Exploring Duck Creek

 So yesterday's ride was kind of what I love about the fatbike.  I did Disney on Ice with Aly in the afternoon then snuck out for a quick ride.  Quick being 2hrs.  Kris is awesome and watch the kids so I could go not after dark. 

Friends have been talking about Duck Creek for a while, it's about 3mi from my house so I just hopped on the bike and rode there.  It was cool.  Great spot to do training and really a lot less flat/boring then I thought. Lots of curves in the river, lots to look at, great wind cover, generally snowmobile trails to follow, and some little jumps up/down the banks to play on too.  I had a good time but really didn't explore a crazy amount of it.  I wanted to ride from FF to Overland but came up a bit short of Overland Rd.  Cole says west of Overland is even better so we'll see.  I may load the bike up and drive there next time so I can maximize time on the river (it's probably 5mi away?).  Maybe not though, it's fun to ride the roads too on this thing, it's just fun all over.

I'm excited for my race Saturday but at the same time not excited - 35mi on a fatbike could be as easy as 35mi on a mtb or could be absolute hell depending on weather. For example, I averaged about 7-8mph on the river yesterday on mostly snowmobile tracks, but I can ride the same if not slightly faster on singletrack here in town. On packed trails (non-singletrack) I could anticipate some averages up to 13-15mph. We'll see. I've been training a bit anyway and feel stronger than I did last year - less overall endurance but more power I think.

The other thing I have a bad feeling about for no good reason is my tubeless setup. I'm really hoping it holds up for the race, it's been good so far but I have not pushed it at race pace or that distance yet.

One thing I am certain of - if I keep this up it's going to be very fast come skinny tire mtb season. I'm already super excited to get out on the Scalpel and I'm probably about 2 months away. I think I will ride with the rear lockout engaged a lot this year.

On a semi-related note my ability to wheelie is much improved.

Tubeless Redo - Clown Shoe Rim Strip on Marge Lite Rim

So I continued to have some issue with my rear tire losing air while riding on the tubeless setup with the gorilla tape.  Friday night last week I decided to take it apart and redo it, this time using the clown shoe rim strip I'd bought just for this reason.

Looks like this in the bead:

I pushed the strip down under the lip, then mounted the tire w/tube, then followed the normal process for going tubeless.  Sealed up way better than the gorilla tape from the get go and has held pressure much much better.

Front is still gorilla tape but I'll swap it out if I have issues.  I'd say weight wise this is very close and no sticky mess to deal with.

Busy work week, tubeless Dillinger 5's

I have had a busy work week this week with travel.  I always put good plans in place to bring workout stuff but then struggle to actually do it.  By the time there are dinners, meetings, and nights in the hotel where I can sleep kid-free it doesn't happen.  Bummed I didn't take the opportunity to work out when I have less external items.

I got home yesterday and finished up mounting the Dillinger 5's tubeless.  They are going to be fantastic.  I'd done the front one on Sunday and it was still holding pressure from Sunday (left it at 9, it was 6).  I am not sure it's 100% yet but we'll see if it holds.  Losing only 3psi in a week with no riding is probably fine.  I'm hoping that over time the sealant takes care of the rest.

What I did was gorilla tape like the youtube video here:




I did 4oz of sealant in the front, but after having a bit of issue there I did 6oz in the rear.  I'd rather over-do it than under.  Thinking about running 2oz in a normal 29er tire, doing 6oz in these giant tires seems like not that much. If the front doesn't get steady at a pressure I may pull the valve and add a bit more.