Larrabee profile

slimchances57:

Thanks for that breath of fresh air. Amen brother (or sister).

What an absolute treat to read this _skookum_ writing (May I say that?! I’m an immigrant from Eastern Ontario to Victoria.)  Thanks!  It made my day….

“Upon leaving the driveway for the first ride, one observation was the lack of sound that dogs the MaxxGrip Assegai on tarmac. The familiar sound that resembles a lazy driver who leaves their winter tires on all year long. You can feel your soul leaving you as you grunt up the hill on suction cups.”

“… feel your soul leaving you…”

Kudos!

“But lately, it's the ones with provenance, patina, repairs, and ///detrition*/// that absorb my interest.”

Excellent word; new to me. Thanks for a great article. 

*the action of wearing something away by friction.

Could someone post some info on the metallurgical differences between resin-only rotors and rotors approved for metallic pads. (To satisfy my curiosity.). 

Thanks.

I’ve read this article several times over the years.  This time, the photos of you two riding on the stone steps through the village struck me as jarring enough to warrant comment.

In what universe is that behaviour going to be considered polite or couth?  Would I do that in my home country, let alone as a guest in another country?

Is it possible that some objectively harmless behaviours are simultaneously offense or simply rude?

The discussion about biases related to the perks and pleasures associated with the press junket have been deep and wide (above). Thanks to all who chimed in. 

Yes, I’ve read “Drunk on Press Junket Lemonade” several times.  While I admire the efforts at introspection there, my position is that there’s no way I would be objective about the product after experiencing it in that manner. 

You easily convince me that riding the e-bike was fun. I’ve raced motocross and rode several years on an ‘07 KTM 525 EXC. 

I’m not as easily convinced that these so-called eMTBs are to be considered acceptable where non-motorized _bicycles_ have been used for decades.

It is deeply embarrassing to me if electric motorcycles with pedal-regulated throttles are welcomed onto trails that were built with the provisio that they’d be used with human power only.

I cannot escape the feeling that this acceptance is an enormous blunder  

I wonder if bicycle media are making an error by reviewing them (“eMTB”) at all.  

Sure, everything is fairly calm now (2021/2022).  I lived through the dirt bike boom of the 1970s.  A million dirt bikes sold per year in USA.  And it wasn’t long before land access was denied in, what, 98%, 99%, more(?) of the areas than before the dirt bike boom. 

Sure it’s tough if someone disabled wants to ride a motorcycle (as I see an eMTB) on bicycle trails and is denied that pleasure. 

Let that person ride in an Off-Highway-Vehicle (OHV) area, and funnel all the electric motorcycles there too — even if they have 230 watt motors, and the throttle is auto-regulated by crank rotation.

I’m grateful for your careful and considered journalism — and for the opportunity to express myself in your publication.  Thanks!  And good luck.

Andrew, shortly after reading your review of the 7iDP Project 23 helmet, I ordered one. While I wear it on every trail ride, I’m not sufficiently over the dork effect yet to wear it on the road. The fit is excellent. (Measure head 6 times, order once.). Mine has the fibreglass shell. The Gloworm Alpha lamp w/ smaller (25Wh) battery straps on nicely. 

Further, after reading your discussion, I changed from Renthal Kevlar (glued & wired) to Renthal Ultra-Tacky (accurately named) grips. Also a win in every way.  

Last item: after reading your Squidworx pedals review, I bought a pair and find them to be superb.  Richard Bedford (proprietor in Pemberton) is a pleasure to deal with  

I’m paying attention and thank you for your advice.

“I get some flack about my push-on grip evangelism, so it’s always a nice bump to hear folks read/tried/loved.”

Thanks to you, Andrew, I switched from push-on Renthal Kevlar grips to the black Renthal Ultra Tacky ones, well glued and with 5(!) wire wraps on each (belt and suspenders FTW!). This on my Murmur, so you know I’m “out there”. 

I donated my spare Kevlar grips, glue, lock wire and labour to my buddy — fitting those to his Chameleon.  

That’s a good gift: show up and put on new grips for a friend. 

Thanks for a whole year of useful info (I’m now on an SQ-Labs 610 Ergo saddle!), and “mass quantities” of entertainment.

I had mud wasps plug the valve orifice on a rarely-used frame-mounted pump — on a daily rider. 

Now: I keep a bit of electrical tape over the valve connector. 

It took a fair bit of digging to clear out the mud — something I couldn’t have done away from home.

I’ll grind mine sharper and report back. 

As I consider myself a squid (and I bought a new 1972 CZ-125 before I turned 16… only a squid would buy one of those), I just had to buy a set. They’re on the way.

One could be Über-fastidious and put Loctite 567 pipe sealant where dissimilar corrosion appears likely. 

I use it on threaded bottom brackets and pedal threads (for 22 years). It cures anaerobically. When “set” is like dried toothpaste; a little lower durometer maybe. 

It’s lower strength than purple Loctite (#222) and ideal for places with large interface areas, as it’s not a chore to disassemble parts goobered up with 567.  It contains Teflon.

Endurimil,

Damn, it’s good to read that; you recovered by working hard, hard, hard. Thanks for putting in your experience here! And — articulating the e-biker telling you to buy one. Same thing happened to me with the only e-biker I’ve listened to up on Mt. Work. I say “listened” because my experience was of meeting Foghorn Leghorn.

Yes, the potential disaster of having trail access yanked out from under us like “the ole tablecloth trick” is constantly on my mind with electrified lightweight motorcycles using the trails that typically were never intended for them.