Title says it all -- I'm getting back into cycling after many many many MANY! years away from it. Goal is a little ambitious -- want to get back on and do the hotter -n- hell hundred this year.
What are the good forums for general bike tech? Looking for good forum for road and mountain bike tech. Trying to keep things as GR as possible -- for now I'm rebuilding my Nishiki International and Nishiki Alien, but will be looking to update to newer bikes if I stay committed 
Thanks!
http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/sprockets/
http://forums.bicycling.com/eve
http://www.twospoke.com/forum/
here are a couple that I just googled using "bicycleing forum"
In reply to furcylndrfoury:
Iddn't the sprockets section for motormabikes?
In reply to Kia_racer:
Thanks! Those came up when I googled too, along with a bunch of others -- looking for someone with suggestions on the good forums to frequent.......
talk to your local bike shop. They will know where their customers talk on. That way you will be talking to locals that you might want to ride with.
Ones I lurk at -
http://www.bikeforums.net/forum.php
http://slowtwitch.com/
Kia_racer -- do you ride? I see you're in Lewisville -- I'm in FW...........any local flavor you can share?? :-)
thanks for the info fastEddie
youd be surprised by the amount of cycling expertise here. Ask away, I know myself and others are/were bike shop employees and waaaaay more are active cyclists. Theres definitely no motorized-only clause to the Sprockets forum.
orphancars wrote: Kia_racer -- do you ride? I see you're in Lewisville -- I'm in FW...........any local flavor you can share?? :-)
I used to ride more. I just spent $300 refurbing my old Trek road bike so I can loose a little weight. I have it set up on a trainer right now. The bike shop I use is Bicycles Inc in Bedford. Nice people and they have a Sunday ride that I have yet to make.
I used to ride the Trinity river green zone. when I lived closer. It goes forever both ways and the paths were well kept up.
Thanks FCF!
Funny story since you brought up bike shops.....I was in one recently and just happened to ask what it would run for them to go through one of my bikes (Nishiki Alien) since I seem to be short on time to do things like that lately...... Bike Shop Guy tells me that once they go through the bike, clean/grease, adjust, new tires/tubes/rim strips that I'd be looking at about a $250 bill....and that it could go higher!!! He then proceeded to walk me over to the new bikes and tell me that I could get on a new bike for around that same amount.
Yowza!!!
I just placed a couple orders with Universal Cycles and Nashbar -- spent less than that on the actual tuneup parts, bought a few things (tuneup stand) and spent less than $250....oh yeah, also got stuff to get the missus' bike in shape, too!
Reminded me why I didn't used to like bike shops...... 
I like bike shops. 10 years ago when I was riding religiuosly I thought owning one would be among the best things in the world. Now I haven't ridden my road or mouintain bike in 5 or 6 years and have the extra 25-30 pounds to show for it.
I can't think of anything I would pay a bike shop to do to a bike - they are easy to work on. There are some things that you need a special tool to do, but the tools pay for themselves when compared to paying a shop to wrench on your bike. I used to make a point to but stuff from the local shops eventhough prices were lower on some of the web-based bike places, just to make sure they were there when I needed them.
TJ wrote: I used to make a point to buy stuff from the local shops even though prices were lower on some of the web-based bike places, just to make sure they were there when I needed them.
a good friend at a shop is worth every penny compared to the pennies saved on a cheaper part on a website. Wanna return those bars cuz their too narrow? a website might take it back, but a shop owner/employee almost always will if youre a good customer. Need a bottom bracket replaced or a head tube reamed on a friday night half an hour before close? Good luck getting a shop to do it if you continually nickel and dime them to death, or bring them web specials to install. spend the $4 more to get the headset out of the case, it will pay tenfold when you need it to.
I know VWvortex has a cycling section but i'm not sure if it's any good.
Unlike most i cycle but not really by choice. I save about $70 a month on gas when delivering on trike versus driving. I also recently bought a commuter for pleasure riding and the commute to my other job. I do have to say i feel much better for it, i spent a few years being pretty lethargic.
Agreed -- they are easy to work on, and I have most of the tools to do anything I need to do on them (except for the cheap Park cone wrenches I broke last night!).......sometimes it is just a question of time. I thought it'd be economical to just hand the bike over to someone to do the work. That went out the window when I found out the price!
Spent an hour last night totally tearing down the Alien and started cleaning everything. Now just waiting for the first batch of parts and bike stand to get here. Get frame on stand and start the reassembly! Guess the Fiero can get its oil change next week :-)
I still can't true a wheel.
I agree about a good local shop being worth it's weight in gold, but good deals are where you find them. I have a friend at a LBS that takes good care of me, but then I've been a customer for over a decade and was club president here for a while. I try to buy hardware from the locals but clothing and accessories are open market for the mail order guys.
repair labor is expensive, but bikes are easy to fix. More over, if you build a good relationship with the local bike shop, they'll usually give you advice for free or even let you use their tools and stuff. If they can teach you to work on it most are smart enough to realize they'll be selling parts, tools, lube, etc etc
I mod over at MTBR on the MTB side of stuff... some good info... also some good vintage bike stuff (you're looking at rolling an alien so you qualify haha)
I personaly roll a 29er these days... but road ride on a 92 trek roadie and have a '88 GT avalanche (1st year of the triple triangle) for a beater/commuter... not that I get to ride much these days :-/
Just chiming in here - no good recommendations for a forum but I've been trying off and on for the last 2 years to get back into shape and ride more. Unfortunately for me my neighborhood buddies have been very committed to their offseason workout and trainer sessions, have started club racing, and were willing to spend $2k-$4k+ on full carbon high-end 13# racing bikes, and are anywhere from 6-12" shorter and 40-60# lighter than me, so I can't keep up with them much anymore, especially when the road goes up. I just don't have the same time to devote to it that they do. 
Hoping to get in good enough shape to do the Livestrong Philly ride this year.
Agree on the LBS though - a few bucks up front for some personal attention goes a long way IMO. And for clothing, the big internet houses can save you big bucks on bibs, etc., but proper fit is a crapshoot. For basic repair labor though bikes are very simple machines if you take some time to figure out how they work.
I'm too lazy to find it but there was a cycling thread last fall that included the disgusting stuff that "dedicated" riders, tri-guys and such did on and to their bikes, probably worth the search.
Bicycles are the gateway drug for cars.
I worked as a bike mechanic - I learned by completely disassembling and reassembling a mountain bike in 1985 or so with a tutor (haven't had a freewheel pawl in my hands since, but still!), and eventually worked in a shop. Two of my coworkers have been professional bike mechanics. Heck, the three of us are going for a ride tonight after work. They're both 10 years younger than I am, it's hammer time
My suggestion would not to get caught up in the gear. Get your bike into good shape and just use it. The biggest performance improvement you can probably make for a long ride is to get it properly fitted for you, then a set of tri bars for a more comfortable/aerodynamic position as you while away the hours.
Kia_racer wrote: I still can't true a wheel.
I can help if you need it! Have a truing stand -- it makes everything easier 
donalson wrote: I mod over at MTBR on the MTB side of stuff... some good info... also some good vintage bike stuff (you're looking at rolling an alien so you qualify haha) I personaly roll a 29er these days... but road ride on a 92 trek roadie and have a '88 GT avalanche (1st year of the triple triangle) for a beater/commuter... not that I get to ride much these days :-/
I'll definitely check it out, Sir!
Tell me about the allure of the 29ers...............why are bigger wheels better, or is it just dubs for the pedal pushing crowd???? lawlz!
Keith wrote: Bicycles are the gateway drug for cars.
Quoted for truth!!! Before I was old enough to drive I got hooked on cycling. I was lucky enough to live in an area that was conducive to cycling. Put a lot of miles on an old Sears Free Spirit 10 speed........and worked a lot harder moving that bike down the road -- it weighed a E36 M3-ton!
My suggestion would not to get caught up in the gear. Get your bike into good shape and just use it. The biggest performance improvement you can probably make for a long ride is to get it properly fitted for you, then a set of tri bars for a more comfortable/aerodynamic position as you while away the hours.
But newer stuff is teh secks, no?? 
Agreed -- gonna hammer it out on the gear that I have for now -- will have to get a new helmet -- my other one is almost 25 years old!!!
In reply to orphancars: If you're close to Arlington, River Legacy Park has some nice riding. I never had much luck with Bicycles Inc. I prefer Richardson Bike Mart, bit of a haul from Fort Worth, but worth the trip in my opinion. Much better customer service. Don't ride anymore as the Trek went to the pawn shop during the last layoff.
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