I admit to being a bike snob. I like the good stuff and will pay to get it. Tricked out Seven with Dura Ace, full Campy Colongo? No problem. I like riding the good stuff and have for years.
I don’t shun others. If they want to ride what they want to ride who am I to say no, but for me, I just won’t do it. I’m sure Lemond makes a great bike, but I don’t want one.
If you haven’t done the Elroy Sparta ride in WI, then make plans to do so. It’s not to be missed.
http://www.elroy-sparta-trail.com/
I wanted to take our bikes with us but it simply wasn’t practical. You do what you have to do, so we rented bikes at the bike shop (if you can call it that) in Kendall.
And not just bikes, a bike. A tandem. And not just a tandem, but an at least 30 year old Columbia tandem probably bought at Kmart in La Crosse back in the Nixon administration. Not a bit of alloy anywhere. All steel, that’s right baby, all steel. WIth 26 inch steel wheels.
I did what I could. Got the tires inflated a little higher than usual. Adjusted the seats to max height (I like mine real high), tightened the brakes. Not that it mattered. Riding that bike was like moving a mattress (Queen size) up a flight of stairs. Damn.
Being that snob I was talking about, I just wasn’t accustomed to it.
But we set off anyway and had a blast. Although the grade was soft, there was still a bit of climbing to do. We walked through the tunnels then bombed the downhills into the small towns along the way and had refreshing Spotted Cow from New Glarus Beer Company at each stop.
We ended up doing 40 miles but I swear to God it felt like a full century. I was sore sore sore. My riding position was totally different from my regular rides and I never got in the zone. (well, after a Spotted Cow I was in the zone for a bit).
I know it’s impossible to say, but what’s the wattage difference riding 40 miles on a Columbia POS versus an Eddy Merckx? I swear it’s nearly double.
I admit it, even as a bike snob, I had a blast on that tandem.
not sure if you can see it, but that white speck in the center of the picture is the other end of the tunnel, nearly one mile away.