RR: now, where did that trail go?



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T

Technician

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Well, i may have found the trail up Tumbledown, but i doubt it. i follow the map as exactly as i
can. i show up to where i think the trail is, and what do i find, but a skidder road. so, thinking
it has been a while since i hiked on the trail, it could be a skidder road now. so i try it. to
start off with, it is steep and full of fallen trees and branches all over the place. i ended up
pushing and carrying the bike up more than i ever rode it. so i pass about a mile, and then the
"trail" heads back down the mountain. i follow it for a bit and it only heads further and further
down. this can't be the right trail. so i head back. at least the last half mile is semi-ridable. it
is steep, and extremely technical, but i manage to ride it. i note the fact that i'm pulling the
front brake lever to the bar, and i still can't lock the front wheel, but i can keep the speed under
control. several times i get caught on a angled branch and go rolling down the mountain side in some
sort of somersault. kind of a sideways endo. after hiking back up to retrieve my bike, i ride down.
this whole time, the bugs are swarming like crazy. after the first 15 minutes of climbing, i gave up
on them so by now it is merely just an annoyance when they get in my eyes. arriving back to the car,
i quickly mount the bike back on the rack, and jump in the car to crank the AC, eat a snack, and
swat at the bugs that managed to enter the car. i continue down the main dirt road a bit looking for
the other trails that are supposed to lead up the mountain, but find none. at a loss, i head home.

no idea where the trail is. guess if i want a mountain ride i either have to find a guide, or stick
to mountains i know how to get to.

But after it is all said and done, that ride down the "trail" was worth the trip. i learned more
about balance, V-brake inferiority, and myself in that little half mile than could be found on any
longer ride. i now know the limits of my traction, the limits of my brakes, and best of all, i
have a new found courage in that i rode down a trail that earlier in my experience i would have
cringed at.

I didn't get any pictures, but given the struggle, i opted not to.
--
~Travis

travis57 at megalink dot net http://www.megalink.net/~farmers/
 
On Tue, 27 May 2003 17:50:11 -0400, Technician wrote:

> i note the fact that i'm pulling the front brake lever to the bar, and i still can't lock the
> front wheel, but i can keep the speed under control.

Sounds like your brakes just aren't set up right.

--
-BB- To reply to me, drop the attitude (from my e-mail address, at least)
 
In article <[email protected]>, [email protected] says...
> On Tue, 27 May 2003 17:50:11 -0400, Technician wrote:
>
> > i note the fact that i'm pulling the front brake lever to the bar, and i still can't lock the
> > front wheel, but i can keep the speed under control.
>
> Sounds like your brakes just aren't set up right.
>
>

yeah, that's what i thought. i checked them when i got back and they are wearing correctly. ie, the
wear surface is flat (parallel to the plane of the pad width-wise), with a slightly deeper wearing
to the trailing edge (from the card thickness toe-out). the rear ones act a little funny (feel
spongy) so i will have to check those, but the front ones hit solid on the rim and squeeze tight. i
managed to do a endo in the driveway checking the front brake so i know they lock up. i think it may
have just been my weight (230 lbs) combined with the steepness of the terrain. i know i was floating
just inches above the rear tire so i couldn't have been farther back without longer arms and legs.

Sudden thought, there were a few wet areas i pushed the bike through (yes, i try to leave little
trace of me being there). that and the few spots of grass was wet. must have simply been the pads
and rim was wet and so the pads just simply couldn't grip the rim like it normally would, no matter
how much i gripped the lever (frequent patches of wet grass all the way down).

So it looks like a long term upgrade (after drivetrain, front fork, and wheels) would be a disk for
the front. i can see that down hills i only use the rear brake to give a little assist to the front,
and it does that well (locks up quite easily), so my front brakes in this case are the most
important upgrade. no need for disks in back.

Now, if only i could upgrade my employment status (still working at it. put an application in at
wallies, though there are no openings at the moment).
--
~Travis

travis57 at megalink dot net http://www.megalink.net/~farmers/
 
Technician wrote:

> several times i get caught on a angled branch and go rolling down the mountain side in some sort
> of somersault. kind of a sideways endo. after hiking back up to retrieve my bike, i ride down.

THE BIKE!!!! How's the bike?!?!?! You didn't hurt it did you!?!?!?!

> But after it is all said and done, that ride down the "trail" was worth the trip. i learned more
> about balance, V-brake inferiority, and myself in that little half mile than could be found on any
> longer ride. i now know the limits of my traction, the limits of my brakes, and best of all, i
> have a new found courage in that i rode down a trail that earlier in my experience i would have
> cringed at.

and doing it on a Hardtail is building "skills" no cushy walgoose could ever teach you.... Time to
go ful rigid, yet?-)
 
In article <[email protected]>, [email protected] says...
>
>
> Technician wrote:
>
> > several times i get caught on a
> > angled branch and go rolling down the mountain side in some sort of somersault. kind of a
> > sideways endo. after hiking back up to retrieve my bike, i ride down.
>
> THE BIKE!!!! How's the bike?!?!?! You didn't hurt it did you!?!?!?!
>

ROFLMAO :-D

the bike is fine, aside for a mud baptismal, and a tiny scratch.

I managed to get through it with minimal injury, thanks for asking. ;-) a few scrapes, nothing even
worth bleeding about. i did manage a fairly colorful bruse on the back of my calve though.

>
>
> > But after it is all said and done, that ride down the "trail" was worth the trip. i learned more
> > about balance, V-brake inferiority, and myself in that little half mile than could be found on
> > any longer ride. i now know the limits of my traction, the limits of my brakes, and best of all,
> > i have a new found courage in that i rode down a trail that earlier in my experience i would
> > have cringed at.
>
> and doing it on a Hardtail is building "skills" no cushy walgoose could ever teach you.... Time to
> go ful rigid, yet?-)
>
>

Yeah, i do seem to be learning a lot more without the rear suspension. i kind of like even just a
little in the front though. just enough to soak up the roots and other obstacles. i think to go full
rigid would be a different bike. i dug an old western flyer out of the top of the garage that i had
when i was like 10. had potential for a single speed rigid, but i think it is also not worth the
time and money as the frame looks fairly weak. but then, knowing nothing of the brand name, it could
have been top of the line in it's day, or it could have been an El Cheepo. the tires are pretty fat
though. near moped i think.
--
~Travis

travis57 at megalink dot net http://www.megalink.net/~farmers/
 
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