HC Bike/Cycling Thread

[MexicanDragon]

I'm going to TRY to do the December meet, I think it'd be a blast! Looks to be a 10 hour drive. Ouch. We'll see.

Jeff, I'm sure you'll be able to drop me, so no worries there. Heh, just keep a GoPro mounted on the seat post facing backwards to see me struggle, I'm sure that will amuse you for many moons.

 

**BRENT**

[VPI]

I will most likely be in Switzerland all of December so skis instead of bikes for me.

[MexicanDragon]

 

**BRENT**

[n_maher]

The ride with Ian today was good, but with temps in the low 90s again it was brutal even in the shade.  I drank way more today than I did yesterday.  The Garmin also couldn't track for shit in the woods and this was the second time that this has happened.  Didn't happen at all last year on the same trail and the only thing that I can figure is the tree canopy is full right now and it was pretty barren by the time I started on the MTB last year.  Either way, not pleased.  I'll probably try to grab a speed/cadence sensor to mount on the MTB to track to get more accurate distance results.  I'll try to put up a little footage later in the week.  Time to prep for the commute tomorrow morning.

[VPI]

I noticed on a ride recently that my Garmin 800 was cutting out and showing really low MPH when I was under a few trees.  I looked down and say it go from 20 to 8 without slowing down as I passed under a few trees.  

[Dreadhead]

Jeff that kind of thing is why you should use the speed/cadence sensor. If you have the sensor then it's either not connected or busted.

Edited July 8, 2013 by Dreadhead

[VPI]

I have speed and cadence on the Calfee.  Never bothered adding one to the Cervelo as the depth of the Zipps and the width of the frame makes alignment pretty tight on the Cervelo.

[Dreadhead]

Was this happening on the Cervelo? I assume so. It can be very difficult to get them to fit and work but without them you are trusting in commercial GPS and trees etc mess with that pretty well.

[Mister X]

How many bad karma points for running over a squirrel?

It ran onto the trail and stopped. I swerved to avoid it and it ran right back in front of me.

Didn't see it on the way back so....

[n_maher]

My thought is 0 points.  You did what you could, it's not like you were aiming for it.

 

I almost tagged a frog yesterday.  There was a bridge that was partially submered and the little guy was probably thinking it was the ultimate perch until I went roaring across.  I caught his escape on the GoPro so I'll definitely try to get that segment uploaded.

[Dreadhead]

Another two hours today wandering around in the area near Mount Vernon. It is so much fun just to go as fast as you want and not be pushing for some average wattage or HR zone.

[boomana]

How many bad karma points for running over a squirrel?

It ran onto the trail and stopped. I swerved to avoid it and it ran right back in front of me.

Didn't see it on the way back so....

 

When we were in Sebring last year, a squirrel suicided into John's wheel.  It was horrid.  I can still remember the sound.

 

I'm headed out on my bike right now.  It's fairly cool and not too windy.  I'm trying out a new saddle on the Calfee to see if it might work on my Kirk......if I ever get it.  

[boomana]

It's been so long since I've ridden in the evening, I forgot how nice it could be.  I didn't even mind the wind with no sun beating down on me.

 

Tried out two saddles: Terry Butterfly and Fizik Vesta.  Both close but no go.  The Butterfly was too padded for my liking, and same with the Vesta.  I like the Vitesse, but really wanted a little soft tissue relief on longer rides, and was looking to try a cutout or channel.  I was hoping the Vesta would be it as it's supposedly a Vitesse with the channel.   The sides of the channel starting pinching in very wrong places after 20 miles, so no go for that.  I'm looking for a hard, flatish saddle with maybe a bit of a convex dip where it counts.  My LBS will lend me an Aliante.  Any other ideas?

 

On the good news front, I tried out the new SIDIs that arrived today.  I bought them a half size smaller than my previous pair, and they're perfect.   

[Dreadhead]

Those dates in December don't work for me either as I will have just returned from Barbados. I'll have to live vicariously.

[n_maher]

This one is for Raffy...

 

I had a really enjoyable ride into work this morning.  I started at a reasonable pace and let myself go a little faster as the miles racked up.  By the time I hit the flat section of the ride, about 12 miles in I was cooking along at about 20mph.  Overall for 19 mile ride I average 19.3mph and felt good.  So this afternoon when I got out of work, after a pretty stressful and frustrating day, I decided to see just what I had left in the tank after 3 pretty hard rides at the end of last week.  I expect that this will stand as the high water mark for me for quite some time. 

 

Ride Data

 

[boomana]

^ Nice, Nate.

I did intervals this morning on the Computrainer. I pooped out 45 minutes in, and my face was beet red for two hours at work. Not an attractive look. Oddly, I really liked it (the workout, not the face). Reminded me of how good I felt at the end of a hard CrossFit workout. I'd had an FPT test a couple weeks ago and it went from 160 to 180, which I think is too high for me, especially at 6AM. AFter a 5-min warmup, it was bascially 3 min at 95%, 1 at 105%, 3 at 95%, 1 at 45% and repeat. After the fifth set, I couldn't get my heart rate under 165 during the one-minute rest, and that's my toast zone. I probably could have pushed through the last two, but I'm a quitter

Testing another saddle tonight, a Specialized something. Tomorrow, I'm going to try out the Aliante.

[Voltron]

That really is a fricken crazy ride you did there Nate.  Over 20 MPH average?  Sheesh.

 

Don't push too hard V.  Sometimes your body tells you to quit for a reason.

[pigmode]

Specialized have a number of good shapes unique to their line. Good dealers have test models, and there's supposed to be a return policy, although I haven't looked into it.

[parris]

Vicki I"ve forgotten what saddles are you on now?  I've gone back to using the Turbo saddles that I was on years ago and unless I find something better that's what I'm going to stick with.  The good thing is that my buddy Pete gave me a nos Turbo slg which is the lighter version with alloy rails.  He also let me grab 2 other Turbos for future projects.

[aerius]

This was my street yesterday evening.  Let's just say there's not going to be any riding for a while.

Oh yeah, and it's forecast to rain some more.

 

[boomana]

Damb, Aerius.

[raffy]

Awesome ride, Nate. As usual, you rocked it out. 

 

Vicki, you might like the Aliante. It's curvy and has a "pocket" just like the Brooks which I know you like. As with any saddle (especially non-flat ones), tilt can spell the difference between unbearable and comfortable. As for me, I think the Arione is what my butt likes best. It's slightly narrow and flat which suits me as I like to move back and forth a lot; I actually find that I ride slightly more forward than most people.

[n_maher]

Damb, Aerius.

This.

[aerius]

Traffic lights are still out in some places and we're supposed to have some rolling blackouts so that hydro crews can do a proper fix of the grid.  We got off pretty lightly my area since we're on higher ground, the lower areas in town got slammed.  There were places where houses had water flowing in through the doors & windows and cars got washed off bridges in the southern part of the city.  We set the single day rainfall record yesterday, beating the previous record which was set when Hurricane Hazel went through Toronto in 1954. 

 

I did a ride around my part of town today to check out the damage, there's still traffic lights out and areas without power.  Lots of trees down everywhere and several pedestrian bridges had their guardrails taken out by giant logs & trees which got uprooted and carried downstream by the current.  A local golf course also has a ton of new water hazards and it's missing at least one hole.  Didn't get anywhere on the bike trails since they're either blocked by fallen trees, flooded, covered in a layer of silt & mud, or simply gone.  Mountain biking on my local trails is probably a write-off for the summer, it's going to take a while to clear out the mess and rebuild everything.

[boomana]

Well, I liked the Specialized, a Phenom, which, according to the Specialized site is actually a mountain bike saddle.  I don't know how it's going to be on longer rides, but it confirmed that I like seats with minimal padding.  The Vesta and Butterfly's padding were...er...compressing the bits.  I only got in 10 miles tonight.  As I was reaching for my water bottle around mile five, I realized that I'd forgotten it, so I headed back home, so I'd like to try it out again this weekend.  I also confirmed that I love these little evening rides.  It was so pleasant out.  My legs were toasty and tight from a leg workout yesterday and intervals this morning, so I just kept it in a low gear and had a wonderful ride, minus being thirsty, and my legs were much happier after.  

 

Parris, I have a B17 on my Gunnar.  It's the best saddle I've found; it doesn't even exist once I'm on it, and I can ride for 85 miles (most I've ever done in one stretch) and ride again the next day with no soreness.  I keep getting the damn thing wet in surprise showers and just being in a constant state of soaking Florida sweat, which isn't good, and I don't want to deal with that on the Kirk, plus I'd like a different look if I can find a saddle that works for me.  I have a Fizik Vitesse on the Calfee, which came with the bike, and was instantly comfy, but not so much after 50 miles on the girly bits.  

 

Raffy, I'm hoping I like the Aliante.  I actually like the Vitesse a lot, so hoping the Aliante's pocket, as you called it, will be exactly what I need.  My LBS guy is lending me his, as he thinks it's probably what I'm looking for, for the same reason, and he's been right with everything he's recommended so far, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.  Fikiz lets you customize your color, and I'd love to have a blue one to go with my new bike (it's going to be pearl white with cobalt blue panels).  If I could do that, I'd probably go with a silver seat post, stem, etc., which would look really sharp.  

 

Oh....and these new SIDIs are seriously white.  It's kinda scary looking down at my feet.  They glow back up at me.