I am sitting here on a Sunday posting on S.T. when I am dressed and ready to go out the door on a 60 miler out to Whitmore Lake and back. Winds are favorable: Headwind out, tailwind back.
Yesterday I pounded out 40 miles and then ran 8 after and felt good. Today I am feeling that workout so getting out the door for another 60 is feeling a little “heavy”.
Dang. Nothing left to do. Here I go.
Would you like to delay a little longer by answering some of the questions I have been asking about my new P3C?
Get out there and ride, Tom. Headwind out, tailwind back is the prefered order. You will be glad you rode today when you get to IM W Oz.
Good to hear that you are back running again.
You can do it
.
Yes.
Fire away Dave.
Awe phooey…
OK Dave. Catch up with me in about 2 hours and 50 minutes. My Assos chamois cream is starting to give me that “minty fresh” feeling. I gotta hit the road Sir.
I’ll check in here about 3 hours from now.
you are still there??? GO! Put yourself on automatic and go:-)
Tom,
FYI we are about the same age, same size, about the same speed, do similar type race (13IMs + 130 others) etc. …I just wish I lived closer to you.
Here are the Qs I have thought of, so far, in 1 day with the P3C (and it has rained the whole time!):
rear bottle carrier - minoura doesn’t work w/ saddle in forward position b/c it hits the rear circle…I’d like to cut the rear circle off b/c I’ll never use it (maybe not recomended). I’ve used the Minoura for a long time (and LOVE it!)and I guess I need to switch…which set up do you recommend?
i been using the same spare tire kit that you have posted on your web site since even b/f you posted it, and it fit perfectly with the Minoura…what do I do now.
going from Carnac to Sidi w/ Speedplay, what is the stack height difference
going from Syntace w/ C2 to Vision, what are the tricks? It seems the Vision base bar sweeps a bit more forward moving the climbing position forward…does it matter? Any other considerations.
going from 54 P3 (650) to 54 P3C (700) - are there any other considerations. My old set up was very well dialed in. In replicating, I 1) took seat height 2) fore/aft position 3) seat nose to pad distance 4) pad to extension distance (i need 2 more cm it appears).
do I need a torque wrench (duh, yes) - what is best for home use.
Anything else you want to add I will gladly take!
Thanks, (go for a longer bike and I’m sure I’ll think of more)
2:44:30 for 60 miles on the dot. It felt OK. I am tired from yesterday. I gotta jump in the shower and grab some chow. Back in 40. I smell like a goat.
Hey David,
I smell like flowers now. I’ll take a crackat your questions.
Hmmm. Yeah. We noticed trouble with rear mount holders due to the shape, size and position of the aero seatpost. I will say, however, the aero seatpost and the clamp mechnism are really very nice, and that is a reserved understatement. Softirde- are you listening? The Cervelo seat clamp is an elegant, seems to be durable and easy clamp to use. Rave reviews. But— what about the behind the saddle bottle affair? Well, I guess I’ll play it like this: It may be better to find an alternative method for bottle carriage for now. I just did a 60 mile ride with one bottle cage holder on my seat tube and it worked out just fine. I stopped once at a party store to refill. It is 82.9 degrees here right now. I used about three total bottles (big 700 ml bottles) of fluid- one consumed entirely at the store, which would be like going through an IM aid station. I took four gels, E-Gel, my favorite. for the time being, this may be a great opportunity to try to trim down your bottle load and also explore options like Jetstream, Profile and other bar mount drink systems. I’m not too into those either though… Give me a bottle cage on the seat tube or down tube and I’m happy. Usually. It’s a compromise at this stage.
Yup. That dang thing doesn’t want to go in there. Since we’v3e only delivered about 6-8 P3C’s so far I have to be honest and tell you I am at loss for this one. Stay tuned… There is always your jersey pocket for a tube and CO2’s on a traiing ride… Another minor compromise. At this stage at least.
Tom, you need to swim and run more… Everybody knows the race is won on the run.
Carnac to Sidi. Easy: Use a pincer-style caliper to measure the sole thinkness at the point where the cleat mounts. Expect the Carnacs to be thicker.
Going from Syntace to Vision? Hmmm. Well. Size your Vision bars accurately and cut them to your desired length. Try to wrap handlebar tape well down the grip section on the base bars since you may find yourself “choked back” on that grip section for climbing, especially out of the saddle. If your stem length is diald you should be OK with this set up and actually like it better.
P3C sizing: We are still learning. It is an unusual bike from a geometry standpoint. The total length of the top tube onthe 54cm is actually 58 cm but you don’t use between 3 and 5 cm of the top tube for the position…So it really is not 58cm, but it really is… Weird. Confusing. Learning to optimally fit the P3C is going to take some time. I tried to fit myself on a 54cm that belojnged to a customer before delivery. No go. Way too much bike. Totally weird. I tried everything. I have a long torso too, but I am not riding a bike with an 80 stem. That doesn’t work for a person of my torso length Weird. I take a 51cm in a P3C. I think. since we haven’t received any 51cm’s I haven’t tried one. We’ll see. Tricky bike to fit. I wager 60% of the people who buy them could wind up on a less than optimal frame size. No shit.
Yes Sir, you should own a torque wrench. Don’t skimp. Buy a nice quality one and get the kind that “clicks” at the torque setting sso you don’t have to controt your neck under the wrench to read the scale. Snap-On rules but be ready for the price. It is worth it. Oddly enough, the Craftsmen wrneches are also pretty good too, and we have about a dozen of those in here and three fancy, expensive calibratible torque wrenches.
I wish I could be of more assistqnce with some of these questions. A lot of these are “works in progress”. I don’t own a P3C yet but that may change here shortly. People keep buying them from us. There are none left for me! Realistically, it’s also becasue I am greedy and want the sale more than the bike sometimes…
I ran 8 miles yesterday and 10 the day before…
Oh, just thought of one more (told you I would) - I also got a set of 999s. I have ridden Conti’s for years (15+?) w/ no flats, so that is what I am doing. I am planning on a comp 22 in back, and can’t decide b/n the GP (19mm) and the 22 for front. Thoughts?
BTW, on frame size Gerard worked with me on sizing my P3 in 2000 (he had plenty of time then) and also helped me on the P3C. My local shop in not a tri shop, but I stay loyal to them…I believe in LBS as long as they are honest and hard working. Anyway, the 90mm stem seams to be just right based on measurements.
Thanks for your insight…, and glad you smell better. Thanks for the family comments…those are prayers I never fotget!
OK, how about the swim?? Check your PM
obviously I’m not tom, but hte 22mm tire should be better on the 80mm deep rim than the 19mm one.
That rim is optimized for a 21mm tire.
-SD
“Winds are favorable: Headwind out, tailwind back.”
I never unstood this concept. Would you have changed your route if different? My group never does…
“Winds are favorable: Headwind out, tailwind back.”
I second this. A headwind out allows me to work a little harder in the beginning and then more efficiently in the end when im tired and trying to speed up. Ill bet it has something to do with wind resistance, like if there is a headwind and your going faster when your tired you wont go as fast on average for total trip.Anyways even without a good readon my ave times and heartrate are always better with the wind like that.
-Dan