Power, part 2

Oddly enough, right about this time last year I posted about a new Lithium-based battery technology that was more powerful than the current crop of Li-Ion batteries. Guess what, there's a new battery in the works... again. This one, however, is being hailed as not only more powerful, but safer for the user and the environment than Lithium batteries.

It's from a company called Zinc Matrix Power and is water based. The charge density looks better than Li-Ion, making it possible for even smaller batteries, or same sized batteries that last longer. Click HERE for a PDF with more information and run time comparisons using a DVD player. It looks like the first application will be laptops -- especially good for those of you worried about your laptop exploding -- but I hope... HOPE, I tell you... that soon we'll see something out of light manufacturers using newer technology.

MiNewt and More

First off, my review of the FSA RD600 wheels is live. Head on over to HERE and check it out, then come back and finish reading this post.

Next up, tiny lights.

As you've undoubtedly read -- if you've followed my ramblings for a while -- I have a strong -- some would say unhealthy -- interest in LED lights. I really lean towards the smaller ones, since they, to me, represent the best compromise available. They aren't as bright as a HID, they aren't as cheap as a halogen, but they are light and very durable.

NiteRiders new MiNewt is made along this theme.

That's a US quarter shown for size reference. The battery is a Li-Ion and is good for 3 hours on full bright and 6 hours on low. There is also a flashing mode. The light head uses a 3W LED as the light source, but eschews the use of solid state optics, opting, rather, to use a very high quality reflector and lens. This gives the light a very clean beam pattern with no abnormalities. I've only had a chance to use the light at dawn, so it wasn't exactly a zero ambient light situation, but I liked what I saw. I'll give it a better thrashing in the very near future and report back.

Finally, I repositioned my DiNotte tail light. The one complaint I have with this light is it's lack of mounting options. I really don't like the way it is supposed to attach to the seatpost. Instead, I've been using a plastic nob mounted to my seat stay to hold and that works for the most part, but I tend to hit riding off road. Well, last night I remedied the situation. I asked my self when do I really need this kind of tail light? In the wintery months, or during standard time. In other words, when I have fenders. So I drilled into my rear fender and mounted the light, via zip ties, to the fender itself. If the light wasn't so lightweight, this wouldn't have been and option. Plus, now it looks like a little rocket booster.

To Cross or Not To Cross

I did it.

I rode in, and finished, my first cyclocross race. I spent 30 minutes with an average heart rate of 176 beats per minute. I thought my heart was going to explode. I loved every minute of it!

Last Saturday, T. and I made some barriers out of PVC -- I understand you can use the stuff for plumbing, weird -- and went down to the park to practice. You see, normally when I ride, the goal is to not get off of your bike. This is true whether I'm riding on or off road. If I am off of my bike, and moving, I did something wrong. In 'cross, this isn't the case. Here the goal is to get off of the bike, jump some obstical, run up a hill, or something, and then get on your bike in as fluid a way as possible. I am not fluid. I am very much solid and it shows. All that solidity give gravity a good hold and twice in practice I went down in a tumbling heap, feat tangled up in my bike. It was always the remounts. I can get off of my bike in a hurry -- I think that mountain biking has helped that a little -- but getting back on a moving bike is another problem altogether.

Fast forward to yesterday evening. We get to the race 20 minutes before it starts -- enough time to get signed in, pay my $15, and practice the final set of barriers for each lap. Saturday was dry. Yesterday was not. My technique didn't work when my shoes were wet.

Aside: I love my Frog pedals. I really do. I've used them for well over a decade and have never had a problem with them. They were nothing but a headache during the race. They clogged. They were slippery on the dismounts. They were everything you didn't want a pedal to be, except that they released every time as expected. They did that well. Now, back to my practice on the barriers.

As I approached the barriers I swung my right leg over to the left side of my bike, between my left leg -- still clipped in -- and my bike. However, before I could unclip intentionally, my left foot popped out on it's own, almost taking me down. That technique was out... time for the tried and true stutter step. It's not pretty but it works and I stay upright.

I line up near the back of the C group and with little waiting we are off! I'll spare you the details of each lap -- we did four -- but I'm not much of a sprinter. It took me the first lap to warm up and then I started reeling in other riders. I am happy to report that I was never passed, and I was able to pass a few of the riders in front of me. I don't know where I placed and it doesn't matter. It was fun. So much fun that I'll be doing it again next month!



Gear

I used my Cannondale Cross with Discs shod with Geax Mezcal Cross in the 34c width. These tires measure a true 34mm at 50psi on Mavic Open Pro rims. I ran them at 43/46 psi front/rear. I didn't flat and had plenty of cushion. They are one of the reasons I did the race. I am reviewing them and have done all sorts of riding with them, but haven't done any racing with them. Since that is the primary design of cross tires -- racing, that is -- I felt I needed to try them out there too. They were great in the mix of damp field, pea gravel, wet sandy soil, grass and pavement that made up the course.

Knig Knog, Blackbottoms

KNOG

Last week I received a couple of nifty lights from Knog. The first, their Frog model, is a tiny silicone bodied, single LED light. It comes in green, red, white and -- in some counties -- blue.


They also included the Bullfrog. This light features 5 LEDs in a horizontal configuration and is also silicone bodied. The Frog is powered by button batteries, and the Bullfrog uses AAA batteries. Both lights are of the "be seen" variety, though they would get you home in a pinch. The small size and minimal weight make them ideal for stashing in a commuter bag or hydration pack for emergency situations.

BLACKBOTTOMS

While at the check-in area for the Lotoja Classic, Jon and I ran into Jay from Blackbottoms. I met Jay at Sea Otter earlier in the year. After chatting for a bit, Jon mentioned that he was in need of a vest. Jay had some final prototypes on hand and willingly gave one to Jon -- and I was in luck, he handed one to me, too -- for the race.

This is a lightweight, wind blocking vest, with a mesh back. It's perfect for early morning/late evening rides in the fall and spring, when temperatures hover around 45 - 50 degrees Fahrenheit. It packs small enough that during the Lotoja Jon kept it in his jersey pocket when he wasn't actually wearing it.

Look for a review of the lights and the vest on GearReview in the near future.

Scott

Ok, I know that I've already posted today, but I just saw this on Cyclingnews.com -- who's hiring, by the way -- and had to share.

James Huang has been over in Europe covering Eurobike, and he snapped some images of this Scott Addict LTD.



According to James, it weighs around 13lbs and costs a staggering $11,000!!!

Click HERE for more...

To Buid a Fire

I ended my "Calling For Help" post with this statement: "One of these posts, I'll have to tell the story of the time we built a fire to fix a flat in the dark. That's a good one." Well, this would be "one of these posts".

We were riding in Dallas, OR, on land that I believe is now owned by Weyerhaeuser. There are -- or were -- a couple of really good trails with some built stunts and some good flow-y areas. The climb up into the area with the trails wasn't all the fun, but the trails themselves made it worth it.

On this particular ride, there were four of us that started -- though one dropped out on the climb in. This was T. which is notable because it was the only time in all of our years riding together that I was able to out climb him. He was kayaking and working much too much that particular spring/summer. Anyway, back to the ride. The ride itself was more or less uneventful. Fun trails, good times.

The ride out, however, proved to hold the adventure.

Once we exited the trail onto a really fast, rough gravel road we opened up and flew. A short way into the descent, however, we heard the 'bang -- psst -- psst -- psst -- psst" of a pinch flat. No problem, we had a tube. Now, by this time it was getting dark. We had taken longer than expected on the trails and one of the reasons for the flat was that we could no longer really see the details of the road. As usually happens when someone in the group flats, we stopped, got off of our bikes and watched the poor soul fix his flat.

Once the flat was fixed, we all went back to our respective bikes and got ready to finish the ride. While we watched the flat being repaired, the evening had proceeded at an alarming rate, and had any of us had lights, we would have turned them on by now. Just as we were getting ready to leave, a second rider discovers that his bike has a flat too, but didn't notice it as we were all standing around looking at flat number one. Now we were in a pickle -- we had no other spare tube. We were riding behind locked gates, so going to get the vehicle was out of the question. Walking out was, likewise, out of the question since it was miles to the vehicle.

We pooled our resources. We had a pump. We had a patch kit. We had no light. We couldn't see the hole well enough to patch it.

As an aside, after this experience, I began carrying a small keychain light.

Then, one of the guys in the group -- I believe it was flat #1 -- says, I've got matches! So, here we are in a forest, in the summer, and we decide that the best way to get out is to build a fire. On the gravel road. On, arguably, private land. We burned a map -- the only paper product we had -- to get the fire started. Once the repair was done, we put out the fire, and finished the ride "riding by braille" since the sun was officially out of the sky and it was night.