Month: March 2016

The start of a new RTF season

March 23, 2016

Sunday marked the first RTF of 2016!  And, while it has felt more like winter than spring, the calendar doesn’t lie.  I already feel like I am behind on my miles, so the pedals must turn regardless of the cold that still prevails.  If you are not from Germany, you may be wondering, “What is an RTF”?  RTF stands for Radtourenfahren and, basically, amounts to an organized ride hosted by various bike clubs throughout the region.  For a small fee (usually 5 – 10 Euro) you can select a course of varying distances and ride.  The courses are generally very well marked and rest stops with food and water are provided every 30 km or so.  This is a great way to see the country side in a way that most people never experience.  And, you get to ride your bike!  You will experience some courses that are fast with rolling hills and others that have you climbing the entire 120+ km.  Each week is different and challenging in its own right.

This Sunday we drove to Rheinstetten-Forchheim to participate in the “Badische Eröffnungsfahrt” with RSV Concordia Forchheim.  The cost was 5 Euro for a choice between a 52km or a 72km route for this spring ride (in summer there will be two longer courses added).  We, of course, chose the 72km to keep increasing our distance each week.  Overall, the ride was fairly flat in the beginning and at the end with 3 small climbs past the mid way point.  The rest stop came at 30km where water, coffee, bananas and sweet bread were provided.  I’m glad I brought a couple of extra bars with me to give me a bit more nourishment.  But, it turned out to be a really nice day, except the wind, and my legs held up!  YAY!  In the coming weeks and months I will check the schedule below to see what’s happening next.  Bis dann!  Go ride your bike!

RTF/CTF-Termine in Baden-Württemberg 2016

 

Datum Kategorie Veranstaltungstitel Verein
20.03 RTF Badische  Eröffnungsfahrt RSV Concordia 1920 Forchheim e.V
10.04 RTF Helmut Herb Gedächtnisfahrt RV Alemannia 1905 Nußloch e.V
17.04 RTF Tübinger Kirschblütentour RV Pfeil Tübingen 1905 e.V. WTB
17.04 RTF “Rhein – Kraichgau – Rhein” RV Badenia Linkenheim
24.04 RTF Schwäbische Hügeltour Skiclub Plüderhausen e.V. W
24.04 RTF Sandhäuser RTF “Durch den Kraichgau“ RC 1902 Badenia Sandhausen e.V
01.05 RTF Drei-Wälder-Radtouren RSV Schwaikheim e.V
05.05 RTF Stauferland-Rundfahrt FTSV Kuchen e.V. Abt. Radsport
05.05 RTF “Rund um die Goldstadt Pforzheim” RSV “Schwalbe” Ellmendingen e.V
08.05 RTF Stammheimer Gäurundfahrt TV Stammheim 1895 e.V
16.05 RTF 34. Ortenauer Radtourenfahrt RMSV Sturmvogel Niederschopfheim
16.05 RTF 20. Ried-Odenwald-Rundfahrt RG Laudenbach e.V
22.05 RTF Rund um Stuttgart RTC Stuttgart 1980 e.V
22.05 RTF Von der Rheinebene in den Enzkreis RSV “Ideal” Kronau e.V
26.05 RTF Würm-Enztal Tourenfahrt RV “Wanderer” 1923 e.V. Merklingen
26.05 Marathon “Vom Rhein zum Schwarzwald” RV Badenia Linkenheim
26.05 RTF “Vom Rhein zum Schwarzwald” RV Badenia Linkenheim
26-29.05 Etappenfahrt Tübinger Etappenfahrt RV Pfeil Tübingen 1905 e.V
26-29.05 Etappenfahrt 19. Brettener-Hundle-Tour RSC Bretten e.V
29.05 Marathon Altheimer Radmarathon RSC Altheim/Alb 1988 e.V
29.05 RTF “Rund um Altheim/Alb” RSC Altheim/Alb 1988 e.V
29.05 RTF RTF Heidelberg/Odenwald Radsportverein Heidelberg
29.05 CTF 7. CTF Königstuhl-Tour MSC St. Ilgen e.V
05.06 RTF 40. Barockstadt-Rundfahrt RSC Komet Ludwigsburg e.V
05.06 RTF WE-Bike Radtourensonntag Sportfreunde Würth Elektronik e.V
05.06 CTF Über die Schwäbische Alb MTB-Club Pfullingen e.V
12.06 Marathon Sachsenheimer Lichtenstern-Tour TV Großsachsenheim e.V
12.06 RTF Sachsenheimer Lichtenstern-Tour TV Großsachsenheim e.V
12.06 RTF 33. Rhein-Alb-Murg RTF FV Malsch 1910 e.V
12.06 RTF Rund um das Bruchsaler Schloss Radsport-Team Kraichgau e.V
12.06 RTF Hegau-Bodensee-Panorama-Tour RMSV Orsingen e.V
12.06 RTF Hegau-Bodensee-Panorama-Tour RMSV Orsingen e.V
12.06 RTF Rheintal-Rundfahrt VFB Unzhurst e. V. Abt. Radsport
19.06 RTF Tour de Barock RMSV Bad Schussenried e.V
19.06 RTF Birenbacher Bergeles Tour TV Birenbach – Radsport
26.06 Marathon ALB-EXTREM-Radmarathon MRSC Ottenbach e.V
26.06 Marathon Zu den Löwensteiner Bergen RSV Victoria Rot 1912 e.V
26.06 RTF 36. Kraichgau-Stromberg-Rundfahrt RSV Victoria Rot 1912 e.V
26.06 CTF Albstädter Country-Touren-Fahrt Freestyle-Club Zollernalb e.V
26.06-02.07 Etappenfahrt Pyrenäentour 2016 RSG Mannheim e.V
02-03.07 Etappenfahrt Städtepartnerschaft-Etappenfahrt Nancy-Karlsruhe Stadt + RSG Karlsruhe 1898 e.V
03.07 RTF RTF Karlsruhe-Baerenthal-Karlsruhe Stadt + RSG Karlsruhe 1898 e.V
03.07 RTF Bodelshäuser Schnecken-Tour RV Wanderlust 1922 Bodelshausen e.
03.07 Marathon Schwetzinger Höllgrund-Radmarathon RSV Kurpfalz Schwetzingen e.V
03.07 RTF Schwetzinger Höllgrund-Tour RSV Kurpfalz Schwetzingen e.V
09.07 Marathon Gertfred Sprotte Gedächtnisfahrt in den Odenwald RSC Wiesloch e.V
10.07 RTF Gertfred Sprotte Gedächtnisfahrt in den Odenwald RV “Vorwärts” Oberjesingen
10.07 Marathon Nordschwarzwald-Bosch-Radmarathon (RMCD) RSV Falkenfels Bühlertal 1913 e.V
10.07 RTF Nordschwarzwald-Bosch-Rundfahrt RSV Falkenfels Bühlertal 1913 e.V
17.07 Marathon 18. SVG Radmarathon SVG Großeicholzheim
17.07 RTF RTF im Radmarathon SVG Großeicholzheim
17.07 RTF Rund um die Ravensburg RSV Germania Sulzfeld 1906  e.V
17.07 CTF CTF – Rund um die Ravensburg RSV Germania Sulzfeld 1906  e.V
24.07 RTF 25. RTF Durch’s Badnerland RSV Concordia 1920 Forchheim e.V.
31.07 RTF Neckar-Alb-Rundfahrt RSC Nürtingen 1949 e.
31.07 RTF 34. RTF “Junge Stadt mit Tradition” MSC St. Ilgen e.V
06.08 Marathon Pace-makers RSC Bretten e.V
14.08 CTF Rund um die Melanchthonstadt Bretten RSC Bretten e.V
14.08 RTF Rund um die Melanchthonstadt Bretten RSC Bretten e.V
21.08 Marathon Nordschwarzwald Rad-Marathon RV Pfeil Magstadt 1905 e.V
21.08 RTF Magstadter Radtourenfahrt RV Pfeil Magstadt 1905 e.V
28.08 Marathon Leinenwebertour MSC Laichingen e.V
28.08 RTF Leinenwebertour MSC Laichingen e.V
04.09 RTF Weinland-Tour “Spätlese” 1. RV Stuttgardia Stuttgart 1886 e.V
04.09 RTF 38. Kaiserstuhl-Tuniberg-Tour RV “Concordia” Reute e.V
04.09 RTF Oberschwäbische Barockstraße Rad-Union 1913 Wangen e.V
04.09 CTF Oberschwäbische Barockstraße Rad-Union 1913 Wangen e.V
04.09 RTF 6-facher Freiolzheimer RSV Concordia 1920 Forchheim e.V
10-11.09 Etappenfahrt Stuttgart-Straßburg-Stuttgart RTC Stuttgart 1980 e.V.
11.09 RTF Rund um den Kaiserstuhl RV Concordia Holzhausen e.V. 1912
11.09 RTF 30. Altdorfer Radwandertag TG Altdorf e.V
11.09 CTF 27. MTB-Ortenau-Trophy TG Altdorf e.V
11.09 Marathon 17. symBadischer Radmarathon (RMCD) TG Altdorf e.V
18.09 Marathon Schwarzwald Ultra Radmarathon RSV Alpirsbach-Rötenbach e.V
18.09 RTF Schwarzwald Ultra Radmarathon RSV Alpirsbach-Rötenbach e.V
18.09 CTF Biken a.d. Höhen d. Naturparks Schwarzwald RSV Falkenfels Buhlertal 1913 e.V
18.09 RTF Weinstadt-Radtourenfahr RV Kirrlach 1898 e.V
09.10 CTF Kapellen-Tour

RV Kirrlach 1898 e.V

-Susan

A New Season A New Bike

March 12, 2016

March is always a time of anticipation for me as the start of a new cycling gets into full swing. Just today, my lovely wife and I completed our first base-mile ride of the season; a short 50k ride that left us feeling drained yet hungry for more. A whole season of club rides and cycling vacations await us; some venturing into previously undiscovered territory and others taking us back over well familiar ground. With the cooler months in southern Germany waning, our long hiatus from the bikes, and months spent doing HIIT training, the winter has been a productive one. But we’re more than ready to take to the road once more.

As I write this article, streaming both the Tirreno-Adriatico and Paris-Nice on Eurosport, I love watching the Pro’s do battle. One of the things I always enjoy is admiring the bikes each team is riding; a Specialized Venge here, a Focus Izalco Max there, and my personal favorite of the pro peloton, the Cannondale SuperSix EVO. As a budding bike mechanic, I can only imagine how much fun it might be to turn a wrench for Slipstream Sports. For now, however, I build my own bikes.

Three seasons ago, I wrecked my carbon Cannondale Synapse after inadvertently connecting with a street pole at high speed. After discussing the issue with a friend of mine, he suggested switching to a platform that might withstand a bit more punishment. Thus began my love affair with Titanium. While I love and support my LBS and my favorite bike companies, I never liked the fact that can’t walk into a bike shop and walk out with the bike configuration of my choice. Since I was replacing my bike entirely, I took this as an opportunity to teach myself how to source components and build my own custom bicycle.

For those of you who appreciate the more technical aspects of bicycles I’d like to share my initial foray into world of mechanics:

Component Brand Specification
Frame Habanero Stock 64cm Team Nuevo
Group Set SRAM Red 50/34, 177.5mm crankset; short cage rear derailleur, 11-28 cassette
Cockpit ENVE 2.0 fork (43mm rake), 110mm stem, standard road bar (44cm)
Wheelset Neugent Cycling HED Belgian C2 clinchers, DT Swiss 240 hubs, Sapim C-Xray spokes (24×28)
Assorted Items Cane Creek, Continental, Habanero, Swiss Stop, SRAM 110 headset EC, Grand Prix 4000s II tires, Ti seat post, brake pads (Original Black), cork handlebar tape

 

For me, this has been a great setup and it has served me well for going on three seasons. The bike is nice and light, for a non-carbon platform, and demonstrates all the characteristics one might expect from titanium; stiff, responsive, and agile. I like the longer 177.5 crank arms; they’re a nice fit and offer a comfortable amount of leverage on climbs. Having ridden carbon and aluminum, I can honestly say nothing rides quite like titanium!

Having ridden for several seasons on just one bike, I have run into mechanical issues that have kept me off the road while repairs take place. Now I’m in the process of building yet another bike. This time, using a custom Habanero frame. Not only will this enable me to have a ‘spare’ at the ready, it also gives me the opportunity to try tailoring a configuration that is better suited to what I love most about road cycling; climbing. With that in mind, here is what I am building at the moment:

 

 

Component Brand Specification
Frame Habanero Custom 64cm Team Nuevo
Group Set Shimano Ultegra 6800 52/36, 175mm crankset; medium cage rear derailleur, 11-32 cassette
Cockpit Ritchey Pro Carbon Road fork (43mm rake), WCS C220 100mm stem, WCS Curve road bar (46cm), WCS Logic EC headset, , WCS Link seat post
Wheelset Neugent Cycling A310CWC (24×28)
Assorted Items Ritchey, Continental, Swiss Stop Ritchey  cork handlebar tape, Grand Prix 4000s II tires, brake pads

 

With this build, I’m trying a semi-compact crank set combined with a much lower range of gears. Additionally, I’ve switched from SRAM to Shimano in an effort to become familiar with the full range of group sets out there. (I’ll venture into Campagnolo as time and budget allow.) As a 6’4” rider who floats between 180-190 lbs., I opted for wheel sets a bit more stout than the average 20/24 spoke configuration. The 24/28 has served me well and I’ve carried that forward with this build. I may sacrifice a bit of weight, but now that I’m in my 40’s, I’m in no danger of being a competitive racer. Lastly, I’ve opted for a handlebar that’s 46cm wide. I’m hoping this will open up my posture on the bike while climbing and provide a bit more leverage than my current 44cm bars.

With two titanium rigs built to my own personal preferences, I like the idea of choosing the option best suited to that day’s elevation profile. It’s also a great learning experience as I attempt to broaden my horizons both in cycling and bike mechanics. In time, I hope to do other builds that I can share and I welcome any feedback or comments.

Thanks for reading!