Newsletter Issue No. 996

December 23, 2021

9 Top Tips for Winter Cycling Training

By Coach John Hughes

I live in Colorado and I Nordic skied on Tuesday and Wednesday, and then my buddy and I enjoyed ourweekly ride on Thursday. As I write this, a fire in my wood stove is keeping me warm.

This is the time of year when I outline my clients’ training plans for the year ahead. For the next 3 – 5 months I plan base training, whether the client lives in Boston, Colorado, Maine or California (in other words, regardless of the climate). Read more.

---

Basics of Installing and Removing Bicycle Pedals

By Jim Langley

A quick note to start: If you’re a pedal virtuoso already, feel free to skip this Tech Talk. But if you have any favorite pedal tips to help newer roadies and mechanics, please do share them in a comment.

With Christmas almost here, I want to offer some tips for anyone who might be getting the ultimate gift, a new bicycle! And for those who might be gifted new pedals, too. To explain, most new bikes either come without pedals or with el-cheapo plastic basic ones that you’ll probably want to upgrade ASAP. And if you’re swapping out pedals and haven’t done it before, there are a few things you need to know. Read more.

---

Ancora – Premium Expansion Plug For Carbon Steerer Tubes

By Rick Schultz

I’ve always been a huge supporter of Cane Creek products and use their headsets exclusively. When my 2014 Giant TCR Advanced carbon fork developed a hairline crack, it was time to quickly replace it. Luckily I had a spare Enve carbon fork laying around. The problem was that the Enve fork was a 2020 model and did not fit the 2014 Giant headset. A quick call to Cane Creek tech support supplied me with which headset I needed. In the meantime, waiting for the headset to arrive (unfortunately the Ancora didn’t exist back then), but fortunately, I had a spare Cervelo steel sleeve for carbon steerers (the one that gets epoxied into the steerer tube) that I started prepping the new fork with. With this solution, I could safely insert a star-nut. Read more.

---

Bicycling in the Winter: Whipping Cold Weather

By Fred Matheny

Unless you live in temperate climes where winter means slipping on a sweater in the cool of the evening, you probably equate off-season training with cold weather. Sure, you can retreat to the trainer and Zwift or the weight room to escape the arctic blasts. But what fun is that? Read more.

---

Winterize Your Bicycle

By Jim Langley

Even though the winter weather is fairly tame here in Santa Cruz, California, I know that in a good many other locales nothing – not snow, or freezing rain, or iced-over pavement, or hurricane gusts that leave normally clogged roads car-free – will stop some roadies from getting their rides in during the winter. Read more.

---

RBR Readers’ Bicycle Winterizing Tips

By Jim Langley

In my Tech Talk, I provided five tips for winterizing your bicycle. Our knowledgeable RBR readers have also chimed in, adding their own valuable tips.

Thanks for sharing your expertise. Let’s look at your recommendations and I’ll add a few related winterizing stories and tips. Read more.

---

45NRTH Draugenklaw Drop-Bar Pogies Review

By Sheri Rosenbaum

For me, cold hands and feet are always an issue when temps dip into the 40s or below. I’ll throw the flat bar pogies on my fat bike, but I never tried them on drop bars. Then 45NRTH sent me a pair of their new Draugenklaw Drop Pogies to test. Read more.

---

3 Types of Aging: Calendar, Metabolic, Fitness

By Martin Sigrist

Takeaway: There is more to aging than counting. Humans are complicated and we can at one and the same time be a number of different “years old”. The calendar may lie, our metabolic age may be greater or less. Also our fitness age. Indeed if you have never have the opportunity to train properly even once a “master” your best years may still lie ahead. Read more.

---

How Can I Keep My Face From Freezing During Winter Cycling?

Question: I don’t mind bicycle riding in cold weather, but I can’t keep my face warm. Shoe covers work for my feet and heavy gloves keep my hands toasty. But my chin and cheeks freeze. I wear a “skull cap” under my cycling helmet. Any ideas? — Barry M.

RBR Replies: You need more than a skull cap, Barry. You need a balaclava – one of the handiest pieces of cycling apparel you can own if you live in a place with real winters. Read more.

---

Avadar C3 City Mid Drive Motor Ebike Review

By Lars Hundley

Avadar contacted me about looking at their C3 City model ebike. When I looked over the features of the bike and saw that it came with Shimano parts and a higher end mid drive motor (compared to the cheaper hub drive motor in many competing ebikes) that cost $2,180, I agreed to take delivery and review it for our readers. Read more.

---

Productive Off-Season Training for Health and Recreational Riders

Productive Off-Season Training, by Coach John Hughes, has information on cardiovascular endurance training, cross-training, cycling indoors – including workouts and drills, resistance (strength) training, including exercises, and intensity training, including workouts. The material is then laid out in two 12-week programs: #1 for health and fitness riders and #2 for recreational riders.

Learn more.

---

Question of the Week

What’s your low temperature outdoor riding limit?

Cool Stuff to Read

LiveScience: Which muscles are used when cycling?
Road.cc: Real-time aerodynamic device closer to reality
Bicycle Retailer: Shimano gets fake clearance website taken down

End Note