A spray bottle of glass cleaner works for what I call a “waterless wash” indoors. That cleaner plus old socks or t-shirts are great for dusting, cleaning and minor dirt removal of bikes and parts without needing to head outside for a spray wash.
Additionally, spraying the cleaner right into a cupped hand, and then scrubbed with both hands works as a great de-greaser if you aren’t close to a sink for a regular hand wash.
Stupid question, how do you get it in the tube. Guessing through the valve somehow?
Some presta valve cores are removable, so you pull those out, insert the sealant, and reinstall the presta valve core.
Schraeder valves are all removable in the same way described above.
I pack a micro pair of tweezers in my saddle bag to pull out tiny metal splinters from the tyre after I flat.
Same, and I’ve used mine to pull out cactus needles & splinters from hands, arms & legs that got stuck during falls.
Many people have heard of braking before the turn. This same concept applies to rocky sections on a trail or even a patch of bad pavement. Braking before the rough terrain and then coasting through is usually smoother and faster.
Buy tubes with removable cores.
Those little stans bottles can be pressed against the valve to put sealant in.
I love this.
Restated, it is: The bike can make this corner. Trust it. Pedal at the same pace or harder, and lunge your weight forward, into that corner, and you will make it. Stare at the point on the road you want to go to, the exact point of your future tire track.
Mistrust, doubt, lean back, you’re down.
Plus, you’ll feel like a GD champ after doing it!
This is the way, the truth, and the light.
Look where you want to go.
Learned this in advanced defensive motorbike training, and it carries to the bike. Obstacle? Stare DIRECTLY, AND UNFLINCHINLY at the clear path beside it. Boom, your tire will nail it, and you’re through. Even if it’s 1" / 2.54 cm beside the rock.
You already own the best recovery tool… a bed.
When you have a window to ride early in the day, always take it, because that window you thought you would have later will disappear. I still occasionally make this mistake and regret it every time.
Nitrile gloves and a small rag in your repair kit if running tubeless and have to use an inner tube to repair a flat. Also carry a few zip ties if you need to jerry rig something in case of an accident.
Ditto on the gloves for any riding (not just tubeless) to deal with a greasy chain or other messes out and about.
Add a individually wrapped baby wipe (Fresh Ones are great) to your saddle bag…will get any grease off your hands.
-Hi fi earplugs. I use Earpeace Musis Pro. I never ride without them. You can also get the Earpeace music standards, with the red plug. Have also used Alpine Audio Pro. Many others exist, these are the best, I’ve tested many. Kills wind & background noise, but actually highlights & increases all other sounds. SAVE YOUR HEARING!!! ….it also feels faster, and smoother, riding with them, than without…
-If your shoes are ventilated, and you want to ride in cold, stuff your foot in the corner of a plastic bag, and cut it off so it just covers the front half of your foot. Then stuff it inside your shoe, over a sock. The front will block the wind, leaving most / all of the sock open to breathe out sweat, which will be wicked out. These can be folded down and stuffed inside a saddle bag, about 2 tbsp total volume, for emergency, if you get cold on the ride. Never leave home without them.
-When buying front & back lights, ask the salesperson to come with you outside the store, and hold it, and let you look from 50 – 100m = 164 – 330 ft away. It should be extremely bright. If you can’t see it at this distance, it’s trash. A car travelling 50 mph covers 147 ft in 2 s. You need them to know you’re there WELL in advance, particularly on country roads.
-Yellow lenses are not a gimmick. You only need to look through a set once to see the proof. Get yellow with polarized. Cheap available online. They massively increase your ability to see small rocks, cracks, etc.
If you have access to do so for free, or are willing to pay for it, print them out. I had done this for R8000/ R8020 and it was so much better than flipping through on a device. I lost them in our last move and regret it to this day.
I have a binder next to my bike with all documents and manuals of parts as well as notes about my setups and fixes. It’s super helpful
Tighten till it cracks then back a 1/4 turn. /s
Torque wrenches aren’t as expensive as you might think. A bike-appropriate range 1/4" torque wrench is under $40: TEKTON 1/4 Inch Drive Micrometer Torque Wrench (20-200 in.-lb.) | 24320 - - Amazon.com
Especially when I’m riding 4-6 days/week, laundry gets tough. I’ve found that, so long as my jersey hasn’t dried, I can do a quick hand wash in my sink (or in the shower) with a little soap and let it air dry, and it’s totally acceptably clean. Can get 2-3 wears out of jersey easily this way. Saves time and water.
Not meant to spark the debate, but one of the best benefits for shaved legs is when you’re at the urgent care and you’ve got practitioners scrubbing the gravel out of your legs. Trust me, that hurts plenty, and they specifically called out how much worse it is for hairy people. So stepping aside the shave or not debate, that’s a practical reason that doesn’t seem to be why people think of to do it.
Regarding looking ahead: Watch videos for motorcyclists about target fixation. The TLDR is ‘you go where you look,’ but there’s more to it than that. Target Fixation specifically manifests in emergency/surprise situations, where a car jumps out on you, a turn radius tightens, or a sudden obstacle appears in the road. I’ve experienced true target fixation exactly once in my cycling life, and it was only because I felt what was happening that I was able to tear my eyes off the obstacle and look back at where I needed to go. I was bee-lining right toward my subject. This is what true fixation looks like in the real world 2 Motorcycles Crash (Target Fixation) - YouTube. His partner crashes and he basically steers right into him. Maybe even better example: New RIder TARGET FIXATION!! - YouTube Rider is clearly capable of making the turn, but sees the opposite side, gets nervous, stares at it, and basically sits up.
Expanding a bit more, you can actually force yourself to experience the opposite of this: Try making a turn while staring at something straight ahead and not looking through the turn. Very difficult.
Lean the bike more than your body in turns. Do it a lot on mt bike and gravel, and still do it some on the road. Your bike will corner so much better if you do.
A torque wrench pays itself off the first time you use it.