Loyalty

I'm a pretty loyal person.

No questions when it comes to family and friends.

But it permeates to even the mundane - I'm a loyal shopper, sticking with a store or product that has done me right (or more importantly, hasn't screwed me over).  Solid service/product and you've got me.  I'm not big on always looking for the next deal or option.  If I like it, I'm likely sticking with it.

Thus far I haven't been one to really talk about/review products on here... there are plenty of sites that do that on the regular.  I think I may have mentioned a product or two in the past (again, if you do me right I am all about you!!) but there has been on product that has been on my mind since my trip out to Pisgah and I just have to talk about it.

When I got into mountain biking seriously I had to start thinking about nutrition on the trail.  There are a ton of products out there, but where to start?  As a newbie, I started with Clif Bars and Sport Beans.  Then, there was that secret stuff that the real athletes used... the two big names I'd hear about were Hammer Gel and GU.

I tried GU's Energy Gels first, and I liked them.  So, the search was done.  Ok, but what about other products, drinks and whatnot?

A while back I had bought a sampler pack from GU - which included (and was my reason for buying) a variety of flavors of Gel, Chomps, and some Brew.  To be honest I kinda put the Brew to the side at first as I really only drank water on the trail.

As the miles per ride grew, and effort increased, I knew I needed more.  Having been an "athlete" growing up it was easy to fall back to old faithful - Gatorade.  Ok... so fast forward a bunch and we find ourselves out at Pisgah for the weekend trip (if you'd like to relive my "glory" you can do so here, here, and here.  While getting my gear together for the trip, and figuring out what exactly I needed to pack, I came across the Brew Tablets that had come in the sampler pack.  To be honest, this stuff scared me.

Ok, just to make sure we are all on the same page... you've got GU Brew - which is the standard powdered drink mix mode.

And then you have the GU Brew Tablets... which, when they come individually packaged in the sampler, appear to be more of a Alka Seltzer type deal.

The "good"

The "when you feel ill"

So, fear of having a medicine-y fizzy drink had banished these glorious tablets to the bottom of my "nutrition basket."  That is, until the trip.  So as I'm gathering my nutritional supplements I decide to give the tablets a go.  Why not?  They'll take up NO room and I can easily just drop them in a bottle when/if I need them.

Let me tell you, I am SOLD!  These tablets are genius!!  Seriously simple and a super taste!!  Not overly sugary or sweat, but not bland or weak.  It's seriously the perfect flavor balance, and that is saying a lot because I like my sweet tea SWEET!!!  Seriously, when I have regular tea (you know, traditional english hot tea) I'm heaping sugar into my mug.  So for this to be the PERFECT level is nothing short of a scientific masterpiece.  Here is what GU has to say about this sweet product:

GU Electrolyte Brew Tablets are simple, light tasting and natural. They are invariably better than water alone and bring your system into balance more quickly by helping you retain more of the liquid you ingest.

Oh yeah, and performance wise it was right on as well.  Taking a swig of the Brew kept me feeling fresh and gave me the boost I needed to enjoy the amazing riding to be had out in Pisgah/DuPont land.

Whether through tablet or traditional powder form, Brew is the go to drink from here on out!
 

switcheroo

I ended up pre riding yesterday... getting your place ready to sell can be kinda crazy.

The original plan was to pick up sealant yesterday, then hit up Cutler since it was right down the street.  Get the new tire on the rear and back to tubeless in the front so that today I would be able to get to Massasoit and pre ride.

Well, I got an email from my wife yesterday letting me know that our third, and final realtor candidate would be by today (Thursday) at 4:30 to check out the place.  And then our contractor who "fixed" our back door was coming by at 5:30 due to the gap in the door and the apparent water coming in now....  blah.

So looks like that means no chance for a ride.  So it was scramble time after work yesterday.  Shoot up to Newton to grab my sealant, and then head back the opposite way to get to Massasoit to get in a ride.  Then back up to Boston to make it for Trivia night.

The pre ride was good.  The first lap I stayed a little closer to the course.  The second lap I latched on to a group of riders about half way through to ensure I stuck to the course - which showed me a spot or two where I had drifted.  I still ended up with 7.33 miles - as opposed to the advertised 7.1 - so I may still have taken a turn here or there I wasn't supposed to.  But overall I like the course.  It is going to be another fast one.  And another case of wishing for rain.  It's sandy out there in spots!!  The singletrack, for the most part, is less technical and not as tight and twisty.  And it felt like there was more climbing than at Winding Trails.

My question, what is up with that last big climb???  That is insane!!  I cleared all the initial climbs - and should be fine come race time.  But that last big one is definitely a straight up hike a bike for me.  Then there is that last short one right before the descent to the finish that I may be able to make depending on if there are riders around... to get in the way and all.  So I'm "excited."  Although I'm not stoked that it doesn't look like I'll get a ride in today... and tomorrow is prom - so no ride then either.... that is no good.  Oh, and we didn't make Trivia last night (just in case you were keeping track).

That just means more energy for race day, right??  ha ha.

I'll leave you with this.  I was eating a delicious Gu packet between laps yesterday and I found myself chewing the Gu... what's up with that?  To chew or not to chew?

new stuff

I was anticipating getting a new part for the HiFi this weekend.  I was actually hoping to get it Friday - so I could get it all set to go and get out for a ride on Saturday.  Friday I did get a package... but the box wasn't the right size.... inside I found this

That's right, a crap load of GU.  I had "forgotten" that I had ordered it.  Actually, it just arrived quickly and caught me off guard.  For me, so far, GU is my go to.  I've been playing with Jelly Belly beans, which are good and all - but not for a race.  So I stocked up on GU.

Saturday was a gloomy day... perfect for some bike maintenance.  And finally the box I had been waiting for arrived!!  New Ritchey Comp Flat 5D bars.



sweet purple paper!!

I quickly set up shop (yes, my current workstation is the kitchen) and got to removing the old handlebars.  I must say that I have LOVED the wide big sweep bars.  They provide great leverage, and are super comfortable... but I feel maybe a little too comfortable.  That isn't to say I'm looking to add discomfort to my ride, but I sometimes feel like the positioning of the bar set my posture less aggressive... plus, they are wide.  So squeezing through tight spaces is just that much harder.  So I figured some narrower straight bars would be more to my liking.


Before



After





Before



After



Aesthetically, it's a thing of beauty!! 

One area of concern was whether or not I would now have to replace the stem for a shorter one since I have taken away the backsweep from the original bars. Only time will tell.



The Ritchey is shorter...



And of course, there is the lack of backsweep...



I was eager to get out on a test ride... but the weather was crappy... So I had to wait until Sunday to get out for a quick ride at Cutler.  Initial testing says SWEET INDEED!!  I like it.  Control was great, stance was good... still wondering about going shorter on the stem.  I felt like I may have been stretched a little during the ride... so I'll pay attention to that during the next couple of rides and then figure out how much shorter I need to go.

If nothing else... the addition of white bars makes me faster, right?