TD newbie qs

[mcmurv]

Just a word on Maxxis Crossmark Non LUST tires... I was running the LUST and loved them but like you I thought it might be beneficial to save the weight and run the non LUST.  Unfortunately they blistered on me.  Googling around, this is a common issue with maxxis non LUST tires.  So, I called Maxxis directly to see if they support/warranty non LUST tires with Stans. I had to leave a message and never heard back.  So I used their warranty web site... no response.  I asked all the folks on my team and no one had ever had these problems on their DH tires... Needless to say I was bummed about losing the $ on a new set of tires.  Now I'm back to LUST :-)

The non-LUST tires  blistered on you?  That is strange.  I have been running non-LUST Crossmarks for nearly 3 years and the only problems I had were with the LUST ones.  The non-LUST have been bullet proof with Stans.  I got 3,000 miles out of my first set.  I rode 5,000 miles on my first set of non-LUST Crossmarks last year.  I put on a pair LUST Crossmarks that I bought by accident and only got about 1,000 miles out of them before the rear tire separated from the bead, because the rubber was blistering and coming unwrapped from the bead. 

[bartspedden]

I hear you mcmurv! No one on my team has had the problem either. But my rear tire had maybe 70 miles on it and had multiple blisters. I didn't bother counting all of them because one blister was the size of a dime and I knew the tire was dead.  But there were many tiny little blisters all over the tire too.  Most of the larger blisters seemed to be near the center of the tire with the smaller blisters being on the smooth sidewalls. I bought a set of ignitors on the same order and decided to sell them instead after reading about all the blisters that ignitor users have seen from a simple google search.  Too bad maxxis wouldn't communicate with me on the issue. A teammate who is also a bike mechanic said that it's not uncommon either. it turns out that not all rubber compounds deal well with Stans. I think some tire manufactures will say explicitly that they support Stans. Anyone out there with any solid industry information on the topic? All my info is just from my own experiences, no real science.

[chriskmurray]

UST(or LUST as Maxxis calls it).
26 2009, 2010
29 2011

Hey Stephen, how did you feel riding a 26in wheeled bike on the TD?  It must not have been too horrible if you did it two years in a row on the same bike.  The only reason I ask is I have a Surly Troll which fits great, rides super smooth and I really enjoy riding that bike more than I have most of my others, not to mention it would save me from buying a new frame/fork.

[sluttyduck]

It was fine, and I had plenty of options for tires when I got to Steamboat.
I did have a hard time keeping up with the 29er folks on the flat/asphalt section.
That was my only gripe

[chriskmurray]

It was fine, and I had plenty of options for tires when I got to Steamboat.
I did have a hard time keeping up with the 29er folks on the flat/asphalt section.
That was my only gripe

Cool, so if you had a 26in bike you really loved you would have no problems bringing it along?  Long climbs seem to be easier on a 26 than 29 so maybe it balances out a bit (although I only have 20ish miles on a 29'er so not a ton of experience between other bikes)

[DenisVTT]

29ers are really good to go over obstacles so that's not really a factor on the TD.

Personally, I rode a 29er but that's because that's all I got and all I ever ride. I saw plenty of people (including Kurt, the eventual winner, if I'm not mistaken) ride 26ers last year and do just fine.

[BigPoppa]

29ers are really good to go over obstacles so that's not really a factor on the TD.

Personally, I rode a 29er but that's because that's all I got and all I ever ride. I saw plenty of people (including Kurt, the eventual winner, if I'm not mistaken) ride 26ers last year and do just fine.

I rode with Kurt at the start (really just the neutral part of the start and they he shot off like a little psycho). He was on a 29er I'm pretty sure. Also, he lists his bike as the Salsa Mariachi, which only comes in a 29 (at least on their site that is all that's listed).

http://www.outsideonline.com/blog/the-cycle-life-10-questions-with-tour-divide-favorite-kurt-refsnider.html

http://salsacycles.com/bikes/el_mariachi/

Personally, I would go with a 29er. It rides so much better over the washboard and such. That's just personally though. Bikepacking is so individual it's insane.

[DenisVTT]

I rode with Kurt at the start (really just the neutral part of the start and they he shot off like a little psycho). He was on a 29er I'm pretty sure. Also, he lists his bike as the Salsa Mariachi, which only comes in a 29 (at least on their site that is all that's listed).

OK, I guess I was a bit too tired when I saw him at the top of Boreas Pass (I was NoBo). Still, I think I saw plenty of 26ers out there. Not the majority, though.

[chriskmurray]

Bikepacking is so individual it's insane.

I think that sums up cycling in general quite well actually.  If I did not have a bike I loved so much I would be getting a 29'er for sure but I am a sucker for sentimental value.

[fotooutdoors]

Curious if anyone has put a rigid fork (like niner carbon) on something like the 29er superfly or specialized and how it changes the geometry/height compared to the stock fox suspension 80 or 100mm fork.

If you get a fork corrected for the amount of travel of the stock fork (Axel to crown height of the sus fork minus sag with you on the bike), it shouldn't change geometry at all, though riding with suspension is obviously different than riding fully rigid.  I believe the niner comes in several different lengths for different travel lengths.

[Area54]

I hear you mcmurv! No one on my team has had the problem either. But my rear tire had maybe 70 miles on it and had multiple blisters. I didn't bother counting all of them because one blister was the size of a dime and I knew the tire was dead.  But there were many tiny little blisters all over the tire too.  Most of the larger blisters seemed to be near the center of the tire with the smaller blisters being on the smooth sidewalls. I bought a set of ignitors on the same order and decided to sell them instead after reading about all the blisters that ignitor users have seen from a simple google search.  Too bad maxxis wouldn't communicate with me on the issue. A teammate who is also a bike mechanic said that it's not uncommon either. it turns out that not all rubber compounds deal well with Stans. I think some tire manufactures will say explicitly that they support Stans. Anyone out there with any solid industry information on the topic? All my info is just from my own experiences, no real science.

In my experience and talking to our tech reps from Maxxis, they were not warrantying the tyres that had been installed with Stans. Stans has an ammonia content that is incompatible with the rubber chemistry of Maxxis tyres, hence the blister failures. I've used Caffelatex (no ammonia), Geax TNT and tubeless therapy with great success on a wide range of tyres and tubs, both road and offroad.

[bartspedden]

Thanks Area54, that's the best explanation that I've heard yet! Glad to hear you are having a good experience with caffelatex too.  I'll have to give a shot. I sure wish the tire manufacturers would just come out and say "we support these tire sealants..."

[bgiro]

Stan's sells 26" and 29" tires.  Completely Stan's sealant compatible.

[bartspedden]

For what it's worth, I started doing some research into the ammonia idea.  I found a couple interesting hits:

This article describes in explicit detail my experience with the non LUST crossmark and is complete with pictures:
http://www.utahmountainbiking.com/fix/sealant-failures.htm

This forum post is pretty darned old (from 2005) but it's directly from the stans web site and has info from the horses mouth:
http://messageboard.notubes.com/viewtopic.php?t=93

From what I can tell, it seems like sometimes sealant will wreck a new tire.  

[rooster14]

Just a few questions

Food
- what kind of food(s) did you pack and how much? (including energy gels etc)
- Did you bring a camp stove/JetBoil type set up?

Gearing
-how many teeth on your big ring?

Tire set ups
- is just about everyone running tubeless or are there still a lot using tubes?

Rain Gear
- how important are/were rain pants to you?

If you forwarded mail
-how did you decide where to mail?
-what did you send to yourself?

[THE LONG RANGER]

- what kind of food(s) did you pack and how much? (including energy gels etc)
- Did you bring a camp stove/JetBoil type set up?

Do you have a dietary restriction?

I personally didn't pack any, "special" foods, or use a stove - with the amount of food you're going to be eating and what type of resources are available right off trail, you may be at the whims of what's stocked at the local gas station or what's on the menu at a bar, for the majority of stops - there's parts where it's slim pickings. The only "sports specific" food I picked up was Gatorade and EmergenC powder, mostly to take the hit off water that's been treated. Learning to eat while out on such a long trip is a good skill in of itself and what works will vary with the person.

- is just about everyone running tubeless or are there still a lot using tubes?

Tubeless are quite impressive - especially when you take them off and see what's still stuck in them. I'd suggest it. Bring along an extra tube with Stan's or slime in it (etc), just in case.

- how important are/were rain pants to you?

Don't think I packed, any. It will depend on how much rain you hit - I may have hit one squall in Colorado, but that's about it. That's going to vary, widely through the years, but I have a hunch that this year is going to be bone, bone dry.

I didn't do any mailing - perhaps I should with bike parts near the half way point. Def. mailed some stuff back, there's plenty of post offices still on much of the route.

[BobM]

Just a few questions

Food
- what kind of food(s) did you pack and how much? (including energy gels etc)
- Did you bring a camp stove/JetBoil type set up?

Gearing
-how many teeth on your big ring?

Tire set ups
- is just about everyone running tubeless or are there still a lot using tubes?

Rain Gear
- how important are/were rain pants to you?

If you forwarded mail
-how did you decide where to mail?
-what did you send to yourself?

Lightening the load trumps everything else in terms of comfort.

Food:

EmergenC, some GU packets, NUUN tablets.  Other than that it's whatever you need to get to the next stop plus a little extra just in case.  Stoves are way to heavy to be worth it.

Gearing:

I have no idea - I am not a gearhead by any means.  I have never been spun out in my biggest gear and I can get down to 4 mph or so in my smallest gear.

Tires:

I am a retro-idiot I suppose and use tubes.  The smart money is on tubeless (make sure you set them up well in advance of the race to make sure you have no problems).

Rain gear:

Rain pants suck for riding.  This time around I think I will go with some homemade rain shorts as it would be nice to keep the shorts/chamois from getting completely soaked in a downpour.  I figure rain shorts will make a nice "sit pad" as well.

Mail drops:

Catch-22 - the more remote areas where a drop would be nice (Like Polaris, MT) have very limited PO hours while the big towns have better hours but you can get everything you need there anyway.  A big box to Rawlins is a nice idea as they have "big city" PO hours.  New shorts, chain, set of tires.  Of course if you arrive on Sat PM or Sunday you're screwed.

Bob

[BigPoppa]

Mail drops:

Catch-22 - the more remote areas where a drop would be nice (Like Polaris, MT) have very limited PO hours while the big towns have better hours but you can get everything you need there anyway.  A big box to Rawlins is a nice idea as they have "big city" PO hours.  New shorts, chain, set of tires.  Of course if you arrive on Sat PM or Sunday you're screwed.

Bob

Totally got there on the weekend this year. Did the whole course in one pair of shorts....!

[rooster14]

So what happens to your box? Return to sender?

[BobM]

So what happens to your box? Return to sender?

Priority Mail gets returned at no charge.