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Austinvines

Certifiably Surly
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Posts posted by Austinvines

  1. PSA if anyone is looking for a new bike.  Ibis knocked $1000 off the price of Ripley AF and Ripmo AF, so they're cheaper than when introduced, making it probably the biggest steal in MTB right now.  Deore level is under $2800, N/GX is $3100, and SLX is $3200.

    Those are great deals. I’m thinking that the inventory shortage is becoming a surplus.
  2. Weller 12 is one of my favorites, be hard for me to make it into an OF. That being said, I bet it was a fantastic drink.

    We had a blind tasting of bourbons provided by my same friend who has a nutty collection. It was two tastes and while I guessed they were the same (they were W12 - I did not guess the booze) one of them had been opened for a year while one was cracked that night. They were similar yet substantially different. The most recently opened was more to my liking and he agreed so maybe the old saw that booze doesn’t change once opened isn’t accurate?

    That said, he’s got some great opened bottles that we can make insane cocktails with. I do like a dram with a little water or a small cube depending on the proof and time of year, but great booze does make a great cocktail, especially in an OF which doesn’t have any extra alcohols or citrus juice.
  3. Have a generous friend who brought over a Weller 12. We had a night of fantastic drinks but the OF was the best.

    1 oz Rittenhouse
    1 oz Weller 12
    1/4 oz Rich Demerara syrup
    1/4 of a thick orange wheel
    Dashes of angostura

    Stirred with ice to chill

    Julep strainer into a highball over a big rock.
    Garnish with a cocktail cherry and orange zest.

    Given the cost of the Weller, I think this would be a $40 cocktail at a bar and I probably pay it happily. Damn good booze.

    3a71e33dffa9bcbc1d223edfc1282e07.jpg

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  4. I broke 200 a several years ago and got down to 185 during Covid, mainly by limiting carbs and riding my MTB 5-6 days a week. Crept back up post Covid to the low 190s.

    We leave for our 25th anniversary trip to Jamaica in 8 days and wanted to get to 175 as a present to myself and bride. Came damn close as of yesterday afternoon of my 52nd Bday and know I’ll be able to shed whatever I added last night and from this coming weekend by next Saturday.

    The great things are that my blood work came back totally normal. My urine showed ketones, buts that’s because I have been really good about not having carbs these past several weeks. My calcium score on the heart screen CT was ZERO.

    The best things are having to buy size M shirts and 32” pants/shorts.


    56baec241624e132dcc3d485e948b699.jpg

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  5. My Longhorn son joined crew this Spring, which I thought was ridiculous since he had to get up at 4:40 5 days a week and got an extra hour of sleep on Saturdays. He stuck with it and ended up sitting stroke seat at ACRA a few weeks ago and got a medal.

    Gives me a whole new appreciation for the sport and I’ve enjoyed watching the Horns keep winning. Three golds would be great but that’s going to be tough.


  6. Well, that’s what I hear everyone call it. My older son came up through the NICA circuit with him and they still ride together occasionally. Good kid indeed, he’s always up to something. I guess we will have to wait what they are working on


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

    Was your kid on the Bulldog MTB team?


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
  7. I’ve got a Breville Dual Boiler from Covid. Naked PF with a 20gr dose and an Amazon funnel. I typically buy whatever is the most recently roasted from Central Market that has ”chocolate” in the tasting note.

    I typically make an Americano with some steamed half and half for the morning bc I like coffee. Espresso for the evening if I need a pick me up.

  8. I ate shit pretty hard the other day.  Nothing broken, but dirt rash, cuts, and scrapes from ankle to hip and a big raw spot on my forearm.  There's a drop on the South Austin Trail Network, that we chatted about a year or two ago, by the Espcarpment Spillway. Maybe a 4-footer or so.   I've been slow rolling it for a while and started hucking right off it maybe 6 months ago.  It's the kind of drop I hate with a few too many rocks on the lead-in.  It's not enough to throw the bike off course, but it's enough that I think about it.   I got a little too comfortable with it the the other day and went off it more casually than normal.  Got crooked in the air and had about a full second airborne when I knew it wasn't going to end well.  Landed with the bike traveling one direction and pointed in another.  Bounced awkwardly and slid a few yards in the dirt and gravel.  
    I've been pretty good about wearing pads when I do stuff like that, but it was a spur-of-the-moment thing on a casual ride so no pads.  We're getting more and more features built on what used to be my boring neighborhood cruise trail.  Knee pads are probably about to become standard on more rides for me, and elbow pads on some days too.  They'd have both prevented the worst of the dirt rash on this day.   

    Ouch. That’s a short runout and I’ve never even rolled it. Ever do the run of drops/ledges at Avana around the tank? Was trying the South SATN Social ride and came across them. Walked several but it looked fun for other folks.
  9. I have a 100oz Osprey Raptor. On hot rides in the summer, I’ll sip through most of it on a 2-3 hour ride. Plus it has saved my “tough”sons who only bring one bottle on those rides.

    It is great. I can add ice to the widemouth bladder to make it really refreshing. I used to carry a shit ton in it, including a u-lock and a cable, but have trimmed down to some tools in the neat little tool pouch, a tube, inflator and cylinder in one of the larger zip areas, and my phone, AirPods, and wallet in a damp proof zip pocket. Nutrition goes in one or both of the hip side pockets.

    Having an iced bottle just to spray on my head and not worry about running out of drinking water is also great.

    I’m built for comfort, not speed, obviously.

  10. I have a 100oz Osprey Raptor. On hot rides in the summer, I’ll sip through most of it on a 2-3 hour ride. Plus it has saved my “tough”sons who only bring one bottle on those rides.

    It is great. I can add ice to the widemouth bladder to make it really refreshing. I used to carry a shit ton in it, including a u-lock and a cable, but have trimmed down to some tools in the neat little tool pouch, a tube, inflator and cylinder in one of the larger zip areas, and my phone, AirPods, and wallet in a damp proof zip pocket. Nutrition goes in one or both of the hip side pockets.

    Having an iced bottle just to spray on my head and not worry about running out of drinking water is also great.

    I’m built for comfort, not speed, obviously.

  11. I have a 100oz Osprey Raptor. On hot rides in the summer, I’ll sip through most of it on a 2-3 hour ride. Plus it has saved my “tough”sons who only bring one bottle on those rides.

    It is great. I can add ice to the widemouth bladder to make it really refreshing. I used to carry a shit ton in it, including a u-lock and a cable, but have trimmed down to some tools in the neat little tool pouch, a tube, inflator and cylinder in one of the larger zip areas, and my phone, AirPods, and wallet in a damp proof zip pocket. Nutrition goes in one or both of the hip side pockets.

    Having an iced bottle just to spray on my head and not worry about running out of drinking water is also great.

    I’m built for comfort, not speed, obviously.

  12. 59 minutes ago, yoladu said:

    overall appraisal up 71%

    now for some dumb guy questions (as i look at TravisCad statement) :

    • Is the "value limitation adjustment" the "10%" rule?
    • Because the appraised value jumped 71%, does that mean i can expect "new appraised" to increase 10% ever year for the foreseeable future?
    • I get why there would be a huge increase in "Land Market" but why would there be a huge increase on "improvement" if no improvements were done, ie: no work done on the house.

    1. Yes

    2. Unless there is a huge crash, yes. Even assuming a flat market for the next five years, thanks to the cap/limitation adjustment/10% rule" it will be 2027 before the value I am taxed at will equal the 2022 notice value.

    3. As others have said, the land and improvement numbers are irrelevant and only the total is what you would protest. Appraisal districts have cost schedules that are tested with confirmed sales. Costs have increased incredibly in the last 18 months so that is one big reason for the increases. Once you determine what an improvement is valued at, the rest of the sales price must be in the land, so that goes up as well. 

    All you with homes better see about increasing your limits on it. The increased premiums will suck but no where nearly as bad as if you suffer a fire and find out you can only replace your 2500 sq/ft  with about 2000 sq/ft due to being under-insured.

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  13. I love the game, have no idea what I am doing, and am totally shitty at it. Playing a Samurai and cannot beat the mounted guys in Limgrave without killing the horse with the bow and feathering the mob with as many arrows as possible before he closes to melee range.

  14. Perfect riding weather. On one of my usual rides I got covered up in that oh so awesome fragrance of Mountain Laurel and had to stop. Wet weather creek with at least 10 native laurels strutting. My planted ones have all dropped their blooms so this was a nice surprise. 6a53a1faf49824b47ee3cf9e8cba82e5.jpg

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  15. Chains and rear sprockets can still wear out on a SS, right? Mashing and skipping was indicative of one or both issues. Of course, I also had that issue once when I hadn’t engaged the clutch, but that was me just being an idiot.

    Trying out a morning ride today. I need to make it at least 30-45 minutes earlier to not screw up the start of my workday but I’ll work on that tomorrow.

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  16. What a bummer, Twice. Was it locked to anything? I have the carbon Ripley in a GX build with an XO shifter. I wanted a Deore build that I could upgrade over time, but had to take what was available in this market. I’m happy overall with the components and really happy with the bike. A dropper has been a nice addition, too.

    Is the AF available/in stock locally? I’ve noticed some more bikes in my local store but not a whole lot.

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  17. Team Moderna - Boost 11/11.

    Still negative for natural AB which is crazy since I spelt in the same bed with my CV+ wife for almost a week over Xmas before we realized she had it. Still out of range for the spike ABs which is nice considering my first CARES draw showed I was down to 291 six months after my second dose. No shingles yet.

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