Forest Frolics & Rainy Reveals

 

The rains came, which was welcome on so many levels and perfect for assessing the performance of tyres and shoes in wet, slippery contexts. I was particularly keen to see how the latest generation of Continental Cross Kings would bite when things tuned slippery, dare we say boggy. They bit and subsequently cornered better than I was expecting but time and  more intense gloop may say different.

They are quite sprightly over hardpack, loose surfaces and indeed, metalled road, although as defaults, I remain impressed by CST Patrol. CST Patrol Folding EPS Tyres | cycling-not-racing I’ve been forming the opinion that the FLR MTX are best suited to broader pedal platforms. Ursula’s Shimano M757 seemed more supportive than more modern dual sided designs and I’ not sure why.

These first generation tend to clog with mud noticeably quicker. I noted some Juice Lubes Bearing Juice creeping from the bodies. Maybe I’d been a little too generous, a little too liberal but we’re talking creep, not oozing. I was also impressed by how well the NOS SR Suntour mech scooped the chain between rings- snappy and reliable, even under load. Sure, it seemed fine on the stand, and designed for a triple, there’s plenty of throw. However, stuff can play impeccably on the stand and misbehave on the road, or trail.   

Upon returning and giving both of us a good clean, using up the last of the Nzero degreaser NZero Bike Degreaser | cycling-not-racing and indeed, the Peaty’s Link Lube All Weather. Then was also the time to switch pedals- I went for the A530 since they should bring out the FLR MXT’s best qualities.

Horses for courses, essentially. While I default to gravel and cross-country mountain bike shoes for general riding, road included, since the soles are stiff but still compliant and grippy enough for walking but are a little too sporty for more adventurous outings, touring particularly.  

These Sidi Aertis are another design that bridge the gap between mountain biking and gravel, although, riding with merino blend socks, I wasn’t surprised to find myself with wet feet given twenty minutes in a heavy downpour. Mercifully, the shoe’s profile means thinner waterproof socks are also realistic (and would be a must for me, during the winter months, although I’d probably switch to the Shimano MW7 Shimano MW7 (MW702) Gore Tex MTB Shoes | cycling-not-racing) by the time things turn wintry wild).

A touring shoe of the FLR’s genre also has scope for waterproof socks. Much as I anticipated, the FLR kept persistent rain at bay for an hour before it became palpable. Fine for commuting and similar duties without recourse to toe covers, overshoes etc. 

Flex was more palpable when on the fixed and charging up the climbs, but I didn't want to go for a single sided, hybrid design. Even though the bottom bracket gives a sporting chance when cornering, there's greater clearance with the Shimano 540 and being dual sided, it's easier to clip in and power away-say at the traffic lights.   

Talking of lights, the new seasons models are beginning to become available. I've been sent this Cat Eye Tight Kinetic, which is impressive for the price. A "braking" function for £23 would've been unheard of, just a few seasons back. I've also received this Lezyne Flow Cage SL Enhanced.

I regret passing my last pair of Lezyne flow on, so was rather pleased to be sent another for testing. Left- and right-hand specific models are nothing new, but some are definitely more ergonomic and though debatable, arguably one of the last words in customisation. On a strictly personal note, Lezyne’s are the best I've used to date.    

Side entry cages are what's called for on smaller compact geometry framesets, since you can both fit and access bottles without catching knuckles on the top tube, or indeed, frame fit pump-should you run one. They’re also a good fit for gravel and bike packing contexts where you’re running a bag within the main triangle.

 I'm a convert to the mini compressor type inflators, at least for roadside rescue, although Muffin, Ursula and Denise still carry a Topeak Road Master Blaster. Muc-Off Airmach and Lezyne as reliable, efficient backups.

The rains and wet roads were really useful from a testing perspective, although I wasn't surprised to discover things performing as I'd expected. However, standing water meant bikes were suitably filthy given a few outings. I'd seen some bike wash going silly cheap and was keen to see how it compared with some premium blends, not least since I was down to the Stan's No tubes.

 I tend to give bikes a good wash n' wax, since they cut through the grime, while leaving a protective wax barrier behind. Nonetheless, I don't always want to take this route and bike washes still have their place. 

I was pleasantly surprised by how effective the budget potions were on heavily encrusted organic grot, although as I'd hope it's not potent enough to strip oily, or greasy stuff. I reached for this Dynamic drivetrain detox to strip the residual Peaty's Like Lube and modest contaminant from the rings, chain and cassette.

Having exhausted this, I've switched to TF2, which is a competent and inexpensive all-weather formula that holds out well in moderately wet conditions, although attracts more contaminant than more sophisticated blends and also contains PTFE, which isn't particularly kind to us, or the wider environment. Formative outings on Muffin suggests the thru axle to quick release conversion is very dependable and seems slightly stiffer than traditional quick release configuration. I've also gone for the slightly narrower (38mm section) Vittoria adventure tyres, which run at a similar pressure to the Continentals and gives a little more clearance around the Gravel Hugger front guard.  Talking of tyres, here’s my review of the Maxxis Rambler Maxxis Rambler Tubeless Ready Tyres | cycling-not-racing

Rambling & Roaming

 

Having tamed cranks, rim tapes and similar sources of potential mischief, it was time for longer, laden escapes from the maddening crowd.   

The Madison Summit rack has been doing its thing very competently, without fuss, or fanfare. Its TIG welded in Taiwan and to the standards I’ve come to expect from products coming out of the Far East. The 10mm rod offers a very stable platform for panniers, especially those such as this Oxford Aqua V20 with Rixen Kaul type attachments Oxford Aqua V20 Single Pannier | cycling-not-racing, which is particularly welcome along rougher roads and trails. I’m still really impressed, astounded in some respects, by the Lomo Zephyr Lomo Zephyr Waterproof Panniers | cycling-not-racing

The narrower (100mm) top section is a little slender for bigger rack bags and though this Carradice will sit reliably, allowing me to concentrate on a decent tempo, it can make fitting and removing panniers from the lower tier trickier, technically defeating the object of a two-tier design. For the record, the Carradice is 116mm wide, so a consideration if you’re planning on a bigger rack bag, especially if you’re pairing with a pannier-single or otherwise.      

 I’ve been contemplating tyres for a while and was talking in terms of something old school and beefier. I may still do this, during the winter months but I’m sticking with something swifter. I’m still impressed by the Maxxis Ravager Maxxis Ravager TR Tyres | cycling-not-racing. My experience suggests that 60tpi casings are more reliable, especially off road. I’ve had one flat with the Ravager, three with Pirelli’s perky Cinturato. Admittedly one was a rim tape issue, so not down to the tyre and they still have bags of charm but I’m craving dependability at the moment, in case that wasn’t obvious.

I got curious about Maxxis Rambler, which Maxxis say are their most popular gravel offering, reckoned to perform uniformly well along asphalt, dirt roads and gravel. The Rambler has been around for a decade now, which suggests a fundamentally very competent design. Tightly packed centre knobblies promise efficiency, while more widely spaced cornering/side knobblies promise to keep bite deep when cornering on looser surfaces.

As would be expected, it’s a dual compound, tubeless ready model. There are two variants, our 60tpi and 120tpi, they’re also available in a wealth of sizes, from 38 to 50mm. I’ve gone for the 700x40, since that’s optimal, dare I say maximum for Denise’s clearances.

The Silk shield puncture repelling technology runs from bead to bead, thus offering the sidewalls some defence against flats and cut damage. They also tip the scales at a similarly respectable 524g apiece. I’ve run ours up front, the Ravager behind, as a control for the first hundred miles. Now, the Ravager are no slouches, even on metalled roads. However, the 60tpi Rambler feel palpably faster. Having reached for the rambler front and rear, I’ve am averaging 16.7mph against 15.9mph along comparable sections and thus far, they’re proving equally engaging off road, along dry hardpack trails, unmade roads and forest trails.

Grip and cornering prowess are proving similarly dependable, although I anticipate needing something with a deeper, more mtb influenced tread when the wetter, wintry months bring boggy bridlepath.  50psi seems the sweet spot for mixed terrain shenanigans but obviously, I’ll experiment further, as time and miles advance.   While giving Muffin a well-earned wash and light fettle, one thing led to another and I was curious as to whether they’d fit comfortably up front, being 42mm (against the Continental Pure Contact, which are 40mm wide and run a hair’s breadth from the MudHugger Gravel Hugger Mudguards. Much to my surprise, the short answer is yes, and this also presented an opportunity to tweak the Spyre calliper’s alignment fractionally.

The Leatt 6.0 are still performing impeccably and having regularly alternating between Muffin (and the Shimano M540) and Denise suggests the Leatt are a little stiffer, translating in slightly improved power transfer, Finish quality is also proving very high, resisting regular dis/engagements with nominal signs of wear.  Interestingly, the Leatt cleats seem fully compatible with Shimano SPD pedals, but Shimano cleats weren’t quite so compatible and its required more effort to engage and release.

Staying with pedals, I’ve always leaned towards dirt biased SPD shoes since the power transfer is generally very good, and you can walk or run efficiently and comfortably. Race shoes, mtb or otherwise can be fine- I’m quite happy whizzing along on the fixed for several hours with these stiff soled FLR F70 Pro MTB M250 Shoe FLR F70 Pro MTB M250 Shoe | cycling-not-racing  but found them a touch too rigid, say shouldering bikes cyclo cross fashion across more technical sections, or indeed mooching around, but then our old friend “horses for courses” springs to mind.