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From: Roger Merriman <roger@sarlet.com>
Newsgroups: rec.bicycles.tech
Subject: Re: Leather Saddle Update
Date: 21 May 2025 20:41:19 GMT
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zen cycle <funkmasterxx@hotmail.com> wrote:
> On 5/21/2025 12:12 PM, Roger Merriman wrote:
>> zen cycle <funkmasterxx@hotmail.com> wrote:
>>> On 5/20/2025 5:43 PM, Roger Merriman wrote:
>>>> Frank Krygowski <frkrygow@sbcglobal.net> wrote:
>>>>> On 5/20/2025 2:00 PM, Roger Merriman wrote:
>>>>>> Frank Krygowski <frkrygow@sbcglobal.net> wrote:
>>>>>>> On 5/20/2025 8:02 AM, Roger Merriman wrote:
>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>> Only sore wrists/hands or rather arm pump is from 1980/90’s  MTB’s on long
>>>>>>>> descents, where you could get for arm pump, some of my fellow Gravellers
>>>>>>>> get arm pump ...
>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>> What's "arm pump"? I'm unfamiliar with the term.
>>>>>>> 
>>>>>> Sore fore arms from braking, on longer technical down hills, aka stuff your
>>>>>> constantly reapplying the brakes.
>>>>> 
>>>>> Ah. I remember my wife complaining about that from one long, steel
>>>>> descent. She refused to ever ride that hill again.
>>>>> 
>>>>> Thanks.
>>>>> 
>>>>> 
>>>> I’ve not heard it ever used by roadies but MTBers whose terrain will push
>>>> brakes rather harder, and why they have 4 pot and bigger rotors and so on.
>>>> 
>>>> This said my MTBing even at my weight two pot seems ample the SLX finned
>>>> stuff I’ve yet to get it to fade, which I did with the original brake set,
>>>> with the same rotors.
>>>> 
>>>> Roger Merriman
>>>> 
>>> 
>>> Wrists, neck, and arms will get sore from braking down a long steep road
>>> descent.
>>> 
>> I’m sure though not to the same level as say 90’s MTB even the CX bike I
>> had with truely woeful cantis, while did I did need to keep pulling and
>> quite hard, and generally focused more on braking than on the Gravel bike
>> with discs, wasn’t enough to give me sore arms I am admittedly fairly
>> solidly built and all that.
>> 
>> Ie good reasons that MTB’s went disk first.
> 
> It doesn't have much to do with the quality of the brakes. In a road 
> bike position on a steep downhill, you have to keep your ass on the back 
> of the the seat but reach forward to the brakes and keep your head up. 
> By steep downhill I'm  thinking well in the double digits range. One 
> downhill that meets these details is the Cathedral Ledge access road in 
> New hampshire.

Due to my MTB background I’ve never really used the drops much, so brake
from the hoods which I prefer the position, the CX I would occasionally
drop into the drops to get better lever pull but rarely.

Only bike I’ve owned with a fair bar to saddle drop was the Fuji Track
bike, though it’s brakes where on the tops so you’d only be in the drops
for non braking riding probably fast flat roads.

Ie I’ve tend to favour a more relaxed position, plus muscle mass so it’s
personally not a thing for me on road, that doesn’t mean it can’t and
doesn’t happen though!

This said while folks do talk about some steep hills being worse down than
up, the talk of arm pump and so on, isn’t really their vs say Gravel riders
who do talk about sore arms due to holding on, on rough trails for many
hours etc. 
> 
> https://www.strava.com/segments/5725330
> 
> The overall is only 10%, but there are long sections over 20%. The 
> pavement is narrow and choppy with frost heaves, so you can't just let 
> it go. By the time you get to the bottom your hands and wrists are sore 
> from the death grip on the brakes. You have to stretch out to keep the 
> real wheel on the ground, so your neck is sore from the extreme angle 
> looking forward while on the steep downward slope.
> 
> Disk brakes won't heal any of that.
> 
No but position will, I’m from wales so plenty of steep stuff, the hill on
the edge of the valley I grew up in has a number of roads who’s average is
17/18% I’d note it’s tourist in cars/folks using google maps that come a
cropper with these hills one in the village seems to average one dead or
damaged car per year!

Bikes not so much, in fact the local kids used to ride down them on BMX’s
with their weight on the rear and shoe jammed in the rear wheel as the
fashion was to be brake less….

Roger Merriman