Bike Fittings: Are They Worth It?

I’m the editor for Chainstay, the newsletter of the Peninsula Bicycling Association. While looking for a feature tech article for the May edition, I read THIS ARTICLE about the value of bicycle fittings. A riding buddy, named Jen, got a professional fitting. She couldn’t praise it enough due to the fact that all of her saddle issues were resolved after local bike shop (LBS) salespeople said she needed to “get used to her new position.” Knowing my time in the saddle during my first attempt at a Super Randonneuring series would far exceed anything I had ever done before, I decided to see if a session with her fitter would help me as well. Continue reading “Bike Fittings: Are They Worth It?” →

May 7, 2013 0

Tour de Cure Century (103 miles)

On April 20th, I rode in the Tour de Cure (TdC), a charity ride which benefits the American Diabetes Association. I rode the TdC for the first time last year and enjoyed the route, support and post-ride activities. One of my riding partners was so pleased with TdC over the past two years that she recruited a team from the ranks of our local fundraising team, Team Killer Bees, who had primarily supported Bike MS over the years. Team Killer Bees fielded 16 riders and raised nearly $5600. Three of us rode the English Century, 12 rode the Metric Century and one rode the 30 mile option. Continue reading “Tour de Cure Century (103 miles)” →

April 22, 2013 2

ACP Suffolk to Skippers 200 km (130 miles)

Our small, informal group of randonneurs, “Tidewater Rando,” had the privilege of hosting the inaugural Suffolk to Skippers 200km brevet on April 13th. Organizer Keith Sutton put on a great ride and route. If you’ve read about my equipment changes, then you know I’ve been anxious to see if my overall finishing time was going to improve on this ride, particularly with the use of “faster” tires. My 200km finishes so far in 2013 were done on new rain tires. My times for these rides were 12:38, 12:45 and 11:34. There were some bonus miles on the first two rides. But they still would have been 12+ hour efforts. The tire article I presented last month said a “fast tire” rolls up to 20% faster than a “slow tire.” That could knock a 12:30 ride down to 10-hours. Put differently, that had the potential to improve my average rolling speed from 13-mph to 16-mph. My local rides had improved by an estimated 20%. So I really had to know. I’m analytical that way! 🙂 I figured I’d be pleased to finish in less than 10 hours and be tickled if I finished in less than nine. Continue reading “ACP Suffolk to Skippers 200 km (130 miles)” →

April 18, 2013 0

New Gearing – Part Product Review, Part Ride Report

I don’t think I’ve ever been a good climber. When I weighed 150-lbs, I rode a six-speed crit bike with a 42x21T as its lowest gear and 99% of my riding in flat terrain. Now that I’m well over 200-lbs and carrying more stuff, I really appreciate the lower gears afforded by 10-speed compact gearing. However, the 34x28T setup which came with my bike (and most other new road bikes today) didn’t quite cut it during the Wilderness Campaign. My rolling load was 260-lbs! I didn’t have to walk the bike on any climbs. But my knees ached as I slowly ground my way up two 10% inclines and many other climbs at 5-mph and low RPM! I imagine my upcoming 400-km ride from Warrenton could be worse. Even if the hills aren’t steeper, I know there will be more of them and the route is twice as long. Continue reading “New Gearing – Part Product Review, Part Ride Report” →

April 8, 2013 5

New Drivetrain and Tires – WOW!

If you read my entry about the Wilderness Campaign, then you know I had some noise issues which got pretty bad during the ride. During my clean-up and replacing of the chain (my first suspect), I noticed excessive play in the guide jockey. So I replaced both jockey wheels. The cassette had ~3500 miles on it. I’m not exactly sure since it had been swapped in and out over the course of 5000 miles. Regardless, I had been riding on it with a worn out chain and opted to replace it. As I continued to clean, I noticed a few gashes and bubbles in the sidewalls of my relatively new Bontrager Race All-Weather Hard-Case tires (less than 1000 miles). The tires seemed sort of slow anyway; plus, I never really felt I needed rain tires in the past. Additionally, I read this article and the following discussions about how higher thread-count tires are more supple and roll faster, up to 20% faster… TWENTY PERCENT. As a result, I left a tire with 60 threads per inch (tpi) and switched to a tire with 330-tpi, a set of Continental Grand Prix 4-Season tires in 700×28. Continue reading “New Drivetrain and Tires – WOW!” →

March 15, 2013 4

ACP Wilderness Campaign 200 km (129 miles)

I finally participated in my first ACP event after being a member of RUSA since October! The ride began at Caribou Coffee in Bristow, VA, about three hours from my home. That’s a little too far to manage without spending a night. Therefore, I opted to spend Friday night near Bristow so I could get a good night’s sleep and arrive at Caribou Coffee nice and early. Of course, that was easier said than done! Continue reading “ACP Wilderness Campaign 200 km (129 miles)” →

March 11, 2013 4

Windsor-Woodland Permanent (Reverse, 126-mi)

I had been looking forward to riding in my first ACP event, the Tappahannock 200k, from Ashland, VA on February 16th. It was rescheduled to the 23rd due to snow and ice. The 23rd was still cold and rainy. No snow, though. The advice I received regarding how to dress for a cold, rainy event left me a bit apprehensive. My winter wardrobe is limited, especially for my legs. I didn’t want to find myself 100 miles from home, hypothermic, unable to complete the ride and in need of distant rescue from home. Luckily, the local rando group opted to ride a 200k permanent the day after the Tappahannock 200k. It was forecast to be much warmer with no rain after 10am. I opted to make this ride instead of the ACP event. I’ll have other chances to ride an ACP 200k. To clarify for my non-rando friends, I must complete ACP-sanctioned events of 200km, 300km, 400km and 600km in order to complete the Super Randonneuring series. Permanents do not count. Continue reading “Windsor-Woodland Permanent (Reverse, 126-mi)” →

February 25, 2013 5

Product Review: Busch & Müller Ixon IQ LED Headlight

I hadn’t planned to post entries other than rides greater than 100-km as I chip away at various randonneur achievements. Then I remembered that part of my goal with this blog is to share my journey into randonneuring. Part of my journey includes the discovery of new ideas, skills and equipment. My first product review is of B&M’s Ixon IQ headlight. Continue reading “Product Review: Busch & Müller Ixon IQ LED Headlight” →

February 14, 2013 12

Suffolk-Gatesville Populaire (67 miles)

Sunday’s weather was too good to pass up for a January ride. I wore tights, a Smartwool base layer, a jersey, a windbreaker with removable sleeves, a lightweight balaclava, and medium-weight gloves. Seven riders showed up, including three recumbents: Keith, Kim, Cory, Ron, Jacob, RecumBrent, and me. We met at a Hardee’s in downtown Suffolk, signed the paperwork and got on the road fairly smoothly. The first mile or two was a bit convoluted and took us through some crowded neighborhoods and even through a tiny grassy area where the streets don’t connect. The road and scenery opened up quickly and then we were going at a steady pace. Continue reading “Suffolk-Gatesville Populaire (67 miles)” →

January 21, 2013 0

Inaugural Windsor-Woodland Permanent (126-mi)

I never imagined a time when I’d complete my year’s first century in JANUARY. Forecasters were abuzz about the wonderful weekend ahead with temperatures in the 70s and almost no chance of rain. What cyclist can resist riding on such a weekend?! I rode 42 miles with Chuckatuck Chainring to loosen up on Saturday. It was foggy and damp, but expected to warm to 67. Then the fog got heavier and the roads got wetter. We didn’t see the sun or dry roads. The observed high was only 55 degrees. “Curse you, Weatherman!” Sunday’s inaugural Windsor-Woodland 203km permanent was forecast with a high of 70 degrees and almost no chance of rain. I cleaned up my bike, lubed the chain and washed my gear. You know the drill! 😉 Continue reading “Inaugural Windsor-Woodland Permanent (126-mi)” →

January 15, 2013 10