Who rides Mountain bikes in here???

MacLeod

GOT IT!

Woohoo!!!

Made the last installment just a couple hours ago. $502.55 total sale for a bike that retails at $700!!

The downside is I just worked my gonads off today for 12 #*****! hours so Im really tired.

I did get it out in the parking lot of the ole apt complex and cruise around for about 30 minutes.

First upgrade : That thong they give you where a seat normally goes! Yikes this thing hurts! Gonna go out and pick up one of those 12" thick seats very soon!

Stoked!!! Cant wait to hit the trails this weekend. Even gonna cut back on gym time to get my chops back at riding. Im still a little wobbly not having ridden in 10 years.

brettw22

Originally posted by MacLeod
Stoked!!! Cant wait to hit the trails this weekend. Even gonna cut back on gym time to get my chops back at riding. Im still a little wobbly not having ridden in 10 years.

Congrats......but don't get Kamakazi with riding trails if you think you're gonna biff it..........ease into it.

mantis

MacLeod
Congrads Bro. Nice man nice.

As far as the seat thing goes, your going to be sore the first few times out. That goes away. I wanted a new seat my first time out and I stuck with my seat and it's fine now. There are so many other things your going to need before a new seat.

Take it easy your first time out or suffer like I did.

Dan

MacLeod

Well I dun went out and spent another $70 in junk. Well actually these were pretty necessary items. I got the old tool kit and bag, a frame mounted pump, spare tube and patch kit and a bad **** lock. NOW Im set!

Ill definitely take your advice on taking it slow. Like I said, I havent ridden in a while and I was a little unsure last night around my parking lot.

Im about to head down to the Chicamauga Battlefiled Park and go for a ride. They have millions of miles of roads and trails. This should be perfect for me to work on getting my chops back.

billbillw

Damn,
All this talk about mtn biking. I'm gonna have to get mine out and dust it off. Its been sitting for about a year and I think it needs a new tube. Been too busy since buying a house, but the projects are pretty much done for awhile. Time to get out on the trails again. You guys sound just like I was 4 years ago. I spent hours at REI, Sports Authority, and Galyans (now Dick's). Seemed like an endless flow of money for awhile. Shoes, helmet, gloves, bag, water bottles, cages, pump, tools, spare parts, biker shorts, breathable shirts, etc. Finally after a couple weeks, I had everything I needed. Took it out a few times on an easy greenway trail. I thought I was ready for some real trails, so I took it to a "moderate" trail and about killed myself! I was faced with drops, hills, rocks, tree roots, and mud! The bike got completely covered in mud and was never quite as smooth after that. I still have some scars from sprocket scrape. The moderate trail was so extreme in a few parts, I had to carry the bike around. Now I've gotten a little better since then, but I still crash a lot and freak out when I come to a severe incline. I grew up in flat Michigan and these Georgia mtns are a bit too much for me sometimes.
MacLoed, you are in for some serious hills up there. Good luck.

brettw22

Originally posted by billbillw
I thought I was ready for some real trails, so I took it to a "moderate" trail and about killed myself! I was faced with drops, hills, rocks, tree roots, and mud!

LOL.....totally relate.....except, I think by default trail riding in AZ is an EXTREME sport in that if you're not good little bike rider and keep all hands and feet within the 8" width of the trail, you'll be rewarded with cactus of every sort, and many of them don't come out of the skin easily.....

mantis

Well Damn,
Extreme riding that sounds like. Man and I thought our trails where tuff with our hills , drops and twists. O well I'm just enjoying the great outdoors and loving every mile I ride.

I have bruised ribbs...LOL so I haven't rode in 2 weeks. The Doc told me to take it easy for while. My crash was pretty bad. No broken bones but bruised ribbs suck. I'm in constant pain. I even wake up at night and have to sit in our livingroom chair for awhile at 2am. But it was and is all worth it. Battle tuff I will become.

I want to go riding this weekend. My buddies are tring out a new place and I'm dying to go. I hope I feel better by Saturday. It's been 2 weeks and it's still hurting pretty bad. Sucks but I'm keeping faith.

Wish me luck

Dan

nadams

Just don't overdo it, or you'll be out of things for a lot longer than another week!

MacLeod

My Gawd! Fellas Im outta shape in a bad way!

I rode for a little over 2 hours on both roads and horse trails around the park. It kicked my ****!!! Ive been spending too much time working on weights. I could flip a car over on its side but couldnt run to the mailbox without passing out!

I had plenty of torque in my legs, I could crest most hills while seated but it didnt last too long.

Im going to revamp my entire workout regimen. Probably drop about 20 pounds and try to get in better shape. Probably blow off the gym tomorrow as well and go riding again!

Another thing that Brett had mentioned earlier about the Camelbak or whatever its called. That is damn good advice. That little tiny bottle just dont get it!

Have I mentioned that my seat HAS GOT TO GO???! :mad:

We should start a thread for mnt bike trips and post pictures. Ive read that Chattanooga is one of the best mnt bike areas in the country. Tons of mountains and lakes. Im planning on hitting the Harrison Bay Park trail Sunday weather permitting. Its supposed to be beautiful with most of the trail lakeside.

brettw22

It depends on the type of seat that you have, but if you're going to look at a replacement, get a Gel type seat that does NOT have a solid plastic bottom to it......the underside of the seat should be open so the gel can flex through making it much more comfortable.........

Riding does take a different group of muscles, so you've found that just cuz you're weight strong you're not necessarily riding strong.....you'll get there, but there's no need to cut back at the gym...maybe just less weight but same or higher reps etc etc...(i'm fat, but I don't let that stop me from giving advice...lol)

Make sure that you get a Camelbak with at least a 100 oz bladder, and don't guzzle that down quick either....if you waterlog yourself, you'll hurt faster.

GET THE PADDED SHORTS.....even if it does look like you're wearing spandex with the biggest tampon pad you've ever seen.....your **** will thank you.

michael_w

Originally posted by brettw22
.....even if it does look like you're wearing spandex with the biggest tampon pad you've ever seen.....your **** will thank you.

lmao.... true but damn funny the way you put it

mantis

Unless your seat just sucks, you will get used to it and the soreness will go away. Mine lasted about 3 rides then after that It didn't hurt me anymore. I also have biker shorts and they help.


Dan

MacLeod

Im not necessarily cutting out the gym. Ill still be squating 405 and benching 315 for several reps, I just wont be going much heavier. Ill stay in the 8-12 range and thats about it.

Its my stamina thats my problem. Im a 160 pound dude naturally and now that Im 250 my heart and lungs are just overburdoned. Whether its fat or muscle, your cardiovascular systyem doenst know the difference, only that its 90 more pounds of weight it has to deal with.

If I were to drop about 20 pounds of fat and maybe another 5 pounds of muscle I think Id be much happier and able to ride further than 3 yards without needing a break!

Ill give the seat more time. Its supposed to be a pretty good one. WTB SpeedV. Besides, Im out of cash so I cant buy anything else for a while! :mad:

exalted512

Originally posted by MacLeod
Besides, Im out of cash so I cant buy anything else for a while! :mad:

the story of my life
-Cody

swerve

Originally posted by exalted512
the story of my life
-Cody

bleh i think the young are exceptions to that phrase... because well you work at a grocier... and you are in college... you shouldn't be able to by gazillian dollar bikes...

gshisme

Well, I haven't read all the posts here but let me say if you are just starting out or getting back into biking don't worry about....fast. Spin in a lower gear and get the techincals worked out. Worry about being fast later. And suspensions don't mean squat unless you are a crazed downhiller. You shouldn't be on the seat often anyhow.

I used to be a USCF cat 2 road rider which led to mountain bike racing after getting hit once to many times by idiots in cages on the road. I raced in the veteran Norba cat. and it was the time of my life. Much more laid back then the USCF. Damn, a case or two of cold ones was always waiting at the end of the race. Not to mention a rolled controlled substance or two. Ah yes, them good old days!!

Below is a pic of my favorite bike from those days. Giant was building bikes for many different manufactures at the time and this is one of the early Giants marketed under their own name. I built all my own wheels for all my bikes then including this Giant.

By the way, nice bikes guys. Any "bike shop" bike is quite adequate for general riding.

gshisme

And my "street racer" from way back when...

mantis

Nice man,
a buddy of mine just bought a Giant mountain bike. It's really nice. I like my Gt but I think my next bike will be a Specialized.

Dan

MacLeod

Specialized are getting to be as mainstream as Trek these days.

That doesnt mean theyre crappy bikes, just that I like to have stuff that not everybody else has.

Thats why the main manufacturers I was looking at were Raleigh, Fuji and Giant. All of those are a little more rare and I think thats a cool thing.

brettw22

Not singling anyone out.....I've read a few bike websites where people have been outright arrogant about the brand they ride.....

Bike elitists crack me up......

A bike's a bike's a bike when it has 2 wheels and brakes.....the big differences between brands is the add-ons mostly (much higher end is frame quality etc, but ya know)

MacLeod

Hell bro, thats in everything.

Bikes, audio, cars. You name it. There will always be the zealots out there that claim "if you dont owm Brand X you aint ****!" Its especially funny in bikes tho cause they all have virtually the same components on em!! How can a Giant suck and a Trek rule when they both have Shimano Alivio drivetrains???

Car audio used to be real bad about it but now there are so many quality manufacturers around its not as bad.

Sometimes tho its kinda opposite. Take JL Audio. They started out as a humble little sub maker and clawed their way to the top by putting out standard setting products. Now theyre on top and all of a sudden there are tons of people that hate em. Go to any car audio forum and start a thread "I love JL" and just sit back and watch the flames. I dont get it.

gshisme

Originally posted by MacLeod
Its my stamina thats my problem.

MacLeod, when on the bike, spin buddy, spin. Just use the lower gears...always. It may feel strange as hell but it will improve your cardiovascular system. The same with the weight room. Lower weight...more reps. This will also help ya to lose a little of that weight. And give that seat a little more time. As was mentioned, bike pants mean the world as far as comfort goes.

mantis

I noticed the Brand X thing 2 in other bike forums. As said, it's there no matter what your into. People like what they buy and think everyone else should have it or they suck.

I like many different bikes. Trek , Giant , GT , Specialized . Cannadale , Diamondbacks and Mongooses.

When I was into BMX, Mongoose, Skyway , Hutch , Diamondback , GT ruled the streets and the tracks. Today they are all considered low to mid end bikes in Mountain biking. Funny but true. What can you do.

I did a very difficult trail today in Mercer County. It had many trees down in the trails that people setup for jumping over, climbing over and what have you.

mantis

I noticed the Brand X thing 2 in other bike forums. As said, it's there no matter what your into. People like what they buy and think everyone else should have it or they suck.

I like many different bikes. Trek , Giant , GT , Specialized . Cannadale , Diamondbacks and Mongooses.

When I was into BMX, Mongoose, Skyway , Hutch , Diamondback , GT ruled the streets and the tracks. Today they are all considered low to mid end bikes in Mountain biking. Funny but true. What can you do.

I did a very difficult trail today in Mercer County. It had many trees down in the trails that people setup for jumping over, climbing over and what have you. I couldn't get past 9 miles an hour due to the twisty turns and logs. Fun as hell and I got a good cardio workout from it.

Dan

gshisme

Originally posted by mantis
I did a very difficult trail today in Mercer County. It had many trees down in the trails that people setup for jumping over, climbing over and what have you. I couldn't get past 9 miles an hour due to the twisty turns and logs. Fun as hell and I got a good cardio workout from it.

Dan, I'm eating my heart out.

MacLeod

Im heading down to Harrison Bay State Park tomorrow to try out their trail. Its a 5 mile loop around the lake. This ought to be very scenic! Looking forward to it.

My wifes wanting to go so I didnt want to without her. She hasnt bought a bike yet cause she just had to have a new $350 cell phone :rolleyes: so I couldnt go anywhere cool til she gets one. :mad: :mad: :mad:

But my dad has like a million old Huffy bikes so I went and scarfed one of his for her to ride so I could go ride tomorrow. Yipee!

Ill be taking the camera so Ill hopefully have some scenery worth taking pictures of. If so Ill start a dedicated thread to mountain bike trips. I think that would be cool.

mantis

Very cool man,

I was thinking of the same thing. Start it up after your ride and I'll add some pic's from my next ride.

Both my kids have bikes and my wife I need to get her one. We are going on Vacation to the Islands next week but when we return, it's the first thing I'm doing.

Dan

MacLeod

Man, just got back from riding. I had an effing blast!!

Rode for 3 hours and wanted to go another couple but the missus was ready to go. :mad:

Id forgotten how much I loved riding!!!

Audio has just taken a back seat to mountain biking on my list of passions (like I really needed something else to spend money on)!

mantis

Nothing wrong with having multible hopbbies.

Mountain Biking is awesome fun. Awesome workout as well.

Dan

mantis

Just got in from Punta Cana Lastnight and couldn't wait to get home to ride. I had a wonderful time there.

This morning I went on a 15 mile ride at my favorite place, Penny Pack Park in Phila, Pa. The weather is so different here then down there. Down there the heat is well hot and here there is a cool in the air. It took me a bit longer to get a good sweat going which I was suprised how fast you get used to your climate.

I love going on vacation but man I didn't work out for a week. I felt like a lazy bum laying around at the pool, then down the beach, looking at all the topless european chics, drinking Rum like it's going out of style.

I know this isn't exaclty on topic but man it was so nice to hit the trails.

Dan