First Century on the Trice Monster
Yesterday I completed the Sweet Onion Century in Vidalia, Georgia. I had planned to ride the Bacchetta Carbon Aero, but since rain was forecast I decided that the trike was a better choice. While it rained heavily the night before the ride, so much so that the electricity went out in my motel room, there was no rain during the ride. We started just before 7 a.m. and the weather looked threatening, but as we rode throughout the day the clouds disappeared and it actually became very hot and humid about noon.
I rode along with an acquaintance, Roger Zoul, who I met on BentRiderOnline. Roger is relatively new to recumbent cycling and he was aiming for his first full Century. We had a very pleasant time riding together. Roger rides a RANS Stratus dual 26. We had a very pleasant time riding together. We were engaged in interesting conversation most of the way and were able to help each other out at certain points of the ride. I had some fender problems, which cost us some time. Additionally, we were so engaged in our discussion that we missed a turn and went 3 miles out of our way. In all, that missed turn cost us about half an hour of time. Together with the fender issues, our finishing time was rather slow. Nevertheless, I did prove that riding a trike on a Century is a very pleasant experience.
Except for my perennial hotfoot problems and the heat in the afternoon, I was completely comfortable during the entire ride. I do lose a little speed on the trike, but if speed is not a major issue, riding long distances this way has some real advantages. Not having to unclip at stops, not having to be concerned about balance during climbing and being very fast and stable on descents offset some of the loss of pure speed.
I wish I could find a way to solve the hotfoot problems, which significantly detract from my comfort and speed during the latter parts of a long ride on a hot day. At the end of the ride, we were talking to two female riders who told Roger and me that they now ride without cycling socks and that seems to alleviate their problems with sore feet.
One of the really nice parts about this ride or the rest stops. Although we did not stop at every one, the people who staffed the rest stops were very pleasant. Our last rest stop was staffed by a Girl Scout troop and they were very attentive. My trike attracts a lot of attention, especially among children. At the end, as people were winding down, a couple of the race organizers took my trike for a spin around the parking lot.
If I ever do brevets in the future, trikes maybe the best way to go.
Sunday, May 06, 2007
Tuesday, May 01, 2007
1500 Miles on the Carbon Aero
I will cross the 1500 mile mark on my Carbon Aero this week, so I thought I would update my impressions. First of all, I am very sad that the production of the Ti Aero has been suspended. That bike is a classic and hope we will see it back at some point. But, thanks to Bacchetta for bringing us the Carbon Aero. Without this wonderful bike, I would be sadly Aeroless.
Thus far, I am hard-pressed to find any significant flaws in this bike. I have had to fiddle a bit with the carbon seat to put extra padding in just the correct places to avoid "hot spots" on my tush. But, in fairness, the seat has an excellent pad and I am, for the most part, very comfortable on either short or long rides.
There have been some challenges getting sufficient carrying capacity. I like the Larry Graham headrest alot, especially for longer rides. The price I pay is that the Bacchetta Brainbox will not fit over the back of the seat, unless I fiddle with the seams of the bag, which I have not yet done. So I use a very good, but more limited capacity OFA bag. Since bladders are my preferred hydration approach, and I stuff a 70 oz bladder in the OFA, there isn't much more room to carry stuff. Now, I try to carry limited stuff because the bike is very light, and I want to keep it that way, but still I use tubulars and must carry at least one extra tire, two on Centuries and beyond. Unfortunately, my beloved FastBackSystem Norback will not fit over the belly that protrudes down from the main tube. The velcro holders are not long enough to fit around the belly. I have temporarily solved the problem with a plastic tie and can carry extra gear in the Norbak. Mike - we need a Norbak for the Carbon Aero!
Now that I am back in hill/mountain country and gone from the Florida flats, I have been able to test out the CA on hills. On my usual training ride around Stone Mountain Park there are plenty of short and longish steep climbs. The CA is a great climber with its stiff frame. I have Q-Rings on my FSA Carbon crank and the lowest chainring is a 30. The chainline on the CA prevents a 34tooth cog on the rear so my lowest in the back is 32. Rotor Cranks (Howie) claims, as I understand it, that given the extra climbing power provided by the Q-Rings a 30 works like a standard round 26 chainring. Thus far, I would say he is correct. I have plenty of low gear even for longish climbs in the 12 - 16 percent grade range. I have never gone Granny-Granny and think I can handle much steeper ascents with my current gearing. On my previous bikes I have used 53-39-26 and 11-34 in the back for Atlanta terrain. I am not a strong climber, and the CA gives me an extra mechanical advantage that I need.
I have also been pleased with the versatility of the bike. It goes anywhere --no problems at all in heavy Atlanta traffic. As a matter of fact, I feel very much in control on this bike, even at very low bumper-to-bumper speeds. I still do struggle a bit getting started when I get caught at a stop going uphill. Thanks to Terracycle mounts I can mount lights on derailleur post and off the back of my headrest, so I am also good to go at night. I haven't yet given the CA a good run on rough roads yet, but I am not expecting any surprises.
One bit of advice to other CA owners....check the torque on the seat bolts regularly. I carry my bike around in a pickup truck and the seat bolts gradually loosen over time due to the vibration. I tighten them before every 4th or 5th ride and they always need an extra 1/2 turn or so. The seat likes these bolts to be tight. I assume this is an issue with the Ti Aero as well.
I am hoping that Bacchetta can pick up production of the Carbon Aero, bring down the price, and get as many out there as its late Ti Aero brother. This is a great bike for performance-oriented riders to enjoy. I am looking foward to Bicycle Ride Across Georgia on the CA this year.
I will cross the 1500 mile mark on my Carbon Aero this week, so I thought I would update my impressions. First of all, I am very sad that the production of the Ti Aero has been suspended. That bike is a classic and hope we will see it back at some point. But, thanks to Bacchetta for bringing us the Carbon Aero. Without this wonderful bike, I would be sadly Aeroless.
Thus far, I am hard-pressed to find any significant flaws in this bike. I have had to fiddle a bit with the carbon seat to put extra padding in just the correct places to avoid "hot spots" on my tush. But, in fairness, the seat has an excellent pad and I am, for the most part, very comfortable on either short or long rides.
There have been some challenges getting sufficient carrying capacity. I like the Larry Graham headrest alot, especially for longer rides. The price I pay is that the Bacchetta Brainbox will not fit over the back of the seat, unless I fiddle with the seams of the bag, which I have not yet done. So I use a very good, but more limited capacity OFA bag. Since bladders are my preferred hydration approach, and I stuff a 70 oz bladder in the OFA, there isn't much more room to carry stuff. Now, I try to carry limited stuff because the bike is very light, and I want to keep it that way, but still I use tubulars and must carry at least one extra tire, two on Centuries and beyond. Unfortunately, my beloved FastBackSystem Norback will not fit over the belly that protrudes down from the main tube. The velcro holders are not long enough to fit around the belly. I have temporarily solved the problem with a plastic tie and can carry extra gear in the Norbak. Mike - we need a Norbak for the Carbon Aero!
Now that I am back in hill/mountain country and gone from the Florida flats, I have been able to test out the CA on hills. On my usual training ride around Stone Mountain Park there are plenty of short and longish steep climbs. The CA is a great climber with its stiff frame. I have Q-Rings on my FSA Carbon crank and the lowest chainring is a 30. The chainline on the CA prevents a 34tooth cog on the rear so my lowest in the back is 32. Rotor Cranks (Howie) claims, as I understand it, that given the extra climbing power provided by the Q-Rings a 30 works like a standard round 26 chainring. Thus far, I would say he is correct. I have plenty of low gear even for longish climbs in the 12 - 16 percent grade range. I have never gone Granny-Granny and think I can handle much steeper ascents with my current gearing. On my previous bikes I have used 53-39-26 and 11-34 in the back for Atlanta terrain. I am not a strong climber, and the CA gives me an extra mechanical advantage that I need.
I have also been pleased with the versatility of the bike. It goes anywhere --no problems at all in heavy Atlanta traffic. As a matter of fact, I feel very much in control on this bike, even at very low bumper-to-bumper speeds. I still do struggle a bit getting started when I get caught at a stop going uphill. Thanks to Terracycle mounts I can mount lights on derailleur post and off the back of my headrest, so I am also good to go at night. I haven't yet given the CA a good run on rough roads yet, but I am not expecting any surprises.
One bit of advice to other CA owners....check the torque on the seat bolts regularly. I carry my bike around in a pickup truck and the seat bolts gradually loosen over time due to the vibration. I tighten them before every 4th or 5th ride and they always need an extra 1/2 turn or so. The seat likes these bolts to be tight. I assume this is an issue with the Ti Aero as well.
I am hoping that Bacchetta can pick up production of the Carbon Aero, bring down the price, and get as many out there as its late Ti Aero brother. This is a great bike for performance-oriented riders to enjoy. I am looking foward to Bicycle Ride Across Georgia on the CA this year.
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