Bar-ends

(photo courtesy of www.diaryofamountainbiker.com)

Just like riding a bike, you can't forget some things.

I stopped using bar-ends a number of years ago. It happened like this: When I started riding mountain bikes, flat bars (with as little bend as possible--3 degrees was about as small as you could find) on fully rigid bikes with short chain stays (for climbing) was the thing. Somewhere along the way, someone decided that if they invented bar-ends and attached them to the end of these flat bars, we'd all be a lot better off. Of course, standing up and pedaling was no big deal back then. No one worried about "bob" or other suspension-related drawbacks.

Um, do I sound old?

Anyway. Bar-ends. Right. So someone invented them and we all got excited over them and the manufacturers jumped on board to make a few extra bucks and before we knew it, everyone used them. Then, for some reason I can't quite pin down, flat bars were no longer the thing. (Actually, before flat bars were the thing, riser bars were it. Yes, full circle.) I don't know if a bunch of road cyclists started to cross the great divide and ride mountain bikes or not, but I do know that everyone suddenly realized that with riser bars, big suspension and the trend to all things "hard core", everyone realized that bar-ends didn't look cool. Or something.

Thus, with the inexplicable rise of, um, riser bars, came the almost total demise of the bar-end. Not really gone, but certainly neglected and hardly used. I, myself, being not quite as much of a retro-grouch as this post might imply haven't had riser bars on my bike for a number of years.

But, in anticipation of a long (in time, not distance), slow ride, I decided to borrow from James some Ergon GR2 grips--with integrated bar-ends. I knew that hours in the saddle without hardly any effort would lead to numb hands and wrists. I really like the Ergons. They perform exactly as designed. They're comfortable and really help prevent any sort of wrist issues that come from bad positioning--something hard to avoid if you're exerting almost no effort throughout a monotonous 5-hour ride.

What surprised me about having the Ergons on my mountain bike wasn't the comfort of the grips, though, (that is one of those unobtrusive benefits) it was how quickly I went back to using bar-ends. I didn't even have to think about them. It was natural enough for me to switch to them when climbing or standing up out-of-the-saddle.

They're off again now (my slow ride is over), but not because of how they looked (not entirely, anyway). No, the main thing I didn't like about them was how it made my handlebars (and grips) virtually more narrow because of the bar-ends. I'm used to having my hand right at the end of the bar, and I almost felt cramped to have that bar-end snuggling up next to my pinky finger.

New Beam Shots

It's been a while since I posted some beam shots and, frankly, I've been meaning to get to these for some time. I can tell you this, though, in the winter, fog is a problem. Now, in the summer, it turns out that bugs are an issue. Long exposure times lead to some interesting patterns. If only I could train a bug to spell out something...

I've been using the SlickRock 900 off and on (swapping it with various LEDs) for the last few months--more than expected to, before getting beam shots up, to be honest--and it's about time I let you see what its beam was like. Without the bug effects.

NiteRider claims 900 lumens for this bad boy, and certainly punches a hole in the dark. How does it look compared to the LED lights that claim similar outputs? I rounded up the DiNotte 800L, Lupine Wilma and, just for fun, the Lupine Tesla. The SlickRock uses a reflector and of these 3 LED lights, only the Tesla has a reflector. I thought it would be interesting to see how the stack up. For reference, the claimed lumes are 920, 800 and 700 for the Wilma, 800L and Tesla, respectively.

First up, the Wilma:


Quick aside: My usual tripod arrangement was out of commision, so I was using a tripod that did not allow my to elevate my camera as high as I would normally. This necessitated my moving the camera to get the best picture, rather than leave the camera in one place, as I've done in the past. The camera settings were the same throughout the shoot, as was the position of the lights themselves.

Next up, the 800L:

Finally, the Tesla:

The biggest difference between the HID and the LED lights was in the beam patterns. The LEDs show a nice smooth even light. The HID has a very bright center, then a dark ring, followed by the peripheral lighting.

The amount of SlickRock seems to be brighter than any of the LEDs and has more light up close than either the 800L or the Wilma--both of which have very similar beam patterns, a nice broad swath of light without a focused hot spot.

The Tesla has a very similar, albeit cleaner, beam pattern to the SlickRock. I think that this highlights the differences between the normal LED optics and reflectors.

Casting Stones

This Spring has not been kind to me. I mean, it isn't even Spring anymore. Somehow it's already Summer. And I'm not in any kind of shape yet. I gained weight--somewhat inexplicably, I might add--sometime around the end of December, and haven't been able to lose it.

Though I've tried to get going and get in shape. Nothing seemed to work.

Last week I think I found the culprit. (And I'm relieved to find out it wasn't due to my own laziness and over-eating. That would've been even harder to solve.)

Wednesday, I was crippled with the worst pain I ever felt. Completely knocked me flat. Only hardcore meds distributed via IV helped me through the pain. I was diagnosed with a kidney stone 4mm x 9mm large. So large in fact, that it was too big to pass. HUGE, I tell you. Though I was out for the procedure, it went well and I got to feel every minute of the recovery.

Today, I think I'm finally past most of the pain and discomfort. I'm almost back to normal. I'm ready to get out and ride again.

Without the added weight (and pain!) of that rock, I figure I'm probably already in top shape again, too.

12 Years Old

The other night I was riding on the trails near my house. I ride there often and it feels like I know every root, rock, turn and climb. They aren't technical trails, but they are close by, enabling me to ride off road as easily as I can ride on the road.

In the winter I'm usually on my 'cross bike. When I want to get a good work out, I lean towards riding my road bike. When I want to have fun, though--to play if you will--I ride my moutain bike.

So, getting back to the other night...

We rode up a gravel road to a ridge and then came down Water Bar trail. We then hit the trail pictured at the right.

I was having an inordinate amount of fun. I found myself launching off of any and every bump in the trail (launching = 1 to 3 inches of air), swooping in the corners, and very nearly laughing out loud and the joy of being on my mountain bike. Does this happen to anyone else? I seriously felt like I was 12 years old without a care in the world. I was on my bike and that was all that mattered at that point. I was jumping and grinning ear from ear.

That's why mountain biking is better than road biking. I never, ever feel 12 on my road bike. Dont' get me wrong, I have fun on my road bike, and I enjoy riding it, but it never feels like playing. Nearly every time I'm on my mountain bike, though, at some point in the ride, I get to jump. I get to wheelie. I get to do the things I did on my bmx bike as a kid.

Tonight there is another night ride scheduled. I'll be riding on some singletrack that is new to me. And it's local. I'm going to have fun... I'm going to play and I'm going to be 12 years old again.