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Got in 12 miles last night after work. Felt pretty damn good. So, with the ride yesterday, I've officially doubled my total miles for the year just this week.

72 total miles in by June 1 Ah well, I'm getting out now, better late than never.

Got in 15 miles yesterday at lunch yesterday, with 16 Strava trophies! Hoping to get a couple more rides in before next week - that would put me over 300 miles on the year, and 760 miles since I bought the bike. Not bad for a noob!

Not sure how many of you guys are into cyclocross, but I wanted to give props to my new tires, made by Clement. They name their models after airport designations where popular cycloX races are held. These are LAS, aka Las Vegas and they are designed for hardpack and gravel, which is in line with most of my terrain, tarmac and hardpack/occasional gravel, so I picked up the pair for less than $50 on eBay. Also got some slime tubes to reduce the number of flats I've been encountering. They ride real nice!

Those look pretty badass!

Cyclocross is...man, its awesome and insane. Good for you for getting into it!

Beautiful day here. I didn't realize I had the wind at my back on the way out until I turned around. The readout on strava was great though. I'm absolutely gassed.

I hope everyone's having a good weekend, even you poor bastards in Phoenix.

TDC this weekend was...er...not like last year.

Storms forced them to cancel the city route, so we did the rides on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Kinda cool. The first half of it was pretty nasty rain. Still had fun though...and um... this happened...

Awesome?

Laps on a bike in the brickyard? Arend, you are killing it.

Sasquatch wrote:Awesome?

Laps on a bike in the brickyard? Arend, you are killing it.

haha yup. Did it last year too. Lots of left turns.


Pic of me getting out of the saddle and charging a little:

I wish there was a Velodrome nearby. They look like so much fun. And pain.

I need a new seat for my road bike. What are you all riding?

I'm thinking about grabbing a old Selle Italia Flite Gel.

[video]https://youtu.be/Ri26peCx88E[/video]

That looks awesome Loop!

TurboPablo wrote:I wish there was a Velodrome nearby. They look like so much fun. And pain.

I need a new seat for my road bike. What are you all riding?

I'm thinking about grabbing a old Selle Italia Flite Gel.

I'm still rocking my 1995 or whatever Selle Italia Flite Ti.

I've got a Fizik Arione R5. It works. My ass hurts after many km, but I think it always will, regardless of saddle. It's miles, not the saddle that tends to make the difference to me.

Road: Selle Royale Sobo now. My favorite so far. This is my 3rd saddle on the Synapse, in my second full season on this bike lol.

Mountain: Specialized Henge Comp. Love this one too. I'm about to gut my Trance FS and go to a full carbon hardtail, and this saddle and my issi pedals are coming with me.

Commuter: Bontrager Montrose. It came off my MTB when I got the Henge. I like it fine.

I've been using the Fizik Aliante VSX. Its way better than the stock Trek/Bontrager seat, but I think I can still do better.

Luckily I almost never ride more than 20 miles at a time, lol.

I ride the stock saddle on my 2015 Roubaix, but if need be, I have a Fizik that I can swap in. Don't know the model off hand - it was a gift.

I also rode mountain the other day. I felt much stronger than Memorial Day, but I definitely need better cardio.

I live a few miles away from the Manchester Velodrome, which was used in the 2012 Olympics. I've not ridden around the track but there are other cycling facilities in the area such as a mountain bike skills area and XC course which I have had a blast around.

I bought my lady a cheap used bike last night. It is a curious hack of different components; the frame is some years old diamondback MTB frame and for some reason it has new Easton EA50 riser bars on it and an LX/Deore groupset that doesn't look like it's seen much action. It has full guards and a rack fitted so it will be a nice little commuter/day trip bike once I get the kinks ironed out of the drive train as it has sat unused for a while and the cable tension is out. I'll also need to cut the bars down as a 27" bar isn't all that useful for city riding I don't think the guy knew the quality of some of the components on it otherwise I'm sure he would have been asking for more money.

madryan wrote:

Yeah... I'm just gonna chance it... My chances of dying in an accident due to being on blood thinners is really pretty thin, but my chances of dying from my relatively sedentary job in 10 years are much higher if I don't get back into real physical activity and I just can't get back into running.

There's a 2015 Roubaix that my buddy can snag me that's mostly Ultegra for $2000. I might look into it if I can't get the fit to work out on the Tarmac.

Whats the backstory here?


awesome bike

Zozobra wrote:I live a few miles away from the Manchester Velodrome, which was used in the 2012 Olympics. I've not ridden around the track but there are other cycling facilities in the area such as a mountain bike skills area and XC course which I have had a blast around.

I bought my lady a cheap used bike last night. It is a curious hack of different components; the frame is some years old diamondback MTB frame and for some reason it has new Easton EA50 riser bars on it and an LX/Deore groupset that doesn't look like it's seen much action. It has full guards and a rack fitted so it will be a nice little commuter/day trip bike once I get the kinks ironed out of the drive train as it has sat unused for a while and the cable tension is out. I'll also need to cut the bars down as a 27" bar isn't all that useful for city riding I don't think the guy knew the quality of some of the components on it otherwise I'm sure he would have been asking for more money.

Man, that sounds like a sweet commuter ride really.

I always wanted to roll on a velodrome when I was younger and my strength/weight ratio was much much higher. Now....well, track cycling is cool and I'd like to do it once, but that would be enough for me.

Yeah it's a nice little ride for sure. I nearly rode it in to work this morning as a test ride It does have the brakes set up in the European style with the front brake on the left lever which is a little odd after 30+ years of riding bikes using the UK set up where regulations stipulate that the front brake must be on the right level at point of sale. I guess you folks in the US use left/front right/rear arrangement? The cable runs do look neater that way, especially with v-brakes because of the cable feed noodle.

Transamerica Race is happening. Here's the tracker. These people are nuts.

http://transambikerace.com/2016-live-tracker/

24 mile loop yesterday in 1:32. Very hilly and while climbing a hill, a voice right next to my head said "ya gotta pedal through it" and I turned my head and a mid-70s year old man was 1 foot from my face. He proceeded to blow by me like I was sitting still. I am 208 lbs and he looked about 135 or so. down right at 16 lbs over the past 16 days. Feel good.

Non cycling but my Altra paradigms come in today.

Sasquatch - being a big dude in cycling is not optimal! I'm sitting around 235lbs at the moment, and my riding partner is maybe 120 soaking wet. He kills me on climbs, but cant keep up when we hit that descent - so at least our weight comes in handy at SOME point in the ride!

I normally just go out for lunch rides around the office, occasionally do some touring with the wife, but typically keep it under 25 miles. Went out for my longest ride to date yesterday, 45 miles, 2800 vertical feet, finished in just under 3 hours. Did a 15 mile recovery ride today and felt fantastic. Also just logged my 1000th mile on my bike that I bought last August. It's been a good first year, and I can feel myself improving, but I had to reset my goals.

My new short term goal is to ride in one of the local club rides at least once a month, and my long term goal is to get a century in before the end of the year.

rear naked wrote:

madryan wrote:

Yeah... I'm just gonna chance it... My chances of dying in an accident due to being on blood thinners is really pretty thin, but my chances of dying from my relatively sedentary job in 10 years are much higher if I don't get back into real physical activity and I just can't get back into running.

There's a 2015 Roubaix that my buddy can snag me that's mostly Ultegra for $2000. I might look into it if I can't get the fit to work out on the Tarmac.

Whats the backstory here?


awesome bike

I have a prosthetic Aorta / Valve. Had a Dissection that temporarily killed me a couple of years ago.

I love the Roubaix BTW... Epic nice bike for the money. Just last weekend went for a couple of rides on it.

I have the 7-Eleven throwback kit (most of it - I need the gloves and socks) and I only ride it on this day, or as close to it as I can get. It looks great, even with the battle scars on the right shoulder.

With my new job starting next week, I took a full week between jobs - the first time I've done this since leaving college - and had to get out on the road today. I picked up some sunburn on the arms, and struggled a bit going up the hills - it was a hill ride today - but I am glad I did it.

itchyfingers wrote:Sasquatch - being a big dude in cycling is not optimal! I'm sitting around 235lbs at the moment, and my riding partner is maybe 120 soaking wet. He kills me on climbs, but cant keep up when we hit that descent - so at least our weight comes in handy at SOME point in the ride!

I normally just go out for lunch rides around the office, occasionally do some touring with the wife, but typically keep it under 25 miles. Went out for my longest ride to date yesterday, 45 miles, 2800 vertical feet, finished in just under 3 hours. Did a 15 mile recovery ride today and felt fantastic. Also just logged my 1000th mile on my bike that I bought last August. It's been a good first year, and I can feel myself improving, but I had to reset my goals.

My new short term goal is to ride in one of the local club rides at least once a month, and my long term goal is to get a century in before the end of the year.

Awesome climb.

I need to get into one of the clubs here too.

Here is my update, regarding my cycling:

1. Saint Paul is a cycling city. I am from Madison, which is also a cycling city, so I'm spoiled, with regards to my move.

2. As a consequence of moving into the city, I have to buy a bike lock. I went full throttle, and bought the Kryptonite New York Noose. I had to refund one, to get a new one, yesterday, but the replacement arrives Wednesday.

3. I had to buy a new pump. Again, in keeping with my beliefs in buying the right products the first time, I went with a Bontrager HP. It's much, much larger than I expected. It should be just the ticket.

4. New city, new rules. I need a local shop, a good wrencher, and a club. All in due course, I suppose.