Fat Dreams Have Been Stoked

One part this....

When I was up at Milltown Cycles a while back, I rode a bike that I have not been able to quit thinking about since. I may just have to pull the trigger on something along these lines....

The first part is a Cargo Bike ingredient. That would be a Big Dummy frame. I have written about this before, how a Big Dummy would be a very practical rig for me. I already use an Xtracycled Schwinn from the late 80's, and a Big Dummy would be a huge improvement. So, at the very least, I think the Big Dummy is a big no-brainer here.

The Xtracycle stuff I already have pretty much seals the deal there, since no other frame I can easily get accepts those bits. Plus- it is a Surly. 

Really, that is all that needs to be said right there.

..two parts this..

Then the bike I rode had Marge Lite rims on it. These are meant for fat bikes, but they can be used on any frame that will accept them, and the Big Dummy frame will.

I would likely have a decent set of Shimano hubs available for this project. Nothing fancy there, just your garden variety Deore disc hubs that would build up a nice, strong wheel with decent Wheelsmith spokes and nipples.

Gotta have the disc brakes to stop the loads with, and that duty would fall to some Avid BB-7's I have lurking around here somewhere, or I could finagle some old hydro brakes into this picture as well. Either way, stoppage is covered here and the wheels would hopefully be able to carry a decent load. Actually, that's my only major concern here. Most of the time, I am not going to be carrying anything too extreme, or too heavy. Mostly bicycle stuff. But there are a few times I carry some monstrous loads, like when I get stuff for putting on Trans Iowa.

But if my weenie Xtracycle can deal with that, why shouldn't a Marge Lite equipped Big Dummy, right?  That's what I figure, anyway.

...and 2  parts this.

The final piece of the puzzle is the Bontrager XR-1 2.4 inch wide tires. The bike I rode had these on the Marge Lites and they measured out to 70mm wide.

That put a big ol' footprint down on the ground and best of all- the bike rode like a magic carpet. Now this makes a great wintertime commute sled or something I can run errands with in the winter. Fat tires spread out for big time traction on a long wheel base bike.

Sounds like good times to me! Now, there are some minor concerns here.....

I would need a Pugsley fork to really make it work right. Extra expense there, and leaves me with a Big Dummy fork sitting around. Also- I would need to do a modified drive train, since the fatter tires would interfere with the chain line. Nothing insurmountable, but it is noteworthy if you are also considering doing this.

Otherwise, what am I missing here? Cargo-Fatbike-Lite. I like the sounds of it.

Now talk me down from the ledge!

Fat Dreams Have Been Stoked

One part this....

When I was up at Milltown Cycles a while back, I rode a bike that I have not been able to quit thinking about since. I may just have to pull the trigger on something along these lines....

The first part is a Cargo Bike ingredient. That would be a Big Dummy frame. I have written about this before, how a Big Dummy would be a very practical rig for me. I already use an Xtracycled Schwinn from the late 80's, and a Big Dummy would be a huge improvement. So, at the very least, I think the Big Dummy is a big no-brainer here.

The Xtracycle stuff I already have pretty much seals the deal there, since no other frame I can easily get accepts those bits. Plus- it is a Surly. 

Really, that is all that needs to be said right there.

..two parts this..

Then the bike I rode had Marge Lite rims on it. These are meant for fat bikes, but they can be used on any frame that will accept them, and the Big Dummy frame will.

I would likely have a decent set of Shimano hubs available for this project. Nothing fancy there, just your garden variety Deore disc hubs that would build up a nice, strong wheel with decent Wheelsmith spokes and nipples.

Gotta have the disc brakes to stop the loads with, and that duty would fall to some Avid BB-7's I have lurking around here somewhere, or I could finagle some old hydro brakes into this picture as well. Either way, stoppage is covered here and the wheels would hopefully be able to carry a decent load. Actually, that's my only major concern here. Most of the time, I am not going to be carrying anything too extreme, or too heavy. Mostly bicycle stuff. But there are a few times I carry some monstrous loads, like when I get stuff for putting on Trans Iowa.

But if my weenie Xtracycle can deal with that, why shouldn't a Marge Lite equipped Big Dummy, right?  That's what I figure, anyway.

...and 2  parts this.

The final piece of the puzzle is the Bontrager XR-1 2.4 inch wide tires. The bike I rode had these on the Marge Lites and they measured out to 70mm wide.

That put a big ol' footprint down on the ground and best of all- the bike rode like a magic carpet. Now this makes a great wintertime commute sled or something I can run errands with in the winter. Fat tires spread out for big time traction on a long wheel base bike.

Sounds like good times to me! Now, there are some minor concerns here.....

I would need a Pugsley fork to really make it work right. Extra expense there, and leaves me with a Big Dummy fork sitting around. Also- I would need to do a modified drive train, since the fatter tires would interfere with the chain line. Nothing insurmountable, but it is noteworthy if you are also considering doing this.

Otherwise, what am I missing here? Cargo-Fatbike-Lite. I like the sounds of it.

Now talk me down from the ledge!

Blow This Wind Away (Please!)

Well, Friday was the 3GR, and I again decided to hit up the gravel on Saturday. I felt it needed to be done since I will be pushing some big miles in about a month all in one ride.

Check out those trees on the right....

I also need to become acclimated to hot weather, since that will surely be on the menu in mid-July, wouldn't you agree? That pushed my ride to afternoon, so I would catch the worst of it out there.

Well, I got more than I bargained for, since the wind was really kickin' out there Saturday afternoon. I don't know where the weatherman is standing when he gets his wind speed info, but I'll tell ya that south of Waterloo it was blowing dang hard. Constantly. Blowing. Wind.

I figured I was being smart by riding directly into the wind for as long as I could manage. Straight down Ansborough then. Right into the teeth of it. The wind was whipping dust up into the air, and you could actually see clouds of gravel dust and dirt on the leeward side of hills. Yeah.....that's windy. Oh, and did I mention how dry it is?

The soybeans are stunted, the roads actually have cracks in them, and there is not much, (if any) relief on the horizon. Scary it is. Real scary. The big culprit is all the strong wind we've had throughout the springtime here. It just dries things to a crispy texture as soon after it rains that it can. Pretty unusual for here. Reminds me a ton of Kansas' Flint Hills wind. If it persists in this pattern, I predict things will wilt and turn crispy for good very soon.

Clement X'Plor MSO tire: The real deal.

Not unlike my legs turned to crispy sticks Saturday, come to think of it. I had to pedal every inch up and down on the way out resulting in some major work. My goal here was to retain a consistent output level for as long as I could without blowing my stack.

For the most part, I did fine in this regard, but my body just ached and I was hurting. Heart and lungs were going great guns. Bah! Maybe I should have partaken in some "Vitamin I" before leaving, but I didn't. In the end, time was a concern. I turned back West at Reinbeck Road, went two miles to Aker Road, and turned back North. Yeah.......major difference!

Now I was flying. I was going so far, so fast without pedaling one revolution that I could have dropped my chain and I'd have not realized it. At one point I was coasting for about 8 tenths of a mile at 25 plus miles an hour, on slightly rolling road. Crazy! Well, this was payback for investing into that headwind, I guess.

A word on the Clement X'Plor MSO: These tires continue to impress me. Friday I rode them at a ridiculously low pressure, (probably in the low 30's psi), just to see how they would do. They were fantastic, and as you might expect, cushy as all get out. Squirmy- yes, just a wee bit, so I bumped that up for Saturday's ride to right at 40psi.

Aker Road  "Hero Gravel"

The ride Saturday was spot on. I hit some gnarly chunk gravel on Reinbeck Road and the MSO's were dealing with it just fine. I powered right over the top with minimal deflections that required me to rein in the bike. This is important to note because if your bike is bouncing around willy-nilly on the chunky goodness you are wasting a lot of precious energy. The Clements gave me a smoother, more controlled ride over this stuff, and I imagine tubelessness would only increase that supple, bump eating feeling. I hope to get these set up tubeless soon.

Trouble is, I keep riding the "Orange Crush" and liking it so well, I don't want to chance the set up to a new tubeless try. Oh well.....I will get it done soon. I'll just have to ride the single speed for a while. By the way, a few tweaks are happening there which I will share soon.

But anyway, back to that ride: I whizzed back to town, blown in by the massive winds, and then had to slog it in on the Sergeant Road bike path. Here I pretty much lost the wind advantage, and my body aches reminded me that they hadn't really gone anywhere. I was glad to pull off at home, just in time to see my family off to a baseball game.

Me? I had to write a draft for an upcoming article that may get published in a mag soon. We'll see. 

Blow This Wind Away (Please!)

Well, Friday was the 3GR, and I again decided to hit up the gravel on Saturday. I felt it needed to be done since I will be pushing some big miles in about a month all in one ride.

Check out those trees on the right....

I also need to become acclimated to hot weather, since that will surely be on the menu in mid-July, wouldn't you agree? That pushed my ride to afternoon, so I would catch the worst of it out there.

Well, I got more than I bargained for, since the wind was really kickin' out there Saturday afternoon. I don't know where the weatherman is standing when he gets his wind speed info, but I'll tell ya that south of Waterloo it was blowing dang hard. Constantly. Blowing. Wind.

I figured I was being smart by riding directly into the wind for as long as I could manage. Straight down Ansborough then. Right into the teeth of it. The wind was whipping dust up into the air, and you could actually see clouds of gravel dust and dirt on the leeward side of hills. Yeah.....that's windy. Oh, and did I mention how dry it is?

The soybeans are stunted, the roads actually have cracks in them, and there is not much, (if any) relief on the horizon. Scary it is. Real scary. The big culprit is all the strong wind we've had throughout the springtime here. It just dries things to a crispy texture as soon after it rains that it can. Pretty unusual for here. Reminds me a ton of Kansas' Flint Hills wind. If it persists in this pattern, I predict things will wilt and turn crispy for good very soon.

Clement X'Plor MSO tire: The real deal.

Not unlike my legs turned to crispy sticks Saturday, come to think of it. I had to pedal every inch up and down on the way out resulting in some major work. My goal here was to retain a consistent output level for as long as I could without blowing my stack.

For the most part, I did fine in this regard, but my body just ached and I was hurting. Heart and lungs were going great guns. Bah! Maybe I should have partaken in some "Vitamin I" before leaving, but I didn't. In the end, time was a concern. I turned back West at Reinbeck Road, went two miles to Aker Road, and turned back North. Yeah.......major difference!

Now I was flying. I was going so far, so fast without pedaling one revolution that I could have dropped my chain and I'd have not realized it. At one point I was coasting for about 8 tenths of a mile at 25 plus miles an hour, on slightly rolling road. Crazy! Well, this was payback for investing into that headwind, I guess.

A word on the Clement X'Plor MSO: These tires continue to impress me. Friday I rode them at a ridiculously low pressure, (probably in the low 30's psi), just to see how they would do. They were fantastic, and as you might expect, cushy as all get out. Squirmy- yes, just a wee bit, so I bumped that up for Saturday's ride to right at 40psi.

Aker Road  "Hero Gravel"

The ride Saturday was spot on. I hit some gnarly chunk gravel on Reinbeck Road and the MSO's were dealing with it just fine. I powered right over the top with minimal deflections that required me to rein in the bike. This is important to note because if your bike is bouncing around willy-nilly on the chunky goodness you are wasting a lot of precious energy. The Clements gave me a smoother, more controlled ride over this stuff, and I imagine tubelessness would only increase that supple, bump eating feeling. I hope to get these set up tubeless soon.

Trouble is, I keep riding the "Orange Crush" and liking it so well, I don't want to chance the set up to a new tubeless try. Oh well.....I will get it done soon. I'll just have to ride the single speed for a while. By the way, a few tweaks are happening there which I will share soon.

But anyway, back to that ride: I whizzed back to town, blown in by the massive winds, and then had to slog it in on the Sergeant Road bike path. Here I pretty much lost the wind advantage, and my body aches reminded me that they hadn't really gone anywhere. I was glad to pull off at home, just in time to see my family off to a baseball game.

Me? I had to write a draft for an upcoming article that may get published in a mag soon. We'll see. 

3GR Report

Leapin' Lamas!

The 3GR went off once again after a two week hiatus. I wasn't sure if anybody would still want to come out again since the rides just started. I made it over to Gateway Park by 5:20pm, and waited.......

One rider came by and asked if I was the leader of the 3GR. I welcomed the new rider and found out his name is Jesse. We waited a few more minutes, and with no one else showing up, we set off. Not far up the bike path we ran across Mike Johnson coming the other way on his Fargo. He joined up with us to make it a trio.

As I stated yesterday, I was going to take a bit of a different route. Mike knew the roads I had in mind, but Jesse was all new to this gravel deal. Fortunately for him, the roads had cleared up tremendously from the first attempts at the 3GR. Now we had cleared out lanes to ride in and in many places the roads were packed in as well as chip seal.

That isn't to say that there weren't patches of new gravel and chunky goodness, because there was. I tried to give a few pointers to Jesse to help him out in those parts. Hopefully it helped! He seemed to be keeping up at a good pace, so this 3Gr was a bit faster than some of the others, barring the spanking I got the night it was just Mr Fry and I.

So we went out on Strymon Road, turned at Mt. Vernon westward, then back north on Big Woods Road. This took us on relatively flat roads past a lama farm and on north of Janesville where the road turned into Garden Avenue. Then we zig-zagged up the old Trans Iowa V3 course past the south side of the Camp.

Ivory Rd. Bremer County

Then we zoomed down the hills along Quarter Section Creek and over to our south bound turn. All this time I hadn't realized we were enjoying the benefits of a tail wind and shelter from the woods near Camp Ingawanis, but we were.

As we emerged out of the river valley, I found out there was a fairly stiff headwind. It wasn't too big of a deal, but when you are heading back, it isn't my favorite thing to have happen. No big deal this day though, as the riding company was fine and the conversations kept my mind off of the winds.

Now we were getting back to the "old course" for the 3GR at the intersection of Marquis Road and Streeter Road.  From here on out the rollers would get bigger and at the end, become outright hills with fairly steep grades.  The road was a bit chunkier with gravel too, which made for a bit more resistance, but not too much.

Tiger Lillys- Already!

We got to the corner of Streeter and Mt. Vernon where we turned eastward and back out of the wind. On the westward stretch we saw another cyclist coming toward us with dust flying off his wheels. It was a shirtless, helmet-less mountain biker.  He probably freaked at the site of three geeked out riders and all of us hauling down the hill toward him. Made me wonder if we were roosting as much dust as he was. We exchanged waves and carried on our separate ways.

From there it was a easy ride down towards Big Woods Lake and the bike path. Back to the cars and then some nice chatting for a bit. It was a beautiful evening for a ride. The skies had nary a cloud, and the wind wasn't too bad, really. Surprisingly, it didn't even feel all that hot either. Just a lot of dust, but you'd expect as much on a gravel grinder, or at least you should.

So that was that. Another successful 3GR ride. Join me next Friday at 5:30pm at Gateway Park if you'd like to check this out for yourself.

3GR Report

Leapin' Lamas!

The 3GR went off once again after a two week hiatus. I wasn't sure if anybody would still want to come out again since the rides just started. I made it over to Gateway Park by 5:20pm, and waited.......

One rider came by and asked if I was the leader of the 3GR. I welcomed the new rider and found out his name is Jesse. We waited a few more minutes, and with no one else showing up, we set off. Not far up the bike path we ran across Mike Johnson coming the other way on his Fargo. He joined up with us to make it a trio.

As I stated yesterday, I was going to take a bit of a different route. Mike knew the roads I had in mind, but Jesse was all new to this gravel deal. Fortunately for him, the roads had cleared up tremendously from the first attempts at the 3GR. Now we had cleared out lanes to ride in and in many places the roads were packed in as well as chip seal.

That isn't to say that there weren't patches of new gravel and chunky goodness, because there was. I tried to give a few pointers to Jesse to help him out in those parts. Hopefully it helped! He seemed to be keeping up at a good pace, so this 3Gr was a bit faster than some of the others, barring the spanking I got the night it was just Mr Fry and I.

So we went out on Strymon Road, turned at Mt. Vernon westward, then back north on Big Woods Road. This took us on relatively flat roads past a lama farm and on north of Janesville where the road turned into Garden Avenue. Then we zig-zagged up the old Trans Iowa V3 course past the south side of the Camp.

Ivory Rd. Bremer County

Then we zoomed down the hills along Quarter Section Creek and over to our south bound turn. All this time I hadn't realized we were enjoying the benefits of a tail wind and shelter from the woods near Camp Ingawanis, but we were.

As we emerged out of the river valley, I found out there was a fairly stiff headwind. It wasn't too big of a deal, but when you are heading back, it isn't my favorite thing to have happen. No big deal this day though, as the riding company was fine and the conversations kept my mind off of the winds.

Now we were getting back to the "old course" for the 3GR at the intersection of Marquis Road and Streeter Road.  From here on out the rollers would get bigger and at the end, become outright hills with fairly steep grades.  The road was a bit chunkier with gravel too, which made for a bit more resistance, but not too much.

Tiger Lillys- Already!

We got to the corner of Streeter and Mt. Vernon where we turned eastward and back out of the wind. On the westward stretch we saw another cyclist coming toward us with dust flying off his wheels. It was a shirtless, helmet-less mountain biker.  He probably freaked at the site of three geeked out riders and all of us hauling down the hill toward him. Made me wonder if we were roosting as much dust as he was. We exchanged waves and carried on our separate ways.

From there it was a easy ride down towards Big Woods Lake and the bike path. Back to the cars and then some nice chatting for a bit. It was a beautiful evening for a ride. The skies had nary a cloud, and the wind wasn't too bad, really. Surprisingly, it didn't even feel all that hot either. Just a lot of dust, but you'd expect as much on a gravel grinder, or at least you should.

So that was that. Another successful 3GR ride. Join me next Friday at 5:30pm at Gateway Park if you'd like to check this out for yourself.

Friday News And Views

Tubeless Brew: 

First of all, thanks for all of the comments on the post yesterday. Many of you seemed to be interested in what it was I was using for sealant. Even to the point of crying "blog foul!", which made me laugh.

Look, I was pretty loathe to reveal the "secret sauce", since the stuff wasn't developed by me. It was my good buddy MG's stuff which he worked real hard on making over years of experimentation. You just don't go handing out knowledge like that without asking.

Fortunately, if you need to know, MG popped in and graciously shared the secret to his brew in yesterday's comment section. Go there if you want to know. Thanks!

3GR:

Yes, the gravel rides on Friday are still happening. Two weeks ago we got rained out, and last week I was out of town. I'm not out of town this week, and so I will be planning on meeting anyone of like mind at 5:30pm at the usual spot. 

I have a bit of a twist on the route I want to try out this time, so it will be something new for anyone that has already ridden this with me.

Expect to ride about 20-25 miles this go around. It is going to be a longer route with average rollers. Nothing crazy, but it is time to start picking up the mileage a bit now since the sun stays up pretty late these days.

Gravel Bikes:

Which leads me to a few comments about "gravel road bikes". First off, I have a couple things I need to get squared away here concerning bikes. I am resurrecting the Fargo Gen I bike, which is coming along slowly. I had grabbed the bar end shifters off it for the RetroShift levers I reviewed (here, and here) , and so the Fargo has no shifting levers! I also needed to do something about tires and wheels, so that was addressed. Finally I need to do something with a chain ring for the crankset. That should get squared away here real soon, and then I'll be using the bike for.......well, you'll just have to wait and see what I will be doing there.

Gettin it back together

Then I need to do a tubeless experiment, (more on that later), and a stem/bar swap on the old Raleigh with a crank swap as well, since this looks to become my dedicated single speed "skinny tired" gravel bike for awhile.

The Singular Gryphon will retain the fat tired single speed crown for now. (Actually, I don't see that ever changing, but you never know.)

Finally, there has been a lot of talk around about what a "gravel bike" is and even to the extent of considering what gravel roads are. (Really- there are different connotations and definitions depending upon where you live.) This ranges from mostly dirt roads to crushed rock of varying levels.

Why does this all matter? Because it will dictate what someone uses for a bicycle, and therefore what a "gravel road bike" is. Here in Iowa, it means one thing, while up in Southern Minnesota, it is something quite different. 

Interestingly, Salsa Cycles is teasing their new introductions and many are being brought out in the public eye at gravel road races this spring. Their take on what a "gravel road bike" is should only feed the discussion on this topic even further. I can't wait to see what they have cooked up.

Okay, that's all for today. Have a great weekend and take some pictures on your adventures this weekend!

Friday News And Views

Tubeless Brew: 

First of all, thanks for all of the comments on the post yesterday. Many of you seemed to be interested in what it was I was using for sealant. Even to the point of crying "blog foul!", which made me laugh.

Look, I was pretty loathe to reveal the "secret sauce", since the stuff wasn't developed by me. It was my good buddy MG's stuff which he worked real hard on making over years of experimentation. You just don't go handing out knowledge like that without asking.

Fortunately, if you need to know, MG popped in and graciously shared the secret to his brew in yesterday's comment section. Go there if you want to know. Thanks!

3GR:

Yes, the gravel rides on Friday are still happening. Two weeks ago we got rained out, and last week I was out of town. I'm not out of town this week, and so I will be planning on meeting anyone of like mind at 5:30pm at the usual spot. 

I have a bit of a twist on the route I want to try out this time, so it will be something new for anyone that has already ridden this with me.

Expect to ride about 20-25 miles this go around. It is going to be a longer route with average rollers. Nothing crazy, but it is time to start picking up the mileage a bit now since the sun stays up pretty late these days.

Gravel Bikes:

Which leads me to a few comments about "gravel road bikes". First off, I have a couple things I need to get squared away here concerning bikes. I am resurrecting the Fargo Gen I bike, which is coming along slowly. I had grabbed the bar end shifters off it for the RetroShift levers I reviewed (here, and here) , and so the Fargo has no shifting levers! I also needed to do something about tires and wheels, so that was addressed. Finally I need to do something with a chain ring for the crankset. That should get squared away here real soon, and then I'll be using the bike for.......well, you'll just have to wait and see what I will be doing there.

Gettin it back together

Then I need to do a tubeless experiment, (more on that later), and a stem/bar swap on the old Raleigh with a crank swap as well, since this looks to become my dedicated single speed "skinny tired" gravel bike for awhile.

The Singular Gryphon will retain the fat tired single speed crown for now. (Actually, I don't see that ever changing, but you never know.)

Finally, there has been a lot of talk around about what a "gravel bike" is and even to the extent of considering what gravel roads are. (Really- there are different connotations and definitions depending upon where you live.) This ranges from mostly dirt roads to crushed rock of varying levels.

Why does this all matter? Because it will dictate what someone uses for a bicycle, and therefore what a "gravel road bike" is. Here in Iowa, it means one thing, while up in Southern Minnesota, it is something quite different. 

Interestingly, Salsa Cycles is teasing their new introductions and many are being brought out in the public eye at gravel road races this spring. Their take on what a "gravel road bike" is should only feed the discussion on this topic even further. I can't wait to see what they have cooked up.

Okay, that's all for today. Have a great weekend and take some pictures on your adventures this weekend!

State Of Tubelessness 2012

Over the years I have written several posts on the subject of going tubeless with your 29"er tires. My last missive on this subject can be found here. This time I don't think I will delve into all the manufacturing side of the issue.

Tubeless and digging it.

That's because the manufacturers are finally starting to get things narrowed down, as far as standards go, and there are a lot of tubeless products to choose from. Just be careful how you match things up is all. UST and Stan's are generally one combination that isn't very compatible, as an example. (I speak of tires and rims here, not sealant.)

No, I want to share some of my observations and experiences so far regarding tubelessness. In no particular order then....

• I don't think much along the lines of, "I can tell these tires are not tubeless and they must be set up with tubes.", but I have thought, "These non-tubeless tires don't work very well tubeless."
• I can't remember the last time I got a flat while riding mountain bike trails. It's been years ago. Chalk it up to tubeless tires and good sealant. 
• I've gotten pretty good at setting up tires tubeless- both tubed type and tubeless. (Thanks to my buddy MG for much of this.)
• Some tires are no big deal tubeless while other tires are downright amazing. Tubeless in and of itself isn't a guarantor of fast, awesome feeling tires. In fact, some tires, (as mentioned above), actually work better with tubes. (Almost always the tires in question are tube type tires.)
• There are some awesome sealants on the market these days, but my absolute favorite is a home brew that is so cheap and simple it is ridiculous. It even out-performs the store bought sealants I've tried. 
• I haven't necessarily found tubeless tires to guarantee being able to run lower tire pressures. In fact, some specific tubed set ups I've run can rival the lowest tubeless tire pressures I have used. (And I'm not talking about fat bikes here.) In some cases, tubeless set ups actually have to use higher pressures to get similar performance to tubed set ups. 
• I also haven't found tubeless tires to typically be a weight saver. Most times it is a wash between tubed/tubeless, and in many cases tubeless tire set ups are actually heavier than tubed ones are. That's not always the case though.

So......what is the main attraction to running tubeless then? If you recall from above, I have pretty much eliminated flat tires as being an issue for me. That right there would be worth it to me, but it isn't the only reason I like tubeless tires.

When you get a good rim/tire match up, tubeless is hard to beat for traction, comfort, and speed. Sometimes you don't get all three of those things, but sometimes you do, and when you do, it beats a tubed tire hands down. Tubed set ups still have a place, and sometimes the tubed set ups actually work just fine, but more and more, tubeless is the way to go now. With all the choices coming out, it doesn't make any sense to stick with a tubed set up anymore for your mountain bike.

State Of Tubelessness 2012

Over the years I have written several posts on the subject of going tubeless with your 29"er tires. My last missive on this subject can be found here. This time I don't think I will delve into all the manufacturing side of the issue.

Tubeless and digging it.

That's because the manufacturers are finally starting to get things narrowed down, as far as standards go, and there are a lot of tubeless products to choose from. Just be careful how you match things up is all. UST and Stan's are generally one combination that isn't very compatible, as an example. (I speak of tires and rims here, not sealant.)

No, I want to share some of my observations and experiences so far regarding tubelessness. In no particular order then....

• I don't think much along the lines of, "I can tell these tires are not tubeless and they must be set up with tubes.", but I have thought, "These non-tubeless tires don't work very well tubeless."
• I can't remember the last time I got a flat while riding mountain bike trails. It's been years ago. Chalk it up to tubeless tires and good sealant. 
• I've gotten pretty good at setting up tires tubeless- both tubed type and tubeless. (Thanks to my buddy MG for much of this.)
• Some tires are no big deal tubeless while other tires are downright amazing. Tubeless in and of itself isn't a guarantor of fast, awesome feeling tires. In fact, some tires, (as mentioned above), actually work better with tubes. (Almost always the tires in question are tube type tires.)
• There are some awesome sealants on the market these days, but my absolute favorite is a home brew that is so cheap and simple it is ridiculous. It even out-performs the store bought sealants I've tried. 
• I haven't necessarily found tubeless tires to guarantee being able to run lower tire pressures. In fact, some specific tubed set ups I've run can rival the lowest tubeless tire pressures I have used. (And I'm not talking about fat bikes here.) In some cases, tubeless set ups actually have to use higher pressures to get similar performance to tubed set ups. 
• I also haven't found tubeless tires to typically be a weight saver. Most times it is a wash between tubed/tubeless, and in many cases tubeless tire set ups are actually heavier than tubed ones are. That's not always the case though.

So......what is the main attraction to running tubeless then? If you recall from above, I have pretty much eliminated flat tires as being an issue for me. That right there would be worth it to me, but it isn't the only reason I like tubeless tires.

When you get a good rim/tire match up, tubeless is hard to beat for traction, comfort, and speed. Sometimes you don't get all three of those things, but sometimes you do, and when you do, it beats a tubed tire hands down. Tubed set ups still have a place, and sometimes the tubed set ups actually work just fine, but more and more, tubeless is the way to go now. With all the choices coming out, it doesn't make any sense to stick with a tubed set up anymore for your mountain bike.

When Colors Work

Not sure I'm feelin' it...

Color. My old boss at my first bike shop gig said something to the effect that, "Cycling is a colorful sport. Your kit and your gear should reflect that." Well, he certainly lived up to that maxim himself. He had a shop full of visually stimulating frames, jerseys, and gee-gaws.

I don't know about the current "neon revival", or those old Polti jerseys, (remember those?), but I do like color in my cycling too. Tasteful, but not avoiding "in your face" stuff either. But it has to be "right". That's a hard thing to get in balance, seemingly, for some of these outfits pedaling cycling gear these days.

Take the example of the Rubena tires here. The grey stripes certainly should call these out at the trail head as something different. However, for my tastes, the grey stripes are contrived, derivative, and just "not right". Want color on your tires? I would rather see it on the side wall, like Geax's old green sidewalls, or skin wall tires, like the old days. (I know...."Mr. Retro" again!)

We could throw in the oddball graphics here, but that is another element of design, so I will keep this focused on color only.

My first "good" mountain bike was this old '92 Klein Attitude. Love, love, love the Sunset Linear Fade with the hot pink, orange, and yellow. It was brash, in your face, but done so well that it garnered a lot of good and disparaging comments. To me, that's a good thing. Why ride a bike that blends in? (Unless it is something you don't want stolen, or for other good reasons.)

And that old bike fit right in with what my old boss was trying to get across. Don't be shy! Get colorful. Just be careful with the design, and it should work. You don't have to be so brash as my old '92 Attitude though! I just use it as an extreme example.

Certainly, a tasteful, classy use of color is definitely okay as well. I like spartan design, one color schemes that are done well. An offsetting panel, or detail in the right place can make or break a design. 

And then there is your cycling clothes. You shouldn't be shy about good design there either. Just don't try any of those old Cipolini skin suits or a retro-Polti jersey on your next ride!

When Colors Work

Not sure I'm feelin' it...

Color. My old boss at my first bike shop gig said something to the effect that, "Cycling is a colorful sport. Your kit and your gear should reflect that." Well, he certainly lived up to that maxim himself. He had a shop full of visually stimulating frames, jerseys, and gee-gaws.

I don't know about the current "neon revival", or those old Polti jerseys, (remember those?), but I do like color in my cycling too. Tasteful, but not avoiding "in your face" stuff either. But it has to be "right". That's a hard thing to get in balance, seemingly, for some of these outfits pedaling cycling gear these days.

Take the example of the Rubena tires here. The grey stripes certainly should call these out at the trail head as something different. However, for my tastes, the grey stripes are contrived, derivative, and just "not right". Want color on your tires? I would rather see it on the side wall, like Geax's old green sidewalls, or skin wall tires, like the old days. (I know...."Mr. Retro" again!)

We could throw in the oddball graphics here, but that is another element of design, so I will keep this focused on color only.

My first "good" mountain bike was this old '92 Klein Attitude. Love, love, love the Sunset Linear Fade with the hot pink, orange, and yellow. It was brash, in your face, but done so well that it garnered a lot of good and disparaging comments. To me, that's a good thing. Why ride a bike that blends in? (Unless it is something you don't want stolen, or for other good reasons.)

And that old bike fit right in with what my old boss was trying to get across. Don't be shy! Get colorful. Just be careful with the design, and it should work. You don't have to be so brash as my old '92 Attitude though! I just use it as an extreme example.

Certainly, a tasteful, classy use of color is definitely okay as well. I like spartan design, one color schemes that are done well. An offsetting panel, or detail in the right place can make or break a design. 

And then there is your cycling clothes. You shouldn't be shy about good design there either. Just don't try any of those old Cipolini skin suits or a retro-Polti jersey on your next ride!

Trundling In The Moonlight

They only come out at night...

I was a bit conflicted- Gravel grinder, or single track night ride? It was a full moon night, the weather was beautiful, and I had put in a long day at work. I needed a ride.

I figured a night ride would be fun, since it was the full moon, and it would be nice outside with little wind. I paused down in the Lab as I considered my choices. Hmm......The Snow Dog got the call.

I switched over the Lezyne Super Drive mount to the carbon Carnegie's Bar, and slapped my "el-cheapo" flashlight on my helmet. I was ready to roll out the door. The route was the same training route I was doing in December for the Triple D event. It was weird with all the vegetation covering the single track. In some places, it was downright hard to see where the single track was.

I don't think I was going any slower though. I certainly was flowing along at my "trundle pace" on the fat bike, bouncing along quietly. That was something I really noticed. The fat bike was like having giant "cat paws" on the trail surface. Very quiet. I couldn't hear the bike rolling many times, but I have to admit that the rousing chorus of frogs were somewhat to blame for that.

Moonshine

And yeah.......the moon was out. That was pretty fun as well. So I think that makes two full moons in a row that I have been out riding. Not a planned thing, mind you, but now that a streak has been started, who am I to let it stop? Next full moon I'll try again.

Up at the Reveal The Path after party dealio, Kid Reimer of Salsa Cycles gave me his 10 minute quick course called "Running a Camera For Big Dummies Named Guitar Ted". Well, I still have a long way to go, but I learned something and was able to at least get a half decent shot of the moon over the little lake I ride around. I still need a tripod though. Gotta work on that one.

After fiddling with the camera for a few minutes, I bugged outta there and headed home. Good thing too, because my flashlight was kicking the can so my "looking around corners" light was pretty much useless now. It was good to be on the bike path at this point where the Lezyne light could take over and rule the night.

It was pretty ho-hum going home until about two blocks away. I saw a car headed towards me. It slowed, and about ten feet in front of me, the car makes a left and cuts me off as it heads into an alleyway. I slammed on the brakes, missing her, and shined that bright LED right at her head. (It was a woman driver in a Cadillac) She started waving her arms about like she was warding off a swarm of angry bees. I made my way around her and headed the rest of the way home.

I mean- It wasn't like she didn't see me. Weird.

Trundling In The Moonlight

They only come out at night...

I was a bit conflicted- Gravel grinder, or single track night ride? It was a full moon night, the weather was beautiful, and I had put in a long day at work. I needed a ride.

I figured a night ride would be fun, since it was the full moon, and it would be nice outside with little wind. I paused down in the Lab as I considered my choices. Hmm......The Snow Dog got the call.

I switched over the Lezyne Super Drive mount to the carbon Carnegie's Bar, and slapped my "el-cheapo" flashlight on my helmet. I was ready to roll out the door. The route was the same training route I was doing in December for the Triple D event. It was weird with all the vegetation covering the single track. In some places, it was downright hard to see where the single track was.

I don't think I was going any slower though. I certainly was flowing along at my "trundle pace" on the fat bike, bouncing along quietly. That was something I really noticed. The fat bike was like having giant "cat paws" on the trail surface. Very quiet. I couldn't hear the bike rolling many times, but I have to admit that the rousing chorus of frogs were somewhat to blame for that.

Moonshine

And yeah.......the moon was out. That was pretty fun as well. So I think that makes two full moons in a row that I have been out riding. Not a planned thing, mind you, but now that a streak has been started, who am I to let it stop? Next full moon I'll try again.

Up at the Reveal The Path after party dealio, Kid Reimer of Salsa Cycles gave me his 10 minute quick course called "Running a Camera For Big Dummies Named Guitar Ted". Well, I still have a long way to go, but I learned something and was able to at least get a half decent shot of the moon over the little lake I ride around. I still need a tripod though. Gotta work on that one.

After fiddling with the camera for a few minutes, I bugged outta there and headed home. Good thing too, because my flashlight was kicking the can so my "looking around corners" light was pretty much useless now. It was good to be on the bike path at this point where the Lezyne light could take over and rule the night.

It was pretty ho-hum going home until about two blocks away. I saw a car headed towards me. It slowed, and about ten feet in front of me, the car makes a left and cuts me off as it heads into an alleyway. I slammed on the brakes, missing her, and shined that bright LED right at her head. (It was a woman driver in a Cadillac) She started waving her arms about like she was warding off a swarm of angry bees. I made my way around her and headed the rest of the way home.

I mean- It wasn't like she didn't see me. Weird.

Still Trying To Figure It Out

My latest trip to Northfield, Minnesota, (which I talked about in the post previous to this one), was an interesting reminder about wheels for off road bicycles. Mike of Mike's Bikes up there was right at the epicenter of the Marin developments as he wrenched at another Mike's Bikes out in Marin County. Mike has some great stories about what went down with the riders and the scene back in the day, right down to some personal nitty-gritty stuff, that would be best left to lie, but is definitely interesting to hear.

It coulda been you....

But leaving the personal tidbits aside, (which may or may not be true anyway), it always comes out in the conversations I have with Mike about the early days of mtb that nothing was "sacred" as far as "standards" as we learned them for mountain biking. What it was about, and this is paramount, was what would work best.

As an example, I give you this anecdote from my latest conversation with Mike. Now Mike isn't one to hang out on internet forums and whatnot. (Which is something I think we all could do less of so we could ride more.) So, I knew he probably hadn't heard that one of the 10 original Breezer bikes, the first purpose built for off road, batch produced bike series, had come up for sale recently. Mike was astounded. He was familiar with the first series, and had seen them back in the day.

Mike wanted to know if it had aluminum rims on it, or the originally spec'ed Schwinn S-2 steel rims. See, the S-2 rims were horrid for braking, since the chrome plated finish was so slippery. When aluminum rims became readily available, all the original Breezer owners had their wheels re-laced to them in what Mike referred to as a "wheel building frenzy". Oddly enough, all the rims that came in were of one anodized color, which wasn't the case later on. Ukai and a few others did several different anodized hues. So anyway, all the rims were a gold ano color on the re-laced set ups for all the Breezer bikes of the day. But what did that matter? The thing was, the aluminum rims worked better. Much better.

And the whole rim deal came down to the tires necessary to do "proper off roading" with, which were all 26" kids ballooner tires from Schwinn cruiser bikes. If those tires had been, say 650B- well then we'd be talking about a whole 'nuther story now. They could have been 700c based as well. Just like the wheels from the late 19th Century were.

But they weren't, and now, with all the available choices, we're still trying to figure out what is best for mountain bikes. In fact, if you think about it, we are still trying to figure out what a mountain bike is in the first place. Whatever it is, I don't think it will ever be as simple as it was in 1977, nor as technologically deficient as it was then. Obviously, a mountain bike is going to have multiple definitions depending upon who you talk to these days.

Maybe we'll never really figure it out!

Still Trying To Figure It Out

My latest trip to Northfield, Minnesota, (which I talked about in the post previous to this one), was an interesting reminder about wheels for off road bicycles. Mike of Mike's Bikes up there was right at the epicenter of the Marin developments as he wrenched at another Mike's Bikes out in Marin County. Mike has some great stories about what went down with the riders and the scene back in the day, right down to some personal nitty-gritty stuff, that would be best left to lie, but is definitely interesting to hear.

It coulda been you....

But leaving the personal tidbits aside, (which may or may not be true anyway), it always comes out in the conversations I have with Mike about the early days of mtb that nothing was "sacred" as far as "standards" as we learned them for mountain biking. What it was about, and this is paramount, was what would work best.

As an example, I give you this anecdote from my latest conversation with Mike. Now Mike isn't one to hang out on internet forums and whatnot. (Which is something I think we all could do less of so we could ride more.) So, I knew he probably hadn't heard that one of the 10 original Breezer bikes, the first purpose built for off road, batch produced bike series, had come up for sale recently. Mike was astounded. He was familiar with the first series, and had seen them back in the day.

Mike wanted to know if it had aluminum rims on it, or the originally spec'ed Schwinn S-2 steel rims. See, the S-2 rims were horrid for braking, since the chrome plated finish was so slippery. When aluminum rims became readily available, all the original Breezer owners had their wheels re-laced to them in what Mike referred to as a "wheel building frenzy". Oddly enough, all the rims that came in were of one anodized color, which wasn't the case later on. Ukai and a few others did several different anodized hues. So anyway, all the rims were a gold ano color on the re-laced set ups for all the Breezer bikes of the day. But what did that matter? The thing was, the aluminum rims worked better. Much better.

And the whole rim deal came down to the tires necessary to do "proper off roading" with, which were all 26" kids ballooner tires from Schwinn cruiser bikes. If those tires had been, say 650B- well then we'd be talking about a whole 'nuther story now. They could have been 700c based as well. Just like the wheels from the late 19th Century were.

But they weren't, and now, with all the available choices, we're still trying to figure out what is best for mountain bikes. In fact, if you think about it, we are still trying to figure out what a mountain bike is in the first place. Whatever it is, I don't think it will ever be as simple as it was in 1977, nor as technologically deficient as it was then. Obviously, a mountain bike is going to have multiple definitions depending upon who you talk to these days.

Maybe we'll never really figure it out!

Mini-Vacation Time

My attendance at "Reveal The Path" was followed by an extended weekend stay with Ben Witt up in Northfield, Minnesota. Obviously, being that it was Friday, Ben and his wife were working, so Mrs. Guitar Ted and I hung out for the day.

Shopping in Northfield

Now Mrs. Guitar Ted is a book nut, kinda like I am a bike nut. Used book stores are like a magnet for her. Northfield actually has a nice one called Monkey See- Monkey Read. Oddly enough, I happen to know the proprietor of the establishment, Jerry, who himself is a bike nut.

Weird, huh?

Well, it gets weirder, in a good way. See, Jerry got involved in selling the  AfricaBike , which are made and distributed by Kona and involves a project to help Africans with bicycles. Jerry had sold several of these over the past few years from his used book store, but only had two left. He is getting to the point where he is going to end his involvement with the selling of bicycles out of a bookstore, so these two bikes had attractive pricing on them as well.

Okay, so the other part of this story is that Mrs. Guitar Ted has always, always wanted a Kona Bike. Didn't matter to her what type of bike, as long as it was a Kona. (I have no idea why Kona. It is what it is, as far as I know!)

Mrs. Guitar Ted on her Kona

Well, Jerry and I get to talking and next thing ya know, we're leaving with a Kona AfricaBike for Mrs. Guitar Ted.

It's pretty cool. Single speed, bolt on hubs, coaster rear with linear pull front brakes, integrated rear rack, a front basket, and of course, it is steel. Oddly enough, the flat black paint job is my wife's second favorite color for a bike as well.

The integrated rear rack has a  four bolt pattern of braze ons that you can mount a platform deck, or a basket on. That's our next project for this bike, which I hope will be getting a lot of use real soon.

Now that wasn't all we did, and the entire day was fun. We walked everywhere we went. Had a ton of fun. In the evening, Mrs. Guitar Ted wanted to go shopping with Ben's wife, so Ben and I planned on hanging out down at Mike's Bikes, kind of like we do every February.

That entailed a bunch of tom-foolery with beers involved. My favorite part of the evening was getting to hear more early Marin clunker stories from Mike himself. I learned more about the Koski Brothers, Joe Breeze, the switch from steel Schwinn S2 rims to Ukai aluminum rims, and early disc brake experiments.

Yesterday was spent mostly at Ben's shop hanging out where I got to see Ben's Big Dummy- Fat-Lite set up. He has Marge Lite rims shod with 2.4" Bontrager XR-1 tires which yields a width of 70mm on the tires. I rode it around and it was really smooove. 

Then we came back home and hung out with our family to see some fireworks. A great way to cap off a nice, relaxing time off. 

Mini-Vacation Time

My attendance at "Reveal The Path" was followed by an extended weekend stay with Ben Witt up in Northfield, Minnesota. Obviously, being that it was Friday, Ben and his wife were working, so Mrs. Guitar Ted and I hung out for the day.

Shopping in Northfield

Now Mrs. Guitar Ted is a book nut, kinda like I am a bike nut. Used book stores are like a magnet for her. Northfield actually has a nice one called Monkey See- Monkey Read. Oddly enough, I happen to know the proprietor of the establishment, Jerry, who himself is a bike nut.

Weird, huh?

Well, it gets weirder, in a good way. See, Jerry got involved in selling the  AfricaBike , which are made and distributed by Kona and involves a project to help Africans with bicycles. Jerry had sold several of these over the past few years from his used book store, but only had two left. He is getting to the point where he is going to end his involvement with the selling of bicycles out of a bookstore, so these two bikes had attractive pricing on them as well.

Okay, so the other part of this story is that Mrs. Guitar Ted has always, always wanted a Kona Bike. Didn't matter to her what type of bike, as long as it was a Kona. (I have no idea why Kona. It is what it is, as far as I know!)

Mrs. Guitar Ted on her Kona

Well, Jerry and I get to talking and next thing ya know, we're leaving with a Kona AfricaBike for Mrs. Guitar Ted.

It's pretty cool. Single speed, bolt on hubs, coaster rear with linear pull front brakes, integrated rear rack, a front basket, and of course, it is steel. Oddly enough, the flat black paint job is my wife's second favorite color for a bike as well.

The integrated rear rack has a  four bolt pattern of braze ons that you can mount a platform deck, or a basket on. That's our next project for this bike, which I hope will be getting a lot of use real soon.

Now that wasn't all we did, and the entire day was fun. We walked everywhere we went. Had a ton of fun. In the evening, Mrs. Guitar Ted wanted to go shopping with Ben's wife, so Ben and I planned on hanging out down at Mike's Bikes, kind of like we do every February.

That entailed a bunch of tom-foolery with beers involved. My favorite part of the evening was getting to hear more early Marin clunker stories from Mike himself. I learned more about the Koski Brothers, Joe Breeze, the switch from steel Schwinn S2 rims to Ukai aluminum rims, and early disc brake experiments.

Yesterday was spent mostly at Ben's shop hanging out where I got to see Ben's Big Dummy- Fat-Lite set up. He has Marge Lite rims shod with 2.4" Bontrager XR-1 tires which yields a width of 70mm on the tires. I rode it around and it was really smooove. 

Then we came back home and hung out with our family to see some fireworks. A great way to cap off a nice, relaxing time off. 

Review: Reveal The Path

Last evening I attended the opening of the Salsa Cycles presented film project, Reveal The Path. I saw the film at its premier at the Riverview Theatre in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The bike film genre' is mostly consumed with riding footage, gravity driven pursuits, and stunts, for the most part. So limited appeal to those outside the cycling circles is to be expected. Was Reveal The Path another "endurance junkie" film, or a pursuit of the ultimate single track film? I didn't know going in. I suspected as much, but to be honest, I hadn't a clue as to what it would be about beforehand, beyond my own vague guesses that it was, in fact, an endurance junkie film. First let me say I was entirely wrong about that!

Reveal is more than a cycling film, first off. It has bicycles in it, yes of course. There are some sweet riding spots shown, and something of the pitfalls and struggles concerning cycling and endurance through difficulties doing such are there. However; Reveal  goes beyond that to delve into the experiential, mind bending factors of contact with other cultures, religions, and ways of life that can be discovered by bicycle.

That sounds huge and like a vast, almost incomprehensible subject matter to tackle in a bicycle driven film, and Reveal does its best to dip your toes into a dizzying array of African/Western/Eastern culture and lifestyle which, on the surface of it, seems disjointed. The film makers strive to tie this disparate soup of world beats together with the bicycle and the shared experiences of four cyclists who are bikepacking through these layers of culture and fantastic landscape.

My feelings about the film are that there is much to be derived from it, not only from a cyclists perspective, but for anyone with a latent sense of wanderlust that needs a "kick in the pants" to get out there and do something. This is a strong message in the film, and to that degree, I found the project to be successful.

That said, I felt as though there was so much undeveloped potential for this film to become the stronger statement that it could have been. There are characters I wanted to see more focus on, struggles hinted at that weren't fully developed, and the beginning of the film seemed quite out of place and clunky.

Okay, so should you go see this film? If you have an inkling of an adventuresome spirit lurking inside of your birthday suit, you will be glad you went to see Reveal The Path. For those others that have a need for a story to delve deep, to  be entertained thoroughly, and like to have the mysteries solved by the closing credits, you may find Reveal The Path to be wanting, dim, and disjointed.

I think, in a way, even my own criticisms of the film are just a way to point out that I need to go out and make my own statements, find my own answers to the mysteries, and discover and overcome my own struggles- be that on a bicycle or not. Maybe this is exactly the hidden gem of Reveal The Path. Maybe it isn't a typical film, much less a typical bicycle flick. In many ways, Reveal The Path is more than that, but taken purely as a film, it finds me thinking there is more there that wasn't brought to bear on the screen.

Disclaimer: I am not a film critic, nor do I claim to be one. This is merely my take on my own experience at the film. Your mileage may vary.

Review: Reveal The Path

Last evening I attended the opening of the Salsa Cycles presented film project, Reveal The Path. I saw the film at its premier at the Riverview Theatre in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The bike film genre' is mostly consumed with riding footage, gravity driven pursuits, and stunts, for the most part. So limited appeal to those outside the cycling circles is to be expected. Was Reveal The Path another "endurance junkie" film, or a pursuit of the ultimate single track film? I didn't know going in. I suspected as much, but to be honest, I hadn't a clue as to what it would be about beforehand, beyond my own vague guesses that it was, in fact, an endurance junkie film. First let me say I was entirely wrong about that!

Reveal is more than a cycling film, first off. It has bicycles in it, yes of course. There are some sweet riding spots shown, and something of the pitfalls and struggles concerning cycling and endurance through difficulties doing such are there. However; Reveal  goes beyond that to delve into the experiential, mind bending factors of contact with other cultures, religions, and ways of life that can be discovered by bicycle.

That sounds huge and like a vast, almost incomprehensible subject matter to tackle in a bicycle driven film, and Reveal does its best to dip your toes into a dizzying array of African/Western/Eastern culture and lifestyle which, on the surface of it, seems disjointed. The film makers strive to tie this disparate soup of world beats together with the bicycle and the shared experiences of four cyclists who are bikepacking through these layers of culture and fantastic landscape.

My feelings about the film are that there is much to be derived from it, not only from a cyclists perspective, but for anyone with a latent sense of wanderlust that needs a "kick in the pants" to get out there and do something. This is a strong message in the film, and to that degree, I found the project to be successful.

That said, I felt as though there was so much undeveloped potential for this film to become the stronger statement that it could have been. There are characters I wanted to see more focus on, struggles hinted at that weren't fully developed, and the beginning of the film seemed quite out of place and clunky.

Okay, so should you go see this film? If you have an inkling of an adventuresome spirit lurking inside of your birthday suit, you will be glad you went to see Reveal The Path. For those others that have a need for a story to delve deep, to  be entertained thoroughly, and like to have the mysteries solved by the closing credits, you may find Reveal The Path to be wanting, dim, and disjointed.

I think, in a way, even my own criticisms of the film are just a way to point out that I need to go out and make my own statements, find my own answers to the mysteries, and discover and overcome my own struggles- be that on a bicycle or not. Maybe this is exactly the hidden gem of Reveal The Path. Maybe it isn't a typical film, much less a typical bicycle flick. In many ways, Reveal The Path is more than that, but taken purely as a film, it finds me thinking there is more there that wasn't brought to bear on the screen.

Disclaimer: I am not a film critic, nor do I claim to be one. This is merely my take on my own experience at the film. Your mileage may vary.