Since you’re near the harbor, Boston Aquarium is awesome. Lots of cool spots in Cambridge. And after your ride, grab pizza and sightsee for a few hours at  Faneuil Hall.

Way to go, police officers! Way to go…

Now if the prosecutor will use due diligence and prosecute to the fullest extent of the law!

Please email me if interested.

Paul

2 men arrested after carjacking of BHS Mountain Bike Team members

These seem to be the folks responsible for the robberies Maureen covered earlier this month:

Oakland Victims Recount Mountain Bike Robberies and Share How They’re Changing Habits to Stay Safe

I am in the process of creating a training and tracking app with a focus on mountain biking and cycling. I created a very short survey to get an idea of what users are looking for in a training and tracking app and would greatly appreciate any participation!

Here is the link to the survey: https://forms.gle/d8oGiTf13mdBzhMk6

Most people have no idea what a sprag is let alone what the most common use is. Sprags have been used in automatic transmissions for decades. All a sprag is, is a one way clutch made up of roller bearings that travel between two ramped rings. One way, the bearings will go down the ramps and become loose, the other, they travel up the ramps and become tighter with more force applied. These are very smooth and impact free which is misleading. While the sprag is holding properly, slippage is nonexistent however, with an Onyx hub, you can feel the sprag becoming tighter in its grip and holding power.

The sprag engages instantly however, you will feel it getting tighter initially, that does not translate to slippage or additional travel of the pedals before motion of the wheel is occurring.

I have owned my Onyx hubs for several years and frankly, I would not buy any other brand that is trying to enter that price range with a damn ratchet! I run my Onyx on Rocky Mountain trails and have no issue with the hub in any way.

My trials bike is a KOXX Red Sky with a TryAll freewheel, 108 click. I can safely say, that feels sloppy by comparison to an Onyx! Marketing B.S. this is not.

If my pedals move forward, the wheel moves forward and now I need a pile of cash  to have Onyx on all 18 of my bikes!!

Complete noob here trying to learn more about my new bike. I just recently purchased a Cannondale trail 5 2021 model. It came with the Suntour XCM30 coil fork with 100mm of travel for 29in wheels.

First question: this fork does not look like it comes with a lockout as both knob I see on the fork are labeled “preload” with +/- signs. Does anyone know if there is a way to change this/upgrade it and have lockout or must I completely change to a new fork?

Second question: if it must upgrade, is there any recommendations on what a reasonable replacement would be for a newbie? I am not looking to add more travel or doing any hardcore riding. Just easy trail/long rides and have ability to lockout the fork.  The rest of the bike itself feels great, just this fork is driving me crazy.

Thank you

Over the last four years I have replaced other parts due to wear and tear so that all that is original are the rims, saddle, bars and forks.

Now the Suntour Axon forks are worn and have some lateral play so it’s time to open the wallet and replace them I have seen a few RockShox options up to £400.

I am thinking of going from 100mm to maybe 120mm or 140mm but I am not sure if this is a good idea, e.g. will it compromise the geometry with longer travel.

So I need ideas and recommendations please.

I am testing a pair of Keen Jaspers at the moment. They are awesome, real leather and stick to pedals appropriately.

Men's Wildcat – 2021

Any help is appreciated,

Thank you

Start by loosening the stem cap and the stem bolts at the steerer tube end. Then, roll the front wheel back and forth before grabbing the front brake to nudge the fork/steerer into place. Tighten the stem bolts, then the stem cap. Don’t overtighten as this can affect the steering.

I’ve found it takes a bit of trial and error to get everything seated properly without tightening things too much, so maybe others can weigh in with better tips/instructions.

I guessing the the Orbea weighs about twice what the Jett weighs. I suspect that muscling around all that extra weight might be causing some of the discomfort in your upper body.

Another thing to consider is the bar height. You might be able to flip the stem upside down to drop the bars closer to what you’re used to with your Specialized.

I’ve been cycling a good number of years. I have a Specialized Jett HT which I love.  I recently got an Orbea E-bike to keep up with mega fit hubby (though I didn’t think I was THAT slow).  Anyhow, despite being measured and awaiting over 11 months due to Covid, Brexit etc. it has finally arrived and I’m not in love with it.  I’ve been out on a few rides but afterwards I ache, lower back, neck, mid shoulders.  Last time I did a long ride on my Specialized it was about 45 miles and I was weary and tired but not aching.

I’ve done comparative measurements on both bikes and there are many differences.  So I’m trying to figure out what I can nip and tweak to help so that this isn’t a very expensive folly.  This will seem like a very hard Higher Maths question but any advice would be welcome.  If I can do nothing I might have to sell it and after waiting so long, I’ll be a bit gutted and reluctant to try another in case the same thing happens.  The measurements are as follows in cm apart from the angle measurement (remembering that the Specialized causes no issues):

Any advice gratefully received

Is you bike strong enough to handle a 150mm fork? In general, increasing (or decreasing) fork travel by 10mm is fine. However, increasing by 20mm may make it more likely that you will break the frame. I would check with Marin to see what they think. They will likely say that using a 150mm fork will void your frame warranty.

What will a 150mm fork do to your frames geometry? It will slacken they headtube by about 1* which I would say is a good thing. However, it will also slacken the seattube by about 1* which is a bad thing. This will make the bike climb less well.

If it was me I would play it conservative and go for a 140mm fork like a Fox 36, Marzocchi 36 or Rock Shox 35, Pike, Lyric, or Yari. This won’t alter the geometry much while still giving you a bit more travel and will increasing the quality of the fork. The Recon is a pretty low quality fork. Choosing any of the above options should be a good improvement. Even a 140mm Fox 34 would provide a good improvement though not as stiff. If you’re a heavy person, I wouldn’t recommend the 140mm Fox 34.

The Ohio Mountain Bike League is signing up kids and coaches now, check out Ohio Mountain Bike League for teams if you know of any kids in Ohio who might like to ride.   There are leagues all over the United States (both  NICA and other organizations), check it out.

I contribute most of these results exclusively to riding my bikes. The more you ride the longer you will be able too.

for gambling and single track fun stay in Black Hawk!!

I am in the area to go to the Monday April 4th practice round of the Masters golf tournament. Thought why I was there I would ride a little. The person that was going, couldn’t make it, so thought I would post here. I also now have a spare ticket to Monday at the Masters.

Anyone interested in riding or the ticket my email is hig4s@bellsouth.net

Reba has mostly been used on lower or middle-tier forks.  So your fork may not be very good for your riding style and trails.  And, it’s old enough to need service, possibly pretty badly, so it may not be functioning even up to its mid-grade standard.  If you have a good mtb shop around, they could probably do the seal, bushing, and oil service and that might fix it right up.  Or you could try it yourself.  The work isn’t that difficult, but finding the right parts kit can be a challenge, again because of Rockshox’ “naming practices.”

In any event, I suspect that it is your fork that is the problem, whether it was not very good in the first place, or is not working properly.

A little jealous of where you live!  Love that area and go out at least once a year.  Any trail I need to ride on this years adventure out there?  Usually 1st week of October.

Greg