Road Discs

On Wednesday, October 4, 2017 at 4:41:32 PM UTC-7, James wrote:
On 05/10/17 01:31, AMuzi wrote:


What do you do in the rain when you pass the gate area where cows are
moved across the road to another pasture?



Close my eyes and mouth.

Very obviously someone who has done that.

On Wednesday, October 4, 2017 at 10:45:48 PM UTC-7, Frank Krygowski wrote:
On 10/4/2017 7:21 PM, jbeattie wrote:
Eddy Merckx raced on a touring bike! https://tinyurl.com/y7a7t5mv Look at the clearance.

And somehow, somehow he was fairly fast.

The modern fashion for super-close clearance continues to baffle me.

That must be why you're on .tech.

On 10/5/2017 7:07 AM, jbeattie wrote:
On Wednesday, October 4, 2017 at 10:45:48 PM UTC-7, Frank Krygowski wrote:
On 10/4/2017 7:21 PM, jbeattie wrote:
Eddy Merckx raced on a touring bike! https://tinyurl.com/y7a7t5mv Look at the clearance.

And somehow, somehow he was fairly fast.

The modern fashion for super-close clearance continues to baffle me.

The pendulum is certainly swinging the other way with discs and direct mount brakes -- and the move to fatter tires.

It's encouraging when the specs for a bicycle extols the fact that you
can mount 700x35 or 700x42 tires.

On Thursday, October 5, 2017 at 9:00:32 AM UTC-7, sms wrote:
On 10/5/2017 7:07 AM, jbeattie wrote:
On Wednesday, October 4, 2017 at 10:45:48 PM UTC-7, Frank Krygowski wrote:
On 10/4/2017 7:21 PM, jbeattie wrote:
Eddy Merckx raced on a touring bike! https://tinyurl.com/y7a7t5mv Look at the clearance.

And somehow, somehow he was fairly fast.

The modern fashion for super-close clearance continues to baffle me.

The pendulum is certainly swinging the other way with discs and direct mount brakes -- and the move to fatter tires.

It's encouraging when the specs for a bicycle extols the fact that you
can mount 700x35 or 700x42 tires.

Well, I'm mounting 32 mm on my cross bike and that's about it.

On Thu, 5 Oct 2017 01:45:46 -0400, Frank Krygowski
wrote:
On 10/4/2017 7:21 PM, jbeattie wrote:
Eddy Merckx raced on a touring bike! https://tinyurl.com/y7a7t5mv
Look at the clearance.

And somehow, somehow he was fairly fast.

The modern fashion for super-close clearance continues to baffle me.

Well, in some quarters that is changing as there is a slight trend
towards larger maximum tire sizes, gravel bikes, cyclo-cross bikes, etc.
I am amazed at how many cyclo-cross bikes I see being used as road
bikes, probably because they fit a wider range of tires, fenders, etc.
The trend towards disc brakes probably also lends itself to this. OTOH
I see a big surge in people riding fixies/single speed FW track bikes on
the road, mostly the young and impractical.

But I think that the cause of the trend of tight clearance, unadaptable
bicycles is that of specificity of purpose having a degree of "cool
factor." If you can use no tire larger than 23 mm, you are really
committed and therefore cool; if your bike will fit tires up to 32 mm,
you must be fredly. If you've only got one gear, no brakes and can't
coast then you must be cool. Sort of like the guy standing at the
corner in -20F weather wearing a light black leather jacket and no
gloves.

On Thu, 5 Oct 2017 01:48:49 -0400, Frank Krygowski
wrote:
On 10/4/2017 8:49 PM, David Scheidt wrote:
wrote:
:On Wednesday, October 4, 2017 at 4:30:59 PM UTC+2, AMuzi wrote:

:
: What do you do in the rain when you pass the gate area where cows
: are moved across the road to another pasture?
:
: -- Andrew Muzi
: www.yellowjersey.org/ Open every day since 1 April, 1971

:I would ride slowly and look carefully where I ride. Although we
:have a lot of cows here this situation doesn't occur often.

The crossing Andrew is describing have a layer of **** (literal cow
****) from one gate to the other. The only way to avoid it is to
turn around nd take a different route. Looking carefully just means
you see the **** you're getting sprayed with due to your irrational
fear of fenders.

We did a tour of Ireland in 1992 or so. Our third day out we were in
Killarney. It poured rain, and the horse dung mixed with rain made
dung soup all across the road. Later in the tour, we encountered the
sheep version of the same soup several times. (Yeah, it rained a lot.)
I was _very_ glad we had fenders.

So was everyone in the pub.

On 10/5/2017 11:30 PM, Tim McNamara wrote:
If you've only got one gear, no brakes and can't
coast then you must be cool. Sort of like the guy standing at the
corner in -20F weather wearing a light black leather jacket and no
gloves.

That's not merely cool. That's damned cold!

--
- Frank Krygowski

On Thursday, October 5, 2017 at 8:30:15 PM UTC-7, Tim McNamara wrote:
On Thu, 5 Oct 2017 01:45:46 -0400, Frank Krygowski
wrote:
On 10/4/2017 7:21 PM, jbeattie wrote:
Eddy Merckx raced on a touring bike! https://tinyurl.com/y7a7t5mv
Look at the clearance.

And somehow, somehow he was fairly fast.

The modern fashion for super-close clearance continues to baffle me.

Well, in some quarters that is changing as there is a slight trend
towards larger maximum tire sizes, gravel bikes, cyclo-cross bikes, etc.
I am amazed at how many cyclo-cross bikes I see being used as road
bikes, probably because they fit a wider range of tires, fenders, etc.
The trend towards disc brakes probably also lends itself to this. OTOH
I see a big surge in people riding fixies/single speed FW track bikes on
the road, mostly the young and impractical.

But I think that the cause of the trend of tight clearance, unadaptable
bicycles is that of specificity of purpose having a degree of "cool
factor." If you can use no tire larger than 23 mm, you are really
committed and therefore cool; if your bike will fit tires up to 32 mm,
you must be fredly. If you've only got one gear, no brakes and can't
coast then you must be cool. Sort of like the guy standing at the
corner in -20F weather wearing a light black leather jacket and no
gloves.

Fixies were hugely popular among the Hipster set but have waned over the past few years -- along with the Hipster set. I'm too old to recognize the next trend. I'll have to button-hole some young person and find out. Discs are showing up in the racks more -- cable discs on mid-fi aluminum frames. Still no renaissance of dyno lights, but the season is young. Creeping home behind the commuters through South Waterfront last night, I didn't notice any trends. People ride most everything . . . slowly. I yearn for the days when I could ride free over the trails . . . just me and the mountain lions.. No conga line through upscale mixed condo developments. I'm moving to Cameron Park.

-- Jay Beattie.

On Fri, 6 Oct 2017 07:11:21 -0700 (PDT), jbeattie
wrote:

Fixies were hugely popular among the Hipster set but have waned over
the past few years -- along with the Hipster set. I'm too old to
recognize the next trend. I'll have to button-hole some young person
and find out.

Here in Minnesota trends arrive behind the times and leave behind the
times. It's the flyover syndrome. So we still have hipsters. Tight
pants, goatees, man buns, fedoras. On fixies. yearrgghhh.

Tim McNamara wrote:
:On Fri, 6 Oct 2017 07:11:21 -0700 (PDT), jbeattie
:wrote:
:
: Fixies were hugely popular among the Hipster set but have waned over
: the past few years -- along with the Hipster set. I'm too old to
: recognize the next trend. I'll have to button-hole some young person
: and find out.

:Here in Minnesota trends arrive behind the times and leave behind the
:times. It's the flyover syndrome. So we still have hipsters. Tight
ants, goatees, man buns, fedoras. On fixies. yearrgghhh.

We still have hipsters, but many fewer of them, and many fewer fixies.
Still common among the high school set, though. I'm not sure what's
replacing the hipsters, I'm too old, and live in a way too uncool
neighborhood.


--
sig 72