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Month: July 2010

Sigma BC 1609 and Maybury

Published July 28, 2010

After having a bunch of issues with my other computers† I came across the Sigma BC 1609, a well-featured wired computer that comes with an optional (and thus detachable, as its not useful for mountain biking) cadence sensor. Costing roughly $35 at a local shop I’m really happy with it thus far and anticipate it performing well for a while. Beyond the online computer emulator/simulator which let me get a feel for the device’s UI and the standard speed / clock / elapsed time / odometer / average / trip computers, here’s what sold me on it, in no particular order:

· Wired.
· Thermometer.
· Weatherproof.
· Bike 2 Cradle Available. (Auto-switching to other wheel size.)
· Stopwatch. (Easy ad-hoc segment timing.)
· Count-down Timer.
· Quality Backlight. (Toggle it on, then it illuminates briefly at each button press.)
· Nicely small wheel sensor.
· Wheel magnet is very low profile and locks on with a sliding clamp.

The only real downside is the slightly thin wire, but hopefully it’ll be durable enough to last. If I’m really concerned about it I’ll just armor it with some spiral wrap or maybe cable housing.

After visiting the shop to pick up a new headset and chain for the singlespeed and random other things I headed over to Maybury State Park to ride the bike trails there. The last time I was there I wasn’t feeling too well and coupled with not knowing the trail I didn’t enjoy the ride. Today I did two laps and while on the first I wasn’t comfortable with the trail and didn’t enjoy it much, part-way through the second I began to feel comfortable. I had a feeling for what was coming up and was able to relax and allow the bike to roll faster and enjoy the trail. I’m now looking forward to going back out here another time, and maybe even racing in the Maybury Time Trial on August 21st.

Oh, and the Sigma BC 1609? Just kept on working, just as I expect. No weirdness at all like I’d had with the other computers.

† 1) Cateye Strada Wireless that had sample rate issues around 30 MPH, an iffy sensor, and interference problems. Batteries were changed, but things still wouldn’t work right.
2) NiteRider Rebel 1.0 which has UI issues where it takes up to three seconds to respond to a button press (longer when moving) and a very sloped face and thus a poor viewing angle when stem mounted. The button latency is terrible if you’re riding along and want to check the time or some other data. It’s also physically much larger than it needs to be. Not bad for a first generation computer from a company that normally doesn’t make them, but I expected more.

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Thorny Face Slapper

Published July 26, 2010

Face slappers, or thin vines growing out over the trail, are a common nuisance in mountain biking. One that I hit today on curved gravely hill caught me on the lip and made for some sudden pain and blood. Here’s a photo of Erik’s hand holding what I believe to be the berry cane that I hit showing its thorns. We went back and cleared back as many as we could, but I suspect they’ll grow back before very long. The bleeding stopped quickly and by the time I got home the scratches were no longer noticeable, but the hot sauce that I had on my pizza dinner did a great job reminding me where they were. Now it feels no worse than a chapped lip.

Oh, and the rest of the ride? Outstanding, save for the deer flies that were taking refuge in my helmet and occasionally biting my scalp. Every time I removed my helmet there were 3-5 of them hiding in the crevices. I can deal with swarms of mosquitos while riding, but I truly loathe biting flies.

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Sliding Dropout Issues

Published July 25, 2010

After washing off the remainder of the mud from yesterday’s race I set about trying to fix the problem with the rear wheel rubbing on a chain stay. This appeared to be due to one of the sliding dropouts sliding, but after looking into it more I think what’s actually happening is that the dropout is rotating slightly while braking due the the bolts being slightly smaller than the slots they go through. So, as can be seen above (when contrasted to this picture) I added some ground down wingnuts to the dropout adjustment screws and changed the outer plates to a set of flat and split lock washers.

The original outer plates appear to have raised ridges in them to alleviate this shifting, but the ones I have are so squished and worn that I don’t think they fit quite right and thus were having the same issue. I’ve tried emailing VooDoo Cycles on Wednesday to buy replacement sliding dropouts, but they haven’t replied, so I think I’ll have to take other steps.

Knowing what forces are in play on the dropouts will hopefully allow me to set things in proper place so they don’t shift any while riding. An initial test around the neighborhoods seemed to help, but not being on trails there was very little braking to be done. If this doesn’t work I’ll also try Fiber Grip to increase friction in the frame vs. dropout area, making larger outer washers/plates, and adding bushings around the screws. I’m also considering adding a link to the chain to both get a quick link in place and allow the wheel to be moved backwards putting the edge of the tire at a wider part of the stay to alleviate/offset the tire rubbing giving it more room to flex/move to the side if it does slip.

Here’s a couple photos of the bike with the new suspension fork, brakes, and Lagunitas Brewing Company cap (on a Niner YAWYD) on it: 1 · 2 · 3 · 4.

Save for the slipping dropout issue I rather like this setup. The fork isn’t the greatest, but it’s a good squishy fork that fits the bike well and is comfortable to ride on.

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2010 Tree Farm Relay: Mud!

Published July 24, 2010

Today was the 2010 Tree Farm Relay, a quite-nice relay race in Novi’s Lakeshore Park. I was on a team with Martin, Nick, and Bill, with my lap being the third out of us four (Martin: 1, Nick: 2, Me: 3, Bill: 4). Our team, Heck’s Angles, came in 17th out of 36 (Sport Men results), a middle of the pack standing.

It had been raining all morning and throughout the start of the race, but with the rain letting up just before my lap the light rainy mud began drying, smearing the entire course with peanut butter-like goo. Prior laps had a much thinner, rain-addled mud left on bikes, and the later laps had denser mud that mostly just packed into people’s tires and made things slick. Mine packed into the entire drivetrain, clogging the chain and filling the bottom bracket, adding a good five pounds to the bike. This slowed everything down, yet despite it the race was still fun.

While riding I didn’t have any real mechanical problems, but my rear wheel was starting to slip a bit in the dropouts, causing my rear tire to just barely begin rubbing a chain stay at the end of the lap. More thankfully last night’s replacement of the fork and brakes didn’t cause any problems and the new brakes performed as hoped (and became bedded in nicely) and the air fork did it’s job. I think the fork may need a bit more air for me, but it was otherwise quite a bit nicer than the super-steep rigid fork.

After the race and at Marty’s suggestion I took a quick dip in Walled Lake to clean myself off, then settled in for a few pints of the Dark Horse, Original Gravity, and Liberty Street (local, tasty, Michigan) beer available on site.

I’m looking forward to seeing some other people’s photos of the race, particularly as someone got one of me going into the crater, blue liquor shot in hand (they are obligatory and handed out mid-course, you know) and I’d like to see how it came out. In the mean time, here’s some select photos that I took today:

· Me standing with my bike right after finishing my lap at the 2010 Tree Farm Relay as part of team “Heck’s Angles”.
· Other Dave and Hodaddy (Joe Foy) immediately after Joe finished his lap.
· Nick’s bike received only a light spray of mud on the second lap.
· My bike caked with mud from the third lap, as the trail was drying out.
· Seat stay bridge and seatpost caked with pudding-like mud.
· Detail of the mud and grass caked bottom bracket before washing it off.
· Detail of my bottom bracket after removing the large chunks of mud.
· Nick hosing off his bike to remove the mud from it.
· While riding the rear dropouts slipped slightly and at the end I was getting some tire rub.
· In Walled Lake some people demonstrate the wrong way to wash a bike. I feel bad for the hubs and bottom bracket.
· Looking through the finish line, including the bamboo gate made by Loren.

A good time was had by all, except for maybe the rider who broke a derailleur (or something similar) and schluffed back to the finish line. He handed off his lei (the batons for this race) to his team mate, then angrily shoved/threw his bike only to have the front wheel dig in and make the bike circle around to hit his team mate right as he was setting out.

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One Thing You Should Never Do

Published July 24, 2010

I just did one of the things you should never do: change major bicycle components the night before a race. In this case I’ve fitted a new fork (Manitou Drake Super Air 29er) and brakes (Avid Elixir R). Tomorrow morning is the 2010 Tree Farm Relay, so hopefully everything will work out well.

Brakes aren’t completely bedded in yet, but some riding around the neighborhood and parking lot helped that along. The new, taller fork has helped the feel of the bike tremendously, and I suspect the squishyness will make the ride a bit nicer too. I did find a couple small drops of what I believe to be brake fluid on the caliper near the banjo bolt and I’m not certain where they came from, but they have me slightly worried. Hopefully that concern is for naught and none ended up on the pads or rotors.

Now, time for a shower and bed.

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Another Edge 305

Published July 22, 2010

Today I fixed another Garmin Edge 305, although it’s still a bit strange. This one wouldn’t find any satellites, so I pulled it open to look for broken solder joints and after nothing seemed awry I tried it again and it worked fine. I suspect that it just needed some manner of hard power cycle to get it working again.

What’s also strange is that the down arrow button isn’t working, apparently due to the top and plunger of the tactile switch not being there. When I opened the device they weren’t there and I really can’t tell where they went, as the unit appeared sealed. I can’t help but think that it was dropped, the switch broke, and something happened which caused the GPS to need a hard power cycle. Despite this I couldn’t find the switch parts in the case, either by removing the PCB or tapping/shaking it to dislodge things under the glued in battery.

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Test Ride, Sore Muscles

Published July 21, 2010

Today after work I took a test ride around Stony Creek with the VooDoo Dambala to see how I like riding a rigid single speed on very familiar single track. In short, after letting a bit of air out of the front tire it was all quite great, except for the eventual soreness in my triceps and trapezius. I feel a bit sore, worn out, and beat up, which makes sense seeing as I just rode a rigid bike fairly quickly over ~10 miles (2x Pines, 1x Back Nine, 1x Snake/Coaster, 1x Pines) of sometimes not smooth single track.

While out riding I ran into Marty and some of the REI / MMBA group of new riders she was showing around the trails. I hung around with them for a bit to sweep / watch the folks near the back to be sure everyone was okay, then I took off to ride some more. I offered to show folks around the Roller Coaster, but no one took me up on the offer. As this was group of new riders it was fairly understandable.

The new 19T cog that I acquired and fitted last night did exactly what was intended: allowing me to actually climb hills while still being able to carry a decent speed through familiar parts of trails. Unfortunately, right near the end of the ride I found that one of the movable dropouts had slipped, and on hard corners the tire could be heard rubbing on a chain stay. When changing the cassette yesterday I noticed that a portion of the dropouts was a bit deformed, so I emailed VooDoo Cycles to ask after suggestions or replacements. Tomorrow I’ll straighten things out and tighten stuff down more, but maybe there’s something better to be done that VooDoo can advise on.

Now, time for bed and thought on if I’ll ride this bike or the Titus during Saturday’s Team Tree Farm Relay.

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Zingerman’s Road House

Published July 19, 2010

On Saturday after picking up the VooDoo Dambala Danielle and I swung by Zingerman’s Roadhouse for lunch. Underestimating its size we had the Chili and Cheddar Fries (described as Our ancho beef chuck chili over hand-cut, twice cooked fries with our grated 2-year-raw-milk Vermont cheddar, as seen above) for an appetizer. It was very good, but unexpectedly large. I think we both expected to receive half as much food.

Danielle then ordered the BBQ Pork Entree with the Eastern North Carolina Vinegar BBQ Sauce (described as Now using Chef Alex’s Cornman Farms hogs, direct from Dexter. Traditional whole hog barbeque made with local hogs delivered direct from the farm. It’s pit smoked for 14 hours, hand pulled, chopped and blended with your choice of barbeque sauce. Served with mashed local potatoes and Southern-style braised greens) which can be seen here: photo. I had the grilled cheese made with a 7-year old aged cheddar and a cup of cream of mushroom soup (photo) along with an Asylum (photo), a mixed drink made from gin, Pernod, and grenadine.

Despite being extremely good neither of us could finish our meals, so we went home with a quite substantial portion of leftovers. I hadn’t been to the Roadhouse prior to this trip, and I was quite impressed. Service was great, food was better (and cheaper) than I’d expected, and it’s quite nice inside. I definitely want to go back there.

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New Bike, Falling, Missing Flags

Published July 18, 2010

Today while trying out the new (to me) single speed at River Bends I washed out the front wheel and fell. Oops. (Crash area photo above or here. Yes, it’s blurry. It’s kinda dark in those woods.)

I also confirmed that the 34:16 gearing is too much for me and I’m now pursuing acquisition of a 19T cog. This should give me a much easier (within 1% of the ‘standard’ 32:18) gearing, which should be good for getting going again with 29er single speed trail riding. Since I couldn’t make it up a couple of the hills (the sharp turn then up ones) I think this will do. Now I just have to find the cog and tool, which I’d prefer to do before Tuesday so I can take the bike out to the Tree Farm for the group ride.

When out at River Bends I had a rather unplesant surprise. I’ve been working the MMBA and Shelby Township to build new mountain bike (and hiking and running, of course, since they are shared) trails in the park. On Friday I marked another large segment of trail for us to build out, but someone removed almost all of my tape flags over the weekend. I suspect it’s someone trying to keep new work (or bikes or something?) out of “their” part of the park, but it’s hard to say. I also found dirt bike tire tracks (photo) on both the two track and single track, and a couple torn up areas from the dirt bikes riding off the trail and doing doughnuts on the two track. I guess these are just the sort of things that have to be dealt with as part of the process (and inherent problems) involved in building and maintaining trails.

Also while out at River Bends I ran into a couple who were out looking to ride the trail for the first time. I started to take them through it, but after a little bit we ended up parting ways as they opted to ride some two track together and I sent off for another lap of the single track. I’m really glad to see people heading out to the trails to check them out.

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VooDoo Dambala

Published July 17, 2010

Ever since the Island Lake Bike Demo I’ve found myself wanting a rigid single speed bike for occasional trail rides. After failing to purchase a Redline Monocog Flight 29er I started looking at used bikes on the MMBA Forum and came across a well-equipped VooDoo Dambala in my size for US$600. After driving out to Chelsea to meet the seller and look it over (and eat at Zingerman’s Road House on the way back) I decided to purchase the bike. It’s just what I want, a steel framed bike that fits me with good quality parts at a fair price.

At 34:16 (2.125:1) the gearing is a bit tall for me, but being a standard single speed hub I shouldn’t have a problem fitting a new (and more appropriate) cog. I’ll give it a go as-is first, since my legs are much stronger since my my last single speed experiment, I don’t want to pick a new gearing before really trying it out.

The bike came with the levers set up British-style (front brake on the right) which is common on mountain bikes ridden by motocross folks, but not right for me. Since taking the photos above I switched them around and swapped the Time pedals for Eggbeaters so it’s now ready for a test ride. I still have to get a new saddle and adjust the rear brakes a tad (clean, or perhaps bleed them), and maybe fit some Ergon grips, but it’s otherwise all ready to ride. Hopefully I’ll be able to get out tomorrow to try it out.

The bike came equipped as follows:

Frame: VooDoo Dambala 18″
Stem: Bontrager 90mm
Fork: Bontrager Switch Blade Race X Lite Carbon Fiber
Wheels: Sun Ringle
Seatpost: Thomson
Bar: FSA CarbonPro
Crankset: Bontrager
Tires: Specialized S-Works The Captain
Brakes: Hayes Stroker Trail (Avid Clean Sweep G2 Rotor in Rear)
Saddle: Selle Italia Flight
Cog: Surly 16T
Chainring: 34T
Bash Guard: Salsa
Grips: ODI Ruffian
Pedals: Time

More pictures of this bike can be found here if you are interested: VooDoo Dambala.

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