All Things Bikes and Tacos! (...and every vehicle imaginable)

Did the Pink Bike advent calendar giveaways go by the wayside this year, or am I just overlooking it?

 

Gone. Said there were too many good sales this year and they were sick of people bitching about fake accounts winning.

 

I just splurged on a combo package from Cateye with a bar mounted AMP1100, and AMP700 with a helmet mount.
The AMP lights are trail lights, and are totally overkill for night/evening commutes.
But... Can't be too visible on the streets. And bring on the nighttime trail rides!
Plus I got a 25% discount on the lot, which helped.

Don't know what rear lights you run, but I also got a Cateye VIZ450 and a RAPIDX3.
It's the cars behind me that make me I feel I need something really effective, both at night and during the day. For that, the 'Daylight Hyperflash' mode on the VIZ450 is blinding and demands attention.
And I never feel post-mounted lights are visible enough from the side, so my idea is to mount the RAPIDX3 in the spokes on the rear wheel.
If I am not happy with it there, I may mount to the back of my helmet that, so at least it bobs around a bit and moves when I scan my 6, which helps draw attention.

Still on day 1, so bear that in mind.

edt: oops, it's a AMP 800, not 700

 

Any Canfield crank owners here?
Been thinking of trying some shorter cranks and theirs are a little hefty, but are much more reasonably priced than say 5DEV.

Canfields being on sale helps too.


https://canfieldbikes.com/pages/mtb-crank-chainring-faq-canfield-bikes

 

haven’t tried their cranks but I like their brand. Local to me. Have always been cool people from my experiences

 

Their crank arms are way too short for me. I think 170 is the biggest they make and they claim that improves ground clearance but damn.

 

Idk I’m tall and a bike I bought came with 165mm and I really like them haha

 

Shortest cranks I’ve used are 170. At 5’ 7”-ish and a low BB bike have me curious to give some shorter ones a try.

 

Same here, and also very curious about shorter cranks. I’d love to demo a set of 165’s or 160’s.

 

Here’s an extra incentive . Example A they email out discount codes.
$25 off $150 or more: SAVE-25-ON-150

 

Why Shorter Cranks Are Better (According To Science) - Pinkbike

Great article on crank length.

I decided to go from a 175mm to 165mm due to the amount of pedal strikes on technical terrain. I ride a Canyon Neuron CF8 and compared to my Trek Fuel EX9 I was getting 2 to 3 times the pedal strikes. I really like the shorter cranks and have noticed a significant reduction in pedal strikes compared to the 175mm cranks. It took me a few rides to get used to the difference in cadence and I do seem to shift more looking for the right gear on climbs and coming out of corners.

I did change my gearing to compensate for the shorter cranks and I was glad I did. Gearing choice has always been very important but even more so with the shorter cranks and less leverage.

 

So I went from 170 to 155 because of a very low bottom bracket, I didn't change any gearing. Just got into pedaling harder in that 52 gear on the cassette.

Something to remember, going shorter cranks means raising the seat height, which also means that your bars may feel extra low while pedaling.
The handlebar issue may not be a big deal to you, it's not to me and I got used to it. Raising the seat may also allow you to fit a longer seat post in there with more drop, if you don't add more drop you're just raising the dropped position.

Also low bottom bracket isn't in itself the reason you pedal strike, most XC bikes have super low BB, however they also have short wheelbases.
I have low BB and a wheelbase at or over 1250 depending on how bike is set up.

 

Just wanted to share our setup. 5 weeks and over 10k miles. Zero issues.

 

I've had a set of Canfield cranks on my Revel Rail for 2 yrs. Don't recall if they are 155 or 160mm, but I definitely wanted to try something noticeably shorter than what I had, which was 175mm. I did drop down to a 28T oval chainring when I installed the Canfields, which is equivalent of 26T/30T round. The shorter cranks were noticeable at first but after 10min of pedaling they feel perfectly natural, sort of like switching from round to oval chainring. First rides included spots where pedal strikes were common, and shorter cranks definitely reduced those. The weight is not an issue at all. Give them a try. I'd suggest going for a larger change. Just 5 or 10mm shorter will have minimal impact and benefit vs what you're running now.

 

wondered if you were in CO given the revel and canfield stuff.. . haha

 

that's a sweet setup!

 

Did a fat bike 'race' with @Pugga yesterday on Sandy Neck Beach (Cape Cod). Weather was more than ideal - hovering around 60F and no rain during the ride. Course ran along the beach, through some soft sand dunes, as well as compacted horse/atv trails. Definitely feeling it today - not much coasting and a lot of steady power output to stay with the group. Did not come close to winning as some of those riders are beasts, but enjoyed the day and got to ride in a different terrain than normal.

 

Still top 30! I'll take that at my age.

 

damn...that combines the misery of xc with the misery of slow rolling fat bikes. lol. sounds fun. ish.

 

Yep, that's exactly what it does! Also, don't forget the high winds because we're next to the ocean and it's usually cold as hell. This year, I ran it in shorts and a t-shirt, it was awesome!