“I’m thinking about getting longer cranks”, said no one in 2023. It’s definitely true that shorter cranks are a trend right now, but why? Is it all nonsense, or is there something to it? Today we’ll take a deep dive into crank length and how it affects your performance. You’ll get a highly biased take on the subject from someone with very short legs.
I still like rim brakes, but I don't have any major opposition to disc brakes as long as they're using with thru-axles. (I don't like the pads rubbing after hard braking, which is usually caused by the hubs shifting.)
Finally figured out the process for getting my correct saddle position on a bike!
Start with the saddle level, a bit low, and slammed all the way back on the rails.
Raise the saddle in 3-5mm increments until you no longer lift off the saddle or have pain on or around your kneecaps. You may need to move the saddle forward a 3-5mm every now and then so you aren’t completely sitting on its nose.
Once #2 has been taken care of, pedal with the technique of spinning your knees in small, tight, and fast circles. That pedaling technique will cause you to scoot forward to where your saddle should be.
Move the saddle forward in 3-5mm increments until it feels comfortable with that pedaling technique. Be sure to keep the saddle as level as possible while doing this.
On Grey ⚫🚲 I got a bottle holder, a front light with horn, an old cellphone (for music, navigating, recording video as witness), a powerbank to charge the old cellphone. All on the handlebar and stem. 😁 Looks rather cluttered but I feel like I need* them.
Considering handlebar covers/mittens for doing #OpenStreetMap updates in cold weather. They're quite pricey though. Would they help?
It's fairly slow travel, with frequent stops near the footway=sidewalk to record data on the phone. Are they any good for that sort of thing, if I use them with a pair of insulated fingerless gloves underneath? #BikeTooter@bikes@mastobikes@cycling
@achadwick@bikes@mastobikes@cycling They work very well, especially with thin liner gloves on. Look for mittens for motorcycle/atv, usually a lot cheaper and work just as well.
@achadwick@bikes@mastobikes@cycling I get about 10-15 degrees C of protection (translating from F, where my dry-bare-hands limit is 45F, but bare hands in bar mitts gets me to 20-25F). The first few minutes of bare fingers on cold grips takes a little getting used to.
I have upright bars, and once or twice when I needed to brake quickly with a hand out, I just grabbed the entire mitt and squeezed, you might want to try that once or twice before you need to do it in a hurry.
@achadwick@bikes@mastobikes@cycling I also make my own pogies for both drop bars and flat bars and am happy to share the template. They take me about 3 hours per pair, cutting and sewing in bulk and probably cost $30 for materials (buying in bulk) but 1/3 of that is the reflective tape. I do an outer shell and an insulated inner shell with flannel. You can make them faster and cheaper upcycling a winter coat or raincoat if you don't care about reflectivity.
I've had good experience with http://barbra.ca/ - protects from wind/cold/snow, but easy to take hands out and back in. I assume you do have good insulation grips on handlebars too? Also, depending on what/how you map (and how vehemently against postprocessing you are), audio mapping & handsfreeset might be an alternative to stopping and typing.
@achadwick@bikes@mastobikes@cycling I have an oversized pair of motorcycle pogies, they protect from the wind chill, but you still need a pair of gloves underneath
@nothingfuture
I feel like this is the crux of the issue: while rim brakes are just as capable of locking up the wheel as disks, disks give better modulation—they're easier to use without locking them up, particularly in the wet, or on older wheels that have seen some bumps. You don't have to keep your wheels as precisely true—I've been riding on a back wheel with a broken spoke for a month now because I'm too lazy to fix it, but with disks it's not an issue.
Another thing in their favour, particularly for time-poor commuters like me is that apart from replacing the pads, hydraulic disc brakes are maintenance-free. I wish I could get back the time I've spent adjusting, tightening, loosening, lubricating, and repairing my rim brakes and tweaking spoke tension to stop the wheel rubbing. But the hydraulics have been set-and forget.
@LabSpokane
If you are talking about the average rider, they take their bike to the shop to get the pads replaced, but only at the point where they are making grinding noises or not working properly. Hydraulic discs self-adjust through the life of the pad, so they stay close to as-new performance right up until they're almost completely worn out, while rim or cable discs require constant adjustment to stay at optimum performance. @nothingfuture@hughtaylorscifi@v_perjorative@cycling@mastobikes