Cycling / Running - Logs, Stories, & Pictures (any fellow cyclists or runners here?)

[martins]

I guess many of you may already have seen this - it went viral a couple of days ago. But since its such a breathtaking combination of stupidity and incredibly good luck, it probably deserves a mention here:

 

[BruceJohnJennerLawso]

I guess many of you may already have seen this - it went viral a couple of days ago. But since its such a breathtaking combination of stupidity and incredibly good luck, it probably deserves a mention here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q35V_GuRAwo

Wow

I mean, the gates are there for a good reason...

 

[clive bradbury]

The rider has since volunteered her identity to the British Transport Police (who had no idea who she was). She has been interviewed and the BTP are apparently deciding what action (if any) to take.

 

[80mileshigh]

Diagnosis:

 

[ex-orbinaut]

I guess many of you may already have seen this - it went viral a couple of days ago. But since its such a breathtaking combination of stupidity and incredibly good luck, it probably deserves a mention here:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q35V_GuRAwo

Wherever he was going was apparently not so important, after all... :lol:

 

[Tommy]

For the truly hardcore, the Tuscobia Winter Ultra started today in northern Wisconsin. This is a new event, taking place on an old railroad grade that is now a snowmobile/ATV route. You can run, bike or ski, and have a choice between 35 mile, 75 mile, and 150 mile courses. Temps are expected to be around -15 degrees F at night (not counting wind chill) and there is a good 12 inch base of groomed snow on the trail. I'll post winning times when I get a chance.

Keep in mind that the longer races will take more than a day to complete - and you have only what you can carry along for food, water, shelter, etc during the race.

And no - I am NOT a participant. Some few of my brain cells still function on occasion and this just didn't sound wise!

 

[MattBaker]

And no - I am NOT a participant. Some few of my brain cells still function on occasion and this just didn't sound wise!

If you are trained, planned this well and know your limits this doesn't sound more stupid than an Ironman triathlon.
There were people covering over 3000 kilometers on a giant glacier around the South Pole, 100 years ago. Compared to that this seems quite doable.

 

[Tommy]

If you are trained, planned this well and know your limits this doesn't sound more stupid than an Ironman triathlon.

I've seen Ironman Tri's on TV, and don't remember seeing any drunken rednecks on snowmobiles and ATV's sharing the course.

Plus, the people who made those journeys were usually after something more significant than bragging rights and a couple hundred bucks.

Latest weather forecast calls for a high of -2F on Sunday - possible as low as -40F Saturday night. Again, those temps don't account for wind chill and there are no facilities on the trail. That's about 60+ hours for the runners in sub freezing temps with no place for a "warm up". No helicopter camera crews, so if you go down it could be awhile before someone stumbles across you (or runs over you on their snowmobile at 70mph). Nearest medivac heli is an hour away - and first they'd have to send a snowmobile litter to get you to someplace it could land. You are, often, over an hour from any first aid, and two from an ER.

Did I mention that the trail cuts through Wisconsin's largest population of wolves (about 75 known to be in the area of the trail)?

More like a dogless Iditarod than an Ironman. It's certainly possible, these are all experienced racers who have done this kind of thing before. It's just the risk/reward ratio that makes me question the sanity of the racers.


If anyone is interested, I think the only web presence is a facebook page "Friends of Tuscobia" or somesuch. They wanted a site, and even have some trailcams, but nobody bothered to tell me until Tuesday - and Christmas Eve wasn't a good time for me to drop everything, find a host, and code a few pages. Next year.

 

[Tex]

Diagnosis:

What happened mate?? Crash in a race?

 

[80mileshigh]

What happened mate?? Crash in a race?

Just a training ride. Descending and cornering on a steep road in damp conditions, about 31mph. I had told the hospital I was going a bit faster, but the Garmin file says otherwise.

Not entirely sure what caused it but I ended up tumbling down the ashphalt for about 80ft. [ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avulsion_fracture"]Avulsion fracture[/ame] (undisplaced) in my left arm and lots of skin off. Could have been worse, I'd normally take the same road faster.

Bike's OK(!) and I'm healing quickly already. Just frustrating to be losing time on the bike during our summer. I'll send you a PM with a little more detail. :thumbup:

 

[Cosmic Penguin]

Off for my (annual?) 10K race now!

 

[80mileshigh]

Off for my (annual?) 10K race now!

How did you go?

 

[DanM]

It's been a while since I've posted here, but I thought I'd stop in and say what I've been up to.

Since I moved out to Fort Collins, CO for school in fall, all things exercise kinda dropped off for me. I picked up things a bit more once I came back out here after a month in Chicago.

My cheap mountain bike I was using before was stolen during break, but my father visited me this weekend and was kind enough to buy me a nice new Trek 7.2 Hybrid.

Monday and today I took it out for a roughly 20 mile (~32km) loop around the Fort Collins area.

http://imgur.com/a/5vtCj Here are some photos I got of the ride today.

 

[Urwumpe]

My first new bike in 20 years...

Its unbelievable... I have not been on a bike for some years now and its impossible to be slow with that one. I still had some trouble getting used to the bike initially, still it easily went past 25 km/h with a few strokes... luckily I had 12 km from bike shop to my home to get used to it.

Its just awesome. Can't wait for the next tour with it. :blink:

 

[MattBaker]

Reminds me of a post by the fantastic Cosmo Catalano a few days back: If you were going to spend £3000 on a road bike what ones would you recommend ?

 

[Urwumpe]

If I go by that recipe... I have done it all right.

 

[Athena]

This thread is constantly reminding me to buy a new bike, which I keep on forgetting...my current bike is nearly 2 years old, has a heck lot of rust here and there and the seat can't be adjusted for some stupid reason.

Got any suggestions on buying a "good" bike, anyone?

 

[Urwumpe]

Got any suggestions on buying a "good" bike, anyone?

Well, I can tell you what I did, maybe it helps you. I prefer to stay away from naming brands and models here, not that I would not instantly recommend my new bike - but I think its my perfect bike and not automatically yours.

1. I decided to buy a bike.
2. I decided to get a MTB because the last bike I was on was a MTB and it felt perfect to me.
3. It is going to be a 29" bike, because its scientifically sound why 29" is better. Who am I to question science.
4. I have no need for a fully, so a hardtail is already good. I hate people who buy a 400€ fully for looking cooler, but have all the worst kind of transmission and brakes, and a too soft and too heavy frame.
5. I wanted to buy it locally, because I can then:
   1. Get the bike home without lending my parents car.
   2. Test it in the shop
   3. And as I found out later: Its better to have a good bike shop selected, because the big maintenance can't be done well in your garage at home. Hydraulics and stuff.
6. Measure the length of your leg on the inside and multiply it by 0.57 to find the recommended frame height. For me, the result was only a few micrometers below 50 cm, so a 51 cm frame was in most cases the closest fit. There are many more variables in the geometry of a MTB, so its really recommended to get into a shop and try a bike.
7. Select a maximum price. A hard maximum price, as in "Not a cent more". Take in account that you will quickly spend about 50% of that price in the next 6 months after buying the bike for accessories.
8. Go watching around and study bikes.
9. Mention your co-worker that you want to buy a MTB and discover that he is avid mountain biker and can help you with the tough questions.
10. Go around studying bikes with a more knowledge about the topic.
11. Don't select the cheapest bike, but the one that suits your requirements best. Still remember the 50% rule.
12. Select the shop in which the employees know what mountain bikes are and can explain things like lock-out and the different types of dérailleur gear.
13. If you feel like the employees know better about selling such bikes than about driving them, you are possibly right. Leave the shop and look somewhere else. Remember that this shop should also do the inspections on your bike.
14. Since I am no professional at all and not planning to do any contests, no need for carbon. Aluminum is perfect. Carbon costs a lot and is quickly damaged by rocks. It only makes sense if you have high demands on your bike and can afford retiring a frame once per year and buying a new one.
15. Its nearly impossible to get a MTB without hydraulic disk brakes. Accept it and choose a good one. And even the rather low-class Shimano Deore brakes are excellent in retarding your bike, better brake systems only save some weight. If you plan to stay below 1500 €, the Deore brakes are perfect.
16. its no difference if you buy a 3 x 10 or a 2 x 10 gear. The 2 x 10 has some advantages, but both have only 18 usable gears. The 3 x 10 still has some small advantages for steeper climbs.
17. A lockout with remote is a nice to have. Better make sure it has some proper shock absorber there, which fits to the price range that you plan for. Keep everything balanced.
18. If you are a beginner, stay away from clip-in pedals.
19. I have now selected a more renown brand, but there are also smaller manufacturers, who are not much more expensive. Spending time looking for options is not futile at all.
20. Buy the bike when the weather is perfect to do some maiden voyages with it.

Soo... this is what I learned in the past months in essence. Maybe some more experiences at the end of the summer.

 

[Codz]

Anyone with cycling experience in the Los Angeles area?

 

[orbitingpluto]

I have a second-hand mountain bike that I've learned to ride on eariler this summer, which has seen some wear and tear, along with a few problems that probably caused it to be sold by the original owner. I have yet to fix the derailleurs so I can use something other than the two largest rear sprockets and and middle drive sprocket, but I did manage to free the stuck seat post a few days ago.

Since I'm still adjusting things, I took a quick ride in my neighborhood earlier this morning with a detour through a nearby park. Since taking up cycling I've been seeing more of the animals that call my neighborhood home than I did on foot, and it's rather nice. Since I'm usually in outside the afternoon/evenings I wasn't aware just how many squirrels there are around here at ~7am. There was one or two every block on the way to the park, and after I got into the park there were several groups and four or more. It was a nice morning ride, despite that I'm still not sure I have the seat high enough.