Friday News And Views

Hey, we should lace these old XC racing rims to road hubs and call it a gravel wheel!

Enve Wheels Debuts Gravel Wheel Set:

When I started messing around with disc wheels for gravel bikes I found that old 29"er wheels which were laced with narrow-ish mountain bike rims worked really well. Many of these early 29"er rims were maybe 25mm or if they were wide, 28mm on the outside. Of course, that's positively skinny now for even XC mtb bikes.

Gravel tires have ballooned to the 45mm range now so a wider rim is totally necessary for tubeless use, and even for tubes, to be honest. The lower pressures you can use and the way the tires set on those wider rims make them more stable on rougher roads and dirt. So, I even played with 25mm inner rim widths and found that worked quite nicely. Then you hear about companies making "gravel" oriented wheel sets and you see something like the following from Enve's site:

"The M525 is a lightweight, full carbon tubeless compatible clincher that has been developed specifically for the demands of world cup cross country racing. Consequently, many of the same attributes that make for a great XC race wheel also deliver a ride quality that inspires confidence for off-road drop bar endeavors."

See? Even these wheel companies are catching on. Well, at least their marketing departments are seeing how this could work. That said, a claimed 1320 grams for the set is very attractive. Only cost ya $234.00 a month! (HA!) We used to, (and many of you still might be), riding wheel sets that cost $234.00 for the set! 

Old mtb wheels are the "new gravel wheels". 

 

The new camera would have been fast enough to get this shot.....O well!

  The New Camera Has Arrived!

 As I walked in the door Wednesday evening I was told by my son that about 15 minutes after I walked out of the door for Trans Iowa v14 recon my new camera showed up.

Dang it!

They say that you don't know what you got till it's gone, and boy howdy! Did I ever figure that out Wednesday! That Nikon point and shoot I used probably does okay for the family reunion and the odd image of the National Park one might be visiting, but for quick, on the fly shooting, it sucked! 

I missed quite a few shots just because the start up speed was so slow. Then the auto focus was bad as well. That caused a lot of unusable shots and the ones I kept were blurred, but I guess I have to take what I have. Had I been shooting with the TG-5, it would have all been cake. I would have nailed every shot. 

But the main thing is- I have the TG-5! I am pretty stoked. And it came to me in black, so it looks great as well. Personally I liked the red, but hey! For what I paid I cannot be choosy. So, black it is. It looks classy and more like a "serious camera guy's" camera, I suppose.  I plan on having a bit of a review up after I've used it some here.

 Merry Christmas!

Since Christmas falls on Monday this year many of you will be gone and not checking in here, so I wanted to say, "Merry Christmas!" before you all flew out for wherever it is that you may be headed to this weekend.  

I'll be around here posting, so you can always check in whenever you get a chance, but here is a challenge: "Tune out from social media this weekend!" Try it and tune in to your friends and family instead. You can always catch up on things next week. 

That includes this blog, so if you are off to see friends and family, well, be intentional and spend some good, attentive time with them. If you are just doing the "regular ol' things", well, I'll be around. Oh, and thanks for reading my scribin'.

So, with that, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you all! 

Friday News And Views

Hey, we should lace these old XC racing rims to road hubs and call it a gravel wheel!

Enve Wheels Debuts Gravel Wheel Set:

When I started messing around with disc wheels for gravel bikes I found that old 29"er wheels which were laced with narrow-ish mountain bike rims worked really well. Many of these early 29"er rims were maybe 25mm or if they were wide, 28mm on the outside. Of course, that's positively skinny now for even XC mtb bikes.

Gravel tires have ballooned to the 45mm range now so a wider rim is totally necessary for tubeless use, and even for tubes, to be honest. The lower pressures you can use and the way the tires set on those wider rims make them more stable on rougher roads and dirt. So, I even played with 25mm inner rim widths and found that worked quite nicely. Then you hear about companies making "gravel" oriented wheel sets and you see something like the following from Enve's site:

"The M525 is a lightweight, full carbon tubeless compatible clincher that has been developed specifically for the demands of world cup cross country racing. Consequently, many of the same attributes that make for a great XC race wheel also deliver a ride quality that inspires confidence for off-road drop bar endeavors."

See? Even these wheel companies are catching on. Well, at least their marketing departments are seeing how this could work. That said, a claimed 1320 grams for the set is very attractive. Only cost ya $234.00 a month! (HA!) We used to, (and many of you still might be), riding wheel sets that cost $234.00 for the set! 

Old mtb wheels are the "new gravel wheels". 

 

The new camera would have been fast enough to get this shot.....O well!

  The New Camera Has Arrived!

 As I walked in the door Wednesday evening I was told by my son that about 15 minutes after I walked out of the door for Trans Iowa v14 recon my new camera showed up.

Dang it!

They say that you don't know what you got till it's gone, and boy howdy! Did I ever figure that out Wednesday! That Nikon point and shoot I used probably does okay for the family reunion and the odd image of the National Park one might be visiting, but for quick, on the fly shooting, it sucked! 

I missed quite a few shots just because the start up speed was so slow. Then the auto focus was bad as well. That caused a lot of unusable shots and the ones I kept were blurred, but I guess I have to take what I have. Had I been shooting with the TG-5, it would have all been cake. I would have nailed every shot. 

But the main thing is- I have the TG-5! I am pretty stoked. And it came to me in black, so it looks great as well. Personally I liked the red, but hey! For what I paid I cannot be choosy. So, black it is. It looks classy and more like a "serious camera guy's" camera, I suppose.  I plan on having a bit of a review up after I've used it some here.

 Merry Christmas!

Since Christmas falls on Monday this year many of you will be gone and not checking in here, so I wanted to say, "Merry Christmas!" before you all flew out for wherever it is that you may be headed to this weekend.  

I'll be around here posting, so you can always check in whenever you get a chance, but here is a challenge: "Tune out from social media this weekend!" Try it and tune in to your friends and family instead. You can always catch up on things next week. 

That includes this blog, so if you are off to see friends and family, well, be intentional and spend some good, attentive time with them. If you are just doing the "regular ol' things", well, I'll be around. Oh, and thanks for reading my scribin'.

So, with that, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you all! 

Friday News And Views

Olympus Tough TG-5. The replacement camera has been sourced!

Camera Problem Solved!

Last week you may remember that my Olympus Tough TG-3 went for a flyer out of my Chaff Bag and slammed into the pavement which ended up, (my diagnosis- I could be wrong), displacing the sensor. The camera fires up and electronics funtion but only about an eighth of the LCD screen shows an image and that is blurry. Everything else is black. If I give it a slap I can see the image move slightly, which tells me that the sensor is probably damaged inside or has come loose from its moorings, or.......something! 

Whatever happened wasn't good, and the camera is useless in that state. So, I had posted about that on social media where a good friend, Jason of "Barns for Jason" fame, got a hold of me via a private message. Turns out that he had a brand new TG-5 he decided he was going to part with. So we made a deal and soon I should have this camera in hand and be posting some good non-iPhone shots. (Yes, that's all I have now.)

The TG-5 has some upgrades over what I had. Ergonomics are slightly improved, there are some technical upgrades, like RAW capabilities, but it is essentially much the same as what I had before.

I'm pretty stoked that the situation is being taken care of so quickly and with a camera I was eying anyway. I was pretty satisfied with the TG-3. I really had no issues with its performance and I was not looking to replace it anytime soon. But a silly little mistake on my part cost me and I will end up getting a new camera far sooner than I figured on. But that said, I am excited to get this camera and start using it. I'll have more to say once I get the thing in hand. Stay tuned......

Funded by French auto maker Peugeot, this "car" could overtake e-bikes in the future. Image from "Bike Europe"

The Future Of E-bikes May Have Four Wheels:

I've often said that e-bikes = motorcycles and when the motorcycle manufacturers get involved, the e-bike will quickly fade away. What I didn't see coming were electric/gas powered "micro-cars" from a well know manufacturer. Sure, I've seen the cheapo Asian made four wheeled electric vehicles before, but nothing as refined and with such high design as this Peugeot. To be fair, it is actually classified as an "LEV" (Light Electric Vehicle) and is positioned to compete with "speed pedelecs". This rig has heating, regenerative braking, and can travel at speeds of up to 70Km/hr.

It is a working prototype to see how common platforms might be developed for future versions of this project. You can read about it in more detail here.

The idea seems tailor made for the bigger urban areas in the colder regions of the country. You just are not going to sell commuters e-bikes in the latitudes where Winter rears its ugly head. Not to current, non-biking folks, at any rate. You know- the people the bike industry keeps saying should have their "butts in saddles", to paraphrase a popular catchphrase of one distributor. Well, good luck with that when the commutes are measured in tens of miles and the wind chill is under zero.

A heated, zero emission LEV though? Maybe that might work. Maybe. I ain't holding my breath on any of this taking over here though.

Europa doesn't look anything like this, by the way.....

Party Time:

My employer has owned Europa Cycle & Ski for 30 years now. The momentous occasion is being feted with a party on Saturday. You can expect the following:

Discounts on merchandise store wide from 9:00am to 5:00pm.

From 7:00pm to 9:00pm there will be a celebration with beer, vittles, and tomfoolery of some sort not yet known to me. You'd have to come and find out. I'll be there later in the day. So, if you want to tip a few with me and some other Europa crazies, be there.

I'm also going to put this out there now. I will be helping to put on a "gravel curious clinic" at an establishment known as Doughy Joey's in Cedar Falls on January 13th, 2018. I will be talking about how to ride gravel roads, local routes, and what gear to use. What a "gravel bike"is, whet tires and pressures to use, and how to deal with dogs and more.

I'll be talking about this more in the near future, but for now I'll share the Facebook event link with you. CLICK HERE. Stay tuned.....

And that's a wrap for this week. Stay warm and stay active!

Friday News And Views

Olympus Tough TG-5. The replacement camera has been sourced!

Camera Problem Solved!

Last week you may remember that my Olympus Tough TG-3 went for a flyer out of my Chaff Bag and slammed into the pavement which ended up, (my diagnosis- I could be wrong), displacing the sensor. The camera fires up and electronics funtion but only about an eighth of the LCD screen shows an image and that is blurry. Everything else is black. If I give it a slap I can see the image move slightly, which tells me that the sensor is probably damaged inside or has come loose from its moorings, or.......something! 

Whatever happened wasn't good, and the camera is useless in that state. So, I had posted about that on social media where a good friend, Jason of "Barns for Jason" fame, got a hold of me via a private message. Turns out that he had a brand new TG-5 he decided he was going to part with. So we made a deal and soon I should have this camera in hand and be posting some good non-iPhone shots. (Yes, that's all I have now.)

The TG-5 has some upgrades over what I had. Ergonomics are slightly improved, there are some technical upgrades, like RAW capabilities, but it is essentially much the same as what I had before.

I'm pretty stoked that the situation is being taken care of so quickly and with a camera I was eying anyway. I was pretty satisfied with the TG-3. I really had no issues with its performance and I was not looking to replace it anytime soon. But a silly little mistake on my part cost me and I will end up getting a new camera far sooner than I figured on. But that said, I am excited to get this camera and start using it. I'll have more to say once I get the thing in hand. Stay tuned......

Funded by French auto maker Peugeot, this "car" could overtake e-bikes in the future. Image from "Bike Europe"

The Future Of E-bikes May Have Four Wheels:

I've often said that e-bikes = motorcycles and when the motorcycle manufacturers get involved, the e-bike will quickly fade away. What I didn't see coming were electric/gas powered "micro-cars" from a well know manufacturer. Sure, I've seen the cheapo Asian made four wheeled electric vehicles before, but nothing as refined and with such high design as this Peugeot. To be fair, it is actually classified as an "LEV" (Light Electric Vehicle) and is positioned to compete with "speed pedelecs". This rig has heating, regenerative braking, and can travel at speeds of up to 70Km/hr.

It is a working prototype to see how common platforms might be developed for future versions of this project. You can read about it in more detail here.

The idea seems tailor made for the bigger urban areas in the colder regions of the country. You just are not going to sell commuters e-bikes in the latitudes where Winter rears its ugly head. Not to current, non-biking folks, at any rate. You know- the people the bike industry keeps saying should have their "butts in saddles", to paraphrase a popular catchphrase of one distributor. Well, good luck with that when the commutes are measured in tens of miles and the wind chill is under zero.

A heated, zero emission LEV though? Maybe that might work. Maybe. I ain't holding my breath on any of this taking over here though.

Europa doesn't look anything like this, by the way.....

Party Time:

My employer has owned Europa Cycle & Ski for 30 years now. The momentous occasion is being feted with a party on Saturday. You can expect the following:

Discounts on merchandise store wide from 9:00am to 5:00pm.

From 7:00pm to 9:00pm there will be a celebration with beer, vittles, and tomfoolery of some sort not yet known to me. You'd have to come and find out. I'll be there later in the day. So, if you want to tip a few with me and some other Europa crazies, be there.

I'm also going to put this out there now. I will be helping to put on a "gravel curious clinic" at an establishment known as Doughy Joey's in Cedar Falls on January 13th, 2018. I will be talking about how to ride gravel roads, local routes, and what gear to use. What a "gravel bike"is, whet tires and pressures to use, and how to deal with dogs and more.

I'll be talking about this more in the near future, but for now I'll share the Facebook event link with you. CLICK HERE. Stay tuned.....

And that's a wrap for this week. Stay warm and stay active!

Friday News And Views

Me. Twin Six Standard Wool Jersey. Image by Izzy

Wool For Summer: My good friend Dr. Giggles turned me on to how to stay cool in Summer. He said, "Get-cher self a wool jersey, son!" I figured he was mad, or had rolled down too many upstate New York and Vermont hills, or something. But he laid out a very convincing case, and being a member of the Slender Fungus Cycling Association, well.....I took note. 

I got a close out special on a Giro wool jersey, which I employed much of last Summer to great success. Ol' Dr. Giggles wasn't foolin' around. He knew what he was on to. So, I was on the lookout for more "Summer weight" wool jerseys, and I'll tell ya, there are not many. I just wasn't connecting with many of the ones Dr. Giggles was suggesting, and some of the others some were pushing my way didn't really hit me right either. I don't know...... I am a picky son of a gun when it comes to what I wear. Just ask Mrs. Guitar Ted!

So, anyway, I was checking out the Twin Six website one day and hey! I saw this thing called The Standard Wool. I didn't waste any time and ordered one up. Those T-6 guys just make really classy, well fitting stuff, and this was no different. However; they also don't do "mee too" design, so there are a couple of things here that are different. The colored part, (blue in my example here), is actually regular ol' jersey fabric. Which is a different touch, but they took that same idea and used it to not only give color to the three back pockets, but to give those pockets structure. Ever had something heavy-ish in a regular wool jersey pocket before? Well, if you have, you know that whatever it is ends up down around yer butt after a while bouncing around back there. Wool stretches, but the Standard Wool Jersey's pockets do not.

Brilliant!

But there's more! In the image above, you cannot tell, but I am soaking wet from a rain shower I got caught in. Hey, wool keeps you warm when that happens. Pretty awesome. Expensive? Yes. $145.00 expensive, which may scare a lot of folks off, but for how this fabric works in hot weather, it is money well spent for me. Your mileage may vary.

The new Olympus Tough TG-5

Tough Camera:

Most of the ride images and stuff I post on here and RidingGravel.com is all imagery taken with my trusty Olympus Tough TG-3. Well, it hasn't let me down yet, but I may replace it, or more likely, add something else to the camera pool. I saw that Olympus just released a Tough TG-5.

Now, I am not one to just get something because it is the next gen thing. You might have noticed I didn't mention the Tough TG-4. It was a minor change from what I had, and I did not see the value in "upgrading", if that even was an upgrade. However; there are some cool features that this TG-5 has that have given me something to chew on.

Basically, the TG-5 is somewhat similar to what I have. However; it does support RAW files, (which I haven't ever used, but probably should), and from my standpoint, better control layout and ergonomics. The TG-3 is a slippery little devil, and there isn't a lot of purchase on the camera body, which gets a little dicey while riding. (Yes.....I shoot a ton of my images while moving. So, sue me. ) The TG-5 has improved grip areas and the control dials are redesigned as well. This may be something that allows me to zoom in with one hand. That would be nice. They also redesigned the mode dial surround so that it doesn't get knocked out of the setting you select easily, which the TG-3 is really prone to do.

The accessory items available for this camera also look a bit more interesting and refined than they have offered in the past. That is a bit enticing, especially the zoom lens, so I may have to seriously consider that as well. But the main things they kept the same were good things. The "tough" features are all the same. Dust proof, freeze proof, shock resistant, and waterproof. All things I insist on for my carry-along camera on my rides. I don't want to baby sit an expensive camera while I am out riding.

It's $450.00 though, so I won't be just grabbing one right off. I need to assess my needs here, and I do have a functioning TG-3, so it isn't like I have to get a camera. But for some of the features this new one has, and the nicer video spec, I can see where it might prove to be a good upgrade, if I use it for video and RAW files, etc.

 GTDRI UPDATE:

Thanks for the feedback, and due to receiving that, I have come to some decisions on the ride.

First- We will start and end at Broad Street Brewing Company in Reinbeck, Iowa. The ride will start at 6:00am.

Second: We will be flying by the seat of our pants if it rains or is wetter than a Level B might allow us to do. We may truncate the route, or .......who knows? If it gets weird, be prepared to roll with it!

Third: This means that the route will have three possibilities for resupply, bailout, or not. First, at mile 28-ish, we will pass just West of Dysart, Iowa. I figure this will be an optional stop. Then we will be going through Traer Iowa at about mile 50. This will definitely be a stop. Then at about Mile 76 we will pass through Garwin, Iowa, and we will definitely be stopping there, I figure.

The route will be 103.5 miles. I plan on doing a recon, at least partial if not all, this holiday weekend. Stay tuned for a recon report next week sometime.

That's a wrap for this edition of Friday News And Views. Have a great weekend!

Friday News And Views

Me. Twin Six Standard Wool Jersey. Image by Izzy

Wool For Summer: My good friend Dr. Giggles turned me on to how to stay cool in Summer. He said, "Get-cher self a wool jersey, son!" I figured he was mad, or had rolled down too many upstate New York and Vermont hills, or something. But he laid out a very convincing case, and being a member of the Slender Fungus Cycling Association, well.....I took note. 

I got a close out special on a Giro wool jersey, which I employed much of last Summer to great success. Ol' Dr. Giggles wasn't foolin' around. He knew what he was on to. So, I was on the lookout for more "Summer weight" wool jerseys, and I'll tell ya, there are not many. I just wasn't connecting with many of the ones Dr. Giggles was suggesting, and some of the others some were pushing my way didn't really hit me right either. I don't know...... I am a picky son of a gun when it comes to what I wear. Just ask Mrs. Guitar Ted!

So, anyway, I was checking out the Twin Six website one day and hey! I saw this thing called The Standard Wool. I didn't waste any time and ordered one up. Those T-6 guys just make really classy, well fitting stuff, and this was no different. However; they also don't do "mee too" design, so there are a couple of things here that are different. The colored part, (blue in my example here), is actually regular ol' jersey fabric. Which is a different touch, but they took that same idea and used it to not only give color to the three back pockets, but to give those pockets structure. Ever had something heavy-ish in a regular wool jersey pocket before? Well, if you have, you know that whatever it is ends up down around yer butt after a while bouncing around back there. Wool stretches, but the Standard Wool Jersey's pockets do not.

Brilliant!

But there's more! In the image above, you cannot tell, but I am soaking wet from a rain shower I got caught in. Hey, wool keeps you warm when that happens. Pretty awesome. Expensive? Yes. $145.00 expensive, which may scare a lot of folks off, but for how this fabric works in hot weather, it is money well spent for me. Your mileage may vary.

The new Olympus Tough TG-5

Tough Camera:

Most of the ride images and stuff I post on here and RidingGravel.com is all imagery taken with my trusty Olympus Tough TG-3. Well, it hasn't let me down yet, but I may replace it, or more likely, add something else to the camera pool. I saw that Olympus just released a Tough TG-5.

Now, I am not one to just get something because it is the next gen thing. You might have noticed I didn't mention the Tough TG-4. It was a minor change from what I had, and I did not see the value in "upgrading", if that even was an upgrade. However; there are some cool features that this TG-5 has that have given me something to chew on.

Basically, the TG-5 is somewhat similar to what I have. However; it does support RAW files, (which I haven't ever used, but probably should), and from my standpoint, better control layout and ergonomics. The TG-3 is a slippery little devil, and there isn't a lot of purchase on the camera body, which gets a little dicey while riding. (Yes.....I shoot a ton of my images while moving. So, sue me. ) The TG-5 has improved grip areas and the control dials are redesigned as well. This may be something that allows me to zoom in with one hand. That would be nice. They also redesigned the mode dial surround so that it doesn't get knocked out of the setting you select easily, which the TG-3 is really prone to do.

The accessory items available for this camera also look a bit more interesting and refined than they have offered in the past. That is a bit enticing, especially the zoom lens, so I may have to seriously consider that as well. But the main things they kept the same were good things. The "tough" features are all the same. Dust proof, freeze proof, shock resistant, and waterproof. All things I insist on for my carry-along camera on my rides. I don't want to baby sit an expensive camera while I am out riding.

It's $450.00 though, so I won't be just grabbing one right off. I need to assess my needs here, and I do have a functioning TG-3, so it isn't like I have to get a camera. But for some of the features this new one has, and the nicer video spec, I can see where it might prove to be a good upgrade, if I use it for video and RAW files, etc.

 GTDRI UPDATE:

Thanks for the feedback, and due to receiving that, I have come to some decisions on the ride.

First- We will start and end at Broad Street Brewing Company in Reinbeck, Iowa. The ride will start at 6:00am.

Second: We will be flying by the seat of our pants if it rains or is wetter than a Level B might allow us to do. We may truncate the route, or .......who knows? If it gets weird, be prepared to roll with it!

Third: This means that the route will have three possibilities for resupply, bailout, or not. First, at mile 28-ish, we will pass just West of Dysart, Iowa. I figure this will be an optional stop. Then we will be going through Traer Iowa at about mile 50. This will definitely be a stop. Then at about Mile 76 we will pass through Garwin, Iowa, and we will definitely be stopping there, I figure.

The route will be 103.5 miles. I plan on doing a recon, at least partial if not all, this holiday weekend. Stay tuned for a recon report next week sometime.

That's a wrap for this edition of Friday News And Views. Have a great weekend!