Fifty Plus (50+) - Ride with Some Dirt

There's a nice organized ride (http://www.triplicate.com/news/story.cfm?story_no=10278) near here next weekend. It's got an easy 20 mile route or a 60 mile route. The problem is that the 60 mile route has about 38 miles that are on a dirt road. It used to be a regular paved road, but it hasn't been maintained. I'll be on a road bike with 700 x 23c tires at 120 psi.

I really am a smooth pavement prima donna, but I'd like to take the longer route.

Thoughts?

This is why you need more than one bike. Ideally, your stable would include a bike perfect for this kind of ride.

Sounds like the perfect excuse to employ the N+1 rule and get yourself a cyclocross bike. I had a blast on mine this summer on the fireroads of Northern Ontario.

Failing that, ride the 20-mile route thrice?

Or assuming a loop, ride to the start of the dirt, turn around, ride the route backwards to the end of the dirt and meet the pack there.

Sounds like the perfect excuse to employ the N+1 rule and get yourself a cyclocross bike......

BINGO! ! ! ! :thumb:

Having had a nice older Italian road bike with 23's on it there's no way I'd want to suffer through 38 miles of gravel with the poor thing. I was thinking the exact same thing as I read your post but Blues Dawg and tsl beat me to it.

Either a cylcocross or a nicer 29'er and put some 34 to 38 mm cyclocross tires on it. For that matter there's some pretty nice mountain bike tires with overlapping center knobs that roll pretty sweet on pavement at the higher end of the pressure range and would still work aces on that gravel. The rest of the time with platform pedals it would be a great casual quick errand bike or you may even feel the need to go and explore some trails ! ! ! !

.. oh sorry for suggesting such a madcap option.... :D

Well, I've been trying to hide it from you guys, cause I want to fit in here, but I guess I have to come out of the closet:

I'm not an N+1 type of guy.

There I said it, and I feel better. I don't like to own a lot of stuff, and I don't like to have a cluttered garage.

Feels good to get that off my chest.

;)

28mm tires are probably the fattest that will fit between your brake calipers. I run mine at around 90psi.

If you do ride that 38 mile dirt section with narrow tires, I would advise not riding it in a group. You're going to need to pick your way through the bad stuff by swerving around some. Riding in a group will force you to hold a straight line. Putting on some 28mm tires, as suggested by previous posters, will help.

I ride a lot of gravel on 28s and it works ok. An extra set of wheels takes a lot less space than an extra bike and it gives you a quick change option if you want to hit the dirt. Or if you are really a minimalist and don't want an extra set of wheels the wider tires really aren't much slower on pavement than your skinny tires

Well, I've been trying to hide it from you guys, cause I want to fit in here, but I guess I have to come out of the closet:

I'm not an N+1 type of guy.

There I said it, and I feel better. I don't like to own a lot of stuff, and I don't like to have a cluttered garage.

Feels good to get that off my chest.

;)

No problem. Make your own choices and live with the consequences.

If you are committed to do this ride on this bike and you want to do the full route, including the dirt road, I would encourage you to put the widest and toughest tires you can fit on your bike. Better take plenty of ibuprophen and plenty of spare tires and tubes along, too. FWIW, I have ridden many miles of dirt roads on my Bridgestone with 28mm tires without much problem, but I would much prefer to do it on a bike that could take wider tires like the 35s I have on Raoul Duke.

If I was going to limit myself to one bike (not likely), I think a cyclocross frame would be my starting point.

Thanks for the advice. I think this time I'll just ride the 20 mile route with my wife.