2011 STP

I'm typing this post one-handed due to a broken collar bone. About an hour into the ride, in Renton, I was second in a paceline. As we approached an intersection, a car approached from the right and our light changed to yellow. I think the guy in front of me was trying to decide whether or not to proceed, then he suddenly decided to stop. I was looking at the same car for just an instant and when my attention returned to the paceline leader, he had come to a rapid stop and I didn't have time to react.

I slammed into his left side pretty violently. I don't recall my exact trajectory but I apparently landed straight on my left side, I think I rolled a bit too. When I stopped, I was laying on my right side and I knew immediately that my collar bone was broken. It took me a while to get up.

One of the other riders helped me up and then called 911. First the police, then the firefighters, then the ambulance arrived. I wound up at Valley Medical Center where they did the usual tests & cleanup. I called my dad and he came down to pick me up and get me on Amtrak back home.

The leader was in pretty poor shape too. When I hit him I either broke or at least separated one of his ribs. He told me that he was having difficulty taking a deep breath and he was quitting the ride to head back home.

Holy cow did my helmet take a hit. The next day I noticed bruising & tenderness in the area of my left temple and if that was the impact point then the helmet spared me some serious dain bramage. Looking at the helmet it is obviously broken, but it fulfilled its prime directive by sacrificing itself for me.

Damage to the bike was several broken spokes in the front wheel and two of my brand-new brake pads were knocked out and missing. My favorite jersey got scuffed a bit in the back where I was carrying my spare tire, my saddle was torn up too. I haven't had a chance to go over the rest of the bike yet. Unfortunately I was too wrapped up in my own problems to ask what damage the other rider had but I think he was changing a flat tire as I rolled out in the ambulance.

So I'm off the bike for 4 to 6 weeks. I'll be getting on the trainer shortly, hopefully I can keep some of my fitness.

Lessons learned:

1. Trust no one unless you've ridden with them before. I got caught up in the excitement of my first STP when I should have instead contacted my regular riding buddies and left with them.

2. Don't get caught up in the excitement. I don't know if I'll even bother trying to do the STP in the future, I feel that I spent a lot of money for a pretty bad experience

McKenzie Pass

What a gorgeous ride. I had never done this before and am glad I got the chance. Three of us went up Saturday morning. The sky was crystal clear so we slathered on the sunscreen before leaving the Blue River Ranger Station.

The climb up was never steep, it was just relentless. Looking at the profile in Ascent, I think there's a stretch of at least 12 miles with literally not a single level spot on it. It certainly felt that way.

The view from the top was stunning. We climbed up to the very top of the observatory and hammed it up a bit:

 

"I'm on top of the world Ma!"

We then headed down the other side to Sisters. I got ahead of the group and was blasting down the road. I glanced down to check my GPS and when I looked up the (closed) gate was practically right in front of me.

Oh snap.

Well, I obviously managed to stop in time but if I hadn't, the two riders just on the other side of the gate would have quite the story to tell of 'the time this guy flew 50 feet after hitting the gate!'

We made it in to Sisters and stopped to sit a bit, eat, and refill our water bottles. Then it was back on the road and upwards.

Kevin got a flat so Dave and I waited for him at the gate and then went up to the summit again. I still had a little pep in the legs so I tried to pick off all the rabbits and managed to get all but one.

We started back down with a group and I took the opportunity to ride with descenders that were much more skilled than I. I don't think I've ever had that much fun on a bike before, descending through the technical switchbacks in a fairly large group.

On the way back we stopped for pizza & beer, the perfect end to a perfect day.

 

Because it's there?

Why am I doing this? Quick answer: I don't know. I do enjoy some of the camaraderie of riding with people, but that doesn't happen very often. Probably more than 90% of my rides are solo; there aren't a lot of people out there who don't freak out at the question 'hey, wanna do a real quick century?'

I like the mechanical aspect of working on my bike, though I get occasionally frustrated with my lack of expertise in certain operations requiring a certain amount of 'muscle memory' or finesse. I'm continually fiddling around with my derailleur adjustments and they're still not where I want them; I think I could take it in to a shop and they'd have it set right in five minutes.

The tactics aspect of riding appeals to me but there really isn't any way to learn them as a cat 5. If I ever upgrade to cat 4 then I could ride the 3/4 races and really start learning. But as an ultra rider, tactics other than 'keep pedaling' aren't really necessary.

Biking certainly get me out of the house, and I'm in the best physical shape I've ever been in. I do have some regrets that I got into this so late in life and often wonder where I would be now if I had been this dedicated one or two decades ago? I'm not going to kid myself that I could have been a pro, although I certainly fantasize about that (who doesn't?) but I would certainly be a much better rider now.

Of course if I was riding the last two decades, who knows what toll that would have placed on my body? Would I replace the lung-searing effort of trying to keep up with the Cat 5 group with chronic neck pain?

What do I enjoy about riding? This may sound a bit arrogant but I slightly enjoy the feeling of superiority over weekend riders. Call me shallow and insecure if you'd like, you're probably right, but there it is.

I also like to think that I'm still on an upward curve as far as month-to-month improvements go. Maybe I'll get discouraged when I finally plateau, which should be in a year or two?

 

Death of a Topeak Road Morph

It looks like my Topeak Road Morph died sometime over the winter. I had a flat a few days ago and it wouldn't pump up when I needed it. I made an effort to keep the plunger lubricated over the winter, but a lot of road grit still got into it. Part of this may be that I don't have full fenders on my road bike, just a set of minimal clip-ons. The seat tube, where the pump is mounted, isn't protected and gets quite a bit of grit sprayed onto it. The failure wasn't something I'd chalk up to a manufacturing defect or design flaw, it was definitely due to blatant abuse.

The Road Morph has been replaced with a Lezyne Road Drive. The Lezyne looks like it is sealed much better; between the rubber caps and the internally-stored hose it should be less susceptible to getting road grit inside. I'll miss the inline pressure gauge, but that's an acceptable loss.

Now, you may be asking yourself how I got home if my pump didn't work? Simple answer is that I'm extremely paranoid and so I also carry a CO2 inflator in my saddle bag. Actually, I'm not that paranoid; I just have the CO2 there in case I get a flat on the way to work or in really bad weather that I want to get out of.

 

Why aren't tubular tires more popular?

Being a fairly recent convert to tubular tires, I wonder why they aren't more popular? The only disadvantage I can see is that they require more work for initial installation. After that, I feel that they are less work.

I currently have three wheelsets, all tubular. Two sets are basically the same, Mavic Reflex rims with bladed spokes and Campy hubs. One pair have Continental GP4000RS, the other pair have Tufo S33 Special (21mm). The third set is a Neuvation C50 with Tufo Elite Ride 23 tires.

I first tried tubulars when I got a good deal on a wheelset from craigslist. My initial idea was to just buy the wheels for the hubs (it was still a good price for a set of campy hubs) but when I saw that the rims were basically brand new I decided to get a set of tubular tires and try them out. Since it was winter, I started out with a pair of wide Tufo Elite Ride 25.

I got a little over 1000 miles before the rear tire blew up. It was definitely on it's last legs anyways as the under-layer was starting to show through the tread. During that time I only had one flat, and even that one was not a problem, I was inspecting the tires during routine maintenance and noticed a big chunk of embedded glass. I pried it out and sure enough, pssssssst. Since I had pre-loaded some Stan's Sealant, I just rotated the tire so that the wound was on the bottom and Stan did it's job. I never had any other flats, nor did the existing hole ever re-open.

For the Lewis & Clark Ultra, I tried a new pair of Conti GP4000RS on my new wheels (the second pair of Mavic Reflex rims). I got a flat in the rear tire but it only took less than four minutes to fix the flat. The only way it could have been fixed quicker is if I had a support vehicle following me with a spare wheel. But this wasn't the Tour de France and I'm not Lance, so no support car for me...

Why are clinchers perceived as superior to tubulars? The cost advantage of being able to repair/replace the tube while still keeping the tire. In my experience, products like Stan's Sealant have negated this advantage.

The one time I had to replace the tire it wasn't a big deal either. I just pulled the current tire off and installed the new one, slammed the CO2 inflater on, and was on my way.

There's a trick to removing a tubular tire which makes it quite easy. I'll be doing a separate post on that with some video but basically the idea is to work a tire iron or screwdriver in between the tire and rim and then use that to pull the tire UP and away from the rim as you work the tool around the wheel. This breaks the glue bond and then you can just pull the tire off.

If I was doing a long tour or adventure ride I would certainly have to go with a clincher. It's also kind of a drag to carry an entire tire around. I haven't gotten the hang of a compact fold, so I just kind of wad the tire up and use a velcro strap to compress it so that it fits in a jersey pocket.

I think the reason tubulars aren't more popular is due to the perceived hassle of installation. They do need to be pre-stretched, rims need to be cleaned, glue applied and allowed to dry, then reapplied and install the tire. But so far I find the routine involved to be soothing, and it gives me a sense of connectedness with all the old-school riders that I admire and envy.