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Is this where we post our explorer scores? Lemme tell you all about my 13x13 square.
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Nov 7, 2019 21:38
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| # ¿ May 21, 2024 02:24 |
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I can clearly see a road right there in your screenshot! Look at this dumb square. I had to walk entirely too far in to a cornfield for that one. Probably isn't happening this year, but I'm two good rides away from 19x19. Edit: grav grav pic 
Crumps Brother fucked around with this message at 22:16 on Nov 7, 2019 |
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Nov 7, 2019 22:03
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I rode gravel today. 40 solid miles followed by 30 party miles. A perfect day for it.
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Feb 23, 2020 06:12
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Good morning gravel! And then 150 miles later... Good night gravel! 
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Mar 1, 2020 03:52
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Exploring and Squares Explained Some other BearPope folks turned me on to this thing and I gotta say it's really injected a boat load of gravel spirit straight in to my veins. The VeloSquares game plays very nicely with Iowa gravel. The explorer squares are almost exactly 1 mile x 1 mile. And if we take a look at a map of all the gravel roads in Iowa we see that with relatively flat terrain and lots and lots of farm land almost the entire state is divided by 1x1 mile square gravel roads. With so many options available gravel riding can start to run in to the same problem as riding tarmac. You find the routes you like and you fall in to the habit of just riding those same roads all the time. Creating stupid looking routes to ride random gravel roads to fill in the squares that I didn't yet have is decent motivation to break the old habits. For me, at least, there was another side as well though. We have a couple different races around here that I signed up for that are cue sheet navigation only. The race directors obviously aren't out to screw you over or anything with regards to the route, but there's something to be said about not knowing exactly where you're going and just riding wherever the map takes you. These squares routes also seemed like a great way to sorta mentally train for that aspect as well. Some roads are perfect. Some roads have been recently serviced and are chunky as hell. Some roads could probably use some servicing and lord only knows what they look like. But none of that matters cuz you gotta do what the map says, after all. Just ride. All in all it's pretty cool so I figured it's worth sharing to everyone. Besides, if I wasn't playing the VeloSquares game I never would have found this cool bridge...  ...and I never would have learned that Scotty's a whore. 
Crumps Brother fucked around with this message at 17:28 on Apr 1, 2020 |
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Apr 1, 2020 17:25
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I got my fiancee to give gravel a second chance today. Things went much better this time around! Also, I'm huge! 
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Apr 8, 2020 02:56
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Spirit of kitty yesterday. And here's it's buddy whom I so rudely interrupted during dinner.  I actually saw the black cat first and I was sitting in the ditch trying to befriend it when the other one started trotting across the street behind me. That photo being at road level when it all happened was completely unplanned, but I liked the way it turned out. Oh, and here's my bike I guess. 
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Apr 16, 2020 17:21
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Gravel in the driftless region is a really different beast. Just an all around great day full of spirit. This wasn't technically a B road, but more like a B.5 road or something. It wasn't "low maintenance" but rather "no maintenance, but only during winter". So they still throw rocks down in the summer, but since they never plow or do anything with the rocks they don't really go anywhere or rut up or anything. We had two of them on the route. Lots of fun, but you really had to watch your line while riding.  I stopped on the second B.5 road to help a friend cross the road.  Rolling hills and sweeping roads.   Ultimately we were riding to the river / Iowa border and back. Not pictured were the six or so bald eagles flying around when we reached the overlook.  The penultimate climb of the day heading in to the sunset. 
Crumps Brother fucked around with this message at 18:14 on May 3, 2020 |
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May 3, 2020 17:59
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kemikalkadet posted:this tile is in the way of me getting an 18x18 square. It's full of unexploded ordnance and signs that say "risk of death" "striclty no entry" and so forth. it should be spicy
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May 28, 2020 14:50
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I upped my max square to 28x28 today with all sorts of trespassing and some on the fly reroutes. I also found a nice lunch time snack in a ditch. It wouldn't stay put on the bike so I changed up my carrying strategy. I rode 40 miles with that thing sticking out behind my left ear.  All in all, totally worth it.  Yesterday I did a century gravel race (Sterile Iowan). Hitting a level C road two days after a poo poo load of rain should have been all sorts of sloppy. I brought my putty knife and shoulder strap just for the occasion. Turns out it's completely exposed and had managed to totally dry out. I was told we were the first group to attempt it and everyone else was detouring around. Fortune favors the bold.  Selfie hill. There's a lawn chair on top, but I didn't bother with that.  Cross posting from the bike thread, but I also took a Dema shot to flash my fancy new birthday socks. This was about 30 seconds after I carried my bike across a creek which is why I'm looking particularly damp in this moment.  All in all it was the perfect weather for riding. I got pretty lucky that it coincided with a totally free weekend. Is it "Dema shot" or "dema shot"? I'm phone posting and can't look up the username right now to refresh myself and proper capitalization.
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Jun 1, 2020 02:26
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The veloviewer plugin for the new Strava route builder is even better than the previous version. That's some pretty slick software, all told. Velo squares are cake to sort out now.
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Jun 1, 2020 16:33
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Riding on all the random rear end gravel roads I can find I'm finding a bunch that just no longer exist. I created an account on Open Street Map and started updating everything I find in my adventures. Apparently this road was decommissioned about 5 years ago, but it sure doesn't seem like any maps have been updated. It started off like any normal B road.  Then after one mile it just vanished on the other side of the intersection.  Not to be deterred from acquiring more squares I rode straight through the drat field anyway. It wasn't the stupidest thing I did yesterday. That probably belongs to the part where I rode a half mile down a row of corn taller than me to grab an impossible square.  The third impossible square of the ride was significantly easier to grab. Just a small detour down a buffer strip.  Not for nothing, but I just really like wind farms. It's even better at night when they're all blinking in unison.  Finally a cute little limestone trail as I head back to my car.  I still have a max square of 31x31. The last handful of outings have been more about laying groundwork for bigger gains later.
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Jul 14, 2020 20:22
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bicievino posted:goddamn 31x31.
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Jul 14, 2020 20:53
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 Pretty sure I don't have any water squares until the Mississippi and that's about 80 miles away.
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Jul 15, 2020 03:51
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iospace posted:Where do you check what squares you've hit? FogHelmut posted:How often do you guys clean your chains riding through all the dust and dirt?
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Jul 15, 2020 14:04
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I cut through another cornfield today when I found yet another nonexistent road. A short time after that I realized that it's detasseling season and maybe cutting through that field was closer to stupid than it was bold. So I got lucky to not get an involuntary haircut or crop dusted. Then I got even luckier cuz the only gravel dog I met on today's ride was dope as hell. We cruised together for a few miles before parting ways. Pretty sure we're buddies now.  In other news, I got to watch county workers striped over some roadkill rather than move it out of the way. I guess that must fall under "not my loving job." So yeah, this next pic is a close up of painted roadkill. You've been warned. 
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Jul 28, 2020 04:11
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ThePopeOfFun posted:This looks awesome.
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Jul 28, 2020 16:53
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FogHelmut posted:Can the Varia alert me to approaching mountain lions?
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Jul 29, 2020 00:27
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Back to back gravel centuries this weekend. I somehow managed 15,000' in the process as well. I'm toast. Saturday was the final installment of our Driftless Region race series. We have all month to complete the route, but Saturday's forecast was too good to pass up.  Early start with the morning fog.  I didn't really know where I was until I hit the old mill. I've kayaked under this bridge in the past. This time I got to ride over it.  The C road climb was all sorts of fun. There was a gravel dog immediately after that climb which was less fun.  This sign was a cruel joke since it was posted probably 2/3rds of the way up the hill. Pretty sure it's there because the incline got way steeper around the corner of of view.  Long winding gravel with no shelter. You can see in the distance where I came from.  I passed a demolition derby in Volga, but I was about five minutes too early to see the fun. I also passed a tractor parade near the end. That's not even my first random tractor parade I've come across. Good ol' Iowa gravel.   I wasn't taking in enough salt during the ride. I was dumping one salt pill in each water bottle. Apparently one pill is about half the amount that is in a single serving of Skratch. I should have been dumping 2-3 pills per bottle. I know that now; I wish I knew it then. I started cramping *hard* around mile 85. I was sometimes able to pedal through it by riding out of the saddle, but I found myself walking up hills that didn't need to be walked. My right leg cramped up so badly in the final two miles that I one legged pedaled the final stretch. I was never going to win the race series, but I had ambitions of coming in 2nd. Probably gonna finish 3rd overall because of this ride. I don't mind, this race series has been a great motivator and the routes posted each month have been seriously pretty. Sunday was something similar, but different. There was a big organized gravel event. A guy posted a bunch of different sized routes that all started/ended at a local winery with the intent of hitting at many B roads as possible. The longest route posted was 77 miles with 22 different B roads. I've been working on that area in the last few weeks for VeloSquares. So I took the 77 mile route and made some alterations to grab all my missing squares nearby. Coincidentally that brought it up to almost exactly 100 miles and 24 B roads total. Awesome.  I saw pictures of the 7:30am start. loving stupid. 50 people all crowded together for a mass start. I left almost two hours before they ever gathered all by myself. How else am I gonna snap a gravel sunrise pic?  It hasn't rained in over a week and the B roads are in great riding shape. It almost feels like cheating. Some roads were "closed", but it's not like that ever stops a bike from passing through.        This was part of my route and not the official route. Here's a decommissioned road that still sorta gets used, but hasn't actually been taken over by nature. It's passing "under" a bridge (est 1913) that's itself is part of a road that is completely gone. On either side of these supports are just farm fields with no indication that there was ever something here in the past. In 10-20 years this is going to be two stone wall amidst nothing.  And here's why I brought a shoulder strap with me. I didn't think I'd need it, but you never quite know what you'll get with B roads. It hasn't rained in over a week, but somehow there's standing water on an unsheltered road. That's hike-a-bike territory on any other day.  I'm slowly getting my fiancee in to gravel riding. She did a non-B road ride with a couple friends on Sunday as well. Timed it pretty well and we met at the winery within about 30 minutes of each other (also skipping the mass start). A great weekend punctuated by a little winery picnic under a shade tree. Here's my feet. 
Crumps Brother fucked around with this message at 15:24 on Aug 4, 2020 |
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Aug 4, 2020 15:16
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A big problem of the heatmap privacy issue is that even if your zones are set up it doesn't really matter unless you plan to never have your friends bike to your house as well because their rides are also going to light up your driveway/house. I don't really know of a true solution to the issue. Edit: Maybe something has changed in the past. I just checked for the first time in awhile and my driveway isn't near as lit up as it's been in the past. Hopefully it's something new about the heatmap algorithm and not my own waning popularity. Crumps Brother fucked around with this message at 21:08 on Sep 3, 2020 |
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Sep 3, 2020 20:59
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Turns out there are three different gravel races in Iowa on October 3rd. That feels a little ridiculous. On the bright side, that means registrations are going to be spread pretty thin so all I have to do is pick the least popular race and I could end up with a properly distant peloton. Today's ride had another good gravel dog.  A solid b road with a rather large tree that didn't get destroyed by the derecho.  And a convoy pulled off a side road right in front of me and I got a nice gravel dust sunset pic. 
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Sep 24, 2020 02:53
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I'm recovering from covid which I got almost immediately after my last post. Missed that race cuz of it too. I've been able to start riding again, but my heart is still pretty messed up so I have to be sure to keep things good and chill. Yesterday I got out and had a great ride on a windy af (20mph sustained, 35mph gusts) day. I managed to push my VeloSquares up to 40x40.  I'm at the point where I have to drive 45+ minutes to get somewhere to ride. Whereas I spent the summer doing 30ish mile rides on weekdays now it's not really worth the time investment for that. Weather permitting though and I can push that square bigger with a few solid weekend rides. And next weekend looks absolutely gorgeous.   Little gravel buddy. It must be pretty new cuz it's in great shape.  Another little gravel buddy. Too bad we dropped him when we turned and got the tailwind.  🌽🌽 Tis the season 🌽🌽  Headwind B road. Always thankful when they're dry. https://i.imgur.com/apZ8rpP.mp4 Wind! This was early in the ride. Probably only 17mph here. Crumps Brother fucked around with this message at 18:12 on Nov 1, 2020 |
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Nov 1, 2020 17:57
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Six-Of-Hearts posted:Im glad you're here to post with us, friend. Just checked, previous post was on the 23rd. On the timeline that's probably the exact day I contracted it (give or take one day). Fun times. Stay safe, y'all. Covid absolutely wrecked me for over a week and I'm still paying for it over a month later. Everything I'm reading says my heart will take 2-5 months to sort itself out. And I'm one of the lucky ones that didn't have to get hospitalized. Long story short, gently caress Kim Reynolds for repeatedly loving Iowa.
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Nov 1, 2020 18:23
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 Gravel is good. B road crossroads is also good. Clutched ders are good too.
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Nov 8, 2020 19:50
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VacaGrande posted:Can you play guitar really, really well now? I really only use my clutch for cx. There was one time this year where I was bombing some pretty washboarded gravel downhills and I flipped it on for that too.
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Nov 8, 2020 23:16
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Registration for Iowa Wind and Rock has opened. It's a 340 mile cue sheet only gravel race in April. It's tough. For the 2020 edition myself and some goon / goon adjacent folks were signed up. All of us DNSed for somewhat obvious reasons. Registration will remain open until November 30th and the event is completely free. If you have even the slightest inkling that this might be up your alley then you should sign up now so you have it in your pocket. Hit me up with any questions or whatnot. IWAR Website IWAR Facebook IWAR Registration
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Nov 9, 2020 15:21
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kimbo305 posted:Ragbrai's... happening?
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Jan 31, 2021 05:22
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I rode gravel this weekend. I haven't done that in a spell. I'm really looking forward to warmer days ahead now. 
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Mar 1, 2021 22:03
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More gravel this weekend! I needed some cue card practice and a fully loaded shakedown ride for my upcoming race. Didn't take too many pictures, but I got a couple. As always, we look at the B roads.   The B roads were good today. In case they aren't good later I have a shoulder strap on the bike to make walking easier.  I followed a route that I didn't know, but already had cue sheets on. This was a single speed century race from a few years ago. It was rough. This is the house where I bailed and called in the sag wagon. Today was a much better day. Also, I had gears this time.  Also, I underbiked some dirt trails around a lake. Half was horrible ripped up by atvs, a short stint on some pretty grass at sunset, and then the second half over postholed horse trails. It was pretty great.   Also, I found a wall. 
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Apr 5, 2021 16:49
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I run 33s for terreno dry. I really like them for my usage.
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Apr 8, 2021 16:28
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jamal posted:I wanted to try some but the 38s come out to like 41-42 and that's pushing it in my cx bike. Went with 38 ramblers, they seem fine.
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Apr 8, 2021 22:15
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BraveUlysses posted:its not a huge flaw but i'm definitely not a fan of how they ran the front shift cable at the top, which requires a stupid rear end pulley near the bottom bracket to get the correct pull direction at the derailleur Crumps Brother posted:That's not actually a top pull FD. It's just a wonky picture angle for a different cable run. My Jamis has the same cable run, but there's actually a little pulley or whatever that turns the cable around. Here's a better picture for you.
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Apr 15, 2021 18:07
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I had another gravel race this weekend. I DNFed. It was pretty awesome.
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Apr 18, 2021 19:45
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spf3million posted:Holy hell, nice work. Would love to read a trip report once you're recuperated.
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Apr 20, 2021 15:52
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ElMaligno posted:
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May 9, 2021 23:25
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Did a bit of driftless region gravel with some friends. That was a pretty great day. Closing in on 100°F by the time we finished. 
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Jun 12, 2021 16:41
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Asking for a friend. Anyone have suggestions for a 650b x 38mm gravel tire? Apparently every single Rambler she's used has failed at the sidewall and I guess it's time for something different.
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Jul 3, 2021 19:39
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She was telling me there just wasn't any other options available, but y'all are providing a bunch. Thanks! I passed along the info and we can see where it goes from there. Hopefully no more sidewall issues.
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Jul 4, 2021 17:31
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Registration for the Iowa Wind and Rock opened this week. It's a free gravel ultra that's cue card navigated. I rode it 2021 and I'm planning to do it again for 2022. All in all it's a pretty great event and certainly a tough challenge. Thought I'd mention it in case this was something that would pique anyone's interest. Feel free to hit me up with questions or comments.
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Nov 9, 2021 15:54
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| # ¿ May 21, 2024 02:24 |
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Went out on a nice long gravel ride today. IWAR is in two weeks. The race demands that you be packed well enough to make it 100 miles with no refueling. Here's my setup this year. Much improved over last year's attempt.   🐈!  And since I was dicking around on a long ride I busted out some squares too. First time in well over a year. Got my squares up to 43x43x3. https://i.imgur.com/0SAzJP0.mp4  
Crumps Brother fucked around with this message at 03:59 on Apr 10, 2022 |
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Apr 10, 2022 03:53
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