The Kid Has Come and Bike Time Has Gone

Congratulations to me!  My second son and future cyclist was born on June 18th!  He is incredibly healthy and incredibly big. I can't wait to get both of the boys on bikes.

But since he has come along, my cycle time has been non-existent.  I've been doing the feeding in the middle of the night thing, much more often than the ride early in the morning thing.  Oh well, it's worth it.

That said, and don't tell my wife I'm telling you this, but in a  couple of weeks she is taking both kids to the in-law's while I stay back and man the fort.  That means...wait for it...a little bike time for me and maybe a little project time too.

I'm thinking about either re-painting my new 29er or simply stripping it and going with a brushed metal look.  I'm also flirting with the idea of getting a new, super light frame, after making some money from selling off parts that came with the bike.

I've been incredibly happy with the bike so far, except that the whole single speed, drop handlebar thing was not for me.  The drops put me way to far in front and the single cog simply would not hold.  Every time I really mashed down, it slipped creating way too many dangerous situations for me while riding.  I threw in the towel, threw on some gears and the original handlebar and it is a much better set up for me.  I have actually been able to get in some miles on it while toting my older son around in his bike trailer.  He loves the trailer and I'm able to squeeze in 8-10 miles, so not so bad for everyone involved.

I'll be sure to keep you all updated on my new little project that will happen in a couple of weeks. Cheers!

Drop it like it's hot

So my new mtb with drop bars project is just about complete...well, it is complete sort of.  I have the bike set up with its new midge drop bars and tektro drop bar brake levers.  It looks pretty nice.  I've also set up a second wheelset with slightly more narrow motoraptor 2.1 tires, rather than the giant beasts the other wheelset offers.

I say it isn't quite done yet only because I plan to repaint it some months down the road.  So, there will be a new version on its way.  Nevertheless, I'm ready to take the bike out and test the drop bar set up today at one of my favorite trails, Schaeffer Farms.  It should be nice and muddy from the rain the past two days, but I can't wait to finally ride the single speed with drop bars on a real trail.  If I like it, great.  If not, I'm ready to pop multiple gears back on it and probably run it as a 1x9.  I'll let you all know how it goes.

Not so fast, my friend!

So, last week I had all kinds of grand visions of my Redline Monocog coming in and making it a mean steel utility bike with drop bars.  Well...I found out last week that it was going to take another month to come in because it is on backorder.  As time is tight with a second child coming fast, I decided to look for a faster option.

In a panick, I began scouring craigslist and was lucky enough to find a killer deal.  The seller lived a good bit away, but agreed to meet me halfway.  I found a Performance Access frame in my size (alu, much much lighter than the monocog), with an On-one carbon, rigid fork, which I had planned to purchase, woodman headset, avid juicy ultimate brakes with carbon levers, a surly tensioner, carbon seatpost, and wtb laserdisc wheels with weirwolf tires, set up tubless.  The bike is in excellent shape!  The fork is like new. It was the bike pretty much exactly how I would have set it up myself!  I grabbed it for $400.  The parts alone could be sold for much more than the price.

Instead of waiting a month for the bike, I was up on it this weekend, pulling my son around in his bike trailer with a smile on my face.  And, yes, I was even able to get a little single tracking in on the trails behind my house.  Not very technical but still fun miles.  And if anyone ever doubts the level of effort required to pull around a 40lb kid in a 40 lb trailer with fat, knobbies on for 15 miles, I will just laugh.  My legs felt it. 

My long-range plan is to strip the bike of its paint (the only part I dislike about the bike is the general labeling of Access on the frame), go with a bare alu look, probably a darker brushed version, add some decals, and put on the drops.  I'll probably also switch out the brakes, as I prefer mechanicals to the hydros.

I also ordered some Kenda Happy Medium tires for cross/trail use, which should be much better than the fat knobbies on there right now.  I'll keep the fat knobbies for the mountains.

MTB with drops... A cool little build

So after selling off my one of a kind Voodoo rig, I set my sights on something more simple, more purist, a single speed 29er.  I'm still waiting on it to come in from the factory, as they are on back order right now.  In the meantime, I've been doing some good reading on singlespeeds and different things you can do with them.

I came across a couple great reads with pics about putting drops on a a mountain bike.  Read this: http://mtbtires.com/features/bikes/why_dropbars.html   See cool pics of some of these rigs here: http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/drop-bar-mtbs-own-one-got-a-pic



An incredible looking bike with an On-one Midge drop bar



Anyway, I got sucked into the looks and supposed benefits of putting a drop bar on my bike.  I want to use my new SS monocog to ride singletrack, trails with my kids, as a bad weather bike, possibly as a cross bike, and possibly as a commuter.  I want it to be versitile as possible.  So, I was already thinking about how to reconcile the differences between a typical mountain bike with a flat bar and a typical road bike with a drop bar.  I have now not only been convinced that a hybrid is possible, but that it might be down right advantageous.

As I'm piecing this build together, I'm looking for just the right pieces to build the bike that can meet all of the purposes stated above.  When looking around at drop bars that were appropriate for the build, I came across a category of drops known as dirty drops.  This genre includes, among others, the On-one Midge (http://www.63xc.com/mattc/midge350.jpg), On-One Mary (http://www.firstflightbikes.com/_borders/P1010211.JPG), Origin8 Gary (http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/31ENwXcy6pL._SL500_AA300_.jpg) (I have read that the Gary isn't really made for true off-roading), Soma Junebug (http://www.bikeman.com/store/graphics/00000001/Alt-BTI/BTI-SF1174.jpg), Salsa woodchipper (http://twentynineinches.com/2010/01/03/salsa-cycles-woodchipper-bar-a-comparison/)%20and and a bar made by WTB (http://www.bikepro.com/products/handlebars/hndlbars_jpg/t1t_wtb_dirt_drop.jpg).  These bars feature a flat top like a typical mountain bar, a drop like a typical road bar, but then the bottom of the bar flares out away from the bike, providing the rider with greater stability and more hand positions.  Of all of the reviews I read, the Midge appears to be the best of the bunch, as it offers a very compact drop, that allows you stay fairly upright in the drops.  Here is a good comparison of several of the bars: http://twentynineinches.com/2010/01/03/salsa-cycles-woodchipper-bar-a-comparison/

I hunted for days for a good price on one, as they are made and sold mostly in the UK.  They are hard to find here.  I found some at unrealcycles.com and twenty2 cycles.  The price was a little steep at $40 plus about $15 of shipping to me.  But then, at the last moment, I found a bunch put up on Ebay by unreal cycles for $30 plus $10 in shipping, allowing me to save a bunch of dough.  I grabbed one of the 31.8 versions.  They are made in both 31.8 and 25.4 (I think this is the right measurement).

Stay tuned for more updates on the build.  I think my bike may be in by the end of this week!

Two new members of the family...

Well, since my wife and I are expecting a new member of the family, a baby boy and hopefully future cyclist, it was time for another member of our family to go.  Since my mountain bike was getting in very little riding time (about 6 rides since the beginning of last season) I just couldn't stand to see such a nice bike go to waste any longer.  So, this past weekend I sold it.

However, (and this is the exciting part) I've decided to use the money on a new, more simplistic member of the family...drum roll please... Yesterday, I put in an order for a new 2012 Redline monocog 29er, a single speed, rigid fork workhorse.  The bike just made sense.  It is relatively inexpensive, it will still allow me to hit the single track when time allows, and it is a great bike to take my two sons in their bike trailer on trails like the C&O canal.  I tried hooking the trailer up to my cervelo, and I just couldn't bear the thought.  And pulling the trailer around on a scandium framed, fox fork wielding, top of the line rig, didn't make more sense.

Maybe the best part about the bike is that by happenstance the bike's paint scheme matches the new paint scheme on my road bike almost exactly.  Since ordering it, I did purchase some Avid bb5 disc brakes so I feel safe up in the steeps of Gambrill.  I'm also thinking about an all black wheelset to keep it fully stealth, but I'll probably wait on that.  I don't want to spend all of the bike money on this bike, otherwise the sale just doesn't make sense.  I'll have to see how much time I really have to get up into those mountains, which I think will be very little based upon the past year.

So, everyone join in a round of applause for the new family member!

I'm cycling in the rain...

I knew today was going to be a cruddy mess, with showers and thunderstorms pretty much constant through the day.  According to the forecasts, I had a 2 hour window in the middle of the day to get in a ride, if I didn't want to get soaked.  At 1pm, the rain slowed to a drizzle and I took to the roads.  Riding in wet conditions on hilly, well traveled roads with very little to no shoulders is not my cup of tea, but I really wanted to get the ride in.

I rode to Mt. Pleasant this time for a slightly longer (23mi) ride that featured a lot of hills, most of which, though, are more gradual. I still managed to climb almost 2500ft.  I didn't get too wet and luckily no one hit me along the way (although several cars came damn close).  Below are my stats:

A Miracle Weekend

By the grace of God, my in-laws agreed to watch our 2 yr old this weekend while my wife is away at a professional conference.  I can't remember the last time that I was on my own without the wife and kid with so much time for myself.  And I'll bet that I don't see it again for just as long, if not longer.

That being the case, the only right thing to do with to pack up the bike and head to the hills of Western PA, where I'm originally from to get in a weekend of great riding.  Today I went on my first ride of the weekend, out to a nice local park with a lake, called Mammoth Park.  The roads to get there are busy enough to keep a lot of loose dogs off of them, but not so busy that you have to outrun 18 wheelers all day.  However, I didn't have a full recollection of the type of hills that are here versus the nice, mostly flat terrain of Maryland, where I now live. At one point, I hit a 20% grade.  I hit so many hills that I actually torqued my handlebar loose from all of the back and forth with the climbing.

All in all, though, it was a beautiful day and a very nice ride. Ride Recap by Strava:  

Double trouble

March 15th and it is 80 degrees and sunny.  I happened to have the day off work so I gave my cycling buddy a call and he took me on some new roads that I hadn't been on in the area.  It was morning, so it was about 65 and sunny.  The trees aren't in bloom yet, but there was no wind (highly unusual for a Maryland March day) and the sun was shining.  It was just a nice ride through the country at a relaxed pace.  One of those perfect "break in the legs" type of rides.

It gave me a great chance to test out the new componentry that I bought late last year and the new pro lite carbon clincher wheels.  After an "incident" on my first long ride with them, I have been quite nervous to get up to speed on the again.  Today ride gave me some nice rollers to get my feet wet with them and really get some confidence in them and I can't say I am disappointed with the purchase now.

The ride was great.  Got in a nice 25ish miler, got in some nice hills and worked on grinding away at some false flats.  The ride was over and we parted ways.  I came home and ate a nice light lunch and the urge was too strong to do it all over again. I still had my gear on so I just hopped right back onto my bike and headed out for another quick 14 in the countryside around my house.

What a great day!

After...

After the paint job I have a 2006 Cervelo Soloist that looks and feels like a 2012 Cervelo.  I do not just love, I am infatuated with it.  It is super stealth.  I even had a tough time capturing the glossy black lettering on the flat black stealth paint.

I have included pics below from the painter and then after the build that took place this weekend.  This bike is better than I ever expected. Design by me, inspired by the Cervelo R5ca.  Painting by Motosports Performance, Krystos Efantis (www.mspracing.net).

Build:

Frame: 2006 Cervelo Soloist
Fork:   Easton EC90 SLX
Crank: Sram Red (Force 53t chainring (-50g over sram red ring)
Pedals: Look Keo 2
Wheels: Pro Lite Gavia 38mm Carbon Clinchers
Tires: Michelin Pro Race 3
Rear Der: Sram Red
Front Der: Dura Ace 7800
Brakes: Sram Red black
Saddle: Fizik Arione Versus (black, glossy black) K:ium rails
Handlebar: Pedal Soft 5th Round alu (218g)
Handlebar tape: Lizard Skins 2.5 DSP
Stem: Uno super light (111g)
Shifters: Sram Red
Cassette: Sram

Before

Before the paint job, I had a very sharp, fast, stiff, light 2006 Cervelo Soloist that I loved.

Here is what it looked like before the paint job:

Baby steps

I would love my new custom paint on my Cervelo to be done today and be riding tomorrow.  Unfortunately, these things take time.  I was, however, able to see the frame and its base paint today and it looks perfect.  Exactly what I wanted.  I then worked with the painter to figure out the details and lettering that are going on it.

Parts are flying in like crazy.  I'm still waiting on the handlebar tape, Lizardskins DSP 2.5 (I'll review at a later date) and a sweet alu handlebar (218g).  I think this beast is going to look great when its done.  I just wish I could finish it tonight.

Paint has begun

The Fizik Arione Versus (black)

My new project is under way.  The other night I stripped my frame bare.  It is shocking how light it is without any equipment on it.  I'm busy shuttling old parts to the post office and receiving the new parts at my door.

I found an incredible saddle to go with my new paint scheme, the Fizik Arione Versus, which is a matte black color with Fizik written on the seat in glossy black...a perfect match.  I'm also changing out the sram red silver brakes for the sram red black brakes.  The other big change is going from an FSA K Wing carbon bar (291g) to  a pedalsoft alu bar (218g).  In addition to the great weight savings, I'm also going to make about $125 on the exchange.

I'm looking forward to seeing my new paint job.  It should be done in the next few days.

It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Winter!

Ok, so it's not...it's not at all.  But, heck, I'm taking advantage of it; putting away my snow boots and shovel in favor of my Sidis and two wheels.  Three rides this week alone and it's the middle of February.  I was even able to get out on my mountain bike for a while.  That was a first in almost a year.

The Cervelo R5 California Project

In other news, I'm getting what is becoming an annual spring itch to some how totally renovate one of my bikes. This time it's the road bike's turn.  I continue to love my light weight super aero Cervelo Soloist frame, but it is 6 years old and the paint job is becoming a little stale for me.  I've fallen in love with the stealthy paint job of the Cervelo R5 CA (to the right), the special California Project bike  that costs around $9,0000 for just the frameset.  Since there is absolutely no way that I'm going to spend that much money on a bike to save a few grams, I'm going to do the next best thing, which is to paint my bike similarly to that one.  I love the look, but I love my frame.  This is the ultimate compromise.

A mock up of what my bike may look like after paint job

In the course of the renovation, my plan is to change from my silver SRAM Red brakeset to the black SRAM Red brakeset, change out my FSA K Wing carbon ergo bars for a more traditional set of round bars that are perhaps a bit even lighter, and I'm going to change the white Fizik Arione saddle for a new Fizik Arione Versus black saddle with glossy lettering to match the bike.  This all assumes, however, that I can actually get the bike repainted for a reasonable price.  My mock up of what the paint job may look right (to the right). Stay tuned.

Review: Sidi Genius 6.6 Carbon lite shoes

This past holiday season I had a few dollars burning a hole in my pocket (anyone close to me knows that cash is the way to go if you want to get me a present).  Over the years I've accumulated pretty much everything that I've wanted.  Garmin gps for the bike, check, garmin gps running watch, check, nice road bike, check, nice mountain bike, check, tools, apparel, accessories, check, check and check.

The one thing I've always wanted and was never willing to splurge on, though, was a really good pair of bike shoes.  I mean, you don't have to walk in them all the time, you don't wear them all of the time, how important could they be.  Well, I decided to finally splurge and get myself a pair of Sidi's to find out.

Although I originally didn't intend to buy the more expensive 6.6's, through a mailing mistake and through finding a great sale online, I decided to jump on them.  I couldn't be happier.

As with a lot of things, you don't know what you're missing until you have actually experienced it.  The same goes for these shoes.  The first time I slipped the shoes on, they felt like slippers.  Not only is the material smooth and accommodating, but there are variety of mechanisms on these shoes to perfect the fit.  The two velcro straps on the body of the shoes look pretty typical, but on closer inspection both have rubber grippers under the velcro that ensure the velcro will not slip mid ride.  Then there is the adjustable heal, ensuring no annoying slippage in the rear.  And finally, we come to the primary reason I wanted these shoes, which is the ratcheting top strap.  The ratchet system not only ensures a great fit from the initial time you slip the strap through the ratchet system, but it also allows the rider to make micro adjustments easily on the fly.  A quick pull on the lever and a click click click later and the shoes form to your foot.

The advantage of such a well-fitting pair of shoes is immediately noticeable.  On my first ride, I was noticeably more efficient on the hills, not losing anything in power transfer.  The carbon soles, stiff, were comfortable but did not budge.  Before and after the ride, the rear rubber bumper on the heal of the shoe allowed me to walk around much easier, as if I was in regular shoes.

The only downside of the shoe is that the white version, the pair I chose, shows dirt very easily.  That's to be expected though and not a fault of the shoes itself.

If you want a very comfortable pair of cycling shoes that will increase your efficiency on the bike and you feel like spoiling yourself, this is the pair of shoes for you.

Time For A Change

Ok, so I'm changing up the blog a little bit.  Since I haven't been able to find much time to go mountain biking lately and because I don't actually have a Motobecane anymore, I've decided to change focus.

My intent is to write a little about this, a little about that.  I'm trying to get some miles in under my belt these days since the rough weather is holding off.  I'm also trying to get a bit of weight off after the holidays.

I really would like to review my new Sidi Genius 6.6 Carbon Lite shoes pretty soon and some of my other new gear. I'd also like to review some rides and write about some things that other people actually care about.

Thanks for visiting. Hope I write about something you enjoy.  Early run tomorrow.  Ciao!