mammal profile

With the original MSRP prices those posts were going for, the fact that they are difficult/expensive to find service for is just insane. It's a bit of a hind-sight situation now, with durable posts going for 1/2 the price they used to, but the Thompson posts were certainly at the premium end of the scale and the value proposition didn't age well.

I've only had my DUB BB for a year now, but I've never had a BB run so smooth after a year. And it was subjected to some serious miles, tonnes of slop, and even left out overnight in the rain a few times. 

I feel it's a shame that a perfectly good, extremely durable BB needed to be ruined in order to fit a perfectly good, extremely durable BB, but I guess that's all a part of the "science".

Millium?

Definitely unanimous. Even the PB comment section was beaming with positivity as a whole. That in itself is amazing.

For me, it's the PD-530. I think I bought 3 pairs between 2010-2015 for around $30 each, and they're still all working well. One set on my Ripmo AF, and one set on my hard tail, currently.

Such a nice frame!

These were my first set of clips in 2002, on my '02 Norco Shore with boxxers. Moved onto the black/grey models after that. The newer generation with composite platforms never quite had the same retention force as these did.

I'd probably never stop laughing if someone carried a funnel 24/7. But that said, it's easy enough that it could be a thing. WAY quicker that installing a tube.

Also Rapid-rise... These things will never get compliments.

I only started riding mountain bikes more seriously in '99, so I missed a lot of the early shimano appreciation (the plastic SIS shifters on my '92 Norco Mini Mountaineer don't count). Regardless, so many notable shimano bits stick out in my memory from various years.

The first "wow" moment was probably when someone at the local shop kicked me down a well-used 8spd XTR deraileur. I had only run the cheapest of what I could get my hands on at that point, and it felt like I was mounting a gold watch on my hanger. I was so impressed with how precise, reliable, and durable it was. It was a window into a world of quality I wasn't yet familiar with.

Next up is probably the same amazing Saint Cranks. I was well into DH bikes at that point, and just starting to race. The whole group stood out weaponry as opposed to mere components, and definitely more prepared for battle than anything else available. But the cranks... They were so stiff, so strong, and spun so smoothly for so long. Those were the absolute gold standard for me. Four consecutive years of getting a new DH bike every season, and those cranks came along for every one of them, while the RF Diabolous or Truvative Whatevers got sold as new take-offs. My best story wasn't actually mine, and is mentioned above, so I won't repeat it.

Onto the present-ish times now, and the 11spd group I bought for the soon-to-be mine custom hard tail that my buddy was whipping up for me Nov'17. I didn't have a lot of cash to throw down on the N+1 bike at the time, and needed to be pretty calculated about it. This was right before Chain Reaction stopped selling Shimano stuff, and I reasoned myself into an 11spd SLX set of Cranks, BB, Derailleur, chain and 2-pot brakes. I don't recall what the price of that package was, but it was borderline criminal. And fast forward to after 3+ years of 4-season thrashings, and everything's still on there being awesome, aside from the chain. As the rest of my bikes got brake upgrades over the last year or so, I was even able to purchase individual Deore 4-pot calipers (Thanks Shimano!) to upgrade those 3yo brakes, and they just pack so much power now. That stuff will probably last the life of the bike, at least in my hands.

Posted by: Bull_Dozer

Posted by: Couch_Surfer

https://www.piquenewsmagazine.com/local-news/north-shore-park-access-limited-in-covid-crackdown-3120983

Article says "Apr 14, 2020" - is that a typo?

No, it's news from last year. It says they started enforcing restrictions on Mt. Seymour road last Friday, but I rode up that on Friday as well as Saturday.

Posted by: Sethimus

did canada fuck up buying enough vaccines for its citizens as badly as the eu or why aren’t most people over there already vaxxed? it’s not like you need to buy much anyways?

If you're comparing the situation to the US, most of the answer is "because we don't manufacture vaccines here". The US used every US-produced dose for their citizens, and still procured them from elsewhere, while we can only rely on the foreign supply chain.

Posted by: Hepcat

Thoroughly enjoyed that. Nice find.

My Stepdad still rides an '85 Kuwahara Cascade from that pioneer era 😅. I take it out annualy and ride Brother's, surprisingly capable and fun with the raked out angles and steel tubes.

I had an 80's Kuwahara mtb as a cruiser bike around 2000. That thing was SO capable, with a slack-AF head angle and monster bars. Not sure what happened in the 90's to make them decide that stability no longer mattered.

I've heard that Shimano Mineral oil is actually in a shortage state in many areas, so alternatives have relevance in these Covid shortage times. That said, I've heard that the alternatives (such as "Clarks" from CRC) suck compared to the Shimano stuff and the viscosity info above seems to point to why. I have been working on my 1L bottle for 3 years now, I service all 4 sets of Shimano brakes in my household, and I'm only half-way through it now. Definitely worth it to buy a big container.

That video is F'n amazing! 1985!!!

Posted by: syncro

Posted by: mammal

Syncro, assuming from that MRI Pic that you lost the right ring finger in the end?

Yeah, when I was in the hospital the doc said they weren't going to bother reattaching it as it was not a very important finger. More importantly tho, because the tendon ripped off from the muscle in my forearm they would have had to slice me open to almost my elbow and there was no guarantee I would regain full function. With that there was a risk that I could end up damaging the finger and my hand again from catching it on something. There's really only two time when it's a bother. One is putting change in my pocket, if I'm not careful it can slip through the gap of a closed hand. The other more noticeable issue is grip strength. My pinky has compensated a bit, but in the gym my grip strength endurance on my right hand is not as good as on my left even though I am right handed. It's not a huge difference, but I do notice it sometimes when I'm doing heavy lifting.

Well, I'm super glad it doesn't bother you much these days. I have to say, picturing that mechanism of injury is one of the most grotesque things that have run through my mind. Absolutely brutal to have to process that level of carnage.

This has been my go-to after work ride lately, while waiting for Fromme to melt. Corkscrew-Pingu-BP-Severed-JD. For me, it's either old buck / BP / mushroom / push up remainder of incline, or else just ride up the road, depending on the day. As things warm up, there's less and less traffic going up to the ski hill, so the road becomes a better and better option. On a nice sunny afternoon without many cars, it's surprisingly pleasant, almost like during the Covid road closure last year.

I had a set of 2-pot SLX brakes, and purchased some Deore 4-pot calipers for them ($90 CAD each). I've got lots of old sets of brakes, and since the Deore calipers don't use the repositionable banjo connection, I needed to use some brake lines from old Shimano brakes to graft them over to the SLX levers. They work great now though, SO MUCH POWER.

I like the SLX levers for the reach adjust, but it would be more ideal to graft on some SLX calipers, due to the brake line compatibility. Or if you've got Deore 2-pot brakes, upgrading the calipers would be a direct change-over to the Deore 4-pot calipers.

Yeah, I use the regional trail conditions on TF all the time, it's super handy. But yeah, sometimes there's gaps in reports and it helps to have all the resources you can. I even use reports from trails with similar topo elevation, consider the various sun/shade/directional influences, and project those reports over to other trails with no recent info.

Posted by: Bushpilot

Posted by: Bushpilot

Snow was starting to stick to the ground at the power lines on Seymour yesterday morning. Any idea if it stuck around / got worse?

Aaaand I’ll answer my own question. Just a whisper of snow on GSM and touch at the power lines as of today at 4:00pm.

To add to this, yesterday the top of Corkscrew was snow covered, melting quickly, with a ridable line through it. Completely clear about 2/3 of the way down, and nothing on Pingu. 

I would imagine the dump on Sunday would have affected Fromme, as it was slushing from the sky at my place on W.Queens.