June 11th, 12th and a wonky wheel…

Walk/run 8.5 km on the 11th and rode 52.33 km on the 12th. I covered that distance in 2:31:39 with an average speed of 21 KPH in an ESE wind of between 19 and 28 KPH.

I had a little problem in that I noticed my rear wheel rubbing against the frame in a big way. I had to stop and loosen off the wheel nuts and re-position the rear wheel. It is still wobbly so I have to fix it better before I go out again. It isn’t until you actually intensively use something that you begin to understand the difference between a cheap bike like mine and a better quality one. Little things like wonky wheels, poorly routed brake and derailleur cables, cheap gear shift levers. When you ride as long and hard as I do, you begin to take issue with “minor” annoyances such as your wheel rubbing against the frame, slowing you down. Things like wheels that don’t seem to run as true as they should. Things like water bottle holders that fall apart and almost fall into your sprockets. My next bike won’t be expensive, but it won’t be low quality either.

I would like an extra high gear so I can go faster when possible. In my highest gear on the flat with no wind I can approach 40 KPH at a cadence of over 100. I am guessing at the cadence, my memory might be faulty here. The point is that at my maximum effort as measured by cadence I simply need a higher gear because I just can’t twirl my legs fast enough. I think the highest cadence I achieved for any length of time was about 110, but again my memory may not be accurate here, and the point is I couldn’t maintain that for long anyway. I am most comfortable at a cadence of between 60 and 75 I think, though I might change that later. I need to do more testing on the flat with no wind.