I rode my older bike, with the triple crank, on the ride up Henry Coe last night. I was thinking to use it on the upcoming Devil Mountain Double this Saturday because it has the lower gearing. It was making some rattling sound, the speed pickup came loose, and it just doesn’t fit me like my new bike, even though both are a 52 cm Trek frame. I was thinking last night to go ahead and use my new bike for the tough double this Saturday, even though it only has a double crank. I can climb all those hills with the double, but I am not sure about doing all of them the same day with a double. I had to use the triple last year for this event due to cramping in my legs.

I spent this morning putting a new tire on the front and moving the front tire to the rear to replace that worn tire. I reattached the speed pickup for my Polar heart rate monitor and I tightened the cassette, which I think was the source of the noise. I had used a torque wrench before but I guess I had the wrong setting.

I weighed both bikes, loaded as I would ride them, sans water bottles. The new Trek Madone is a lighter bike but I have aero bars on it. On my old bike I have put on new wheels and a new Durace crankset so it is lighter than it use to be. I was surprised that both bike weighed nearly the same, within half a pound.

• Trek Madone 5.2 18.65 lbs (with pack with 2 tubes, CO2, mini pump, aero bars
• Trek 5200 19.35 lbs (with pack with 2 tubes, Co2, mini pump)

Part of the difference is the weight of the Syntace C2 aero bars at 358 grams, close to one pound. I could remove those since there is not that much drafting on this event. That would bring the wieght of the new bike down to 17.8 lbs, or 1.5 lbs lighter, both on an equivalent basis.

I set up both bikes next to each other to see if I should make any adjustments to the old bike to match the ride I like on the new one. I ended up moving the saddle forward slightly. I notice the handlebars one the new bike are a bit higher and the 10 speed shifters really do have a better angle, but without getting a new stem for the old bike there is little I can do there.

I just finished 24 mile last ride using the old bike. I fixed the rattle and it seems to be working fine. I calculated that the difference of 1.5 lbs will only mean 4 mintues total time difference for the entire DMD. I recall when I did the Furnace Creek 508 going up Townes Pass with my double and having a difficult time. Later I thought I should have used the older bike with the triple (which was on the support car). I expect the climb up Sierra Road after already doing 140 miles and 15,000 feet of climbing will be similar. But I did the entire Furnace Creek 508 with only a double, even Townes Pass. I used the double on the Death Ride and the Cimb to Kaiser. So I have decided to tough it out and go with the faster and lighter bike.

Categories: Cycling, Cycling Equipment, Devil Mountain Double
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