Creaks, squeeks and noises

I finally fixed the creaks on my Giant. Turns out it was a combination chain, bottom bracket, fork and pedals. First I tried cleaning the chain and lubing it. That reduced the noise, but I still had other noises. Next I cleaned the bottom bracket and noticed one bearing wasn't turning properly. I had Barney's replace the bearing, which made it much better.

After I got the bike back from barney's the noise was much better. After a two weeks, I felt compelled to get rid of the noise. I started by cleaning the seat post and fork. Since I sweat alot, the seatpost and seat tube had lots of salt. I gave it a thorough cleaning and applied a little bit of lube to seat tube. The fork took a bit more work. First I removed the handlebar, then I removed the fork from the frame. The top wasn't too dirty, but the bottom was full of black oily gunk. I didn't think dirt, sand and grit could get in there, but looks like the wet conditions on Major Taylor Century got lots of dirt in there.

I rode the bike for another weak, but there was still a little creaking noise on every revolution of the crank. Finally, I decided to take the pedals off, give them a thorough scrub and lube. I wouldn't have though it would cause it.

Now that I finally figured out what caused it, it should be easier to diagnose in the future. The noise from the chain tends to be higher pitched squeek. The pedals tend to have a low frequency creak just after the apex of the crank revolution.

The fork creak tends to happen when I'm out of the saddle. The saddle creak on climbs with low cadence.

Castelli Pave Nanoflex bib tights

I bought Castelli Pave Nanoflex bib tights and felt compelled to blog about it. Over at biketiresdirect.com they had it on closeout sale, so I decided to give it a try.

Nanoflex bib tights

When I first started riding, I bought myself some cheap Nashbar bib tights. Back then I felt expensive cycling clothing is mostly hype. Although there's hype around cycling clothing, the truth is the cheap stuff doesn't fit as well and tends to wear out faster.

Last year I bought Pearl Izumi Amfib tights, which work great for under 30 degrees. One big downside is the fit. The legs are a bit long and the shoulder straps a little loose. I bought a size small, thinking that would be the best fit. I haven't tried XS amfib tights, but given how much it costs I don't plan on buying another one until my current one wears out.

In contrast, the Pave Nanoflex bib tights fit great and look good. It compresses where it needs to and doesn't feel like my legs are in a vice. The range of motion is good and the compression snug. The amfib in comparison feels tight around my quads and loose around the torso. Comparing the cut and material between PI and Castelli, it's clearly due to design.

I had a similar experience with Castelli jacket compared to Pearl Izumi. Although cheaper brands are cheaper, they just don't fit as well. In terms of material, I've noticed Castelli clothing breathes better than Pearl Izumi. Overall, I'm unsatisfied with Nashbar clothing. Satisfied with Pearl Izumi. Castelli clothing is very satisfying.

Odd creak

I've been trying to figure out what part of my giant is creaking, but it's hard to find. Back when I rode Major Taylor, the bike developed several loud squeeeeeks and creaks. The most annoying was a high pitched squeek coming from the bottom bracket.

I had barney's order a replace bb86 and got rid of that aweful squeek. On the trainer, I don't hear anymore odd noise other than me breathing hard. On the road, there's still a creak. At first I thought it was the chain, so I washed it last saturday. On sunday, the creak was still there. I tried to diagnose it and thought maybe it was the seat post.

When I got home, I removed the seatpost, cleaned it, cleaned the clamp and the frame. The creak was still there. Next I checked to see if anything was rubbing the chain and I noticed the new front derailleur chain guard was rubbing at one point. I took that off. I like the idea of having a guard to prevent the chain from scuffing up the carbon frame, but not if it's rubbing and making noises.

I hope this got rid of the creaking noise.

Broken tooth on chain ring

This year's Major Taylor Century had terrible cold, wet weather. I ended up bailing with Gary at the first rest stop. We ended up with 52 miles. When I got home, my bike was a total mess and was covered with dirt, grime and junk. Around mile 25, my crank started to squeeek very loudly. When I got home, I did a quick wash/rise with simple green foaming cleaner, but it was still squeeking.

Last weekend, I decided to give it a complete wash and clean out the bottom bracket. It was rather dirty. When I took off the crank and chain rings, I noticed the wear. A few of the teeth were dented and bent and 1 tooth actually broke the tip.

On the last photo, the tip broke off the tooth on the far left. I have no clue when it broke, but it's definitely got wear. Since my chain ring is badly beaten, I'm thinking of replacing it with either a mid compact or rotor Q ring. I haven't decided.

Retaping the handle bars

Now that I've had the giant for over a year, the white bar tape was looking grungy. I decided to buy some tape from nashbar and retape. This is only the second time I've tried to retape road handlebars. The first time was retaping my wife's old Trek road bike. This time it was a bit easier. At first I tried nashbar blue, but after it was on, I decide it looked ugly. Good thing I ordered white and blue. It was pretty cheap 6.00 for each.

For a newbie, it turned out ok.

OPQ wins TTT

I like Tom, he is a good guy. What surprised me is boonen says he was under geared.

Experimentation with Clif Shot Mocha Gel

This summer I've been experimenting with nutrition and trying to figure out how to avoid lulls in energy. The first two years I didn't have any issue with cramping or dehydration, since most of my rides were less than 1 hour. On the longer rides, like centuries I didn't push myself. My goal was to just have a good time and finish.

At this year's King Tour of the Quabbin double metric, I managed to stay with the A guys for the first 100 miles. Right as I was getting dropped at mile 99, our average was right at 20 mph. Luckily, the last rest stop is at mile 100, so I was able to regroup. I saw lots of 7HW people at the last rest stop and tried to cram down as many calories as I could.

When we took off again, my legs were feeling tight and I felt a little dehydrated. As I expected, once they kicked it up, I couldn't hang on. I managed to tag along with some 7HW people and finish the ride with an average of 19mph. After KTOQ, I started to pay more attention to proper hydration and eating. Before that, I tried to follow the rule of drink before your thirsty and eat every hour.

Now that I've been experimenting with Clif shot gels, I've noticed a few things. If I eat 1 gel right before I start my lunch ride, I'm able to push hard going down reservoir street. At the turn around point my legs feel fine. If I eat a nectarine, plum or asian pear before a ride, I'm able to push hard down reservoir, but I start to fade half way up reservoir. I've also tried eating a gel at the turn around point to see if that helps. So far it feels like it doesn't help going up reservoir, but I do have more energy at the end of the ride.

The last few times I climbed Wachusett summit, I ate a gel 15 min before the climb. As a result, I've beat my personal record several times. In the past, I would eat a Clif bar 15 min before the climb, but that wasn't enough time to digest. The only way to know "when" to eat the clif bar, I'd have to experiment to gather some data. Since it's close to the end of the cycling season, I will leave that for next year. I like the taste of clif bars, but they are hard to eat at 22mph. On group rides where we stop to rest or regroup, I can cram down half a bar.

I don't pretend to know nutrition science and my methods are 100% guess work. But even without rigorous scientific method, I've been able to increase my lunch ride average up to 20mph. One could argue that is the natural progression through the season. I honestly don't know. Slowly, I'm learning about how to feed my body so that I get consistent performance.

Laurens Ten Dam pain cave

This video with Rabobank's Laurens ten dam is funny.

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What surprised me is the grade is so steep even a pro needs compact crank.

Hilarious video on bikes

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I clicked on this video on YouTube. It is hilarious. I don't necessary agree with everything the guy says, but it gave me a good laugh.

Tarmac on sale

Today I went to bike alley to check out trainers. Unfortunately, the fluid cycleops model they had on the floor was setup on a big bike and I'm small. The noise level was good and a lot less than wind trainers.

While I was there, I asked if they had a Specialized Tarmac 49. To my surprise, they had a 2010 Tarmac 49cm 2010 tarmac elite. The price was discounted from 1999.99 down to 1499.99. That's 500 off the MSRP. I'm tempted to get it, especially if I can apply my 7HW discount.

To be honest, I don't really need another bike. It's not like the Tarmac will magically keep me from getting dropped on Wednesday rides. I'm just not at the same level as those guys.

Follow up on Cliff Shot Gel

I finally finished the first box of cliff shot gels. Although I still find it sweet, the mocha flavor is good. I can't stand fruit punch flavor that is sickly sweet. The last few weekends I've climbed Wachusett summit a couple of times and each time I ate a gel 10-15 minutes from mile hill road.

What I find is that half way up, my legs don't feel like led weights. In the past, I would eat a cliff bar about the same time. Sometimes if the group stops I can eat the whole bar. If we don't stop, I can maybe chew down half a bar. The thing is, 10 minutes from mile hill road isn't enough for the sugar to get into the blood stream.

Cliff shots on the other hand do and it definitely gives you a sugar + caffeine rush. The last three times I climbed the summit, I ate a gel before the climb. Each time I improved my PR for the summit climb up the down road. On Wednesday, I ordered another box of Mocha cliff shot gel.

Another side effect I noticed is that I've lost about 2 lbs the last 3 weeks. In June I rode 825 miles. This month I've logged 658 miles so far. This is unscientific, but here's my guess. Using the gel I'm able to push harder on my lunch rides and go harder on weekend rides. As a result, my fitness level has gotten better, which means I'm burning more calories. I haven't changed my diet this month, so it's not due to that. One downside of burning more calories, so I have to eat more at meals.

That brings up a point about cycling and why I don't race. I ride because I am addicted to it and I love the feeling of spinning on my bike. I don't care if I'm going fast, medium or slow. If I were to become competitive and race, I'd have to drop weight and count calories. I really love to eat, so counting calories doesn't sound or feel pleasing. Plus, I don't get all psyched about beating someone else. I get more enjoyment from taking a good pull and helping the group keep a strong pace. Though I'm small, so it's not much of a draft.

Overall, I'm happy with Cliff Shot mocha gel. It tastes like a strong mocha and isn't so thick your tongue is glued to the roof of your mouth. Wish a quick swig of water and rinse, it washes down quickly. I also like that cliff shot is 90% organic.

Aero wheels

I've been reading up on aero wheels and found a couple of links

http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/cms/article-detail.asp?articleid=1099
http://bikehugger.com/post/view/aero-wheels/

The question I am struggling with is "are they worth it?" Since I don't race, my immediate answer is NO. Looking at the articles above, a saving of 20-30 seconds over 40Km doesn't really make a difference. Put it another way, is 30 seconds worth 1K bucks? The answer to that is "hell no!"

I've been getting dropped going down hill on group rides, so I wondered "would aero wheels help?" Well, my friends tell me in a pace line, aero wheels don't help. You're already benefiting from the slip stream, so that alone beats any aero wheel advantage.

It would seem that aero wheels give you a slight advantage when you're going faster than 18mph and by yourself. Much of the literature say you save x watts per x miles. My main focus is loosing weight and staying healthy, so burning more watts is what I want.

Actual performance benefit aside, aero wheels do look nice, but not nice enough that I want to spend 1,000.00 bucks on them. If the bike came with a set of aero wheels, I wouldn't return them, but at the same time justifying an extra 1K feels silly to me. I'd much rather put that to retire or the kids college fund.

Raleigh Militas 3

On monday, Raleigh bicycle was kind enough to bring a bunch of Militas 3 for people to try. About 10 people tried the bikes and everyone agreed the bikes were fast.

I rode a 50cm with SRAM Red and full carbon everything. I lowered the seat and moved the saddle forward, but I am short so the position wasn't ideal. The front derailleur on the demo bike wouldn't shift up to the big chain ring. Before I left, I should have checked the front wheel, but I didn't. It was a bit under-inflated, but even then I still average 20 mph on reservoir street. On my giant, my previous best time was 18.2 mph, which is a decent speed.

Dave took off early and was at the front. I was able to catch up to him, so the higher average wasn't due to drafting. The biggest difference is the stiffness of the frame, race geometry and weight. The bike weighed about 14-15lbs, which is about 3.5lbs lighter than my giant.

I put my cheapie nasbar look pedals on it and the water bottle in my back pocket. If I there was time to adjust the bike to a proper fit, fix the front derailleur and inflate the tire, I'm sure I could have gone faster. For me, a 1 hour ride wasn't enough time to "get used to" SRAM. I don't know if I could get used to double tap, but it definitely didn't feel as natural as Shimano 105.

Comparing SRAM to Shimano 105, I had absolutely no trouble adjusting to the 105. In fact, it felt perfectly natural. I also didn't like the feel of the SRAM Red. It took much more effort to shift compared to the 105.

Ignoring the SRAM groupo, the Raleigh Militas 3 is a fast bike. It is very stiff and my butt did feel the difference on a few pot holes. For a long century ride, I would choose my giant. For the 7HW wednesday nite rides, a bike like Militas 3 would come in very handy.

This year I can't afford to get a new bike and probably not even next year. When I do, I will definitely consider a Raleigh Militas 1. The Militas 3 is the top end, which I don't need. If someone gave it to me as a gift, I'd take it, but I'm frugal. The Militas 1 or 2 with Shimano ultegra or 105 is more than sufficient.

Militas 3

Up the down road

Last weekend I climbed Wachusett summit with Old Fast Don. Instead of the up road, we went up the down road. The up road is a CAT3, the down road is CAT2. On Sunday, I rode up to wachusett again and saw Dale and Lynn. It was funny, as I was going down Mile Hill Road, I saw them climbing up and I thought "that looks like Dale and Lynn."

When I got up to the summit, Dale and Lynn were up at the parking lot. They were just about to head down as I got to the top. I didn't rest at the top and headed down to the rest area. When I got down, Dale and Lynn were heading up again. Both of them are stronger riders than I am.

Energy gel

Last week I decided to give energy gel a try. More accurately, I decided to try other kind of gel since I don't like GU. On the greylock century I started to cramp a little around mile 70, so I ate some gel. Not sure if it was GU or some other brand, but it tasted way too sweet.
Since I like Clif bar, I decided to give Clif shot a try. I also bought some Clif shot drink mix. On Sunday I tried the lemonade mix. It tastes similar to Gatorade, but different. I'm not sure if it's the green tea extract. At first my senses were expecting Gatorade, but after a couple of drinks I started to like the flavor. It definitely tastes less sweet than gatorade. All things considered, Gatorade isn't as sweet as other drinks. Clif shot drink mix uses rice syrup solids. I didn't know what it is, so I had to google it (http://www.agcommoditiesinc.com/articles/rice-syrup-solids.php). The odd/funny thing is that when you first mix it, there's solids floating around that look like brownish specs. I'm guessing that's the rice syrup. According to the article, rice syrup is a sweetener that doesn't affect blood sugar levels as much.

Yesterday I tried the clif shots gel. Although the mocha flavor tastes less sweet than GU, it is still sweet. So far I don't know if I like it or not. I generally don't like sweet things and prefer savory/salty flavors. In terms of boosting performance, I don't know that it made any difference with just 1 try. Generally, I try to eat a fruit like nectarine, plum or pear 30 minutes before a ride, so eating a clif shot doesn't make much difference. I'll have to do a longer ride to see if it makes a real difference.

http://www.clifbar.com/food/products_shot_gel_turbo/
http://www.clifbar.com/food/products_shot_electrolyte/

Riding around Hawley MA

On my ride Saturday morning, I saw a field of sun flowers in Hawley. Usually I'm not willing to stop to take pictures, but I decided to stop for once.

There was a little bit of fog in the morning, so Hawley hill looked quite nice.

Hilarious comment by Vens

I happen to come across this interview with Jens.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0zZ2jFf2-M&feature=g-vrec

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On greylock century, I joked with mike "what does jens say shut up legs".

Greylock century boost

Today I went on my regular lunch ride and felt great. I took it easy sunday and monday to make sure I recover fully. On my regular lunch ride, I managed to beat my previous best time by 30 seconds. At the turn around point, my average was 20.95mph. Previous best average at the turn around point was 20.35 mph.

here are some photos from greylock summit.

This year the rest stop had pumpkin bread, cookies and sausages at the end. Thanks to all the volunteers on greylock century.

I managed improve on last year's time. This year I managed to finish around 2:30 with a ride time of 6:48. Last year I finished around 4 with a ride time of 7:17.

Getting ready for Greylock Century

Today is June 20, that means 2.5 weeks until Greylock century. So far the training this year has been great. After King's Tour double metric, I felt great and my legs feel good. The cardio is in good shape, so it's really just a matter of training properly and not peaking too soon.

I know I can finish greylock century, but I'd like to improve my average. Last year it took me 8:43 minutes with a ride time of 7:17 averaging 13.72mph. I hope to average 15mph this year and finish with a ride time under 7 hours. Given there's over 9000 feet of climbing on the century, that would be impressive to me. The latest elevation map says it's over 11,000 feet of climbing.

http://bcacycling.blogspot.com/p/greylock-century-ride.html

Of the three big climbs, the second climb up route 2 is the easiest. The grade up to Whitcomb summit is steady the entire way, so once you get into a nice rhythm it's autopilot. According to the berkshire cycling association, the first climb up to Greylock summit is a CAT 1 climb. Mapmyride and other apps call it 2 separate CAT 2 climbs. In the middle, there is a "flat-ish" section, which lets you recover. The road was repaved a few years ago, so it's smoothe and clean from the visitor center to the summit.

By far the hardest climb is up East Hawley road. The grade changes from 6% to 15% several times, so it's tough to get in a nice rhythm. Last year I trained on the hill several times and found myself getting out of the saddle on the steepest grades.

After Hawley, the rest of the climbs are only cat 4 or 5. I look forward to riding it again.

Feeling healthy

Like most cyclist, I put on weight over the winter and spend the spring getting rid of it. This morning I finally got rid of the last few lbs I put on. This winter wasn't too bad, I put on 10lbs of weight. This morning I stepped on the scale and was about 141lbs. Last september I got down to 140 after working my ass off from May.

Thinking back to high school. When I was a freshman, I joined the cross country team. My Senior year I was pretty active, but my resting heart rate was only about 64. The last 2 mornings I measured my resting heart rate and it was between 48-50. Going by that measurement, I'm more fit at 40 than at 18. In high school and college, my cardio was ok. It wasn't great.

Last nite, I went on a group ride with 5 of the wednesday nite A group. Boy, I got my ass kicked by them, but it was loads of fun. Since I'm a glutton for punishment, I don't mind getting dropped. It is humbling to see guys older than me fly up a hill like it's flat.

Looking at the splits for the ride, we were averaging 19mph on the climbs. They weren't big, only about 3-3.5% average grade. Last year I rode with the A group a few times and I got dropped hard. On similar hills, they were averaging 19mph, while I was averaging 16mph. Overall, I feel healthy and strong. The feeling of spinning on the road is a physical and spiritual experience for me.

Eating and drinking properly

On monday's 7HW social ride, I had a chat with a fellow cyclist. He rode the King's Tour of the Quabbin Century. Right around mile 50, the route goes up route 202. He's done it a few times and every time, he bonks on the climb up route 202. That got me thinking.

Why is that? I rode with Gary for the double metric. He bonked around mile 75, but Gary is a pro at cycling. He knows the importance of drinking and eating properly during a long ride. I emailed him after the ride to see how he did. Gary has the legs and the conditioning. When he bonked, he realize his body needed fluids and calories, so he stopped at the mile 75 rest stop to refuel and rehydrate.

From my own experience these last 2 years, eating and drinking properly makes a huge difference. There have been times when I bonked at 50 miles on a 60 mile ride. What I notice is that I didn't drink enough or get enough calories that morning. Say it takes 4 hours to ride 60 miles. Going at 15mph average a cyclist weighing 140-150 lbs will burn about 2-3K calories. The human digestive system takes several hours to digest food and it takes several hours to properly hydrate.

On Saturday, I made sure to drink more than usual and consume extra calories. On the day of the ride, I try to drink 1 water bottle per hour. If the weather is hot, add another bottle per hour. On Sunday I went through 5 bottles of water and 3 bottles of Gatorade. At around mile 100, I started to get a little dehydrated, so drank the last of my water. At every rest stop I ate 1 banana and 1 PBJ sandwich. During the ride I ate 2 Clif bars.

I don't use Gu or that stuff, since I don't like the taste. It feels nasty to me. There's a reason why professionals use it though. Liquid calories are absorbed more quickly into the body and doesn't require the lengthy digestion process.

I'm still a newbie when it comes to cycling, but listening to my friend dave and my wife has helped reduce the learning curve. My lovely wife, whom I think is hot has been very patient with me. She has been giving me advice on cycling, but it's taken me a long time to "learn" it. It's not that I don't listen, it's that I'm not ready to implement it. It's similar to the advice my friend dave gave me. The first year I was trying to get used to a road bike, so I just wasn't able to follow his advice. Once I felt more comfortable, it became easier. Note, that easier doesn't mean easy.

As an example, dave suggested I use water bottles instead of camelbak. The reason I preferred camelbak was it felt safer and easier for me. I simply didn't have the skill to reach down, grab the bottle, drink and put it back without crashing. I was so focused on handling the bike that using camelbak was more comfortable. As my skill improved, I felt more comfortable using water bottles.

The same thing happened with shifting and learning when to shift. Early in the season, my conditioning isn't great, so at the bottom of a hill I shift to a lower gear. As I get stronger, I shift up and get out of the saddle. Sometimes, as much as we want to follow others advice, we're just not able to. It's part of being human.

A great example of this is mountain biking. I love spending time with my wife and kids on mountain bike, but my handling sucks. That's not modesty either, it's the blunt truth. When I look at videos on YouTube of guys doing amazing things on a mountain bike, it's painfully obvious my handling is pathetic at best. Even on a road bike, my handling isn't good or great. When I looked at the elite guys on 7HW rides, they are completely one with their bike. I'm not one of those. Where I lack in talent, I make up with passion. I feel better when I ride daily.

King's Tour of the Quabbin 2012

The heavens shined down on cyclist Sunday and blessed everyone with perfect weather. If I was a witch doctor with magical weather spells, it couldn't be better. At 7:00 the temperature was around 65, but once we got going, things warmed up. Around noon time, it was in the low 70's, but going at a 20 mph it felt awesome. Around 2, it was starting to get hot, but the wind picked up. Not sure if that's good, cuz the head wind made the last 20 miles feel tougher. Then again, I'm not sure if the "feeling" of wind was really a breeze or my legs giving out.

This year, I rode with the 7HW wednesday nite A group. Old fast Don, Eric D and Peter kept a steady fast pace the whole way. I managed to stay with them for the first 98 miles. At the last rest stop we regrouped. After 105 miles, I simply couldn't keep their pace, so I rode the remaining 10 with Peter Howard and a few other 7HW cyclist.

Thanks to the A group for pulling me along for 98 miles. According to my bike computer, here is the stats:
Miles: 121.74
Average speed: 18.3 mph
Ride time: 6:39:07
Max Speed: 43.5 mph
Average Cadence: 90
Max Cadence: 156
Zone 1 (102-130): 14%
Zone 2 (130-148): 41%
Zone 3(148-185):  43%
Uphill trip distance: 37.28 miles
uphill Avg speed: 13.56
uphill Avg incline: 3%
uphill trip time: 2:45
uphill altitude: 7217
uphill max incline: 10%
downhill distance: 38.9 miles
downhill avg speed: 26.11
downhill avg incline: 3%
downhill trip time: 1:29
downhill altitude: 7273

Climbing and pain

Today is a brutal mountain stage in Giro D'Italia. Seeing the pros suffering up the hill gives me pleasure. Actually, seeing anyone suffer on a hill gives me pleasure. That includes myself. There's something raw and life affirming about pounding up a hill.

Interesting talk by Dr. Max Testa

I happen to stumble across this talk by Dr. Max Testa, who is the team doctor for BMC.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4T_wzVZNSv8

Aerodynamics stupid

The last few months I've been paying attention to my average speed in relation to wind and the clothing I wear. Even though it would seem obvious, there's nothing quite like first hand experience to drive the point home. What I've noticed is that if I wear a winter riding jacket, my average speed for my usual lunch ride is 1mph slower. One might ask, "How do you know?"

I don't use a power meter, so there isn't definitive proof with hard numbers. What I do notice is the sections where I have the highest split times, are 1-2mph slower when I wear jackets versus long sleeve jersey. In contrast, when the temperature is above 70 and the wind is 15-20mph, I can still average 19mph for 21miles. The main reason is the amount of drag. In warm weather, I wear bib shorts and short sleeve jersey. Below 50F, I wear either a long sleeve jersey or pearl izumi jacket. Basically, when it's sunny I wear long sleeve jersey and cloudy days I wear the jacket for a little extra warmth.

So this got me thinking about bike frames and value. My giant avail advance has a aero seat post and seat tube. The down tube is also aero, though not as aero has Specialized Venge, time trial bikes or other aero road bikes costing 5-10K. I paid just under 2K for the avail, whereas the equivalent bike from Trek and Specialized would run in the 4-5K range.

Within old school bike purists, many prefer steel or titanium frames. The thing is, metal frames generally are tubes, which isn't the best for aerodynamics. My Trek mountain bike has oval steel tubes, but it's not for aerodynamics. They're thick heavy tubes made to take a beating.

Is it possible to make an aero frame using titanium or steel? I don't know, since I'm not a frame builder and don't know the first thing about it.

I was wrong

For the last 2 years, I've been learning how to dress for cold weather. Last winter I spent good money on winter gear and got 2 Pearl Izumi jackets. When I was doing research, I saw a lot of praise for Assos and Castelli. Honestly, I thought it was snobbery. I just couldn't justify spending 300-600 on a jacket. Last week, I saw that Castelli's Espresso Due jacket was on sale at Bike Tires Direct and decided to get it. Today it arrived. I tried it on and instantly noticed a difference. The cut of the castelli jacket fits snug, whereas the PI pro soft shell felt a bit loose. Both jackets are size medium. The second big difference is design. The castelli jacket has a mesh on the back, which lets it breathe. The PI pro soft shell doesn't. The third big difference is the collar. When I zip up the PI pro soft shell, it feels a bit tighter than I would like. In contrast the espresso due jacket is higher and stretches more. The end result is it keeps cold air out without feeling like it's constricting your neck. Tomorrow I'm going to try it out in the cold weather and see how warm it feels. I paid 150.00 for the Izumi jacket and 170 for the Castelli. Both jackets were on sale.

Another Saturday, Another climb

Today the weather was nice, so I went and did 2 intervals on Wachusett. The first climb I went to the summit. The second time just to the visitor center. There were quite a few cyclist today climbing Wachusett.

http://maps.google.com/?q=http://share.abvio.com/bc64/6357/4c7a/cf0e/Cyclemeter-Cycle-20120421-1112.kml I managed to finish the ride with an average of 16mph, which isn't bad considering I climbed Mile Hill Road twice.

First climb up Wachusett summit

Last Saturday I climbed Wachusett summit for the first time this year. Considering it's only April, it felt great. I managed to log 62 miles, and took 2 pictures.

On my ride, I saw a few cyclist out, but not a lot. At the visitor center, there was several cyclist.

Riding around Amherst

Over the weekend I was in Amherst for passover and managed to get in some good rides. One great climb is up North Valley road in Pelham. It's a CAT4 climb, but it is harder than that. North Valley / Buffam road changes grade several times, so it's actually a harder climb than going up Shutesbury road. Shutesbury road maintains the same grade for most of the 4miles, so once you get into a good rhythm, it's easy to spin up the hill.

On Saturday I rode up to the town Orange and up route 202 going south bound. I stopped at Mattawa lake and took a few pictures.

Mattawa is a nice little lake. There were a lot of people out fishing on Saturday. I saw about 10 people relaxing on beach chairs fishing. When I got to the peak of route 202, I snapped a picture of Quabbin reservoir.

Saturday Ride Up Mile Hill Road

For the second weekend in a row, I climbed Mile Hill Road in princeton. That is one of my favorite hill in MA and my favorite hill in central MA. The favorite hill is East Hawley Road, which is a longer and harder climb than Mile Hill road.

The last two weeks I've been riding every day and pushing myself on my lunch rides. Last Thursday I took a picture of the Rox at the start of the ride. As the image shows, my heart rate is 59.

I don't use the heart rate monitor every ride. Some days I forget. The thing I like about the heart rate monitor is it helps me monitor my progress. As I get in better shape, the heart rate drops and the recovery is shorter. Yesterday's climb up mile hill road felt easier than the previous Saturday. It is a lot of fun to ride in a pace line and take turns pulling. Yesterday I tried to longer turns pulling to push myself. Today my legs are a little sore, but it's a good soreness.

Eating properly

During the winter, I try to eat healthy, but the cold gives me the munchies. Once the weather warms up, I switch back to fruits for snacks and more veggies. This week I ate a banana every day before my ride. It makes a significant difference. Today it rained, so I had to go to the gym. Usually, I try to get in as many miles as I can in 30 minutes. Today I managed to average 25mph for 30 minutes and logged a little over 12miles. Over the winter I tried to do longer workouts on the stationary bikes, but I can't seem to do it. It is simply too boring.

Another thing I try to do during riding season is to drink water instead of juice. One thing I noticed the last 2 years is proper hydration before a workout makes a big difference. When I'm properly hydrated, I don't get cotton mouth and have a easier time recovering from a strenuous climb. When I don't drink enough water, I feel it in my legs, and breathing.

Leading a ride this Saturday

Last week, 7HW asked me to lead a ride. After I got the OK from the wife, I decided to lead a ride.



Find more Bike Ride in Holden, MA


I like to do this route on the weekends for a couple of reasons. The first 12 miles has a good amount of climbing, so it gets the legs and lungs warmed up. Once we get to route 62, it's mostly flat. It's a good stretch to recover and cruise. The big climb up mile hill road on Wachusett is one of my favorites. When I can, I try to do intervals there.
Last year I used it for my Greylock century training. In terms of difficulty, the climb to Wachusett summit is harder than the climb to Greylock summit. During the summer months, it is a popular climb for cyclist.

Spring glad to see you again

Today the weather was around 65 and my lunch ride was awesome. It is amazing how much easier in warm weather. The biggest difference between cold and warm weather for me is getting a good spin and maintaining it. When it's cold, I have a real hard time getting a good spin and keeping it.
On my usual Holden Reservoir route I was able to get a good spin and maintain it. Even though I gained about 8lbs over the winter, I still managed to average 18.2mph for 19 miles. If the weather keeps up, I hope to drop the 8lbs over the next 4 weeks.

So much for summer and winter bike

When I bought the Avail, I told myself "now I have a summer bike and winter bike." In reality, I rode my avail over the winter. The Avail is simply more comfortable. On a cold windy day, I generally want to get done quickly with as much comfort as possible. That meant riding the Avail. I still love my Dolce, but I use it more as a backup. My son has started using it, so it's basically become his road bike.

GPS versus Barometer

The Sigma sports Rox 8 comes with a barometric altimeter. After my ride today I compared the reported ascent. Rox says 1177 versus 1002 GPS. Given how inaccurate GPS altitude is, I'm inclined to take the Rox numbers. One nice benefit of Rox8 is that it shows the grade during the ride.
Overall, I'm happy with the Rox8 and how it performs. I especially like downloading the ride to my computer.

Cycling withdraws suck

The great thing about cycling is that I am in good shape and feel healthy. The downside is that New England winters suck ass. The bitter cold, snow, sand and salt make riding in winter difficult. After my ride on thursday, I felt good for about 30 minutes from the adrenalin rush. A few hours later though, I really started to hate New England weather. I really @#$@%^ hate new england winters.

My body needs the endorphin rush of riding for 1-4 hours on the bike. Going to the gym really sucks from an mental and emotional perspective. Physically I can get in a good workout in 30 minutes, but I'm left with an emotional void.

I long to get out on the road for the hum of the wheels and solitude of tackling a big hill. The joy of pushing and spinning the wheels up a steep slope for 2-5 miles is emotionally and spiritually satisfying. It is similar to the spiritual high I used to get surfing in southern california.

I really do hate new england winters. I just want to get on the bike and ride.

I must be crazy

Today I was itching to ride, so I looked out side. The streets looked clear and the sky was partly cloudy. Around lunch time I headed for a ride. I wore the Pearl Izumi AmFib tights and pro soft shell jacket.

Outside, there was still snow on the ground from the snow earlier in the week.

For the first 3 miles, my fingers were freezing. At first I was planning on a 14 mile loop, but after 3 miles I decided a short ride was wiser. Getting frost bite is not my idea of fun. Around 6 miles, my hands started to warm up, but they were still freezing.

A sane person would not ride 8.5 miles in 24 degree temperature. Including wind chill, it felt like 15 degrees. The Sigma Rox8 bike computer I bought worked well. One feature I really like is the heart rate zones. It tells me how long my heart rate was in each zone.

The worst part about riding in cold weather is the cold air on the lungs. I don't know about others, but lower than 32 degrees it really stings to take a deep breathe. Under 20 degrees it's just hard to get a full breathe.