Friday, November 8, 2013
It's been a while.....
Hi folks....I'm back! Not that I really went away. I stopped updating the blog a while back because the desire kinda just went. But now there's a new lease of life and I will be posting some updates over the coming weeks including a summary of the last almost 24 months, success at WEMBO, maybe another Fitz's write up and a brief look at what's planned in the year ahead (including a bit of a new direction)
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Puzzles
So I finally got my hands on a set of the new XTR cranks, and things didn't go smoothly fitting everything up. Normally changing cranks is a 1/2 hour job...this it turned into a full on 80 minutes!
Removing the old gear went smoothly, fitting the new chains was OK, adjusting the front derailleur I hit problems. Because the outer ring is 39t I had to drop the derailleur down and there wasn't enough clearance on the chainstay for the bottom of the derailleur. Moving it back up resulted in a gap of about 9mm or way to much above the big ring, even though it shifted perfectly.
Cursing and swearing ensued until I decided to pillage the SRAM XX derailleur off the Salty. Cue having to break two chains removing and swapping the derailleurs and readjusting the stops. And I was finally done.
Shifting is OK with the SRAM derailleur but definitely not as smooth. I'll get it on the dirt tomorrow and test it out. Again though I have full range of gears with no rubbing on the cranks or derailleur, it's great!!!
Still in the box
The old
The New...yay 30gms!
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Alpine Challenge 2011
Well behind the eight ball again with the ride report for the 250km Alpine Challenge. But here it is finally.....
Unlike last year I wasn’t as nervous this year with the route having ridden it previously. Also the volume of training leading up to this year’s event meant I had almost 3x the kilometres in my legs including some big days in the mountains from the Kosciusko 360 ride. Even the drive down this year was more relaxed with 2x stops at McD’s to allow Wee Man out to have a run around the in playground and stretch the legs. The start/ finish area was the same as last year situated beside the Oven River, and I swore to the wife that once I finished this year I was going straight into the water as a cool down.
This time around I actually got a full night’s undisturbed sleep and woke up refreshed before chugging down 2x cans of chocolate creamed rice. The drive was again in the dark to the start with a pull over at the top of Towanga Gap as Wee Man.....well needed to wee!
Getting to the start I loaded up the pockets with food for the day and rolled to the start.
After hearing a couple of snippets of conversation I realised the 250k wasn’t starting for the same place as last time up around the corner for some reason so I hopped up onto the side walk and pushed my way clear of about 200 people before heading around the corner and getting to the start proper.
I caught up with Thomo who I met on the Kosciusko 360k ride and he picked my brain for 5 minutes about the course and what lay ahead.
The Start to Mt Hotham
At 6.30am we were set off and rolled out at what felt like a very leisurely pace for the climb up Mt Hotham....but in fact it was probably about 30kph. My legs weren’t feeling fantastic, but at the same time I was feeling antsy to get the pace a bit higher. So when we hit the first slopes on Hotham I hit it hard, firstly to try and warm the legs up but also to get some pace into the bunch.
People soon settled into their rhythm and a largish group of about 12 formed at the front which stayed together through and across the top and false flat before the exploding after the descent and the final climb up to the peak of Mt Hotham. Like last year my legs just refused to work up this second portion of the climb and I soon found myself riding with 3 others while a group of 6 disappeared up the road. The road through this section this year was battered by freezing crosswinds which made the going even harder and I was hoping it was not a omen of things to come.
On the decent from the top we had a ripping tailwind as the direction changed and screamed into the first checkpoint at Dinner Plains.
Getting in I quickly refilled my bottles got my wrist band scanned and managed to roll out with the front group again!
Falls Creek
For the next 10-15ks we had a tailwind at our backs and made excellent time before dropping into the valley and loosing the wind completely. About now my legs were starting to protest a bit at the pace and on a couple of the rollers I started to lose contact before the final big climb into Omeo the elastic snapped completely on the climb. I kept the group in sight but I didn’t rejoin them before the next checkpoint. This one proved to more chaotic and we lost a couple of riders and ended up rolling out with only two others.
The other two weren’t too sure if the others were ahead or behind and so after catching a couple of riders from the group that started at 4.30am we worked out they were behind and slowed the tempo down up the climb out of Omeo. This allowed a bit more of a recovery, and we avoided running over the wiggly stick that was making it’s way across the road halfway up the climb.
Talking to the others, I found out that one of them was the one that had crashed on the decent off Towanga Gap last year and ended up going to hospital.
The other 4 riders caught back up across the top of the climb before the decent down into Anglers rest and the climb up to falls creek. Due to the wind this year the descent wasn’t as fun and you had to work quite hard to keep the momentum up. The group stopped at Anglers rest to refill bottles before we took the left hander and began the climb up Back of Falls. I filled up my bottle and rolled out by myself and set a slower pace until the others caught back up.
Next was the left hander and given the way I was feeling I thought this would be the last I would see of the others but I was in for a surprise. The road kicked and I got out of the saddle and suddenly the legs came to life....I was suddenly feeling strong the initial 20% grade and a couple of the others who I expected to ride off dropped off the pace.
As the graded settled a group of four formed in front on me while I settled into a high tempo pace knowing what lay ahead. The group only got a lead of about 200m before two riders lost contact. This gave me something to chase over the next 3k, slowly reeling in one then the second. The other two had disappeared from sight, but I was enjoying the climb this year rather than suffering. The road had bedded in over the previous 12 months and while there was a surface of loose stones every so often it was miles ahead of the year before. What also helped this year was the temps were definitely down by about 5 or 6 degrees.
At the top of the climb into the alpine area, the wind picked becoming into a wicked crosswind and after a couple of kilometres I spotted the two lightweights that had disappeared up the climb. Picking up slower riders as I went I soon had a 5 rider echelon sitting behind me as I drove it to close the gap by the time we reached the Falls Creek check point. Coming into falls Creek I had shut down all but 100 metres of the gap and when we stopped the look on the other two riders face was priceless, one of how did the guy that had been struggling for the previous 50ks close a 2 minute gap inside of 15kms????
A bottle refill and we were off with the standard warning about the lefthander 1.7kms on the way down. I decided I would have some fun on the way down, and started chasing a Ford Falcon through the top section of corners sitting about 2m off the rear bumper. The only problem with this was that because the straights were so short, accelerating to 60kph then braking down to 25kph for the corners I heated up my rear rim and caused the tire to blow off the rim after about 6kms of the descent. Luckily I managed to stop from 60kph to 0 in only about 20m. I’m actually pretty lucky it wasn’t the front as I’m not sure I could have kept it upright.
The other two stopped, surprised that I had kept it upright after the tire exploding before disappearing off down the decent when I assured them I was alright. With the tire already half off the rim it made the tire change easier. However as I found out the disadvantage of a mini pump is you really can’t get enough air into the tire to be confident on a decent.
Once back up and running with a softish tire I continued making my way down the descent with more caution this time.
The decent has a nasty kick in the middle of it, and after the time on the side of the road my legs didn’t appreciate it much. Down into Mt Beauty and the drag along the main road before the left hander and the road up Towanga Gap.
Towanga Gap
At this point I decided to shut it down up the climb so as not to go too far into the box for the day. I set an easy tempo up the climb using the 26 and 29 tooth cogs on the back before pulling into the way stop after 3kms up the climb. I refilled my bottle and started on my merry way for the remaining 5kms of the climb before cresting the climb.
On the descent I exercised caution again, and sure enough on the same corner as last year there was a rider in the ditch being attended to by medical officers. His bike was poking out of the ditch with the front end snapped of front the impact of going into the ditch. Another timely reminder that there is no need to push it when you don’t need to.
The valley floor was drag again with a headwind before the turn back onto the main road and into town. I linked up with another rider at this point and we traded of turns until crossing the line.
Numbers for the Day
So the numbers from the day were,
Time: 9:11hrs
Distance:248Kms
Climbing:4370mtrs
NP:237w
IF:0.818
TSS:517
Calories:5809
Unlike last year I wasn’t as nervous this year with the route having ridden it previously. Also the volume of training leading up to this year’s event meant I had almost 3x the kilometres in my legs including some big days in the mountains from the Kosciusko 360 ride. Even the drive down this year was more relaxed with 2x stops at McD’s to allow Wee Man out to have a run around the in playground and stretch the legs. The start/ finish area was the same as last year situated beside the Oven River, and I swore to the wife that once I finished this year I was going straight into the water as a cool down.
This time around I actually got a full night’s undisturbed sleep and woke up refreshed before chugging down 2x cans of chocolate creamed rice. The drive was again in the dark to the start with a pull over at the top of Towanga Gap as Wee Man.....well needed to wee!
Getting to the start I loaded up the pockets with food for the day and rolled to the start.
After hearing a couple of snippets of conversation I realised the 250k wasn’t starting for the same place as last time up around the corner for some reason so I hopped up onto the side walk and pushed my way clear of about 200 people before heading around the corner and getting to the start proper.
I caught up with Thomo who I met on the Kosciusko 360k ride and he picked my brain for 5 minutes about the course and what lay ahead.
The Start to Mt Hotham
At 6.30am we were set off and rolled out at what felt like a very leisurely pace for the climb up Mt Hotham....but in fact it was probably about 30kph. My legs weren’t feeling fantastic, but at the same time I was feeling antsy to get the pace a bit higher. So when we hit the first slopes on Hotham I hit it hard, firstly to try and warm the legs up but also to get some pace into the bunch.
People soon settled into their rhythm and a largish group of about 12 formed at the front which stayed together through and across the top and false flat before the exploding after the descent and the final climb up to the peak of Mt Hotham. Like last year my legs just refused to work up this second portion of the climb and I soon found myself riding with 3 others while a group of 6 disappeared up the road. The road through this section this year was battered by freezing crosswinds which made the going even harder and I was hoping it was not a omen of things to come.
On the decent from the top we had a ripping tailwind as the direction changed and screamed into the first checkpoint at Dinner Plains.
Getting in I quickly refilled my bottles got my wrist band scanned and managed to roll out with the front group again!
Falls Creek
For the next 10-15ks we had a tailwind at our backs and made excellent time before dropping into the valley and loosing the wind completely. About now my legs were starting to protest a bit at the pace and on a couple of the rollers I started to lose contact before the final big climb into Omeo the elastic snapped completely on the climb. I kept the group in sight but I didn’t rejoin them before the next checkpoint. This one proved to more chaotic and we lost a couple of riders and ended up rolling out with only two others.
The other two weren’t too sure if the others were ahead or behind and so after catching a couple of riders from the group that started at 4.30am we worked out they were behind and slowed the tempo down up the climb out of Omeo. This allowed a bit more of a recovery, and we avoided running over the wiggly stick that was making it’s way across the road halfway up the climb.
Talking to the others, I found out that one of them was the one that had crashed on the decent off Towanga Gap last year and ended up going to hospital.
The other 4 riders caught back up across the top of the climb before the decent down into Anglers rest and the climb up to falls creek. Due to the wind this year the descent wasn’t as fun and you had to work quite hard to keep the momentum up. The group stopped at Anglers rest to refill bottles before we took the left hander and began the climb up Back of Falls. I filled up my bottle and rolled out by myself and set a slower pace until the others caught back up.
Next was the left hander and given the way I was feeling I thought this would be the last I would see of the others but I was in for a surprise. The road kicked and I got out of the saddle and suddenly the legs came to life....I was suddenly feeling strong the initial 20% grade and a couple of the others who I expected to ride off dropped off the pace.
As the graded settled a group of four formed in front on me while I settled into a high tempo pace knowing what lay ahead. The group only got a lead of about 200m before two riders lost contact. This gave me something to chase over the next 3k, slowly reeling in one then the second. The other two had disappeared from sight, but I was enjoying the climb this year rather than suffering. The road had bedded in over the previous 12 months and while there was a surface of loose stones every so often it was miles ahead of the year before. What also helped this year was the temps were definitely down by about 5 or 6 degrees.
At the top of the climb into the alpine area, the wind picked becoming into a wicked crosswind and after a couple of kilometres I spotted the two lightweights that had disappeared up the climb. Picking up slower riders as I went I soon had a 5 rider echelon sitting behind me as I drove it to close the gap by the time we reached the Falls Creek check point. Coming into falls Creek I had shut down all but 100 metres of the gap and when we stopped the look on the other two riders face was priceless, one of how did the guy that had been struggling for the previous 50ks close a 2 minute gap inside of 15kms????
A bottle refill and we were off with the standard warning about the lefthander 1.7kms on the way down. I decided I would have some fun on the way down, and started chasing a Ford Falcon through the top section of corners sitting about 2m off the rear bumper. The only problem with this was that because the straights were so short, accelerating to 60kph then braking down to 25kph for the corners I heated up my rear rim and caused the tire to blow off the rim after about 6kms of the descent. Luckily I managed to stop from 60kph to 0 in only about 20m. I’m actually pretty lucky it wasn’t the front as I’m not sure I could have kept it upright.
The other two stopped, surprised that I had kept it upright after the tire exploding before disappearing off down the decent when I assured them I was alright. With the tire already half off the rim it made the tire change easier. However as I found out the disadvantage of a mini pump is you really can’t get enough air into the tire to be confident on a decent.
Once back up and running with a softish tire I continued making my way down the descent with more caution this time.
The decent has a nasty kick in the middle of it, and after the time on the side of the road my legs didn’t appreciate it much. Down into Mt Beauty and the drag along the main road before the left hander and the road up Towanga Gap.
Towanga Gap
At this point I decided to shut it down up the climb so as not to go too far into the box for the day. I set an easy tempo up the climb using the 26 and 29 tooth cogs on the back before pulling into the way stop after 3kms up the climb. I refilled my bottle and started on my merry way for the remaining 5kms of the climb before cresting the climb.
On the descent I exercised caution again, and sure enough on the same corner as last year there was a rider in the ditch being attended to by medical officers. His bike was poking out of the ditch with the front end snapped of front the impact of going into the ditch. Another timely reminder that there is no need to push it when you don’t need to.
The valley floor was drag again with a headwind before the turn back onto the main road and into town. I linked up with another rider at this point and we traded of turns until crossing the line.
Numbers for the Day
So the numbers from the day were,
Time: 9:11hrs
Distance:248Kms
Climbing:4370mtrs
NP:237w
IF:0.818
TSS:517
Calories:5809
Friday, January 21, 2011
Kosciusko 360 Day 2
Khancoban to Cabramurra
The day dawned and I woke up not at all refreshed due to a fitful sleep. Due to Khancoban being small there wasn’t alot of choice for breakfast options, but the boys managed to convince the local takeaway shop to open at 8.00am. So it was another game of load the car up then off to breakfast. 45 minutes later everyone had eaten their fill, but there hadn’t been much in the way to talk with everyone in deep contemplation of the day ahead.
I came out of the takeaway shop to find my front tire had decided to go flat, so I did a quick change and we hit the road out of town at about 9.00am. The inital roads were course chipseal and heavy going before we took the right hander on the secondary road which would see us all the way to the snowy mountains highway. The first section of this really in bad repair with the top coat missing which just served to bash our already sore and tired bodies around more.
I was mentally hoping it was going to be like this the whole way otherwise what was shaping up to be a hard day was just going to get alot worse. Luckily after about 4k we dropped through a lefthander and began the never ending climb...or this is what I called it. First Andy then Gaz disappeared up the road leaving me to solo along at my pace. I decided to keep things pegged at a solid seated tempo and get out of the saddle to stretch and ease the legs through the numerous corners. The seal through here was good but it still felt like slow going.
I was watching the time and kms slowly tick away but it was alot slower than I had anticipated and by the time I finally reached the false flat along the top through the open alpine area I guessed I was about an hour behind schedule. The climb I had just come up was a solid two hour effort and the most climbing I had done in one stint ever.
Guestimating that I was still about an hour from Cabramurra, the next 10kms was pure torture with dead roads, driving crosswind and rolling to false flat climbs I mentally cracked at least three times through here.
The next false hope of the day was the descent into Tumut pond and realising I had to climb back out of the valley with 7kms to town. Being down at the dam and looking up while spectacular in view was a real mental kick in the teeth as the road just went up then disappear into the hill.
Up to this stage I had been playing tag with a bunch of motorcyclists with them roaring past and then stopping to look at the views allowing me to catch up before passing me again and off to the next scenic lookout. Ripping past me on the first steep portion I used the engine noise to work ou that in fact the road was a series of switch backs and wasn’t as bad as what I had been imagining.
Near the top I cracked again as I was out of water and stopped at one of the many culverts which had water coursing through it to top my bottles up. I knew how stupid I looked trying to clamber down these rocks to get at the flowing water but didn’t care. Immediately drinking half a bottle of some of the sweetest tasting water I almost over balanced and ended up face first in the culvert. It was here I had my first encounter with Australia’s marsh fly…..in fact I ended up with three bites including a huge one on my stomach which I didn’t discover till the next day when I was wondering what the pain down there was.
Out of the culvert and I hit up the last 1.5k to the top of the climb and the 2k roll down into Cabramurra. As I was coming into town Andy and Gaz were heading out. With the temps having dropped off about 7-10 degrees through the alpine area, I knew that the stop wasn’t going to be long. I grabbed a couple of cans of soft drink and sat down outside in a shaded are from the wind. I was trying to saviour the drink and clif bar I was throwing down my neck…but I’m sure that I drank both cans and ate the bar in under 5 minutes before saddling up for the next leg.
Cabramurra to Adaminaby
The next stage of the ride started with a climb for 500 metres before hooking left and back into the tree line and onto a downhill for a kilometre or two before more rollers and climbing. The road through here was as dead as previously and I was feeling better after the drink and food. Eventfully I broke out into another alpine area but it was completely different to the last one. The roads were fast the landscape was more of a grassy pasture type then the scrub that had been higher up.
Looking ahead I could see the huge black clouds and knew I was going to be in for rain inside of the next half an hour. Plugging along with a slight tail crosswind I soon reached the intersection with the Snowy Mtns highway. Turning right onto this brought a huge smile to my face, I was back on good hotmix and the wind was now a tailwind and even though I had begun to drizzle I didn’t care as I knew the next 30kms was going to be quick and a lot easier than the past 5 hours.
The rain stayed at a drizzle for most of the next hour as I hauled a$$ over the downhill rollers enjoying every minute of it. It was about 5kms from Adaminaby that the heavens opened up properly on me and I was drenched to the bone inside of a minute. The rain was intense but it wasn’t cold which was a relief.
My head became a bit foggy at this point and I passed a sign pointing off to the right to Old Adaminaby. I almost made the mistake of taking the turn down here but decided no it wasn’t the right way, and rolled into Adaminaby about 5 minutes later. I found Andy and Gaz sheltering inside the local tearooms and quickly bought another 2 cans of drink and repeated the procedure at the previous stop. They had been there for about 20 minutes previously and by the look of the table had eaten half the shop. Apparently they had been riding in solid rain for about the previous 30 kilometres and had only just started to dry out. As I was freshly soaked I wasn’t keen on sitting around so we ended up rolling out for the final 50 kilometres together.
Adaminaby to Cooma
Starting out Gaz soon let me know that he was blown and only able to roll through occasionally so Andy and I took turns at taking measured turns on the front making sure Gaz didn’t get gapped on any of the rollers we were soon going over. The rain remained steady or torrential depending on where we were but we were making good time and kilometre kept ticking over.
I started to do some mental calculations to work out when we would be back in Cooma as I had told wifey it should be about 5pm and it was looking close. In one torrential down pour on a downhill section I ended up gapping Andy & Gaz as I was having to much stomping on the pedals with the crosswinds. When I ended up turning around I found I was suddenly on my own with Andy and Gaz about 300 metres back…..opps. After this I eased up and made sure I didn’t push too hard into any of the cross winds.
Eventually we were back on the main road into Cooma and with only a couple of small risers it was soon into town and dodging the cars and a right turn into the Macca’s carpark.
I think all three of us were please with completing the ride, and more so given the conditions over the final 2.5hrs.
Numbers for the Second day
Ride Time 7.33hrs
Total Time: 8.02hrs
Distance 175kms
Climbing 2978m
Normalised Power 230w
TSS 415
IF 79%
I have to say that this was great way to start the year with a huge kick to the training and I will definitely be up for it next year.
The day dawned and I woke up not at all refreshed due to a fitful sleep. Due to Khancoban being small there wasn’t alot of choice for breakfast options, but the boys managed to convince the local takeaway shop to open at 8.00am. So it was another game of load the car up then off to breakfast. 45 minutes later everyone had eaten their fill, but there hadn’t been much in the way to talk with everyone in deep contemplation of the day ahead.
I came out of the takeaway shop to find my front tire had decided to go flat, so I did a quick change and we hit the road out of town at about 9.00am. The inital roads were course chipseal and heavy going before we took the right hander on the secondary road which would see us all the way to the snowy mountains highway. The first section of this really in bad repair with the top coat missing which just served to bash our already sore and tired bodies around more.
I was mentally hoping it was going to be like this the whole way otherwise what was shaping up to be a hard day was just going to get alot worse. Luckily after about 4k we dropped through a lefthander and began the never ending climb...or this is what I called it. First Andy then Gaz disappeared up the road leaving me to solo along at my pace. I decided to keep things pegged at a solid seated tempo and get out of the saddle to stretch and ease the legs through the numerous corners. The seal through here was good but it still felt like slow going.
I was watching the time and kms slowly tick away but it was alot slower than I had anticipated and by the time I finally reached the false flat along the top through the open alpine area I guessed I was about an hour behind schedule. The climb I had just come up was a solid two hour effort and the most climbing I had done in one stint ever.
Guestimating that I was still about an hour from Cabramurra, the next 10kms was pure torture with dead roads, driving crosswind and rolling to false flat climbs I mentally cracked at least three times through here.
The next false hope of the day was the descent into Tumut pond and realising I had to climb back out of the valley with 7kms to town. Being down at the dam and looking up while spectacular in view was a real mental kick in the teeth as the road just went up then disappear into the hill.
Up to this stage I had been playing tag with a bunch of motorcyclists with them roaring past and then stopping to look at the views allowing me to catch up before passing me again and off to the next scenic lookout. Ripping past me on the first steep portion I used the engine noise to work ou that in fact the road was a series of switch backs and wasn’t as bad as what I had been imagining.
Near the top I cracked again as I was out of water and stopped at one of the many culverts which had water coursing through it to top my bottles up. I knew how stupid I looked trying to clamber down these rocks to get at the flowing water but didn’t care. Immediately drinking half a bottle of some of the sweetest tasting water I almost over balanced and ended up face first in the culvert. It was here I had my first encounter with Australia’s marsh fly…..in fact I ended up with three bites including a huge one on my stomach which I didn’t discover till the next day when I was wondering what the pain down there was.
Out of the culvert and I hit up the last 1.5k to the top of the climb and the 2k roll down into Cabramurra. As I was coming into town Andy and Gaz were heading out. With the temps having dropped off about 7-10 degrees through the alpine area, I knew that the stop wasn’t going to be long. I grabbed a couple of cans of soft drink and sat down outside in a shaded are from the wind. I was trying to saviour the drink and clif bar I was throwing down my neck…but I’m sure that I drank both cans and ate the bar in under 5 minutes before saddling up for the next leg.
Cabramurra to Adaminaby
The next stage of the ride started with a climb for 500 metres before hooking left and back into the tree line and onto a downhill for a kilometre or two before more rollers and climbing. The road through here was as dead as previously and I was feeling better after the drink and food. Eventfully I broke out into another alpine area but it was completely different to the last one. The roads were fast the landscape was more of a grassy pasture type then the scrub that had been higher up.
Looking ahead I could see the huge black clouds and knew I was going to be in for rain inside of the next half an hour. Plugging along with a slight tail crosswind I soon reached the intersection with the Snowy Mtns highway. Turning right onto this brought a huge smile to my face, I was back on good hotmix and the wind was now a tailwind and even though I had begun to drizzle I didn’t care as I knew the next 30kms was going to be quick and a lot easier than the past 5 hours.
The rain stayed at a drizzle for most of the next hour as I hauled a$$ over the downhill rollers enjoying every minute of it. It was about 5kms from Adaminaby that the heavens opened up properly on me and I was drenched to the bone inside of a minute. The rain was intense but it wasn’t cold which was a relief.
My head became a bit foggy at this point and I passed a sign pointing off to the right to Old Adaminaby. I almost made the mistake of taking the turn down here but decided no it wasn’t the right way, and rolled into Adaminaby about 5 minutes later. I found Andy and Gaz sheltering inside the local tearooms and quickly bought another 2 cans of drink and repeated the procedure at the previous stop. They had been there for about 20 minutes previously and by the look of the table had eaten half the shop. Apparently they had been riding in solid rain for about the previous 30 kilometres and had only just started to dry out. As I was freshly soaked I wasn’t keen on sitting around so we ended up rolling out for the final 50 kilometres together.
Adaminaby to Cooma
Starting out Gaz soon let me know that he was blown and only able to roll through occasionally so Andy and I took turns at taking measured turns on the front making sure Gaz didn’t get gapped on any of the rollers we were soon going over. The rain remained steady or torrential depending on where we were but we were making good time and kilometre kept ticking over.
I started to do some mental calculations to work out when we would be back in Cooma as I had told wifey it should be about 5pm and it was looking close. In one torrential down pour on a downhill section I ended up gapping Andy & Gaz as I was having to much stomping on the pedals with the crosswinds. When I ended up turning around I found I was suddenly on my own with Andy and Gaz about 300 metres back…..opps. After this I eased up and made sure I didn’t push too hard into any of the cross winds.
Eventually we were back on the main road into Cooma and with only a couple of small risers it was soon into town and dodging the cars and a right turn into the Macca’s carpark.
I think all three of us were please with completing the ride, and more so given the conditions over the final 2.5hrs.
Numbers for the Second day
Ride Time 7.33hrs
Total Time: 8.02hrs
Distance 175kms
Climbing 2978m
Normalised Power 230w
TSS 415
IF 79%
I have to say that this was great way to start the year with a huge kick to the training and I will definitely be up for it next year.
Monday, January 17, 2011
Kosciusko 360 Day 1
So this last weekend was the first (of hopefully many) running of the Kosciusko 360 ride around you guessed it Mt Kosciusko. The route was plotted by Big Jase just prior to Xmas and setup on Facebook for all comers with the date set down for the 8th & 9th of January.
Now whether this was a good choice in timing is still under debate given the mountainous route of the two days....
Day One: Cooma to Jindabyne.
The start was set down for a 10am rollout and as seems to be the norm recently I was running late. A combination of under estimating the drive time from Canberra and dumba$$ drivers meant we how into the Macca’s carpark at 10.05am. So after quickly sorting all my gear and bike out, I started to re-pack the car with everyone else’s overnight bag. Wifey had graciously agreed to pull sag wagon duties for the two days and also do some sightseeing as well.
So eventually we got rolling at 10.20am only 20 minutes behind schedule, and it was quick start with tail/ cross wind I eventually found myself up front with Andy, Gaz, & Thomo sitting on a good solid 40kph without much effort. From having previously ridden most of the roads for the first day so I knew what we were in for. But was surprised at the speed we were covering the ground. Having ridden from Cooma to Jindabyne before I remember dead alpine roads that just sucked all the life out of your legs...but not today.
With the high speed first Gaz then Andy were spat out the back leaving me at the front with Thomo for company till we got to Berridale and into the rolling hills. At the top of the long drag there was a regrouping and we were back to a group of four with no sign of the others. We set a moderate tempo for the remaining 10kms into Jindibyne.
We stopped at the servo there and didn’t really get the best of service...the woman behind the counter who reminded me of the crazy cat lady from the Simpsons, pissed off and made a 5 minute phone call when we walked in. So after we eventually got served it was a case of topping up the water bottles and hitting the road again.
We made the call not to wait for the others but to re-group for lunch at Thredbo.
Jindabyne to Thredbo
Knowing that the first climb on the road to Thredbo is long and steepish, I settled into something of a rhythm and watched Andy & Gaz ride off up the hill (which would continue to be a pattern for the weekend). The heat at this point was getting into the low 30’s so I made a point of trying to keep hydrated and just ride at a manageable pace. The road up the valley was a real trudge with the tar on the road melted and reflected heat making it more of baking nightmare.
Because the weekend was about training, I started to relax a bit and take in the scenery a more while slowly the km’s ticked over.
Eventually after about an hour and a half I made it to Thredbo. I kept riding past the first entrance and took the second straight to the bakery. Having spent a good chunk of my $20 I had thrown into the back pocket at the start of the day at Jindabyne of drinks. I was shocked when my H&C croissant and 2x cans of solo came to almost $13!
So I sat outside in the shade took my shoes off and slowly tried to eat the croissant and not skull the two cans of drink! I phoned wifey to find out where she was, and also sent Big Jase a text message to see how far away he was with no success.
After about ½ hour I rolled out to the garage on the main road where I found the others waiting and after 10 minutes Jase’s group rolled in and it was back to the bakery for another ½ an hour for more eating.
Thredbo to Khancoban
Once everyone had finished we hit the road again at about 3.00pm I muttered a prediction to wifey about what time we would be in at the finish for the day knowing I would be pushing it. The climb to the top of Dead Horse Gap reinforced that my legs were about half cooked and as the three other road away in the space of about 5k all I could do was watch.
At the top I settled in for the fun part! The descent down dead Horse is a 1km drop in about 12kms so makes for some very fast descending. Throw in sweeping corners and it’s enough to put a smile on anyone’s face. I managed to catch back up to the others on the way down and drop them by pushing harder into the corners and taking a couple more risks. And in a flash it was all over and we were out at Tom Groggins.
From here it was off into the unknown..well for me at least. The road from here consisted of initially a series of rollers (about 7-8) with a kick of about 20m to each one. At this point I was back riding with Gaz & Andy till we reached the last couple and I took my foot off the gas and dropped the pace back down.
It was a good thing too as there was a really sting in the final climb that went up about 500ms through a series of cuttings before eventually peaking at a dam /power station. This really hurt coning at about 155kms into the ride. Descent wise it was 7kms back down into the valley floor before the final 3kms to town.
Khancoban
Small town in the middle of the back of beyond.....Rolling in I almost decked myself on the ruts in the road along the left hand edge which were hiding in the shadows. The town centre was off to the right, but our accommodation was out the other side so I just kept going. I had been allocated a cabin close to the road so it was easy to spot the car.
Sitting down I started the re-hydration process with coffee milk and powerade happy with completing the first day but knowing there was a lot more to come tomorrow.
Data for the day
So first day over and the stats were,
Ride Time 6:22hrs
Total Time: 7:50hrs
Distance 171kms
Climbing 3075m
Normalised Power 243w
TSS 367
IF 83.9%
Dump from WKO
Now whether this was a good choice in timing is still under debate given the mountainous route of the two days....
Day One: Cooma to Jindabyne.
The start was set down for a 10am rollout and as seems to be the norm recently I was running late. A combination of under estimating the drive time from Canberra and dumba$$ drivers meant we how into the Macca’s carpark at 10.05am. So after quickly sorting all my gear and bike out, I started to re-pack the car with everyone else’s overnight bag. Wifey had graciously agreed to pull sag wagon duties for the two days and also do some sightseeing as well.
So eventually we got rolling at 10.20am only 20 minutes behind schedule, and it was quick start with tail/ cross wind I eventually found myself up front with Andy, Gaz, & Thomo sitting on a good solid 40kph without much effort. From having previously ridden most of the roads for the first day so I knew what we were in for. But was surprised at the speed we were covering the ground. Having ridden from Cooma to Jindabyne before I remember dead alpine roads that just sucked all the life out of your legs...but not today.
With the high speed first Gaz then Andy were spat out the back leaving me at the front with Thomo for company till we got to Berridale and into the rolling hills. At the top of the long drag there was a regrouping and we were back to a group of four with no sign of the others. We set a moderate tempo for the remaining 10kms into Jindibyne.
We stopped at the servo there and didn’t really get the best of service...the woman behind the counter who reminded me of the crazy cat lady from the Simpsons, pissed off and made a 5 minute phone call when we walked in. So after we eventually got served it was a case of topping up the water bottles and hitting the road again.
We made the call not to wait for the others but to re-group for lunch at Thredbo.
Jindabyne to Thredbo
Knowing that the first climb on the road to Thredbo is long and steepish, I settled into something of a rhythm and watched Andy & Gaz ride off up the hill (which would continue to be a pattern for the weekend). The heat at this point was getting into the low 30’s so I made a point of trying to keep hydrated and just ride at a manageable pace. The road up the valley was a real trudge with the tar on the road melted and reflected heat making it more of baking nightmare.
Because the weekend was about training, I started to relax a bit and take in the scenery a more while slowly the km’s ticked over.
Eventually after about an hour and a half I made it to Thredbo. I kept riding past the first entrance and took the second straight to the bakery. Having spent a good chunk of my $20 I had thrown into the back pocket at the start of the day at Jindabyne of drinks. I was shocked when my H&C croissant and 2x cans of solo came to almost $13!
So I sat outside in the shade took my shoes off and slowly tried to eat the croissant and not skull the two cans of drink! I phoned wifey to find out where she was, and also sent Big Jase a text message to see how far away he was with no success.
After about ½ hour I rolled out to the garage on the main road where I found the others waiting and after 10 minutes Jase’s group rolled in and it was back to the bakery for another ½ an hour for more eating.
Thredbo to Khancoban
Once everyone had finished we hit the road again at about 3.00pm I muttered a prediction to wifey about what time we would be in at the finish for the day knowing I would be pushing it. The climb to the top of Dead Horse Gap reinforced that my legs were about half cooked and as the three other road away in the space of about 5k all I could do was watch.
At the top I settled in for the fun part! The descent down dead Horse is a 1km drop in about 12kms so makes for some very fast descending. Throw in sweeping corners and it’s enough to put a smile on anyone’s face. I managed to catch back up to the others on the way down and drop them by pushing harder into the corners and taking a couple more risks. And in a flash it was all over and we were out at Tom Groggins.
From here it was off into the unknown..well for me at least. The road from here consisted of initially a series of rollers (about 7-8) with a kick of about 20m to each one. At this point I was back riding with Gaz & Andy till we reached the last couple and I took my foot off the gas and dropped the pace back down.
It was a good thing too as there was a really sting in the final climb that went up about 500ms through a series of cuttings before eventually peaking at a dam /power station. This really hurt coning at about 155kms into the ride. Descent wise it was 7kms back down into the valley floor before the final 3kms to town.
Khancoban
Small town in the middle of the back of beyond.....Rolling in I almost decked myself on the ruts in the road along the left hand edge which were hiding in the shadows. The town centre was off to the right, but our accommodation was out the other side so I just kept going. I had been allocated a cabin close to the road so it was easy to spot the car.
Sitting down I started the re-hydration process with coffee milk and powerade happy with completing the first day but knowing there was a lot more to come tomorrow.
Data for the day
So first day over and the stats were,
Ride Time 6:22hrs
Total Time: 7:50hrs
Distance 171kms
Climbing 3075m
Normalised Power 243w
TSS 367
IF 83.9%
Dump from WKO
Thursday, January 6, 2011
A whole months worth of blogging in one post
Yet again I have been slack in updating the old blog over the last month. I could use an excuse like dog ate my keyboard but well it’s been done to death.
Rain, Rain more Rain
So since my lat post I think I have ridden the MTB maybe 2 or 3 times along the bike path with the family due to the absolute hammering Canberra has hand in December from the rain. The rain wiped out Stromlo and Majura from about 2 weeks before Xmas through to about now with some of the Stromlo trails re opening but a lot of them still in need of maintenance.
So the training has been all road riding which while not as much fun is good for base building. I’m had three good Saturdays out with the boys on the Bakery Bunch with a catch up afterwards for coffee and to talk sh!t...something I don’t normally do.
New Zealand Trip
Xmas was spent back over the ditch with family. A good time was had by all, but I think my mother was glad to see the back end of Wee Man....he’s not the sweet little 2 year old she remembers from a year ago more of a dervish of chaos on legs now!! The number of times he was told off for chasing her cat....I lost count after the first day.
I trip to the Caroline Bay Carnival was in order to show the family the rides. My favourite was the bumper cars which left me feeling like I had just been in a bike crash after getting out at the end. We avoided going on the roller coaster which was a good thing as it looked dodgy and sure enough after we got back there was a news story saying it had come off the tracks but luckily no one was injured!!!
There were also a couple of trips to the beach, got to go to the movies for the first time in a couple of years and just some general bumming around catching up on sleep.
I must admit it wasn’t til after four days of getting 9hrs+ sleep I actually realised how tired and burnt out I had been feeling from work and training. Suddenly getting up on the odd day at 6.00am didn’t have me burying my head under the pillow and grinding my teeth when the alarm went off!
Training
I also got some riding in over old training roads I haven’t been on it years. I borrowed by little brother’s bike....and managed to crash it. No real serious injuries but my hands do look like I picked a fight with a cheese grater still.
Now that I’m back home, the training is in full force with the weather cooperating so far. The rides have been either early or late to avoid the heat of the day and I’m starting to feel a bit more normal!
This weekend is Big Jase’s Kosiosko 360 ride (Yes Jase I am putting the blame on you if this goes pear shaped!) A ride from Cooma over 2 days covering...you guessed it 360k. Looking at the altitude there is going to be a fair bit of climbing on tap which is good with the Alpine Challenge in two weekend’s time.
Following on from this is a month’s gap to the Otway Odyssey which I have entered. The goal for that one is try to knock a good chuck out of the 6.5hrs I did it in the first time.
The other two races I am focussing on in the first third of the year are the Real Bike Insurance 100miler and Escape from Cobra Mtn 100miler. I DNF’ed at the first race last year so am out for redemption this time around.
Well that’s a month,s catch up in one post more or less. Next time I will do a summary for 2010 of the good ,the bad, and the ugly .
Thursday, November 18, 2010
New XTR Goodness
Profile of the pedal hasn't changed for 2011
But the surface area has
Well the new XTR is slowly hitting the net at the moment, mainly through ebay with along of the larger internet retailers still not having the stocks in.
So I decided to upgrade a couple of bits. Over the last couple of months I have been becoming more and more dissatisfied with my CB pedals. The lack of a positive engagement and the ability to cant your feet when clipped in lead to a very vague feel.
So I decided to try out the new XTR 980 race pedals. For 2011 shimano have made a couple of tweaks to their existing 970 design but nothing to radical. They have gotten lighter and the platform has increased. I have to admit straight SPD's are one system I have never used having always opted for CB or time in the past. I decided to try these because of the larger platform surface and the adjustable tension.
So have scouring ebay I managed to pick a pair up from someone here in the ACT who won them at the 2010 Scott event as a lucky draw prize. Funnily enough she rides CB and decided to stick with those and ebay these ones.
Once I got my filthy little hands on them first thing I did was the "tail of the scales". All up they are 80gms heavier than my modified CB eggbeaters.
Next it was playing around with the spring engagement/ release tensions. It took me about 5 minutes to get them where I wanted, having cranked them up to the stiffest setting then winding them back off to find the point where I could clip in without having to fully weight my feet to get the clack.
The engagement is very positive with a real audible clack as the cleat engages.
Having been out on a couple of rides with I don't have alot more to say. The platform is solid with no rocking of the cleats, engagement has been faultless so.
New XTR Front Derailleur
The other item I have replaced is the front derailleur on the 29er. When I initally swapped the parts over on this bike, I left the SLX front derailleur on figuring that a front derailleur is a front derailleur. But after struggling to get it set up with my dual-control levers, I cracked and bought a one of the new XTR derailleurs.
Out of the box it's profile has changed to the previous model and in fact it almost looks as though they have beefed it up to improve the shifting, not that the old model had any problems with this.
Setup was straight forward, 34.9mm clamp bolt straight on, set the height, set the rotation, cable tension....done.
First spin around the driveway and it just works. All the gears minimal rubbing. Clicks are positive but not super stiff, so the changes are easier. And this was the issue with the SLX derailleur, it felt like the weight of the spring was to much and you have to fight it to move it up through the gears.
In comparsions I have a SRAM XX front derailleur on the dually and I have to say I prefer the action of the XTR. It feels smoother even though the XX derailleur is lighter.
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Fitz's Write Up...Finally
Intro
Two weekends ago was that time of year again....Fitz’s Epic, where I get to haul my sorry a$$ over a bunch of climbs for the day all in the name of fun.
The lead-up to the event this year has been OK, but I don’t have a lot of longer rides up the belt this time around so I knew I was just going to have to rely on experience to get through the 207kms for the day. Also this year I decided I was going to ride the course differently and not spend over 2/3’s of it off the front solo.
Night Before
My original thinking was to ride to the race, ride, and then ride home afterwards to give about 250ks for the day, but the forecast, and then eventual downpour over nite with continuing showers in the morning put paid to this. It also had me scratching through my gear cupboard at the last minute trying to find lightweight waterproof gear.
I ended up opting for Defeet arm-skins, Assos knee warmers with a layer of Quoleum embrocation smeared on underneath. Top was a standard short sleeve with a Craft medium weight base layer underneath. I threw my Gore jacket in the back pocket as a just in case last resort.
The Start
With the showers coming and going of the proceeding 2 hrs before the start there moments there where I was asking myself if I really wanted to spend the next 8hrs in the pouring rain.... Manning up I threw the bike knowing that it should (fingers crossed) turn into a fine day, and drove to the start.
Lining up for the start, there was the normal 1 minutes silence for the fallen rider who crashed and died during the event a number of years back. Then the shout and we’re off.
Of course the Joule doesn’t want to work with the wheel sensor after I had swapped wheels for the event so I pull over after 300 metres and have a fiddle with it, no joy so I quickly change the mode and start off again and try making my way to the front. Straight away I can see someone up there is turning the screws as the bunch has already shattered we’ve done less than 1k and I’m dodging riders left and right trying to move up. By the first intersection I’m back in the front 10 riders, but the pace is still on.
I sit back and try to relax for the ride down into Pierce’s Creek, but after about 5k the rain starts falling again. It’s at this point a rider on a full TT bike comes ripping past and takes off down the road, everyone looks at each other shrugs and figures we’ll see him later.
Pierces Creek to Namadgi Turn
At the bottom of the Pierces Creek climb I look down at the Joule and the Intensity factor is 0.97, and while I’m comfortable I figure the bunch is going to start reducing very quickly and sure enough even though the tempo is steady we crest the climb with only 5 of us at the front. Over the next couple of k’s there is a re-grouping with riders coming back.
However the descents in the wet split the bunch again due to cautious riding by some, and plain nervousness by others.By the time we reach the space station turn the group has solidified with approximately 15 riders.
In the next 15k’s to Tharwa we are hit by another 2 rain fronts and lose some riders with the bunch coming down to 10. By this point the pace has come down but with the tailwind we are still covering the distance quickly. The drop into the base of the Fitz’s climb enables the riders to sort themselves out in terms of climbing ability before the ascent starts.
Having reacquainted myself with the climb the previous weekend I knew it still sucked, with a near maximum effort required for close to 14minutes to crest the top. With the roads still being damp even though it had not rained in the past ½ hour, I was struggling with wheel spin on the climb every time I got out of the saddle to change muscle groups. The geometry of the bike plus the steep grade meant that there was less weight over the rear so I would get a ¼ turn of wheel spin on the down stroke.
Having packed the trusty 29t cassette for this ride, I was still doing it easier than others. I can normally grind it out up Fitz’s without having to resort to using it but today in the wet it came in handy on the lower slopes to maintain tempo without having to drop my cadence below about 65rpm.
Over the top of the climb there were two riders that had managed to gap the small group I was with, over the next few Km’s to the far turn we kept them pegged at under a minute and within sight distance. It was at this stage that Tri-boy went flying past in the other direction, I estimated he probably had about a 10 minute lead at this stage. One of the front riders dropped back about a kilometre before the turn before we all stopped. We re-grouped at this stage to about 7 riders, got out the tear and go slips to prove we had made the turn and set off for Apollo Rd.
Namadgi Turn to Top of Corin Climb
By this stage fatigue was setting in with some of the riders, and we had a low speed fall on one of the rolling climbs after a touch of wheels. The group waited for the two riders to catch back up with no one seriously injured.
Also caution was exercised on the Fitz’s decent due to the still wet surface, before a couple more rolling hills then the left turn into Apollo Road.
At this stage the sun appeared from behind the clouds, and it warmed up enough to roll my arm-warmers down. Up the first 1/3 of the climb is where the damage is done and myself and two other riders gapped the other 4 and grunted and stomped up the 3 ramp sections before crossing the cattle grate and climb levelling out. From here we kept riding a solid tempo up to the checkpoint at the top. About halfway up I kept expecting to see tri-boy flying down the climb, and we he didn’t appear we assumed he had blown up and gone home.
Another re-grouping at the top and we set of back down the descent. About 1/3 of the way down, I spied tri-boy stamping up the climb and had a good laugh to myself. Even though the left turn is clearly sign-posted he had flown past it and now was having to make up time.
So this left 1 rider still out front with a group of 6 rolling along to the climb up Corin. In the past it’s this section where I have opened up serious time to other riders because of how windy it normally is and how rolling the terrain is.
This year rolling in the group was a lot more pleasant, even though I was doing longer pulls on the front. Passing through Tharwa, we started having to dodge riders who were in the shorter distances and spread across the road. Towards the end of this section I was sitting on the front for 3-4k setting tempo because the other riders were really pushing their limits.
About a kilometre before the left turn into Corin Road I looked across and could see the rider I had nick-name red-jacket making his way across the first rolling/ false flat sections of the Corin climb. The others saw him too and started saying things like you’ll catch him up the climb etc etc, but I wasn’t too sure. He had held a gap of about a minute for the past 20+k’s so he wasn’t crawling.
Again on the climb the same three riders formed at the front, and we set a steady tempo up the climb. Compared to the year previously where the temps had been in the low to mid 30’s by this point the high teen’s was really really pleasant.
Up the climb I kept getting glimpses of red-jacket but as I guessed we didn’t make any time up, up to the check point.
Just as we were filling our bottles up and getting ready for the descent tri-boy came storming in, practically threw the tear and go at the volunteers and took off back down the descent. I quickly finished messing with my bottles and took off in pursuit leaving the other two behind.
Corin to Finish
Mentally I knew I was going to have to do a suicide descent to catch back what I guessed was 45 seconds to tri-boy. On the initial part of the descent I couldn’t even see him until we got about halfway down. So even pushing the limits, slicing the corners and not touching the brakes I had made up only 15 seconds. I knew if I didn’t get him by the left turn back onto the main road he was going to be gone. I was slowly running out of road to the turn and mentally I was preparing myself to have to do a maximum sprint up the last portion of the main road climb to try and close the gap....a do or die effort.
However just before the turn he pulled over and started grabbing free bottles and food from someone in a car so I made the corner first and started the drag through the remaining rolling hills to Mt McDonald. I decided to try and get as much of a gap on him through here to as a cushion into the final pinch climbs through Pierces Creek.
About 5k’s up the road I was joined by a group of riders from behind who I started rolling with before Tri-boy came flying past. No one else tried jumping on his wheel, so I had a go at it and before long we had gapped the group. Now if you haven’t tried drafting someone on a TT bike let me tell you it’s hard, they sit a lot lower down and provide almost no shelter!
After a couple of k’s he turned around and I think was surprised to find someone on his wheel, then he seemed to get a bit upset when he started motioning me through and I started shaking my head....hmmm I wonder why?
After get a small amount of recovery we started rolling before hitting the rollers leading into Pierces Creek and it was at this stage the legs had enough and I let him go. The final checkpoint this year was located further up Mt McDonald in the bend of the right hander before it steepens for the top. I did a quick stop here as the bunch I distance earlier had worked together to peg time back. So I did the tear and go and started off up the hill.
With not much further to ride I was giving it death up the climb still feeling good until just of the top where it starts to roll before the right hander, and I bonked spectacularly. One minute I was flying the next I was dizzy, fuzzy headed and just couldn’t put any power to the pedals. It took me a good minute to work out what had happened as it has been years since I have bonked this hard. The interesting thing was one part of my brain knew I needed to start shovelling food into my mouth, but the other part just wanted to keep riding and trying to turn the pedals over. After what felt like 5 minutes the eating part won, and I started throwing down gels, a clif bar, and a couple of clif shots.
I started to feel better straight away, but the damage had been done. I had missed eating regularly over the previous hour and a half and was now paying for it. So as I made my way slowly back to Stromlo trying to find my legs again I resigned myself to getting caught by the following bunch at some point and then spat out the back.
I made it as far as the top of the first of the three sisters before a group of 6 came past. I hung in for about 200 metres before my legs folded and I watched them ride off into the distance. With only about 7k’s to the finish I just kept pedalling and eventually rolled across the line for a time just over 7.5 hours.
After handing over my final tear and go for the pay I re-filled my bottle put the bike into the easiest gear I had and started the slow spin home....it took me just on 50 minutes to do 15k.
Summary
This year I took a more relaxed approach to this ride, as the previous two times I have ridden I have ended up in the hurt box for the best part of the next week trying to recover. Fortunately this year I didn’t have to back up for the Highland fling 100miler like last year.
The best part of the ride this year was the weather. The wind was a lot less, and temperatures didn’t go as high. This meant the risk of dehydration wasn’t there. Also riding with others this time around for longer made it a lot more enjoyable.
The worst part was the first hour and a half in the pouring rain and a couple of very nervous riders who couldn’t descend in the wet. There was a couple of point where I had it almost locked up to avoid them due to braking in the wrong places.
Two weekends ago was that time of year again....Fitz’s Epic, where I get to haul my sorry a$$ over a bunch of climbs for the day all in the name of fun.
The lead-up to the event this year has been OK, but I don’t have a lot of longer rides up the belt this time around so I knew I was just going to have to rely on experience to get through the 207kms for the day. Also this year I decided I was going to ride the course differently and not spend over 2/3’s of it off the front solo.
Night Before
My original thinking was to ride to the race, ride, and then ride home afterwards to give about 250ks for the day, but the forecast, and then eventual downpour over nite with continuing showers in the morning put paid to this. It also had me scratching through my gear cupboard at the last minute trying to find lightweight waterproof gear.
I ended up opting for Defeet arm-skins, Assos knee warmers with a layer of Quoleum embrocation smeared on underneath. Top was a standard short sleeve with a Craft medium weight base layer underneath. I threw my Gore jacket in the back pocket as a just in case last resort.
The Start
With the showers coming and going of the proceeding 2 hrs before the start there moments there where I was asking myself if I really wanted to spend the next 8hrs in the pouring rain.... Manning up I threw the bike knowing that it should (fingers crossed) turn into a fine day, and drove to the start.
Lining up for the start, there was the normal 1 minutes silence for the fallen rider who crashed and died during the event a number of years back. Then the shout and we’re off.
Of course the Joule doesn’t want to work with the wheel sensor after I had swapped wheels for the event so I pull over after 300 metres and have a fiddle with it, no joy so I quickly change the mode and start off again and try making my way to the front. Straight away I can see someone up there is turning the screws as the bunch has already shattered we’ve done less than 1k and I’m dodging riders left and right trying to move up. By the first intersection I’m back in the front 10 riders, but the pace is still on.
I sit back and try to relax for the ride down into Pierce’s Creek, but after about 5k the rain starts falling again. It’s at this point a rider on a full TT bike comes ripping past and takes off down the road, everyone looks at each other shrugs and figures we’ll see him later.
Pierces Creek to Namadgi Turn
At the bottom of the Pierces Creek climb I look down at the Joule and the Intensity factor is 0.97, and while I’m comfortable I figure the bunch is going to start reducing very quickly and sure enough even though the tempo is steady we crest the climb with only 5 of us at the front. Over the next couple of k’s there is a re-grouping with riders coming back.
However the descents in the wet split the bunch again due to cautious riding by some, and plain nervousness by others.By the time we reach the space station turn the group has solidified with approximately 15 riders.
In the next 15k’s to Tharwa we are hit by another 2 rain fronts and lose some riders with the bunch coming down to 10. By this point the pace has come down but with the tailwind we are still covering the distance quickly. The drop into the base of the Fitz’s climb enables the riders to sort themselves out in terms of climbing ability before the ascent starts.
Having reacquainted myself with the climb the previous weekend I knew it still sucked, with a near maximum effort required for close to 14minutes to crest the top. With the roads still being damp even though it had not rained in the past ½ hour, I was struggling with wheel spin on the climb every time I got out of the saddle to change muscle groups. The geometry of the bike plus the steep grade meant that there was less weight over the rear so I would get a ¼ turn of wheel spin on the down stroke.
Having packed the trusty 29t cassette for this ride, I was still doing it easier than others. I can normally grind it out up Fitz’s without having to resort to using it but today in the wet it came in handy on the lower slopes to maintain tempo without having to drop my cadence below about 65rpm.
Over the top of the climb there were two riders that had managed to gap the small group I was with, over the next few Km’s to the far turn we kept them pegged at under a minute and within sight distance. It was at this stage that Tri-boy went flying past in the other direction, I estimated he probably had about a 10 minute lead at this stage. One of the front riders dropped back about a kilometre before the turn before we all stopped. We re-grouped at this stage to about 7 riders, got out the tear and go slips to prove we had made the turn and set off for Apollo Rd.
Namadgi Turn to Top of Corin Climb
By this stage fatigue was setting in with some of the riders, and we had a low speed fall on one of the rolling climbs after a touch of wheels. The group waited for the two riders to catch back up with no one seriously injured.
Also caution was exercised on the Fitz’s decent due to the still wet surface, before a couple more rolling hills then the left turn into Apollo Road.
At this stage the sun appeared from behind the clouds, and it warmed up enough to roll my arm-warmers down. Up the first 1/3 of the climb is where the damage is done and myself and two other riders gapped the other 4 and grunted and stomped up the 3 ramp sections before crossing the cattle grate and climb levelling out. From here we kept riding a solid tempo up to the checkpoint at the top. About halfway up I kept expecting to see tri-boy flying down the climb, and we he didn’t appear we assumed he had blown up and gone home.
Another re-grouping at the top and we set of back down the descent. About 1/3 of the way down, I spied tri-boy stamping up the climb and had a good laugh to myself. Even though the left turn is clearly sign-posted he had flown past it and now was having to make up time.
So this left 1 rider still out front with a group of 6 rolling along to the climb up Corin. In the past it’s this section where I have opened up serious time to other riders because of how windy it normally is and how rolling the terrain is.
This year rolling in the group was a lot more pleasant, even though I was doing longer pulls on the front. Passing through Tharwa, we started having to dodge riders who were in the shorter distances and spread across the road. Towards the end of this section I was sitting on the front for 3-4k setting tempo because the other riders were really pushing their limits.
About a kilometre before the left turn into Corin Road I looked across and could see the rider I had nick-name red-jacket making his way across the first rolling/ false flat sections of the Corin climb. The others saw him too and started saying things like you’ll catch him up the climb etc etc, but I wasn’t too sure. He had held a gap of about a minute for the past 20+k’s so he wasn’t crawling.
Again on the climb the same three riders formed at the front, and we set a steady tempo up the climb. Compared to the year previously where the temps had been in the low to mid 30’s by this point the high teen’s was really really pleasant.
Up the climb I kept getting glimpses of red-jacket but as I guessed we didn’t make any time up, up to the check point.
Just as we were filling our bottles up and getting ready for the descent tri-boy came storming in, practically threw the tear and go at the volunteers and took off back down the descent. I quickly finished messing with my bottles and took off in pursuit leaving the other two behind.
Corin to Finish
Mentally I knew I was going to have to do a suicide descent to catch back what I guessed was 45 seconds to tri-boy. On the initial part of the descent I couldn’t even see him until we got about halfway down. So even pushing the limits, slicing the corners and not touching the brakes I had made up only 15 seconds. I knew if I didn’t get him by the left turn back onto the main road he was going to be gone. I was slowly running out of road to the turn and mentally I was preparing myself to have to do a maximum sprint up the last portion of the main road climb to try and close the gap....a do or die effort.
However just before the turn he pulled over and started grabbing free bottles and food from someone in a car so I made the corner first and started the drag through the remaining rolling hills to Mt McDonald. I decided to try and get as much of a gap on him through here to as a cushion into the final pinch climbs through Pierces Creek.
About 5k’s up the road I was joined by a group of riders from behind who I started rolling with before Tri-boy came flying past. No one else tried jumping on his wheel, so I had a go at it and before long we had gapped the group. Now if you haven’t tried drafting someone on a TT bike let me tell you it’s hard, they sit a lot lower down and provide almost no shelter!
After a couple of k’s he turned around and I think was surprised to find someone on his wheel, then he seemed to get a bit upset when he started motioning me through and I started shaking my head....hmmm I wonder why?
After get a small amount of recovery we started rolling before hitting the rollers leading into Pierces Creek and it was at this stage the legs had enough and I let him go. The final checkpoint this year was located further up Mt McDonald in the bend of the right hander before it steepens for the top. I did a quick stop here as the bunch I distance earlier had worked together to peg time back. So I did the tear and go and started off up the hill.
With not much further to ride I was giving it death up the climb still feeling good until just of the top where it starts to roll before the right hander, and I bonked spectacularly. One minute I was flying the next I was dizzy, fuzzy headed and just couldn’t put any power to the pedals. It took me a good minute to work out what had happened as it has been years since I have bonked this hard. The interesting thing was one part of my brain knew I needed to start shovelling food into my mouth, but the other part just wanted to keep riding and trying to turn the pedals over. After what felt like 5 minutes the eating part won, and I started throwing down gels, a clif bar, and a couple of clif shots.
I started to feel better straight away, but the damage had been done. I had missed eating regularly over the previous hour and a half and was now paying for it. So as I made my way slowly back to Stromlo trying to find my legs again I resigned myself to getting caught by the following bunch at some point and then spat out the back.
I made it as far as the top of the first of the three sisters before a group of 6 came past. I hung in for about 200 metres before my legs folded and I watched them ride off into the distance. With only about 7k’s to the finish I just kept pedalling and eventually rolled across the line for a time just over 7.5 hours.
After handing over my final tear and go for the pay I re-filled my bottle put the bike into the easiest gear I had and started the slow spin home....it took me just on 50 minutes to do 15k.
Summary
This year I took a more relaxed approach to this ride, as the previous two times I have ridden I have ended up in the hurt box for the best part of the next week trying to recover. Fortunately this year I didn’t have to back up for the Highland fling 100miler like last year.
The best part of the ride this year was the weather. The wind was a lot less, and temperatures didn’t go as high. This meant the risk of dehydration wasn’t there. Also riding with others this time around for longer made it a lot more enjoyable.
The worst part was the first hour and a half in the pouring rain and a couple of very nervous riders who couldn’t descend in the wet. There was a couple of point where I had it almost locked up to avoid them due to braking in the wrong places.
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Upgrades
Finally finished, new wheels, tires, seat and post
Easton Haven wheel set with Hope Floating Rotors
So the new wheels for the 29er turned up last week, along with the other bits to get them up and running however the tires I was sent were 26" not 29" so I had to send em back. I had abit of think as to where I could get tires on short notice and ended up heading into Lonsdale St Cyclery during my lunch break.
There on the wall they had a number of the new Specialized 2bliss tires in 29" so after steering at them for about 5 minutes pick them up and putting them down I grabbed a Fasttrak for the front and a Renegade for the rear. I was tossing up whether the Renegade would have enough grip for the front and hence ending up mixing the two.
Specialized 2Bliss Renegade
Specialized 2Bliss Fast Trak
Also the new seatpost and seat arrived so it now matches the saddle on the roadie. I opted for a Prologo Scratch TR again, it's not the lightest but it is comfortable.
Prologo Scratch TR
Also on the weekend I finall got around to applying the frameskins to the bike...well kinda. I started, got air bubbles in the first one before wifey took over and finished the rest for me. I figure its not a boy job...requires to much patience. The end result is fantastic, you can't actually tell its there in most cases.
Installed FrameSkin Protection with no air bubbles thanks to Wifey
Side Project
Over the last couple of weeks I have had a steady follow of packages arriving thanks to my little Brother. A while back I offered to build his bike up for him once he got all the pieces sorted. So on Sunday I finally got it all assembled and boy is it something different.
My brother opted for an all-mountain build based around a GT Force frame. When this turned up I had to throw it on the scales and I couldn't believe it when they read 3.0kg including the shock.
From here it's been XT parts and other suitable items, thomson, easton, dt swiss, White Industries. Alot of it is brand new but about 1/3 was stuff I had laying around.
I set it up to initally to weight and measurements and took it for a quick spin on pavement. And all I can say is different..... 150mm travel, slack angles, and a more up-right position is totally removed from what I'm used to.
He flies into the country tomorrow, and we're supposed to be riding Friday so I should get a chance to have a play with it then off road.
Little Brother's All-Mountain Bike/Tank
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Sucked in....
That's right I have been sucked into two of the "latest" trends.....carbon frames and 29ers. The only thing that caould be more insideous is combining the two together. Though carbon frames really aren't the latest trend, but I have resisted upgrading to one for a while. But about a month ago I crack and ordered a frame from pedalforce.
The frame is what can be termed a "carbon blank", a generic carbon frame with pedalforce's logo on it. The frame however does have two of the latest "upgrades" on it, BB30 and a ISP (Intergrated Seat Post). I upspec the package by purchasing a fork from edge composites to ensure fantastic handling.
When the frame arrived I was surprised to find it weighted in under 950gms and the finish was immaculate with no blemishes in the clearcoat.
Assembly was straight forward, but I did have to purchase a tool for pressing the bearings into the frame.
Having ridden it for over a month now and the rides is as good as the cannondale that it replaced. It doesn't have any quirks in the handling and with the BB30 is definitely more responsive to accelerations.
The other trend I have jumped on is the purchase of a 29er hardtail. After doing alot of research regrading a new hardtail through the early part of this year, I finally committed to a Giant 29er. I won't go into to much detail as the benefits and downsides are easily found on the internet. What really pushed me towards a 29er was the ability to not get bogged down through the smaller rough stuff and added cushioning from the wheels.
I have to say at this point I think I have made the right decision. The bike handles more like a roadbike with the larger wheelsize. For a lot of pure mtbers this is seen as a disadvantage rather than advantage, but for me having spent so much time it is second nature. First rideout I found that I was steering the bike through corners alot quicker than the old hardtail, there seemed to be a larger amount of grip despite the soggy conditions. Also the bike felt more stable at speed. I put this down to the larger wheels and 15mm through axle upfront. I also think the enlarged headtube contributes towards the stability as well.
The interesting thing about the bike as well is the riding position. Because of the larger wheels a rider is place more upright and I found it leads to a sense of being "in the bike" instead on on top of it like a normal mtb.
So for every positive there must be some negatives, and in this case its the weight. Stock from the shop the bike weighted in at 11.9kg....definitely porky. So the day after I got it home the garage looked like a scene from Monster garage as I tore my old hardtail down and swapped bits over. I also converted the stock wheels to tubeless. All up I saved about 1kg in weight.
The biggest contributor to the excess weight are the stock wheels. These come in a something like 2.4kgs. So I have ordered up a new pair which should be here next week. At a guess this will get the bike closer to the 10kg mark.
The other item I bought was a smaller diameter titanium seatpost to added to the cushioning of the ride...also should be here next week.
For a more detailed review of the Giant XTC 29er head over to Kev's Blog as he recently purchase one too and has a full write up there
New Ride
The frame is what can be termed a "carbon blank", a generic carbon frame with pedalforce's logo on it. The frame however does have two of the latest "upgrades" on it, BB30 and a ISP (Intergrated Seat Post). I upspec the package by purchasing a fork from edge composites to ensure fantastic handling.
When the frame arrived I was surprised to find it weighted in under 950gms and the finish was immaculate with no blemishes in the clearcoat.
Assembly was straight forward, but I did have to purchase a tool for pressing the bearings into the frame.
Having ridden it for over a month now and the rides is as good as the cannondale that it replaced. It doesn't have any quirks in the handling and with the BB30 is definitely more responsive to accelerations.
The other trend I have jumped on is the purchase of a 29er hardtail. After doing alot of research regrading a new hardtail through the early part of this year, I finally committed to a Giant 29er. I won't go into to much detail as the benefits and downsides are easily found on the internet. What really pushed me towards a 29er was the ability to not get bogged down through the smaller rough stuff and added cushioning from the wheels.
I have to say at this point I think I have made the right decision. The bike handles more like a roadbike with the larger wheelsize. For a lot of pure mtbers this is seen as a disadvantage rather than advantage, but for me having spent so much time it is second nature. First rideout I found that I was steering the bike through corners alot quicker than the old hardtail, there seemed to be a larger amount of grip despite the soggy conditions. Also the bike felt more stable at speed. I put this down to the larger wheels and 15mm through axle upfront. I also think the enlarged headtube contributes towards the stability as well.
The interesting thing about the bike as well is the riding position. Because of the larger wheels a rider is place more upright and I found it leads to a sense of being "in the bike" instead on on top of it like a normal mtb.
So for every positive there must be some negatives, and in this case its the weight. Stock from the shop the bike weighted in at 11.9kg....definitely porky. So the day after I got it home the garage looked like a scene from Monster garage as I tore my old hardtail down and swapped bits over. I also converted the stock wheels to tubeless. All up I saved about 1kg in weight.
The biggest contributor to the excess weight are the stock wheels. These come in a something like 2.4kgs. So I have ordered up a new pair which should be here next week. At a guess this will get the bike closer to the 10kg mark.
The other item I bought was a smaller diameter titanium seatpost to added to the cushioning of the ride...also should be here next week.
For a more detailed review of the Giant XTC 29er head over to Kev's Blog as he recently purchase one too and has a full write up there
New Ride
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Stone Age
Yup, sorry for the lack of updates but I have no internet at home at the moment as we change over to a naked dsl line. First it was not broadband only dial up (A 11meg file taking 1/2 hour to load) now no service for at least the next week...Yay the joys of technology.
The training is progressing but nothing on the racing front for the time being. I have been spending alot of time playing with the Joule 2.0 and it providing to a good reliable unit with all the training metrics functioning properly.
So once I log some more hours up I will post a full report.
Friday, August 27, 2010
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Seen on the way home....
Geek on a Segway....I didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
On the bike path wearing a helmet...made my ride home.
Monday, August 23, 2010
I give it a week....
mmmm Shiny Whiteness
These turned up in the post today. I was so impressed with my Fury shoes I bought the matching road version. I opted not to get the slightly obnoxious yellow version, but the more subtle white version. However I'm now thinking that given our recent run of weather it will be about a week before they are white/ grey/ black smudged. Though admittedly the yellow version have cleaned up really well time they have ended up covered in filth.
Low profile sole
Next to it's MTB Cousin
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Hit out
So I decided to rock up for my first Bakery Bunch ride since about March. So the result.......well I made the front group through to the end but boy I was in a world a hurt. 335w NP for 20min. First up is the overall view,and secondly is the plot using fast find. As you can see in the space of 20 minutes there are close to 30 surges of over 315w or my the upper end of my threshold. Even trying to stay out of the wind when the acid is on hurts.
Overall plot
So how many surges in 20mins?
Overall plot
So how many surges in 20mins?
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Power Meter Choices Part II: Installation, Set-up, and other things that bring you to tears.
This the second in my little series about power meters and how I choose the one I did. This second part focuses on that happens after you get the nice shiny new box and starting the installation, setup and calibration process.
SRM
First up again is SRM...because well it’s the brand I have owned the longest and am the most familiar with. I would like to say I have had no experience with the new wireless version, but I imagine it would be similar to setting up a Quarq (See below).
Installation
Setting up a wired SRM involves two main parts. The installation of the crank it’s self and the routing of the cabling for the head unit.
Installing the crank is about a 10 minute process depending on whether you have the correct BB in the frame..... if not double it. At this point you can choose to install the crank sensor. Depending on which wiring kit sits behind the crank on the chain stay or if you have the more modern version is mounted using the bolt for the BB cable guide.
From here the job becomes a bit more time consuming if you want it done correctly the first time. Running the cable up the down tube and around the front brake cable so that you have a nice tidy set of wiring takes another 20-30 minutes and can be quite frustrating. I have used various methods including insulation tape and cable ties to get everything in place. One of the key things to watch is that there is enough length around the head tube area so that if the handlebars are turned 90° you do not snap the speed or sensor cable (been there done that $90 lesson).
The final step is mounting the head unit clamp and putting the unit on. I rate the SRM head unit as having the second best fixing method. I have broken a head unit before when a taxi in Sydney decided to open a door on me and snapped it from the mount. Given their position they can be damaged in an accident if something manages to get between your bars.
Trouble Shooting
I have had to trouble shoot SRM installations before and they are a bit more involved due to the number of potential sources of error. Sensor placement near the crank, faulty wiring kits, and batteries are the biggest causes of failure to get a signal from the cranks. The latter two are the expensive ones to fix as they require a new wiring kit or the crank to go off for a week to Kinetic to have the battery replaced.
Calibration
As I have mentioned previously SRM are the only power meter which a user can change the calibration on. I advise anyone that purchases one to check the calibration as the slope from SRM themselves is known to somewhat suspect. When I had two I would calibrate them once a month as it would only take about ½ hour and therefore I knew my data was always accurate.
The 0 offset for a SRM is set by pressing a combination of buttons back pedalling once, waiting for the numbers to settle then hitting enter. SRM’s seem to be more temperature sensitive than powertaps due to the way that power is measured with strain gauges. This means having to potentially reset this value a couple of times in a 5 hour ride if the weather is changeable.
Powertap
I have owned my powertap now for about 18 months and is the second oldest system I have experience with.
Installation
Depending on where you purchase yours from the system either comes built up in a wheel or as a hub which you have to have built up. The second option gives you more freedom of choice for rims and also it means that the freight costs are less due to smaller size of the box.
I had dramas with mine due to the LBS and my choice of spokes I used to get the wheel built up with. In summary it took over a year for the local distributor to admit that the spokes used on my wheel were a bad batch and replace them.
This issue aside getting the wheel, throwing a tire on and mounting the head unit up are as simple as it gets.
The Little Yellow Computer (LYC) is the most secure of all the head units I have tried due to its placement and the locking mechanism, which is very positive.
TroubleShooting
The powertap system is Ant+ so the headunit is paired with the hub. If the two aren’t talking it is normally a battery issue. Replacing the battery in the LYC is very straight forward with the cover easy to access. However on the MTB powertap you have to remove the disc rotor to be able to replace the hub battery and this is a 15 minute job, which luckily you should only have to do every 6 months or so.
The other issue with the powertap wheels their bearings. Basically, they are sh!t. I had to replace mine after only 3 months of getting a fresh rear wheel earlier this year. While getting the bearings is easy it’s about ¾ process to disassemble the hub punch the bearings out, press the new ones in and reassemble. The new bearings I got down the road are miles better than the originals and still going strong 6 months later.
Calibration
I wrote a piece a couple of months back about how to check the slope for a powertap. This is all that can be done by the user. If there are any issues the hub has to be sent back to Saris for repair.
Setting the 0 offset in the headunit is done so that every time a user coasts the offset is re-set. This is a good function and means that you don’t have to manually perform this as with a SRM.
Quarq
The new arrow in my quiver and so far so good.
Installation
So it’s and integrated crank and the installation is the same for any such similar crank set. I had to remove my existing BB and put in the SRAM specific GPX model that came with the crank set. Here I hit my first snag, the BB tool I had did not fit the non-drive side cup...seems that the axle hole on this cup is smaller than the drive side. So I tightened up by hand and continued with installing the cranks.
With wireless cranks (both SRM & Cinqo) you need to place a magnet close to the spider to activate the electronics when you begin pedalling. To start with I just used insulation tape to fix the magnet as I wasn’t sure whether the position I had chosen was going to activate the cranks.
Next I pushed/tapped the cranks through the BB using a rubber mallet as the machining tolerances are very tight. The fixing for the SRAM S950 is a single 8mm allen bolt on the non-drive crank arm. Basically tighten this up and that’s it. There is no ability to adjust play in the bearings and it relies upon the machining tolerances to ensure no side to side movement.
Next I mounted up the Garmin 705 on my stem and set about pairing the two up. The Garmin fixing is fairly weak. So far I have lost my GPS through user error with the bracket no engaging correctly and in a crash at Wagga earlier in the year. I don’t see the system being a problem on the roadie but time will tell.
Pairing the Garmin 705 & cranks was very easy it took less than 20 seconds...it seemed I had placed the magnet in the correct location.
Trouble Shooting
I got my first taste of this on my second ride! Was riding home from work and the cranks wouldn’t work. The night before I had rolled back the firmware as the latest stuff from Garmin is buggy with speed drop outs so it was back to version 2.90. So to start with I tried re-pairing the devices and that didn’t work. So I rode home with no power. Next I thought the magnet had moved so I spent ½ hour playing with that...still no joy. Then I went back to the settings in the Garmin and had another play with that...no luck. Finally I started going through the on-line trouble shooting guide till I got to the battery. I thought what are the chances? So I popped the battery on the cranks... and low and behold the Garmin flashed up a “low battery warning on power meter message”.
Back up stairs and scratching through the spares in the bottom draw and do you think I had the right one...nope. So I dashed off to the mall on the off chance that Coles/ Woolies/ K-Mart might have the right on in stock. But no dice.
Next day it was a trip to Dick Smith at lunch time and $13 later I had 3 new batteries and it was all good again.
So from this I learned that the system is more complicated than my previous SRM with potential sources of problems from both the head unit and the cranks themselves.
Calibration
The Cinqo transmits the 0 offset to the head unit so this viewable by the user. There are two method of re-setting this. Either by manually doing it using the options on the Garmin or alternatively backpedalling 4 times. The Cinqo is setup to detect this movement and resets the offset.
The slope is basically non-changeable....but I did read it is possible using Linux, a Garmin ANT+ USB stick and some programming knowledge. This is way beyond anything an average user/ me perform themselves.
So this concludes the second part of the series. I’ll post the next in a couple of days.
SRM
First up again is SRM...because well it’s the brand I have owned the longest and am the most familiar with. I would like to say I have had no experience with the new wireless version, but I imagine it would be similar to setting up a Quarq (See below).
Installation
Setting up a wired SRM involves two main parts. The installation of the crank it’s self and the routing of the cabling for the head unit.
Installing the crank is about a 10 minute process depending on whether you have the correct BB in the frame..... if not double it. At this point you can choose to install the crank sensor. Depending on which wiring kit sits behind the crank on the chain stay or if you have the more modern version is mounted using the bolt for the BB cable guide.
From here the job becomes a bit more time consuming if you want it done correctly the first time. Running the cable up the down tube and around the front brake cable so that you have a nice tidy set of wiring takes another 20-30 minutes and can be quite frustrating. I have used various methods including insulation tape and cable ties to get everything in place. One of the key things to watch is that there is enough length around the head tube area so that if the handlebars are turned 90° you do not snap the speed or sensor cable (been there done that $90 lesson).
The final step is mounting the head unit clamp and putting the unit on. I rate the SRM head unit as having the second best fixing method. I have broken a head unit before when a taxi in Sydney decided to open a door on me and snapped it from the mount. Given their position they can be damaged in an accident if something manages to get between your bars.
Trouble Shooting
I have had to trouble shoot SRM installations before and they are a bit more involved due to the number of potential sources of error. Sensor placement near the crank, faulty wiring kits, and batteries are the biggest causes of failure to get a signal from the cranks. The latter two are the expensive ones to fix as they require a new wiring kit or the crank to go off for a week to Kinetic to have the battery replaced.
Calibration
As I have mentioned previously SRM are the only power meter which a user can change the calibration on. I advise anyone that purchases one to check the calibration as the slope from SRM themselves is known to somewhat suspect. When I had two I would calibrate them once a month as it would only take about ½ hour and therefore I knew my data was always accurate.
The 0 offset for a SRM is set by pressing a combination of buttons back pedalling once, waiting for the numbers to settle then hitting enter. SRM’s seem to be more temperature sensitive than powertaps due to the way that power is measured with strain gauges. This means having to potentially reset this value a couple of times in a 5 hour ride if the weather is changeable.
Powertap
I have owned my powertap now for about 18 months and is the second oldest system I have experience with.
Installation
Depending on where you purchase yours from the system either comes built up in a wheel or as a hub which you have to have built up. The second option gives you more freedom of choice for rims and also it means that the freight costs are less due to smaller size of the box.
I had dramas with mine due to the LBS and my choice of spokes I used to get the wheel built up with. In summary it took over a year for the local distributor to admit that the spokes used on my wheel were a bad batch and replace them.
This issue aside getting the wheel, throwing a tire on and mounting the head unit up are as simple as it gets.
The Little Yellow Computer (LYC) is the most secure of all the head units I have tried due to its placement and the locking mechanism, which is very positive.
TroubleShooting
The powertap system is Ant+ so the headunit is paired with the hub. If the two aren’t talking it is normally a battery issue. Replacing the battery in the LYC is very straight forward with the cover easy to access. However on the MTB powertap you have to remove the disc rotor to be able to replace the hub battery and this is a 15 minute job, which luckily you should only have to do every 6 months or so.
The other issue with the powertap wheels their bearings. Basically, they are sh!t. I had to replace mine after only 3 months of getting a fresh rear wheel earlier this year. While getting the bearings is easy it’s about ¾ process to disassemble the hub punch the bearings out, press the new ones in and reassemble. The new bearings I got down the road are miles better than the originals and still going strong 6 months later.
Calibration
I wrote a piece a couple of months back about how to check the slope for a powertap. This is all that can be done by the user. If there are any issues the hub has to be sent back to Saris for repair.
Setting the 0 offset in the headunit is done so that every time a user coasts the offset is re-set. This is a good function and means that you don’t have to manually perform this as with a SRM.
Quarq
The new arrow in my quiver and so far so good.
Installation
So it’s and integrated crank and the installation is the same for any such similar crank set. I had to remove my existing BB and put in the SRAM specific GPX model that came with the crank set. Here I hit my first snag, the BB tool I had did not fit the non-drive side cup...seems that the axle hole on this cup is smaller than the drive side. So I tightened up by hand and continued with installing the cranks.
With wireless cranks (both SRM & Cinqo) you need to place a magnet close to the spider to activate the electronics when you begin pedalling. To start with I just used insulation tape to fix the magnet as I wasn’t sure whether the position I had chosen was going to activate the cranks.
Next I pushed/tapped the cranks through the BB using a rubber mallet as the machining tolerances are very tight. The fixing for the SRAM S950 is a single 8mm allen bolt on the non-drive crank arm. Basically tighten this up and that’s it. There is no ability to adjust play in the bearings and it relies upon the machining tolerances to ensure no side to side movement.
Next I mounted up the Garmin 705 on my stem and set about pairing the two up. The Garmin fixing is fairly weak. So far I have lost my GPS through user error with the bracket no engaging correctly and in a crash at Wagga earlier in the year. I don’t see the system being a problem on the roadie but time will tell.
Pairing the Garmin 705 & cranks was very easy it took less than 20 seconds...it seemed I had placed the magnet in the correct location.
Trouble Shooting
I got my first taste of this on my second ride! Was riding home from work and the cranks wouldn’t work. The night before I had rolled back the firmware as the latest stuff from Garmin is buggy with speed drop outs so it was back to version 2.90. So to start with I tried re-pairing the devices and that didn’t work. So I rode home with no power. Next I thought the magnet had moved so I spent ½ hour playing with that...still no joy. Then I went back to the settings in the Garmin and had another play with that...no luck. Finally I started going through the on-line trouble shooting guide till I got to the battery. I thought what are the chances? So I popped the battery on the cranks... and low and behold the Garmin flashed up a “low battery warning on power meter message”.
Back up stairs and scratching through the spares in the bottom draw and do you think I had the right one...nope. So I dashed off to the mall on the off chance that Coles/ Woolies/ K-Mart might have the right on in stock. But no dice.
Next day it was a trip to Dick Smith at lunch time and $13 later I had 3 new batteries and it was all good again.
So from this I learned that the system is more complicated than my previous SRM with potential sources of problems from both the head unit and the cranks themselves.
Calibration
The Cinqo transmits the 0 offset to the head unit so this viewable by the user. There are two method of re-setting this. Either by manually doing it using the options on the Garmin or alternatively backpedalling 4 times. The Cinqo is setup to detect this movement and resets the offset.
The slope is basically non-changeable....but I did read it is possible using Linux, a Garmin ANT+ USB stick and some programming knowledge. This is way beyond anything an average user/ me perform themselves.
So this concludes the second part of the series. I’ll post the next in a couple of days.
Monday, August 16, 2010
Power Meter Choices Part 1
Well rather than write screeds in one sitting I have decided to break-up my entry on how I went about choosing my new powermeter, the installation, and headunit.
I am going to break this into three parts with this being the first regarding system choice.
The Options
There were a couple of reasons I decided to update my system. The first was the age and the second was the technology used. My old SRM systems were coming up to about 7-8 years old, and while they were still reliable, the fact that they were wired and used either a square-taper or Octalink BB was becoming a hindrance in looking at new frames.
I already knew the three systems I was going to have a closer look at SRM, PowerTap, & Cinqo.
SRM
This the grand daddy of all the power measurement systems available on the market today and the technology hasn’t changed much since it was originally implemented. The design has been refined and spread across a number of different crank systems from Shimano, FSA, Cannondale, and Rotor.
The biggest developments have been in terms of the head unit. With a progression from the original PCIV which I started off with through to the latest PCVII. Each iteration has been a refinement of the previous, though some would argue that the PCIV’s 0.1sec recording rate was a feature that should have been continued on later models.
My SRM’s were running the PCV head unit which was the last of the wired units supported before SRM changed to wireless with the PC VI. When they made this leap there was no cross compatibility between the systems meaning that a PC VI would not work with a wired system.
The Good
• Proven, reliable, design.
• Easy to setup and use.
• The gold standard in accuracy.
• Service is the best in the industry.
• User calibrated.
• Now USB compatable/ Charging
• 130+hr battery
The Bad
• Price. In market terms SRM’s are overpriced given the technology involved as demonstrated by pricing for Quarq’s.
• Units are sold minus a head unit which is needed to check/ change calibration. Across all power meters, these are the most overpriced component given the technology involved.
• No GPS.
• Head Unit not user customisable.
Powertap
Another power meter I currently own as it is the only viable system available for the MTB. Like most people I have had problems since purchasing it, with it having to go to the USA to be replaced (reason not given) by Saris. And 1x set of dead bearings inside of 4 months on return. Powertaps are cheap in comparison to the other systems available and a lot of people end up purchasing them for this reason. However as mentioned previously the support given by TBA for these is next to none...if you are lucky. I ended up contacting Saris directly when I had problems with mine. Personally if/ when Cinqo get a MTB crank on the market I will be selling my powertap wheel.
The Good
• Cheap, you can purchase two for the price of an SRM.
• Easy to use
The Bad
• Chews bearings
• Cannot be user calibrated
• Next to no support in Australia from the distributor
• Bound to one rear wheel.
Cinqo
The new kid on the block. The system is not common over this side of the world, and after doing some research I found out why. Cinqo produce measurement systems for a number of cranksets, SRAM, Lighting, Rotor, Cannondale basically any crankset which has a removable spider similar to SRM. However the only cranks distributed internationally are the SRAM version. And these are done back through SRAM. So it goes something like this,
Quarq get the cranks from SRAM -> Fit the new spider and send back to SRAM international ->SRAM International then send these out to their distributors in each region -> You get your LBS to contact the countries distributor and purchase them through them.
You cannot buy directly from Quarq if you live outside the USA or Canada....which seems a bit backwards.
So I initially found a cheap on-line seller of the cranks here in Australia, but after a number of emails to Quarq, SRAM USA, the seller, And Monza here in Australia. I worked out that they were not an official distribution channel despite claiming to be. For those interested the only official distributors here in Australia are Monza and Echelon Sports.
In the end I actually found a second hand set from the USA for less than $AU1300....good score.
The Good
• Proven technology- Strain gauges in the crank.
• User replaceable battery- yah no more $AU90 to have the crank battery replaced every 18 months.
• Spider can be swapped to BB30 cranks should buy a new Cannondale Caad 10
• Lighter than current setup
• Integrated BB spindle means it’s compatibles with most modern frames.
• Not bound to a specific headunit, can be used with Garmin, Saris Joule, and SRM (if you get the signal changed.
The Bad
• No local support. If there is a problem it has to go back to the US
• Not easily user calibrated. It is possible but very involved and you probably need to be a computer programmer to do it.
The Unknown
• Reliability- Still a very young system and its long term durability is not known.
• Accuracy- The crank has 20 separate strain gauges to achieve the claimed 2% accuracy vs SRM’s 2, 4, or 8 gauges. Until I started using the crank this was going to be the real unknown as to how it stacks up against the SRM.
Part 2 will follow in a the next couple of days.
I am going to break this into three parts with this being the first regarding system choice.
The Options
There were a couple of reasons I decided to update my system. The first was the age and the second was the technology used. My old SRM systems were coming up to about 7-8 years old, and while they were still reliable, the fact that they were wired and used either a square-taper or Octalink BB was becoming a hindrance in looking at new frames.
I already knew the three systems I was going to have a closer look at SRM, PowerTap, & Cinqo.
SRMThis the grand daddy of all the power measurement systems available on the market today and the technology hasn’t changed much since it was originally implemented. The design has been refined and spread across a number of different crank systems from Shimano, FSA, Cannondale, and Rotor.
The biggest developments have been in terms of the head unit. With a progression from the original PCIV which I started off with through to the latest PCVII. Each iteration has been a refinement of the previous, though some would argue that the PCIV’s 0.1sec recording rate was a feature that should have been continued on later models.
My SRM’s were running the PCV head unit which was the last of the wired units supported before SRM changed to wireless with the PC VI. When they made this leap there was no cross compatibility between the systems meaning that a PC VI would not work with a wired system.
The Good
• Proven, reliable, design.
• Easy to setup and use.
• The gold standard in accuracy.
• Service is the best in the industry.
• User calibrated.
• Now USB compatable/ Charging
• 130+hr battery
The Bad
• Price. In market terms SRM’s are overpriced given the technology involved as demonstrated by pricing for Quarq’s.
• Units are sold minus a head unit which is needed to check/ change calibration. Across all power meters, these are the most overpriced component given the technology involved.
• No GPS.
• Head Unit not user customisable.
Powertap
Another power meter I currently own as it is the only viable system available for the MTB. Like most people I have had problems since purchasing it, with it having to go to the USA to be replaced (reason not given) by Saris. And 1x set of dead bearings inside of 4 months on return. Powertaps are cheap in comparison to the other systems available and a lot of people end up purchasing them for this reason. However as mentioned previously the support given by TBA for these is next to none...if you are lucky. I ended up contacting Saris directly when I had problems with mine. Personally if/ when Cinqo get a MTB crank on the market I will be selling my powertap wheel.
The Good
• Cheap, you can purchase two for the price of an SRM.
• Easy to use
The Bad
• Chews bearings
• Cannot be user calibrated
• Next to no support in Australia from the distributor
• Bound to one rear wheel.
Cinqo
The new kid on the block. The system is not common over this side of the world, and after doing some research I found out why. Cinqo produce measurement systems for a number of cranksets, SRAM, Lighting, Rotor, Cannondale basically any crankset which has a removable spider similar to SRM. However the only cranks distributed internationally are the SRAM version. And these are done back through SRAM. So it goes something like this,
Quarq get the cranks from SRAM -> Fit the new spider and send back to SRAM international ->SRAM International then send these out to their distributors in each region -> You get your LBS to contact the countries distributor and purchase them through them.
You cannot buy directly from Quarq if you live outside the USA or Canada....which seems a bit backwards.
So I initially found a cheap on-line seller of the cranks here in Australia, but after a number of emails to Quarq, SRAM USA, the seller, And Monza here in Australia. I worked out that they were not an official distribution channel despite claiming to be. For those interested the only official distributors here in Australia are Monza and Echelon Sports.
In the end I actually found a second hand set from the USA for less than $AU1300....good score.
The Good
• Proven technology- Strain gauges in the crank.
• User replaceable battery- yah no more $AU90 to have the crank battery replaced every 18 months.
• Spider can be swapped to BB30 cranks should buy a new Cannondale Caad 10
• Lighter than current setup
• Integrated BB spindle means it’s compatibles with most modern frames.
• Not bound to a specific headunit, can be used with Garmin, Saris Joule, and SRM (if you get the signal changed.
The Bad
• No local support. If there is a problem it has to go back to the US
• Not easily user calibrated. It is possible but very involved and you probably need to be a computer programmer to do it.
The Unknown
• Reliability- Still a very young system and its long term durability is not known.
• Accuracy- The crank has 20 separate strain gauges to achieve the claimed 2% accuracy vs SRM’s 2, 4, or 8 gauges. Until I started using the crank this was going to be the real unknown as to how it stacks up against the SRM.
Part 2 will follow in a the next couple of days.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
New Powermeter
So last night was the first outing with the Cinqo and it performed perfectly...even in 3 hours of pouring rain. I have teamed the new crank up with my Garmin 705 for the time being and the data coming out agrees within the margin of error between the two powermeters.
I performed a quick and dirty MFA last night to check and the difference is in the order or 2%.
I will provide an fuller post within the next couple of days as to why I choose the Quarq and details regarding setup etc.
Monday, August 9, 2010
Goodbye old Friend
Goodbye old friend...I'm going to miss you.
Yes today is a sad day, it was my last ride on my beloved SRM. My replacement powermeter arrived today, and after riding home. I tore her down and put the new one on.
My old SRM was super reliable and never missed a beat in the 3 years that I was it's owner, and now like it's predecessor is going on fleabay to a new home.
But enough with all the sentiment, I have a new toy to play with! It's wireless, 100gms lighter then the old system, and full of carbony goodness. So after putting it through it's paces tomorrow night I'll post up a picture....And yes it's something a bit different ;)
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Carbon is bad mmmkay
Someone sent me a link to this site involving well...pictures of broken carbon bike bits....... oh no the horror
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