Indholdsfortegnelse for March 2014 i Bicycling

I WAS OUT FOR A RIDE ON A SUBFREEZING afternoon that looked like it was behind an Instagram filter. Everything was white and gray and dull earth tones, and the edges of my field of vision were blurry. The wind was heaving, and salt-stained school buses occasionally churned past, but the world still seemed quieter than normal. I could really hear myself think—along with the loose cleat on my left winter boot, which emitted a quick squeak with every upstroke. It was the kind of bitter day on which going uphill is more fun than going down. Ten minutes into the ride, all my fingertips were prickling. On one descent, I repositioned my thumbs behind the handlebar in an attempt to keep them out of the wind. A storm was…

The buzzer sounds and you’re flying down the trail. Five minutes pass, maybe 15. Then, like a carnival ride that ends too soon, it’s over. Only, it’s not. This is enduro racing, a format that combines the burn of cross-country with the thrill of downhill, but doesn’t necessarily require the same levels of fitness or fearlessness. Courses are divided into short, timed sections; in between, cruise with your friends to the next segment. “Getting together and having fun is a big part of enduro racing,” says Devon Lyons, director of Oregon’s Enduro Series. Most events last a few hours (though some are multiple days) and can be ridden on all-purpose mountain bikes with 4 to 6 inches of travel. That, along with the social vibe, is drawing new riders, especially…

{ AMAZ ING DESCENTS } Big Mountain Enduro Moab, Utah This August event ends with a rotor-warping run down Moab’s Whole Enchilada trail—one of the longest descents in America. The course starts 12,000 feet up in the La Sal Mountains. Last year, riders began bundled up and finished in 85-degree heat. Capped at 200, registration typically sells out in minutes. If you didn’t get into the 2014 race, mark your calendar for 2015. { RACE WITH PROS } SRAM Canadian Open Enduro Whistler, British Columbia The final stage of North America’s largest enduro race starts at Whistler’s 7,494-foot-high summit, then descends lava flows and shale fields before entering the mountain’s bike park. There, competitors negotiate jumps and granite-lined chutes. The only North American stop on the World Enduro Series circuit…

From the bicycle’s earliest days, cyclists have ridden across borders to wherever their imaginations and legs could propel them. But there’s more to preparing for a cycling vacation abroad than logging training time. You also need to understand your rights and responsibilities while traveling internationally with a bike. Here’s what you need to know to ensure a smooth trip. Pack Your Bike Right If you are traveling by air and bringing your own bicycle, you will need to follow the carrier’s rules for transporting it. On some airlines, that means nothing less than a hard-shell case; other carriers allow you to use a cardboard box or soft-sided travel bag. If you don’t follow the guidelines, the airline might still ship your bike, but it will require you to waive your…

THE MOMENT YOU WERE BORN, TWO balloons inflated inside your chest, began pumping, and haven’t stopped since. Those sacs of air—a.k.a. your lungs—are responsible for transferring oxygen to your bloodstream and removing waste in the form of carbon dioxide. Most of the time you’re hardly aware of them, but if you’re grinding up a long climb, you might notice how hard you’re breathing and wonder whether those balloons are any bigger than a couple of grapes. In fact, your lungs are plenty large. “Most of us are born with enough lung capacity to escape a lion,” says Norman Edelman, MD, senior medical advisor for the American Lung Association. But if your lungs are compromised, says Edelman, they can slow you down. And many cyclists may unwittingly be doing theirs harm.…

HERE I AM—STARTING MY 18TH YEAR AS A professional bicycle racer, and at the age of 42. Some of you have said to me that I am a little bit crazy. I have to say: This year, actually, I am beginning to agree with you. Last year definitely was the hardest Tour de France I ever rode, and part of that just came from the fact that I am older. For racers, no matter how good you think you are, or how high you flew during your career, there one day comes a point where the body says, “Hey—I’m not going to put up with this anymore!” I feel like I am getting there, but I am still good at telling myself to shut up and ride, so I signed…

My favorite thing to do in Los Angeles is seek out the many different group rides. Every day of the week, you can find fixie rides, roadies in spandex and pacelines, outrageous packs of costumed riders, rolling parties, you name it. Two of the best I’ve tried—the Wolfpack Hustle’s late-night speed run and an urban-exploration adventure called the Passage Ride—both happen to begin and end at doughnut shops. I discovered that no snack tastes as good as the one you’re just about to negate with miles of nighttime pedaling or the victory treat you earn when you park your bike after a long day. This inspired me to create Sweet Ride USA, a web-video documentary series of our visits to dessert shops on routes specifically designed to burn off as…

When Jamis engineers set out last year to refine the company’s premium race bike, they had a few simple goals: They wanted to make it lighter, more comfortable, and maybe a little more aerodynamic. They ended up with a completely redesigned frame that is one of the better race bikes I’ve ridden recently. To maximize performance while saving weight, Jamis uses advanced carbon in key areas and a new molding process that reduces the amount of frame material. The updated bike also has stout, box-section chainstays and a wide BB386 bottom bracket, which prevented the rear from flexing during sprints. Stiff ribs inside the fork blades kept them from twisting during hard braking and cornering. To make the Xenith more comfortable, Jamis gave it pencil-thin seatstays to dull road vibrations,…

1. Swiftwick Pursuit Seven Tall enough to shield your lower calves—and keep debris out of your shoes—these warm socks feature a tight weave that lightly compresses your legs to boost muscle efficiency. $22, swiftwick.com 2. DeFeet Woolie Boolie The Dude These cozy socks can tie your kit together whether you’re called His Dudeness, Duder, or El Duderino. Choose one of several subdued patterns if you’re not into that whole Big Lebowski thing. $17, defeet.com 3. Rapha City Riding This sock fits loosely around your ankle, which keeps your feet from overheating as you ride to the office. Once there, the bold colors will accentuate your personal style as you stride to your desk. $25, rapha.cc 4. Point6 Cycling Rider Ultralight ¾ Crew Not much thicker than a synthetic sock, this…

CamelBak Volt 13 LR $125 In contrast to the barrel-like bladder used in most other packs, the Volt’s is shaped like a pyramid. It also sits lower on your back, extending over your hips. This placement reduces strain on your shoulders, which is what makes this the most comfortable and stable bag of the test group. The unique design, however, reduces cargo space, and the bladder can be difficult to insert into the pack when full. Compared with the other finalists, the Volt also has fewer compartments for storing your glasses, phone, tubes, and tools. But those inconveniences faded from memory on the trail, where the pack’s snug fit impressed all our testers. “It moved around less than the others and never bounced up and hit me on the back…

Steve Isaacs created Sweet Ride USA to promote bike commuting in Los Angeles, as well as the city’s top dessert spots. He recounts one of the group’s recent adventures in “One Sweet Ride” (p. 64). “I loved my Mexican chocolate ice cream nacho sundae at Peddler’s Creamery, but doughnuts are my addiction,” says Isaacs, a digital creative director and former MTV VJ. Find out how you can join him for a spin at sweetrideusa.com. Photographer Mathew Scott tagged along with Steve Isaacs’s dessert-obsessed crew on a 25-mile ride through Los Angeles. But when he’s pedaling his home streets in San Francisco, the avid urban cyclist frequents the St. Francis Fountain in the Mission District: “It’s a good old-school-style diner, with a full ice cream bar.” Scott has also shot for…

Is it safe to ride in the rain? YES—AS LONG AS YOU’RE EXTRA VIGILANT about signaling, traffic rules, and your surroundings. On slippery surfaces, keep your effort steady: Standing up on a steep, wet road can cause your back wheel to slip, and hitting the brakes too hard may make you skid. If you live where it rains often, consider wider tires. The smoother, softer, and wider they are, says Matthew Karre, sales manager at River City Bicycles in Portland, Oregon, the more contact between rubber and road. If you’re caught in a downpour with regular tires, stop and let out a few psi of air. And remember, roads will be very slick during the first rain after a dry spell because oils have built up on the surface. Other…

TRAINING ACTIVATE YOUR MUSCLES Lifting weights can train your riding muscles to last longer and work harder. When you do sport-specific exercises such as squats and leg presses for eight to 12 weeks in the off-season, the muscle fibers you use for short, hard efforts become more resistant to fatigue, according to a report published in the Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports. Your brain also becomes more adept at recruiting the muscles you need to keep riding. Try this move from Douglas Lentz, director of fitness and wellness for Results Therapy and Fitness, in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. It targets your quadriceps but also activates just about every other muscle in your lower body. Do three sets of five repetitions two days a week. Dumbbell Bulgarian Squat Grab an…

1 The Smith Optics Forefront helmet absorbs 30 percent more impact than traditional lids (claims the company) and has an integrated system to mount a camera or light. $220 2 Made of USA MultiCam military fabric, the Sassquatch Combat jacket by Brandt-Sorenson is handcrafted to order in California. $275 3 The anti-slip-grip Easton road bar tape’s cushioned EVA foam vanishes beneath your hands as easily as the print disappears against nature’s backdrop. $11 4 You’ll want to wipe your nose with the Giro Zero gloves—the microfiber surface is like velvet. A mesh upper and leather palm offer a barely there feel on the handlebar. $35 5 Weatherproof exterior pockets and a roll-top closure ensure that the only water getting into the ACRE Hauser hydration pack is what you put into…

Off the bike, you know you’re supposed to fuel up with real, whole foods. So why should the stuff you throw into your jersey pocket be any different? Yet the average energy bar contains 20-plus ingredients, many of which don’t sound like actual food. We examined the labels of every bar we could get our hands on to find the simplest, tastiest, and most nutritious. These six offer back-to-basics energy—and you’ll recognize every single ingredient they’re made with.…

I HAD COME TO THINK I WOULD NEVER ride the old bike again. But now, the afternoon before a gran fondo, I pulled it from the basement. It looked elegant, if a bit battered, displaying the classically strict triangular proportions of a racing bike from the era preceding carbon, and ready to spin as fast as a proud relic could. Even its most striking feature, its paint job, remained undimmed by time—bold, glossy, and piquant as ever. The bike had been leaning against a wall, idle, for more than a year, since the day I’d brought home its replacement. My new bike was intended to formalize my long-term relationship with riding. It was light, stiff, fully carbon, decked out in high-end components and molded in swooping, space-age, ergonomic lines. It…

Whether you took our third annual reader survey on BICYCLING.com, answered questions on our Facebook page, or sent a missive via carrier pigeon—actually, we’re still waiting for that one, but we are sure he’ll arrive someday—you played a role in shaping this story, and probably even future issues of this magazine. Some of the results—people who ride to work have more sex, for example—were unexpected. Other stats confirmed what we’ve long suspected. Eighty-four percent of you say riding gives you more energy—excellent information to share with the boss when you’re lobbying for commuter facilities. In any case, we hope the results offer some insight into your fellow riders and inspire you to expand the way you ride—as long as you do it judiciously (in other words, think twice before practicing…

Sailing Hawks, a trail near my home in Durango, Colorado, rumbles along the base of a disintegrating cliff and features awkward corners, sharp descents, loose rocks, and large obstacles that require powerful moves to negotiate. After riding Trek’s Remedy 9.8 27.5 on several smoother trails, I brought it here to test. The model is one of the first from Trek to have 27.5-inch wheels, and I was eager to see how they would handle the choppy terrain. Plus, I had previously ridden a 29er version of the Remedy on this trail, and I wanted to compare the two wheel sizes. It didn’t take me long to notice a difference: The 27.5 model felt slower while descending, but it accelerated more quickly out of turns and was easier to steer through…

Consider the Weather If you ride on wet roads or muddy trails, you should opt for a wet lube, which has a thicker consistency so it won’t wash away in a downpour. For more arid conditions, try a thinner, dry lube. Buy one of each so you’re ready for any weather, but clean your chain before switching. Keep It Clean The heavier viscosity that helps wet lubes stick to your chain means they also collect more dirt and grime, so your drivetrain will need to be cleaned often, and following every foul-weather ride. Dry formulations attract less dirt but many varieties can wear off after about 100 miles and need to be reapplied frequently. Apply It Right Many lubes come in squirt bottles, which allow you to deliver a precise…

RockShox Pike RCT3 The heart of the Pike is its new Charger damper cartridge—a sealed unit that eliminates air bubbles and separates the lubrication oil from the damping fluids for more consistent performance. The adjustable system allows you to switch between three modes: wide open, pedaling, and locked. You also can change the amount of low-speed compression to keep the fork from diving into its travel when you pedal or hit the brakes. That makes the 4.1-pound Pike (27.5-inch model) feel plush—I was able to speed over rocks, ruts, and ledges—but with little unwanted motion when climbing or snapping through turns. On larger hits, it smoothly absorbed the blow without bottoming out, allowing me to use all 160mm of travel. $1,005, sram.com/rockshox Fox 34 Float 27.5 FIT CTD w/Trail Adjust…

Most times the perfect ride happens when riding is the last thing I want to do, but I go anyway. I never regret it. THOMAS WALLACE VIA FACEBOOK “The Perfect Ride” instantly took me back to June 15, when my girlfriend and I did the Starlight Spectacular ride in Colorado Springs. I had been to the Garden of the Gods many times, but to see it and the city glow in the night was pure magic. It was a beautiful night full of delicious food and crazy people in costumes. JESSY WISDOM CHRISTIANSBURG, VA Take a Bite out of Grime Another way to disinfect a bottle or hydration bladder (Ask BICYCLING): denture cleaner. A $5 box of the effervescent tablets will last for seasons. Buy unflavored tablets unless you like…

1. REMOVE Take your wheel off. Slip the flat end of a tire lever under the bead; hook the other end onto an adjacent spoke. Insert a second lever under the bead and slide it between the tire and rim until one side is completely off. Remove the other side and pull out the damaged inner tube. 2. INSPECT Run your fingers along the inside of the tire to feel for and clear anything that may have caused the flat—a thorn, a piece of glass, a nail. Two side-by-side holes (like a snakebite) usually indicate a pinch flat, which is generally a result of underinflation. 3. INSTALL Seat one side of the tire onto the rim, then tuck a new, slightly inflated tube inside—starting at the valve hole and working…

If you think indoor-cycling classes like SoulCycle and Flywheel are just for celebrities and SoHo socialites, think again. The performance perks are legit. Not only can you gain plenty of fitness that will translate to regular cycling, you also burn as many as 600 calories in a 40-minute session. Here’s how an indoor class can take your outdoor riding to the next level. You Get Fitter On most indoor bikes, you can’t brake or coast. That kind of constant effort is hard to do outside thanks to traffic lights and terrain changes, says SoulCycle instructor and track racer Christine D’Ercole, who trained exclusively inside prior to the 2009 Masters Track National Championships, where she won the match sprint. You Go Harder With a stationary bike you obviously don’t need to…

Some 20 years ago, I coached a masters cyclist whose job required him to travel during the winter. His only time to ride would be three one-hour blocks during the week and one two-hour session on Saturday or Sunday. His somewhat lofty goal was to maintain his competitive form and race strong in the spring. Breaking with traditional training schedules, I created a three-month off-season plan that included mostly hard riding, theorizing that the intensity would substitute for volume. My masters athlete was skeptical, but he trusted me enough to give it a shot. He ended up having his best season ever. In the years since, I’ve read a number of studies on the merits of high-intensity training as a replacement for big mileage in the winter months. Set yourself…

IT WAS THE OLIVE OIL SHORTAGE THAT finally got me back on the bike. I’d minced the garlic and chopped the onion, crying with the sting of it. Then I’d reached up to the ledge where I keep the dark green bottle, and when I grasped and lifted it, found it way too light. Earlier that day, when I’d gone to the hanging basket near the pantry where glass mason jars stand like an army, there were no lemons. I needed to go to the market. I’d been home for three weeks, after traveling for work for two months straight. The travel—riding bicycles and taking photographs and writing about it all—sounds romantic, and sometimes is, until you forget what your own bed feels like, how the crook of your lover’s…

Want to be a better cyclist? Just ride. Every time you turn the pedals, you naturally improve a little. Of course, one well-placed tip, trick, or nugget of wisdom can help you achieve something you might otherwise not learn for years. Drawn from my BICYCLING book, 1,100 Best All-Time Tips, here is a generous helping of wisdom from the most skilled and knowledgeable coaches, physiologists, and cyclists in the world. NO. 1 To avoid muscle soreness and fatigue, don’t hunch your shoulders. Tilt your head every few minutes to stave off tight neck muscles. Better yet: Stop to admire the scenery. NO. 7 If you don’t have a chance to slow for an obstacle such as railroad tracks or a pothole, quickly pull upward on the handlebar to lift your…

Handmade in Italy, the new Sidi Five women’s road shoe has an ultrastiff sole, but there’s a little flex in the toe area to relieve stress on the plantar tendon—good news for long-distance riders. The Five borrows its perforated upper and ventilated heel cup from Sidi’s top-of-the-line Wire, but it also features a few beautiful details of its own: zigzag edges where the Lorica synthetic leather meets white microfiber and racy lightning-bolt accents, balanced by silver mesh panels that keep the appearance from venturing too far into pro-wannabe territory. Sure, you could find functionally similar models that cost less. But if you’re as serious about style and comfort as you are about your Strava standing, there are few things better on which to splurge than a Sidi Five. $290, sidiamerica.com—EMILY…

Unless you’re from Colorado, home to boutique builder Spot, you’re likely wondering what a Wazee is. Well, I Googled that for you: It’s a street in an artsy neighborhood of Denver, lined with shops, galleries, and bars. It’s the kind of place that’s best explored on a bike—but not just any bike. You’ll want one that can not only handle frequent starts and stops and match the speed of traffic, but also looks sharp. This is just the bike. I’ll be honest: I didn’t immediately appreciate the Wazee. Although it’s a commuter bike, it borrows disc brakes from the mountain bike world and a swept bar from a fixed-gear hipster for its roadie-retro frame. But the parts made sense once I started to ride. The hydraulic disc brakes helped me…

Wrap It Tight Prevent two or more bikes from banging into one another (and potentially wrecking fragile parts) by wrapping used bike tubes around your frames where they touch and between components that rub. { LIGHTWEIGHT } 1 Yakima Highlite 2 At 17.5 pounds, this is one of the lightest hitchmounted racks we’ve tested. It holds two bikes, attaches quickly without tools, locks securely in place, and won’t rattle when fully loaded. Tilt it down to access your trunk and fold the arms out of the way when it’s not in use. PRICE $340 yakima.com { EASY TO INSTALL } 2 Sea Sucker Mini Bomber Four high-powered suction cups make the Mini Bomber easy to install and remove. We were skeptical it would hold, but a week of high-speed testing…

1. Check Your Chain With dozens of moving parts, your chain is susceptible to corrosion if left unmaintained. Some rust can be wiped off, but if your links have seized or skip when you pedal, you’ll likely need a new chain. In that case, look for one that matches your brand of drivetrain and number of gears, says Andrew Crooks, a former racer and the current owner of NYC Velo in Manhattan. If you have a SRAM drivetrain, he recommends the PC 1051 chain ($40), which uses the same ultrastrong material as the manufacturer’s top models but costs less and weighs only slightly more. 2. Replace Cables and Housing If your bike won’t change gears smoothly, don’t immediately blame your shifters or derailleurs. It could be your cables or the…