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Bicycle age
- Thread starter elrechazado
- Start date
jakonovski
Member
Any thoughts on the spec of this bike?
http://www.konaworld.com/precept.cfm
It's completely entry level components wise, but the frame should be pretty good. I'm just worried about upgrading pitfalls.
http://www.konaworld.com/precept.cfm
It's completely entry level components wise, but the frame should be pretty good. I'm just worried about upgrading pitfalls.
Christoff Yurievich
Member
Went for a leisurely test ride with the rflkt today, did about 45 minutes and about 17km. We had our phones in the saddle bag handling the bluetooth to rflkt data and GPS. Recorded every bit of the ride and the phone battery only dropped about 8%, very happy with the outcome.
edit: looking at the data, it seems it was on and recording for about 1 hour and 10 minutes, even more impressed
I've been looking at getting one of these and pairing it with their Blue S/C speed/cadence sensor. Good to see a real-world review.
My ride on Saturday went ok. My total time was 7 hours so I shaved an entire half-hour off my usual 100 pace. I attribute that to somewhat better self-knowledge of when I needed to refuel but mostly it was because when I arrived at the second one they said, "You're the first person we've seen today!" I wanted to keep that going so I pushed myself to keep up my pace. I shouldn't have done that. I ended up being passed finally on the hill at mile 60 (check here for the elevation profile), that grade was just too much for me.
I ended up with two very sore knees by the end and my pace went from an almost 20 mph average for the first 60 miles to 15.4 by the end. Which is my usual pace, as it turns out. Sigh. I can say that, as far as I know, I was the fifth person across the finish of the century people, because I saw how many people passed me. I can't say that with certainty though because the 75-mile rest stop included the 66-mile riders so anyone who passed me could have been from either group. I'm just going to go with I was fifth and leave it at that.
Computer stats:
6:46:45 moving time
104.46 miles (I rode my bike to the start line since it's just a few miles)
15.4 average
47.6 max speed (it was a steep-ass hill, see mile 28)
3611 calories burned
Next year I'm going to do the 66 and then, since they're all loops, do the 34. It's still 100 but I miss out on all of those insane hills.
PjotrStroganov
Member
Mengy
wishes it were bannable to say mean things about Marvel
I wanted to get out on my bike this weekend but my back tire isn't holding air, lol. It's time for new tubes and tires anyway, these lasted me a long time so I'm fine with it. I need to get it fixed now because it's going to be a nice week.
Wax Free Vanilla
Member
To not get totally ripped off you need to buy from China:
http://www.cycling-monton.com
http://www.aliexpress.com/premium/c...us&initiative_id=SB_20150504073112&isrefine=y
jakonovski
Member
Just go to a big online retailer and hunt bargains. I got my posh Castelli bibs half price that way.
TarpitCarnivore
Member
Rest
All these years later I still chuckle at what a fucking moron that guy is.
Since I bought my bike about three years ago, it's had the original seat on it. Most of my rides had been about 15 miles, and the seat has been fine. The odd 20 mile ride would end with some soreness, but nothing too bothersome.
I just started riding with a new cycling partner though, and his goal is to get up to about 36 miles per ride. We just did 25 yesterday, and my coccyx was killing me the rest of the day, and is pretty sore still today.
So, I know that I do need a new seat, and probably some cycling shorts, but what should I look for in a seat? I know that too much padding can cause you to put too much weight down and lead to the same kind of soreness as insufficient padding, but how do I find the balance for my self? It's not like buying guitar strings or something, for $5 a pop until you find something you like, and I don't have tons of money in the first place to try different stuff out.
I just started riding with a new cycling partner though, and his goal is to get up to about 36 miles per ride. We just did 25 yesterday, and my coccyx was killing me the rest of the day, and is pretty sore still today.
So, I know that I do need a new seat, and probably some cycling shorts, but what should I look for in a seat? I know that too much padding can cause you to put too much weight down and lead to the same kind of soreness as insufficient padding, but how do I find the balance for my self? It's not like buying guitar strings or something, for $5 a pop until you find something you like, and I don't have tons of money in the first place to try different stuff out.
Darth Pinche
Member
Looks nice but I think the next one up is aa better bike. Beyond the better parts, it have a 142mm rear, which will be more upgradable, since all the better parts are going that way. I saw both bikes in person over the weekend and they looks great!
I like Rapha for the upper, but I have found Wiggle's DHB house brand to be great for bib shorts, arm warmers, overshoes, etc..
Wiggle is often running decent discounts on their stuff, so check them out.
A lot of LBS will have something that measures your sit bones, also most will often have test saddles for you to try. So I would try that route first.
jakonovski
Member
How weird that manufacturing two different rear triangles for the same basic frame is cheaper than a wider rear axle. But yeah, definitely a good catch, thanks!
I'm not sure you need to replace the seat if you have never tried using a short with padding on it, it makes a really big difference. and seats can be expensive
I really liked Ornot, but with shipping and taxes, it's just as expensive as the other high class brands
Psychotext
Member
Have returned from my bikepacking adventure. Completely wrecked my knee on day one which meant by the third day I could barely pedal. Did the last thirty miles pretty much pedalling with one leg and wanting to just stop and weep.
Feel totally, utterly broken now. Going to take a few days of doing nothing to recover.
Feel totally, utterly broken now. Going to take a few days of doing nothing to recover.
Oof! That's a damn shame after all that planning. High winds and rain too I guess?
Psychotext
Member
Yeah, weather was shit on the first couple of days. Luckily I ran into some guys who told me where there was a really nice bothy on day two.
Third day was amazing. Had my waterproofs off and attached to the bike within the first couple of hours. Am actually a little sunburned.
Third day was amazing. Had my waterproofs off and attached to the bike within the first couple of hours. Am actually a little sunburned.
Misread that as "ran into some guys who told me where there was a really nice brothel" the first time.
My mind is a sewer.
Psychotext
Member
Strava Links
https://www.strava.com/activities/298524886
https://www.strava.com/activities/298523768
https://www.strava.com/activities/298522412
Day 2 may look a bit pathetic, but trust me, it was hell. I had to push for a ridiculous amount as much of it was un-rideable.
Edit - Garmin still isn't exporting elevation data, so will take a while for Strava to do it. Surprised at how good some of my times were though, given I was carrying more than one bike worth of weight (total bike weight, 56lbs).
https://www.strava.com/activities/298524886
https://www.strava.com/activities/298523768
https://www.strava.com/activities/298522412
Day 2 may look a bit pathetic, but trust me, it was hell. I had to push for a ridiculous amount as much of it was un-rideable.
Edit - Garmin still isn't exporting elevation data, so will take a while for Strava to do it. Surprised at how good some of my times were though, given I was carrying more than one bike worth of weight (total bike weight, 56lbs).
I've been riding my bike a bit lately, trying to work up my endurance. I went on rides up to over 5 miles last week, hoping to get up to 7 or 8 by the end of this week. The problem is that my saddle is tremendously uncomfortable. I'm fat, so the normal pressure of the nose of the saddle + my weight = numbness and having to shift around the saddle the entire time I ride.
I'm thinking about a noseless saddle or something more comfortable. I'm not all that interested in riding fast, but I would like to be able to go on longer rides. I don't care if I look like a dork or whatever. I'd just prefer to not have a sore taint. Do any of you have any recommendations on more comfortable saddles?
I'm thinking about a noseless saddle or something more comfortable. I'm not all that interested in riding fast, but I would like to be able to go on longer rides. I don't care if I look like a dork or whatever. I'd just prefer to not have a sore taint. Do any of you have any recommendations on more comfortable saddles?
Psychotext
Member
Saddles are extremely individual. I suggest getting your sitbones measured (this may be more difficult if you're very overweight) and getting one that's intended for your size of ass bones.
In reality there may be little anyone can do for you until you've lost some weight to be honest. The general suggestion is to go for one with a cutout, not too padded (you sink into it, which puts pressure on your nerves) and make sure it's set flat (the temptation is to tilt it forward).
I ended up having to go with an extremely uncomfortable one to use on my turbo trainer as I got numbness really quickly. It's hard as a rock, but no more numbness. That tool me 7 or 8 saddles to find though.
On my outdoors bikes I don't have such an issue as I spend much more time out of the saddle.
Edit - Oh, and if you're sat on the nose of your saddle, your bike fit is fucked.
In reality there may be little anyone can do for you until you've lost some weight to be honest. The general suggestion is to go for one with a cutout, not too padded (you sink into it, which puts pressure on your nerves) and make sure it's set flat (the temptation is to tilt it forward).
I ended up having to go with an extremely uncomfortable one to use on my turbo trainer as I got numbness really quickly. It's hard as a rock, but no more numbness. That tool me 7 or 8 saddles to find though.
On my outdoors bikes I don't have such an issue as I spend much more time out of the saddle.
Edit - Oh, and if you're sat on the nose of your saddle, your bike fit is fucked.
Now that you mention it, they didn't actually fit me at the shop. The assembled my bike and just sent me on my way. I might just ride down there tonight and see if they can help me get it adjusted, because I've had a couple other issues that seem to be fit related...
GamePnoy74
Member
I second Wiggle's DNB brand, their bib shorts are very high quality at a fraction of similar quality shorts. The race-quality bib shorts their pro team uses are $70 and easily some of the best shorts I've had so far. It's hard for me to spend hard-earned cash on something of similar quality by Castelli or Rapha when Wiggle DNB's pro-style shorts are really good and are much much cheaper.
You can say Wiggle's DNB clothes are like the UK version of Performance Bike's house-branded clothes, but better quality and better deal overall.
The higher end model has slightly longer travel from the different rear triangle. The bigger issue with the lower end model is the rear shock. It can be hard to find the right size and tune some times when you want to upgrade. 142mm and 135mm rear axle spacing is the same it's just 142 is a thru-axle.
While I don't doubt you on the comfort of the shorts, the quality of them is vastly different from Castelli and others. For instance the panel design of the dhb Pro bibs is one of the cheapest to make. There is a lot that can go into these things that make a big difference in cost beyond just brand mark up. As you found out they don't always make a difference to the rider.
Psychotext
Member
I assume it woudn't go down the tube far enough and you were riding with it too high?
Why so much?? it dosen't fit inside the frame?
Darth Pinche
Member
6 inches? Makes me think you got the wrong sized frame.
Psychotext
Member
It's also possible that he just doesn't like riding at the correct height. I've met a lot of people that have their seat agonisingly low because they feel unstable / perched up when it's at their calculated correct height.
Comes with time though. Losing the efficiency of having my proper height infuriates me now, but I used to prefer dropping it a couple of inches.
Comes with time though. Losing the efficiency of having my proper height infuriates me now, but I used to prefer dropping it a couple of inches.
Darth Pinche
Member
Good point, I like a lot of extension and I get funny looks sometimes since most people ride with their posts very low at my local mountain bike park. I should get a dropper post, but the cost and my frame having an interrupted seat tube complicates things.
Yeah it was as low as it would go and I was overextending. I could barely mount it properly. I just assumed this was since I was out of practice, but no, it was way too high.
6 inches might be a bit more than what it was. I bought a medium frame, since I tried a small and it was way uncomfortable. A medium seems like it's maybe a tish big because my inseam is like 28", but with the seat at a proper height it feels like a whole new world.
GamePnoy74
Member
Psychotext
Member
Psh, he could be more aero than that.
I did my first ride of the season on Sunday with a new bike computer, a Garmin GPS unit. No idea how accurate it was but you can't argue with the ease of use and setup. Here's the steps:
1. Put it on your bike.
It definitely got the mileage right, but the average speed didn't make sense to me, as it shows you what appear to be chunks of average rather than "ride so far" and also seemed to include five minutes of complete stop. Which is weird. I bet there's a pause function.
I hope the calorie counter is right because it was a shitload of calories.
Also picked up some new shoes and cleats. Going to be a gorgeous weekend and I'll test out the computer some more.
1. Put it on your bike.
It definitely got the mileage right, but the average speed didn't make sense to me, as it shows you what appear to be chunks of average rather than "ride so far" and also seemed to include five minutes of complete stop. Which is weird. I bet there's a pause function.
I hope the calorie counter is right because it was a shitload of calories.
Also picked up some new shoes and cleats. Going to be a gorgeous weekend and I'll test out the computer some more.
The first time I used Strava and discovered that it had paused during stops, I thought that was weird.
Calorie counters that work just on position+timing data tend to be absolutely spot-on, within a ternary order of magnitude or so.
Definitely needs cycling sunglasses.Psh, he could be more aero than that.
Psychotext
Member
Yeah... the calorie data wont even be close tbh. It has no idea what your FTP is, your resting heart rate, your VO2Max etc. Not to mention what your bike weighs, what the terrain is like, how much gear you're carrying. Some of that you can program in, but still, without heart rate data it'll be useless anyway.
As for the average. On some models there's a setting that lets you decide what mph (or less) counts as stopped. You can also show average vs moving average.
Edit - On the subject of sunglasses, I lost another pair this weekend. That makes four in total in the last three years.
As for the average. On some models there's a setting that lets you decide what mph (or less) counts as stopped. You can also show average vs moving average.
Edit - On the subject of sunglasses, I lost another pair this weekend. That makes four in total in the last three years.
Christoff Yurievich
Member
My computer - a CatEye Velo 9 - is almost the most basic one you can buy. It pauses automatically as well, which I like because then I don't have to remember to turn it on. Also it looks like you're faster than you are when it says you do a ride in 3 hours but you know it was actually 3.5 total. It does calories as well but it'll tell me I burned 4k on a ride and a program online that has my particulars (weight, etc) will say I burned 6k. So I don't know who to trust. I just stick to eating 1200 calories or less a day and hoping that plus constant riding helps me.
I'm looking at getting a RFLKT but as I don't have a smart phone I'd be pairing it with my ipod touch. I can't find any reviews that says how well that'll work but the website says it's possible. I'm mostly thinking about it because of the TICKR pairing and I'm trying to get more HR conscious when I ride. I've lost 10 lbs in the past two months and while that's 10 more than I've lost in the previous three years of riding, I'd like to take off at least 15 more, if not 20.
I'm looking at getting a RFLKT but as I don't have a smart phone I'd be pairing it with my ipod touch. I can't find any reviews that says how well that'll work but the website says it's possible. I'm mostly thinking about it because of the TICKR pairing and I'm trying to get more HR conscious when I ride. I've lost 10 lbs in the past two months and while that's 10 more than I've lost in the previous three years of riding, I'd like to take off at least 15 more, if not 20.
(It'll make climbing easier, right?)
Psychotext
Member
Yeah, the weight drop makes a ridiculous difference. I know people who actually train with extra weight on their bike so that when they take it off for events they feel much faster.
But why cut it? Isn't your frame hollow? What happens if you want to increase the height again? Didn!t your bikeshop help you set up the riding position when you bought it? There's plenty of other adjustments you should do in addition to seat height
Psychotext
Member
If it's a full suspension then the chances are it only has a couple of inches of insertion depth. Some hardtail 29ers have really odd seat tubes too.
TarpitCarnivore
Member
Calorie counters are almost too generous. There are far too many variables to count for to get something accurate.
Yes, the Garmin (and strava) calculate moving time. They'll show total time, but any data is related to your actual moving time.
The average speed will fluctuate throughout the entire ride so best to not look at it during your ride.
Gray Matter
Member
Just got in from a 12.5 mile ride, mostly flat. Fun ride, tomorrow back at it again with the crew at the bike shop.
Ah, see, the seat was as low as it would go in the frame, and it was still too high.
TarpitCarnivore
Member
I've been sick since my ride on Saturday. Just head cold and congested to the point of low energy. Finally starting to come down though so hopefully I can get out this weekend.
Psychotext
Member
Third day off, still can't walk properly. =/
Christoff Yurievich
Member
I was looking for a picture of a 29er for something and happened upon this:
It almost looks to me like that fork is on backwards.
It almost looks to me like that fork is on backwards.
Psychotext
Member
I was looking for a picture of a 29er for something and happened upon this:
It almost looks to me like that fork is on backwards.
Mine has that. No idea why, but it makes the bike look a little different.
Gray Matter
Member
I'm afraid the weekly ride at the bike shop might be too easy for me. Last week we did roughly 13 miles, it was slow but I didn't mind because it was the first ride of the season. Today, however, we did just a bit above 10 miles, super slow pace. Everytime I started to pick up some speed I had to slow down because I would either pass the ride leader or get too close to another rider, fastest I went was 18-20, and that was going down a small hill. Now, I'm just a beginner, but I can definitely go a little faster and a lot longer than 10 miles.
/rant.
/rant.
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