The worlds ride last night was rough. Everyone is getting faster and I have an invisible 200 pound gorilla on my back. I've been getting whipped pretty good lately. Not much has changed except the temperature and my shoes. My routine has been the same since January. According to Strava I've been averaging 5 rides, 170 miles, 10 hours per week. That's not a lot and not a little. Somewhere in the middle for a working stiff with no kids. I take two days off (Monday & Friday) and ride no more than 3 days in a row. Usually the Tuesday and Saturday rides are where I get my intensity and mileage the rest is from commuting. Weight has been the same for the past two years. Could I be lighter? Sure. Do I want to eat salads to achieve that? Nope. I think the summer heat is where you really feel those extra pounds though. Specifically fat. Last night I had to split off the group because I couldn't hold the wheels. Kind of a bummer but the ride in was pleasant and super scenic so not really. That's what is so great about the bicycle. You can ride alone or with a group and there are good things in both settings. What I find most disturbing is the lack of power. The gears I normally turn are no longer an option. It didn't seem too hot yesterday even though we cracked the 90's. I think the crazy strong wind helped with that. Still lost 4lbs of water weight in a 2 hour 40 minute ride. You would think the 3 bottles I consumed would help but my sweat rate is off the charts. Anyways the usual suspects were crushing it last night. Kudos to them. I'm going to listen to that inner voice that is saying 'when in doubt..rest'. Time for some long-slow-distance until the power comes back. Maybe I should go old school and ride with no water and force the body to adapt.
The 100th running of Le Tour
I'm having a hard time getting excited about the tour this year. Partly because the first two weeks of the Giro satisfied my deepest desire to see exceptional, passionate bicycle racing. The Giro was everything I'd hoped it would be. About the only thing keeping my attention is that the race is running for the 100th edition. That's pretty cool. I've been enjoying the historic photos and write ups floating around on the web. Can anyone derail the Sky train? I hope so. I'm quietly hanging my hat on Cuddles and TJ but it is clearly Froome's race to lose. So much can happen over three weeks.
Kudos
Kudos to Strava for effectively bringing the word Kudos into my vocabulary repertoire. I find myself using this word way too much. It's funny how that happens. I NEVER used this word before. Kudos might be the new epic. Isn't there a candy bar called Kudos? I thought Strava was another cycling fad but must now admit it is totally legit, useful and fun. Pretty brilliant actually. I'm only using the free app on my phone. Can anyone out there tell me if the premium membership is worth the coin? Whoa that would be a big deal.
Revo
Jay over at TBR gave me a bottle of Continental Revo Sealant to try out. So far so good. Supposedly it doesn't clump up like Stan's and doesn't dry out as quickly. I haven't pulled the tire yet to test the clumping but everything else is a thumbs up. The most notable things for me are as follows #1 it does the main job. Seals the tire. The tire is holding air just like Stan's. I haven't had any flats or burping.
#2 easy to measure with a clear numbered scale located on the bottle. Also comes with a chart on the bottle with how many ounces to use per tire size.
#3 my favorite. Super easy application with this small tip. Just remove the valve core and squeeze. No more breaking the bead and needing an air compressor to apply. I never had much luck with the valve hose adapter thing from Stan's. It still made a mess. I've heard Stan's has a similar tip on their smaller bottles. Correct me if I'm wrong.
#4 no clumping. Not yet tested but this will be a nice bonus.
Probably not enough to get me to convert from an American made product like Stan's sealant but I must say I'm impressed so far. Seems like everyone is getting into the sealant game these days.
2 comments:
I've had horrible luck with the Conti sealant in my mountain bike tires (even when running Conti tires, haha). Persistant leak that continued with Revo immediately sealed up with Stan's...glad you've had better luck!
Thanks Eric. Your on another level when it comes to the MTB so that's saying something. I actually love Stan's but I'm always up for trying something new. Do you know if Stan's sells their sealant in a bottle that can go direct to the valve once the core is removed?
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