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Yeah, I tried the American Classics, easy to install tubeless, no worries holding air, no punctures. I just hated the way they rode, zero suppleness, heavy and they wear out quickly. I went back to my tried and trusted g-one all’s and have been very happy with them as always.
Did a 60 mile ride from our house over the weekend and connected some forest service roads into a big loop. We had a 25 mile stretch where we didn't see another person.
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Dabbled in bikepacking for the first time this weekend with a little 25 mile (each way) overnight jaunt down the coast from my front door. I was on an XS gravel bike and my buddy was on a singlespeed with very little bags but we made it work pretty well. Good shakedown for getting everything in place and planning for bigger adventures. XS Frame and small dropbars is bikepacking on hard mode :rolleyes2 Saw a bunch of Whales and a few Alpacas so that was fun. Good mix of gravel, road, and bike paths.
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I went ahead and ordered a pair of GK SKs through the LBS for the next few months of training with the intention of adding the Tufos later. Can you let me know when you get yours and what you think of them when you do?Quote:
Originally Posted by jdadour
Good call. I often always go back to my SKs when I'm in between other tires, or just want to make it a no brainer tire decision. Have them in a 43, and and 50 for my wider wheelset. Hoping to get the tufos by the fall! Will definitely report back!Quote:
Originally Posted by sethschmautz
This summer going to try out the Vittoria Terreno 2.1, and Vittoria Mezcal 2.1 as my "big tire". I'm lucky enough to have a frame that can fit 52-53mm tires.
Not gonna clutter up the forum with a thread for a niche product, so here it is... For sale:
Sinewave Revolution - $80 shipped within USA
New, never used or installed. This is a USB charger that gets wired to your dynamo hub and allows charging of devices or a battery bank while riding.
Link to manufacturer site for specs and details: https://www.sinewavecycles.com/produ...ave-revolution
SON Edelux II Dynamo headlight - $140 shipped within USA
Used on a handful of trips. I found I prefer my helmet mounted light instead of a handlebar light so I haven't been using this.
Includes handlebar mount, quick connect cable, and some misc connectors. The cable allows for easy disconnect if you want to remove the light or your front wheel from the bike.
Being German design this light a beam pattern designed to cut off at the top to avoid blinding other riders/drivers (similar to car headlights), but is also brightest at the top where you need the light as it provides better illumination at further distance down the trail.
The light does dim and flicker a bit at low (hike a bike) speed but I found it sufficient at that pace most of the time without the need for turning on a headlamp.
Link to vendor site with specs and details - https://www.peterwhitecycles.com/sch-hl.php
http://www.habventures.com/photos/Fo.../RSinewave.jpg
http://www.habventures.com/photos/Fo...r/RSon_box.jpg
Biggins, Goniff, and I started the VTXL in Canaan last Saturday (https://bikepacking.com/routes/vtxl/).
I’m sorry to report that only one of us made it to Massachusetts. biggins and goniff were undone by injuries along the way. biggins got some serious chafing early on and goniff crashed on the 2nd to last day and reinsured his thumb to the point he could t ride.
As challenging as this route is, it does highlight the beauty of Vermont from end to end.
Day 1 started with me loading my bike into a bus for the ride south. It was dark and raining for my 5am cycle to the station.
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We rented a Uhaul in Bennington and went full Sanford & Son north from Williamstown, MA. We dropped the rig off in Colebrook, NH only 6 miles from the start of the route.
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Day 1 we pedaled 50 miles and 4000’ vert (all figures are approx) to Island Pond.
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to be continued once I get better reception…
Cool trip, thanks. I look forward to the rest!
Ms CE and I had planned to do the VTXL in Sept but then we ended up buying tickets to New Zealand, so we're planning a few weeks of bikepacking there....
Day 2 we left Island Pond. biggins decided to head off route so goniff and I started cycling. We eventually ended up pedaling 70 miles and 7500’ vert ending up at a very interestingly named pond. biggins had secured us a great campsite where we were invited to join their potluck dinner.
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Day 3 we left East Ryegate on the most challenging day of the tour. 44 miles and 6200’ vert. biggins wisely decided to head to a friends while goniff and I went into full grinder mode.
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Luckily we found places to cool off too.
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We found a wild camp deep down an ATV trail.
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It had full facilities.
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continued below….
Day 4 started a little greasy.
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We pedaled 42 miles and 4200’ that day. The rain started just around the time the roads really went to shit.
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Luckily biggins had secured us a hotel room so we had a chance to hose off outside before even walking into the room.
We headed off on Day 5 as a trio on some great class 4/horse trails.
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continued…
I know Biggins tapped out from injury, but he sure does seem to have the right idea for this trip. Ride some, visit a friend. Ride a bit more, get a hotel. My kind of bike tour.
biggins wisely knew the terrain and left goniff and I to finish out the day on the VTXL. 55 miles and 6700’ vert was enough to get our attention. Luckily we stopped by a great general store (well known to many ECRC mags) for lunch.
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goniff and I had encouragement knowing we would end up at MNIAW’s place where he and his wife were terrific hosts. Thanks again, man.
On day 6 the three of us headed out and biggins pealed off as his home is a short ways off the route. goniff and I started our long climb up and over the back side of Stratton. But not before goniff took a dip in the stream.
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The climb is real.
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Unfortunately on the downhill back to the gravel, goniff took a tumble and re-injured his thumb which meant he had to ride the huge hill down to East Arlington without being able to use his front brake. We found a gennie and the first aid began.
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goniff realized his ride was over and called for a lift. The campground we had planned on staying at told me they couldn’t take me so I kept cycling and thanks to biggins I found a bootleg site in the woods of Bennington.
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My day ended with 53 miles and 4100’ elevation.
It was a solo trip to take a run to the border on Day 7.
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I rode my bike back to Bennington to catch a bus back up north and after 31 miles and 2700’ elevation the cycling was over.
^^^Beast. Good times homie. Well done.
Some more randos:
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Great trip report and glad everyone had a reasonably good time despite some set backs. Heal up, Goniff.
You said it, not me :). That said- next summer, 9 days instead of 7, no excuses. Peruvian and Goniff crushed.Quote:
Originally Posted by Supermoon
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Hey BB, how is this filter working out? Has the flow rate kept up reasonably well? I just scored one and am thinking of using this instead of the mini but for backpacking, not really bikes. How's it working without O-rings?Quote:
Originally Posted by babybear
Just my first impressions of it:
Feature wise, the filter has everything I wanted which was basically a) close in speed to a sawyer squeeze (the gold std, i think, for these fiber filters) and b) two female 28mm threads BUILT IN. I also like that it does not come with extra parts that I didn't need. You get just the filter and two caps for the nipples. 22 bucks, comparable to the MINI; the squeeze is usually around 40. Going SMART/LIFE bottle to bottle is money with the threads on both ends.
Obviously, it has a nipple on both sides for in-line use.
It doesn't use o-rings for the threads but it uses a shape that so far has sealed well for Smart/Life bottles. Hard to say if that will keep working well, but it seems like a solid enough design.
Initial testing with just tap water shows that it is at least double the mini flow rate, which, for me the mini hasn't really slowed down with backflushing. It seems more relaxing/comfortable to drink with it screwed to a bottle compared to the mini, since the flow rate is better. However, its a bit more awkward because the threads kind of block the nipple a little bit. The threads on the output end will let water pool if you squeeze an upright bottle so a little will drop down your chin when you take a drink.
Looks like it would be respectably fast tied straight to a CNOC or Evernew for gravity (still maybe faster with a hose, but I don't like to bring a hose and extra parts very often).
I weighed it after use but after drying it out for 1 day and it checked in at 77 grams. Obviously its larger than the mini, which i think is still the lightest in-line/28mm style at 1.77 oz, after use but after drying for 1 day.
Anyway, the device seems pretty legit unless it just bogs down a ton faster than the squeeze. I'm willing to deal with backflushing more frequently to avoid bringing fucking extra couplers and shit.
Cheers!
ETA: I see people like to list the Squeeze at 3.0 Oz but my buddy and i weighed a brand new one the other day and with the plastic cap, but no other accessories, it was 2.31 or thereabouts, significantly less than three. I doubt saturating it adds .7 oz. More than the trusty mini, but I think those are getting ditched for better flows even by some "UL" peeps.
It hasn't seen a ton of use, but it's been holding up well. I haven't tried using it (or any) inline, and when things look particularly funky I try to prefilter with some cloth. At times the lack of o-ring leads to leaking with the cnoc bag I'm using, but it's worked well for me when directly on a bottle. I too dislike all the extra plastic stuff that Sawyer tries to bundle.Quote:
Originally Posted by Jong Lafitte
And a photo from last week. Kicked my own ass and Baby Bear eventually picked me up when I needed to tap out.
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Ended up pulling the trigger on some Tufo Thundero 44s from a euro site. Great exchange rate right now made for a good deal.
Got out on them for the first time this morning on a quick ride. Im 175lbs and did 34/35psi. Mine weighed 480-485 grams, and since they are on the lighter end of the spectrum for their width I opted to run them with the Tubolight gravel inserts at about 35 grams each. Seemed worth adding a little weight for the benefits.
These things are FAST, and supple. Very smooth and composed. Not sure how much the inserts are contributing to that, but im sure most of that is the tire. Grip seems good, as it should with that tread pattern, but no solid verdict on that yet until i get them on real long descent.
- Faster than the riddlers.
- Seem to have better side knobs than the GK SKs, which is what I have always wanted from that tire.
Very positive feedback so far!
My Crux Expert 56cm came in a about a week ago, w/XTR pedals and two cages, set up tubeless at 18.7lbs! Bike is totally sweet, climbs and descends like a dream. This is the matte green with sliver letters. Did a 75 mile ride today, comfortable and noticeable light going uphill at the end of a 5 hour ride. My first bike with electric shifting, it’s ridiculous how good it is. I’ve dropped the stem and raised the post since I took these shots. Pretty much dialed now.
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How much are you asking for your Renegade?
Gave it to a buddy
Good on ya!Quote:
Originally Posted by buttahflake
As much as I hate the big S…that’s one great looking bike! Congrats!
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Which site?Quote:
Originally Posted by jdadour
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I got them in Bike24 for a great price, but they are out of stock now. These tires are hard to find!Quote:
Originally Posted by sethschmautz
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