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@vern 104036 wrote:

The streets in my neighborhood aren’t plowed so I can’t even sneak in a sleaze ride…maybe I could ride loops in my basement.

My sleaze yesterday was me attempting to commute, wiping out and later seeing that my bike light chipped my top tube when the bars spun around (i’m displeased). My neighborhood has also not been plowed (and at this point a plow would do nothing). I’m not sure where I’m going to be able to get a sleaze ride in…. at this point i’m debating riding around in circles in the Vienna Metro Parking deck. Its only a few minute walk from the house, but I will get some really really odd looks.

It feels like I’m iced into some horrid anti-bike universe. Although that probably describes Fairfax for most people all year.

Perhaps the parking lot at the corner of Blake and Lee… Must get my 1.1 in……..

[dplasters]

The bigger problem is that jrenaut is likely not eligible for the LEO discount that Chipotle offers and the reason why they are all there. So ordering for them is unlikely to help.

I drove home along my bike commute route. I’m hosed for at least a day or two, probably all week given the temps. Half the roads were never touched. Pounded down snow/ice everywhere that will freeze solid over the next few days. Awesome job Fairfax County.

Going to need to figure out where and when I can get my sleaze rides in.

[dplasters]

Well, Fairfax didn’t plow or treat Lee Highway, or Virginia Center Blvd or really any road on my route. After eating it twice it was time to turn around and call that a morning.

Got my mile + in, first sleaze ride of FS2015 for me.

2″ of snow on slicks… not a great combo.

But I got to cackle at the 3 BMWs I saw spinning those rear wheels muwahahahahahahaha

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@Tim Kelley 103590 wrote:

We’ve still got a bunch left in our storage room…

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How could one from Fairfax procure such a thing? Are people from Fairfax allowed to use things from the People’s Republic of Arlington?

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Its official, the wind is trying to kill me. My west north west commute home was just dead into the teeth of it.

I look forward to the day that I get a morning commute with a tailwind as strong as that headwind.

But snow tomorrow morning. Which is nice.

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I feel dirty posting this as I was the one driving but…

Date: Saturday – 1/3/15.
To the cyclist in the dark blue/green rain cape just before 7pm doing a U turn in my neighborhood (Circle Woods) with no lights at all and then riding back east on Lee highway, counter traffic, cutting across all seven lanes to then turn right onto Nutley / head towards Safeway. You are insane and scare the crap out of me. You appeared to know what you were doing??? Or at least pulled your insanity with bravado but wow….

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This morning was lovely. Heavier than normal car traffic though. Everyone has to show up today to remind the boss they still work there after almost two weeks of slacking I guess.

The rest of the week….. well….. it might get a little cool. Wishing my drop bars/bar mitts were showing up today or tomorrow and not wednesday afternoon right about now.

[dplasters]

Apologies not accepted.

:p

[dplasters]

@Powerful Pete 103270 wrote:

Hozn, what is that rear light?

Thats my old tail light actually Knog Blinder R. Nope, I went with the slightly cheaper model… so its the classier version of my old tail light.

@Drewdane 103291 wrote:

Questions:

How accessible are the controls, especially on the rear light, to switch modes on the fly?

Can the headlight be easily swiveled on the stem? Alternatively, how easy is it to reach to cover so you don’t blind oncoming traffic on the MUT?

Theres only one big button on the underside of each light. Pretty tough to miss and it only has three options:
Off
Blink
On
I’d think you’d be able to change on the fly pretty easy. Where you mount it on your seatpost (height wise) could make it easier or harder to reach.

I have a threadless stem. I have heard reviews of people with threaded stems sometimes having the light move slightly off line on them. Otherwise by default it will point to where you mount it to point then swivel/turn as you turn your handlebars. You can physically make it turn by hand but it would be tough to do depending on how tight your headset is setup. I wouldn’t attempt to rotate mine without loosening the headset.

I wouldn’t worry a huge huge amount about blinding people (220 Lumens I think?). The light points down (the angle at which it points down is dependant on your headtube angle) and can’t be adjusted short of you bending the actual light frame (which sounds like a bad idea). How close to your bars you mount it would also have something to do with this. If you look at the last image I posted, I have two spacers underneath it which means it is actually just below my bars. It wouldn’t be too hard at all to cover. Much more feasible than the lights that are mounted around the brake area. Assuming you have drop bars or bars that make the flats there available to you, you’d basically just have to drape one of your hands over top of the bar to block light that had a chance to really get in incoming cyclists eyes.

[dplasters]

@jrenaut 103241 wrote:

These have definitely moved up to the top of my Covet List. Thanks for the review.

Do you think they’re enough for, say, riding back to DC from the BAFS kickoff happy hour? It gets DARK along 4MR and MVT. It looks like it would be from the photos.

I think you would be fine if you were to keep to the 15mph “speed limit” i hear people talk about. I think if you were to go faster than that you’d be out running their light. I have a short mup I ride on to get to downtown Vienna and it has no lights and I’ve never had an issue.

@jrenaut 103242 wrote:

Oh, one more request – can we see a well-lit picture, too? I don’t mind silly-looking functional things on my commuter, but the Pinarello needs pretty.

Lets go easy on the handlebars ok? Its a work in progress… I have new stuff on the way. Yes – in the winter I have broken down and added an sks s-blade fender. I had to tape it on.. when I wear shorts I’ve had my shorts flap back far enough to grab the quick release and dump my fender on the road on me. I’m still waffling on if it is worth it.

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More taillight photos

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@dkel 103218 wrote:

As it turns out, it’s hard to come by winter gear in my size this late in the season. So, circle broken! Doesn’t help my cold feet any.

Fret not, my quest for bar mitts has now resulted in the most ridiculous purchasing chain in quite some time.

The logic chain is essentially:
I do not like wearing really big gloves.
I like warm hands.
Bar mitts rock.
Bar mitts do not secure well to bullhorn bars (even the style specifically made for bullhorn bars).
Buy all new handle bars, stem, brake levers, brake cables.
Buy bar mitts that secure well to drop bars.
You now have warm hands and can wear light gloves.

Wait – you just changed all those things because you don’t like wearing your snowboarding gloves while you ride?
Yes.

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@dkel 103175 wrote:

The guy at the shop showed me some shoes that were more like normal shoes, but I just went ahead and got some actual MTB shoes, since I keep normal shoes to change into at my office anyway. I figured the MTB shoes would be about as stiff as I could get, and they’d be able to fit shoe covers more easily than shoes that are better for walking (one of the problems I had with the Keen sandals I had been wearing). Speaking of which, my feet got super cold in those new shoes this morning; much colder than they used to in my sandals (really!). I’m stopping by the shop this afternoon to get some shoe covers!

And so it continues, the circle of cycling purchasing.

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@dplasters 103022 wrote:

Bar mitts are great… they mean I needed to order bar-end brake levers, new brake cable / housing and bar tape. Plus I was able to get a new 11 in 1 Park Tools hex wrench thingy.

$52.13

God bless NashBar.

Change of plans. The bullhorn style bar mitts just don’t attach as well as I’d like. Will return the previous order and…….

Got new drop bars coming, hood style brakes, new stem, new brake cable / hosing and bar tape as well as some black spacers to complete the black and white front end look. Also, returning the bullhorn mitts and switching to the drop bar mitts (which are on Amazon for only $50 so I’ll save $25).

$93.14

Still – God bless Nashbar.

Although their choice of UPS Surepost leaves much to be desired.

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@chris_s 103042 wrote:

I am firmly in favor of splitting infinitives; I was applauding cyclingfool’s trolling. We had another thread go off the rails into a grammar discussion earlier this month.

I’m shocked this is five pages in and still on the rails. Average around here is what? Page two? I am allowed to post here since I’m new to FS. Although the National Weather Service informs me that, on average, the high in the DC area is above freezing all year. So perhaps the more appropriate name is “Sometimes Frozen, but More Frequently Fairly Chilly Saddles: 2015”. Also known as SFbMFFCS.

Let’s talk about bollards.

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