Cycling in Canada

[Marshal]

Originally Posted by Airboy

Talking with another rider yesterday. She commented about how superior you feel when passing MTBs on the trails while riding your cross or gravel bike. Yup you do feel that you are the better rider.

Yes, certainly superior going up straight forward climbs, but that reverses when the climb gets super steep or technical, not to mention the descending, drops, jumps, and off camber turns. And, germane to the posts above, there is the ease of manualing over a curb to escape a speeding dump truck that is giving you no room.

I find there are many, many more skills associated with high level mountain biking. Road cycling can be more meditative, even Zen like. Serious mountain biking requires intense concentration to the point of erasing everything else. This offers its own kind of mental relief. "Love both of them . . . definitely miss using my road bike."

[Airboy]

Originally Posted by Marshal

Yes, certainly superior going up straight forward climbs, but that reverses when the climb gets super steep or technical, not to mention the descending, drops, jumps, and off camber turns. And, germane to the posts above, there is the ease of manualing over a curb to escape a speeding dump truck that is giving you no room.

I find there are many, many more skills associated with high level mountain biking. Road cycling can be more meditative, even Zen like. Serious mountain biking requires intense concentration to the point of erasing everything else. This offers its own kind of mental relief. "Love both of them . . . definitely miss using my road bike."

Under stand completely. We are finding though that there are so many new people in the sport here that there are issues quite often on the trails. One reason my ex teammate 's coaching business is doing so well.

I raced the Canada cup circuit for 8 years in MTB and another 6 in DH. Started when the bikes were rigid. Find Gravel and CX are much like those days. where you were required to have a high level of skill and could not rely on the tech to get you out of trouble. We see that now with the number of people riding full squishys. and get into trouble.

Its also Why a number of us do the single tracks with the CX bikes. Make us work harder.

There are 2 tracks here. Logrythem and Flat Pete, My fastest times have been on my CX bike.
There are a couple (Matchete and Raven) I would love to try but I am told by my wife that if I get hurt on those ones she will not come for me. Done them on the MTB and Fat bike and they were hard.

Road and Long gravel are the zen rides.

Can do a short 26% climb but any more that a 100meters is tough without the climbing gear. May look at that new Sram gear. The 12-20% 2 km+ climbs are tough no mater what you ride.

Hoping my new MTB shows up for next season. A new Scott spark 29r.

May have a new CX by the end of this season. a Niner.

N+1

[Marshal]

Sounds good. Thank God for that beautiful river valley. My comments mostly relate to North Shore climbs and downs. There are definitely a lot of beginners out on the green trails, but few of them venture onto more challenging stuff (at least here). I am finding the numbers have dropped off considerably since July.

Here's another ride experience. Night riding w 1200 L is awesome, but another unique and interesting thing is riding in the dark with no lights. This is not wise in general, but I do it from time to time and love it. The key is riding a trail you know like the back of your hand, and get out before its fully dark. I did it tonight on Burnaby Mountain linking XC and DH trails. You go slow and really get into every feature the trails have to offer. Accomplishing some tricky rooted drop zone at a crawl, using all your balance skills and partial pedal strokes, offers the slowest thrill I know of. All good stuff.

(I ride an All-Mountain full-suspension beauty with 180/175mm travel (w lockouts) and 650b wheels.) While it rarely gets a shout out, there is plenty of XC to ride here, but the steep trails will always dominate.

[Airboy]

Originally Posted by Marshal

Sounds good. Thank God for that beautiful river valley. My comments mostly relate to North Shore climbs and downs. There are definitely a lot of beginners out on the green trails, but few of them venture onto more challenging stuff (at least here). I am finding the numbers have dropped off considerably since July.

Here's another ride experience. Night riding w 1200 L is awesome, but another unique and interesting thing is riding in the dark with no lights. This is not wise in general, but I do it from time to time and love it. The key is riding a trail you know like the back of your hand, and get out before its fully dark. I did it tonight on Burnaby Mountain linking XC and DH trails. You go slow and really get into every feature the trails have to offer. Accomplishing some tricky rooted drop zone at a crawl, using all your balance skills and partial pedal strokes, offers the slowest thrill I know of. All good stuff.

(I ride an All-Mountain full-suspension beauty with 180/175mm travel (w lockouts) and 650b wheels.) While it rarely gets a shout out, there is plenty of XC to ride here, but the steep trails will always dominate.

Road the north shore years ago. yup it can be challenging. Only night ride I have done was a winter ride under a full moon. Would not challenge myself to do hard ass CX with no lights. Maybe because I'm older now with a mortgage. Our friday morning Gravel rides will be starting in the dark soon. The rain we got Monday should be making the trails here fast. they we loose and dusty the last month.

I ride with bike cameras now, Front and Back. have used them on all my bikes. Interesting to see events and incidents after. Was originally for road rides but now use them for all rides.

[Airboy]

Safe Passing Bylaw just passed in Edmonton. To Start Sept 30. 1-1.5 meter of clearance.
https://edmontonjournal.com/news/loc...box=1630523665

[Marshal]

Let us know if you notice a change in behaviour.

[jamincan]

My observation in Ontario is that the people who weren't actively being assholes are still actively not being assholes and leave even more room or wait. The assholes just disregard the law and buzz you anyway. I honestly can't wait for self-driving vehicles, because as many mistakes as an AI might make, it's not going to risk my life for a laugh or aggressively cut me off because their boss berated them at work at the end of the day, or drive right over me because they were texting their wife that they will be home in 15 min.

[Acajack]

First morning ride in a very long time where long sleeves were de rigueur.

It's September.

[Airboy]

Originally Posted by jamincan

My observation in Ontario is that the people who weren't actively being assholes are still actively not being assholes and leave even more room or wait. The assholes just disregard the law and buzz you anyway. I honestly can't wait for self-driving vehicles, because as many mistakes as an AI might make, it's not going to risk my life for a laugh or aggressively cut me off because their boss berated them at work at the end of the day, or drive right over me because they were texting their wife that they will be home in 15 min.

That is so true. I was on a back road last week. no other vehicles 2 lanes, me against the side and a mom wagon brushes by me. I have yet to download the video but will put it up as soon as I do. Its not the big pickups lately is the family cars.

[Airboy]

I have been using arm covers most of the year, more sun protection than cold.

[Nite]

Montreal's New Express Bike Network (Le REV)
• Video Link

[Kilgore Trout]

That video was shot very soon after the REV was first implemented. Since then it has become one of those things that seems as if it has been there forever. Around 7,000 people are using it every day now, and that number will no doubt increase over time. There are even complaints from users that it is getting overcrowded.

[Marshal]

It's that time of the year: 1st long sleeve ride here too. Tuesday, 19C, air felt chilly. In the spring, 10C means short sleeves and balmy rides. It's hard to believe that seasonal acclimation is even real.

[J.OT13]

New bike lanes up and down Bay Street in Ottawa, one block west of the CBD.

Originally Posted by zzptichka

Cycle tracks on Bay Street

[JHikka]

The right side: A good bike lane
The left side: Ottawa's 'what if we got a little...fun?'

Why not just push the bike lane and pedestrians x-ings to the corner? I guess to give right-turning cars space so they're not clogging up the through lanes? Seems like a waste of space and an overly-convoluted design.

[Nite]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

New bike lanes up and down Bay Street in Ottawa, one block west of the CBD.

seems like the engineer for this street doesn't cycle to explain the mess on the left lane. why not make the left lane straight like the car lanes??

[Aylmer]

I use the left one pretty regularly. And yeah, I want to love it, and it's certainly a lot better than the bike gutter it replaces. But, ouf, those are not twists and turns to be taken at anything north of 10 km/h.

But again, so much better, so much safer. But there are improvements to be had in how we build this stuff yet.

[hipster duck]

Originally Posted by Aylmer

I use the left one pretty regularly. And yeah, I want to love it, and it's certainly a lot better than the bike gutter it replaces. But, ouf, those are not twists and turns to be taken at anything north of 10 km/h.

But again, so much better, so much safer. But there are improvements to be had in how we build this stuff yet.

I can see an upside to those twists and turns. One is that it forces bicycles to slow down when crossing a pedestrian intersection. The second is that it gives cyclists on the far side of an intersection a good view of cars that are approaching from the right and about to make a right turn.

It might also give a right-turning car a better view of the cyclist approaching behind them to their right, since the cyclist has to weave at a lower speed (more reaction time for the driver).

[J.OT13]

Explanation of the zig-zag north bound bike lanes along Ottawa's Bay Street.

Originally Posted by bradnixon

The design is adapted from the standard Dutch intersection design, explained in this video. The turns in the cycle track allow for drivers and cyclists to make eye contact at the crossing point, and prevent "right hooks".

• Video Link

And part 2 of the video...

• Video Link

[Airboy]

Originally Posted by Marshal

It's that time of the year: 1st long sleeve ride here too. Tuesday, 19C, air felt chilly. In the spring, 10C means short sleeves and balmy rides. It's hard to believe that seasonal acclimation is even real.

3 rides in this weekend. Sat morning was cold as we started a 6:30am. 5C. by 8 it was already 15C.
Sundays long road ride out to Elk Island NP started at 9 and it was 18C already. 3.5 hours later it was 25C.
Mondays Gravel ride started much the same at 9am. but 40kph winds you did not feel the 25C weather.

All told 183 kms ridden and not really wearing fall clothes yet.

Do have my fall gear ready to go though the Cyclocross season starts next weekend and the races are early enough that fall gear is advisable. Plan to ride right through the winter again this year. There is a Quebec company making winter cycling boots that are less expensive that 45Nort so will be looking at that since they are good to -30.