Welcome to our Ask a Mechanic column where our expert mechanic Daniel Slusser answers your bike maintenance questions. If you have a question for Daniel, please post it on our Facebook Wall or e-mail Daniel directly at daniel.slusser@artscyclery.com.
This week we have a big one for you, so settle in and enjoy.
Rotor's Q-Rings minimize the dead spot in your pedal stroke, increasing your efficiency on the bike.
We recently had the good fortune to have Christie O’Hara from Rotor come by and tell us a little more about what’s going on at Rotor and some of the science behind the Q-Rings. The interview is somewhat paraphrased to make it readable but the information is the same. Enjoy. Read more…
If you’re one of the true cycling tifosi, this is the best time of year because two great stage races are taking place at the same time! The beginning of America’s biggest stage race, the Amgen Tour of California, is an exciting event for American cycling fans and having the Giro d’Italia taking place at the same time is icing on the cake. The Giro saw the battle for the GC start to take shape with its first mountain stage on Saturday. Michele Scarponi (Lampre ISD) stamped his authority on the race with a blistering attack in the last km of stage 7 that quickly seperated the wheat from the chaff. Only Paulo Tirralongo (Astana) was able to go with him and managed to come around him at the finish for the win. Frank Schleck (Radioshack-Nissan) and Joaquin Rodriguez (Katusha) accelerated away from the chase group to finish only a few seconds back in 3rd and 4th. On Sunday, we saw the second mountain stage go to the little climber from Colnago – CSF Inox who is looking like a dark horse for an overall podium spot with his win at the Giro di Trentino. Accelerating away from the group of favorites, he quickly put 30 seconds between himself and the chase group. Read more…
For your weekend viewing pleasure… a random collection of stuff we think you’ll think is interesting, if only for a minute. Mostly cycling-related, all work-safe, but you might want to turn the volume down on your computer before you click.
Shred Fest
Kyle Baldock BMX Dirt Jump Session: Gorge Rd New Zealand
If you were wondering what fast looks like, here it is.
Since we’ve watched those guys risk their lives, a helmet debate
We all need food, and a lot of us live in cities.
Even though you’ll probably be watching the Tour of California this weekend, you might want to pretend you’re surfing in Rio
And last, be glad you weren’t on this ride. But check out the sweet bunny hop-over-human. Must be a former mountain biker!
In this new weekly feature we will be sharing our most recent product arrivals fresh out of the box. This week we have the 2012 Sram Red Exogram BB30 cranks, Swissstop Disc 26 pads, Renthal SR4 Chainrings, Renthal Integra Stems, and the long awaited 29er Continental Trail Kings!
2012 Sram Red Exogram BB30 cranks showed up… sort of. We got a 170 and a 175 in stock so far. The crank is truly much nicer than the previous generation with its massive X-GlideR chainrings. Just picking it up, the first thing you think is, “wow this is light!” Our scales confirm this with a 175 coming in at an impressive 562 grams. Best of all, Sram got rid of the wavy washer, finally! Read more…
The defining moment of the 2011 ATOC - Chris Horner's win on Sierra Road.
The 2012 Amgen Tour of California will be the hardest edition of the race ever with even more mountains than last year’s route. The 8-day race is in its seventh year and will cover 735.6 miles with new features such as a climb up Mount Diablo, a time trial in Bakersfield and a final stage in Hollywood. The battle for the overall win is really up for grabs with defending champion Chris Horner the favorite. But the 40-year-old will face stiff competition from a host of young guns and veterans alike.
Here are our favorites to claim the golden leader’s jersey:
1. Chris Horner - RadioShack Nissan Trek
Horner absolutely crushed the field on stage four last year finishing over a minute in front of his rivals on the super steep summit finish on Sierra Road. Only his teammate Levi Leipheimer could hang with him on the seventh stage that finished atop the infamous Mount Baldy. Horner suffered a nasty crash during the Tour de France that derailed the second half of his season. But he is back to full strength and focused on California glory. Read more…
Welcome to our Ask a Mechanic column where our expert mechanic Daniel Slusser answers your bike maintenance questions. If you have a question for Daniel, please post it on our Facebook Wall or e-mail Daniel directly at daniel.slusser@artscyclery.com.
Specialized OSBB cups without bearings installed
In this post Daniel discusses how to reduce foot pain on long rides and what the difference is between OSBB and the other bottom bracket standards on the market. Read more…
In honor of America’s biggest stage race, we’re having a contest during the month of May to give you a shot at winning some awesome prizes. Just click here to go to our Facebook page where you can enter to win. Prizes include a Garmin Edge 500, Oakley Radars, a $50 Art’s Cyclery Gift Certificate, a Tour of California Leader’s Jersey and an Art’s Cyclery Jersey. That’s almost $650 worth of stuff! Winners will be selected and announced on June 1st.
We also have a great selection of Tour of California apparel in stock. Our favorites this year include the Most Aggressive Rider Jersey and the Men’s CA Flag T-shirt.
As handlebar widths have grown wider and wider, most of us here at Art’s Cyclery have embraced the longer levers along with the increased leverage and control they bring. In fact, several riders here are riding bars well beyond the 750 mm mark. In our quest to find the perfect widebar bend and rise, we’ve sampled many different handlebars, some of which flex so much it’s visible to the naked eye. Thus, when Easton announced the release of the new “oversized”—as 31.8 was called when it debuted—we were instantly intrigued. Here is the breakdown, giving you a chance to decide if you think the Easton 35 cockpit controls will fit into your game. Read more…
Dura-Ace 9000 SRM Power Meter Crankset
Spy shots of the new Shimano Dura-Ace 9000 SRM crank have been spotted at the Giro d’Italia. This confirms the rumors that the new 11-speed group is nearing completion and will likely include all the standard upgrade options including power meters when the group is released later this year. This is great news for power meter users that have typically had to wait months after an initial product release in for such upgrades in earlier component group upgrades.
On a related note, we expect the 2012 SRAM Red Exogram Quarq BB30 cranks to come in stock within the next two days. The new crank will drop a significant amount of weight when compared to the outgoing version and will continue to reduce the weight penalty of power meter systems.
