Test ride with new gear

I went for a lovely 40 mile ride with Sherry last Saturday and rode my Anaheim-Oceanside 125k permanent with Amber and Iria on Sunday. Iria has not ridden this route before and she seemed to really enjoy it.

I was having some problems with my 10+ year old seat post on the ride and couldn't get the pitch of my saddle to stay locked in so I decided to replace it. I bought a Botranger seatpost from Redlands Cyclery. This is a very reasonably priced seatpost which has a neat feature. Instead of one bolt that controls everything and makes setting the precise pitch of the saddle almost impossible, this one uses two bolts that allow you to easily set the saddle position. I love it. Redlands Cyclery even put a dab of grease on the shaft so I could insert it easily.

I've also been having problems with the USB port on my Cygolite headlight which is a shame because it's only about two years old. I decided to buy a new one which was also an upgrade to a brighter model.

With all this new gear, and a major ride coming up, I had to do a test ride after work last night so I decided to ride the upper SART.

It was windier than normal with a 15-20 mph wind out of the SW which was a headwind on the way out. I had the new seat post dialed in and I mounted the new light where the old one went. The new light came with a helmet mount option so I put the old light on my helmet to see if I liked it.

The ride out went really well. Despite the headwind I maintained a 17-18 mph average feeling unusually strong. After turning around I was holding 20-22 mph and completed the 38 mile ride in just two hours. I rode so fast I only had five miles of darkness to test the lights in. They did great.

The seat post performed well although I had to stop and retighten the bolts after 30 miles so I think a light touch of loctite will be necessary. The cygolite on the helmet didn't bother me, although I probably wouldn't ride with the light mounted during the day.

A friend of mine sent me a link to a new paint called LifePaint being tested by Volvo that contains microscopic glass beads that reflect light. There's a temporary water-based version and a permanent oil-based version too. Interesting.