What are your embarrassing or shameful bike confessions?

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We have the meme thread. We have the unpopular opinions thread. Now tell me your deepest, darkest bike related confessions. I’ll start.

I love reading race tech guides. I’ll read them front to back at least 2 times before big races. And apparently nobody else does judging by all the racers confused by the rules or logistics at the race.

I rarely check the air pressure in my tires. A firm press with my hand is usually all I do. And unless they feel low, I’ll just ride them. Definitely ridden tires (28s) at like 40psi at 85kg body weight.

Related to the last one, I rarely do scheduled maintenance. My MTB suspension probably hates me but I don’t even track hours ridden and service it really only when it gets bad. I do wax my chains…once. After that I just use the drip stuff until the chain wears out.

I count Zwift miles.

I love oversized derailleur jockeys even if they’re insanely expensive and don’t add any benefit whatsoever. I just think they look neat. Similarly, I shave my legs because I just think it looks cool as hell, like I’m a real bike racer.

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I’ve no shame here! I know I’m crap and slow but dammit I’ve got smooth pins!

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Shameful confession:
I only have TWO bikes.

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I’m definitely guiltily of that and I think weak hands during chemo 6 years ago made me more complacent. Things always felt hard to me. Ive had tyres at sub 20psi when I have eventually pumped them up but I’m 62kg.

The other daft thing I have done is ordering what I thought was a 10 speed cassette. It was actually an 11sp cassette that could fit on a 10sp hub. I only noticed when I came to fit it a few months later. I use 11speed chains on all my bikes so it wasn’t a dead loss and I fitted it and adjusted the limit screws. It seemed to shift better than the 10sp cassette the bike shop insisted I put on :joy:

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I always train like I’m preparing for a big event, but rarely participate in anything because I don’t like racing. When I do race, it’s typically a longer gravel race where I’ll study the route as if I’m prepping for the MCAT just to under hydrate/eat and fall apart about 5 hours into the event :rofl:

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I confess I just dished out money for a top-of-the-line, overpriced bike when my perfectly fine canyon is only a couple years old… and I did it mostly because I like the color.

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I’ve always worn my glasses under the straps.

Sacrilegious, I know…

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Does this count?

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IMG_84203024×4032 1.42 MB

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I’ll do both :open_mouth: I’ll wear sun glasses on top of the straps but spectacles I’ll wear under the straps!

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I was hit by a car nearly three years ago and am still uncomfortable riding solo on roads I used to ride alone every day

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In the line up of stupid mistakes these 2 are most recent:
Had a flat on the road. Put a new tube in and finished the ride. In the middle of the next ride I got another flat. Removing the tube I noticed I had twisted it when installing.
Installed new SRAM brakes. Trying to bleed them but could not force fluid thru the front or back. I had put the olives on backwards.
I’m sure the there’s many more.

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I took out a bike I hadn’t ridden since late fall. I was proud that I’d cleaned the drivetrain before I put it away, but realized I hadn’t lubed it. So I put on some Rock n Roll extreme. It was only later that I remembered that I had the chain waxed in Bentonville and was going to save it for “dry rides”. Oops.

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That’s not shameful nor should you be embarrased!

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Often times I go for a ride without checking my tire pressure

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This took me a second and then out loud I said ‘oh nooooo’

Thats a mistake you’ll only make once.

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At $600 for a new fork, I sure hope so.

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A month ago or so at my first gravel race of the year…

I was prepping my bike the day before the race. I switched pedals from my road pedals which I had used over the winter, to my SPD pedals as there is a chance for hike a bike during this race. Thought I was good to go. Drove 4 hours to the race. Hopped on the bike 30 minutes before the race and couldn’t clip in my right foot into the pedal. I immediately knew what I had done. I had put a broken right pedal on my bike. A pedal I broke THREE years ago at an MTB race but for some reason decided to keep on my workbench because I may need a part off of it one day.

So I did an entire race not clipped in with my foot flying off the pedal any time the terrain got rough. Not a fun day, but entirely preventable.

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And I thought for sure you were going to say that you had put your road shoes in your bag! :grin:

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Unfortunately I have done that too! Not for a race, but brought the MTB shoes for a gravel ride when I had road pedals on my bike. I had driven about an hour for this ride, so once again I spent a few hours awkwardly trying to keep my feet on the pedals… :man_facepalming:

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I signed up for a TTT with 3 buddies…got to the race site over an hour away. Got all kitted up and realized I left my helmet in my car back at the spot where we all met.

4 man TTT became a 3 man TTT.

So not only did I screw up, I screwed over my buddies, too. :man_shrugging:

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