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Lets go ride bikes!
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Dorian Gray
Veteran Member
 
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Paris, France
 
2016-09-29, 04:56

Quote:
Originally Posted by Eugene View Post
Over an hour around 3.7 w/kg...
Okay. Pretty fit and/or reasonably gifted genetically, but I’m in that ballpark on a good day. Pity we can’t go for a ride together.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Eugene View Post
As for obsolescence. Why would my drivetrain become obsolete in a few years? As long as I replace old batteries, I plan on using the crankarms, shifters and derailleurs until they cannot be repaired.
The day they cannot be repaired may come sooner rather than later. You mention your friend’s Di2, but 10-speed Di2 is a good example of planned obsolescence. Even if you don’t want the new 11-speed version, which is of course marketed and reviewed and hyped as a must-have upgrade, you simply cannot buy important spare parts for 10-speed Di2 any more. The web is full of tales of woe from owners caught like this.

Maybe SRAM will try harder with spare parts, but they’re as bad as anyone for introducing incremental/meaningless changes as often as possible.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Eugene View Post
AFAIK we have never been told that wider tires are more aero...
Well, not just tyres but rims and tyres. Loads of people are claiming aerodynamic benefits for wider wheels. The story doing the rounds is that wider wheels help reattach the airflow to the rims and/or prevent early separation on the trailing edge. It’s all a bit make-believe, pretending we’re talking about laminar flow and clean air rather than the utter mess that is a bicycle wheel spinning in a frame (swapping leading and trailing edges twice per revolution) and following another rider in front or at least the front wheel (for the rear wheel).

It would not surprise me at all if my narrow, box-section rims and 24.5 mm tyres have less real-world drag than your aero jobbies and 29 mm tyres. Whereas most cyclists, fed a diet of nonsense by a witless cycling press, would assume your wheels to be vastly slipperier than mine.

But, sure, you want your wide tyres regardless of aerodynamic concerns. I understand that.

It’s telling to look at the average speed of races such as the Paris–Roubaix you mentioned above. The fastest average speed of the winner remains that of Peter Post in 1964, riding a bicycle like these at over 45 km/h. How do you square that with the outlandish claims made by the makers of aero wheels, helmets, shoes, clothing, and now frames? Remember too that the peloton has doubled in size and become more professional and less controlled. Presumably training methods and diet have also improved. And yet, improvements in average speed on flat races have been marginal in half a century (mountain stages have seen big improvements from lower gearing and new ways of racing mountain days).

… engrossed in such factional acts as dreaming different dreams.
  quote
Eugene
careful with axes
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Hillsborough, CA
 
2016-09-29, 05:51

Quote:
Originally Posted by Dorian Gray View Post

It’s telling to look at the average speed of races such as the Paris–Roubaix you mentioned above. The fastest average speed of the winner remains that of Peter Post in 1964, riding a bicycle like these at over 45 km/h. How do you square that with the outlandish claims made by the makers of aero wheels, helmets, shoes, clothing, and now frames? Remember too that the peloton has doubled in size and become more professional and less controlled. Presumably training methods and diet have also improved. And yet, improvements in average speed on flat races have been marginal in half a century (mountain stages have seen big improvements from lower gearing and new ways of racing mountain days).
It's hard to compare even one-day races from one year to the next because the courses change. Perhaps Post had favorable conditions. The next two fastest avg speeds were posted in the last 3 editions of the race. If only we had power data from the 1964 race to compare with Mat Hayman's from this year...

Surely teams would be wise to the data from the paper you mentioned and demanding narrower tire/wheel combinations? AFAIK Cannondale-Drapac are the only team consistently running 23mm tires since their wheel spin for Mavic has been slow to jump on the wide rim bandwagon.

--

As for my fitness level, definitely not genetically gifted in terms of muscle performance, but perhaps in avoiding weight gain. I'm currently 145 pounds and over the summer I had been riding 150-200mi weeks with ~15-20000ft worth of climbing. I've been going at it pretty hard and even brought my bike with me to a destination wedding. I only did Shasta at 200W average over 1:35, but that was also on a very cold morning and at much higher elevation than I am accustomed to. Also a ride where I was content to look up and enjoy the view every once in a while.

Last edited by Eugene : 2016-09-29 at 06:19.
  quote
Dorian Gray
Veteran Member
 
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Paris, France
 
2016-09-29, 07:05

Froome and Sky experimented with 22 mm tubulars (so actual width 22 mm) on road bikes last year (they still routinely use 22 mm tubulars in time trials).

Sky uses Shimano wheels; wasn’t Shimano also reluctant to go wide? I’m not well informed about high-end wheels.

But if Mavic and Shimano, both traditionally engineering-led companies, are slow to adopt a trend, that may be for sound reasons.

I think pro teams are almost as susceptible to market trends as the guy on the street, for two reasons: they’re sponsored so need to use their sponsor’s latest kit, and their component buyers operate in the same sphere of discussion and new developments as we do.

Regardless, the trend to wider wheels is a good thing for most cyclists, but chiefly because it results in wider tyres.

Sounds like you had a good summer of cycling. Do you have a preferred power meter?

… engrossed in such factional acts as dreaming different dreams.
  quote
Eugene
careful with axes
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Hillsborough, CA
 
2016-09-29, 16:36

I use the Garmin Vector 2s, but not for any particular reason. The battery lasts about half a year and they are more exposed in the event of a crash.
  quote
Dorian Gray
Veteran Member
 
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Paris, France
 
2016-10-01, 05:47

How much faffing around is required at the start of a ride to calibrate or do the zero-offset or whatever is needed with these pedals?

I don’t have a power meter. My estimate above is from putting climb performances into a cycling power calculator and reading charts of power versus time to estimate FTP. Having done this for more climbs for which I have data, I think I’m a little lower than you actually, maybe closer to 3.3 or 3.4 W/kg. But I’d like to know for sure.

Since I have unusual cranks, I can’t go with Stages or 4iiii. Don’t want a PowerTap hub either, since I like my wheels. Pedal-based systems are therefore appealing and the single-sided Garmin looks decent value.

I’m torn between the simple beauty of just riding my bicycle and the wish to optimise my fitness with data. The latter is tempting because I think I have some (modest) genetic talent, based on my performance still visibly improving after a bout of hard rides. I don’t formally train.

This guy tells interesting stories about winning Cat 3 races on a ~200 W FTP, which is at the very least an entertaining idea. He can sprint, of course. I can’t properly sprint (i.e. 15–20-second efforts) but I have a punch that lets me close gaps and shake off followers on climbs or (if they’re weak or not draft-savvy) on the flat. I am way more aero than most people despite the high handlebars – I bend my elbows – so among non-racers I can hold my own on the flat against big guys with more power but no idea.

I guess I’ll never know if I’m any good if I don’t follow a training plan for a year.

… engrossed in such factional acts as dreaming different dreams.
  quote
Eugene
careful with axes
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Hillsborough, CA
 
2016-10-01, 17:17

Oh yeah, the calibration process is annoying because it requires a bit of menu diving. If only it popped up with a calibrate dialog when the device is turned on and detects the PM for the first time.
  quote
Eugene
careful with axes
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Hillsborough, CA
 
2016-10-13, 18:22

Not the best place for someone to drop a random patch of sand...



Front camera grabs.




Last edited by Eugene : 2016-10-14 at 00:50.
  quote
Dorian Gray
Veteran Member
 
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Paris, France
 
2016-10-14, 04:20

Cool frame grabs. I see you didn’t slide along the tarmac this time.

Diesel spills are occasionally a problem where I live. People overfill their vehicles and some of it sloshes out on curves and roundabouts – which is of course the last place you want to encounter diesel on a bicycle.

… engrossed in such factional acts as dreaming different dreams.
  quote
PB PM
Sneaky Punk
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Vancouver, BC
Send a message via Skype™ to PB PM 
2016-10-14, 12:01

Nice setup to get those shots. Is your phone chest mounted or a dedicated camera?

It's too bad the rainy season has settled in here in Vancouver, not many days for serious riding. I used to ride right through winter, but that was before I had a car. I don't miss falling on black-ice. Thankful I have other means of staying fit.

My current method of tracking my riding is a cheap bike computer, which always stops working whenever I get too far above sea level. Yeah really helpful. Any suggestions for something that doesn't cost more than $100? Is some kind of fitness watch better than the computers, or is that just a waste of time?
  quote
Eugene
careful with axes
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Hillsborough, CA
 
2016-10-14, 14:26

It's a Hero 5 mounted on a chest harness. Not the best set up for a road cyclist because of the range of positions we go through on a ride. I have the camera tilted at a 60 degree angle when standing straight up. Anything less and those photos above would have just been shots of my top tube and my feet.
  quote
Eugene
careful with axes
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Hillsborough, CA
 
2016-11-22, 23:43

Ribbit.

  quote
Eugene
careful with axes
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Hillsborough, CA
 
2017-03-31, 02:14

Well, with cutting a bit of weight and A LOT of Zwift over the winter, my FTP is now >4w/kg. I still get dusted on flat roads by heavier/stronger riders, but I can drop those same guys on climbs.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Eugene View Post
Oh yeah, the calibration process is annoying because it requires a bit of menu diving. If only it popped up with a calibrate dialog when the device is turned on and detects the PM for the first time.
Forget this. I realized there is a setting to bring up a calibrate dialog whenever a saved PM is detected.

Last edited by Eugene : 2017-03-31 at 04:02.
  quote
Dorian Gray
Veteran Member
 
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Paris, France
 
2017-03-31, 10:02

That’s impressive, and I’m surprised you’re still having a hard time on the flat at that kind of power. I seem to do alright on the flat with less power (still guessing about my power). Obviously it depends who you ride with.

I draft efficiently, and I’m sure I’m more aero than everyone I ride with (narrow 40 cm bars, low torso, very tight-fitting (size S) Rapha Pro Team Training Jacket, etc.).

I had a good winter but then got a major chest infection in January and was practically off the bike for a month. Since then I keep getting light colds and have been struggling to return to form. Enjoying my cycling, though.

You should consider racing if you don’t already. You have enough power to make it fun.

… engrossed in such factional acts as dreaming different dreams.
  quote
Eugene
careful with axes
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Hillsborough, CA
 
2017-04-25, 04:47

I ran a bunch of cyclists through FaceApp for another forum, but I may as well put it here too.

Meet Petra Sagan.



And a young Froomey.



And female Esteban Chaves looks just like male Esteban Chaves.



Whoa.



Caleb.



Sir Chris Hoy.



Wiggo.



Tiffany Cromwell.



Lemond.



GVA.



Bom Toonen.



Dan Lloyd.



And Last but not least.

  quote
Eugene
careful with axes
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Hillsborough, CA
 
2017-04-25, 05:24

Bonus Cavendish...



Aaaand Tom Boonen responded...

Last edited by Eugene : 2017-04-25 at 06:57.
  quote
Ryan
Veteran Member
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Promise Land of Trustafarians
 
2017-05-29, 00:05

Any recommendations for laptop panniers? I've been hearing good things about Arkel.
  quote
Ryan
Veteran Member
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Promise Land of Trustafarians
 
2017-06-06, 09:56

Picked up my new bike yesterday. Marin Fairfax SC2:



Biked to work for the first time today. Not nearly as sweaty as I feared.
  quote
Eugene
careful with axes
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Hillsborough, CA
 
2017-06-06, 23:29

Here's what I've been up to: https://www.instagram.com/dorkeugene/
  quote
Ryan
Veteran Member
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Promise Land of Trustafarians
 
2020-10-02, 20:58

My bike was stolen last week, so today I bought a new one. Salsa Journeyman with flat bars and 650b tires.



Looking forward to having something a bit more capable than my old hybrid.

While I was in New Zealand last year I got really into bike touring, this one should serve me well for some light multi-day rights.
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