any cyclists?

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Some good looking bikes! I rock a vintage 1985 Peugeot PH501. For tires I've been going with the Continental Gatorskin Bicycle Tire (700x28), and have put about ~1,500 miles on them so far with no flats or issues. All stock components and just recently rebuilt the bottom bracket and crankset. Rides like a dream :)
 

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also i need to figure out how and where im going to do a 100 mile ride this year
anyone local with some input (Denis im looking at you here) im all ears
i usually ride the Farmington Canal trail from Farmington to Westfield MA i can get 67 miles out of that (though it should be extended further north through Westfield MA soon), i may have to just double up and do the lower 30 mile section twice

Honestly to get in your first century I would suggest one of the local organized rides. 100mi solo takes a good deal of planning to make sure you're hydrated and to consume enough calories. Also most of these rides have SAG wagons in the event that you need some assistance on the road. There are a crap load of charity rides that host metric and full centuries.

Cycling Concepts in Glastonbury does the Two Ferry's ride every yr. http://www.cyclingconcepts.com/calendar/two-ferry-ride/ only $40 to register.
Elm City Cycling typically does the New Haven Century earlier in the yr.
There is alsoo http://www.tourofthelitchfieldhills.com/
and quite a few others.

For Fundraiser / Charities there is Tour De Cure and Closer To Free. I've done both of these. The Tour de Cure is hilly and Closer to Free is pretty flat but riding in the open wind on the shoreline is a killer.

Any reason why you only seem to ride rail trails and not out on the road??
 
i found a century ride im thinking of doing in Ashford CT on Oct 4th
they have a 100 mile ride, a 62 mile ride, a 25 mile ride, and a 10 mile ride
im looking at the 100 mile ride as the 62 is 5 less miles than the ride to Westfield that i do 3 or 4 times a month anyway for free

as for why i stick to the trails and not so much on the road... cars mostly (specifically inattentive or asshole drivers)
lol
honestly i just don't have much experience riding on the road and being out there by myself i feel more comfortable not having to deal with the traffic

there is a section on the route i ride that puts me on the road for a few miles... and its not too bad, but it is an established and marked bike route, and people in W. Simsbury, Simsbury, and Farmington seem to be pretty accustomed to seeing people on bikes on the road, everyone has been polite and respectful and tend to give plenty of space when passing me

i do a short ride on Monday nights that is all on roads around me, its an 8 mile route with a 1 mile 6.6% hill climb (unofficially named "Fuck that hill"), it is mostly very low traffic roads though without much through traffic, there is a bit of main road travel though and while most people are cool there is the occasional asshole that buzzes by too close or speeds past just to make a right turn directly in front of you

the trail just tends to be quieter and less stressful, im also only ever on it during the week either mid day or later at night, so usually there is not many people out there... if i was riding on weekends when it gets a bit packed i would likely do more roads rather than dodge all the people on the rail trail

i suppose if i was riding with other people i would feel a little better about being on the road
 
I'm going to have to get together with you and get you out on the road.

I'd do the Oct4th Century w/ you except we are having a party at our house the night before and I'll be in no condition to ride,.
For this Ashford Century how are you with Hills? 4000+ ft of climbing isn't chump change.
 
so,
I did the Ashford Century ride yesterday :D
total ride ended up being 103.6 miles (as per my computer on the bike)
my average speed was 16.2mph (again as per my computer)
total ride time was 6:24:41 (computer doesn't count at stops)
started at 7:30 AM, finished at about 2:20PM
there were 4 rest stops along the way, took about 5 min at each stop
I was pacing with a guy named Jim from RI that I caught up to about 10 miles in, we were the lead 2 bikes on the 100 mile route by about 5-7 minutes :)

it was a tough ride (definitely a lot of hills) and I was pretty spent by the end of it, but I felt good
(here is the route)
I did pretty well on the climbs (my Monday night climbs definitely paid off)
there was one 9% downhill that i hit 47.8 mph on :blink: (weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee)

the baked potato and warm apple crisp with ice cream at the end were delicious, and totally worth it (and earned) :thumbup:

I'm a little tired and sore today, but all in all I feel surprisingly good (I don't think i will be doing my Monday night hill climb though)

it was a great ride and an awesome experience, I'm looking forward to doing more of these next year :D
 
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Thats awesome. Have the day off and took my mountain bike out for the first time in over a year. Found a small park near me that has a few trails, so I gave it a try. I definitely need to get some more practice on more technical sections.

Are the CT guys who ride just road guys, or do you go offorad?
 
just road for now,
my flat bar can do unpaved walking path type stuff but that's about it
 
Damn E, you're in much better shape than I imagined. The pace you held for the century is what I typically ride at and the ride time is typical of what I can do a century in.
 
so,
I did the Ashford Century ride yesterday :D
total ride ended up being 103.6 miles (as per my computer on the bike)
my average speed was 16.2mph (again as per my computer)
total ride time was 6:24:41 (computer doesn't count at stops)
started at 7:30 AM, finished at about 2:20PM
there were 4 rest stops along the way, took about 5 min at each stop
I was pacing with a guy named Jim from RI that I caught up to about 10 miles in, we were the lead 2 bikes on the 100 mile route by about 5-7 minutes :)

it was a tough ride (definitely a lot of hills) and I was pretty spent by the end of it, but I felt good
(here is the route)
I did pretty well on the climbs (my Monday night climbs definitely paid off)
there was one 9% downhill that i hit 47.8 mph on :blink: (weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee)

the baked potato and warm apple crisp with ice cream at the end were delicious, and totally worth it (and earned) :thumbup:

I'm a little tired and sore today, but all in all I feel surprisingly good (I don't think i will be doing my Monday night hill climb though)

it was a great ride and an awesome experience, I'm looking forward to doing more of these next year :D
You're a fucking animal!
 
Damn E, straight beastin`....

picking up an old Univega Mixte for Jen off CL today.... looks like it's in awesome condition

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Nice work E. I need to get my shit together so I can do a century next year. I may end up spending the winter getting ready to do the Seattle to Portland next year.
 
Jens new whip.. really good condition for the age and rides smooth.. fairly new Panaracer tires

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Decoded the serial and found the date code stamps on the components... Looks like it was from Jan 1980..
 
Picked up another bike from my neighbor.. '95 TREK 520 Touring for $70 .. needs the wheels true and it's got a looonng stem so that needs to be changed too.
 
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