Glad you *did* get out, Leah. Our weather here in SW Ontario hasn't been much better, 1-2 hours north of here has been really awful. These days, a day we would consider meh last year, is all of a sudden a decent day. We have to make the most of it!
Funny you mention the foreign feel of a bike after riding another bike a few times in a row. On my Fargo I had been using the same handlebars as my Roadini. I can go back and forth and didn't notice the change. I switch to VO Crazy bar on the Fargo, ride that a few times, and then when I hop on Roadini, I was like, ew "these bars as so narrow", "I'm hunched over". Took 10+ minutes to feel normal. A second ride on Roadini and then it was normal from the get-go. I've learned that bars make a huge difference (of course, right). My chiropractor says it's better to have my two bikes be set up different, as I'm using different muscles, etc. Makes sense, I guess. On Thursday, April 3, 2025 at 8:29:45 PM UTC-4 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote: > Well, in today’s bike life… > > 1. 37 mph winds today. Not the best day for a ride, but I had a little > time after I got weights done, and, I figure, you’ll never get better at > riding in wind if you never ride in wind. > > 11.1 miles today, most of them rather miserable. After this week of storms > and being forced off the bike because of them, I’ll take these miles, fun > or not. Spring is overdue here in SW Michigan, and I am losing patience. > > The thing about having different bikes is that every time you ride one, it > feels foreign for a while. I’ve been running off with Charlie (that > scoundrel!) and I’ve gotten used to his Choco bars, set lower and without > flare. I chose my Racing Platy for today and suddenly the tried-and-true > favorite Billie Bars felt strange to me. The bike felt heavier than I > remembered. We got reacquainted quickly, but how weird. Thousands of miles > on that Platypus and I’d have told you it always feels like home. > > Also, if I can’t wear all pink on my pink bike I don’t want to go. > [image: image1.jpeg] > > 2. Ok, after that, my younger son and I made the trek to my college boy’s > city to drop off his College Clem. You’ll remember this was the bike I’d > improved after he so enjoyed and used his bike fall semester. I added new > Cliffhanger wheels with Gravel King tires, my old Shutter Precision hub and > new Schmidt lights. I changed his gearing so it’s higher, put on the > Faceplater stem and albatross bar (and shims 😑) and finally…his first > mirror. A German mirror from Rivendell. > > Remember those cross winds I told you about? > [image: image2.jpeg] > I had taken the bike off the rack, turned to grab his bike bag from just > inside the SUV and BAM. I saw it happening and could not intervene. The > brand new mirror SNAPPED and lay in the parking lot. Do you know those are > $40 mirrors now? I nearly wept, right there in the parking lot of the dorm. > Snapped. Before he had even come out of the dorm and seen his new mirror! > > I ordered another immediately. Not that he will ever get around to > installing it. I know this. It pains me. Anyway, he noticed his bars > immediately. Which is actually saying something because he is, in the > truest sense, Just Ride. He doesn’t care how the bike looks or what parts > it has. He cares about the freedom it gives him and the upgrade that it is > from riding the buses. He got the bug to try bike camping as soon as he > heard the term at Philly Bike Expo, and one of our very own Listers here > just sent him some camping gear that I brought to my son this very day! I > hope his Clem gets to not only be a College Clem but a Camping Clem. > Actually, I just hope it doesn’t get stolen. My son loses everything like > it’s a special talent only he has. He actually *did* misplace his Clem > once, forgetting which of the bike racks he locked it to. He was under the > wire doing exams and did not find it for 2 more days. It was locked up, > totally unmolested, at “one of the libraries.” Save me your lectures, I > know, I know. And he does too. He’s been careful since, but I really should > hide and Air Tag in there. > [image: image3.jpeg] > > That’s it for now. > L > > On Mar 19, 2025, at 10:23 PM, Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! < > [email protected]> wrote: > > I just want to talk bikes for a little bit. Threads with subjects are > great and all, but so is talking shop. And we are about to hit a spate of > cold weather here in SW Michigan and I am a little morose after a few days > of Pretend Spring. I did get 25 miles in today and Monday, but now I want > to talk shop. > > I don’t know what you all have been up to, but I have been fighting with > and fidgeting with my bikes. > > Recently, I went through a great stem swap where I changed over most of my > bikes to Faceplater stems. I even put one on my college boys’ big old Clem > with Bosco bars. I even used my new torque wrench, and…the bars slipped! So > now I have new Albatross bars and stem and shims because Riv believes this > 31.8 clamp will grip 25.4 bars better. I have little experience with shims. > And what I have learned about them is that they will set you to cussing. > You want the bars centered, but then the shims slink out of their spot. > When you want to nudge them just a bit, they have bitten into the center of > the Albatross bar and you must find a way to knock them loose. Then the > whole bar moves and you have to re-center and line up the gaps in > shim/clamp. When you knock the shims loose a few times you realize there > are metal shavings on your fingers, which means you are damaging stuff. And > every time you decide to adjust the position you have to fight with the > shims AND loosen and re-tighten 4 bolts with your torque wrench. I have > emailed 2 people about this, badgering them to check my work and say it’s > safe. I made peace with the shims being a millimeter uneven because at > least the bars are centered. Then I went to wash the metal shavings off my > hands. > > Shims. In short, I hate them. > > During the Great Stem Swap of ‘25, I managed to drop a hex wrench. I heard > the ping of it striking the top tube of my raspberry Platypus on its way > down. Ah, my first real paint chip, and right in a place I’ll see every > day. Tonight, I painted that chip with nail polish I found in a close color > match. It’s passable, but sad. > > I turned my attention to the mermaid Platypus, which I have no good excuse > to have anymore, and noticed the rear tire is flat again. This is because > on Monday, I decided I would top off the sealant, and could not be bothered > to put the bike in the stand. The clamp on the stand needs more seatpost > and I didn’t want to raise my saddle. So I did it with the bike on the > kickstand and was never able to recover the seal between rim and tire. I > have gotten by with this in the past. Got cocky and have now been brought > low. Every week, and you can set your watch by it, I do the walk of shame > into the shop. I fling open their door, the cowbell rings, and I announce, > “Guys! A terrible thing has happened!” I will go there again tomorrow > because a terrible thing has happened - that seal did not hold and we are > back to flat tire and dripping sealant. They are sick of me at this point > but they are Michiganders, good folk through and through, and they do not > let on. > > Meanwhile, Charlie. I’ve been running away with Charlie on club rides. > High winds have really cramped our style. Charlie and I are on a learning > curve. I try and find out if the sounds he’s making are benign or > malignant. There was a screeching pedal (a terrible thing that happened!) > that my shop addressed. But now there is ghost shifting and something > whirring when I stand to climb and toss my weight on the drive side of the > bike. Charlie had been denied his accoutrements because I tried to make him > Pure Road Bike and keep his accessories minimal. We failed miserably and > I’ve junked up the bars just like Charlie’s a Platypus. The final piece, > his German mirror, arrived today. I still don’t know if Charlie is any > faster than a Platypus. Nothing is fast in these winds. We are out there > shredding our thighs, trying to brave winds and get fit for the season with > Charlie and his junked-up non-aero bars. > > What have you all been up to? Are you having the same struggles? Who else > is wanting to throw up their hands and just talk shop? > Leah > > > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to a topic in the > Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To unsubscribe from this topic, visit > https://groups.google.com/d/topic/rbw-owners-bunch/ksvlbi-Jd6w/unsubscribe > . > To unsubscribe from this group and all its topics, send an email to > [email protected]. > > To view this discussion visit > https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/5175834e-31c3-4cea-87cb-37ee34020bdan%40googlegroups.com > > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/5175834e-31c3-4cea-87cb-37ee34020bdan%40googlegroups.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > . > > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. 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