Gravel? That’s No longer Great!

We’ve a winner!*

That’s proper, additional to the previous day’s publish, the solution is that I swapped the cassettes, however I did not switch the lockrings:

As you’ll be able to see, the lockring for the 12-tooth cassette is larger than the only for the 11-tooth, so once I put it at the 11-tooth cassette it didn’t permit the chain to completely have interaction the cog:

See, that’s what occurs while you rush issues. If I have been a professional biking crew mechanic I’d have simply value my sprinter the race:

If he have been dressed in a microphone, you’d pay attention him shouting, “HEY YOU SON-OF-A-BEETCH, YOU RUEEN DA BIKE, MARIO NO CAN A-USE-A HEES ELEVEN!!!”

So should you be told anything else from me, it must be to take your time when doing motorcycle repairs. Good day, it’s no longer a lot, however it’s all of the knowledge I’ve were given to impart. For the true necessary stuff, like how to spice up your biking cadence, you’ll wish to seek the advice of the mavens:

Unfortunately, I’m no longer lately a Bicycling member:

Despite the fact that sadly for them they tipped their hand and the whole lot you wish to have to understand is in entrance of the paywall:

See that? All you wish to have to do to spice up your cadence is get a motorcycle have compatibility, shorter cranks, an indoor teacher, a pc and cadence sensor, a bigger cassette, smaller chainrings, a gravel drivetrain, and a triple.

Despite the fact that I realize they did omit “downshift.”

Foolish me, there I used to be pondering all you wish to have to do to spice up your cadence is pedal quicker.

So why are cyclists so obsessive about cadence anyway? I’ve been driving for many years and I’ve but to determine the rationale, even though I do have in mind once I were given my first biking pc with a cadence sensor. So high-tech! Wow, an entire new quantity at the display and the whole lot! Sadly, in contrast to pace or mileage, which might be cool and fascinating issues to understand, I had no concept in any way to make of this new data. Certain, I now knew precisely how repeatedly I used to be turning the cranks in keeping with minute, however used to be I turning it too repeatedly or too few occasions? It used to be all drastically thrilling, and but like a amateur gamecock teacher, I had no context:

Then there used to be Lance Armstrong. It became out he and all his competition have been mainlining EPO and blood baggage through the gallon, however again then the “experts” claimed that the name of the game to Armstrong’s luck used to be biking genius Chris Carmichael’s sensible high-cadence methodology:

Pedal motorcycle quicker =win race? WHO’DA THUNK IT??? Guy, for awhile there, Chris Carmichael had it made. All he needed to do used to be trip round making up shit about bricks. He used to be even into singlespeeds and fixies prior to it used to be cool:

See?

Certain. And typing with one hand for 4 hours is an identical to typing with each fingers for 8 hours. That’s why you you’ll be able to use one hand on the administrative center after which inform your boss you’re going house at lunch. (No less than till DOGE will get sensible to it.)

And but right here we’re in 2025 and I nonetheless don’t know why the hell I must care what my cadence is. Doesn’t it simply come naturally? However I suppose no one would learn an editorial known as, “PEDAL WHATEVER FUCKING SPEED YOU FEEL LIKE AND STOP BOTHERING ME.” So as a substitute we get “Six Surefire Ways To Supercharge The Shit Out Of Your Cadence,” and YouTube movies with rhetorical query titles and folks with dumb perplexed expressions–even though in most cases you don’t have to look at them to uncover the answer:

It’s no longer, it sucks.

Sure, you’re all going to die.

Sure, however they may be able to best be used with gravel sneakers, and gravel socks, and ridden on gravel, or else you’re all going to die.

Talking of gravel, the UCI Gravel International Championships in Great has been cancelled:

They’re now in search of a brand new venue:

And clearly they must glance no additional than Cleveland:

There’s gotta be some gravel round there someplace.

As for the gravel in Great, I sought after to be informed extra about it and located this:

I then clicked at the #whatisgravel seek hyperlink:

And located this:

It appears gravel is now utterly ineffable, even though the message used to be accompanied through this symbol:

I suppose he’s gravel personified, despite the fact that he’s status on a floor fabricated from processed gravel.

However possibly essentially the most anxious factor about gravel is the punctuation–sorry the PNCTN. See, the gravel taste guide calls for all phrases to be rendered in all-caps and not using a vowels. Then again, it appears Open, the corporate with most likely essentially the most frustrating style naming conventions in all of biking (and that’s coming from any individual who rides a motorcycle known as a Platypus) has been granted an exception and is authorized to make use of vowels simply so long as they come with a host of gratuitous sessions: