-
A Key Characteristic of BMX Sprockets That Every Rookie Should Now
from Rookie’s keyboard, Hello, friends Today, I saw five BMX bikes “parked” near the bike shop where I work. They looked awesome, even though the teenagers who owned them appeared to be on the hooligan side (screaming, smoking, teasing each other, etc.). But let’s not get carried away. This is a bicycle site, not one…
-
Explaining The High Body Fat Percentage Of Recreational Cyclists
from Rookie’s keyboard, Hello, friends Today, I will demystify another myth. Many people are suprised to see cyclists who are on the fatter side. But what’s even more suprsing is that many times some of those riders will be extremely dedicated…almost maniacal. And yet their BF % (body fat percentage) is unexpectedly high. So high,…
-
A Close-Up Analysis of Tapered Fork Sizes
from Rookie’s keyboard, Hello, friends This morning I hopped on hardtail and went for a ride. It was nice, to be honest. I’d forgotten how it feels to ride a bicycle with a suspension and wide tires that just eat everything. The experience inspired me to write an MTB post too. Today, I will talk…
-
Why I Like Brass Spoke Nipples More Than Aluminum
from Rookie’s keyboard Hello, friends I am back with another post. Don’t worry. I won’t be talking about bike pedals soon. The last few posts were focused on that component, and I guess some readers might find that somewhat annoying. Today, I will talk about wheel building or spoke nipple material, to be exact. Well,…
-
The Most Inefficient Bike Commuter
from Rookie’s keyboard, Hello, friends Today, I made a somewhat weird observation. In front of the bike shop, I saw two bikes that were the polar opposite of each other. One was a fully rigid retro MTB (equipped with a basket) while the other was some 2k dual-suspension MTB. To the untrained eye, the second…
-
Plastic Pedals Are Good Enough For Most People
from Rookie’s keyboard, Hello, friends Many rookie riders often wonder whether it’s necessary to invest in luxirious pedals made of alloy. I have nothing against those models. I even have 2-3 sets of metal pedals taken from retro road bikes. I specifically ordered one of the sets as I wanted a Lyotard model. But at…
-
The Motivation Behind Rigid Touring Bikes
from Rookie’s keyboard, Hello, friends Today, I will talk about a feature of touring bikes that may seem confusing to some rookies out there. If you analyze touring models (from low to high-end), you will see that the vast majority are rigid. Or in other words, neither the fork nor the frame has a suspension…
-
One Property of Bicycle Pedals That Every Rookie Should Know
from Rookie’s keyboard, Hello, friends Another day, another post. Today, I decided to talk about bike pedals again – a “boring” but super important bicycle component. What if I tell you that they have one unexpected property (from a rookie’s perspective)? What is it? Well, they have a built-in “self-tightening mechanism” that prevents them from…
-
Safety Brake Levers Looked Cool But Rightfully Vanished Into Obscurity
from Rookie’s keyboard Hello, friends Today, I will make a short post on a piece of equipment that you may see once in a while on an old road/commuter machine. Meet the “safety lever” (image below). Safety Levers are designed for braking from the top position of a road bike’s drop bars. They allow you…
-
I Like Strapless Toe Clips
from Rookie’s keyboard, Hello, friends Today I will talk about my absolute favorite foot retention system – strapless toe clips. The goal of foot retention is to keep the feet in an optimal position on the pedals (the ball of the foot should be the part contacting the pedal) so that you can pedal efficiently…