Triangle Adventure Racing Team

Fox 29er Fork, Trek 69′er

Name aside this is one sweet looking ride……and to top it off it rides like a champ. I had a chance to ride a Trek Demo over a recent weekend in the mountains of WV. Took her out for a long gravel road climb, and a screaming double track descent that left my hands cramping. What’s differant with this one…it’s a 69′er or a 96′er….depending on the company puttin’ em out. Carver Bikes is the only other major builder producting this set-up…with a 29er front wheel and a rear 26″ wheel. The selling point..the rollover improvement with the big front wheel while still maintaining the cornering and acceleration of the smaller rear wheel. A relatively new concept, which Trek has jumped in feet first with and they have put together a nice package. To top things off, it is the only bike to feature the new Fox 100mm front fork, that’s it folks..not available on any other builds or on the open market…only on the Trek 69′er. This bike created quite a stir when Trek rider Chris Eatough took a prototype ride to several 24 HR wins and some NORBA Marathon top finishes as well. Read the rest of this entry »

Foot care is extremely important in adventure races or any long distance event for that matter. Another important factor specific to multi-sport events is the ability to use individual gear for multiple disciplines. In my opinion, these socks are perfect. They stay tight on your feet after hours and days of racing, they aren’t too thick so you can switch from running to biking without changing socks, they dry quickly and even seem to work just fine if they’re wet, they’re kind of “slick” in the shoes, so the shoes rub against the sock, but the sock doesn’t rub against your foot. At $15 a pair, they’re kind of pricey and I think they’ve recently even been marketing them as “adventure racing socks” which doesn’t excite me, but I still wouldn’t consider using anything else. I do recommend getting different colors so when you’re changing from wet dirty socks into dry dirty socks, you’ll be able to keep track of which ones might be filled with sand. I prefer the mini crew which come just above the ankle.
JT
3-17-2007

After checking out differant options for a water shoe, mainly the Salomon models, I resigned myself to either pay high prices for the amphib models 80-100.00 or wear open toed TEVAs etc. I found these while breezing through an LL BEAN catalog. I have worn them while on the river in WV including kayak runs, swimming and white water rafting. They were comfortable from day one, drain quickly and dry just fast. Though I havent run in them for an extended period of time..they do appear to have enough support that they would work if needed….say for a long boat portage. The great thing about LL BEAN is their guarantee…no hassles…no arguing..just return it for replacement or refund. At 34.50 you can’t beat the quality…..

“LL BEAN”:http://www.llbean.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?storeId=1&catalogId=1&langId=-1&categoryId=46107&shop_method=qs&feat=qs&catalog_id=PP

So I get home today from running…sit down to eat and read the paper before work…when I hear the faint familiar rumble and shifting of a Panel truck….it gets closer and closer…..Could it be?….then I hear the air brake….YES….then the double horn toot….OH JESUS…YES….with trepidation I pull the curtain a little bit aside and peer out…..UPS…God Bless UPS…the bike box comes out the back….I want to run out and grab it ….but I stand down….he drops it on the porch….GOD should I rush out and start tearing it open…..I wait…cant look to anxious..like I’m unemployed and waiting on a oriental blow up doll……ah but then he drives off….I run out with my knife and start cutting tape… HOLY MOSES…….there it is in all it’s glory the “On One Inbred 29′er”:http://www.on-one.co.uk it’s even more beautiful then the web picture….like meeting Cheryl Ladd in person as a 13 year old…..certainly alot better than the wrinkled up Sports Ilustrated 1983 swimsuit edition…..but I digress….some assembly required….but I feel like Dr Frankenstein….creating something but not sure what yet…..I finish…pump the tires and step back…..my knees were a little shaky….I have to admit…but WOW…this thing…Jeezus…When I rode those 29’s around the yard………I felt like a KING…like a PIMP daddy….like Ernie walking in the door after work…I was in one of those weird ass Burger King commercials with the big headed King and pimp cape he wears……. wow……I need to ride it ….NOW…..So anyways…Rides one and two I’m still gettting used to the feel of it…I love the all-around Steel frame through Umstead and the 29 wheels feel fast….it is tough riding SingleSpeed over some of those hills but I’m sure my riding will improve…my third ride….Whoops..the left crank arm comes of while in mid ride and it’s dangling from my foot via the eggbeater pedal….without a 8mm tool to fixit the ride ended abruptly….Okay so I tighten it down hard and keep the fingers crossed that it was loose from the factory…..5 solid rides since and it has held tight…no signs of loosening….I’m loving the bike even more….one drawback being no suspension….it beats the tar out of you on technical singletrack….so I will likely go with a front fork in the near future….so far so good for my first experience with a 29′er and fixed gear….I’m beggining to wonder about all these gears/shifters/deraillaurs etc being worth the hassle…….

These little lights are great. I like to keep one attached to the front of my pack, and use them for changing batteries on other lights or for map reading so I can turn my head light off.

In addition to adventure racing, I keep one on my keychain and one attached to my cell phone!

– Sean

This little light is a life saver. Typically in adventure racing, all I use is a head light. But I’ve found that sometimes having a mini flashlight is well worth it. This light is extremely light weight at just 3 ounces, yet it is strong enough to provide 60 lumens. It reaches much further in the dark than most head lights.

The burn time with the two CR123A batteries is just one hour, but I typically use it in “flash” mode. You can either turn the light so it is always on, or just use the button on the back. In Flash mode, I was able to use just one set of batteries all night the US National Rogaine Championship. But in a trek in the Florida Coast to Coast, I had to use the light more steadily, and did need to change batteries in a 4 hour period.

– Sean

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I’ve had the Petzl Duo for a long time and it has served me pretty well. After a couple of years, they came out with the LED version, and than an LED upgrade package for the old incandescent version. I upgraded mine to have 5 LEDs.

It’s great to have two different intensity lights, and to be able to focus the halogen. The LEDs give great burn times (100 + hours with lithium batteries), while the halogen will give 6-10 hours or so. Much better than the < 3 hrs and < 12 hours I used to get with the incandescent bulb and alkalines!

There are two draw backs to this light. First, it is not really water proof, just water resistant, and my batter contacts have corroded a bit. Second, you have to wear it over your helmet when biking, while some petzl lights can fit under the helmet as they have a front mounted battery pack.

-- Sean

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I’ve used the Petzl Duo for over a year now. Most of the time I prefer LED lights for their long battery life, but since I’m often the navigator, I need a halogen light for route-finding. The Duo meets both of these needs but has a few drawbacks. First of all, this light is not as comfortable as others when worn for long periods of time. By morning I’m very happy to be able to take it off. Also the halogen beam doesn’t focus as nicely as the Zoom (for instance). I assume this is due to the smaller reflector. The focus adjustment dial is supposed to allow you to change from flood to zoom, but I’ve only found one position that I consider usable.

I’ve used both the 3-LED and 8-LED modules. The 3-LED module produces sufficient light for hiking and biking on easy fireroads, but you’ll need something else if the biking gets fast or slightly technical. The 8-LED module is very nice and has 3 different power levels. The highest LED setting can almost compete with a halogen bulb for area lighting. The halogen was only needed when trying to spot distant objects.

I’m not sure of the run time in LED mode, but in constant halogen mode I only get about 5 hours using lithium batteries. In normal race conditions, one set of lithiums will usually last the entire night.

Despite its shortcomings, this is still a good light for AR. I would probably consider the newer Myo 5 if was going to buy a new light, though.

– Charlie

This is another fantastic product from RailRiders. I’ve had this for as long as I’ve had my weather pants, and it’s been used in most of the same ways. It provides great sun protection during the day and bug protection at night. It is extremely light weight and cool, so it even works in the middle of the day in the heat of a Florida summer.

Highly recommended.

These pants from RailRiders are simply fantastic — they are my do everything pants. I’ve had a pair for over four years now, and they have been used to race across Florida three times (in the annual Florida Coast to Coast race), other adventure races and orienteering events including the 2003 National Championship Rogaine, to paint my Mom’s house, to clear the lot of the home we built, and to do lots of other yard work!

They are light weight, dry fast, and are incredibly tough. After everything they’ve been through, I only have a few minor snags on them. They are a bit covered in paint now, though. The paint looks like dried blood, so I do get some interesting stares! I highly recommend these to anyone that needs protection from the sun, bugs, and bushwhacking.

Note: I have a small frame — 5′8″ and 140 lbs. I typically wear a size 29 waist / 30 inseam. I had to get the woman’s small for these to f it comfortably.