During the winter, I have to go a long way south to get to good riding country. Of course, going there is an impossibility. So, I've come up with a few things to keep from going crazy!
Lights
Winter brings shorter days and longer nights. I've been caught on late rides too many times without'em. I know they're spendy, but they worth it. Go out and get a nice pair and don't let the lack of daylight slow you down. I still feel that NiteRider makes the best lights for the money.
Popcorn and a Video
OK, so you aren't actually riding, but this has gotta be the next best thing. On the safety of your couch, you can watch others feel the pleasure and pain. You usually won't find them at Blockbuster or Hollywood. Recent favorites have been Freeride Entertainments Fat Tire Fury (New World Disorder 2), Ride to the Hills, Double Down, and Kranked 4 (Search for the Holey Trail). Try your local bike, motorcycle or skate shop, or order online. Grab some popcorn and enjoy!
Happy Trails
Until recently, I wasn't one to much enjoy road riding. I admire the Trials riders from a distance. Nonetheless, I'm convinced there's nothing better for improving your balance and control than trials riding. Check out www.biketrials.com for some great riding and photos.
Snow Schmo
Don't let the weather stop you. Bundle up, eat a hearty bowl of stew, and head out. Make sure you have nice warm wool or substitute material socks and warm winter bike gloves. Your hands and feet will freeze first. Get some studded tires or make your own and go. Edmonton Bicycle Commuters (www.edmontonbikes.ca) have some helpful information on studding your tires and general bike winterizing.
Friday
Womens' Bikes: Thoughts On Frame Size and Design
The most most important part of buying a bike is frame size and design. The frame is the heart of the bike and it is a complicated topic. Here are some considerations for women.
Bars and Stems
A main concern for women is getting the bars closer to them. In short, get the bar futher back (a shorter stem) and get the bar higher up. A good way of getting the bar higher is to get a bar with an upward slope in the extension part. The old-fashioned quill stem consistes of two parts, the quill that goes down into the steerer tube, and the extension that goes forward and grips your bars. If you have a threadless stem, the entire length of the stem is the extension. If you use a quill stem, get a longer quill. If you have a threadless stem, then get a longer steerer tube on your fork.
The width of your handelbars is another concern. For road and mountain bikes, the width of the handelbars should be approximately the width of your shoulders. Since women generally have narrower shoulders, more narrow handelbars are in order. Keep in mind that MTB magazines will speak about bars that are too narrow. Remember, the writers are exclusively men. Only pay attention to articles about women's specific bikes.
The Juliana Handlebar
Many MTBers use a "riser bar." These are handlebars that bend up and back from the stem area. They are useful for raising the grip up if you have trouble getting a hand position that is high enough. The problem for women is that they are usually significantly wider than flat bars. This means that you can end up with bars that are far too wide for you. Unfortunately, they can't actually be shortened because of the design. They curve at the wrong position, preventing proper positioning of the shift and brake levers. Fortunately, some relief is had with the Juliana handlebar, by Wylder. It has a narrower grip, and they are better padded than standard grips. However, be aware that a thinner grip area will prevent you from using bars ends or SRAM twist-shift levers.
The Terry Handlebar
The Terry handlebar has a nice feature. The handelbars have hand indentations that allow you closer to the brake levers when your hands are on the drops. A nice feature especially if you have smaller hands. This is useful if you want to use Campagnolo or Shimano integrated shifter/brake levers. These levers put the brake lever even further from the bar than the usual drop bar brake lever, making them more difficult to use from the drops with small hands.
Brake Levers
The choice of levers is especially important to women. Women may wish to avoid Dia Compe short-reach brake levers (BL-24C) for drop bars. These levers have more cable friction than brake levers from Campagnolo and Shimano. This is a particular problem for women because a strong grip is required. Of course, Magura makes hydralic rim brakes that with drop bars. These breakes reduces cable friction and stretching.
Many women prefer to use the Campagnolo and Shimano integrated brake/shift levers combination because it is convenien to operate from the brake lever hood. Nevertheless, women may have some difficulty reaching the brakes/shifters from the drops. Women that have small hands may want to use and want to use the Terry handlebars with Campagnolo/Shimano levers.
Shimano Sora conveniently places an adjustment screw that allows shift/brake levers to be closer to the bars. Setting these up properly makes it much easier to reach the brake levers.
Cranks
It is very important that the crank length suit the length of the rider's leg. Unfortunately, many manufacturers may little regard to the shorter leg length of women. It is necessary for shorter women to look hard in order to locate an appropriate crank length. It is time well spent.
I hope these ideas have helped.
Bars and Stems
A main concern for women is getting the bars closer to them. In short, get the bar futher back (a shorter stem) and get the bar higher up. A good way of getting the bar higher is to get a bar with an upward slope in the extension part. The old-fashioned quill stem consistes of two parts, the quill that goes down into the steerer tube, and the extension that goes forward and grips your bars. If you have a threadless stem, the entire length of the stem is the extension. If you use a quill stem, get a longer quill. If you have a threadless stem, then get a longer steerer tube on your fork.
The width of your handelbars is another concern. For road and mountain bikes, the width of the handelbars should be approximately the width of your shoulders. Since women generally have narrower shoulders, more narrow handelbars are in order. Keep in mind that MTB magazines will speak about bars that are too narrow. Remember, the writers are exclusively men. Only pay attention to articles about women's specific bikes.
The Juliana Handlebar
Many MTBers use a "riser bar." These are handlebars that bend up and back from the stem area. They are useful for raising the grip up if you have trouble getting a hand position that is high enough. The problem for women is that they are usually significantly wider than flat bars. This means that you can end up with bars that are far too wide for you. Unfortunately, they can't actually be shortened because of the design. They curve at the wrong position, preventing proper positioning of the shift and brake levers. Fortunately, some relief is had with the Juliana handlebar, by Wylder. It has a narrower grip, and they are better padded than standard grips. However, be aware that a thinner grip area will prevent you from using bars ends or SRAM twist-shift levers.
The Terry Handlebar
The Terry handlebar has a nice feature. The handelbars have hand indentations that allow you closer to the brake levers when your hands are on the drops. A nice feature especially if you have smaller hands. This is useful if you want to use Campagnolo or Shimano integrated shifter/brake levers. These levers put the brake lever even further from the bar than the usual drop bar brake lever, making them more difficult to use from the drops with small hands.
Brake Levers
The choice of levers is especially important to women. Women may wish to avoid Dia Compe short-reach brake levers (BL-24C) for drop bars. These levers have more cable friction than brake levers from Campagnolo and Shimano. This is a particular problem for women because a strong grip is required. Of course, Magura makes hydralic rim brakes that with drop bars. These breakes reduces cable friction and stretching.
Many women prefer to use the Campagnolo and Shimano integrated brake/shift levers combination because it is convenien to operate from the brake lever hood. Nevertheless, women may have some difficulty reaching the brakes/shifters from the drops. Women that have small hands may want to use and want to use the Terry handlebars with Campagnolo/Shimano levers.
Shimano Sora conveniently places an adjustment screw that allows shift/brake levers to be closer to the bars. Setting these up properly makes it much easier to reach the brake levers.
Cranks
It is very important that the crank length suit the length of the rider's leg. Unfortunately, many manufacturers may little regard to the shorter leg length of women. It is necessary for shorter women to look hard in order to locate an appropriate crank length. It is time well spent.
I hope these ideas have helped.
Wednesday
Unintentional Automatic Upshifting
Unintentional upshifting is a common complaint among cyclists, particularly with strong riders who use fairly flexible frames. The typical moaning is that the *%#* bike shifts up to the next smaller rear sprocket when standing or pedalling hard.
To remedy the situation, the first thing most guys check is the shift lever. In ages past, the friction shift lever required periodic re-adjustment. The thing is, most friction shift levers have a screw or wing nut to keep unwanted upshifting under control. However, at times the screw becomes too loose. Note that in some cases the problem is not insufficient friction, so tightening the lever won't cure it.
Today, with the indexed shifting, the problem is much less prevalent, but sadly, it does still exist. When unintentional upshifting occurs, the problem is not the friction regulation screw, but the cable guide that the derailer cable uses to get around the bottom bracket. As you pedal the bike, the bike frame flexes from side to side. This will cause the gear cable to get tighter then looser with every other pedal stroke.
If the bottom-bracket cable guide has too much friction, it can act as a one-way clutch, pulling the cable down from the lever, but not allowing it to retract on the opposite pedal stroke. Thankfully, greasing the cable guide is all that is usually required.
To remedy the situation, the first thing most guys check is the shift lever. In ages past, the friction shift lever required periodic re-adjustment. The thing is, most friction shift levers have a screw or wing nut to keep unwanted upshifting under control. However, at times the screw becomes too loose. Note that in some cases the problem is not insufficient friction, so tightening the lever won't cure it.
Today, with the indexed shifting, the problem is much less prevalent, but sadly, it does still exist. When unintentional upshifting occurs, the problem is not the friction regulation screw, but the cable guide that the derailer cable uses to get around the bottom bracket. As you pedal the bike, the bike frame flexes from side to side. This will cause the gear cable to get tighter then looser with every other pedal stroke.
If the bottom-bracket cable guide has too much friction, it can act as a one-way clutch, pulling the cable down from the lever, but not allowing it to retract on the opposite pedal stroke. Thankfully, greasing the cable guide is all that is usually required.
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