Bike Noob

Because I'm Always Learning Something New

  • Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • Partners

Archives for January 2011

Musings on a Rainy Day

01.16.2011 by Ray Niekamp // 8 Comments

The email and message boards lit up Saturday evening with ride cancellations.  We’ve had several wet days in Central Texas, with a fine mist falling all day Friday, and heavier, steady rain Saturday.  Rain again Sunday.  We certainly need it, but it sure throws a monkey wrench into things.  As the organizer of our club’s Sunday ride put it, “I have no problem riding in the wet myself, but it might send the wrong message if we as a club go ahead with our ride in these conditions.”  A local bike shop announced that its Sunday shop ride was cancelled for the first time in their history.  So not only will I not ride, but some long-delayed yard work is going to be delayed even further.

My attention isn’t focused on riding right now anyway.  Thursday afternoon, while driving home from the car dealer’s where I paid a lot more than I expected for some service on my car, I was rear-ended.  A woman pulling out of a parking lot assumed I was moving forward (I was stopped at a light), and looked left for oncoming traffic.  There was none, so she turned out of the lot – right into my rear bumper.  I had just celebrated making the final payment on the car a week ago, and I was already in a foul mood about the cost of the service.  Now this.  But when I looked at the damage to her car, the great German word – schadenfreude – came to mind (taking joy in the suffering of others).  Her crumpled fender, hood, and headlight were in far worse shape than mine.

Auto insurance has gotten easier to deal with in recent years.  State Farm called me Friday, asked what body shop I had in mind, gave me the shop’s phone number as well as the extension of the person who handles State Farm claims, and said a rental car would be ready at the shop whenever I took my car in.  I guess the fact that the woman was also insured by State Farm helped.

The trip to the body shop Monday will have to fit in around a trip to the dentist.  I’m getting a new crown put in to replace a bad tooth, and the temporary one they put in last week is causing me a lot of discomfort.  They’ll fix it, but it makes finding time to ride a little more challenging.

The good thing is that the forecast for Monday calls for improvement.  The rain will be gone, the temperatures will be milder, and it’s a holiday for some of us – myself included.  Somehow, I’m going to find time to ride.

Like this:

Like Loading...

Categories // Odds 'n ends Tags // cars, rain

That New, Better Bike

01.13.2011 by Ray Niekamp // 12 Comments

Ramon H.

 

Once we noobs have been riding a while, it’s only natural to think about upgrading to a better bike.  For one Bike Noob reader, Ramon H. of the Rio Grande Valley in Texas, everything happened to line up at the same time: the bike shop had what he wanted, his wife is really nice, and he got a heckuva deal.  I asked Ramon to write a guest post about acquiring his bike, a titanium Serotta.

It all got started because I had taken my entry level Trek road bike into the LBS (Wally’s Bicycles) because there was a severe shifting issue in the back.  Basically, the bike kept shifting back and forth all on its own.  I had ridden the bike for several thousand miles, so I would not have been surprised if they would have told me to get a new cassette.  While I was there, I decided to ask how much it would set me back to buy Shimano 105 components.  The rationale was that I was probably going to buy a new cassette anyway, so might as well do this upgrade if the numbers looked right.

Wally had always had a Serotta floor model that several of us would drool at everytime we came into the shop.  He commented that the main shortcoming of the bike was that it was a titanium frame and that most of the folks that were serious about spending that kind of money would inevitably veer towards carbon framesets.  I had always thought about getting a Serotta with a titanium frameset, but the cost was very prohibitive.  Wally informed me that the issue with my entry level bike was that one of the cables needed replacing.  He started running the numbers on the gruppos I had asked him about and they were not coming back too nicely.  I already had known that when one buys a bike, the gruppo is a big part of the cost, so no surprise on my part there.

The interesting part is what happened next.  I think the cycling gods were smiling upon me that day because you could almost see the lightbulb go off on Wally’s head.  He took out his measuring tape and did a couple of quick measurements on my entry level bike and the Serotta floor model.  I was extremely hesitant because I knew what the cost of that bike was.  I remember Wally saying something like, “Hmm … this is very odd, almost freaky odd.”  He started telling me the measurements and they were coming back uncannily similar to my own bike.  He already knew that I always wanted a Serotta because I had mentioned it a couple of times before.  He said, “Those measurements are coming real close to your existing bike.  You are welcome to ride it during the shop’s ride in a couple of days so you can test it out.  The bike has been sitting on my floor since the day I opened the store over a year ago.  I want that bike to go to a person who is going to do plenty of riding.  Let’s make a deal …”

And quite a deal he gave me.  It was one of those deals that I could not refuse.  Unfortunately, it was one of those deals that I had not budgeted for.  I went home and consulted with the missus.  She came back to the shop the next day to take a look at the bike and asked all of the preliminary questions a spouse tends to ask.  Ultimately she said, “Ride the bike during the shop’s ride tomorrow and see how it feels.  If you like it, you would be a fool not to buy it.”

The Serotta Fierte, all Ultegra. (Click to enlarge.)

Of course, the next question you will have is: How does it ride?  It is almost magical.  For starters, I get a lot more for the effort I put in.  This bike is fast!  I can keep an 18-21 mph pace quite easily.  On the entry level bike, this same amount of effort would only get me to a 16-19mph pace.

The acceleration is phenomenal.  When leading a group, it is not uncommon for me to easily drop the entire group as we are coming out of a traffic light or a turn.  There is a lot of yelling when I do this because folks think I am being a jerk.  Honestly, I don’t do it on purpose.  The bike just takes off by itself, so I have learned to tone it down when I take off and not even get off the saddle because otherwise I end up dropping the group.

The ride is also very smooth.  I can ride over chipseal and while most folks are hurting, I am just enjoying the ride.  Now here is the best part of owning a titanium frame: never having to worry about rust on the frame or about the paint job.  Titanium rusts very very very very slowly, and not the same as other metals.  That means I don’t have to worry if I get sweat all over it.  Additionally, there is no paint job and I don’t have to worry about scratches or about having to apply polish/wax to it.  As as friend put it, “If your frame gets scratched, you just take some steel wool and rub it right out.”

Good for you, Ramon.  If we wind up on the same ride in Central Texas someday, you’ll have to let me ride it — before you use it to leave me in the dust.

Like this:

Like Loading...

Categories // Bikes, guest post Tags // Bikes, guest post

I Need To Ride

01.11.2011 by Ray Niekamp // 3 Comments

Guest poster Jeff Hemmel has been away from biking for a bit, and that’s had him frustrated.

At some point, if you ride long enough or just become hopelessly addicted to cycling, getting out for a ride changes from a “want” to a “need.” I know, because I need to ride right now. Badly.

This has been a pretty good year for me cycling-wise. I’ve averaged about 500 miles per month, and even nudged that total up to about 700 during the fall. My fitness is probably close to an all-time high in terms of endurance, and I’m feeling strong. Or at least, I was feeling strong. After months and months of high mileage, December proved to be one cruel month. Yes, I know I’m a wimp, but we set the record for coldest December in recorded history here in my area. That was already making the month a challenge, but then I got a stomach flu that was raging through my family over the Christmas holidays, just as I was trying to make up for lost time. One minute I was out riding marveling at my hearty immune system, the next I was headed for the…well, I’ll spare you those details. Before I knew it, I was looking at the month’s end feeling weak, dehydrated, and with the fewest miles logged in over a year.

With a new year comes new hope. I got out for my first ride in a week with a friend, and knocked off 45 miles without really feeling the effects of my illness. In fact, I felt really good. Unfortunately the very next day I went in for some rather extensive dental surgery, the unexpected result of an injury I had suffered a year earlier. (Good news – I still have all my teeth!) That stomach that was just beginning to recover has now been assaulted by antibiotics and painkillers, and thanks to a mouthful of stitches that will stay for two weeks, my diet has been limited to mostly liquids and mush. To add insult to injury, the doctor told me I’d need to take about a week off any serious aerobic activity, and even then ease back into it. I’m feeling sore, weak, and depressed…and unable to do the one thing I know will make me feel better.

At the conclusion of his book Tour de Lance, author Bill Strickland quotes Lance Armstrong as saying “I think people are better, smarter, more present, and more patient when they’ve done some type of exercise—that goes for an eight-year-old and a sixty-eight-year-old—and I need more, perhaps than most people, to get the results I want.” Strickland goes on to note there’s some scientific evidence to back up Armstrong’s theory, specifically when it comes to cycling. Basically, cycling mixes sustained aerobic exercise with complex brain functions — balance, timing, and spatial awareness. For that reason, it may literally be able to “soothe” the brain. Studies at universities including Vanderbilt, Johns Hopkins, and Georgetown back up this theory. I know I feel much happier after I’ve returned from a good ride. Sometimes, if I feel I’ve ridden particularly well or hung with certain people on a group ride, I’m almost giddy.

Right now, however, I’m going crazy. Somewhere along the line, between accomplishing that first 30-mile ride and riding my first century, between trying to fit in rides around life to fitting life around rides, riding a bicycle has gone from something I want to do to something I need in my life. That’s why today, with my doctor’s blessing, I’m getting out on the road, sore mouth and stitches and bad conditioning and all.

Because, as a lot of you will understand perfectly well, I really have no other choice…

Like this:

Like Loading...

Categories // Cold weather, guest post, Injury Tags // guest post, Hemmel

  • « Previous Page
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
  • Next Page »

Get Email Updates

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 257 other subscribers

Categories

  • Accessories
  • Bike fit
  • Bikes
  • Blogging
  • Books
  • clubs
  • Cold weather
  • Community
  • Commuting
  • Components
  • crash
  • cycling
  • Equipment
  • Favorite rides
  • fitness
  • food
  • guest post
  • Heat
  • Injury
  • logs
  • Maintenance
  • Mental
  • Nutrition
  • Odds 'n ends
  • People
  • Poll
  • Racing
  • Records & stats
  • Review
  • Rides
  • running
  • Safety
  • soreness
  • Specialized
  • Technique
  • Technology
  • Tips
  • tires
  • training
  • Travel
  • Uncategorized
  • Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • Partners

Recent Posts

  • Getting Back on the Bike: Road Cycling Tips for Older Cyclists
  • Are BCAAs and EAAs Good for Cycling?
  • How to Fix Numb Toes When Cycling
  • How to Find and Vet a Bike Club
  • Celebrate Pearl Izumi with Big Savings in the Memorial Day Sale

Categories

  • Accessories
  • Bike fit
  • Bikes
  • Blogging
  • Books
  • clubs
  • Cold weather
  • Community
  • Commuting
  • Components
  • crash
  • cycling
  • Equipment
  • Favorite rides
  • fitness
  • food
  • guest post
  • Heat
  • Injury
  • logs
  • Maintenance
  • Mental
  • Nutrition
  • Odds 'n ends
  • People
  • Poll
  • Racing
  • Records & stats
  • Review
  • Rides
  • running
  • Safety
  • soreness
  • Specialized
  • Technique
  • Technology
  • Tips
  • tires
  • training
  • Travel
  • Uncategorized

Archives

  • May 2024
  • December 2023
  • November 2023
  • March 2022
  • October 2020
  • November 2018
  • May 2018
  • September 2017
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • January 2016
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011
  • September 2011
  • August 2011
  • July 2011
  • June 2011
  • May 2011
  • April 2011
  • March 2011
  • February 2011
  • January 2011
  • December 2010
  • November 2010
  • October 2010
  • September 2010
  • August 2010
  • July 2010
  • June 2010
  • May 2010
  • April 2010
  • March 2010
  • February 2010
  • January 2010
  • December 2009
  • November 2009
  • October 2009
  • September 2009
  • August 2009
  • July 2009
  • June 2009
  • May 2009
  • April 2009
  • March 2009
  • February 2009
  • January 2009
  • December 2008
  • November 2008
  • October 2008
  • September 2008
  • August 2008
  • July 2008
  • June 2008
  • May 2008
  • April 2008
  • March 2008
  • February 2008

Copyright © 2026 · Modern Studio Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

Go to mobile version
%d