...later and my Garmin is finally what it should have been the whole time. I now have detailed street information, and can even use the stupid thing in my car. It also tells me where local ATMs are as well as places to eat. There are more pizza joints in Bridgeport than I thought.
I rode into work yesterday, and on the way back I blew myself up. My co-worker Isaac was riding with me and even though I was done, I went out and did the Audubon Loop uphill with him. When I got to the steepest section of the hill, the muscles in my right leg started popping and just felt awful. On the way back to Norristown I just couldn't keep pace. I felt fine and I had the energy to keep riding but my legs and back hurt. On the bridge from Norristown to Bridgeport I tried to stand and the popping came back. I just sat my ass down and crawled home.
Riding with Isaac is fun because he forces me to do things I wouldn't normally try. He's heavier than I am, and has much better bike control and just kills me on downhill/windy sections. He has a compact crank with a 28T rear cassette so I can climb faster, but he can climb longer. Since we ride a lot of rolling hills, he will lose me on the downhill and then I'll catch and pass him on the uphill, only to have him whiz by me on the next downhill. Regardless, it's someone to ride with and someone I enjoy riding with. Now, if I can just convince him to ride in the cold...
05 October, 2009
02 October, 2009
Nick Went Mt. Biking
High Road Cycles had it's annual employee appreciation day this past Tuesday and this year it was held at French Creek National Park. I had never been on a mt. bike before (on a trail anyway) so I was a little excited. Luckily for me, my co-worker Issac hadn't either. At least I had someone to be terrible with. The plan was to have a road ride and a trail ride and some people would switch off so that everyone could do everything. Funny thing about plans is that they rarely work as such. EVERYONE wanted to play in the woods. There were technically enough bikes for everyone to ride, but not enough sizes. Issac and I decided to do a road ride thinking at least someone else would join us, but no one did. So we went off on a beautiful ride on roads that were two lanes of twisting, rolling fun. The weather was brisk (mid 50's) and windy, but the sun was out and that was all we needed. We finished the ride with two climbs. The first was long but constant, so we just slowly pulled ourselves up. The second was shorter and easier, but was pretty close on the heels of the first, so it burned. We swooped back into camp and enjoyed a nice hot lunch.
The shop's Specialized rep came out for the event and he brought Specialized's new Romin saddle with him for us to test out. Since Issac and myself were the only two who bothered to use any of the road bikes, we were the only ones to test it. neither of us are pleased with the Toupé saddle that came on our bikes. He took his off after five minutes, and I am still using mine, but have been pretty unhappy with it for a while now. It's finally at a point where I can ride without complete discomfort, but I still notice it. I was so happy to be where I was with my saddle that when I was offered to try the Romin, I initially declined because I didn't want to ruin my fit. I'm glad I reconsidered. Both Issac and I LOVE the saddle. As soon as it's available I'm buying it. From the very moment my chamoised ass touched the thing, it was angels singing and harps playing. I was seated for most of the ride, and to do so with the Toupé causes me a bit of numbness, but I felt like I hadn't even been on a bike after my ride with the Romin. Great Saddle.
After everyone got back and we ate, we headed back out on an "easy" ride around the lake. I was using a StumpJumper Hardtail 29er. Te first part of the ride was just rolling terrain with gravel paths and some roots sticking up. I enjoyed it very much. The second part was a rocky, rooty death march that I did not enjoy at all. It started when Ian (another co-worker) fell right in front of me. He didn't bring me down, but his fall took away all of my momentum. Then other people started to fall, or slow too much and a traffic jam would occur. It got to the point that I just couldn't get started, and when I did, I would almost fall over becuase I didn't have enough speed to make it over obstacles. My continuing problems with SPD pedals was also hindering any kind of enjoyment. I finally just waited for everyone to go and got myself some room and started getting in a groove again when I went right over my handle bars. I was only doing like 2mph, so it didn't hurt at all. I actually enjoyed that more than having to constantly clip out. At one point I even got lost. I lost sight of the guy in front of me and then had no idea where everyone was, so I guessed. Everyone stopped to wait and I showed up to a resounding "how did you come from that way?" Eventually we made it to the paved road that runs through the park and two other people joined me on just saying "fuck it." We rode back to camp and were discussing how we enjoyed the first section, so we went back and did it again. Again, I enjoyed it very much.
After we got back I decided to give the Guru Geneo a thrashing. Link This is the bike that Jen rides, and I've always wanted to ride it on more than a test ride. The bike that we have at the shop is a 55cm green and black beauty with full Dura ace 7800 and Ritchey Carbon everything else. The bike weight 16.14lbs without pedals. It's awesome. Stiffer than my bike in every situation, it climbs well, it handles just how i like... it's a great bike. I can see why Jen likes her's so much. I can also see why she will not ride it on windy days. One good side wind is enough to toss you in a ditch. The aerodynamic shape is great for stability, efficiency, and being blow around by side winds. Still, if I had the money and was getting another road bike, I would strongly consider it.
Speaking of new bikes, I'm getting a cross bike made by... you guessed it, Guru. It's an aluminum frame with dark blue paint and red accents. Because it's a Guru it will also be made to my measurements. My recent enjoyment of gravel sections with only minimal rock/root interference has me really excited for the bike. I'm up in the air on what group to build it with, but the front runners are full Rival or just putting my 105/Ultegra from my Tarmac on the cross bike and getting Force for the Tarmac. I'll be using the wheels that come off my Tarmac with Kenda Kommando tires, and I'm getting Zipp's SL carbon bars with a Ritchey Pro stem and seat post. You can use your imagination and guess which saddle I'll be getting.
The shop's Specialized rep came out for the event and he brought Specialized's new Romin saddle with him for us to test out. Since Issac and myself were the only two who bothered to use any of the road bikes, we were the only ones to test it. neither of us are pleased with the Toupé saddle that came on our bikes. He took his off after five minutes, and I am still using mine, but have been pretty unhappy with it for a while now. It's finally at a point where I can ride without complete discomfort, but I still notice it. I was so happy to be where I was with my saddle that when I was offered to try the Romin, I initially declined because I didn't want to ruin my fit. I'm glad I reconsidered. Both Issac and I LOVE the saddle. As soon as it's available I'm buying it. From the very moment my chamoised ass touched the thing, it was angels singing and harps playing. I was seated for most of the ride, and to do so with the Toupé causes me a bit of numbness, but I felt like I hadn't even been on a bike after my ride with the Romin. Great Saddle.
After everyone got back and we ate, we headed back out on an "easy" ride around the lake. I was using a StumpJumper Hardtail 29er. Te first part of the ride was just rolling terrain with gravel paths and some roots sticking up. I enjoyed it very much. The second part was a rocky, rooty death march that I did not enjoy at all. It started when Ian (another co-worker) fell right in front of me. He didn't bring me down, but his fall took away all of my momentum. Then other people started to fall, or slow too much and a traffic jam would occur. It got to the point that I just couldn't get started, and when I did, I would almost fall over becuase I didn't have enough speed to make it over obstacles. My continuing problems with SPD pedals was also hindering any kind of enjoyment. I finally just waited for everyone to go and got myself some room and started getting in a groove again when I went right over my handle bars. I was only doing like 2mph, so it didn't hurt at all. I actually enjoyed that more than having to constantly clip out. At one point I even got lost. I lost sight of the guy in front of me and then had no idea where everyone was, so I guessed. Everyone stopped to wait and I showed up to a resounding "how did you come from that way?" Eventually we made it to the paved road that runs through the park and two other people joined me on just saying "fuck it." We rode back to camp and were discussing how we enjoyed the first section, so we went back and did it again. Again, I enjoyed it very much.
After we got back I decided to give the Guru Geneo a thrashing. Link This is the bike that Jen rides, and I've always wanted to ride it on more than a test ride. The bike that we have at the shop is a 55cm green and black beauty with full Dura ace 7800 and Ritchey Carbon everything else. The bike weight 16.14lbs without pedals. It's awesome. Stiffer than my bike in every situation, it climbs well, it handles just how i like... it's a great bike. I can see why Jen likes her's so much. I can also see why she will not ride it on windy days. One good side wind is enough to toss you in a ditch. The aerodynamic shape is great for stability, efficiency, and being blow around by side winds. Still, if I had the money and was getting another road bike, I would strongly consider it.
Speaking of new bikes, I'm getting a cross bike made by... you guessed it, Guru. It's an aluminum frame with dark blue paint and red accents. Because it's a Guru it will also be made to my measurements. My recent enjoyment of gravel sections with only minimal rock/root interference has me really excited for the bike. I'm up in the air on what group to build it with, but the front runners are full Rival or just putting my 105/Ultegra from my Tarmac on the cross bike and getting Force for the Tarmac. I'll be using the wheels that come off my Tarmac with Kenda Kommando tires, and I'm getting Zipp's SL carbon bars with a Ritchey Pro stem and seat post. You can use your imagination and guess which saddle I'll be getting.
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