Sunday, July 31, 2011
Singlespeed cyclocross
True story; a couple years back after I had registered, ridden the course and was milling around I met a man. This gentleman was obviously in a spot of trouble, he looked at me and asked if I knew if any mechanics at the venue. I looked around and noticed one my friends who also a mechanic, I directed the question in his direction ‘do you know any mechanics?’. He just smiled and said ‘no, not today’, although both of of us knew the correct answer would have been in the affirmative. I can appreciate the sentiment and hey, it was race day and we both had better things to do than adjust a derailleur that morning. That’s when I knew I had made the correct decision to rock the singlespeed.
I could say there are better ways to race, but for me there are not. Singlespeed is lighter, less hassle and since carrying your bike is mandatory, just as competitive. My first CX race was on a mountain bike(it sucked) the second was a geared(better), but for my money singlespeed is the way to go. After a pre-ride the course course conditions will determine the proper chainring/cog set up. The rule for off-road singlespeed riding has been 2 to 1, for a lighter bike used in CX I start with 38/16. I’m not saying this can’t be fine tuned, but how many people carry along a full set of chainrings and cogs? I just might consider it, if I was doing this for anything other than extreme recreational riding. What about a set of 3 chain rings and 3 cogs, plus a chain tool, allen wrench and maybe an extra chain? I will admit it could be tough under some conditions to pre-ride, breakdown, reset the ratio and pre-ride again. But how bad do you want to win? I’m thinking of testing out a derailleur/chain tensioner set up that will allow me to flip/flop a rear tire with two singlespeed cogs of differing sizes.
Why does singlespeed make sense? Considering the mud/slush and general bad conditions of most venues and the weather in northern climes during CX season it’s a no-brainer to me. Add into that the fact that dismounts and re-mounts may cause your chain to shift out gear and I’m sold. The weight saved in eliminating a chainring, multi-speed freewheel/cassette and derailleurs is significant. Anyone who has ever had a derailleur caked with frozen mud can appreciate the fact that the elimination of one could be a positive benefit. More than once while winter riding I have been forced into riding with a de-facto singlespeed on my geared bike, ice clogged cables are an interesting problem.
So, as you fine tune your rig(or rigs) for the upcoming season consider what needs replacing and what can be eliminated altogether. I’m spending an inordinate amount of time fine tuning my set-up in the garage this summer, with the hot weather. When the winds of fall start blowing I’ll be more than happy to start the season free and clear of unnecessary parts. Good luck and may all your barrier jumping be free of stutter steps.
Friday, July 22, 2011
planning the comeback
but then the family pushes back..... and for good reason. cycling is a costly sport, even competing in 4 races a season. there are the minimum of three bikes, cause ya'll know it's never enough. i work a road bike, mtb and a singlespeed cyclocross bike. all are steel and cobbled together from old stuff that i find around the bike shops and swap meets. the other part is the danger, when my wife saw this years TdF she was even more hesistant.
with danger there comes liability and responsibility. i carry my own insurance and monitor my extreme riding. unfortunately i don't always wear a helmet. most of the riding i do is commuting, you know junk miles. it's not dangerous to ride, as dangerous as being a pedestrian. when i ride off-road or ride on my road bike long distances i wear a helmet.
i'm done.
Sunday, July 17, 2011
so i'm not unique
this just in from cycling news
Thursday, July 14, 2011
a brief history....
i have an idea how i got the way i am today, there was foreshadowing in my profile. i started riding a bicycle seriously in highschool, taking my brand new motobecane 12 speed off on long solo rides. the first indication my family may have had was the phone call from a pay phone 10 miles outside of town that i needed a ride after i blew up my rear derailleur on a quick shift. it was a long quiet drive home that day, my dad didn't under stand the whole spandex thing. then there was my dad catching me drinking a beer and smoking a cigarette after i finished a transition work-out at 10 pm, i ran a 10 k and then biked thirty miles, i needed the break. the perplexed looks continued until i moved out of the house.
i won't bore you with details, but instead give you the highlights.
- '90 bought my first mountain bike
- '93 mountain bike racing
- compete in first CX race in wirth park
- winters of '01 and '02 work as messenger in chicago
- 2007 begin comeback with 3 CX races in Mpls
- 2011 bust face preparing for 2011 CX season
Monday, July 11, 2011
so i've been at this a while
- 1975 lay out my stingray in the gravel 12 stitches in my left knee
- 1985 over the handlebars onto the pavement, unconcious, 5 hours of plastic surgery on forehead, eyehole , 2 days in the hospital
- 2011, singlespeed ride in the park....you know the rest by now
rest day update on TdF 2011
Where and why 18 riders abandoned the Tour de France
Stage 9:
DNF Wout Poels (Ned) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team - illness
DNF Pavel Brutt (Rus) Katusha Team
DNF Alexandre Vinokourov (Kaz) Pro Team Astana - crash, broken head of the femur
DNF David Zabriskie (USA) Team Garmin-Cervelo - crash, broken wrist
DNF Frederik Willems (Bel) Omega Pharma-Lotto - crash, broken collarbone
DNF Jurgen Van Den Broeck (Bel) Omega Pharma-Lotto - crash, collapsed lung, three broken ribs and broken shoulder blade
DNF Amets Txurruka (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi - crash, broken collarbone
DNS Juan Manuel Garate (Spa) Rabobank Cycling Team - crash on stage 5, arm and hip injuries
Stage 8:
DNF Beñat Intxausti Elorriaga (Spa) Movistar Team - crash on stage 1, broken radius bone (elbow)
DNS Christopher Horner (USA) Team RadioShack - crash on stage 7, head trauma, broken nose
Stage 7:
DNF Bradley Wiggins (GBr) Sky Procycling - crash, broken collarbone
DNF Tom Boonen (Bel) Quickstep Cycling Team - crash on stage 5, injured shoulder
DNF Rémi Pauriol (Fra) FDJ - crash, broken collarbone
Stage 6:
HD Vasili Kiryienka (Blr) Movistar Team
DNS Iván Velasco Murillo (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi - crash, broken collarbone
Stage 5:
DNF Janez Brajkovic (Slo) Team RadioShack - crash, broken collarbone
DNS Christophe Kern (Fra) Team Europcar - knee tendonitis
Stage 4:
DNF Jurgen Van De Walle (Bel) Omega Pharma-Lotto - crash on stage 1, shoulder injury
Sunday, July 10, 2011
video from stage 9 Of TdF
http://ewoud.home.xs4all.nl/cycling/20110710_tourdefrance_carcrash.html
Friday, July 8, 2011
tour de france stage 7
thanks bicycling for one piece
and the there's this from cycling news
....in which we discuss options for liquid nutrition
i lost 15 pounds the first 10 days of my incarceration,...i mean recovery. i wasn't riding, i was on antibiotics and i was in massive pain. the two days i spent in the hospital were pretty much a , the morphine haze. the first 12 hours they were just working to get the swelling down so i could have surgery the next day. i'm nearing my ideal 'fighting weight' 0f 185, for biking i should probably still drop another ten pounds.
so the second i got out the hospital , after i posted gruesome photos on facebook, i went searching nutrition advice. i wasn't happy with sound nutrition advice i rec'd from the hospital's registered dietician. she suggested those nutritional shakes(ensure, boost or generic) or carnation instant breakfast, both of which are sickly sweet and chalky. the odwalla or naked bottled fruit smoothies and protien shakes are better tasting but roll in at $4 a pop. i'm not really adverse to sugar, but you do realize it's not a food group right? there are a few other things i'm still checking out. i could get the blender fired up and start making my own, it is summer and there is plenty of fruit available. next installment we speak of the juicer, it worked for jack lalane
gotta start somewhere
i've been thinking about this for a while. but i think i know what aided my demise. several weeks after my accident i re-built the bike, i noticed a loose stem. a loose stem that would cause problems. i tightened it but noticed that it wasn't any more solid. i purchased a new stem, it's solid now
[my apologies if somebody recognizes the following excerpt from a personal msg i sent them last week, once i get the account how i like it i kinda tell the same story.]
i busted my jaw, last friday fucking around at lake harriet after midnight. so i got all layed out and then to make it awesome i rode home cleaned up and went to bed. next morning my wife drove me to southdale and i had 4 hours surgery sunday am. i'm fine i went out biking today and yesterday. but i kinda busted my face.
if you want the details( i'm thinking you do) here goes. jaw wired for 5 more weeks, crushed orbit and zygomatic arch(?). the only part that is really freaking me out is the blackness from not brushing my teeth for 6 weeks. i'm thinking CX season i'm gonna kill it hard. if you think 2007 and the back surgery jazzed me then 2011 and a walk with grim reaper at lake harriet is gonna make me even more motivated. 45 minutes racing ain't shit after almost dieing.
yes, that's the real deal. i fucked up and i almost died
no, i didn't call 911 i just got back on my bike and rode to richfield. i have no idea if i passed out or not, it wouldn't surprise me if i did. what's freaky is that i had a weird voice in my head, saying, 'yeah, your gonna want to stay down for while there' and that made me get up and straighten the bar run a quick check on the bike and jump up and get home. never listen to voices, they're usually wrong.