2010 Riding Recap

Total 2010 miles on Raleigh Grand Prix: 1421 miles.

Total number of 2010 rides: 103

Average ride: 13.8 miles

Longest Ride: 21.4 miles June 29, 2010

Most miles in a month: 222 miles July

Least miles in a month: 0 miles February

Most miles in a week: 81 miles June 27 to July 03

5102 Miles: Slow Leaking Front Tire

I had a slow leaking front tire. I would fill it to 100 psi and in 4 to 5 days it would be down to less than 30 psi.

When I removed the tube and checked it in water, I did not see a leak. It must be really small.

I replaced it with a CST 700 x 18/25 model 29117193 made in China that I had purchased from Price Point. I always have 2 or 3 spares.

The last flat I had was also the front at 2808 miles. So I got 2294 miles from that tube. I still have not replaced the back tube yet!

5000 Miles !!!!!

Today I reached the 5000 mile mark on my Raleigh Grand Prix!

I hit the milestone on my 8.7 mile morning fitness run. It was an ideal cool morning with temperatures in the low 60s.

An awesome ride and an awesome long run on the Raleigh!

No Roads

I have been on vacation all this week and have been able to take some great rides. The weather has been perfect-- 70 degrees F and low humidity.

I took some time to do some exploring. I was going to take Moore Road to Route 401. I had never taken this road but I found it on google maps. It is near the Wallace Turnpike stop.

But guess what-- no road. It should be called No Moore Road. This is where the google maps s
hows the road.

Later I went up Twin Valley Road to where google maps show Township Line Road. Guess what-- no rad again!

The power company continues to work on the downed lines. Here is Mapleflower Road. This is day 7 after the storm.

I saw a lot of markers for The French Creek Iron Tour

Mega Storm

I did not ride in the last few days because we had been without power for the last 4 days after a storm on June 24, 2010. I was the worst storm in a long time. Most of the roads were blocked by fallen trees. There were multiple power lines down.

I finally got a chance to ride today so I took my 21 mile route to Downingtown and back on Route 282 and the Struble Trail.

As you can see in the pictures there are some massive trees down. They got pulled up by the roots. Most of the trees have been removed from the road.

2010 Pedal to Preserve

Today I rode 21.0 miles in the 2010 Pedal to Preserve bike event. The event raises money to preserve farmland in Lancaster County. For a $25 entry fee you get beautiful scenery, a T-Shirt and a lunch. This is the fourth year that I have ridden.










There are two water stops on the 20 mile ride. They also have bananas and twizzlers. They also have 6 and 51 mile rides.












They route goes by many of the preserved farms.

35 Day Hiatus Ends!

Because of all of the snow (we had over 50 inches of snow in February alone) I have not ridden the Raleigh in 35 days. February 2010 was the first month since I have been riding (June 2007 start) that I had no mileage at all.


Today I rode 15.6 miles to test out the Raleigh after I completed the 3 year maintenance. The Raleigh rode smoothly. I do need to tweak in the front derailleur, so I will do that later--- I just wanted to ride.

I really like the Vittoria Zaffiro Pro tires. They ride very smoothly. The rolling resistance seemed low as I felt like I had too much speed going down some of the hills. You can definitely tell that it is a quality tire.

Recall that on September 06, 2008 I swore of cheap tires. I had purchased 2 IRC Red Storm tires for $25. One had a kink, the other started to fall apart after 300 miles. On the other hand, I got nearly 4000 miles on the Vittoria Zaffiro and I could have still used them. The Vittoria Zaffiro Pro are only $20 each. From now on I am only buying Vittoria Tires.

4066 Miles 3 Year Maintenance

Today I started the 3 year maintenance on the Raleigh Grand Prix. This is what I did:

1. Stripped all of the accessories off the bike.

2. Removed the pedals and lubed them.

3. Checked the chain for stretch using my Nashbar chain tool. It checks if there is 1% or greater stretch, indicating it should be changed. My chain is OK.

4. Removed the chain and degreased it.

5. I inspected both tires. I have about 4000 miles on these tires and can probably get more out of them. There are some sidewall cracks. Sheldon Brown says the sidewall cracks are harmless and you only need to replace the tires when you see the threads of the tire through the rubber.

I am going to play it safe and replace them. I ordered 2 Vittoria Zaffiro Pro tires from PricePoint at $19.99 each. The tires I have now are the Vittoria Zaffiro. They have performed well so I am sticking with Vittoria. The Pro is a little lighter at 240 grams and has 60 TPI (threads per inch) which should be a better ride.

6. Removed the chain rings and cleaned them.

7. I removed the cassette and cleaned it. I used a piece of long cloth to "floss" the cassette.

Before

Flossing

After

8. I also cleaned and regreased the front and rear wheel bearings.

Each side of the axle has 9 ball bearings, so you have to be careful and make sure you get them back in properly.

9. I also thoroughly cleaned the rear derailleur wheels. No grease is needed as they are ceramic.

10. I took apart and greased the brake cable mechanism. They were stuck.

11. I am also replacing the brake pads. They are $3.98 a set at PricePoint. These pads are still good but I like to play it safe. A new pad has 3.0 mm of material. The front was worn down to 1-1.5 mm and the rear had 2.0 mm left.








I changed the tires, reinstalled the chain and lubed it, reinstalled all of the accessories. I will give it a test run tomorrow, the weather is going to be good finally!