The Talon is ready for business, weighing in at 19.12lbs with all the accessories (pedals, computer, cages, etc.) attached. Looks good, rides fast, and it should get me there with haste. The only other place to cut weight is from me, which is continually on the agenda. Picked up my race packet today & after I ride tomorrow I'll need to attach the race number/timing chip. The number has to be tied to the front of the handlebars for the chip to work, so forget about aerodynamics. I might try to trim it here & there to create less of a sail, but it just depends on how it will attach to my rig.
The expo itself was a bit lackluster. Not much in the way of swag. The highlight for me was the Mavic station. They had almost every road wheel they make there, and, um...wow. There's a new treatment they put on the braking surface that's almost like a fine sandpaper. When used with special brake pads that are included, breaking time/distance is greatly reduced, especially in wet weather. With regular brake pads, however, you get about 100 miles! The wheels are a solid, dull black, and they look really, really hot. That treatment costs quite a bit, though, and it's kinda hard to justify the cost here in the desert. Racing in the rain isn't really much of a concern. On the other hand, they would look amazing on the Pinarello Dogma BOB color. Well, to dream. I don't think I'll be getting a Dogma or a crazy set of wheels anytime soon. And it's certainly not like I need them. With two sets of Ksyrium SL's, I'm pretty well set for a good all-around racing wheel. I might consider some aero wheels at some point, but that point is certainly not right now.
What I may consider sometime soon is a Powertap. You just can't argue with the numbers. It simplifies training & racing by giving exact information that can be used to determine when to keep pace & what pace to keep, when to attack, and when to recover. You want to train for sprinting? It'll let you know if you're making progress. Want to hold a certain power over 200 miles? Well, you get the point. It's about the most useful training tool on the market today (powermeters in general). The sad thing is that other than an Open Pro, the Powertaps can't be laced up to any Mavic rims due to Mavic's wheel-specific spokes. That just seems like a mistake by Mavic. Why build a $2,500 wheelset that you can't use with such an awesome tool? Shame.
Tonight I sleep. Last night I only got about 4 hours, and those came after sunrise. I need to get my body in line with this race. Even though the race is at noon, I need to be there about 9, which means I need to be up & prepping my body by 6, 7 latest.
One last note about the Mavic wheels. I told the rep about my recent experience with my Aksium cutting my light in half & showing no damage at all. I told him that those are the wheels I train on because they're stronger (which I assumed because they're heavier). According to him, that's not true. The SL's are supposedly stronger as well as lighter. So maybe I'll think about putting more training miles on them, especially since I have two pairs.
Bon soir.
No comments:
Post a Comment