{"id":978,"date":"2009-07-25T23:56:10","date_gmt":"2009-07-25T15:56:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nargalzius.com\/blog\/archives\/2009\/07\/25\/toys-and-more-toys\/"},"modified":"2017-02-07T16:17:52","modified_gmt":"2017-02-07T16:17:52","slug":"toys-and-more-toys","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/nargalzius.com\/blog\/archives\/2009\/07\/25\/toys-and-more-toys","title":{"rendered":"Toys and more toys!"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Been a while since I posted. While there <em>may<\/em> be some stuff I would want to blog about, I&#8217;m not feeling &#8220;profound&#8221; these days.<\/p>\n<p>Instead, I&#8217;ll just be my usual shallow self and talk about some stuff coming in this august (c\/o my friend Arjay) &#8211; I&#8217;m stoked! So this is what it feels like to drool over stuff you technically already own; the wait is <em>killing me!<\/em><\/p>\n<div align=\"center\"><a href=\"http:\/\/farm3.static.flickr.com\/2491\/3754121238_9bb802af52_o.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"You may click on the image for more details\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" src=\"http:\/\/farm3.static.flickr.com\/2491\/3754121238_63364179c6_m.jpg\" class=\"wb\"><\/a><\/div>\n<!--more-->\n<!-- \/\/ -->\n<h1>Camera Stuff<\/h1>\n<p>Nothing for the D300, nor the LX3&#8230; not even really &#8220;photography.&#8221; What I got was a <em>motion<\/em> camera.<\/p>\n<div align=\"center\"><a href=\"http:\/\/farm3.static.flickr.com\/2648\/3754122000_2e4fc99daa_o.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"You may click on the image for more details\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" src=\"http:\/\/farm3.static.flickr.com\/2648\/3754122000_9eb9cda504_m.jpg\" class=\"wb\"><\/a><\/div>\n<h3>VholdR ContourHD high definition wearable camcorder<\/h3>\n<p>This is more of a result from my biking; while it would be nice to use still cameras for much more detailed pictures, it&#8217;s very difficult to keep on busting out and &#8220;setting up&#8221; when you&#8217;re busy negotiating terrain (let alone taking pictures while riding). The real thrill of Mountain Biking is in the paths you take&#8230; the more challenging the better. And the only way to capture <em>that<\/em> sort of thing is by video <em>while<\/em> in motion.<\/p>\n<p>So I got the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vholdr.com\/contourhd\/overview\">ContourHD,<\/a> because it&#8217;s, if I&#8217;m not mistaken, the first and only <em>high definition<\/em>  camera of its class <span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_978_1('footnote_plugin_reference_978_1_1');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_978_1('footnote_plugin_reference_978_1_1');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_978_1_1\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">1 <\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_978_1_1\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\">Wearable\/helmet cameras<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_978_1_1').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_978_1_1', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top right', relative: true, offset: [10, 10], });<\/script> in the market today &#8211; at least as of this posting. I kinda got spoiled by the hi-def video on the LX3 that watching something on anything less than a 16:9\/720p resolution looked &#8220;old.&#8221;<\/p>\n<h3>Helmet &#38; bicycle handlebar mounts<\/h3>\n<p>I was supposed to get the helmet mount alone since that would be the best way to use the camera. But I remembered how much I hated wearing helmets especially when I start &#8220;overheating.&#8221; I didn&#8217;t want to be forced to wear the helmet for the sake of the camera&#8230; so I got handlebar mounts as well for those occasions. VholdR has got a <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vholdr.com\/contourhd\/accessories\">wide range of mounts available,<\/a> which I&#8217;m considering getting, but most of them weren&#8217;t released yet at the time I purchased the camera. Hopefully some smart entrepreneur would sell them here. <\/p>\n<h3>Extra battery, wall charger, and 16GB memory card<\/h3>\n<p>Given how video tends to suck the life out of cameras fairly quickly, plus the fact that it uses proprietary rechargable batteries, I bought an extra batt&#8230; thinking back, I should&#8217;ve gotten 2. Hopefully the two batteries would have enough juice to be able to fill up the 8 hours of footage the CountourHD is supposed to be able to take with a 16GB card.<\/p>\n<h1>Bicycle Stuff<\/h1>\n<div align=\"center\"><a href=\"http:\/\/farm3.static.flickr.com\/2469\/3754122294_0236c61001_o.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"You may click on the image for more details\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" src=\"http:\/\/farm3.static.flickr.com\/2469\/3754122294_ce3b4d0f77_m.jpg\" class=\"wb\"><\/a><\/div>\n<p><em>I know, I know,<\/em> the camera was <em>ultimately<\/em> for my biking (which constitutes as being part of the cycling stuff). But this &#8220;other batch&#8221; are literally parts for <a href=\"http:\/\/www.nargalzius.com\/blog\/archives\/2009\/07\/06\/orbea-alma\">my bike.<\/a><\/p>\n<h3>Ergon GX2 carbon grips and HS100 bar-end plugs<\/h3>\n<p>With this puppy, I&#8217;ll finally solve that issue I had with hand-soreness whenever I would go on extended rides. Paired with the matching end-plugs, I&#8217;ll now have a perfect bar-end setup for my carbon handlebar (without worrying about compatibility and &#8220;cracking&#8221;).<\/p>\n<h3>Easton EC90 Zero seatpost<\/h3>\n<p>As I mentioned in my <a href=\"http:\/\/www.nargalzius.com\/blog\/archives\/2009\/07\/06\/orbea-alma\">Orbea Alma<\/a> post, the ideal cockpit I wanted was all Easton components. Now everything will <em>finally<\/em> match! Plus of course this is a zero setback post, which I would prefer to have especially given how I tackle uphills&#8230; I just hope it doesn&#8217;t mess with the bike&#8217;s geometry <em>too much.<\/em><\/p>\n<h3>Fork boots<\/h3>\n<p>These are more of cosmetic thing, <a href=\"http:\/\/farm4.static.flickr.com\/3506\/3754557017_35e95ed86e_o.jpg\">fork boots on a Fox fork just look <em>sooooo<\/em> sexy IMHO<\/a>. But it does have the benefit of protecting the moving parts of shock-absorbing forks from the elements. A clean, well lubricated tube will most likely keep the seals in good condition.<\/p>\n<p>Digressing a little; that last picture was taken from my <a href=\"http:\/\/picasaweb.google.com.ph\/doy2xd\/BikePorn#5330364220667004050\">friend&#8217;s photo stream.<\/a> While browsing the other pictures he had&#8230; I found <em>one really good reason<\/em> why it&#8217;s better to have <a href=\"http:\/\/farm4.static.flickr.com\/3577\/3446737418_c3dfdc8334_o.jpg\">roof\/top-mounting<\/a> bike racks. <a href=\"http:\/\/farm3.static.flickr.com\/2427\/3754557721_4b867ee7f8_o.jpg\">The picture definitely says a thousand words<\/a>&#8230; and these thousand words constitute the <em>single<\/em> reason why I now prefer top-mounting bike racks <em>without exception<\/em> over trunk-mounts &#8211; <strong>anyday<\/strong> (and twice on Sundays).<\/p>\n<h1>Conclusion<\/h1>\n<p>All in all, I&#8217;m very close to the &#8220;ideal,&#8221; nay; <em>perfect<\/em> bike setup. The only thing I can think of changing now are the saddle, tires, and pedals. <span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_978_1('footnote_plugin_reference_978_1_2');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_978_1('footnote_plugin_reference_978_1_2');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_978_1_2\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">2 <\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_978_1_2\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\">if those CrankBrothers are really what they&#8217;re cracked up to be<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_978_1_2').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_978_1_2', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top right', relative: true, offset: [10, 10], });<\/script> And even those are really just &#8220;optional.&#8221; For the most part, my bike&#8217;s pretty much tricked out as much as it could be. <span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_978_1('footnote_plugin_reference_978_1_3');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_978_1('footnote_plugin_reference_978_1_3');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_978_1_3\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">3 <\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_978_1_3\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\">Well, probably the saddle could definitely be upgraded&#8230; but the other two are just a matter of preference &#8211; and I&#8217;m still debating what that &#8220;preference&#8221; would be <em>hahahaha.<\/em><\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_978_1_3').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_978_1_3', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top right', relative: true, offset: [10, 10], });<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Oh I almost forgot, there&#8217;s always room to upgrade the headset, bolts (to titanium) and crank bearings, jockeys pulleys, etc. (to ceramic)&#8230; but just like the others, they&#8217;re way back in the priority list.<\/p><div class=\"speaker-mute footnotes_reference_container\"> <div class=\"footnote_container_prepare\"><p><span role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" class=\"footnote_reference_container_label pointer\" onclick=\"footnote_expand_collapse_reference_container_978_1();\">Notes<\/span><span role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" class=\"footnote_reference_container_collapse_button\" style=\"display: none;\" onclick=\"footnote_expand_collapse_reference_container_978_1();\">[<a id=\"footnote_reference_container_collapse_button_978_1\">+<\/a>]<\/span><\/p><\/div> <div id=\"footnote_references_container_978_1\" style=\"\"><table class=\"footnotes_table footnote-reference-container\"><caption class=\"accessibility\">Notes<\/caption> <tbody> \r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_978_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_978_1_1');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_978_1_1\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8673;<\/span>1<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\">Wearable\/helmet cameras<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_978_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_978_1_2');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_978_1_2\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8673;<\/span>2<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\">if those CrankBrothers are really what they&#8217;re cracked up to be<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_978_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_978_1_3');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_978_1_3\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8673;<\/span>3<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\">Well, probably the saddle could definitely be upgraded&#8230; but the other two are just a matter of preference &#8211; and I&#8217;m still debating what that &#8220;preference&#8221; would be <em>hahahaha.<\/em><\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n <\/tbody> <\/table> <\/div><\/div><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> function footnote_expand_reference_container_978_1() { jQuery('#footnote_references_container_978_1').show(); jQuery('#footnote_reference_container_collapse_button_978_1').text('\u2212'); } function footnote_collapse_reference_container_978_1() { jQuery('#footnote_references_container_978_1').hide(); jQuery('#footnote_reference_container_collapse_button_978_1').text('+'); } function footnote_expand_collapse_reference_container_978_1() { if (jQuery('#footnote_references_container_978_1').is(':hidden')) { footnote_expand_reference_container_978_1(); } else { footnote_collapse_reference_container_978_1(); } } function footnote_moveToReference_978_1(p_str_TargetID) { footnote_expand_reference_container_978_1(); var l_obj_Target = jQuery('#' + p_str_TargetID); 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While there may be some stuff I would want to blog about, I&#8217;m not feeling &#8220;profound&#8221; these days. Instead, I&#8217;ll just be my usual shallow self and talk about some stuff coming in this august (c\/o my friend Arjay) &#8211; I&#8217;m stoked! So this is what it feels like &hellip; <p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"http:\/\/nargalzius.com\/blog\/archives\/2009\/07\/25\/toys-and-more-toys\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Toys and more toys!&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p><\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3],"tags":[312],"class_list":["post-978","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-cycling","tag-cycling"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/nargalzius.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/978","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/nargalzius.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/nargalzius.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nargalzius.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nargalzius.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=978"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/nargalzius.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/978\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1316,"href":"http:\/\/nargalzius.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/978\/revisions\/1316"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/nargalzius.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=978"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nargalzius.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=978"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nargalzius.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=978"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}