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The Civil War Century in Pennsylvania is coming up on September 6th. 100 miles of riding with over 7,000' of cumulative elevation gain. I did the ride back in 2013 right after doing the Seattle to Portland (STP) double century. I hadn't fully recovered from the STP, so the CWC was really hard despite only being half as long.

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Flyhound said:
The Civil War Century in Pennsylvania is coming up on September 6th. 100 miles of riding with over 7,000' of cumulative elevation gain. I did the ride back in 2013 right after doing the Seattle to Portland (STP) double century. I hadn't fully recovered from the STP, so the CWS was really hard despite only being half as long.
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That looks like a fun ride!
 
This might be a bit wonky for most, but I think it's the most succinct summary on the topic I've seen yet.

 
Looks like a grand day out!
I’m resting today too
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Apparently I've been going a little harder than usual this spring. This tape was brand new 8 weeks ago, 900 miles later it's looking a little long in the tooth.

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Bill said:
Looks like that tape isn’t measuring up!
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Found this from almost exactly 10 years ago… the more things change, right?

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If it’s getting trashed wrap the tape around the affected areas. It won’t feel different riding but it will significantly increase the life of your bar tape.
 
Nah. New Bar Tape Day is always a special day. Almost as fun as New Tire Day.
Also if I'm honest my own on-bike vanity still has limits ;)
 
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Flats suck. This is the little bugger that did me in today. I think I missed it last flat but I did a bubble test and found the spot. This is the primary reason why I am anal about lining the tire logo with the stem.

I’m pretty sure it is puncture weed. Nine times out of ten it’s little steel wires from shredded tire carcasses on the side of the road. They are like invisible hypodermic needles.
 
@Sac Arrow I see you're still holding out with tubes. Can't say I disagree; tubeless is a pox - but if you're gonna run tubes I recommend something like Conti gator skins. Also 110 style points for lining up the valve with the label. We'll get you to come around on bar tape soon enough ;)
 
Hengelo said:
@Sac Arrow I see you're still holding out with tubes. Can't say I disagree; tubeless is a pox - but if you're gonna run tubes I recommend something like Conti gator skins. Also 110 style points for lining up the valve with the label. We'll get you to come around on bar tape soon enough ;)
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I hatred Gator Skins. I run those on the Tarmac. They perform slightly better than normal tires for puncture resistance but ride like carp.
 
I think I might have an insensitive taint. Rode them for a decade of racing and training and never had a flat, or a "ride quality" complaint. Changed them about once a year.
 
Sac Arrow said:
...little steel wires from shredded tire carcasses...
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I cannot tell you how many times I've had a flat from one of those wires. I didn't realize what they were until now.

I've found those wires hide out in those dark, sandy, debris spots. There was a long, local FB post recently with people raging on bikers slowing down traffic. The next morning to give cars more room, I road in the gutter for a bit, couldn't avoid one of those sandy spots, hoped I wouldn't get a flat, but sure enough. That's what I get for trying to be considerate.
 
I agree with @Sac Arrow that Gatorskins are the pits. I used to run them for flat resistance, but found they were not perfect in that regard. Now use Vittoria Rubino Pro's as training tire with no flat so far. They suck just enough to make my racing tires/wheels feel like a turbo charger, but the ride quality and handling is much better. Think Conti has a much newer flat resistant tire as well.
 
On the tubeless bike I have over 10,000mi on sets of Conti 5000 S TR, ride nice, no flats yet.

On the tube bike those wires and even smaller glass shards have been my nemesis.

I recently switched to carrying one of the new micro size rechargeable electric tire pumps, super nice, and weigh about the same as a two CO2 canisters and the inflator.
 
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I had a little oopsie on my bicycle last Thursday. No doubt it was my fault, but I thought I’d post it here as a cautionary tale.

We were camping at Indian Boundary Recreation Area near us in Tennessee. I had taken my 42 year old Cannondale road bike which I had just recently restored. I had planned to ride it mainly on the road, but there is a 3.6 mile loop trail around Indian Boundary Lake, and I thought I’d give that a try.

The trail was not particularly difficult, but there were sections with rocks and roots, and I walked a couple of the gnarlier sections. There were also quite a few wooden bridges, which were pretty easy to traverse. Until…

I was about 2/3 of the way across one when the front tire must have hit a damp, slimy area, or maybe an uneven board, and slid out to my left. That threw me against the wooden railing, with my right elbow taking the brunt of the impact. It was hard to tell the extent of the injury, but blood was starting to run down my right arm. Nothing to do but carefully complete the loop and ride back to our campsite.

There, I noticed a small blood spot on my right glove and taking it off my hand was quite swollen. Went to the bath house and cleaned things up in the shower as best I could. Karen put gauze on it and we drove about 25 miles to Madisonville, which was the nearest walk in clinic. They cleaned it up, applied some antibiotic cream, bandaged it and gave me a tetanus shot. They didn’t like the look of the hand and sent me to another of their clinics in Loudon that had an X-ray machine. Got the report back shortly that nothing was broken.

It’s now been about a week and things are gradually healing. Though it looked nasty, I think it could qualify as superficial. At 75, it’s a bit depressing how thin my skin has become and how easily I bruise. I try to stay lean and active and fit, but there’s no doubt age is taking its toll. Especially the two decades from 55 to 75 - it’s undeniable that my balance, strength and coordination have all taken a noticeable hit. But I guess there’s nothing to do but carry on!

Oh, and if you’re going to ride trails, choose a more appropriate bike with more appropriate tires.

Note: the wooden bridge below with GiGi was not the culprit, but is indicative of the kind of bridge where my wipeout occurred.

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@FastEddieB that does look proper gnarly. Glad it was mostly pride that took the blow and nothing worse. Wet wood can be murder. Worse than painted lines.

Your lovely bike is definitely a classic. Tires that narrow should come with some warnings.

Modern tires have definitely moved wider, and lower pressure - even for road bikes. The advantages aren't just better traction but a softer ride.
 
Wet/damp wood bridges are evil. A friend of mine fell and broke her hip riding one of the wet bridges on a bike path.
 
Those dimpled yellow plastic blind crossing tiles are deadly in the rain. A few years ago I was riding on the bike trail, and to continue, I had to take a shortcut through a light rail station. The loading dock was plastered with those stupid things, it was raining, and my tires slid out on them, nearly tossing me on to the tracks in front of an oncoming train.
 
Got my front wheel stuck in a streetcar track when I was about 16 - did the full Joey's ok into oncoming traffic. Thankfully it was early in the morning and traffic was light.
 
I just remembered this gem from my time living and racing in NYC; seems oddly appropriate here since one of the storied race courses was on Floyd Bennett Field. The aviation connection had completely slipped my mind.

As the Tour gets ready to start it’s pretty cool to see where some of the domestic racing starts… Charlie Issendorf was the race organizer; he’s a former teammate of Hincapie. Charlie didn’t dope, though.

 
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