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The BMC urban model looks awesomely nice, but is absolutely not a good theft deterrent! And it needs drops.

No particular models, just whatever newS has trickled through so far. The only particular model (of anything) I was really intrigued by was the return of the GT Edge Ti. Alas, it costs as much as say, a Lynskey frame, so it’s not feasible.

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@KelOnWheels 26402 wrote:

And we should get orange cone-shaped helmets.

Now there’s something that’s distinctive, hi-vis, can be worn all year round and could even be made aero

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I enjoyed the Tour this year (Sagan in the first week and then Voeckler later, lit it up for me) but I agree it was a little disappointing compared to some of the previous recent years where we were perhaps a little spoiled with the close results.

I’d be happy to see Wiggins, either/both of the Schlecks (possibly in a team with Jens Voigt?), Froome, Contador, Nibali, Evans (or whoever BMC end up deciding on, probably van Garderen) all competing on different teams. I was sad that Sammy Sanchez crashed out (and right before the Olympics) – he’s one of my favourites to watch in the mountain stages and Euskatel-Euskadi are usually more interesting in the mountains but they were definitely short staffed this Tour. Since there’s no Olympics next year, might Cavendish go to a different team for the green jersey? That would be a great points battle with Sagan taking the hillier sprints and Cavendish the pure sprints.

Next year will be the 100th Tour de France I think? I’ll miss George Hincapie.

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Standard freaks me out because it always looks so crowded. I’ve never been in. Great place to check out parked bikes though.

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As much as I like goofing off, I don’t know if I’d attend much more than once/fortnight, and more likely it’d be once/month. A good option for me in the summer months would be something that actually combines riding and going to a few different places (CaBi pubcrawl?), although I guess then in theory you can’t drink very much at all.

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@jopamora 26193 wrote:

An interesting DIY project. LED handlebars.

The good thing is there’s plenty of fun LED strip options available that run off 12V thanks to those who like LED lights for their car! But 8xAAs = heavy battery pack, and annoying to replace/change. You can get standalone 12V battery packs though (although they’re still heavy).

Anyway, right now I’m coveting 2013 bikes as new of them trickle in… lots of disc specific CX builds!

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@DaveK 26201 wrote:

Some of the forum kits are pretty cool – I spotted a reddit kit out on the trail the other day and I liked that design a lot.

I saw a Strava jersey this morning on the W&OD and it wasn’t bad either. Although I really had the urge to overtake him.

@Tim Kelley 26172 wrote:

FYI–we don’t make any money off the BA jerseys. We sell them at cost. Even though they are a little pricier than some of the low end generic jerseys you can find, they are high performance.

Coincidentally, they’re the same type of jerseys that the Trek Mountain Biking team used to use a couple years ago. Funny how things like that work out.

Yeah they’re the nice Mt. Borah ones with the full zipper! I just don’t usually spend upwards of $30 on a jersey because I’m not high performance. The nicest jerseys I have are Hincapie brand but I got them cheap (I agree I do find them a little short though).

What about a technical t-shirt or polo shirt? They’d probably be cheaper, and would appeal possibly to a wider crowd. Would people here wear those riding? I don’t actually need rear pockets for commuting, although I do use them.

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I’d prefer a jersey actually although I’ve held off on getting a BA jersey as they’re expensive by my standards, and I doubt a Washington one would come in any cheaper (although I’d still consider it if I liked the design). I like the WABA jersey design better than BA, although the BA is very recognizable. I don’t really wear caps while riding and I’m fussier about what socks I wear (for comfort), and details on reflective bands or socks aren’t visible from anything but close quarters.

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Looks like a sweet ride. My first non-department store/yard sale bike was a Diamondback.

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Sorry to hear about your crash Kathy. I hate those boardwalks too. Heal up!

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For the 500, you can manually set known elevation points. I think when you start a ride, if you are close to it, it will use it as the starting elevation. Not sure if the 200 has the same feature.

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@GuyContinental 25966 wrote:

I’m a pretty big fan of supporting thy LBS but Nashbar has two dang good deals right now on a generic steel 105 touring/commuter
http://www.nashbar.com/bikes/Product_10053_10052_522412_-1___203588

and a generic Force (or Rival for less) road bike
http://www.nashbar.com/bikes/Product_10053_10052_533290_-1___203588

You’d have a hard time buying that Force group (new) for that…

Very true. I had a look at some of their bikes online today. You could always support the LBS by bringing your newly purchased Nashbar bike in for final fine-tuning. Though you might get some side eye.

@lordofthemark 25979 wrote:

Maybe its not being in shape, or knowing the tricks to riding effecitively (I do want to take a class) or its the heat, but I find I get exhausted riding the mountain bike any length, and I don’t go very fast. Last sunday I did a short ride, maybe 10 minutes here in hilly annandale (to get to the bus) than a ride from the Pentagon around to the MVT and then on the MVT to Rosslyn, and by the time I got to Rosslyn I was tired and sweaty. I assume that would have been more pleasant on a lighter bike with narrower wheels.

The first time I ever tried the W&OD/Custis was about 6 years ago when I tried my commute on for size on a weekend. I had a $300 MTB and I was so exhausted, I didn’t attempt riding to work for 3-4 years after that!(only to metro – it was thanks to Bike to Work Day I attempted bike commuting again.)

For a MTB I think the easiest optimization is to get thinner slicker tires, and make sure they are inflated enough. You can get 26″ slicks for <$20 each (they're around 1.2-1.5 inches wide). It's probably not worth the $ trying to lighten a stock MTB. Also make sure your saddle is high enough for decent leg extension. If you happen to have a front shock with lockout it could be helpful to lock it out as well.

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@TwoWheelsDC 25937 wrote:

Although Tiagra is “better” it’s doubtful you’d notice the difference.

Yep, especially for flat bar shifters. If it were dropbar road style shifters I would spring for Tiagra over Sora.

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Steel vs aluminum – the general thinking is that steel is more comfortable and lasts longer but is heavier and can rust, but there are high end steel bikes though that are very light and like any material, the end results vary from frame to frame. The only steel bike I’ve owned was a MTB that was stolen so I can’t really make any comparisons based on experience.

That Charge bike from the pictures does appear to have a fairly aggressive (less upright) set up with the saddle higher than the handlebars which may not be ideal depending on your riding style.

Don’t forget to factor in accessories and maintenance costs. I think I’d rather spend $200 on accessories than on incremental upgrades from low-level to mid-low level components. If you are buying at Performance, they have a “Team Performance” membership. Costs about $30/yr I think, but you get 10% store credit on any purchases including bikes, so it could be worth your while for 1 year if you do spend $600. Performance as well as Bikenetic in Falls Church offer free lifetime basic maintenance with new bikes purchases from them.

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@KelOnWheels 25925 wrote:

It made my knees happy for sure! I had to slow down a couple of times, apparently I think I’m gonna spin like Lance when I grow up (Although I’m pretty sure he actually produces power and not just spinniness. Oh well, one step at a time.)

If it looks bad this afternoon I’ll just hang out in DC and Metro home with the bike after rush hour.

I’d always rather be spinning at 90+ than mashing at <80! My knees have thanked me many times.

A good option. For me, I don’t like hanging around in DC close to work any longer than I have to (and I don’t want to miss dinner – with my young kids we tend to eat around 5:30pm). I think there might be window around 4pm… it’s definitely going to be a Radar/Weather Wall watching afternoon.

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