Arizona was great! The weather was perfect for riding, and I wasn’t the only who thought so because there were tons of riders enjoying the 70 degree weather. I had fun taking some slow rides w/ Ambrie and my big bro. This sounds crazy, but one of the best parts of the trip was using my Rock Mounts Clutch rack for my truck. I had such a peace of mind that my bikes were safe and secure. They were worth every penny!
Here is the email I sent my local bike shope:
Hi Mad Dog,
As a loyal customer, of multiple bikes and $1000’s in accessories, I thought I should introduce you to Rocky Mounts. I was in your store a few weeks ago looking for a fork bike rack for my truck (’07 Tacoma), but all you had was a limited selection of Yakima options that included drilling holes in my truck (not my kind of product). After futile attempts w/ Toyota I found Rocky Mounts online and purchased their Clutch fork rack and I absolutely love it!
I highly recommend this company and product, so if you want my rack related money I think you guys should start selling Rocky Mounts in your store.
Thanks,
Clint Gordon-Carroll
Any shop would be smart picking these guys up, so I hope Mad Dog does.
Now I’m back in UT w/ 30 degree weather, no snow, and not much desire to ride. What the hell am I going to do? I need to start hitting the pool.
If you drive a Toyota or Nissan truck, and you want a bike rack for truck bed then look no further than Rocky Mounts Clutch SD. This fork mounting rack is bolted to the block plate that slides into the rails. Works great for road and mountain bikes!
The Clutch SD has an all around better design then the mounts you can buy from Toyota, it also comes w/ a lock and two keys. Not are you getting a better product, but you will get it at half the cost ($50 vs $100).
Rant: I love Toyota, but they are just like any other car manufacturer. They want to bleed you dry w/ the cost of accessories. The mountain bike fork mounts are$45 odd bucks, but you also have to buy the rail block separately which is another $45 bucks. What a load of crap!
Published at November 18, 2007
in Cycling.
It’s been a few months since I’ve gone for a ride; I guess life has just gotten in the way. But the wife and I took a short ride up Provo canyon to Vivian park. It was a beautiful ride with clear skies and warm weather. It was great to get out again w/ the exception of the sore ass.
I hope we take the bikes w/ us to Arizona during the holiday weekend. I need to ride!
Tony Swenson has compiled a complete training guide and workbook for anyone stupid enough to train for a triathlon: The Total Triathlon Almanac 5. I’m that stupid guy. I’ve only gotten through the first 30 or so pages, but what I have read has been extremely informative from my perspective (my perspective being one between a former couch potato and a weekend warrior). Swenson addresses the training needs of beginners, intermediate, and advanced athletes. He has combined the efforts and training modules of top triathlon athletes to create a well rounded approach to competing. The almanac is half book and half workbook to give you the information to get on track, and then a home to keep track of your progress. Very nice feature.
Every cyclist knows the feeling when you ride through an intersection or pass a driveway, and seeing the oncoming driver not see you. You immediately perk up and make yourself big, and then you try talk to the driver in your head by saying something like “you better look up and make eye contact w/ me”, and then something like “if you hit me I’m going to sue you for everything you’ve got”.
You might even be using some expletives in your head.
Yesterday at the least likely spot on my ride I was pushing myself at 26 mph in the hammer as hard as I could when this car shot out in front of me. On her damn cell phone the lady slams on her breaks when she sees me. This does nothing for me because she’s now completely tee’d me up, and I’m less than 20 feet away and closing. I squeeze as hard as I can on both breaks, and within a second my back tire skids out from under me and then the front tire putting me at a 45 degree angle, and perpendicular, sliding towards her car. My bike slowed and the forward momentum of my body pushed me backup to 90 degrees and I whipped my front wheel 90 degrees in hopes to recover parallel to the road. I missed breaking a leg, or worse, and her front bumper by a couple of inches.
My heart rate monitor spiked from 180 to 195 immediately and I couldn’t stop shaking. And when this lady pulled up next to me at the intersection she didn’t have the decency to roll down her window and apologize. So the light turned green and I gave her the bird as I went on my way.
This applies to everyone: get off the damn phone! There is no need to be talking on the phone when you drive. Wait until you get to your destination and make that call.
This week’s Rosie Award goes to people who drive while talking on the phone, and those damn girls who try and text message while driving. You know who you are!
Not quite the BG S-works, but $135 cheaper and only few hundred grams heavier. This Comp shoe from Specialized is a great mid-range shoe for road bikes. This shoe has stiff reinforced carbon plate sole (Specialized brags a -7.0 on the stiffness index–what the hell is that). The plates are 3 bolt Shimano compatible, so you won’t have problems finding the right pedal.
This shoe includes plenty of ventilation and extremely comfortable in-sole. Specialized boasts Body Geometry science behind the comfort and fit. I also like the two velecro straps and m-lock buckle for a secure fit.
If you are counting grams this shoe is probably not for you, but any of the BG Pro line offer a significantly lighter shoe without compromising on comfort. Most of the weight reduction comes from lighter materials and loosing the velecro straps and m-lock buckles.
Love the shoes! If you can’t test the shoes before you buy then you MUST check out the informative and engaging Body Geometry site. It includes digital animation of your inner-self (skeletal, muscular, nervous, and blood flow) views in different riding modes (climbing, spinning, standing and coasting). This site rocks!
FYI - If you are disgusted by Nike’s handling of the Michael Vick dog fighting scandal like I am then Specialized is such a better way to spend your $$$.
I hit the 600 mile mark today on my bike heading home from work. Not bad since I bought my bike in April. That’s about 5 miles a day. I need to build a feed or a counter for my mileage to post on the blog.
Commuting is fun; I just wish I lived further away from work!
I’m also saving a gallon or more of gas a day by riding my bike.
So the Tour de France is over, now what? Nothing to blog about. Not true, it’s time to ride like hell. There are a couple of local rides I want to do in the next week or two:
- Ride around the largest natural fresh water lake west of the Mississippi, Utah Lake.
- Ride the alpine loop around Mt. Timpanogis.
I am also working on filming some How To’s with my local bike shop, Mad Dog, on bike maintenance, and some bike reviews. We’ll post them here, Mad Dog’s site and Tubetorial.
And if I can get motivated, or find some training partners I’d like to start training for a triathlon. We’ll see!
Found a great review on the new 2008 Gary Fisher Superfly on Twenty Nine Inches. Only thing missing is a comparison of other bikes. I want to know how it compares to other XC mountain bikes like the S-works Epic.
As predicted the Spaniard, Alberto Contador, won the Yellow jersey of the Tour de France. Cadel Evans and Levi Leipheimer finished respectively 2nd & 3rd. Before the final stage into Paris there whisperings by the media and fans alike that Evans, 23 seconds behind Contador, would attempt to make a final attack on the yellow jersey. But the rumors were just that: rumors. Steeped in race tradition there would be no attack; rather riders giving high-fives and posing for pictures. For showmanship the sprinters would battle it out in the final kilometers, and the race leaders would finish safely in the peloton.
Many unfamiliar to the sport will question why there was no race to the end, and that Evans and Leipheimer should have battled Contador for the yellow jersey. Such notion should be dismissed for two reasons:
- Cycling is a team sport; Evans would be hard pressed to attack the strongest team in cycling–Discovery.
- Tradition is important for any major sporting event, it brings competition into perspective (it’s just competition).
Contador is only 24 years old, and a tour rookie, it looks like he will have his chance to dominate the sport like Lance Armstrong. He will also have his distractors, who won’t accept his victory, and in their eyes the Dane, Michael Rassmusen, was robbed of the yellow jersey at the last moment.
This might be true, and here in lies the problem: the UCI, the Tour, teams, and the athletes have to come together and create a cohesive federation that levels the playing field against cheaters, but upholds a standard of due process for every rider and team.
Maybe this will happen before next years tour.
Despite the off-the-road drama of the Tour, stage 19, was the most exciting stage of the 3 week event. Discovery came in and did what they do best: WIN! Contador maintained his lead over Ausie Cadel Evans by 23 seconds; enough to keep the yellow jersey and (probably) win his first Tour de France.
But the day belonged to American Levi Leipheimer of the Discovery team. Third in GC standings, behind Cantador and Evans, Leipheimer blew the time trial off its hinges. Evans, who finished second, was 51 seconds behind; Leipheimer put himself 6 seconds behind Evans, and 30 seconds behind Cantador in the GC. This will probably go down as the ride of his life!
Not to distract from Leipheimer’s tremendous accomplishment, but isn’t it interesting that 30 seconds is the difference between him and the Yellow jersey. If he could have improved any 5 of the 18 stages by 6 seconds he could be wearing yellow.
How do you mentally make up the seconds? These guys push themselves to the wall and over, so to imagine that seconds can be improved is pretty difficult. Obsession, it’s the only thing I think drives these guys through this much pain, which explains a lot for the cheaters.
