From the category archives:

Product Review

Last week I got a Thule roof rack for my 2007 Honda Civic from ProVelo Cycle Sport. I got my car back in July and have just been packing things into my trunk until now. This is going to make things so much easier.

The Parts
The entire rack system came in 5 boxes. The load bars came in one, with each bike tray in its own box. Then the mounting towers came in their own box with the fit kit specific to my car came in another. In the first picture you can see all of the parts laid out before I started putting it all together.

I was Impressed
The first thing I was most impressed with was the tape measure that was included in the kit as well as the Allen wrench needed during installation. Even though I have a garage full of tools, this always makes things easier.

The Instructions
The instructions were pretty straight forward. The fit kit instructions for my car didn’t even have words for the most part. It was mainly just pictures that clearly showed you what to do. Each box had specific instructions for the parts that were in it.

Assembly Time
From start to finish it took 2 hours for me to pull the car into the garage, kick out the cats, unpack and arrange the parts for the photo, assemble, install, and test my rack. If I hadn’t spent the time laying out all the parts, and catching 3 cats, I could have easily been done in around an hour.

The Whistle
This is just a fact of how things work with attaching items to the outside of a car. My roof rack whistles once I get to about 35 MPH and up. I elected not to get the additional fairing to save some cash but I think I will get it soon to see if it helps.

The Verdict
I love this rack. I would recommend it to anyone. Another reason I like it is the versatility and accessories that are available. You can get carriers and rails for everything from cargo boxes to kayaks. If I get a new car, I will most likely be able to buy a new fit kit and it will mount right to it.

Here it is mounted and ready to go:

In Other News…

The Archive page is now functional. I’ll be adding some more features to this page as I figure out how to get the other archive methods working.

I’m also making some needed improvements to the webiste in the footer area. Don’t mind the mess for now. I’ll get it how I want it soon. But check it out when you come back here because I plan to put links to some good resources and other info in that space.

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2 Chances to Win a $50 Gift Card in Time for Christmas

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in Product Review

This is a bit time sensative so you’ll have to act fast. This promotion has been going on all week but I didn’t find out about it until today. So here are the details:

Go to UltraRob’s Adventures and read the post I have linked to for full contest details.

Basically try out the product search that can be found on the link I will post below and then give Rob some feedback in the comments about what you thought of the search and he will pick a winner out of the comments to get the gift card.

Its that simple, so check it out. Here are the links:

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Got Studs?

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in Bicycle Commuting, Mountain Biking, Product Review

So its winter time and for much of the country that means snow and ice. Bicycles don’t always do very well in these conditions but you do have some choices to increase traction and decreasing slippage. They all revolve around studded tires.

When it comes to studded tires you can either buy off the shelf studded tires or you can add the studs your self. It doesn’t end their though. There seems to be a few different methods to studding the tires your self.

Off The Shelf Studs

These might set you back a little bit but their engineered for this and I’m sure they work quite nice. There are a lot of models to choose from so you should be able to find something you like and they should be available to most bike shops.

Schwalbe Marathon Winter and Ice Spiker Pro
Innova Snow tires (you have to scroll down a bit)
Nokian Winter Tires (Finland based company available in the U.S.)
Kenda Klondike tires

Do-It-Yourself Studs

Now if you are a bit adventurous or just cheap and you want to make your own, these sites give some instructions and explanation of the way they did it. Each one is a little bit different.

I’ve not tried any of these options my self. So if you have, please share your experiences by leaving a comment. Did you make your own or did you buy them? What model? Did they work? What problems did you have? You know stuff like that.

The photo is from Mark Hohengasser. Thanks Mark.

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Off Season Training Guide by Coach Levi

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in Product Review

Levi Bloom of CoachLevi.com has published an e-book titled "The Complete Guide to Off Season Training for Cyclists". I got my hands on a copy and I read it. I’ll give you quick run down and review here.

What do you get?

You get a 53 page PDF document with pictures and links. You also get 2 bonus items. The first bonus is the "Winter Tires Buyers Guide" by Coach Levi and the "The Original 4-Week Bodyweight Turbulence Training Workout" by Craig Ballantyne.

How much is it?

The e-book costs $7.95 but you do have a 60 day money back guarantee

Was it worth it?

This is really subjective. I already knew most of what was in this e-book but I would consider myself fairly educated in these sorts of things.

I think this e-book would be great for someone that is new to cycling or at least new to specifically training for cycling.

The outdoor winter riding and indoor trainer tips are solid.

The exercises are not new but they do work and they are staple exercises in any body weight or dumbbell work out routine.

Yoga is something that I have not done but it makes a lot of sense. Flexibility is important in all facets of life and can be very beneficial in any athletic competition. I think I’ll incorporate the Yoga poses found in this book into my workouts to try and improve my flexibility.

The winter riding tips could be useful to anyone that rides in the winter months where it gets cold and nasty outside.

To buy, or not to buy, that is the question.

Advanced cyclists probably will not find much new information (you should already know this stuff) but for the average beginner or intermediate cyclist I think its worth the $7.95. Besides with the 60 day money back guarantee you don’t really have anything to loose.

If you would like to get your own copy of the e-book or read more about it visit CoachLevi.com.

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