I'm Shanghai-based and planning to do a trip in North Japan (Hokkaido) as it will be the best weather around that time of year. Anywhere else I'm afraid might be too hot and I wouldn't consider it. check out Hokkaidowilds.org for lots of resources, including bike rentals. If you're used to urban riding, that's also the most Shanghai has got to offer as its urban sprawl extends almost all the way to neighboring cities like Suzhou (about 100km from SH). You could cycle there for a slight change of scenery and visit old traditional gardens. I wouldn't recommend cycling in any other direction from Shanghai unless you really like endless rice farms and soulless industrial towns. I can't overstate how hot and humid it really gets though, I have bailed on rides after 35km in June from fear of heat stroke.

Bastards of Young (Documentary) talks mostly about this scene

I was just looking at it earlier! Very tempting but wonder how weather resistant it is. I know my camera isn't but if the lens is, at least might be one less thing prone to get damaged.

Ricoh GR FTW. can fit it in my frame bag or small handlebar bag. Some trips I'll bring my Fuji X-E3 instead just wish I had a pancake lens

came here to say something similar (also had to look up mine)... I use the Bontrager XR Endurance comp which are all plastic and they do feel like the GA3s I have on another bike. Comparable in both build quality and feel but cheaper than Ergon.

Look up on Youtube: Rhino basics. watch any video once, then you'll be able to model it.

question is not why but, should it be? I am not hating the palette but I wonder if there's a huge market for it. Seems to be more of an ID trend than a market trend.

I'd say don't pay too much attention to them. I leave mine way longer and they do look wild but it's better when putting a handlebar bag. that way I can sort of wrap them around the bag.

glad to know you are keeping it! adding on to my comment...I was in Tokyo about a month ago and won my way to Bluelug (look it up if you don't know about them!) I stumbled upon this beauty: https://imgur.com/a/i6PefWj  and it made me really happy to know I own one :)

absurdly big bottom bracket looks like it might be a Pinion gearbox or similar since there's no RD but that's not for me to judge. it's just a reminder that there's probably more that went into developing the concept that you might realize. Conceptually I am not sure it's that strong but that depends on what the student was given to work with so all I can talk about is the form development which looks good enough and relatively complex surfacing involved. Already pretty good for a Master's student, which I don't believe is necessarily regarded as a high standard for someone's skills and it's just another level in education.

Nice catch. Do you think part of that definition would be usable to meet OPs requirement? Or better to start with lines that are somehow tangent to the main curve and then dimension them/join

Thanks, I'm starting to learn grasshopper and I try to do everything there to push myself to learn. Here's your answer: https://imgur.com/a/n3kntSV 

I have the same bike and bought it around the same time as you. I also have taken it to some trails (mainly gravel and chunkier stuff) and I'm still happy with it, or actually it's my gf who uses it now as a daily commuter and on trips we've taken every now and then. We live in China and I've been able to find very affordable genuine components so I converted it to a 1x by getting a new BCD chainring from Prowheel (34T) and threw in an 11-46T Sunrace Cassette + Shimano Deore 11 speed which tbh is only a bit wider range than the 3x9 original configuration but with the added benefit of having a clutch in the derailleur and more neat looking controls (the window on the stock shifter had broken). from what I've read, the stock brakes are pretty decent value so I just changed the front rotor for the next bigger size (believe it's 160 or 180mm). The rest is pretty much stock but I was thinking swapping the wheels for 650bs... for this I am a bit stingy and also don't want to generate more waste so was thinking building new wheels with the existing Marin hubs which seem fine and just lace them myself since I've seen plenty good videos from Park Tool on how to do it. Apart from those things you can change other comfort / contact point accessories like saddle, seatpost (I got a suspension seatpost) handlebars. All that being said, it is a bit heavy of a frame as it's single butted, I believe so at one point I could just get a new frame and migrate all the upgrades from the Marin to it for a new build :)

This. it's pretty broad but it can be pretty insightful too:

Making It: Manufacturing Techniques for Product Design: Lefteri, Chris: 8601404249495: Amazon.com: Books

the clutch makes it great off-road. keeps the chain tensioned at all times eliminating slapping and possible chain drop. it has its limits of course but I never pushed too hard on rough terrain anyways since it's a drop bar bike

SRAM Apex is indeed on the entry level of SRAM's groupsets but it is more similar to the mid and high end groupsets than Shimano's tiering. I believe the main differences are in material use and construction which translate to weight savings while in the case of Shimano's Claris, it's not even in the same range as GRX. FYI Apex derailleur also has a clutch.

I'd recommend Vitus Substance CRS-1 if you can find a dealer (I got mine from Wiggle). it's 1x11 Apex (11-42) and I've used it with an 11-46 cassette with no issues. In fact, I'm selling that same bike in excellent condition for roughly your budget but I'm based in China at the moment so if you were interested I could get a quote for shipping :) lmk if interested

check out Joliette and Antiniño. Both from Mexico. the song Czirros by Joliette is one of my all-time genre favorites.

Did he KOM though?

I would expect so. normally these are on Dianping (Chinese tripadvisor-type platform)

I like Yu Massage, they have one on Xikang Rd in Jing'an and I believe one near Xinle/Fumin Rd. Bamboo 7 (康友四季) is pretty decent too but I've only had their foot and back massage. both good and not too expensive IMO.

try making cowboy coffee directly in your metal drinking cup. make sure you add cold water on top to make the grounds sink to the bottom. another alternative is cold brewing overnight, for this, I've used the Rivers cold brew tumbler but you can also make it work with tea infuser bags.

Because it's a prototype, you can't expect exact same results as production stuff but you can take a regular nylon fabric and maybe screen a dot pattern onto it. There's a few inks that puff up or have similar rubbery effects. Main concern would be curing them without burning the fabric. Good luck!

I've only flown into Hanoi and took a car to a hotel where I stayed for a night and departed the next day. The hotel staff were really nice and let me store my bike bag in their facilities for the length of my trip. The trails/route wasn't right at the gate of the hotel but it took me maybe 30-40 mins to get out of the city in Hoa Binh direction.

TLDR; it might not be so easy to roll out from the airport but transportation can be pretty cheap and people are friendly and willing to help in some SEA Countries