New Outdoors Column! New Shifters! New Every thing!!! – Bike Snob NYC

Howdy! I’ve received a brand new Outdoors column, and it’s about commuting:

Astute readers will notice that additionally used to commute to my radio present, which suggests I didn’t actually take a 14-year hiatus, however contemplate that an essential lesson about by no means trusting the company media.

Talking of commuting, yesterday I, uh, commuted. Although I’ve been using the Homer, I went with the Eye of the Tiger Bike, only for a bit selection:

Whereas the air was significantly clearer than it had been, there was just about no bicycle or pedestrian site visitors, and the comparatively few those that had been out had been largely carrying masks:

We’ve grow to be very well-trained animals, and it’s outstanding how shortly and dutifully we now revert to disaster mode. Please notice that is not me saying MAN UP AND BREATH THE SMOKE YOU WOOSIES!!! Clearly when the air is as dangerous because it was it makes excellent sense to take affordable precautions, and to remain inside if you happen to’ve received nowhere to be. I simply discover it attention-grabbing that society now has two modes–the in-person mode, and the digital mode–and it’s turning into increasingly more regular to easily toggle between them. (Other than individuals who have jobs that contain really doing stuff, that’s, however I wouldn’t know something about that.) Typically I ponder if we’re turning into too afraid of the world, however I suppose it’s all a part of humanity’s evolution, and the gradual strategy of importing our collective consciousness into the digital realm.

This isn’t to say no one was using. In fact folks had been, and a few of them even had saddles that appeared like excessive close-ups of flies:

See?

Nonetheless, the West Aspect Greenway specifically was very quiet, even later that night:

And I can’t say I minded the elbow room as a result of it may be an actual shitshow:

In the meantime, the smoke had lastly relinquished my view:

All in all, issues had been wanting rosy…or no matter these flowers are, I’m not a Flower Fred:

Then this morning, having obtained a brand new pair of brake hoods, I resumed my aborted friction shifter retrofit operation on the Milwaukee. Clearly the very first thing I did was take away the STI levers, paying shut consideration to the situation of the cables, since I’d not too long ago realized that they’re alleged to destroy them:

They had been completely effective:

The cable looks as if takes a reasonably straight path via the lever physique, no less than for the primary few centimeters, so I’m unsure why the pinnacle would come off, as folks appear to say they do. There was a bend additional up, although general it looks as if the cable has to bend rather a lot lower than it does on a downtube shifter:

Perhaps it has to do with what sort of ferrule you employ, or what sort of housing you employ, or how you narrow it, since I assume I may see the cable getting worn away the place it enters and leaves the cable as you shift. Or perhaps it’s one thing else altogether. However you what? IT’S NOT MY PROBLEM ANYMORE! In reality it by no means was. Not solely have I by no means even had the problem within the first place, however now the Milwaukee is formally geared up with downtube friction shifters:

I reused the outdated soiled bar tape as a result of it got here off in a single piece, plus I figured there was no sense utilizing new bar tape simply in case I didn’t like how issues turned out and I wanted to unwrap the bars once more. Nicely, I doubt that can be mandatory, as a result of as a lot as I’d been having fun with the built-in shifting, as quickly as I headed out on the reconfigured bike I knew I’d made the precise choice:

How foolish worrying concerning the slight variations between Shimano and Campagnolo cassettes appears whenever you’re utilizing a clean and chic shifter that doesn’t give a shit what’s happening again there. Campy? Shimano? 7, 8, 9, 10? It’ll work completely on all of them, and extra. I did surprise if I’d miss the consolation of the STI levers themselves, what with their fashionable ergonomics and all, however I didn’t as a result of the form and place of the common old school levers felt nice:

Not solely that, however the brakes felt extra highly effective–not that there was something incorrect with them earlier than, however I nonetheless observed it. This could possibly be as a result of I’d modified the cables and housing. Or it could possibly be as a result of I believe the STI levers I used to be utilizing have a revised cable pull, however these brakes don’t, and neither do the standard brake levers I’m now utilizing. Or perhaps it was simply my creativeness. Anyway, the bike stops actually good is what I’m saying. It additionally rides actually good, and I’d argue it appears no less than pretty much as good as something you’ll discover at a kind of customized bike present circle jerks:

So who knew? All these years my dream street bike was proper there below my ample proboscis. Go determine.