Stopping to get a picture of the scenic wooden bridge over a stream before taking on a gravel climb known to the locals as the “Noble’s Mill Leg Crusher”…
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How I want to drive on such roads… But I don’t find anything like that within reach.
Is this the place you’re talking about?
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yea, that looks right
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The most “wild” places in my case look like this 
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Today I won a small victory over myself 
There is an ascent in Filevsky Park (Moscow), which in 2021 I could only walk, with a break and dizziness at the end point. The best result was 3 minutes 53 seconds.
It’s scary to remember about 2020…
Today I drove (!!!) this rise took 44 seconds and the pulse did not exceed 130 beats.
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2022
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First overnighter with my bikepacking setup. Planning on a two-week tour next year.
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Well… Apparently, this year’s cycling season is over for me.
He was very good - he drove 1.65 times more than in 2020 and 2021 combined 
And now, of course, it’s funny to look at the geography of trips
This is the geography of 2020, and I sincerely thought that this was an excellent result 
And this is the geography of trips for 2022. And I understand that I have not reached many places…
But I still have time and energy to expand the geography of trips 
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How much do I “dislike” using the rear brake of a bicycle - after 3585km, the thickness of the working layer on the brake pads is ≈1.7-1.8 mm.
Considering that the new ones “should” have a thickness of 2mm and the minimum thickness is 0.5mm, how long do they pass me? 
I really “don’t like” the rear brake. That is why for the next season, a 140mm brake rotor will be installed in the rear instead of 160mm in the stock. The disks have already been purchased and are waiting in line for installation. At the same time, I will drop 50g from the weight of the bike 
P.S. For accuracy, the pads are the most ordinary Shimano L03A, resin which.
Is there a reason behind it?
I am always a little worried to use front break. Especially in unforseen close-to-accident situation when my center of mass may be in a wrong possition and I could go over the front wheel.
I have a special place for bikes in my heart. I love commuting by bike, great exercise and great for the environment. I am also a member of a few local bike groups that work with the city to expand bike and pedestrian infrastructure to try to be less car focused. Which is a tall order being in America, and specifically the south. But our city is slowly becoming more bike friendly.
Here is a picture of my wife and I’s steeds. Mine is the gray one with the purple handlebars. Its a fixed gear. The other ride is my wife’s its a single speed. This was from a few months back when we went downtown for coffee.
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Of course there is a reason. Well described in an article from a respected site sheldonbrown.com .
It takes practice to use the front brake safely. The practice is constant.
During almost every trip I take, I find a place where I can safely improve my braking practice. And I’m doing it.
So that during an extraordinary event, my body itself, without the participation of the brain, performed the necessary actions and with the necessary effort.
It’s just worth remembering once and for all - the most effective braking is braking with the front brake. And practice… Practice… And practice…
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The Ø140mm brake rotor looks neat and quite harmonious on a bicycle.
Red caps were installed on the fittings for pumping brake calipers. Black, due to poor eyesight, I didn’t really distinguish and just didn’t pay attention to the fact that I could pick them off when cleaning the bike. The reds are immediately noticeable, which the new glasses contribute to 
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I installed a Shimano RD M8000 SGS rear derailleur on my Merida. That is, derailleur of the Deore XT group. Yes, this is not the most modern version, but it did not get worse from this
For the entire 2022 season, I used the Sensah RX11pro derailleur. And I can say that it turned out to be quite a viable alternative for people with a limited budget or just riding, without claims to a certain “sports” component.
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Sounds like Santa Claus came early to your house.
Pudge
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It just coincided with the availability of a certain amount of “free” money with interesting price offers And I couldn’t resist such a temptation 
Tomorrow I will show the latest update for the bike this year
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After two seasons, the Look X-Track pedals failed.
The photo shows that there is practically no thread on the nut of the right pedal, because the metal of the nuts is frank plasticine, and I am not light at all. I found several mentions on the web about a similar problem and it was on the right pedal. I decided to replace it with the Shimano PD ME700.
I will restore the Look over time and they will be a backup option.
If we consider the design, the Look looks somewhat more modern — with two closed bearings on the pedal, against the “classic” ones for Shimano. However, it is this “old design” that also gives certain advantages — if you do not bring the pedals to a deplorable state, their maintenance and adjustment is very easy, making the pedals cheaper, easier and more reliable in long-term operation.
Shimano fix the leg more rigidly - at the zero level, Shimano holds it stronger than Look at +4, which, at this stage, I like even a little more. But Look gives a little more freedom to turn the foot. It will be necessary to really travel and only then draw conclusions on this topic. Previously, there is a feeling that for acquaintance with SPD, Look is preferable because of the greater “softness” of buttoning-quilting and a little more freedom for turning the foot.
The pedals are a bit heavy. Mine, the entry-level Look X-Track weighs 391g. Shimano ME700, also entry-level, weighs 483g. The difference is slightly more than 90g in the direction of weighting. Although, this is absolutely not significant in my case. Because replacing derailleur and his manette, Sensah on Shimano, gave a gain of about 70g, removing the “radiator”, concurrently — the adapter for the 160mm brake rotor for the rear wheel, gave a gain of 50g when replacing the disc with 140mm, plus I changed "a technical flask " Elite (650ml) for a more compact and slightly lighter one from MucOff (450ml) — about 15-20g more gain. So in the end I also reduced the total weight by about 45g
And this is the last replacement as part of the bike maintenance this year
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Today I won another victory I figured out the wahooMapsCreator program 
The program allows you to create maps for Wahoo yourself based on the most up-to-date data.
I did everything in the console using EndeavourOS - it worked! 
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