Reviews for the hardcore cyclist » racing

Pedals

admin — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 01:45:53 +0000

Keo Sprint do well for training and Keo Ti Carbon are nice for racing.

The Keo Carbon Ti come race ready, they all ready have gone threw a test of load bearing rotations. The rotation is silky smooth.

One of my older Look pedals weight more then two of the Look Keo Carbon pedals. Very noticeable on the pedal stroke and well worth the extra $$.

For commuting I use greyhound track pedals with plastic clip ones from mec. They have a sealed bearing which does well for one winter. Salt and sand mixed together to a great job at braking down grease while wearing out any metal part.

Cassettes

admin — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 01:27:13 +0000

I have run threw more cassettes that I can remember, ultegra has done well for training and so long as regular chain replacement is done they last 3 to 4 chains.

Lower end cassettes wear quicker and I tend only get 3 chains out of them.

I don’t ride much with dura ace cassettes, I doubt that the cassette would last longer then ultegra. If it did then it would need to wear 2x slower then ultegra to make it financially justifiable for training.

For racing, the extra weight loss is easily justified considering how difficult (costly) it is to reduce weight on wheels. Rotational weight is key during races with lots of spin ups.

Giant Tcr compact frames

admin — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 01:01:32 +0000

Over all the Giant Tcr compact frames are a fairly inexpensive platform to build your bike on. Personally have found them not to be the stiffest frame but that has not changed my results in any significant way. Aero dynamics is where improvement could likely be made.

Ultegra and Dura Ace shifters

admin — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 00:58:36 +0000

Ultegra, Dura Ace shifters fair well for training and racing. What tends to do them in is dust which gets into the shifters and or spring breaks in side. The Dura Ace are some what lighter but at this moment have not noticed any difference in Durability.

Vittoria Rubin Pro

admin — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 03:08:41 +0000

I have found the Rubin Pro’s are good for time trails and not a fan of using them for heavy cornering.

For using them racing the 23 mm, I like to have less then 1,500 km on them and for the 20 mm I like to have less then 800 km.

For max life span the 23 mm seam to be in the 2,500 to 3,000 km range and the 20 mm at 1,000 to 1,500 km. Keep in mind I am hard on my tires so your mileage may be better.

Rubino Pro

Dura Ace chain

admin — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 02:16:51 +0000

I have gone threw around 20 to 25 chains in thew last few years and my preference has been Dura Ace chains with a fixed pin. My opinion is they take the longest to wear out (1.5 to 2x longer), quitest and all most never break. Good for training and racing.