Expert Advice on the Internet

The internet, as we are in the process of proving, is a wonderful place where any idiot can put their thoughts, safe in the knowledge that virtually no-one will bother to read them in a sea of pointlessness, unless they are actually any good, or very bigoted, when they stand a chance of being heard, and eventually land a job writing for the Daily Mail.

While you expect a certain amount of rubbish to turn up I was baffled by this website which came up on one of my highly technical searches to find interesting stuff to put on here. I simply can’t work out what it’s there for. It seems to be a forum for cheapskates (“How do I repair a BMX brake cable without buying a new one?” or “I’m doing a triathlon for the first time and I don’t have a good bike to ride. What would be a good bike for me under $200?”), people who don’t understand some of the basics of the sports they are doing, and those with some “expert” advice to give.

These “experts” have covered the Shimano mountain-bike component range based solely on what the local bike shop told them, and without bothering to look at the excellent Shimano website which would have told them far more about groupsets than he seems to have discovered, including that Deore is far from the entry level, XT is perfectly adequate for racing, and Deore LX, is no longer a mountain bike groupset, having been replaced by SLX. As someone with “Experience with full suspension and hardtail mountain bikes, bike parts and organizing race events for mountain biking”, you might have thought they would know that, and maybe even have been able to fit the part themselves.

Another “expert” has tackled the issue of the different forms of mountain biking, although, interestingly has included BMX and cyclocross, which aren’t forms of mountain biking, but makes it clear that trials is not a form of mountain biking, despite it being included in many mountain bike competitions.

The forum also includes a very familiar post on Trek bikes which is as confusing as the rest of the site.
“Mountain Bikes is a very ancient brand. This is in existence for a very long time and has come to stay”, yes, well indeed, at least since 1976. It seems to me that the author hasn’t so much “Been Researching and Reporting on Mountain Bikes for Years”, so much as bizarrely trying to promote Trek bikes in confusing English all over the internet. If you want some real information on Trek (and their all-reaching bicycle-making company) maybe try their website instead (other multi-national bike manufacturers are also available).

What amazes me the most is that people have actually taken the trouble to answer the questions on the forum, sometimes with fairly intelligent answers.

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