A Stretch of Summer Riding

Bancroft Tower, August 8, 2015

A good stretch of riding just past. Bancroft Tower visits, a racing fast Monday ride with the Barney's Crew, me innocuous and unaligned and happy to ride for myself in the break away. A one way ride from Harvard to Worcester, the point of launch being Carlson's Orchards, a venerable producer of peaches, nectarines, and apples. Big sun, big puffy clouds, big blue radiant New England skies, back roads bounded by stone walls. Long climbs with the new gearing. Explorations, missed turns, meandering afield in Rutland, Sterling, Princeton, Lancaster, category 3 and category 4 climbs.

Dexter Drumlin, Lancaster, MA
August 8, 2015

But what of the compact 50/34? For inconsequential starters, this Ultegra set-up is noisy when coasting, it produces a whirring spinnicky-clicking sound that, at speeds, sounds like a host of meth-fueled cicadas going off under my seat. The pronounced drone makes listening to other errant noises that the bike might make difficult to hear so that audio troubleshooting might prove challenging. But the important thing is how it performs. And that, I'm happy to report, is excellent.

The second lowest gear (i.e., 2nd easiest to peddle) is now what my lowest gear was before. That's good as I can now get out of the saddle and hammer in that gear and still have a fallback option. However, the lowest gear is almost powerless. It's so easy to turn over that I find myself pumping staccato-style, jabbering almost, like someone stuttering, firing up and down rapidly but ineffectively. Except on the steepest grades. Then that low gear shines.

Mason Rd, Princeton
Aug 8, 2015

Yesterday's ride with the Monday night group was uplifting. I'd gone there tired and a couple weeks removed from the last time I rode with them when I did not acquit myself well (missed the break away that night and then dogged it on the hills, as I recall). But last night went much better. I rode 4+ miles (including a climb to Bancroft Tower) before getting to the ride rendezvous so I was warmed up. Then I made sure I stayed in contact with the front.

Racing along the newly paved section of Reservoir Rd at 22+ mph, we were a speeding train of ten or so guys. I didn't go near the front. I hung at the rear, alternately last or second to last, until we hit the climb. The group hammered onto the slope, as did I, feeling pretty good. But I had miscalculated. With the new compact gearing I'd figured that I'd be able to out climb guys but when I dropped to the lowest gear, I sacrificed momentum for ease of pedaling. That proved costly as I was only able to pass two guys; the rest of the group powered off ahead of me as I thrashed myself upwards, panting.

That's the good thing about the group ride versus the normal solo ride - you get to test yourself against stronger, better, and more experienced riders than yourself. And the competition is earnest but friendly; no one's a dick. There's nothing at stake, not even bragging rights. You're riding solely to test yourself.

I also did a short ride in town Sunday morning, August 9th. With plans for hiking later in the day, I opted just to get out on the quiet city streets for some local hill climbing. Green Hill Park, for example, George Street, Bancroft Tower. All good climbs. A beautiful morning. Very little traffic.

Main St, Woo City, Aug 9, 2015

Crossing Highland Ave Sunday Morning

Dubstoevsky at Bancroft Tower
Sunday, Aug 9, 2015

Developments

Tour de France, July 2015

What a week, and then some. Travels to the south Jersey shore, the end of the Tour de France, a major restructuring of the Allez Comp's drive train, and the arrival of the Bib. In Cape May, NJ I rode a single speed fat tire beach cruiser about six miles round trip to Cape May Lighthouse State Park but I neglected to activate my Strava connection so have no chart of that unusual ride.

More importantly, three giant developments have occurred since last we checked in with Dubstoevsky.

First, a new crank set and drive train. Much research into the pros and cons of a 50/34 set-up, a compact, vs the typical racing set of 53/39. Having had trouble with my crank's compression nut for a while and being unable to adjust it to satisfaction, throw in the need of a new chain and a replacement of the considerably worn chain rings, and it seemed a no brainer. I went with the compact. Six days in the shop while I was at the Jersey shore. Return to a whole new drive train world. More on this in a subsequent post.

Second, the arrival of The Bib. Why I have ridden all these years and never worn one is beyond me. This changes the game, comfort-wise.

Yesterday being a case in point. A hot day and long in the saddle, over 50 miles and lots of climbing. The Bib alleviated the midriff bunching & pressing that comes with regular biking shorts. The Bib doesn't put pressure on your bladder, but it does, corset-like, keep your belly tucked and your form tight.

Saturday, out by 9:00, another hot and dry weekend, though setting out I encounter more clouds than were predicted. The first hour proves to be under puffy gray overhang. Eventually, the day rises into being and the sun takes over the sky, the cloud cover dissipates and the full heat of the 90+ degree pulses.

My goal? The Wachusett summit. Via the Worcester Airport and Paxton & Rutland. A category 4 and a cat 3 climb on today's route. The entire ride, though taken on many 'main' roads, proves to be traffic-free, a real long pedal and grind through extraordinary New England landscapes, including, when all was said and done, over 4,000 feet of climbing. Allez!

Mt. Wachusett Summit, August 1, 2015

Sterling Airport, August 1st, 2015

It was a great ride, though arduous. A piping hot day. This time I rode in the correct direction, starting out in the morning and riding northwest so that the sun was behind me, and when I returned near noon, though the sun was above me it was also slanted slightly from behind, so the sun wasn't in my face. The last time I did a similar version of this ride, leaving the same time (roughly 9:00 AM), I went in reverse and rode into the sun the entire way, going and coming.

Sterling, Ma

But I digress.

Despite a stellar ride yesterday and a real excitement about the new drive train - climbing was incredible, considerably easier - I come now to the third development.

This afternoon, eager to set out once more and further put to the test my new drive train, I discovered a loose spoke in my rear wheel. It being Sunday, I wasn't sanguine about finding a bike shop open that could help me. But I did.

Unfortunately, the 'one loose spoke' revealed a greater problem - two evident cracks in the rim. And just like that, today's ride was cancelled and now I'm looking at another week or so to get a new set of wheels and get back in action.

Maybe it's a blessing in disguise. I have been suffering from 'tennis elbow' (in my case 'biking and driving elbow') and another week's rest might be beneficial. Given how good I felt on the 50+ miler on Saturday after a week's lay off, I don't worry about jumping back into the thick of it after a lay off. Plus, new wheels. That might be exciting.

The Recovery Elixir

Juice it up after a big ride

Strawberry, peach, carrot, apple, beat

With the Niceness!