Transcontinental Race No. 6 - TCR6 - #TCRN06 - 2018

My everlasting memory from the Paris-Geneva leg of Ride25 was coming down a hill around 40mph, and hearing the 'ring-ring' of a bike bell as one of the Brompton's came past me sat up straight, I nearly fell off laughing... he confessed that he'd been pedalling like mad to catch me and sat up at the last minute, he reckoned a few more mph and he'd be getting a front wheel wobble...

Brompton are a bit meh.

Scoble level review right there

I did a ride to Paris once where one of the guys was on a Brompton. He hated it by the end, said it was heavy and uncomfortable.

I don't know this guy but I know that riding a bike that isn't your fastest is not respecting the spirit of the event. I've got nothing against Bromptons or people riding them across Europe or wherever they like, even in PBP, just not in this particular event.

Slowing right down at the moment. Seems I'm not the only one. Possibly the hilliest route in the land. Hot weather really saps everything.

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Must be tough in this heat. A rest in the heat of the afternoon is a good idea

Bjorn looks like he is going to go the wrong side of lake Balaton. Ie West. It's similar distance but much hillier, like a couple of thousand metres more.
His routing over the last day or so has been odd. He has doubled back on his route to cp3 but often chose different roads for some sections. One set must have been better than the other so why not decide which is better then use it both ways. Suggests he hasn't put nearly as much care into his routing as skinny

Rest up and ride on. Keep that finish in mind, the feeling on completion will be one of the best of your life.

riding a bike that isn't your fastest is not respecting the spirit of the event

I get it...but then at the same time I don't. I don't think Hippy is on his TT rig. Or is he?!

I've got nothing against Bromptons or people riding them across Europe or wherever they like, even in PBP, just not in this particular event.

I never realised TCR had to be taken so seriously. I was under the impression that while it is a race, most people do it for fun. Better scrub any ideas I might have had of doing it, as there's a risk I might enjoy some of it.

You won’t. Look at hippies twitter. Pain and misery 24/7

And beer, pizza and brothels. Can't be all bad...

I think attempting it on a Brompton is great, personally I would probably rather ride a Brompton 4000k than a fixed. They are really capable little bikes, and gears/freewheel....

While the race is hot at the front I love the people that are just in it to get to the finish. Skinny and Bjorn make it look relatively easy, but they are elite athletes. For your everyday cyclist, just completing the route is an incredible achievement.

Things that are frustrating re Seaton’s Brompton, did he not test his setup? Surely he would have realised the Alfine was a bit shit. Also, whoever suggested the Alfine 11 has a lot to answer for (for some reason from his responses on FB I don’t think it was his idea). Then, I reckon M type would have been better, but CHPT3 only come in S.

Here it is

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Are you with him?

Is there any sign of oil leaking around the seals? Is his chain completely dry? Do you/he know how to adjust the cable pull?

Things that are frustrating re Seaton’s Brompton, did he not test his setup? Surely he would have realised the Alfine was a bit shit. Also, whoever suggested the Alfine 11 has a lot to answer for (for some reason from his responses on FB I don’t think it was his idea)

Yeah. This. I went down the rabbit hole on Sheldon's site reading about the 11 speeds. They are finicky to say the least. Real shame.

Chap up thread did 8000km before his eight ate itself. That's not bad. Wish my X0 11-42 cassette would do 8,000km because it costs about the same as an alfine eight complete...

Hot weather really saps everything.

Strong sock game though!

I'd take one of those German Butterfly bars, just for the variety of hand positions

@skinny is showing on the tracker as having been to CP4, but not in his history (or location) presume this is a glitch that someone will notice and fix?

Replacing the internals costs £65, so much cheaper!

I get it...but then at the same time I don't. I don't think Hippy is on his TT rig. Or is he?!

No. But that's because he doesn't believe he would be able to ride on it for the distance. Ultan tried it one year and it didn't work out for him. I've discussed it with Hippy and he seriously considered TT bike for TABR, but not for this as it's too hilly and too much gravel. Hippy is on what he considers to be his fastest bike for this event.

We sell folding butterfly bars at sjs... be great for a Brompton! 😂

Bromptons are all custom and have so many set ups, I’m currently working on one that stock, was 7.8kg before changing more stuff. There’s multiple bar types, seatpost lengths, tyres, gearing options bla bla bla, to say they are heavy and uncomfortable imo is not something I agree with, knowing people who ride them daily, including myself, people who have done 200mile + rides etc.

I’d love to do tcr on my little wheeler, As roger said, it’s just a fun bike to ride. I would never be fitting an Alfine though! Sucks he’s had those issues, but I love that he’s gone for something others will turn their nose up at!

He's still showing in Hungary for me although not that far from the Croatian border.

It seems to be longitudinal. He's further east than CP4 so it shows his distance to the finish. Same thing happened to Bjorn when he went east of CP3, it showed his distance to CP4.