97's Bike Talk(( MTBs, Roadbikes and BMX riders welcome!!))

[DHFX]

It's been awhile since I've stopped by here. In case anyone is wonder how things are looking on the pro side of extreme biking, look no further then this thread about the 2012 Chatel Mountain Style event and get ready to go... :-O !!!

http://www.pinkbike.com/news/2012-Ch...l-Results.html

[Reach_Yeah]

Just signed up for my first sportive. A local 45 mile ride in September. I've also pencilled in a 100 mile charity ride for the weekend after. Hopefully they'll work ok together! The 45 mile will be a head down push myself all the way type ride. The 100 mile will be a lot more relaxed, well slower at least, through the mountains of North Wales. I will have at least 1 decent stop as it'll be the 1st time I've ever done 100 miles!

[MJohnson0806]

what's up people this is my first post. I ride anything with 2 wheels. I race BMX on the weekends, and mountain bike 12 miles a day during my lunch break. Also ride a 07 yamaha R6 when I feel like going really fast.

[phoenixr2]

thinking about buying a second crappy bike for a commuter. BRB having to put on my shoes to ride my FS Epic 1.1 mile to work and then have to keep it on doors because I fear leaving it outside, LOL. maybe time for craigslist searching to find a cheaper beater bike. anyone ride a single speed? seems like it would be a fun challenge.

[MJohnson0806]

thinking about buying a second crappy bike for a commuter. BRB having to put on my shoes to ride my FS Epic 1.1 mile to work and then have to keep it on doors because I fear leaving it outside, LOL. maybe time for craigslist searching to find a cheaper beater bike. anyone ride a single speed? seems like it would be a fun challenge.

I like single speeds, if your ride isn't to long then it's not that bad unless it's up hill.

[flyerscup08]

Does 800 dollars seem reasonable for a first road bike? Worth it in the end?

[phoenixr2]

I like single speeds, if your ride isn't to long then it's not that bad unless it's up hill.

generally ride is withing a mile or two to work and its "mostly" flat. If I ride around town its definitely not flat, always going up or down.

Does 800 dollars seem reasonable for a first road bike? Worth it in the end?

pretty loaded question brah. some arent worth $80, and some are worth $8000. What kind, what condition, does it need anything, etc. IS it worth $800 to you? My bike cost more than my car (sign that you live in CO LOL) but it was one of the best purchases I ever made

[flyerscup08]

generally ride is withing a mile or two to work and its "mostly" flat. If I ride around town its definitely not flat, always going up or down.

pretty loaded question brah. some arent worth $80, and some are worth $8000. What kind, what condition, does it need anything, etc. IS it worth $800 to you? My bike cost more than my car (sign that you live in CO LOL) but it was one of the best purchases I ever made

Well I talked to a few people and found out that is pretty low as far as bikes are concerned. I'm currently looking at a CAAD 8 Tiagra for 1200 or a Cannondale synapse 6 tiagra.

[-calvus-]

Posted this in my journ but thought a few folks here might enjoy the pics.

Drove down to St. Helens in WA to do an epic loop yesterday and was on the bike for 6 hours, climbed/descended 5000 feet or so, and looped about 23 miles. Really amazing landscape with quite a diversity in a short loop.

Started off with a 4000 foot drop down into smith creek. The trail was all loose pumice and we "surfed" alot on the trails with some nice endos after digging a tire in too deep.



Had a pretty grueling climb out of smith creek and started on the Ape caynon trail. From this trail you could see all the old lahar flows which was 26ft deep in places after the blast 32 years ago.



Went for 5 miles or so through some old growth forest that was more protected on the SE of St. Helens. These were some of the largest groves that I have seen in WA so far second only to the massive cedars and firs on the olympic peninsula.



Starting now on the plains of Abraham which has been described as a "moonscape". Supposidly the newest lanscape in north america which was sterilized by a 600-700 degree blast and covered in ash, pumice, flows etc. Trail was not as precarious as it looks in photo. (me in far distance)



Even after 32 years only enough organic matter is present to support a few wildflowers. I believe this would of all been vegitation/trees before the eruption in 1980.



Looking down into the canyons that we first dropped into this morning (and had to climb out of).



Didnt get a good picture of the worst part of the blast zone but is to the left of the picture and you can see a little how the landscape got razed. You can see the trail winding on the tops of the ridges on the right side.

[-calvus-]

And a couple of panoramas.
Spirit lake in which you can see all the old trunk and wood debris which has been floating in the lake for the past decades.



A pano of Mt. St Helens and part of the plains of Abraham

[GasGas450]

Great post, Calvus.

I live in Bellingham. Galbraith Mtn is a 7 minute ride from house on my hard tail 29er, an 8 min ride on my Dawg Primo 5" full suspension, and a 9 minute ride on my Stinky Deluxe DH bike. If you know Galbraith, you can see why I'm rarely interested in travelling any distance to mtn bike (esp when i travel so much to paddle white water) but you've made a great case for heading south.

Thanks for the great post.

[robbie_vlad]

Just got this baby to supplement my road riding:

2012 Trek Slash 9


Unfortunately I separated my shoulder while riding two days ago, so I'm out of commission for the next few weeks. I'll be able to start running again in about a week at least, but this bike is begging to be ridden HARD haha.

[CLK-GTR]

Just got this baby to supplement my road riding:

2012 Trek Slash 9


Unfortunately I separated my shoulder while riding two days ago, so I'm out of commission for the next few weeks. I'll be able to start running again in about a week at least, but this bike is begging to be ridden HARD haha.

REALLY nice... id be interested to hear how a 2012/2013 Trek rides.

Im seriously considering swapping my 2010 Commencal 55 for something lighter now im living in Hong Kong. The climbs are just too steep and the heat too intense.

[SuperDavid]

I'm back on the bike offroad! Havn't done much offroad for a few years!
got myself a helmet camera so I'll see if I can get some footage on the next ride. might be a few weeks though

[Aune]

I dont know why I havent seen this thread yet, shame they moved this section away from the misc. Im about to pick up the trek remedy 7, and am hopefully moving to washington soon. It seems like a perfect match haha, lately though ive had an old hardrock riding around joshua tree national park. Dont know why I didnt do this while I was younger...

[schmack]

Posted this in my journ but thought a few folks here might enjoy the pics.

Drove down to St. Helens in WA to do an epic loop yesterday and was on the bike for 6 hours, climbed/descended 5000 feet or so, and looped about 23 miles. Really amazing landscape with quite a diversity in a short loop.

Started off with a 4000 foot drop down into smith creek. The trail was all loose pumice and we "surfed" alot on the trails with some nice endos after digging a tire in too deep.

[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v234/calvus/DSCF1943.jpg[/IMG

Had a pretty grueling climb out of smith creek and started on the Ape caynon trail. From this trail you could see all the old lahar flows which was 26ft deep in places after the blast 32 years ago.

[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v234/calvus/DSCF1955.jpg[/IMG

Went for 5 miles or so through some old growth forest that was more protected on the SE of St. Helens. These were some of the largest groves that I have seen in WA so far second only to the massive cedars and firs on the olympic peninsula.

[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v234/calvus/DSCF1956.jpg[/IMG

Starting now on the plains of Abraham which has been described as a "moonscape". Supposidly the newest lanscape in north america which was sterilized by a 600-700 degree blast and covered in ash, pumice, flows etc. Trail was not as precarious as it looks in photo. (me in far distance)
[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v234/calvus/DSCF1968.jpg[/IMG

Even after 32 years only enough organic matter is present to support a few wildflowers. I believe this would of all been vegitation/trees before the eruption in 1980.

[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v234/calvus/DSCF1977.jpg[/IMG

Looking down into the canyons that we first dropped into this morning (and had to climb out of).

[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v234/calvus/DSCF2003.jpg[/IMG

Didnt get a good picture of the worst part of the blast zone but is to the left of the picture and you can see a little how the landscape got razed. You can see the trail winding on the tops of the ridges on the right side.

[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v234/calvus/DSCF2004.jpg[/IMG

Sick views while riding bro. Up here in New England we don't see views like that.

Just got this baby to supplement my road riding:

2012 Trek Slash 9
[img]http://cdn.mos.bikeradar.com/images/news/2011/07/14/1310640023561-1cllxh2jljwi4-500-90-500-70.jpg[/img

Unfortunately I separated my shoulder while riding two days ago, so I'm out of commission for the next few weeks. I'll be able to start running again in about a week at least, but this bike is begging to be ridden HARD haha.

Looking at that bike and the Specialized equivalant. That's a sweet bike.

[Dragger]

I need a good online site to order a mountain bike, new or used. I have a low limited budget of $300 and I refuse to buy a walmart/department store bike, rather go witout one than that. I'm not a hardcore racer or daily rider so I don't need anything extreme like carbon frame, dual suspension but I do want something somewhat light with fork suspension and disc brakes if possible. I'm open towards a used older Specialized, Trek, Cannondale, etc...

Found a few new GT, Motobecane, and Gravity mountain bikes for $300, does anyone know much about these three brands? Are there any good sites that sell used mountainbikes? I'm not wanting to get one from Ebay and I can't go more than $350. Yes, I'd like to go higher but it's either $350 for a bike or no bike at all.

[phoenixr2]

I need a good online site to order a mountain bike, new or used. I have a low limited budget of $300 and I refuse to buy a walmart/department store bike, rather go witout one than that. I'm not a hardcore racer or daily rider so I don't need anything extreme like carbon frame, dual suspension but I do want something somewhat light with fork suspension and disc brakes if possible. I'm open towards a used older Specialized, Trek, Cannondale, etc...

Found a few new GT, Motobecane, and Gravity mountain bikes for $300, does anyone know much about these three brands? Are there any good sites that sell used mountainbikes? I'm not wanting to get one from Ebay and I can't go more than $350. Yes, I'd like to go higher but it's either $350 for a bike or no bike at all.

Check out the local craigslist for your area. I have seen some absolutely retarded deals on great bikes. People buy BRAND new bikes, ride them once or twice (if ever) and then let them sit for a year or two and then sell them for pennies on the dollar. Ive seen some 1K+ bikes for a couple hundred in mint shape. That would be my recommendation for new/used deals.

[DHFX]

Motivational pic post.

[grace_ou]

I need a good online site to order a mountain bike, new or used. I have a low limited budget of $300 and I refuse to buy a walmart/department store bike, rather go witout one than that. I'm not a hardcore racer or daily rider so I don't need anything extreme like carbon frame, dual suspension but I do want something somewhat light with fork suspension and disc brakes if possible. I'm open towards a used older Specialized, Trek, Cannondale, etc...

Found a few new GT, Motobecane, and Gravity mountain bikes for $300, does anyone know much about these three brands? Are there any good sites that sell used mountainbikes? I'm not wanting to get one from Ebay and I can't go more than $350. Yes, I'd like to go higher but it's either $350 for a bike or no bike at all.

Might want to look around bikesdierct. They have some great buys on there sometimes.

Ebay and craigs can have good cheap bikes but a great deal of them are stolen.

[mntbikedude]

Great pictures guys. Been riding to work this past week and it's a pain to get all the gear together. Big temperature range from going to work in the light and going home after dark. I invested in a really sweet light and it makes night riding reasonably safe.

[Reach_Yeah]

Great pictures guys. Been riding to work this past week and it's a pain to get all the gear together. Big temperature range from going to work in the light and going home after dark. I invested in a really sweet light and it makes night riding reasonably safe.

Going to work in the morning at half 6 with a thick ground frost... not much fun! Body heat kicks in after about 10 mins but body heat doesn't reach the fingers! Cycling home at night is also dark, but not quite as cold as the mornings!

[mntbikedude]

Going to work in the morning at half 6 with a thick ground frost... not much fun! Body heat kicks in after about 10 mins but body heat doesn't reach the fingers! Cycling home at night is also dark, but not quite as cold as the mornings!

Yeah my fingers are my only real issue right now. Trying to get the right gloves. The clothing issue is always the toughest part of riding in the winter. But I've got all that together now minus the right gloves so no more excuses. Do you have decent light?

[schmack]

Yeah my fingers are my only real issue right now. Trying to get the right gloves. The clothing issue is always the toughest part of riding in the winter. But I've got all that together now minus the right gloves so no more excuses. Do you have decent light?

Best light right now in terms of bang for the buck is from Cree. I bought one from magicshine which is the same and it's crazy bright. Which light did you get?


Jelly of your location. MTB heaven, although it's pretty good here to.


http://www.amazon.com/Lumen-Bicycle-...4203725&sr=1-5

[mntbikedude]

Best light right now in terms of bang for the buck is from Cree. I bought one from magicshine which is the same and it's crazy bright. Which light did you get?


Jelly of your location. MTB heaven, although it's pretty good here to.


http://www.amazon.com/Lumen-Bicycle-...4203725&sr=1-5

It is MTB heaven just 2 hours from Moab and really nice trails start a block from my house. This is my light, I'm real happy with it. It's bright enough I think people are going to flash me their brights. http://www.cygolite.com/products/new...milion200.html

It also works well to double as a flashlight when camping.

[schmack]

It is MTB heaven just 2 hours from Moab and really nice trails start a block from my house. This is my light, I'm real happy with it. It's bright enough I think people are going to flash me their brights. http://www.cygolite.com/products/new...milion200.html

It also works well to double as a flashlight when camping.

that's cool, behind my house is backside of new england mountain biking trails (NEMBA).

Yeah friend of mine has that one but he replaced with the Cree. The cree says 1200 lumens but it's really 800 maybe.

I hope to make it out to MOAB at some point.

[iNoScopedRFK]

and a couple of panoramas.
Spirit lake in which you can see all the old trunk and wood debris which has been floating in the lake for the past decades.

a pano of mt. St helens and part of the plains of abraham

beautiful!

[Reach_Yeah]

Can anyone recommend what to look out for buying clip pedals & shoes? Do they all fit each other, or are there different types, for example?

Thanks

[phoenixr2]

Can anyone recommend what to look out for buying clip pedals & shoes? Do they all fit each other, or are there different types, for example?

Thanks

Road or Mtn?
I don't know much about road to be honest.
Mtn I am a bit more familiar with. Nearly all are standard "spd" style. The only really different are "eggbeater" clipless pedals by crankbros. They are some of the lightest, simpliest, and usually most expensive ones out there. I love clipless but it makes in town riding/commuting a bit more of a chore. I believe they make shoes that have recessed cleats so that way you can clip in and then still use them as normal shoes without damaging cleats.

I personally have Shimano XTRs.

just did a quick google. this page offers a bit more in depth http://www.caree.org/bike101cliplesspedals.htm


hope this helps

[Reach_Yeah]

Road or Mtn?
I don't know much about road to be honest.
Mtn I am a bit more familiar with. Nearly all are standard "spd" style. The only really different are "eggbeater" clipless pedals by crankbros. They are some of the lightest, simpliest, and usually most expensive ones out there. I love clipless but it makes in town riding/commuting a bit more of a chore. I believe they make shoes that have recessed cleats so that way you can clip in and then still use them as normal shoes without damaging cleats.

I personally have Shimano XTRs.

just did a quick google. this page offers a bit more in depth http://www.caree.org/bike101cliplesspedals.htm


hope this helps

I'm looking for road. I believe the pedals and cleats have to match, but the cleats [i]should[i] match all shoes.

Thanks. I'll take a look at the website.