Mic profile

I am really intrigued by the beast...I love hardtail riding so much, apart from bikepark shredding. Still, I think I would love to test ride one but live on the wrong continent, and my plan is to buy a new ht in two years, and I think I would go with a Stylus again, this time with 27.5 wheels. I like it playful and nimble.

Still...awesome way to go for Chromag.

And does it hold a water bottle and spares?

Thank you for that feature, I really enjoyed it. I can still remember an interview with Jared in the old Dirt Mag when it was still paper, this interview literally made me taking up hot/cold showers after a practise or training session. Really inspirational.

Thanks for that tale, the name Pulp Traction kind of always floated there in the back of the English-speaking mtb world, now I know why.

Any chance The Moment will be available on dvd/blu-ray?

I might have. I rememer having read it, and since I have not thrown away any copy of Bike I bought or subscribed to, chances are good. I check this weekend.

I am a dad myself, and yes, when we lived together before the break it was at times challenging. 

But in this day and age of easy-to-access info and training and coaching your argument is not really all that valid in the long run. 

Dads and moms need time to get used to the new vircumstances but sooner or later it all comes down to the facts that 

• every single one of us gas 24 hours. How and with what we spend them depends on each one of us.

• if a rider wants to improve and stay healthy long term he/she does not come around input/training from other areas/pursuits, be it yoga or lifting.

• being a good dad entails being a positive, life-affirming role model. And for that Little Toddler should understand that health and happiness can be connected to training and goals. 

But....I can remember that time of "I just want to go gor a ride NOW!" time pretty well, after the birth and the first time.

That is a great piece with some really solid advice, Cam. 

I am currently in hospital after a stupid training related movement gave me a prolapsed disc L5 S1 with sciatica.

All more or less good now, and the best part without surgery. Rest and rehab now, got a good physiotherapist. 

What I am once again checking as a personal upgrade is a new trail helmet with maximum coverage. What good is a fit and strong body if your head is not as protected as it could be? 

And yes, the most simple way to improve performance is fine tuning the engine and skills associated with it. But that is not as easy as buying that set of cranks or wheels. 

Anyways, enough of a middle-age rant, thanks for the article.

That was really sick! Sick rider, sick bike, sick trailriding, sick picnic table manual, wall ride, roof drop, stairgaps. Awesome. True style never gets old. 

And that T-shirt. Sweet.

Oh the optimism of youth? Seriously? Because of the weather? 

Perfect winter conditions.....after a certain age time is precious and that is a bigger issue than cold temps and a but of mud.

Re: Seond hand/used bike issues mentioned

I think that this is not really a legit issue if a person wants to start riding. It would make for a great Satruday late afternoon with a drink or two while pulling apart that used bike and get some skills in being self sufficient.

And a bike rider does need a few tools anyways, and fixing a bike at home can be done with a mini/multi tool, might be no fun - but can be done.

This issue might be different for people who do not care at all about how a bike is working or who only ride because of the hype, true.

The question at the beginning of the editorial is purely rhetoric, though. Who gives a shit about what anyone is riding?

Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving.

- Albert Einstein

Posted by: aShogunNamedMarcus

What if the wall would've kept the serious offender out in the first place? These people usually walk across because they dont have the money to travel in otherwise.

So how far are you willing to change things? Deport them and confiscate their property and bank accounts amassed during their whole time illegally spent in the USA? Biometrically implant them to set off scanners at ports of entry (yes the new digital tattoo). Adopt a new detention system where wherever that person is from, we adopt their prison system (you get caught and sent it, you need someone sending you food or, you steal ya lose a hand kind of thing - like an actual deterrent to go through legal means?).

As you can see, the other side of the wall argument is way uglier.

Let us keep to the "What if's"...what if the serious offender would never had had a need to become a serious offender? What if US American politics in Meso- and South America would not have turned quite a few places into "shitholes"? What if there would never have been the need for a wall in the first place? What if the war on drugs would have simply never started because for whatever reasons, and there would never had been the need for even cheaper coffee and bananas and whatnot, and cheap work force and support from authoritarian governments just to keep the communists or socialists or who ever was "Public Enemy du jour" at bay?

We can debate and exchange questions and WhatIfs into all eternity, this does not change my original statement one tiny bit: Walls have never worked and are not going to work because ... see my posts above.

Politics can not change any given status quo or development by simply ignoring it and building a wall. Never worked, never will.

Posted by: KenN

This thread reminds me.  We haven't had a good mass debate about religion lately ....

Have not had a proper mass debate in what feels like ages, true. 

There have been quite a few members who are sorely missed, kind of.

Posted by: aShogunNamedMarcus

Posted by: Mic

Posted by: aShogunNamedMarcus

This isnt about how smrt we are.

But?

Seriously.....a wall has never worked. Life does not work like that. Kind of like water.

A wall has never helped keeping a status quo...not in China and not in Roman antiquity. In the long term it does ot work in Israel as well. And the Berlin Wall and the fence that went through Europe...well...history in the long run has a pretty effective way of not caring about walls.

So instead of trying to figure things out differently...let us all move back to nationalist times of a century ago. Instead of solving problems it is far easier to bury the head in the sand, this time behind a wall.

I think you and most others are looking at it completely wrong. Trump is building the wall as the will of the people. This was an election pledge that you could argue won him the election. He has a mandate from the masses and the masses are the ones that agree with the NEED for a southern border wall. US Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Agents also happen to agree with those voters on a need for a wall. And obviously the wall doesnt need to span the entire border coast to coast.

You want to figure this out differently? Change immigration laws and redefine certain things. If you or I were a repeat serious offender that's already been deported 3+ times, would you care about reoffending inside the US again if you just get thrown out but allowed back in? Why pay any admission fee when you can just walk around to the back? Is that how you run your house?

Interesting argument...to be honest... and rather simplistic as well. I do not have time right now to answer in depth apart from stating that the argument of the "serious offender" and the follow up question directed at me is rather simplistic and yes...a wall would not keep a serious offender out of the USA.

Edit: I saw an interview with a marshall who clearly stated that a wall does not change anything or keeps out the illegals. It would be far better to use that money for personnel and technology.

Posted by: chupacabra

Posted by: syncro

maybe instead of debating about a wall the question should be how should they deal with the people entering the country illegally? i also bet if you ask people in regions that receive the majority of undocumented immigrants you'd get a different view on the whole undocumented immigration issue.

This is what always puzzles me.  The Rust Belt and Bible Belt spend more time freaking out about illegal immigration and Sharia Law than anyone else even though they experience far less of either concern.  Or maybe everyone needs to watch the new Sicario movie to truly understand the problem.

I have read an article a few months ago about the issue you are mentioning, the less a group has contact with a different group considered different the bigger the prejudices and whatnot. It can actually be observed in parts of Germany as well. Those regions with the least amount of immigrants/refugees/non-Christian population have the biggest issues with them and most of the prejudices. 

I think this issue which has to do with perspective is well known in sociology and anthropology. 

I really observe I tend to forget a lot of info that I do not "refresh" regularly. 

I have not seen that movie so I can not comment on that, sorry.

Posted by: aShogunNamedMarcus

Posted by: Mic

Posted by: aShogunNamedMarcus

mmmhhhmmm... great wall of what meow?

Israeli wall 99.9% effective?

6 European countries have or are building walled border

If you saw me you'd be surprised at my long, deep sigh.

You are smart enough for the statement I brought up, I reckon. *shrug*

This isnt about how smrt we are.

But?

Seriously.....a wall has never worked. Life does not work like that. Kind of like water.

A wall has never helped keeping a status quo...not in China and not in Roman antiquity. In the long term it does ot work in Israel as well. And the Berlin Wall and the fence that went through Europe...well...history in the long run has a pretty effective way of not caring about walls.

So instead of trying to figure things out differently...let us all move back to nationalist times of a century ago. Instead of solving problems it is far easier to bury the head in the sand, this time behind a wall.

Posted by: ReductiMat

Posted by: Mic

Are you talking to yourself here, kind of like in the Roman Empereror Marcus Aurelius' "Meditations"?

Anyways, the first idea of not getting so fucking angry is pretty good.

Easy to say when you don't care.  I end up caring a little too much about things that impact our lives.

I don't ignore points others bring up.

I think it has something to do with emotional distance, so to speak. 

In the last few years I have learned a lot about interactions and my emotions...not only becausw of a great counsellor I am still going to on a regular basis....but because of a shift in my own perspective. 

Ever read the book "The obstacle is the way" by Ryan Holiday?

Posted by: Stuminator

#2 is refreshing. It seems accountability & responsibility have been thrown out the window these days.

And there are a lot of finer points to this one. Accountability and responsibility are two rather huge words, because you need a form of awareness of yourself, your belief system, your social and emotional intelligence, for example, before a person can live that way on a day to day basis. 

Very important point.

Posted by: aShogunNamedMarcus

Posted by: switch

Posted by: aShogunNamedMarcus

Either no one else grew up in a house with a fenced yard or people dont want to consider that angle.

The fenced yard wasn't for keeping people out, it was for keeping children and pets in.

Perfect flip side. Could also keep pets out.

Think about it like this: When Shogun was 4-5 yrs old, my neighbors Terrier was put down for taking a 2x2 chunk out of my right ass cheek. That happened as my sis and I rode our bikes past their house. So if there was no fence, that lil dog would've been in the yard harassing me (until we would've got our husky choco lab - then no problems with other animals).

You guys ok with a moat?

Makes for some awesome BMXing and jibbing.

That is an awesome idea. Engraining proper patterns. Nice one. Really nice one.