Early spring has arrived and started logging the miles in preparation for this years Iron Horse Bicycle Classic. Anyone else training for events?
2020 Road Bike Thread
- Thread starter ZiaHunter
- Start date
Got into road cycling last summer, rode a steel frame I put some modern parts on for a bit. Few weeks ago, got a great deal on a Trek Emonda ALR frame from a friend of mine and moved some components over.
Been training for this race season after a guy at school saw some of my Strava rides and convinced me to give racing a try this season. Really excited for my first race in a couple weeks! We'll be in St. Louis for the first night of the Tuesday Night Worlds series and then at Indiana University for the Candy Stripe Classic on March 14-15.
I'm not training for any road events this year, but am resolving to get in more pavement riding throughout the season as active recovery from MTB rides.
My buddy and I are hoping to put in our first century ride of the season during the last Sunday in March, weather permitting.
My buddy and I are hoping to put in our first century ride of the season during the last Sunday in March, weather permitting.
Mine has been on the trainer for almost 18 months. Chickened our riding roads solo and don’t have a group at the new house.
78 road miles at tempo this weekend riding solo. lift Mondays and Wednesdays then TrainerRoad indoor workouts Tuesday and Thursday. Been including 1500 to 2000 ft of elevation in my weekend rides with first big climb of the season scheduled for March 15th as we climb Emory Pass in southern NM.
Iron Horse has been postponed until September. September in the San Juan's is beautiful and actually looking forward to riding it in September rather than late May. Logged 34 miles this morning and will ride 40 tomorrow. Backed off the intensity of training and will give me more trigger time. Haven't rode Copper Triangle in a couple of years and may squeeze it in the first Saturday of August. Beautiful ride.
I haven't seen an update on the local gravel grinder in June, but I imagine it'll be postponed until later in the year. Too bad, because the best way for me to maintain social distancing is a long gravel ride - it doesn't take too long for me to get dropped 
My road bike is still bolted to the smart trainer, since we're still likely to see some cold rainy weather (I was still riding Zwift into late April last year). I did take the gravel bike on a mostly-paved last night, which doesn't really count as a proper road ride (particularly since I was wearing a Fox jersey and Alpinestars baggy shorts from a mountain bike ride earlier in the day).
My road bike is still bolted to the smart trainer, since we're still likely to see some cold rainy weather (I was still riding Zwift into late April last year). I did take the gravel bike on a mostly-paved last night, which doesn't really count as a proper road ride (particularly since I was wearing a Fox jersey and Alpinestars baggy shorts from a mountain bike ride earlier in the day).
Received an email from Iron Horse stating the 2020 event has been cancelled. Next year is the 50th anniversary of the ride so will sign up again. Registered for the Gunsite XLR Class in September so not all is lost.
Look on the Tour of Utah website. They probably have the routes from the event posted. There are some great rides in that event.
all though im not in shape to really run the iron horse i live in farmington and have been aching to get the road bike out to NAPI and log some miles the boy and i have an elk hunt in the sargents WMA in november and both of us truly need to trim the fat in order to make that hunt a good one.
My road is a popular cyclists route. I live in Rural KY, 55mph blind turns steep hills, blind turns on steep hills. I certainly understand why it's good for training but anyone who gets on a bike and decides to put themselves and others at risk is just ignorant. In the 7yrs we lived here 2 cyclist have been seriously injured. They absolutely ignore every law sometimes they will get in groups and ride side by side and in formations mind you its illegal to ride side by side even on motorcycles not to mention we are on roads hardly wide enough for vehicles add a trailer or farm equipment and sometimes you have to come to a full stop to get around each other. What stop sign lol better to just blow through than unclip how they managed to get the law to give permission to blow stop signs is beyond my comprehension.
I love when we are going up a blind steep hill at 3mph in a 55mph zone and they start waving you around. Could you imagine getting into a head on accident killing someone and saying the guy in the spandex told me go around.
When we lived in Iowa it was totally diffrent they had shoulders on the paved roads and our Rural roads were gravel so it was way safer for everyone. They had a event every year that thousands of cyclists would show up to it was really cool. We would get together and hand out water bottles as they passed. At night they would terrorize whatever town they were in and for some reason they would always get naked hahaha.
Be safe out there and please keep in mind that even though you are willing to risk your life for the love of the sport if something happened the person responsible will have to live with that forever it's not just your life you are risking.
RANT OFF...Flame on...Hahaha
I love when we are going up a blind steep hill at 3mph in a 55mph zone and they start waving you around. Could you imagine getting into a head on accident killing someone and saying the guy in the spandex told me go around.
When we lived in Iowa it was totally diffrent they had shoulders on the paved roads and our Rural roads were gravel so it was way safer for everyone. They had a event every year that thousands of cyclists would show up to it was really cool. We would get together and hand out water bottles as they passed. At night they would terrorize whatever town they were in and for some reason they would always get naked hahaha.
Be safe out there and please keep in mind that even though you are willing to risk your life for the love of the sport if something happened the person responsible will have to live with that forever it's not just your life you are risking.
RANT OFF...Flame on...Hahaha
Yeah...you're not wrong. My grandfather was killed by a car on his bike, believe me I'm painfully aware of what happens if someone does something stupid. Everyone on the road has had a close call, and if they haven't they're lucky and the incredibly small minority. That's also why I don't blow stop signs and don't wave people past (they can pass when it's safe or decide to be an idiot on their own).
It's doesn't help things that there are people driving cars that hate every cyclist they see, no matter what. People get too close, pass too fast, maybe they don't realize just how much wiggle room there is on a bike, maybe they do.
And I'd love to have enough paved trails and paths that I'd never have to put rubber on an actual road again, but it's just not realistic when you're no longer just tooling through the park at barely above walking speed. Not to mention that pedestrians hate most of us too. So we hit the roads.
You're preaching to the choir when it comes to the lives that are at risk...
Also, the Iowa ride you're talking about sounds like Ragbrai. Had a couple friends go on it before, it's supposed to be a hoot!
Anyone you talk to in the Des Moines area has a story about a crazy cyclist during that. It sounds more like a party than a marathon hahaha
Been a road cyclist for over 25 years and had my share of close calls. Some by distracted drivers and some folks just mad at the world. Known friends that have been killed and injured while riding some of which put themselves at risk by the way they rode. I always said people ride their bikes like they drive their cars..some safe some dangerous. Completely understand your point point about the danger of riding on the rural roads in your area and would never put myself at risk in such an area. I am fortunate where I live in southern NM where the open and less traveled roads make for good cycling. Very selective on who I ride with and we obey traffic laws just as if we were driving.
It's currently May 18th, and my road bike is still sitting on the trainer Might be one more Zwift ride tonight and then I'm calling it quits on the indoor season - the forecast is finally turning the corner starting tomorrow.
Might be one more Zwift ride tonight and then I'm calling it quits on the indoor season - the forecast is finally turning the corner starting tomorrow.
Finally getting warm and now it’s supposed to rain for ten days my bike is getting mad at me
It’s actually my third one. I started back in 2002 I believe on a $1,500 orbea then sold it after a few thousand miles and bought a $3k orbea and also road it for a few then I scored a sweet orbea frame with a rithchey carbon fork in my wife’s size so I took the wheels and components off mine and built hers sold my frame and fork. Then I built the one in the picture just the way I wanted. Bought frame and fork and broke the budget hard on that bad boy spent $9,500 total but at that point I was riding a minimum of 150 miles a week and was a total junkie for road riding. So to answer your question I love the orbeas there really nice bikes and depending on your style may have a setup that works for you. The one im riding now is full race and super stiff but when you hit the gas it transfers awesome. I also spent a couple years on a orbea 29” hardtail and got along very well with it but now my mb is a focus raven 29” and my wife rides the same orbea I built for her and she is also on a focus raven but hers is a 27.5” definitely give that shop and the orbea a look and try to schedule a test ride on one let me know how you make out. Where in the country are you located?
Still riding one of the original Merlin Road titanium bikes built in Cambridge and designed by Tom Kellogg. I have been riding this frame since 1995 and fits me like a glove and currently on the fourth set of components. Definitely a classic.
I'm in North Carolina foothills. We have some decent rides here buy just west in Lincoln County and beyond it gets real good. I just got a new Bianchi in October. Only have 2000 miles on it but it's a great bike. I do like the looks of those Orbeas though. My shop is Bianchi, Orbea, Giant dealer. I might have to be needing another new bike real soon.
With every USAC and Senior Olympic cycling event put off until Fall, it has been hard to get out and train. My buddy from Dallas (who is 81 and regularly drops me like a hot potato) has challenged me to get back going. Luckily, weight has not become a problem but forcing myself to get out and Train has. Still come July, it will be time for intervals, hill repeats, Time Trial practice and long hilly rides in the heat of the day.
Got out for my first proper road ride of the year yesterday - a quick 27-mile local loop. It's weird getting back on the road bike after spending all winter and spring on the gravel and mountain bikes. It's skinny, rides roughly, makes weird noises, and goes really fast. My hamstrings hurt a bit this morning since the bars are so much lower than my other bikes (and using the aero bars for a few minutes certainly didn't help). It's probably time to do some stretching and flexibility work.
Got really lucky that our local race sponsor wanted to get back to racing as much as we did. They were able to get the health department to okay racing this past weekend. Raced the Cat 4/5 crit (first decently sized race) and came up with sixth place from going for the sprint too early.
Very intense and exciting style of racing!
Very intense and exciting style of racing!
Here is my road bike. A few years old, but I really like it, and don’t care about something newer. It’s all I need. This summer is brutal with the heat and humidity. Getting ready for a trainer ride so at least it will be tolerable.
What cycling apps are you all using for ride tracking? Have run 10 workouts through Fitmeter and like most of its features, and now time to upgrade or move along. Wondering if there’s something better out there. Do not have a Bluetooth or Apple watch or other device to get get heart rate data, which could be useful at 68 and in Texas heat. Appreciate any guidance ya’ll can offer. Split my time between road, caliche and MTB rides, trying to get back in shape now that I’ve retired.
I’ve used Garmin Connect through three different Garmin Bike computers. It works fine for me. Also works with the Garmin watch. Garmin Connect talks seamlessly with Strava, which is a bit of a plus. The Garmin 130 is fairly inexpensive and Garmin Connect is free. The speed /cadence sensors and the heart rate sensor all work but are a bit expensive.
As always; No Dog in Hunt.
As always; No Dog in Hunt.
Signed up for a month sampler of Strava. Pretty well featured and rated. Thanks for reference . Have managed to peel off 10# and want to build on that momentum and keep moving forward. Seeing what some of you all are getting done keeps me motivated-really appreciate that.
Strava is the main spot for roadies that I've seen. It used to be a little more full featured in its free version, but still keeps the same basic functionality if you don't want to continue to pay for it. It's a relatively good platform that I have been happy with
My last two rides have been on the road. A casual Sunday morning with a couple of buddies:
And then a Tuesday night ride with a few guys (about 75% causal/25% full-gas, and with an oh-so-rare "KOM'd a segment without really even trying"):
With all this roadie stuff, I'm not sure I can even call myself a mountain biker anymore
As a side note, those power numbers are wacked since my Garmin Vector 3 pedals continue to shit the bed constantly. I put fresh batteries in the right side pedal last night, and it wasn't even an hour into the ride before I started getting "Right Power Meter Error" messages several times a minute. I think it's time to disable the right pedal for the remainder of the season, and then send it into Garmin this winter so that they can hopefully fix whatever's wrong. Until then, I'll just continue believing that I actually have a 61/39 L/R power balance.
And then a Tuesday night ride with a few guys (about 75% causal/25% full-gas, and with an oh-so-rare "KOM'd a segment without really even trying"):
With all this roadie stuff, I'm not sure I can even call myself a mountain biker anymore
As a side note, those power numbers are wacked since my Garmin Vector 3 pedals continue to shit the bed constantly. I put fresh batteries in the right side pedal last night, and it wasn't even an hour into the ride before I started getting "Right Power Meter Error" messages several times a minute. I think it's time to disable the right pedal for the remainder of the season, and then send it into Garmin this winter so that they can hopefully fix whatever's wrong. Until then, I'll just continue believing that I actually have a 61/39 L/R power balance.
First and last Senior Olympic cycling race for this year. My Home state, actually put the event on and were rewarded with a very large turnout.
Won both age group TT’s with a light turnout in our class. Got my hat handed to me in the Road Race. Told Brenda Lea that If I ever mention Road Race again...SLAP ME!
Won both age group TT’s with a light turnout in our class. Got my hat handed to me in the Road Race. Told Brenda Lea that If I ever mention Road Race again...SLAP ME!
Never fails…..You meet the Crabbiest people when you go out for a bike ride. Even a Practice Time Trial!
My latest, not sure if I posted it here yet or not. Lauf Anywhere XPLOR AXS build with Next DT 240 wheels and Barlow Pass rubber
