Yesterday I loved a experience upon autumn’s crunchy carpet:
And handed the next signal:
As soon as upon a time in case you needed privateness you set up some drapes. Now I assume you flip a swath public property into the Shunan Bamboo Forest and ask all people to please depart it alone:
I don’t know what sort of bizarre bare suburban firepit Bacchanals these individuals are having again there that necessitates a thicket of this magnitude, however I needed to chop all of it down out of spite. Alas, I didn’t have a machete with me:
[The Park Tool MA-1]
And even my artisanal axe, which after 9 (9) years I’ve but to make use of:
So I had no alternative however to heed their needs:
Nevertheless, after I acquired again residence, I did channel my vitality in a constructive style. It’s possible you’ll recall I just lately reconfigured the cockpit on my A. Homer Hilsen:
Flipping the bars and relocating the shifters have been each enhancements; nevertheless, the click-friction thumbies themselves are merely not as good because the Silver2s, so I’d been fascinated by switching them. Then it occurred me that if I used to be going to begin pilling stuff off the handlebars anyway I’d as properly strive one thing I’d all the time been interested in, which is equipping the Homer with drop bars. So I stripped the Choco bars of their accoutrements:
And changed them with the 25.4 highway bars I just lately faraway from the Normcore Bike:
Right here it’s all buttoned up:
Now that’s what you name a head tube:
Earlier than you complain concerning the black bar tape and level out the way it doesn’t match the saddle and it’s utterly missing in shellac or twine or no matter, please keep in mind the company mandate right here at Bike Snob NYC World Headquarters is to not purchase something if I can keep away from it–particularly after I’m experimenting with cockpit configurations and should very properly pull all of it aside once more at any time. All of that is to say that I pulled the black tape off one other handlebar I wasn’t utilizing and reapplied it right here within the title of frugality, and if it’s not twee sufficient for you then I don’t know what to let you know. Anyway, so far as I’m involved you possibly can by no means go too far mistaken with black handlebar tape on any bike, it’s like denims on your cockpit.
As for the levers, I had a pair units to decide on one, however finally went with these chunky-yet-comfy Tektro Campy-esque numbers, largely as a result of they have been closest handy:
And naturally I went again to the Silver2s:
Sure, I do know {the electrical} tape is ugly, however the used tape’s fairly raggedy and I don’t need it to unravel.
After one (1) 20-ish mile experience, my first impression is that the drop bars really feel nice:
The Chocos are a really comfy bar that afford you kind of the identical variety of hand place as drops, and I really like them more often than not I’m utilizing them, particularly since I flipped them. Nevertheless, when using the Homer I did often discover myself pining for the full-on climbing-and-descending positions that drops provide–largely after I’m on trip upstate, after I’m doing a number of climbing and descending. To date my sense is that switching to drops might have unlocked the total vacationing potential of this bike with little to no sacrifice in consolation (thanks, big head tube and quill stem!), however time will inform. I’ll notice that when utilizing the shifters within the bar-end place on the Chocos they often hit my knees (relocating the shifters to the thumbie place solved this), however with the drops they’re properly out of the best way and to date I haven’t hit them as soon as. Plus, bar-end shifters on drop bars are about as straightforward and ergonomic to make use of as built-in shift levers–perhaps much more so, since if you’re using within the drops all you should do is nudge them together with your palm.
What can I say, I assume I’m a handlebar traditionalist.
I’ll additionally unapologetically add that, in an act of whole give up, I used to be sporting a full Rivendell wardrobe, proper all the way down to the pants and the sweater,
Additionally I nonetheless actually like these Pearl Izumi Canyon footwear, which I’ve been sporting loads:
I’m only a blur of lugs and wool.
