Randonneuring on Rivendells

[lambbo]

How many people here are active randonneurs and ride their Rivendells?  What is your set-up? Are your priorities fenders or tire size? Do you run battery or dynamo?  What size bag do you carry if you have one? Does anything change from 200K to 600 or 1200K on your rig?  Pictures appreciated (because...it's an addiction). 

My Roadini is most comfortable on Jack Browns but I missed a 300K because I didn't want to ride 12 hours in heavy rain without them. Now I have 28s and fenders, which is fine but not the same cushion on the longer rides (I'll survive). I have dynamo on my Cheviot and love it for commuting, but am hesitant to invest just for 4 rides a year when batteries work fine. Small Saddle-Sack.  I love my setup, I'm really just curious what other people are doing with their Rivendells on Brevets. 

[Clayton.sf]

Done brevets on my Quickbeam in various configurations. basket, bags, fixed and SS. In my experience comfort is the most important thing since time limits are generous. The catch is that comfortable varies quite a bit from 3 to 300 miles. Full upright is nice for a few miles, but will be very uncomfortable for 120 miles for me. Both battery and dybamo lights work.

Experimentation is key and what works for me will maybe not work for the next person. In the end you won't know what works for a 300k unless you do a 300k. Best advice is to just start and see how it goes. worst case scenario you will DNF, so what? You will learn something anyway.

Clayton Scott
SF, CA

[Lum Gim Fong]

I did a 200k, centuries, and permanents on my Bleriot.

Ed Felker did PBP on his.

I have read of others who did Brevets on Rivendells.

Paul Donaldson(?) AKA WGR(?) World's Greatest Randonneur did brevets on his Sam Hillborne. Just google Worlds Greatest Randonneur and you will see the funny write up about his bike.

So I think comfort, reliability, and function is key. Put on it what you need to be comfy and cozy for any given ride.

But I have read/seen people doing brevet/s on many different types of bikes and violating all sorts of alleged dictums by alleged experts.

I think Clayton is right you have to ride and see what you need.

[SSL]

This year I rode my first full series (200, 300, 400, 600) + the Fleche and Dart team events with the SF Randonneurs on my Sam Hillborne. For each I ran Compass Snoqualmie Pass EL tires (44s). I had fenders on up until May - they just barely fit with the 44s! I've got a dyno which powers my front light + my phone + my wahoo GPS. For the longer distances, being able to power electronics is great. I use battery lights on the back, mostly because I haven't gotten around to wiring up a dyno rear light.

In terms of bags, my current setup is a 10" x 10" x 8" boxy rando bag on the front from Ruthworks and a xsmall saddle sack. In the past I've used a shop sack in a wald basket with two Randi Jo bartender bags attached to the basket. That setup worked fine, but I wanted something that was easier to get into while riding. On the last 200k I rode, I tried a more minimal setup of a small Jandd frame bag + a small Sackville trunk sack, which worked well for the shorter distance. 

The main thing I've changed is switching from mustache bars to drops. I love the mustache bars, but I was having trouble with finger numbness from pinching my ulnar nerve. Switching to drops seems to have fixed that. 

Current setup: https://www.instagram.com/p/Bg_00Eeh8Ff/?taken-by=seanlerner

Basket-rando setup (minus the shopsack): https://www.instagram.com/p/Bc2Vw1HAljW/?taken-by=seanlerner

More minimal 200k setup: https://www.instagram.com/p/BjyDJyXBhKV/?taken-by=seanlerner

[lambbo]

SSL, that's great to hear about - your evolving set-up is interesting...having something on the front seems so handy (I've committed to the rear but maybe next year).  That's also smart to think of powering your GPS, I know lots of people stress about battery life of such an essential.  Thanks for the pics!    SF rando seems really hardcore (so hilly!) and I always imagine that many of the people on here, in that area, ride with them.   Are you hoping to do PBP on the Hillborne?

[Lynne Fitz]

I did (rando bike is now a custom Sweetpea 650b), longest ride was a flèche. Bleriot frame.

Tires varied from Nifty Swifties to Michelin Axial Raids (oh, I miss those!). Fenders still are Honjos. Drop bars. Front and rear racks, Acorn front bag, Carradice Barley rear bag. Topeak Morph pump. Son 28 front hub, most recent light is a Supernova (as lights got better, I upgraded). The bike was also my commute bike; hence the rear rack, rather than the Bagman.

Bike is currently my well over-featured around town bike, with the addition of a Platrack and a Racktime camper rear rack.

Here’s a pic from when the luggage was NEW (both faded to the same color now): https://flic.kr/p/62eNHc

[lambbo]

Lynne, that's a sweet ride! Why did you switch to the sweetpea? I'm guessing your bleriot was 650b as well?

[RonaTD]

>How many people here are active randonneurs and ride their Rivendells?

My first brevets were on my Heron Road. Back then I carried everything in a Carradice saddle bag. For all the well-known reasons, I found that I preferred carrying things in a handlebar bag, and to this day I really like the Riv boxy bag and matching Nitto rack. The magnetic closure is a key feature. (But I prefer my Berthoud front bag for it's built-in map case.) I bought a Bleriot/Protovelo frame and had S&S couplers installed for a travel bike and to enjoy fatter 650B tires. I've done a fair amount of brevet and perm riding on that bike, and for a few years it was my commuting bike, as well. I also experimented with 650B on my Heron Road bikes, and that is where I discovered a handling issue, in which carrying weight in both a handlebar bag and a saddlebag at the same time created a noticeable shimmy issue. Eventually I decided to try a full-on, skinny tube, low trail rando bike, which I used for several years. I found I really liked the lower trail steering feel, especially when carrying a bunch of stuff in the handlebar bag. I particularly notice the handling difference on steep, curvy downhills (and of course steep, slow uphills). I had my Heron Road fork pulled to where the trail is now in the low 50's, and really liked the change.

I also found that each time I rode the Heron I thought, "this is my favorite bike." So, last year I had Waterford make me an ST-22 with a Heron fork raked out to get the trail into the low 40's. Using the Heron fork crown limits the fender width (it's 40mm between the tangs), so I decided to stick with 57mm reach brakes and 28mm tires with stainless steel fenders. The roads in Wisconsin are generally quite good and I haven't yet regretted going back to skinnier tires. Between the Compass EL casing and the flexy round fork blades, the bike really soaks up road imperfections nicely. The handling is right where I like it. The Schmidt dyno hub with the electrical connect built into the fork ends is a giant convenience, and having always available lights is important to me.

Fenders vs tire volume depends on your riding conditions and your tolerance for bumps vs being wet. My experience with fenders hasn't been completely happy, as I find that I still get quite a bit of spray on my feet and in the drivetrain. And, one time on a commute a tire picked up a stick and the fender jammed it enough that it tore the tire. That said, I still prefer to ride with fenders if it's wet. But when I took my Bleriot/Travelo to Ireland recently I didn't bother packing fenders. (And lucked out - the weather was beautiful!)

My 650b skinny tube bike is now my commuter, and I'm really happy with that. Dyno hub and lights are key, and fenders while not perfect are helpful. I carry a backpack in a Wald basket on the front and the very low trail geometry makes that work.

I've done 200km on my Rivendell Road, which has 26mm tires and nothing more than a small tool wrap under the saddle, and that was fast and fine, though it meant stuffing the jersey pockets and relying more on buying stuff along the way. There is a lot that changes when you get over 200km. Contact points - feet, seat, and hands - and fueling are the areas I've had the most adjustment. None of that is really "Rivendell specific".

Ted Durant
Milwaukee, WI
RUSA 7849

[Jim Bronson]

I have ridden 23,000 km of brevets on my older Road Standard/Custom.  And a couple hundred KM on my Redwood.  I'm now running 650b with Loup Loup Pass, Tektro R559 brakes, Pacenti PL23 rims.  44/28 up front and 11-32 in the back.  46cm Noodles, Tektro levers, Microshift 10 speed bar ends.  Carradice Barley in the back.  I have a SON Deluxe Widebody and would not dream of running night time rando rides without it.  Light is one of the Busch and Mueller LEDs that has 80 lux, fork crown mounted.  I keep a battery powered light in the trunk bag for emergencies only.

I have dreamed for a long time to have a full custom 650B purpose built rando bike, but it has of yet gotten high enough on my priority list to get done.  I would like a titanium Tournasol PBP model.  Maybe someday.  For now my current bike is a pretty swell steed and it's pretty free of vices, other than rust.

I have to admit my rando riding has tapered off quite a bit since I became a father but maybe in a few years I can get back riding full series and such.  For now I'm happy just to get out and do a populaire.

On Mon, Jun 18, 2018 at 8:28 PM lambbo <antone...@gmail.com> wrote:

How many people here are active randonneurs and ride their Rivendells?  What is your set-up? Are your priorities fenders or tire size? Do you run battery or dynamo?  What size bag do you carry if you have one? Does anything change from 200K to 600 or 1200K on your rig?  Pictures appreciated (because...it's an addiction). 

My Roadini is most comfortable on Jack Browns but I missed a 300K because I didn't want to ride 12 hours in heavy rain without them. Now I have 28s and fenders, which is fine but not the same cushion on the longer rides (I'll survive). I have dynamo on my Cheviot and love it for commuting, but am hesitant to invest just for 4 rides a year when batteries work fine. Small Saddle-Sack.  I love my setup, I'm really just curious what other people are doing with their Rivendells on Brevets. 

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[Jim Bronson]

Fenders.  I forgot, Fenders Fenders Fenders at all times.  Running the cream Longboards I got from RBW 5 years ago, still.  

If I encounter riders without fenders in the rain I try to get away from them, by speeding up if I can, or slowing down if I must.  I've gotten sick from eating other riders road grime in the rain before and don't care to repeat the experience.

[lukeheller]

I rode a canti-rom for my first year or two of brevets.
It was capable machine.

Now primarily riding a custom low trail ti Carver, S&S couplers, 700x35 with fenders, front rack.

[SSL]

That's the current plan!

[lambbo]

Ted, it's neat to hear the details about your low trail trials, I've never ridden one, that I know of, but it's hard to imagine handling better than my cheviot with a front load (feels great even with 30lbs).  I'll have to try!     Have you found that fender-flaps have helped at all?  I also feel discouraged when my feet continue to get wet from puddles, despite fenders.   Thanks for sharing!

[Toshi Takeuchi]

I owe the group an update on my custom randonneuring Riv, but yes, Rivendells are plentiful in the rando scene here in the Bay Area, CA.  I rode 200ks on my Roadeo with 32mm GB Cypress tires, no fenders.  200k/300k/400k with 700c Rambouillet, 32mm Paselas, 600k with A Homer Hilson, Parimoto 38 mm with fenders. 650b Rambouillet--full series 200k-600k, 42 mm Hetre with fenders.  Custom rando Riv 300k, 600k ("skipped" 400k this yr), 42 mm Hetre with fenders.

Usually trunk sack small for front rack and Acorn sm/md or Riv banana bag for seat bag.  For 600k I use a Acorn boxy rando bag for the front. Front bag is highly recommended for easy access to food and other key items without any fuss.

If you don't want to put a Mark's Rack on the Roadini, then you could get a small handlebar bag to put a few goodies in, and maybe small top tube container --that is what I do on my Roadeo rides. 

I like the ability to not fuss with batteries and use a dynamo system.

Toshi

[phil k]

Yes would love to see an update! The custom randonneur Riv was one of my favorite builds by Riv.

[Lynne Fitz]

They are both 650b, yes, and remarkably similar in component setup. Except for handlebars; Sweetpea has the On One Midge bars, which I love.

I had the Sweetpea made because I wanted a shorter top tube.

[nathaniel nichols]

I do all the road brevets on my fendered Rambouillet (pop, 200, 300, 400, 600, flèche, dart) 42mm Honjos over 28mm [closer to 30mm on velocity quill rims] Clement strada lgg tires. SONdelux hub to B&M Luxos U headlight to charge devices/Garmin. Ruthworks brevet bag on 44 Noodle h'bars wrapped with newbaums, ruthworks wedge on nitto 65 seat post under a Brooks cambium c15 carved. Kinda heavy but comfy

[nathaniel nichols]

https://www.instagram.com/p/BfIChudBmqi/?utm_source=ig_share_sheet&igshid=1i65cw12ewwzw

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bh699YUBrq9/?utm_source=ig_share_sheet&igshid=2oa1s0gl1qub

Before the dyno light and with nitto rando bars
https://www.instagram.com/p/BaxGfArB1jW/?utm_source=ig_share_sheet&igshid=13hp12qmj06au

[RonaTD]

> it's hard to imagine handling better than my cheviot with a front load (feels great even with 30lbs).

My Cheviot is a nightmare with weight up front. It had a crooked fork, and aligning that helped, but it still is very unstable with a front load.

> Have you found that fender-flaps have helped at all?

Well, I mounted my fenders pretty low, and a lot of the spray seems to come from the sides of the finders, but I should try flaps.

[Clayton.sf]

All personal preference I guess. I had a big wald basket on my Cheviot and routinely had a full camping or grocery load in there. It rode very well with that kind of front load be it dirt or trails.

Clayton Scott
SF, CA

[lambbo]

*Clayton, your Cheviot is now my cheviot so I guess it makes sense that we both find it works!