I have the freemount down. Kind of a jump and ride move.
The coker is great and I love the over bad road characteristics of the uni. I road from my LSA (Life Support Area) two miles down a road that parallels one of the runways to the next LSA where they have a weight room. I did a leg workout and then rode back.
How do you guys ride huge mileage on these? In the two mile ride back, my feet got numb and other parts on which I sit!!! I have a KH gel seat too.
I got a lot of thumbs ups and honks. As I sped past some soldiers I heard “now that’s how you do it”. The area I rode is rather desolate; I plan on hitting the high traffic area today for a five mile ride.
We stop alot, use airseats, stand on the pedals for brief periods, and get used to it. High quality bikeshorts are a plus for chafing problems. Riding with a herd is the best because there are more frequent reasons for short stops.
Thanks for doing your part in Iraq. Be safe and come home to ride with us.
I do have a GB handle installed. I have only used it for mounting and walking the uni though. So, you hold it while you stand and pedal? I also wear cycle short under my regulation Army PT shorts.
You guys are welcome too and thanks for your support.
Speaking of support, it is just amazing how much support we are getting from the American people here. Be it care packages (mountains of them), letters, TV commercials, concerts etc. etc. Everywhere I turn there are piles of cookies, candy, magazines and DVDs. You guys rock and we do appreciate it.
Also, I have just started a plastic scale model group here and with the support of FineScale Modeling magazine and the International Plastic Model Association there are several shipments of models and building supplies on the way to me now. There are all free and for the soldiers to help fill the down time we have. Just amazing!
If you would like to contribute to the FOB Speicher Model Group or know someone who does, here is my address -
MAJ Duke Samouce
101st Avn BDE/S3
FOB Speicher
APO AE 09369
Yes. This is done at a greatly reduced speed because it is similar to walking. Riding while standing 30 seconds fully upright on the pedals can work wonders for your circulation. Having bike shorts under sweat pants works well because there are no troublesome seams. If regulation Army PT shorts have seams in bad places the bike shorts only help a little. Uncovered bike shortd will work the best.
You don’t really NEED to stand either - I find you can put half your weight on your arms and half on your seat and it’s a lot nicer ride. You kind of tip the seat/uni forward just a bit…
what i also do is push forward on those handles pushing the seat forward, then resting my weight back down with my different part of my weight on the back, wider, part of the seat, you can ride like this at pretty much normal speed on the flats, and it a relief to be able to switch up like that.
you can hold onto the handles or let them go and ride in an otherwise similar riding posture
Although i’m no great cokeur, i find that pulling the seat right forward and sitting right on the rear edge of the seat for a short while is immense relief, and moderate speed can be maintained whilst doing this.
It’s really crucial to make sure the frank and beans are as high up as they can go. You can’t be sitting on any part of the package or else there will be numbness, pain, and/or circulation problems. Once you’re up, just dig in there and pull everything upwards. Sounds gross (and is), but it beats the many alternatives.
After taking a lot of publicity hits because of this, I finally discovered a more acceptable alternative which is useful under some conditions. Reach down with both hands and pinch your bike shorts on the outside between thumbs and forefingers. Pull the fabric out, then down and way back between your legs. Then release the fabric. It will snug up under you, then pulling up a little at the waist will slide everything into place. No digging or hands touching private parts. At least it works for me most of the time.
As David said previously, crotch comfort trumps social standing every time.
Suggestions for good bike shorts brands?
My special needs include one version for warmer weather and one version for -10° C
I’m particularly unfond of bike shorts that have seams in the crotch or the inside of the legs.
A lot is just practice. You’ll learn how to sit if you ride a lot.
Even riding fast, you can still lean on the handle a bit to keep the weight off your arse. I only do this some of the time though.
There’s no shame in stopping and getting off the coker when you need a break. I find I ride fastest if I make myself stop every so often. I know I can ride for 25 or 30 miles without a break, but on a ride longer than that I’ll try and stop about every 10 miles. On our 100 mile ride recently, we stopped first after about 15 miles, then every 10 miles till either sixty or seventy miles and about every five miles for the last thirty miles. Riding without stopping is uncomfortable and doesn’t lead to the best overall speeds as you really gain some speed after each stop. You also get more mounting practice if you get off lots.
The standing and pedalling helps a bit, but I didn’t find it making that much difference after 50 miles, which is when it starts to get uncomfy.
If your feet get numb that’s weird, do you have funny shoes on, or very tight shoes? I’ve only even had numb feet in cycling shoes done up way too tight.