I just mailed off my entry fee to the this year’s Whiteface Mtn Uphill Bike Race after waffling about whether I wanted to endure that much pain again (link to last year’s writeup).
I decided I did.
Last year I rode it with a KH29 modified only in that I’d replaced the Kenda Claw knobby with a BA3.0 tire; (American for tyre). That tire is a fun tire for playing around, but it turned out (for me, at least), to be squirrelly on side hills. The twisty route up Whiteface Mtn turned out to be strongly tilted because of the banked turns and strongly crowned road, and I, as a fairly new rider, back then, was flailing like a one-armed paper hanger with three sheets to the wind, to mix a few metaphors.
This year, after reading the reports of some fellow hill climbers who rode Mt. Washington last year, I changed a couple more things on it.
- 165mm cranks instead of the stock 150s
- BA2.35 tire
A few weeks ago I swapped to the 165s and immediately noticed a difference in their climbing leverage. Today I switch to the BA2.35, completing my planned setup, and it feels great. For the first time, I’m really getting psyched to break my last year’s record (the only uni time ever) - 1:59:47. I’ve got a faster setup and my technique is much smoother (I hope) as a 2yr rider, compared the 1yr rider I was last year, so I’m pumped.
The time’s ripe to be beaten, and quite slow compared to Mike and Ben’s times on MW last year, in a race with 1200 ft more of vertical gain. Anyone want to give me some competition?
