fork damage from bus rack
10-27-08 | 02:53 AM
#26
Pedaled too far.
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 12,851
Likes: 9
From: La Petite Roche
__________________
"He who serves all, best serves himself" Jack London
10-27-08 | 03:40 AM
#27
Your generally looking at a 3-5 mile ride with a couple hundred feet of elevation change.
In general it's not the place to play share the road.
__________________
This is Africa, 1943. War spits out its violence overhead and the sandy graveyard swallows it up. Her name is King Nine, B-25, medium bomber, Twelfth Air Force. On a hot, still morning she took off from Tunisia to bomb the southern tip of Italy. An errant piece of flak tore a hole in a wing tank and, like a wounded bird, this is where she landed, not to return on this day, or any other day.
This is Africa, 1943. War spits out its violence overhead and the sandy graveyard swallows it up. Her name is King Nine, B-25, medium bomber, Twelfth Air Force. On a hot, still morning she took off from Tunisia to bomb the southern tip of Italy. An errant piece of flak tore a hole in a wing tank and, like a wounded bird, this is where she landed, not to return on this day, or any other day.
10-27-08 | 06:53 AM
#28
Senior Member
Joined: Oct 2007
Posts: 1,522
Likes: 0
From: Madison, WI
The usual reason for a bridge being off limits is... it's part of a limited access highway. In some areas, you may have more limited access bridges than open access. Not good, and depending on the road layout, it may mean a cyclist has to make substantial detours to actually cross. A number of major rivers on the east coast cause this kind of problem.
10-27-08 | 10:46 AM
#29
Pedaled too far.
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 12,851
Likes: 9
From: La Petite Roche
The usual reason for a bridge being off limits is... it's part of a limited access highway. In some areas, you may have more limited access bridges than open access. Not good, and depending on the road layout, it may mean a cyclist has to make substantial detours to actually cross. A number of major rivers on the east coast cause this kind of problem.
Last year however, they opened up the Big Dam Bridge, a bridge across the Arkansas River exclusively for pedestrians and bicyclists. It's still a couple of miles out of the way and the bridge itself with the long ramps to and from it is almost a mile. So it's still a substantial detour. But the view is spectacular.
__________________
"He who serves all, best serves himself" Jack London
Last edited by Artkansas; 10-27-08 at 10:53 AM.
11-04-08 | 10:57 AM
#30
Professional Genious
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 83
Likes: 0
From: St. Louis Mo Area
Bikes: 1999ish Giant Rincon, 2004 Trek 4900
Today, as I was putting my trek mtn bike up there, I suddenly realized that the reason my from brakes are so gouged up is from the rack. Its really digging in there. I'll take a pic and post it up.
11-04-08 | 11:38 AM
#31
Señior Member
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 13,748
Likes: 10
From: Michigan
Bikes: Windsor Fens, Giant Seek 0 (2014, Alfine 8 + discs)
Here are a couple of photos
It's 5 miles long and located in the straits of Mackinaw. Winds can get bad enough that the police sometimes reduce the speed limit to 20 MPH or even close it. Even "normally" the speed limit is 45. About 20 years ago the wind caught a car (admittedly, something like a Yugo, and the girl was speeding) and blew it off the bridge.
It's a wonderful bridge, we cross it at least a couple times a year. I rode over it on a motorcycle once, and I stayed on the open gridwork as long as possible, it was quite fun. And I'm all for asserting my rights as a bicyclist. But there's no way I'd ride over that bridge. And there's no way to walk it, either.
__________________
Work: the 8 hours that separates bike rides.
Work: the 8 hours that separates bike rides.
11-04-08 | 12:17 PM
#32
Ono!
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 643
Likes: 0
From: Seattle
Bikes: 2006 Cannondale R800
And to top it off, if you don't accept the DoT transportation across the Mackinac bridge because you're a real cyclist who would never use public transportation, you have two choices, either of which are well over a 1000-mile detour: around Lake Michigan (through Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, and then across the U.P.), or around Lake Huron (through Canada).
11-04-08 | 03:01 PM
#33
Senior Member
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 976
Likes: 0
From: Flagstaff, AZ
Bikes: Marin Pt. Reyes, Gary Fisher HiFi Pro, Easy Racers Gold Rush recumbent, Cannondale F600
I frequently use the bus racks in the Seattle area as I often don't have time to ride my whole 46 mile round trip commute. Most of the Sportworks bus racks have a dense foam cover over the rack arm to prevent the arm from scratching the bikes, but many of these covers are old and frayed. The arms tend to get a little flobby too with age, allowing the bike to rock a little more on some racks than others. I like the lizard skin or pipe insulation options for protecting the fork.
11-04-08 | 04:03 PM
#34
Senior Member
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 458
Likes: 0
From: Durham, NC
Bikes: LHT + FreeRadical
i have an 80 mile rt commute, 60 of which are by bus. i'm also a planner for a transit authority who has bike racks on buses. a few comments:
- carry an old tennis ball that you've cut open. slide ball over support arm on rack to prevent rubbing.
-fenders are "not recommended" but you can make them work.
-transit advocates fight the same fight as cyclists advocates, and sometimes on behalf of cyclists (read: racks on buses). give the bus trashing a break thx
- carry an old tennis ball that you've cut open. slide ball over support arm on rack to prevent rubbing.
-fenders are "not recommended" but you can make them work.
-transit advocates fight the same fight as cyclists advocates, and sometimes on behalf of cyclists (read: racks on buses). give the bus trashing a break thx
Last edited by benda18; 11-04-08 at 04:10 PM. Reason: spelling
11-04-08 | 04:25 PM
#35
Grumpy Old Bugga
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 4,229
Likes: 9
From: Adelaide, AUSTRALIA
Bikes: Hillbrick, Malvern Star Oppy S2, Europa (R.I.P.)
lcayton, I can't comment on the racks or how to avoid hurting your bike because I don't know them - have never seen a bus rack of any type actually.
I understand what you're saying about wanting to ride your nice bike on the way home too.
Then we need to factor in that commuting at any level is really hard on the bike, much harder than any type of competition.
Sooooo, how about this for a thought -
Build yourself a commuter but build it as a completely different style of bike such as a fixed gear bike. Something sporty and fun, something different so you're not comparing it with your good bike and something to give you a different experience - let's face it, as experiences go, commuting is right up there with root canal work.
It doesn't have to be expensive - better if it's not, and that's where the fixed gear bike makes some manic sense because all you need is an old roadie and convert it with some track bits, but you could do the same with a mountain bike (there you go, build a fixed mtb
) or a SS bush basher or ... It doesn't matter, just something that'll do the commute, won't complain about the inevitable damage and which still gets you smiling when you ride it. Then you'll be able to put a carbon form back on your good bike.
Richard
I understand what you're saying about wanting to ride your nice bike on the way home too.
Then we need to factor in that commuting at any level is really hard on the bike, much harder than any type of competition.
Sooooo, how about this for a thought -
Build yourself a commuter but build it as a completely different style of bike such as a fixed gear bike. Something sporty and fun, something different so you're not comparing it with your good bike and something to give you a different experience - let's face it, as experiences go, commuting is right up there with root canal work.
It doesn't have to be expensive - better if it's not, and that's where the fixed gear bike makes some manic sense because all you need is an old roadie and convert it with some track bits, but you could do the same with a mountain bike (there you go, build a fixed mtb
) or a SS bush basher or ... It doesn't matter, just something that'll do the commute, won't complain about the inevitable damage and which still gets you smiling when you ride it. Then you'll be able to put a carbon form back on your good bike.Richard
11-05-08 | 09:48 PM
#37
Senior Member
Joined: Nov 2006
Posts: 1,106
Likes: 36
From: Hammonton, NJ
Bikes: Dawes Lightning sport, Trek 1220, Trek 7100
Hey folks-
thanks for the great ideas! The lizard skin fork cover and the pipe insulation (+1 for creativity) both sound like good possibilities. I live in san diego, but, judging from some quick googling, the bike racks here seem pretty standard. I think it's partly that my bike configuration is a little uncommon: wide road fork (to accommodate aggressive cyclocross tires) and no rim brake. On any bike with a rim brake (road, canti, whatever), the rack arm will not dig into the fork because the brake is in the way. And most road forks are much narrower anyway, so the arm might actually reach around.
I basically agree with the comments on getting around on a utilitarian bike, but since I only have one *nice* bike, I really love to ride it all I can. It's a steel cyclocross bike, so it's really not far off a commuter, the main impractical aspects being that it's 1) a bit flashy looking, so not something I want to leave locked up and 2) the carbon fork, which has been replaced with an inexpensive steel fork (Kona project 2, which I think could survive a nuclear blast). I have a 17 miles commute to work, or a 5 mile ride + bus ride, so I usually take the bus in, and then do the ride home. Given the length of the ride (plus the nice trails around work that I like to ride sometimes), it's really nice to have the cross bike with me.
xenologer: actually the scratch is fairly deep. Think of a flat head screwdriver being pressed into the fork with the stops and starts of a rickety bus.. Carbon is fairly strong stuff, but can't handle any sort of lacerations. Frankly I'm as surprised as anyone that full carbon bikes are becoming more common for cyclocross and mountain bikes..
thanks for the great ideas! The lizard skin fork cover and the pipe insulation (+1 for creativity) both sound like good possibilities. I live in san diego, but, judging from some quick googling, the bike racks here seem pretty standard. I think it's partly that my bike configuration is a little uncommon: wide road fork (to accommodate aggressive cyclocross tires) and no rim brake. On any bike with a rim brake (road, canti, whatever), the rack arm will not dig into the fork because the brake is in the way. And most road forks are much narrower anyway, so the arm might actually reach around.
I basically agree with the comments on getting around on a utilitarian bike, but since I only have one *nice* bike, I really love to ride it all I can. It's a steel cyclocross bike, so it's really not far off a commuter, the main impractical aspects being that it's 1) a bit flashy looking, so not something I want to leave locked up and 2) the carbon fork, which has been replaced with an inexpensive steel fork (Kona project 2, which I think could survive a nuclear blast). I have a 17 miles commute to work, or a 5 mile ride + bus ride, so I usually take the bus in, and then do the ride home. Given the length of the ride (plus the nice trails around work that I like to ride sometimes), it's really nice to have the cross bike with me.
xenologer: actually the scratch is fairly deep. Think of a flat head screwdriver being pressed into the fork with the stops and starts of a rickety bus.. Carbon is fairly strong stuff, but can't handle any sort of lacerations. Frankly I'm as surprised as anyone that full carbon bikes are becoming more common for cyclocross and mountain bikes..
it may look a bit odd... but if it works...
