July riding

[north woods gal]

Thompson makes a great seat post. Have several. Quality item.

[ny biker]

They have Tabata classes at my gym. I think they do them up on the roof during the summer.

So I did manage to get out and ride last night. As usual I got out of work late, so it was around sunset when I reached my ride start (a community center) and got everything out of the car. Removed the rear wheel with the flat tire, spread all the tools out in the back of the car, got a spare tube from my gear bag. Noted the location of the tire logo relative to the valve stem. Struggled to get the tire off the rim, I think maybe I should get better tire levers. Pulled out the tube, pumped air into it, searched for the hole, no luck. It was too slow a leak. Put on my reading glasses, got out my daytime blinky headlight, set it to steady beam, used it as a flashlight as I inspected the tire. Didn't find any cuts or anything sharp on the inside. Did find numerous small cuts on the outside. Scratched a couple of tiny pieces of glass out of two of the cuts. Checked the rim tape inside the wheel. Put a new tube in, struggled to get the tire back on the rim. Made sure the tire was situated with the same logo lined up with the valve stem, for reference. Pumped it up. Took a restroom break. When I returned, the new tire appeared fine. Still not confident, though. So I did a few short laps on the roads immediately around the community center. Tire was okay. Headed out on my normal route, but when I reached the next residential neighborhood a mile or so away I decided to so some laps there so I wouldn't be too far from my car if the tire went flat again. Zig-zagged through the streets up a big hill and back down again, four times. Tire still good, ride distance about 6 miles so far. Headed out on the main road for a couple of miles to connect with the flat neighborhoods that I usually ride through on the end of the ride. Did a few laps there. Returned to the community center. Total distance 17 miles, about what I would have done if I'd ridden my normal route, but with fewer hills. So glad I've learned the roads well enough over the years to improvise like this.

This morning I pumped the bad tube up again and held it under water to find the leak. It was roughly opposite the valve stem. The new tire is still holding air so I think either I removed the offending glass or the cause of the puncture was not stuck in the tire. I will check the tire again tonight with a magnifying glass just in case. And perhaps I will use the bad tube to practice patching tubes, which is a thing I am very bad at.

We're expecting lots of rain tomorrow and Saturday, so I have a club ride planned for Sunday.

[Crankin]

The other club I belong to (not the one I lead for) is doing a flat century in the cranberry bogs of SE MA on 10/1. DH and I are thinking of doing it. I've done one century, also flat, in 2006, with no real training. I just need to do a few 50-75mile rides and I'll be fine, since all of the rides I do around here are hilly and require time in the saddle.

[north woods gal]

Yeah, no substitute for time in the saddle to prepare for a big ride like that. It's part of my bicycling regimen that needs a little work. One hour of trail riding, every day, is a good workout and very healthy, but that long distance stuff is another type of workout.

Been riding the Surly Krampus all week and switching back and forth with various bikes for the sake of comparison. The closest bike to the Krampus is my other 29+ rigid, my Trek Stashe. Okay, well, duh! Still, the two are surprisingly different. Shorter chain stays on the Trek, lighter frame and more XC geometry make it a more nimble, agile bike. You might expect a 29+ bike to be kind of clunky in the handling department, but not this one. Reminds me of my old classic 26" MTBs.

The Krampus, though, amazes me. With the new Knard tires, it's actually a slightly faster bike than the Trek on a straight run. Plenty agile, but not as twitchy as the Trek. Better climber in the steeps and easier to hop logs with it's trail geometry. And that steel? Oh, yeah, what a difference it makes on the rough stuff.

What is especially noticeable on the Krampus is its ability to track a straight line. This could be the result of it fitting me better than than the Trek, but it is the more stable bike. I used to ride the Trek on 6 to 10 miles of pavement to get to my favorite gravel and sand roads, but the Trek just felt like a mismatch on the pavement as in, what are we doing on this stuff? Get the Krampus out on a road, though, and it begs to cover some miles. I had originally hoped that the Krampus would give me a narrow tire, lighter version of the Pugsley for a do it all, utility bike and looks like I hit the jackpot. The Pugs will still get the call in extreme conditions or when things turn soft and the Pugs can be ridden in all four seasons, but the Krampus will take over for the longer rides until the snow falls.

Love the Pugs and now the Krampus, too.

[Crankin]

I helped lead our struggling Fri. morning series. The guy I lead with goes anyway, and the last few weeks, when I have not attended, he had one person. Today we had 2. It's the same ride every week. He mentioned that he had cut the end part off the past 2 weeks, since the one attendee was happy with 25 miles instead of 30, which we also did. The end of the ride is through a business park, a community college, and a VA campus... it's ok, but not that pretty. We are going to add the miles back in, with a prettier route.
I've had some allergies, which seems to affect my cycling more than anything. But, I did the job as sweep, the other woman there was riding my speed, though I did lag a bit on a climb that came after a short and super steep climb. This ride is mostly shady, which is good, as even though it was only 77 when we left, in the full sun of the parking lot, it felt like 97. And, I was home by noon.
Weather looks better for tomorrow. I may ride early in the AM, just a short one, before my granddaughter arrives.

[Crankin]

Today DH and I rode out to Bolton Farms. Found out it is not quite 50 miles from our condo, as opposed to our house. We kind of knew this, and although we did not take the shortest way home after lunch, I think next time, we will do the 3 needed miles before lunch! It was a perfect New England day. Not hotter than 78 degrees and a dew point in the 50s. Also a breeze. The part of the ride before lunch is very hilly, with a long downhill right before the stop. After lunch, is also a climb, not so steep, but totally unshaded, so we've had many hot and uncomfortable rides up this part of the ride. It was a little quieter than usual on the roads today, both cars and cyclists. Everyone's at the beach, and it's the last weekend before the PMC. Most of the riders we saw were going the other way, in the beginning of the ride.
Need to keep doing longer rides...

[north woods gal]

No, have never tried the 510s, but have heard about them and considered giving them a try. Just never had any issues with the wide variety of shoes I use on all my flats. Thanks for the warning.

Took the Krampus for a pavement ride, yesterday. Did a total of 25 miles. 4 were gravel/sand, but all the rest pavement. Very comfy ride, kind of like a faster Pugsley. Definitely a capable shoulder riding bike like the Pugs, too. Nice to have as an option should I ever need detour or get off the road, quick.

Only issue was that the Krampus felt so much like the Pugsley that I kept reaching for those Jones Loop bars which weren't there (have them on the Pugs). Definitely need to add the Jones to the Krampus if I plan to do a lot of road work with it.

[north woods gal]

On the shoes thing with flats, I also use some old clipless shoes without the cleats attached and they work fine, too.