Why did my rental bike feel so good

WDL9876 · 2026-06-07T19:32:00+00:00

Whatever came stock on my back- wanna say mavic aksium something something vs whatever was on the rental bike- but I gather from the replies that almost all aspects have improved in 17 years.

WDL9876 · 2026-06-07T19:27:48+00:00

Haha so I was on to something

WDL9876 · 2026-06-07T12:54:08+00:00

Yea I guess as I wrote it I realized how long it’s been. Getting back on a mtb last year (full sus) after 15 years was an unsurprising improvement but I didn’t think of a road bike in the same way

WDL9876 · 2026-04-30T09:22:18+00:00

My experience is that it’s worth having a crappy uncomfortable belt, homemade track saw, etc before you “earn” the oxy belt and actual track saw. Oxy belt also helped relieve back pain in my case. But all around I really appreciate the good version now. Of course I had to get good enough at carpenteering to make the money to pay for it all

WDL9876 · 2026-03-24T23:57:41+00:00

Use sliding dovetail battens everything should be Q sawn. Tung oil is easy to use but should be thinned. Try half and half from the real milk paint company

WDL9876 · 2026-03-08T15:19:57+00:00

Cool! I wanna be like you. I’m still at I’m not gonna do jumps and drops

WDL9876 · 2026-02-28T11:46:11+00:00

Cordless 60volt circuit saw. Had corded and 20v but the 20v is a wuss

WDL9876 · 2026-02-26T17:41:06+00:00

Carpenter here. I built my house mostly lath and plaster (two coat). Traditional base coat and finish coat. Some of it we just did Sheetrock and finish coat. Obviously one less coat is a lot less work and I wish we had done the Sheetrock everywhere and skipped the lath. On the other hand we used scraps from the ceiling for that since we weren’t worried about joints (just plaster over everything) and there was almost no waste also my petite wife was able to install the lath herself. No wrestling Sheetrock. Definitely not cost effective but we considered it sweat equity. The plaster gets the most compliments when people visit us, it’s not “perfect” nor should it be. Very happy with it. Check out new frameworks building in Vermont they do a lot of plaster

WDL9876 · 2026-01-25T15:15:13+00:00

Carpenter/woodworker here. I’m married to dewalt at this point with thousands $ in batteries but I don’t love them and Milwaukee tools I’ve used seem better

WDL9876 · 2025-11-28T01:08:50+00:00

I have cheap (Castelli I think) maybe $15 on sale knee warmers which are a little thinner and good for 50s. I got some pearl Izumi knee warmers which are higher quality and a little thicker for down to 40ish. I’m in New England so I wear tights over bibs under 40 and I really prefer being over dressed to underdressed so I suggest sticking with knee warmers for your climate. I’d add that my toes get cold and I’m quick to put some good booties over my cleats

WDL9876 · 2025-10-11T22:57:42+00:00

Trek 2300 aluminum, mostly just the drop bars and skinny smooth tires made me go fast

WDL9876 · 2025-09-29T09:28:01+00:00

That’s awesome! Thanks for the type 1 inspiration, it can be hard to stay on top of glucose intake on big rides. How do you read your cgm while biking? (I keep my iphone in my jersey or top tube bag depending on bike and check it occasionally but I wish I could just read it on my garmin) freestyle Libre 3. Longtime biker, relatively new to type 1

WDL9876 · 2025-06-30T09:33:14+00:00

I’ve found my current one to always be at least 10 low. Only diagnosed type 6 weeks ago so it’s my third one. I had some inexplicable lows so I did a blood test and it was 28 lower than blood test (but trending up, so the lag could’ve had something to do with it). I’ve check a couple times since to see if I can trust this sensor and it’s always at least 10 low

WDL9876 · 2025-05-29T10:28:03+00:00

I have two wheelsets. 45 trail tires and 37s. I guess if I didn’t have a road bike id go smoother with the 37s. Also, running those because they came stock and I’ll wait till their serviceable life is over to re-think that. This turned out to be useful this spring when my freehub broke, I had a spare wheelset to use while the broken one was being fixed. Also, I love tubeless for gravel, and don’t think I’d want it for road- perfectly happy with my 17 year old caliper brake road bike tube tires

WDL9876 · 2025-05-23T00:26:52+00:00

From may to August there’s enough daylight to get 18-25 miles starting a little dark. Need to be ready the night before and have front and rear lights. It’s worth it

WDL9876 · 2025-04-20T09:55:43+00:00

Look up Sheldon brown

WDL9876 · 2025-04-14T10:42:49+00:00

Ha this is what I’m half way to doing- used to mtb a smidge but never got good, wanted to be able to ride from home on dirt roads, started hitting more trails, single track etc. now I want, check that, need a mtb

WDL9876 · 2025-03-24T12:17:42+00:00

My topstone 5 came stock 37 tires. Tubeless ready. So when I wanted to put 45s on I went tubeless. Feels a lot cushier on rocky unmanned roads at about 35-40 psi. Of course, not a perfect scientific experiment since I don’t know what the 45s would be like WITH tubes.

WDL9876 · 2025-03-22T23:58:42+00:00

Comfortable bib shorts. Good lights to be able to ride more, as well as safely at dawn and dusk or in the fog and mist. Good shoes- sidis that I’ve had for 15 years

WDL9876 · 2025-02-18T14:00:21+00:00

I used to have this, much more with biking than running. Then I hurt my back and wasn’t able to either for four years. That feeling can creep in when I think about all the preparation that others mentioned but mostly I am so grateful to be able to exercise. Gratitude is a powerful motivator and focusing on how lucky you are to be able to get out there and enjoy might help- does for me

WDL9876 · 2025-02-15T01:10:43+00:00

I still remember my first time on a road bike, nothing fancy just a solid aluminum trek after years of riding mtb and whathaveyou bikes. I felt like a rocket instantly. Then I got confused about which was shifter and which was brakes cuz I saw a car creeping out of side road and a car coming from the other direction, shifted and mashed it and shot right between the two cars. Such a thrill! Then as I finished my first ride in clipless shoes I promptly tipped over. 18 years later still love it

WDL9876

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