The Bicycling Thread

[taemo]

got my first tire cut this morning along 4th street, 17th ave.
struggled for almost an hour trying to put the 700x25 tire back on, i was about to give up and go to the bike shop until it finally went in.

[msommers]

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Just ordered a pair of Castelli Free Aero Race bibs for 126.35 from Wiggle. Do I need another pair of bibs? I do now. There are also the Aero Race 5.1 Jersey and the Climbers 2.0 for cheap from Probikekit, limited sizes.

At that price why not! I decided to try them. A bunch of Castelli stuff is on-sale, must be that time of year for getting rid of old stock. Picked up an Alpha jacket from Merlin Cycle. They also have more colour options and sizes but $10 more.

http://bikes.merlincycles.com/search...20Bib%20Shorts

[sneek]

Is anybody else heart rate training their commutes? I started recently and I seem to get stuck in zone 3 for 50-70% of my rides. I am thinking I will try to ride easy on my way to work and then try and sprint home in zone 4.

[s_havinga]

Anyone doing the RTCC this year. This weekend will be my first time and also my first time biking over a 100k two days in a row. Between commuting and a few evening rides, I've done about 850 kms this year so the ride will put my well over 1000 so far this year so I know I'll make it, but that many hours on a bike in 1 weekend is still making me a little nervous.

[Brent.ff]

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Is anybody else heart rate training their commutes? I started recently and I seem to get stuck in zone 3 for 50-70% of my rides. I am thinking I will try to ride easy on my way to work and then try and sprint home in zone 4.

Not doing heart rate, but typically 'nose breathing' in high zone 1 for most of my rides, as i'm all about building base during commutes for the big days.


Had a bus try to squish me today on 11st in the bike 'lane' (https://www.google.ca/maps/@50.98746...7i13312!8i6656). I got ahead of him at the red light (off the bike path), knowing he was doing to pull into the bike lane to stop, but figured if i was ahead of him he wouldn't try and push ahead and cut off into the lane. But nope..he went hard off the light, pulled in front of me and slammed on the brakes in the lane. Good thing my head was up.

[lilmira]

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Anyone doing the RTCC this year. This weekend will be my first time and also my first time biking over a 100k two days in a row. Between commuting and a few evening rides, I've done about 850 kms this year so the ride will put my well over 1000 so far this year so I know I'll make it, but that many hours on a bike in 1 weekend is still making me a little nervous.

You'll have fun. It's a well organized ride with plenty of stops.

[CLiVE]

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Had a bus try to squish me today on 11st in the bike 'lane' (https://www.google.ca/maps/@50.98746...7i13312!8i6656). I got ahead of him at the red light (off the bike path), knowing he was doing to pull into the bike lane to stop, but figured if i was ahead of him he wouldn't try and push ahead and cut off into the lane. But nope..he went hard off the light, pulled in front of me and slammed on the brakes in the lane. Good thing my head was up.

I had the same thing happen to me going on 10th street by SAIT a few weeks ago. Bus passed me, then immediately cut in and slammed on the brakes. He could have waited 10 seconds til I was past the bus stop.

[J-hop]

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Is anybody else heart rate training their commutes? I started recently and I seem to get stuck in zone 3 for 50-70% of my rides. I am thinking I will try to ride easy on my way to work and then try and sprint home in zone 4.

What are you using to monitor heart rate?

[CLiVE]

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Anyone doing the RTCC this year. This weekend will be my first time and also my first time biking over a 100k two days in a row. Between commuting and a few evening rides, I've done about 850 kms this year so the ride will put my well over 1000 so far this year so I know I'll make it, but that many hours on a bike in 1 weekend is still making me a little nervous.

You'll be fine. Keep it relaxed, watch the pacing and keep up with hydration/nutrition. Have fun.

[sneek]

I am using the Wahoo TICKR X chest strap. It is a pretty unique product in that it gives you an estimated cadence and speed. So far I have actually found it to be pretty accurate, but it has increased my frustration with always being in zone 3.

Yesterday I rode in zone 2 most of my ride home. I took it easier in the smaller chainring with an 85ish cadence. Hopefully I will be able to break into zone 4 on my weekend rides or next weeks commute.

[msommers]

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At that price why not! I decided to try them. A bunch of Castelli stuff is on-sale, must be that time of year for getting rid of old stock. Picked up an Alpha jacket from Merlin Cycle. They also have more colour options and sizes but $10 more.

http://bikes.merlincycles.com/search...20Bib%20Shorts

Just following up. Merlin Cycle was also free shipping and a couple days faster than Wiggle. No duty/taxes on either though Merlin declared my jacket as a rear derailleur for some reason...

[CLiVE]

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Just following up. Merlin Cycle was also free shipping and a couple days faster than Wiggle. No duty/taxes on either though Merlin declared my jacket as a rear derailleur for some reason...

You probably lucked out. Tariff on clothing is 18% I believe...vs 8% on parts.

I purchased a Carbon Wheelset that were incorrectly labelled as clothing and ended up with a huge bill a while back. Managed to get it corrected though after sending pictures and documentation.

[sneek]

I have been eyeing the Rove ST in Olive lately. I can't decide if I should get a Rove ST or a JTS for next season. Worried that the SRAM 1X would leave me spun out on the top end

[XylathaneGTR]

Sneek - probably not worth too much but I'll offer my thoughts: I ride with a guy who's frequently on a trek crockett which has a SRAM Force 1x (40w/ 11-32), while I'm typically on my Roubaix (Praxis/Ultegra 50/34 w/ 11-32). He's still faster than me on our leisurely-ish group rides (~25km/hrish pace, ~60ish km distance). Taking into consideration that he's a legit athlete while I'm not, I guess the answer to your question would be focused around what you're intending to use the bike for, but my observations would suggest that a slightly lower top-end isn't a problem for most people unless you're going for all-out topspeed highway runs.

[sneek]

Thanks for the input! You've convinced me to test ride the Rove ST! It has the Rival 1X 40 / 11-42. I am all over the place with what I want. On one hand I would love to be able to ride even the slightest amount of gravel, on the other hand I have a road bike now and it hasn't held me back too much. I am tempted to get a Jake the Snake and have a bit of balance in between. ... sorry for derailing this thread!

[Brent.ff]

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Just following up. Merlin Cycle was also free shipping and a couple days faster than Wiggle. No duty/taxes on either though Merlin declared my jacket as a rear derailleur for some reason...

Who did wiggle ship through? Mine was supposed to show up Wednesday and a no show. I'm on vacay for a week and a bit worried it's gonna go back

[lilmira]

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Who did wiggle ship through? Mine was supposed to show up Wednesday and a no show. I'm on vacay for a week and a bit worried it's gonna go back

Assuming that you chose untracked free shipping, usually it gets handed to Canada Post once it reaches Canada. Custom can hold it sometimes for whatever reason and that's beyond the control of the carrier. I've had order that came within two weeks and I've had order that came just under a month.

[Brent.ff]

Ya... cheapness got ahold of me. Thanks

[sneek]

I picked up a new JTS from Bike and Brew. They had a small sale on their bikes so I finally pulled the trigger. I really liked the Rove ST but the geometry of JTS just felt more natural. Debated buying a used Giant TCX but decided to buy my first new bike.

[D'z Nutz]

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I picked up a new JTS from Bike and Brew. They had a small sale on their bikes so I finally pulled the trigger. I really liked the Rove ST but the geometry of JTS just felt more natural. Debated buying a used Giant TCX but decided to buy my first new bike.

Sweeeet. Did you get a 2017 or 2018? That new yellow colour is pretty hot too.