Dammit’s adventures in mountain biking

Wingnut - amazingly comfortable as you carry the weight on your hips/waist

I don't know if any of you realise this but apparently MTB technology has developed a fair bit since 1991.

Lies! Mtb frames are still all made of steel, with rigid steel forks

Actually this Gary Fisher is made of high grade alume-in-num

Now you're just making up words

Anyone riding this weekend?

not allowed .. next though

Sunday

Storm Hannah tomorrow - best day of the year to go cycling in a forest?

Ask @dimi3 about falling trees

https://www.instagram.com/p/t2gi_Dp74E/

I spent the night bivvying in the woods. No trees fell on me. YMMV.

Woke up not feeling great, took the Mrs to her audax for 05:45, came home and got back into bed.

She picks her days for audax doesn’t she

Can they be more miserable than they are already? I'm never going to find that out personally, but I suspect having a headwind for 400Km is not ideal.

By missing cycling today I did get to collect my new pads from the post office.

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Compression damping- who knew?

Golf club members only

Get an Evoc hip pack. If you can't fit everything you need for a sub-six hour ride in there you've got too much stuff.

The danger with backpacks is you'll fill them...

It’s stopped the bike going tail high off bigger jumps

Which are still, in the scheme of things, smaller jumps. But they’re better!

I rode this today: https://www.strava.com/activities/2343776855/segments/59196856279

Bike was great, however - there are some steeper climbs on this route, and the position that I am on the bike means that on the steepest stuff the front wheel has no weight on it - it's almost in a wheelie all the time.

This means that you can't really aim the bike with any authority as the front tyre is just lightly touching the ground, which lead to three unplanned excursions into the shrubbery today.

All, of course, very low speed, and whilst I was laughing at the silliness of it all, but I'd like to be able to steer.

How do I resolve this?

Get out the saddle.

Yeah that sounds like more skills are needed

Longer wheelbase and a steeper seat tube.

Out of the saddle works, but then you risk the rear wheel breaking traction and an unplanned high velocity bollock-TT interaction.

Push? What I do on the steep natural stuff around here (after messing with 22t inner ring and bar ends to try and tackle them)

E-bike

Sometimes:

1. you have no traction and so can't get out of the saddle else the back wheel slips and you stop moving.
   
2. you're going up something so steep and in such a low gear that your front wheel is lifting up.
   
   

I've not found a solution for that situation except I guess lower pressure and flats so you can get your feet out quickly.

Edit: what @umop3pisdn said

Actually I do have one trick up my sleeve, which is to drop my dropper all the way down and stay seated and then ride up it. Looks stupid and destroys your legs but it sort of works. And helps prevent testicle-crushing accidents because your feet reach the floor.