Bicycle thread

[k7]

Originally Posted by ErrinV

Yep! We did it Gerry! I say we because there is no way, NO WAY, I could've done this alone. In the end every single vote counted and I really appreciate everyone that took the time to vote. There was only a difference of 5 votes! That's insane!

I may not be riding the moto much but the spirt of ADVrider is strong in me. Between brevets, riding the Great Divide and soon to be Alaska, the feeling I get on the bike is the same I get riding with you guys. Thanks for everything.

Errin

Outstanding my friend! That's just great news for you. I hope you enjoy your rides and....tailwinds to you!

[k7]

Originally Posted by Ridge

I liked this quote I came across today.

Quote:
"To be a cyclist is to be a student of pain....at cycling's core lies pain, hard and bitter as the pit inside a juicy peach. It doesn't matter if you're sprinting for an Olympic medal, a town sign, a trailhead, or the rest stop with the homemade brownies. If you never confront pain, you're missing the essence of the sport. Without pain, there's no adversity. Without adversity, no challenge. Without challenge, no improvement. No improvement, no sense of accomplishment and no deep-down joy. Might as well be playing Tiddly-Winks." -- Scott Martin

On my last event, there were so many times I wanted to quit. The first day was trying to say the least and the second day wasn't a whole lot more enjoyable.

The third day, something changed. I walked outside to meet my buddies and despite 4.5 hours in the previous 28 or so hours, I was pumped. I literally yelled at my buddy, "You ready to get this done?" When he responded, "I guess so", I knew he was done and wouldn't finish the day.

When we hit that first hill out of Atwood, I quickly dropped him. Not out of meanness but out of necessity. I knew that if I didn't get to Anton by 6 pm that evening, I wouldn't make it.

As it turns out, I missed the store being open by about half an hour but there was support for other riders who provided lots of food for folks like me.

My buddy arrived some six hour later in Anton and DNF'd.

I know the feeling of exhilaration and exhaustion. It's now a friend that I hope to visit again soon.

[neanderthal]

Originally Posted by YakSpout

Nice work. If you start by heading uphill, go easy until you're warmed up. Trying to push the pace right off the start is a great way to burn out long before the end of the ride.

Regarding the discomfort, do you have decent shorts? Do you use anything like Chamois Butt'r?

You're in the SFV, right? I ride from Sherman Oaks to Griffith Park and back a couple weekends each month. Usually depart around 7:30-8am. Slow and easy 25mi bike path cruises to hilly 45mi routes via Mulholland, depending on my mood. Occasionally I join up with some friends in Tarzana and loop around Chatsworth Lake as well. That group tends to be more about rest stops at Starbucks than hauling ass, though.

Shoot me a PM if you'd like to join up sometime.

I reckon I have good shorts. Bike store brand 8 panel. About $60 each I think. No butt'r, although I guess that's something I should look into.

This was just a weird ride coz normally I am comfortable.

Yeah, i'm in the middle of the valley pretty much. I don't know that i'm at the point where I can go on group rides. I went on one or two with the SFV bike club and got an initiation in hell. Kinda soured me on group rides. Apparently, the beginner ride I went on (from CSUN south into the hills of Tarzana/ Encino) was "mis labelled." It sucked dirty sweaty donkey balls. That's a coffee shop group as well.

I ride at night right now because it's so hot during the day. I'm only off work for the next two weeks (actually, we'll see what the doc says tomorrow) but there are rugby games on Saturday mornings that I can't miss.

I'll def hit you up when I get fitter and have a Sat off.

Good looking mate...

Cheers.

[YakSpout]

Originally Posted by neanderthal

I reckon I have good shorts. Bike store brand 8 panel. About $60 each I think. No butt'r, although I guess that's something I should look into.

This was just a weird ride coz normally I am comfortable.

Yeah, i'm in the middle of the valley pretty much. I don't know that i'm at the point where I can go on group rides. I went on one or two with the SFV bike club and got an initiation in hell. Kinda soured me on group rides. Apparently, the beginner ride I went on (from CSUN south into the hills of Tarzana/ Encino) was "mis labelled." It sucked dirty sweaty donkey balls. That's a coffee shop group as well.

I ride at night right now because it's so hot during the day. I'm only off work for the next two weeks (actually, we'll see what the doc says tomorrow) but there are rugby games on Saturday mornings that I can't miss.

I'll def hit you up when I get fitter and have a Sat off.

Good looking mate...

Cheers.

Good onya with the shorts and definitely check out a chamois lube. Lots of brands and even a few recipes to make it on the Internet. (I think it's basically hand lotion, mineral oil and some plant oils.) Find one that keeps the kibbles'n'bits happy and you'll ride happier. I've noticed that if I wear my cheaper 'commuter' gear, I need to use lube even for shorter rides, but if I wear decent 'long ride' gear, it's not necessary until I plan on fairly serious miles.

Just so we're clear, I'm not talking 'coffee shop/club ride" that leaves from a bike shop. This really is a group of 3-8 (35+ year-old) friends who show up at a buddy's house and ride. Very casual, no crazy pacelines or anything. And if my wife comes along, she whips us into a proper 14-15mph pace so she can talk to her friends without breathing too heavily.

On the other side of that coin, if you're a dick, you're not invited again. We stop at stopsigns/red lights (unless there's absolutely NO ONE around), we pick up stragglers before the next turn and we stuff our faces with burgers and beer after the ride.

My 63 y.o. father-in-law rides with us. How bad can it be?

[neanderthal]

Originally Posted by YakSpout

Good onya with the shorts and definitely check out a chamois lube. Lots of brands and even a few recipes to make it on the Internet. (I think it's basically hand lotion, mineral oil and some plant oils.) Find one that keeps the kibbles'n'bits happy and you'll ride happier. I've noticed that if I wear my cheaper 'commuter' gear, I need to use lube even for shorter rides, but if I wear decent 'long ride' gear, it's not necessary until I plan on fairly serious miles.

Just so we're clear, I'm not talking 'coffee shop/club ride" that leaves from a bike shop. This really is a group of 3-8 (35+ year-old) friends who show up at a buddy's house and ride. Very casual, no crazy pacelines or anything. And if my wife comes along, she whips us into a proper 14-15mph pace so she can talk to her friends without breathing too heavily.

On the other side of that coin, if you're a dick, you're not invited again. We stop at stopsigns/red lights (unless there's absolutely NO ONE around), we pick up stragglers before the next turn and we stuff our faces with burgers and beer after the ride.

My 63 y.o. father-in-law rides with us. How bad can it be?

Sounds like good people. My kinda people.

I definitely observe street signs. It's part of the responsibility of being a cyclist. And if you want to be accorded the same respect and rights as a car, you should follow the rules they observe.

Or course I ride at 1am though. Very little traffic in the middle of the week at that time. Check for safety, and go. Thank God for the bike path and the new extension on Roscoe. That's half my route.

Only caveat; I don't adhere to The Rules. Mountain bike helmet. Mountain bike shoes. I never ride without a camelbak. And I need to harden the fuk up.

If the doc gives me more time off i'll hit you up. Otherwise this is my 2nd last Sat of free(read= bore)dom. And i'll be watching the footy in the morning.

[Ridge]

Originally Posted by ErrinV

Yep! We did it Gerry! I say we because there is no way, NO WAY, I could've done this alone. In the end every single vote counted and I really appreciate everyone that took the time to vote. There was only a difference of 5 votes! That's insane!

I may not be riding the moto much but the spirt of ADVrider is strong in me. Between brevets, riding the Great Divide and soon to be Alaska, the feeling I get on the bike is the same I get riding with you guys. Thanks for everything.

Errin

Excellent news. Glad we could help you out.

[Gummee!]

Went mtn biking on Quantico Marine Base yesterday. Buddy of mine's a Marine (duh) and works right next to their trail system. Bout an hour's ride. The two I was with wanted to go quickly but my legs didn't wanna.

...till about 2/3 of the way thru the ride when they woke up.

Marine buddy tipped over 2x on different hills. Stopped and flopped on his side (1) and then stopped and flopped on his back in an uphill hairpin (2)

I certainly wasn't stopping in the middle of a hairpin to help him up! He got into the mess, he can get out of it. I did ask him if he was OK on the way by. You just never know... He woulda scored higher on the 'crash scale' if he'da come up with something witty to say on the way down. As it was he didn't say anything so his scores were low.

I'm racing Sunday. Applecross. Cross practice tonite with the Haymarket shop, then a couple of VERY easy days. We'll see how the weekend goes.

M

[Ridge]

Looks like I've been horn-swaggled into competing in my first ever Psychlo-cross race this weekend. Heading to Asheville and then to Johnson City, TN for my trial by mud... pray for me.

[Gummee!]

Originally Posted by Ridge

Looks like I've been horn-swaggled into competing in my first ever Psychlo-cross race this weekend. Heading to Asheville and then to Johnson City, TN for my trial by mud... pray for me.

Tee hee.

You're either gonna love it or hate it. There's really not much middle ground.

Few quick tips: the field sprint's in the beginning. Warm up well.

If it don't hurt, you're doing it wrong

Its probably the hardest thing I've done on 2 wheels but the most fun at the same time.

If you see a handup, take it. You'll make the day of whomever is doing the handup. I've gotten a $69 gift card from the shop putting on the race before. Lots of $1s and beers at some of the races.

G'luck!

M

[Ridge]

Originally Posted by Gummee!

Tee hee.

You're either gonna love it or hate it. There's really not much middle ground.

Few quick tips: the field sprint's in the beginning. Warm up well.

If it don't hurt, you're doing it wrong

Its probably the hardest thing I've done on 2 wheels but the most fun at the same time.

If you see a handup, take it. You'll make the day of whomever is doing the handup. I've gotten a $69 gift card from the shop putting on the race before. Lots of $1s and beers at some of the races.

G'luck!

M

Grassy ass Gummee. Crits are my forte' so I'm hoping the CX will be similar... only with the added humility of mud in places I dare not mention.

[Gummee!]

Originally Posted by Ridge

Grassy ass Gummee. Crits are my forte' so I'm hoping the CX will be similar... only with the added humility of mud in places I dare not mention.

Harder than crits. There's really no way to hide whether you're strong or not. IOW no pack to hide in.

Riding a cross bike across a grassy field and putting down power is tough. AMHIK

This time of year is probably won't be as muddy as you think. Wait a bit tho. Good mid-atlantic videos here

Next weekend's race last year was muddy. Don't think it'll be like that this year, but I've been known to be wrong before


M

[Ridge]

Nice... I'll be sure and document my antics with pictures for y'alls entertainment.

[Aurelius]

As of last weekend, I've officially made the transition from flats to clipless pedals.

Just thought you'd all like to know.

[Gummee!]

Originally Posted by Aurelius

As of last weekend, I've officially made the transition from flats to clipless pedals.

Just thought you'd all like to know.

Great news! Remember you WILL fall. Typically at a stop sign/light as you unclip the wrong foot.

Originally Posted by Ridge

Nice... I'll be sure and document my antics with pictures for y'alls entertainment.

If you've got time to take pics, you're doing it wrong. I've had 'those' pics taken: tongue hanging out, sweating running into my eyes, etc. Non-cyclists just don't understand.

M

[Ridge]

My teammates and "friends" will be taking the pics of the race. I'm just documenting for... posterity yeah, that's it... posterity. No need for evidence pics of my impending face plants.