Slop Season Begins

Riding just after ice-out and before the frost comes up puts you in weird places.

The snow is on the run, and even if we do get dusted again with the white stuff, it ain't lasting long anymore. Eventually the Sun wins out, and Spring will get here. Spring fever has already taken hold of residents here as we hit the 50's today- nearly 60- and motorcycles came out along with lots of folks just hungry to experience warmer temperatures, be that on bikes, walking, or whatever.

Bicycling during this time in the Mid-West is tricky. Off road trails are, for the most part, off limits for quite a while yet. Paved trails are hit and miss. Under the overpasses and under bridges there are still a lot of icy and snowy patches. Tree lined trails will take a while to clear off. Roads are mostly cleared, but pot holes are appearing like zits on a teenager's face before prom now, so it is pretty sketchy. Add in the left over detritus of sand and other Winter trash and it can be a minefield for a road bike.

Gravel can be good, or it can be peanut butter mud, or both on the same ride. Frost heaves are likely, and those weeping muddy patches will start appearing like bleeding scars running down the limestone veins of Iowa. In the meantime, you'd better have yer mud guards, (fenders to us Yankees), on, because the slop is everywhere and keeping dry is tantamount to keeping warm now.

Then there is the challenge of what to wear. Starting out in the morning you may have booties or Winter footwear on, a wind breaker, a wool jersey, and some decent gloves. By noon you might be looking for a place to stash that stuff because you might be frying inside those layers. The wind might make this even more tricky to gauge. Oh yes........there will be lots of wind. 

But give me a bike and an open gravel road. I'm ready no matter how sloppy and difficult it might be. 

Slop Season Begins

Riding just after ice-out and before the frost comes up puts you in weird places.

The snow is on the run, and even if we do get dusted again with the white stuff, it ain't lasting long anymore. Eventually the Sun wins out, and Spring will get here. Spring fever has already taken hold of residents here as we hit the 50's today- nearly 60- and motorcycles came out along with lots of folks just hungry to experience warmer temperatures, be that on bikes, walking, or whatever.

Bicycling during this time in the Mid-West is tricky. Off road trails are, for the most part, off limits for quite a while yet. Paved trails are hit and miss. Under the overpasses and under bridges there are still a lot of icy and snowy patches. Tree lined trails will take a while to clear off. Roads are mostly cleared, but pot holes are appearing like zits on a teenager's face before prom now, so it is pretty sketchy. Add in the left over detritus of sand and other Winter trash and it can be a minefield for a road bike.

Gravel can be good, or it can be peanut butter mud, or both on the same ride. Frost heaves are likely, and those weeping muddy patches will start appearing like bleeding scars running down the limestone veins of Iowa. In the meantime, you'd better have yer mud guards, (fenders to us Yankees), on, because the slop is everywhere and keeping dry is tantamount to keeping warm now.

Then there is the challenge of what to wear. Starting out in the morning you may have booties or Winter footwear on, a wind breaker, a wool jersey, and some decent gloves. By noon you might be looking for a place to stash that stuff because you might be frying inside those layers. The wind might make this even more tricky to gauge. Oh yes........there will be lots of wind. 

But give me a bike and an open gravel road. I'm ready no matter how sloppy and difficult it might be. 

How Are We Going To Do This?

Those two threaded holes? That's an early attempt at a disc brake mount.

Everyone that nerds out on bicycles seems to have a pretty strong opinion on "standards", (like "there aren't ANY"!), and these opinions often times will be without any regard to history. Usually "it has been done before" and the reason it didn't catch on might be one of several things. Money being one of the biggest reasons, but material technology is usually reason number one. That means that the idea was "there" but the means to make it work right was not. Materials and the way they are applied generally are the reason many innovations ultimately become realities for bicycles. Like disc brakes, for instance.

Shimano had working disc brakes for bicycles back during the bike boom of the 70's. While the calipers were heavy and clunky, and the rotors were solid steel, they did work. There were concerns , of course, and since forks of the day were spindly and not very strong, disc brakes on bicycles then were typically only mounted on rear wheels. Ironically, Shimano chose to thread on the rotor to the hub, much like a freewheel, and if you think about it, Centerlock brakes are just a minor variation on that theme.

The whole disc brake thing then "went away" for a time, but during the late 70's, 80's and 90's, mountain bikers started tinkering around with disc brakes and by the late 90's, it was going to happen. Early adopters were within the ranks of the Marin clunker gang who used the Shimano disc brakes of the time despite their tank-ish weight. Later in the 80's there was a few attempts at using disc brakes on down hill mountain bikes. The 90's saw more activity with disc brakes, maybe most famously by Mountain Cycle who had an "upside down" fork design which required disc brakes to make it work. Gary Fisher also had a bike with disc brakes at the time, but it was........ahhh.... not very good!

Most suspension forks now use the 74mm post mount standard developed by Manitou

Finally, a concerted effort to make disc brakes work cranked up in the 90's. There was the Rock Shox mechanical disc brake with their funky 3 bolt rotors. Hayes Brakes had a 22mm direct mount, Manitou had a 74mm post mount, (yes, Manitou came up with that), and there was a 51mm mount that required adapters floating around as well. Eventually, the 51mm standard got adopted as the "International Standard" while Manitou, (and ironically, Hayes after they bought Manitou), stuck with 74mm mounts which eventually became the standard across most suspension forks and now rigid mtb forks. While the 51mm "IS" standard is still around, it requires different adaptors for front and rear brakes, while the 74mm post mounts do not. 74mm isn't widely adopted by the frame builders though since it requires a bit more effort to make precisely.

Now around about 2014 Shimano unveiled plans to make a new standard called "Flat Mount", which is not unlike what Hayes was trying to do in the late 90's with its 22mm mount. The idea was that the calipers would sit flush to the frame and fork without unsightly adapters or posts sticking off forks and frames. Unfortunately, by the time flat mount came about there were many carbon forks which were using the post mount standard for road applications. To further complicate things, not many custom or high end builders liked the flat mount aesthetic on the rear chain stay, nor were too keen on not using already available IS compatible drop outs which had been refined to look rather good.

Complicating things further is Shimano's lack of interchangeable adapters to fit other types of calipers to flat mount and flat mount calipers to other types of mounts. SRAM has done more in this vein. There are issues with adapters, but one thing flat mount does do is make adapting the caliper to either a 140mm or 160mm rotor an easy affair. You just flip the adapter mount around to use one size or the other. (No 180mm or 203mm rotors can be used with flat mount Shimano calipers.)

Shimano Flat Mount Disc Brakes

Flat mount seems to have been developed to make disc brakes look sleeker and to limit rotor sizes to smaller rotors. While it confuses the market further, it probably isn't going away, since aftermarket brake, fork, and some frame makers are adopting this for road and "gravel" applications.

It also is worth mentioning that along with flat mount disc brakes Shimano also foisted 12mm front through axle for road on us at the same time. This all makes one ask a few hard questions, such as, "What is wrong with 15mm through axles?", (a standard, ironically also foisted on us partially by Shimano), and how about "What is wrong with 74mm post mount, or IS brake mounts we already have?". Don't hold yer breath for any answers to those questions, by the way.

So, in a way, Shimano has brought us full circle back to the flat mount brake, which Hayes proposed in the late 90's. Weird, huh?

The whole disc brake mounting question isn't 100% settled just yet, but it would seem that IS and 74mm post mount will be the realm of off road applications only and this flat mount technology will be the realm of road and gravel. Maybe.......

Then there is the whole through axle thing which is already changing road bike wheels and will, no doubt, upset the apple cart with regard to legacy wheels not working, people wanting certain combinations that won't be possible any longer, and with the brake thing, it will be even worse. Change is often frustrating and painful. This looks to be no different, but we've been through this before with mountain bikes, so welcome to the nightmare......again.

How Are We Going To Do This?

Those two threaded holes? That's an early attempt at a disc brake mount.

Everyone that nerds out on bicycles seems to have a pretty strong opinion on "standards", (like "there aren't ANY"!), and these opinions often times will be without any regard to history. Usually "it has been done before" and the reason it didn't catch on might be one of several things. Money being one of the biggest reasons, but material technology is usually reason number one. That means that the idea was "there" but the means to make it work right was not. Materials and the way they are applied generally are the reason many innovations ultimately become realities for bicycles. Like disc brakes, for instance.

Shimano had working disc brakes for bicycles back during the bike boom of the 70's. While the calipers were heavy and clunky, and the rotors were solid steel, they did work. There were concerns , of course, and since forks of the day were spindly and not very strong, disc brakes on bicycles then were typically only mounted on rear wheels. Ironically, Shimano chose to thread on the rotor to the hub, much like a freewheel, and if you think about it, Centerlock brakes are just a minor variation on that theme.

The whole disc brake thing then "went away" for a time, but during the late 70's, 80's and 90's, mountain bikers started tinkering around with disc brakes and by the late 90's, it was going to happen. Early adopters were within the ranks of the Marin clunker gang who used the Shimano disc brakes of the time despite their tank-ish weight. Later in the 80's there was a few attempts at using disc brakes on down hill mountain bikes. The 90's saw more activity with disc brakes, maybe most famously by Mountain Cycle who had an "upside down" fork design which required disc brakes to make it work. Gary Fisher also had a bike with disc brakes at the time, but it was........ahhh.... not very good!

Most suspension forks now use the 74mm post mount standard developed by Manitou

Finally, a concerted effort to make disc brakes work cranked up in the 90's. There was the Rock Shox mechanical disc brake with their funky 3 bolt rotors. Hayes Brakes had a 22mm direct mount, Manitou had a 74mm post mount, (yes, Manitou came up with that), and there was a 51mm mount that required adapters floating around as well. Eventually, the 51mm standard got adopted as the "International Standard" while Manitou, (and ironically, Hayes after they bought Manitou), stuck with 74mm mounts which eventually became the standard across most suspension forks and now rigid mtb forks. While the 51mm "IS" standard is still around, it requires different adaptors for front and rear brakes, while the 74mm post mounts do not. 74mm isn't widely adopted by the frame builders though since it requires a bit more effort to make precisely.

Now around about 2014 Shimano unveiled plans to make a new standard called "Flat Mount", which is not unlike what Hayes was trying to do in the late 90's with its 22mm mount. The idea was that the calipers would sit flush to the frame and fork without unsightly adapters or posts sticking off forks and frames. Unfortunately, by the time flat mount came about there were many carbon forks which were using the post mount standard for road applications. To further complicate things, not many custom or high end builders liked the flat mount aesthetic on the rear chain stay, nor were too keen on not using already available IS compatible drop outs which had been refined to look rather good.

Complicating things further is Shimano's lack of interchangeable adapters to fit other types of calipers to flat mount and flat mount calipers to other types of mounts. SRAM has done more in this vein. There are issues with adapters, but one thing flat mount does do is make adapting the caliper to either a 140mm or 160mm rotor an easy affair. You just flip the adapter mount around to use one size or the other. (No 180mm or 203mm rotors can be used with flat mount Shimano calipers.)

Shimano Flat Mount Disc Brakes

Flat mount seems to have been developed to make disc brakes look sleeker and to limit rotor sizes to smaller rotors. While it confuses the market further, it probably isn't going away, since aftermarket brake, fork, and some frame makers are adopting this for road and "gravel" applications.

It also is worth mentioning that along with flat mount disc brakes Shimano also foisted 12mm front through axle for road on us at the same time. This all makes one ask a few hard questions, such as, "What is wrong with 15mm through axles?", (a standard, ironically also foisted on us partially by Shimano), and how about "What is wrong with 74mm post mount, or IS brake mounts we already have?". Don't hold yer breath for any answers to those questions, by the way.

So, in a way, Shimano has brought us full circle back to the flat mount brake, which Hayes proposed in the late 90's. Weird, huh?

The whole disc brake mounting question isn't 100% settled just yet, but it would seem that IS and 74mm post mount will be the realm of off road applications only and this flat mount technology will be the realm of road and gravel. Maybe.......

Then there is the whole through axle thing which is already changing road bike wheels and will, no doubt, upset the apple cart with regard to legacy wheels not working, people wanting certain combinations that won't be possible any longer, and with the brake thing, it will be even worse. Change is often frustrating and painful. This looks to be no different, but we've been through this before with mountain bikes, so welcome to the nightmare......again.

Sproingle

So this rig should be hitting the roads this week.

The weather is breaking for the better, at least for a few days. It looks more and more as if ice will become less a concern and gravel travel will be on the menu again. I've been busy getting some stuff together for this time to come. One of those things was revealed last week. Here is another thing- the latest from Cirrus Cycles, the Kinekt post.

Formerly known as the "Body Float" post, this is the latest incarnation of the design, which has been refined quite a bit from the version I have. The biggest thing is that they have reduced the set back a lot, which should make this post work better in terms of fit for a lot of people.

I think this version will end up being the preferred one for mee, but I'll reserve judgment on that for now. I also have the Terreno Dry tires from Vittoria on the "Orange Crush" which I need to conclude the review for. Then when I get that done I have to swap those tires out and get cracking on the waaaay overdue Kenda Flintridge Pro review. I'm sure a slew of other tires will be making cameo appearances on my bikes throughout the year as well. It will be interesting to see how gravel tires progress- or don't.

Then I have been checking over the bits and peices on the Raleigh and BMC to make sure I am good for some, what is sure to be, sloppy roads. I fitted fenders back on the Tamland, and I cleaned and relubed the chain on the ol' BMC. That bike is going to need a bottom bracket soon too, but I'm going to wait it out till better weather comes. I figure I may as well soak this old one in grit now and put the new one in when things clear up out there and the roads are dry again.

Of course, it's supposed to snow again Thursday. 

BAH!

Sproingle

So this rig should be hitting the roads this week.

The weather is breaking for the better, at least for a few days. It looks more and more as if ice will become less a concern and gravel travel will be on the menu again. I've been busy getting some stuff together for this time to come. One of those things was revealed last week. Here is another thing- the latest from Cirrus Cycles, the Kinekt post.

Formerly known as the "Body Float" post, this is the latest incarnation of the design, which has been refined quite a bit from the version I have. The biggest thing is that they have reduced the set back a lot, which should make this post work better in terms of fit for a lot of people.

I think this version will end up being the preferred one for mee, but I'll reserve judgment on that for now. I also have the Terreno Dry tires from Vittoria on the "Orange Crush" which I need to conclude the review for. Then when I get that done I have to swap those tires out and get cracking on the waaaay overdue Kenda Flintridge Pro review. I'm sure a slew of other tires will be making cameo appearances on my bikes throughout the year as well. It will be interesting to see how gravel tires progress- or don't.

Then I have been checking over the bits and peices on the Raleigh and BMC to make sure I am good for some, what is sure to be, sloppy roads. I fitted fenders back on the Tamland, and I cleaned and relubed the chain on the ol' BMC. That bike is going to need a bottom bracket soon too, but I'm going to wait it out till better weather comes. I figure I may as well soak this old one in grit now and put the new one in when things clear up out there and the roads are dry again.

Of course, it's supposed to snow again Thursday. 

BAH!

The Touring Series: The First Hundy Part 1

A Guitar Ted Productions Series

Welcome to "The Touring Series". This series is a re-posting of a story I told here on this blog in 2008. The story is about what I named the "Beg, Borrow, and Bastard Tour". This was a fully loaded, self-supported bicycle tour from just Northeast of Waterloo, Iowa starting in a little village named Dewar and the goal was to get to Sault Ste. Marie, Canada in one week's time. The plan called for us to be picked up there and taken home by car.

When I returned home from this tour I wrote a rough draft manuscript of about half of the trip. It is 27 pages of hand written stuff, front and back, and this is what I will be posting to begin with. You'll be able to identify the 1994 manuscript material by my using italics to post it here. After the manuscript information ends, the rest of the story will be picked up from memories written down in 2008. That will appear as regular text here. As mentioned, cameras, smart phones, and the like did not exist for us in 1994, so images will be few. There are some though, and I will sprinkle those in when they are relevant.

We pick things up where the ride had just started from Dewar Tap and left north on a quiet county blacktop.....

___________________________________________________________________________

By the time we had gotten to the Wapsi Valley High School, about 10 to 15 miles in, I had an intense feeling come over me. Hunger! I was famished! So, I called for a stop and I ate most of Troy's dried fruit mix. Next trip I will have to remember to bring some "road food". As we quenched our hunger pangs, we looked around and noticed that it was very peaceful and quiet on this morning. There was nary a car on the roads, and the birds and animals must have still been sleeping. A dreary mist hung in the hollows of the fields. It promised to be a humid summer day, with a good stiff southerly wind. This was good! We were going north with the wind and the road was our own.

As we made our way across Highways 3 and 93, I thought about the hills to come. The gently rolling countryside had proven to be an easy challenge. I knew that greater hills lie before us and I wondered if I would be up to the task. Then my thoughts would be broken by a comment or a joyous whoop made by one of my companions. We could all ride side by side and converse. This made the miles slip away under our wheels.

We reached Lawler Iowa at mid-morning. There we stopped at a convenience store and had some refreshments and filled our water bottles. We would make many stops like this during the week. Generally we might find a bite to eat at one of these stops. Most often though we just had soda pop and Gatorade. We would hang out in the front of these stores, just sitting right on the ground in the parking lot.

This, of course, attracted a lot of attention. People generally would look askance and not give us so much as a "hello". Only children, as a rule, would be curious enough to talk to us. We obliged them and were amused by their curiosity. Sometimes they would even be enthusiastically supportive of what we were doing. There were no children at Lawler this morning; however, just disdainful looks and a bathroom to use. Steve bought some fake chewing tobacco that he cursed for its nasty taste, but he chewed it for the rest of the trip!

We got a little turned around here since we couldn't find the northward black top we were looking for. We finally figured out we had to go east out of town to find that road. Once we were on our way again, it became like before, quiet, an occasional car, but only now it was bright and sunny. It was getting hotter. I had ridden 40 miles now and I felt the miles coming harder. By the time we reached Protovin Corner, I was starving again. More munchies; Pop Tarts and water. We had gone over 50 miles and it was approaching the noon hour.

The next stretch between Protivin and Cresco is a county blacktop that receives as much or more traffic as a State Highway. This was my first experience with "true" highway riding. It also was more hilly. I did not know about drafting techniques. My climbing abilities were not developed yet either. So, I fell off the back often. I would grit it out and catch back up though. This ended up really draining me. After another convenience store stop in Cresco, we had another 12 miles to go to get to Lime Springs. Then another two miles downhill to the park. It was hot, very windy, and 12 o'clock noon when we left. Most of the last leg was in a crosswind, as we were obliged to go west. It was here that Troy broke the wind for me and began to teach me how to draft.

Those twelve miles took forever! I wasn't sure I could make it. Add in some major hills and I thought I was done for. I was in pain and I was cursing myself for being so dumb to think I could go on with this for a week! I thought these hills would be nothing compared to what lie ahead, so therefore I was toast. I was going to have to die because I was stupid enough to think I could do this. Perhaps it is hard to understand, but sometimes, well.........you just have to do what you have to do. I did, and somehow I made it. 
___________________________________________________________________________

So, it might be good to remind you all that by the time I had reached Protovin Corner, I had ridden the longest ride I had ever ridden before in my life. My Mongoose All Mountain Pro had front and rear panniers, a sleeping bag, tent, and many heavy tools and replacement parts loaded on it. I'm pretty sure the entire bicycle and load weighed near 100lbs. I couldn't pick it up off the road!

Obviously I was burning calories at an unprecedented rate, thus the stops to abate my raging appetite. I probably ate more food that day than I had since being an adolescent. But more on that later.....

Next- The First Hundy Part 2

The Touring Series: The First Hundy Part 1

A Guitar Ted Productions Series

Welcome to "The Touring Series". This series is a re-posting of a story I told here on this blog in 2008. The story is about what I named the "Beg, Borrow, and Bastard Tour". This was a fully loaded, self-supported bicycle tour from just Northeast of Waterloo, Iowa starting in a little village named Dewar and the goal was to get to Sault Ste. Marie, Canada in one week's time. The plan called for us to be picked up there and taken home by car.

When I returned home from this tour I wrote a rough draft manuscript of about half of the trip. It is 27 pages of hand written stuff, front and back, and this is what I will be posting to begin with. You'll be able to identify the 1994 manuscript material by my using italics to post it here. After the manuscript information ends, the rest of the story will be picked up from memories written down in 2008. That will appear as regular text here. As mentioned, cameras, smart phones, and the like did not exist for us in 1994, so images will be few. There are some though, and I will sprinkle those in when they are relevant.

We pick things up where the ride had just started from Dewar Tap and left north on a quiet county blacktop.....

___________________________________________________________________________

By the time we had gotten to the Wapsi Valley High School, about 10 to 15 miles in, I had an intense feeling come over me. Hunger! I was famished! So, I called for a stop and I ate most of Troy's dried fruit mix. Next trip I will have to remember to bring some "road food". As we quenched our hunger pangs, we looked around and noticed that it was very peaceful and quiet on this morning. There was nary a car on the roads, and the birds and animals must have still been sleeping. A dreary mist hung in the hollows of the fields. It promised to be a humid summer day, with a good stiff southerly wind. This was good! We were going north with the wind and the road was our own.

As we made our way across Highways 3 and 93, I thought about the hills to come. The gently rolling countryside had proven to be an easy challenge. I knew that greater hills lie before us and I wondered if I would be up to the task. Then my thoughts would be broken by a comment or a joyous whoop made by one of my companions. We could all ride side by side and converse. This made the miles slip away under our wheels.

We reached Lawler Iowa at mid-morning. There we stopped at a convenience store and had some refreshments and filled our water bottles. We would make many stops like this during the week. Generally we might find a bite to eat at one of these stops. Most often though we just had soda pop and Gatorade. We would hang out in the front of these stores, just sitting right on the ground in the parking lot.

This, of course, attracted a lot of attention. People generally would look askance and not give us so much as a "hello". Only children, as a rule, would be curious enough to talk to us. We obliged them and were amused by their curiosity. Sometimes they would even be enthusiastically supportive of what we were doing. There were no children at Lawler this morning; however, just disdainful looks and a bathroom to use. Steve bought some fake chewing tobacco that he cursed for its nasty taste, but he chewed it for the rest of the trip!

We got a little turned around here since we couldn't find the northward black top we were looking for. We finally figured out we had to go east out of town to find that road. Once we were on our way again, it became like before, quiet, an occasional car, but only now it was bright and sunny. It was getting hotter. I had ridden 40 miles now and I felt the miles coming harder. By the time we reached Protovin Corner, I was starving again. More munchies; Pop Tarts and water. We had gone over 50 miles and it was approaching the noon hour.

The next stretch between Protivin and Cresco is a county blacktop that receives as much or more traffic as a State Highway. This was my first experience with "true" highway riding. It also was more hilly. I did not know about drafting techniques. My climbing abilities were not developed yet either. So, I fell off the back often. I would grit it out and catch back up though. This ended up really draining me. After another convenience store stop in Cresco, we had another 12 miles to go to get to Lime Springs. Then another two miles downhill to the park. It was hot, very windy, and 12 o'clock noon when we left. Most of the last leg was in a crosswind, as we were obliged to go west. It was here that Troy broke the wind for me and began to teach me how to draft.

Those twelve miles took forever! I wasn't sure I could make it. Add in some major hills and I thought I was done for. I was in pain and I was cursing myself for being so dumb to think I could go on with this for a week! I thought these hills would be nothing compared to what lie ahead, so therefore I was toast. I was going to have to die because I was stupid enough to think I could do this. Perhaps it is hard to understand, but sometimes, well.........you just have to do what you have to do. I did, and somehow I made it. 
___________________________________________________________________________

So, it might be good to remind you all that by the time I had reached Protovin Corner, I had ridden the longest ride I had ever ridden before in my life. My Mongoose All Mountain Pro had front and rear panniers, a sleeping bag, tent, and many heavy tools and replacement parts loaded on it. I'm pretty sure the entire bicycle and load weighed near 100lbs. I couldn't pick it up off the road!

Obviously I was burning calories at an unprecedented rate, thus the stops to abate my raging appetite. I probably ate more food that day than I had since being an adolescent. But more on that later.....

Next- The First Hundy Part 2

Minus Ten Review- 8

I got this Tomi cog handed off to me at Frostbike '08. Yes....I did actually purchase it!

Ten years ago on the blog here I posted one image all week. That was of this Tomi Cog. It bolts direct to a 6 bolt disc brake rotor mount so you don't have to worry about any issues with lock rings. Yes, you end up with no rear brake, but this is fixed gear people. And I don't ride in the mountains. One brake is really sufficient with the additional "back pressure" applied through the pedals.

My hope is to get this cog back on something here and start using it again. I think that it will go on the original bicycle I had it on, my '03 Karate Monkey, or perhaps on an On One Inbred frame I have that isn't being ridden at the moment. We will see. I am certainly in no hurry to get this done, obviously!

But other than that I was yakking quite a bit that week about Trans Iowa v4 stuff. Recon mostly, but there was banter about lights and how to set up accessories so they wouldn't get rattled off the bike by gravel. I also was stoked to reveal that we had Surly Bikes and Princeton Tec Lights on as sponsors for the fourth running of the event. Princeton Tec sent over some head lamps for volunteers to see with at night, and I still have those around here. I've made use of them in subsequent Trans Iowas. Thanks Princeton Tec!

What became this had its roots ten years ago on this blog

But a big turning point in things here began ten years ago when I posted the following on Thursday, February 21st, 2008:


"First up we have an idea. There seems to be a growing number of freaks putting on low key gravely adventures around these parts. My thought is that there might be a need for a clearing house of sorts. A place dedicated to gravel road rides only and a place where rides could be added that others could go to and check out....."

It wasn't long until I had posted a blogspot address and was compiling events so everyone could keep track of them. The first effort wasn't mine, and it wasn't the blogspot address I mentioned here, but soon afterward it was seen that the original effort wasn't going to be what I had envisioned so I did it myself. Anyway, by the end of the year I was well on my way to doing "Gravel Grinder News" and at the end of 2014 that was merged into RidingGravel.com. The race/event calendar has survived along with those changes all these years.  

Also ten years ago this week I think I made the very first mention of an electric motor fitted to a bicycle which I promptly declared was not a bicycle. I think with ten years of perspective I would slightly modify that to say an e-bike is not bicycling. It is "something else". "Assisted", or whatever, but it is definitely not bicycling, nor can it ever impart the full bicycling experience. It is, at best, a poor facsimile of bicycling and at its worst, out and out motorcycling. 

Note- I have not said here that I am for or against these contraptions, I am just stating that anyone who engages in riding a two wheeled vehicle that, at minimum, assists them in powering the bike or more, is not riding with the same experience as a fully human powered bicycle. Those two experiences are different, and if they were not different, then why would there even be electrically assisted/powered two wheel vehicles? It's obvious that the e-powered experience is "easier"( ie: you are not fully powering the vehicle) and therefore vastly different than fully human powered two wheel travel.  

 

Minus Ten Review- 8

I got this Tomi cog handed off to me at Frostbike '08. Yes....I did actually purchase it!

Ten years ago on the blog here I posted one image all week. That was of this Tomi Cog. It bolts direct to a 6 bolt disc brake rotor mount so you don't have to worry about any issues with lock rings. Yes, you end up with no rear brake, but this is fixed gear people. And I don't ride in the mountains. One brake is really sufficient with the additional "back pressure" applied through the pedals.

My hope is to get this cog back on something here and start using it again. I think that it will go on the original bicycle I had it on, my '03 Karate Monkey, or perhaps on an On One Inbred frame I have that isn't being ridden at the moment. We will see. I am certainly in no hurry to get this done, obviously!

But other than that I was yakking quite a bit that week about Trans Iowa v4 stuff. Recon mostly, but there was banter about lights and how to set up accessories so they wouldn't get rattled off the bike by gravel. I also was stoked to reveal that we had Surly Bikes and Princeton Tec Lights on as sponsors for the fourth running of the event. Princeton Tec sent over some head lamps for volunteers to see with at night, and I still have those around here. I've made use of them in subsequent Trans Iowas. Thanks Princeton Tec!

What became this had its roots ten years ago on this blog

But a big turning point in things here began ten years ago when I posted the following on Thursday, February 21st, 2008:


"First up we have an idea. There seems to be a growing number of freaks putting on low key gravely adventures around these parts. My thought is that there might be a need for a clearing house of sorts. A place dedicated to gravel road rides only and a place where rides could be added that others could go to and check out....."

It wasn't long until I had posted a blogspot address and was compiling events so everyone could keep track of them. The first effort wasn't mine, and it wasn't the blogspot address I mentioned here, but soon afterward it was seen that the original effort wasn't going to be what I had envisioned so I did it myself. Anyway, by the end of the year I was well on my way to doing "Gravel Grinder News" and at the end of 2014 that was merged into RidingGravel.com. The race/event calendar has survived along with those changes all these years.  

Also ten years ago this week I think I made the very first mention of an electric motor fitted to a bicycle which I promptly declared was not a bicycle. I think with ten years of perspective I would slightly modify that to say an e-bike is not bicycling. It is "something else". "Assisted", or whatever, but it is definitely not bicycling, nor can it ever impart the full bicycling experience. It is, at best, a poor facsimile of bicycling and at its worst, out and out motorcycling. 

Note- I have not said here that I am for or against these contraptions, I am just stating that anyone who engages in riding a two wheeled vehicle that, at minimum, assists them in powering the bike or more, is not riding with the same experience as a fully human powered bicycle. Those two experiences are different, and if they were not different, then why would there even be electrically assisted/powered two wheel vehicles? It's obvious that the e-powered experience is "easier"( ie: you are not fully powering the vehicle) and therefore vastly different than fully human powered two wheel travel.  

 

Friday News And Views

The new Niner "Steel Mountain Bike Fork".

Niner Announces Steel Fork, New Investor:

A couple of things came down the newswire this week concerning Niner Bikes. First off, we saw the introduction of their "Steel Mountain Bike Fork". Okay.......wait a minute.......

So, you mean to tell me that you can name a bicycle or part with a sensible, easily understood name that doesn't require some form of "inside knowledge" of some bizarre sport or niche band culture to understand the model name? Really?!!

Sorry, I just had to get that off my chest. Now, as for this fork........

The Steel Mountain Bike Fork uses Boost spacing , a tapered steer tube, and obviously, it has a through axle. Axle to crown measurement is 490mm and the offset is 51mm. It has mounting points for cages and racks and is rated to carry up to 45lbs. MSRP is $179.00. See more here.

Now what was I saying just yesterday about how straight steer tubes, quick releases, and axle spacing was going to change? Hmm.........

Next up in Niner news is that they were able to find an investment company to partner with which will now allow Niner to continue onward and have the cash to invest into R&D for future designs and products. Chris Sugai remains as head of Niner and all operations are to be continued as they are now. Good news and "good luck" to the Niner crew going forward.

Differences between through axle 142, Boost, and Super Boost hubs. Courtesy of Pivot Cycles.

 Your New Hub May Be Boost Or Super Sized!

Noticing a theme of ever changing component dimensions here lately? Well, it isn't going to end anytime soon, so best get used to it. Now the rumblings are that longer travel mountain bikes may all be going to an even wider than Boost rear hub, called "Super Boost".

This is really all a result of where we have been stuck in terms of over-lock dimensions for hubs for decades. Only recently has the "Pandora's Box" of hub width been opened and I believe the dust isn't going to settle on this for some time. Obviously fat bike hub width was the precursor to this madness and it showed that consumers are willing to entertain new ideas for bicycles based upon crank, hub, and drivetrain needs.

Way back when the decision was made to go from six to seven speeds, mountain bike manufacturers, and in particular, WTB, were calling for "symmetry" in rear wheels, which meant that the rear axle was going to have to be widened. WTB already was championing wider than 100mm front and 130mm rear hubs for mountain bikes based upon Charlie Cunningham's experimentation with hubs and wheel design. So, the concept of a wider hub has been there, it was just a matter of breaking that traditional thought regarding hubs that was holding everything back.

Now I don't for a minute think that this is staying on the mountain bike side. I believe that road will see an increase in hub widths in the coming years and going to through axles will be the way that the "tradition" is broken. Younger riders will be familiar with disc brakes, through axles, and hub widths won't matter at all to them if it makes the bike better handling and wheels stiffer.

 T.I.v14 Update:

The latest on Trans Iowa; Cues- So far I have two sectors covered in the formatting department with one to go. I should have the last sector formatted this weekend. That will get printed out into a final draft and that draft will be final checked in the field sometime in late March or early April. Weather will likely play a factor in when I get out to do that. It is interesting whenever I do formatting that I can visualize the course as I fill out the format. I also have found a few places where I deleted cues, added cues, or made some small changes based upon comments jotted down while we did recon last year. So, refining the cues is always something on my mind until I make the final commitment to print them in April.

I expect also to be sending out a communication to all participants starting this weekend. The e-mail will detail the schedule of events and lay out the procedure I plan to use for handing out cues the morning of the event. This will be very important, so be looking for that if you are in Trans Iowa coming into your inbox next week.

Number plates will begin to get worked up sometime in March or early April. I also have a plan in the works for some schwag for the racers that is in motion right now. I am getting assistance for that in an unlikely place which will be an interesting story to tell you all when I can. Stay tuned on that front.

That's all for this week. Keep the rubber side down and get out and ride folks!

Friday News And Views

The new Niner "Steel Mountain Bike Fork".

Niner Announces Steel Fork, New Investor:

A couple of things came down the newswire this week concerning Niner Bikes. First off, we saw the introduction of their "Steel Mountain Bike Fork". Okay.......wait a minute.......

So, you mean to tell me that you can name a bicycle or part with a sensible, easily understood name that doesn't require some form of "inside knowledge" of some bizarre sport or niche band culture to understand the model name? Really?!!

Sorry, I just had to get that off my chest. Now, as for this fork........

The Steel Mountain Bike Fork uses Boost spacing , a tapered steer tube, and obviously, it has a through axle. Axle to crown measurement is 490mm and the offset is 51mm. It has mounting points for cages and racks and is rated to carry up to 45lbs. MSRP is $179.00. See more here.

Now what was I saying just yesterday about how straight steer tubes, quick releases, and axle spacing was going to change? Hmm.........

Next up in Niner news is that they were able to find an investment company to partner with which will now allow Niner to continue onward and have the cash to invest into R&D for future designs and products. Chris Sugai remains as head of Niner and all operations are to be continued as they are now. Good news and "good luck" to the Niner crew going forward.

Differences between through axle 142, Boost, and Super Boost hubs. Courtesy of Pivot Cycles.

 Your New Hub May Be Boost Or Super Sized!

Noticing a theme of ever changing component dimensions here lately? Well, it isn't going to end anytime soon, so best get used to it. Now the rumblings are that longer travel mountain bikes may all be going to an even wider than Boost rear hub, called "Super Boost".

This is really all a result of where we have been stuck in terms of over-lock dimensions for hubs for decades. Only recently has the "Pandora's Box" of hub width been opened and I believe the dust isn't going to settle on this for some time. Obviously fat bike hub width was the precursor to this madness and it showed that consumers are willing to entertain new ideas for bicycles based upon crank, hub, and drivetrain needs.

Way back when the decision was made to go from six to seven speeds, mountain bike manufacturers, and in particular, WTB, were calling for "symmetry" in rear wheels, which meant that the rear axle was going to have to be widened. WTB already was championing wider than 100mm front and 130mm rear hubs for mountain bikes based upon Charlie Cunningham's experimentation with hubs and wheel design. So, the concept of a wider hub has been there, it was just a matter of breaking that traditional thought regarding hubs that was holding everything back.

Now I don't for a minute think that this is staying on the mountain bike side. I believe that road will see an increase in hub widths in the coming years and going to through axles will be the way that the "tradition" is broken. Younger riders will be familiar with disc brakes, through axles, and hub widths won't matter at all to them if it makes the bike better handling and wheels stiffer.

 T.I.v14 Update:

The latest on Trans Iowa; Cues- So far I have two sectors covered in the formatting department with one to go. I should have the last sector formatted this weekend. That will get printed out into a final draft and that draft will be final checked in the field sometime in late March or early April. Weather will likely play a factor in when I get out to do that. It is interesting whenever I do formatting that I can visualize the course as I fill out the format. I also have found a few places where I deleted cues, added cues, or made some small changes based upon comments jotted down while we did recon last year. So, refining the cues is always something on my mind until I make the final commitment to print them in April.

I expect also to be sending out a communication to all participants starting this weekend. The e-mail will detail the schedule of events and lay out the procedure I plan to use for handing out cues the morning of the event. This will be very important, so be looking for that if you are in Trans Iowa coming into your inbox next week.

Number plates will begin to get worked up sometime in March or early April. I also have a plan in the works for some schwag for the racers that is in motion right now. I am getting assistance for that in an unlikely place which will be an interesting story to tell you all when I can. Stay tuned on that front.

That's all for this week. Keep the rubber side down and get out and ride folks!

A Wee Bit Slickery

Those darker grey-ish areas? - STAY AWAY! It's ice!

The big melt we had going on with all the warmth, rain, and fog went to the deep freeze over night and that means one thing- Ice!

Since I missed out on riding to work two days in a row due to the inclement weather, I wasn't about to sit around all day Wednesday and watch it be Sunny outside without putting my butt on a bike. No matter how icy it might be!

So, with no real agenda in mind other than to stay upright and pedal, I chose the Blackborow DS, decided to take things slow, and went out to explore. I had no idea how far I could get, so I didn't know if I'd be home in five minutes or two hours. But I was gonna get a ride in!

The decision was made to try riding down the Sergeant Road trail Southwestward and then I hopped up onto the dike for the Black Hawk Creek to get a bird's eye view of the scene in the Green Belt. With all the rain and warmth we had I found a lot of ice and wherever people, snow mobiles, pets, or whatever had been on the snow previous to the recent weather it was very icy and hard not to slip out on it.  I actually had to stop a few times just to keep from going down, and I wasn't going fast at all. Eyeballing the Green Belt at these stops it was easy to see that traveling in the Green Belt won't be happening anytime soon.

There is a lot of frozen flood water in places in the Green Belt right now.

So, I decided to run the dike out to the Sergeant Road Trail again, then up to Martin Road, and back toward Irv Warren Golf Course. I went up by the Pro shop and noted that the parking lot had been plowed. Hmm..... If you cannot golf, why bother plowing the lot? Weird.

The "Oh So Pro" parking at the golf course wasn't being used, so I took advantage!

In a few places I was running on what was left of the snow for fun. Now this snow has seen upper 30"s and rain, so it was really crusty. The Lou's were making an awful racket if I sank in a little bit. Ultimate "ripping Styrofoam" sounds! Almost deafening, actually. By the way, I don't think the Lou's treads have ever been cleaner!

On the way home I ran into NY Roll. He invited me in his home for a beer. We yakked about bikes and how I was able to get Ella, his Ridgeback, to talk to me. Apparently she isn't very vocal. Maybe I have a way with dogs? Dunno......

It was great to get out and pedal, but this ice business is for the birds. Penguins, I'd say. Anyway, it has to go. Hopefully with the angle of the Sun getting better everyday this stuff won't be around too long. It's what? A month till Spring? A little over two months till Trans Iowa?

Yeah, Winter is just about done, I hope!

A Wee Bit Slickery

Those darker grey-ish areas? - STAY AWAY! It's ice!

The big melt we had going on with all the warmth, rain, and fog went to the deep freeze over night and that means one thing- Ice!

Since I missed out on riding to work two days in a row due to the inclement weather, I wasn't about to sit around all day Wednesday and watch it be Sunny outside without putting my butt on a bike. No matter how icy it might be!

So, with no real agenda in mind other than to stay upright and pedal, I chose the Blackborow DS, decided to take things slow, and went out to explore. I had no idea how far I could get, so I didn't know if I'd be home in five minutes or two hours. But I was gonna get a ride in!

The decision was made to try riding down the Sergeant Road trail Southwestward and then I hopped up onto the dike for the Black Hawk Creek to get a bird's eye view of the scene in the Green Belt. With all the rain and warmth we had I found a lot of ice and wherever people, snow mobiles, pets, or whatever had been on the snow previous to the recent weather it was very icy and hard not to slip out on it.  I actually had to stop a few times just to keep from going down, and I wasn't going fast at all. Eyeballing the Green Belt at these stops it was easy to see that traveling in the Green Belt won't be happening anytime soon.

There is a lot of frozen flood water in places in the Green Belt right now.

So, I decided to run the dike out to the Sergeant Road Trail again, then up to Martin Road, and back toward Irv Warren Golf Course. I went up by the Pro shop and noted that the parking lot had been plowed. Hmm..... If you cannot golf, why bother plowing the lot? Weird.

The "Oh So Pro" parking at the golf course wasn't being used, so I took advantage!

In a few places I was running on what was left of the snow for fun. Now this snow has seen upper 30"s and rain, so it was really crusty. The Lou's were making an awful racket if I sank in a little bit. Ultimate "ripping Styrofoam" sounds! Almost deafening, actually. By the way, I don't think the Lou's treads have ever been cleaner!

On the way home I ran into NY Roll. He invited me in his home for a beer. We yakked about bikes and how I was able to get Ella, his Ridgeback, to talk to me. Apparently she isn't very vocal. Maybe I have a way with dogs? Dunno......

It was great to get out and pedal, but this ice business is for the birds. Penguins, I'd say. Anyway, it has to go. Hopefully with the angle of the Sun getting better everyday this stuff won't be around too long. It's what? A month till Spring? A little over two months till Trans Iowa?

Yeah, Winter is just about done, I hope!

Welcome To The Dark Side

Yep......carbon.

The latest craze in the gravel travel world is for a company to slip in a bike with 650B wheels and wide rubber. Then they claim that they have this awesome geometry, (generally it is warmed over CX geo), and they start in how all the roads and even single track is now your playground.

As if that weren't the fact with any bike, really. But whatever.

I'm not here to tell you what you should do, I'm just here poking a bit at the marketing machine. This gig they are telling us about isn't "new" and what they put out, (again, in the general sense), isn't really anything but cyclo cross stuff with 650B wheels shoved in. Sometimes it is straight up roadie geometry, (The new Surly Midnight Special), and sometimes they get it mostly right, (The new All City G.M.).

Anyway, I got these new Irwin Cycling wheels to test for RidingGravel.com and they are 650B based. Disc, of course, so that makes them an easy swap into my Raleigh Tamland Two. Now, my Tamland Two is a 2014 model. Yep...... Four years old, and it is steel, and it has reasonable length chain stays, and it can take a big, wide tire in 650B and 29", and it uses a standard road crank. Plus, it doesn't have cyclo cross geometry. So, not new, but in some ways, actually better than what many companies are putting out now.

Weird. Guess some folks aren't paying attention.

Steel- check, 650B wheels-check, big rubber- check.

So, to all you new entries to this niche- welcome to the dark side. 

The old Raleigh may be on the cutting edge with these wheels and its geometry, but there are a few things that will make this bike obsolete in a few years. First and foremost- the quick release wheels. Those quick releases are on their way out. You probably won't even know it when it finally happens to all high performance bikes, but we are in the middle of that "takeover". The other thing that will doom this bike eventually is the 1 1/8th steer tube.That's a good thing to have from the standpoint of front end compliance, but this will be made obsolete by the fact that all forks made in the future will one day have tapered steer tubes. Brands like Soma and Ritchey try to keep it going, but someday...... Then there is the standard road crank and bottom bracket width. Despite decades of bikes being built this way, Road Boost is coming and there will be a time when standard width bottom brackets and standard chain line cranks will become a thing of the past.

Look, I hope I am wrong about all of that, because if I am, I can keep my Tamland going. If I am right, well, one day I'll have to hang it up on the wall for good. Let's hope that dark side doesn't come to pass!

Welcome To The Dark Side

Yep......carbon.

The latest craze in the gravel travel world is for a company to slip in a bike with 650B wheels and wide rubber. Then they claim that they have this awesome geometry, (generally it is warmed over CX geo), and they start in how all the roads and even single track is now your playground.

As if that weren't the fact with any bike, really. But whatever.

I'm not here to tell you what you should do, I'm just here poking a bit at the marketing machine. This gig they are telling us about isn't "new" and what they put out, (again, in the general sense), isn't really anything but cyclo cross stuff with 650B wheels shoved in. Sometimes it is straight up roadie geometry, (The new Surly Midnight Special), and sometimes they get it mostly right, (The new All City G.M.).

Anyway, I got these new Irwin Cycling wheels to test for RidingGravel.com and they are 650B based. Disc, of course, so that makes them an easy swap into my Raleigh Tamland Two. Now, my Tamland Two is a 2014 model. Yep...... Four years old, and it is steel, and it has reasonable length chain stays, and it can take a big, wide tire in 650B and 29", and it uses a standard road crank. Plus, it doesn't have cyclo cross geometry. So, not new, but in some ways, actually better than what many companies are putting out now.

Weird. Guess some folks aren't paying attention.

Steel- check, 650B wheels-check, big rubber- check.

So, to all you new entries to this niche- welcome to the dark side. 

The old Raleigh may be on the cutting edge with these wheels and its geometry, but there are a few things that will make this bike obsolete in a few years. First and foremost- the quick release wheels. Those quick releases are on their way out. You probably won't even know it when it finally happens to all high performance bikes, but we are in the middle of that "takeover". The other thing that will doom this bike eventually is the 1 1/8th steer tube.That's a good thing to have from the standpoint of front end compliance, but this will be made obsolete by the fact that all forks made in the future will one day have tapered steer tubes. Brands like Soma and Ritchey try to keep it going, but someday...... Then there is the standard road crank and bottom bracket width. Despite decades of bikes being built this way, Road Boost is coming and there will be a time when standard width bottom brackets and standard chain line cranks will become a thing of the past.

Look, I hope I am wrong about all of that, because if I am, I can keep my Tamland going. If I am right, well, one day I'll have to hang it up on the wall for good. Let's hope that dark side doesn't come to pass!

The Six String Side: The Effects

When I started this blog over ten years ago, I stated that it was a "Bicycle and guitar oriented elixir....". Well, the "guitar" part sort of got pushed out by the bicycle stuff, but I've always been playing. In the Easter post,(2016), I mentioned playing my '90 Strat, and someone suggested I detail the fleet, so here ya go. Hopefully y'all enjoy the change in pace. I'll post something periodically. This time it isn't guitars, but the stomp boxes.......

The new pedal board I got over the weekend stuffed with a selection of my effects pedals. Here in construction mode!

 

 I've periodically shown you my guitar collection over the last couple of years, but there are amplifiers and these little, funny, painted boxes of electrical massaging that we guitarists call "effects pedals" or more commonly- stomp boxes, since to turn on the effect of choice, you must step, or "stomp", on a button which is an on/off switch, most generally.

I think I got my first stomp box in the very early 80's, like 1980, or it even could have been 1979, but it was an Electro-Harmonix "Big Muff". I didn't like what it did at the time so I sold it. (Dumb! It would be worth a mint now!) I also had an original Vox wah-wah for a while as well, but sold that. (Again- dumb!) Anyway, the point is that I have been collecting these little funny boxes for years. I have a pretty good collection.

Anyway, I don't expect that a lot of you know or care about these gizmos, but I will list each one and link to the website for each if available. You can click the links to find out what they do. Starting from the little grey box on the lower right then and going clockwise from there.

• Grey box with red printing- An Analogman "Beano Boost". 
• Boss Chromatic Tuner TU-2
• Dunlop Cry Baby 535Q Multi-Wah This guy is the biggest pedal on the board, the list continues with the white pedal to its left and continuing clockwise after that.....
• Hungry Robot "The Monastery"
• Hungry Robot "The Midnight Sun" A boost pedal out of production
• Hungry Robot [fz]
• Hungry Robot MOSFET Bluesbreaker. A limited edition clone of a Marshall Bluesbreaker 
• Ibanez Sound Tank Series Tremolo- Long out of production tremolo effect with a super-cool, sea-sick warble, cheezy sound I love. 
• Boss Chorus Ensemble CE-5
• Hungry Robot "The Wash"
• Hungry Robot "Starlite" (partially off frame on the upper left)

So, you'll notice I favor this "Hungry Robot" company. Well, the guy behind the company used to live here in this area, so I started supporting him and as it turns out, he has some unique circuits that were things I was looking for. Plus, these are sort of rare birds in the pedal world. Not everyone will have one of these things. Anyway, Hungry Robot is now based out of North Carolina and I highly recommend his work.

The board is a "Pedal Train" model that was big enough that I could get on what I felt was a minimal amount of effects to get me by at my church gig. If I were playing out, there are a few things I wouldn't have on here and a couple of things I would have on here, but that's not how it is. Anyway, I have enough stuff laying around to set up a completely different pedal board. The pedal board idea isn't new, but this is my first. I used to "daisy chain" everything together, but the other guitarists at the church were hauling in all their stuff in these fancy cases which had everything organized and I thought it was a better idea, so........

Anyway...... Guitar nerds.....whatta ya gonna do?

The Six String Side: The Effects

When I started this blog over ten years ago, I stated that it was a "Bicycle and guitar oriented elixir....". Well, the "guitar" part sort of got pushed out by the bicycle stuff, but I've always been playing. In the Easter post,(2016), I mentioned playing my '90 Strat, and someone suggested I detail the fleet, so here ya go. Hopefully y'all enjoy the change in pace. I'll post something periodically. This time it isn't guitars, but the stomp boxes.......

The new pedal board I got over the weekend stuffed with a selection of my effects pedals. Here in construction mode!

 

 I've periodically shown you my guitar collection over the last couple of years, but there are amplifiers and these little, funny, painted boxes of electrical massaging that we guitarists call "effects pedals" or more commonly- stomp boxes, since to turn on the effect of choice, you must step, or "stomp", on a button which is an on/off switch, most generally.

I think I got my first stomp box in the very early 80's, like 1980, or it even could have been 1979, but it was an Electro-Harmonix "Big Muff". I didn't like what it did at the time so I sold it. (Dumb! It would be worth a mint now!) I also had an original Vox wah-wah for a while as well, but sold that. (Again- dumb!) Anyway, the point is that I have been collecting these little funny boxes for years. I have a pretty good collection.

Anyway, I don't expect that a lot of you know or care about these gizmos, but I will list each one and link to the website for each if available. You can click the links to find out what they do. Starting from the little grey box on the lower right then and going clockwise from there.

• Grey box with red printing- An Analogman "Beano Boost". 
• Boss Chromatic Tuner TU-2
• Dunlop Cry Baby 535Q Multi-Wah This guy is the biggest pedal on the board, the list continues with the white pedal to its left and continuing clockwise after that.....
• Hungry Robot "The Monastery"
• Hungry Robot "The Midnight Sun" A boost pedal out of production
• Hungry Robot [fz]
• Hungry Robot MOSFET Bluesbreaker. A limited edition clone of a Marshall Bluesbreaker 
• Ibanez Sound Tank Series Tremolo- Long out of production tremolo effect with a super-cool, sea-sick warble, cheezy sound I love. 
• Boss Chorus Ensemble CE-5
• Hungry Robot "The Wash"
• Hungry Robot "Starlite" (partially off frame on the upper left)

So, you'll notice I favor this "Hungry Robot" company. Well, the guy behind the company used to live here in this area, so I started supporting him and as it turns out, he has some unique circuits that were things I was looking for. Plus, these are sort of rare birds in the pedal world. Not everyone will have one of these things. Anyway, Hungry Robot is now based out of North Carolina and I highly recommend his work.

The board is a "Pedal Train" model that was big enough that I could get on what I felt was a minimal amount of effects to get me by at my church gig. If I were playing out, there are a few things I wouldn't have on here and a couple of things I would have on here, but that's not how it is. Anyway, I have enough stuff laying around to set up a completely different pedal board. The pedal board idea isn't new, but this is my first. I used to "daisy chain" everything together, but the other guitarists at the church were hauling in all their stuff in these fancy cases which had everything organized and I thought it was a better idea, so........

Anyway...... Guitar nerds.....whatta ya gonna do?