June 10, 2021
Which Electrolytes Do You Really Need?
By Coach John Hughes
It was 95F (35C) and sweat was dripping into my eyes a few years back, so I tied a bandana around my head and put my cowboy hat back on. My wife and I were sitting in the sun listening to Yonder Mountain String Band’s Sunday morning gospel set at RockyGrass, the annual bluegrass festival only a few miles from our house in Boulder, Colorado. Yonder usually plays amphitheaters seating 10,000 or more. We were lucky that they were playing to an audience of only about a thousand at Planet Bluegrass on the banks of the South St. Vrain river, a popular spot for soaking to escape the heat! Read more.
More on Cassette Tools
By Jim Langley
We have a bit of catching up to do this week. The last Tech Talk, which you can read here was actually a rerun from 2018.
A reader named “Walt” commented and expressed surprise that it was a previously run Tech Talk. So I’ll explain for him and anyone else curious about this that we do that when the writer (yours truly in this case), is off riding (or perhaps something equally important) and can’t get a new column done in time to meet the weekly deadline. Read more.
Connecting Things Leads to Better Cycling
By Kevin Kolodziejski
Even though I’m three months into my seventh decade, I ride as hard as I can as often as I can and sometimes even mix it up with up-and-comers a third my age. A former training partner who’s much younger and now does all his riding recreationally recently asked why I still do so. The question caught me off guard. I shrugged my shoulders and asked about his wife and kids. Read more.
Smith Optics Express Commuter Helmet Review
By Sheri Rosenbaum
Rarely do you find a commuter bike helmet for $100 that is lightweight, incorporates MIPS, and has a cool factor. Smith’s Express helmet, which launched in April, offers all that and a whole lot more. Read more.
Ohio River Reverie
By Stan Purdum
Nearly 20 years ago, I pulled out on the fourth day of what I’d planned to be a longer bicycle tour because heavy rain had set in and was forecast to continue for a couple days more. It was the right decision, but it left me disappointed — partly because the leg of the journey that promised some of the best riding lay just beyond where I ended the ride. Read more.
Why You Should Ride Like Crazy Horse
By Greg Conderacci
During his life, the great Native American chief Crazy Horse found himself pursued many times – by the U.S. Army, scouts, and members of rival tribes. But they could never catch him, despite riding their horses into the ground in efforts to do so. Read more.
Are Bike Computers Worth It?
By Stan Purdum
The short answer is “Yes,” but since there are two classes of bike computers, the longer answer is “It depends on what you want to know about your ride.”
Bike computers can be classed as “basic” and “advanced,” though they aren’t usually identified by that terminology. Read more.
Machines For Freedom Versatile Off-Road Collection
By Sheri Rosenbaum
In mid-April, Machines for Freedom launched a new collection and entered a new cycling category. Previously, the company focused exclusively on the road cycling market but now has the Versatile collection for off-road. Read more.
Many Common Drugs Can Raise Blood Pressure
High blood pressure markedly increases risk for heart attacks and strokes. A study of 10,676 adults, average age 56, found that 47.2 percent had high blood pressure, and one in five of the subjects who had high blood pressure (>130/80) took medicines that can raise blood pressure. The blood-pressure-raising medicines taken most frequently were antidepressants (8.9 percent), NSAIDs (7.2 percent), and steroids (2.2 percent). Realize that some prescription drugs are necessary for your well-being, so you should never stop any drug until you have discussed it in detail with your doctor. Here is a partial list of some medications that may raise blood pressure. Read more.
Summer Riding Bundle
Summer Riding Bundle by Coach John Hughes gives you the info you need to ride better and more comfortably. It includes:
- Cycling in the Heat, Part 1: Ride Management. 20 pages on how to acclimate, how to ride in the heat without overheating, how to stay (relatively) cool, what to wear, what to eat and drink, how to cool down if you overheat and heat related problems
- Cycling in the Heat, Part 2: Hydration Management. 21 pages on assessing your personal sweat rate and composition, how much you should drink, electrolyte replacement and the pros and cons of electrolyte replacement drinks, supplements and foods.
- Preventing and Treating Cramps. Hughes has not cramped in decades. 10 pages on what causes cramps, how to prevent them and what to do to break a cramp so you can keep riding.
- Eating and Drinking Like the Pros: How to Make Your Own Sports Food and Drink — Nutritional Insight from Pro Teams. 15 pages covering what the pros eat and drink, what you can learn from this, how to make your own sports drinks, gels and solid food and what to eat at a minimart.
Question of the Week
Lots of cycling events are back. Are you riding any this summer?
Other Cool Stuff to Read
Road.cc: UCI bans blood glucose monitoring devices from in-competition use
Bicycle Retailer: Houston bike shop installs fog machine to try to stop repeated smash and grab break-ins
VeloNews: New and unreleased gravel bikes spotted in Kansas
VeloNews: Vittoria Air-Liner Road designed for riding a flat tire with a foam liner
End Note
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