The R3V Bicycle Thread

[superj]

and nick, that sucks that its broken and It took you out of competition

[superj]

Actually I have, I was working with a HPV team for a bit. They wanted me to ride it for them, but I couldn't since I was going to a different school.

Well, have fun.

Will

that's cool that you have. its weird that you had such trouble on it but recumbents are not for everyone.

[ButtJuice]

Nice m-tech wallet

[Nick_S]

My DH season got cut short. Entered mt first race out in Crested Butte, CO, was practicing friday and took a spill. Ended up breaking my thumb in practice and having surgery on it right away. Super bummed. Race results came out today and I was on par to make podium in pro DH :( Oh well, I'll hopefully be back in 8 weeks.

[BlackbirdM3]

I guess you have never really tried to ride a recumbent for more than around the block? they take a few weeks of getting used to for your legs because its (oddly) different muscles. I thought it would be the same muscles but its not 100%.

I have been riding recumbent for 5 or 6 years now. I kill upright guys on sprints, standing start or rolling (except the locals who race at state level) and I do a few 100 mile rides a year so being stabile is not a problem. I have passed many people on big hills around Austin (but I have been passed also).

this p38 is new to me so I will have to feel it out but my phantom, the touring bike, lets me ride with the fastest group on my Tuesday night rides. two or three guys get me on top end because I am gear limited but my next rear cassette swap I would have went even more in hopes of fixing that top speed issue. I am learning that stuff as a I go.

the p-38 should already be good for top end though, and it seems to take off rolling pretty quickly for sprints. I don't what cassette is on the back but the front large ring is a 53 tooth. my phantom was only a 52 and my cassette doesn't go as small and starts larger.

I don't ride uprights too much more because my wrists hurt enough that its hard to work the next day. if I am doing less than 20 miles I have a giant defy4 to ride, which is a nice riding bike. I don't know how it ranks since its an entry level bike but it still rides very nicely.

I am just excited about the p38 since I have wanted one for so long but couldn't get myself to spend 3400 on a bike I wasn't sure I was going to like. this used one came in so cheap that if I end up not liking it, I can resell it for almost double easily.

Actually I have, I was working with a HPV team for a bit. They wanted me to ride it for them, but I couldn't since I was going to a different school.

Well, have fun.

Will

[leegf]

I've never tried a recumbent, have no desire to, etc. but certainly cast no judgment on my fellow two-wheeled road users. Anything that gets people outside and excited about riding bikes is A-okay in my book, whatever the form the bike happens to take on.

[superj]

I guess you have never really tried to ride a recumbent for more than around the block? they take a few weeks of getting used to for your legs because its (oddly) different muscles. I thought it would be the same muscles but its not 100%.

I have been riding recumbent for 5 or 6 years now. I kill upright guys on sprints, standing start or rolling (except the locals who race at state level) and I do a few 100 mile rides a year so being stabile is not a problem. I have passed many people on big hills around Austin (but I have been passed also).

this p38 is new to me so I will have to feel it out but my phantom, the touring bike, lets me ride with the fastest group on my Tuesday night rides. two or three guys get me on top end because I am gear limited but my next rear cassette swap I would have went even more in hopes of fixing that top speed issue. I am learning that stuff as a I go.

the p-38 should already be good for top end though, and it seems to take off rolling pretty quickly for sprints. I don't what cassette is on the back but the front large ring is a 53 tooth. my phantom was only a 52 and my cassette doesn't go as small and starts larger.

I don't ride uprights too much more because my wrists hurt enough that its hard to work the next day. if I am doing less than 20 miles I have a giant defy4 to ride, which is a nice riding bike. I don't know how it ranks since its an entry level bike but it still rides very nicely.

I am just excited about the p38 since I have wanted one for so long but couldn't get myself to spend 3400 on a bike I wasn't sure I was going to like. this used one came in so cheap that if I end up not liking it, I can resell it for almost double easily.

[BlackbirdM3]

I got a new (to me) bike yesterday.

I rode with a local group yesterday and one of the guys had ridden his recumbent with me before. Well, he said he wanted to sell it because he was having hip pain (he is 65) well on it but not on his rubauix.

So I told him I would swing by once I finished my ride and grab it. I ended up doing 60 miles so once I made it to his house, we swapped my 700 bucks for his p38 and went our ways.

The bike is a rocket. Its so fast. I have done a lot to my phantom in the 4 years I have been riding it to make it faster but its still a touring bike. The p38 is a racing bike and feels that way while riding it.

Hopefully I can gain some speed because one section of a local strava spot I have been trying to kom and so far, 4th has been my best at 36mph for the 1/4 mile it stretches. I hope to improve that on this bike

You bought a recumbent? Good luck with that being faster than a normal road bike. There is really no way to sprint on one, and stability at speed is questionable. Climbing is even more of a chore.

Sure, HPVs are effectively a recumbent, but the are also fully faired, that is why they go so fast. They also have monster gearing because you can't sprint the thing.

Will

[wworm]

fast road bikes are underrated. I rolled around on my friends race built cervelo and the things an absolute machine

[superj]

I got a new (to me) bike yesterday.

I rode with a local group yesterday and one of the guys had ridden his recumbent with me before. Well, he said he wanted to sell it because he was having hip pain (he is 65) well on it but not on his rubauix.

So I told him I would swing by once I finished my ride and grab it. I ended up doing 60 miles so once I made it to his house, we swapped my 700 bucks for his p38 and went our ways.

The bike is a rocket. Its so fast. I have done a lot to my phantom in the 4 years I have been riding it to make it faster but its still a touring bike. The p38 is a racing bike and feels that way while riding it.

Hopefully I can gain some speed because one section of a local strava spot I have been trying to kom and so far, 4th has been my best at 36mph for the 1/4 mile it stretches. I hope to improve that on this bike

[BlackbirdM3]

dont forget to wear sunscreen! lol I am currently sitting in bed with a gnarly ass burn. Weather was so good yesterday that I spent the whole day riding in a tank and my gringo ass got cooked. All these whistler opening day vids make me want to move north

Whistler has some awesome stuff. I raced a Cactus Cup race there in 1997 (There is a certain amount of irony there, not a cactus to be found in 1500 miles) . It wasn't my best xc race ever, but it was a pretty awesome race.

Will

[wworm]

dont forget to wear sunscreen! lol I am currently sitting in bed with a gnarly ass burn. Weather was so good yesterday that I spent the whole day riding in a tank and my gringo ass got cooked. All these whistler opening day vids make me want to move north

[Nick_S]

DH parks are opening. I refuse to pedal uphill till October.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TxVIbS8Attw&feature=youtu.be

[BlackbirdM3]

Mainly MTB I guess, because that's more what I'm into. Trying to find a decent wheelset that isn't QR is a chore, same with straight steerer forks, etc. Or a decent crankset that isn't BB-something-stupid. I've finally worn out my I-9s to the point where rebuilding/relacing them doesn't make financial sense, but shopping for a new set (QR, SS) is a slow process.

I guess I'm slowly slipping into grouchy old man status, but I never once hit a jump or climb or whatever and thought "Man, if only this steerer was 1/4" bigger at the bottom, I'd be better off"

These days I go looking for the stuff I was racing on 18-25 years ago. The stuff was bombproof back then when I was breaking anything and everything. Since Most of that original group I still have, its easy to put a bike together. Heck, some of the stuff is now affordable (Like Shimano M900/950 XTR.) 8 spd XTR was hands down the best group sets Shimano has ever produced. I'm still riding the right XTR shifter I bought in 1997 (The indexed shifting for hte front derailleur bugged the hell out of me because it would rub, so I replaced it with a Suntour XC Pro front thumb shifter, saved a few grams and had a trimmable FD so it never rubs.)

Seriously, the parts these days exist to sell more parts. They aren't supposed to last like the M950 or M900 stuff was. Its all gimmicks and bad ideas being sold as the latest and greatest things now. Not once have I been bombing down a hill at 40+ mph and thought "I wish I had disk brakes" A dropper post? How cute, never once needed one. Yeah, I'm a cross country rider, raced semi pro. Still, do I put the hurt on guys with their big hit bikes and dropper posts on most single track trails? Yep. I shift into my 46 tooth big ring and off I go laughing at these guys with a single 32 tooth chain ring and 9 inches of travel all spun out as I blow past on my 20 year old hardtail with 3 chain rings and V brakes.

Seriously, there is nothing on the market that I currently want on my bike (aside from tires) Hell, even my seats date back to the 90s.

If I had the time to get out and ride, would I show up on my 20+ year old hardtail with 20+ year old parts on it for an XC race? Hell yes! It wouldn't be the bike that would keep me off the podium. They worked great back in the day, and they still work great. Fitness and age would be the only things holding me back.

Will

[Rob]

Mainly MTB I guess, because that's more what I'm into. Trying to find a decent wheelset that isn't QR is a chore, same with straight steerer forks, etc. Or a decent crankset that isn't BB-something-stupid. I've finally worn out my I-9s to the point where rebuilding/relacing them doesn't make financial sense, but shopping for a new set (QR, SS) is a slow process.

I guess I'm slowly slipping into grouchy old man status, but I never once hit a jump or climb or whatever and thought "Man, if only this steerer was 1/4" bigger at the bottom, I'd be better off"