maestro8 said:*I see no mention of "active" or "advancing" riders spending _time_ as
opposed to _money_ into bettering their setup. If someone is really
"into the sport," I believe they should also be into maintaining their
own gear, including spending some time learning / practicing wheel
builds. Especially if they'll be subjecting their gear to long, hard
rides, or travelling far from home, or buying pre-assembled gear from
a questionable source.
Granted, throwing money at a problem can, in some cases, ensure it's
done well, but it leaves one right where they started... clueless as
to the actual process. The best way, IMHO, to be prepared for
trail-side emergencies is to know your ride inside-out, to have built
it (or parts of it) yourself. You can't just "throw money" at the
problem when your on the trail! And no matter how well something is
built, you can't guarantee it won't break.
Look at unicycling's top rider... Kris Holm... he doesn't just push
the sport forward through his riding, he's also working to design and
manufacture better equipment! Another good example is
Gerblefranklin... a superb trials and muni rider who is currently
prototyping his own trials frames... this sport needs more people who
aren't afraid to work on their own equipment, because we can't depend
on a handful of manufacturers / technicians to put together all the
gear we'll need as this sport progresses!
Instead of using your clout to encourage people to spend money, why
not encourage people to build their own rig? Why not put some energy
into a guide for aspiring wheelbuilders, a'la Sheldon Brown? *
Hmm... I don't see anywhere that I have "encouraged people to spend
money". I have simply said that price/performance tradeoffs are
individual decisions. And I certainly have not said that people should
throw money at problems.
I agree with you that many people that want to become serious riders
would do well to learn how to service their own gear. This will save
them time and money. By doing this, too, they will come to know and
appreciate the difference between good gear and bad gear.
I also agree with several riders who recently have said that the main
thing is the rider, not the gear. Look at Lars Clausen, who recently
did something like 9000 miles on a stock Coker wheel. No matter what
gear you have, it will eventually all come down to your desire to
succeed, your willingness to suffer pain, and your willingness to put in
the preparation time and training. The same goes for the 24/26 or
29/36 debates, crank length and such.
Many good riders who service their own gear, and even do their own
research into new unicycle technology, buy from me. I'm very glad for
their business and the opportunity to share, in some way, in their
adventures. As far as Sheldon Brown goes, I highly encourage people to
visit his extensive webpages and learn all they can from them... I
certainly do! And John Childs does an amazing job here with advice on
lots of technical issues. I really admire his clear writing style.
I try to offer the highest quality product available, and I charge less
than I should for it. I also try hard not to step on other
manufacturers' toes. It's not much more complicated than that.
I'm wondering what your contribution will be to unicycling, maestro8. I
look forward to seeing what it will be! However, I do know that you
won't be able to make that contribution while you are focused on me, or
Tyler, or anyone else. Dig deep in yourself and find it; it'll be
something great.
--
U-Turn - As long as my feet keep movin'...
Weep in the dojo... laugh on the battlefield.
'LiveWire Unicycles' (http://www.livewireunicycles.com)
'Strongest Coker Wheel in the World'
(http://www.unicyclist.com/gallery/albup39)
'29er Tire Study' (http://u-turn.unicyclist.com/29erTireStudy/)
'New York Unicycle Club' (http://www.newyorkunicycle.com)
-- Dave Stockton
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