Stuff and mebbe some things

I don't really understand "kudos" on STRAVA.

Yesterday, I recorded a ride so I could share the completed cut-through that makes a very safe route between Park Road Shopping Center (Bike Source) and over to my neighborhood... which then gets you to the Backyard Trails.  The installation of a pedestrian signal and the completion of some housing construction makes for a quiet ride without the nerve wracking sidewalk surfing past busy parking lot driveways AND cuts off a big incline.

But in order to share the route (and not just a shitty screen shot), I had to make it public. Make it public, and...

get kudos.

A less than one mile ride at a very slow speed... gets kudos.

Mebbe they're to encourage me to make more rides public or... I dunno.

Either way, I hope my friend looked at the route, because I'm turning it back to private like all my other rides. I still don't know why I have STRAVA, other than for correcting Wahoo generated elevation on rides that I'm recording for the Breck Epic in Place...

Which I already completed distance-wise... and I'm almost at the suggested goal of 72,000 feet of elevation (I think)... so essentially, I did it for a t-shirt.  Oh, and a good cause.  So there's that.

Topeak sent me a tool.

I know, if you've read the blerhg long enough, you know I have lots of torque tools now.  What can I say?  I'm a sucker for tools, especially of the torquing variety.  What makes the Torq Stick different from the others?

It comes with a bunch of Allen bits.  Most do.  It's not digital, so there's no beeping, and it's also not the clicking type where you kinda have to listen for that subtle noise indicating proper torque. 

The head of the tool kinda just pivots slightly (and clicks quite audibly) when you hit the set torque.

No more muting the Pandora Tool station, asking my family to not speak and shooing the dogs outside so I can hear "click."   Also, that little thumb wheel allows you to spin the bolt with your fingers to speed up the loosening/tightening process.

A nice thumbprint on the tool to make sure you hold it in the right place...

and thank.

Easy to set torque ranging from 2nm to 10nm, pull out the end of the tool, and one turn equals one nm.  A good enough range for just about "everything bike" outside of cranks, sliding dropout bolts, and mebbe pedals (does anyone even use a torque wrench on pedals?).

Idiot proof torquing.  More than likely just gonna save the digital wrench for the big jobs and break this one out 95% of the time.

A keen eye might have noticed the random seat post collars on my work bench...

Speaking of torquing things, member when I was convinced that a Thomson collar would alleviate the binding/slipping issues with my Fox external drooper?

I member.

It was perfect at first, but for some inexplicable reason, I was finding the fine line between having the post slip back down into the frame or having binding issues all too often.  Seems like something you should never have to futz with once you set it up, but there I was... futzing.

I was back to looking for solutions... and the random collars are indicative of failures.  I had a feeling I knew what would solve my problem... throwing money at it.

Meet the Engin Seat Collar, designed by Peter Verdone.  If you think you can't spend more money on a collar, you'd be wrong, as I didn't opt for the ti bolt option.  It has almost twice the stack height of other collars and has two bolts for even clamping force.

It's almost as tall as the slot on my seat pipe.

Upside.  My post has not slipped... since...

Downside.  I had to go slightly higher than the recommended 5nm of torque.  That said, there is zero stiction in the post action, so I don't care.  I'd like to not be thinking about this problem anymore, so I'm calling it $65 well spent.

Other upside tho?  Despite it's double stack height and two steel bolts, it's only a few grams heavier than a Thomson (and most other) collars.

Was this post random enough for you?

I think I'll ride Knoxville again Saturday, if only to give you a sense of consistency and normalcy.