Author Topic: [LEL17] Mechanic's advices for the next LEL  (Read 23748 times)

Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #50 on: 11 August, 2017, 11:32:09 am »
We added several more cable ties at Pocklington as the originals were starting to stretch, allowing the pedal end of the crank to move around again.

When he showed up at Barney, he already had cable ties from a previous control that were overstretched by the climb over Yad Moss. We put fresh ties on his crankset, and when he left, I told him he would probably be okay until London as long as he keeps spinning lightly on a low gear. We knew very well that "spinning lightly" through the forthcoming Howardian Hills was at best a theoretical idea, so I'm glad to see that our ties made it to Pocklington!

Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #51 on: 11 August, 2017, 11:40:22 am »
The humble cable tie proves its worth again 👍, must be one of the most versatile "get you out of the deep and smelly" fixes known to man

A

Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #52 on: 11 August, 2017, 12:38:20 pm »
Never even saw him at Louth so must have been fine, I had loads of ties and also some spare cranks which were not used.

vorsprung

  • Opposites Attract
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Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #53 on: 11 August, 2017, 01:34:51 pm »
Ah! you are Alain from Barnard Castle?  I was the idiot who though changing the LH gear cable would fix the front shifter problem.  It didn't!

Unfortunately I had to pack at Thirsk due to a broken seatpost

Thanks again for your help/advice

Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #54 on: 11 August, 2017, 02:51:15 pm »
Ah! you are Alain from Barnard Castle?  I was the idiot who though changing the LH gear cable would fix the front shifter problem.  It didn't!

That was me!  I might have been a bit rude with you. At that moment, I was too tired to explain any complicated reasoning in English. That's why I asked Peter to do it for me. It was nothing personal against you!

Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #55 on: 11 August, 2017, 05:55:17 pm »
von Broad is too polite to mention me by name, but yes, I do think that the advertised provision of mechanics services throughout the event has made riders careless of the consequence of equipment failure.  I didn't spend a great deal of time on the mechanics section at St Ives, but I saw some fairly shocking examples of poor preparation (overseas as well as British riders).  And open annoyance that there were some things we couldn't fix.

Crinkley is right, we do want to help.  That happens on any audax ride and is to be applauded.  I have happily given help to, and received help from, other riders on events.  But I don't believe creating an expectation that there will be repair stations every 70 - 100 km is right.

Riders should properly prepare for such a challenge.  Fresh cables, fresh tyres and tubes at the very least.  Wheels should be chosen with British minor roads in mind, with enough spokes that if one goes it is not too critical, tension checked before the start.  And has been said up thread, for anything that is not bog-standard (like aero spokes, Di2 gearing) suitable spares should be carried.

It's like first aid - we should be prepared to patch up minor injuries / malfunctions.  Anything significant is for the paramedics / specialist bike shop.  And having now mentioned first aid........ no, I must shut up now!

Whatever happened to the core audax principle of self-sufficiency?

vorsprung

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Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #56 on: 11 August, 2017, 06:50:27 pm »
Ah! you are Alain from Barnard Castle?  I was the idiot who though changing the LH gear cable would fix the front shifter problem.  It didn't!

That was me!  I might have been a bit rude with you. At that moment, I was too tired to explain any complicated reasoning in English. That's why I asked Peter to do it for me. It was nothing personal against you!

I didn't think you were rude.  And I understand about being tired out, I did the mechanic thing at Brampton last time.  Hope to see you on the road sometime :)

mattc

  • n.b. have grown beard since photo taken
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Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #57 on: 11 August, 2017, 06:58:37 pm »
It's like first aid - we should be prepared to patch up minor injuries / malfunctions.  Anything significant is for the paramedics / specialist bike shop.  And having now mentioned first aid........ no, I must shut up now!

Whatever happened to the core audax principle of self-sufficiency?
Well ... if I ride in 2021, I shall be sure to pack my own defib, oxygen tanks & blood test kit as a minimum


 ;)
Has never ridden RAAM
---------
No.11  Because of the great host of those who dislike the least appearance of "swank " when they travel the roads and lanes. - From Kuklos' 39 Articles

Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #58 on: 11 August, 2017, 07:27:25 pm »
We took back the surplus supplies to Paul Hewitt today. He was fettling a £9,000 Cervelo TT bike, and we had a few words about the event. He'd like to have had a bit more notice to do the job more professionally, but was glad that the local bike shop had got some good trade out of the event.

He doesn't rate the Campag electronic gear, he reckons the Shimano Di2 is a well-sorted mature technology, and that the SRAM setup is good once you've read the instructions thoroughly. Shimano gear cables jam in Campag levers, and Campag cables will work in both, so only having Campag gear cables is the way to go.

On a more general note, I mentioned that a friend had ordered a bike. He was puzzled why they'd specified 10 speed Ultegra. We agreed that there wasn't any real advantage to 11 speed, but Paul knows that it's more and more difficult to get spares support for 'legacy' equipment. It might be useful to advise LEL 2021 riders what the most-supported bike setup would be. Wheels are a prime example, traditional 32 or 36 spoke are always easy to deal with.

Thanks for whoever trued up my wheel at Brampton. I sent a Campag and Shimano spare up. I overpriced them, and my intention was to be phoned-up to save a ride at a discount, but never actually articulated that Heather.. I had to consider if I'd ever see the wheel again, and how much a replacement would cost. I remembered LEL 2003, when I discovered at the last minute that Heather's back wheel was on the way out. Paul Hewitt had a wheel that had been on a Cycling Plus test bike, and we used that. In 2007 we met an Italian chancer called Riccardo Gravina, and we ended up lending him a tent, and then that same back wheel. The freehub never recovered, but that wheel is still true.

thing1

  • aka Joth
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Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #59 on: 12 August, 2017, 12:54:06 am »
Regarding electronic shifting, I think the Di2 battery may last 1400km unless you have a wireless transmitter to record your gearshifts on your GPS.

I have such a transmitter and my Di2 battery (new in February; latest firmware) showed 60% charge after LEL. Maybe I don't change gear enough?

The original  Shimano SM-EWW01 D-Fly had a bug in the firmware which caused it to run down the main Di2 battery at about double the expected rate -- after installing it I could only eek out about 1000km between charges. (On the plus side, the D-fly means my garmin lets me know exactly how quick it's draining said battery)

Upgrading D-Fly firmware to v3.0.5 or later fixes the issue -- See Release notes:

Apr 22, 2016   3.0.5      Reduction of electric power consumption

mr ben

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Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #60 on: 13 August, 2017, 08:50:22 pm »
We took back the surplus supplies to Paul Hewitt today. He was fettling a £9,000 Cervelo TT bike, and we had a few words about the event. He'd like to have had a bit more notice to do the job more professionally, but was glad that the local bike shop had got some good trade out of the event.

Slightly tangential...I rode on a Hewitt tourer (Cheviot) and it did everything I asked of it, as usual.  I have a pleasant image of cockroaches riding around on them after the apocalypse... :D
Think it possible that you may be mistaken.

ElyDave

  • Royal and Ancient Polar Bear Society member 263583
Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #61 on: 13 August, 2017, 09:34:35 pm »
It's like first aid - we should be prepared to patch up minor injuries / malfunctions.  Anything significant is for the paramedics / specialist bike shop.  And having now mentioned first aid........ no, I must shut up now!

Whatever happened to the core audax principle of self-sufficiency?
Well ... if I ride in 2021, I shall be sure to pack my own defib, oxygen tanks & blood test kit as a minimum


 ;)

I always carry my own blood test kit, but paramedics prefer to use theirs for some reason
“Procrastination is the thief of time, collar him.” –Charles Dickens

Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #62 on: 20 August, 2017, 07:30:08 pm »
Just as a matter of interest - any reports of problems with hydraulic brakes?
It's a technology I've been shying away from - but maybe with no good reason?

Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #63 on: 20 August, 2017, 07:53:11 pm »
No problems with hydraulic brakes at Barnard Castle. From the small and non-statistically representative sample that we have seen in BC, I  would tend to say that disc brakes are overall a rather positive thing. Many worn out rim brake pads, but no problems with disc brakes.

Zed43

  • prefers UK hills over Dutch mountains
Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #64 on: 21 August, 2017, 09:01:49 am »
I noticed on day four that my front brake did not have its usual "hitting a brick wall" stopping power when used at the max; the day before I had more stopping power without using the brake to its limit. Contaminated disc or pads? When I got home I scrubbed both pads and disc and it's better now, though squealing awfully. As I was already past Spalding and front+rear still provided good enough braking I decided not to bother a mechanic and just push on.

yorkie

  • On top of the Galibier
Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #65 on: 21 August, 2017, 09:21:28 am »


No problems with hydraulic brakes at Barnard Castle. From the small and non-statistically representative sample that we have seen in BC, I  would tend to say that disc brakes are overall a rather positive thing. Many worn out rim brake pads, but no problems with disc brakes.

The only disk brake related problem I saw at Pocklington was a gentleman who needed to use the workshop stand to hold his bike whilst he changed his rear hydraulic disk brake pads. It was dark and the main assistance I provided was to hold a torch and pass the occasional Allen key or screwdriver whilst he changed the pads himself. One of the easier jobs that week!

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hulver

  • I am a mole and I live in a hole.
Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #66 on: 21 August, 2017, 10:09:28 am »
Just as a matter of interest - any reports of problems with hydraulic brakes?
It's a technology I've been shying away from - but maybe with no good reason?
Yes, I saw one chap who had a stuck piston in one of his calipers. We both worked for a while to try and free it up, eventually getting it moving again by clamping the working side down and pressing the brake lever until the stuck side moved again. I'm not sure how well it was working after that, but he put it all back together again and got moving, so moderately I would say.

I didn't see many brake problems at all really, just that one and somebody with worn out pads who had carved a chasm in their rim getting to us for new ones.

Redlight

  • Enjoying life in the slow lane
Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #67 on: 21 August, 2017, 09:48:40 pm »
Wheels should be chosen with British minor roads in mind,

Fair point - although if I'd known in advance how poor the roads into Edinburgh were I'd have opted for the kind of wheels and tyres that you see on US beach bikes ...plus full suspension!

(for the record, I had my front wheel trued and rear wheel rebuilt before the ride. I had no mechanical problems)
Why should anybody steal a watch when they can steal a bicycle?

Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #68 on: 22 August, 2017, 09:40:26 am »
Fair point - although if I'd known in advance how poor the roads into Edinburgh were I'd have opted for the kind of wheels and tyres that you see on US beach bikes ...plus full suspension!
We rode a 400 last weekend that returned to Edinburgh along that same road. It was the worst surface of the day and that's saying something. The stretch just before Mountain Cross is ridiculous.

whosatthewheel

Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #69 on: 22 August, 2017, 12:02:35 pm »
I'll throw this in the mix... just for the sake of an argument... it baffles me that so many riders have so many problems with their bikes in an event, which at the end of the day is less than a thousand miles of tarmac with light to inexistent luggage, Di2 Batteries aside.

So 1500 riders times 1400 km = 2.1 million km

To put it in perspective... the Ride London Surrey Whatever has 20,000 entrants  times 160 = 3.2 million km... the Marmotte has around 1.3 million km (arguably more demanding terrain for brakes, chains, spokes etc..)  and yet there appears to be no mass reports of failures...

Could it be that us Audaxers like to spend as little as possible in maintenance?  ;D
I certainly have witnessed riders with tyres showing the canvas ahead of a 400 km event and of course seen many bikes which had been lovingly recycled from a skip

Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #70 on: 22 August, 2017, 12:05:36 pm »
The two rides aren't entirely equivalent:

LEL: bikes being ridden 1,400km since last opportunity for maintenance / mechanical checks

RLS: bikes being ridden 160km since last opportunity for maintenance / mechanical checks
Eddington Number = 132

Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #71 on: 22 August, 2017, 12:54:27 pm »
Also, here we're getting - in part - the perspective of some of those who worked on bikes that had broken.

I bet if we had folk who'd been mechanics on Ride London posting here, they'd also have tales of woe.

Redlight

  • Enjoying life in the slow lane
Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #72 on: 22 August, 2017, 01:40:10 pm »
Also, I suspect that many of the bikes on Ride London had not been ridden that much (compared with the average AUK's mileage) in the months ahead of the event.
Why should anybody steal a watch when they can steal a bicycle?

Kim

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Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #73 on: 22 August, 2017, 01:49:22 pm »
I'm guessing the average AUKs weren't the ones needing the services of a mechanic on LEL, thobut.

whosatthewheel

Re: Mechanic's advices for the next LEL
« Reply #74 on: 22 August, 2017, 02:44:09 pm »
I'm guessing the average AUKs weren't the ones needing the services of a mechanic on LEL, thobut.

Bloody foreigners... they come here with their broken bikes pretending to get them fixed free of charge...  ;D