It is almost Christmas and if you are a typical male you might be aimlessly wandering through the stores trying to cross names off of your shopping list. The outdoor industry has no shortage of products that make outrageous claims and when the pressure is on to make a decision, you are left with recommendations from the sales staff or what is printed on the side of the box. If one of those names on your list likes to spend their free time hiking, biking, climbing, fishing, boating, snowmobiling or any other activity in the great outdoors or on the high seas miles from civilization, the line of SPOT messaging devices might be for them. Continue reading Does SPOT Save Lives?
Category: Cycling
Hands On: 3LC ‘Road Race’ DVD Training Session
A few weeks ago we wrote about the release of a series of training DVDs by Three Legs Cycling (3LC) based on the Isle of Man and the home of Mark Cavendish. 3LC currently has five, one hour long training sessions that are designed specifically for cyclists and take a little bit different approach than other training DVDs. 3LC’s approach is to focus on cadence and Rating of Perceived Exertion (RPE) instead of the watts or heart rate. Being primarily a mountain bike rider and occasional racer who prefers long distance races like the Leadville Trail 100, my best performances on dirt seem to happen when riding at a higher cadence – these DVDs seemed perfect for my winter training needs.
3LC sent three DVDs our way, ‘Road Race’, ‘Sprinting’ and ‘Climbing’. Each of these 50 to 60-minute sessions are designed loosely to simulate the power exertion that can occur while performing each of these activities on a bike. ‘Road Race’ was first picked to review since it featured a little climbing and sprinting that might occur during a race; and in all honesty, starting with ‘Sprinting’ featuring Mark Cavendish wasn’t the physical abuse that I was looking to begin with. The riders in the video are all using turbo or rear wheel trainers. In theory any bicycle trainer is fine to use with this series as long as you can adjust the resistance to a point that you can maintain a cadence of 80 RPMs and lift it to 130+RPMs during various times in the session. Since the mid-1990s, I have been using Kreitler Dyno-Myte rollers (below) and recently added a weighted flywheel to simulate road resistance. This would be the trainer used for our evaluation. Continue reading Hands On: 3LC ‘Road Race’ DVD Training Session
Thursday Reading List (12/22/2011)
httpv://youtu.be/JYELRfVxoBg
Russian Transformer Bike
Short video of a bicycle that transforms to a tall-bike as you’re riding. It is a novel idea and looks to operate very smoothly. Continue reading Thursday Reading List (12/22/2011)
Eco-Friendly Liners for Water Bottles
We’ve seen no shortage of water bottles that make all sorts of promises when it comes to getting, and staying clean. Last year we even did a round-up of water bottles but now there is a new product that has us giving greater though to the problem. What if there was a way of ensuring a clean bottle every time, even if we couldn’t wash it? This is the concept behind FLEXR Sports’ BPA-free sports bottle with disposable and fully biodegradable liner. It promises to keep the bottle as clean and fresh as the first day.
The concept is simple enough. The bottle features a fully biodegradable liner that eliminates bacteria and hence unpleasant aftertaste. It also means an easier bottle to drink from while running or biking as the liner compresses as fluid is squeezed out thanks to a patent pending one way jet stream, and when empty it makes for an easier to clean bottle as well. Additional caps can be purchased as well without the need to buy a new bottle.
The FLEXR Sports bottles are available in four sizes, from 28 oz. aerodynamic bottle for cycling to 21 oz. bottle with neoprene insulating sleeve for runners, as well as 16 oz. and 8 oz. versions for other activities. This could be a new way to stay hydrated and not worry about cleaning a dirty bottle ever again.
Primal Wear Gives Back in Tour de Cure 2012
Just in time for the holidays Primal Wear has announced that it will increase its sponsorship and support of the American Diabetes Association’s Tour de Cure events in 2012. Beginning next year, Primal will be the Signature Sponsor of the 2012 Tour de Cure Colorado and the official apparel sponsor of the Tour de Cure Southern Colorado and Montana, respectively.
Primal is currently the supplier for all Tour de Cure cycling apparel and the apparel provider for the National Red Rider program, which recognizes riders with diabetes. Primal is also the preferred custom cycling apparel vendor for all Tour de Cure teams and clubs.
“We are proud to take our involvement with the Tour de Cure and the ADA to the next level.” said Dave Edwards, Primal Wear founder and CEO. “Our hope is to help expand the platform of the Association, increase Diabetes awareness nationwide and raise much needed funds for the cause.”
In addition to Primal’s direct sponsorship, all Tour de Cure teams are eligible for the company’s Primal Gives Back program, which donates 15 percent of a team’s apparel order back to the event charity, on behalf of the team, to help them meet their fundraising goals.
Virtual Active and BitGym Offer New App
Whether you trek the globe on business, or just hit the gym the truth is that there are times when you’d likely reather be somewhere else, and now the Virtual Active: BitGym Edition fitness app for iOS can take you there. Available now the app takes a user’s workout intensity into account and responds accordingly, providing a first person perspective of locals ranging from the Swiss Alps to Venice to the Grand Canyon. The app is free to try, and costs $7.99 to buy.
The twist here is that it is available for mobile devices, so rather than being immersed in a large HDTV experience, users can take it to the gym and use on an exercise bike. Thus for those who travel the world, but not for biking adventures, can still feel like they’re riding in the Alps. Video after the jump
“Pedal-Driven” a Documentary on Mountain Bike Access
The land managers of U.S. federal, state and local public lands and the citizens that pay their salaries have been engaged in the issue of access for as long as there have been ‘public lands’. The land managers have been tasked with the job of protecting these resources, while the citizens have wanted to use the land for their own agenda. From mining to hunting and from climbing to dirt biking, each of these activities, along with countless others, have some sort of impact on the land. But who is right and who is wrong? That sometimes depends on environmental impact studies; education of both land managers and citizens about the ‘use‘; and frankly, public opinion. “Pedal-Driven: a bikeumentary,” is a new documentary by Howell at the Moon Productions that is making its way around the country looking into one such land access battle and how both sides may seem to be at odds, but are really fighting for the same goal – “the rights of Americans to play in the woods.”.
Additional videos after the jump
MJ-818 Bicycle Tail Light Review
Edited by Rita Braun, Braun & Company
Magicshine Light Reviews
This is the first in a series of three reviews of Magicshine lights. The lights are being tested while commuting in Colorado this fall. Look for reviews of two different headlights soon.
Magicshine MJ-818 Bicycle Tail Light
Tested: 503 miles
The cryptically named MJ-818 should simply be called the “Photon Torpedo.” It is without a doubt the brightest and most visible bicycle tail light I’ve ever seen. After reading this review, check out our video of the light in action. Continue reading the review
Thursday Reading List (12/15/2011)
Creative Radio
Two innovative podcast programs worth a listen are Radiolab and 99% Invisible. Get a view into each at the same time as Radiolab does a story about 99% Invisible, a tiny radio show about design, architecture & the 99% invisible activity that shapes our world.
Keep Your iPhone Secure in Action with Quad Lock
On the bike, your smartphone isn’t just a communication device, many apps turn it into a cycling computer. But it’s difficult to see the readouts from the screen if you have your phone in a back pocket or pouch. Australian start-up Annex Products has a Quad Lock case and mount that solves that problem.
Continue reading Keep Your iPhone Secure in Action with Quad Lock
Netpulse Nets Virtual Active
This week Netpulse, Inc, a provider of personalized interactive media for fitness centers and active lifestyle consumers, announced that it has acquired San Francisco-based Virtual Active. As a part of the acquisition, the entire Virtual Active team will be joining Netpulse, also based in San Francisco, to develop engaging exercise media experiences for active people.
This will see Netpulse expand its platform, which provides consumers worldwide with engaging content and data regarding their fitness experience, outside health clubs via mobile devices and home fitness products. Additionally, Netpulse has partnerships with seven of the leading commercial fitness equipment manufacturers, accounting for over 73 percent of global fitness equipment sales to health clubs. Continue reading Netpulse Nets Virtual Active
Hands On: StemCAPtain Bottle Opener
You and your riding buddies have just finished an all day mountain bike adventure and you are back at the car digging into the cooler to reward yourselves with a tasty beverage. Where’s the bottle opener?!?! There are none on your key chains and no one in the parking lot has one. Sure, you are mountain bikers and nothing is going to keep you from a cold bottle of suds, but slamming the bottle on the side of the guard rail can often lead to a sudsy mess and half of your hard earned beer on the ground. StemCAPtain has come to the rescue with their headset top cap that doubles as a bottle opener.
This past VeloSwap in Denver, we had a chance to chat with Mike Hogan, one of the StemCAPtain owners, who handed us a bottle opener to try. Bikes and beer goes hand and hand, so on the bike this opener went. The installation was just as easy as the StemCAPtain Clock and StepCAPtain Thermometer that we tested earlier this year and the entire install took less than two minutes to put on the bike. Continue reading Hands On: StemCAPtain Bottle Opener
Metal Grip Solid
The GoPro camera maybe ready to go anywhere – and for those who really push things that could be straight off the bike should the plastic handlebar mount fail. Stepping up to this concern is K-Edge of Boise, Idaho. We’ve seen some of the company’s other products and its line of GO BIG Mount mounts, designed specifically for the GoPro cameras are what we’d call the real deal.
The company offers both handle bar and seat mounts, with prices ranging from $20 to $60. K-Edge even offers a warranty that offers to replace a mount should a rider crash and break one – company founder has reportedly said he’d love to see the video in which said accident occurred! Continue reading Metal Grip Solid