Don’t worry the riding will continue next week.  We are short staffed this week and have no one to lead the ride.  Anyone is still welcome to ride from the shop this Saturday, but there will be no Sellwood employee leading the charge.  I’ll keep you in the loop for next week!

We’ll be riding again this Saturday on the road, rain or shine!  Leaving the shop by 7:45 am sharp, we’ll embark on the following routes:

11 Feb group ride, long route

11 Feb group ride, short route

Expect about a 2 hr ride that is medium to hard intensity with the potential for a few race pace efforts.  The ambitious ones that show up will be getting in about 40 miles in 2hrs, otherwise, there is a shorter route option.  There will be some re-grouping, but generally this is a non-stop ride.  If you want more (or less) pain than the planned ride, the routes should provide enough choices to make the ride what you want.  We look forward to seeing you!

 

photo from http://www.raleighronsclassics.com/11SteeringWheelieking.html

Looks like it will be a beautiful day for a ride, I’ll probably be going sleeveless to work on my tan…Anyway, the trend continues with a solid group ride happening Saturday the 4th of February leaving from the shop at 7:45am sharp.  Here are the planned route options:

4 Feb 2012 group ride, long route

4 Feb 2012 group ride, short route

Expect about a 2 hr ride that is medium to hard intensity with the potential for a few race pace efforts.  There will be some re-grouping, but generally this is a non-stop ride.  If you want more (or less) pain than the planned ride, the routes should provide enough choices to make the ride what you want.  We look forward to seeing you!

 

Photo from http://www.greatescapeholidaysinfo.com/book-sunshine-coast-accommodation-easily/

As we have been doing the last few weeks, we will be leading a group road ride tomorrow, Saturday the 28th of January.  We will leave from the shop at 7:45am sharp and ride the following longer and shorter route options:

28 Jan 2012 group ride, long route

28 Jan 2012 group ride, short route

The ride will happen rain or shine.  Expect about a 2 hr ride that is medium to hard intensity with the potential for a few race pace efforts.  There will be some re-grouping, but generally this is a non-stop ride.  If you want more (or less) pain than the planned ride, the routes should provide enough choices to make the ride what you want.  We look forward to seeing you!

As we have been doing the last few weeks, we will be leading a group road ride tomorrow, Saturday the 21st of January.  Starting between 7:30am-7:45am will will depart from the shop and ride the following route:

21 Jan 2012 group ride route

The ride will happen rain or shine.  Expect about a 2 hr ride that is medium to hard intensity with the potential for a few race pace efforts.  There will be some re-grouping, but generally this is a non-stop ride.  If you want more (or less) pain than the planned ride, the route should provide enough choices to make the ride what you want.  We look forward to seeing you!

This is Erik’s beloved Honky Tonk, a 56cm 2009 model.  We think it’s so wrong, it’s right!

Remember those kids’ games from your youth?  Can you spot all the things wrong with this bike?

The first is the 27″ wheelset.  The bigger wheels (630mm bead-seat diameter) fit the frame and fork, so we didn’t really have a choice.  Add those big Panaracer Pasela Tourguard 27×1-1/8″ tires, and the bike really rolls.

The second are the Retro Shifters. (Check out RetroShift.com.)  We have them set up to Shimano Dura Ace 10s down-tub shifters.  They work well–they’re like the missing link…discovered long after we all realized one was missing.

The third is in the drivetrain.  The new 10s mountain range cogsets (shown here: an 11-34t Shimano SLX HG-81) can work on road bikes as long as there’s a 10s shifter, 10s chain, and rear derailleur with enough capacity.  The trick is to use a Shimano 9s-era rear mountain derailleur (shown here: a mid-cage XT Shadow M972) because they operate just like all 9s and 10s Shimano road derailleurs.  (The new Shimano 10s mountain rear derailleurs are only operable by Shimano 10s mountain shifter pods.)

The last is the saddle: it is indeed so wrong, it’s right!

Thanks for the fun! –Erik & Nick

 

This all started for me when Erik gave me a call Friday morning.  He told me he had a crazy idea involving me pitting for him in a two day UCI race in downtown LA, and after a bit of deliberation I decided the opportunity to travel and support the boss was simply too good.  I’ll put it bluntly when I say that my artistic skills handily eclipse my talents as a bike mechanic, so I found it well put when Erik told people he was bringing his personal artist instead of a pit mechanic.  At Sellwood Cycle Repair, we kind of have our own way of doing everything, and as Erik’s choice in travel partner showed, the jaunt to LA would be no different.

The next morning found Erik and I arriving in balmy LA around noon.  We quickly grabbed our luggage (two boxed 2011 carbon Major Jakes, and a wheel bag with two sets of wheels), and successfully made it onto the “Flyaway” airport bus towards Union Station.  After a bit of quintessential LA freeway traffic, we arrived at the station, which was supposedly within 1.4 miles of the racecourse.  What perhaps we didn’t realize was that the leisurely walk to the course that we had imagined, had become more of a mad dash as we were cutting it close with about an hour and a half to spare before Erik’s race, and we carried two bikes that would require a decent amount of assembly before they were rideable.  As our arms tired, we began to desperately drag the boxes across the LA sidewalks in pursuit of the racecourse that was proving to be much further than we had thought.  We stopped at an intersection, and began cursing our luck, just to raise our heads and see in the distance, glorious white course tape beckoning us forth.  After two speedy bike assemblies, Erik at the least had all the pieces in place to put in a good ride.  I’m sure he could give you his own version of the race, but in my opinion for a guy that’s been nursing a shoulder separated in August, he was looking pretty good.  I believe he ended the day less than 3:00 back from the leaders, in 16^th.

We folded up and stashed our cardboard bike boxes under the stage hoping they’d be there tomorrow, and took off on bike to find the Dragon’s Gate Best Western (which I might add was quite a hotel indeed).  We must have looked pretty funny riding carbon cross bikes and tubulars around the streets of downtown LA in search of our hotel, one hand on the bars and the other grasping a wheel bag.  We ended our night with some awesome chow fun and pepper beef from a Chinese restaurant down the block called Master Chef, and a bit of anthropological field work at a fancy hotel bar investigating how the other half lives over a few pints of Guinness.  All in all, a very successful day.

The next day started with an interesting continental breakfast at the corner coffee shop.  It was pretty standard fare except the amount of waffles one could devour was carefully overseen by a wary attendant, and amidst all the palm trees and tropical feel was a massive stuffed moose head watching over the proceedings.  Erik being the ever-thoughtful guy he is, brought an extra long seatpost so I could try to get his 56cm carbon bike feeling comfortable for my 6’4” frame.  After a bit of riding around the surrounding industrial area, we set our sights for the hills that rose above Chinatown.  Our greatest discovery of the day was an awesome recently closed park that had some fun rough roads climbing to the top, providing us with a huge radio tower and a nice vista of the sprawl that is LA.  We returned to the hotel and threw on the morning’s football games flipping back and forth between the Broncos vs. Vikings and the Raiders vs. Dolphins games.  The second day at the races was a bit more leisurely and we got to watch a bit of the single speed and women’s races while soaking up the sun.  And while the course was pretty flat and perhaps not as exciting as some of the better Cross Crusade races, the setting couldn’t have been more idyllic with the palm trees and skyscrapers of downtown LA at our backs and the rugged San Gabriel mountains in the distance.  Erik looked quite a bit stronger the second day, and finished just over two minutes back from leader Ben Berden in 16^th place again.

Our return trip was not nearly as harrowing and frenzied as our arrival, with the most eventful happening being Erik’s acquisition of the month’s Rolling Stone that listed the 100 greatest guitar players (Tony Iommi was 26^th I believe, should’ve been higher on the list in my opinion but oh well…).  Our faithful pal Brad swooped us from the Airport in the ever trusty and slightly smelly Kona van, and we cruised leisurely back into town totally exhausted.  The weekend in my book was a total success.  Given the tight tolerances that we had placed on the trip, with two races in a span of 36 hours, all the while navigating a city that neither of us knows at all, it was amazing to me that everything came together so flawlessly.  But as Erik regaled me with story after story of traveling high jinks while flying out to big bike races all across the country, it became quite clear to me that this trip was not too much out of the ordinary.  I am still astonished by the feat of balancing a professional bike racing career and a full time job, and I find it truly inspiring the intensity with which these guys approach their goals both on and off the bike.

Winter is approaching, with its rain, dark and cold. We’re prepared to keep you toasty and dry with hot cocoa and your very own soigneur! Actually, that won’t happen, but we DO have some lovely things here at the shop that are far better and more reliable. Cycling caps made of wool or flannel, with or without ear cover, by local company Double Darn–no two are alike! Classic wool jerseys by Wabi Woolens. Waterproof jackets and pants by Showers Pass. Arm warmers, knee warmers, shoe covers, wind and waterproof gloves, tall wool socks, and more surprises on the way!

 

Our new guy Patrick went and did a bit of testing with the boys. Here is what he had to say:

Kona bikes at Sandy Ridge.

Having spent the last 8 years of my life in Bellingham, Washington, moving to Portland, Oregon has been quite the change. Allow me to elaborate. I’m a mountain biker. So for the last 8 years I’ve been going on really great mountain bike rides, that start and end at my front door, regularly. So you can imagine my enthusiasm when Erik told me that Ian from Kona was coming down for the weekend and if I wanted to not work on Friday and go rally some cool Kona 29ers around the woods at Sandy Ridge, I could do that.

Of course, we had to time it perfectly with the first real storm to hit the Pacific NW. The forecast was calling for Rain (“no shit?”) and even snow later in the day. But this is the part about being a mountain biker in the Pacific NW, you kinda relish those conditions just a bit. All your favorite single track that’s been so familiar in the dry months, is totally changed. The turns are in the same spot, maybe the rocks and roots too, but traction and speed are both compromised, it’s like riding a whole new trail!

So a couple Friday’s ago, Mad Mike, Ian from Kona, Boobs (a.k.a. Sean), Roscoe (Mike’s dog) and myself, all loaded up the Kona van with a grip of cool bikes, warm clothes and even warmer tea. After the obligatory stop for donuts in Sandy, we arrived at the trail head.

Between the four of us, we had 5 bikes to ride. They included, two Satori’s, Kona’s brand new all-mountain 2-9 wheeled beast with 150mm of travel; Two Hei-Hei 2-9s, a 100mm travel all-around mountain bike rocket ship; and one Tanuki Deluxe 26″ wheeled trail bike with 130mm of travel.

I’d never ridden at Sandy Ridge but I’d heard lots about it. I was on one of the Hei-Hei’s as I was pretty keen to see if this could be the new race bike for the 2012 season. Sean (a.k.a. Boobs) was also trying out a Hei-Hei, while Mike and Ian humped the Satori’s up hill beside us. We suited up and started the pedal up to the top.

The last mile or so of the climb was in snow that got progressively deeper. There was probably a good 5 inches or fresh pow for us to track up on the way down! It was amazing! After ripping the first run with a couple obligatory stops for logging photographic evidence of the day, we roasted the last half of the decent, and, grinning ear-to-ear, switched bikes and started another pedal to the top!

I jumped on a Satori while Ian quickly adjusted the Hei-Hei to fit him and off we went for another lap! We had to threaten to leave Mike to survive on his own to convince him to keep on pedaling to the top, but it was worth it! For this descent we left the camera in the truck so there would be no excuses to stop. One run, completely uninterrupted. I’d say we all rode like small children on that last run, by way of giggling and catching air the whole way down.

I’ve always preferred 26 inch bikes for their handling and nimble charateristics. I like to feel that I’m on a toy that can hop all around the forest, break the tires loose, catch some air, and roost fluffy corners like the Dukes of Hazard. Oddly enough, this Hei-Hei full suspension felt incredibly nimble, even more-so then some 29 Hardtails that I’ve ridden. The Hei-Hei felt like an all-around rocket ship made for off-road trouble-shooting. Kona got the geometry totally dialed on this bike. And the 142 thru-axle rear kept things incredibly stiff and responsive in the back. It was easy to keep speed on the punchy uphills and the tight steering was super quick in the slower twists and turns. I might have asked Erik to locate me one of these for me so I can have too much fun more often next year. It’ll be the race bike too.

The Satori, on the other hand, was the steam roller. The less you steer and the more you just run into everything, the better! For a 29 inch wheeled bike with 150mm of travel, it was more nimble then I would have guessed. The wheelbase on a 19″ Satori is only 0.2 inches longer then the same size Hei-Hei! This made the ride super nimble and fast. Anytime you can point the bike, and steer and brake less, you’re going to go faster. The big wheels combined with the super tight geometry and 150mm of travel made the Satori almost scary fast. Like riding a DH bike with the seatpost at max height, the Satori is a perfect candidate with a gravity dropper seatpost. I should mention, for how well it descended, it did climb quite well.

We finished off the perfect wet PNW day of mountain biking with a burrito from La Sirenita in Sellwood and then hanging around the shop and swapping ride stories with the duders who didn’t get to join in the fun!

We’d like to throw out a HUGE Thank You to Ian and Kona Bicycles for making the day a huge success, and I guess Erik Tonkin too, for the “day off” and making the day possible. The jerk probably knew it’d be crap weather! But you know he wanted to come too.

Patricky out.

We won’t be here on Thursday, but we’ll be back on Friday.

Thanks!