NotSoBigBen

The starting point was that I have the Bianchi 'Ducati' road bike I have posted before built as a single speed ... being bored and thinking about something to keep busy I decided to experiment It was anyway built with a set of Campag Veloce 10sp shifters of which the left lever was faulty and not working, was all good as it was really only for the brakes. It would therefore have to be a 1x which also meant no fiddling with front dérailleurs and stuff. With some extensive research (trolled the Web for an hour) it appeared that using an 8sp Shimano derailleur and cassette would work as the 'pull ratio' was the same. Keeping in mind I don't anyway have any wheels with campag freehubs ... Checked the 'vintage part box' as Grumpy calls it and low and behold an 11-21 8sp cassette (from my young and stupid days) and chain and an Ultegra 9sp Derailleur. The downside ... could clearly only use 8 gears but hey for fun of it that's fine and 'BECAUSE I CAN' 😜

Don't come at me bro 😜 Google gave me this ... no I have no idea what 'portmanteau' means "Shimergo. This portmanteau word combines a Shimano mech and cassette with Campagnolo"

Just wondering if any hubbers have experimented with mixing these? I have heard anecdotal stories but don't know of anyone that's running any mix of these, It also really irritates me when people say ' something should work'. Thought it might be interesting to hear of 'real world' stories and how successful they've been. And just because I'm bored and have time and a 'box(es) of stuff' I experimented with something myself of course 😜 I'll post that later .... with pics and also how the test ride went!

Too much speed and power mate!

@Pikey will be fine, he has the necessary skills and then some 👍

Ma se hare ❄️ and it'll get colder here on the Highveld in Alberhoughton no doubt! When you meet an old friend along the way that is a gazillion times faster than you (no exaggeration 😜 ) and he doesn't mind to ride along with you for a while ... those are good mates 👍 #ItsWhatIDo 'Be safe, another day to live means another day to ride!'

After all the years of watching the #Giro2023 I've lost interest ... I'm well aware it's out of control of the organisers and the riders/teams but it's just lost 'something' this time around.

Interesting you say that, when I started cycling in the late 80's rumour has it that's where most guys were getting their dodgy stuff from. Equine steroids was a thing for them apparently 🤷‍♂️

I once wrapped bar tape over normal grips to get some relief at a 24hr race ... I raced solo and didn't sleep so it was flippin long! Like you say it didn't last ... last 2 hours or so I just took it off. In a strange way the change actually did my hands good anyway.

Won't happen says Pat! https://m.nieuwsblad.be/cnt/dmf20230517_94865256?utm_campaign=twitterfeed&utm_medium=dlvr&utm_source=twitter

Strange weather here in Howteng at the moment ... @The Ouzo thought I'd just quote something I wrote back when I ran the social media site for a bike shop "So a bit of 'musing' about riding in cold weather ... This morning my hands were cold, as they always are riding in winter, and I wondered if perhaps I have missed something over the years about keeping them warm? Despite all the promises on the tags of various gloves my hands are definitely not warm, clearly they are still not as cold as if you wore no gloves or normal summer gloves though and that is for sure! I have tried all different kinds as well as the normal 'old timer' options of wearing thin runner type cotton gloves under as well as using surgical gloves. In all these cases I guess it does make it a bit LESS COLD bit definitely not WARMER 🤔 Anyone have any suggestions? NO, staying in bed under a warm duvet is not the right answer 😜 #TheOldGeezerInTheShop"

It would appear streaming on the App only ... info thanks to Tread - Mountain biking with soul @Sean Badenhorst

No downhill this weekend

Sadly loadshedding also has an impact .... for me anyway 😡 Between this and MotoGP, 'it is what it is' as the cool kids say

Quickly checks on Google what's 'arbitrage' 😜

@Jewbacca "from somebody who knows his own intellectual limits" now therein lies the crux my friend ... 'quite some few' as my mate would say over estimate theirs 😜

After 'only 250k' of riding I would tend to agree with @PhilipV that a slight adjustment should do the trick .... As someone once told me a very long time ago (granted in the days when there were only road or commuter bikes) "most gear shifting problems can be solved with half a turn of a barrel adjuster"

I had this long thing typed out then my phone went haywire so let's try again ... I have found its a bit of a lottery of whether it's better or not, depends on the route, the intentions of the organizer etc. In a race touted as a proper gravel route like the GT100 held here in Jozi south then it's certainly a better option. At Race 2 the Sun I was quicker on my gravel bike than those I regularly ride with on their MTB's At the Circus100 an all comers welcome but gravel race an MTB was better ... then there was a race held by the 'Pink Flamingos' or something like that from Troyeville that was for Gravel bikes only that was certainly, too my mind anyway, not ideal for gravel bikes On tar and good to fair gravel in my humble weekend 'worrier' experience a gravel bike whips any MTB's backside I ride it because I like to ride a variety of different bikes and try where possible to use the right weapon on the day ... no I don't always get it right

Just like that it's time on the Highveld ... looks lekker out but 🤔 Ja ja some of us get cold quicker than others before the thick skin okes wake up 😜

#MiekItHappen 🏆

The older we get the faster we were 😎

Some of us more than once, ek se maar net 🤪

I wonder how much if any expertise there is around to repair components at that level? Some years ago there were some around, my go to guy has sadly retired ... recently had to replace a complete garage door motor and make a DIY plan with the charger on our gate motor. Both of which I'm sure were pretty simple repairs .... but ja 'it is what it is' as the cool kids say 🙄

There's a reason why it's sometimes 'the road less traveled' ... gave it a shot but it went nowhere

Having been through this and done the 'out of warranty upgrades' a few times which I can't really afford anymore decided to 'DIY' my way around as much as possible. Just got my boet to order me 2 batteries in NZ (+- 800 ZA rondts for both) which his son in law will bring with him when he visits in just over a weeks time. For a Garmin Vivoactive3 and a Samsung S3 ... Google provides the how to 😎