Very Important Subjects

[littlebittybobby]

Okay---I'm just sitting here, deafened by you kidses' silence. Thinking maybe--I should get the message, and donate all but ONE of my bikes to charity, to get things organized and tidied-up around here! Nice & Neat, like it's not even lived-in. The one I should keep, of course, is an old, 1996 Trek Antelope that I put together from a pile of bikes that came from the local University surplus auction via another person who took the E-Z ones(department store bikes, btw) & blew up the tires & put them out by the curb 4-sell, and sold me the rest for $20. But see---the good ones--they weren't E-Z money, but they were at least decent entry-level 90's bike shop bikes--so-called "Mountain Bikes" from the early days of the fad. A Specialized Hard Rock & a Trek Antelope & a Raleigh. The first two are ridable now, while the Raleigh is still out back. Anyway--the Antelope is pretty functional for short hops on city streets. You do have an upright riding position and a low-slung frame and 26" smoothie tyres, and twist-grip shifters. Yes, it's a junker, but waaay better shape than most of the rusty-chain bike-rack bikes at the lirrrarrary and pool & other places, that the street urchins ride. It also has one o' those thick padded seats, too. But, riding it 50 miles would be a feat, for sure. Not gonna try it. It is not a road bike. Nope. The Hard Rock, I rebuilt for the purpose of using it on the rail-trail, after experimenting with my road bikes on the rail trail. But, just haven't gotten the hang of riding it, yet. More on this one, later. Hope that helps you some. Thankk mee.

[rosarugosa]

How many bikes do you have? We just have an stationary exercise bike at our house, so I don't really have much to add to the bike conversation.

[littlebittybobby]

How many bikes do you have? We just have an stationary exercise bike at our house, so I don't really have much to add to the bike conversation.

Thank You Very Much(TYVM) R/R, for axxing mee that quesssion. I been wondering just how many bikes I have, myself. So, early this morning I started looking around the place, in all the likely places, and tallying up the bikes. It got dark, and I kept counting until the batteries in my flashlight went out. So, I hope to resume tomorrow and plan to have an answer for you by late afternoon. Rounded off to the nearest dozen. See---there are several reasons for having so many bikes. One possibility, according to Pschopathy Today Magazine, (which I read at the laudr-O-mat because they have stacks of old copies there
), is that I'm afflicted with Bikomanic Disorder in combination with Collectahoardosis. Another reason could be that like Lays Potato chips--you can't have just one. And last---which sounds most credible to me---is that bikes are like shoes---one pair won't do, for an active person. See? If you are going out to the farm, and walk in tall vegetation, it's best to have tall boots on, with thick soles to protect your feet. If, on the other hand, your just going shopping at the store, some canvas shoes might be better. See? So, yeah---I have different bikes for different applications, all customized to my requirements. If I were to purchase NEW bikes, and customize them to suit, that would be VERY expensive. But, I have started with old, used, SELECT framesets, and built them up with moderately-priced components, myself. In one case, I drove to a village 25 miles away, answering a craigslist ad. A school teacher, who did odd jobs in the summer, had a 1988 Trek 1000 for sale for ????, that hed been given, while cleaning out a garage. It is turquoise with white lettering, and the paint and decals in VERY good shape. But, the fork had been replaced with a generic steel fork that was chromed, and the wheels were different brands, and other components unsuitable. The guy asked if I wanted to try it out, by riding it around. Nope. It was my size, and I simply gave him $125, took it home and the next day---without riding it---took it all apart, down to just the frame, minus the fork. That was all I wanted. The other parts went to a plastic tub of surplus stuff I may donate, sometime. I bought a really nice aluminum fork the right color, and acquired the rest of the bits n pieces, new & used, including a nice new set of integrated brake/shift levers from a seller in Malaysia, to upgrade it. Made it a 3 x 9 speed, too(was 2 x 7 speed). But, yeah--it turned out pretty nice, for a cheap build. I don't put a lot of miles on that one, because I want to keep it looking fresh. One of my beloved cats clawed up the new bar tape, but I redid it. Take it to short rides, events in town. See? That's its' purpose. I looked at 'er tonight, and it needs cleanup, just from sitting in my shed this winter. To be continued. Hope that helps you some.

[littlebittybobby]

How many bikes do you have? We just have an stationary exercise bike at our house, so I don't really have much to add to the bike conversation.

I was wondering if maybe you could share with us some information about your exercise bike?

[littlebittybobby]

Okay----I put the aero bars I had in my junk box onto my Trek 1990 1420. Still waiting for the replacement cushions, for the armrests. That will give it more comfort. That particular bike I use for the longer rides, and one issue is numbness in my hands. Having an additional hand position that takes the pressure off, should help. Aero bars can help you make better time with less effort, even when you're just touring, above a certain speed---say 12-15 mph. . They would be especially beneficial in I-wah, where you encounter strong breezes that can slow you down a lot, on long straight stretches. . The new set of Aero bars arrived today, and between rain storms and a power outage, I installed 'em on my white 1988 Trek 2 x 11 speed. This is a bike I use for fast riding on medium-length routes. Not races, not long bikepacking trips, definitely NOT gravel. But yeah--it will help make this one fun to ride & utilize my rather vintage and finite Packy-power. Yup. One thing that may save you kids some wasted expense is the fact that Aero bars are of little value on a stationary bike EXCEPT to accustom you to the aggressive riding positon. As has been stated on this forum elsewhere, you're "all humped over, like a racing bike". But, even if you're NOT racing, you can conserve your strength, and make better time, by assuming an aero stance(except on a stationary bike). See?? It also lowers you & redistributes your weight, so the bike handles better at speed. Hope that helps you some. Now, I will use electrical tape to temporarily hold the bar tape, instead of super gluing it. That way, I can ascertain that the bars are where they need to be.

[littlebittybobby]

Okay---Here's a photo of a Married man w/grandkids, who received a nice, clean, new $225 Huffy Beach Cruiser Bike for his Birthday, from his Family. He's shown in this photo, taking it for a ride. I suggested that he raise the seat, but he insisted that it was "very compfterbal" the way it was. Yup. As you kids know, I know EVERYTHING, right? But, if I do in fact know everything, then why am I now riding a bike from the pawn shop, that cost substantially more, needs work, and is 16 years old? Ha. See? 2022-05-20 (4).jpg

[rosarugosa]

I was wondering if maybe you could share with us some information about your exercise bike?

Our stationary bike is an inexpensive SUNNY brand that we bought from Amazon. We chose it because it is compact, lightweight and portable, which are desirable attributes in our very small house. However, I don't think it is very good quality, because we are on our second one. DH wore out/broke the first one after about 2 years of regular use. I joked that nobody is supposed to actually use an exercise bike, so he broke it by not using it for its intended purpose as a clothes rack.

[littlebittybobby]

R/R---That is indeed awesome and amazing that DH actually used an exercise bike, until it wore out! Two years is a VERY long time for a consumer product & probably the manufacturer would like you to return it, so they can analyze where they can go forward and take shortcuts to lower production costs, so the product fails in a year. Yup.

[littlebittybobby]

Okay---I know I am wading into deep water that may necessitate rowing, due to the controversial nature of a clash of ideologies caused by my sexist stereotyping and stuff like that. I just know you kids will be pm-ing Alan(when he has yard work to see to)screaming that lbb is at it, again. Okay--but here goes nothing, as our next-door neighbors' daughter used to say, when taking a croquet shot back in that littlebittytown waaaay up north in the middle O- nowhere, where MEAT in large quantities is the ideal. Big Steaks make for Big People. Anyway, if I could get scientific, I could chart just zackly what is the optimum amount of biking. I think there are people out there who have figured it out. So, I'm not going to lie--I might be compensating for my lack of motivation, a little. Whatever they call it, in Psychopathy Today Magazine. See? Anyway---here's one o' my case studies, to illustrate my point. Okay---you have this certain mid-fifties gal here, who is an active biker, which is understating it. Last fall, at one of the few organized events I attended, I hauled my bike the 12 miles to the starting point in my 14-year-old cheap subcompact that I bought from the wreckin' yard, years ago & rehabbed. Anyway, I've seen that lady at events before, and she is affable & genial and has lots of friends and acquantances that bike, okay? So, I get home, after the event, which for me was a 50-miler on my old Packard-Schwinn, which is older than many of the participants, and check the Strava site, to see how some others fared. Well, it turns out that lady(the case study), who is an "avid" biker biked from her home to the event, and back home again, which prolly added another 25 miles plus city traffic to her ride, that day. So, I looked on google maps and said I can do that, BUT the ride commences at 7 am and check in is before that, so you've got to commence riding well before 5 AM to arrive on time. And then, traffic is murder and it'll be 90-plus degrees out, on the route home. See? But yeah---her Strava account is impressive in the sheer number of rides she does by herself or with her many friends, year around. She is petite and lean, especially for a wummun in her mid-fifties. Yup. But---They are what I call "junk miles". Why? Well, here's the caveat: The other day I checked her F-book, (to update her case file), which shows her doing all kinds of bike-y stuff, the main thing that stood out was her post wherein she apologized for being absent the last few weeks(during winter), due to "having her knee done". She said she was healing nicely, and was anticipating having the "other knee done" one of these days. Hopefully not during the prime time for biking, right? So yeah---here's the takeaway. How much biking(or any fitness activity) leads to diminishing returns? Needing surgery is definitely a negative. Yup. See? If I go over X-thousand miles in a year, I develop aches and pains in certain critical areas(not caused by general fatigue) that are my bodys' way of saying: "back waaay off", because that nagging pain can escalate into chronic injury. Sure can. Not a good strategy for a casual rider. Don't want to be one of those poser wannabee EBikers, either. See? Anyway, I filed her data, along with this other item from her F-book account, which I'll post here. Hope that helps you kids some. Thank Mee.2022-05-21 (2).jpg

[rosarugosa]

R/R---That is indeed awesome and amazing that DH actually used an exercise bike, until it wore out! Two years is a VERY long time for a consumer product & probably the manufacturer would like you to return it, so they can analyze where they can go forward and take shortcuts to lower production costs, so the product fails in a year. Yup.

Lol, you are probably right, but one of the local scrap metal guys took it.