Hey all,
I'm learning about roadside assistance for bicycles (they come and pick you up if things get crazy ... and drop you at a bike shop?). Does anyone know what's locally in Chicago?
People have mentioned Better World Club and I saw 3rd Coast Cycle Mobile Repair on Google Maps.
Riding home tonight on the LFT I saw many bikes without lights. Not just teenagers who aren't likely to read bike forums, but plenty of respectable yuppies too. Some of them even wearing helmets.
The Lakefront Trail is UNLIT. Especially in the wooded sections away from streetlights, it's easily possible to get rear ended because someone didn't see you. It's not possible to see someone coming towards you unlit in the gloom unless your eyes are completely focused on the trail and adjusted to the dark. If you momentarily have to look somewhere else, it's easy to not see someone and crash into them.
Second thought: the dim, blinking dynamo lights are not really bright enough and too intermittent to track another biker's position. Maybe they sell brighter ones, but only constant LED lights are truly safe.
Hi,
I've noticed sometimes riding by Vado 4.0 that I hear a "rubbing sound" when I start riding, which seems to correspond to the pedals turning. It seems to diminish a bit if I play with the chain cover, which in any case seems like a cheap-ish plastic thing (it came stock with the bike). Is it worth taking it in to get looked at? Could I upgrade the chain cover to something more durable?
Longevity is my #1 concern with the bike, followed loosely by speed (I commute about 400mi/ 650 km a month, longest days are 35 mi / 56 km round trip).
I'm also a little worried because I stand on the pedals a lot to get the bike going. Sometimes they seem to "clunk" or creak, not sure if I'm being a hypochondriac or I should get that looked at too.
I'm thinking about getting new tires for my bike. Right now it has Specialized Pathfinder 27.5 x 2.3 and 29 x 2.3. But I'm not seeing similar sizes in any brands, or even in different Specialized tires. Am I misunderstanding something?
Hey all,
Sorry if this is a stupid question. I got a Turbo Vado 4.0 two weeks ago and I've been riding it about 100m / 160km a week commuting. I'm worried about chain maintenance, after seeing people on here say it's the key way to get bike longevity.
But how should I clean and degrease the chain? The chain doesn't move when you pedal backwards (the standard instruction). Am I stuck shelling out $300 for a bike rack? Or am I way overcomplicating the whole thing?
Any tips for Turbo Vado longevity are also welcomed. As you might be able to tell, I'm worried about my finances if I don't take good care of it.
I've been riding my bike about 100 miles a week and it has me thinking about lubrication, which I haven't done since I bought the bike two weeks ago.
Is it possible to use wax lube on an old chain if it already has ~200 miles on it? Assuming one cleans it first using the Park Tool chain cleaner. Or is that only for new bike chains and I'm better off using a nice oil lube?
I'm in general just very stressed to work on the bike. It's a Turbo Vado 4.0 and I worry about messing it up if I try to do much maintenance at home.