We ended up not doing “Beau’s Rob’s Ride” which would’ve included the U-Conn climb. That would be interesting to see. He has made it on Coker from Route 9 to the summit dismont-free but on 152s. That is definitely on the list to try soon. It would also include Magic Carpet on 125s!
The one I was talking about was on campus, those little staircases with the steep drainage ditch things on the side. The regular one climbs 5 steps or so and most of us can make it ok. Beau found a different one that has two staircases back to back with about 8 or more steps each. Same angle up the ditches on the side and he made it both times with the 125s. No one else can touch it on 152s (yet).
Hello MuniAddict, I don’t think you’d want a quick release clamp with the T7 handle bar. That handle needs to be clamped down tight. You can ask others since I’ve never used a quick release with the T7, but I wouldn’t expect it to hold well. Good luck with that new Coker.
We gave up on the 29er tubes after the Alps Tour in 2005. While they do perform much better than Coker tubes, the hassle just wasn’t worth it for us. They are hard to install and puncture much more easily. We almost never get flats with the Coker tubes. And we’re so strong now, we don’t need the extra turbo boost they provide.
Me, Kevin and Jeff (thisguyIknow) had a blast doing a 20 miler along the bike path from Hermosa beach to Marina del rey bridege and back! Not too many stops and a max speed (by way of gps) of 15mph, and 9 mph average. A well deserved lunch upon finishing and looking forward to NEXT sunday’s ride! Too bad Vivalargo and his pal Don missed out on this one, but there’s always next time!
You’ll have to come on a Coker-muni ride. That’s were the fun is at! Louise and I rode “Mailboxes” on Coker about 3 weeks ago. At first, she thought I was joking, since Mailboxes was one of the “hardcore” muni routes at muni weekend a few years back. We blasted through everything at blazing speeds, and it was soo much fun. I couldn’t ride the one “really steep and rocky” section (about 100 feet long), but then again, most people don’t even attempt it on muni.
During the 100k Strawberry fields ride (throughout santa cruz), I was keeping up with a couple of women on bikes. One of them had a speedometer, and she was clocking us at 17 mph. I kept up with them for quite a while – until we hit a hill and I blew bast them. Eventually, they passed me on a long downhill. I was breathing pretty hard, but I think it is quite possible to maintain 17mph for a long time (especially if you are Beau Hoover), with 125mm cranks.
Nathan should post about last weekends 72 miler (mortals) or 100 miler (gods) that we did yesterday — riding around tahoe!
What kind of 36ers? Airfoil? Coker or Radial TA tire? Crank length?
I have a wired cycle computer on my Radial which is calibrated very accurately compared to known-mileage routes which I’ve ridden. With it I know I’ve hit and slightly exceeded 17 mph a few times, but only momentarily, and only since I’ve installed 125mm cranks. My feet felt like they were flying and I was barely in control.
I’m not saying it’s impossible, but 17 mph is about 165 rpm on a 36er, that is nearly 3 whole revs per second. How long did you maintain such a pace? Unless your feet were moving in frenetically fast circles, I respectfully suggest that woman’s speedometer was wrong.
Get yourself a cheap, wired cycle computer, calibrate it carefully and check it out.
Caveat: I’ve only 3 years’ experience, so maybe you spin MUCH more smoothly than I do, but 17 mph is way fast and 165 rpm is maniacally fast pedaling.
Damn, Corbin - 17 MPH is right around where I start freaking out thinking if I fall, I’ll perish. And the idea of doing 100 miles on a 36er is frightning. Maybe I should stick with Muni . . . but we’re having to much fun doing our once-a-week Coker cruise.
It is certainly possible to hold 17mph or more for quite long periods. On July 26 last year, Patrick rode 27.18km in an hour. That is just under 17mph. That’s for an uninterrupted hour! With 110mm cranks, even to a slow rider like me, 17mph no longer feels scary and wild. It is controllable, holdable and comfortable. Faster guys cruise at 18mph or even 20mph for minutes at a time. When I first started riding a Coker, over 8 years ago, every time I hit 17 or 18 mph I felt like I was cheating death. That was with 152mm cranks. Go short and you can go fast.
I remember riding one time in Norway with Christian. It was the end of the day and we were going down a slight descent into the town on a smooth road. 3 of us were cruising fast at 14 or 15mph. 2 bike guys go by and say something that sounds derisive, so Christian took off after them. In what seemed like 2 seconds, he was FAR down the road, cruising smoothly at 24mph (according to his carefully calibrated cyclometer), chasing down those guys. Ultimately he was unsuccessful, but it was awesome to watch. Actually there are quite a few people who have hit 24mph on Cokers, verified by cyclometer, not car speedometer. It’s just a matter of skill and experience (and ditching the long cranks).
Okay, this is probably a silly question but I’m going to go ahead and show my ignorance.
Why has no one produced a super light carbon fiber uni with skinny road bike tires?
My road bike is very light and has skinny tires that are pumped up to 120 psi. It just seems that distance riding on a uni of a similar construction would make it easier to maintain speed. There must be a flaw in my thinking or someone would have already invented one.
Scott Wallis “V-grip / death grip” CF handle (cracked/breaking)*3
I was cruising with them for probably 1/4 mile till we hit the hills and I left them behind
They caught up to me about a 1/2 to 1 mile later (estimated).
This was on flat; I maintain much faster speeds downhill. I need to borrow Nathan’s GPS (or get one of my own) and see how fast I go, but I really book it down hills. It is easier for me to go fast than to use the brake.
I’ve been riding 3 years too (2 years on coker), but as Nathan said, it took me a while to get comfortable at fast speeds, and 125’s are essential.
So, regarding my *'s:
*1: While one footing on the coker, I broke my steel braided magura brake line – pushing my left foot on the nimbus frame puts it in a terrible spot right on the brake. IMHO, the frame’s brake location should be on the after fork member, and not the fore one. Hunter frames got it right, and put it on the aft member.
*2: I tend to bend the steel cranks. But then again, I ride down some rough stuff. I also like to hop up stairs on my coker, and that puts a lot of pressure on the cranks.
*3: My CF handle started cracking and bending too much. Possibly from hard crashes, or me putting too much downward pressure on it.
The first time I went over 18mph with 152mm cranks I crashed hard. After a couple of weeks of recovery I started Cokering again, but never tried for increasing speed records. Years later, after I discovered the joys of shorter cranks, I built back up in speed and actually went over 20mph a few times without crashing. Nowadays, 18mph is unremarkable. Although holding it for any real length of time requires 110mm cranks for me. I am NOT a fast rider though, not even close.
Too bad Vivalargo and his pal Don missed out on this one, but there’s always next time!