Tomorrow morning we leave on our bike trip. Here are today's headlines:
- Gooding Man Dies in Dairy Accident (We'll be spending our first night on the road in Gooding.)
- 66 Pocatello Homes Destroyed in Wildfire, 1,000 Evacuated (Day three of our ride will pass within a mile of the fires.)
- Like Driving into Hell: Traveling in Colorado's Wildfires (And of course Colorado, where 350 homes have burned to the ground this week, is my final destination.)
Apparently, as we trek east the destruction increases exponentially. I hope these aren't "bad" omens.
Friday, June 29, 2012
Thursday, June 28, 2012
The United Nations on two wheels
Last night Kimberlee read my blog post and commented about me having a US-made saddle on my bike. It got me thinking about where everything on the bike was made. The tendency today (maybe always?) is for people to buy whatever is the cheapest item available that still performs somewhat satisfactorily (at least for the foreseeable future). I personally don't mind spending a little more on a product if (a) I suspect it will outlast a cheaper product, and (b) the company that makes the product is local, environmentally-responsible, and/or seems to be more interested in making good products instead of just making money. Admittedly it's nearly impossible to know about every product and/or company in order to make this judgement.
The current trend with bicycle components and frames is to out-source production of the products to other companies that specialize in mass producing said product. It's most obvious in the bicycle frame arena where there are several large companies that make frames for most of the larger companies. For instance Giant (who make their own brand of bikes) also manufacturers frames for Trek, as well as many other companies. There's cost savings to be had by larger economies of scale. For instance, assuming Trek manufactured their own bikes (which they used to), they may find that they're not selling as many bikes as they'd planned at the beginning of the year. Because fewer bikes were needed, and frames builders had already been hired, Trek may need to reduce their workforce which means layoffs (which aren't good). But because Trek sub-contracts out the frame building, they can ask for fewer frames and Giant who builds the frames can then slot in production of another company's frames into the available time slot. As long as some company is selling bikes Giant can keep workers at work. It's not a bad system for larger companies as it prevents employees from having to move from factory to factory as work volume changes. However, it also means that companies that "build" bikes, really don't build bikes any more - they now send blueprints to companies that build bikes - kind of a big change.
Many smaller companies on the other hand don't sub-contract their production, they do the work in-house. Often this means that their prices are higher as they have to absorb any downtime into their cost structure. But it also means that they guy who build/machined my last frame/component is likely the same guy doing it this time too. For example, all frames that say "Nobilette" on the down tube where built by Mark Nobilette. It's kind of cool I think, and I'm willing to pay a bit more for that knowledge.
Which in a non-linear way brings me back to the United Nations on two wheels... Where were the parts on my bike made?
Made in the USA: The frame and fork were made in Colorado by Mark Nobilette. The Selle An-Atonomica saddle was made in Wisconsin. The brakes are made in Chico, CA, by Paul Components.
Made in Italy: The Campagnolo shifters, headset, front and rear deraillers, chain, and hubs were made in Italy. Campagnolo has done their best to keep manufacturing alive in Italy although they've recently opened a facility in eastern Europe.
Made in Australia: The Velocity Synergy rims were made in Australia. I've heard rumors that they're moving production to Florida (in the US) in the near future.
Made in Switzerland: The DT Swiss spokes are still made in Switzerland.
Made in Japan: The Nitto front rack is a made in Japan. The seat post is an old SunTour XC post form the 1980s made in Japan (these are likely the easiest to adjust seat post ever made). Also the tires, branded as Pacenti, were made by Panaracer in Japan.
Made in Taiwan: I'm pretty sure that the Ritchey bar and stem are made in Taiwan. The "Q Tubes" inner tubes are also from Taiwan.
Not really sure, but somewhere in Asia: SRAM has multiple facilities around the world and I'm not sure which made my crank set. The cable housing is made by Jagwire which has facilities in both Taiwan and China - not sure which place actually made my housing.
Unknown: The bar tape, cables, headset spacers, and water bottle cages are unknown. In some cases I'm not even sure what brand is on the bike.
The current trend with bicycle components and frames is to out-source production of the products to other companies that specialize in mass producing said product. It's most obvious in the bicycle frame arena where there are several large companies that make frames for most of the larger companies. For instance Giant (who make their own brand of bikes) also manufacturers frames for Trek, as well as many other companies. There's cost savings to be had by larger economies of scale. For instance, assuming Trek manufactured their own bikes (which they used to), they may find that they're not selling as many bikes as they'd planned at the beginning of the year. Because fewer bikes were needed, and frames builders had already been hired, Trek may need to reduce their workforce which means layoffs (which aren't good). But because Trek sub-contracts out the frame building, they can ask for fewer frames and Giant who builds the frames can then slot in production of another company's frames into the available time slot. As long as some company is selling bikes Giant can keep workers at work. It's not a bad system for larger companies as it prevents employees from having to move from factory to factory as work volume changes. However, it also means that companies that "build" bikes, really don't build bikes any more - they now send blueprints to companies that build bikes - kind of a big change.
Many smaller companies on the other hand don't sub-contract their production, they do the work in-house. Often this means that their prices are higher as they have to absorb any downtime into their cost structure. But it also means that they guy who build/machined my last frame/component is likely the same guy doing it this time too. For example, all frames that say "Nobilette" on the down tube where built by Mark Nobilette. It's kind of cool I think, and I'm willing to pay a bit more for that knowledge.
Which in a non-linear way brings me back to the United Nations on two wheels... Where were the parts on my bike made?
Made in the USA: The frame and fork were made in Colorado by Mark Nobilette. The Selle An-Atonomica saddle was made in Wisconsin. The brakes are made in Chico, CA, by Paul Components.
Made in Italy: The Campagnolo shifters, headset, front and rear deraillers, chain, and hubs were made in Italy. Campagnolo has done their best to keep manufacturing alive in Italy although they've recently opened a facility in eastern Europe.
Made in Australia: The Velocity Synergy rims were made in Australia. I've heard rumors that they're moving production to Florida (in the US) in the near future.
Made in Switzerland: The DT Swiss spokes are still made in Switzerland.
Made in Japan: The Nitto front rack is a made in Japan. The seat post is an old SunTour XC post form the 1980s made in Japan (these are likely the easiest to adjust seat post ever made). Also the tires, branded as Pacenti, were made by Panaracer in Japan.
Made in Taiwan: I'm pretty sure that the Ritchey bar and stem are made in Taiwan. The "Q Tubes" inner tubes are also from Taiwan.
Not really sure, but somewhere in Asia: SRAM has multiple facilities around the world and I'm not sure which made my crank set. The cable housing is made by Jagwire which has facilities in both Taiwan and China - not sure which place actually made my housing.
Unknown: The bar tape, cables, headset spacers, and water bottle cages are unknown. In some cases I'm not even sure what brand is on the bike.
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Three days out
It's Wednesday today and the big ride starts on Saturday morning. The plan is to take off at 9 a.m. and ride as far as Gooding, ID - a distance of about 120 miles. Hopefully everything comes together in time to make that happen.
The last few weeks I've been working on getting my stuff together. Primarily this involved setting up the bike. The bike I'm riding was built by Mark Nobilette. I bought it last winter from my buddy Sky who was moving his bike shop (VeloCult) from San Diego to Portland, OR, and needed to lighten his load. I've put several rides on the bike, but getting it set up for a 900 mile ride required a few additional adjustments.
When pedaling for this many miles setting up the bike for comfort instead of speed is the objective. Being mildly uncomfortable (which usually means being a bit more aero) is acceptable on a day long ride, but not so much on a long ride. Having a sore upper back on day two or day three isn't going to get me through nine days on the bike. After making several "fit" adjustments and putting in several 40-45 mile rides testing my position and I think I'm all set.
The bike needed a few changes/additions. I'd been running a standard double Campy crank on the bike. The chain rings were 39/53 which again is great for a single day ride. But if we hit a steep hill on day five I'm not sure my legs are going to be too happy turning over a 39x28 low gear. Luckily I had a 'cross bike that has a crankset with 34/50 rings. A 34x28 gear sounds a lot better to me! However, losing the 53T big ring is kind of sad. To help gain back a little speed on the high-end, I mixed and matched a couple of Campy cassettes to get an 11-28 cassette (something that Campy does not offer - at least in 10-speed). Using the lower half of an 11-25 and upper half of a 12-28 yields a wide-range cassette that doesn't have gaps that are too large.
Next was the saddle. I needed a saddle that wouldn't make my butt hurt after several long days. The obvious choice was a Brooks saddle. I tired two different Brooks models that I own and unfortunately I wasn't able to get the saddle positioned correctly due to the relatively short rails (that limit adjustability) on the saddle. Time to look elsewhere... I found Selle An-Atomica, a US company that makes saddle very similar to Brooks (they don't look quite as nice) but they have super long rails that allow for great saddle positioning. I ordered a saddle from the manufacturer and installed it. I think it's going to work!
Lastly I need a means to carry a limited amount of junk while on the bike: extra tube, repair kit, rain jacket, a little food, and maybe some sun screen, a digital camera, and a tripod for my GoPro camera. I had a Nitto front rack and an old bag that I had planned on using. The rack fit fine. The bag however, which fits fine on a rear rack, was too long for the short front rack and would not stay secured. Oops, time to find a new bag. Luckily, Bike Touring News in Boise had the perfect bag in stock. Easy fix! While there I ordered a spare 650B tire to carry with me. The Nobilette has 650B wheels, which are ideal for the type of riding we're doing (at least I hope they are) but are somewhat hard to find in an urban area, and I'm guessing will be impossible to find in rural Wyoming. Having a spare - just in case - seems like a good idea.
So it's late Wednesday night, the bike is ready. My legs are as ready as they're going to get. I have two more days to get the rest of my gear packed. I think I'm running ahead of schedule (for me), I'm just waiting for something to go really wrong and make the last 48 hours really stressful.
The last few weeks I've been working on getting my stuff together. Primarily this involved setting up the bike. The bike I'm riding was built by Mark Nobilette. I bought it last winter from my buddy Sky who was moving his bike shop (VeloCult) from San Diego to Portland, OR, and needed to lighten his load. I've put several rides on the bike, but getting it set up for a 900 mile ride required a few additional adjustments.
When pedaling for this many miles setting up the bike for comfort instead of speed is the objective. Being mildly uncomfortable (which usually means being a bit more aero) is acceptable on a day long ride, but not so much on a long ride. Having a sore upper back on day two or day three isn't going to get me through nine days on the bike. After making several "fit" adjustments and putting in several 40-45 mile rides testing my position and I think I'm all set.
The bike needed a few changes/additions. I'd been running a standard double Campy crank on the bike. The chain rings were 39/53 which again is great for a single day ride. But if we hit a steep hill on day five I'm not sure my legs are going to be too happy turning over a 39x28 low gear. Luckily I had a 'cross bike that has a crankset with 34/50 rings. A 34x28 gear sounds a lot better to me! However, losing the 53T big ring is kind of sad. To help gain back a little speed on the high-end, I mixed and matched a couple of Campy cassettes to get an 11-28 cassette (something that Campy does not offer - at least in 10-speed). Using the lower half of an 11-25 and upper half of a 12-28 yields a wide-range cassette that doesn't have gaps that are too large.
Next was the saddle. I needed a saddle that wouldn't make my butt hurt after several long days. The obvious choice was a Brooks saddle. I tired two different Brooks models that I own and unfortunately I wasn't able to get the saddle positioned correctly due to the relatively short rails (that limit adjustability) on the saddle. Time to look elsewhere... I found Selle An-Atomica, a US company that makes saddle very similar to Brooks (they don't look quite as nice) but they have super long rails that allow for great saddle positioning. I ordered a saddle from the manufacturer and installed it. I think it's going to work!
Lastly I need a means to carry a limited amount of junk while on the bike: extra tube, repair kit, rain jacket, a little food, and maybe some sun screen, a digital camera, and a tripod for my GoPro camera. I had a Nitto front rack and an old bag that I had planned on using. The rack fit fine. The bag however, which fits fine on a rear rack, was too long for the short front rack and would not stay secured. Oops, time to find a new bag. Luckily, Bike Touring News in Boise had the perfect bag in stock. Easy fix! While there I ordered a spare 650B tire to carry with me. The Nobilette has 650B wheels, which are ideal for the type of riding we're doing (at least I hope they are) but are somewhat hard to find in an urban area, and I'm guessing will be impossible to find in rural Wyoming. Having a spare - just in case - seems like a good idea.
So it's late Wednesday night, the bike is ready. My legs are as ready as they're going to get. I have two more days to get the rest of my gear packed. I think I'm running ahead of schedule (for me), I'm just waiting for something to go really wrong and make the last 48 hours really stressful.
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
First Thoughts...
For several years I've been encouraging myself to write more. I like the idea of communicating my ideas and preserving my thoughts, which seem to disappear as quickly as they materialize. However, while the concept of writing is very inspiring, the act of putting "pen to paper" (so to speak) is the most difficult of tasks for a procrastinator such as myself.
At the end of this month, June 30th, a mere 18 days away, I'll be departing on a week long bike trek from Boise to points east - hopefully Laramie, WY, or Fort Collins, CO. This is part of a larger tour organized by my buddy Dave who plans to continue on to St Louis, MO. I'm hoping that this adventure is what inspires me to write, or to better to continue to write, in the hopes that (a) I have something interesting to say, and (b) years later I'll have a picture of words to describe what I saw.
Stay tuned for comments about bikes, politics, people, places, and nonsense.. or possibly nothing at all.
At the end of this month, June 30th, a mere 18 days away, I'll be departing on a week long bike trek from Boise to points east - hopefully Laramie, WY, or Fort Collins, CO. This is part of a larger tour organized by my buddy Dave who plans to continue on to St Louis, MO. I'm hoping that this adventure is what inspires me to write, or to better to continue to write, in the hopes that (a) I have something interesting to say, and (b) years later I'll have a picture of words to describe what I saw.
Stay tuned for comments about bikes, politics, people, places, and nonsense.. or possibly nothing at all.
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