December 8, 2022
Anti-Aging: Is Winter Endurance Exercise Important?
By Coach John Hughes
Endurance exercise is a relatively long ride at a conversational pace. But is this important in the winter when it’s hard to log outdoor miles and hours on the trainer suck?
Probably not if you use Merriam-Webster’s definition of endurance: “The ability to withstand hardship or adversity especially: the ability to sustain a prolonged stressful effort or activity.” For example, “A marathon runner’s endurance.” Read more.
Fixing Bent Derailleur Hangers Part 2: Using a Professional Hanger Alignment Tool
Jim’s Tech Talk
By Jim Langley
This is the second article on repairing bent derailleur hangers. In part one we covered common ways they’re bent and the shifting problems caused by bent hangers. And we recommended derailleurhanger.com as a good source for finding the correct replacement hanger for frames with bolt-on hangers (most frames today). This article is about using a professional hanger alignment tool to fix bent hangers. Read more.
Pearl Izumi Expedition Thermal Cycling Bib Tight Review
By Brandon Bilyeu
Pearl Izumi has three weather categories for their cycling tights: Cool, Cold, and Deep Cold. The Expedition Thermal Cycling Bib Tights fall into the Cold category. Temperature comfort ranges vary from person to person, but the Cold range is probably the most versatile as it has more insulation than the plain lycra of the Cool range and more freedom of movement than the Deep Cold kit with AmFIB softshell fabric. Read more.
Quick Tip: Check Internal Clearance When Replacing Wheel Bearings
By Rick Schultz
A short tech tip to consider next time if you install your own replacement wheel bearings and they don’t spin as well as the original bearings.
The bearing manufacturers understand that the industry uses different tolerances, so they have come up with a solution called Internal Clearance. Read more.
Is Protein the Key Piece to the Obesity Puzzle?
By Kevin Kolodziejski
Granted, the question posed in today’s title doesn’t carry the same existential clout as “To be, or not to be” — which just happens to be the world’s best-known should-I-commit-suicide-or-not soliloquy. So allow me to ask you another, not quite as imminent as Hamlet’s but still related in a way to your mortality. Read more.
What does “no-drop ride” mean?
QUESTION: What does “no-drop ride” mean? My bike shop has a list of group rides, and they describe some of them that way in parentheses. —Jeff T.
RBR’S STAN PURDUM REPLIES: It’s a ride where nobody gets left behind, no matter how slow a rider they are. If you are a new rider or even a long-time cyclist but one who usually rides alone or pedals at moderate speeds, no-drop rides are a good way to break into group cycling. Read more.
Can you put road tires on a gravel bike?
QUESTION: Can you put road tires on a gravel bike? I’m looking at a used gravel bike and like the idea of a more upright and comfortable geometry. But in reality I almost only ride on the road so I probably want road tires. – Ralph C
RBR REPLIES: Yes, you can definitely use road tires on a gravel bike. The reverse is not true though, because road bike frames often don’t have enough clearance to fit a wider gravel tire. There are a few issues you might still look out for if you’re going to run road tires on a gravel bike. Read more.
Exercising in Cold Weather
Cold weather is associated with an increased incidence of heart attacks (Arch Intern Med, 2004;164(8):863-870). The majority of cold weather deaths are associated with elevated blood pressure and increased clotting to cause heart attacks and strokes. If you have heart or lung disease, you are far more likely to die in cold weather than in the heat. Even a short-term drop in air temperature in the tropics is associated with increased heart attack risk. Read more.
Cycling Past 60 Bundle
In this 2-article series, Cycling Past 60 Bundle, Coach John Hughes shares his personal insight and the current research into how the human body ages, especially past age 60.
- For Health gives you six different health maintenance objectives for different components of your physiology, including comprehensive fitness programs that address these objectives. It shows you how to measure your “Athletic Maturity” to assess your relative fitness in terms of all aspects of good health. This eBook includes three balanced, full-body exercise programs for different cyclists of different athletic maturities.
- For Recreation uses the concept of “Athletic Maturity” to design programs for riders of different athletic maturity. It includes six different structured workout programs, three each for Endurance and Performance cyclists, based on levels of athletic maturity.
Question of the Week
Do you work on your own bike?
Cool Stuff to Read
Cycling Weekly: New York City saw three e-bike battery fires in the past 24 hours
Bicycle Retailer: Drivetrain maker Classified Cycling raises $23 million
The Cycling Independent: Dying to Get Home
VeloNews: Are modern bicycles the end of DIY maintenance?
Rene Herse: Tire Testing: Lab vs. Real Road
End Notes
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