Night Riding

Everyone who has tried riding the trainer knows what I'm talking about when I say, every minute on the trainer can seem like 5 min., unless you are one of the exceptions who can turn off your brain for an hour or two! To make the time go faster I recommend having a TV with the sound off, some rippin good music and a fan blowing on you, all at the same time. There is another solution, and that is check into buying a good light for night riding. I'm not talking about your average $40-60 models. Today your serious night rider is sporting a unit that will cost $200-$400 and I believe they are rated in candle power.

Ride Right

While on the Grand Performance Sprint ride, at the intersection of Cliff and Johnny Cake Rd. Joe Christian, who leads Mello Velo tours was hit from behind by a pickups passengers mirror on the left shoulder. Lucky for him, and he told me so, that the big mirror was ducked taped on so it broke away very easy. Dan Casebeer said that the pickup came very close to him while riding behind Joe. I was right behind Joe and to the right so I could see the whole thing. The driver sped away knowing what had happened. If Joe would have been just 1 ft. or less further to the left we would have been making a 911 call. The driver of the pickup had alot of room to avoid all this but he was the 1/10th of 1 % of the drivers who have this mentality towards bike riders on THEIR road.

Chain Maintenance

I always check my chain for excess stretch at around 2,000 miles. I laid out my old one, and laid the new one along the side of it to see how much the old one had stretched out. You should lay them together to make sure you break the new one at the same length as the old. The old one was 3/16th of an inch longer. This might not seem like a lot but, it is when you start talking about the extra wear it can put on your front chainrings and your cogset in the rear. I currently have over 20,000 mi. on my chainrings and my cassette. A new chain every 2,000 mi is cheap compared to what you will pay for the other drivetrain components. That 2,000. mi is based on aggressive riding, so if your riding is more laid back you might be able to get 3,000 mi. Of course with the new 11 speeds the chain plates are thinner, and you know what that means.

Keep Those Tires Aired Up

Always air up your tires before every ride. Tires can loose up to 7 lbs. of pressure in 24 hrs. On the side wall of your tires you can find suggested psi info. You can safely add 10 lbs. to this number without any worry but, will give you a little harsher ride. I ride Continentals 4000 tire and always inflate my rear to 120, and front to 110. Having the correct psi will give you less rolling resistance while eliminating pinch flats from hitting something sharp and hard especially if you are a heavier rider.

Use the Correct Brake Pads for Your Wheels

When using full carbon wheels without a machined brake surface, make sure you use the correct brake pad to make sure you have adequate stopping power, not to mention so you don't ruin your investment! Many times these brake pads use cork instead of the rubber compound you are more familiar with.

How to Check Carbon Frames for Damage

From VeloNews' Lennard Zinn:
"Inspect all tubes for cracks, gouges, buckles, dents, and paint stretching or cracking, especially near the joints where stress is highest. With a carbon frame, use the "coin test" to check for damage to underlying carbon layers. Tap on the tube with a quarter in the questionable areas and compare it with the sound on other tubes, in surrounding areas, and on the opposite side. If you have delamination or cracking in underlying carbon layers, especially in central areas away from the joints, you'll be able to hear the difference; the damaged fibers deaden the nice "clack" sound you hear when tapping on an undamaged tube. If in doubt, take it to an expert for advice. Carbon structures that look good on the outside shouldn't get softer unless the layers start delaminating, and the coin test may be able to detect such areas."

What is in Your Saddle Bag

Everyone carries a saddle bag right? In yours you should have 2 tubes, 2 CO2 cartridges (16 gram) unless you carry a frame pump. A patch kit, tire irons, 10 bucks preferably in case you need to bribe a driver for a ride home. This $10 bill can also be used as a boot for the inside of your tire casing if you get a cut to big for a patch. But most importantly, is the need to have some form of ID and a contact # in case of an emergency. Hopefully you will never need the last item.

Chamois Cream

For those of you who are fairly new to our sport, and are doing a long ride that involves more than 2 hrs. of saddle time, I highly recommend some sort of chamois cream to protect you from chaffing and the dreaded "saddle sore" which in the past has kept even the pro's off the bike for a few days. The brand Chamois Butt'r Eurostyle is a good one that is formulated to create a cooling and soothing effect.

Removing a Stuck Seat Post

Here is an interesting article in Velo News regarding Stuck Seat Posts. If you fail to do some maintainance of cleaning and loosening at least once a year, you might become stuck with this same problem which could be big. Every year at the end of the season I take mine out, clean it, and add a light coat of high quality grease to the post. I also put a fine bead of silicone where the post itself meets the seat tube. This will help prevent water from running down the post into the tube itself. Simple but, effective. I have never had a problem.

DIY Repairs

If you would like the challenge and self satisfaction of fixing your bike yourself visit parktool.com for lots of videos on do it yourself repairs, and tons of other helpful info. Means more $ to spend at Starbucks.

Drafting

Either the wind can be your friend or foe. Even the Pro's can misjudge the effects it can have in a race from time to time. The name of the game is conserving energy. That's what I do on the Wed. night Penn Cycle rides which usually average 22-23 mph. Knowing which direction it is from, and getting into position especially prior to taking turns that can quickly change a tailwind into a severe crosswind is paramount to surviving til the end. On our rides that's why you might here me say ride further to the right or left in order to benefit everyone in back of the lead rider. Keep this tip on your mind all the time and you to will be a better more accomplished rider because of it.