BRAN Gravel: Decisions Made

 It is getting closer to crunch time and the bags need to be packed up. Decisions need to be made. Last week I wrote about bike choice and for myself, it came down to two bicycles.

The Salsa Cycles Fargo Gen I is a crowd favorite. I posted an image on Facebook and Instagram of that bike and it got a lot of views. It would be the "People's Choice" bike to take on BRAN for the gravel route. 

This may not be fair, as I did not post a similar image of the Black Mountain Cycles MCD.  The bike may have received as many views as the Fargo. I can only say the two bikes got a different take here on the blog as commenters seemed to lean toward the pink machine instead of the venerable veteran choice. 

And the MCD is actually the bike that is going to Nebraska this time. I thought about this a lot, but a couple of things came to mind which swung the pendulum towards the BMC. One of those has to do with tires and what I heard randomly at work last week. 

A man came in to the Collective who said he was from Northwestern Nebraska. We got to talking about things and the subject of goat heads came up. In case you are unaware, goat heads are round-ish, smallish thorny bombs of doom and can ruin a bicycle ride in a hurry. 

The man said that in Western Nebraska this year the goat heads are at a higher level than normal. He suggested to not even roll my bike through grass out there. And he strongly suggested I run a tubeless set up. 

Of course, both my bikes under consideration are tubeless currently. However, only one has puncture protected tires, and that is the BMC. I just mounted both sets up within the last few months, but I will inject just a little extra goop into the Schwalbes before I go. Plus I will take a Stan's DART tool, extra sealant, and valve cores. 

I also mounted my XTR 11 - 40T cassette which is paired with my 46/36T crank set. This gives me two gears of 1 to 1 or lower which should be enough to get me up any hill I encounter out there. As I (vaguely ) recall, the hills aren't super steep, but longer than we have out here in Iowa. The elevation profile on Ride With GPS also suggests this with climbs of a mile to a mile and a half in some places. 

You may be wondering if my GRX derailleur will actually work with this cassette. While Shimano does not suggest that it will, if you carefully choose the correct chain length and use the B tension screw you will find it shifts in and out of the 40T cog quite nicely.  I even still have a little B tension screw sticking out beyond the derailleur, but I wouldn't push the capacity any further than 40T and expect great shifting. 

 So, there is the bike I am taking and how it will look. The water carrying capacity is great. I have low enough gearing with fast enough road gearing to suit me. The Schwalbe tires roll excellently on pavement and there will be paved sections of this ride nearly every day significant enough in length that this will make a difference. 

There is a Redshift Sports ShockStop Pro stem on this bike which should help take the zing out of the gravel. The Ritchey Design Venturemax carbon handlebars will help as well. Their flattened ovalized top section will be a nice respite for tired hands on long climbs. 

Now I have to go through my tool roll and top tube bag to see what I do or do not have. I may need to get rid of some stuff as well. Otherwise this is it. Now on to packing the rest of the gear up! 

BRAN Gravel: Gear Choice - Part 2

A couple of days ago I posted some gear choices for the Bicycle Ride Across Nebraska's gravel route. BRAN gravel  will require a lot of thinking about your gear and choosing correctly will make your week go a lot better. Hopefully these suggestions will help you find the right choices for you. (And you can apply this to any tour, long gravel ride, or ultra-distance event.)

I don't have a lot more to cover in this article, but there is one detail which can enhance your ride a great deal. Many riders don't think about this in regard to their drop handlebar set up. What is it?

Handle bar tape. 

I was a retail bicycle mechanic for over thirty years, and I have seen how much handle bar tape is ignored. This is kind of puzzling because it is not only an important contact point between yourself and your bicycle, but handlebar tape is relatively cheap, as bicycle parts go. Having your handle bars re-wrapped with fresh tape will enhance your experience and make you feel better about your bicycle. 

New handlebar tape will make you feel bold! Like elephant! (JK!)

In today's marketplace you can find lots of choices in handlebar tape, and it can be confusing. Many folks simply choose their favorite color and go with whatever the tape may be. This is a big mistake most of the time. Color matters, yes, but comfort matters more. 

Who cares what color your bar tape is if your hands are miserable. So, I would suggest looking at handlebar tapes with some level of technology built in. My 'go-to' tape is made by a company called Ergon. Note: I have no affiliation with Ergon, nor do I receive any compensation from Ergon for suggesting their products. I just really believe in their bar tapes and believe they are the best on the market for hand comfort, longevity, and grip. 

Ergon makes a handle bar tape called the BT Gravel Tape, and while it is not cheap, it does really well at reducing vibrations, it has a great grip, and it lasts and lasts. But recently Ergon has offered a new tape called BT OrthoCell. It's a bit less thick and feels more racy, if that is what you like. However; the material it is made from is a special foam developed by BASF to absorb vibrations, and it does this quite well. Plus it comes in a basic black, which most folks are okay with.

 At any rate, try the Ergon stuff, I highly recommend it. But definitely get new handlebar tape if you haven't done so this year. 

Consider a TPU tube as your spare. They weigh a lot less!

Tools & Spares:

Lastly I wanted to hit on tools and spares for your gravel traveling. As mentioned by the BRAN folks in our podcasts, there is a good chance those little stickers called goat heads will be found in Western Nebraska. A tubeless set up is recommended to help you get by without puncturing a lot of tubes. However, in a worst case scenario, tubeless can fail you, and then what? 

Well, you need a bail-out tube. I would suggest a TPU tube as your backup. TPU tubes are smaller rolled up than a traditional butyl tube, but more importantly, they weigh a LOT less. This makes them an easy choice for a back-up tube. 

Those mini-pumps are getting better all the time, but you also may want to look into the mini-air compressor type, electric pumps which are small and quite easy to use now. Just make sure you have an inflation device! I should also mention there are tubeless plugs out there which can help seal up bigger tears, cuts, and holes sometimes. A good tool to check out is a Stan's DART tool. These are easy to use and not very expensive.  

As far as basic tools and a way to carry this stuff, check out my gravel based tool kit review I wrote in 2018 HERE. This was written to aid riders looking at a really long gravel ride and with the aim to be self-sufficient. 

Nutrition: 

Usually it is a wise thing to carry some food and to make sure you are hydrated while riding for over an hour on any bicycle ride. Food choices run all over the place from powders which you can mix into your water to convenience food fare. I tend to be a person to avoid sugary stuff and I go with protein and fatty items like pemmican bars or a similar type meat product. I also have used Justin's almond butter packs as well. Although those are hard to get down without some water! 

Hydration is obviously important and I use a product called Elete which keeps cramps away for myself. I know some folks like pickle juice or other hydration products. But definitely consider hydration additives to keep the cramps at bay.  

The good news is that BRAN has a few points of interest along the route each day where one could stop to eat and resupply. So carrying a ton of stuff may not be necessary.  If you are registered for BRAN you can get access to Ride With GPS's event listing for BRAN which has all the daily routes and those points of interest I mentioned are marked there. It's a great way to plan ahead for your hydration and nutritional needs and to see what you'll be doing for mileage and whatnot. 

Okay, that's about it for gear talk! Now it is time to pack it all away and get ready to go! I'll have daily updates from the route here on the blog starting June 6th and running through the 13th.  

BRAN Gravel: Gear Choices - Part 1

Earlier this week I went over the bicycle choice for the Bicycle Ride Across Nebraska's gravel route. BRAN gravel will be a unique experience and the bike one chooses can be a critical part in enjoyment level of this ride. In case you missed that post you can go back and read it by clicking HERE. 

This post will be covering choices in gear besides the bicycle for this ride. Things like jerseys, shorts, outerwear, casual wear, nutritional supplements, and tent/camping gear. BRAN is a tenting ride, no motels in these small villages! So, a bit about camping gear is also included in this post. 

In fact, let's kick things off with the home for the week. My tent was chosen for a few reasons. One, it isn't too big. Yes.....that's intentional. Maybe you've heard the saying that a bigger purse, or a bigger garage, just means you have more junk inside of it. Smaller things force intentional choices, and really, you'd be surprised how little you can get by on. Plus, you don't have to worry about so many things needing packed, and where they get packed. I know I've come home, unpacked, and found stuff I never used and forgot I was toting around! 

Sierra Designs Full Moon 2

Camping: For a tent I wanted something light, easily set up and taken down, and packable. This is exactly what backpacking tents do well. Plus you can get several different sizes and with several different price points. 

I wasn't needing to save every ounce here, because our gear is getting toted by a touring service from place to place. So, ultra-lightweight tents were unnecessary. This is also very good because those tents cost an arm and a leg! 

I ended up with a two-person Sierra Designs Full Moon 2. Two person? Yes. My advice is to always buy a tent made for one more person than you need. This extra room will be very much appreciated, trust me! The Full Moon 2 isn't the lightest tent, but it is a solid choice. I have an older one of these and it did really well in wet weather, wind, and in every other way. It was easily set up and taken down. This new one will be even better, I am sure. 

So......why not use the old one? Great question. I lost the poles somehow that hold it up, so..... Yeah. A bit embarrassing!  

Now with a bike packing tent you should also use a ground cloth. You can buy one, but a great hack which is cheap, or free, is to find a partial sheet of Tyvek insulation wrap. (Or a similar material). This stuff is like a lightweight, thin tarp. It is very tough, and will not let moisture pass through to the floor of your tent. 

Thermarest pad

I also bought a brand new Thermarest Basecamp sleeping pad. I have an ancient one from the early 1990's which is getting a bit long in the tooth. But these things are the bomb for sleeping in a tent short of carrying a heavy inflatable mattress. Thermarest pads keep you insulated from the ground, which is important so you won't get hypothermic from heat loss to the ground. 

I already have a very lightweight sleeping bag which is all I need to stay warm at night down into the 40's, if it even gets that cold this year. And even if it does, I can wear some clothes to bed to insulate myself more. 

Finally, a little inflatable pillow is going along to cushion my head. Besides this, I won't need anything camping specific. All meals will be purchased or provided so no cooking to be done on this trip! 

One could go ultra-lightweight with their camping set up, but since - again - gear is being carted for us, I see no need to go spend the kind of money it would take to get lightweight, competent gear. But you do you. Maybe you'll use ultra-light stuff for other trips. Then I can understand the need there. 

One more word on tents: A full rain fly is nice if we get a wind driven rain storm. So, this is something to think about when buying a tent. 

Clothing: With no laundry service on route you can do one of two things. One- Pack seven days of stuff. This isn't a bad idea, but it is a LOT to pack for. Two: Pack for three days, wash your kit when you take a shower, and hang it out to dry on your tent fly ropes. (Or suitable hanging situation)  

I'm going with option two. Then I will have a pair or two of shorts, a few t-shirts, socks for the week, and a pair of sweat pants for cooler evening in the tent. I'll bring a light jacket or hoodie, and some casual shoes. I love the stuff Twin Six does for riding wear and casual wear. Check them out HERE. 

I use clipless pedals, so I'll have the cycling shoes, a helmet, jerseys, bibs, and riding shorts. Or I may just bring inserts and shorts. Probably the latter.  I like to wear a bandana on my head to keep sweat out of my eyes and protect my head from flying insects which could get into the vents of a helmet. Generally speaking one would also want to consider sunglasses, but in my case I haven't been yet able to afford prescription eyewear. A great sunglasses brand which won't break the bank is Tifosi Optics. 

Shoes are kind of a big deal, so I will spend a little more time on this. I would strongly suggest your carbon fiber soled racing shoes stay home. Unless you cannot get anything else, then yeah. But suffering on boards with no flex will fatigue your feet, calves, and shins if you have to do much off the bike stuff. Getting a shoe with a little flex is something to consider here, and definitely think about some shoes comfortable enough to walk around in. 

You'll be spending the better part of seven days in those shoes, and if you cannot wear your super-stiff, super-racy shoes for more casual riding because they make you hurt, then this ride will be a lot less fun. 

Saddles are another super important subject when it comes to longer rides. Everyone is different and so my choices won't reflect what works for many. Here's a few things to think about though. 

- Proper bike fit has to be done before any saddle will work properly. A great saddle can be a hurtful thing if your bike fit is poor. Check with a local bike shop or bike fitting professional if you need assistance here.

- Once your saddle height and fore/aft positioning is squared away, then you should determine your sit bone width. Most quality saddles are designed with certain sit bone measurements in mind. Wilderness Trail Bikes and Ergon have online saddle width calculators so you may want to search those out and see where your sit bones measure out for reference in the future. 

-It is a journey. There is no "easy button" when it comes to finding a perfect saddle, but if you have the fit dialed, and you know you sit bone width and have chosen a saddle width accordingly, that's half the battle won. And there is one more important thing to do when seeing if a saddle will work......

- Use a chamois creme and quality shorts with a pad insert. Big, BIG game changer here.  Your interface with a saddle is two sided. The saddle and the garment that comes in contact with that saddle. Chamois creme is the secret to keeping those shorts slipping and sliding against your body where it needs to be doing that. Better this than a hot spot, chafing, and saddle sores. Check out Chamois Butt'r for a great solution here. 

See Guitar Ted's "Top Ten Recommendos"  for more on what works for him. 

That's a long enough post for this time. I'll post up again this weekend with anything I'm missing here. Got questions? Hit me up in the comments or email me at g.ted.productions@gmail.com.  

Two Things

 

 Testing 1,2,3....

 Just testing out this shiny new laptop I got Friday for this BRAN gig coming up in a couple of weeks. 

I need to be able to update the blog from the road, and well.....  Dragging a PC around isn't very practical. So this laptop was procured and it should provide me with the means to do some writin' on the road. 

I'm still testing this thing out and hopefully images won't be too hard to get the way I want them. You know, technology isn't my best area of expertise, although I will advocate for myself a little here and claim a bit of competency in dealing with new things. 

So, wish me well. 

And for the tech nerds out there I will head off any questions in the comments and let you know what device we ended up with. It is a Lenovo Yoga (I say "Yoda", but Mrs. Guitar Ted doesn't like that!)

So, there ya go. Stay tuned for more from the Yoda laptop soon. 

Note: The above part was posted on the laptop. Now back to the regular PC.... 

Joe Meiser with a Ti Fargo 32 (Image by Steve Fuller)

The 32" Watch: Ti Fargo 32 Completes Century Gravel Ride:

Have you, like me, been thinking a 32"er might be good for gravel road riding? Well, apparently Quality Bicycle Products' own Joe Meiser, a former Trans Iowa winner, thinks it does. He just used a 32"er Ti Fargo to complete the century distance at this past weekend's Heywood Ride. 

Thanks to volunteer Steve Fuller, we have this image and a few details. Apparently Joe chose Teravail Ciclos carbon rims and had these laced to Berd hubs with the Berd spokes which, I would imagine, results in a very lightweight wheel set. 

Those are the Teravail Cannonball 32" tires on there as well. Steve got a quick ride on it and said the bike felt pretty natural to him. It is an XL size, by the way. 

32" Fargos will be available in titanium and steel coming later this year. See your Salsa Cycles dealer for more details. 

And....

I have seen an image of another prototype 32"er which I have been told will work with drop bars or flat bars which will be offered "very soon." This will be coming from a company not known primarily as a bicycle company, by the way. 

Stay tuned..... 

Making A List

Yesterday's announcement now has made this more real to me. This ride is actually going to happen, so I'd better be getting my ducks in a row. Actually, I already have been. This all starts with my mind racing in four different directions at once, so making a list of things I want to make sure I get gathered together for this week-long adventure helps me to get my head wrapped around things a bit better.. 

So, there are some categories I need to head up my list and then put things in those categories which should help me compartmentalize packing and getting all the gear and things in the truck so nothing is left behind. 

The Bike:

I know for some of you this would be the easiest category. Not for me! Too many choices exist and all would make sense to take for one reason or another. Here are the contenders so far. 

The 2018 Black Mountain Cycles MCD

Black Mountain Cycles MCD:

Listening to the folks I interviewed for the two BRAN Gravel podcasts, it was apparent I should take a bike with wider tires than not. This is because I am going to be tackling gravel roads in the Sand Hills region of Nebraska. Having a little experience with sandy gravel in Nebraska, (Odin's Revenge days), I know a wide tire handles the sandy gravel, or just outright sand in some cases, better than typical gravel tires would. Not that you cannot ride 700 X 40's, but if you have the option to go wider, and I do, those wider tires sure make the going easier. 

The Black Mountain Cycles MCD currently has a 29 X 2.25 on the front and a 700c X 47mm in the rear. Probably good enough for this ride. Water carrying capacity is also okay. Fit and function, okay also. It would likely get the job done. 

Next... 

Singular Gryphon Mk3

Singular Gryphon Mk3:

Speaking of wider tires, here ya go! 29 x 2.8"ers here! Sand? No problem! Weight? Yeah......there is that. However; this bike was the one I took out to Western Iowa to do the Tree In The Road Ride and there were some big hills out there to climb, which I was able to do. It wasn't easy though, but I attribute that to the brutal heat and humidity we suffered through on that day. Still.... 

Water carrying capacity is great. Fit is awesome. (Luxy Bar) Function.....good. The front derailleur function could be better. 

Next....  

Fargo Gen I

Salsa Cycles Fargo Gen I:

And here's the last contender, the Fargo Gen I. It can handle pretty wide tires, like the Surly Extraterrestrial 29 X 2.5"ers. Right now I have some Rene Herse tubed tires on it, but I also have a set of N.O.S. Vittoria Terreno Dry 29 x 2.25"ers ready to go on this wheel set. That would be a tubeless set up. So, then the tires would be definitely wide enough, but not too heavy either.  

Comfort level - Excellent! Water carrying capacity? Excellent! Function? Excellent! (The front derailleur really works well on this bike!) 

So, you can see I have choices, and all three have merit. I'm leaning toward the Fargo right now, but ask me again tomorrow and I'll have talked myself into the MCD, or the Gryphon. 

I actually have a couple more bikes I could talk myself into here, but I have to limit this!  I'll come up with a decision this week, then I'll get into all the fine details as to why I chose how I will choose. Or something like that....... Anyway... 

After the bike comes the Overnight Set-Up. This will encompass my tent, sleep system, what details this all encompasses, and more. Next will be Clothing. I need to consider how I will manage a week-long ride with no laundry and after ride clothing as well. Finally, Logistics. Food, water, travel. 

Look for more to come on my pre-ride choices soon. .