Quick training update and Tour Divide Gear Preview - Bike and Bags

Things have been less than active here lately. Apologies, there's plenty to write about but not a lot of time to write about it. Getting prepared for the 2015 Tour Divide is taking up most of my time outside of work, which has left me a bit of time for my family and even less time to write. Honestly, reading about the prep would bore most people. Figure 18 - 25 hours on the bike per week, with some weeks being more. I started adding in 24 - 48 hour riding/camping trips last fall and this spring as long as the temps were in the upper 20s or higher. Winter involved a lot of trainer time doing intervals of various intensities and lengths, with an eye on strength and endurance. This meant a lot of big ring, high power/low RPM stuff on a road bike to simulate climbs or riding into headwinds. If you want the boring details, friend me on Strava and you can see every workout/ride I've been doing for the last 18 months. I'd be happy to discuss if anyone is really interested.

I am going to write up a series of short posts describing my bike and equipment over the remaining few weeks before the race. Everything is pretty much sorted now, other than some minor things. Today I'm going to start off with my bike and bags.

Bike - 2014 Salsa Fargo (size L) w following modifications

• Stages X9 power meter crankarm
• SRAM 39/26 chain rings
• Ashima 180mm front/rear rotors
• Avid Sintered metal brake pads
• Salsa Regulator Ti seatpost w 25mm offset
• Brooks Cambium C17 carved seat
• Specialized Roval Control SL 29 carbon rims
• Continental Race King 2.2 tires (tubeless)
• SP PD8-X dyno hub
• Profile aero bars

This is pretty much a classic Tour Divide rig any more. I had a lot of miles on both a Gen 1 and a Gen 2 steel Fargo and found it to be a really comfortable, stable bike. TD was a good excuse to upgrade to the Ti model. A week riding the GDMBR in late July led me to adjust the rings down from the stock 40/28 pairing. It will force me to spin and give me a lower low, which I wanted at the end of the week. The Stages crank arm was bought mainly for training purposes, but being able to glance down at my power on occasion will help me more accurately regulate my pedaling effort during the race. The larger rotors are a bit of insurance for descents, with both them and the pads being utilized for less fade and better wear in bad conditions. 

The Regulator post and Brooks saddle are there for additional comfort and because they can take a beating. I love the independent adjustments for the seat angle and fore/aft on the Regulator. It's made getting the seat dialed in a lot easier. The Cambium is the 4th saddle I've had on this bike and it's finally one that doesn't cause any chafing or other issues on my backside. I went with it over a traditional leather Brooks for durability in wet/muddy conditions. 

I've had the Roval rims for well over 2 years now, but they were purchased with the race in mind. The Race King tires roll fairly fast and set up tubeless easily. I went with the Black Chili Compound and ProTection casing options. The SP hub is one of only two thru-axle dyno hubs on the market right now. It's almost half the price of the Schmidt and has proven itself to be mostly durable. The first hub I purchased was sent back for replacement under warranty after it quit putting out the appropriate amount of power. I was told that some of the first hubs had some issues, which is what I hope was the cause of the issue. The Profile aero bars are a must for any distance event IMO. They allow me to stretch my back, get some weight off of my hands, as well as give me a few more places to mount lights, etc. 

Bags

• Porcelain Rocket cuben fiber frame bag
• Porcelain Rocket Mr. Fusion cuben fiber seat bag
• Porcelain Rocket MCA handlebar system w cuben pouch
• Revelate Designs Feedbags (x 2)
• Revelate Designs Jerry Can
• Blackburn Design Outpost top tube bag
• Adventure Cycling map case
• Aloksaks

I've been buying bags from Scott at Porcelain Rocket since I first started getting into the bikepacking thing a few years ago. He will do fully custom bags and has taken a lot of cool trips himself, so he has good ideas on what works and what doesn't. I went with cuben to save a few ounces and because I like the way it looks. The frame bag has a vertical pocket along the seat tube that was originally going to hold a bladder. After living with it for a week on the GDMBR in July, I decided to move the bladder to the main pocket and use the vertical pocket to hold tubes, rags, my water filter, and other smaller, less frequently accessed items. The full length slender pocket on the right hand side holds anything small or flat (maps, pump, wallet/phone, etc)

I upgraded from my stock PR Booster Rocket seatpack to the Mr. Fusion so that I could quickly remove my gear from the bike and put it back again in the morning. My seat bag has most of my on and off bike clothing in it. Being able to quickly throw the entire bag into the bivy in case of bad weather was important to me. Being able to put it back on the bike without fighting seat mounting straps was just as important. I've been super happy with this decision as it has taken a decent amount of frustration out of camp prep and packing.

I had been using an older Revelate sling for quite a while, and while it worked, there were a number of things about it that made it a pain to use on my setup, mostly having to do with the strap locations and their stability. I sent Scott some photos of my cockpit area, marked up with some measurements and he custom sewed a MCA system just for me. The straps are a lot easier to tighten down since they don't interfere with the aero bars, and they don't slip. The front pocket has some extra loops on the outside and a divider on the inside, so I can quickly find my spot tracker or some pop tarts among all of the cliff bars and other food I keep in there. The MCA is home to an Outdoor Research 13L Event compression drybag that holds my sleeping system. I've been really happy with the MCA thus far. Everything sits solidly in place and the straps don't slip.

With the feedbags, one is currently tasked with holding charger cables, an external cache battery, my charging circuit and spare batteries. I'll go into the whole electronics/lighting thing in another post. The second bag is currently empty but has been used to hold a bluetooth speaker, food, trash, bottles of soda, and beer. The small mesh pockets on the outside hold bug spray, sunscreen, electrolyte drops, etc.

The Jerry Can is a good portion of my tool box. It holds a lot more stuff than I originally thought it would. Some of that is due to design and some of it is due to good packing skills. The Blackburn Outpost bag was purchased as a replacement for my Revelate Gas Can. It has a mesh pocket on top, and a couple of extra pockets on the outside. I haven't had any ride time with it yet, but that will be taken care of soon. Right now, this bag is mainly home to my camera. I'm not sure what I will put in the smaller side pockets, but I'm sure I will find something. The map case will be home to my cue sheets (if I decide to use them), along with some note sheets regarding resupply points, etc. The Aloksaks will be used to keep my phone, wallet, passport, and some other items dry when they are being stored. 

Feel free to ask questions in the comments section and I'll do my best to reply. 

Long weekend w friends

Two short weeks after the Alexander, I met up with my partners in crime, Taylor, Kyle and Rick for what has become an annual ride for Kyle - The Great Memorial Gravel Ride to Cedar Rapids. Since this ended in familiar territory and I had to be in Waterloo that weekend for a family event, a plan was hatched - Ride to CR on Friday with "The Group" and then ride the Cedar Valley Nature Trail end to end on Saturday, finishing at my inlaws' house east of Waterloo.

I rolled out of the house at 4:30 Friday AM to meet the rest of the group on the Neal Smith Trail. From there we rolled pavement and gravel north at a fairly stupid pace until we turned east onto the Heart of Iowa Nature Trail and settled into something a bit more sustainable. Our route was a bit more seat of the pants than I would have liked for a ride of this length, but I opted to relax and enjoy the day with friends. We took a break in Maxwell, and then headed back out onto the trail, which is unfortunately a bit broken up due to right of way issues that plague some older railbeds. After a brief route reset at the trail's terminus in Rhodes, IA, we worked our way onto the paved trail which parallels Hwy 330 and rode that into Marshalltown, where we took our second break of the day, with about 67 miles between us and the start.

After leaving Marshalltown, we wandered north for a fair bit, arriving in Conrad, where we grabbed an ill timed adult beverage and rested in the shade for a bit. The temps were starting to climb and, although a cold drink sounded good, it didn't really sit well in anyone's stomach. We then hopped on the limestone Comet Trail, which, despite some weather related issues carried us into Gladbrook. Rick, Taylor and I wanted to stop in Gladbrook to get something cold to drink, grab a quick bite, and refill water bottles. Kyle estimated that we were just 7 or so miles from the next town, which had a restaurant and convenience store. Since we all had water left, we opted to head east and not take a break. Leaving Gladbrook, which I've now visited three times in less than two years thanks to TransIowa, we headed out onto a hilly section of road that was used for both TIV9 as well as TIV7. Estimating your distance via a small GPS screen is difficult, even when the route is on screen. It wasn't long before we passed the 7 mile mark and wondered which hill was hiding Traer. The hills kept coming, and the heat kept building. I pushed ahead and quickly realized we were still a long way from Traer. After an extra 10 miles, I hit the edge of Traer, sat in the shade, and waited for the rest of the guys. Rick came in next, followed by Kyle and eventually Taylor, who had run out of water a while back. Neither Rick nor Taylor looked too good at this point. We rolled into Traer, found a restaurant and made some decisions. Taylor and Rick took a ride to CR with Kyle's dad, while Kyle and I opted to press on. I put 10 lbs of unneeded clothes and camping gear in the SUV, and then Kyle and I then headed east in search of fame and fortune.

About 10 miles later, we pulled into Dysart and I needed to stop and grab a drink. I had dug a bit of a nutrition hole and was having a hard time getting out of it, despite the burger, fries and cola in Traer. After a bottle of iced tea, we hopped on the limestone surfaced Old Creamery Trail and worked our way through Garrisson and then to Vinton, where we took another break due to the heat. With 135 miles or so in our legs, we were starting to feel the day's effort start to hit. Knowing that we had just a bit of gravel left to ride, we headed out to Urbana, dodging some wild driving kids in a Lumina a few too many times on our way there. We caught the Cedar Valley Nature Trail in Urbana, which took us gently downhill to Center Point, where I told Kyle that I needed a break. The hole I had dug myself was getting deeper and my stomach was starting to turn. Despite the nauseous feeling that was starting to rise up, I forced a couple of pop tarts down and told Kyle it was time to finish this up. About 2 miles outside of Center Point, the trail turns from limestone to asphalt. This was also the point where all of the food I'd eaten finally became usable and our pace picked up measurably. I could hear Kyle spinning out his one gear in my draft and then coasting for a bit. We held a solid 16 - 18 MPH pace to Hiawatha where the trailhead was located. A few more miles of wandering through NE Cedar Rapids, and we finally arrived at Kyle's childhood home with just over 170 miles behind us. We both had a highly welcome cold beer, took a shower, and then all of us sat around and ate and talked for a few hours before collapsing on air mattresses in the basement.

After a walk and a good breakfast the next morning, I loaded my Fargo back up and headed north towards Waterloo. I took a side trip to my mom's house for a short visit before making my way to Center Point, where I stopped for the best pork tenderloin I'd ever had. Afterwards, I kept a steady pace north on the limestone portion of the trail, stopping occasionally to take a photo or stretch, since I planned at riding at a touring pace and just enjoying the day. I stopped at a bar in Brandon for two much needed gin and tonics, and again in La Porte city for ice cream and some udder balm for my seat. The trail turned to pavement from here on so it was fairly easy going, other than the sight of storms brewing to the SW of me. After a quick GPS check, I rode north out of Waterloo on a county highway, working hard to stay ahead of the storms. With the rain getting closer and the wind picking up, I took a right hand turn on to the 4 miles of gravel that took me to my final destination. Unfortunately, the rock was loose and chunky and it took a good amount of effort to cover the those last 4 miles. I pulled into my in-laws' garage just as the rain hit. Another 75 miles in for the day, bringing me to 245 for the weekend.

My Salsa Fargo was once again the right ride for the job. Steady and sure on all surfaces. Fast on gravel or pavement, despite the load and the mountain bike tires.

I managed to drag the camera out on both days of the trip. Photos are all here.

S24O

Left on a S24O on Friday afternoon with a bunch of friends. Plan was to camp by the river under the High Trestle Trail bridge, cook some meat over a big bonfire and enjoy a beverage or two. Everyone met at Kyle's Bikes in Ankeny around 3 and we headed down the trail towards Madrid. A few beverage stops later and we found ourselves inside of the Flat Tire Lounge for another beverage or two. We wanted to make the camp site before it got dark, so we finished our drinks, hit the store for some grub and made our way to our camp area.

Five of us rode (or walked) the steep gnarly descent under the bridge and started our firewood gathering. Meanwhile, the sound of the chainsaw, or an eagle eye tipped off the county sheriff to our presence under the bridge. A short conversation was had and soon we were pushing our bikes up 13 stories worth of hill to find another campground. A brief rainstorm during a flat change on the way back to Madrid left me soaked since I forgot to bring a rainshell with me. :(

We called a friend's coworker who lived in town and ended up camping in his yard, rather than ride another 3 miles to the closest campground. Thankfully we made a quick side trip to a convenience store before hand. Campfire wood was soaked, so I grabbed a package of ramen and two small bags of smoked almonds. After we arrived at our "campground" I set up my tarp, bivy and bag, then proceeded to pull my  supercat stove out and make a hot Snowpeak cup of ramen while I munched on the almonds. While others in the group opted for a couple more drinks, I slipped into my sleeping bag so I could get some rest.

Sleep was mostly good, if a bit restless after 4 AM or so. About 7 AM I finally got up, cleaned my cup out, and fired up the stove and made a cup of coffee after crawling back in my bag. We broke camp steadily, if slowly, then pedaled downtown for breakfast before heading back down the trail for the 90 minute ride home.

Some miscellaneous thoughts:

• I brought both my tarp/bivy setup and my hammock to sleep in, not being completely sure of how the area below the bridge would be for bivy setup. I ended up not using it, and carrying a couple of extra pounds for no reason. 
• The tarp/bivy combination worked out fairly well. I was dry and warm the entire night. Running my tyvek ground cloth through the washer, as suggested on Bikepacking.net, really helped to soften it up and make it a lot less noisy. The poles I took were hard to pack, and I had some issues with the grommet slipping down overnight since the tarp I'm using isn't really designed to be used in this way. I'll keep using this setup for a while before I invest in lighter, smaller poles and a lighter purpose built tarp.
• My $3 reflectix autoshade was awesome for helping keep me warm. It was the only thing between me and the ground other than the bottom of my bag and the tyvek. I think that next time I will put it inside of the bag or the bivy so that it doesn't move out from underneath me.
• Not bringing a rainshell was a completely boneheaded move. I had plenty of room in my seatpack for it so there was no excuse other than just being dumb. 
• Events of the evening reinforced my opinion that I should pack my stove, cup and fuel for any trip. Without them, I would have gone to bed colder and hungrier tan I would have liked. 
• Bike w water, food and gear was 52 lbs. Plenty of places to cut weight though. Removing the second sleep setup, cans of beer and the flask of whiskey will help a lot. 

TransWisconsin

I'm in the final stages of prep for The TransWisconsin. After what I can only describe as a complete blast to my physical systems and psyche in Kansas two weeks ago, I was really close to withdrawing from this event. After taking some time to reset myself, I decided that not going would be the worst thing I could do. So here I am, feeling less prepared than I want to, but ready to take on the challenge of 620 miles of Wisconsin's finest gravel roads and single track. My Salsa Fargo will be my home for the journey. I have a complete multipurpose sleeping system compressed into a sub 5 lb waterproof bundle and everything else that I need will either be in my Ergon BC3 backpack or my Jannd frame bag. Food will be gathered along the way and cooked at night, or eaten in whatever restaurant/gas station/farm we can find food at. I'm still working through some last minute issues, but I'm hoping to pull both the front and rear Nice Racks off to drop a few pounds of of the bike. Fenders are staying on. I'd kill for one of the soon to be released Salsa Minimalist racks right now, but they're not in the cards until fall. I do know that I'm looking forward to a few days on the bike to clear my head out. Plan is to pedal, eat, sleep, and fill up the memory card on the camera.

Getting closer

Bike is getting closer to being ready. I should have my Thomson setback post in the next day or so and the construction will be complete. Still up in the air on the rack. If I can snag an Ergon BC2 or BC3 yet this week, the rack will stay home. I've double wrapped the drops in order to try and keep hand fatigue at bay. I also moved the hoods down a bit further on the drops so the brakes are easier to reach. Here's hoping the body is ready for what is gonna be thrown at it in a few days.

Go Far

Finally done

Build list

A very special La Cruz frame
Avid BB7 w 160mm rotors
Salsa Semi 29er Disc rims w Chris King hubs
Shimano Dura Ace rear mech (from parts bin)
Shimano Ultegra front mech (from parts bin)
Stronglight Pulsion carbon crank (from parts bin)
FSA Platinum Pro Ti BB (from parts bin)
Chris King solto voce headset
Thomson Elite seatpost
Specialized Rival SL seat
Specialized bars and stem
Shimano 105 brifters
Schwalbe Marathon Extreme 40mm tires (not pictured)

I haven't weighed it yet. Might see if I can track a scale down over the next day or two.

After a short ride last night, my initial impressions of the bike are positive. The BB7 brakes will take a couple of rides to get bedded in. My biggest disappointment is the Shimano brifters. After using the Campagnolo Chorus on my Paramount, the 105s feel like a large step backward in terms of refinement. The front shifting mechanism feels fairly clunky and unrefined, and I really miss the micro-adjustment. I went with the Shimanos to avoid having to use a JTEK shiftmate hanging off the back. I guess there is something to be said for Italian design after all.

I'll be riding it a lot this next week so I can get my fit dialed in for the Almanzo 100 next weekend. Hopefully the Marathon tires show up early next week so I can get them installed before the race.

Experiments

Been thinking more about this Fargo, and the whole adventure bike/monster cross thing. I had some time after coming home from the IMBCS time trial, and went to work in the garage.



The 2.1" WTB NanoRaptors are SO close to fitting that it's not even funny. Plenty of (well, enough) clearance in the front, and a slight bit of rubbing on the chainstays due to the side knobs. Even if I file them off, it's gonna be pretty tight. I'm going to try and track down some 1.8" tires this week and mount them up and see how it goes. If I can get them to fit, I'll break the setup on the double gravel century this weekend.

Tempting...

I have been thinking about the "perfect" gravel bike lately. My Karate Monkey is nice in that the large tires allow me to float over a lot of things that I've seen people with cross bikes have some difficulty with. However, on a long ride, the straight bars don't really help with the comfort, like the drop bars on my LHT. Putting something like On-One's Midge or a Titec H-Bar on the KM means that it's going to not be that great for XC racing. I have noticed some people putting larger tires on the LHT for a "monster cross" type approach. Some tires fit well, and others have clearance issues. My LHT is really set up for touring with the fenders and the racks, so removing all of that once or twice per month for a gravel grinder is a lot of work. I'm also not that happy with the brakes on the LHT, and disks are not really an option. So we're back to the cross bike again. Decent tire clearance, but not as much as the KM. I might have something good coming with the Salsa Fargo:



Disk brakes: check
big tire capable: check (up to 2.3" possibly)
drop bars: check
full rack mounts: check
water bottle holders: SIX

This is an adventuring bike in the same spirit as Thorn's eXp and Sherpa or one of the Kogi-Miyata adventuring bikes, but built around a 700c wheel. The full bike is spec'd pretty nicely, and it will also be available as a frame only for build up. I haven't ridden a sloping top tube bike before and I'm curious if there's any difference in feel vs a standard horizontal tube. I can see running the Fargo with either drops or an H-bar and just setting out for a really long day of riding back roads and single track. With a skinnier set of tires (38mm), it may make a reasonable road touring bike too. Looks like I'm going to have some thinking to do in the next few months. Not completely sure that I would give my Long Haul Trucker up for the Fargo, but the braking on my LHT is currently one of its weakest points.