Riding with Brian is never easy. Couple that with the fact that I still had the studded cross tires on and I was in for a ride to Hurtsville. Pulling out of his driveway, you're met with a nice 400' climb as a warm-up. Plain and simply, it sucks. Those tires seriously have to be worth a couple gears and with a 42x28 minimum, yeah, you know where this is going. ON top of that, I had to ride like I was on a fixed gear on the descents (Brian still effortlessly coasted away) and then slog back up the climbs. I initially thought that because it was so cold that my Garmin wasn't picking up my HR properly, i.e. it was running about 10 beats higher than normal. I tried a Fonzie tap of the unit, but I was still a regular vistor the upper 160's/low 170's. Well, it wasn't the Garmin, it was the goddamn tires.
The ride was nondescript, really. It was cold with a slight head wind as we headed north but my trusty Assos gear was (once again) doing its job wonderfully. I know everybody has their go-to gear, but let me tell ya, Assos is the best. Yeah, it costs an arm and a leg but there's a reason- It works. If you ride outside a lot, a Fugujack and a pair of bib tights will not let you down.
My water bottle was frozen solid 20 minutes into the ride. I think I was able to get the top off at one point and take a sip but I otherwise went without water for nearly 2 hours. Yeah, all the risers were taking their toll and for sure my mounting dehydration was only exacerbating things. I felt a twinge of a cramp coming in my right hamstring at one point and thankfully things just held together until the end.
For shits and giggles I weighed the cross bike with the studs. About 3# of rotational weight added over the Michelin Mud/Jet combo.
Also for shits and giggles I weighed everything I had on laden with sweat. I figured around 10# so nearly 9.5 was pretty close. And yes, I may have shot this naked.
For the metrics geeks: STRAVA
Note to self: Remove studded tires before riding with Brian.
3 comments:
22 lbs is pretty good; my Kite with sub 1500g wheels and tubulars weighs almost that.
So you were standing around naked in the garage when it was 17*F out?
That's hot!
Actually the bike workshop is 10 feet from the wood stove which was going nicely.
So yeah, no shrinkage.
Awesome. You will appreciate looking back at this ride report in July when its 95 degs.
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