Cycling Miscellany

[RC Vikings]

So...who here shaves their legs on race day?

http://triathlon.competitor.com/2014...ErPzecXHZxw.99

For the record, I think I would score pretty high on the Chewbaca scale. Wasn't going to shave for my triathlon next week. But now? I guess I'll have to think about it. (What I'm really thinking is what kind of difference that might make over the course of 200+ miles of Lotoja.)

I've been doing it for about thirty years now. During the winter I may go a week or two without but then it just looks bad so I figure you need to be all in or not. I was in school and just starting to ride and all the fast guys had shaved legs so wanting to fit in I decided to get the job done one day. I was in the bathroom for at least 20 minutes and by the time I was done it looked like a war zone in there, blood everywhere. My roommates looked at me the same way the parents looked at Dave in the movie Breaking Away, like I had lost my mind. With your cycling muscles, a nice tan from riding and no hair to cover it all up your wife won't be able to keep HER hands off of you.

[Dwight Schr-ute]

I've been doing it for about thirty years now. During the winter I may go a week or two without but then it just looks bad so I figure you need to be all in or not. I was in school and just starting to ride and all the fast guys had shaved legs so wanting to fit in I decided to get the job done one day. I was in the bathroom for at least 20 minutes and by the time I was done it looked like a war zone in there, blood everywhere. My roommates looked at me the same way the parents looked at Dave in the movie Breaking Away, like I had lost my mind. With your cycling muscles, a nice tan from riding and no hair to cover it all up your wife won't be able to keep your hands off of you.

I'm not sure if your wording here was intentional, but this is likely closer to the truth. I haven't been riding enough to justify shaving in years, but when I was and did, I was surprisingly vain about it. Always touching them feeling for a random rough spot or ingrown hair. My wife, not so much.

[Joe Public]

So...who here shaves their legs on race day?

http://triathlon.competitor.com/2014...ErPzecXHZxw.99

For the record, I think I would score pretty high on the Chewbaca scale. Wasn't going to shave for my triathlon next week. But now? I guess I'll have to think about it. (What I'm really thinking is what kind of difference that might make over the course of 200+ miles of Lotoja.)

I never have. For a 10 to 15 watt savings, though, I would have to consider it if I were ever in podium contention. In other words, I'll never need to worry about it. I do have a disc cover, though.

[mtnbiker]

One problem I am having is my hands falling asleep. It used to just happen on rides but now it's even happening while I'm driving or sitting on couch. Anyone else ever have this happen ?

My hands don't fall asleep unless I'm biking. I don't know how the pros go hour after hour. I have flat-top bars and extra padding, and have gel gloves, but it seems like too much gel actually hurts more than it helps. A thin gel glove works best for me, but I still get nerve issues.

[OceanBlue]

27.40 miles with a buddy from church. Experienced rider who has been out of action for a while but knowledgeable about biking and he says my bike is too small. He thinks it is a poor fit all around. Time for a new bike ?

[Pelado]

27.40 miles with a buddy from church. Experienced rider who has been out of action for a while but knowledgeable about biking and he says my bike is too small. He thinks it is a poor fit all around. Time for a new bike ?

Yes. Get a Harley.

[OceanBlue]

142.5 miles this week. Seventh complete week of six day a week riding. Lots of fun. Most mileage I've done in a week.

[mtnbiker]

27.40 miles with a buddy from church. Experienced rider who has been out of action for a while but knowledgeable about biking and he says my bike is too small. He thinks it is a poor fit all around. Time for a new bike ?

How tall are you, and what size frame are you riding now? How tall is your seat post? Want to post a pic of it and maybe of you on it?

[BrutusBuckeye]

Yes. Get a Harley.

A Harley puts out more CO2 than a carbon frame.

[Pelado]

A Harley puts out more CO2 than a carbon frame.

As if anyone could even know that.

[OceanBlue]

22 miles on a borrowed Cannondale Liquigas supersix carbon bike. Not sure of the year but it was last year Cannondale made their bikes in the US. The frame is bigger then my aluminum Trek. I should have brought the seat up on the carbon because it was at least an inch lower then the Trek aluminum and my back bothered me. Other then that the carbon was a blast. The one hill I deal with was much easier and it seemed to have quicker take off speed. My hands were fine and no falling asleep issues. The carbon also has indexed shifting ? Hope that is the right term and spelling.
I'm pretty sure buddy lent me bike with hope of me buying it. I'm getting fitter as 22 miles seems easy. I'll have this bike for the week so it should be interesting.

[OceanBlue]

38 miles on a bike I was thinking of buying. My back and the bike did not get along. Took my old bike to LBS and got refit. I was told by my bike guy I have horrible form and that's why I'm having hand issues. He did some adjustments on the bike which hopefully will help my back and hand issues.

[PaloAltoCougar]

38 miles on a bike I was thinking of buying. My back and the bike did not get along. Took my old bike to LBS and got refit. I was told by my bike guy I have horrible form and that's why I'm having hand issues. He did some adjustments on the bike which hopefully will help my back and hand issues.

Getting fitted properly by someone who really knows what they're doing may be the best thing you can do to ensure comfort and performance. When we got our road bikes five years ago, the owner/manager of Palo Alto Bicycle, who's very experienced (rides with LeMond on occasion) and very gracious, spent over an hour with the missus and me. Since that time, with M-PAC doing most of the work, [humblebrag alert!]we've racked up over 35,000 miles combined on the same steeds with no back, knee or hand issues (knock on wood). The missus gets hot feet occasionally, but that's a shoe issue. Or an old woman issue, but don't mention that to her.

[OceanBlue]

Did my daily 20 miler. After spending a hour and a half in the bike shop I got my bike refitted. The owner of the LBS also watched me ride and told me some things. These last eight weeks I've been riding a good bit of the time in the hardest gear. Had no idea you were not supposed to because it felt fine to me. He changed the aero-bars to a position that is now much more comfortable. My back still bothered me some but not as bas as yesterday. The pain today could be from yesterday.

[RC Vikings]

The carbon also has indexed shifting ?

Index shifting has been around for over twenty years now. Reaching down to your down tube and having just the right touch to move from one gear to another was a real art back in the day.