I haven't taken it off road to test it out but it feels good on the road with a 38mm Continental Contact pumped up to 85psi. They look pretty good being so wide.
further adventures of my handlebar tuning on my new hybrid... having drop the stem 3 10mm spacers from its original position, AND flipping the stem over so its horizontal instead of 45 degrees up, I then swapped on the almost-straight bar from my last hybrid (about the only part that didn't get mangled in the car wreck), and whoa, had to raise it back up 1cm.... so 2cm spacers below and 2 cm spacers above, for now. I'm gonna ride it like this for awhile before i shorten the tube. felt good doing laps around the driveway, and by tape measure, the grips are exactly the same height off the ground as the seat, which, IMHO, is perfect. this almost straight bar also has less angle backwards than the original riser bar, and that suits my build better (I ride the adjustable grips on my R1100RS at their wider/straighter setting, too). oh, and the 25.0 to 27.2mm seatpost shim arrived, so I could install the Moxey Suspension Seatpost on my wife's stepthrough. what a cool seat post. its firmer than I expected, you can hardly tell you're on a shock while riding on pavement, til you hit a bump or drop (potholes in the case of my test), and then it very subtly absorbs it without any drama. bloody shame Thudbuster/Cane Creek sued them out of existence, its a great design, very well engineered.
During the Giro this year they did a little review on the speedsuit. I thought it was a pretty neat idea . I saw the price ($350) and forgot about it. While perusing chainlove.com I come across the suit at 51% off ($169) . That's easier to swallow as I have paid more for bibs and jersey in the past. I jumped and now have half a dozen rides with it. It is certainly warm weather kit , perfect for floriduh. Extremely comfortable . I like the fact that if I need to travel by vehicle to pedal shorts/jersey are packed easily. Sizing is a little funky. I am 5'10" and 165lbs and normally wear mediums for most brands. I saw a review from someone my size who went with an XL so I did the same. The suit is designed for someone with a cyclists build (thin upper body). The jersey is tight but not so much as to be a bother or irritant while pedaling. As many reviews I read stated - once pedaling you forget you're wearing anything.
The FTB in full-on poseur mode. My ride started last nite with C saying 'we're going moderate....' That's what I need! That lasted till The Plains. Then the speed went up. I sat on and had a great tow till we hit the 'S bend road.' C got on the front and turned the screw. I went around him and turned it even more and ended up pulling most of the way up the road. I got to the point where my legs were on fire, backed off just a hair, then kept it up as long as I could. C finally came by again right before the crest of the rise. I briefly gave up 'cause my legs were burning and didn't want to turn the pedals any more. That lasted about 10m then I rode back up to him telling the legs to 'shut up and pedal!' Turned the corner and waited for em to catch back up then ramped it back up on another little rise. Pulled off the front for a bit to catch my breath again. Rode like that for a bit, people rotating thru the line smoothly. Then we turned right on Rt 55 and right again onto another road that takes us around and dumps us back off on Rt 55. Got to the top of the second hill and lit 'er up again. I knew that 'the sprint' was coming up so I wanted to get into a spot in the line (of 4 of us!) where I wasn't on the front coming into the sprint but yet looked like I was working. It almost worked too! ...but I'd burned so many matches that when C came around and started sprinting I got in a few hard pedal strokes and my legs waved the white flag. So the last hill of the ride... I was sitting 3rd wheel. 1st guy pulls for a bit. 2nd guy pulls for a bit and as the road ramps up, he keeps slowing down. Too slow for me (...and that's saying something from a dedicated non-climber!) and I went around him and 'led out' for the last km or so to the top of the hill. I was fully expecting someone to come around me. That didn't happen till my legs completely shut down 50m from the top of the last rise. Somehow I managed to stay away on the downhill run to Antioch Rd. I was sorta-kinda trying to stay away and sorta-kinda waiting for em at this point. I went around the corner on Antioch with a gap and decided to see how long I could hold off C. I had no doubt he was going to catch me, I just wanted to see how long it would take. Not as long as I thought. C is 6'4"-6'5" and STRONG. The guy pulls like a freight train. I was hoping to hold em off till Silver Lake Park, but they caught me a few km from there. Oh well. I let the two of em rotate thru till I caught my breath again then worked in. C ended up pulling from before the Boy Scout camp to just about the sprint line. He started the sprint... I jumped in the biggest gear I had (46x12) and I managed to come around him and 'take the win.' I strongly suspect if he hadn't been pulling, it woulda been lots closer. Did I mention C is strong?! The sprint line is up and over the top of a freeway overpass. Its a hill, but not a particularly big or steep one. Still hurts like a mofo at full trot. Now its a few days of easy riding and/or playing UW Hockey till Sunday's race out in Winchester, VA (Applecross) M
funny you ask. Yes, on my usual rides I am averaging .5 - 1 mph faster. Is it the suit ? Maybe I just feel the need to pedal harder because of it . ?
P35's build up a great wheel. I run about 200lb and they work great for me for everything from enduro type riding to dirt jumping. I have 29" on my stumpy and 26" on my DJ.
As others mentioned, I'd go with the standard P35. The extra width will make for a more laterally stiff rim. It'll, also, add more air volume, which results in a better ride. And, you'll end up with a wider footprint. Lastly, the standard, 3X and brass nipples are plenty adequate. Generally, the higher the build (less weight), the less durable and lower the weight capacity.
Last Saturday I rode with a racer dude I'd previously only 'met' on line. He holds many of the KOM's at local trails, and has done some grueling races that I wouldn't even think of attempting. When we met in person for the first time, I was shocked to see how fat he was! I don't mean to suggest that he's morbidly obese, but he could easily lose 50 lbs. :eek1 I can't understand how he could ride so fast and have so much endurance, given all that extra weight he's carrying around. Wouldn't that be an enormous liability for a bicycle racer?
I forgot to add. A buddy of mine runs P35's to build some very competitive XC hardtails. He is also around 200 and is very strong. Very versatile rim.
Only going uphill The rest is power vs aerodynamics. The guy I rode with last nite (C) is a big guy. He's NOT fat tho. The minute the road goes up, he (and I) are OTB as the skinny SOBs climb away from us M
Considering only the physics of bicycling, that's true. But I'm thinking of the added strain on his pulmonary system in supplying oxygen and nutrients to all those fat cells. It's not the same as wearing a backpack filled with 50 lbs of rocks. That would be bad enough, but being fat means that his body is expending a lot more energy than mine just keeping those fat cells alive. :huh
I am kind of in the same boat. I ride clipless on road, have for years. I never really liked clipless off-road..... About 2 months ago I thought I should give it a try again. Voile! I like it. Maybe it's the new pedals (I am running Time ATAC instead of Shimano 858s), I don't know, I am sold. I still ride platforms on my DJ........ and trials.
Endurance and body fat ratio are not directly proportional. Look at Sumo wrestlers and long distance ocean swimmers....both typically have body's that would look to be fat to most people, but both also have great endurance. Fat is not really using that much oxygen at all..only enough to exist. Fat is a secondary fuel source for the body. Its the muscles that use the oxygen in doing their job..and obviously carb storages(glycogen in muscles). Fat is also lighter than muscle or bone..so the "extra" weight he is carry is deceiving as far as its actual weight. Food for thought.
There are two instructors I know who swear by flats, but their ultra-aggressive style of riding doesn't really lend itself to clipless anyway. They do things like dragging a foot while cornering and change foot position a lot when riding, which clipless pedals aren't designed for. I find that I have to concentrate on my pedaling technique a lot more when riding clipless off road, but the 20% power increase is well worth the effort. And of course I no longer have to worry about my feet slipping off the pedals when the bike is bouncing around under me, or when shifting gears aggressively.
