Innehållsförteckning för September 2017 från Bicycling

I n 2016, I was preparing for collegiate track Nationals held in September. There were three races that I thought I had a chance to medal in: the points race, sprint tournament, and 500- meter time trial. From May to September, I connected nearly every training session to the way I wanted to ride in the fall, visualizing the effort, speed, and persistence I wanted to achieve in those races as I pedaled. It pushed me harder. I wasn’t just rolling around the track with my legs burning for the fun of it—I was flying into the finish for the win. Every time I sprinted, I could feel my opponents on my hip, sometimes nipping me at the line. I practiced pushing through fatigue, because that’s what it would feel…

I moved to Boulder, Colorado, when I was 25, mostly broke, newly jobless, and totally car-less. So I rode everywhere. I tooled around to the grocery store, to Target, to FedEx (one-handed, with a box under my arm). To the bus depot hauling my ski gear for the shuttle to our local ski mountain. To the photo studio to get actual film developed (it was 1998). I’d sometimes ride 20 miles to my then-girlfriend’s house a couple of cities over, acutely aware that boyfriends are a lot less appealing if you always have to pick them up. (Spoiler: We broke up.) And of course, I rode road bikes and mountain bikes for fun. ¶ These errand miles weren’t junk miles. A 10-minute sprint to the photo shop was a nice…

I t makes no sense to me that filling a virtual trophy case made me the fittest I’ve ever been. I’ve always been a mediocre (and reluctant) climber. But then I started joining Strava’s monthly climbing challenges. Before I knew it I was tacking local monsters onto lunchtime rides and choosing pointy routes instead of flat ones. Once, with just a day left and a significant number of vertical feet between me and that month’s badge, I hit the biggest hills I could find until my computer ticked over to the magic number. I even crafted a sadistic 20-miler that had me going up and over a ridge near my house multiple times, gaining 100 feet of elevation for every mile (I called it The Killer). I found myself doing…

SPROUTED ▸ It’s made with germinated whole grains and add-ins like nuts, seeds, and lentils, which deliver vitamins, protein, and healthy fats. Eat it: postride with a generous slick of hummus. SOURDOUGH ▸ Its tang comes from the baking method—using a bacteriarich starter to initiate fermentation. The process slows down digestion (read: you’ll have fewer energy crashes) and lowers the bread’s gluten levels, so it’s less likely than traditional white bread to cause problems for people with gluten sensitivities. Eat it: dipped in extra-virgin olive oil and aged balsamic postride. ANCIENT GRAIN ▸ Breads made from spelt, einkorn, emmer, and other nutrientdense, nonhybridized members of the wheat family have rich flavor and texture and may be better at lowering cholesterol than those made with modern grains. Eat it: preride as breakfast toast topped…

After last year’s refresh to the Reverb and Reverb Stealth dropper seatposts to make them smoother and last longer between service intervals, we figured it was only a matter of time before the original, plunger-style trigger got a revamp as well. At the time of its 2011 introduction, the plunger was a solid design. It could be mounted almost anywhere on the handlebar—top or bottom, left or right. This was important because with shifters on both sides of the bar, space was limited. Fast forward five seasons. Thanks to the proliferation of 1x drivetrains, front shifters started disappearing, opening up the left side of the bar for dropper triggers that resemble shift levers. Other companies offered their versions. But SRAM, the originator of the 1x drivetrain and producer of the…

WHEN IT COMES TO E-BIKES, it’s easy to get caught up in the idea that faster is better. But just as a McLaren or a Ferrari would be overkill for basic grocery runs, the e-bike equivalent feels excessive for everyday riding. Enter the Cannondale Quick Neo, a bike that hits the sweet spot of practicality and price, and one that’s closer to a Fiesta or an Accord: less go-go-go, more get-it-done. Outfitted with Shimano’s STEPS mid-mount drive system, the Quick Neo combines a 1x-style drivetrain that shifts 10 cogs with added assist in three power levels: Eco, Normal, and High (maximum 250 watts). Pedal assist tops out at 20 mph, meaning anything over that speed is all on you. The bike also has rack and fender mounts, and is equipped…

ONE REASON I ride is to defy what ’s supposed to happen to a pe rson as a re sult of 1) having a desk job and 2) be ing mortal . P LUS, W HEN I ’ M AT M Y F I T T E S T, I ’M H A P P IE S T (smiling l ike Kelton Wr ight on our cove r). Same for the BICYCLING staff, who share their best training tips on PAGE 24. // T h o u s a n d s o f you a r e a l r e a d y in on the t ime- s a v in g , p o w e rb u i l d i n g MAXIMUM OVERLOAD p r o g r am…

1 TRIGGER POINT MASSAGE BALLS I’ll use these while driving to relieve pressure. 2 ALL STAYS APP Provides info about safe places to park and camp, and works without cell service. 3 WE BOOST When it looks like we have no cell service, this gives us a signal boost to get a text out. 4 ACTION WIPES Basically bigger baby wipes for when we can’t find a shower. We reuse them to clean the bikes. 5 PEE BOTTLES It’s very disruptive to open the clunky van door in the middle of the night. Pam also uses a GoGirl, a flexible funnel designed to help women pee in compromising spaces. 6 TIRE LEVELERS Place them under your wheels to level out the vehicle before sleeping so you don’t have to have…

YOU NEED SNAP TRY JUMP SPRINTS Shift into a big gear, get out of the saddle, and ride hard, gradually increasing speed and cadence. Then sit down and ramp up your rpm, shifting as necessary, until you’re riding as fast as you can while remaining smooth. Maintain that top speed for 20 to 30 seconds. Do four to five sprints with 5 minutes of recovery in between.* *Do the workouts on these pages once or twice a week. Before each, warm up at an easy to moderate effort for 15 minutes. Spin easy for about 5 minutes to cool down.…

There are 47 lunch-ride routes that depart from BICYCLING headquarters, but it always seemed like we were doing the same five. Last summer, in an effort to cure the monotony, our then editor in chief, Bill Strickland, created the Ping-Pong Challenge. We numbered each route, wrote the corresponding number on a ping-pong ball, then tossed the balls into a big glass jar. Every day someone would pick a new ball until we’d ridden all the routes. We kept track of who was on each ride, which added an element of competition: Who can do the most? ¶ That’s when lunch rides stopped being something I might do and became something I made time for. The challenge also got more people out at lunchtime, which added to the fun. Each day,…

Need proof that you can consume bread (and butter) on a daily basis and still ride really, really fast? Meet Robin Carpenter. The 25-year-old Holowesko-Citadel rider is one of the top cyclists on the North American professional circuit, and he got there on a diet of home-baked sourdough. His bread is in such demand from his teammates, he brings it to events. “When I make a perfect loaf, it feels like winning a race,” Carpenter says. By making your own bread, you eliminate unnecessary additives like sugar and preservatives. Plus, says Carpenter, “I need all those carbs for my big rides.” Science agrees. “There’s a mountain of evidence suggesting that low-carbohydrate diets don’t make you faster,” says Sean Burke, MS, an exercise physiologist and cycling coach in San Diego. To…

▪ Bontrager Anara Women’s Cycling Short These are my go-tos for crazy-long endurance races when numerous nature calls make bibs inconvenient. Wide leg grippers and a yoga-style waistband prevent binding. The density and size of the chamois keep it comfy without being obtrusive. The Lycra is thick and compressive and gives you that energizing feeling of your muscles being protected from vibration fatigue. (And there’s a bib version for men: the Specter.) Price $110—Selene Yeager ▪ Giordana FR-C Bibs I’ve put thousands of miles on these bibs and tortured them in every way possible—on trails, in cold rain, and in the heat of summer— and they’ve remained as comfortable and chafe-proof as they were the first day I wore them. The leg grippers have held up, the fabric still compresses,…

TWICE IN MY LIFE, the Orbea Orca has helped me get my mojo back. In 2008, I had dreams of making it to Junior Worlds when I was struck by a car on a training ride. I had fractures in my spine, a broken arm, ankle, and hand, and severe contusions to my face. In the ambulance, when I tearfully asked my dad about my bike, he said, “Don’t worry, I already bought you an Orbea.” He had planned to surprise me on Christmas morning. I learned to feel safe on the roads again riding that Orca. Eventually I rode it to a collegiate national medal. Last year, my season ended in a splat when my collarbone made contact with a concrete velodrome. This time, I wasn’t sure if I…

SPECIALIZED HAS NEVER been a brand to sit around waiting to see how things play out. In designing its 140mm-travel Turbo Levo e-mountain bike, the company really went for it, delivering a bike that looks and feels similar to a traditional trail bike. Prior to the Levo, the e-mountain bikes I’d ridden made it seem as though components, geometry, and suspension design took a backseat to the electric-assist motor. On the Turbo Levo, everything from its long, low, trail-focused geometry to its stellar FSR suspension is what you’d expect of a modern trail bike. Generous 2.8-inch-wide tires support the extra weight and power of an e-mountain bike, adding traction and rim protection when plowing through rocks. A clean, down tube–integrated 460Wh battery maintains close-to-normal looks, and a smartphone app allows…

INS IGHTS, IDE A S, AND INSPIR ATION FROM AL L K INDS OF R IDERS WINGING I T I didn’t really know mountain biking existed until my freshman year at the University of Colorado Boulder. I joined the team the next year, racing cross-country on a $600, 26-inch hardtail. One weekend we needed more girls for the downhill race, so I borrowed a full-suspension Yeti and said, “Let’s do it!” I had to walk a few sections, but as I sprinted through the finish line, my heart beating out of control, I was in complete awe: I’d just survived one of the craziest things I’d ever attempted. Now I’ve gone full enduro. I love catching air and flying down the mountain as fast as I can. I dream about…

T H E B E T T E R Y O U G E T , T H E M O R E F U N I T I S CLIMB! Topping out at 14,115 feet and located west of Colorado Springs, Pikes Peak is arguably the hardest road climb in Colorado: 19.5 miles with 7,175 feet of elevation gain. Roughly 10 miles are above 10,000 feet. In June 2013, my wife, Lisa, and I decided to tackle it. ¶ For six miles, the road gently rose from the mountain’s forested floor. But we kept our efforts in check. Timberline marked the halfway point, where the grade steepened. Silent suffering replaced casual chitchat. No need to waste oxygen on small talk. ¶ The final skyscraping miles were the toughest. Each…

1. Get your ass kicked. Find the hardest ride around and hang on as long as you can. 2. Sprint for town signs even if you have no chance of winning— or you’re alone. 3. Do a 200-mile week. 4. Hire a coach. 5. Or not. Try the BICYCLING Maximum Overload program to build speed and endurance. Find it at BICYCLING.com/ maxoverload. 6. Twist it up—yoga helps build stabilizing muscles and stretch out tight spots. 7. Eat right. This doesn’t mean just passing up donuts—look at the balance of everything you take in. Aim for 40 to 60 percent carbs, 20 to 30 percent fat, and 20 to 30 percent protein in your diet.8 But, seriously, have that donut sometimes. Tasty treats can be the motivation you need to push…

Sculpted quads. Gnarly scars. Bulging veins. A cyclist’s legs reflect more than hours in the saddle. Here are six head-turning pairs— and the experiences that shaped them. CHARON SMITH, 43, Signal Hill, California // 5x California State Criterium Champion // I do 10 to 15 hours a week of riding. A lot of little things light a fire in me. One year I was told by another racer that I wouldn’t win a race the following year. I actually typed that on a piece of paper: You will not win a race in 2013. I laminated it and hung it up at work. I saw that every day during the off season. I was like, I’m going to prove this guy wrong. I ended up winning the first four races…

UNTIL NOW, the closest thing to a 29er trail bike in Cannondale’s product line was its XC-oriented, 100mm-travel Scalpel. But the new Scalpel SE 2 is about to change that. Based on the frame of the original Scalpel, the SE 2 (a designation Cannondale uses across its line to identify brawnier versions of the originals) gets a bump in travel—it has 120mm up front, 115mm in the rear. To accommodate this increase, its chainstays grow by 6mm, which also raises the bottom bracket by a few millimeters too. And compared with the standard Scalpel’s relatively slack (for a crosscountry frame) 69.5-degree head angle, the SE 2’s 69-degree head angle remains almost unchanged. Though the SE’s numbers still resemble those of an XC bike—especially when compared with short-travel, long-low-slack trail bikes…