that did actually happen a while ago :), thanks
What teams are you looking at for next year?
Also, unless you are going to change shoes every few years, buy either white or black... seriously.

We already had a vaccine for Lyme disease. 15 years ago. It was 100% effective in kids and 76% effective in adults. Then some people decided the vaccine had given them autoimmune issues and sued. The FDA and CDC found no evidence of a link, but it killed the sales anyway.

Anti-vaccine people really get under my skin.

It looks like the new vaccine is basically the old vaccine from a different maker. Same mechanism. Sure would be nice if this one actually gets somewhere.

Btw did you win the Valley Ride yesterday?

Ah, congrats!

The team I'm most likely joining (Leopard-Sapporo) has black/orange kits, and white summer tops. So I suppose black or white will do. They might even have a shoe deal, I'll have to check.

I do know they have what appear to be team-color custom Nike "podium" shoes, so that part is already covered.

Nah, didn't do it. Did 413w 17:30 OLH and extended with a few guys riding the ridge up to Kings. 2-ish hours at lunch is enough for a Wednesday.

And you should look into Squadra. If I switch teams that's where I'll go. They have a bunch of nice guys and actually ride as a team.

When I am solo road racing I always join their breaks as they slow every chase down. Some scrubs too, but even they are nice guys.

Tech question:
Anyone using 2013 Sram Red have issues with from Upper Limit Screw being a little too short?

+1

I just ordered some northwave shoes per Hida's recommendation. They are ugly. Matte black.

We shall see!

front or rear?

The answer for me is "no" on both, but the front derailleur took about 400 tries to get it positioned perfectly. The yaw = good shifting, imo, but the tolerance on getting it to work well and not rub at the limits is about .001mm.

I like my Northwave Winter shoes

SHHHHH. Don't tell my wife! I told her I got a screaming deal on the only shoe that fits my feet.

I told my wife how much my Shimano heat mold shoes were (like $350 or something) and she said something like "that's fine, whatever you need to ride". She's mostly very supportive of me.

Front. What complicates the problem is I use Osymetric Chainrings and the front is a 54 which looks like a 56 when at the top of the stroke...
I think I have it pretty close right now.

+1 to Squadra. I know a lot of those guys and they're all great. Strong presence at races, train/ride together, good to grab a beer with. Which, to me, are the most important qualities. Also, their kit ain't half bad (hard to screw up red and black).

Red Factors FTW!!!!!!

The only real interaction I've had with Squadra was at CCCX last weekend when they were oddly blocking/not pulling through for guys not on their team up the road, then laughed when I told them to pull through.

I know they have some solid cat 1's (or at least one), but I like to have team stuff happen organically - and so far they haven't really approached me the way the Leopard guys have. Also, Leopard seems to be more centered on the South Bay, where I'm at.

I guess there are a few Squadra guys down here too.. but so far they seem more cliquey(?) than Leopard. I'm sure they are nice guys/don't crush kittens though.

Those guys were c3s in a c2 race. Not everyone is as dumb a racer as I am.

Oddly other way around for me. I know a bunch of Squadra guys who tried to get me to change teams last year, but the Leopard guys, even the ones I know, have never brought it up. I dunno, their summer kits are nice, but their purple/orange getup is a bit garish.

Buuut, Chris Isley is an animal and could probably drag you with him to c1 if you value that.

I ordered those and then sent them back. They did not fit at all. Way too small and narrow.

To be fair though, the Competitive Cyclist size guide says if wear a 45 in Sidi and a 44 in Fizik to order a 43 in Northwave. That seemed ridiculous to me, so I ordered a 43.5 and they were not correct.

They didn't look bad in matte black though.

And I am thinking of getting a pair of Lake's. I saw on their site that you can go with custom colors. I'm thinking I might have to order lime green shoes. (So my wife can find me in races.)

10 speed or 11 speed?

Rocky Hill Crit course is almost 1.4 miles long. I dislike long courses.

Chapin - Mountain View - Carol - Mountain View - Bailey - Parsonage - Chapin. This is more like a road race than a crit.

I'll be there regardless. I have no idea how to approach this race.

Does this mean you are riding/racing again?

10 speed. The issue is that the cage is hitting the bottom of the hanger so I will slowly file away a little meat.
No comment...

coughtbscough

How do you like those rings? What size inner do you have and how does it do for ~20% grades?

Take a little getting used to. I run a 54/44 and wtf is 20%?