BUFFAL0B1LL BIKESITE
last updated 02-10-07
by buffalØb1ll@verizon.net
*This website has been using 100% recycled electrons since 2003. No new matter was created as a result of its publication.
Bike Axioms - Rules to live by
NEW RULE FOR 2007 -Steel is heavier than aluminum but wears longer and bends back.
Say, "Hello, puppy!" in a high pitched voice to every dog you meet on the trail. Even the meanest can't resist wagging his tail at that one.
My bikes get crazy around horses. For this reason I always yield to equestrians.
I like lycra shorts because they can't get caught on your bike. You wouldn't use a circular saw with a neck tie on. Why would you ride a bike in baggy shorts? (Black lycra is best because chain oil stains don't show.)
Wearing cycling gloves is as important as wearing a helmet...unless you plan to crash headfirst every time.
If your tires are splashing mud droplets on your shirt, you'd better have eye protection on.
Someone should invent a bicycle jersey that doesn't look ridiculous.
All bicycles should have a bell. There is no nicer way to let trail users know that you don't plan to slow down.
All bicycles that might suffer a broken chain need a stem pad. The Lizard Skins Ball Frog has saved my knees many times over. It hasn't yet for me saved the parts of the anatomy in its namesake.
7 and 8 speed index shifting are fine. Their spacing between cogs is the same (interchangeable) and by my calculations they are 14.7% less likely to mis-shift than 9 speed systems.
ODI Lock-On Grips don't spin. Forget about hair spray, spray paint, varnish, and other adhesives that fail.
1990's Marzocchi Bombers rule...no plastic parts, user serviceability is mapped out in the instruction manual, and performance is outstanding even by today's standards. If only I'd not been such a weight weenie in the 90's, I could have known this simple fact much earlier.
Currently, Panaracer Fire XC 2.1 is the offroad tire of choice. I haven't found a better all-condition tire yet. It doesn't hurt that they're mail orderable for $12 each.
A presta to schrader adapter can't come in handy if you don't have it screwed onto the wheelset.
All your bikes should take the same pedal cleats.
Criss-cross derailleur cables allow housing to run with fewer kinks up front.
White Lightning Lube. Apply, wipe off, re-apply, & wipe off before every ride.
At least one part on every bike should be customized, i.e., drilled, milled, or ground down.