Road Gear

Editor's Note: Drew Geer is an endurance mountain bike racer who has been using a computer training log since 1998 and has hand-written training logs going back to 1972. He's been an Apple Mac user since 1984. Geer paid retail for each of the products he reviewed in this article.

Do you have any advice for correcting leg-length discrepancies?

Torque wrenches and temperature ranges Dear Lennard, I own both deflecting beam and click-type (Giustaforza) torque wrenches. They are stored in my garage where the temperature can get below freezing in the winter and over 100 degrees Fahrenheit in the summer. Do torque wrenches need to be stored and used within a certain temperature range to maintain accuracy? Gary Answer from Effetto Mariposa:

Ridding the rim of remnants
Dear Lennard,
I have some carbon tubular rims that I glued Vredestein Fortezzas into, and when I removed them there were parts of the casing stuck to the rim (I think it might have been latex that covered the casing but it wasn't able to be removed before mounting). Is there a safe way to remove this substance from a carbon rim?
Jared Dear Jared,

Colors: Khaki Sizes: 30 to 38 inch waist Price: $90 Web site: www.cordarounds.com You may not be a "hardcore" commuter, but there's a good chance you use two wheels to get around town every once in awhile. In that case, a good pair of commuting pants that are not made of lycra may be just right for you. [nid:86098]

Size: 12" x 12"[nid:86095] Price: $13.95 Web site: www.velogear.com Collected by the editors of VeloNews, here's a full year of the best photographs of road cycling, from the spring classics to cyclocross. Full 12" by 12" color photographs.

Electric D-A: Why not a little step instead of a big leap? Dear Lennard, Great review of the new electronic Dura-Ace in this month’s VeloNews. I have to say there have been a lot of comments about the “why?” of electric and it was nice to finally read an article that included a good reason — shifting under load that can't be done with cable.

Sizes: 280 and 350mm length; 27.2 and 31.6mm diameter Price: $100 to $325 Web site: www.thenew3t.com 3T may be an unfamiliar brand name to those of us in the U.S., unless you’re the new owner of a 3T fork after Cervélo recalled their Wolf forks, but 3T is a familiar name in Italian cycling.

Sizes: 500ml Price: $25 Web site: www.elite-it.com Are frozen water bottles during the winter riding months betraying your thirst? Or is the scalding water in your bottle during the dog days of July preventing you from hydrating properly? The Nanogelite water bottle from the Italian company, Elite, is a thermal bottle for keeping your liquids at just the right temperature.

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At first glance, Jeremy Powers' Cannondale looks like a fairly standard pro mount: a Cannondale aluminum frame with Mavic wheels and SRAM Red parts.

A former road bike product manager at Specialized, Andy Jacques-Maynes has an eye for detail when it comes to bikes, and has the advantage of riding a frame he helped design. Jacques-Maynes won the 30-34 national cyclocross championships for the second year in a row on Saturday, aboard a carbon Tricross. [nid:85912] The bike features an array of Specialized parts and thanks to the light frame and Roval Alpiniste climbing wheels, weighs in at just 15.2 pounds.[nid:85913]

Ryan Trebon's Kona Major Jake is very similar to the mount that he's been racing on for the last few years, except for the change to Challenge tubular this season. Trebon also switched from 175 to 177.5 mm cranks this fall just before the Gloucester, Massachusetts, race. He says the longer cranks help him get the full benefit of his size. [nid:85926] Ryan Trebon's Kona Frame: Kona Major Jake scandium, 63cm Fork: Alpha Q CX20 Wheels: FSA Carbon RD488 tubular Shifters: Dura-Ace 7800 Brakes: KORE Brake pads: Swissstop

Georgia Gould's Orbea is a simple, solid race machine. Gould runs virtually all Shimano parts, and is one of the few top pros to use clinchers (although sharp eyes might have noticed her on some blackwall tubulars at nationals). She also prefers a single front chainring, a set-up that appears to be becoming a bit less common among the top pros. Frame: Orbea Lobular aluminum Fork: Easton EC90X Wheels: Mavic R Sys clincher Tires: Maxxis Raze clincher 700x35 Shifters: Dura-Ace 7800 right; Shimano aero left. Rear Derailleur: Dura-Ace 7800

Just days before she attempts to win her fifth national cyclocross title, Katie Compton and her husband/mechanic Mark Legg have decided to switch from a hodge podge of Shimano and Campagnolo drivetrain components to a new set of Dura-Ace 7900 shifters and derailleurs.

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Sizes: 43, 46, 51, and 56cm Price: $2500 Web site: www.carryyourdreams.com Just in from France: the new Lapierre Passport, a full suspension folding mountain bike and travel case. When packed inside of its travel case, this 24.5-pound, aluminum mountain bike only weighs 35 pounds, which means no extra weight fees for air travel.

Well, the manuscript of the third edition of Zinn and the Art of Road Bike Maintenance is due today, and I’ve been burning the midnight and daybreak oil for some time now, especially the last week, to get it done. Still not certain I’ll make it. But somehow, despite not riding or answering the phone these days, I got sucked into answering this question in some serious detail while writing Chapter 8 on cranksets. Back to the book now. Lennard

Red crank in a Madone?

Colors: Gloss metallic black with scotch-bright panels Sizes: 50, 53, 56, and 59cm Price: $2,399.99 Web site: www.ironhorsebikes.com New from Iron Horse the Double Cross cyclocross bike is built around an aluminum frame. The Double Cross features Hutchinson Bulldog tubeless-ready tires and a SRAM Rival group.

Weight: 200g/pair Suggested retail: $599.99/pair Web site: www.zerogravitybike.com The Vanderkitten Elite Women’s Team will be using a limited edition version of the Zero G brakes, which also will be available to the public next month. Ciamillo Components’ Zero G brakes are made in the U.S and feature a patented Power Cam that provides a mechanical advantage with modulated stopping power.

Weight: 83 grams Sizes: 90, 110, and 120mm Price: $199.00 Web site: www.rotorbike.com With the new Rotor SL MTB stem you can shave off a few more grams to make your mountain bike that much more responsive and make climbing just that much more effortless. With the use of only two screws for the handlebars and two for the steer tube, the Rotor SL MTB stem still achieves the required clamping force using its dual-thread pitch DTT Evo bolts with T25 Torx heads.

Colors: Black, Egglplant, Periwinkle, Orange, and Moss Green Sizes: Fits 22.2-25.4mm and 31.8mm handlebars Price: $25 to $40 Web site: www.trekbikes.com[nid:85626] The Trek Time series includes fun, simple, and functional watches for those looking for an entry-level bike computer. The ability to snap the computer on and off the handlebars allows you to detach it when you make stops during your ride or commute without worrying about theft.

Sizes: XS to XL Price: $65 Web site: www.dakine.com/bike The Dakine Storm Rider includes a Gore Tex insert to help to keep your hands dry from precipitation and the Thinsulate insulation. For durability, the Storm Rider uses Dakine's Weathershield shell. And out of consideration for your sniffling red nose, they stitched terrycloth panels to the thumbs.

Web site: www.hutchinsontires.com[nid:85576][nid:85577] Have you been looking to run tubeless tires on your road bike? If not, here's a few reasons why you should: no pinch flats; ability to run lower pressure for better traction and a smoother ride; less weight than traditional tube-dependent clinchers; less expensive than tubulars. Now Hutchinson offers a variety of 127 tpi tubeless road tires. The Atom is a single compound, slick-type road tire that offers low weight, safety, and dry weather race performance.

Price: $95 to $125[nid:85546][nid:85548] Web site: www.sanmarcovintage.com In the world of cycling, fashion is determined by small details that are typically overlooked by the "noobs" and those not involved in the sport. One of the more subtle, yet convincing ways to step up your cycling fashion is with a classy saddle.

Matching your tire to a course’s conditions is a key to achieving the best possible result. There are currently three major tubular tire manufacturers that design, manufacture and produce complete tire lines: Challenge, Dugast and Tufo. Each manufacturer’s line is made up of three models — file tread, all-condition and mud — in a multitude of sizes.

Katie Compton, four-time national champion and worlds silver medalist, does not have a component sponsor. Compton and her mechanic husband Mark Legg, are not entirely pleased about this state of affairs, but the pair does enjoy the freedom to choose the parts they prefer.

Dear Lennard,
I'm a 39-year-old, 175 lb., 150-200 miles-per-week recreational rider who frequently rides long charity rides and occasionally races. I recently switched to Specialized Armadillo Elite tires to avoid a rash of flats I'd been having, and they've worked wonders (no flats at all since the switch.) I had most recently been riding Schwalbe Stelvios, and Michelin Lithions prior to them.

Check out CyclingTips's author page.

Check out CyclingTips's author page.

Check out CyclingTips's author page.

Retail price: $18.95 Web site: www.velopress.com Pages: 224 Weight Training for Cyclists: A Total Body Program for Power and Endurance by Ken Doyle and Eric Schmitz is now available in a revised second edition. The new edition features: • All-new illustrations for clarity and ease of use • A new chapter on stretching and warm-up • Expanded coverage of core strength and lower-body strength exercises

The price of 11s
Dear Lennard,
I have been riding Campagnolo components for years and years. The new 11s stuff looks great, but the new 11s cranks are not inexpensive.

I cannot understand why given a 5.5 to 5.9 mm difference in changes the 10s crank would not work fine. Do you have any experience with the 11s parts used with a 10s crank. I happen to have a carbon 10 crank, first generation, Record.
Jeff

Dear Jeff,
I think you’ll find that your Record crank will work just fine with the 11-speed group.

Colors: White, Silver, Grey White, Black Sizes: 38 to 48 Price: $400 Web site: www.gaerne.com There is no question of whether or not the Gaerne Myst is a high quality road shoe. Every stitch, perforation, and bit of material was designed to serve a function, and do it well.

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To a cycling enthusiast, the fall Garmin-Chipotle team camp may look like Christmas for the 28 riders on the squad, but to them it’s another day at the office. Whether they’re thumbing through Fi’zi:k’s ‘Blackbook,’ the brand’s 2009 saddle catalog, trying to decide which saddle to choose or test, or they’re submitting sizes for 2XU compression gear, or sitting through a lecture on wheel selection by sponsor Zipp — it’s all work. [nid:85344]

Price: $21.95 Web site: www.firstendurance.com First Endurance, the makers of Ultragen and Optygen, also make an unbeatable electrolyte mix. Electrolyte Fuel System (EFS) is packed with all of the right ingredients to provide lasting energy during endurance events.

One of the neatest features of Garmin Edge GPS bike computers is the "Virtual Partner," which lets you race against a previous trip over the same course, with your relative positions marked by little cartoon riders on the screen. It's a geeky fun distraction, even if its name is a little creepy. But what if you are a professional racer, looking for tools, not amusement? How could you use that feature?

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Dear Lennard,

Price: $38 to $225 Sizes: 16, 38, 60mm and full disc Web site: www.wheeltags.com Wheeltags is a manufacturer of stylish graphics for high profile rims and disc wheels. With over a dozen (and growing) styles to choose from you can find the perfect match to make your bike just that much more unique. If Wheeltags doesn’t provide a stock design that’s perfect for you then you have the option to go the custom route for a little extra cost.

FOX Racing will produce two commemorative suspension components — a special 40 RC2 fork and DHX RC4 shock — based on development that netted championship titles in men’s and women’s downhill worlds in 2009. Only 200 of each will be produced for consumers.

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Check out CyclingTips's author page.

Check out CyclingTips's author page.

Check out CyclingTips's author page.

Check out CyclingTips's author page.

Kona Bicycle has a new line of gloves with models for mountain biker, freeriders, roadies and kids. The men’s Chevron glove ($25) is intended for cross-country. It features a Chamude palm for increased durability, silicone grip finger tips for better braking control and a terry snot wipe thumb. The women’s XC glove offers an air-mesh palm with Chamude overlays for added durability and circulation, 4mm gel palm pad and gripped finger tips.

Fairwheel Bikes makes colored hoods for recent Campagnolo and Shimano's Dura-Ace, Ultegra and 105 shift/brake levers. Hoods for SRAM levers will be available later this year. The company says the hoods are exact replacements and are available in six colors. Suggested retail is $25.

Joy Industrial's Novatec hubs may become a popular item among wheelbuilders, because they allow relatively easy swaps between four different front hub/fork drop out standards. Riders with multiple wheels and forks in their garages also might find these hubs convenient. The 4in1 front hubs can interchange — without tools — to fit standard quick releases, or 9mm, 15mm or 20mm thru axles.

Kenda showed a 650B (also known as 27.5-inch) John Tomac Nevegal at the Taipei Cycle show last month. The company showed the new tire diameter in a 2.35-inch width and said a 2.1-inch width will be available soon. The diameter splits the difference between traditional 26-inch mountain bike sizes and the fast growing 29-inch hoops, said Kenda's Jim Wannamaker. "From a design standpoint, this new wheel size makes sense. It allows a bigger wheel to be

Fox has a slew of improvements to its product line for 2009, but two stand apart: A remote lockout for the F80, 100, 120 RL forks and a new thru-axle standard called 15QR, which is an option for all of its 32mm stanchion forks.

The Everti 29R is a hardtail titanium 29er frame, designed and built in British Columbia. Kurt Knock of Everti said the frame has been in development for about a year. It features 3/2.5 titanium, with double-butted top and seat tubes, and straight-gauge elsewhere. The downtube is oversized and ovalized at the head tube, and the head tube is longer than most 29ers to distribute the extra stress created by a longer fork, Knock said. The frame also features a mini-gusset at the head tube/downtube juncture and full length cable housing.

It might surprise you to find out just what it takes to build a one-off bike. Travis Brown can sure tell you. The Trek test rider and product developer lost one after last year’s early fall single-speed world championships. Trek built Brown a custom polished one of a kind 69er single speed for the event in September. After a pre-ride, derby and race, Brown UPS’d his bike back to the U.S. and the men in brown promptly lost it.

As the Sea Otter Classic swings into full force in addition to people pouring in for the festival and the races kicking into gear, there proved to be no shortage of new stuff to see. The weather is holding, which is always a question in April on the Monterey Peninsula, so without further ado let us dive right into it.

Trek development rider Travis Brown was at the Trek team truck at the Sea Otter Classic sporting a never-before-seen set of white and red Bontrager mountain bike shoes. The shoes have a large RXL logo on the middle strap that threw many for a loop. "People keep asking me if they’re from Polo Sport," said Brown. Ralph Lauren was a common sight at Sea Otter in previous years with his now dissolved RLX Polo Sport mountain bike team.

With the world’s best racers descending upon Houffalize, Belgium, for the World Cup opener, the Sea Otter Classic needed to supplement this year’s world class downhill races with something extra to keep the event growing. For the Sea Otter, now in its 18th year, the answer was to bolster the festival and promote the tradeshow aspect of the event. It’s a trend that has been building for the last few years as more and more manufacturers are using the Sea Otter as a launching point for new product coming down the pike.

A Nevada court has delayed ruling on a request by the owners of Lew Racing to bar competitor Edge Composites from displaying or selling products that Lew alleges were made using a “secret process” it developed.

Dear Lennard,
I've just read your article article about the SRAM ceramic bottom bracket and its maintenance. We at CeramicSpeed have been working with ceramic bearings for the past 11 years, introducing systems for bicycle applications eight years ago.

In this four-part video tutorial, VeloNews Tech Editor Matt Pacocha walks us through the procedures involved in properly gluing tubular tires.

• Part 1: Tools, preparation & removing the old tire
• Part 2: Cleaning the rim & stretching the tire
• Part 3: Prepping the tire and applying the glue

You’re saying there’s a chance? Well, when there was, Mario was ready to turn some heads. Carbon Sports, the manufacturer of Lightweight wheels, was commissioned to build Rock Racing's Mario Cipollini something special for Milan-San Remo, but when Cipo and Rock Racing didn’t get an invite, then parted ways, this special wheelset became obsolete — to Cipollini anyway.

Our annual Buyer's Guide features several tours of bicycle and bicycle accessory factories and labs. Here are some outtake photos from VeloNews' photo editor Brad Kaminski's visit to the Bell Sports headquarters in Santa Cruz, California. To read Fred Dreier's complete article on Bell Sports, along with other factory tours and in-depth product reviews, you'll have to grab a copy of our Buyer's Guide.

Are longer cranks 'harder to push'?

As a companion to our annual Buyer's Guide we are featuring some behind-the-scenes photos, taken by VeloNews photo editor Brad Kaminski during his visit to the Specialized headquarters in Morgan Hill, California. To read Fred Dreier's complete article on the Specialized factory, along with an array of other factory tours, you'll have to grab a copy of our Buyer's Guide.

The Beijing Olympic mountain bike course is punctuated by short, steep, smooth climbs that favor a powerful rider like Giant’s Adam Craig. The descents on the Chinese course, too, are smooth. It’s the sort of terrain that doesn’t offer advantage to Craig’s Anthem Advanced full suspension bike; rather it calls for a light, stiff frame able to transfer maximum power on smooth trails. Giant just delivered on Craig’s special request for an Olympic hardtail.

Rapha’s pricy, chic line of retro-modern cycling clothing is built from a mix of technical and natural fibers including Merino wool, wool hybrids and synthetic fabrics by Swiss Schoeller. They’re then tested by an outfit of London bicycle messengers, the Rapha Continental test squad, and — not to mention — cycling legend Andy Hampsten.[nid:73678]

Our annual Buyer's Guide features some in-depth factory tours. You'll have to pick up a copy for the full story, but here are some photo outtakes from our tour of the Calfee factory in La Selva Beach, California, taken by VeloNews photo editor Brad Kaminski. Make sure to check out the Buyer's Guide to read Fred Dreier's full article on Calfee, as well as factory tours of Specialized, Masi, Primus Mootry and other builders, big and small, around the globe.

Are ceramics that delicate?
Dear Lennard,
In your article on ceramic bearings in the recent VeloNews Buyers Guide I got the impression that these things were not only smooth but durable as well. As a result, I ordered a ceramic SRAM bottom bracket with the Red crankset on my new bike. To say the least, I was surprised when I read the SRAM maintenance instructions that came with it and saw the recommendation that one should disassemble and lube the bearings after every 100 hours of use and immediately after riding in the rain or wet.

Revising its original plan to reserve its Record Red Ergopower shifters for professionals, Campagnolo announced Thursday that it will offer a limited run of the special heavy-action shifters to the public. The pro Ergo levers incorporate stronger springs for a more tactile action. Campagnolo says that the change was made to appease elite riders who use the crisper action to “feel the shifts at the hardest moments of the race.”

Shimano’s electric Dura-Ace is becoming more and more common in the ProTour peloton. Gerolsteiner rider Stefan Schumacher scored a podium placing on it at last year’s world championships. For three years now an electric prototype group has been raced in the spring classics and semi-classics. Last year it was also in cycling’s biggest show, the Tour de France.

Dear Lennard, Question for you re: forks for long head tubes. I'm 6'4" and have a Seven Axiom with a roughly 30cm head tube and a Seven rebadged Reynolds carbon fork on it. It is a bit flexy when braking while cornering and I'd like to improve that. What options are out there and how do they rate vs. each other? I know Alpha Q makes one with a steerer long enough (as seen on your bike) as does Storck, but want to understand if they are better than the Reynolds vis a vis flex/rigidity. Ted Dear Ted,

NEWS FLASH: I put Centaur Ergopower levers on my SRAM Red-equipped bike and have been riding it happily ever since with nary a hiccup in the shifting. I have a SRAM 10-speed chain, SRAM Red chainrings, SRAM Red front derailleur, SRAM Red rear derailleur, and SRAM Red 10-speed cogset mated with the Centaur 10-speed Ergopower levers. This means that Campagnolo and SRAM 10-speed road shifters, including their bar-end models, pull almost exactly the same amount of cable with each click.

So … ?

Titus Cycles, Inc., an Arizona high-end bicycle makers, has been purchased by Great Arizona Investments, a group that has holdings in a variety of industries. The new owners have created a business called GAI Cycles to operate Titus and any other cycling projects they enter. Titus, based in Tempe, had been owned by Vyatek Sports. The company was founded in 1991 and makes road and mountain bikes in stock and custom sizes, from aluminum, carbon and titanium. Titus CEO Pat Hus said the company has grown significantly in the last three years.

After racing the final 22 kilometers alone, off the front, Francaise des Jeux rider Philippe Gilbert crossed the finish of Omloop Het Volk last week in victory. It was the second Het Volk win for the Belgian; his first came in 2006. The 2008 win was special to two of his sponsors and was a milestone for road technology, because Gilbert crossed the line on a tubeless wheel and tire.