Board Track
1.
2.
3.
4.
Klunker
5.
6.
7.
Rat
8.
9.
10.
Mix
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
Sunday, June 30, 2013
Cool Ride-able Bike Styles!
Which one do you like?
2.
3.
4.
6.
7.
9.
10.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
27.
2.
3.
4.
6.
7.
9.
10.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
27.
Friday, June 28, 2013
Breathing New Life into...
I have been thinking about how many riders have nice road bikes that they want to keep but no longer ride. In a lot of cases, riders don't want to part with their old rides for sentimental reasons but it seems an awful shame for them just to sit.
Of course, their are a lot of good reasons for this to happen. In some cases former racers don't want to put on the pajamas. Others have lost so much form that a race bike is a bit depressing to ride! In my case, both of these circumstances exist! I suspect that I am no alone in this circumstance!
My thought is that it's a good idea to convert them to cool upright bar bikes that raise the bars to about saddle height and replace the brake levers and shifters over to any number of good configurations. 28c tires can fit in most road frames and some will even fit a 32c tire. To complete the transformation a pair of pedals that work with regular street shoes would finish the basic transformation out.
Now that old race bike is very usable for fun around the town! Frankly, in most cases they would be fine for long rides as well. Add lights and you have something fun to ride at night. Add a rack or basket and lock and you can go get groceries.
The most important aspect of this is that you would have a fun bike to ride. I am going to build one for myself so I am going through the learning process of what parts are available to create really solid conversions.
It's incredible how many bars have been designed for this purpose. Some have the correct outside diameter to fit mountain bike levers and some are designed to have the correct inside diameter for bar end shifters. Quite a few of the bars have attractive shapes.
Levers matching the cable pull for both the brake caliper and shifters is critical to make a nice bike. It's cool how available this equipment is. A few companies have made a component that converts bar end shifters to thumb.
The pedals are also very cool. Low profile, super large and it seems everything in between. Personally, I will skip on the titanium version but I understand the temptation if your old sled was on this level.
For riders who have the clearance and desire aftermarket chain guards, fenders, dynamo hubs are all available and very much improved over former models.
I am not sure if converting the old race bike is really a conversion of the bike or the rider but if you are interested in transforming a bike please let me know. I'd like to help or at the very least we can swap stories!
What ever the case, I am excited to be building something to be on the road again!
Warm regards,
Neil
I have been thinking about how many riders have nice road bikes that they want to keep but no longer ride. In a lot of cases, riders don't want to part with their old rides for sentimental reasons but it seems an awful shame for them just to sit.
Of course, their are a lot of good reasons for this to happen. In some cases former racers don't want to put on the pajamas. Others have lost so much form that a race bike is a bit depressing to ride! In my case, both of these circumstances exist! I suspect that I am no alone in this circumstance!
My thought is that it's a good idea to convert them to cool upright bar bikes that raise the bars to about saddle height and replace the brake levers and shifters over to any number of good configurations. 28c tires can fit in most road frames and some will even fit a 32c tire. To complete the transformation a pair of pedals that work with regular street shoes would finish the basic transformation out.
Now that old race bike is very usable for fun around the town! Frankly, in most cases they would be fine for long rides as well. Add lights and you have something fun to ride at night. Add a rack or basket and lock and you can go get groceries.
The most important aspect of this is that you would have a fun bike to ride. I am going to build one for myself so I am going through the learning process of what parts are available to create really solid conversions.
It's incredible how many bars have been designed for this purpose. Some have the correct outside diameter to fit mountain bike levers and some are designed to have the correct inside diameter for bar end shifters. Quite a few of the bars have attractive shapes.
Levers matching the cable pull for both the brake caliper and shifters is critical to make a nice bike. It's cool how available this equipment is. A few companies have made a component that converts bar end shifters to thumb.
The pedals are also very cool. Low profile, super large and it seems everything in between. Personally, I will skip on the titanium version but I understand the temptation if your old sled was on this level.
For riders who have the clearance and desire aftermarket chain guards, fenders, dynamo hubs are all available and very much improved over former models.
I am not sure if converting the old race bike is really a conversion of the bike or the rider but if you are interested in transforming a bike please let me know. I'd like to help or at the very least we can swap stories!
What ever the case, I am excited to be building something to be on the road again!
Warm regards,
Neil
Thursday, March 02, 2006
General Classification
This is the first section of an evaluation of our overall performance and how we can improve. First lets look at the attrition rate of this early season race. I will list the order from highest place individual rider on general classification time down on leader, team, number of riders that finished.
1. Floyd Landis 0:00 Phonak 7 finishers
2. David Zabriskie 0:39 CSC 8 finishers
4. Jeorge Hincapie 0:45 Discovery 7 finishers
5. Nathan O’Neill 1:08 Health Net 7 finishers
6. Levi Leipheimer 1:10 Gerolsteiner 7 finishers
7. Cadel Evans 1:28 Davitamon-Lotto 5 finishers
11. Nicolas Vogondy 2:14 Credit Agricole 7 finishers
12. Bernhard Kohl 2:15 T-Mobile 6 finishers
19. Jose Gomez 3:22 Prodir–Saunier Duval 5 finishers
23. Chris Baldwin 6:13 Toyota-United 7 finishers
24. Ben Jacques-Maynes 6:20 Kodak/Sierra Nevada 4 finishers
25. Glen Chadwick 6:32 Navigators 7 finishers
28. Danny Pate 7:34 Tiaa-Creff 6 finishers
45. Brian Jensen 13:01 Jelly Belly 5 finishers
46: Arquimides Lam 14:15 KB Home/Mexican 3 finishers
55. Davide Frattini 18:47 Colavita-Sutter Home 5 finishers
We had two primary areas where we could have given less time away. First is in the area of equipment. Lams’ time trial bike had a 5+ year old shifter in it that broke during the long time trial. This added at least 3 minutes to his time. Additionaly, the weight of our bikes was way out of range. For example Lam’s road bike weighed over 10 kilos! In this level of competition it is unwise to give your competition a 5-6 pound advantage. Lam gave away at least 4 minutes on equipment deficit. I have some recommendations on how we overcome the equipment challenges that I will present in a later post.
The second area is preparation. We had a camp very close to the event without proper courses to prepare for this type of event on. Additionally, riders were unsure if they were actually going to compete in this event. Once we got in camp we were able to pull things together but given proper organization we can make a big improvement in our capability to deliver.
Given the necessary equipment and preparation our KB HOME Mexican National Team stands a great chance of really competing in this venue. KB HOME did everything you could ask of a sponsor. Of course, there are reasons things came out the way they did and lessons should be learned from this event.
We were out equipped, physically unprepared and lacked the necessary organization to pull out a better performance. I congratulate our finishing riders Lam, Fausto and Jesus. It takes a minimum of three riders to make the claim of finishing as a team and they were able to pull it off. I would like to add they always showed an attitude of gratitude even knowing the advantage they were spotting their competition in equipment. No excuses from the riders.
Every team has to start somewhere and I have no doubt that great things are possible from Mexican riders.
This is the first section of an evaluation of our overall performance and how we can improve. First lets look at the attrition rate of this early season race. I will list the order from highest place individual rider on general classification time down on leader, team, number of riders that finished.
1. Floyd Landis 0:00 Phonak 7 finishers
2. David Zabriskie 0:39 CSC 8 finishers
4. Jeorge Hincapie 0:45 Discovery 7 finishers
5. Nathan O’Neill 1:08 Health Net 7 finishers
6. Levi Leipheimer 1:10 Gerolsteiner 7 finishers
7. Cadel Evans 1:28 Davitamon-Lotto 5 finishers
11. Nicolas Vogondy 2:14 Credit Agricole 7 finishers
12. Bernhard Kohl 2:15 T-Mobile 6 finishers
19. Jose Gomez 3:22 Prodir–Saunier Duval 5 finishers
23. Chris Baldwin 6:13 Toyota-United 7 finishers
24. Ben Jacques-Maynes 6:20 Kodak/Sierra Nevada 4 finishers
25. Glen Chadwick 6:32 Navigators 7 finishers
28. Danny Pate 7:34 Tiaa-Creff 6 finishers
45. Brian Jensen 13:01 Jelly Belly 5 finishers
46: Arquimides Lam 14:15 KB Home/Mexican 3 finishers
55. Davide Frattini 18:47 Colavita-Sutter Home 5 finishers
We had two primary areas where we could have given less time away. First is in the area of equipment. Lams’ time trial bike had a 5+ year old shifter in it that broke during the long time trial. This added at least 3 minutes to his time. Additionaly, the weight of our bikes was way out of range. For example Lam’s road bike weighed over 10 kilos! In this level of competition it is unwise to give your competition a 5-6 pound advantage. Lam gave away at least 4 minutes on equipment deficit. I have some recommendations on how we overcome the equipment challenges that I will present in a later post.
The second area is preparation. We had a camp very close to the event without proper courses to prepare for this type of event on. Additionally, riders were unsure if they were actually going to compete in this event. Once we got in camp we were able to pull things together but given proper organization we can make a big improvement in our capability to deliver.
Given the necessary equipment and preparation our KB HOME Mexican National Team stands a great chance of really competing in this venue. KB HOME did everything you could ask of a sponsor. Of course, there are reasons things came out the way they did and lessons should be learned from this event.
We were out equipped, physically unprepared and lacked the necessary organization to pull out a better performance. I congratulate our finishing riders Lam, Fausto and Jesus. It takes a minimum of three riders to make the claim of finishing as a team and they were able to pull it off. I would like to add they always showed an attitude of gratitude even knowing the advantage they were spotting their competition in equipment. No excuses from the riders.
Every team has to start somewhere and I have no doubt that great things are possible from Mexican riders.
Tuesday, February 28, 2006
On Monday, we flew into Tucson, AZ then I drove the riders to Nogales, Mex for their next race. It is a five day UCI 2.2 race starting today! Not my plan, but the riders are going for it nonetheless! It is normal to take at least a few days off before starting another race especially this early in the year. In any event, this is a photo of Lam and Hector at the first hotel in Nogales.
This is just an example of one of the hundreds of Mexican flags that were out on the course. I took this while I was driving to the start before the final stage. I am told that we were the crowd favorites by a number of the AMGEN Tour of California staff that were out on the courses. We had pictures left on our cars and big greetings before and after the stages. A lot of Viva Mexico chanting! We need to get a proper Mexican horn for our cars!
Here is a photo of our final finishers and some of the staff. Right to left. Me, Jesus, Lam, Fausto, Gerardo Langarica (should be a talent scout in Mexico), Jorge Rodriguez ( Vice President of the Mexican Cycling Federation and an honorable man), Hector Zamora, Cirilo Ortega, Jason Tullous (a timely consistent performer!) and Pedro Zamora. Cesar and Wences were out taking photos. I will post them as soon as I get them...
KB Home Mexican National Cycling Team blog For The Amgen Tour of California
Hello Everyone,
Sorry, that it has taken me a while to post again. My travel laptop is having a glitch of some sort where it does not recognize any wireless connections…
This post will be short but keep checking in because I will produce a more thorough evaluation of our performance.
The sixth stage had thousands of spectators lining the course. Our race was uneventful setting up for the finish. The course was good for Fausto. Fausto was in fifth position at 200 meters to go but his legs blew up so he faded back to the 18th position. Not a bad finish considering the effort it requires to get into position without a strong team for lead-out.
The final stage was the circuit race. There was a crash caused by the best place U23 rider in the race. Unfortunately, he hit a big pothole (one of the only ones on a near perfect course). His hands slid forward off the bars and many riders went down. Phil Zajicek (NIC), Robert Hunter (PHO), Bart Dockx (DVL), Sebastian Lang (GST), Koldo Gil Perez (SDV), Michael Creed (TIA) were all out of the race. Phil Zajicek landed on an already damaged right wrist… The team leadouts were good eliminating good set up positions if you were not on one of the big teams - Fausto finished in 22nd place.
For our team the final stage was uneventful except for a wheel service for Fausto.
The guys were glad to have finished as a team. I have photos that will be posted along with a lot more information.
I will get my computer working properly and new postings will be forthcoming! Stay tuned.
Hello Everyone,
Sorry, that it has taken me a while to post again. My travel laptop is having a glitch of some sort where it does not recognize any wireless connections…
This post will be short but keep checking in because I will produce a more thorough evaluation of our performance.
The sixth stage had thousands of spectators lining the course. Our race was uneventful setting up for the finish. The course was good for Fausto. Fausto was in fifth position at 200 meters to go but his legs blew up so he faded back to the 18th position. Not a bad finish considering the effort it requires to get into position without a strong team for lead-out.
The final stage was the circuit race. There was a crash caused by the best place U23 rider in the race. Unfortunately, he hit a big pothole (one of the only ones on a near perfect course). His hands slid forward off the bars and many riders went down. Phil Zajicek (NIC), Robert Hunter (PHO), Bart Dockx (DVL), Sebastian Lang (GST), Koldo Gil Perez (SDV), Michael Creed (TIA) were all out of the race. Phil Zajicek landed on an already damaged right wrist… The team leadouts were good eliminating good set up positions if you were not on one of the big teams - Fausto finished in 22nd place.
For our team the final stage was uneventful except for a wheel service for Fausto.
The guys were glad to have finished as a team. I have photos that will be posted along with a lot more information.
I will get my computer working properly and new postings will be forthcoming! Stay tuned.
Saturday, February 25, 2006
Yesterday was by far the best day of this tour for us! Now that we are getting some race experience with each other it is becoming more and more apparent we have a good potential to compete at the highest levels sooner rather than later.
Our equipment hassles continued yesterday. We are using a lot of Mavic Neutral. Lam is riding a Campagnolo Veloce bike that has a rear derailleur that needs to be replaced along with a worn out shifter. The wheels that Mavic puts together are designed to work with both Shimano 10 and Campagnolo 10 speed systems. It is amazing that it works as well as it does. Lam has a new chain but the bike shifts poorly none the less. We put in a real campy wheel and it worked much better so we went with a lightweight American Classic rear wheel with an 11-25 on it to be sure he was able to climb in the big chainring.
Unfortunately, the relatively new freehub body gave away under Lam’s pressure and freewheeled in both directions. Mavic did a wheel change and we got him back in before the climb.
During the climb Lam rode with the best and in the end finished 1:13 down on the leaders. The decent was the kind you pedal on and the first group had more punch in it. We should never race at this level again without the equipment that is necessary. Lam’s bike is almost 10 kilos! I will see if I can get some pictures for you to see what the others are using.
Jesus was in the 3:58 group. Once the climb was over it is unlikely you could improve your position on the course… It was another respectable showing.
One of the best things that happened yesterday was that Fausto was smart and did the right thing by minimizing his expenditure. His GC is nowhere so it did not make sense that he would go for it yesterday with today’s stage being a better fit for his current form. It is easy to talk about doing the right thing but he was able to resist burning to many matches. Fausto did a professional ride yesterday.
Today’s stage looks to be a good one for Fausto. It has 3 category 4 climbs and one category 3. This is a similar profile as the day he was able to get the 14th place finish. The thing that is not in the race manual or talked about much is that there are two sections of very steep grade before the finish. Some of the teams are going with the 11-25 just to be sure there is no gearing problems. We are following suit.
Today is the day for Fausto but we are going to hold Lam ready in case those last two pitches are hard enough to get him into a forward split. We should have Lam near the front before we hit those steep sections.
We only have our three riders left but team general classification is calculated the cumulative time of the daily top three placing. As long as we are able to finish with three riders it is legitimate to say that Mexico is able to field a team that was able to compete at this level.
These riders do feel the responsibility of representing their country. It is an honor for me to be part of such an effort. We are not going to hide in the field just to finish. These riders are leading the way for Mexico to provide further opportunity for Mexican riders.
Thanks everyone for your support. This blog had over 800 hits in the past 24 hours. I regret not being able to spend more time on it but this blog is not on my high priority list at this time.
Many thanks for the frame builder Andy Gilmour for coming out to straiten out some of our equipment issues.
Our equipment hassles continued yesterday. We are using a lot of Mavic Neutral. Lam is riding a Campagnolo Veloce bike that has a rear derailleur that needs to be replaced along with a worn out shifter. The wheels that Mavic puts together are designed to work with both Shimano 10 and Campagnolo 10 speed systems. It is amazing that it works as well as it does. Lam has a new chain but the bike shifts poorly none the less. We put in a real campy wheel and it worked much better so we went with a lightweight American Classic rear wheel with an 11-25 on it to be sure he was able to climb in the big chainring.
Unfortunately, the relatively new freehub body gave away under Lam’s pressure and freewheeled in both directions. Mavic did a wheel change and we got him back in before the climb.
During the climb Lam rode with the best and in the end finished 1:13 down on the leaders. The decent was the kind you pedal on and the first group had more punch in it. We should never race at this level again without the equipment that is necessary. Lam’s bike is almost 10 kilos! I will see if I can get some pictures for you to see what the others are using.
Jesus was in the 3:58 group. Once the climb was over it is unlikely you could improve your position on the course… It was another respectable showing.
One of the best things that happened yesterday was that Fausto was smart and did the right thing by minimizing his expenditure. His GC is nowhere so it did not make sense that he would go for it yesterday with today’s stage being a better fit for his current form. It is easy to talk about doing the right thing but he was able to resist burning to many matches. Fausto did a professional ride yesterday.
Today’s stage looks to be a good one for Fausto. It has 3 category 4 climbs and one category 3. This is a similar profile as the day he was able to get the 14th place finish. The thing that is not in the race manual or talked about much is that there are two sections of very steep grade before the finish. Some of the teams are going with the 11-25 just to be sure there is no gearing problems. We are following suit.
Today is the day for Fausto but we are going to hold Lam ready in case those last two pitches are hard enough to get him into a forward split. We should have Lam near the front before we hit those steep sections.
We only have our three riders left but team general classification is calculated the cumulative time of the daily top three placing. As long as we are able to finish with three riders it is legitimate to say that Mexico is able to field a team that was able to compete at this level.
These riders do feel the responsibility of representing their country. It is an honor for me to be part of such an effort. We are not going to hide in the field just to finish. These riders are leading the way for Mexico to provide further opportunity for Mexican riders.
Thanks everyone for your support. This blog had over 800 hits in the past 24 hours. I regret not being able to spend more time on it but this blog is not on my high priority list at this time.
Many thanks for the frame builder Andy Gilmour for coming out to straiten out some of our equipment issues.
Friday, February 24, 2006
We had another day that shared the properties of good and bad. The bad is that Domingo had burned too many matches in the time trial yesterday. Today his legs were just not under him. Domingo retired from the race in the first feed. I am sure he will be on form for a great season after another month of effort. It is just too bad that we loose him. Domingo has a quiet leadership style that I like very much.
The race was fast today from the beginning. Even the controlled starting circuits for the spectators was fast! The race had quite a few crashes too. Lam went down in one but was able to get back in. His left hand has been on ice since the end of the stage.
Fausto had good condition on the finish. Juan Jose Haedo won another stage for TUT. Frankie and his crew are very happy! Great results for a first year team. They had the finish weird it was dicey. Fausto and quite a few others were slammed where they had to break. In any event, Fausto was good with a 14th place finish.
Jesus and Lam also enjoyed a good day of racing. The course has breathtaking views that are hard to take in at such a blistering pace. 4:41 for 230k… Every race staff was taking pictures. You could see whales from the course.
The course had 2 category 4 climbs and 1 category 3 climb. Really fast. A lot of riders were lost today. T Mobile lost two in the way we lost Domingo for example.
We are doing well and the other teams let us know that this evening. One thing that is funny is that Lam is wearing full fingered gloves and leg warmers. None of the European riders can understand that he is actually cold. We will have to show them just what individuals Mexico can produce.
Tomorrow is a great opportunity. It has a 10k cat 1 climb that tops out 30k before the finish. The decent is not as technical as the other ones we have been experiencing. It is important to stay good in the draft because you have to pedal during the decent. If you come out of the draft it will be hard to get back on. Everyone knows this so the speeds can be high if it is in the favor of a strong team… CSC has made no move in this race and it is getting close to the end. It goes relatively flat for the last 10k.
Overall out team is showing signs of a very good potential. Once we drop another five pounds off of the bikes and get the riders prepared properly, I think we will produce some results that will amaze others who don’t know about the potential of Mexican riders.
Sorry no pictures. It is hard to get anything decent when you are driving a team car.
Tomorrow I will have a guest Andy Gilmour my friend and a great frame builder. Perhaps he can get some good shots.
More after I can capture another internet connection.
Cheers,
Neil
The race was fast today from the beginning. Even the controlled starting circuits for the spectators was fast! The race had quite a few crashes too. Lam went down in one but was able to get back in. His left hand has been on ice since the end of the stage.
Fausto had good condition on the finish. Juan Jose Haedo won another stage for TUT. Frankie and his crew are very happy! Great results for a first year team. They had the finish weird it was dicey. Fausto and quite a few others were slammed where they had to break. In any event, Fausto was good with a 14th place finish.
Jesus and Lam also enjoyed a good day of racing. The course has breathtaking views that are hard to take in at such a blistering pace. 4:41 for 230k… Every race staff was taking pictures. You could see whales from the course.
The course had 2 category 4 climbs and 1 category 3 climb. Really fast. A lot of riders were lost today. T Mobile lost two in the way we lost Domingo for example.
We are doing well and the other teams let us know that this evening. One thing that is funny is that Lam is wearing full fingered gloves and leg warmers. None of the European riders can understand that he is actually cold. We will have to show them just what individuals Mexico can produce.
Tomorrow is a great opportunity. It has a 10k cat 1 climb that tops out 30k before the finish. The decent is not as technical as the other ones we have been experiencing. It is important to stay good in the draft because you have to pedal during the decent. If you come out of the draft it will be hard to get back on. Everyone knows this so the speeds can be high if it is in the favor of a strong team… CSC has made no move in this race and it is getting close to the end. It goes relatively flat for the last 10k.
Overall out team is showing signs of a very good potential. Once we drop another five pounds off of the bikes and get the riders prepared properly, I think we will produce some results that will amaze others who don’t know about the potential of Mexican riders.
Sorry no pictures. It is hard to get anything decent when you are driving a team car.
Tomorrow I will have a guest Andy Gilmour my friend and a great frame builder. Perhaps he can get some good shots.
More after I can capture another internet connection.
Cheers,
Neil
Wednesday, February 22, 2006
It has been quite a day. All of the guys made the time cut! Domingo 62nd in the TT. Floyd Landis stomped everyone and won by 26” over second place… I had a gut feeling he was going to fly when I talked to him in the hotel last night.Our other guys rode a smart time trial. Lam had a serious when his bar end shifter broke (I don’t recommend you keep them around for more than five years…) He was riding well until the shifter broke in his hand.
This time trial has a really fast and technical decent.
Mexican people are greeting us from everywhere. We get people honking there horns stopping in traffic to shake hands and it just goes on and on. The reception we are being given is quite incredible.
The other half of the team that did not make the time cut will be racing in LA this weekend. It will be interesting to hear if they receive the same kind of reception without the AMGEN Tour of California energy surrounding them.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)