Emily moving from behind the camera to being in front of it was one of the best things to happen to this podcast - the dynamics between the three of you is awesome! :)
I love Emily on this show. Amazing voice, smart, and always an interesting counter take. It's nice to see a podcast with women as well instead of the usual overly serious men (and I'm saying that as an overly serious man.) What's not to like?
We just watched this episode together as a team! What an honour! We guarantee your FTP is at least double what you think it is with the dino behind you ;)
Pro tip for when your bottles taste like plastic: use denture tabs! Works amazingly well. Just chuck a few tabs in a bottle with some water, shake it around for a few minutes, rinse well and the taste will be gone forever. Works with hydration packs as well!
An additional 50 watts for 30 min is what the custom made motors specifically for hiding in regular bikes are doing right now. They are crazy expensive, though
@Cade_media - I'm a 33 year cancer survivor (had it at age 24) who has volunteered in the cancer space for 26 years. Over and above not ignoring symptoms; it is key that all (Men and Women): 1. Go get your annual checkup EVERY year, no matter how fit/healthy you feel; 2. Discuss your family medical history with your Doctor to help them understand your risk. 3. Ask your Dr what screening tests are appropriate for you given your medical history and current age; 4. Get those tests done; and 5. Always be candid with your Doctor, being uncomfortable about asking a question or discussing a symptom is MUCH better than dealing with a delayed cancer diagnosis. - Will
After 2020 I have very little trust in the medical profession. I may have to see them for an acute injury otherwise I'm staying the hell away from them!
Great post and I hope you are thriving after the cancer battle. I agree with all except #1. Yearly physicals have been studied and do not confer better health to folks or increase patient survival. Typically lead to unnecessary and costly testing. HOWEVER - as you said, see your doctor if something is bothering you and be sure to discuss evidence based screening based on your demographic.
@@GK-zr9cq - Please, do what you feel is right. But I can tell you that if I hadn't gone in when I did, I'd not be alive. Also - info from my team as to what the long term (30 years after) side effects from the treatments that saved my life could be, I saw my GP for annual checkups - he found the expected complication, I had zero side effects of that (very serious) complication and another procedure has given me decades more of my life to live. Whatever your thoughts are (again, you do what you feel is right) I'd hope you can separate 2020 issues from going in to have an annual physical, checkup, etc.
@@intshrmp - Thanks for the well wishes - thriving 33 years post treatment so far, thanks! For me, the annual physicals were a way to watch out for future health issues that did show up as long term complications of the treatments that saved my life. They caught something 30 years after treatment that was showing no symptoms, but could have been fatal. Early detection of this saved my life, episode two (No - I don't want to see episodes 3-9, I don't want a STAR WARS medical history 🤣😂) I think an initial consult to find out what each person's personal risk factors are is the most important thing - then they can discuss w/ their GP if every year, 2 years, 5 years would be the best interval to check for whatever things they're at risk of. I know of so many people I've met in the cancer support space who have much more advanced cancers because they thought they were "fit and healthy" and didn't need a checkup. For those who aren't sick, it is extra and (perhaps) unnecessary visit; for those who do have early stage cancer or another serious disease, every year checkups could be the diff between catching it early and being able to cure; vs presenting later when it is now too far to be able to cure. All good points and raising awareness so all can make their own decisions is what I'm all about. Take care and be well!
33:08 - I ride flats on a gravel bike (Trek Checkpoint) setup as an "everything" bike and ride home 35 miles (56km) on pavement (rail-to-trail) plus regular jaunts of 12-38 miles (20k-60k) on a mix of pavement and gravel. Here is the answer: 1) Get good platform pedals. Most of the thinner aluminum flat pedals for MTBing will work, though think about the pin (spike) length. For road/gravel riding, you don't need long pins and some MTB pedals come with pins long enough to count as deadly weapons. 2) Next comes the shoes. I would recommend a lace-up low top MTB shoes. I'm partial to Ride Concepts as they offer good performance, weight, quality, wear, and walkability. I put LockLaces on mine, so I get the bonus of laces with the speed of something like BOA.
Congratulations. I cannot tell you how much Emily adds to the overall podcast. She has some excellent insights and a wonderful sense of humor. You have come a long way over the past year in content and quality. Keep it up please!!!!
Missed the biggest fidlock advantage: bottom of the down tube. Then when you don’t need the 3rd bottle, there’s no cage there to hit stuff. I put them on all my downtubes, run regular cages in the triangle.
Lizzie was on “The Cycling Podcast” last week. She went into depth about everything and it was a really good listen and explains how these things can go wrong so easily
Congratulations on reaching your 1st birthday with the podcasts. The three of you, with the occasional appearance from Nic, have such a great rapport and keep everything down to earth. Genuinely this is the best podcasts I've listened to.
Another great episode. A few comments on my side in regards to a few topics discussed. 1-fidlock I use them on all my bikes. They last well. Mostly for road and lite gravel. Never lost a bottle. If you have multiple bikes, adding just the supports is not that "expensive". They are great for having on the forks. You don't notice them when no bottles are there. But they are there when you need them. Something not mentioned, and my biggest dislike with the system is actually the bottle nozzle to drink the liquid. I prefer camelback so much more. And to add, they use a dedicated thread on the caps you can't interchange. At least never found a cap that fits... 2- 2x vs 1x. I use both. Tend to agree that for road 2x is better. I have a mullet 1x system that has a 38 in the front and a 10-52 on the back. I can climb anything on it. At the 10t I can pedal comfortably at 27mi/h which is plenty for me. Down side? CADENCE. 1x has bigger gaps. I feel I have to constantly stay on speeds that are not optimal to be on a optimum cadence. I'd say if you race this is a no no.
Re: Fidlock, a major advantage and the main reason I got them on my gravel bike, is because you can mount it on the downtube, and still able to use the bottle while using a big frame bag. With any normal cage, I have no clearance above the bottle to be able to slide it in and out.
To be fair if you played games as a kid in the 90s early 2000s on a console and then stopped playing them when you became an adult (jobs kids etc), you could easily miss Steam being a thing.
Consoles have been so good for a long time that you can exist entirely out of SteamWorld. I only have it to get Half-life 2 on launch day when it was new, and really never used it again, not with XBOXs, Nintendos, and PS. I played the junk out of WOW, no steam required there either.
@@Thomas-fy9yc Not required, but people playing PC MMOs will hear stuff in chat about different games. Steam was mentioned a lot because of gifting games and discounts during July. Steam is spread through social osmosis.
On fidlock; I think they’re underrated on full suspension MTB frames where the rear shock takes up room in the triangle and with a traditional bottle cage it requires a bit more room to get the bottle in/out. The fidlock bottle can be taken in/out within its own footprint.
Through axles are one of the best results of re-engineering something that most people didn't think of very much or feel needed improved. Through axels are a great bit of design and engineering.
I use a Fidlock on my Bike Friday folding bike as it allows me to attach a water bottle on the long steerer tube and doesn't get in the way of the fold once I remove the bottle.
Me, Prostate cancer no symptoms. I was lucky because of family history and I knew to be watching for PSA increases. Had it removed with good and bad results, but would do it all over again. Get tested!
I just wear comfortable shoes when riding with flats. I’ve been bike touring for years and thousands of miles using regular flat gym shoes. I know people who tour in sandals. It’s just a matter of personal preference. I think a stiff sole is unnecessary for flats.
beeing in my early 30's , this episode cements my feeling that francis would be an all around ncie bloke to be around. especially mentioning the darth jar jar binks FACT . also fidlock bottles are godsent on mountainbikes, on my canyon spectral i can't mount a bottle cage, because there is not enough space for putting ina bottle... and sideloading bottles really do fly around fidlock is just bombproof.
I tried out fidlock bottles (and a bag) after seeing Francis use them. My reason for trying them, on a road bike I should add, is having quite small frames I often find removing and replacing bottles into/out of a cage a bit tricky, especially whilst on the move. As a result I would usually just stop by the side of the road to take a drink, but only if riding on my own. Fidlock bottles have been easier for me to get in and out, even on the move, so all good so far. The only negative I have experienced (other than the price, which hasn't been as high as suggested by Emily in the video) is that when the fluid level drops quite low (or empties) and the bottle becomes lighter, they do rattle slightly annoyingly. Not a deal breaker so far but it could become one....
I had this on my gravel/road bike (swap wheels/tyres), now moved to 44t, 11-46 cassette. Higher and lower gear, using standard SRAM Force 1 shifter & mech.
I think 1x11 is actually the worst combination to have on a gravel bike... Don't get me wrong, I own one bike with 1x11. It's probably fine to ride flat gravel terrain but not great for steep sections. If someone is buying a gravel bike in 2024 I suggest 2x10 or 1x12 options... New Shimano 1x12 GRX610 is quite affordable (apart from that MicroSpline hub/new rear wheel you need to get for that cassette).
Great podcast guys! Fidlocks are great on a lot of current MTB's with unusual bottle location ( eg: Starling,Cotic). They sit upside down! The Fidlocks will stop them ejecting and normal cages are awkward and get in the way! Plus points for looking good as I use a bottle locally and when away will use just Camelback and the bike is clean with no cage to catch or interfere with! Use 1X on most of my bikes even road but am used to it on my MTB and gravel. Depends on fitness and terrain and weight of bike. My current titanium road bike is running a 44t ring with a 10-36 Sram set up and it's good round the Midlands for most stuff. I have got a range of rings and my mech is a Sram XPLR so I can always put a 10-44 cassette onif I struggle!
I’m on Campag Ekar 1x 13 on the Gravelo. With either 38 or 40 front ring 5 minute swap out. With a 9 tooth x 40 thats a massive bigger than 52 x 11 roadie set up. At the other extreme it’s a 44 x 38 which gets me up anything (almost!) oh and the battery goes flat on a mechanical GS in the middle of nowhere. I’m Red AXS believer on the roadie btw. Happy 1st birthday to you all. Love the candid honesty.
The first step when considering 1x is using a gear calculator to figure out if a given ratio would suit your riding and speed. Just be honest with yourself. 10-33 + 38t chainring gives me enough top end even for sprinting at my power output and lets me climb seated in most situations, easier that my 2015 Ultegra
Love my fidlock bottles. My road, gravel and MTB are all equipped with fdlk. They never fall off and they look great. Expensive, but those bottles will last a long time.
Get a good set of flat pedals from Chromag or the like and a decently stiff soled shoe like Keen or better, Five Ten and you won't notice any power issues.
My winter bike is steel and I ride Pennines, dales and north York moors (about as steep as it gets). I have 1 by 11 speed 42 at front, 11-42 on back. I tend to climb in 2nd gear as this matches my normal road bike 36-32 climbing gear. I rarely spin out. Going down hill, by the time I spin out I normally would tuck anyway. The 42-42 is just for emergency like cramp. Love this setup. Easy to clean, quiet, no rattling around at all. Easy to set up. Perfect for winter bike.
Agree with Francis re Fidlock, I’ve lost bottles while cycling on not particularly rough terrain. Switched to Fidlock a few months ago & would never use anything else.
As an old person, approaching 60 at lightning speed, the movies 7,8, and 9 are a disaster and based on that, have refused to watch the tv versions. I wish I could get the time back from 8, and 9 I could not watch more than 25 mins. Star Wars died when Disney bought it....and I loved that IP. However, I know each person has their own enjoyment levels and I am glad you are enjoying them.
I'm approaching 40 at warp speed, grew up with the original trilogy and have to agree with you categorically that episodes 8 and 9 were dreadfully bad. That said, don't dismiss the later releases...Rogue one, Mandalorian, Book of bobba, Andor and Obi-wan were all excellent IMHO.
Episode 8 wasn’t bad. Yeah they tried some new things, and that’s not bad. It wasn’t perfect, but let’s be real…neither is the Original Trilogy. What makes Star Wars great is all the additional stuff around the main movies: the graphic novels, animated series, etc. In my opinion, the Clone Wars animated series and Bad Batch are peak Star Wars storytelling, and it works best in long form animation where story arcs really have a chance to develop.
For people that don't get on with SPDs. I did a LOT of analysis as I had friends who just couldn't get on with them. This is what I found: When someone gets into trouble when clipped in, their first instinct is to try and pull up vertically with the foot that is uppermost in the pedal stroke. As this foot is already high, they can't generate the forces to overcome the spring tension (it takes a LOT of force to exit vertically from an SPD without twisting!) and so down they go, usually on the side opposite this upper foot. (If they are right footed, the right foot is usually uppermost and they fall on their left). The quickest way to exit an SPD is press DOWN with the ball of the foot slightly and flick the heel out and this should be done first with the foot that is at the bottom of the pedal stroke (so you then put that foot down on the ground). But this is not a natural thing and has to be taught so it becomes second nature. It's important to get the hang of press down and heel flick early as after a couple of falls, the newbie is very nervous and this then becomes a mental block.
Weird, I always unclip with the foot at uppermost position, and it's very easy with Shimano SPD or Crank Brothers. On the other hand, Shimano road (SPD-SL) pedals gave me lots of troubles. Now I only use Crank Brothers Eggbeater or Candy.
Alternative take: ride flats. No learning curve, no accidents due to getting stuck, and, unless you are a pro or competitive amatuer, no meaningful loss of power or efficiency. Just easy-on/easy-off the bike. Better shoes, too.
I maintained pharmaceutical deionized water systems for 40 years and kept instrumentation calibrated in parts per billion It’s miraculous when your calibration reagents at 250/500/750 PPB actually test out in the 643 testing machine within 5%
It could be because cycling is a great sport for someone with asthma: no impact like running, you can coast a bit to let your lungs catch back up, and it's a great way to expand your lung capacity. I know cycling helped me a lot, and I had terrible asthma attacks when I was a kid before there were proper drugs to help prevent attacks or alleviate symptoms.
@@tonycrabtree3416 I meant it probably gets a lot of asthma sufferers *into* cycling, and some of them make it to the big leagues. I didn't mean coasting during a race of course :)
42 or 44 in the front with 11-42 in the rear (11 speed) is plenty for me. I know several other buddies that ride 44 x 11-42 and are in the front group of gravel races averaging 24-25 mph here in Michigan. I don't spin out in 42 x 11 until I'm near 30 mph. 1x is great for gravel but I'd still run 2x for road, like Jimmi said. I could be convinced if I ever got my hands on a 12 speed SRAM set up with say 48 10-42 on road.
We need more Star wars content in bike podcasts. I normally listen to you in the car and my kids like to listen in. They were happy to hear the Star Wars stuff as SW fans themselves. Also, I use Tacx bottle cages on all my bikes and haven’t ever had a bottle come out on a ride - MTB, CX, road, gravel - including some decent crashes.
Those thru axles that Francis was on about are Mavic Speed release! They still use them on Willier and Cannondale use them as well as Jimmy found out! Great idea but not common!
I never leave the house on a bike or to go do any kind of aerobic sport without an insulated water bottle, either Polar or CamelBak (the CamelBak mouthpiece are a bit pf a pain to clean - I think they have a new version now), but both are great at keeping the water cold for a long time. Never lost one on any kind of bike either.
I've heard Francis say such great things about Fidlock for ages now. But the price put me off. (despite dropping $70 each on a pair of Ti cages for a bike once). But then I got to play with them at Sea Otter and realized how well the mechanism works. What finally pushed me to spend the money was the issue of not having the cages in my frame all the time to make it easier to swap for a frame bag etc. Only have a couple of rides in so still training the muscle memory to hit the mount (it isn't slide down until you find it 🙂) but liking so far. So scoring: Underrated but overpriced.
51:45 I am running 1x with a 46t chainring and a 10-52 12 speed casette. Great for flats, climbing, gravel, road and bikepacking. I was able to tackle all the things I was confronted with til now. Some people may have struggles with the gear steps and thus the cadence, but for me I am really happy for now! (I am running a Ltwoo GRT setup with a Sram XG1299, Sram Chainring & Sram Chain, for those who will be asking how this can work lol)
I can’t believe someone is making an actual fun looking cycling game. I’m a 3D artist and cyclist and I’ve been tryna make this happen 😭😭 I want to build a level so bad. Pls can we make this happen haha
about the 1x issue: 1x is a compromise. you either miss top end, low end or narrow gapa between the gears. what you get is ease of use. you can minimize compromise, but you have to do some math. what cassette, what chain ring is a very personal choice and you have to play close attention to what gears you are actually using before the conversion
Congrats on the year. Always a good watch/listen and Emily definitely had to be in front of the camera as she is, clever, quick witted and very articulate and Jimmy you are definitely punching way above your level so well done that man. Not forgetting Francis who is turning into Jimmy’s and Emily’s love child. Joking aside, the three hander definitely makes this work
Have to say fidlock is probably the only bottle system that fits and will never fall of a mountainbike. Most mtbs dont have a lot of space in the frame so the twisting really helps. (I know there are bottle cages that you can put the bottle in from the side) but the real advantage is that the bottle will never ever fall of your bike. I recently crashed, flipped everything (myself included) and the bottle was still on the bike. You can ride the gnarliest trails and the bottle will stay. even the biggest 750ml compact doesnt come off if its full of water. So totally underrated for mtbs, and maybe some gravel
1) Now this is the kind of content that you do so well. Charming, funny, informative,bravo, more please! 2) Consider that thru axles are really just a more extreme form of lawyer lips. They reduce liability caused by disc brakes inherent tendency to launch wheels upon braking. An example below will make clear why manufacturers might find this desireable. Probably coincidentally but definitely conveniently, thru-axles create another point of forced obsolescence for consumers. Most often (though incorrectly) they are described as stiffening the frame for better performance. If the frame or wheel require stiffening from a thru-axle, they have bigger problems than the thru-axle can solve. And at least for steel frames (I can’t say for alu/titan/carb but suspect a parallel impact) the resulting thru axle dropouts and rips are bigger, heavier, and less elegant looking than the QR compatible ones they replace. Disc brakes have advantages, but not in speed of wheel changes and not in weight. The reason that wheel ejection remained a problem until thru-axles is largely due to the adoption of external cam QRs, for which manufacturers never bothered to develop the mechanism to keep the cam and the bearing surface (hollow) in alignment throughout the cycle of opening and closing the lever. As you no doubt know, when these become misaligned, the lever won’t close until the skewer is loosened significantly😅 (or a smart person puts them back into alignment). If the skewer is loosened and closed out of alignment, it presents an accident waiting to happen when a large bump or series of vibrations combined with skewer pressure force the cam and bearing back into alignment and cause the wheel to no longer be held in place. This is a problem with any brakes, but discs actively try to eject a wheel under these circumstances. It’s funny, a recent TH-cam video of an influencer on an organized ride crashed twice (fortunately not a full speed) when his rear wheel “…just fell off…”. He survived but his rear disc got mangled to the point of becoming an anchor until offered some caveman repairs. And even then, it no longer offered stopping assistance. Shimano support did a great job of finding the right disc and mounting it up for him to complete the journey. It’s hard to believe Shimano didn’t know what was happening, but maybe hubris prevented the rider from explaining the diagnosis to the audience. But one might have expected that this was a semi-sophisticated rider who would know better, and who would immediately know what happened the first time the wheel fell off. And perhaps in many other respects he was. But surely either he didn’t read the owners manually closely, or forgot the warnings about how to use QRs. And if it could happen to him, it might happen to most of your viewers. With this in mind, It might be a great service to your viewers if you reminded them about proper use of QRs once or twice a year.
Bivo make the best metal bottles - the flow rate is unreal. They don't always fit perfectly cages, but I've found them to work well in mine. Highly recommend
I am in my mid-50s and my first couple of years racing as a junior back in the 80's were with clip and strap pedals. Getting in at the start of a crit was a real art and you had to reach down (especially with the finish coming) to give the strap a quick pull to tighten for the sprint. Constantly finished with completely numb toes.
In terms of how much motor doping has an impact - you have to think that even for a fairly fit amateur, 20 watts is probably something like 10%. I'm not 100% of the Maths but that's something like 20-30 seconds faster for every 5 minutes (As in, a 5 minute segment without the motor would be 4:30-4:40 with the motor) and that's HUGE! Again not 100% on the stats but the average household battery drill has a motor that can theoretically put out 100+ watts for 5 continuous minutes with one full charge. So it seems very reasonable that you could get a hold of a motor that could provide maybe even 50 watts and enough battery life hidden in the frame to provide that assistance for a good 10 minutes or more. I think making one is a fantastic idea - we're told a lot about scandals and suspicions thereof, but we don't ever really get an idea for how easy or not it may be, what the actual gains look like, etc. In terms of bottle cages, can't agree with Francis at all. Got myself a pair of Vel 750ml bottles + cages for about £15.00. They work fine, the bottles are held very securely, and I couldn't care less what happens to them - at that price they're very easily replaced (and bio-degradable materials is a plus). I honestly have no idea why anyone would spend serious money on bottle cages or bottles unless it's a weight weenie thing or some sort of limited edition whatever, and that I only excuse because sometimes people just want a certain thing, even if it is a bit of a silly price tag. Fidlock is MASSIVELY overrated. Even the photos thing - since when is bottles on the bike a bad look? The best pictures I've ever seen of bikes aren't of soulless showroom frames in pristine position, condition, and composition - they're badly framed pictures of bikes propped up against a low wall at the top of a climb, 6 days into a tour, and half the back wheel obscured by the horribly sunburnt rider, pint in hand! Bikes are supposed to have soul, and at the risk of sounding a bit like the "Steel is real, plastic bikes are rubbish" crowd, bottle cages, panier racks, and dirty bar tape are all hallmarks of a bike that's been enjoyed for what it is, not what it looks like.
Shimano ET7 are nice shoes for road riding on normal pinned flat pedals. Comfortable, easy to walk in, grip well enough. Look good pretty nice as well.
58:54 thank you for raising awareness, half of the list sounds about right in my case, gonna go to my doctor tomorrow. Would be odd, you wouldn't think you could have cancer in your early adulthood
I'm running a 1-by with a 38-tooth chainring and an 11-speed cassette with a 11-46 range. That does mean that I give up high gears for going downhill, but the smaller cogs are pretty close together, so the jumps are actually reasonable, and the larger jumps between the large cogs are fine when I am climbing where "fine tuning" is not an issue.
With regards to your discussion on quick release vs. thru axles, Suntour do a really good quick release thru axel called the Q-Loc system which I have on my Wilier hard tail. On another note, you should definitely watch Rouge One before watching Episode 4 as it's end leads in directly to the start of Eps 4
About Fidlock, they seem expensive if you already have bottles and bottleholders. But a bottleholder kosts like 10-20€ at onlineshops, proper bottles like Camelbak etc. do cost almost the same. So for one bottle+holder you spend like 20-40€. If you just start with fidlock like with the 590ml ones you got the bottleholder(base) and bottle for 30€ at several online shops. So they dont seem that expensive anymore. I had normal bottles for a few years, without any problems, but switched to Fidlock only to use medium sized framebags with 2 bottles in my medium sized bike frames. It wouldnt be possible to get normal bottles out of the holders without hassleing around with the bags. so i really love them
Agree to a point, you can easily replace regular bottles for as low as $5 a piece. If you lose/ruin your Fidlock bottle, the bottles are $40 a piece. I had 2 regular cages and 2 bottles for less than $60.Also they can be interchanged between bikes. I have 3 Fidlock bottles on my gravel bike, cost close to $150. In my opinion, they are expensive, but they work, especially when you have frame bags and such. Allows you to have a bottle where a regular cage would not work.
@@noxskuses OKay, it seems cheaper in Germany. A bottle without connector costs 12€. The connector costs 16€, a bottle with connector costs 26€ and a whole set Base+bottle+connector 28€ Its definately a different price to your Dollar prices
@@MaceWanted Wow, yeah that is way better. Here the average sized bottle and connector is $49.99 US. the connector alone is $12.99, the connector for the bottle is $27, a 450 bottle (single) is $40. The cheapest bottle and base system is $45.
I like QR skewers, I don't really see any issues with them. My 2006 stumpjumper full suspension mtb has them and I do like them, no issues at all with disc brakes.
Considering how easily someone could be "dirtied up" there's no way I'd go down the road of training with all the associated work and risk to become a professional cyclist. There needs to be some way to guard against these false positives. Frankly, I'm more likely to stop watching bike racing because of bad regulation than doping. Your entire career could be undone by someone spraying you with contaminated water from the side of the road. I'm more likely to stop watching bike racing because of bad regulation than doping.
Looking forward to the doped bike as well! Word of advice, DON'T try to drive away haha. Cheers from the USA. Always look forward to listening/watching this show!
A little advice from the mountain bike side of things Crank Brothers flat pedal shoes are the most comfortable with very little break-in period however my favorite flat pedal mountain bike shoes are Etnies. And I have had my bike fly off of 20 ft cliff and then tumble another 20 ft and my fidlock didn't come off. I switched to fidlock because I kept breaking bottle cages in the winter cold
I love my FidLocks Bottles. Because I have the smallest Frame you can get. And normal Bottleholders are often not fitting with big bottles in the Frame. And they have the uni connector wich you can fit to every bottle. So yay its is a lot of money, but I love it. :)
A single 2170 cell would provide 20 Watts for nearly an hour. Each to fit 6 or 8. Surely they're doing 150 W or so at crucial times to get over a hill fresh or solo across Flanders. Like Ganchellara.
Quick release skewers are definitly underated! Watch Peak Torque´s vids about them. ("Thru - Axle and QR analysed. Stiffer? Hmm. " + "QR tension measured. How much load for a quick-release?! Wheel pull-out force predicted...." )
Shoes: Adidas Terrex Swift Solo is a great all-round shoe, perfectly good for biking longer distances Quick Release: Overrated, it's just way easier to steal it and thru-axle is stiffer
Bottle Security: Just buy the bog standard Elite alloy cages, put them on the frame and slightly bend them. They stay bent and grip a plastic bottle superbly. Never lost a bottle during years of mountain biking and the Elite cages are as good as new.
The other nice thing about fidlock is that they look like they should be more aero when you don't have a second bottle. If you don't want to deal with removing the 2nd bottle cage every time you ride with only a single bottle. My experience has been mixed. The bottles are extremely flexy so they kind of bounce around excessively because they are only secured on one side. Locating the bottle mount is also a big adjustment -- several rides later and it's still significantly harder than a traditional cage.
Regarding bottle cages, I've found that a lot of the extremely light bottle cages made of carbon are too rigid to pinch the bottle. The cheap metal cages can be squeezed together to pinch the bottle tighter. For non racers, the cheap cages might be the simplest solution.
33:04 I too have a hard time getting comfortable in cleated racey shoes. If the question asker wants to try another shoe with cleats, look at the SPD shoes that look like more traditional sneakers in combination with cleats "with play". That is a relatively comparable experience to regular shoes with flat pedals, with some benefits of clipless still. But there is more float, and you can unclip in any direction. Example: I use (these are male shoes) Shimano SH-EX700 and SH-SD501 (sandal for the very warm days, I get hot feet easily). Other manufacturers make similar stuff geared towards MTB and gravel, but I use this mostly in urban scenarios and really like this setup because walking is still very comfortable. This in combination with the SM-SH56 cleats with play, float and unclipping in any direction, combined with a combo flat+spd pedal, so large platform for the forefoot as well, and the freedom to wear normal shoes for short trips. A lot of manufactures make these, I like the Shimano Click'r ones (PD-T421) on my trekking bike and a RFR MTB style (with the screw in pins on the flat side) on my gravel bike.
QR with rim brakes is better. a ten speed chain is durable. eleven speed is the most you can optimally use as twelve speed chains are slower than eleven speed chains. Rim brakes are more aero and lighter. without rain or mud, rim brakes are better and often not used.
I love Fidlock - especially on MTBs... for Road use I believe they are a bit overratet... The main problem I see with them: little choice of bottles... if there'd be enough bottles where you can just stick the fidlock clips on it would be really nice...
My wife was also displeased with clicky pedals. I got her Magpeds. I’m surprised you weren’t familiar with this solution. It is a pretty good way station between flat and clicky.
I used to use Vincero design magnetic bottles. They rusted and swelled if used in all weather though. Like the old magnetic helmet strap clasps did too.
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Emily moving from behind the camera to being in front of it was one of the best things to happen to this podcast - the dynamics between the three of you is awesome! :)
No
Agreed. Love it more with Emily active in the podcast.
I love Emily on this show. Amazing voice, smart, and always an interesting counter take. It's nice to see a podcast with women as well instead of the usual overly serious men (and I'm saying that as an overly serious man.) What's not to like?
We all love Emily...
We just watched this episode together as a team! What an honour! We guarantee your FTP is at least double what you think it is with the dino behind you ;)
🤣🤣 genius 💪
Pro tip for when your bottles taste like plastic: use denture tabs! Works amazingly well. Just chuck a few tabs in a bottle with some water, shake it around for a few minutes, rinse well and the taste will be gone forever. Works with hydration packs as well!
Elite Fly Elite bottles are my current top pick. Lightweight, easy flow/squeeze and fits perfect in the bottle cage without any issues.
Would love to see a motor doped regular looking bike tested - how much power it can give and for how long!
An additional 50 watts for 30 min is what the custom made motors specifically for hiding in regular bikes are doing right now. They are crazy expensive, though
GCN did it quite a few years ago
just buy an E Bike
And if you do see if you can get away with motor doping in a race, make a documentary film about it -- the perfect sequel to Icarus.
@Cade_media - I'm a 33 year cancer survivor (had it at age 24) who has volunteered in the cancer space for 26 years. Over and above not ignoring symptoms; it is key that all (Men and Women): 1. Go get your annual checkup EVERY year, no matter how fit/healthy you feel; 2. Discuss your family medical history with your Doctor to help them understand your risk. 3. Ask your Dr what screening tests are appropriate for you given your medical history and current age; 4. Get those tests done; and 5. Always be candid with your Doctor, being uncomfortable about asking a question or discussing a symptom is MUCH better than dealing with a delayed cancer diagnosis. - Will
After 2020 I have very little trust in the medical profession. I may have to see them for an acute injury otherwise I'm staying the hell away from them!
Great post and I hope you are thriving after the cancer battle. I agree with all except #1. Yearly physicals have been studied and do not confer better health to folks or increase patient survival. Typically lead to unnecessary and costly testing. HOWEVER - as you said, see your doctor if something is bothering you and be sure to discuss evidence based screening based on your demographic.
@@GK-zr9cq - Please, do what you feel is right. But I can tell you that if I hadn't gone in when I did, I'd not be alive. Also - info from my team as to what the long term (30 years after) side effects from the treatments that saved my life could be, I saw my GP for annual checkups - he found the expected complication, I had zero side effects of that (very serious) complication and another procedure has given me decades more of my life to live. Whatever your thoughts are (again, you do what you feel is right) I'd hope you can separate 2020 issues from going in to have an annual physical, checkup, etc.
@@intshrmp - Thanks for the well wishes - thriving 33 years post treatment so far, thanks!
For me, the annual physicals were a way to watch out for future health issues that did show up as long term complications of the treatments that saved my life. They caught something 30 years after treatment that was showing no symptoms, but could have been fatal. Early detection of this saved my life, episode two (No - I don't want to see episodes 3-9, I don't want a STAR WARS medical history 🤣😂)
I think an initial consult to find out what each person's personal risk factors are is the most important thing - then they can discuss w/ their GP if every year, 2 years, 5 years would be the best interval to check for whatever things they're at risk of. I know of so many people I've met in the cancer support space who have much more advanced cancers because they thought they were "fit and healthy" and didn't need a checkup. For those who aren't sick, it is extra and (perhaps) unnecessary visit; for those who do have early stage cancer or another serious disease, every year checkups could be the diff between catching it early and being able to cure; vs presenting later when it is now too far to be able to cure. All good points and raising awareness so all can make their own decisions is what I'm all about. Take care and be well!
I assume these checkups are very expensive without health insurance? (in the States) 👀
33:08 - I ride flats on a gravel bike (Trek Checkpoint) setup as an "everything" bike and ride home 35 miles (56km) on pavement (rail-to-trail) plus regular jaunts of 12-38 miles (20k-60k) on a mix of pavement and gravel. Here is the answer: 1) Get good platform pedals. Most of the thinner aluminum flat pedals for MTBing will work, though think about the pin (spike) length. For road/gravel riding, you don't need long pins and some MTB pedals come with pins long enough to count as deadly weapons. 2) Next comes the shoes. I would recommend a lace-up low top MTB shoes. I'm partial to Ride Concepts as they offer good performance, weight, quality, wear, and walkability. I put LockLaces on mine, so I get the bonus of laces with the speed of something like BOA.
Congratulations. I cannot tell you how much Emily adds to the overall podcast. She has some excellent insights and a wonderful sense of humor. You have come a long way over the past year in content and quality. Keep it up please!!!!
Missed the biggest fidlock advantage: bottom of the down tube. Then when you don’t need the 3rd bottle, there’s no cage there to hit stuff.
I put them on all my downtubes, run regular cages in the triangle.
Lizzie was on “The Cycling Podcast” last week. She went into depth about everything and it was a really good listen and explains how these things can go wrong so easily
yeah, don't take the stuff.
Sounds like Contador and the dodgy steaks.
The crosscontamination aside....its amazing,ING how many Pro Cyclists have to take meds for Asthma, no....!? 🤷🏽♂️
Congratulations on reaching your 1st birthday with the podcasts. The three of you, with the occasional appearance from Nic, have such a great rapport and keep everything down to earth. Genuinely this is the best podcasts I've listened to.
great episode and congrats on the year! Be great to get Lizzy on, such a great rider, hope she finds her way back into the sport!
Another great episode.
A few comments on my side in regards to a few topics discussed.
1-fidlock
I use them on all my bikes. They last well. Mostly for road and lite gravel. Never lost a bottle. If you have multiple bikes, adding just the supports is not that "expensive". They are great for having on the forks. You don't notice them when no bottles are there. But they are there when you need them. Something not mentioned, and my biggest dislike with the system is actually the bottle nozzle to drink the liquid. I prefer camelback so much more. And to add, they use a dedicated thread on the caps you can't interchange. At least never found a cap that fits...
2- 2x vs 1x. I use both. Tend to agree that for road 2x is better. I have a mullet 1x system that has a 38 in the front and a 10-52 on the back. I can climb anything on it. At the 10t I can pedal comfortably at 27mi/h which is plenty for me. Down side? CADENCE. 1x has bigger gaps. I feel I have to constantly stay on speeds that are not optimal to be on a optimum cadence. I'd say if you race this is a no no.
Re: Fidlock, a major advantage and the main reason I got them on my gravel bike, is because you can mount it on the downtube, and still able to use the bottle while using a big frame bag. With any normal cage, I have no clearance above the bottle to be able to slide it in and out.
It's 2024 and Jimmi doesn't know what Steam is?? What the heck man 😅
Auld ones don't know
To be fair if you played games as a kid in the 90s early 2000s on a console and then stopped playing them when you became an adult (jobs kids etc), you could easily miss Steam being a thing.
@@rob-c. He's a World of Warcraft fan. He knows PC gaming.
Consoles have been so good for a long time that you can exist entirely out of SteamWorld. I only have it to get Half-life 2 on launch day when it was new, and really never used it again, not with XBOXs, Nintendos, and PS. I played the junk out of WOW, no steam required there either.
@@Thomas-fy9yc Not required, but people playing PC MMOs will hear stuff in chat about different games. Steam was mentioned a lot because of gifting games and discounts during July. Steam is spread through social osmosis.
Rogue One leads directly into the opening scene of Episode 4. Directly. It can't be missed
😮
Also you can’t ignore the Clone Wars animated series…so damn good
Try the Specialized Z cages. They're side loading and will hold any normal bottle. I have never lost a bottle using them for years riding MTB.
On fidlock; I think they’re underrated on full suspension MTB frames where the rear shock takes up room in the triangle and with a traditional bottle cage it requires a bit more room to get the bottle in/out. The fidlock bottle can be taken in/out within its own footprint.
Through axles are one of the best results of re-engineering something that most people didn't think of very much or feel needed improved. Through axels are a great bit of design and engineering.
I think this makes through axels underrated, but QR neutral
Through axles were very much needed for disc brakes.
@@FOREST10PL plenty of road bikes have QR and discs and are fine - just do them up properly 🙂
I use a Fidlock on my Bike Friday folding bike as it allows me to attach a water bottle on the long steerer tube and doesn't get in the way of the fold once I remove the bottle.
I strangely find your program very entertaining keep it up and thank you I think I might start listening to you as a podcast when I’m riding
Me, Prostate cancer no symptoms. I was lucky because of family history and I knew to be watching for PSA increases. Had it removed with good and bad results, but would do it all over again. Get tested!
I just wear comfortable shoes when riding with flats. I’ve been bike touring for years and thousands of miles using regular flat gym shoes. I know people who tour in sandals. It’s just a matter of personal preference. I think a stiff sole is unnecessary for flats.
beeing in my early 30's , this episode cements my feeling that francis would be an all around ncie bloke to be around. especially mentioning the darth jar jar binks FACT .
also fidlock bottles are godsent on mountainbikes, on my canyon spectral i can't mount a bottle cage, because there is not enough space for putting ina bottle... and sideloading bottles really do fly around
fidlock is just bombproof.
I tried out fidlock bottles (and a bag) after seeing Francis use them. My reason for trying them, on a road bike I should add, is having quite small frames I often find removing and replacing bottles into/out of a cage a bit tricky, especially whilst on the move. As a result I would usually just stop by the side of the road to take a drink, but only if riding on my own. Fidlock bottles have been easier for me to get in and out, even on the move, so all good so far. The only negative I have experienced (other than the price, which hasn't been as high as suggested by Emily in the video) is that when the fluid level drops quite low (or empties) and the bottle becomes lighter, they do rattle slightly annoyingly. Not a deal breaker so far but it could become one....
Similar to Francis 1x setup - 40t, 11-42 cassette - works for 90% of my riding, average rides are 100km. Happy riding 💪🏻
I had this on my gravel/road bike (swap wheels/tyres), now moved to 44t, 11-46 cassette.
Higher and lower gear, using standard SRAM Force 1 shifter & mech.
I think 1x11 is actually the worst combination to have on a gravel bike... Don't get me wrong, I own one bike with 1x11. It's probably fine to ride flat gravel terrain but not great for steep sections. If someone is buying a gravel bike in 2024 I suggest 2x10 or 1x12 options... New Shimano 1x12 GRX610 is quite affordable (apart from that MicroSpline hub/new rear wheel you need to get for that cassette).
Great podcast guys!
Fidlocks are great on a lot of current MTB's with unusual bottle location ( eg: Starling,Cotic).
They sit upside down! The Fidlocks will stop them ejecting and normal cages are awkward and get in the way! Plus points for looking good as I use a bottle locally and when away will use just Camelback and the bike is clean with no cage to catch or interfere with!
Use 1X on most of my bikes even road but am used to it on my MTB and gravel.
Depends on fitness and terrain and weight of bike.
My current titanium road bike is running a 44t ring with a 10-36 Sram set up and it's good round the Midlands for most stuff.
I have got a range of rings and my mech is a Sram XPLR so I can always put a 10-44 cassette onif I struggle!
Similar, I’m running 42t 11-42!
I’m on Campag Ekar 1x 13 on the Gravelo. With either 38 or 40 front ring 5 minute swap out. With a 9 tooth x 40 thats a massive bigger than 52 x 11 roadie set up. At the other extreme it’s a 44 x 38 which gets me up anything (almost!) oh and the battery goes flat on a mechanical GS in the middle of nowhere. I’m Red AXS believer on the roadie btw.
Happy 1st birthday to you all. Love the candid honesty.
Honestly Emily might be my favorite personality on the podcast
The first step when considering 1x is using a gear calculator to figure out if a given ratio would suit your riding and speed. Just be honest with yourself. 10-33 + 38t chainring gives me enough top end even for sprinting at my power output and lets me climb seated in most situations, easier that my 2015 Ultegra
Love my fidlock bottles. My road, gravel and MTB are all equipped with fdlk. They never fall off and they look great. Expensive, but those bottles will last a long time.
Get a good set of flat pedals from Chromag or the like and a decently stiff soled shoe like Keen or better, Five Ten and you won't notice any power issues.
Fidlock is great for Cyclocross. You can remove them for training/races but still have them with you on the ride to/from the location.
I feel like Wattgames should have some old school DOOM midi sountrack
My winter bike is steel and I ride Pennines, dales and north York moors (about as steep as it gets). I have 1 by 11 speed 42 at front, 11-42 on back. I tend to climb in 2nd gear as this matches my normal road bike 36-32 climbing gear. I rarely spin out. Going down hill, by the time I spin out I normally would tuck anyway. The 42-42 is just for emergency like cramp. Love this setup. Easy to clean, quiet, no rattling around at all. Easy to set up. Perfect for winter bike.
Agree with Francis re Fidlock, I’ve lost bottles while cycling on not particularly rough terrain. Switched to Fidlock a few months ago & would never use anything else.
Fidlock bottles are great for mtb bikepacking. Much better more durable and cheaper than high-end bottles cages and bottles.
As an old person, approaching 60 at lightning speed, the movies 7,8, and 9 are a disaster and based on that, have refused to watch the tv versions. I wish I could get the time back from 8, and 9 I could not watch more than 25 mins. Star Wars died when Disney bought it....and I loved that IP. However, I know each person has their own enjoyment levels and I am glad you are enjoying them.
I'm approaching 40 at warp speed, grew up with the original trilogy and have to agree with you categorically that episodes 8 and 9 were dreadfully bad.
That said, don't dismiss the later releases...Rogue one, Mandalorian, Book of bobba, Andor and Obi-wan were all excellent IMHO.
@@edgararias6601 I did like Rogue One
@@edgararias6601 7,8,9 were just rehashes of 4,5,6.
Episode 8 wasn’t bad. Yeah they tried some new things, and that’s not bad. It wasn’t perfect, but let’s be real…neither is the Original Trilogy. What makes Star Wars great is all the additional stuff around the main movies: the graphic novels, animated series, etc. In my opinion, the Clone Wars animated series and Bad Batch are peak Star Wars storytelling, and it works best in long form animation where story arcs really have a chance to develop.
Emily’s camera facing and input have greatly improved your podcast!👍
For people that don't get on with SPDs. I did a LOT of analysis as I had friends who just couldn't get on with them. This is what I found: When someone gets into trouble when clipped in, their first instinct is to try and pull up vertically with the foot that is uppermost in the pedal stroke. As this foot is already high, they can't generate the forces to overcome the spring tension (it takes a LOT of force to exit vertically from an SPD without twisting!) and so down they go, usually on the side opposite this upper foot. (If they are right footed, the right foot is usually uppermost and they fall on their left). The quickest way to exit an SPD is press DOWN with the ball of the foot slightly and flick the heel out and this should be done first with the foot that is at the bottom of the pedal stroke (so you then put that foot down on the ground). But this is not a natural thing and has to be taught so it becomes second nature. It's important to get the hang of press down and heel flick early as after a couple of falls, the newbie is very nervous and this then becomes a mental block.
Weird, I always unclip with the foot at uppermost position, and it's very easy with Shimano SPD or Crank Brothers. On the other hand, Shimano road (SPD-SL) pedals gave me lots of troubles. Now I only use Crank Brothers Eggbeater or Candy.
Alternative take: ride flats. No learning curve, no accidents due to getting stuck, and, unless you are a pro or competitive amatuer, no meaningful loss of power or efficiency. Just easy-on/easy-off the bike.
Better shoes, too.
Better yet, clip in and out 3-5 times on each foot before riding your bike.
Takes a few seconds but the heel flick will become automatic.
@@donadams5094 Plus can ride the bike in any shoes.
Get Shimano multidirectional release cleats SM-SH56. Much easier to unclip.
I maintained pharmaceutical deionized water systems for 40 years and kept instrumentation calibrated in parts per billion
It’s miraculous when your calibration reagents at 250/500/750 PPB actually test out in the 643 testing machine within 5%
Lauren - Try approach shoes. They're nearly as comfortable as sneakers, but have a stiffer sole which helps with pedaling.
It is amazing to me how many top level athletes take asthma medication. Seems crazy how well a person with asthma performs so well.
Nothing to see here!
It could be because cycling is a great sport for someone with asthma: no impact like running, you can coast a bit to let your lungs catch back up, and it's a great way to expand your lung capacity. I know cycling helped me a lot, and I had terrible asthma attacks when I was a kid before there were proper drugs to help prevent attacks or alleviate symptoms.
@@MichelBertrand No across all sports. Bronchial dilating drugs are all banned PED's.
@@MichelBertrand No, you can't coast in a race going up hill... LMAO!!!! Come on, man....
@@tonycrabtree3416 I meant it probably gets a lot of asthma sufferers *into* cycling, and some of them make it to the big leagues. I didn't mean coasting during a race of course :)
Happy 1 year anniversary 🎉 And thank you for keeping us in the loop with all things bike and more ❤
Wait, wattgames looks sick. Now I just need this in VR
If Zwift had been like 'dinosaurs chase you now (and also we increased prices by 25%)' no one would have left
I keep trying to mention GTA Bike but my posts get deleted...
42 or 44 in the front with 11-42 in the rear (11 speed) is plenty for me. I know several other buddies that ride 44 x 11-42 and are in the front group of gravel races averaging 24-25 mph here in Michigan. I don't spin out in 42 x 11 until I'm near 30 mph. 1x is great for gravel but I'd still run 2x for road, like Jimmi said. I could be convinced if I ever got my hands on a 12 speed SRAM set up with say 48 10-42 on road.
We need more Star wars content in bike podcasts. I normally listen to you in the car and my kids like to listen in. They were happy to hear the Star Wars stuff as SW fans themselves.
Also, I use Tacx bottle cages on all my bikes and haven’t ever had a bottle come out on a ride - MTB, CX, road, gravel - including some decent crashes.
Those thru axles that Francis was on about are Mavic Speed release!
They still use them on Willier and Cannondale use them as well as Jimmy found out!
Great idea but not common!
I come back to the podcast because of Emily. Such a well balanced perspective on things.
I never leave the house on a bike or to go do any kind of aerobic sport without an insulated water bottle, either Polar or CamelBak (the CamelBak mouthpiece are a bit pf a pain to clean - I think they have a new version now), but both are great at keeping the water cold for a long time. Never lost one on any kind of bike either.
Hell Yeah Guys! Congratulations from across the pond in Philly! 🤙🚴
The SIS 750ml clear bottles are excellent. Last forever, soft enough to squeeze stuff out and hold really well in all the bottle cages I've used.
Lizzy was/is asthmatic? You do know that asthma medications are huge performance boosters... That's also sth UCI is trying to regulate.
Typical trick a lot of athletes use. I doubt she is asthmatic.
510 shoes and decent flat pedals like OneUp composites, I regularly do 100km+ rides on my road bike with those
I've heard Francis say such great things about Fidlock for ages now. But the price put me off. (despite dropping $70 each on a pair of Ti cages for a bike once). But then I got to play with them at Sea Otter and realized how well the mechanism works. What finally pushed me to spend the money was the issue of not having the cages in my frame all the time to make it easier to swap for a frame bag etc. Only have a couple of rides in so still training the muscle memory to hit the mount (it isn't slide down until you find it 🙂) but liking so far.
So scoring: Underrated but overpriced.
51:45 I am running 1x with a 46t chainring and a 10-52 12 speed casette. Great for flats, climbing, gravel, road and bikepacking.
I was able to tackle all the things I was confronted with til now. Some people may have struggles with the gear steps and thus the cadence, but for me I am really happy for now!
(I am running a Ltwoo GRT setup with a Sram XG1299, Sram Chainring & Sram Chain, for those who will be asking how this can work lol)
I think Francis should run to work at least one day next week.
and then do the show with no food and no rest 🤣🤣🤣
I can’t believe someone is making an actual fun looking cycling game. I’m a 3D artist and cyclist and I’ve been tryna make this happen 😭😭 I want to build a level so bad. Pls can we make this happen haha
Congrats on 1 year.. Enjoy the podcasts
about the 1x issue: 1x is a compromise. you either miss top end, low end or narrow gapa between the gears. what you get is ease of use. you can minimize compromise, but you have to do some math. what cassette, what chain ring is a very personal choice and you have to play close attention to what gears you are actually using before the conversion
Congrats on the year.
Always a good watch/listen and Emily definitely had to be in front of the camera as she is, clever, quick witted and very articulate and Jimmy you are definitely punching way above your level so well done that man. Not forgetting Francis who is turning into Jimmy’s and Emily’s love child.
Joking aside, the three hander definitely makes this work
Have to say fidlock is probably the only bottle system that fits and will never fall of a mountainbike. Most mtbs dont have a lot of space in the frame so the twisting really helps. (I know there are bottle cages that you can put the bottle in from the side) but the real advantage is that the bottle will never ever fall of your bike. I recently crashed, flipped everything (myself included) and the bottle was still on the bike. You can ride the gnarliest trails and the bottle will stay. even the biggest 750ml compact doesnt come off if its full of water. So totally underrated for mtbs, and maybe some gravel
1) Now this is the kind of content that you do so well. Charming, funny, informative,bravo, more please!
2) Consider that thru axles are really just a more extreme form of lawyer lips. They reduce liability caused by disc brakes inherent tendency to launch wheels upon braking. An example below will make clear why manufacturers might find this desireable.
Probably coincidentally but definitely conveniently, thru-axles create another point of forced obsolescence for consumers. Most often (though incorrectly) they are described as stiffening the frame for better performance. If the frame or wheel require stiffening from a thru-axle, they have bigger problems than the thru-axle can solve. And at least for steel frames (I can’t say for alu/titan/carb but suspect a parallel impact) the resulting thru axle dropouts and rips are bigger, heavier, and less elegant looking than the QR compatible ones they replace. Disc brakes have advantages, but not in speed of wheel changes and not in weight.
The reason that wheel ejection remained a problem until thru-axles is largely due to the adoption of external cam QRs, for which manufacturers never bothered to develop the mechanism to keep the cam and the bearing surface (hollow) in alignment throughout the cycle of opening and closing the lever. As you no doubt know, when these become misaligned, the lever won’t close until the skewer is loosened significantly😅 (or a smart person puts them back into alignment). If the skewer is loosened and closed out of alignment, it presents an accident waiting to happen when a large bump or series of vibrations combined with skewer pressure force the cam and bearing back into alignment and cause the wheel to no longer be held in place. This is a problem with any brakes, but discs actively try to eject a wheel under these circumstances.
It’s funny, a recent TH-cam video of an influencer on an organized ride crashed twice (fortunately not a full speed) when his rear wheel “…just fell off…”. He survived but his rear disc got mangled to the point of becoming an anchor until offered some caveman repairs. And even then, it no longer offered stopping assistance. Shimano support did a great job of finding the right disc and mounting it up for him to complete the journey.
It’s hard to believe Shimano didn’t know what was happening, but maybe hubris prevented the rider from explaining the diagnosis to the audience. But one might have expected that this was a semi-sophisticated rider who would know better, and who would immediately know what happened the first time the wheel fell off. And perhaps in many other respects he was. But surely either he didn’t read the owners manually closely, or forgot the warnings about how to use QRs. And if it could happen to him, it might happen to most of your viewers.
With this in mind, It might be a great service to your viewers if you reminded them about proper use of QRs once or twice a year.
For non-racing purposes a fully stealth gravel e-bike would be amazing. Especially for commuting and for hilly areas.
There are quick-release through axles, mostly in MTB though. For road you can look up Focus/Cervelo Rapid Axle Technology
Bivo make the best metal bottles - the flow rate is unreal. They don't always fit perfectly cages, but I've found them to work well in mine. Highly recommend
Glad to say I now "joined" you guys. Love the podcast
I am in my mid-50s and my first couple of years racing as a junior back in the 80's were with clip and strap pedals. Getting in at the start of a crit was a real art and you had to reach down (especially with the finish coming) to give the strap a quick pull to tighten for the sprint. Constantly finished with completely numb toes.
In terms of how much motor doping has an impact - you have to think that even for a fairly fit amateur, 20 watts is probably something like 10%. I'm not 100% of the Maths but that's something like 20-30 seconds faster for every 5 minutes (As in, a 5 minute segment without the motor would be 4:30-4:40 with the motor) and that's HUGE! Again not 100% on the stats but the average household battery drill has a motor that can theoretically put out 100+ watts for 5 continuous minutes with one full charge. So it seems very reasonable that you could get a hold of a motor that could provide maybe even 50 watts and enough battery life hidden in the frame to provide that assistance for a good 10 minutes or more. I think making one is a fantastic idea - we're told a lot about scandals and suspicions thereof, but we don't ever really get an idea for how easy or not it may be, what the actual gains look like, etc.
In terms of bottle cages, can't agree with Francis at all. Got myself a pair of Vel 750ml bottles + cages for about £15.00. They work fine, the bottles are held very securely, and I couldn't care less what happens to them - at that price they're very easily replaced (and bio-degradable materials is a plus). I honestly have no idea why anyone would spend serious money on bottle cages or bottles unless it's a weight weenie thing or some sort of limited edition whatever, and that I only excuse because sometimes people just want a certain thing, even if it is a bit of a silly price tag. Fidlock is MASSIVELY overrated. Even the photos thing - since when is bottles on the bike a bad look? The best pictures I've ever seen of bikes aren't of soulless showroom frames in pristine position, condition, and composition - they're badly framed pictures of bikes propped up against a low wall at the top of a climb, 6 days into a tour, and half the back wheel obscured by the horribly sunburnt rider, pint in hand! Bikes are supposed to have soul, and at the risk of sounding a bit like the "Steel is real, plastic bikes are rubbish" crowd, bottle cages, panier racks, and dirty bar tape are all hallmarks of a bike that's been enjoyed for what it is, not what it looks like.
If the weather permits, then cyclling sandals are great with or without spd cleats.
Of all the cycling channels / podcast i love you guys the most especially Jimmy! Congrats guys
Fidlock fan boy here…I like purist bottles too but the bottle caps are hard to take apart and thoroughly clean so they fill with gunk quickly
Shimano ET7 are nice shoes for road riding on normal pinned flat pedals. Comfortable, easy to walk in, grip well enough. Look good pretty nice as well.
58:54 thank you for raising awareness, half of the list sounds about right in my case, gonna go to my doctor tomorrow. Would be odd, you wouldn't think you could have cancer in your early adulthood
I'm running a 1-by with a 38-tooth chainring and an 11-speed cassette with a 11-46 range. That does mean that I give up high gears for going downhill, but the smaller cogs are pretty close together, so the jumps are actually reasonable, and the larger jumps between the large cogs are fine when I am climbing where "fine tuning" is not an issue.
Congrats on the 1 year guys, you all turned me into liking podcasts
Heres to many more 🍻
With regards to your discussion on quick release vs. thru axles, Suntour do a really good quick release thru axel called the Q-Loc system which I have on my Wilier hard tail.
On another note, you should definitely watch Rouge One before watching Episode 4 as it's end leads in directly to the start of Eps 4
About Fidlock, they seem expensive if you already have bottles and bottleholders. But a bottleholder kosts like 10-20€ at onlineshops, proper bottles like Camelbak etc. do cost almost the same. So for one bottle+holder you spend like 20-40€. If you just start with fidlock like with the 590ml ones you got the bottleholder(base) and bottle for 30€ at several online shops. So they dont seem that expensive anymore.
I had normal bottles for a few years, without any problems, but switched to Fidlock only to use medium sized framebags with 2 bottles in my medium sized bike frames. It wouldnt be possible to get normal bottles out of the holders without hassleing around with the bags. so i really love them
Agree to a point, you can easily replace regular bottles for as low as $5 a piece. If you lose/ruin your Fidlock bottle, the bottles are $40 a piece. I had 2 regular cages and 2 bottles for less than $60.Also they can be interchanged between bikes. I have 3 Fidlock bottles on my gravel bike, cost close to $150. In my opinion, they are expensive, but they work, especially when you have frame bags and such. Allows you to have a bottle where a regular cage would not work.
@@noxskuses OKay, it seems cheaper in Germany. A bottle without connector costs 12€. The connector costs 16€, a bottle with connector costs 26€ and a whole set Base+bottle+connector 28€ Its definately a different price to your Dollar prices
@@MaceWanted Wow, yeah that is way better. Here the average sized bottle and connector is $49.99 US. the connector alone is $12.99, the connector for the bottle is $27, a 450 bottle (single) is $40. The cheapest bottle and base system is $45.
I like QR skewers, I don't really see any issues with them. My 2006 stumpjumper full suspension mtb has them and I do like them, no issues at all with disc brakes.
Congratulations on a year. I haven’t missed one yet. I really enjoy it🎉
Considering how easily someone could be "dirtied up" there's no way I'd go down the road of training with all the associated work and risk to become a professional cyclist. There needs to be some way to guard against these false positives. Frankly, I'm more likely to stop watching bike racing because of bad regulation than doping. Your entire career could be undone by someone spraying you with contaminated water from the side of the road. I'm more likely to stop watching bike racing because of bad regulation than doping.
Looking forward to the doped bike as well! Word of advice, DON'T try to drive away haha. Cheers from the USA. Always look forward to listening/watching this show!
A little advice from the mountain bike side of things Crank Brothers flat pedal shoes are the most comfortable with very little break-in period however my favorite flat pedal mountain bike shoes are Etnies. And I have had my bike fly off of 20 ft cliff and then tumble another 20 ft and my fidlock didn't come off. I switched to fidlock because I kept breaking bottle cages in the winter cold
I love my FidLocks Bottles. Because I have the smallest Frame you can get. And normal Bottleholders are often not fitting with big bottles in the Frame. And they have the uni connector wich you can fit to every bottle.
So yay its is a lot of money, but I love it. :)
A single 2170 cell would provide 20 Watts for nearly an hour. Each to fit 6 or 8. Surely they're doing 150 W or so at crucial times to get over a hill fresh or solo across Flanders. Like Ganchellara.
Quick release skewers are definitly underated! Watch Peak Torque´s vids about them. ("Thru - Axle and QR analysed. Stiffer? Hmm. " + "QR tension measured. How much load for a quick-release?! Wheel pull-out force predicted...." )
wattgames is hilarious i LOVE it 🤣
Shoes: Adidas Terrex Swift Solo is a great all-round shoe, perfectly good for biking longer distances
Quick Release: Overrated, it's just way easier to steal it and thru-axle is stiffer
Bottle Security: Just buy the bog standard Elite alloy cages, put them on the frame and slightly bend them. They stay bent and grip a plastic bottle superbly. Never lost a bottle during years of mountain biking and the Elite cages are as good as new.
Lezyne Flow Cage, they hold bottles very well, never lost one yet!
The other nice thing about fidlock is that they look like they should be more aero when you don't have a second bottle. If you don't want to deal with removing the 2nd bottle cage every time you ride with only a single bottle. My experience has been mixed. The bottles are extremely flexy so they kind of bounce around excessively because they are only secured on one side. Locating the bottle mount is also a big adjustment -- several rides later and it's still significantly harder than a traditional cage.
Regarding bottle cages, I've found that a lot of the extremely light bottle cages made of carbon are too rigid to pinch the bottle. The cheap metal cages can be squeezed together to pinch the bottle tighter. For non racers, the cheap cages might be the simplest solution.
33:04 I too have a hard time getting comfortable in cleated racey shoes. If the question asker wants to try another shoe with cleats, look at the SPD shoes that look like more traditional sneakers in combination with cleats "with play". That is a relatively comparable experience to regular shoes with flat pedals, with some benefits of clipless still. But there is more float, and you can unclip in any direction. Example: I use (these are male shoes) Shimano SH-EX700 and SH-SD501 (sandal for the very warm days, I get hot feet easily). Other manufacturers make similar stuff geared towards MTB and gravel, but I use this mostly in urban scenarios and really like this setup because walking is still very comfortable. This in combination with the SM-SH56 cleats with play, float and unclipping in any direction, combined with a combo flat+spd pedal, so large platform for the forefoot as well, and the freedom to wear normal shoes for short trips. A lot of manufactures make these, I like the Shimano Click'r ones (PD-T421) on my trekking bike and a RFR MTB style (with the screw in pins on the flat side) on my gravel bike.
I'm in the peaks and use a 1X, the way I've achieved a good range is a 48 front + 11x42 teeth rear. It's a little harder than a 2X, but not much more.
Francis, you disappoint me, no comments about the armor not being aero?
QR with rim brakes is better. a ten speed chain is durable. eleven speed is the most you can optimally use as twelve speed chains are slower than eleven speed chains.
Rim brakes are more aero and lighter. without rain or mud, rim brakes are better and often not used.
This game looks like a lot of fun :D
I love Fidlock - especially on MTBs... for Road use I believe they are a bit overratet... The main problem I see with them: little choice of bottles... if there'd be enough bottles where you can just stick the fidlock clips on it would be really nice...
My Look has speed release thru axles, you need an open dropout on one side to work but they're great!
My wife was also displeased with clicky pedals. I got her Magpeds. I’m surprised you weren’t familiar with this solution. It is a pretty good way station between flat and clicky.
I used to use Vincero design magnetic bottles. They rusted and swelled if used in all weather though. Like the old magnetic helmet strap clasps did too.
I prefer the simplicity of 1x. I don’t race but do 50+ mile rides and have no complaints.
I have always prefered 1x on my gravel bike and recently built up a new road bike with 1x. I have to say that I prefer it too.