"Monique Y. Herman" <
[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On 2004-03-14, Chris penned:
> > If you're stuck on the Steelhead, get it, but I have to
> > vouch for the Raptor. Fits every downtube ever, and you
> > can leave the front wheel on...better for interior
> > cleanliness, and I just have a thing about fork mounts
> > (even though riding forces are the same on dropouts, I
> > just don't like it).
>
> Doesn't fit Eric's Y-frame =/ Also, I'm wondering about
> how much climbing I'd have to do to lock that thing
> properly.
Welp, a Y-frame would do it. The lock is in the big red knob
that closes the downtube clamp...not that hard to reach, I
would think. On my '03 Outback the lock is about 6' 6'' off
the ground. No big deal for me, but if you are of the petite
variety I see where you were going with the doubt.
> One of the nice things about the Steelhead is that we
> already have two on Eric's car; we could save money by
> just moving them over.
Then by all means, save your money.
>
> Your suggestion prompted me to poke through the Yakima
> offerings. I'm trying to figure out what the difference is
> between the Viper and the Steelhead.
Think of the Viper as the "Steelhead Extreme." Bigger tires
and disc brakes were in mind when it was designed; they
claim there isn't a bike around that can't lock down on the
Viper. Some stuff had problems on the Steelhead clearing
disc calipers and such.
>
> > And, Penny was right: head to a store and look through
> > the Yakima fit guide, or, even better, talk to an
> > experienced salesdude/dudette. They always offer some
> > advice/experience/clearance-priced alternatives that
> > make things work out real smooth.
>
> Yeah; I just need a find a place I can trust first =)
I think there's an EMS in Boulder...check it out. I've
worked for EMS before, and while management and corporate
types are total asswipes, I've found all the sales staff to
be pretty cool. Much cooler when I was a part of it,
naturally, but still. Nice and smart folks.
> Stickers?
A must. My last ride was covered in outdoor stickers (only
surviving photo at
http://www.pbase.com/image/13007144) and,
while I'd like to continue to fly the flag on a new car, I
also want to keep it clean and nice, so I only stuck a few
on the Raptor rail...IMBA, Park Tools, Manitou, Sixsixone,
RaceFace, RaceFace, and RaceFace.
> I'm not sure what you mean by the interior of the WRX
> feeling "immature"; can you give me some examples? Maybe
> it's just because my previous cars were a Probe and then
> a Celica convertible. I traded in the fully-optioned
> convertible, so I guess I should be missing something,
> but I'm not. I have tons of headroom and visibility. The
> audio controls are pretty easy. The only thing I'm hating
> is the cupholders -- there's one that gets in the way of
> the stereo and is completely ineffective at keeping my
> mochas from spilling all over when driving over a speed
> bump; the other one is right where my elbow needs to be
> when I shift.
>
The WRXs I drove felt too plasticy and had that fake
aluminum stuff going on. By contrast, the Outbacks are
plasticy with a fake leather/fake wood thing going on. It
felt more adult - elegant even - to me, and it was nice to
have a grown-up car for once (coming off a decidedly junky
1-2-3 combination of GT Mustang, Dodge Caravan, and Ford
Bronco II). I felt like the WRX was a college-kid kind of
car and the Outback was an adult car. Even though I AM a
college kid, I went for fake elegance.
> Insurance was higher for me, but not ungodly. I also have
> the advantage of the drop you get at 25, and I expect my
> insurance to go down a bit more once I'm married at the
> end of the month.
>
Lucky you. Us single 23 y.o. men get ravaged to the
tune of about 2K a year on WRX insurance...and I have a
clean record.
> > If you end up using the factory crossbars and need the
> > plastic adaptors that allow Yakima stuff to mount
> > (MightyMounts, I believe) I think I have like 5 or 6
> > floating around. Let me know, I'll send 'em to you.
>
> Well, thank you very much! I'll have to figure it out. I'm
> definitely not buying anything till I see where the county
> taxes and the honeymoon expenses leave me.
>
If you need to buy, check the online clearing houses
(Campmor, Sierra Trading Post, RackAttack, online bike
shops) for crazy sale prices, then go to EMS or REI and have
them match it. And, if you find you do need some 24H
MightyMounts, I might (no guarantees) have a half-dozen
lying around my house.
Chris