hillcranker

I want to do a road century and maybe a double century this summer. I race cyclocross on a Kona Jake and it's pretty much my only bike (except my commuter Raleigh C30) I use.
Would my Jake hold up to the punishment of a century or double? I realize their might be some comfort issues along the way but any other factors that you guys can let me know would be a great deal of help.

Paul L.

Guy I used to ride with did El Tour De Tucson several years on his cyclocross bike with no problems.

CliftonGK1

Holding up to the punishment shouldn't be an issue for your Jake. It's more about making sure that you're comforatble. For longer distances, you might want a less agressive position that what you use for CX racing. Depending on the century or double you're doing, you might want to change your gearing, since CX bikes typically don't have a tall top end gear on them.
I just bought a Cross-Check as my do-it-all bike and had it set up with a bit more upright position at the bars than the stock setup. I haven't had it out for anything longer than 75 miles yet, but it's very comfortable so far. Some people will gripe about the bb height of a CX bike, but it's all personal preference. Since you're used to your Jake, I think you'll be fine on it with swapping out to a set of road tires and possibly adjusting your bar height.

rtruectoc

i think the Jake has a more relaxed position than the major jake and jake the snake. it is meant as more of an all rounder cross check style frame

Six jours

I think the typical 'cross frame is better suited to LD than the typical modern road frame. It certainly should not be any kind of handicap, assuming you'll be replacing the knobbies first.

lesdunham

It seems reasonable to ride your Kona Jake for these type of events. If you can do 50-60 miles on your bike then a century is not too big of a step up. Any ideas on rides. Looks like TOSRV and a MS150 weekend for this year for a few of us. We also do an event called the Blue Water Ramble in Oct.. Right now we just want some warmth and no snow.

brotherdan

I do centuries and double centuries on my bianchi volpe, which is a cross/touring frame.

It's funny that you ask if a cross bike will hold up to "the punishment." Cyclocross riding is so much more punishing on a frame than anything you will encounter in long distance cycling. Fatigue punishment on your body is a different story. But if you work up to longer distances, I think you shouldn't have a problem.

ericgu

The use of a cross bike is a lot harder than that of a road bike, so I wouldn't worry at all about it holding up.

kokomo61

The bike will hold up just fine....but it might be a bit rough on you....I commute on a JTS, and while it's perfect for the 43 mile RT, I would have had a tough time doing a century on it, with its 46/36 front chain ring. I have a much better time with the 52/39/30 by 12X25 setup on my Giant OCR C2 (and it's more comfortable as well).

Six jours

I have a 46/30 on the front of my LD bike. I greatly prefer it to a wide range triple, as I really have no use for gears like 52x12. YMMV, of course.

Hocam

Six Jours, what crank do you use that allows you to go as low as a 30?

Six jours

T.A. Pro 5.

Goes down to a 26 ring and up to a 64. Suitable for singles, doubles, triples, or even a quad. Narrowest "Q" of anything on the market. Incredibly light, and gorgeous. You can't believe the shine they put on those things until you've actually seen one in person.

Huh. I sound positively enthusiastic about the thing, don't I?

Hocam

Yeah, but the price and the lack of heel clearance has me sticking to my veloce triple. I'm pretty duck footed and having the high gears is nice for short fast rides, especially in a pace-line.

However, If I had a rando-specific bike and a fast road bike I'd probably do the same gearing as you on the rando bike, and drop the granny ring on the road bike.

Richard Cranium

Quote:

I realize their might be some comfort issues along the way but any other factors that you guys can let me know would be a great deal of help.

Pump the tires up and make sure you can change positions once in a while. A quick release binder bolt on the seat post could help.