I decided to build a new set of wheels for the Xstream. The only wheels I have for it are a set of heavy, bombproof commuting wheels and a set of HED aero wheels. Since I’m no longer commuting, I’ve been wanting something nicer and lighter than the commuting wheels. And the HED aero wheels are a bit too much in crosswinds for every day riding. Both those sets of wheels are 559 wheels. The Xstream can use either 650C (571) or 559 wheels, but I want to stay with 559 wheels on it so I can run a wider tire on the rear wheel.

I always scratch my head as I read Randy Schlitter’s writings about how bone jarring the ride of a high racer is, compared to that of a long wheelbase bike. I’ve always found exactly the opposite to be true. A high racer has a better balance of weight ratio between the front and rear tires, and with a very reclined euro style seat like that on my Corsa, my own weight is spread out all along my back. A 650c x 23 tire gives a passable ride on the Corsa.

On the other hand, with my Xstream, Stratus XP, Nimbus, and every other long wheelbase bike I’ve ridden, almost all of my weight is on the rear tire, and with a more upright seat, almost all of my own weight is on my behind. A 23mm wide tire just gives an unacceptable ride. Even a 25mm tire rides too harsh to suit me. On my Xstream, I want at least a 28 mm wide tire on the rear wheel. I have two sets of Conti Grand Prix tires that still have some miles left on them. One set is 28mm wide and the other is 25mm. I’m designating them as two sets of tires for the Xstream, but with the 28’s as rear tires and the 25’s as front tires.

I decided on Velocity A23 rims for the wheelset. These are performance road rims, but they’re one of the new generation of slightly wider road rims, so I figured they’d be perfect for 25mm and 28mm tires. They’re also one of the few performance road rims made in the 559 size. I bought a 28 spoke rim for the rear and a 24 spoke rim for the front. This is a combination that’s worked well for me for years on the Corsa. I bought Sapim CX Ray spokes and Rotaz road hubs for the wheelset.

I went with the standard 3 cross lacing for the spokes on the rear wheel. I have over 13,000 miles on a wheel with this same spoke count and lacing on the Corsa. The Xstream is more heavily loaded on the rear wheel, but running a wider tire, I’m hoping the same setup will hold up well on it, too. I considered radial spoke lacing on the front wheel. The 13,000 mile wheel on the front of the Corsa has this lacing, and it’s a more heavily loaded wheel than the front wheel on the Xstream. I’m not sure the Rotaz hubs are as strong as the Velocity hubs on the Corsa, though, so I decided to just go with a 2 cross lacing on the front wheel. With 3 cross on the rear and 2 cross on the front, all of the spokes ended up being the same length, 264mm.

I finished building the wheels Monday evening. I loved everything about the wheels right up until the minute I started mounting tires on them. I’d never owned a Velocity rim that was hard to mount a tire on before. That statement is no longer true. Even with Velo Plugs in the rims rather than rim tape, there’s no way I could have mounted either tire on these rims without my VAR tire lever. I’ll be carrying that bead jack on the Xstream as long as I run these wheels. I was thinking I’d eventually run Conti Gatorskins on these wheels, but there may be no way to mount them. I have a used one I’ll try mounting just as a test before I consider buying new ones for the Xstream.

I’ve done two rides on the new wheels, 25 miles yesterday afternoon and 25 miles this afternoon. They do ride nicer than the commuting wheels. I think I’m going to love them, except for flat changing time.

All the parts (except for the Velo Plugs – I robbed them from an old wheelset later).

Just built.

Front wheel with 25mm Conti Grand Prix tire.

Rear wheel with 28mm Conti Grand Prix tire.

Ready to go.

I joined 12 other riders and took off from Italy at 7:30 this morning and rode the Jailhouse 216k route. It reached 82 degrees this afternoon, a very warm December day, but I hesitate to call it a beautiful day, because the wind gusts of over 30 mph made it a brutal ride.

This route heads southwest out of Italy (directly into today’s wind), and goes to Valley Mills, then takes the same route back. I fell off the back of the faster group fairly quickly and ended up joining Daniel Schaaf for most of the ride out to Valley Mills. It took us five and a half hours to reach the half way point. I had a 13.0 mph average at that point. That gives a good idea just how tough the wind was.

I rode with Vickie Tyer much of the ride back to the next control at mile 102. I started fading at around mile 90 and watched Vickie disappear into the distance ahead of me. This was the first time I’ve ridden with Vickie since she got her recumbent. Riding that stretch with her, I realized something I hadn’t noticed before. She doesn’t hammer the hills, but doesn’t let up on the downhills either. She rides with a more consistent effort than anyone else I’ve ever ridden with. That probably goes a long way in explaining how she does so well on really long rides.

By the time I reached the control at mile 102, I was completely wiped out. I think the big effort against the wind had caught up with me. So much of this route is now boulder seal road that my toes were killing me, and I spent too much time thinking about that and stopped drinking my maltodextrin drink. As I sat at that control, I honestly didn’t think I could finish the ride, but after ingesting sugar, maltodextrin, and salt, followed by some slower riding, I started feeling better before the end of the ride. I followed Stephen, Sharon, Steve, and Debbie, who were on two tandems, the rest of the way in.

My shoulder felt better on this ride, but I’ve done too few long distance rides this year, and fading at the end of this one was another reminder of that. But I needed the miles to have any chance of making my mileage goal this year, and managed to finish the ride, so I’m calling it a good day. As always, I enjoyed the company along the way. I ended up with 135 miles even.

The Jailhouse 216k route.

I hadn’t been on a bike since last Saturday. I’ve been so busy with the contract work I’ve been doing, job interviews, drug testing (when did recruiters start doing drug tests right in their offices?), and everything else, that I just haven’t had time to ride. My mileage goals for the month as well as my mileage goals for the year are circling the drain.

But it was a beautiful morning this morning, so I took off on the Corsa, rode through Burleson, then headed for quiet Johnson County roads. The ride wasn’t without its challenges. The dogs seemed especially aggressive this morning. I punched one on the nose twice, and got wobbled for a second by another when he hit the back of my bike and got his foot run over. I also got pinch flats on both tires when I hit a railroad track that was suddenly much rougher than I’ve ever seen it.

But it was still a great ride. It was so nice to be out riding in shorts and short sleeves on Thanksgiving Day; that doesn’t happen most years. I ended up with 59.4 miles. Now, it’s time to gather with family and eat much more than I should. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

This morning’s route.

I drove to Rio Vista this morning and joined the FWBA River View club ride. The 70 mile route goes from Rio Vista past Hamm Creek Park, passes very near the Brazos River at Painted Rock (with some great river views!), crosses the Brazos at Brazos Point, then heads on to Glen Rose. It returns by way of Nemo and Cleburne State Park. There were some modifications to the route for today’s ride because of road construction.

I fell in with a group of seven other riders doing the 70 mile route. I’m recovering from a serious cold, sinus infection, or whatever you want to call it, so I wasn’t too sure how well I would ride. But I know these roads well enough that I wasn’t worried about getting dropped. I did better than I expected, only falling back from the group on long hills, and catching up soon afterward.

I chatted with fellow rbent member Frank, who was on his P-38, for a few moments as I rode through Glen Rose. Nice meeting you, Frank! It was pretty chilly this morning, but turned into a beautiful afternoon. The reasonable pace and numerous stops suited me, since I was thinking I’d better not overdo things while recovering from being sick. I felt good at the end. Even my shoulder held up better than it has been on rides of this distance. It’s slowly healing. I ended up with 74 miles even.

FWBA River View modified route.

I haven’t made as many entries in my blog as usual this year. With my cratered left shoulder, I just haven’t done anywhere near as many long distance rides. Riding recumbent bikes as I do, I was able to keep riding with my shoulder, but even with comfortable bikes that put no pressure on it, the road vibration, and keeping my arm in one position for so long, made the long distance rides really tough. I was in a world of hurt at the end of each one this year.

I stayed busier than usual on weekends, so there weren’t a lot of club rides, either. Most of my miles so far this year have come on weekday rides. Many have just been little rides from home (Rose and I have already put 1,500 miles on the RANS Screamer tandem I bought in March). But I’ve also done a lot of Tuesday and Thursday FWBA (Fort Worth Bicycling Association) club rides that I haven’t bothered to post about.

Since April, more Tuesdays than not, I’ve ridden the FWBA Rusty Chain Gang Ramble. This ride starts at the City of Fort Worth building on Columbus Trail in south Fort Worth. This is only six and a half miles from home, so I’ve always just ridden to the start. I usually end up with forty something miles.

On Thursdays, I’ve been doing the FWBA Burleson & Beyond club ride. This ride starts in old downtown Burleson, again about six and a half miles from home, so I’ve just ridden to the start of this ride, too. I end up with between 50 and 66 miles on this ride.

The Rusty Chain Gang is a group of older riders within FWBA, but their Tuesday ride attracts riders of all ages. There are fast riders on both of these rides, but there are more who ride an easier pace, especially on the Tuesday rides, so I have no trouble keeping up on either ride. It is a core of really nice people who do these rides, and I have to say that I have really enjoyed being around them these past months.

More often than not, I’m ahead of the main group on each ride, chasing the fast riders (but usually not catching and keeping up with them), but I also do an easier pace some days, and just enjoy the company. Even on days when I’m not in the middle of the group a lot, these rides make lots of stops, so there is plenty of time for chatting and visiting during stops.

I’ve always ridden the Corsa on these rides, but today, for the first time, I rode the Xstream. It was a chilly morning, so the Xstream’s fairing looked appealing, so I just took off on it. I’ve known for a long time that I’m slower on the Xstream than Corsa, but there are plenty of easy pace riders on these Tuesday rides, so I figured I’d still be able to keep up with most. I enjoyed today’s ride a lot, and surprisingly, got a better comparison of the Corsa and Xstream speed than I ever have.

I hadn’t thought about it, but when you spend months and months doing the same rides with the same riders, you learn your capabilities, as compared to them, very well. I know which riders I can keep up with on a hill, and which ones will drop me. I know which ones pedal on downhills, which lets me coast along without passing them, and which ones sit up and thus make me get around them. I know when I’m having a strong day, and when I’m struggling.

So, today’s ride became the best comparison I’ve ever had between the Corsa and Xstream. First, I was a bit surprised to learn that the Xstream seems to be really close to the same speed as the Corsa on downhills and flats. I didn’t think it was that fast. That fairing does make a difference. The big difference in the bikes though, came on the climbs. The Xstream, rigged for commuting with its fairing, rear rack and Aero Trunk, and heavy wheels, is a much heavier bike than the Corsa, and was understandably much slower on the hills. I wasn’t able to keep up with nearly as many climbers as usual. But, once on the flats or downhills, I seemed to catch up just as quickly as on the Corsa.

Since I haven’t commuted since February, this has me thinking about making the Xstream as light as I can (except for the fairing, which I love in the winter), and seeing what it will do. I start a new job next week, so my days of doing these Tuesday and Thursday club rides is at an end, and I probably won’t get to compare the lighter Xstream on either of the club rides I know best, but it still sounds like a fun undertaking. The new job is field service work, so there will be no commuting to work on the bike.

Below are maps of the usual routes of the Tuesday and Thursday rides. They do vary a bit from week to week. For example, Last Thursday’s ride was a bit shorter than usual, due to an approaching cold front. Also below is a comparison from my Garmin of today’s ride on the Xstream, and last Tuesday’s ride on the Corsa. My average speed was almost the same, but last Tuesday was a much tougher day, with the wind really howling, and my average heart rate was still a bit higher on the Xstream today. There was a mile difference in the distance, but most stats were pretty close.

Today’s Rusty Chain Gang Ramble route.

Last Thursday’s Burleson & Beyond route.

I had a physical therapy appointment for my shoulder rehab this morning, so I didn’t get to join the Rusty Chain Gang Ramble club ride like I’ve been doing on most Tuesdays lately. But, after I got home from PT, I took off on the Corsa and headed for a spot southeast of Joshua where I’d ridden on last Thursday’s Burleson & Beyond club ride. At this particular spot was a big cluster of wild grapes growing on a fence. I decided it was time to pick some wild grapes.

Ever since I added the Fastback Double Century bag setup to the Corsa (to move the Camelbak Unbottle to the right side, where my good shoulder is), I’ve been doing most rides without the Radical seat bag I always used. I just put some essential stuff in the right side Fastback bag, and don’t use the bigger Radical seat bag unless I’m doing a randonneuring ride where I want to carry a spare tire, more tools, etc.

But, today I put the Radical bag on the bike, and tossed in a couple of wally world plastic bags to fill with grapes. I ended up stopping at a spot before the one where I’d seen all the grapes the other day. It seems that the area just east of Joshua is a good one for wild grapes. In less than 10 minutes, I had filled a plastic bag so full of grapes that I had a tough time getting it in the seat bag (remind me to take the Xstream, with its huge Aerotrunk bag, on my next grape picking ride).

I’m a novice at picking wild grapes, and didn’t realize that the prime time for picking them has already passed. Some of the grapes were already starting to wither, but there were still plenty of good ones. I’m just as big a novice at making grape jelly, so we’ll see how that goes. I ended up with 38.9 miles.

The grape vine.

Seat bag full of grapes.

The wild grape ride route.

I joined Paul Brown, Gary Gotlieb, and Sharon Stevens and rode the Venus to Elm Mott 200k yesterday. It was a beautiful morning with winds that never got up too much, but it got a bit hot in the afternoon. Sharon kept the pace pretty easy, as we were trying to mostly stay together. I did take off at a faster pace when we left Elm Mott at the turnaround for the 22 miles back to the Malone control, figuring a longer break there would help my shoulder.

Paul, a fellow recumbent rider, rode strong all day. I felt strong early, but faded as my shoulder hurt more and more. That’s the way most of my longer rides have gone this year. I’m thinking this will likely be my last 200k of the year. Maybe my shoulder will tolerate one better by early next year. I ended up with 128 miles.

Elm Mott Trot route.
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In spite of the fact that my left shoulder had been sliced and diced on two weeks ago, I headed down to Wichita Falls yesterday, and this morning I rode the 100 mile route of the Hotter ‘N Hell Hundred. This trip is always a blast, the ride down with DJ, camping at the church community center, visiting with everyone there, the bike show at the convention center, the ride to the start early in the morning, and all the rest.

I usually enjoy the ride a lot too, but I can’t say that this year’s ride will be remembered as one of my favorites. The highlight of the ride was definitely the ride through Sheppard Air Force Base. The 100 mile route had never gone through it before this year, and I’d never ridden anything except the 100 mile route, so I’d never been through Sheppard on HHH day. It’s pretty special having all those airmen cheering for you as you ride through.

Overall though, I have to give a thumbs down to the new route. The new turn south at mile 15 takes you to some rolling hills on high ground that really catch the wind (and the south wind was howling today). Then, when you finally turn north and get a great tail wind, the road gets so rough that you can’t take advantage of it. The 100k and 100 mile routes splitting so early broke up the paceline I was in, the remaining riders in it on the 100 mile route soon broke up, and I could never find a paceline that I fit well in after that.

By the time I reached Electra and rejoined the old route, I had stayed out in the wind by myself way too much, and would pay the price for it later. I made a 2 minute stop at mile 60. I took a quick nature break, but the stop was really more to give my aching shoulder and toes a quick break. I really hit the wall at mile 70, plus had GI issues that made my stop there even longer, never recovered very much, and was barely moving by the time I finished. That last 18 miles straight into the wind was brutal. But I did finish. I’m going to call that a victory on this day that I felt more like the bug than the windshield.

I finished in 6:14 (my second slowest time ever at HHH). My on the bike time was 5:52, so I stopped for a total of 22 minutes. That’s much more off the bike time than I usually do at HHH, but it was the only way I thought I could finish today. It looked like lots of riders were struggling in the wind at HHH today, though, so I was in good company.

HHH 100 mile route.