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Bicycle age
- Thread starter elrechazado
- Start date
Psychotext
Member
People are comfortable with old tech pretty much. There are a few solutions out there, but they don't get a lot of support and are pricey at the moment because of a lack of mass market appeal.
Tube change complete, here's proof in the form of a scientific cow, a bike and a whole bunch of vicious barnacle geese. I also found a cool place to practice downhill turns, but didn't stop to take a pic because there was a maintenance dude doing something in a nearby public bomb shelter.
Nice, I also have an X caliber and I love it. Great bike.
So, uh, best way to tackle a really long and hard climb right at the start of a ride? It starts with a hill that's 4 kilometers, average grade 8%, 450 height meters, on asphalt, with an mtb. The only thing I can think of is to warm up very thoroughly first. I don't think I'll be able to get up on the middle chainring, so I fear that I'll have to use low gears on the smallest chainring, and that all the other contestants will steamroll away from me long before reaching the top, making the rest of the race pretty dull. Anything clever I can do to get up not too long after the others? I'm a good climber, but never seem to find the right gears on the mtb.
Psychotext
Member
That seems like a bit of a contradiction... and yeah, your only real hope is to warm up fully first. A lot of people take very small turbo trainers with them.
Well I'm a good climber on the racer
The mtb is tricky to get right on asphalt climbs. My tires are very coarse, maybe that's a factor. I'll try to drive there early and spend some time warming up. It's not a big deal, just a fun race, but it would be so much more fun if I could keep up with the rest for longer than the first hill. I don't expect more than 50 contestants at most, most of them being much more experienced than me.Psychotext
Member
What tyres are you running?
Chao Yang "Polar Bear". Here's a pic. They came with the bike, and have been good in the terrain. But they feel very slow on the road.
Psychotext
Member
Yeah, they don't look like they'd have the best rolling resistance. What size?
If you know that the terrain is likely to be easy then I'd consider something like Panaracer Fire XC Pro. If it's a little more difficult, then something like Maxxis Highroller II. You can mix and match. For instance, I know a couple of people that swear by a 2.4 Maxxis Highroller II on the front and a 2.1 Maxxis Aspen on the back. There are also tyres like Continental Speed King (I've had loads of punctures with these, don't recommend) and Maxxis Ikon (pretty good front and back, terrible in the mud) which are considered "race" XC tyres.
I did one ride with Aspen front and back. Couldn't grip for shit. Wasn't a fun time.
If you know that the terrain is likely to be easy then I'd consider something like Panaracer Fire XC Pro. If it's a little more difficult, then something like Maxxis Highroller II. You can mix and match. For instance, I know a couple of people that swear by a 2.4 Maxxis Highroller II on the front and a 2.1 Maxxis Aspen on the back. There are also tyres like Continental Speed King (I've had loads of punctures with these, don't recommend) and Maxxis Ikon (pretty good front and back, terrible in the mud) which are considered "race" XC tyres.
I did one ride with Aspen front and back. Couldn't grip for shit. Wasn't a fun time.
My tires are 26 inch. Thanks for the recommendations, I'll have a talk with the guys at the bike shop. The race is 42 kilometers, and perhaps 4-5 is on forest paths. The rest is 50/50 asphalt and gravel roads of varying qualities. I always have trouble keeping up on flats or downhill, so a faster tire or two might be what I need. Thanks again!
Psychotext
Member
I meant width. Probably 2.0. But yeah, you definitely want something fast rolling on that.
As for the talk about tyres. It's because we have so much time available because we're not having to worry about what espresso to drink, which brand of razor gives least ingrowing hairs and whether we've got enough sponsorship on our lycra.
Not to mention the wheight/aeroness/stylishness of every single component and clothing. The correct ratio of complex carbs ad proteins for the bidon, practising casually adding french words to conversations, convncng oneself that over 200euro for a bib is actually not that expensive, avoiding rain at all costs (failed on my last two rides) and deliberating on how to set up yhe perfect interval session
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMCkuqL9IcM
Oh. No idea about the width, sorry.
I'm half road biker, half mountain biker. I wear ball-tight lycra on the mtb and climb gravel roads with the racer (did this last week to, uh, get an espresso). Everything is confusing. Halp.
Any tips about eating on the race, by the way? Since the hardest part by far is at the start, should I swallow something nutritious already in the middle of the hill, or wait until I'm at the top? I'm having a big breakfast a couple of hours before starting, that's for sure.
So I'm looking at adjusting my gears on my mountain bike and I was wondering if you guys could walk me through what I should be doing. First off, this is in response to my chain running off the back gears while I was in the highest gear (largest front, smallest back) and getting stuck between the frame and the gears. Not very fun with the pedals stuck at ~20mph.
What I'm needing clarification on is what the adjustment screws are doing. To me, it looks like they're just screws that hit stops on the derailleur. On the rear, I'm assuming I should be adjusting the high screw so that my top gear just engages?
And on the front set, which is a set of 3 gears, I thought that the smallest is for the bigger gears in the back (1-4?), the middle should be usable for all, and the largest is for the smaller gears (4-7) in the back. With my bike currently, the middle gear up front rubs on the guide in lower gears and the smallest gear doesn't rub on any of the high gears in the back. Would that be the low adjustment screw?
What I'm needing clarification on is what the adjustment screws are doing. To me, it looks like they're just screws that hit stops on the derailleur. On the rear, I'm assuming I should be adjusting the high screw so that my top gear just engages?
And on the front set, which is a set of 3 gears, I thought that the smallest is for the bigger gears in the back (1-4?), the middle should be usable for all, and the largest is for the smaller gears (4-7) in the back. With my bike currently, the middle gear up front rubs on the guide in lower gears and the smallest gear doesn't rub on any of the high gears in the back. Would that be the low adjustment screw?
Psychotext
Member
You wont need to worry about nutrition until at least an hour into the race. Don't eat too heavy though, you'll impact your performance.
I tend to go with shot bloks, flapjack and drink tablets.
This covers pre race: http://blog.trainerroad.com/pre-rac...e-race-nutrition-for-cyclists-and-triathletes
This has some info for pre and during: http://www.bikeradar.com/road/gear/article/best-carbs-to-eat-for-cycling-34900/
http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/article/how-to-adjust-the-gears-on-your-bike-video-23582/
LOHPOIDH.I bought a new bike yesterday
I'm guessing a mini nuclear reactor hidden in the hub, driving the rear wheel.
Doesn't everyone have one of these?
Psychotext
Member
There are motors / batteries that can be hidden in seat tubes which drive the rear wheel. Hard to be 100% certain, but it looks like that's what we're seeing there.
Edit - I'm told that in most cases those motors actually drive the cranks. So I guess it really is just a trick of the physics.
Edit - I'm told that in most cases those motors actually drive the cranks. So I guess it really is just a trick of the physics.
I've never trusted roadies. Saw one cycling past a school the other day and my blood ran cold. I was shaking so badly it took me three attempts to phone the police.
Psychotext
Member
Damn right.
Christoff Yurievich
Member
I hate embedded video that won't load correctly.
Not too surprising that mountain bikers don't have basic understanding of momentum and kinetic energy, most I've met are obviously illiterate.
Yeah, I sure hope that isn't a serious article
1) This isn't any unusual sight, when you hit the ground at 30, the bike spins out when the wheel hits.
2) The bikes are all weighed, you aren't sneaking 1kg of battery and motor onto a bike.
3) The motors are loud, road bikes are pretty quiet. Hell, Di2 shifts are noticeably loud in a field.
4) Even if somehow you snuck it in, I don't really see how it would make that much of a difference vs you having to lug another kg around, unless we are talking a very short flat TT. On hills and long rides which is what 95% of tour rides are, this would probably make you slower.
Yeah, I sure hope that isn't a serious article
1) This isn't any unusual sight, when you hit the ground at 30, the bike spins out when the wheel hits.
2) The bikes are all weighed, you aren't sneaking 1kg of battery and motor onto a bike.
3) The motors are loud, road bikes are pretty quiet. Hell, Di2 shifts are noticeably loud in a field.
4) Even if somehow you snuck it in, I don't really see how it would make that much of a difference vs you having to lug another kg around, unless we are talking a very short flat TT. On hills and long rides which is what 95% of tour rides are, this would probably make you slower.
jakonovski
Member
It's clearly a KERS system.
edit: one of these years I'm buying a road bike to see what the hubbub is all about. Or more likely a cyclocrosser, to retain a semblance of street cred.
edit: one of these years I'm buying a road bike to see what the hubbub is all about. Or more likely a cyclocrosser, to retain a semblance of street cred.
If you want street cred, a road bike is the way to go, if you want cred from people in parks or on gravel roads, then you should get a cx
on the 1 hand, race bikes need to make a minimum weight, and frames components are getting lighter all the time so sometimes ballast is used.
on the other hand, i'm sure there are people who are walking databases of bike component weights and would raise suspicio if bike looks too light. all components on a bike is visible anyway...
ryder is a former mountain bike champion. corrupted by the system, perhaps... he's already be implicated in the drug epidemic
if you want street cred, ride a track bike. built with n.o.s. components from the 70s
on the other hand, i'm sure there are people who are walking databases of bike component weights and would raise suspicio if bike looks too light. all components on a bike is visible anyway...
ryder is a former mountain bike champion. corrupted by the system, perhaps... he's already be implicated in the drug epidemic
if you want street cred, ride a track bike. built with n.o.s. components from the 70s
Psychotext
Member
Not too surprising that mountain bikers don't have basic understanding of momentum and kinetic energy, most I've met are obviously illiterate.
I bounce off rocks for fun, what can I say.
Fixed
jakonovski
Member
This would be pretty cool I guess, a remake of a Finnish bike from the 80s. All the cool dudes had one when I was a kid.
Yep, spinning wheels are a KERS system.
@ UCI races all equipment is checked/rechecked at rollouts, they are also commonly X-Ray'd. You can bet any non-TT bike that is appreciably over 6.8kg is going to be scrutinized heavily.
Just jokes, we all know the real villain is people that ride track bikes on the street.
Also, patron saint of roadies would be Eddy Merckx or Jens Voigt.
@ UCI races all equipment is checked/rechecked at rollouts, they are also commonly X-Ray'd. You can bet any non-TT bike that is appreciably over 6.8kg is going to be scrutinized heavily.
I bounce off rocks for fun, what can I say.
Just jokes, we all know the real villain is people that ride track bikes on the street.
Also, patron saint of roadies would be Eddy Merckx or Jens Voigt.
The only fast tires my local shop had in stock right now for 26" wheels were Continental Race King. The seller recommended them for this particular race, but I read reviews, and lots of people had problems with punctures. So I guess I'll use my current, slow tires anyway. I'll probably come in last, but won't get a puncture.
Got to admit, this looks really fun.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNVeMNKLen8
One of these days I'll get a MTB.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNVeMNKLen8
One of these days I'll get a MTB.
Psychotext
Member
Leader got totally fucked over on that last corner. That was full on online racing bullshit.
Psychotext
Member
It seemed like it. Never seen one so short though.
It's the elimination sprint, heats of four and the two best go on to the next round
Bit of an epic ride today - I set off over the bridge and just kept on going. Before I knew it I'd ridden across the Atlantic and found myself on a reservation in South Dakota. After a quick pow-wow with the tribe (you can call me Dances With Iron Horse from now on) I just had time to take these pictures before heading back for tea. Phew! What an adventure.
No time for hangage from the eagle's wings, unfortunately. Maybe next time.
No time for hangage from the eagle's wings, unfortunately. Maybe next time.
This would be pretty cool I guess, a remake of a Finnish bike from the 80s. All the cool dudes had one when I was a kid.
My older brother had one, it was passed to me. Used to ride to gymnasium with it, didn't realise how great it was back then and it's lost somewhere in history (my little brother took it to go drinking with friends and forgot to lock it and where he left it. A common occurence).
I'm tempted. It's a beautiful bicycle for sure.
You know we expect better from you, right? Cool totem pole.
It must be the only one in the world with a Welsh coal miner on it.
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