We had a few days with rental bikes in Ren ai’
Three of us made it all the way up to 3275 on day one. Shorter routes the next day and today was the biggy.
8700 ft on some very rustic backroads.
Myself I am preferring the Mormon missionary position
That is sitting as upright on the bike as possible
Apparently popular in Holland
Much more relaxing than hunched over
My bike I’m not as completely upright as I will like but close enough
Read today that the rear tire should be as much as five to ten psi higher than the front and yes I agree the ride today was
Much better for me on my hybrid with the 29 inch and 2.0 tires
I put them at 50psi in the back and 45 up front
The ride seems better balanced
Then when I had both tires at 45
Mines a hard tail and with no front suspension so although it’s a hybrid it’s jumpy on gravel due to me having the tires pumped up but it decreases the riding effort greatly
I have a suspension seat post which I think helps
The behind
Joe got hybrid 1.95 tires now on his 26 inches instead of the former 1.75 skinny tires
His is a road bike but now with fatter tires he can do gravel as well as mine
I suggested he go 50 back and 45 front too as he is similar weight well actually I’m 208 and he’s 188
Upright is fine if you plan on riding just leisurely from now on, but if you ever want to ride fast, climb some hills and descend from them with confidence, you’ll want to hunch over. The missionary position gets boring over time.
The way my bike is set up I can’t get straighter but want to. It’s pretty much adjusted to near upright the handlebars
Had my bro do that when he came over he’s the one that put the bike together out of the box for me
I always can hunch over when going over some rough spots or downhill fast but for
The most part the leisurely speeds I go (6 to 9 mph) upright does it good
Upright has better visibility, less risk of back and neck problems, better cooling (we stand upright for a reason) and your legs get more of a workout for the same output. Everything is a compromise.
Plus more comfortable for pot bellies 
I had a McDonalds milkshake in supposed Banana flavour (tastes like ethyls) on a ride the other day, it was a short ride, but still, the bloat made reaching the handlebars a challenge.
Plenty of cyclists out this morning which was nice to see. Got passed by a small group with so much ease which was impressive to see. They did lose respect for not saying morning and then passing through two red lights.
I got back to WI from my short visit to Keelung and RenAi and was happy to reunite with my mountain bike. She is a 2020 Kona HeiHei in alpine blue running shimano XT 12-speed and a 120mm Sid fork.
There are several trail systems around the Madison area and I spent my second day home riding on all of them to the tune of 103 miles.
It was a long day on the bike. I don’t often run knobby tires on pavement and was always grateful to jump on the wheel of passing road cyclists when they passed for some extra speed.
It was 86F and sunny with good air quality. It was great to get back in the woods on a bike.
At first I wondered Where is WI in Taiwan?
Eventually this non-American forumosan (yes we exist) figured out what you were describing. 
Guy
Yeah, I also thought there’s nowhere like that in the West Indies.
Then you had me at Madison…
More photos from your rides, please. Madison is one of the most livable cities in the U.S., the university there is great and the surrounding rolling countryside makes for fun, easily accessible cycling.
What does that even mean? 
Does Obama drink the tap water there?
It’s clumsy chick obstacle course season out there, folks. Stay safe.
The recent rains must have produced a bounty for momma birds out there; the clumsy chick obstacle course was non-existent out there today. Crusty old snails made up for it, though. Stay safe bike-lookers.
Only saw a couple ballsacks with beaks before the Mynas got to them today. So, overall, not as dangerous as some days. I did see quite a few people walking down the road with their hands up in the air, though. It’s hard to tell whether they’re practicing or exercising. Stay safe, Lycra Demons.
@flatlandr The sign offs we need, but don’t deserve.
Tried getting up at 5 in the morning to go cycling for four hours last week and realised even that wasn’t early enough to avoid crowds and the sun. Up at 4 in the morning today, with better results, and back just after 8.
On the way to the river paths, riding through utterly empty streets, I didn’t feel any of the tension I usually feel trying to crawl past morning traffic. It’s a nice feeling. Thinking of getting off the paths for the first time in a long time and exploring some roads leading out of Taipei, but I still have borderline PTSD from previous traffic encounters.
Had the idea to cycle straight through the city, south to north, at four in the morning when the streets are empty, but don’t know if it’s a foolhardy notion or not. That said, every time the idea comes to mind, I always remember what it is that sometimes wakes me in the middle of the night - the sound of some guy slamming his motorbike through those same streets at 300kph.