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Writings on Riding
This is the place for monthy content from
a few of our local members. Here you may find articles
about events in the Triangle, interviews with local
mountain bike leaders, write ups and editorials. Check
back here often for new "news" stories. Want to
be a regular contributer? Contact the webmaster at
trianglemtb@yahoo.com.
Writings
on Riding will no longer be updated on a monthly basis. I
will update it as we get new material and news. - Tim
WHEN FEAR WINS
by Tammy Kaufmann
October 2003
Someone once told me that everyone who
races downhill gets scared, and I believe that is
probably true. However, sometimes there comes a point
when fear overtakes desire, and confidence is crippled,
paralyzed, beaten down and left at the start gate. That
unfortunately is where I have now arrived. For the past
several years, downhill racing has defined who I am; it
has been my passion, fellow competitors my
“family”.
Racing filled the tremendous void left in
my soul when I lost my horse to a broken leg 8 years ago,
thus separating me from the only life I had known for 35
years – that of the horse-show world. And now, my
heart is breaking once again, as I find that I can no
longer manage the terror that rises up in me when the
beeps start at the top of the course, or force myself to
let my bike carry me over the rocks and ruts that make up
the trail snaking its way down the side of the mountain.
I can no longer hold back the tears when I realize that I
am afraid, and timidly walking sections of trail that
just a couple of years ago I easily rode, or would at
least attempt. Suddenly, I feel the weight of my ever
advancing age when I notice how much more I have in
common with the parents on the sidelines cheering on
their daughters who are competing with me in the races,
and I can no longer find the joy.
The excitement has been replaced with
embarrassment – I am ashamed of my overwhelming fear
despite layers of body armor and long travel bikes,
ashamed of my inability to conquer that fear and convert
it into the adrenaline needed to tackle the courses. I am
defeated because I do not understand what is happening or
how to correct it. I want desperately to be able to ride
well, and I have tried everything I can think of –
clinics, private coaching sessions; I take my bike out
all the time and try to just enjoy riding, yet the skills
continue to elude me. Rather than improving, I find that
I am regressing, becoming more and more hesitant as a
rider. Worse, the memories of losing so much of my social
connection and lifestyle upon the loss of my horse alarms
me with respect to the prospect of losing my downhill
racing “family” now that I can no longer
participate, and may be relegated to the
outsider-looking-in status. At this point, I can only
console myself in the hopes that during my time as a
downhiller maybe I was able to inspire at least one
person to stretch their limits and attempt things they
never thought possible, and hopefully to achieve those
things. If that is true, then perhaps I will not have
failed, no matter where this life’s journey may next
lead me.
Lume Lighting Strada HID review
October 2003
By Tim Broyer
I love to night ride. If you haven't tried
it, you are missing out and I just can't put into words
the feeling you get of bombing down a tunnel of darkness
with your lights, using your reflexes and instincts to
react. TriangleMTB.com picked up a new sponsor this past
summer,
Lume Lighting out of California.
It's a small company who only make lights and darn good
ones as far as I can tell.
I'm not going to hide the fact that yes, I
did get a set of lights at cost but I'm not going to let
it bias my review. Sometimes being the webmaster has its
perks. The regular cost is very competitive with other
HID systems on the market. In fact, using the TMTB.com
purchase code (found on the site), you can purchase a HID
system for $265. That's a few Benjamin's less than Night
Rider.
I bought the Strada HID with a fast
charger. It comes with everything you need, including a
helmet mount, bar mount, extension cord, charger, battery
mounts, 9.6 volt NiMH battery and Velcro strips. Why
don't the competitors include both types of mounts in
their lights? At first glance, this stuff is the bomb. It
is made from CNC machined 6061 aircraft aluminum and a
filament wound composite shell. It looks bullet proof.
My first real test of the Strada HID was
the night ride at Uhwarrie this past August. The light
performed flawlessly. It was a wet ride with lots of big
spiders. I had the HID mounted on my helmet and my trusty
old Night Rider Trail Rat on my bars. I turned the Trail
Rat off because the Strada put out so much light that the
Trail Rat was not adding to it. It turned into my back up
light set. I like stuff that you don't have to fool with
or constantly pamper to get it to work. I rode the whole
night with zero problems and enjoyed the ride. Lume
Lighting advertises 3.5 hours of run time but I haven't
tested that yet. I rode for two hours and the lights
didn't even flinch.
The fast charger is a great benefit and
I'm glad I got it. It's not the speed of charging that I
was looking for but the plug it in and forget it feature.
It won't overcharge your battery. Come back the next
morning and the LED indicator say's it's finished.
The one major beef I have with the Strada
HID is the helmet mount system. The light is
semi-permanently attached to the helmet mount by a screw
and sits in a tilt mechanism allowing for easy angle
adjustment of the beam. The light and mount are then
attached to the helmet via velcro straps. Once you get
the helmet on, adjust the angle of the light to suit your
position, you are all set and it is solid. It is pretty
stiff and might take some doing to get it to budge.
What's my complaint? The helmet mount and the light
virtually become one piece. During the Shenandoah
Mountain 100 ( a race I did in late August), you are
required to have lights after checkpoint 5. I had to
strap the lights onto the helmet at the aid station and
adjust it. I would have preferred to have the mount
already on the helmet and just snap the light in (similar
to the Night Rider set up). It's a minor complaint, but
it cost me a little frustration. The straps holding the
mount to the helmet are okay at best. I drilled a couple
holes in the mount and zip tied it directly to the
helmet. On the flip side, the bar mount is made of
machined aluminum with a large, knurled nut to secure it.
It works flawlessly. They also supply rubber rings that
go around the battery that allow for a pretty good fit to
the frame when you Velcro it down. That's a nice touch.
These are good lights. They are tough
although a tad heavy. Everything about them is first
class (minus the helmet mount). The cables are tough and
snap together with a nice tight snap. Lume Lighting has a
pretty cool website with all the technical specifications
and prices. You can order direct from their website.
These are damn good lights. You can check
them out for yourself at the Harris Lake Night Ride
series this winter.
"Just keep riding your bikes. Make
fun of each other, make fun of yourselves. Just keep
riding your bike and have a good time." Zap
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