Clydesdales/Athenas (200+ lb / 91+ kg) - Is it a normal sound?

So this is my first week back at riding since I was 15. Picked up a 2010 hardrock disk and with a buddy half my size started riding. Did 67 miles total over 4 rides this past week and it feels great. Though i cant imagine doing 500 miles in a month like many on here.

On this last ride with about 200yards to go we decided to race to the finish. For the first time i stood up on the bike in top gear and mashed it. Well on the second or third rotation i heard, ping, ping,ping ping ping, ping. It sounds like it was from the rim so i sat down and went on my normal business, no more noise no wobble and nothing looked funny. So i am assuming the spokes were making the noise, correct? Is this normal or should i get them checked? I am 6'3 310# if it matters

When you get a chance, take your bike and flip it upside down so that it rests on its handlbars and seat. Take two spokes and give them a pinch, repeat with the next set and so on untile you have squeezed every spoke on both wheels. If you find a set that moves more than the others then you may have a broken spoke nipple, but in any case you have wheels that need attention (If you find loose ones).

Mashing is bad, stop that.

ok, they seem fine. Thaks Bauteri. But no mashing :( that was what was fun about riding back in the days. I guess i will have to learn to live with it

No problem! Mashing puts a ton of stress on your knees and your bike's drive train. It's much better for both the bike and the rider to use a lower gear and spin at a higher cadence vrs. a large gear and mashing.

Sometimes I mash too, I won't tell if you won't!

Welcome and nice ride..... Pics????

Could it have been the spokes on the new bike were not properly stress relieved before it left the shop??? In a hundred or so more miles, it might be a good idea to have the spokes retensioned/wheels trued to prevent any broken spokes. Just my $.02

BTW, I too mash the big ring......

Could it have been the spokes on the new bike were not properly stress relieved before it left the shop??? In a hundred or so more miles, it might be a good idea to have the spokes retensioned/wheels trued to prevent any broken spokes. Just my $.02

I've built my fair share of wheels, and I'm pretty sure that the spokes would have done their majour settling (the kind that goes ping-poing) within the first 100 yards. (Then again, I always de-stress my wheels before installation, so they make very little settling noise.)

Definitely agree with getting them checked out after a couple hundred miles, though.

I've built my fair share of wheels, and I'm pretty sure that the spokes would have done their majour settling (the kind that goes ping-poing) within the first 100 yards.

OK, Any other ideas? No broken spokes / nipples.....

OK, Any other ideas? No broken spokes / nipples.....

Ping Poinging when you stand up to mash, but the spokes are fine and the wheel is still true? Hrm, that's a thinker...

I'd check the drivetrain. It's unlikely, but the retaining pins in the cassette may have snapped. The shifting could be just shy of perfectly aligned; if the chain isn't under heavy tension it can go unnoticed.
I'm not saying "there's no possible way it could have been the spokes". Just that from wheels I've built, the settling noises typically happen in the first test lap around the parking lot. There's always the chance that an unstressed wheel build will have enough settling to do that even under the pressure of a Clydesdale rider, it may have some more to do the first time someone stands up and really puts some lean on the wheels.

Well stress relief wouldn't solve the prollem if the shop dude managed to bind a spoke. When I true a wheel, I make sure to place a small black dot on the spoke (with a marker pen) so that I can see if the spoke turns along with the nipple. Most shop guys just twist away.

I've had wheels ping after truing from a shop. Took it to a bud that 'splained this to me. He loosened then retensioned each spoke solvig the problem and picking out the binding spoke.

Most shop guys just twist away. Either cause they don't know better or they are to lazy to do it right. "If it's straight, it's good" is their theroy. NOT TRUE! That's the main reason I build my own now.

Hadn't thought about that one!

(Probably because I always use enough spoke-prep that I've never encountered any twisting issues.)

Ping Poinging when you stand up to mash, but the spokes are fine and the wheel is still true? Hrm, that's a thinker...

the settling noises typically happen in the first test lap around the parking lot.

Concur.
If it goes away don't sweat it and get the wheels checked (retensioned/trued/destressed) in a couple hundred miles??

I did 16 miles yesterday and i didnt notice any issues. I pinched the spokes as instructed and nothing seemed out of sorts. Could the wheel had flexed parting the spoxes and when they came back together made a pinging noise?

I dont hear anything wrong with the drivetrain but i am a noob so that doesnt mean much. I am taking the bike up to the LBS on friday to adjust the rear D so perhaps i will mention it to them then and see what they have to say.

OK, Any other ideas? No broken spokes / nipples.....

Are you sure it wasn't your knees? Many of us older guys make a lot of noise when we ride...