I hope gurp is still breathing. On the STR home page it always says Welcome back trekker. Yet I'm not really "back". Still have to login to see pictures or post, etc. And I do click remember me. What's up George?
No. I spray them in the face with pepper spray. I'm still breathing, thanks. It's not hard to type and my cardio is in pretty good condition, thanks for your concern, trekker. It may have sounded angrier than it was. It's frustrating to hear this stuff from people you like. If I didn't like the people on this site I would just go elsewhere. It's even more frustrating to hear it from people who should know better. For example, if a hiker meets one mtber who skids and tears up the trail, is it fair for that hiker to now assume all mtbers are that way? Or, more to the point, let's say this hikers out on the trail and in that whole day most of the mtbers say little more than "Onyerleft" as they pass. Sure, a couple cheerfully call out, "Howdy" but not most. And, a few of them grind up the trail with their big gnarly tires. This hiker decides all mtbers are focused more on getting there fast and don't care to be cordial or care about the trail. Is this a fair generalization about mtbers? Is it even true? Does this hiker ever mtb? Now, let's say that on a hiking website, most of the hikers talk sh*t about mtbers. They talk about how dangerous it is to be on the trail with them, how they are impolite and don't care about the trails. Our hiker friend shares his experience, conveniently leaving out the parts of the story that include the friendly mtbers and only relates the negative. The other hikers agree that mtbers are total jerks. Now, assume you enjoy hiking and this hiking site has cool people to hook up with. Also, many of them know alot about hiking and camping and you enjoy learning from them. They know great trails that you would never otherwise hear about. Problem is, they find out you like to mtb and they constantly make references to how you're a "trail killer" and some of them flat out make stuff up such as insinuating that all mtbers like having sex with dogs in the backcountry. At first you chuckle and play around. It's cool and all, you figure, no harm no foul. Then, a few more hikers mention that they too mtb. So, you guys talk about mtbing and even plan a ride. Some of the other hikers mention that maybe people should take their mtb discussions elsewhere. And, people keep talking crap about humping dogs. Gets on your nerves but you take it. Makes you feel pretty unwelcome, but you *do* love hiking so you stay. Plus, it's not like you're the only mtber on the site. Get my point? I'm stretching the analogy since I think the hikers would have a valid point that mtbing is not the same as hiking, but both enjoy the trails. However, road biking and mtbing are at least both cycling.
Wow, guess I touched a nerve. So be it. The point about roadies is that if they look at you, or through you, then maybe a head nod or a wave. If you catch up to them at a stop light and they don't want to give the time of day, well f* them. If I come up on a mtb'er, they will more than likely give some type of "hello" and general bs-ing. Even on mtb's, it's not that I "wave" at everyone when riding the trail but I do try and acknowledge them with some type of greeting. And yes, I have had some just look at me in total shock. I guess if I really wanted to touch a nerve I would throw out the bit about shaving legs and other parts of the body! So anyhoot, No harm intended. Cheers, And I hope to, someday, see you out on the TRAIL. :beer:
I never notice the ads, so keep 'em if they work. I don't see a problem with the "THANKS" counter/feature. I will thank someone if they post info I find useful, they post something I agree with in a discussion oriented thread or if they post something that made me laugh. I don't see a problem with that. I joined this site as soon as it was started, but since it was primarily OC riders, I was a lurker for a long time. Since I didn't live in the area and never rode with the original "core" group, I never posted. It definitely felt clickish. Not that people were rude, but a lot of threads took on a very "the in crowd" feel, with inside jokes, etc. Don't get me wrong, it didn't bother me, I would have been right there with all of you had I been a local. But, I felt like I was on the outside looking in for sure. There seemed to be some people who acted like snobs towards new members/outsiders. Now, I'm sure that wasn't their intention, but it definitely came across that way. Now that the site has grown, I definitley feel "more at home" and am more comfortable posting on a more regular basis. I like the site more now for the same reasons that some others don't like it as much. And I can't believe people let a post counter aggravate them. Who cares? So what if you have to wade through a bit of drivel. It's the internet, get over it. There will always be drivel. Plus, it goes back to the "snob" mentality. To complain that you have to wade through junk to get to the good stuff is a little elitist. You are implying that you never post stuff that others consider junk. Well, that isn't the case believe me. We all post junk from time to time. It sucks that we can't all co-exist without being judgmental and wishing it could go back to the way it was. Change is almost always good, and I can't see how the site has changed for the worse. It still feels like a small and pretty personal site to me. I envy you guys who live close to each other and get to ride together a lot and have built strong friendships with people you otherwise would have never met--all because George had an idea and saw it through. Cherish the good instead of complaining about the bad. -Doug
Looked again and finally found the setting that controls this (you wouldn't believe how many settings there are). The timeout is currently at 15 mins and I changed it to 30 minutes. As for why it doesn't remember you when you close your browser - that's a cookie issue and might be something related to your browser. PM me and maybe we can troubleshoot it. Lately I've been considering taking them off and finding another source of consistent revenue. The click rate is super low and most days they struggle to reach a buck in earnings. That's kind of why I wanted to hear people opinions on them. But like I said before, donations and some sales have covered just about all the hosting fees thus far. So for now I'm not worried. I gotta admit this made me smile. You make a good point - just about all my good friends are people that I've met through STR. It's kind of mind-blowing what a little work on my part, word of mouth, and a ton of great people can create and nurture. Thanks for everyone that has responded, it's been super helpful. :bang:
I realize now I never said what I meant to say at the end of my post: George, we've never met (hopefully we'll ride together sometime) but I would like to thank you for the hard work and guts it took to start this site. I remember your posts on MTBR asking around if you thought there was an interest for this board. You took the chance and made it work--it could've failed just as easily. There is a great group of people here and I think it's pretty damn cool what you've been able to do with the site. The members make it work, but you took the initiative and got the ball rolling. Props to you bro:beer:
Thanks, doug! Knowing that so many people like you have benefited from all the time and energy I've invested makes it all worthwhile. Btw, I found that thread that you referred to. Ah, the memories
I think it's GREAT! Hey George, I think this is a pretty doggone cool site. I actually like hitting the road forum. I got got myself a road bike, threw some mtb riser bars on it, and go pedal my a$$ off when I get a chance. And I'm with Winston on the point of your site compared to the MTBR SoCal forum. This one rocks!:bang: I've only met a couple of you guys in person, but I like the ideas that get thrown out there like BBQ's after rides and such. And to me, this site seems to have more female riders on here, which is cool for Lacey to see. Sauce, Sharkey, Chelle, B.O.B...you girls need to hook up for a all girl ride that Lacey could tag along on. Keep up the great work George, it's really appreciated!:clap:
Feedback plus bonus rant! George, What a great site, :clap: I wish I had found it sooner. I have been watching the posts on another site for several years, which has left me a little confused about the sprit of our sport at times. :-k I have always ridden by myself, but I’m looking forward to meeting & riding with all the members. The camaraderie of the site has inspired me to get more involved in the local cycling community.:drunk: This leads me nicely into the topic of roadies. I ride Road & Mountain; I find that both groups can be as equally unfriendly or friendly depending on the bike I’m riding. I think that it’s great that there is a forum for Roadies, which can always serve as sneaky peak for those that might be interested in riding on thinner tires. Cue creaking of the soapbox!8-[ The topic of this discussion though is the downfall or weakness of our sport. If we were more united as a group, we could achieve so much more. Whether we’re trying to build trails & access new land, building more cycling lines & improving safety for us on the roads, or getting OC transport to add more routes with bike racks for commuters. As a larger group with one mission ‘Cycling’ we might find we get a lot more achieved. At the end of the day it doesn’t matter what size your tires are or how tight your shorts are, we are all getting knocked off our bikes on the roads! (Who wouldn’t benefit from a safer cycle line in Santiago Canyon?) Our trails & roads are getting more crowded; we need to stand together for the future of cycling both as a sport & a recreation. And I’m done! So great site, keep it real & the end of the day we’re all just trying to enjoy the little free time we have. :beer: Oh & I think the time out feature will keep the site running at a faster speed, dropping connections that are idle, will maintain sever traffic to a decent level.:-k
In short I think the site is great and one the best of the biking forums I frequent because of the people first and the site second. That will change over time but for the people and site site rocks. I could give a $hit about the post count thing and found no problem with the counter from the beginning. I think the thanks feature is cool and a way to say thank you for a useful or helpful post. Keep it. I think the 'I hate the Rodie' stuff is rather sophomoric. If you don't like rodie stuff don't go to the board. The fact is that many of us do both and we want to plan both types of ride with the same group of people. Pulling the Rodie board would be a big mistake. We are one community, let's keep it that way. Don't see the Google add in my FireFox browser because of a user defined CSS that blocks all Google and most banner adds.
Ok... there should be some misunderstandings cleared up here. I don't think any of us "hate" the roadie stuff, but to say that we could simply ignore it is ignorant... it is rather difficult when you have an Unread Post counter as well as a list of Roadie threads with new posts in them [mine used to reach around 60+ Unread Posts all from the Roadie Forum]... how do you simply ignore that. Your statement of 'just don't go to the board' is difficult beacuse the only way to clear the post count is go into that forum once in a while and mark all threads as read. I'm sure that's what the lot of 'us' have been doing... but George went and fixed this issue for us so called 'roadie haters' by just removing it form our view, kinda like the 'ignore' feature which is great. Quit reading so much into this stuff. I don't think it should be removed because it seems many of you do enjoy and use that forum, but I'm glad all those post and threads are no longer shoved in my face every time I click on the Unread Posts counter. So by all means have it and enjoy :bang: :beer:
It's pretty damn easy to ignore the rodie stuff, or anything else you don't want to read. Don't use the unread threads feature. Go to the board(s) you want to read, look for bolded unread titles, read the ones you like, and move on. Not that hard.
don't get your panties in a bunch man. perhaps your lycra is a bit tight8-[... the unread posts feature is one of the best features of this site you must not use it all that much. :-k why visit every forum to find out what's new when everything is listed for me or any user in one spot and through 1 mouse click. you must like doing things the hard way... so be it:beer:
to lighten up the mood a bit, i don't really hate roadies at all really... i just like giving the guys here a hard time! :lol:
Chaos - Do you real ALL of the non-roadie posts? if not then you leave some posts unread already, what's the diff when the roadies are just more posts you can gloss over if you want? I use the "Today's Posts" feature under Quick Links instead, that will give you the most recent threads and posts, the ones that are bold have new posts or you haven't read yet. Also only 1 mouse click. I ignore the unread posts counter, because I already assume I do not want to read every post on the site, no matter what subsection it's in. So then to stay current, I always would have to "Mark Forums Read". It's actually more work than just going to Today's Posts.
Y'know, I think I'm going to buy more lycra shorts. They *are* more comfortable to ride in and my ass looks great in them. Which, Frank, you'll see plenty of because I'll be in front you. bahahahahahahaha! Don't be mad, I'm only playing. :lol:
