First off let me say two things.
1) This post will be long. It will also be worth your while to read it.
2) These are sponsor products. We chose to align with them because they are the best at what they do. I will point out salient features as to why these products are market leaders.
CANNONDALE
These bikes are some of the lightest and most predictable bikes I have ever ridden. My team Scalpel and F29'er are 22.5 lbs each. Each bike does have Stan's wheels.
29'er: Very good in tight twisty singletrack. Very easy to get the front end off the ground and hop BIG stuff. Climbs like a mt. goat. These are the three biggest praises I can give this bike. After riding a different 29er last year. This feel is very different. It just rides better. The bike feels very nimble and rides that way.
Scalpel: This is my first time on a full suspension bike. The Scalpel is neat because it is a pivotless 100mm travel bike. This design will save almost a full pound over other full suspension designs.
Due to rear suspension, the bikes absolutely sticks to everything. There is no rear wheel slide out or bounce when climbing. Coming from a road background I prefer climbs where I can stand & attack. The Scalpel is great here. The bike is great in singletrack and rolls through rock gardens almost as well as the 29er. Big wheels are just better. Hard to fool physics. Anytime you point the Scalpel downhill, it flies. It steers where you point it and you can always be pedaling, instead of off the saddle. This bike is my preference for any race greater than two hours, or where there are big rocky sections.
GRIPS: ERGON
Just buy them. This is probably the most inexpensive performance booster you can put on a bike. The grips help to relieve hand and wrist fatigue due to their ergonomic shape. This shape also allows a certain amount of leverage when pulling up when climbing. Ergon grips do have a model with bar ends attached for those who like bar ends.
Personal plug/story. I have had one carpal tunnel surgery. I should have my left hand done as well. One of my bikes has Ergon grips, the other is awaiting a second pair. When riding the bike without Ergon grips I get significant numbing and loss of grip strength in my left hand. When riding the bike with Ergon grips this is not an issue. The grip design and ergonomics alleviate any grip related problems.
HELMET: Rudy Project
Everyone needs a helmet. I have been racing for 21 seasons now. I was always a Giro person. That is until 4/5/2008. That was the day I first rode in my new Rudy Project helmet. The fit and feel will be different than anything you have ever worn. First the padding is like a web. There are no little pads that curl up or come undone. This design also keeps the helmet up ever so slightly higher. The benefit is to allow better airflow and moisture wicking. The tension device feels better than Giro as it feels like the helmet is coming down over your head like a cap, not a cinching front to back feel. This helmet is incredible, period.
GLASSES: Rudy Project
I used the Rydon frames for the first time at Greenbrier. These frames are so light and fit so well. There is an orangeish lens, which i used at Greenbrier and the standard dark lens. What makes these glasses so nice is that they can be custom-fit to your own noggin. The arms bend and flex. This way you can make them feel EXACTLY how they should feel on and around your ears. This also allows for a better position on your nose and eyes. Great specs.
H2O Packs: Deuter
I have not used this pack yet. My review will be in concept. What I like about this pack is that the pack sits off of your back slightly, this allows air to move between your back and the pack. This pack will PROMOTE cooling. That about the physics. Airflow over or under cool object creates a cooling effect. Air between an ice-filled pack and your back helps to cool. ie Bridge freezes before road surface. It is well documented that cooling vests increase performance by delaying fatigue. Yes, i am very excited to use this product.
LIGHTS: Lupine
Please speak with Ray or Kuhn about these. They can speak much more intelligently. From my reading the lumen's produced, burn time, batteries and design seem to be the absolute industry standard.
SHOES: NORTHWAVE
These shoes are sweet. If you have wide feet they are for you. The toe box is nice and ample. I absolutely can not wait until cross to roll these guys. I should finally make a season without cracking my big toenails halfway down. OUCH!
The fit is very comfortable. On the mountain shoe the ratchet design is small and works quite well. The ratchet position is adjustable. The soles are stiff with plenty of room for your cleats.
The road shoes are very stiff and extremely comfy. The sole has a rough material so your cleat will not slide. I am using a three strap shoe. I am coming from a strap and ratchet design, and have not noticed any downside.
HEART RATE MONITORS: SUUNTO
The sweet part about the Suunto for me is three-fold. There is a cyclometer feature in the watch so you can see all of your standard cycling functions on your HRM. It is downloadable, so your workout can be viewed to see exactly what the benefit was. Most importantly the monitor has a feature called EPOC. This feature works to assess just how hard the effort was that you put out. The feature seems similar to a TSB feature from CyclingPeaks. If you are serious about training and racing, you know that you need to asses form, fitness, and freshness to see where you stand. Until now CyclingPeaks was the only way to do this, and you need a Power-tap wheel to accomplish that end. Now Suunto has addressed this with their T6 HRM. This feature is sweet. Talk to Ry at a race about Suunto.
CADENCE: SHOP & COACHING
All of our sponsor products, minus bikes, can be seen and purchased at Cadence Cycling in Manayunk. This shop is one of the premier shops in the Mid-Atlantic area. it is THE premier training facility/organization in the Mid-Atlantic.
Coaching: I use a coach. I use a Cadence coach. My coach is Mike Kuhn. The reasons for hiring a coach are many. To get the most out of yourself you need to have an outside perspective to offer feedback. That point really is not arguable in life. You need someone to objectively give you feedback. Then as a person you need to apply that feedback. On a macro level, that is a coach.
A coach gives you years of experience to cull from. A coach will design programs that are specifically for you, based on your goals. A coach knows when to say more, and more importantly when to say that is enough.
Say what you will about coaching. No one NEEDS a coach. If you WANT to get the most out of yourself as an athlete, you will NEVER do that until you hire a coach.
So there are some reasons why VisitPA.com MTB team uses the products that we do. Hopefully this will encourage people to support these great companies. From a selfish standpoint, deep down we know these products are the best and give us an advantage just by having them. So if you chose not to use them that is alright, it just makes our racing a little easier.
Enjoy your season.
Hebe
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
What A Weekend! The promoter of the visitPA.com US Open Team Relay chimes in
First, thanks for coming. We set a record at the visitPA.com US Open Relay and almost doubled last year's attendance! We were not expecting quite such a turnout and we're very psyched that you all seem as into this format as we are. This is what I've been going for in a relay for years. The results were very much along the lines of what we were hoping to see with regard to the mix of squads in the top 5. Where last year was a little too heavily weighted toward the elite teams, this year everyone was in the mix with 10+ teams within two to four points (1 equivalent lap) of the winners. The win was in question right to the end and while one of the four man elite teams did win it wasn't by much and they were pushed hard to do it.
Second, hope you liked it. I have to thank Kim for having a birthday and bringing her brother and his band, The New Kings of Rhythm along as they certainly helped to turn that fun factor up to 11 and added a super sweet touch to the event. That was all her doing and I take none of the credit for it. Although, I guess if I wasn't holding the event then The New Kings of Rhythm wouldn't have had a bike race at which to play. So, then it was actually all me. I suppose I will take credit for that too. Anything bad was likely Kris's fault so you can take that up with her. Or more likely its the complete opposite of what I just said.
Third, sorry 'bout the reg lines, but we're all over that for next time.
Fourth, results are coming - you know me, or if this was your first experience, or if you don't, I sometimes like to complicate things. The scoring on this race is one of those things that I've complicated. I'll have those results up very soon along with some extra stuff like every single lap time and a ranking of the all the lap times so you can see how you stack up. I figure this will save all of you scrolling back and forth for hours trying to compare how you did vs. your buddies and your competition - we'll have it for you all in one place. Be patient, its coming as soon as we figure out what actually happened with the points and stuff and who actually won. Yes, I just gave it to one of the visitPA.com teams since I run the race and co-produce the squad with big Ray. Your suspicions are confirmed. I'd have given it to my relay team mostly for being stuck with me for the day, but who would have believed that one?
I'm already working on next year and introducing a few new tricks. I'm thinking the '09 theme will be along the lines of "Everybody Runs!" Tell your friends and bring 'em in from all over. We don't think there is a better way to start the season and we hope you're starting to come around to our way of thinking.
Thanks for coming to our visitPA.com MTB Team/High Speed Cycling production and thanks again to our sponsors - visitPA.com - the place to go for all your visitin' PA needs, Cannondale, Cadence Cycling and Multisport Centers, Suunto, Northwave, Ergon, Deuter, SRAM, Rudy Project, Psycho Lube, and Lupine. Without their support the team could not do what we do. If you happen to like what we do don't be afraid to show these great sponsors some love.
Second, hope you liked it. I have to thank Kim for having a birthday and bringing her brother and his band, The New Kings of Rhythm along as they certainly helped to turn that fun factor up to 11 and added a super sweet touch to the event. That was all her doing and I take none of the credit for it. Although, I guess if I wasn't holding the event then The New Kings of Rhythm wouldn't have had a bike race at which to play. So, then it was actually all me. I suppose I will take credit for that too. Anything bad was likely Kris's fault so you can take that up with her. Or more likely its the complete opposite of what I just said.
Third, sorry 'bout the reg lines, but we're all over that for next time.
Fourth, results are coming - you know me, or if this was your first experience, or if you don't, I sometimes like to complicate things. The scoring on this race is one of those things that I've complicated. I'll have those results up very soon along with some extra stuff like every single lap time and a ranking of the all the lap times so you can see how you stack up. I figure this will save all of you scrolling back and forth for hours trying to compare how you did vs. your buddies and your competition - we'll have it for you all in one place. Be patient, its coming as soon as we figure out what actually happened with the points and stuff and who actually won. Yes, I just gave it to one of the visitPA.com teams since I run the race and co-produce the squad with big Ray. Your suspicions are confirmed. I'd have given it to my relay team mostly for being stuck with me for the day, but who would have believed that one?
I'm already working on next year and introducing a few new tricks. I'm thinking the '09 theme will be along the lines of "Everybody Runs!" Tell your friends and bring 'em in from all over. We don't think there is a better way to start the season and we hope you're starting to come around to our way of thinking.
Thanks for coming to our visitPA.com MTB Team/High Speed Cycling production and thanks again to our sponsors - visitPA.com - the place to go for all your visitin' PA needs, Cannondale, Cadence Cycling and Multisport Centers, Suunto, Northwave, Ergon, Deuter, SRAM, Rudy Project, Psycho Lube, and Lupine. Without their support the team could not do what we do. If you happen to like what we do don't be afraid to show these great sponsors some love.
Monday, April 7, 2008
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery or...
If you can not beat them, try to join them.
That was the incredibly funny tribute from four young pro's to four older and old semi-pro's, this weekend at the 2008 US Open team relay championships. The four young guns decided to all dress up in VPA kit and memorialize their older and faster, at least on this day, heros.
The VisitPA.com real team US Open relay team was set to defend their 2007 title. With a line-up of no less than three National Champions in Wes Schempf, Mike Yozell and Ryan Leech and yours truly we were ready to take all comers. The team goal was to win the lap race, and to defend the title against the handicapped teams.
This great event allows beginners, juniors, men and women to all race for the overall win. I can say first hand that the VisitPA.com team races our guts out for 3:59:42, just so we could send out another rider for a last lap. That last lap was the lap that gave us the win.
With Wes leading off for VisitPA.com we were afforded a lead just three minutes into the race, and never looked back. Mike Yozell stretched the lead and handed off to me as I stretched it a bit more. I handed off to Ryan Leech who held his own against his counterpart on the young guns who was riding the fastest laps of the event. As the first hour passed our very trusty Cannondale F1 29er bikes were working flawlessly. The big wheels were turning and helping us increase the lead through hour two and three. After three hours we realized that we had exactly 1 hour and thirty seconds to ride our last four laps. We needed to turn fourth laps faster than 90% of everyone else's fastest lap. With great laps fro Wes, Yozell and myself we gave Ryan exactly sixteen minutes to win the race for us. The lap race was won at that point, Ry just need to finish before 4:00 so Wes could do a lap of fun. I headed into the woods to see Ry and give encouragement. It would be close. Yozell and I figured we would have 10-15 seconds to spare. Ry killedit and we had 18 seconds to spare. The race was ours. After some celebrating Mike & I decided to ride the last half-lap with Wes, as a demonstration that teammates win races as a team.
The day was a huge success with around 70 teams. All kudos for race management need to go directly to team director/founder Mike Kuhn of High Speed Cycling. I heard so many great comments through the day, about the event.
I would like to thank VisitPA.com for supporting the team. Cannondale bikes for supplying us with absolutely flawless machines. Ergon grips for the most comfy grips known to man. Rudy Project for the most comfy helmet I have worn in 20+ years of racing. SRAM for the absolute best shifting and brakes you can race with. I can not wait to use these products the rest of the year, as well as our other generous sponsor products from Suunto, Deuter, Northwave.
Thanks to all who attended the event.
Enjoy your season and remember to thank the promoters and teams that bring you these great events.
hebe
That was the incredibly funny tribute from four young pro's to four older and old semi-pro's, this weekend at the 2008 US Open team relay championships. The four young guns decided to all dress up in VPA kit and memorialize their older and faster, at least on this day, heros.
The VisitPA.com real team US Open relay team was set to defend their 2007 title. With a line-up of no less than three National Champions in Wes Schempf, Mike Yozell and Ryan Leech and yours truly we were ready to take all comers. The team goal was to win the lap race, and to defend the title against the handicapped teams.
This great event allows beginners, juniors, men and women to all race for the overall win. I can say first hand that the VisitPA.com team races our guts out for 3:59:42, just so we could send out another rider for a last lap. That last lap was the lap that gave us the win.
With Wes leading off for VisitPA.com we were afforded a lead just three minutes into the race, and never looked back. Mike Yozell stretched the lead and handed off to me as I stretched it a bit more. I handed off to Ryan Leech who held his own against his counterpart on the young guns who was riding the fastest laps of the event. As the first hour passed our very trusty Cannondale F1 29er bikes were working flawlessly. The big wheels were turning and helping us increase the lead through hour two and three. After three hours we realized that we had exactly 1 hour and thirty seconds to ride our last four laps. We needed to turn fourth laps faster than 90% of everyone else's fastest lap. With great laps fro Wes, Yozell and myself we gave Ryan exactly sixteen minutes to win the race for us. The lap race was won at that point, Ry just need to finish before 4:00 so Wes could do a lap of fun. I headed into the woods to see Ry and give encouragement. It would be close. Yozell and I figured we would have 10-15 seconds to spare. Ry killedit and we had 18 seconds to spare. The race was ours. After some celebrating Mike & I decided to ride the last half-lap with Wes, as a demonstration that teammates win races as a team.
The day was a huge success with around 70 teams. All kudos for race management need to go directly to team director/founder Mike Kuhn of High Speed Cycling. I heard so many great comments through the day, about the event.
I would like to thank VisitPA.com for supporting the team. Cannondale bikes for supplying us with absolutely flawless machines. Ergon grips for the most comfy grips known to man. Rudy Project for the most comfy helmet I have worn in 20+ years of racing. SRAM for the absolute best shifting and brakes you can race with. I can not wait to use these products the rest of the year, as well as our other generous sponsor products from Suunto, Deuter, Northwave.
Thanks to all who attended the event.
Enjoy your season and remember to thank the promoters and teams that bring you these great events.
hebe
Patience please
I can't wait patiently, that much I am aware of. The need to be perpetually prepared has always kept me on the go.....and up too late for too many nights! See, the first race of the NUE Series, the Cohutta 100, in Tennessee is fast approaching. I've been thinking about this race since January, and here it is...and there I was 1 week ago without a bike....
WAS, thanks to some quick action by the guys at The Bicycle Shop, in State College for the connection to Troy Laffey at Cannondale, who pit-stopped in my hometown mid-route on his mega-transect across the nation for upcoming national events.
Speedy Delivery....24hrs later, a silver beacon arrives and a Cannondale bike is in my hands!!!
See this truly is amazing to me. I'm an average rider in the grand scheme of this racing scene, so the fact that I got upfront service says (to me) nothing about my abilities, but in fact, highlights Cannondale's priority to take care of their racers...and for that, they have my highest regards.
I raced the Cannondale Rush at Kuhndog's Kick-off M.A.S.S. Team Relay Event this past weekend in Marysville, PA. In a few words, that bike is light, quick and responsive to the tight track and logs, it climbs like a champ and descends with ease. Those Juicy Ultimate brakes are sooo smooth......
Not only do I have the nicest and prettiest bike that I've ever owned in my possession, but also have a peace of mind knowing that I'm riding on a solid bike made by a quality PA company..........and with that I will rest easy for a long time. THANKS Troy and Cannondale!!
Friday, April 4, 2008
Relay Update
The course is prepped and we'll be running tape on Saturday. Please keep in mind that the course is not open for pre-riding until Sunday morning before the race. I turned about a 19 min lap yesterday so I may shorten it just a hair before the event, but I'm not sure where because we put in a fun new section of trail that I hate for you all to miss!
We're up to 216 riders - about 75 more than last year already and there is still time to pre-reg as that doesn't close up until Sunday AM. Please be sure to pre-reg as you'll save some coin and us some time.
I have one person who has contacted me looking for a team for this weekend so if there are still riders out there who don't have a full team together let me know and I'll put you guys in contact. There is also a thread on the MASS forums that is a good place to look for team members.
A couple notes - you will not be able to leave once the relay gets going as we're using the driveway as part of the course. Please keep this in mind if you have people coming to spectate - have them park out at the end of the drive so they can leave if they are not planning to stay for the whole show.
Dogs - remember, we don't allow them at the farm. We love 'em and you likely will see ours there. Its not about the dogs really. Its about avoiding the potential - even if unlikely - issues that come from dogs being there. We know this frustrates many of you because you love your dogs and want to bring them. Please leave them at home for the relay.
The weather is going to be fantastic and the racing is going to be sweet!
We'll see you soon!
Kuhn and the Gang (aka. visitPA.com MTB Team and our familial units)
We're up to 216 riders - about 75 more than last year already and there is still time to pre-reg as that doesn't close up until Sunday AM. Please be sure to pre-reg as you'll save some coin and us some time.
I have one person who has contacted me looking for a team for this weekend so if there are still riders out there who don't have a full team together let me know and I'll put you guys in contact. There is also a thread on the MASS forums that is a good place to look for team members.
A couple notes - you will not be able to leave once the relay gets going as we're using the driveway as part of the course. Please keep this in mind if you have people coming to spectate - have them park out at the end of the drive so they can leave if they are not planning to stay for the whole show.
Dogs - remember, we don't allow them at the farm. We love 'em and you likely will see ours there. Its not about the dogs really. Its about avoiding the potential - even if unlikely - issues that come from dogs being there. We know this frustrates many of you because you love your dogs and want to bring them. Please leave them at home for the relay.
The weather is going to be fantastic and the racing is going to be sweet!
We'll see you soon!
Kuhn and the Gang (aka. visitPA.com MTB Team and our familial units)
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