Saturday Rides Starting from Starbucks in Rosemount, MN
During the winter off season, when we cannot ride road bikes outside, we offer Saturday morning group rides on Zwift. These rides usually offer a weekly two to four-hour group ride. To communicate during the rides, we have a Discord server that lets us talk to each other and lets us have our coffee and pastry-shop chat during the ride.
Read MoreRecently, I noticed that my favorite lenses for my Rudy Project Rydon sun glasses were in rough shape and that was affecting my vision on and off the bike. So, I went looking for replacement Racing Red lenses. I found that I could buy new lenses for about $85, but then I remembered that Rudy Project has a Replacement Lens Program (RLP). That program covers all lens damage (e.g., scratching) from any use or activity on all RP Optic, Polar 3FX or ImpactX Lenses made by Rudy Project and mounted in products that are found in the current year's Product Catalog. Through Rudy Project North America's RLP, consumers can opt to replace scratched lenses for a nominal processing fee directly through Rudy Project North America.
Read MoreRide etiquette and safety has been a topic of conversation at several of our rides recently, so I’ve taken a fresh look at the riding etiquette and safety tips on our web site, and I’d like everyone to read it. This bit of wisdom was written by Mike Munk, a ride leader for 22 years. Following his 13 “rules” will make you a better and safer rider.
On our rides, everyone’s safety is a primary concern and knowing how to safely ride in a group is key. We all know a few riders who we prefer not to follow, because they are not steady and unpredictable. Are you someone that others try to avoid? To help you improve, GCN has a short video on how to properly hold the wheel of the rider in front of you, and a related video about how to ride in a paceline.
Read MoreA few club members have been riding with Zwift for multiple seasons. This year, I decided to join Zwift to see what it can do to make indoor riding a bit more fun and interesting. Zwift is a game for your indoor trainer where you can ride on several virtual courses that are imaginary or based on real places around the globe. You can ride over 100 km of virtual roads, do structured workouts, and join group rides.
Getting started was pretty easy. All I needed was the trainer that I already own, a speed sensor that supports ANT+ or Bluetooth, and a laptop. I didn’t have a speed sensor, so I bought the Wahoo RPM Cycling Speed and Cadence Sensor combo. They are small and light and can communicate via ANT+ and Bluetooth, so I can pair them via Bluetooth to the Zwift Companion app and via ANT+ with my Garmin 510 when I ride outdoors.
Read MoreThis guide will help you if you’re a new rider and you don't have a closet full of cycling clothing and you don't have experience riding in a wide variety of weather conditions. Or, if you've been riding for a while and want to extend your riding season, this will help you make the leap to improve your clothing choices. I'll explain what cycling clothing, called kit, you should own, so you can get out for a ride in a wide variety of conditions.
Before we get into the clothing specifics, here are a few things you should consider when trying on clothing.
Read MoreThe next time you put your helmet on, check the chin strap. When your mouth is closed, the chin strap should be tight enough that you can only fit two fingers between the strap and your chin. If the strap is too loose it may not stay on your head when you need it the most.
Chin straps can loosen over time, so it's a good thing to check a couple of times a year. Check out this video to see more information about how to properly fit a helmet.
Deciding what to wear while cycling in inclement weather is tricky. It can take a lot of trial and error to get it dialed in, but riding in most conditions is A LOT more comfortable once you know how to dress. It’s a horrible feeling when you went through the painstaking process to figure out what to wear last year, but you wrote nothing down so you spend the first few rides of each season miserable.
I’m here to tell you about a system I’ve honed that could help you out. The picture below is me, sitting in the car after a fat bike ride at -10F, where I was actually TOO HOT on the ride.
Read MoreComponents of a road bike and a glossary of terms and jargon that you are likely to hear during a club ride, or afterwards at the coffee shop.
Read MoreI know a lot of you are so pressed for time to ride, and juggling family life makes your time on the bike even more important that you want to see results in your fitness. But for those of us who have more riding and training time available, I want to recommend LSD (Long Slow Distance) riding from time to time.
Read MoreThe easy way of making sure your new cleats match up with the position of your old ones, and this is very important, is to use masking tape on the outside edge of the cleat in different places, or better yet scribe with an awl, or pen around the whole outside edge. I use both tape and an awl. But before you loosen things up, get on your bike and clip in both shoes while leaning up against something.
Read MoreThis article has all cyclists and hikers concerned. The U.S. government is expected to release a report on the safety of certain plastic water bottles containing the chemical compound bisphenol-A or BPA, which some scientists consider a health concern. Recent lab tests indicate that exposure to BPA may raise the risk of certain cancers, effect both male and female fertility and possibly enhance the risk of developing Type II diabetes at certain exposure levels. Look for a small triangle on the bottom of your bottles. The number inside the triangle indicates the category of plastic that is used to manufacture the bottle. Bottles that contain the number 3, 6, or 7 have either BPA or other chemicals that should be avoided. Most cycling bottles are made with No. 4 plastic.
While riding in a group, especially at a fast speed, keep your head up and look beyond that rider in front of you. Remember drivers ed, and how they taught you to scan ahead and get the whole picture? The same holds true with us, in that looking ahead to see what's going on 4-5 riders ahead will give you more reaction time in case there is a crash. It will also be helpful in telling you when the speed will increase, or decrease, or if there is something in the road that doesn't get pointed out for some reason.
About 65% of your body weight is over the rear wheel. So if you encounter a rough set of railroad tracks, or even a pothole, getting off the saddle and leaning forward will transfer your weight more evenly between the front and the back wheel can prevent these.
I learned this from Scott Flanders many yrs. ago, and for those of you who know him, know that he is meticulous about his race bike being race ready at all times. At both the front and rear derailleurs there are points where, if you work the shift lever can see where a part will move against another part that won't. That is the pivot point, and it makes sense to give that point just 1 drop of light weight lubricant once in a while. The rear derailleur has 4 points, and the front also 4 points. I use the smallest plastic bottle of Triflow I can find. I inserted one of those spray tubes into the top, that way I can see that I'm using just a drop. Then wipe off the any excess.
If you like to ride with your hands on the "tops", meaning the top of the bars alot, always make sure at least one thumb is wrapped under the bar. That way if you happen to hit a hole or deep crack unexpectedly, and it will happen if you ride alot, your hands won't slide off the bars which would more than likely cause you to crash, and possibly others.