Things I Like

Time to read, even if it is an insight to other worlds of cycling. From BMX to bicycle messenger Bike Snob NYC delves into the heart of all cyclists and finds words to explain why we tick. Your basic history of the bicycle is covered through to culture and conformity but what grabbed my attention was the accurate velo-taxonomy of some of our subsets. Cadel Evans, Hello Kitty, nothing is left untouched in Bike Snob.

New tyres. The excitement of Tubeless, gripping rubber from Onza.

Crank Bros m19. I have been carrying this multi-tool around for almost a year now and have only had to use it in anger a couple of times. The m19 includes more than the essential elements for a mid-ride adjustment and houses itself in a great case, which has enough room for a SRAM Link and some additional dollars. I have found it to be a great multi-tool.

Knog Frog Stobe, fashioned from silicone rubber, simple yet funky, from the outset it looked like not much had changed when I purchased the latest Frog. My old Frogs had seen their fair share of bike time and have been an necessary component for the daily commute and doubled as "back-up" lights for a few 24s. When I spotted Knog's most recent offering I had to give it a go, this time with a red diode. Fundamentally the Frog is the same but it is the little things that have made them even better. Going from a single LED globe to an LED element with a focused reflector means better directed and more efficient lighting. Like many simple LEDs Frogs of old had just flashing and steady modes, the latest offering has three distinct flashing modes and the standard steady. The unique rubber outer can stretch to fit most tube diameters, even abnormally shaped Aluminium alloys and crazy carbon.

Mt Annan Revisited

With the Single Track Mind Round 1 at Awaba just put on hold due to the wet weather, more info here, I am glad I got out late in the week on the Yeti. I was joined by my dedicated support crew from last years WSC, we were all on bikes but this time I was the one handing out the drinks.

We visited the Enduro trail at Mt Annan and it looks to have held up fairly nice after the beating it took during the Rocky Trail GP. It is challenging enough to keep us all entertained. There were riders out there training right through to families with the kids on 16" or smaller wheels, all having a bit of fun.

Picture gets feature

The TBSM guys were amped with my photo. Check out their report from the Mt Annan Rocky Trail GP here.

Like new if not better

Over the first couple of races back in 2011 my Rockshox SID fork was feeling a bit sluggish, that and the multitude of hours collected while racing in 2010 I decided it was time to treat the XX Worldcup SIDs to a well earned service. My choice for shock and fork servicing is by Duncan from DIY MTB, servicing are carried out in a professional and timely manner. For the SIDs it was a clean, lube and a new set of Racing Brothers seals. I look forward to putting these seals through their paces over the next few months. While the bike was being serviced I noticed a small amount of play in the rear suspension. After some troubleshooting it was isolated to a single pivot then further to the du bush within the pivot. Duncan from DIY MTB again came to the rescue, this time with some new bushes from Racing Brothers. With the Racing Brothers bushes fitted there was no more play from the rear suspension. Problem solved. It is also time to change the chain on the Yeti. A certain semi wet six hour ride in Pt Macquarie and then dry and dusty ride at Mt Annan were the last straw for a chain that has also seen a 24hr. I have been running a SRAM nine speed hollow link chain and at this point see no point in differing as they seem to be holding up quite well.

Riding with TORC

With all the racing going on at the moment I thought it might be time for a change of pace. Well that is what I thought when I was invited to ride with the Turramurra Off Road Cyclist. It was announced as a TORC Epic - Bucketty Challenge and invited roadies to taste a bit of dirt without the hassles of single-track and obstacles. In essence we were to ride from St Albans, the home of the Classic 100km in May this year, to Bucketty thirty or so clicks up the dirt road. A large range of 29er hard-tails arrived and immediately knew I was in trouble with it all being open dirt road riding. I had hardly clipped in before the bunch had split and a small group launched off the front, heads down, hammering up the road. Remaining back with a larger bunch we swapped turns on the front as we did it TT style towards Bucketty. There was no slacking and when the pace dropped another rider would launch out of the saddle and spearhead us up the road at pace. It wasn’t till the serious climbing nearing the turn-a-round point where we made our way up onto the ridgeline that I was able to make a break of my own, climbing solo to the turn-a-round point. From there it is virtually a downhill run back to St Albans and we made the most of it before hitting the flats and regrouping in pairs or triples. Once on the flat it was back to the grind and all out TT for St Albans. I was glad for my training time with groups such as Hawkesbury Tri and Penrith Roadies as this sort of riding doesn’t come naturally to MTBing. Back in St Albans the pub was open and I was able to settle into a hearty steak burger and feed my cravings for carbs with chips. Thanks to TORC for the invite and a mornings fun.