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Get Fit, Stay Fit, Feel Good - 2026

stangmx13 said:
Ya 1x gearing is often shorter/easier than 2x gearing. The 1x usually sacrifices top speed. The 2x gives more gears and more top speed. Count the teeth and divide. 51t rear & 40t front is not uncommon for 1x gravel. 51/40=1.28. (Higher is easier). Easiest 2x gearing is around 36t rear & 30t front. 36/30=1.20. I wouldn’t be surprised if your new bike is 34/31=1.10. I’ll scroll back and see if I can find out.

Levi’s is technically a road race. The new elevation gain may be more smooth shallow climbs, not super steep stuff. So you may not need ez gears, just more stamina. RideWithGPS has good data for this if you can see the route there.
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One of the climbs is Coleman Valley Road. It’s on the very hard side for me right now.

The surly is a 34/50 in front. Shimano 105 R7101, 11-34t, 12-speed Rear.

I’m gonna go count teeth on the Vassago and brb. lol 42 front, 51 rear

Agreed re: stamina. My legs have gotten stronger than they used to be so I'll get back in the saddle and start trucking.
 
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two wheel tramp said:
One of the climbs is Coleman Valley Road. It’s on the very hard side for me right now.

The surly is a 34/50 in front. Shimano 105 R7101, 11-34t, 12-speed Rear.

I’m gonna go count teeth on the Vassago and brb. lol 42 front, 51 rear

Agreed re: stamina. My legs have gotten stronger than they used to be so I'll get back in the saddle and start trucking.
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Oof. Ya 34-34 is a lot harder than 42-51. You can get the Surly to 30-34 for ~$200 in new parts and 30-36 for ~$300 in parts. 30-36 would feel the same as 42-51. PM me if you want to parts list.

That Coleman climb is something. I agree everyone could use more gearing than 34-34. 20min at 10% grade, FUNNN 😅
 
stangmx13 said:
Oof. Ya 34-34 is a lot harder than 42-51. You can get the Surly to 30-34 for ~$200 in new parts and 30-36 for ~$300 in parts. 30-36 would feel the same as 42-51. PM me if you want to parts list.

That Coleman climb is something. I agree everyone could use more gearing than 34-34. 20min at 10% grade, FUNNN 😅
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Thank you. This is actually encouraging. I’m pondering doing the fondo on my 1x9 again. 😂 it’s got a 40-40 granny gear.

I did hit a grade today that I could not make it up on the Vassago. So I turned around.

I’m going to DM you for that parts list and explore modifying the surly. I also got really curious what the Vassago would feel like with drop bars.

@tag3 is gonna kill me. :teeth
 
two wheel tramp said:
Thank you. This is actually encouraging. I’m pondering doing the fondo on my 1x9 again. 😂 it’s got a 40-40 granny gear.

I did hit a grade today that I could not make it up on the Vassago. So I turned around.

I’m going to DM you for that parts list and explore modifying the surly. I also got really curious what the Vassago would feel like with drop bars.

@tag3 is gonna kill me. :teeth
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40-40 is the same as 34-34. 40/40=1.0=34/34. Did you have a typo in there?

You might be able to do a dropbar conversion on the Vassago for $250, depending on how well eBay treats you. But there is a chance dropbars would ruin the fit by moving the grips too far from the saddle. A good mechanic or fitter would be able to tell before buying parts.
 
stangmx13 said:
40-40 is the same as 34-34. 40/40=1.0=34/34. Did you have a typo in there?

You might be able to do a dropbar conversion on the Vassago for $250, depending on how well eBay treats you. But there is a chance dropbars would ruin the fit by moving the grips too far from the saddle. A good mechanic or fitter would be able to tell before buying parts.
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The 😂 = I know this is stupid but…

And yup. The trek has a 40-40.

I’ll see what @tag3 has banging around his parts bin and discuss with him before I get too stupid with the drop bar curiosity. I’m thinking of shuffling the Vassago to the bay area as my longer distance bike.
 
Been many years since I did Levi's, but yes I was not geared low enough (or fit enough) for Coleman. I really enjoyed the Willow Creek option (not fully paved, but shadier). I won't forget when Levi passed me in a flash up a hill as I was sitting/spinning. The Marin Century is a good one as well. Just did a nice loop on Hawk Hill over the weekend.

You have inspired me....looking at registering now...
 
Norcalslowpoke said:
Been many years since I did Levi's, but yes I was not geared low enough (or fit enough) for Coleman. I really enjoyed the Willow Creek option (not fully paved, but shadier). I won't forget when Levi passed me in a flash up a hill as I was sitting/spinning. The Marin Century is a good one as well. Just did a nice loop on Hawk Hill over the weekend.

You have inspired me....looking at registering now...
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Rad. Thanks! If my fat ass can dare, hopefully your fitter ass will join us. :laughing
 
A cool article on fat as primary fuel, I’ve been thinking it’s an endurance sport hack that is underrated

carnivoreweekly.com

Carnivore Diet for Runners: Endurance Training on Zero Carbs

Can you train for a marathon on the carnivore diet? What happens to endurance performance on zero carbs, how long adaptation takes, and how to fuel long runs.
carnivoreweekly.com
 
You’ll pry my motivational gummy bears from my cold, dead hands. :x

:laughing

Editing to add I actually did go read the article.
 
Das MotorRad said:
A cool article on fat as primary fuel, I’ve been thinking it’s an endurance sport hack that is underrated

carnivoreweekly.com

Carnivore Diet for Runners: Endurance Training on Zero Carbs

Can you train for a marathon on the carnivore diet? What happens to endurance performance on zero carbs, how long adaptation takes, and how to fuel long runs.
carnivoreweekly.com
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I posted an article on that a number of pages ago. It was focused on women and their ability to utilize fat as an endurance fuel, and they are way better than men at accessing fat for fuel. However once exercise gets above a certain threshold your body switches to carbs as it’s primary energy source because it’s able to access it much faster than metabolizing fat.
 
Ridley said:
I posted an article on that a number of pages ago. It was focused on women and their ability to utilize fat as an endurance fuel, and they are way better than men at accessing fat for fuel. However once exercise gets above a certain threshold your body switches to carbs as it’s primary energy source because it’s able to access it much faster than metabolizing fat.
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I read an article about super insane women ultra endurance runners and thought of you, or really, your wife. Like just insane distance.
 
Das MotorRad said:
A cool article on fat as primary fuel, I’ve been thinking it’s an endurance sport hack that is underrated

carnivoreweekly.com

Carnivore Diet for Runners: Endurance Training on Zero Carbs

Can you train for a marathon on the carnivore diet? What happens to endurance performance on zero carbs, how long adaptation takes, and how to fuel long runs.
carnivoreweekly.com
Click to expand...
Those are some strong claims in the adaptations section. I need a study.

I wonder what the max human fat oxidation rate is. I wanna c a bell curve and c how many calories anyone could ever reasonable get from fat.

I dislike that this includes a common oversimplification about glycogen stores. Ya your body stores around 2000Cal of glycogen - 400-500g in the muscles, 100g in the liver, and 5g in the blood. But your muscles don’t share!!! That glycogen molecule in your forearm isn’t going to fuel your quad as you are running. When your quads run out, they are only topped up by the blood and liver. That changes the napkin math A LOT.
 
For a study, watch "naked and afraid" or alone. N&F is easier to visibly see the fat used as fuel evidence.
 
stangmx13 said:
Those are some strong claims in the adaptations section. I need a study.

I wonder what the max human fat oxidation rate is. I wanna c a bell curve and c how many calories anyone could ever reasonable get from fat.

I dislike that this includes a common oversimplification about glycogen stores. Ya your body stores around 2000Cal of glycogen - 400-500g in the muscles, 100g in the liver, and 5g in the blood. But your muscles don’t share!!! That glycogen molecule in your forearm isn’t going to fuel your quad as you are running. When your quads run out, they are only topped up by the blood and liver. That changes the napkin math A LOT.
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I would love to read your experience with it, as I have generally always agreed with your take on things and methodology, as far back as brotogp days at least… wanna give it a go? :teeth
 
Fat burn is more about insulin levels than fat as a"primary fuel". IOW, your body prioritizes based on the ease to burn: glucose, glycogen, fat. the longest Fast recorded is 382 days. Started @450, ended@ 185 IIRC. I was shocked when I heard that stat...seems a decent metric on the value of (stored) fat.
 
Das MotorRad said:
I would love to read your experience with it, as I have generally always agreed with your take on things and methodology, as far back as brotogp days at least… wanna give it a go? :teeth
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I'm biased because I can't think of any successful pro cyclist that is employing this kind of strategy. I tend to try what others have proved to work, not vibes written on blogs. Do you really want me researching this :LOL:

Here's some useful sources I found. I'll type up some thoughts later.
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5766985/
https://www.researchgate.net/profil...king-fat-as-a-fuel-for-endurance-exercise.pdf
https://www.ovid.com/jnls/acsm-msse...fat-oxidation-rates-in-an-athletic-population
 
Holeshot said:
For a study, watch "naked and afraid" or alone. N&F is easier to visibly see the fat used as fuel evidence.
Click to expand...
Why do you think Naked&Afraid counts as a study? Was their calorie intake and expenditure measured or estimated? Were they weighed before and after? Did they wear fitness watches the whole time?
 
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