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Your opinion has been registered (duly and often). You don't need to keep reminding us, however it's obviously your prerogative. All the best.

Always a pleasure, amigo. Don't think we've ever had a bad one, but that sure was a good one.

Nice one, Mike. That was a memorable one, indeed. Would love another crack at those twitchy trails on a bike I knew better but will always fondly remember our first ride together.

Happy holidays, Barry.

Can't argue with the sentiment but if the only alternatives are other plastic bottles, it's moot. WPL was working on an environmentally friendly package but I think Covid interfered. 

I'm not sure MUC Off products in general hold up well when you dig into the ingredient lists. 

All these questions and feedback are making their way back to WPL however and I'll see if we can get some of these questions addressed.

Dude. Amazing. Zurich is terrific as is having PR status in Schweiz.

Thanks for chiming in, mrbrett. It's a big part of the challenge to take technical info like this and present it in a digestible way without diluting the facts. If you know of any other goo sources of info on this stuff, please feel free to post them for others to see.

Curious about this magic spreadsheet you speak of...

Is it because they seem 'pinned' to the bottom of the insole above them? I recently had that issue with a pair of winter shoes I'm testing, so I installed the cleats just tight enough and used a hammer to (not-so-gently) persuade them to get to their new home all the way back in the track.

I've reached out to them. Had heard of them before but haven't had any contact. We'll see if they reply. Another brand worth checking out is Northwave - they have an extensive offering of winter flat and clipless shoes, but they switch Canadian distributors every few years so it's hard to track them down. They are, however, great shoes (and I think they may be the ones manufacturing Crono's shoes).

I don't follow - but that's probably because I don't know who this is...

Posted by: Ride.DMC

Posted by: Vikb

People do this weird thing [I've been guilty of it in the past] is to find a place to live that they don't actually really want to be and then spend all their time driving away from it to be better places. The solution is to live where you want to be.

I don't necessarily agree with this.  I like going to the North Shore to ride my bike, but I would not want to live there.  Plus there is the 'grass is greener' phenomena - regardless of where you live you will eventually tire of the local amenities and want to branch out.  It's human nature.  I like being centrally located to lots of great riding areas that I can travel too easily.

The personal calculus on that can for sure go in both directions. I used to live at a great place on 17th and Yukon (2001-04 and again in 08). Good neighbourhood, close to a huge variety of restaurants, bars, and green spaces, and truly central within Vancouver. But every time I wanted to go riding on the shore - which was 3-4 times a week - I had to load up the car, dodge traffic on one bridge or the other, ride and return...every ride was a 4-6 hr adventure. When I was young, that wasn't the end of the world but even then the time commitment didn't feel sustainable (to say nothing for gas and in the interim traffic got way worse of course). Eventually I realized that as much as I liked being close to the city, I probably only really wanted or needed to be there 2x per week, whereas I wanted to ride way more than that. Moving to the shore allowed me to ride more with less effort. Easy. But for other people's lives, the opposite could be true.

In May my wide and I moved to Sechelt for all the same reasons that Niels is considering TCV and others already moved to the island. For us, the island was too far away from the lower mainland and Sechelt --> Van or North Van is not a bad day trip for work. Not to derail the thread but for those considering a move out of the lower mainland, but still want the proximity (and can't believe the prices in Squamish), the Sunshine Coast is turning out to be a very good option. We love it here. It's way different than North Van, but many of the things we loved about the North Shore are also present here.

Bottas was just a guest on the Beyond the Grid podcast, which is always a good listen but I thought his interview was interesting. He's either incredibly misunderstood (and doesn't seem to care that much) or one of the best at hiding his true self in an interview. I doubt it's the latter. Always had mixed feelings about him but came away with more respect for sure. Hard to deny he has one of the worst/hardest jobs in F1 as Lewis' teammate. Will be interesting to see how George does in that seat next year - not to mention how Bottas and Alfa Romeo make out.

Posted by: earleb

Posted by: grambo

Have definitely seen the turds blasting up Mountain Highway and Old Buck on turbo mode with head down not acknowledging others (some must be self aware and realize they will not be received kindly).

Why do people get their panties in a wad about riders not acknowledging others??? Every rider on the trail isn't yer bud we don't all need to be friends.

Motorbikers on the road, Jeep drivers, Land Rovers, even most road riders like to give quick waves. I do it in my neighbourhood when I'm out walking the dog, just to make sure people know I'm a friendly presence. 'I see you' is the main point, not 'let's stop and talk about the weather or make useless chit chat'. It helps with community spirit and I think most people appreciate being seen and acknowledged. I totally understand some people like to get in their own little zone when they're on a ride sometimes, but I don't think it's too much to flick a quick wave, tilt your head, wink, whatever.

And if someone has just pulled over to let you pass, no matter what you're both riding (or if one is a hiker, etc) I think it's even more important.

Posted by: tashi

Yeah with the one I rode, while it got me access to more descents in the same time with only slightly more effort the descending  wasn’t nearly as good (slower too). On those trails I’d way rather ride a regular bike and shred harder.

Both climbing and descending, I find that speed and enjoyment varies depending on terrain on an e-bike. 30-40% faster overall on average checks out for me (maybe slightly higher) IF I'm going up something like the climbing trail on Fromme...your gains aren't as drastic on slower, technical trails, whether up or down. Where you can realize more speed gains are when you're on climbs like Mtn Hwy (or roads, of course) and riding down trails like Bobsled or Expresso - you have extra acceleration out of corners and don't lose as much maneuverability because the turns aren't as tight and sections aren't as technical.

However, up the climbing trail and down Executioner to Dreamweaver, you gain less time on an e-bike. If there's traffic on the climbing trail I go up extremely carefully and do my utmost to wait to even ask to pass until it's a good time. Honestly, I'll sit back there as long as it takes. Buddy up front is working hard on their regular bike - I've been there, I don't need to be the prick trying to get by as fast as possible. 

Having now been passed by plenty of e-bikes on Fromme and Seymour, I can say it's irritating when they're not courteous - I've noticed this more on Seymour lately, where every time out there seem to be quite a few e-bikes going by on the climbs and not only are most of them not waiting patiently or asking to pass, they're also not saying hi, thanking me or even acknowledging my presence. If you're an e-biker reading this, please take note: whether you like it or not, you're part of many other trail users' early impressions of e-bikers, and it IS partly your responsibility to be thoughtful and courteous so you undo people's preconceptions. It's up to regular riders and hikers, too, but e-bikers are the new kid on the block, so they have more work to do. This is not just noobs, either - some of these riders look like they know what they're doing, but they're mentally checking out when they get on the e-bike, and it's not helping the issue.

Posted by: rnayel

Posted by: Mic

Read through the thread and had to think of Kitsbow, are they producing in BC?

Old Fort, NC

Right. One thing they are doing that's unique in the apparel world, though, is producing many of their pieces to order. Their stuff is pricey but they're taking lots of steps to reduce the waste that is so common in the apparel industry.

I think I can add some useful info to this thread. 

First, I'm also a big fan of photochromic lenses. I've had great luck with Smith and Ryders and most recently, these shades from Julbo: https://www.julbo.com/en_ca/segment

For north shore/heavily forested conditions, particularly in winter, even the 'clearest' photochromic lenses usually have a small amount of tint that inhibits a bit of light, so when it's really dark/crappy and wet, I go with a full clear lens (I never find myself wishing I had a tinted lens - even on the ride home - btwn October and March anyway).

Lenses and their coatings can get saturated - even Ryders' vaunted antiFog has its limits, and you'll meet those limits while climbing through wet conditions on a colder day. So, if the ride involves a climb first (don't they always?) I'll begin with the glasses inside a lens bag, in a pocket that won't get wet or see pass-through condensation. In other words, NOT a jacket pocket, back jersey pocket, etc. Hip bag/pack all the way. Pull them out for the descent, and the antifog coating will be intact and you've given yourself a head start. Use that lens cloth to dry/clean them periodically, then stash it in a dry pocket.

Stashing on the helmet when climbing is convenient if you can pull it off, but works a lot better for roadies or fast rides, otherwise the heat coming off your head will outmatch the air flow and your glasses will be fogged up. Again, in warmer conditions you'll have better luck, but below about 15 degrees C, it's tough to manage. A roadie trip that does work, however, is clipping the glasses to the back of your jersey or jacket. They won't be subject to ventilation or condensation. They can still get wet back there but it's not too bad, they'll stay in place for mellow riding, and you won't likely forget them there. They're also easy to get at if you decide you want them on while climbing.

Public parking in the Dempsey/Braemar area has been restricted to the north side of Braemar for quite a few weeks now. Residents only on the south side. It's been busy, but when the packed up cars are focused across the road from the residents, that at least provides a bit of a buffer. And the packed area doesn't extend too far away - you can park 300 meters down the road and have all the room you want.

Unsurprisingly this thread strayed a bit from the original question but it's been a good read. 

The poll is flawed, though: you need to include an option stating that the respondent feels as safe riding in the US as in Canada. Instead it goes from 'only when choosing a riding location carefully' to 'feel safer riding in the US than in Canada'. In any case I realize the poll is secondary to the question. 

I think it's an interesting topic and a use case outside the typical assumption for gun use - at least to people outside the US, whereas for many Americans this question probably doesn't seem out of the ordinary at all. Personally, I've been traveling to the US very frequently since I was very young and can count the number of times I've felt unsafe on one hand: one of those was when driving in Palo Alto and a wrong turn had us driving through a neighbourhood complete with several porches filled with guys that looked like gang members drinking Olde English in the middle of the day. We definitely missed the turn to Stanford. The irony of it all wasn't lost on us, once we had a chance to exhale and laugh about it. 

Anyway, I understand why people feel unsafe in the US but I also think it's irrational. Life is inherently unsafe and driving a car is the most dangerous thing you do on a daily basis. Of course there are dangerous people and your chances of being shot are higher in the US than Canada, but a high number of gunshot wounds are also either self-inflicted or caused by a weapon owned by the injured. Don't carry and your odds reduce significantly. 

But I also understand the American psyche and the attitudes and history that shaped the ideas around self-determination, guns and freedom, having studied it in university and being fascinated by American history for some time before and after post-sec. 

What's funny though is that despite all my time spent down there skiing, riding and golfing - often in remote places - I never encountered the discussion of carrying a gun while riding until about 5 years ago. We were in rural Oregon and bumped into a few fellas also out riding and we ended up shutting back up together. They were friendly and showed us a few trails. We had fun. At some point the topic of carrying while riding came up - I think because we encountered some shells on the ground (not a rare occurrence in Oregon) but one of them may have broached it when mentioning that there were some meth-cook RVs in the area a la Breaking Bad. Whatever it was, the one guy mentioned that he always carries when riding in that area - and always, as I recall. 

We asked if he'd ever bumped into any meth-cookers in the area? 'Yes'. 

Had any of them ever been a problem or made him feel threatened? 'No'. 

Huh. Ok then. America and guns in a nutshell. 

The other mention I wanted to make was with respect to wildlife and protection - bear spray vs guns. Came across this article awhile back and thought it was worth posting for those that are interested. 

https://www.outsideonline.com/2401248/does-bear-spray-work

Posted by: Stuminator

Played golf & rode on the same day. Life is good. (Did a lot better on the bike, lol)

As someone who loves golf and used to pack them both into a day on a regular basis, that is good living indeed. 6 or 7 am tee time, done before noon, ride in the early afternoon and retire somewhere with a bit of sun and a beer.

Had a quick thought about the second part of your post - that you did a lot better on the bike - and that made me think 'yep, that's me too these days'. But part of that is the quantifiable nature of golf. We don't HAVE to keep score, but we always do. The bike equivalent would be to monitor your speed in real time (a la Strava premium) and judge ourselves 60+ times over the course of a ride ("you suck! what kind of line was that?", "Damn I'm fat and slow" would be 90% of the time, and every now and then: "I am the greatest rider this trail has ever seen (at least in the last hour)").

Which made me go even further down the rabbit hole. Part of the misery of golf is that we obsess with keeping score all the time, but it's not necessary in some ways - and in mountain biking, we're free to enjoy ourselves and play like kids and not worry about bogeys or double bogeys (or losing $5 on a hole). Is this an inherent advantage of a sport like mountain biking? Yes, I think it is.

And lastly, a round of golf for the average hacker can involve a lot of bogeys, double bogeys, etc. Is there an equivalent in golf? If a par is making it through a section of trail according to an arbitrary standard (fairly smooth and fast, no mishaps) then a birdie would be hitting it faster or smoother than usual, or nailing a section you don't normally expect to ride clean. But a bogey, or worse, a double bogey? A come-off, and one with consequences. 

Good thing we don't have that many bogeys on a mountain bike ride.