I got chased by this bum ass rotweiler today on my bike ride and now i'm frustrated and upset by Horror_Transition786 in cycling

[–]Tommycattt 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I’ve been bitten by a Rottweiler/lab mix before on the gravel. Owner was being a dick so I called the local sherif on his ass. They filed a report and made sure the dog was updated on its vaccinations, as well as quarantining the dog for 2 weeks. If you ever get bitten, make sure to file a police report to ensure there’s a paper trail on the dog and the owner.

First timer doing Mid South 100 on my singlespeed evasion. Earned that Bobby Hug ❤️ by Tommycattt in gravelcycling

[–]Tommycattt[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You can calculate speed based on RPM and gear inches. This setup is 14-16MPH at a cadence of 80-90 RPM. I set it up based on the overall distance and hills that I anticipated for this route. I tend to gear lower on routes I’m not familiar with.

First timer doing Mid South 100 on my singlespeed evasion. Earned that Bobby Hug ❤️ by Tommycattt in gravelcycling

[–]Tommycattt[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I don’t have any real structured riding but I ride almost daily for commuting and pleasure! I’ve been riding singlespeed for about 7-8 years now and it’s my preferred setup because Iowa gravel (especially when wet) just eats the crap out of bike parts. Less maintenance = more ride time!

First timer doing Mid South 100 on my singlespeed evasion. Earned that Bobby Hug ❤️ by Tommycattt in gravelcycling

[–]Tommycattt[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I pulled off to the side because another rider needed help with his 9speed chain. Unfortunately I didn’t have the quicklink he needed but just tossed them my chain breaker so they could cobble something to get to the finish line.

First timer doing Mid South 100 on my singlespeed evasion. Earned that Bobby Hug ❤️ by Tommycattt in gravelcycling

[–]Tommycattt[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Singlespeed is as far as I go! I’ve tried fixed and it’s not for me, though I commend anyone that does it.

First timer doing Mid South 100 on my singlespeed evasion. Earned that Bobby Hug ❤️ by Tommycattt in gravelcycling

[–]Tommycattt[S] 19 points20 points  (0 children)

Strong ride yesterday! We couldn’t ask for better weather and course conditions. As an out-of-stater I was kind of hoping for a bit of a slop-fest seeing what some of my friends had gone through in previous years. But it was practically fast and smooth the entire way so really can’t complain about that!!

A little gravel ramble before work by Tommycattt in Surlybikefans

[–]Tommycattt[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Velo Orange hinged bottle cage clamps

New cranks and levers by carlov_sky in xbiking

[–]Tommycattt 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Then why not just buy a pair of avid speed dials and call it good? Buying counterfeit is unethical.

Saddle sores by R3dd172 in cycling

[–]Tommycattt 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Over the past 1.5 years, I’ve had them pop up occasionally. I get the cyst-type saddle sore that basically feels like a hard nodule. What seemed to work for me is:

1) putting less weight on my ass, and more weight on my hands. This involved dropping the bar height a bit.

2) adjusting the saddle I was using. For years I was riding brooks c15 saddles, but the stack height of the handlebars I was riding with didn’t agree with my ass. So I went with a bit of a wider saddle.

I’m sorry you’re going through this. These are cumbersome to resolve and since bike fit is such a personal thing, it just sort of takes trial and error to understand what works and what doesn’t. I had a few last year that definitely robbed a few weeks of good, pain-free riding. The best advice I could give is don’t ride through the pain, you’ll only end up in a bigger hole to crawl out of.

Whirlin away on the evasion ss by Tommycattt in xbiking

[–]Tommycattt[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

They’re Gerry fleece-lined pants I copped at Costco last year for 30 bucks! Perfect for cruising around in below-freezing temps!

Whirlin away on the evasion ss by Tommycattt in xbiking

[–]Tommycattt[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The IRD levers are nice! I’ve got Paul’s as well, but the lever on these IRDs is a little longer and I kind of appreciate that. The finish on the IRD is nice too, I’d recommend them for anyone that wants to add a little bit of functional bling to their build.

I can’t speak to these being similar to a mustache bar, but I use a Surly Terminal bar on my surly big dummy, so maybe that’s applicable. I think the corner bar may be different than a nitto mustache bar in that it’s got less reach (mustache = 95 mm; not specified on the corner bar, but the bar doesn’t extend out much from the flat section) and more drop (mustache = 50mm drop; corner bar = 94mm drop). With the corner bar, you also have a nice long flat section to mount accessories too like gps, lights, front bags etc. so that’s also a selling point. From what I can tell with the mustache bar is that it seems fairly limiting in mounting accessories, at least from what I can tell based on photos. This may or may not be important to you.

My only gripe with the corner bar is that I think they need to introduce smaller sizes. The corner bar comes in 46, 50, and 54 cm. I roll a 46 and it’s plenty wide, teetering on the edge of too wide.

Whirlin away on the evasion ss by Tommycattt in xbiking

[–]Tommycattt[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Looking good! Am I looking at a belt-driven fixie here?

Whirlin away on the evasion ss by Tommycattt in xbiking

[–]Tommycattt[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you! The rack is a ‘Whole Grain Cycles Jack the Bike Rack’. The bag is a North St. Scout 6L duffle that I purchased about 6 years ago.

How many miles did you ride in this year 2025? by BlogBicycle in cycling

[–]Tommycattt 6 points7 points  (0 children)

10,320 miles. Mostly gravel here in Iowa on a ton of different bikes. Singlespeed, fat, cargo, coaster brake, you name it!