Come up to the GSW (granite state wheelmen) Seacoast century It's mosly at sealevel Compared to the rest of the state, it's downright flat.
I live right at the edge of the 'coastal plain' here in the DC area. I forget what its called, but its where the tide stops when it comes in. To my east? Flatter. To my west? Hilly. If I want to stay flat, I can. As much as I hate them, I get a better workout going into the hills. M
as Gary Klein put it when someone asked him why he used radial spoking on his bikes about (30 years ago), "the question is why NOT?". at that time the concern he cited for not using radial spoking was that most hubs of the day didn't have flanges strong enough to handle the stresses placed on them by the direct spoke. i'm not a big fan of most outtathebox wheels, but have put many miles on a pair of (early) Rolfs that i picked up for giggles and ended up riding most of the time for a coupla' years. finally sold them to a lighter-weight friend because even though i couldn't find any problem with them, just the idea of my 200lb+ sack of lard bombing the descents that i enjoy so much on 1300g wheels bothered me somehow. (that, and my friend had recently found his DreamBike, and being on a newlywed budget needed some help). the only possible downside might be that due to the increased tension and the stiffer rims that are necessary for the low-spoke-count radial-laced wheels, they were a tiny bit (almost imperceptibly) harsher riding than more conventional wheels, but the Rolfs were a delight on the ascents, and i rather miss that,... but frankly, getting myself in better shape would make more of a difference than riding light wheels did. these days i travel mostly on hand-built conventional wheels; Open Pro or Velocity rims with 32 very light 3x spokes in the front (with brass nipples for long-term maintainability), and slightly heavier spokes in the rear laced 3x drive side/2x non-drive side for more even spoke tensioning. not as light as the the Rolfs (or the GEL280s i ran way back in the day), but a more comfortable ride, and i just don't think about them.
very pretty. as for "how... thousands of feet in elevation in a ride", it's like so many other things; you just get better at it with practice. (that and the fact that i can't hardly go for any kind of decent ride around here without doing a coupla' thousand feet of elevation.) but mostly, i'm not especially good at or fond of going up, but coming down is another story... i go up to come down.
I live on a ski mountain, so hills are not something I can avoid, unless I stick the bike on the roof rack and drive somewhere. The Seacoast Century is my treat for the year. As for radial wheels, I have a set of Campy Scirocco's that have been quite bombproof, I got them used about 5 years ago, and they've never needed truing, they aren't on the bike full-time though, my conventional 32 spoke tubbies are more comfortable.
Another 'Rule #5' ride today. Even tho I waited till the rain stopped, it was still VERY windy. My riding buddy accused me of hammering up the hills so he started hammering up the hills so I HAD to hammer up the hills. ...all into one heck of a headwind! The ride back was mostly tailwind 2:17 of 'not going easy' and my legs are dead again. M
Had a beautiful ride today. 66 and sunny, just lovely. It was one of those "always a headwind" days though.... The only time the wind was to my back was the last mile to my house. Can't complain, though. 22 miles in 1.5 hrs. Lots of stops for lights and traffic, so not that bad.
Two of the UK’s biggest motoring schools, the AA and BSM, will give learner drivers dedicated instruction on how to drive safely around cyclists. “I am personally committed to breaking down the ‘two tribes’ attitude displayed between some drivers and cyclists. Often we are the same people,” King said. “This new module means we now have a standardised approach to teaching learners how to drive safely around cyclists from two of the country’s leading driving schools. I am convinced that this initiative will change attitudes and save lives.” Its a start anyway. I hope it'll catch on here, but I seriously doubt it. M
I test rode the Shiv and Speed Concept yesterday. Both bikes proved to be unexpectedly user friendly on local roads. I can see how either one could serve as your daily ride. In the racing position though, the Trek was a bit scary, even in a straight line. The slightest movement sends it veering off course, and the front end has an annoying tendency to fall into the turns. I'm told this is because the Speed Concept has a more aggressive steering geometry and places more of the rider's weight over the forks than the Shiv does. I could not verify any claims about their superior speed because the roads just weren't long enough to get me up to 35mph+ without having to brake for an intersection. Neither bike was what I'd call a fun ride. Certainly not compared to any of the current crop of road bikes I've ridden. Unless I was involved in time trials or iron man contests, I can't see a reason to want one.
Attention everyone. I have an announcement! I have a case of the screw-its today. That is all. Carry on M
Here's yesterday's Sonoma County adventure. My GPS croaked at about 86 miles or so, right on what I thought was the worst climb of the whole day. If you're interested, drop in to see this little gem: http://app.strava.com/activities/56370855#1033391407 <iframe height='405' width='590' frameborder='0' allowtransparency='true' scrolling='no' src='http://app.strava.com/activities/56370855/embed/0c5ef8995b19bce2638b1ba1237fc64e0c615a56'></iframe>
I just finished my longest ever ride, 340 miles over six days. Great fun, and I'm ready for more rides like that. At the start of the ride, my buddy was going on and on and on about lubing his crotch, and he even got me a fresh tin of lube - Bag Balm, for cow teats. I was skeptical, and rode "dry" for the first 70 miles. On the second day, I decided to give it a try, and was very pleased with how it works. No rash, no friction, no strangeness at all... just easy pedaling, all day long. Good stuff.
I like Belgium Butter. Not the Euro style stuff with that tingly stuff, just the normal stuff. It's crucial. Where'd you guys go?
I won't go riding again without it, great stuff. We did parts of what you covered yesterday, but started from Berkeley, up through Napa Valley, over to Healdsburg, then to Cloverdale, Boonville, out Navarro, then back down the coast on highway 1, all the way through Muir Beach, then home on BART. It's sure strange to go from pastoral coastal route to the east sidewalk of the Golden Gate Bridge! Here's a map: The route: http://ridewithgps.com/routes/2183399 And some pictures: https://diesel.smugmug.com/Bici/May-Ride/ We stayed with friends and family, then used credit cards at motels, no camping gear on this trip. Funny thing, over the week, we saw only five other cyclo-tourists, and four of them were riding the coastal route from Seattle. Of course, lots of fast day-riders out there, some of 'em crazy enough to be riding north on the coast, into the wind. We fought some fierce winds last week, along 128 west of Cloverdale, but they also provided a tailwind push once we got turned south. This worked out so well, I'm looking forward to some longer day rides, 70 - 100 miles. Might see you out there.
+1. Good job, Andrew! FWIW, I used Bag Balm for while and it worked well enough. However, it doesn't wash out as well as dedicated chamois cream and builds up in the chamois. I switched to DZ Nuts a while back. It's a bit pricey, but worth it if you've ever suffered with saddle sores.
I'll second that. Assos is probably the best, but its pricey. You can DIY pretty much an Assos clone with Eucerin, tea tree oil, and some 'kills everything' kind of goop. There's a recipe on the web. Me? Went out for 2.5hrs. Ran across the hash and stopped in to say howdy. Rode home then went back and had a beer with them. This particular group... meh. They've kinda lost the plot a little. More annoying than fun. Then I played UW Hockey later in the evening. I was half a step behind the play the whole game. ...and it killed my legs so I'm going short again today. M
I experience soreness after about 30 miles, but it's not from friction. I think it's just a case of a lack of blood flow to the tissue from continual pressure. Does this Bag Balm (or any other product) relieve that sort of thing?
