Eszter Horanyi's Arrowhead 135 Blog: Lessons Learned

The final countdown to race day.

Yesterday was my last day of cold weather riding before heading off to the land of International Falls for the start of the Arrowhead 135. I’d like to share the top five lessons I’ve learned in this adventure because regardless of how this race goes on Monday, I’ve been able to commute to work, in Crested Butte in the winter, on my bike everyday this winter, and that in itself is enough to consider this adventure a success.

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Sram Leaks New Clutch Equipped Derailleur

With the release of Shimanos Shadow Plus derailleur this past season, Sram has been hard at work to create some significant updates to current derailleur offerings.

Shimano's Shadow Plus derailleur features a roller clutch mechanism that greatly decreases unwanted chain movement by allowing the derailleur to only move in the direction of the shift. This system has shown great potential and it is obvious why Sram would adopt a similar technology for their derailleur updates.

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Tested: Continental Top Contact Winter Tires

Mounting up a set of winter tires can make all the difference in the world on your daily bike commute. Continental offers a great studless, winter specific option with the Top Contact Winter tires.

The day after I mounted the Continental Contact Winter II on my Electra cruiser, it began to snow and didn't stop for many days and has been below freezing on and off for the past few months. So I have been able to ride the tires on dry pavement, 6"+ powder, soft and hard packed snow, -10*f Styrofoam-squeaky super hard packed snow, slush and of course ice. 

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CX Masters Worlds Day 4

The fourth and final day of Championship races unfolded much as the day before. Deep frozen ruts and a slight dusting of fresh snow greeted the racers as the morning began. By the 11 o'clock races, the sun began to thaw the frozen ground and the course surface became slicker than snot, once again sending nearly everyone out on course down for at least a couple spills. As the afternoon rolled around, the course became increasingly muddy and the pits once again came alive. The Sunday morning races were most inspiring, as the 60+ and older age groups took to the course under seriously challenging conditions.  

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Shop Tech Video Tour: Fox Vanilla Overhaul

Protect your Investment and Keep your Fox Fork Running Smoothly.

Scot Banks of Absolute Bikes in Salida, CO shows us the proper way to service a fox fork. This service is important to keep your fox fork running properly and keep the internals properly lubricated. Thanks to Scot and Absolute Bikes

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Eszter Horanyi Arrowhead 135 Blog: Puzzle Pieces

Two weeks out from the Arrowhead 135 and the puzzle pieces are coming together.

As of right now, I am 16 days out from the start of the Arrowhead 135.  The thought is slightly terrifying because until I bought my plane ticket to Minnesota two days ago, the race seemed like somewhat of an abstract event in my future.  With less than two weeks until I board a plane in Denver and head north, the reality of the situation is becoming very real.

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Cyclocross Masters Worlds Day 3

Another challenging day out on the course in Louisville! With the temperatures remaining below freezing throughout the day on Friday and overnight into Saturday, the course remained a maze of unforgiving frozen ruts. Course workers continued to shift the course tape around and bring in sand on a couple of the worst sections of ruts to make the course a bit less treacherous for the 6 Championship races on Saturday.  

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