WheresWaldo

Can't wait for it to get here. An '05 Cannondale Road Tandem. Hoping it will arrive here in NC early next week. I have been all over the internet and read many things on this formum to help my daughter and I learn to ride it together. I am not a novice to riding, I have over 50,000 miles on a Klein Quantum, and even did some road racing with it, never got beyond Cat 4! I have put my daughter on a set of rollers this winter to improve her balance and some bike handleing skills. But now that it is on it's way, and before spring reappears there are some things the Dale needs. As I mentioned, I have read through most of the posts on this forum but the info is really spread out and some of it is very dated. I am looking for pedal, cages, computer, pumps, bag recommendations, etc.

Our current singles all have Look or Shimano (SL) style pedals. I am still using a Cateye Cordless CL-100 and my daughter has a Sigma 1200 RDS. I have a San Marco Regal Saddle and she has a Terry Butterfly.

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Mine: Klein Quantum, DiamondBack Hardtail
Wife: Trek 1000, Mongoose Full Supension
Girl: Cannondale R400 Compact, Fuji **********
Ours: Cannondale 05RT

Old Hammer Boy

My wife and I have an '05 C'Dale road tandem and really enjoy it. We only have about 1,000 miles on it, but we ride our half bikes a lot, too. About 4,000 miles so far this year. We like the following pedal combination; Captain, Shimano 520 SPD dual sided. Stoker: Shimano PDM-324s. The PDMs are SPD clips on one side and platforms on the other. We chose them so friends could jump on the stoker's saddle for a short ride using street shoes on the platform part of the pedals.

I really like the Topeak Road Morph road pump, and you can read about it in bike reviews. It fits nicely on the stoker's down tube. It has a gauge and works like a baby floor pump. You will love a Shimano Flight Deck computer because it shows what gears you're in, along with lots of other information. I found one a few months ago at Colorado Cyclists for $49, but I don't see them for that any more. For the stoker we have a Garmin Ledgend GPS unit. I built a special handlebar mount for it and the rear admiral really enjoys it.

We also have the Topeak small front handle bar bag. It's currently on sale at Nashbar for $19 and Nashbar is offering (until 12/5) an additional 20% discount. It's a great little, quick release bag and offers a nice "light bar" that accomodates the Flight Deck nicely. I don't remember the Nashbar code number, but you can find it on the net, I'm sure. If not, let me know and I'll go look it up. We also have the Topeak medium wedge bag under the stoker's saddle, and have a Topeak trunk bag and QR rack for it.

I just ordered an LED handlebar front light and already have a blinkie for the back. The spending never ends, but it's cheaper than hanging out in a bar, and much healthier! I hope this helps. OHB

WheresWaldo

Thanks OBH, I ordered the Flight Deck from JensonUSA. I have also decided to go with Shimano Ultegra Pedals, I don't want to change cleats or have to buy another pair of shoes. I do have a pair of those plastic clip that allow street shoes somewhere lying around. I was thinking about a GPS and I thought the Garmin E-Trex would be good, but I'll look at the legend also.

I do have a question, have any Dale owners had any issues with the suspension seatpost?

DocF

The suspension seatpost on our 2003 Cannondale MT800 is not the best, but since the stoker (my wife) switched to a Brooks B67s saddle, this is no longer an issue.

We are practically neighbors; welcome to the world of tandems.

Doc

Old Hammer Boy

The Ledgend is an eTrex model. It's blue and even matches our Tandems' color. That's not why we got it however, but it's nice when things work out that way. It's been just great. We got ours off the Amazon site, but I believe it's being replaced with a newer model and may be discontinued (Electronics!!!). We paid just over $100 for it and then had to add the handlebar bracket for another $15 or so. R.E.I also carries them.

That's a fine solution on the pedals, and you will really enjoy that Flight Deck. I can't imagine tandem life without it.

Cannondale did have some problems with that seat post a year or so back, but ours has worked flawlessly. My stoker is what I'd call a medium-sized gal (I dare not give out her weight), and she is quite comfortable in the back seat. She uses a Serfas reactive dual density saddle and I use a Bontrager Race Lite saddle (same as my half bike).

If you're inclined to carry a handlebar bag, once again, I'd really recommend the Topeak I mentioned earlier, and I'll put in another plug for the Road Morph.

Welcome to the wonderful world of tandems and let us know how your miles go... OHB

dfcas

"I have put my daughter on a set of rollers this winter to improve her balance and some bike handleing skills."


What a great idea!I think all stokers should be required to ride rollers to learn how to make life easier for the caption.Captains,however,can rock the bike boat as much as they like

I removed the stock sus post on our 05 C'dale tandem because it looked waaay cheap and I had a USE in the seatpost box.It may be better than the one I put on,tho.

dan

WheresWaldo

I don't have the same problem telling on weight. My daughter is 5'2" and about 145lbs, she will be the primary stoker. my wife is 5'4" and if I say she will kill me kind of weight. My daughter really likes her Terry Butterfly, and her single has one in blue to match the blue Dale R400 she has. I am between saddles, I really like my very well worn San Marco Regal but I am going to try the stock saddle for a while as its been some time since I have put extended time in the saddle and I am always sore at the beginning of the season.

I couldn't find "Road Morph" at Nashbar. But I did see the Topeak Medium Wedge.

Old Hammer Boy

The Topeak Road Morph is (actually Morph/Road version vs. Mtn bike) is item number TP-MFPR and is currently selling for $26.95 with a possible 10 or 20% discount. 20% if you can get a $100 order together. I ride with a lot of folks in our local tourning club, and they turned me on to the Morph pump. I sound like a missionary for Topeak, but my experience has been very good with their products, and I also understand their service is excellent, too. Happy trails...

ROJA

Congrats on the new bike. I have a blue Cannondale tandem RT2000 (c. 1997) and love it so far!

WheresWaldo

Ok, here is an update. Our Dale shipped on Friday, should be here by next Friday, as it is traveling clear across the country. Since then we have decided to buy a few things to make life a little easier. Per suggestions on this board we have aquired the following items and listed the requester:

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The Topeak bags look really nice and seem to be constructed well. The quick release function seems very sturdy and I like the fact that they are expandable. The rain cover is an interesting touch but I don't know how practical it will be in use.

The new handlebars are at the request of the stoker, my daughter. She said the bullhorn bars looked stupid, her words not mine. She wanted the same bars she has on her ½ bike, which are 38cm, I told her that I would compromise and get a 40cm bar as it might be a little tight when she was down in the drops right behind me. She rides most of the time in the drops, so the bullhorns simply would not do.

What can I say about Cinelli Cork Ribbon, every road bike we own has Cinelli cork. It is very comfortable and wears very well.

Seatpost, again the stoker has a Cannondale CAAD3 R400 Compact Triple and loves the stiff ride, she did not want any chance of bouncing up and down on the saddle or any chance of side play. so another compromise. A carbon fiber seatpost to make the ride bearable. The Sette APX Carbon seatpost looks like a quality made item. It is well marked and the weight was just 7.8 grams over the advertised weight. it is 350mm in length and if that is too long I can cut off the excess. I have alot of experience cutting graphite golf shafts so I know how it needs to be done to get a clean cut and I have the correct tools to do it.

The Shimano FlightDeck seems to be the best way to go with FlightDeck compatible Brifters and it was extremely easy to set up. I am sure it will take a little time to get used to the button pressing on the Brifters. As far as functionality goes, you don't miss what you never had. I have an Cateye CC-CL100, it was one of the first generation wireless bike computer, downright ancient by todays standards. I am sure the FlightDeck even with deficiencies will be fine. Of course it had to be wireless, I hate those pesky wires that always seem to be in the way when it's time to maintain something.

The Shimano Ultegra pedals are a work of art! That is the only thing that has been updated on my road bike since I bought it in 1989, I went from Dura-Ace to the Ultegras, as I saw no point in spending more money just to save a few grams. I have always liked the Look-style clipless and I think Shimano has improved on the design. We wanted to keep the same pedals on the Dale that we have on our ½ bikes, so we had no choice. The only ½ bike that still has the old Look pedals is my wife's Trek 1000. She did not want to change, hardly rides, and has vowed never to get on the back of the tandem. She says she can't trust me. Maybe it was the 72mph downhill ride down from Spencer's Butte in South Eugene, or some of the downhills on the back side of McKensie Pass going into Sisters, Oregon, passing cars. Anyway, she says no, and after 20 years I have learned not to argue with her.

CO2 is a wonderful way to inflate tires in a pinch. It doesn't tire your arms like a pump does, although I understand new pumps work on the push and pull stokes, my road Silca does not work this way. I figured I would get the Innovation Ultraflate Plus as it was on sale, it accepts both threaded and unthreaded, 12g and 16g CO2 cartiridges. It is easy to stash in a bag and rarely has anything go wrong. I have been using CO2 on the road for over 10 years and have not had any issues. I always deflate the tire and reinflate with air when I get home. Only way to go.

Okay now that I have sung the praises of CO2 why did I have a small pump on the list? Well rides don't always turn out like we plan and some days are worse than others. I remeber one trip over the mountains, and I had tubulars on my ½ Bike. I was carrying a spare tire and just 27 miles from my destination I get a flat, okay no problem put the other tire on, inflated with CO2, on my way again. Just 22 miles to go and another flat, no spare this time, no more CO2. It was the last time I did any long rides with tubular tires, the last time with only CO2. Now I always carry a backup plan, frame pump, extra tube and a patch kit for the old tube.

The Shimano XTR is a Rapid-Rise derailleur, which means it has a low normal position. Anyone who remembers the Suntour pantograph rear derailleurs will know about low normal position. It is said to make shifting into lower gears even snappier and can be done under full load. It does shift backwards on the Brifters but this is really a non issue as my ½ bike has Dura-Ace downtube shifters. I have very limited experience with STI Brifters, I have only used them when I am tuning my daughters bike. So I will never know they shift backwards! The XTR is probably the best Mountain Bike derailleur Shimano has ever made. It has two teeth more capacity than the Shimano XT used on the '05 or the SRAM XT used on the '06. Look over at the Mountain Biking forum or Mountain Bike Review to see what people have to say about this derailleur.

The Magellan eXplorist, most of you will probably ask why not a Garmin Etrex Legend C or Vista C. Two reasons. Garmin has yet to make a handheld with SD card capability, and I already own and use a Meridian Gold for in-car navigation. I have all the Magellan software and cables. The 600 has a 3-axis electronic compass, a backlit color screen, barometer, thermometer, altimeter, water resistant and a few more goodies. It will be mounted on the stoker's handlebars so she has something to play with on rides, other than her mp3 player.

I already have one of those bike pulley systems sitting in a box in my garage for the past two years, My garage has 14' tall ceilings and it is very hard to lift a bike that high to hook a rear wheel on one of those J hooks. I guess I better spend this weekend installing it.

There are still one or two items left on my list, and I'm sure I have forgotten something. Those items include:

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Sorry for the length of this post, but I had alot to say. Please feel free to ask questions or comment on any of the choices or to make suggestions that make life easier.

Old Hammer Boy

Thanks for helping the U.S. economy. Ain't that Topeak stuff nice? You'll discover that it might be a bit difficult removing water bottles the usual way. So you might consider the Cannondale type bottle cages that allow you to remove the bottles "straight out" rather than "up and out." I'd recommend the black ones, because the silver ones leave silver marks on our bottles. I don't know for sure, but I imagine the black ones won't do that.

It'll be interesting to see how your stoker's bars work out. You may have a problem getting that wedge bag under your saddle, but there are alternatives. It may be her bars will be mounted low enough, and your seat post high enough to work, but not for us. Therefore, we use a small Lone Peak bag that mounts on the long stoker stem.

Send pictures once you get the new gal all outfitted... OHB

TandemGeek

If you want cages that won't leave marks on your water bottles use cages made from stainless steel.

WheresWaldo

Dean,

What size frame is your Dale. This will give me some perspective on water bottle cages if it is different from mine. We needed a Large/Small. I currently ride a 1989 Klein Quantum in a 57, I could not go bigger. My daughter rides a compact bike in a 47, it's a compact because of standover height. My wife who I hope will change her mind someday rides a 48 with 700c wheels. L/S was the only logical frame choice I could make.

zonatandem

Stainless steel, plastic or carbon fiber cages leave no marks on bottles . . . choices and only more $$!
What? No matching tandem jerseys for you and the stoker?
Have ridden the Eugene area, including some of your hills! The McKenzie loop was always a real pleasant ride.
Enjoy the new C'dale!
Yep, things have changed a bit since we did test riding for C'dale back in the early 80s. Two years before the introduction of their tandem (they originally sold the frameset only) we were riding one of their two test bikes. Had it for 3 months, and at that time there was no such thing as a suspension seatpost. BIG difference from what was then on the market!
Pedal on!
Rudy and Kay/zonatandem

WheresWaldo

I would assume that powdercoated aluminum would also not leave marks on bottles. About the matching jerseys, my daughters favorite jerseys are the Biker Chick ones from Precaryous. It might be a little creepy for me to wear the same jersey. Might have to look at something custom.

The loop around the McKensie River was my early season training ride, from my buddy's house it was a 19.2 mile loop, unless you added the Springfield Golf Course on the backside. That and the time trial in Coburg were the two most regular rides, with an occasional climb up McGowen Creek Road, man was that steep, one trip I managed 45 minutes up and 13 minutes down. Eugene is a very bike friendly town, it should be a model for most other cities. Where I live now just south of Charlotte, NC is a cyclists nightmare.

zzzwillzzz

the powdercoating always wears off where the bottle slides in and out leaving you with bare aluminum and the plastic ones always break eventually. i prefer the stainless steel as well

DrPete 

A refreshing belief, and one that should be considered a bit more often. Maybe it's because we're new to tandeming, but we both tend to think that the "team uniform" concept can get a little creepy at times.

We have this cool matching outfit, though--we both wear what fits and works best for each of us.

DrPete