Tubeless Cross

One of the disciplines of cycling that should have taken tubeless tires and ran with them is cyclocross. Because the tires are much skinnier than mountain bike tires, pinch flats are a common problem. As a remedy, tubular tires are still very present at 'cross races, though tubeless tires would have nearly all the benefits, without having to glue the tire to the rim, making tire swaps a piece of cake.

Now, if you aren't running discs, a person could use either Shimano's Dura-Ace or new Ultegra wheels, a tubeless-ready cross tire (like the Hutchinson's Bulldog cross) and some sealant. But what do you do if you run disc brakes?


Enter 29er wheels. Luckily, 29er wheels are 700C, and just a smidge wider. T. recently built up a set of Stan's ZTR355 29er wheels. These rims are just 2mm wider than the venerable Mavic Open Pro. In theory, this should open up the tire and make for a flatter profile.

Sitting right around 400g, the ZTR is similar in weight to the Open Pro, as well (claimed to weigh 435).

Frankly, when T. asked me if I wanted to try out these wheels, I said "yes" without a moment's hesitation. It's a well documented fact that I love tubeless wheels/tires. In fact, they rank third or fourth on my list of major innovations since I started riding in the latter half of the 80's. I feel that they are that good.

So how do these wheels ride?

In a word: fast!

They provide enough cushion to take the sting out of rougher trails. They provide enough traction to enable railing through corners, and enough traction that for the first time since owning my disc equipped 'cross bike, I want to upgrade the front rotor to a 7-inch. I'm riding trails faster than I have any business riding them. It really is amazing.

Despite the fact that they aren't the lightest wheels out there, they spin up remarkably fast. On back to back rides between my road bike--Dura-Ace wheels, Hutchinson Fusion tubeless--and my cross bike--the wheels I'm writing about, Hutchinson Bulldog Cross--I found that the road wheels spun up about the same, which I found odd. I have no explanation for this, but it has made riding my 'cross bike a whole lot more fun. And that's saying something.

Now, it's not all roses. There are some issues. It turns out that I can't run the tires as low as I want to (36-37psi). I need to keep them around 40psi. Still, that's about 5-7psi less than I normally run the Bulldogs when I use them with tubes, so that's still a gain. If I run less than about 40, I burp air a little. If I run less than 35psi, the tires are squirmy and too soft for hard cornering.

The ZTR rims, like all of Stan's rims, are designed to lock onto a standard tire bead. I found that this was the case, with the tire locking onto the rim very quickly and effortlessly.

All in all, I think that the positives outweigh the negatives with this wheel. In fact, if these didn't belong to a very good friend, I'd have a hard time giving them back. He knows where I live, though, so it would be rather hard to hang onto them.

Maybe I should move...

Fun and Games

You know your Mom said it: "it's all fun and games until someone gets hurt." Well, last week, we had just such an occurrence.

The night ride started out like most. We rode out anticipating a fun ride. The plan was to ride two loops of a local trail, adding up to about 1500ft of climbing, total. The first loop went as planned. We climbed the trail--which for some reason seemed steeper than the last time I rode it, did the hill change?--and decided to alter our route a little. Rather than do two complete loops back to back, we decided to complete the first loop, climb a gravel road and descend the section we had just climbed, since the mountain changed and it was now steeper than it was before. Really.

The first loop went as planned. Everyone had fun and I got to have a good chuckle as the unexpected short, steep uphill near the end of the downhill caught many unawares. I'm twisted that way.

The gravel road ride was a nice reprieve from the now-too-steep trail and I, for one, was looking forward to enjoying the last bit of downhill.

As we dropped in, M. and I took the lead, followed by G., J., E., J2., and T. I think that was the order, anyway. I was riding my cross bike and really had to work to stay in front of M., narrowly making two of the three bridges.

As an aside, I've been running T.'s tubeless cross set up. I'll be posting about it in the very near future. I love them. I'm going to try and not return them. I hope T. isn't reading this post.

Upon completion of the descent, M. and I congratulate ourselves for having put some serious time on the others.

Then we waited. And waited.

It was clear at this point that something wasn't right. Considering the group we were riding with, there is no way we put this much time on them. They aren't a slow group.

Now we were worried. As we were discussing who should go back and find out if there was a rider down or if there was just a mechanical problem, G. comes riding up and lets us know that J. crashed. He informed us that he thought that J. injured his arm.

Now three of us were waiting.

Soon E. and J2. came riding down. J.'s arm is injured and he cannot ride out, so T. and J. are going to hike to the nearest access point and E. was going to ride to get J.'s car and meet them there.

After a trip to the ER, J's arm is in a cast. He has a dislocated fracture of his left radius and a displaced wrist. Today he went into surgery to have a plate added to his radius and a screw inserted into his wrist.

Mountain biking is fun. Night riding is GREAT fun. But, in the time it takes to blink, things can go awry. Stay safe out there. Wear a helmet--all of were, by the way. And remember, "it's all fun and games until someone gets hurt."

Best Night Ride

It's no secret that I like riding at night. There is no one else on the trails, you can see more and varied wildlife, and it adds a whole new element to familiar trails.

The downside is that my night riding is usually limited to local trails; it's hard to convince the wife that I need to drive 3 hours for a night ride.

Sometimes, though, the stars align and I find myself proximal to an epic trail with my lights. Hmmm... what to do when the camp goes to bed. RIDE OF COURSE!

Such was the case last week when I ended up camping near the McKenzie River Trail--and by "near", I mean "right on top of"--right where the trail goes from technical to non-technical, with nearly all of the usual suspects that join me on the local night rides. For those of you who haven't ridden the trail, it should be on your must-ride-before-you-die list. It's 26 miles long and is very nearly two different trails. The upper half has long sections of lava rock, has some steep-ish bits, and will make you crash if you have a lapse in concentration. The lower half if mostly flat with a few good rollers. It is mostly smooth with roots interspersed. On the upper half, you are generally picking your way carefully, with a few spots were you can open up and fly. On the lower half you are generally opening up and flying with a few spots were you need to pick your way. It rocks.

So what happens when you take an already epic, amazing trail and ride it at night? You get epic squared. Maybe cubed. I couldn't wipe the grin off my face for the entire ride.

Ok, that's not entirely true. When I had one of those aforementioned lapses in judgment and relaxed... only to have my bike stopped while I continued on without it. The trail--where I landed--removed the smile, but I had it back as soon as we were riding again.

If you haven't ever done a long ride, do one. If you have, but not at night, get out there after dark. But remember, battery power at night, particularly on a trail where there is no good bail point should something go awry, is akin to water in the desert. You can never have too much. As we found out, it might be a good idea to even carry a spare light. Something small and versatile, that can be helmet or handlebar mounted, just in case. T. was using an older HID which, for some reason, decided that this was the perfect time to lose its ballast. This eliminated his bar light, and some battery issues with his helmet light required musical chairs with batteries among the other riders. The irony was that he had a spare light back at camp, and I had a spare battery back at camp. So, use our mistakes as your lesson. Bring way more light than you think you'll need. Just in case.

Riding very good excellent trails at night is another way to see them in a completely different light. Next up, the North Umpqua Trail. In sections, please.

It turns out the best rides also make the best night rides.

Long Ride, No Preparation

Last Friday I rode what has become an annual tradition: The C2Sea. This would be the fourth time I've ridden this route, and the third official C2Sea ride. Last year, I wasn't able to ride the whole thing because of a mechanical early on. The year before, I rode it on my 'cross bike (see HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE; this is the most detailed information about the route I've posted.) This year, I barely got my bike sorted before we left. I wasn't sorted at all.

Because of school, home repairs, etc., I am not in the sort of shape I usually am this time of year. I've been riding, but not the big miles needed to get ready for a ride of this magnitude. I was close to not even attempting the ride, but decided I could struggle through it. Besides, T. was taking his mountain tandem and had his 5 year old on the back for the first half. At the midway point he was exchanging kids for his 8 year old. I mean, if they could do it, I should be able to. Right?

Here's what I found out and thought about during the ride:

• It's a very good thing that I've spent so much time on the bike over the years. I was able to adjust my pace as needed and read my aches and pains to minimize my suffering.
• I suffered.
• I can suffer and still enjoy the scenery, to a point.
• There is no substitution for real training for long rides.
• I hurt much worse the next day.
• When I am tired and struggling to hang with the group, I don't take any pictures.
• Full suspension is very nice when you are tired.
  
• Swapping tires to lightweight ones doesn't matter a whole lot when you then strap 4 pounds of water to the bike.
• I really, really like eLoad. It has replaced Cytomax as my go-to energy drink. I could drink this stuff all day long. Really.
• Chamois creme makes all the difference. But it still feels weird when I first apply it.
• I normally don't eat right before riding, I should have stuck to that for this one, too.
• Apple Pie Clif Shot doesn't taste like apple pie.
• You can never be prepared enough for flats.
  

About the flats: I had one early one, even though I was running Stan's goop. I lost pressure, but the goop did its best. As near as I can tell, I ran down a blackberry bush length-wise, since I had 3 or 4 spots where the sealant was coming out along the tread. The bad one, though, was the puncture in the sidewall--ironically located dead center on the "tubeless" symbol. I had a can of Hutchinson sealant/inflater and used that as well. Since it was an expanding foam, it did a slightly better job of getting that sidewall puncture. However, it continued to leak down. Only when we met up with T.'s wife to do the kid swap was I able to take care of it. T. had placed a floor pump in the van, so with that I inflated my tire to a little over 50psi, forcing the sealant out that sidewall hole and sealing it. Without that, I think I would have struggled with the slow leak all day.

I was not the only flat. We had a total of 10 flats out of 12 bikes. Most of those were near the end of the ride, as well. It actually became comical, since we'd ride for 20 minutes then stop for 20 to fix a flat.

Overall, this was the biggest group we've had on this ride. It was great fun, and next year, I'm training.

Seriously.

WBR 09 - Report

A couple of Saturdays ago, I helped support some running friends of mine while they raced in the Wasatch Back Relay (a 188 mile relay race-- see here: http://www.ragnarrelay.com/wasatchback/index.php). My job was to ride my bike through the night, providing water (or other energy drinks), lights and a way for the rest of the team to rest. Basically, those who aren't running are supporting the guy who happens to be out doing that particular leg of the relay. By riding through the night, I allow them to get some much-needed sleep.

About the ride

I started around 2:30am (someone else took the first half of the night) and finished around 7:30am. I covered about 35 miles. I rode my hardtail mountain bike (I didn't think my road bike had low-enough gearing) with flat pedals, Ergon grips (http://acidinmylegs.blogspot.com/2009/06/bar-ends.html) and plenty of lights. I rode slowly. One might even call it a running pace. (Though, to be sure, I don't think I could have run at that pace. I'm no runner.)

Observations

It hurts more to sit on a saddle when you aren't pedaling, or are pedaling slowly.

While I had plenty of time to look around, it was dark. Even once the sun came up, I'd rather not have that much time to look around.

Runners run on the wrong side of the road-facing traffic. We were on old country-roads where the only other people on the road were others supporting or participating in this race, so it wasn't so bad, but I really don't like riding against traffic. Makes me feel like a salmon.

When riding that slowly, grips make a big difference (http://acidinmylegs.blogspot.com/2009/06/bar-ends.html), but shoes do not. I wore some comfortable shoes and didn't miss the stiff soles of my normal riding shoes.

I got surprisingly hungry, but not really thirsty over the ~5 hours I rode.

It's much harder than you'd think to sit on the bike and go slow. Trust me.