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Level that saddle

01.02.2009 by Ray Niekamp // 7 Comments

Some time ago, I read a tip about riding position that said you should use a carpenter’s level to make sure the saddle is in the right position.

A few days before Christmas, I remembered the tip, and spent a little time in the garage doing just that. It turned out the saddle was tilted up a few degrees, more than I had expected. Maybe that’s why I’d been feeling sore down there after a longish ride.

allezThe saddle looks level in this picture from September, but it turns out that it wasn’t. I think the sloping top tube throws off the eye, making the saddle seem flat, when it’s really tilted up. Even though it’s tilted, it will still look flat when compared to the top tube.

I assume the saddle was level when I bought the bike. I had them switch out the original white saddle for a black one, and I hope they leveled it. After a few months of riding, I wouldn’t be surprised if it starts tilting one way or the other. Maybe that’s why the suggestion is to check its level once every month. Getting the saddle level again didn’t take long, although every time I thought I got it right, the pressure from the Allen nut would raise it. After several tries, I got it the way I wanted it.

I’ve now had several rides with the new saddle position. I hardly notice it, which I guess is the goal. Today, I did 19 miles of hills in strong wind. I wore some older shorts with rather thin padding. No problems with my bottom, but it’s time to start including more hills in my workouts again!

Anyway, if you’re not as comfortable aboard the bike as you think you should be, a few minutes with a level should help out.

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Categories // Equipment, soreness Tags // saddle

The 700C x 25 debate

12.16.2008 by Ray Niekamp // 10 Comments

Betcha didn’t even know there was a debate on this arcane topic, didja? It came up the other day when a club member, who is a pretty good rider and is usually out front on our group rides, said he’d switched to the slightly wider 25 mm tire. He said he was pleased at the better ride, better traction, better cornering — all at no appreciable increase in rolling resistance.

That touched off a firestorm on our club Yahoo board. Why, there must have been eight or nine comments bouncing back and forth about the relative merits of the 25s vs. the skinny 23s that most of us “macho” bikers ride.

And one member pointed out that the size of the contact patch (where the rubber meets the road) is more dependent upon the circumference of the rider’s waist than the width of the tire itself. The wider the waist, the greater the bulk, the higher the weight, the more tire deformation — they all add up to more traction, but with more rolling resistance.

A 23 mm tire on the left, 25 mm on right.  The difference is obvious.
A 23 mm tire on the left, 25 mm on right. The difference is obvious.

Although, if you want to really gauge rolling resistance, the famous wheelbuilder Jobst Brandt has a nifty little interactive page that lets you calculate the rolling resistance of your tires after you enter the effective frontal area of the tire, its drag coefficient, the air density, the combined weight of the rider and bike, the phase of the moon, the odds of your maternal grandmother being born on a Sunday, and multiplying that by the slope of the regression line of the area of adhesion.

I haven’t tried 700 x 25 tires on my bike. It came with 23s, and I’ve been happy with them. But for a smoother ride, it might be worth the switch. Can you enlighten me any further on this burning topic?

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Categories // Accessories, Equipment Tags // tires

The pump performs

12.02.2008 by Ray Niekamp // 3 Comments

The other day, Mrs. Noob and I took a 12-mile ride. A stiff northwest wind pushed us along during the first leg — I could coast at 28 mph. When we reached the Veloway and turned back into the wind, she told me to take off on my own.

“I’m going to do two laps,” she said. “That’s about all I can handle in this wind.”

I took off. Several riders in cycling gear were ahead of me, and I fell into line, eventually passing two of them, and being blown off mercilessly by a third. On the second lap, I reached the short hill, and felt the back wheel waver a bit. At the top of the hill, I slowed and pulled over. The young lady I had passed a half lap back caught up, and asked me if I needed anything. I told her no, and pressed the rear tire. It was soft.

But it wasn’t really flat yet, and I couldn’t find a puncture.  Now was the time to test my new pump in the field — for real.  It did a nice job of pumping up the tire.  I reattached it, and pedaled easily around to the Veloway entrance.  Pat wasn’t there yet, but the tire was a little soft again, so while I waited for her, I got out the pump and filled the tube again.

Pat pulled up to me as I was finishing, and I told her what happened.  She was glad I’d be going slowly on the way home, since the wind would be in our faces most of the way, and she was having a tough time maintaining forward momentum.

On a long downhill stretch during the trip home, I found myself keeping the bike’s speed in check, because the rear tire was going soft again, and wasn’t all that stable.  I got through the stoplight and pulled the bike off the road one more time for a pump up.

I had one mile to go to reach the house, and I made it.  I suppose I could have replaced the tube out on the Veloway, but since the tire seemed to be only leaking, and hadn’t gone flat, I figured a try to get home would be worth it.  It was.  The pump proved itself, and I got used to operating it quickly.  This is one purchase I’m glad I made.

Back in the garage, I pulled the rear tire and replaced the tube.  I’ll patch the bad one later, if I get bored and am looking for something to do.

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Categories // Equipment Tags // flat tire, pump

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