This and that

Fun ride last night. Went out SLOW, and the pace picked up as we rolled. I'm glad I'm not the only one who is seemingly a little burned out.
Time to start changing up the routine a bit methinks...
As I was saying...or typing, as it were, the pace picked up greatly on the run back into town.
As the normal jackass couldn't take a pull...well, he could, but chose not to so he wouldn't get blown out the back, Dr. Jones nailed it, young Mathis followed, and I chased the gap. Did I mention all of this happened at 65kmh?
Yeah...the shit hurt...
Dr. Jones nailed it again under the airport bridge, and split the group. Once again, it was the three of us...but...
The shifting on the Ridley has been suspect for a few weeks. I know I need new cables all around, as I haven't changed them since I built the Noah last June. That's 15 months, probably 15k kilometers (or more). and untold shifts.
On the way TO the ride last night, my shifting ostensibly stopped. A little jiggle of the housing, and everything was seemingly back to normal.  Seemingly...
Once onto the flat after the airport bridge, I went to shift, and that was that. Cable failure.
I tried to stay in the group with 2 gears (39/12 or 52/12), but seeing as suplesse is something lacking in my skillset, I sat up, and mashed it alone.
No sense endangering the group...
The Noah will be getting new cables today/tomorrow. Just need to go get some new bar tape.  I should probably drop the fork too, as the headset feels a little crunchy. Maybe a partial overhaul?

Jens broke The Hour record yesterday. It was pretty cool to watch the effort, even if one isn't a Jens fanboy...which I am decidedly not.
51.115km in The Hour.
The UCI has changed the rules of The Hour more times that an OCD diaper changer washes his/her hands, so comparing Jens' effort to Merckx, Moser, Indurain, or Sosenka is little comparing apples to fungo bats.
His position was closer to Boardman and Obree than Merckx and Sosenka.
The effort was outstanding anyway. 204 laps of a 250m track? Made me dizzy watching. The physical effort is admirable, but the mental toughness is astonishing.
And begs the questions...
Will assaults on The Hour begin? Will Wiggins, Cancellara, and Martin put it WAY out there?
Consider this...
In the last TT of the 2014 Tour, which was 54km, Tony Martin put 9:32 into Voigt. NINE THIRTY TWO.
If one were to run the math, that comes out to 32 laps of a 250m track @ 17.7 seconds per lap, which was Voigt's average. Or 8km!!
Martin averaged 49kmh in the Tour TT, and Voigt averaged 43kmh, so Voigt rode 87% as fast as Martin.
Yeah, I know it's purely hypothetical, but if the gap were to be the same on the track, Martin would put The Hour out to around 57kmh.
Ruminate on THAT for a moment...
I know the guys at Specialized have run the numbers, and will likely cut the rear end off of a Shiv to fit 120mm track ends in the near future.
Trek got A LOT of marketing out of Jens' effort, and Specialized is nothing if not marketing savvy. Or whores...potato/potatoe

Other stuff...

Victoria Pendleton. British Track Cycling star. Winner of the British version of Dancing with The Stars. I'll let you guys come up with your own comment(s)...

Custom Buell. Sort of reminds me of an A-10 fighter jet. The A-10 is a plane built around a gun. This custom is a moto built around a 1203cc modified Harley motor. Wonder if it's fast?
I'd be dead the afternoon it got delivered...

And I picked up a Giant Numen Aero blinky light. If you have an aero bike, with a teardrop shaped post/mast, this is really the only answer.
It fits the Noah post perfectly, is plenty bright, and just doesn't move, nor bounce around.
And it looks far more elegant ON the bike than other lights. No ugly brackets, no exposed screws/bolts...just a rubber attachment, and the light. Clean and simple.
I bought the battery version. It takes (2) CR2032 batteries. Giant also makes a USB rechargeable version. 
I got mine from the guys at Summit....

Time to make a Publix run, and go get some new bar tape....

This rain should end today, and the weekend looks outstanding. Go outside and play!