TallRider

There is one long climb that gets very steep, and because it's on dirt can be tougher to power through at low RPMs. In 2016 I rode a 52/38 with 12-28 freewheel (neither the freewheel nor the 38t chainring were original), and then I switched to a vintage-enough setup with a 50/34 and 12-32 cassette. (Note: I didn't use my clipless pedals on the Eroica ride. This is just my regular bike, which happens to be vintage enough for Eoica.)
I'm baffled that so many road cyclists used pure racing gearing for so many decades.

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Erzulis Boat 

I am definitely going to pay the for the grinding.

It is my first Eroica, and this may be foolish, but how far am I going to go with gearing? My 70 Paramount has this gearing, and it's been in the family since 1983. I have ridden this bike up some brutal hills and lived to tell the tale. I am almost 50 now, but I am not totally out of shape. I do not want to fundamentally change my bike, it is what it is.

It's a matter of principle I suppose. If I complete my segment (70 miler) then it will be aptly named Eroica.

How far are we willing to "game" this ride?

ETA- I did 48 miles on a 48-17 SS with tons of hills here in SoCal last year. It sucked sometimes, but I lived.

Salamandrine 

That seems likely. I've learned to take GPS incline angles with a grain of salt.

non-fixie 

That's the spirit! If it doesn't hurt, it's not very heroic, is it?

Bikegeek1968

This. I still do some racing and I am in reasonable shape. But last year Cypress in a 42x28 had me at my limit. Any steeper and I would have been walking. The steepest part is right at the top and was wet, too.

Of the three, I thought Santa Rita was the easiest, but it is long and at the end of the day.

This year I have a Mavic rear derail with a 30t rear cog capacity, and you better believe I am going to use it.

Ghrumpy

Go for it. I try not to game it at all. I'm over 50 and have done the long route twice with a 42-26 low (about 44 gear inches.) And I'm no skinny climber. You might still end up pushing up a couple pitches especially if the traction is poor. There were a few times I had to channel my inner Eddy to stay on the bike. On some of the pitches there's not really enough road to "paperboy" it to the top.

I suggest you tighten your toe straps to give you an incentive not to walk. Works for me.

TBH the most harrowing part of the ride is not the climbs, but the bomb down the back of Cypress. The road is either DG or broken up old pavement, and vintage brakes aren't all that effective. But I have lived to tell the tale.

Bikegeek1968

The worst part of the Cypress downhill begins at the left hand hairpin. As soon as you see it, start braking, then brake some more and keep braking. Once you unsh*t yourself, get ready for an equally terrifying right hand hairpin, followed by a series of 5 or 6 blind entry, stair step drop offs. The last one curves sharp to the right. If you survive that, you are through the worst of it.

Ghrumpy

Hahaha! Not to mention that your eyeballs will be bouncing around in their sockets, and probably tearing up from the wind coming in from the ocean, so it's even worse than it sounds. You really need to commit to those turns whether you think you're going to make it or not. Relax and trust the Force.

Oh and did I mention the road isn't closed to vehicle traffic?

Is it farther down where you will encounter the wavy and broken pavement, you know, after you've picked up speed? That's my recollection.

jcb3

Last year my rims got so hot coming down Cypress that the tufo cx 32s started rubbing on the fork crown (whats that zip, zip, zip sound?). I had to stop and let out some air!

davester

How old were your brake pads, cables and housings? There are an awful lot of people riding Eroica who have ancient, hardened pads, unlined housings, and/or ungreased cables. Brakes in that kind of condition are definitely ineffective, vintage or not. Those factors make a massive difference in the amount of lever effort needed to slow/stop. A brake is nothing but a pad pushing against a rim. If the pads are fresh, the rims clean, and the cables and pivots well lubricated, the only difference between a classic brake and a dual pivot brake is the leverage. The dual pivot has more leverage so decreases hand pressure required per unit of braking force required by perhaps 20-30%, but is not any more effective than a sidepull or centerpull. I had no difficulty braking while bombing down Cypress, and my brakes are ordinary Superbe side pulls (albeit with fresh koolstop pads, relatively new, lined, DuraAce housings and cables, and greased pivot points.

Classtime 

And make sure that your pads are sufficiently tightened and/or have tools to readjust and retighten. in 2016, I stopped to help a couple guys, one of whom was on a borrowed bike. We had to get his front brakes working. Mafacs maybe? And I didn't have anything but allen wrenches. I can't remember how we got slightly improved braking for him comping down that longsteeproughdescent but I did my best.

Ghrumpy

Like I said, I try not to game the ride, so in both cases I had original brakesets with factory original blocks. So no, not fresh. One is a MAFAC LS2 setup, the other Campagnolo Record. New blocks excepted, they were set up as well as it is possible to do, and I had done extensive shakedown rides that approximated what I would encounter at Eroica. So I knew what I was in for. Both bikes had 25mm tires, one clinchers, the other tubulars.

Both have lined cable housings, so it wasn't cable drag or anything like that that made it exciting. At a certain point, it wasn't even hand effort that became the problem. I simply got to the limit of their ability to generate friction. No matter how much harder I squeezed, I wasn't slowing down any more. OK, that, coupled with my own tendency to like to go fast down hill. (I earned that descent, dang it!) I could have kept my speed down, braked earlier and longer, and made it less exciting, yes. But that has its own risks from overheating rims per @jcb3.

BTW, my friend reported having far less difficulty braking with his MAFAC Racer setup with salmon Mathauser blocks. I have no doubt new blocks would make things much better on my setups.

davester

Brake pads are consumables that need to be replaced every couple of years before they harden and become nonfunctional. I would hardly call replacing pads and cables "gaming the ride" since replacing them every couple of years is standard maintenance and has been basically forever. I would however call using 30+ year old pads "dangerous as heck". Note that koolstop sells black Mafac replacement pads that are almost indistinguishable from the originals.

Erzulis Boat 

Just did a shakedown cruise on the Paramount.

1- Cleat position is good, had to relearn how to get my feet in smoothly, was doing great after the first few sloppy insertions.

2-Chain noise when slacked out on gearing, 99% sure that removing one link gets her silent.

3-She is stiff! Love the ride.

4-Turbo saddle is comfortable, might bring nose up a hair......hmmmm.

5-Installed Kool-stop pads in the Modolo Professionals, good braking as vintage goes.

6-Had to relearn the down tube shift technique by not inadvertently loosening the tensioner with my meaty claws. All good now.

7-Finding the gears came back quick.

Anyway, I will tweak some more, then post pics.

mech986 

Love the fact that many walking/jogging have taken off their riding shoes and running in socks!

Glad to have you aboard, please check in on my Eroica California thread and give us info on your hometown, route, and bike you're riding.

Ghrumpy, and any others in this thread not already ID'ed, are you riding Eroica this year and have you checked in at my Eroica California thread?

Eroica California 2018 - BF C&V page - plus donations question

Andy_K 

Now there's a solution I hadn't considered...wear my vintage shoes with the slotted cleats but stuff a pair of comfortable walking shoes into my jersey pockets (or maybe sneak them into @gugie's handlebar bag)!

Ghrumpy

Not going to make it this year, I'm sorry to say. I'm keeping the dirt under my fingernails though helping a friend get his bike ready. Going to glue up his tires today in fact. See y'all next year, fingers crossed!

Salamandrine 

BITD when riding slotted cleats on dirt, I kept a small metal tool in my jersey pocket for clearing mud from the slots. Old MAFAC tire levers work OK, IIRC, but basically anything thin and metal will work. Better if you custom grind something with a bit of a hook. This was pretty normal. No fun getting stuck with cleats that don't work out in the middle of nowhere 'cause you had to cross a muddy creek.

Andy_K 

I hadn't even thought about keeping the cleats clean. The things are just painful to walk in.

I had actually managed to avoid toe clips completely until just last week when I decided I better try them out before the event. As I spent my first ride flailing at the pedals I found myself wondering if people actually used these things in cyclocross races back in the day, which obviously relates to your muddy cleat story. I can get on and off the bike almost gracefully with clipless pedals, but I have a hard time imagining working the extra pedal flip into an on-the-fly remount. On the other hand, I would have said something similar about clipless pedals the first week I was using them.

gugie 

I don't think those are socks. Spring Classic races in Flemish weather means shoe covers - which I what you think are socks.

Kabuki12

Well, I changed the front sprockets from 52/45(the way it was when I got it) to 53/42 on my Mondia. I am looking through my freewheels for a 28 tooth low 5 or 6 speed unit that I can swap out and I will be ready! The 27" x 1 1/4" Michelins rub a little on the inside of the fork crown( a little "vit-vit sound)when inflated to 80lbs . I will either use the "spoke shim trick or do some filing". Going for a shake down ride Sunday on foothill to compare Strava times. I am bringing the Windsor Pro for back up, it did very well last year with the 700 x 28's and 52/42 and 26 low in the freewheel. I walked only a couple short hops, in good company I might add!( Thank you Rich!!!). See you all there, Joe

Andy_K 

Well I'm 5'9", 210-215, and almost 50, so you can imagine where that leaves me. A triplizer on my Record Strada crankset, a Nuovo Retro long cage on my Nuovo Record rear derailleur, and a 14-30 SunTour freewheel.

My actual plan with regard to shoes is to wear modern Pearl Izumi cycling shoes. I'm declining the invitation to wear vintage shoes. Using toe clips is sacrifice enough for me. Also, my bike has been repainted and unless the course police call me on it my jersey won't be wool (though it is a Molteni reproduction).

mech986 

I'm very similar - 5'9", 210, but 62. This year have gone to a Campagnolo NR crank drilled for 74 bcd inner triple with wide 124mm spindle, 53-42-28, SOMA Retro long cage and a 14-28 Suntour freewheel, although I'm pretty confident I could mount a 30T to 34T freewheel too. I rode with Shimano modern shoes because they provide the wide width I need. Molteni repro jersey will be fine.

While your concern is noted, there is no way Eroica (or any other ride, not race) has the manpower to inspect and test all bikes entered. It is up to the riders to make sure their bikes are mechanically sound for this type of ride. As you found out, a lot of people ride everyday on roads and climbs/descents similar to Eroica, even paved roads where speeds can get fast in a hurry, and in traffic. Plenty of mountainous areas in California and Oregon area quite similar to Paso.

As for helmets, Eroica strongly encourages and urges modern helmet use for safety, BUT, California law does not require helmet use over age 18. Obviously, it's generally safer to use a helmet, but riders will do what they want to, thus the waiver.

As for injury, a number of riders have slipped, fallen or crashed with minor injuries, a couple,due to mechanical issues. However, Google Tom Ritchey (yes, that Tom Ritchey) and Eroica, and you'll find an account of him bombing down a descent, got squirrelly, missed a turn and hit a stationary car. I think he had a non-displaced tibial fracture and went to The ER after being driven back to town. He's a pro level rider, and like in most pro races, someone gets hurt, and not always in high speed descents. That's why it's termed "a leisurely ride" not a race. But when ex-racers, competitive folks, or just an adrenaline surge kicks in, riders need to know what they can and can't do and ride accordingly. And yes, there will be riders who can ride the descents at full speed.

Kabuki12

Little update on tire size, I went with the "file"(grind) the inside of the fork crown to add clearance. It worked well and the rear is ok. For fun, I measured the front tire after setting pressure at 75lbs. It checked 1.390" wide (supposed to be 1 1/4"!) . So my suspicions were right with these Michelin Protek tires... THEY ARE WIDE!! they really ride smooth( top speed on decent so far is 35mph) and I have scored my best Strava time on these. I was running 65lbs max on the front to keep them from touching, but now that won't be an issue. Looking forward to my shake down ride to see how it rides with 75lbs.I run 80-85 on the rear tire. Joe

Andy_K 

NR front derailleur too? How is your front shifting? Right now mine doesn't want to shift from the small ring (26T) onto the middle. I have to go small to big (not a smooth transition) and then back down to the middle. I've wondered if maybe the 26T is just too small. I'm using a 122.5mm spindle.