haha - what the what?? I think Fredrik had it right!!
I'm talking about tubeless MTB tires... There are patch kits for the tires, basically this sticky goop on a thread, and you run it through the patch, and it just blocks the hole......
I'm off tubular tires. I've got one left on a trispoke on my track bike, and am looking for a clincher to replace it with. ;)
Still waiting for that patch kit, fyi, riding a tube in the rear right now...which is fine, as it's dry and i'm going with a higher pressure anyway. Will *have* to switch back for the fall.... And i'm very keen to see some tubeless cyclocross tires....holy crap that'd be awesome. Hutchinson has some, but they're heavy and not a favorable tread...i want my Mudd2's!
Catching up on the week:
May 3 - 1.5hrs MTB at Cobble Hill, preriding the race course a bit more.
May 4 - rest, with a little time on the MTB, helping with teaching an elementary school MTB program, grades 1-5..yuck.
May 5 - same, different school.
May 6 - 1.25hr MTB - holy rain!!!!! I was riding up freaking rivers!
May 7 - rest
May 8 - rest (seems like a lot of rest, but saving it for..)
May 9 - OBB Crit - finished 10th! See below
May 10 - Cobble Hill MTB Race, finished 6th, more below too.
Crit
My most favorite crit course, around Windsor Park, just a few blocks from my house. Pancake flat, five corners, although only two are any trouble...
Raced A of course, expecting to get shelled. Fast riders, including a few local pros. Teammate Emile was there. Nearly 20 started, although four were B's (their raced ended with a big crash, guy with broken pelvis.)
Race was about 30mins, averaged nearly 43kph, which was the fastest i've seen on that course. Hit nearly 57kph at one point. It was pretty steady, although some riders weren't very good crit riders, braking in the corners (and not using the whole road!!!) I eventually stopped following those wheels, and went wider than them, and it smoothed it out for myself..
I was on the rivet most of the time, close to my red line, didn't take any pulls, mainly sitting quietly on the back or middle. Since i haven't done a race like this, just wanted to see where i was sitting...was pleasantly surprised! Sprint was pretty lacklustre, but hey, i was in with the bunch. =)
See below for pics.
Cobble Hill MTB
Holy hills!!! This course was mostly uphill!! Something like 650m of elevation over two laps (is that a lot?) Lots of singletrack, but almost none of it downhill, ended up on fireroads for the few descents, so it was over FAST. Definitely a climbers race.
Start was pretty awesome... Chris D took off like a bat out of hell, i was positioned in 3rd, another fellow chasing Chris. It went uphill right off the top, btw. I settled into a steady chase, and caught the chaser, and kept Chris in view... Climb was over in a few mins (steep too), and i was on singletrack...kept the pace up, actually had a gap on the pack, and was feeling alright.
Note about Chris: his bike (Salsa Mamasita) weighs 21lbs, and he is under 145lbs. Compare that to my 29lbs and 162lbs. Uh-huh..steep is not my friend. Him and his bike barely weigh as much as me biff naked!!
It leveled out a bit, and some guys were catching on me...i made them chase, and then hit the next section of climbing, they tagged on my wheel.... I kept the pace up for a few more mins, but then four guys slid by me... I watched them climb away...
Maintained my pace, only one other guy got by me. Never saw any of them again!
Funny story with my pal Roland - as i was on the final stretch of climbing on the singletrack, Roland caught up to me just as i hit the top, this big ugly rock we had to get off the bikes for...then it was downhill, and i dropped him quick, and started catching slower Expert riders (i ride Intermediate).
Same thing the next climb....about 2/3rds up, Rollie is 50m back!! Arrgh!! I gunned it in a desperate effort to stay ahead....it was wider trail at that point, but still plenty steep....he kept gaining on me... It flattens out for a bit, and i picked up good speed there, and then into the worst section, more steep and technical uphill singletrack...somehow he's a couple meters back when i hit the top!!! Luckily i'm still in front as we clamber over the rock, and i bid him farewell. =)
I think i beat Rollie by a few mins, and was about 4mins behind Chris who won...ouch. First lap was about 35mins, second was about 34.
Here's his GPS of the course:
http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/epis ... ue=8190526
Fun times!
For the crit, here's my PowerTap output:
http://picasaweb.google.com/davenoisy1/ ... 0971693106
And below are some photos, i posted this in another thread:
A'ight, raced a crit on Sat, here's a few shots:
Teammate Emile in the front, be behind. Emile ended up taking an impressive 2nd, i finished with the pack in 10th, which i'm pretty darn happy about as i haven't raced on the road this year, nor done any intensity, and this was a pretty fast race, averaging nearly 43kph over 30mins...fastest i've ever seen on that course.
Me beside Matt Dawes. Noting because he's one of the biggest regular racers, and this 'skinny vegan' is pretty close in size. ;)
Yay! I survived!