Monthly Archives

December 2020

News

Wait?! “Sweet Spot” isn’t Sweet?

I did not expect the conclusion that Dylan came to in this video. After all, we all know that the “sweet” in “Sweet Spot Training” (SST) means that it’s placed in the perfect location to push up the FTP over time. Right? Well, apparently that’s not the case because “science”. Sigh, going to have to get that name changed… One thing that Dylan states clearly, but is easy to miss on the…

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Blog

Ramp It Up?

Don’t tell anyone, but it’s been ages since I did a structured FTP test. There are a few reasons behind this, but mostly it comes down to laziness. This is something I’ve been meaning to correct, so I’ve been looking at the various tests out there. The last time I did one of these, the 20-Minute Test was the standard, but in the time since the Ramp Test seems to be what…

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Featured Review

Giant Revolt Fender

Sometimes it’s necessary to learn things the hard way. No instructions made figuring out how to install the fenders Giant created specifically for the Revolt gravel bike much more difficult than it needed to be. Doing it over, I probably would have opted for a different solution.…

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News

It’s not just you. Strava is borked.

You would think that somewhere in their vast pool of employee talent, Strava would have at least one person who understand how to keep the service up and working correctly. But, that’s clearly not the case even though their “am I up” page is reporting “all-good”. Hmm… Update: Strava is back online.…

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News

Garmin Releases Firmware 13.10 for fēnix 6

Fixes and improvements galore in the latest firmware for the fēnix 6 family of fitness watches. Unfortunately Garmin hasn’t provided a direct download, but I was able to encourage it with Garmin Express. That could have been because I was running the 13.00 RC, and the 12.77 BETA before that, both without any showstopper issues. The only niggle that I experienced was that I needed to reboot my phone to get it…

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News

Hammerhead Karoo 2 Is Out

The Hammerhead Karoo 2 has been in the works for a while, but where it was vapor before, now it’s a real thing, that real people are getting in their hands. That doesn’t mean you can run out and buy one, and get it today (or in some reasonable amount of time to ship it to you). But, DCR has one in a “finished” state that he’s done his thing with; in…

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Featured Review

Vittoria Terreno Dry Gravel Tires

This is less review than PSA because Vittoria doesn’t think it’s important to mention anywhere on the product page that the Terreno Dry gravel tire is intended for hooked rims only. While it might be possible to mount them on a hookless wheel; if Vittoria isn’t confident in their product, I don’t think I should be either.…

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Blog

Moving The Goalposts

I have an unexpected goals problem. I had hoped that shaving 1:30 off my Alpe Du Zwift time was a tough, but achievable long-term goal that would keep me motivated for at least a few months. Where it actually turned out to be a totally achievable short-term goal. When I set out on the first attempt, my expectation was an improvement, but nothing near the 3:05 I ended up taking off my…

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