c/canadian-riders-hub

Vent: Found out my favorite riding gloves had asbestos after 10 years

I was cleaning out my gear locker last Tuesday and stumbled on an old pair of gloves I'd been using since 2014. Out of curiosity I looked up the brand on a vintage gear forum and found a thread from 2016 talking about how they used asbestos in the heat shielding. I still can't believe I rode with those for nearly a decade without knowing. Anyone else ever find out their old gear had something dangerous in it?

Rant: The 'Lake Okanagan Loop' group ride is way overhyped for what it is

Went on the big organized ride around Lake Okanagan last August with about 30 riders from this hub. Everyone talks it up like it's this amazing scenic route. But honestly, half the time we were stuck behind slow RVs on narrow roads near Kelowna with no passing lanes. The views were nice for maybe 20 minutes near the wineries. The rest was just traffic and dust. I get way better riding just heading north past Vernon on my own. Anyone else find organized group rides more hassle than they're worth?

Warning: compared two riding routes near Vancouver and one was way sketchier

I did a ride from Horseshoe Bay up to Squamish on the highway last Saturday and compared it to the Sea to Sky trail. The highway was faster but I almost got clipped by a truck twice near Lions Bay. The trail took about 45 minutes longer but zero close calls and way better views. Has anyone else tried both and found the same thing?

Why does nobody warn you about chain lube on your back tire

My buddy Dave told me to lay it on thick before a rainy ride last spring and I spent the whole next day wiping black gunk off my driveway and pants. Has anyone else had a random tip backfire this bad?

I used to think cold weather gear was all marketing hype

After watching a buddy on a -15C ride from Calgary to Banff last week come back shivering while I felt fine in my heated vest, I realized thermal layering actually matters way more than I gave it credit for. Has anyone else found a specific brand of base layer that actually holds up after 20+ washes?

Fell for an expensive brake upgrade on my KTM that wasn't worth it

I spent $450 on a Brembo master cylinder kit for my 2019 KTM 390 Adventure last spring, thinking it would transform the braking feel. Turns out, the stock setup was fine for trail riding around Banff and I just needed to bleed the lines properly. The difference was maybe 5% better, definitely not worth the money. Has anyone else thrown cash at a "performance" part that just didn't deliver?

Rant: Got roasted by a shop in Vancouver for my chain tension.

I took my bike into Dream Cycle on Main Street for a tune up last month. The mechanic handed it back and said my chain was so loose it looked like a skipping rope. He told me to ditch the 1 inch slack rule and go for just a quarter inch of play. Now my shifts don't clunk and I lost that annoying slap sound. Has anyone else been running way too much slack for years?

I finally figured out why my bike kept dying in the rain

Was on a group ride up the Sea to Sky highway near Squamish last fall. About 20km in a big storm hit and my 2005 Kawasaki started sputtering bad. Pulled over with three other guys and one of them spotted my spark plug boot was cracked right at the base, letting moisture in. A quick wrap with electrical tape from his pack got me running again and I made it home fine. Anyone else carry emergency tape or have a similar highway breakdown story?

That trail marker confusion cost me 5 hours on Seymour

I was riding the Baden Powell trail on Mount Seymour last Saturday and hit a split where two different colored markers pointed in opposite directions. Ended up going down a washed out gravel path that was unrideable and had to hike my bike back up. Has anyone else had a similar issue with the trail markers on the North Shore being inconsistent?

Old timer at the Tim Hortons lineup told me I was overthinking my gear ratios

He said he's been riding the same beat up 10-speed since the 80s and just pedals harder up hills, and now I can't stop wondering if I wasted $200 on that cassette swap last month, anyone else ever get told something simple that stuck with you?

Chat with a retired courier made me rethink my whole gear setup

I was swapping stories with a guy named Pete at the Tim Hortons in Thunder Bay last Tuesday. He told me he's been riding for 30 years and still uses the same $200 rain suit he bought in 1995 because he says layers beat expensive gear every time. Has anyone else found that cheap rain gear actually holds up better than the high-end stuff?

The day I finally swapped my stock pedals for clipless ones on my commuter bike

I rode with flat pedals on my old Norco for nearly two years, thinking clipless was just for racers. Then last month I borrowed a friend's hybrid with SPDs for a week. The difference in my hill climbs was like night and day, I could actually pull up on the stroke instead of just mashing down. My commute dropped by about 4 minutes each way on a 20 minute ride. But the real shocker was how much less my knees ached after three days of using them. Now I'm eyeing a set of Shimano M520s for my own bike, the ones that run about 60 bucks at MEC. Has anyone else made this switch late in the game and regretted it or loved it?

Overheard a guy at the Tim Hortons in Sudbury saying he shaves 2 minutes off his commute by not using cruise control on the 69

So I tried it myself for two weeks and my mileage actually dropped by 1.5 km/L, anyone else find that trick doesn't work on hilly stretches like up near the French River?

Spent 3 months fixing my route through the Rockies

I used to plan my rides from Calgary to Vancouver on a map and end up wasting 2 hours on bad backroads. Switched to the Canadian Riders Hub route tool and found a cutoff near Revelstoke that saves me 45 minutes each way on my delivery runs. Has anyone else found a hidden shortcut that totally changed their regular trip?

PSA: found out the average tow truck wait time in rural Ontario is 2.5 hours

I was stuck on Highway 7 near Sharbot Lake last Tuesday after my bike died on me. While waiting I looked up stats on the Canadian Riders Hub forum and found a post breaking down average response times by region. Apparently in rural Ontario it's 2.5 hours compared to just 45 minutes in the GTA. That blew my mind because I always assumed tow trucks were faster outside cities. Has anyone else noticed this difference or had a longer wait than expected?

Rant: Found some numbers that changed my mind about riding in the rain

Looked up accident stats on the Transport Canada site and saw that only 8% of bike crashes happen in wet conditions. Everyone in this group acts like rain is a death sentence but the data says dry roads are way more dangerous. Anyone else feel like we overhype the rain thing?

I called bull on 3D-printed bike parts until my derailleur hanger broke in the middle of nowhere

I was riding near Banff last summer and my derailleur hanger snapped on a gravel section. A buddy I was with pulled out a little plastic one he'd printed himself and it got me home 40km back to town. I figured it would fail in the first 10km but it held up fine through some bumpy stuff. Now I carry a spare in my pack, cost me $3 in filament to make. Has anyone else actually pushed 3D-printed bike parts hard on a real ride?

Realized after 5 years I was lubing my chain wrong the whole time

I was over at my buddy's place in Vancouver last Saturday helping him tune up his old Trek. He grabbed my chain lube and goes 'dude, you're supposed to wipe off the excess after you apply it, not just leave it dripping'. I've been doing it the thick and wet way since I started riding. Now I get way fewer grimy drivetrain issues. Anyone else have a basic maintenance habit they had to unlearn?

A 25-year rider from Calgary told me my suspension setup was completely backwards

PSA: Saw a moose casually walking through a gas station lot in Sudbury

I stopped at the Esso off Highway 17 last Thursday and this big fella just strolled past the pumps like he owned the place, no one even blinked except me. Has anyone else had a wildlife encounter that made you question who really runs the show up here?

Overheard a guy at the Tim Hortons in Kamloops say 'hub caps are for posers' and it got me thinking

I was grabbing a coffee near the Husky station on Tranquille Road and this older rider was talking about how he never bothers with fancy hub caps on his old Goldwing. Said he just runs bare steel rims because they're tougher on gravel roads. Made me wonder, how many of us are buying extra chrome parts that just add weight for no real benefit? Anybody else out there strip their bike down to the basics after hearing someone else's opinion?

Switched to full-face helmet after a deer hit me on Highway 17 last fall

I used to wear a half-shell for years, thought full-face was overkill. Now I won't get on the bike without it. Anyone else have a close call that changed your gear?

Used to think pre-ride bike checks were pointless until my chain snapped on the 401

I used to just hop on and go, never checking tire pressure or bolts before a ride... that changed last month when my chain snapped near Kingston and I ended up stranded for 3 hours waiting for a tow. Now I spend 10 minutes every morning checking everything over with a torque wrench. How many of you actually do a full pre-ride check before heading out on a long trip?

Crossed 2,000 kms on a brand new gravel route in Ontario last weekend

I mapped out this loop near Bancroft that linked a bunch of old logging roads and rail trails. Hit exactly 2,034 kms over three days and my legs felt like lead by the end. I thought I planned enough water stops but ran out with 15 kms left on day two. Has anyone else done a long self-supported ride and miscalculated their supplies that badly?

Finally figured out I was gripping my clutch wrong after 10,000 km

I was riding my Kawasaki Vulcan for about two years and always had a sore left hand after long trips. Last month at a group ride near Kelowna, this older guy named Steve watched me pull up and said 'you're holding that clutch like a death grip, eh?' He showed me to use just two fingers and keep my wrist straight instead of curling it. Tried it on the way home and my hand didn't hurt at all for the first time ever. Now I feel stupid for ignoring that ache for so long. Has anyone else had a basic riding habit suddenly click for them like that?