Category: Christoph Sauser
Clipping or cutting tires
This is a quick post to explain to John Harrington (facebook discussion on 24 August ) about clipping tires.
(There is more, but I couldnt screen shoot the whole thing- was born in the 70s)
These Specialized Captain 2.00 tires clogged with mud at XTERRA Vermont in 2009 (Read more about the race, rotten foot and tire story here) Not knowing Vermont, I didnt bring real mud tires, so I had to make do, so I used a sharp wire cutter and clipped every 2nd knob out of the center line of knobs. Which would help the mud shed (fling off) the tire easier when speed increase.
Real mud tires are narrow (sinks to the bottom of the mud where the real traction is) with few, but tall knobs. Tall knobs provide more grip (like paddles or spikes) and few because, too many knobs will let the mud pack onto the tire and make a thick sausage like the pic above.
Downhill racers are famous for cutting tires to suit certain courses.
Off course, a rainy pre race taper allows for plenty of cutting time, so here is my product. Cant see on the pic, I clipped every 2nd knob out of the center row of this Specialized Captain for better mud clearing.
Of course, its a tedious job, it takes seemingly hours and 1 slight mishap and you can throw the tire in the garbage.
Before the new fast rolling Specialized Renegade tire the Specialized Factory Team (especially Susi and Burry) used to cut the Fast Trak knobs shorter for less rolling. (and less stopping/cornering 🙂 ) But now they’d cut Fast Trak tires for more grip on somewhat muddy courses. If it gets real muddy, they’ll go with a full on mud tire. Except Burry. He just sticks to low knobs and goes with the sliding- I saw it 1st hand at Sani2C…
Athletes’ Beauty Kits. And other random quirks
Seriously Bobby, you need 8 tooth cleaning tools? (ok 4, if you dont count the ones in the mirror)
On a recent trip to Keystone Colorado for the Specialized 2011 product launch, I shared a room Specialized Team Manager, Bobby Behan, who is a very very organized guy. (“like, you know”- Irish accent) When on the road, he always completely unpacks his whole bag right away- even if its just a 1 night stay. He neatly lines all his shoes in a row, all his watches in a row and his training clothing goes neatly in Specialized bags- lined up according the temperature rating.
Sharing the “road” with other athletes is always a trip. Jamie Whitmore had a pre-race ritual which led her to travel the globe with a her waffle iron and special waffle mix…
Breakfasting with the Specialized Factory Team is quite an experience in itself.
Good luck to Specialized riders Susi and Burry at Cape Epic
Pic by Gery Perkin
Good luck to fellow Specialized riders Christoph Sauser and Burry Stander on their quest to win the much heralded Cape Epic mountain bike stage race. 1500 riders from all over the globe tackles the 730kmin 8 days with 15 000m of climbing on sunday.
Read more about the Specialized team and their charity, Songo on Songo.info
Burry, now remember those down hill lessons I taught you at Team Camp 🙂
Yes, he is tiny. Or maybe someone supersized the Caveman and his wheels
Sea Otter Cycling Classic. I finished 8th in the pro Cross Country.
Loved the Specialized 29er Epic. Andy pimped my ride between thrashings. Note my new race kit for 2009. Made by Luma.- more later.
Christoph won comfortably. Todd had a flat, I gave him my CO2 and he finished 6th- which allowed him to win the Omnium-(Short Track and XC combined) Great for Todd, Specialized and the 29er. Lene finished 2nd in the XC and won the ladies’ Omnium. A great start for the season. Burry had a head cold from the previous day and saved it for this coming weeks World Cup in Germany.
I had a close sprint finish with Jeremiah Bishop for 7th. A lot of fun. Quite surprised at my results. (16th in short track and 8th in XC)
I was stoked to be “randomly selected” for UCI drug testing. (Photos below) The 180bs triathlete tearing it up at XC? Of course he needs testing!
More stories shortly.
Looking forward to a good XTERRA season.
Here are some slides: Go to flickr.com to see the pictures titles.
Created with Admarket’s flickrSLiDR.
Riding with Christoph Sauser and Conrad Stoltz…
It was “Make a wish” for 16 year old mountain biker Justin Pictor from Stellenbosch South Africa. Fresh off a great 3rd in the under 17 race at South African Mountainbike Nationals last week, it was good to catch up with Justin again.
A year ago I rode with him and some friends. His ability and enthusiasm for mountain biking was fun to watch. I raised his saddle by a massive 3cm, helped with a technical, nutrition and racing tips. He trained really well, right through the holidays, and all around he has improved tremendously in just 1 year. Its fun to watch the kids improve in leaps and bounds, because once you get to the top level, (and has been there for a while) improvement is few and far between.
Christoph Sauser, (Susi) 3x Mountain bike World Champion, Justin Pictor & myself getting ready to ride fine Jonkershoek single track.
