On Tue, 2012-03-06 at 09:09 -0800, Smitty-A-Go-Go wrote: > I've got 40mm Marathon Supremes on there now. I imagine I'd be the > only one with 40mm tires.
Maybe or maybe not. There are several folks in DC Randonneurs on 42mm Hetres. But chances are you'll see everything from 21 or 23mm on up. > Not that that's a deal breaker but I've been contemplating getting a > set of faster tires and this seems like as good a reason as any to > make a purchase. What sort of tires do people normally ride on such an > event? I love all the Schwalbes I've had and am tempted to get Kojaks > out of brand loyalty. I was also eyeing the 32mm Grand Bois Cypress on > Jan's site. As far as I can tell Jan is the rando guy and I can't > imagine he'd sell crappy tires. Grand Bois tires are excellent. I have the 700Cx32mm Cypress on my Velo Orange. They're definitely in the "unarmored" camp, though. Kojaks get a lot of love on the lists. I have them on my Alex Moulton and like them a lot. But unless you get something absolutely horrible (something you could ride over an IED and not get a flat) it probably won't make any difference in terms of "success" or "failure" although the thing about high quality fast, supple tires like the Cypres is how nice they ride. > What sort of foods do people eat? I'd rather avoid things in the power > goo and protein pudding food group. It always tickles me that the really fast people in DC Randonneurs make use of the time savings they build up to have big fancy lunches in restaurants. Although, I'm sure there are some eating slime from a tube. > I went for a ride with some roadie types a few weeks ago and brought > dates as my snack. I was keeping up ok before I ate the dates but the > dates sat heavy in my belly and I became a slug. One more vote for going with what you're used to. You'll have enough novelty with the additional distance and THE RULES, you don't need to spin the roulette wheel on possible gastric disturbance. Trust me, that can really ruin your day no matter how it manifests itself. I still remember the way the vegetable soup at the first rest stop on the Civista Century 2 years ago repeated on me all the way down to the 75 mile rest stop, and trust me, diarrhea will not only lose you great gobs of time but also will make your ride truly memorable in a not good way. I know this for a fact. > How extensive of a tool kit do people generally bring on a ride like > this? I generally carry more tools than I've ever really needed on the > road. Flats are really my only stop-me-in-my-tracks roadside repair > I've had to deal with. I'm tempted to minimize the tool kit but don't > want to go too small. At some point you could experiment with carrying fewer tools than you do now but this probably isn't the time for that. You have enough novelty going on as it is, no need to throw anxiety about breaking down and not having the tools with you on top of that. But definitely leave the welding torch, the sledge hammer and the 12" crescent wrench at home. > I realize the ride is short enough that I could probably get by doing > business as usual and get through it Hold on to that thought. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
