- This topic has 108 replies, 26 voices, and was last updated 5 years ago by Yak.
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2019 XC Racing, bike plans, purchases, thoughts ?
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ferralsFree MemberPosted 5 years ago
Without picking on one person I’ve seen the effects that has on bike pleasure, riding, fun, where disillusionment is the one thing that comes to mind, a lack of enjoyment, a lack of excitement, head down, buried on the stem for too long etc… It’s just not happening… I ride for enjoyment and pleasure
Which is where the old adage ‘race yourself fit’ is so good, enter a bunch of races, bury yourself, have fun and end up fitter 🙂
If getting a new bike / new wheelset make you mroe inclined to race I say go for it
AkersFull MemberPosted 5 years ago@weeksy. Any particular reason you went for the Hope Pro4 Tech XC?
I have a set, they aren’t paricularly light (claimed 1709g for the pair in 27.5″), the rims are narrow (19.5mm internally), and the rim material is soft as cheese…weeksyFull MemberPosted 5 years agoThat’s what i’ve started with by entering the first Brass Monkeys on the 6th Jan.
Whether I’ll do the 2nd on or wait for the Feb one instead i’m not sure yet. Time constraints can often get in the way, but generally Sundays are good for time out if i need it. A lot may depend on how much i like the Minley course, not ridden that one yet.
I must admit i’m a bit of a fair weather rider, if it’s lashing down on a race day, unlike some other riders, i’ll likely stay home…. Which i know is a bit weak… 🙂
weeksyFull MemberPosted 5 years ago@weeksy. Any particular reason you went for the Hope Pro4 Tech XC?
I have a set, they aren’t paricularly light (claimed 1709g for the pair in 27.5″), the rims are narrow (19.5mm internally), and the rim material is soft as cheese…I felt they were the best bang for your buck, along with good support and spares should anything happen. I’ve never had an issue with a Hope wheel yet, but i’ve seen people that have and they’re sorted fairly easily with spares or indeed by Hope themselves. 1700Gr should be good enough for me as i’m not a small bloke at 90kg, so don’t need super lightweight. The Vittoria rubber i’ve bought is 545gr each so already saving a decent chunk on what i have fitted usually. My wheels are coming in about 2100gr or so as stock
I still have time as Winstanleys have not shipped them yet : )
You guys know a lot more about good componentry than i do, so if i should have gone for them Mavics, then now is a good time to tell me… or indeed if i should have gone for something else instead… then by all means let me know.
I wouldn’t want to spend more than £400 on wheels, they need to be 10 speed compatible, Shimano hub, 142×12 and 15×100.
AkersFull MemberPosted 5 years agoDT Swiss X1700 22.5mm Lighter, Stronger, wider, Stiffer £409.25 Here
Hob-NobFree MemberPosted 5 years agoEasy, buy these: https://www.pinkbike.com/buysell/2485785/
Swap the XD Driver with someone who has a DT Swiss Shimano freehub, or buy one on Ebay for 30 quid.
For £300 you won’t get close to a better wheelset.
weeksyFull MemberPosted 5 years agoWell they start at £300 then i needs the freehub and i need to drive to Tewksbury for them… I’m not feeling that 🙂
weeksyFull MemberPosted 5 years agoDT Swiss X1700 22.5mm Lighter, Stronger, wider, Stiffer £409.25 Here
Hmmm…. then need centerlok rotors… .but will see what they cost etc.
Hob-NobFree MemberPosted 5 years agoYou can buy the freehubs for £30 on Ebay. Wider, lighter & stronger than probably anything Hope make & a 240 hub, will probably last longer than you do.
Or, keep an eye out for some Roval carbons on eBay. They are regularly under £400 for a used set of 650b wheels.
john_lFree MemberPosted 5 years agoThat’s what i’ve started with by entering the first Brass Monkeys on the 6th Jan.
Its the 2nd one, you’ve missed the first, but don’t let that stop you – I’ll see you there!
weeksyFull MemberPosted 5 years agoIts the 2nd one, you’ve missed the first, but don’t let that stop you – I’ll see you there!
I know 🙂 i meant the first one of 2019 🙂 and the first for me in the series 🙂
I’ll be on the sky blue white with either blue hope wheels or whatever wheels this lot talk me into instead.
Should i go back to these then fellas ?
Ooopps… that window has closed… the Hopes have been shipped… I’m not going to arse about sending back etc… So they’ll be going on for better or worse.
weeksyFull MemberPosted 5 years agoArrrghhh. Even though I mailed the seller to cancel the purchase, he’s now accepted the offer.
So the Hopes or the Mavics? Which would you pick?
padkinsonFree MemberPosted 5 years agoReferring to the stuff a wee way back in this thread, XC racing (and especially XCM) is still a primarily aerobic sport. It always seems like people get caught up in the start sprint and corners, but for the most part it’s just chugging around not far off threshold.
Compared to racing on the road (which is difficult to generalise because of the variety, but here I go), I’ve actually found myself being shelled out of the back because of a lack of accelerating ability, not the other way around. People often say “Oh he’s a mountain biker so he’ll be good at sprinting out of corners etc”, but to be honest I think XC racing just builds you into a diesel engine.
I think this is due to the fact that you’re never actually recovered, or making a maximal effort, after the first sprint (and even that is way off full gurn). For example, in a road race you might have to close a gap to the back of a group, and put in a near maximal effort, in the knowledge that once you’re on it’ll get easier and you can recover. In an XC race you might have a short hill of a similar length, but you won’t go anywhere near as deep, as you’ve got to that same thing without dropping off for another hour. Looking at something like W’ % expenditure over a race (W’ being the amount of work you can do over critical power/FTPish), after the start of a mountain bike race you drop down to about 30% expended and stay there, never really recovering but never putting hard enough efforts in to drop it down any lower. Marathons can be slightly different due to much longer climbs/descents, but it’s similarly aerobic, or even more so. In a marathon with long climbs I’ll be sitting right around lactate threshold on the climbs, the limiting factor in the race being my ability to sustain this over the whole day.
TL;DR: don’t forget that XC racing is still an endurance sport, primarily determined by your aerobic capacity.
Sorry about the wee internet essay, I’ve just finished the uni semester so have plenty of time for forum bothering now!
padkinsonFree MemberPosted 5 years agoOh and of those two I’d probably use the Mavics, but the warranty on the Hopes could be very valuable.
weeksyFull MemberPosted 5 years agoThat’s OK Padkinson, any information is absolutely fantastic. I’m feeling a little bit down on it all today after an absolutely rubbish Zwift ride today, but it was hilly, so i’m never going to do well in honesty. But i’ll soon get over that, even if my legs won’t 🙂
I think clearly i need to STFU and just get on with racing and honing my skills out there in the melting pot, but lets be honest, my target for the year is to get inside the top 50% at a Southern XC rather than to get onto the podium. At my level, i’m not sure any training is a bad idea and better than nothing. 🙂
weeksyFull MemberPosted 5 years agoOh and of those two I’d probably use the Mavics, but the warranty on the Hopes could be very valuable
I’ve done a very typical internet thing… Asked you questions (on 2 threads) and completely ignored the answers. I’m going with the Hopes, basically because of the warranty/repair/availability etc over the Mavics.
rollindoughnutFree MemberPosted 5 years agoI enjoyed your reply padkinson. A well thought out argument that totally correlates with how it feels during an xc race.
rollindoughnutFree MemberPosted 5 years agoAnd Weeksy, I think that if you’re feeling the excitement of the prospect of some racing then the first questions you should be asking yourself are not ‘what stuff can I buy to make me faster’ but ‘how can I design and implement a training plan that will make me faster’? Try spending some time writing down your available free time then do some internet research into how best to fill that time. I can recommend the blogs and vids of Tom Bell for this. He explains things very clearly.
weeksyFull MemberPosted 5 years agoI think maybe I should go with my HRM on the bars to mitigate for the times I feel my HR is in the red, but maybe it’s not.
I’m not sure I need to worry too much for this particular event, this is a bit of a tie in the water situation.Kryton57Full MemberPosted 5 years agoWorth remembering there’s Racing and there’s training. I was talking about Training. While Padkinson talk very accurately about Racing, you certainly don’t train at XC by riding 90 mins at just below LT – which is actually what Weeksy does in his Zwift Races in the main.
The conversation was also very specific to the Gorricks/SE area that Weeksy rides – its very much off/on with a few climbs and sections at/above LT.
weeksyFull MemberPosted 5 years agoThe hard part is going to be what do I actually do to give me the best results to suit in that context. As we know, it’s unlikely to be a structured thing that often, once a week maybe some over/under type stuff but I need the racing aspects to hold my interest.
weeksyFull MemberPosted 5 years agoWell it seems they only have 1 of the Barzo’s in stock in my sizes.
So i’ve also won one of these on Ebay. VITTORIA BARZO – TNT 57-584 / 27.5X2.35 – ANTH/BLK/BLK – 680G SRP £44.99
Which doesn’t seem to be the Isotech G+ but i don’t actually know yet what that entails 🙂
I’ll have a quick google and see if the TNT means it’s tubeless lol.
Certainly seems to be heavier than the G+ Isotech version though. But through Probikekit i can get a Mezcal in 2.25 and G+ Isotech.
Kryton57Full MemberPosted 5 years agoTubes-Not-Tubes – aka Tubeless.
Isotewch G+ is the more expensive Graphene tyre – better wear / grip / rolling resistance but not enough to make a huge difference to you. I have a “normal” on on my HT set up tubeless and its fine.
weeksyFull MemberPosted 5 years agoAwesome… .the good news is, i only paid £17 posted for the 2nd tyre new… so that saves me ordering another in the Mezcal.
Thanks for the info and help buddy.
Wheels being collected from DHL drop-off today… Will Tubeless them tonight and then fit the rubber over the next few days when it arrives with me
weeksyFull MemberPosted 5 years agoHope pro4’s arrived and taped for tubeless. All ready for fitting once valves and tyres arrive.
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2dxCVJs]2018-12-17_02-01-50[/url] by Steve Weeks, on Flickr[url=https://flic.kr/p/2aRz2vu]2018-12-17_02-01-26[/url] by Steve Weeks, on FlickrweeksyFull MemberPosted 5 years agoOnly 1 tyre here currently, so fitted the front. Never had a tyre go up as easily tubeless as the Barzo. Overall weight difference is nearly 550gr between the standard WTB front and trail boss. 400gr lighter that the DT Swiss and trail boss. So all in, pretty good.
YakFull MemberPosted 5 years agoGood stuff. Yeah those tnt vittorias only need a track pump and all is done. How it should be.
Kryton57Full MemberPosted 5 years agoNever had a tyre go up as easily tubeless as the Barzo.
Thats my experience with Vittoria’s as well. And you lost a 1lb on 1 wheel, nice.
weeksyFull MemberPosted 5 years agoDue to the 2nd tyre being the non-super duper version it’s not saved as much weight on the rear, only 200gr. However, again, it went up effortlessly.
So we’re all good to go and ready for racing 🙂
jonnyrockymountainFull MemberPosted 5 years agoAll sizes of barzo’s available at lordgun
https://www.lordgunbicycles.co.uk/vittoria-barzo-tnt-graphene-plus-29-tyrejonnyrockymountainFull MemberPosted 5 years agoAs for wheels, hunt xc wheel 1600g at £329 and get good reviews
Kryton57Full MemberPosted 5 years agoAll sizes of barzo’s available at lordgun
Isn’t that site a scam or have you had a good experience there?
jonnyrockymountainFull MemberPosted 5 years agoI’ve ordered a few stuff with them over last few years not a problem
Adam_BucklandFree MemberPosted 5 years agoHey Weeksy, it’ll be good to see you back at the races. We’re behind with the website but it’ll be updated soon at https://www.eventrexuk.com/southern-xc/ and stay tuned to https://www.facebook.com/Southernxc/ for updates. Have a great Christmas and enjoy your new purchases!!
DT78Free MemberPosted 5 years agomy experience of riding xc is a bit different to above. I def don’t chug around unless it’s a 4hr / 6 / 12 endurance. the gorricks I find I do a mix of absolutely smashing myself on climbs and fireroads followed by recovery in the single track sections where you often can’t go flat out anyway as your stuck behind other riders. as soon as switched from trying to ride single track fast to going for it on the flats I improved my results loads.
not road raced, other than tt, so can’t compare
have fun with the race and your new toys.
thegeneralistFree MemberPosted 5 years agoRight, bought a Giant Anthem. Need a reason to have bought it! Entered HTN in March
Can anyone recommend any other races in north Wales/Lakes/Peak? There always seems to be a complete dearth of them when I looked before.
Sorry if I’ve derailed the endless discussion about wheels, I know how much STW likes to talk kit 🙂
Kryton57Full MemberPosted 5 years agoNot knocking Weeksys thread, but you may get more attention to your specific question thegenerist here:
weeksyFull MemberPosted 5 years agoNo problem at all Kryton. I’ll jump into that thread from now on regarding the racing anyway.
Both wheels are now done and tested, the Barzo were brilliant and more than fine on similar sort of woods type terrain to Gorrick. Tyres grip and turn fine, arguably a bit slippery on wet roots, but what isn’t, everything slips at times.
Get Xmas out the way and then the search for the bottom of the pack in the 2 hour.
Adam, can’t wait matey, plan is for at least me to do all of the series, we’ll see how many my lad fancies after event 1.
SaccadesFree MemberPosted 5 years agoReckon I’m doing this slightly wrong but I bought an Orange Segment – not massively heavy with it’s spec, 29 Vs 26″ etc.
Push the climbs and allow the steamroller to drop me down easily.
I’ve no idea on tyres, these Vittoria really that good (loved the Pave bitd), as currently I have some beastly maxxis on there.
Plan to do local NPS and club races to get a decent result at Twentyfour12.
weeksyFull MemberPosted 5 years agoWell the race came and went and brought with it as many questions as it did answers. From a course context it showed me just how much like on Zwift, picking the correct course is of paramount importance, somewhere like Checkendon, well that’s how/why I’ve had my best results over the years there, it’s pancake flat compared to Minley. The sections at Minley i struggled on most where when it went upwards. Obviously at Checkendon there’s not much in the way of up, so i can use my power traits to my advantage.
So today we’re back on the 5-2. But going to hit it really hard for a couple of months, cutting out not only the 2 days of calories but also being a lot better on the 5’s than i have been in the last few months.. See if we can get the weight back down to a lower level.
I have to admit i’m sitting here thinking “maybe a light XC29er would help….”
Currently watching and thinking about this CUBE LTD Race 29…. but whether it would be better or indeed quicker than my Parkwood i’m not sure. Maybe throwing some light 29er wheels and rubber at the Parkwood would be better than throwing a whole new bike in there. It would also bring into the discussion when I’d ever use the Parkwood again if i had this…. Along with where i’d store it. So i’m a little torn.
I think though improving my weight is likely to make a bigger difference than improving the bike weight…So it’s onwards and upwards i guess 🙂 I can see me skipping the Gorrick later this month, but the Feb 17th at Crowthorne may be an option, as long as i can work it logistically as my lad is racing on the 16th at FoD in the enduro there… But i should be able to wangle the 17th.
We’re then onto the April round at Checkendon for Southern XC which is where i’m hoping i can hit the required weight plans and put on a decent performance for myself 🙂
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