Wanted to go on a different route and figured I would take a ride by Ron and Phyllis. Stopped by BikeWorks to get a mirror for my helmet. Pulled up at the Knot's farm and bam; did a turttle! Man, that gravel hurts.
Got back on the road after a short visit, however, I found most of Bailey Rd pretty ruff as I rode out towards Colton. The rest of the ride was uneventful as I looked forward to hitting the newer payed County Rd A.
While it took a while to adjust and find the "sweet-spot" on the mirror, I found it useful and now prefer keeping an eye on passing autos.
Weather Conditions: 1038 hours. Overcast and cool. Light winds mostly from the ESE 3.5 to 6.9 mph.
Min: 45 Avg: 48 Max: 49 ºF
Saturday, April 09, 2011
Monday, April 04, 2011
Liquigas-Cannondale and Lampre-ISD recon Tour of Flanders
The Tour of Flanders is but two days away but that hasn’t stopped Italian squads Lampre-ISD and Liquigas-Cannondale from riding reconnaissance over the most important parts of the route.
While Quick Step, Leopard Trek and Garmin-Cervelo all organised media press conferences, Italy’s two biggest teams took to the parcours for some last-minute preparation and training.
Liquigas-Cannondale will line-up with one of the strongest teams in the race and with Peter Sagan the team will have a legitimate shot for the podium. The 21-year-old Slovak is riding his first Classics campaign but showed in Gent-Wevelgem that he is here for more than experience, forming the most dangerous move of the race and almost holding off the peloton with his escape companions.
Lampre-ISD, on the other hand, will have one eye on the Ardennes later this month where they’ll be led by Damiano Cunego and Michele Scarponi in La Flèche Wallonne and Liège-Bastogne-Liège.
Source: http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/liquigas-cannondale-and-lampre-isd-recon-tour-of-flanders
While Quick Step, Leopard Trek and Garmin-Cervelo all organised media press conferences, Italy’s two biggest teams took to the parcours for some last-minute preparation and training.
Liquigas-Cannondale will line-up with one of the strongest teams in the race and with Peter Sagan the team will have a legitimate shot for the podium. The 21-year-old Slovak is riding his first Classics campaign but showed in Gent-Wevelgem that he is here for more than experience, forming the most dangerous move of the race and almost holding off the peloton with his escape companions.
Lampre-ISD, on the other hand, will have one eye on the Ardennes later this month where they’ll be led by Damiano Cunego and Michele Scarponi in La Flèche Wallonne and Liège-Bastogne-Liège.
Source: http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/liquigas-cannondale-and-lampre-isd-recon-tour-of-flanders
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| Riders will have to face the Old Kwaremont on Sunday's Tour of Flanders. |
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| Tourists struggle up the Koppenberg. |
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| A rider crashes in front of the Lampre-ISD team. |
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| The Liquigas-Cannondale team car on the climbs. |
Monday, March 21, 2011
Wabash Cannonball - Long Loop
Weather Conditions: 1506 hours. Clear skies. Winds mostly out of the WNW 8.1 to 12.7 mph.
Min: 55 Avg: 57 Max: 57 ºFMXS: 22.0 mph.
Thursday, March 17, 2011
County Rd C with Shimano SPD Clip-less Pedals
Was board with the usual Wabash ride so decided to just go for a run up County Rd C. The HRM strap was in a funk, i.e., 239 bpm. At that rate I would be headed to the morgue.
Pulled over and adjusted the HRM with a fresh loogy and continued westward. The wind was rather brutal too but I kept pushing wondering whether the clip-less system would make a noticeable difference into the wind. Alas, nay! Or so I thinks.
I expected the ride east might be faster...ok, so I hoped it would be faster, cause this late in the winter season I AM "the wuss".
There was some difference but I doubt it was due to the clip-less array. That said, it is too early to say that I have benefitted from Shimano SPD.
MXS: 19.5 mph.
Weather Conditions: 1405 hours. Warm and clear. Winds mostly from the SSW from 15.0 to 21.9 mph with gust of 29.9 mph. Min: 63 Avg: 66 Max: 68 ºF
Pulled over and adjusted the HRM with a fresh loogy and continued westward. The wind was rather brutal too but I kept pushing wondering whether the clip-less system would make a noticeable difference into the wind. Alas, nay! Or so I thinks.
I expected the ride east might be faster...ok, so I hoped it would be faster, cause this late in the winter season I AM "the wuss".
There was some difference but I doubt it was due to the clip-less array. That said, it is too early to say that I have benefitted from Shimano SPD.
MXS: 19.5 mph.
Weather Conditions: 1405 hours. Warm and clear. Winds mostly from the SSW from 15.0 to 21.9 mph with gust of 29.9 mph. Min: 63 Avg: 66 Max: 68 ºF
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Wabash Cannonball - Long Loop
Just the usual: NOT!
OK...same ride but with real roadie shoes locked into real roadie pedals. Actually, they are a mountain style pedal and shoe for more comfortable walks in town during long-distance cross-county rides.
That said, the clip-less bindings are a little difficult to get used to for several reasons in the short run. Firstly, I found that there is an amount of float (or play). Secondly, I am not used to pedaling with a more forward position from the ball of the foot. This changes the mechanics and thus the muscles used in pedaling versus those used with standard petals. Thirdly, and more importantly, I found it tricky to think ahead and dismount the shoes from the petal in a timely manner. The alternative to a timely dismount is falling over stuck to the petals.
The benefits of this system is more efficient pedaling allowing for burst of power as in sprints.
Needless to say, I was nervous about stopping at cross-roads or other instances and not dismounting a shoe before falling over. The ride went well, however, when I rode to the end of the south trail at County Rd 1, I forgot that my left shoe was still mounted and started leaning to the left. There, I realized my error as I started going down. Amazingly, as I braced myself for falling, my left shoe popped out of the petal and slipped to the pavement and preventing me from a most embarrassing moment.
The rest of the ride was uneventful although very windy.
MXS: 24.4 mph.
Weather Conditions: 1619 hours. Overcast. Winds 9.2 to 12.7 mph mostly from the WSW.
Min: 37 Avg: 37 Max: 37 ºF
OK...same ride but with real roadie shoes locked into real roadie pedals. Actually, they are a mountain style pedal and shoe for more comfortable walks in town during long-distance cross-county rides.
That said, the clip-less bindings are a little difficult to get used to for several reasons in the short run. Firstly, I found that there is an amount of float (or play). Secondly, I am not used to pedaling with a more forward position from the ball of the foot. This changes the mechanics and thus the muscles used in pedaling versus those used with standard petals. Thirdly, and more importantly, I found it tricky to think ahead and dismount the shoes from the petal in a timely manner. The alternative to a timely dismount is falling over stuck to the petals.
The benefits of this system is more efficient pedaling allowing for burst of power as in sprints.
Needless to say, I was nervous about stopping at cross-roads or other instances and not dismounting a shoe before falling over. The ride went well, however, when I rode to the end of the south trail at County Rd 1, I forgot that my left shoe was still mounted and started leaning to the left. There, I realized my error as I started going down. Amazingly, as I braced myself for falling, my left shoe popped out of the petal and slipped to the pavement and preventing me from a most embarrassing moment.
The rest of the ride was uneventful although very windy.
MXS: 24.4 mph.
Weather Conditions: 1619 hours. Overcast. Winds 9.2 to 12.7 mph mostly from the WSW.
Min: 37 Avg: 37 Max: 37 ºF
Friday, March 11, 2011
Wednesday, March 02, 2011
Wabash Cannonball - Long Loop
This was just a get out and ride the old route ride for the sake of riding. The sun was warm but the gusts a bit much!
Anyhow, it felt good but man have I lost what little speed I had by the end of last fall. I need to start running intervals again to boost my output.
I posted laps with the Garmin as a benchmark for the start of this season.
MXS: 19.4 mph.
Weather conditions: Cold and clear. Winds mostly from the NW from 8.1 to 10.4 mph. Gusts to 18.4 mph.
Anyhow, it felt good but man have I lost what little speed I had by the end of last fall. I need to start running intervals again to boost my output.
I posted laps with the Garmin as a benchmark for the start of this season.
MXS: 19.4 mph.
Weather conditions: Cold and clear. Winds mostly from the NW from 8.1 to 10.4 mph. Gusts to 18.4 mph.
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