On a scale of Stupid to Rad, how did the little Sundeal do overall?
So rad. But also astoundingly stupid. So much fun to ride. Carried everything I needed easily. The long ass seat post gives so much suspension. Everyone there loved it and wanted to ride it around at camp.
Problems I identified: (1) The brakes don’t like being used on long, steep hills. I was definitely smelling them on several occasions. (2) It’s way overgeared. (3) The tiny wheels really don’t hold speed at all. Once we got into rolling hills I struggled a lot where other folks were able to use their momentum. (4) The support system for the basket needs to be improved. Both stays are spaced out from the fork leg at least 20mm. It looks like they were once attached to the axle but that caused them to dig into the fork leg. (5) Every time I saw my reflection in a store window I couldn’t believe how much of an idiot I looked like.
I love it and I’m even more excited about fixing all the little issues to make it an epic townie/bikepacking bike.
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don’t drag them. Brake harder for shorter and let them cool off in between. I bombed a big ass hill on a lime bike a few weeks ago and it was terrifying. Hill ended at a t intersection and I could smell the already weak brakes fading about 1/3 of the way down. Then the handling got wonkier with speed dodging potholes with the rigid tires. I had to just ride it out deathgripping the bars.
I was definitely pumping, alternating front/rear and trying to let them cool. But it was tough on 10+% with blind corners in the rain on roads I hadn’t ever ridden.
I had a solid axle on there but swapped it out to fix a flat and could never find it again. If I come across it I’ll let you know.
The answer to your brake problems is definitely sub-deore hydro stoppers:
Or if you wanna “ball harder”:
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Kyle told me he thought we would tell him they were shit and he was dumb to buy those, and I told him we would say he was dumb to not buy them
Also these are comically cheap and will be fine for Sundeal purposes
This is all true.
The basic level shimano hydro-jobbers are so far beyond any mechanic brake it’s stupid. The do their job amazingly well and even take care of xc-type riding really well.
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Took my 5yo son on an overnight poopbarn adventure (had no idea it was the Swift thing)
We took the train an hour outside the city to Fürstenberg, and then it was a 20km route mostly on the Berlin → Copenhagen bicycle path.
After about 4km we passed alongside the Ravensbrück memorial (former women’s concentration camp).
Continued through the woods and past a few small lakes. I think he ended up making it ~7km each way, the rest of the time just loaded his bike on top.
The camping area is reasonably remote - it’s intended for overnight canoe folx as part of a larger creek / waterway system. Somehow we had it all to ourselves.
I almost failed to get the fire started, but in the end roasted hot dogs, marshmallows, smores, more marshmallows, drank some beer. win 
The weather was pretty much perfect so left off the rainfly…which is how I realized it was the solstice. Laid in the tent waiting for the stars to come out, and waited, and waited…was light until about 12am and then bright again by 4am. Always forget how far north Berlin is.
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Man I’m so jealous. The trails in Germany are spectacular and safe.
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A small lol slipped my mouth, reading this from just below the 64th degree north…
During the solstice the sun “went down” around 23:30 and then up again at 02:30 
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sure ya fuckin’ didnt…
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How do you like those bars on the bullitt?
They’re fine. I don’t find them magical by any means.
Honestly the best part is that they create a dedicated place for kid hands when sitting on top tube
Cool, we’re a ways off from having our kid ride on the top tube, so no need for a second hand hold yet. Mostly curious if the handling gets wonky with them.
The handling is currently more twitchy than I remember it being (before sup stole it from me as daily driver)…but I just assumed bushings on the steering rod were starting to go. Could be bars + short stem tho. I had to use a ~40-50mm stem to get the Jones bars to feel reasonable. I still think they’re a bit long for us, but got used to it.
If I get motived to change again it would probably be for a 13-17deg backsweep bar (or drop bars + steering dampener!).
Did the Oregon Backcountry Explorer loop with some friends, including @tehschkott, @theKearney, and some other folks at least two of which lurk on here.
https://bikepacking.com/routes/central-oregon-backcountry-explorer/
I have not ridden more than 12 miles in single day in over a year, this was a nice re-introduction to cycling. We did it in 3 nights, with our daily mileage very roughly 25,45,35,40. It was “cool” but that still means 80°+ days and much of the route is baked gravel roads with very little shade actually across the road surface. Parts of it were difficult, but I would absolutely do it again.
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The various bikes and gear:
Me and my Novara
Zach’s Crust
Rick’s Breadwinner
Heather’s Surly
Scott’s Marin
Larry’s Radlawn
Lauren’s Salsa
Moira’s Soma
Tommy’s Salsa
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Not sure where else to put this, but I found these older dog packs, and they fit pretty much perfectly on my front rack. I cut off most of the straps and zip-tied the lower rear corners around the fork legs. It was awesome to have just a bit of extra room in the form of two baggy pockets that I could just throw stuff into. Great for the gravity water filter (easy to pull out and use or leave out and pack up last thing in the morning), snacks, extra layers, etc.
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