Cyclocross Ride - Cycling Mob: Road Cycling, Mountain Biking and More

02-19-2004, 08:45 PM

I have a couple of cyclocross bikes. A couple of week ago I rode one from
South San Francisco over to Pacifica and then back up over the dirt ridge
trails. It's a LeMond Poprad but it only had a single front ring. I'm
putting a triple on it right now so I'm waiting for parts to come in.

My other 'cross bike is a world championship CX Atala. It has barend
shifters and only a 7 speed on the back but a good triple. It rides like an
absolute dream.

This evening after I got home it was threatening rain in the sky but I
wanted to get in some miles. I pulled the Atala out and rode up the street,
down to the shoreline trail and 10 miles down the trail to the trailhead and
then came back. Over the paved sections the knobbies rode perfectly smoothly
and when I hit the trail, whether it was muddy or drying from the last
week's worth of rain, the tires didn't even threaten to slip.

The trails ride along the shoreline but occasionally dodge inland a couple
hundred yards or so before going out again. The wind was cold but not too
cold. I kept it in one gear for the whole ride, probably a 39/25 or so. The
idea was to enjoy the ride and not to wear myself out. I'm coming down with
that cold that's going around and I don't feel like making it worse.

18 miles in a little over an hour and a quarter and I was back home. Sure
beats the hell out of sitting around the house after work.

02-20-2004, 07:38 PM

was balmy again today like yesterday, so I saddled up the Jamis for a
ride. Being early in the season, and being unsure of my legs, I
didn't want to venture too far from home, so I find my rides these
days less the daylight-burning point-to-point rides of the summer than
meandering up a variety of hills and rises in town. Mapped, they
would probably look like one of Billy's errands in "The Family
Circus."

There is a little-used network of gravel trails in my town, stretching
for about five miles or so, interconnecting with a county-maintained
trail. I've always been kind of sniffy about most recreational
trails, as they tend to meander. But being in a meandering mood, I
decided to explore some of the gravel trails here in my town.

I pulled my bike off the main road and onto the trails. It was the
middle of the day, and I shared them only with a few good-natured
dog-walkers and birdwatchers. Some went uphill, some went down, some
were level. All were hardpacked dirt or sand or gravel. My 32mm
tires did fine, and I discovered a positive to my considerable on-bike
bulk: excellent traction uphill. Mostly in the middle ring. Heard
birdsong, saw cardinals. Jarred my way through to the end of state
maintenance and decided to see just how far I could go into the
improvised trail that went into the woods.

Not far at all, it seemed. Mud here was deep--all the way to the
spoke nipples--and smooth tires don't grip too well in those
conditions. Many dismounts. No running: CX racers have the benefit
of knowing the course. I had no clue where I was. I should have
known I was in for trouble when the only tracks I saw were dog prints
and 2.5 inch tires. I thought briefly of the mountain bike at the
pawnshop, and thought better of it--too many bikes already.

I turned for home and did a few hills. Maybe with a surfiet of
enthusiasm.

Fourteen miles on the day. There will be more miles on other
mornings. I'm still getting the muck out of my drivetrain. And the
soreness out of my legs. And the smile off my face.

-Luigi

02-20-2004, 07:38 PM

was balmy again today like yesterday, so I saddled up the Jamis for a
ride. Being early in the season, and being unsure of my legs, I
didn't want to venture too far from home, so I find my rides these
days less the daylight-burning point-to-point rides of the summer than
meandering up a variety of hills and rises in town. Mapped, they
would probably look like one of Billy's errands in "The Family
Circus."

There is a little-used network of gravel trails in my town, stretching
for about five miles or so, interconnecting with a county-maintained
trail. I've always been kind of sniffy about most recreational
trails, as they tend to meander. But being in a meandering mood, I
decided to explore some of the gravel trails here in my town.

I pulled my bike off the main road and onto the trails. It was the
middle of the day, and I shared them only with a few good-natured
dog-walkers and birdwatchers. Some went uphill, some went down, some
were level. All were hardpacked dirt or sand or gravel. My 32mm
tires did fine, and I discovered a positive to my considerable on-bike
bulk: excellent traction uphill. Mostly in the middle ring. Heard
birdsong, saw cardinals. Jarred my way through to the end of state
maintenance and decided to see just how far I could go into the
improvised trail that went into the woods.

Not far at all, it seemed. Mud here was deep--all the way to the
spoke nipples--and smooth tires don't grip too well in those
conditions. Many dismounts. No running: CX racers have the benefit
of knowing the course. I had no clue where I was. I should have
known I was in for trouble when the only tracks I saw were dog prints
and 2.5 inch tires. I thought briefly of the mountain bike at the
pawnshop, and thought better of it--too many bikes already.

I turned for home and did a few hills. Maybe with a surfiet of
enthusiasm.

Fourteen miles on the day. There will be more miles on other
mornings. I'm still getting the muck out of my drivetrain. And the
soreness out of my legs. And the smile off my face.

-Luigi

02-21-2004, 07:59 AM

In article <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]>, luigi12081
@cox.net says...
> was balmy again today like yesterday, so I saddled up the Jamis for a
> ride. Being early in the season, and being unsure of my legs, I
> didn't want to venture too far from home, so I find my rides these
> days less the daylight-burning point-to-point rides of the summer than
> meandering up a variety of hills and rises in town. Mapped, they
> would probably look like one of Billy's errands in "The Family
> Circus."
>
> There is a little-used network of gravel trails in my town, stretching
> for about five miles or so, interconnecting with a county-maintained
> trail. I've always been kind of sniffy about most recreational
> trails, as they tend to meander. But being in a meandering mood, I
> decided to explore some of the gravel trails here in my town.
>
> I pulled my bike off the main road and onto the trails. It was the
> middle of the day, and I shared them only with a few good-natured
> dog-walkers and birdwatchers. Some went uphill, some went down, some
> were level. All were hardpacked dirt or sand or gravel. My 32mm
> tires did fine, and I discovered a positive to my considerable on-bike
> bulk: excellent traction uphill. Mostly in the middle ring. Heard
> birdsong, saw cardinals. Jarred my way through to the end of state
> maintenance and decided to see just how far I could go into the
> improvised trail that went into the woods.
>
> Not far at all, it seemed. Mud here was deep--all the way to the
> spoke nipples--and smooth tires don't grip too well in those
> conditions. Many dismounts. No running: CX racers have the benefit
> of knowing the course. I had no clue where I was. I should have
> known I was in for trouble when the only tracks I saw were dog prints
> and 2.5 inch tires. I thought briefly of the mountain bike at the
> pawnshop, and thought better of it--too many bikes already.
>
> I turned for home and did a few hills. Maybe with a surfiet of
> enthusiasm.
>
> Fourteen miles on the day. There will be more miles on other
> mornings. I'm still getting the muck out of my drivetrain. And the
> soreness out of my legs. And the smile off my face.

That last one will be tough <Grin>. Nice story!

--
Dave Kerber
Fight spam: remove the ns_ from the return address before replying!

REAL programmers write self-modifying code.

02-21-2004, 07:59 AM

In article <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]>, luigi12081
@cox.net says...
> was balmy again today like yesterday, so I saddled up the Jamis for a
> ride. Being early in the season, and being unsure of my legs, I
> didn't want to venture too far from home, so I find my rides these
> days less the daylight-burning point-to-point rides of the summer than
> meandering up a variety of hills and rises in town. Mapped, they
> would probably look like one of Billy's errands in "The Family
> Circus."
>
> There is a little-used network of gravel trails in my town, stretching
> for about five miles or so, interconnecting with a county-maintained
> trail. I've always been kind of sniffy about most recreational
> trails, as they tend to meander. But being in a meandering mood, I
> decided to explore some of the gravel trails here in my town.
>
> I pulled my bike off the main road and onto the trails. It was the
> middle of the day, and I shared them only with a few good-natured
> dog-walkers and birdwatchers. Some went uphill, some went down, some
> were level. All were hardpacked dirt or sand or gravel. My 32mm
> tires did fine, and I discovered a positive to my considerable on-bike
> bulk: excellent traction uphill. Mostly in the middle ring. Heard
> birdsong, saw cardinals. Jarred my way through to the end of state
> maintenance and decided to see just how far I could go into the
> improvised trail that went into the woods.
>
> Not far at all, it seemed. Mud here was deep--all the way to the
> spoke nipples--and smooth tires don't grip too well in those
> conditions. Many dismounts. No running: CX racers have the benefit
> of knowing the course. I had no clue where I was. I should have
> known I was in for trouble when the only tracks I saw were dog prints
> and 2.5 inch tires. I thought briefly of the mountain bike at the
> pawnshop, and thought better of it--too many bikes already.
>
> I turned for home and did a few hills. Maybe with a surfiet of
> enthusiasm.
>
> Fourteen miles on the day. There will be more miles on other
> mornings. I'm still getting the muck out of my drivetrain. And the
> soreness out of my legs. And the smile off my face.

That last one will be tough <Grin>. Nice story!

--
Dave Kerber
Fight spam: remove the ns_ from the return address before replying!

REAL programmers write self-modifying code.

02-21-2004, 08:56 AM

"Luigi de Guzman" <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> wrote in message
news:[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]...

> There is a little-used network of gravel trails in my town, stretching
> for about five miles or so, interconnecting with a county-maintained
> trail. I've always been kind of sniffy about most recreational
> trails, as they tend to meander. But being in a meandering mood, I
> decided to explore some of the gravel trails here in my town.

We've got something like this too, under the powerlines. Very steep hills.

> Fourteen miles on the day. There will be more miles on other
> mornings. I'm still getting the muck out of my drivetrain. And the
> soreness out of my legs. And the smile off my face.

I hope you keep the joy in your heart.

--
Warm Regards,

Claire Petersky
Please replace earthlink for mouse-potato and .net for .com

Home of the meditative cyclist:
[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]

New CD coming out this month! See: [Only registered and activated users can see links. ]

"To forgive is to set the prisoner free and then discover the prisoner
was you."

02-21-2004, 08:56 AM

"Luigi de Guzman" <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> wrote in message
news:[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]...

> There is a little-used network of gravel trails in my town, stretching
> for about five miles or so, interconnecting with a county-maintained
> trail. I've always been kind of sniffy about most recreational
> trails, as they tend to meander. But being in a meandering mood, I
> decided to explore some of the gravel trails here in my town.

We've got something like this too, under the powerlines. Very steep hills.

> Fourteen miles on the day. There will be more miles on other
> mornings. I'm still getting the muck out of my drivetrain. And the
> soreness out of my legs. And the smile off my face.

I hope you keep the joy in your heart.

--
Warm Regards,

Claire Petersky
Please replace earthlink for mouse-potato and .net for .com

Home of the meditative cyclist:
[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]

New CD coming out this month! See: [Only registered and activated users can see links. ]

"To forgive is to set the prisoner free and then discover the prisoner
was you."

02-21-2004, 09:52 AM

>"Luigi de Guzman" <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> wrote in message
>> There is a little-used network of gravel trails in my town, stretching

On Sat, 21 Feb 2004 16:56:29 GMT, "Claire Petersky"
<[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> wrote:
>We've got something like this too, under the powerlines. Very steep hills.

Around here, powerline trails might be overdoing it for a cross
bike; they're very rough, including deep puddles and mudholes that
will submerge your bottom bracket and require MTB-fat tires.

The hills are the same, though. I wonder why power lines are always
in the hilliest terrain available...cheap land?
--
Rick Onanian

02-21-2004, 09:52 AM

>"Luigi de Guzman" <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> wrote in message
>> There is a little-used network of gravel trails in my town, stretching

On Sat, 21 Feb 2004 16:56:29 GMT, "Claire Petersky"
<[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> wrote:
>We've got something like this too, under the powerlines. Very steep hills.

Around here, powerline trails might be overdoing it for a cross
bike; they're very rough, including deep puddles and mudholes that
will submerge your bottom bracket and require MTB-fat tires.

The hills are the same, though. I wonder why power lines are always
in the hilliest terrain available...cheap land?
--
Rick Onanian

02-21-2004, 11:28 AM

"Luigi de Guzman" <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> wrote in message
news:[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]...
>
> Fourteen miles on the day. There will be more miles on other
> mornings. I'm still getting the muck out of my drivetrain. And the
> soreness out of my legs. And the smile off my face.

I think that we've almost forgotten how cyclocross racing came into being -
it was FROM these sorts of rides and not the reverse.

Cyclocross racers these days aren't designed for the sort of riding that
we'r talking about here but really there's minimal changes to a CX bike to
make it ready for this sort of riding.

I don't feel bad coming in from a ride with the bike almost invisible under
a coating of mud. But I sure wouldn't want to do that with my Colnago Super
re-paint. The Atala is almost a perfect riding cross bike.