Words to Live By

Triples never shift quite right, and the front derailer trim is usually funny. At the same time, you can get within a whisker of a triple's gear range using a 50-34 front derailer, on an 11-25 or 11-27 cassette. If you're considering a triple, I presume the somewhat larger gaps between rear cogs on an 11-27 doesn't bother you too much; you're not a target for a slick shifting 11-23 anyhow. Front shifting is just as reliable as any other double if you install a Chain Dog or Third Eye Chainwatcher, which is about $7, and probably $2.79 at wholesale. And really, if you're an entry level rider, are you going to miss the 53:11 option? So why do manufacturers keep selling triples on entry level road bikes? Did the advent of popular compact cranks leave them with a lot of New Old Stock of triples on hand? Do they have a bunch of old machinery purpose-built for milling out triple cranks, and they are trying to get some marginal profit? Otherwise, I don't get it.

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Velo News gives Sampson's new-ish lightweight "Stratics" gruppo the ultimate backhanded compliment.

while the performance, ergonomics, durability, and finish quality might be open to debate, depending on personal preference and a rider’s needs, there’s no denying that Eric Sampson’s components are quite light and reasonably priced.

You want that in English? The performance, comfort, durability and looks are questionable, but at least it's cheap and light. There is an inviolable rule in bikes. Bontrager's Iron Triangle says that you can have cheap, light, and strong: but you can only have two of them at one time.

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Lenard Zinn has a few tips for how you should store tubulars in the cross off-season. He has detailed instructions on how to remove them, how to hang them, how to suck sealant out of them, and the relevance of temperature and humidity factors. After reading the article, I'm definitely convinced... that it's time to throw mine out and by new ones. No way am I going through that hassle.

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If you saw Avatar and now wish to commit suicide because the movie made you realize how we've destroyed our planet, and the paradise all of us humans squandered thanks to insanely cruel Marines, you probably should follow your impulse. Otherwise, it's a sure bet that you will die when you stick your arm under the lawn mower to see if it's running, when you find out what happens when you stick your tongue in a power outlet, or when you light a match behind the furnace to see if it's leaking, because you think you smell gas. Any of these results would certainly make the 10 foot tall blue people cry, and you don't want to do that, do you?