[999] Musings

Last weekend I was chatting with some former colleagues of mine in Viber. These are guys I've known for well over ten years and they're also people I'd consider friends.

We were talking about our careers and how our lives have been. It was interesting that I share the same point of view as one my friends. This was basically the "wanting to miss doing 3D" thing I realized a few years ago. This is one of the things you want to feel again when you're burned out, and to be honest I really, really want to feel it again.

When I told this to my best friend though he told me that maybe I needed a vacation. I told him I'm not sure a vacation will make me miss doing 3D. The reason I say this is because I've already had a couple of 3 to 5 day vacations and I still feel burned out.

I'm just tired, I guess. And I don't know what to do. Or I know what to do, but I don't want to risk it.

Out.

[998] Filler Musings

Looks like I'm back to blogging filler posts just to achieve this unoffical "quota" I set myself of doing six blogs a month. And it was so close too.

The past few months I guess have been good for me writing wise, I had found lots of "safe" stuff I could blog about, specifically about bikes. However I guess fatigue is catching up to me. Not just physical fatigue but mental fatigue. Let's not even get into spiritual fatigue if there is such a thing.

So I write this down letting you, the reader, know a few things. I'm tired. I want a break. I probably need a change as well. We shall see.

Out.

[997] New SRAM Apex Groupsets

Yesterday evening I saw a youtube video from Ben Delaney about SRAM's new Apex 1x groupset. If I understood it right, Apex is SRAM's lowest tier groupset which makes it relatively affordable. I also checked online and found more interesting news about this new release of Apex groupset.

Now I'm not too familiar with SRAM products but I'm really curious about this if I do end up having enough disposable income to actually afford an Apex groupset. I'm aiming for the mechanical shifting with hydraulic brakes, as usual, because I think mechanical is better for how often I ride, which is close to zero nowadays.

I'm intrigued with the Bike Radar article mentioning that you can use Shimano HG cassettes for the groupset. I'm also curious about the possible range of cassettes you can use depending on what rear derailleur you decide to get.

Based on Ben Delaney's video I'm preferring a 40T chainring with 10-44T cassette. It's in a similar range with my current chainring and cassette.

And as an added bonus you can apparently also get a really cheap power meter with the groupset. Interesting times indeed. Now how can I save enough for this?

Out.

[996] Life Updates

Yesterday my daughter graduated from grade school. She'll be starting junior high school next school year.

It was a very amazing feeling seeing her graduate, and the bonus of getting an academic award only made my day even better,

Days like yesterday are meant to be treasured and used as motivation to keep on fighting.

Out.

[995] Bike Update

I rode my bike a few days ago to test my inner tubes. Holy cow I got tired easily. I only did two kilometers or so.

I guess that's what I get for not riding for a few weeks, or even months. Maybe I'll go out to ride again tomorrow and see if I can get my legs back. I always thought jogging would help me maintain stamina for riding but different muscle groups I guess.

Out. 

[994] Gravel Bike Build Revisited

This is connected to this previous blog post of mine about a new gravel bike dream build.

I'll be honest and realistic, I really want a GRX system for my bike but based on specs on Shimano's website the biggest low gear a GRX rear derailleur can have is 42T. Based on how fit I am and one short but steep climb I took I really need at least one gear ratio that's at least 1:1. Which means only one thing.

I'm going with the Shimano GRX 2x11 hydraulic brake, mechanical shifting. It'll have the ST-RX600-R and the ST-RX600-L brifters, the RD-RX812 42T max rear derailleur, the FD-RX810-F front derailleur, the FC-RX600-11 crankset with the 46/30 gearing, a BB-RS501 Tiagra bottom bracket, an 11-40T CS-M7000-11 SLX cassette. Basically you get my drift, all Shimano components, all GRX compatible, even the brakes. I've also decided to go with the Shimano SPD PD-M530 pedals instead of the Shimano Saints just because the former is cheaper (or at least I think it is).

Thinking about it I can also go 1x with the FC-RX600-1 40T 1x crankset with either the 11-40 or 11-42T rear cassette. If this is the case then I'll be using the BL-RX600-L left brifter instead. Come to think of it, this isn't that bad an idea since I don't plan on riding too fast anyway.

I didn't add a saddle before and I think I'd like to try the Brooks C17 all-weather saddle. Yes it's not the leather Brooks saddle but it is an all-weather saddle. And it's still Brooks. It also seems to have a positive review from a bike website I trust.

So there, some updates from my previous post where I was too lazy to add a decent groupset. Although I have heard the Sensah has a hydraulic braking mechanical groupset about to come out soon.

Out.