欧州自転車レース追っかけ日記 2015年03月

Tufo S33 Pro 24 Tubular tire 24-622 2015

TUFO S33 24 Tubular tire

I purchased this tubular tire to fit it on my Zipp 404. It was a choice based on two reasons.

One. I already have Tufo S33 21-622 (2013 or 2012 model) on thre front wheel.

Two. It was rather cheap.

There was a visual problem that I recognized when I opened the package. The "TUFO" logo on the tire has changed (or 21 mm wide model and 24 mm wide model have different logo colors?). Old 21-622 has TUFO in yellow and the new 24-622 has TUFO in white. What's the heck! I wanted to make them match.

21-622 model's proper (recommended) air pressure is between 8 to 12 bar and that of 24-622 model's is between 6 to 8 bar. As I expected, the wider 24 mm version allows less air pressure because it holds more air inside. This would result in a more comfortable ride. This, I have to see when I ride the bike.

It was easier to pull it on the wheel. The tire is already on the wheel without the glue cement. I will let it stretch for a while.

Elite Super Bysasi Bottle Box for Tools 850 ml black

A Tool can for the urgent repair needs on the way. I have a smaller simple tool can from "PRO". It holds, one tightly packed inner tube (for a clincher tire), tire levers and tiny parts (chain connectors, a spare bulb, a tiny rear light, a tiny LED light). It is then full.

I would like to put a pocket multi-tool, a front light and its battery and etc. I needed a bigger one. Now I have it. It is neat. It has a separate tiny compartment to hold easy to get lost.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Tufo S33 Pro 24 Tubular tire 24-622 2015]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車（スポーツ用） - ジャンル:スポーツ

Rotor 3D+ confusion (update solved!)

I need to jot down something here. I ordered wrong set of spacers for my Rotor 3D+. Is it my fault?

Today, I received a package containing something that I ordered a week ago from Germany. A BSA 30 BB cups. These cups came with a wrench and a piece of paper, which is the instructions how to install the crankset.

After scanning the contents, I realized what I really needed for my application -- installing a Rotor 3D+ on a road bike with BSA 68. I need a two spacers called "E", which is 0.5 mm thick spacer.

OMG! The spacer "B" is needed for mountain bike applications. How did I get confused or misled? I downloaded some PDF files from Rotor's site and I thought I had read them carefully. How come?

This 0.5 mm spacer is made of what material? Plastic or aluminium or something else. I don't want to order this tiny piece of spacer and pay for the shipping, which costs more than the spacer itself. It is ridiculous.

This is the screenshot clip from the Rotor's PDF instructions for installing the crankset.

(image 1 from the PDF instructions)

3+4 is for BSA 30 (BSA cups).

(image 2 from the PDF instructions)

(image 3 from the PDF instructions. The document seems to cover the road racer frame.)

NOOOOO! RD3 means 3 chainrings. My crankset is for 2 chainrings.

Wow! I think I need two E spacers after all.

As you can see, it clearly says I need an E spacer and a B spacer. I don't understand at all.

On the other hand, I was told by this paper that I needed two Es.

This is the paper included in the BSA30 package. ~~I am really confused.~~

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ

[Rotor 3D+ confusion (update solved!)]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車（スポーツ用） - ジャンル:スポーツ

Rotor 3D+ MAS arrives and Garmin Map Updates 2015.40

It has arrived. As expected, the package did not contain anything but the crankset complete with chianring fixing bolts.

I have already ordered the necessary spacers (named B=5.5 mm and E=0.5 mm) and the totally unnecessary bolt (because the crankset came with one in black but because the red one looks good and I could not resist). They will be arriving later this week or early next week.

My Rotor 3D+ has an MAS (Micro Adjust Spider) on it. It was not because I wanted it but it was just so. I don't need it but it will cost me to buy something else (a normal spider for Rotor 3D+).

Q-rings or QXL chainrings from Rotor could be thicker than normal chainrings. When I used the chainring bolts (that came with the crankset) to fix the O.Symetric chainrings, the bolts and the nuts could not properly fix them (outer and inner). I guess they were made for thicker rings. I guessed that as Q-rings and QXL rings have so many holes, the material has to be thikcer.

(image from Rotor's site)

And one more thing I realized. The MAS spider are cumbersome and the inner chainring won't come in place when the spider is already set.

I have to place the inner ring before tightening the Rotor cranks on the frame. I should not forget this.

Garmin Map Updates:
As expected, it took long time to complete the task. This time I updated both the map on the PC (for my case, it is MacBook Pro and for the BaseCamp on it) and the map on the GPS device (nüvi 2340). Downloading the map update took several hours (I don't know exactly but 4-5 hours?) and installing on the Micro SD card inside the nüvi 2340 took one night.

Should I buy a torque wrench?
This has been on my mind for a while. Smaller torque range wrenches are not so expensive. Larger torque range wrenches are expensive, of course. Rotor cranks should be fixed using the torque between 35 NM to 40 NM.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Rotor 3D+ MAS arrives and Garmin Map Updates 2015.40]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車（スポーツ用） - ジャンル:スポーツ

I did not go watch Gent-Wevelgem this year

Curse my karma! I wanted but I could not. I tried all to get there but I could not.

I was upset but something prevented me from doing so.

I was upset that I bought something on the Internet, namely, some spacers needed to install Rotor 3D+ on BSA-68 BB cups. And also I bought a shiny red anodized crank fixing bolt. This bolt was not needed as the Rotor 3D+ crankset comes with one but alas it is in black. I wanted a red one.

I had already given up the hope that my Rotor 3D+ crankset might come with the necessary spacers. It won't happen one in a million.

I don't want to wait. The crankset will be mounted on my Cervélo as soon as possible.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [I did not go watch Gent-Wevelgem this year ]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車レース - ジャンル:スポーツ

Nightmare again -- Fabian Cancellara fell

E3 Harelbeke, a Belgian race turned out to be a nightmare.

It happened before. I was there. It was at the de Ronde van Vlaanderen 2013. I was there. I was there at the cobble section where Fabian fell (did not see him fall, though) and I was also there at the TREK team bus where almost nobody (fans and supporters) came. When he wins, a host of people come to the team bus.

I just wish him a quick recovery.

Please take a look at this image (screen shot clip made on my MacBook Late 2009 running Linux)

This is NOT the Rotor 3D+ MAS crankset that I bought. It is something else on the ebay. It says in its item description that item condition is "New Other" as it was never used (for riding the bike) but once mounted on a bike then taken off before the bike went to sale. It means that it is 'practically' new.

My recently acquired Rotor 3D+ crankset could be one of those but the seller's description says it is simply "New". It this item does not come in a package full of spacers and other originally included small parts, I have the right to leave a bitter harsh "negative" feedback to the seller citing that the description was not correct and I was misled to believe that it would come with a full set of spacers and co.

I am waiting. I never left a negative feedback to the sellers that I had transactions with. I don't like doing so.

Mudguards in practice:

Mudguards are one of the standard equipment on city or trekking bikes. They will protect your ass, your shoes or your clothes getting dirty from the splash that front and rear wheels make when going through wet roads. Everybody knows that. Right.

To cut to the chase, my bike does not usually have mudguards on it. From time to time, I need them (or it). Splashes on my ass are annoying.

I own two types of mudguards for my road racer.

One is AFD-21201 from Acor Sports and the other is the "original, the first generation" Ass Saver from Ass-Savers.

Here are my views on these products.

AFD-21201
Thumbs up:
Almost a stealth look.
Its blade is very effective for shedding the splashes off that are otherwise your ass-bound for its size.

Thumbs down:
Grains of sand and mud particles stuck on the tire surface get passed the mudguard and dumped on your back, the back of the saddle, on the brake body, the seat pillar and the seat tube.

Ass Saver (first generation type, which has a different shape from the second generation products, which are obviously much improved) non-extended version.
Thumbs up:
Not so much intrusive optically but easy to spot them on the bike.
Light and easily tacked away.

Thumbs down:
Toooo short (This is why the extended version was introduced) to catch some splashes.

AFD-21201 vs Ass Saver
AFD-21201 is better in my view.
The former is much stealthier (less conspicuous) than the latter.

Ass Saver is superior to AFD-21201 as the AS is easily removed and tacked away.

I put up some URLs.
http://www.acorsports.com/
The latest "R" version. I don't know the improvements they made on my non-R version.
AFD-21201R (http://www.acorsports.com/products.php?func=p_detail&p_id=192&pc_parent=31)

http://ass-savers.com/
http://www.mudcatcher.com/ (similar products but as AS moved away from the original design, this MC now looks inferior)

I would very much like to try the extended version of the Ass Saver but I don't want to buy it for now.

I intend to continue using AFD-21201but I need some modifications on it.

First, the sticky dirt must be shaven off the tire. I happened to have a long narrow strap of velcro tape and I cut and applied the tape with the furry surface glued on the back side of the blade. This way, the velcro's furry side will, I hope, work as a brush to scrape the dirt off the tire. It is ready to go but I haven't had the time to test it.

Secondly, the Nokon cabling does not like the protrusive part that the shaft supporting the blade is connected. I wanted to turn it around so that the supporting shaft grows on the left (non-drive side).

In a country called Japan, AFD-21201 is easily purchased. Here in Europe it is impossible or nearly impossible to get one of these. I think in Taiwan you can also get them easily.

In Japan you can even find a similar product (as AFD-21201) with a reinforced carbon composite shaft (DA026MG).

You may google "DA025MG" or "DA026MG" or search them on the Amazon Japan or the Rakuten Market.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Nightmare again -- Fabian Cancellara fell]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車レース - ジャンル:スポーツ

Comparison between (round normal) 50/34 and O.Symetric 52/38

Here are two images that I took on my own using my own chainrings.

FSA 50/34 and O.Symetric 52/38:

They (O.Symetric) say that a normal chainring 50 corresponds to their 52 and 34 to 38.

What do they mean by saying so? Take a look at the pictures. They (50/52 and 34/38) almost have the same radii where O.Symetric chainrings are the shortest.

(image 1: 50 juxtaposed on 52)

(image 2: 34 juxtaposed on 38)

Now you know what they (O.Symetric) look like.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Comparison between (round normal) 50/34 and O.Symetric 52/38]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車（スポーツ用） - ジャンル:スポーツ

Bulk products? Spacers missing? Maybe?

I checked the YouTube site for Rotor crankset installation and removal instructions. I also downloaded and read the manuals for the crankset from the manufacturer's site.

The seeming unusually cheap Rotor crankset (new, so claims the seller) may not come in full. The seller does not put up a picture of the package box or small parts that come with the fully new purchase. The seller did not mention those small parts nor did the seller's pictures show any of those small parts (spacers, small wrenches or etc.).

Spacers may be missing, I fear. Suddenly it hit on me that the crankset I bought is new (in the sense that it was not used on a bike) but not new as in 'never taken out of the package'.

Mine could be one of those that are sold directly to bike manufacturers to be mounted on the bike on the assembly line. Or mine could be one of those that were taken off the show bikes or similar bikes.

Luckily, spacers are easily purchased from shops that are handling Rotor products. In my case, I will need two spacers (for installation on BSA 68 and its BB cups, which are sold separately) a 5.5 mm spacer and a 0.5 mm spacer.

I think I have to buy those from the same shop from which I ordered the BB cups. I could have saved the shipping fees if I had bought them together. Well, the shipping form Germany costs only 6 euros or so.

Rotor 3D+ B 5.5 mm spacer = 5.9 euros
Rotor 3D+ E 0.5 mm spacer = 4.5 euros

I will see but I am afraid that I have to buy them.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Bulk products? Spacers missing? Maybe?]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車（スポーツ用） - ジャンル:スポーツ

Shopping spree and the day after

One day after I had a kind of shopping spree, I am a bit upset as I spent so much. You live only once. OK, I work and the salary will be coming soon.

I did not pay too much form the things I bought. I am very sure of that.

They are arriving soon.

I am trying to explain the plight that I am facing with my FSA crankset.

Let's say "y" is the height of the chainrings. It is the radius of a normal round chainring. For O.Symetric chainrings "y" is not the radius. As O.Symetric chainrings has taller points and shorter points, "y" is always changing.

If the crank's spider arm is set as it is supposed to be, there is no "x". Theoretically There should be none at all.

What happens if the spider arm is tilted and the chainring is subsequently tilted? Then "y" is not the chainring radius anymore, "z" is the chainring radium now.

Thus, "x" happens. The greater the value of "z", the greater the value of "x".

My round 50-cog chainring wobbles but it is almost acceptable as "z" is not so much. I think for the moment maximum "x" is 1 mm or so.

My twincam 52-cog O.Symetric chainring wobbles and the value of "x" is about 2 mm or so (or greater?), which is way out of the acceptable values.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Shopping spree and the day after]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車（スポーツ用） - ジャンル:スポーツ

New crankset purchased (already?)

Oooooopppss. I have done it. I just bought a crankset that would seemingly fit my Cervélo RS 2011, which fits a BSA threaded BB.

I bought the crankset on ebay but the seller's description states that it won't fit BSA frames. Why? The manufacturer's web site states that it will fit via an special BB cups. I will see.

Now I am shopping for the missing link, these BB cups. They both come from Germany, the neighboring country of Luxembourg.

What did I buy? Which brand? How much did I pay?

I bought a Rotor 3D+ MAS 110mm BCD crankset seemingly 2013 or earlier model judging from the logo design on them. The latest model (different logo design) sells for around 390 euro as new. The one I bought was almost half the price. Why? I don't know why.

I did not want that MAS (Micro Adjust Spider) spider arms but it was sold so. I had no choice. It (MAS) is useless unless I use Rotor Q-rings on it.

I might try to buy a normal spider (and a special removing/mounting tool) later but that is whole another story.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [New crankset purchased (already?)]の続きを読む

I want a new (or used) crankset for my O.Symetric chainrings

My crankset (FSA Carbon Pro Team Issue 34/50 ISIS, or similar model) is defective. I have written about this long time ago. I also wrote at that time that I tried to correct the defect by myself.

The spider arm in the picture above is made of reinforced carbon fiber but mine is made of aluminium.

The defect is that the spider arm on it is tilted, askew, or wobbling. I am not sure if this description is correct for the mechanical minds but it should give you the ideal.

If I was talking about wheels, I would describe them as not "true". The problem is that when they, small or big, go around, they touch the FD blades (inner side or outer side) or the chain catcher at the points where they are out of center.

As O.Symetric chainrings have taller (than the normal round rings with the same cog numbers), they scratching effect gets augmented. The bigger the ring, the more wobbling.

I was trying to make the FD setting and chain catcher setting as good as possible.

Here is the background. The first generation of O.Symetric chianrings (up to 2014) were simple flat aluminium plates with cogs (and a simple pin that prevented the chain stuck between the out plate and the crank). The minimum function.

The second generation (since 2014) has been dramatically improved (in terms of functionality). Their essential functionality, that is twincam harmonic shape, has not been changed (I believe).

The improvements were;
1) They got thicker by 1 mm but had intricate shaving on the back side so that they can be stronger in structure but keep the weight from growing.

2) They have extra pins on the outer ring that help the chain go up on the outer ring.

Significant improvments?

My chainrings belong to the first generation. So making the chain go up by setting the FD blade in the right position is very important. When I set the blade closer to the chain, the FD blade get abraded to the chain at one point where the rings are out of center. It is irritating to hear the scratching sound one in the crank rotation.

I want a new crankset that is true, precisely machined.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [I want a new (or used) crankset for my O.Symetric chainrings]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車（スポーツ用） - ジャンル:スポーツ

So-calld "expert" and the car accident aftermath

Tuesday, 24th March 2015 I have an early morning appointment at a car dealer where I bought my Ford Ka back in 2012.

It is about having so-called "expert (French word not English) take a look at the damage made on my Ford Ka by a drunk driver (according to the insurance company's letter, women or at least some with a name typical for a woman) who hit another car belonging to the woman living in the same apartment building as I do and almost totally destroying it before hitting my car.

On the letter the accident is described as "Sinistre du (date of the accident) a (the address where it took place) Affaire - (name of the drunk driver) Contre (my name)"

French lesson:

Sinistre noun masculine
1. fire, blaze
........
2. accident
........

A preposition
1. at

Affaire noun feminine
1.
.......
5. trial, lawsuit, case

Contre preposition
1. atainst

Anyway, the I made an appointment with the expert (in insurance lingo, evaluator) and the appointment requires me to bring my car (or Ka) to the dealer to let the expert take a look at the damages made to my car.

I hope the repair takes places swiftly.

It is a pain having to do all of these unnecessary things (telephoning, emailing, driving to somewhere and everything) because someone drank and drove. I am not happy. They (insurance company for the drunk woman) may pay for the repair but they won't pay for my lost time.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [So-calld "expert" and the car accident aftermath]の続きを読む

O.Symetric Chainrings first impression is in!

So Today (Sunday, 22nd March 2015) I took my bike out and rode a bit. It has been a quite while since I last rode my bike at all. I am ashamed but we should be given a chance to repent.

It was a bit cloudy but no sign of rain. The temperature remained 6 to 3 degrees Celsius (43 to 38 in Fahrenheit if you need the conversion). I started after watching the Milan-San Remo, where John Degenkolb had a emotional finish. I knew I was coming back late in the evening when it would be really dark and cold so I had lights (front x 2 and rear).

I came home after 21:00. I had a long rest at one of my work places where my colleagues were working.

How were O.Symetric chainrings? Did they feel weird? Was I speeding too fast? Did I climb fast?

Here is my honest impression. I DID NOT FEEL ANY DIFFERENCE AT ALL.

I am very sorry to write here that I did not fee the difference at all. I will see if I will notice anything in the future.

I was expecting an unusual pedaling experience but pedaling was as hard as ever.

Well, to be fair, I was too out of form to notice anything unusual.

On a separate note, I opened up the wheel bag where I keep my Zipp wheels and found the rear tire had developed a spot where out rubber had frayed. I had to replace this Vittoria with a new Tufo tire. This Vittoria had been in use for a long time. I am now stretching the new tire. I will glue it later this week.

Now I am out of the stock (spare tubular tires). It is time to shop.

I remember buying these 2 sets of Tufo S33 Pro tires just before the Tour de France 2013. On the Tour I take only Zipp 404 wheel set. That means I have to have at least one spare tire in case of getting a puncture. I don't remember why I bought 700 mm x 21 mm tires. Maybe 700 mm x 24 mm were out of stock at that moment. This time I am considering buying the 24 mm width version.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [O.Symetric Chainrings first impression is in!]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車（スポーツ用） - ジャンル:スポーツ

O.Symetric Chainrings setting tips from O.Symetric USA (on YouTube)

I was setting up my O.Symtric chainrings on my Cervélo RS (with SRAM wired Red components and FSA crankset).

Do they have some tips on the YouTube? This hit me as SRAM has some tips on its YouTube site.

It did. O.Symetric USA has posted some videos. One of them is the tips for setting up the chainrings.

I did not know (as I got two chainrings as a used good and they did not come with anything else) that I was supposed to widen the FD cage by inserting a washer (or several washers). It makes sense.

As the O.Symetric chainrings are partly taller than normal round ones, the chain tends to hit the inside of FD cage when the chain is on the tallest (or shortest) point of the chainring.

You have to own them to understand what I am trying to say here.

By widening the FD cage, you can avoid that nasty rubbing between the chain and the cage. This (widening the FD cage) definitely adds two or more rear cogs. In other words, without widening the cage, you can easily lose one, two o more rear cogs out of possible 20 combinations. (front 2 x rear 10)

I don't use combinations like front outer x rear biggest or front inner x rear smallest. These combinations are pointless anyway.

I did not find any appropriate washers (spacers) in my tool box so I may have to shop for them.

I recently bought (on ebay) 5 pieces of used brake shoe holders manufactured by Ciamillo (www.caw-designs.com). They are arriving sometime soon. The seller (living in Germany) wanted to send the item only within Germany so I had ask someone I knew who was (and is at the time of this writing) in Germany to let me use his address. This was not the problem. I successfully won the auction and they are mine!

They come (4 of them out of 5) with Swissstop yellow shoes (pads). I am not sure if they are gentle on my ZIPP 404 rims.

I was using Shimano shoe holder compatible Kool Stop pads for years. They are fine. They squeak (from my own personal experiences, I can tell you they do) but they are known to be gentle on ZIPP rims. ZIPP genuine pads were made by Kool Stop. I don't know if Kool Stop still provides ZIPP.

They are gentle on rims as they wear pretty quickly. I did not mind at all knowing that it was pads that were wearing off but not rim surfaces.

Once (years ago) I read that Swissstop yellow pads were not gentle on ZIPP rims. Should I be alarmed?
I should buy new pads for my Ciamillo designed "Campagnolo" compatible shoe holders. Which ones? There are wide choices to choose from. Price, quality, brand names... what are the criteria?

I am leaning toward "ZIPP Tangente High Performance Cork Brake Pads" as they are reviewed as one of the best in the market. They are rather expensive but wear slowly (long lasting) and said to eliminate the squeaking completely.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [O.Symetric Chainrings setting tips from O.Symetric USA (on YouTube)]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車（スポーツ用） - ジャンル:スポーツ

O.Symetric Chainrings on Cervélo (SRAM /FSA component)

It is late at night but I was doing some preliminary work to switch to O.Symetric chainrings.

I had already cleaned the chain in the afternoon.

1) I knew I had to move the FD up to accommodate the taller part of the outer ring. I was not sure if the wire cable was long enough.

2) I did not know if the SRAM Red FD chain catcher would fit the inner ring.

RE 1)
I had to move the FD about 1.5 cm or more?? The wire was long enough but was too short to use the wire end cap. I have to replace the wire later.

RE 2)
When I first installed this chain catcher on my Cervélo RS frame, the chain catcher did not fit the frame. I had to file off some aluminum. One of the rivets that fasten the FD stay hit the back side of the chain catcher.

This time (since I moved the FD up and the chain catcher moved up, too) I had to file off more from the lower part of the chain catcher.

Now they (O.Symetric chainrings) are on and I can shift up and down on the outer and inner rings. I don't think the current settings are good enough for actual riding. I will need further adjustment later.

They look really weird! I love the way they look, especially when in motion.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [O.Symetric Chainrings on Cervélo (SRAM /FSA component)]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車（スポーツ用） - ジャンル:スポーツ

O.Symetric Chainrings arrived and Negative-G shoe holders

I went to work Today and found that the O.Symetric chainrings that had been sent to me arrived safe and sound. I got them. I was happy or ecstatic to be exact.

This was already in the evening. I had to go to another location to work in the morning so I went to the usual work place only in the evening. I had the chainrings sent to this address.

Anyway, I received them. They were not new ware but used ones. They seemed to be OK to me.

I had yet another thing on my mind this evening, namely, an ebay auction ending in the evening.

I got a set of Negative-G brakes years ago (also via ebay). They were also used. They did not come with the original shoe holders. The original shoe holders are so-called campy style ones. The seller seemed to have switched to Shimano style holders at some point. I did not like those cheap shiny forged ones so I bought CNC milled mean looking holders soon after that.

I have been looking for those original meaner looking ones for years. I could have bought them from an authorised dealer in France but they were costly. I have been looking for a way to get them cheaper.

The problem was that some years ago carbon wheel manufacturers came up with the idea of making wheels more aerodynamic by widening the rim width. Since them shoe holders also got lower in profile to accommodate the extra width.

My ZIPP 404 wheel sets belong to the older lower profile generations so I need the original (older) higher profile shoe holders from Ciamillo. Ciamillo is the manufacturer of those Negative-G, Zero-Gravity and other brakes.

These original high profile original shoe holders are getting extinct since Ciamillo also introduced low profile shoe holders. Indeed, the French authorised dealer does not carry older black shoe holder anymore.

So when I found these black anodised used older "high" profile holders on ebay, I was excited. I thought to my self that I must get them. This might be one of the rarest chances, I thought.

Anyway, I got them. The competition was fierce. Three people (including me) bid for the merchandise at the last moment. We three bid within the last minute before it ended. I, of course, outmanoeuvred them. I bought them rather inexpensively, I think.

I was twice happy today.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [O.Symetric Chainrings arrived and Negative-G shoe holders]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車（スポーツ用） - ジャンル:スポーツ

Paris-Roubaix 2015 (113rd edition) Route

Its 113rd edition takes place on Sunday, 12th April 2015. A.S.O. in its usual manner won't let us (the general public) have the detailed information of this year's course.

It is said that this year's course is identical to that of 2013. OK, I begin plotting the course on the Garmin BaseCamp by looking at the materials available on the net (from 2013).

The change in the route is shown below:

(2014 course: clip from Garmin BaseCamp)

(2015-aka-2013 course: clip from Garmin BaseCamp)

OK, I realized that Gent-Wevelgem is coming soon. First I have to take care of this race.

In 2013 I took trains to get there (Kortrijk). Why? It was cold and snowed. As I did not (and do not) have winter tires, I had no choice but take trains. In 2014 I could drive there (Deinze).

This year? I think I am sure I will drive to Deinze (the start location) as the weather here in Europe has been mild so far this year.

In 2014 (to refresh my memories) I drove to Deinze to watch the start ceremony, drove to Baneberg (one of the finest view spots) to watch riders struggle up the climb (men and women) and then came back to Wevelgem to watch the finish. In 2015, I think I will do the same as I really enjoyed myself doing so. I think I am taking a friend of mine with me as last year.

De Ronde van Vlaanderen has stepped up its efforts to entertain us. It (the organizer's site) has posted a gpx file that shows the course. I downloaded and opened it in the Garmin BaseCamp.

It looks like this.

It helps me to find the route to drive to get somewhere without running into the race.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Paris-Roubaix 2015 (113rd edition) Route]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車レース - ジャンル:スポーツ

MacBook cooling fan control under Linux possible?

My MacBook Late 2009 runs really hot with Kali Linux. It is a real problem.

Under OS X (Yosemite 10.10.3 beta for the moment) I use smcFanControl and it works (at least seems to work) well. Of course, I can not verify the temperature and the fan speed it shows. I can say it works well as I can explicitly turn the fan up to cool the mother board.

When the mother board (and consequently the back lid of the MacBook) gets noticeably hot while using Kali Linux, I restart (actually, shut it down and then turn it up as 'restarting' does not function on this MacBook Late 2009) the MacBook into OS X. I start smcFanControl and explicitly turn the fan speed up to see if the temperature goes down. It does. The back lid gets cooler and the air coming from the back air vent in a matter of a couple of minutes. The smcFanControl works very very well. I want to do the same under Linux.

I started looking for solutions. There seems to be options. If you 'Google' "mac fan control linux" (or something), you will be shown various sites.

mbpfan (https://github.com/dgraziotin/Fan-Control-Daemon) is one of them. This is a very elegant solution but it requires installing some software.

On the other hand this site (its URL is referred on the site above) tells me more intuitive way to control the cooling fan speed. (http://allanmcrae.com/2010/05/simple-macbook-pro-fan-daemon/)

I tried the command lines shown on this site and they simply worked. I could turn the fan speed up so easily.

echo 1 > /sys/devices/platform/applesmc.768/fan1_manual
(to set the flag from 0 to 1 to overtake the control like turning the autopilot off on an airplane)

The value of "fan1_min" is 2000 and that of "fan1_max" is 6000. So I can explicitly specify the value in "fan1_output" to between 2000 and 6000 by doing like;

echo 3000 > /sys/devices/platform/applesmc.768/fan1_output

For the moment (I am writing this on the MacBook under Kali Linux), the fan speed of 3000 (rpm?) seems to be enough for the CPU load from this kind of web browsing activity and blogging activity. I think 3000 seems to be the right value.

I may have to turn it up more for video playing or so.

So all I have to do is make some scripts like these:

'script Scotty, I need more juice' when the things get hotter

echo 1 > /sys/devices/platform/applesmc.768/fan1_manual
echo 3000 > /sys/devices/platform/applesmc.768/fan1_output

'script code RED' when it gets really hot and an intense cooling job is required

echo 1 > /sys/devices/platform/applesmc.768/fan1_manual
echo 6000 > /sys/devices/platform/applesmc.768/fan1_output

'script situation normal' when it is cool enough after cooling is done

echo 3000 > /sys/devices/platform/applesmc.768/fan1_output

I will do some testing with various values to see if I can fine tune the scripts.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [MacBook cooling fan control under Linux possible?]の続きを読む

テーマ:Mac - ジャンル:コンピュータ

Re: people around me are getting iPhone upgade

I have been using iPhone 4 since October 2010. I bought it at the Apple Store at the Louvre Museum in Paris, France. It has been working well but began to show some signs of aging.

One: the battery is weaker than before but this is acceptable.

Two: the Home button is almost dead (really unresponsive) and this is not acceptable.

Luckily, my iPhone 4 is jailbreakable and has been jailbroken so that I can use virtual Home button made possible through jailbreaking.

People around me started upgrading their iPhones to iPhone 6 or 6 Plus since their arrival or simply getting new iPhone 6 (or 6 Plus).

Good side of this effect is that I am not bothered by them as they often begged me if they could borrow my charger cable or so.

Their iPhone 6 or 6 Plus look really pretty. Do I want them (iPhones)? Am I envious of them (people)?

The answer is NO. I can wait until 2017 when the iPhone 7 comes out.

If my iPhone 4 is still in good shape by Fall 2017, I can wait for the iPhone 7S or iPhone 7S Plus for yet another year.

I rushed to buy iPhone 4 in 2010 as my iPod touch (2nd Generation) was lost just before Tour de France that year. As I was dependent on iPod touch for its Address Book, Clock (alarm clock) and other functionalities, I felt annoyingly insecure without it. I thought about buying another iPod touch but decided to buy iPhone.

It has been my good buddy since then. It saved me from getting lost (literally and mentally) in France during the Tour de France when my Garimn GPS device stopped to work just one week before the Tour. That year, I managed to meander through France with this iPhone 4 (and Tom Tom GPS software on it) without any problem. Chance favors the prepared mind! I was prepared for this kind of accident (loss of GPS).

This Garmin GPS was repaired after the Tour only to be stolen from my car.

In 2012, during the Team Presentation Ceremony in Liège, Belgium, my Ford Ka was broken in and the Garmin GPS device and my Notebook computer were stolen (along with other small things). My iPhone 4 bravely volunteered to be of service. I was saved again.

So my iPhone 4 saved me twice. I am grateful for these services and I don't want to abandon my iPhone 4 so easily. You can say that I am emotionally attached to it.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Re: people around me are getting iPhone upgade]の続きを読む

テーマ:iPhone - ジャンル:携帯電話・PHS

How to delete U2 from iPhone

I have nothing against U2, the Irish great rock band, in fact I admire them. Having said that, I admit that I had to delete their album from my iPhone 4 recently.

Why? Not because I didn't like the album but because of the software engineering flaw that Apple implemented in iOS 7.

I do not own iOS 8 capable devices so I do not know much about iOS 8 so this only happens in iOS 7.

I listen to the audio books that I have on my iPhone when in bed before falling asleep. Naturally I operate the device in a tilted position. The Apple stock app Music when tilted displays U2 album and masks everything else making it impossible for me to choose the audio book I want to listen to unless I tilt it back to a straight upright position or lock the orientation.

What can I do? So I deleted the album. It took me a short while to figure out how to accomplish the feat. I had to search for the solution on the net.

Obviously a lot of people for some reasons wanted to do the same.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ(まだ書いてません)

Friday, the thirteenth March 2015

Yay! The the ebay-auction-gotten used O.Symetric chainrings are on the way to me! They have been shipped. Hopefully, they will arrive later next week.

They are not too expensive even if purchased as new off the shelf from some bike shops. Why have I been hesitant and waiting to get them for so long? Life is short.

You get this feeling as you get older. Life is short so enjoy your life while you can.

What else am I holding out on?

I am thinking of a way to work when I want to and not work when I don't want to. Of course, the best way to accomplish that is to retire, which is for the moment not in any way feasible.

Another way to reach that goal is to be a self-employed worker. This is tricky. If you make enough money to work only when I want to, I will be happy. If not (your business is not so prosperous), I will be in a big trouble.

Nothing dared (ventured), nothing gained. There is a very well-known Chinese proverb describing this predicament. Literally, it reads, "If you don't get in the tiger's lair, you will not get the (treasured) cub."

No pain, no gain.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Friday, the thirteenth March 2015]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車（スポーツ用） - ジャンル:スポーツ

Spring training, my weight and O.Symetric chainrings

I am not much of a man of will power. I am lazy. I know.

Sometimes I need a thing or things to motivate me to do something that I should do.

Like the bike frame I bought when I decided I had to on the bike to be fit. I have been lazy this winter and have not been on the bike for a while.

I bought a set of used O.Symetrics chainrings. They will arrive in a week or so, I hope.

What was the first time that I got to know these strange bike equipment? I believe it was sometime in late 2004 or early 2005. (I came to Europe in September 2003 and started traveling to see road bike races in 2004)

I was a supporter of Team CSC at that time. Bobby Julich was using them on his bike. I gazed at his equipment close when I could. They (O.Symetric chainrings) were amazing. They were strangely shaped. He had a hand-made chain-catcher (a device that helps chain from slipping off the chainrings) at that time.

Now (2015) O.Symetric chainrings got widely known among cyclists and cycling sport fans but in those days they were very rare and almost no professional cyclists were using them. The same thing applied to chain-catchers. They are very common among cyclists now but back then they were still rare.

I remember saying to myself that I would use them when I had the chance. It materialized after 10 years. I bought a used set of O.Symetric chainrings.

They are used and worn to some extent for sure. They were not so expensive as new ones. Here in Europe, a new set of them costs around 230 to 240 euros. I spent only half of these prices.

These chainrings will give me motivations to get on the bike.

I also decided that I would put up my weight here whenever I had the chance. I am 173 cm tall. My optimal weight as a climber would be around 62 kg. I want to be a mean lean climber.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Spring training, my weight and O.Symetric chainrings]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車（スポーツ用） - ジャンル:スポーツ

New tires required for my Ka and I am not so happy about it

This afternoon, I just dropped off one set of wheel and tire at a local tire shop. I told the man in the office to take a look at the tire for any damages and I would pick it up if the tire was OK and could be remounted.

Later in the afternoon I got a phone call from the shop. The diagnosis turned out that the tire was damages (as I rode on that flat tire a couple of hundred meters before I could stop) and must be replaced along with the pairing tire. So I will have to pay for two tires.

I am not happy about it the fact that relatively new tires (replaced one year ago) must be replaced again. It is going to cost me a lot.

I said that I would come by at the shop in the afternoon the next day and would talk about it.

This time I may opt for Continental tires. They are more expensive than Uniroyal ones but I believe that they are superior in quality.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [New tires required for my Ka and I am not so happy about it]の続きを読む

テーマ:タイヤ - ジャンル:車・バイク

The return of MacBook in 2015

I own two MacBooks Late 2009. The MacBook line was discontinued after MacBook 2010. This MacBook 2010 was discontinued some time in 2011 (I think) but continued to be offered to educational market a bit afterward.

Apple announced the return of MacBook March 2015. MacBook had traditionally less expansion possibility than the MacBook Pro. This new MacBook has only one port, USB 3.1 (USB-C). It does not even have a dedicated power port. It is almost like an iPhone or iPad. It is almost like an iPad with a built-in keyboard.

I am not interested in buying one of them for the moment. I am happy with my MacBooks.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [The return of MacBook in 2015]の続きを読む

テーマ:Mac - ジャンル:コンピュータ

O.Symetric Chainrings (used) purchased!

Oops! I did it again. I just bid for used black anodized O.Symetric chaninring set (110 mm BCD, 52/38) on ebay.

I have been looking for these chainrings sporadically for some time by now. The new product (a set of outer and inner rings) costs 230 to 250 euro for the moment. They (www.osymetric.com) changed the specifications in 2014 (I think). They added 1 mm to the thickness to the chainrings. It might have added strength and gave the chainrings more rigidity. I am not sure if the rings that I just bought belong to the current generation or the previous. I don't care.

They will arrive soon.

They require new settings for the FD (Front Derailleur) as they are not round but oval (actually not oval but twincam but they look oval compared to the normal conventional round chainrings).

I am excited.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [O.Symetric Chainrings (used) purchased!]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車（スポーツ用） - ジャンル:スポーツ

Lubuntu (or Ubuntu) v.s. Kali Linux

It is not a fair comparison. Lubuntu is a popular desktop distribution and Kali Linux is an odd distribution not too popular among general public.

When I install Adobe Flash plug-in for web browsers on Lubuntu, it installs it and the browser shows the flash movies.

When I install Adobe Flash plug-in for web browsers on Kali Linux, nothing happens. I don't think the Adobe Flash plug-in gets installed unless I manually download the correct tar.gz package from Adobe's web site in addition to whatever I installed.

Update:
I installed on top of what I could install by using "Add/Remove Software" tar.gz files from Adobe's web site. After this I could suddenly play Flash movies on YouTube and so. Hallelujah! I knew this might happen but was not too sure.
!

The same thing applies to DropBox.

I am not saying that Kali Linux is a failure. It does not aim at getting a popular desktop distribution at all. It has other ambitions.

One thing that bothers me about Kali Linux on my MacBooks (Late 2009 and Pro Mid 2010) is that the heat that Kali Linux generates. I have never heard my MacBook Late 2009 scream so loud until now when its cooling fan suddenly started to blow at seemingly its full power.

The CPU load was not too high at all before that frantic cooling happened. I think the cause of this heat buildup was the improper control of the cooling fan. Kali Linux does not keep the cooling fan at a proper speed. I am not sure of this so it is only my guess.

There is (at least one that I know of and use) a utility program under OS X that control the cooling fan and at the same time keeps an eye on the temperature (of the CPU core). I have "smcFanControl" installed in my MacBooks. You can explicitly make the cooling fan keep at a higher speed disregarding the setting of Mac OS X.

I don't know how (Kali) Linux controls the cooling fan but it seems that it is not doing enough.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Lubuntu (or Ubuntu) v.s. Kali Linux]の続きを読む

テーマ:Linux - ジャンル:コンピュータ

A flat tire and O.Symetric chanirings

This morning I took my Ka (or car) to work. After a hundred or so meters, I noticed constant vibrations. That could not be good. I had to stop and see what was wrong. I did.

The front left tire was off the wheel. OMG! I quickly changed the wheels. I had a spare tire in the back of the car, of course. It took only ten minutes or so. I had to go to a tire shop to have them check the wheel and the tire.

I changed the tire on this wheel (and the right tire, too) last April in Belgium. I was on my way to Bruges early Saturday morning (around 06:00?). It was a burst. That afternoon, I was lucky to find a tire shop who had the tires that fit my wheels. The only choice I had was Uniroyal's tires.

As you may know, Uniroyal is a brand owned by the Continental tires for cost-conscious customers. Continental tires are superior of course. Unreal tires are OK.

Monday or Tuesday when I have time I will drop off the wheel and tire at the local tire shop.

I remember being told by the tire shop employee back in last April that the wheel was damaged and the tuning the wheel balance was not possible. Do you know why I kinda ruined the wheel? Damn Belgian and French highway potholes!!!! There are stretches of highways in Southern Belgium and near CDG airport where humongous potholes are left un-repaired.

And I want O.Symetric chainrings.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [A flat tire and O.Symetric chanirings]の続きを読む

テーマ:ヨーロッパ - ジャンル:海外情報

Euro hits the lowest against US dollar in 11 years

Euro (currency) is losing its values

According to wort.lu, Euro (the currency used in many EU countries including Luxembourg, where I live) hit the lowest against US dollar in last 11 years. OMG! I was buying small things from China (like MacBook batteries or EU-plugs for Mac's Magsafe wall adapters) that are priced in US dollar for the last couple of years. It was like this, if it cost 1 US dollar, it was 0.75 euro about a year ago. It is now almost 1 euro.

Fortunately, I don't plan to travel to the US or buying anything expensive from the US. Please someone stop this trend!

Mobile roaming charges will live on

There is another piece of bad news on wort.lu. The mobile roaming charges within EU countries was supposed to be abandoned by now but it will survive until 2018. OMG! I was hoping to use mobile Internet connection on my iPhone 4 in France during the Tour de Frace 2015.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Euro hits the lowest against US dollar in 11 years]の続きを読む

テーマ:ヨーロッパ - ジャンル:海外情報

OS X Yosemite 10.10.3 Public Beta Update installed

I participated in OS X Yosemite Public Beta program and I am now eligible for getting beta updates earlier than the genuine public users.

It was a about a week ago that my MacBooks (Pro Mid 2010/Late 2009) started telling me that Yosemite 10.10.3 public beta update was available for installing.

Today, I updated the OS on the MacBook Pro Mid 2010. It came with that long anticipated Photos. I have not used the program yet as I have no time to spare for the moment.

This MacBook Pro has two SSDs installed in it. One Toshiba 128 GB and one not-Toshiba 32 GB. I was not sure if this 32 GB SSD was really healthy as it suddenly stopped booting Lubuntu a while ago. I installed Kali Linux on it and Today I set it up so that I can now write in Japanese.

I can turn the keyboard backlight off by pressing F5 key repeatedly but can not turn it off by scripting in /etc/rc.local.

echo 0 > /sys/class/leds/smc::kbd_backlight/brightness

won't work. I need some more researching on the net, I guess.

Or should I write the value '0' to the file this "/sys/..../brightness" is linked to.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [OS X Yosemite 10.10.3 Public Beta Update installed]の続きを読む

テーマ:Mac - ジャンル:コンピュータ

I totally soured Kali Linux installation on MacBook Late 2009

I did it again. Now my MacBook Late 2009 (II) boots into Kali Linux in the recovery mode but not successfully into the normal mode.

I know what I did wrong. I tried to install the NVIDIA graphic driver with a method not described on the Kali Linux site. OK, it is my fault.

I will reinstall Kali Linux on this MacBook from the installation DVD (1.1.0 version) and rebuild the environment again. This time I will not install those pesky NVIDIA driver. I don't need it anyway.

Under Lubuntu (I guess Ubuntu, too) switching those device drivers is made easy. It is fail-proof and you can switch it back to the original if the new one does not work well.

Now the MacBook Pro Mid 2010 can perform a dual boot into either OS X or Linux. It used to have Lubuntu had on it but the Lubuntu suddenly ceased to boot. It was not my fault, I think.

I think the SSD that my MacBook Pro Mid 2010 has in its (originally) optical bay has a problem an the problem is kind of a big time. The filesystem on it breaks everytime I do something.

It (Kali Linux) behaves erratically (like I can not write a file, save a file etc.) or delete a file. On reboot, it automatically falls to a maintenance (recovery) mode. I have to "fsck /dev/sdb2" to fix the filesystem error.

/dev/sdb2 is the place where Linux is installed on.

Anyway, it won't last. I know now why the previous Linux (Lubuntu) suddenly ceased to boot. It was because of this hardware malfunction.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [I totally soured Kali Linux installation on MacBook Late 2009]の続きを読む

テーマ:Linux - ジャンル:コンピュータ

New Linux installation on my MacBook Late 2009 II Updated

*ALI Linux Revisited

This distribution is not one of the Ubuntu flavours. This distribution is also based on Debian distribution but it is not related to Ubuntu family distributions.

I had tried the previous version (1.0.9a) of this distribution and found not so good on my MacBook Late 2009. At that time (3 to 4 months ago) I could spot several shortcomings of the DVD ISO image installer.

1) The guided partitioning scheme did not work well (separate /var, /tmp etc scheme did not work at all as the installer gave up soon after that process).

2) The guided partitioning scheme did not work well (separate /home and everything else together) as it made /(root) partition too small (10 GB).

Because of 1) 2), the only choice I had was to put everything together in one partition.

3) It (the system) did not shut MacBook Late 2009 down. Instead, it hung.

4) It (the system) did not restart MacBook Late 2009. Instead, it hung.

5) VLC did not work properly. Instead, it hung.

Soon after this, the /(root) partition ran out of space and so I had to abandon the system altogether.

New and improved version?

This time (version 1.1.0) it (the system) did not see any improvement on 1), 2) and 4).

It has improved concerning 3) and 5).

Updates:
I tried the same version (1.1.0) of this distribution on my MacBook Pro Mid 2010 and found out that:
3) It can shut it down properly.
4) It can reboot the device properly.
5) VLC's works but the sound coming out of the speaker had initial scratchy noises for several seconds.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ
[New Linux installation on my MacBook Late 2009 II Updated]の続きを読む

テーマ:Linux - ジャンル:コンピュータ

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