How to get odor out of cycling clothes
posted on July 15th, 2012 in Cycling, Cycling Tips, Reviews by Stephen
This has been quite a mystery for me for several years, and I have tried multiple products along the way, but still once I’m sweating then my cycling clothes stink.
Some of the things that I was trying (scented detergent, oxy-clean, fabric softeners, drier sheets) always seemed to be only temporary masks and the ammonium odor used to come back. Usually what I notice the most is my gloves when I wiped sweat from my brow.
Cause: Ammonium odor usually means that you are burning muscle, which is caused by a lack of glycogen (sugar) to use as fuel. This often happens when you are riding at intense heart rate for extended period of time – like a fast group.
What we have found is that if you wash your cycling gear with hot water – Double Rinse them and do NOT use any fragrant products & NO clothes softeners. They are merely a temporary mask & as soon as you start sweating again, the softeners attract the scent molecules and attach to them. This causes the odor to stick around longer.
Any other helpful tips, just throw in a comment below, Thanks!!
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Dumbing down trails
posted on July 7th, 2012 in Adventures, Cycling, Reviews by Stephen
There has been an ongoing trend of dumbing down Mountain bike trails.
Some sections of trails need to be maintained in order to keep the water run-off going properly. Side-Note: I understand that this is the USFS main concern for National Forestry property.
Some trail systems seem to be going in the direction of a smooth roller-coaster ride. Yes, they do great and Fun re-working of trails, but they make most trail systems (that I have ridden around Atlanta) so basic that anyone on most any bike shop bike could ride all of it.
Where is the challenge in that? Where is are the latest trails to challenge your skills? Don’t tell, because seemingly they are coming for those trails also – and they are bringing a big Zamboni to plow through any technical sections that maybe left.
Recently on trails that have been previously re-worked I have noticed that work-groups have gone so far as take out parts of a trail that have been a small obstacle for years. This is what we call ‘dumbing down’ trails so that anyone can ride everything. This happens when people take out parts of a trail because it is too challenging. Never-mind that there is no real danger in these obstacles – or that you could make an ‘easy path’ around an obstacle – they just take it out. Flatten and smooth out the trail so that a good Mountain biker could easily tow a child in a trailer through.
At what point are Mountain bikers going to notice how far they have gotten away from their roots.
Is it a goal to stop Bicycling magazine’s articles about how to bunny-hop, do a wheelie & how to do a track stand – due to the fact that no Mountain biker on an SORBA trail will ever need to know this information?
I have found myself going far away from some of these trails, in fact I would often literally pass 1 trail system to go ride trails that haven’t been bulldozed.
While on a camping trip over the 4th of July, I was shocked to hear that a trail system we were riding has had a sectioned that had been re-worked with a motorized shovel.
It suddenly hit me that the places that we are driving hours to get too are slowly being over-taken by the giant well oiled machinery of SORBA.
Most of the trail work they do is Great! But it seems that they are like a dictator who is getting drunk with power, and now wants to take on other countries – snapping roots, popping rocks, and leaving a dirt mound strategically placed in it’s wake.
I’m hoping that in the near future IMBA/SORBA will realize that in order to grow the likes of Pro Mountain Bikers, they will have to leave some technical sections on the trail.
Please focus more efforts on keeping trails open, and maybe opening more trails. But for the sake of the true Mountain bike passion, stop the insane pursuit of “sterilizing all trail systems”.
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bicycle maintenance
posted on March 26th, 2012 in Cycling, Cycling Tips, Reviews by Stephen
Here is an important tip:
1 of the least expensive things on your bicycle can be replaced often and save you a bunch of money in the long ride. Why this concept hasn’t taken off more by now I do not know! What that concept is that if something were to wear out first – would you rather it be something very expensive or rather 1 of the most affordable components on your bike?
This is such a Great concept! It is your chain!
Yet most people do not realize this.
If you would Replace your chain annually, the gears that it runs on would last MUCH longer!!
Oddly, your chain is one of the least expensive parts of the drive train, and if you replace it often it can save you money because you will not have to replace your chain-rings and cassette as often! You see it is actually your chain that wears out first – due to all the links/joints in the chain. Then once the chain is worn out it wears out the cassette and chain-rings due to the stretched links in the chain.
A great and super easy way to measure your chain is to put your chain onto the big chainring and use a standard measuring tape to measure out the links. The pins in the links should measure up at the 0″ mark and the 12″ mark. Anything exceeding 1/4 (one quarter) of an inch is excessive chain wear, and should have already been replaced.
If you have excessive chain wear and replace your chain there is a good chance that you will have to replace other parts in the drive-train. What can happen is that the worn out parts may allow slipping when put under pressure.
For example, when standing on a steep climb your chain may suddenly skip a tooth on the cog.
So, depending on how much you ride, check your chain once or twice a year – replace as needed. It will save you money because your chain-rings and cogs last longer!
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StrongerCyclist.com is the site of Stephen Carhart, personal trainer, author, and cyclist.