Art’s Cyclery Blog

Cerro San Luis (San Luis Mountain) lies smack-dab in the middle of San Luis Obispo and is a big part of everyone’s mountain-biking experience here. It’s the go-to ride-from-the-shop during the summer, and if you live or work in SLO, it’s easy to ride Cerro San Luis before or after work, and the mountain has a little bit of everything; singletrack, fire road, steep sections both up and down, and rocks. Lots of rocks. The trail on the backside of the mountain is known as the Rock Garden, and while it’s not the gnarliest trail around, it definitely has consequences if you fall. Many local riders have intimate relationships with the Rock Garden, and Anthony Medaglia, SRAM engineer, is one of the fastest. Enjoy this POV video and if you live here, compare Anthony’s run to the lines you usually take. Also, always send a buddy down ahead of you to make sure there aren’t any hikers. Don’t risk having mountain bikers kicked off the mountain.

Luke Mountain

Check out Art’s Cylery’s new Facebook page and stay up-to-date with all the goings-on of your favorite bike shop. Keep up on sales, watch videos, look at pictures, and be involved!

Luke General

Everyone wants to live in an area with lots of riding opportunities, and lots of people to ride with, right? We at Art’s Cyclery know how lucky we are to have both—it’s not Whistler or the hills of Tuscany, but we can pedal from our front door into hours of climbing, plummeting, rolling, twisting, scenic asphalt or singletrack, and almost always run into someone we know along the way. 

San Luis Obispo’s cycling scene has been pretty strong for a long time, and we love hearing tales of the old days when adventurous guys like Ron Cox rode dirtbikes up on the Ridge to blaze the trails we now ride by pedal power only. Even though there is a rich history of riding bikes in this town, there is always an opportunity to strengthen the community, and thankfully, that’s just what is happening. 

Local races are a great way to bring the cycling enthusiasts in your area together, both on the pavement and on the dirt. San Luis Obispo’s premier race promoter, cencalcycling.com, puts on races both large and small, from crits to cyclocross, and the turnout gets better every time. For 26″ wheeled racers, there is an under-the-radar “Black Market” race series put on by the racers themselves complete with times, photographers, and sometimes prizes. (Disclaimer: the Black Market Series is held on remote trails, where hikers, equestrians, or other trail users never go.)

Finally, San Luis Obispo’s “Bike Happening” attracts both hardcore and strictly-casual cyclists alike, and is a great way to have fun, ride bikes, and catch up with friends you haven’t seen in a while. The Bike Happening is a Critical-Courteous-Mass-style event, held on the first Thursday of the month, in which participants dress-up according to a theme, pedal around downtown SLO a few times, and have a great time, all while increasing the profile of responsible cycling in the community.

So there you go. Get some friends together and start a race series, or meet up after work one night and ride in circles for a while. Whatever you do, tell other cyclists about it, and make sure they spread the word as well. Before you know it you’ll be spinning right in the middle of a growing bike scene, which will lead to more trails, more bike lanes, and more friends!

Luke General

16-Serving Fluid Recovery Drink Mix

We here at Art’s Cyclery feel a special kinship with Fluid, since we are both based in the same town—San Luis Obispo, California, (Fluid started as a Cal Poly senior project). Most of us use Fluid in our recovery ritual, some use it exclusively, and appreciate that it is a 100% natural mixture, while providing an excellent molecular profile for fast and complete recovery.

If you haven’t tried Fluid yet and still need some more persuasion, check out this forum on slowtwitch.com. Interesting results include noticeably decreased post-workout muscle soreness, and increased post-workout energy. Most testers appreciated the 2500 mg of L-Glutamine.

We are excited to be able to partner up with Fluid to offer a special online price to enable you to discover what we feel is a breakthrough product. Enjoy!

Luke Gear, Product Reviews

The new Blackburn Tech Fluid Trainer

We’ve sold a lot of Blackburn trainers over the years, and we thought we knew the low-down on trainer performance, no matter what the brand is. It turns out, everything we thought we knew is wrong. Well not wrong, exactly, but things aren’t quite what they seem. According to Blackburn engineers Michael J. McColligan and Niko A. Henderson, trainers are a little more complicated than just, “Buy the most expensive trainer you can for the most realistic road feel possible.” 

It turns out that there is no such thing as an accurate or “realistic” resistance curve, at least not how we think of it. Resistance you encounter on the road is affected by many, constantly changing variables—hills, cross-winds, cornering are a few, and when you factor in the different aerodynamic resistance riders encounter based on their frontal area, it makes sense that one trainer can’t possibly provide a truly accurate “real-world” riding experience. The best that engineers can do is to attempt to create a resistance profile that matches the average rider under average riding conditions. That doesn’t mean that trainers are a hoax, however, in fact, just the opposite is true. By matching the different trainers characteristics to riding styles, we can fine-tune our training regimens to our specific needs.

If you’ve been reading this far, here comes the pay-off. Both fluid and magnetic trainers can provide a “realistic riding experience,” you just have to identify your experience. If you mostly ride flat roads at a higher speed/cadence,  especially in a pack—which translates to a more constant speed with few accelerations/decelerations, then the relatively linear resistance-curve of a magnetic trainer will provide a feel close to your real rides. This is because magnetic-resistance trainers tend to be more accurate in the lower end of their resistance-curve. Conversely, if your riding is filled with climbs, intervals, and head winds, then a fluid-resistance trainer will feel more like the real thing to you. Fluid units tend to be more accurate in the middle of their resistance-curve. McColligan and Henderson’s extensive testing found that “fluid-resistance units generally model middle- and (to some extent) high-end power output more accurately, and are more responsive to changes in rider input. Magnetic units are generally more accurate at the lower-end of the resistance curve, and tend to be more responsive to relatively small changes in rider input.”

Hopefully that helps you decide on which trainer is best for you. All trainers have their distinct resistance-curves, and some allow adjustability as well. It’s shaping up to be a long, cold, wet or snowy winter, so invest in a trainer to keep your fitness up and you’ll be the lion roaring next March.

Luke Gear, Technique

Trigger Point Performance Hip and Lower Back Kit

As cyclists, we all have a pretty decent grasp of the importance of a training routine; pre-season, off-season, mid-season, and  peak-season all have different programs, and we all know that preparing ourselves for the next ride begins at the end of this one. Everyone has their optimal nutrition schedule, warm-ups and intervals dialed in. We even know how important proper recovery is to success. But there is a big part of almost everyone’s recovery and maintenance routine that is limited or missing altogether, and that is massage.

Pro cyclists understand the importance of a post-ride massage to speed the breakdown of lactic acid and keep overworked muscles soft and loose and able to maintain proper body alignment. That’s why the pro’s have staff masseurs. Now, no one I know can afford to have a massage therapist work on them after every ride, until now that is, and that massage therapist is you.

The Grid from Trigger Point Performance

Trigger Point Performance products will help you reach and maintain your peak levels of performance. By massaging, strengthening, and toning your muscles (which is what Trigger Point products help you to do), you can push yourself to train harder and longer with superior results. Trigger Point products will help you even if you commute two hours each way to your desk job. For example—by keeping your psoas muscle (responsible for pulling your leg up towards your torso, and often responsible for lower back pain among desk-jockeys) elastic and loose you can easily maintain proper bike posture, increase flexibility, and possibly eliminate back pain. Trigger Point Performance products make this easy.

Just think how happy you would be if you had a massage every day. With Trigger Point, you can make that a reality. Unlock your potential with a Trigger Point kit today.

Luke Gear

As if you needed another reason to shop at artscyclery.com this holiday season, we are now offering free 2nd day air shipping on most orders over $150. Of course, we always provide free ground shipping on all orders over $50 as well, because we like you. Check out our great selection of gifts for the cyclists on your list, even if they happen to be you!

Luke General, Sales

The anxiously awaited Troy Lee D3 helmet has finally hit the shelves at Art’s Cyclery! Be assured, the wait was worth it. The Troy Lee D3 is an awesome helmet. Amazing looks, very light, and incredible protection all come together in this very special helmet. 

The concerns about the helmet looking “bulbous” are unfounded. The D3 has an extra 1/4″ of foam compared to the D2, but it is a very sleek-looking lid. There is no way you will look anything but pro with the D3 on your dome.

The graphics on the D3 line-up are probably the coolest of any  Troy Lee helmet—moto models included. Check ‘em out and buy one now—supplies are limited.

Luke Mountain

Here’s a little advice from Evan, our clothing buyer and avid triathlete, on how to get through the down-time of winter. Don’t forget, one of the the best ways to stay in shape through the off-season is to put in some maintenance miles on a trainer. This year’s crop of trainer’s from Blackburn and Cycle Ops look great, and will keep you in shape, ready to go when the roads thaw out. 

 ”I used to have trouble enjoying the off-season. As soon as my last race ended marking the conclusion of my season, I would start thinking about my next race, which would be several months away. I used to have to force myself to take time off the bike.

One unfortunate season that ended in burn-out sparked a monumental shift in my psyche. Now-a-days, I cherish the off-season and embrace it as a period of rest, recovery and flat-out laziness. I usually take two weeks after my last race of the year for complete rest. Those two weeks usually fly by as I reflect on my season and map out some goals for next year. After those two weeks, I begin the gradual process of easing my way back into training mode.

I’ll ride slow with friends with no set route or destination. I try to ignore my watch and cyclometer and just enjoy being active. This is the phase I’m in right now, and it’s interesting to note the psychological and physiological changes that occur.

My appetite is about a fourth of what it was when I was training 15-20 hours a week. I used to bring grocery bags full of food to work with me because I would constantly graze and snack to appease my incessant appetite. Now, I occasionally skip lunch without even realizing it. The irony is that since I stopped training with the unwavering vigor necessary to race at an elite level, I have actually lost weight.

Eventually, I will gain it back. Right around Thanksgiving, I’ll start to notice a little belly forming where there used to be a chiseled six-pack. I will compete with my brother in our annual contest of who can gain the most weight on Thanksgiving Day. He’s won the last three years in a row, with an unbreakable record of over five pounds in a five-hour period. The most amazing part about it is that he’s a vegetarian!

My advice for anyone struggling with the off-season blues is to pick up a new sport. Whether it’s competitive eating with siblings, cyclo-cross, or adventure racing, having a sport to fuel your athletic ambitions is always positive. If you have already mastered the art of the off-season, I say congratulations. The rest you get now will help when you start piling on the miles to build a strong base for your season.

Don’t be so focused on racing that you lose sight of why you do it in the first place – to have fun. Enjoy some rest, gain some weight, and you’ll come back next year stronger and more focused than ever.”

-Evan

Luke General

Art’s Cyclery is happy to announce that we are now selling Chrome bags and products. Chrome makes some of the best cycling-specific bags, clothing, and accessories available—because Chrome is a company owned by cyclists, staffed by cyclists, and supported by cyclists. Chrome started in a garage when two guys couldn’t find a bag that would stand up to the rigors of everyday riding, in all weather conditions, so they made their own bags. 

Chrome now leads the industry in durable, stylish, gear for the daily rider. See what we have on offer for you  at the Art’s website, and if there’s something Chrome makes that we don’t have, just ask and we’ll get it for you.

Luke Gear, Road