your daily bicycle log

Otoh someone is correct. Think of it as the difference between playing a tennis stroke with a dead straight wrist or using the wrist to add power.

pedaling from the midsole makes zero sense, and is retarded

trained medical professional, btw

just got one of these dudes in the mail this morning

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_hCWpfr04SG8/R_GutstZFVI/AAAAAAAAAC0/avmaGyHbu4A/s320/IMG_0526.JPG

(not mine)

rode it for about five minutes around the block (it's pissing rain, atm) and it is like sitting on a blow-job. i've had terrible luck with saddles in the past (including a Brooks that went from awful--->comfy--->perfect--->ass-hatchet), so i'm cautiously optimistic.

btw, hunt3r, cuddy, should i pay $75 for a local shop to do a fit on one of those serotta(?) fit machines? a new bike is not really in the cards, but it'd be nice to get my cross-check dialed in, as it's pretty much the only thing i ride these days

i also never ride with shorts/cham, so that might be part of the problem (lol commuter)

if shop really knows its shit, $75 seems worth it to me. i mean, going to a sports-med physio dude and having yr issues addressed by pros would be lots more. cant doctors network their way to free services from someone? ;)

i bet shit only gets frustrating when they tell u that u need new stem new bars shims wedges massage therapy voodoo charms u know...

im waiting for my position to start givin me pains. ive had the same position since 1990whenever and im no spring chicken any more.

btw today was hot fitness and racer chix day on high grade rd climb, never seen it like that before.

love them

What is that saddle it looks interesting?

selle anatomica

they started off modding brooks saddles, now manufacture their own in WI. Super comfy, but it's still early in the game (have put ~maybe~ 20 miles on it). They're mucho dinero, but I figure that riding several thousand miles a year warrants the expense.

selle composit SMP

23 mtb miles yesterday round Thetford. Not too rainy except for the drive up. It's an interesting place - very flat, being in Norfolk 'n' all, so not a lot in the way of crushing climbs or exhilerating downhills. But being flat you do have to pedal all the time, which makes it pretty tiring. It's also quite... wavy, you're always getting out of the saddle to cruise over some bumps or power through larger dips and hummocks. Most stupidest moment was probably choosing (not my idea) to cycle down a trail almost overgrown with bracken and nettles. My legs are still tingling even now.

did this ride yesterday on long island, some of my favorite roads on the north shore:

http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/ny/plainview/860124442673193035

i forgot how big li is, that ride does not "look" like 50 miles as plotted.

60 miles!

about to head out on long ride w/roadie pal (former cat 2, used to race in belgium, i was v v intimidated), and as i'm rolling my bike out of the shed i have in the backyard, the rear wheel locks up. investigation reveals that the chain broke ~right then~

this wasn't totally shocking, however, as this is the stock chain that came with the bike and that had been ridden all winter. it was also, incidentally, the same chain i broke mid-winter (just took out a link). so, go inside and grab a new, SRAM 9 speed chain that i had purchased in the spring for just such an eventuality, and go to put it on. i've never used powerlinks before, but i think mine was defective? i was under the impression that the powerlink was actually two identical plate/pin combos that mated together. but in my case, one of these things was not like the other, and sean and i tried forever to figure out what the fuck was going on. we would've just broken out another link, but sean estimated that the chain was just short enough as it was

anyway, i know that i like to fart and that i am crazy, but this seemed double crazy. i am going to the shop now to sort it out. walking :(

the ones i've used were more like a normal link with a single loose plate that snaps over a special lugged pin.

http://i41.tinypic.com/zitwck.gif

anyway, i know that i like to fart and that i am crazy, but this seemed double crazy.

lol

vindicated: one of the pin/plate deals was defective. new chain installed in basically 30sec.

what of your ride

gonna go on a night ride in a few hours

kudos

i like powerlinks a lot, they make it all so easy.

speaking of easy, here's my 6500 mi report on nexus 8 spd: great product for commuting, but would be super great with some kind of quick release mech for flat repair. it still works like new, and it is as close to 0 maintenance as i can imagine a geared chain drive could be.

tornado warning like every day :( i stayed dry tho!

Managed a new top speed of 45.5mph going down a hill today.

http://www.rapha.cc/gentlemens-race-new-paltz-ny

Got out with my brother this morning round Penshurst, Hever, Chiddingstone and the High Weald of Kent - approx 40 miles, although we could remember what time we left, so not sure how fast we were going (brother reckoned 18-20 - may not sound much, but it's good for me). I was in surprisingly good shape and kept up with him for most of the ride apart from the last five miles when I just started going backwards on hills - although I was wheel sucking like parasite pretty much all the way.

There was one hill just outside Penshurst (I just typo'd Penshurts) which took it all out of me. He wanted to go up Ide Hill on the way back, but my legs were very heavy, and as we were both riding fixed (MUST get my road bike sorted out SOON) I refused in the strongest possible terms (you can fucking go up it if you want to, I'm not going up it).

But what a day for it! Cool green, sunken lanes, dappled shade, two-bike width roads, sheep and beautiful English parkland and pasture. Penshurst Place is one of the most beautiful houses in the south east, completely worthy of Ben Jonson's poem. Hot shower, cold beer and cold barbecued meat when we got back.

In the words of The Classical - 'I've never felt better in my life'.

approx 40 miles, although we could remember what time we left, so not sure how fast we were going (brother reckoned 18-20 - may not sound much, but it's good for me)

'May not sound much'??? If you were averaging 20mph for a 40-mile ride with a nasty climb and on a fixed wheel I'd say that's very good.

18 miles yesterday, 3.5 today, all on London roads. No suspension and super firm tyres really bring home how fucked the road surfaces are here, and the edges are always the worst.

important correction, 5.5 not 3.5

with a nasty climb

Frankly, the climb wasn't that nasty, it was just a short hill, with a sharp bit in the middle, but it did for me completely. And that average speed is more or less guesswork. All I know is that it was a great ride and by the end I was completely buggered.

I road today for the first time in about 10 years. I went past the Steinway Mansion, the Steinway Piano Factory, and Con Ed plant, and then down through Astoria Park by the East River. It then started pouring rain and I road home.

awesome. welcome.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=Harding+Way&daddr=Park+Ln+to:Cambridge+Rd+to:A1307%2FHuntingdon+Rd+to:A1303%2FChesterton+Ln+to:A1134%2FNewnham+Rd+to:A1134%2FTrumpington+Rd+to:A1309%2FHigh+St+to:A10%2FHigh+St+to:High+St+to:Fowlmere+Rd+to:B1368%2FFowlmere+Rd+to:B1368%2FCambridge+Rd+to:Newton+Rd+to:Granham%27s+Rd+to:Granham%27s+Rd+to:A1134%2FMowbray+Rd+to:Cherry+Hinton+Rd+to:High+St+to:Coldham%27s+Ln+to:Coldham%27s+Ln+to:A1303%2FChesterton+Rd+to:A1134%2FVictoria+Rd+to:B1049%2FCambridge+Rd+to:52.253422,0.103555&hl=en&geocode=FVRPHQMdbpABAA%3BFaRJHQMdqjYBAA%3BFZYXHQMd7EkBAA%3BFZLkHAMdWlkBAA%3BFdKsHAMdNcIBAA%3BFXaBHAMdMbsBAA%3BFYNeHAMdvuEBAA%3BFZsXHAMdEbgBAA%3BFUSWGwMdZEEBAA%3BFbQ3GwMdcegAAA%3BFUjyGgMdRDUBAA%3BFSZCGwMdjIEBAA%3BFfV8GwMdh4oBAA%3BFVikGwMdNswBAA%3BFUDMGwMdNRQCAA%3BFegQHAMdAVECAA%3BFVZOHAMd3FMCAA%3BFZhDHAMdQp0CAA%3BFQJhHAMdBLgCAA%3BFeeOHAMdGVQCAA%3BFQimHAMddi0CAA%3BFWDBHAMdUgsCAA%3BFcG9HAMdWbcBAA%3BFV32HAMd47MBAA%3B&mra=dme&mrcr=23&mrsp=24&sz=15&dirflg=w&sll=52.253027,0.117202&sspn=0.012873,0.038624&ie=UTF8&ll=52.15561,0.160332&spn=0.103211,0.30899&t=h&z=12

my current lap of cambridge. just did it in two and half hours. got lost a couple of times, its about 30 miles. going to increase it to 50 miles this week before attempting cambridge -> london this weekend. can't wait.

oh bollocks, sorry.

waiting out latest round of tstorms in starbucks :(

hey i put a salsa shortnshallow 44cm bar and new wtb saddle on iro. life is waaayy better. since the rails are long i can slam saddle back to where it belongs, which also lowers it like a cm. with the new bar, this bike finally rides properly, it feels almost like my road bike.

wow, raining buckets out there.

60.5 miles b/w Sunday & Monday: combination of city streets (neighborhoods) & paved bike trails. At this point, I can comfortably go 30+ miles in a single run w/o completely wrecking myself. Averaging around 15.5 mph per trip (about 17 first half & then......). I broke my gearshift recently & can only use half of the settings, so hopefully my average speed will increase once I replace it. Then again, I'm basically starting from scratch stamina-wise, at least as of a few months ago, so that probably has more to do with it than anything. I'm going to try to fit in 100-150 miles/week for the rest of the summer.

good stuff, good goals!

maybe try a century by the end of the summer?

lightning strikes to the right of me, tidal waves from passing buses to the left of me, through the gutter tsunamis of death rode hunt3r. (the lightning was legit really scary--share your scary lightning stories)

Hey you guys - I did my big 24-hour relay race on the weekend - man that was tough. I've written about it on my blog, so please have a look! 2 parts up so far - a third and final one to come.

http://lanternerouge.tumblr.com/

you never told us you had a blog.

Meh, it's barely a blog. But, y'know, I occasionally write stuff in it.

All 3 parts now up. Thanks for looking.

just sliced 45 mins off my "cambridge lap" time. not getting lost and being lucky with, or rather, ignoring traffic lights definitly helped. as did trying to keep up with pro looking cycle wear bike dude for a considerable stretch.

really wish there were some better roads round here. cambridge city centre is excellent, sometimes seems like there are more bikes than cars. most of the time you can have the whole road to yourself because the cars have to go so slow. as soon as you get out of the city there are loads of little almost single lane bendy back roads where cars like to do 60-70mph+ don't feel entirely comfortable on these.

did a good 25-30 miles with some friends on sunday, i always feel good keeping up as i have a single-speed. when it gets hilly you have no choice but to charge them

good stuff, good goals!

maybe try a century by the end of the summer?

Thanks. Didn't see this earlier. Anyway: Sure 100 miles sounds impossible now, but two months ago 35 would've seemed absurdly excessive, so we'll see. I'm definitely planning on taking a trip to MI b/w various cities to visit old friends at some point in the upcoming months and that will entail 40/50 mile legs b/w stopping points, so I guess I'll just to that & go from there.

One thing is for sure, though. The dog days are seriously cutting into my stamina/mileage. mid-week last, shit got up into 90+ w/ extreme humidity & it was really hard maintain. I hope it dies down and stays that way, but those kind of highs in June are a bad sign..

just make sure to increase the drinking and eating, also pouring water on your head works great

yeah love pouring water on my head