Fifty Plus (50+) - I need an insanely tough abrasion resistant fabric

Hi,
I am going to start dragging a tire around again.
And I don't want to buy more chain, that gets expensive.
So I want to wrap the chain in some sort of fabric, that should
be cheaper.

But this stuff will be dragged along the road for some distance, with some weight
on it.

I did have one idea, used tubular tires. Hardly anyone around here uses them,
and Maine certainly doesn't have a pro team.

Anyway, I could use some suggestions (besides the ones saying I'm crazy, I know that)

huh? Why?

Do you mean dragging a tire behind you bike? Like the football players do with an old car tire?

Exactly, what football players do, but with a much smaller tire over a longer distance.
I used too big a tire last year, so this year I am going to start with a 14, and then 16,
etc. I have a truck tire already, but I need to build up to it. I've been doing a hilly 5 mile walk
as cross training, it's gotten too easy.


http://www.youtube.com/user/PerformanceU#p/u/164/5SoPMxVDKh4

Instead of having the chain wrap around the tread and bead as in the you-tube video, drill a hole in the middle of the tread and pass the chain through that hole and into the middle. Thus the chain doesn't drag on the ground.

Clever.

I just might do that, thanks.

Clever.

I just might do that, thanks.

Use a hole saw.
http://www.adamcarolla.com/AHBlog/wp-content/gallery/ep111/10-hole-saw.jpg

I'm thinking that this may not be such a good idea.

Um, steel belted radial tires are kind of hard to cut, even with a hole saw. You might be able to find an old/ancient nylon bias ply tire at a scrapyard. That you can cut with a hole saw.

I've been dragging a tire with me for years. Unfortunately, the darned thing is around my waist.:lol: I told my wife that on my last tour I seemed to be riding a tandem. The only problem was my stoker wouldn't pedal on the uphills but sure added momentum on the descents.

I've been dragging a tire with me for years. Unfortunately, the darned thing is around my waist.:lol: I told my wife that on my last tour I seemed to be riding a tandem. The only problem was my stoker wouldn't pedal on the uphills but sure added momentum on the descents.

You mean the extra spare ? That's why I started cycling again. Hopefully the only one I'll carry from now on is the one that's folded up in my seatbag.

Small hole in the tire, small eye bolt, two washers and two nuts. Attach the chain to the eye bolt.

I would try swing set chain inside an old garden hose.
Every one has an old hose laying around.

The chain is too big for a garden hose, but it'd work with a rope.

I find that knocking a brake when taking a bike out of a car does the trick! ;)

I towed a friend round the first half of a century ride and wondered why he was grovelling in my wake when he was normally faster than me. When we stopped at a 55 mile checkpoint I noticed that his rear brake was rubbing!

I thought that was pretty funny, him being a mechanic and all, but I then I did a hilly '200' (125 miler) and suffered the same problem. I got back to the car park totally exhausted, dismounted to push the bike the last few yards to my friend's car and discovered that my back brake was dragging - d'oh! :notamused:

I find that knocking a brake when taking a bike out of a car does the trick! ;)



When they stopped making Conti Top Touring 2000 tires, they practically gave away the last of them.
So I bought a couple.

These were old school tires with buttery sidewalls and massive amounts of rubber.

The soft sidewalls meant that when you pedalled, half your energy was lost with the sidewall flexing.

So I put my almost free tires on, and went on one of the easiest rides in the state, the Lighthouse Loop.

It was half the mileage I was used to, and no climbing to speak of.

By the end, my legs literally felt like they were going to fall out of the hip socket.
I put my old tires back on, and gave the Contis away.

Oh well, if it doesn't kill you it just hurts like hell :D

Does Maine utilize May 9th as our version of April Fool’s day due to a late spring?

If not, this may help. While fishing in the Allegheny River we drag a chain in shallow swift water from the boat to keep it straight and to slow it down in the strong current. My drag chain is about 15' long and is tied to a rope that attaches to the boat. I purchased the chain at Home Depot along with a clear plastic drainage hose to put the chain inside. The plastic sheath keeps the chain from making a lot of noise when dragging on the rocks and keeps the boat form getting banged up. After many years of dragging the drain hose with the heavy chain inside there is abrasion to the hose but not significant loss of plastic.

One thing to keep in mind is the clear plastic hose needs to be big enough to allow the chain to pass through. The clearances of my chain/hose were such that I had to heat the hose up in the oven a bit, wipe the chain down with olive oil, tie a small cable to my car's trailer hitch to use as a "fish", put the cable through the hose and attach it to the chain, then pull the hose over the chain. That was a lot of work that would have been negated if I bought a larger hose or small diameter chain. Several posters have already made good suggestion on how to attach the chain to the tire.

Using my hosed sheathed chain method seems like a lot of work but pulling a tire up a hill with a bicycle, to do intervals, would justify it.

Please post images or a YouTube video of the finished product.:D

Use a hole saw.
http://www.adamcarolla.com/AHBlog/wp-content/gallery/ep111/10-hole-saw.jpg

Waddya need that for??? Just us a Michelin wire(tm).

How about wearing a backpack and adding weight as needed? Seems a lot easier to implement.

How about wearing a backpack and adding weight as needed? Seems a lot easier to implement.

2 reasons.

It's a different exercise. When you are pulling, you are leaning forward and using a lot of hip,
and calf, as well as leg.

Second, my knees are crap and I have trouble going downhill because of it.
The friction of the tire actually helps with this, allowing relatively normal walking downhill.

It's a remarkably effective method of cross training, it's just not something you see every day.

But it stresses the aerobic system, and lower leg, upper leg, hips and core.
You can get the heart rate up very quickly, and with a large tire, the strengthening part is
significant.

It develops deep muscle and bone that cycling largely ignores.

But to be honest about it, I do it because it feels like backpacking, which I miss.

Why not just adjust your brakes to drag? Ride in a higher gear? Add weight to the bike? Carry weight on you? Lower tire pressure? All the above? Kinda goofy to drag a tire around...

I take it drag chutes are out?

Why chain? I believe I would use hemp rope, maybe in the 1/4-3/8 inch range, very abrasion resistant, much lighter and cheaper, and plenty strong.

Elite xc-skiers will use the same rig for training in the summer months.

I am going to start dragging a tire around again.
And I don't want to buy more chain, that gets expensive.
So I want to wrap the chain in some sort of fabric, that should
be cheaper.


Irrespective of the wisdom of dragging a tire around, and notwithstanding the likelihood that this solution will not be cheaper than just buying more chain...

for an insanely tough abrasion resistant fabric to wrap around your chain, you want to get some Techflex Dura-Flex Pro woven/braided nylon sleeving. http://www.techflex.com/prod_DPN.asp

I think some of us (myself included) mistakenly thought you were dragging the tire behind your bicycle, this being a bicycling forum and all...