Daniel R Hicks

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12066

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	location	Minnesota, USA
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visits	member for	1 year, 11 months
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Old, tired, crazy.

	26,065 reputation	bio	website		visits	member for	1 year, 11 months
12066 badges		location	Minnesota, USA		seen	2 hours ago

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Sep 7	comment	Do your legs get tired faster when riding a recumbent trike compared to a upright bike? Keep in mind that on an upright your legs are helping support your torso, relieving pressure on your hands and, to a degree, your butt. On most bent designs most of that is unnecessary.
Sep 6	comment	When or how often should I replace my bike helmet? If I'd ever found a different sort of mirror that worked I'd use it.
Sep 6	comment	How to significantly lower HR[avg] while improving performance output Actually, they generally recommend that you don't exceed 80% of HR[max].
Sep 6	comment	Food costs compared to Gasoline riding cross country USA Nor the impact on your marriage from cycling 100 miles a day with or without your SO vs taking a nice leisurely trip together (that involves visiting lots of shops she likes). ;)
Sep 6	comment	Night cycling: Is it worth using electroluminescent wire? I'm skeptical whether EL wire would add more than simple reflector strips. It's not generally very bright. And it's one more battery to deal with. If you REALLY want to be visible get a xenon strobe light.
Sep 6	comment	How to significantly lower HR[avg] while improving performance output Ten years ago my calculated HR[max] would have been 172 by one formula, 168 by another. However, that year I checked into an ER with a kidney stone and my HR was 205 (and BP was 195 over something like 110).
Sep 6	comment	How to significantly lower HR[avg] while improving performance output No one knows what your individual capacity is. A Greg LeMond doesn't get to be a superior cyclist purely through training (or through drugs, for that matter), but it takes a certain degree of innate ability -- the right genetic makeup. I think you should appreciate what you can do and enjoy whatever improvements you can achieve, without worrying so much that maybe someone is better than you.
Sep 6	comment	Safety data: Which is safer, head/tail lights which blink or emit a steady beam? At one time I had a life vest strobe beacon on the back of my bike. It flashed a xenon strobe about once a second. I'm relatively sure all motorists saw THAT light.
Sep 6	comment	Safety data: Which is safer, head/tail lights which blink or emit a steady beam? And note that most US states only require a front headlight and rear reflector. And even that requirement is poorly enforced.
Sep 6	comment	Food costs compared to Gasoline riding cross country USA Back when I was younger I traveled fully loaded on several tours, and I tended to carry more than most. But, from the looks of it, that Surly is carrying about 50% more than I ever did.
Sep 6	comment	Food costs compared to Gasoline riding cross country USA Minor point: You didn't figure anything for bike maintenance. I think realistically you'd have to figure about 5 cents per mile for that. And depreciation for the bike likely would be another 5-10 cents, depending on the bike and how long you keep them.
Sep 6	comment	When or how often should I replace my bike helmet? What about if you're using the helmet to have a place to mount your mirror?
Sep 6	comment	How to significantly lower HR[avg] while improving performance output Basically talking about HR[max] here, or perhaps HR[max-delta], since it's generally recommended that one not exercise all the way to HR[max]. And in someone not accustomed to exercise HR can be easily driven quite high on brief, vigorous exercise. Once one becomes accustomed to exercise it's harder to achieve that peak level.
Sep 6	comment	Maintenance lube for Aluminum Electra Townie I see -- it's essentially a semi-recumbent design. But the standard seat (from the pictures I can see) doesn't appear to offer much resistance to "back sliding", which could have several consequences.
Sep 6	comment	What kind of bike rack can go with this bike? I think it could be made secure if you could somehow lock the suspension. The back and forth jiggle would be bad otherwise, though -- not really an issue of how secure it is.
Sep 6	comment	What's a good bike lock that costs less than $30? Until you encounter a thief with a Bic pen, at least.
Sep 6	comment	Is a recumbent trike faster than a non-recumbent bicycle? One would think that, but bent riders I've talked to say that bents are at a disadvantage on uphills, which doesn't make sense if you can apply more power.
Sep 6	comment	Slipping gears on new Electra Townie 8i With the old "English racer" multi hubs you could definitely damage the hub by shifting (or having the gears slip) while pedaling. Some newer hubs claim to tolerate this. Don't know about yours.
Sep 6	comment	Maintenance lube for Aluminum Electra Townie If you're saying that the seat is adjusted such that you can touch the ground while seated, that's far too low.
Sep 5	comment	What does this warning symbol on my pannier bag mean? It's because the bag mfgrs support the "Ban Hammers!" movement.