonished that the same doesn't apply in road bikes.
I can tell the difference in speed between 26er mountain bikes and 29ers, so I'm utterly astonished that the same doesn't apply in road bikes.
frontieruk
Member
jakonovski
Member
The latest motor pacing record was done using smaller than 20" wheels to reduce the center of gravity.
I've seen tests that indicate no trend on good roads, from 559 to 622. Obviously that's a much smaller range, though.
Definitely not if we're only counting wheel/tire-related differences.
Well, on the whole, most likely not.
The really major thing is that, if it's currently fit how it is in the picture, aerodynamics are going to be totally obliterating the rider if they're going any kind of speed. That bike is beach cruiser levels of upright.
Surface irregularities on trails tend to be a lot bigger, though, which should make the angle-of-attack matter more.