My "new" bike. Finally I can put the Trek 800 that I've been riding for three years on nasty weather duty. That way this baby won't ever have to see rain/mud

 

I broke the frame, the top tube popped open right down a seam in the carbon. Trek (owns and manufactures Gary Fisher bikes) warrantied the frame with 2010 model. Since posting brand new bike pics it's got a new frame, new upgraded fit parts - stem, post, bars, grips, seat, and brake upgrade so that means new pics.

 

sick gary fisher! im lovin it.




Did a 20mile ride today on 48x18T fixed haha

 

I got 32 miles of single track in this morning at a 10.2mph average pace with temps only 40's

 

my new mercier mini velo bike



and here it is with my 70cm bradley lol

 

wow I have been on this site for a long time how did i miss this thread??? I was riding/racing bikes for 25 years!!

 

I got into recumbents about 20 years ago but can't pull some of the hills around hear very well so I have been looking at assist motors for my LWB Infinity.

 

Getting ready for the first race weekend of the season end of January! Will be my first Cat 3 race and then the Pro 1,2,3 later in the day as well. Should be deep in the pain cave when its said and done.

 

My bikes have been mostly gathering dust for the last ten to fifteen years. I have an old cro-mo steel rigid Breezer for a beater/commuter bike, a Chris Kavle Reynolds 531 custom sport touring bike (tours in the Midwest, New England and England, Cornwall and Wales on this bike), a 531 Gazelle AB club racing bike and a Mark Zeh butted Ti suspension fork/rigid tail mountain bike. My wife has an old steel Breezer and a Basso. All these bikes are from the 1980s and '90s.
I rode 150 to 200 miles per week, about nine months out of the year from the mid-1970s through the late 1990s but I've grown old, fat and lazy. I keep telling myself that "this year I'm going to get back in some semblance of shape" but it hasn't been happening. I start to ride regularly for maybe a month and then I get sick or something comes up that devours my free time. I find that the soupleese comes back quickly from old muscle memory but my endurance and power are shot. It doesn't help that I'm carrying an extra forty pounds above racing weight.

 

Your an old guy.... Get a recumbent with an assist motor for a little boost when you need it.... All of my bikes are ancient too.

 

I've ridden three recumbents over the years, all long wheelbase models, and frankly I didn't like them. Contrary to my expectations they felt less stable than a conventional bike and simultaneous less maneuverable. I also felt more at risk from cars. I had the sense that I couldn't see or be seen as well and that coupled with being at bumper height wasn't comforting. They also don't seem to climb very efficiently. The long wheel base recumbents are also a hassle to transport. I would like to try a short wheelbase at some point perhaps a Challenge, Lightning or Bacchetta. I'm also curious about recumbent trikes like the Challenge, ICE or Catrike but the non-folding ones seem like an even bigger transportation issue than LWB recumbents. The bike itself and the traditional saddle and position are less an issue for me than just getting out on the road.

 

I have a couple of folding LWBs that are comfy but very squirrelly and terrible on hills... The one I like was made by Ace Tool company in Indiana and called an Infinity... It is a very low slung LWB with adjustable seat that is very comfortable under seat cable steering and 74 degree neck angle.... I use mirrors that clip to the ear pieces on my glasses and have flashing LEDs on the front back sides and a 9V piezo horn operating on 27v.... Except for not being able to side hop a curb and having to spin on the smallest chain ring and largest cog at a speed that has you wobbling to not fall over at less than walking speed it is great.... I am planning to go to 26X 1.50 wheel and tire on back and a 20X 1.50 bmx wheel on front with a motor kit by Golden Eagle or something like it.. My back and knees make a conventional bike difficult to ride but I do fairly well with a 87 GT BackWoods that I created a pretty cool touring bike from.... The frame is of thick wall Isiwata MBT tubing which was the heaviest duty stuff ever made but the moving parts were considered light in there day and It has numerous seat and handlebar adjustments with quick releases... I an considering a 97cc Honda OHV clone on a rear mount for it or maybe a Tanaka 2 stroke that has performance parts available if needed.About the time I am starting to feel the benefits to my health from riding I start having knee and back problems so having a small engine would let me get home without having to half crawl half drag myself into the house.

 

Suggested retail was $1300, no longer available in 2011. The one previous owner is my size(16" frame) and rode it 5 times since his October purchase. I added Flybikes Ruben pedals, Blackburn Flea USB lights & AirStik LongNeck pump, Ergon BioCork grips, WTB tan seat, King stainless cage, Easton Monkeybar, Niner YAWYD w/IBC cream soda bottlecap. I also buffed the blue "Pro" logos off the Ritchey stem w/a Scotchbrite pad and covered a bad paint chip on the toptube/headtube join with an old GrindKing sticker. Lastly, I have a Blackburn Atom 4.0 computer that I haven't installed yet.



This is a huge upgrade from the bike I've been riding since I bought it new in '90, a Specialized RockHopper Comp!

 

Not a bad rig, but why the crazy tri saddle?

 

I cant believe i missed this thread!


Heres my Roadie!

 

I had originally used links to my pics at the MTBR forums, I could see them because I was logged in - you get the dreaded "red X" otherwise - D'OH!

This bike uses 650B sized wheels/tires, which are 27.5" dia - exactly halfway between the old standby 26" MTB size and the monster 29" size. At 5'7", with a 29" inseam - this 16" frame bike fits me great and still gives me a taste of the famed "big-wheel" effect of a 29" wheel.

I may later go to a 29" front wheel as there is clearance for it - and some testers tried it out and said it works even better in some conditions.


Suggested retail was $1300, no longer available in 2011. The one previous owner is my size(16" frame) and rode it 5 times since his October purchase. I added Flybikes Ruben pedals, Blackburn Flea USB lights & AirStik LongNeck pump, Ergon BioCork grips, WTB tan seat, King stainless cage, Easton Monkeybar, Niner YAWYD w/IBC cream soda bottlecap. I also buffed the blue "Pro" logos off the Ritchey stem w/a Scotchbrite pad and covered a bad paint chip on the toptube/headtube join with an old GrindKing sticker. Lastly, I have a Blackburn Atom 4.0 computer that I haven't installed yet.



This is a huge upgrade from the bike I've been riding since I bought it new in '90, a Specialized RockHopper Comp!



I'll probably convert the old bike to single speed, and put the old rigid fork & standard seatpost back on it...

I live off of Walnut Creek Metropolitan Park in Austin, and there's lots of beautiful singletrack there:

http://www.mountainbiketx.com/downlo...t_Creek_II.pdf

We do a weekly R&I (Ride & Imbibe) ride there where the riders meet up in the parking area and grill up some sausage, burgers, and venison and sample various micro-brews...

Official R&I Thread

More general info:

MountainBikeTx.com | Trails | Hill Country | Walnut Creek Metro Park

 

@shaun954 I have never seen a wheel with such a small number of spokes and a lace pattern like that... If I didn't have narrow 26" aero rims on my old mountain bike and wasn't aware of the strength they have I would say that such a setup was too weak to work... What kind of rims, hubs and is the spoke gauge on those wheels? It looks freaky tricked.

 

 

He recently got the Schwalbe Ice Spiker Pro EVO tires - I looked 'em up, here they'd cost me $150 EACH!!!

(he said they're not so bad in Germany... about 70 Euros - still $100)





Schwalbe - Professional Bikes Tires