Testing: Joe's No Flats Tubeless Conversion Kit

Ok so I was given a Joe's No Flats kit last year to try out. The opportunity for me to use it really hasn't presented itself so I decided to let a co-worker of mine try it out on his DH rig. I figured what better way to get real world feedback then with a downhiller since they are pretty hard on their equipment and prone to punctures. In fact this rider was complaining of constant punctures so we'll see how he likes the added protection and ability to run lower pressures.
Kit comes very complete. Here's what's included:
Big Bottle of sealant - 500mL
Small measuring bottle
Rim prep tape
Rubber rim strip with attached valve stem
Instructions in many languages
Spare valve cores

Also I received 2 different widths of rubber rim strips to accommodate any application I would encounter.

So I'm going to come clean here. The sealant I used in this install was Stan's. I have already used the bottle of Joe's to seal up my tubeless tires to my tubeless rims on my race bike. I can report that it works just as well as Stan's. Seems a little stickier and seems to bond more to the tire once the liquid has evaporated. Didn't really notice if this was a good or bad thing compared to how Stan's sets up. So I already know that the sealant works well whereas I'll have to wait until Brian the guinea pig gets back to me with his impressions of the strips in a couple weeks.

First step is to remove the tire and check the rim tape. I found the tape he had on to be a little wide and didn't want it to interfere with the rubber rim strip so we decided to use the provided rim tape which has a lower profile.

Here is the installation of the rim tape. Just like a normal tape. Just do one wrap, should be enough to cover the spoke holes. Take a knife or screwdriver and cut a hole for the valve stem. Make sure not to dislodge the tape if you are doing it with a dull screwdriver.

Next install the rubber rim strip. The valve is attached right to the strip so feed the valve into the rim first and go from there. Keep even pressure as you seat the strip into the rim. You sorta have to let it slide in your hands or you'll end up with a big loop of slack strip. Here is was just making sure the rubber was tucked under the bead lock on the rim so that it wouldn't protrude once the tire was on.

Next put the tire on. We used levers to finish it off. I've never really damaged a tire or rim so that it couldn't be sealed when using levers. I think as long as you are careful and only use nylon ones then you will be fine.

Measure out the correct amount of sealant. I used the Stan's cup but with the Joe's No Flats kit you can use the measuring bottle which is handy. They tell you to seat the tire first then remove the valve core and squirt the sealant in through there yada yada yada. I just simplify this step and add the sealant while one bead it still off the rim. Just be careful not to dump it out when you are putting the other bead of the tire on the rim.

Got the first one to seal up no problem. 2nd one gave us a bit of trouble but we managed to get it to work eventually. The tires were seated using the compressor.

So until I hear back from Brian about the strips I can only comment right now on the sealant. I know what you are thinking, Joe's No Flats??? What a rip off of Stan's No Tubes. I 100% agree. From what I have seen so far it looks and performs extremely similarly so the only reason I would ever buy Joe's over Stan's is if it was significantly cheaper.

Performance gets 8 out of 10

-Works very well just like Stan's. Strips can be a messy pain in the @ss and changing a flat is more of a hassle out on the trail since you have to pull the tape out and keep it in your jersey. So I guess it's not that much more complicated then changing a flat with tubes.

*Update on the kit after some ride time.*

Brian reports that he hasn't flatted since we installed the kit. He also likes the lower pressures that he can run with less risk of failure. He does report some burping of air but attributes this to the crapply old tire that he is running. It even sealed up some pretty big cuts in the tire, so overall impressions are good at this time. This kit gets 2 big toes up.

Nationals @ St. Felicien

So I am boycotting the rain tonight and am gonna do some core and strength training instead. Also gives me some time to update about Nationals. I knew it was going to be an epic weekend and right from the git-go it didn't disappoint. Rolled out of Barrie at about 5:30am since TomTom calculated a 1138km journey. Got off the 401 at Port Hope to pick up my travel mate Zach where my muffler decided to divorce its long relationship with the rest of the exhaust system. So a quick trip to Zach's barn and we got her all patched up courtesy of some clamps and a can of beans.

Arrived at our B&B at about 7pm after our barnyard vehicle repair set us back an hour and a half. Got out for a quick spin and took in some more of the beautiful scenery that is Northernish Quebec. We were staying with a bunch of team mates so we did a group dinner thing which is where I started hearing stories about the awesome course that had been prepared. Needless to say I was pretty excited to get out there and test the legs after some less than mediocre training from my annual summer cold. For some reason I was feeling good technically, I think the time off gave me time to clear my head.

Pre-riding on Friday was awesome. Probably the best XC course I have ridden to date, a big relief given the amount of time committed to making it out there. There were lots of man made big granite rock gardens and drops and berms. The course snaked around and over and back on itself which was great for spectators too. A couple high speed double track downhills that would feed into the singletrack via huge berms that would keep your momentum uninterrupted. I'd say there were 3 major climbs all in the 2nd half of the lap. The first was a tough singletrack climb that snaked up through the woods. This was followed by a technical descent which came out to an open switchback climb on the face of the ski hill. Then after a fast switchback descent we headed right back up a pretty steep climb that went straight up most of the hill only to come right back down the most technical descent of the race which brought you back to the start/finish. Not very much rest on this course.

There was rain the night before and rain that morning just before the race. About 1.5 hours before our 2pm start I decided to switch to my 2.0 Bontrager Mud X's. Sure they are aggressive but the roots and rocks were angry that day. Due to the insane amount of course prep the course pretty much stayed dry. There were a couple greasy climbs and descents but nothing that really got flung up and collected on the bike. I was still glad I had the mud tires on though, they really didn't roll that bad either. Anyway I had a pretty good start and stayed about mid pack most of the race. The Espoirs were flying and I got passed by a bunch of them. I finished mid pack as well, 28th out of about 50ish I think. Not my best finish at Nats but I was pleased because I felt I had a good ride. I can't remember in recent history being so tired after a race, it was just relentless.

Drive home was thankfully uneventful and the can of beans seems to be up to the challenge until I can find a used exhaust somewhere for cheap. So in short I am very glad I made the journey and if you can only make it out to one Quebec race next year then I would highly recommend going to St. Felicien.

See you next time.

Benno

Stuff Happens

So here it is, middle of summer............well I guess technically start of summer but I think we've all been in the summer mentality for a while despite the weather thinking differently. What better time to get a cold? Ok so the timing could have been better but also could have been much worse.

Starting feeling it late Monday, now I did a 2 hour ride in the pouring rain that day so that probably didn't help my cause but I was going to get sick regardless. Now if you know me at all you know that I get sick like this a couple times a year and I really don't get over it very well. Last summer I had the same thing a little later in the year, took me 3 weeks to get over it.

Soo that brings me to now, 5 days later. I am still stuffed up but my general feeling of crappiness and disorientation seems to be subsiding. Going to get out a lot on the mountain bike this week to get ready for Nationals. I know it's not the best strategy to take almost a week off the bike just before Nats but really I am just glad that I will probably be 95+% healthy for the race even if my legs aren't ideal.

Timing wise I did have to miss the Canada Cup finals in Bromont this weekend which is a bummer. I think they are using the World Cup course for it so it would have been nice to get some laps in on that. Maybe I will tour down there to spectate the World Cup and cheer on the Canadian riders.

Going to head to Buckwallow tomorrow and get in a nice long ride. Should be easy on the stagnant legs and start to get me back up to speed bike handling wise. First ride there on the Anthem X, the added travel will be appreciated.

Tune in next time.

Benno

Sold - 2009 Giant Anthem XO

Sold

South Carolina 2010

Why South Carolina? I started going down to SC on the suggestion of a friend. To be honest I wasn't too hot on the idea at first. I'd never heard of riding there and figured it would be mediocre at best. Well 5 years later and I've never missed going down since. Reasons I keep coming back are the riding and the affordability. Who knew that Northwest South Carolina has some of the best mountain biking and road riding in North America. You can ride rolling hills South of the house or category 1 mountain climbs North of it.
Travel costs about $75 gas each way depending on the car (my Civic actually did it for $50 average) so get one or two to share the ride and you are looking at a $75/person round trip.
The weather there is about 2 months ahead. Their March is like our May, April is like June/July.
What can be said about our South Carolina adventures? So many memories over the years, so many miles and shenanigans. 2009 was one for the record books. Record amounts of singletrack discovered, record amounts of people enjoyed The Palace, record amounts of Easter candy (mostly jelly beans) consumed. Cyclists of all abilities sharing rides, meals, racing stories. There's the annual barbecue with local Forest "Iron Man" Fowler (moonshine and handguns optional), hikes up Table Rock on "rest days", sliding rock, the Blue Ridge death march, midnight movie releases, Tiger Town Tavern, Duke World of Dance............I could go on. Riding is good too.
The house is pretty darn big. At any time you'll be sharing it with 11 other riders yet you could go for days without seeing some of them. People tend to form in riding groups depending on ability and willingness to get up in the morning. Be careful not to sleep too late or risk being dubbed resident zombie.
Besides the hundreds of miles of snaking, nicely paved roads you can also find about 100miles of awesome singletrack within a 25min driving radius of the house. Explore into nearby North Carolina to find the Blue Ridge Mountains, Pisgah, Dupont, and Tsali. Take part in some of the SERC XC racing series or weekly police escorted club road rides in Greenville.

I will have the place next spring for all of March and April. Looks like Saturday February 27th - Saturday May 1st. This year will be limited to 12 singles including myself or 9 singles and 3 couples. Should cut down on the congestion in the kitchen area.

I am also now taking reservations for the house down south next spring. Please let me know if you have any special room requests or anything of that sorts. Master bedroom goes to the first couple to book on any given week. There are 3 couple appropriate rooms. To book you need to put a $50 deposit for each week with the remaining balance due February 1st.

House Info
Top Floor - 2 Bedrooms, one with a Queen and a Twin. One with a Queen and a bunkbed (Full and Twin)
Main Floor - 3 Bedrooms. Master Bedroom has a King. 2 Bedrooms have Queens.
Walk out Basement - 2 Bedrooms. One with a Queen and a Twin. One with a Queen and a bunkbed (Full and Twin).
-3 t.v's. One 32" equipped with satellite.
-Wireless internet
-Pool Table
-6 bathrooms, 7 showers
-Fully furnished rooms and kitchen
-big dining room table
-on the water with a nice dock and deck
-bbq
-2 car garage for bikes (and garage crit championships) and lots of parking outside
-full central air conditioning (yes we've used it before)
-gas fireplace
-2 refrigerators
-2 laundry rooms with washers/dryers
-towels/sheets/pillows

Pricing
Full balance is now due upon booking. Prices are as follows:
Price per person is $180/week/person
Price per couple is $230/week/couple
*non refundable after Feb 15th.

Weeks available:
Week 1 February 27th - March 6th
Week 2 March 6th - March 13th (Full)
Week 3 March 13th - March 20th (Booked for group)
Week 4 March 20th - March 27th
Week 5 March 27th - April 3rd (Full)
Week 6 April 3rd - April 10th (Booked for Tour)
Week 7 April 10th - April 17th (5 spots left)
Week 8 April 17th - April 24th (4 spots left)
Week 9 April 24th - May 1st (5 spots left)

*Small print* Deposit is 100% refundable until February 1st, 2010. After February 1st the total balance is paid and is non-refundable after February 15th ,2010. Any money paid including deposit and balance are 100% refundable until February 14th, 2010.

Ben Dawson

mmmbenno@yahoo.com

705 229 6923

From the air (hey that's my civic! haha)


Master Bedroom


One of the two loft bedrooms. Each with their own full bathroom.


Kitchen/Dining Room area


Party time

O-Cup #4. Boler "Mountain"

Lol at the word Mountain. Anyways so made the drive down to London on Saturday morning and got in a good 2 pre-ride laps. The course was really fun and I was looking forward to the race. Lots of twisty stuff and faster laps though really not much climbing, a couple short hills. More of a big guys course I think, the watt pushers.
Stayed with some friends at the Western campus in a 4 bedroom dorm apartment with a kitchen but no dishes or cookware. We took that as a sign to order Swiss Chalet, I'm all about hassle free living when I'm away at a race. Had a good breakfast after my 10 hour sleep. Bed was pretty damn firm though and my old man back let me hear about it. Figured the back would start cramping on the 2nd lap or so but it never really did. Hurts like hell now though, massage anyone anyone??
Got to the race site and had a good warmup of about 30min or so after chilling out under some nice shade trees and making jungle noises for those walking by DOOOooooooEEee. Weather was warm and humid. I figured the race would be hot but never really noticed it that much while I was out there. Started on the 2nd row and got my famous Boler hole shot and took the lead for 20 glorious seconds. Started going backwards pretty quick after that cause I didn't want to blow. Got passed my Zach Hughes who promptly went over the bars right in front of me. I was inches away from rolling over his face but came to a pretty uncontrolled stop and was relegated to the last 2/3rds of the pack. Easy come easy go. Rest of the race went ok, not great, not horrible. Was caught slacking off when the juniors caught me on the 2nd lap and managed to hang with them for a lap. All in all finished 13th which seems to now be an average finish for me.
I love how Ontario doesn't give you any slack anymore with the training. I'm really going to have to start streamlining and putting a lot more thought into what I'm doing if I want to crawl my way back to the front of the pack. Stay tuned cause this old guy still has some fight left!
As always, pics if I can find em.
Cheerio

Canada Cup #3 / O-Cup #3 - Hardwood

Ok well what is there to say about Hardwood. Did about a million pre-ride laps since I work there lol. Was pretty easy to get out on course after work or whenever I had spare time. I have done well at this race in the past, in fact last year I had my best Canada Cup result to date which was 14th. I was hoping to do similarly this year and went into the race pretty confident with my fitness. So long story short or more like short story short, race didn't go to plan. I'm not going to make up some lame excuse about what happened and discredit the many racers that whooped my ass. Pretty much the main problem was that in certain parts, such as the entire race, I was going slow when I should nay could have gone fast. I dunno it was pretty damn cold out, like 7 degrees not including the ice cold 35km/h wind. I decided shorts and jersey would be sufficient though I did start regretting this decision as snow fell during the first section of singletrack on the first lap. Though it did only last 20 seconds I never did warm up. I would be sort of o.k. for a little bit then come out to the open and get blasted with the wind and freeze all over again. Heart rate sat at a low 163 average compared to my usual 175+. I finally decided to clench the teeth, spool up the turbos, and let 'r' rip. It was glorious! I started flying by people, the legs warmed up, I got a good rhythm...........it was, it was.............at the 2km to go mark and just a smidge too late. So I'm going to get in a couple training rides this week and some spins to get ready for the London O-Cup this weekend. Final result from this weekend, 27th out of 51 that finished. I know that's only 2 spots worse than Tremblant but there really wasn't the depth to the field that there was in Quebec. Must have been another race going on somewhere else in the world.
Results Here

That's it.