The Cycling Thread

[Rick Danger]

Originally Posted by dill99

SRAM's are much more rugged and durable, which is very important, especially when you're flying down Market st. into the Powell st transition. No time for gearing probs in this situation.

No time for brake problems either !

That's why I complimented you after your first post. Riding the hills of San Fran, you're definitely a Man's Man !

[Rick Danger]

Originally Posted by vinceprice

Gemma Atkinson fan of the cycling thread. No matter how fast my bike was I'd stay behind her.

Originally Posted by cyclodog

And since it appears we are now adding a smattering of "girls" to our new cycling thread - I thought I would throw this in for shits and grins

What are you guys trying to do ? Turn this into a porno blog ? What do you think this is, an erotica website ?

Oh, that's right. It is.

In that case........................



Gemma Atkinson in a skinsuit. Yee-Ouch !

FYI, Eva Longoria (middle picture) is back on the market. She just divorced Tony Parker. I hope she still has my phone number !

[Mister Emporia]

well as long as we're on the topic...



look closely - the bike is in there....

[Rick Danger]

Duh-uhh, what bike ? What window ???

[Rick Danger]

It's been an extreme pleasure to know Marty Epstein and "Marty's Reliable Cycle" since 1992.

Marty was pretty busy, even when I walked into the small storefront on Speedwell Avenue in Morristown. Aside from running the shop, he was busy with sponsorship of a cycling team (Northeast Hardware), organizing fitness rides, both road and mountain around the Morristown area during the evenings, and refurbishing old bikes that were then sent to poor communities around the world.

Since those days, his business has expanded. While still in the original location the Morristown store moved all the setup and repair activites to a building in back of the store. Marty has also opened two new stores in cycling mad Morris County. And he's still had time to ride, raise a family (one of his sons works at the store and is a Cat 1 mountain bike racer), been an advocate for cycling, and grow a few inches taller since last I saw him !

The success he is enjoying couldn't happen to a nicer guy !

Marty's Reliable Cycle
Morristown, NJ
Randolph, NJ
Hackettstown, NJ
http://martysreliable.com/
2010 Top 100 Five Star Bicycle Retailer

Marty in front of his original Speedwell Ave. location at the corner of Spring St. - Probably around 1982.

Our History
Yes, there really is a Marty. Since 1978, Marty's Reliable Cycle has been a community institution. Does that mean that after all these years, Marty should be put in some sort of institution? Some say maybe so; the discussion continues. The following is our illustrious history:

Before Marty's Reliable Cycle, there was Reliable Cycle. The early beginnings of Reliable Cycle are somewhat vague. This is all that is known. The first location in Morristown was at 116 Speedwell Ave. which is now a Mexican restaurant. The first owner of Reliable Cycle was Nate Popick. Nate originally owned Reliable Cycle in Newark, NJ. He also owned a bungalo colony in Mt. Freedom, NJ, up Sussex Turnpike, just west of Morristown. Mt. Freedom was a destination vacation area for much of the NY/NJ area which boomed in the 1940's or earlier through the 1960's. Many large hotels and other vacation sites such as Popick's Bungalo Colony were in Mt. Freedom. Mt. Freedom was only eclipsed by the growth of the Catskill Mountain resort areas. There are remains of such sites as now reported by unsuspecting people exploring the area in Weird NJ magazine. It is fast becoming lost knowledge.

Anyway, back to Marty's history. So, Nate Popick moved Reliable Cycle to Morristown. There were three owners of Reliable Cycle: Nate Popick, Tom Kerns of Mendham who owned the store during the 1960's and 1970's and John Christopolis.

Marty bought the store in 1978 from John who also co-owner Caldwell Cycle which is now defunct. Marty added his name to the store to show a transition in the business but kept the Reliable part to show some business continuity to established customers. The business flourished in the late 70's and early 80's.

In 1984, Marty had long outgrown his original location at the intersection of Speedwell and Spring Steet. He had his eye on the current location at the intersection of Speedwell and Sussex Ave. which was Morristown Hardware at that time. He had, over the years, pestered the property owners about its availability. The owners were the Wenarsky brothers, Nat and Benny, who owned Wenarsky's junkyard (aka recycling center). The Wenarsky brothers happened to be second cousins by way of Marty's father.

Well, one day Marty went for his occassional pestering trip to the Wenarsky's and ask once again if they would sell. Low and behold, they were going to list the property that day-it must have just slipped their minds about Marty. He bought it right then and there. A handshake was as good as anything among family and honest businessmen.

Business grew at the new location as mountain bike popularity and the Marty's reputation grew. Marty expanded the site to include the back building as well as the front building. In 1994, a complete renovation was done on the rear building after years of sweat equity took its toll on many emplyees. One of the more notable (we use this term loosely) was a service manager named Joe Dube. Joe established a frame building and repair business at the store. There are many tales to be told here.

Marty's 2 in Succusunna on Rt 10 was opened in 1995. It doubled in size in the late 90s and then moved down the road a little ways to a brand new building in Randolph in 2005.



In November 2006, Marty opened his third location in Hackettstown.



Well, that is more or less our history. Interesting to us, maybe to you. We will be glad to elaborate on any and many war stories of the bike business. Through it all, we have strived to create a better cycling culture.

Yes, there really is a Marty!

(Marty, actual size)

Okay, he's really a bit taller!

[Rick Danger]

News
Wed 17 Nov 2010, 12:14 pm UT
Anti-doping agency rejects Contador defence
By AFP

A study by the World Anti-doping Agency (WADA) has found no evidence to support Alberto Contador's claim that contaminated meat was responsible for his positive doping test, a Spanish newspaper said Wednesday.

The Tour de France champion was provisionally suspended following a positive test for a tiny amount of clenbuterol, a banned weight loss/muscle-building drug.

The Spanish rider has claimed that the positive result, which followed a doping test during the Tour de France in July, was the result of eating contaminated meat.

But a report by WADA obtained by the newspaper El Pais said its experts visited the butcher's shop in northern Spain where the meat was purchased and the slaughterhouse that supplies it, and found no evidence of clenbuterol in any of its products.

"None of the inspections, none of the tests on samples of meat found traces of clenbuterol, a banned drug used to fatten cattle quickly," El Pais said.

The report also cited a European Union study from 2008 in which experts tested 300,000 meat samples but found evidence of the possible use of clenbuterol in only one of those.

"Obviously, farmers who cheat will never slaughter their illegally fattened cattle until about 20 days after the last dose of clenbuterol for two reasons: to avoid being caught by checks on the meat and to allow the anabolic steroid to have its full fattening-up effect," the WADA report said, according to El Pais.

The paper said the International Cycling Union (UCI) delivered the WADA report to the Spanish cycling federation (RFEC), which is to decide whether to sanction the rider.

Contador's lawyers immediately rejected the report.

"The legal team of Alberto Contador categorically denies the information published today in some media about the contents of the report sent by the UCI to the Spanish cycling federation," the cyclist's press team said in a statement.

"After careful study of the documentation sent by the UCI, which contains the report of a detective agency hired to trace the origin of the meat, it is not possible to determine that the meat was not contaminated," it said.

"In the documentation sent (to the RFEC) there is no evidence that the WADA has made any kind of analysis of the butcher in question, much less of slaughterhouses which are mentioned."

The newspaper commented that the WADA report "is the main problem that Contador must overcome to prove his innocence, as his entire defence rests on the involuntary ingestion of the meat contaminated with clenbuterol in such a tiny amount that it had no effect on his performance."

If suspended for two years, the 27-year-old has threatened to quit the sport.

Contador, who also won the Tour de France in 2007 and 2009, in August signed a two-year contract with the Saxo Bank team.

© AFP 2010

[dill99]

I was wondering if anyone knew where I could find a new set of TAG wheels in a 29 in size? Haven't checked EBAY yet. Are there any other companies making mag wheels?

[Rick Danger]

News
Fri 19 Nov 2010, 1:22 pm UTC
Valverde doping challenge fails at Swiss supreme court
By AFP

Spanish cyclist Alejandro Valverde has lost the latest round of his lengthy attempt to overturn Italian anti-doping sanctions, according to a ruling published by the Swiss supreme court Friday.

Valverde had asked the Swiss Federal Tribunal to overturn a decision by the Lausanne-based Court of Arbitration for Sport rejecting his appeal against a two year ban in 2009 from racing on Italian territory, on procedural grounds.

"The current appeal must be rejected," the ruling said as it dismissed one of Valverde's major arguments as "unfounded".

His lawyers had notably challenged the impartiality of one of the arbitrators and their access to some of the evidence from the Spanish Operation Puerto doping investigation.

Valverde, winner of the 2009 Tour of Spain and one of the most feared racers in hilly one-day classics, had been banned from racing in Italy since May 2009.

Italian authorities took a blood sample from the Spaniard at the 2008 Tour de France when it passed through the country, and it matched one of the blood bags containing the banned blood booster EPO (erythropoietin) from the 2006 Puerto raid.

The CAS, world sport's top court, in May 2010 also handed a two-year worldwide ban on Valverde.

Valverde has filed a separate appeal against the world-wide ban.

© AFP 2010

[Rick Danger]

News
Fri 19 Nov 2010, 10:30 am UTC
FSA recall some Gossamer BB30 road cranks
By BikeRadar UK

Full Speed Ahead (FSA) have issued a recall of some Gossamer BB30 road cranksets for safety reasons. A problem has been reported with the non-drive crank arm which could cause it to loosen.

The affected units have non-drive crank arms with serial numbers beginning 10B, 10C or 10D. (Serial numbers are located on the backside of the crank arm by the pedal threads.) Some were fitted as OEM products on complete bikes, while others were sold aftermarket through bike shops. MegaExo crank arms and triple cranksets aren't affected.

In a statement, the company said: "FSA have received reports that the bolt shoulder on non-drive Gossamer BB30 series crankarms can crack and break if the installer exceeds the recommended torque specification while tightening the crank bolt. If the bolt shoulder is cracked or damaged in any way, the crank arm can potentially loosen, allowing the rider to lose control and fall."



Crank arms subject to recall shouldn't be ridden. Replacements will be available from 1 December. Dealers are being asked to contact riders who've bought bikes fitted with OEM Gossamer BB30 cranksets.

In Europe, these are:
•Cannondale CAAD 10 105
•Cannondale CAAD 8 105
•Cannondale Synapse Carbon 105 / Apex
•Cannondale Synapse Alloy 105 / Apex
•Cannondale Super Six 5 105
•Bianchi Sempre Ultegra / 105 / Veloce 10v

In the US, these are:
•Bianchi Sempre Ultegra (2010)
•Cannondale CAAD 9 5 / CAAD 9 5 Feminine (2010)
•Cannondale Six Carbon 5 (2010)
•Cannondale Slice 4 / Slice 4 Nytro / Slice 5 (2010)
•Cannondale Synapse Carbon 4 / Carbon 4 Feminine / Carbon 5 (2010)
•Cannondale CAAD 10 5 105 / CAAD 10 5 105 Feminine (2011)
•Cannondale Slice 5 / Slice 5 Women's (2011)
•Cannondale SuperSix 5 105 / SuperSix 5 105 Women's (2011)
•Cannondale Synapse Carbon 4 Rival / Carbon 4 Rival Women's / Carbon 5 (2011)
•Cannondale CAAD 8 5 105 (2011)
•Cannondale CAAD X 105 Cyclocross (2011)
•Felt F75 / F75X (2011)
•Fuji ACR 1.0 / 2.0 / 3.0 (2010)
•Quintana Roo CD.0.1 (2010)
•Litespeed C3 (2010)
•Raleigh RX 1.0 (2010-11)
•Scattante CFR Comp (2010)

Anyone who has bought an affected aftermarket crankset, or anyone with queries, should contact their FSA dealer. In the UK, this means Windwave (sales@windwave.co.uk, 02392 521912) or ATB Sales (GrahamMarcroft@atb-sales.co.uk, 01424 753566). European customers should call Full Speed Ahead Europe on +39 039 688 5265.

US owners should call Full Speed Ahead (toll-free) on 1-877-743-3372 or email recall@fullspeedahead.com. In America, this voluntary recall is being handled in cooperation with the US Consumer Product Safety Commission.

[Rick Danger]

Originally Posted by dill99

I was wondering if anyone knew where I could find a new set of TAG wheels in a 29 in size? Haven't checked EBAY yet. Are there any other companies making mag wheels?

Not sure anyone is still making mag wheels. But BikeBling.com has a sweet set of Easton XC 29ers on sale for $399.99. The specs don't mention disc or rim brake compatibility.

http://www.bikebling.com/Easton-XC-O...xc-one29er.htm

I'll keep poking around.........