Challenge Fango Tubular review

Time to dust off this 'ol blog for a review.

Now, tubular cyclocross tires aren't as cool as cigarettes, but have many of the same associations: tradition, addiction, perceived nuances, and loss of brain cells. While reading about the woody earthiness in a Parliament light, I can only think to the countless poetic masturbations written about supple tubular casings. On to the review!

Challenge Fango Tubular - 32mm

This pair of tires was a complement to a set I already owned and love - The classic Challenge Grifo, also in 32mm. For those of you that don't know much about tubular cross tires, these are relatively inexpensive with a nice supple casing and classic latex-tube-sewn-in construction. This makes them more repairable than a tubeless (Tufo) type, but also more fragile. The sidewall is polyester instead of the more expensive Dugast's cotton...but don't take that as a bad thing. Cotton sidewalls rot if left wet, and need protective layers of aquaseal or other rubber to protect them, while polyester can be left bare without a problem. They're somewhat heavier than the other good cross tubulars, but honestly who cares. Yeah, I said it.

The tread pattern on these tires is a bit of a mystery to me. They have low central and transition knobs - great for rolling resistance on hardpack or pavement, and they clear mud really well, but don't offer much pedaling grip in mud, loose debris, or really anything else when compared to a tire with taller center knobs like the Grifo, or a Michelin Mud2. I agree with Matt Pacocha - the side knobs are solid, scoop shaped, and well supported - they hook up better at high lean angles than any cross tire I've ever used and really make this tire what it is. This combo - fast rolling center with great side knobs - makes this tire ride more like a mountain bike semi-slick than what I'd truly call a "mud tire". In serious slop, the side knobs really help in off-camber, but I find myself wishing for more paddles in the center of the tread to keep momentum forward. I'm curious to try a Grifo in the rear, with a Fango up front for really slick conditions.

That said, when the terra-firma turns into terra-caramel, these tires actually clear when others won't.

Best for:
High speed, mountain-bikey hardpack courses, super sticky mud, grass.

Worst for:

Seriously slippery mud, sharp/rocky courses due to fragile sidewall.

How it fits into your quiver:
This tire has turned into my favorite all-arounder. If you own a single pair of tubulars, this should be high on the list unless you're always racing on landfills (norcal), or in goatheads (CO) - in those places I'd probably opt for the more durable Tufo's - likely going with the non-flexus version to save some cash.

If you're looing for a dedicated mudder, look elsewhere. Don't buy this expecting to excel at Hamme-Zogge, or even Gloucester if it's been raining a lot. Suggestions for those conditions would probably be Tufo's Cubus (flexus or regular), Dugast's Rhino, or even Challenge's classic Grifo.

This one speaks for itself

Mavic R-sys Fuckup

Kimmel just pointed me to the VeloNews story of a post recall Mavic R-Sys wheel spontaneously imploding. Turns out that one of those wheels happened to fail on a VeloNews editor.

I have had a certain opinion of Mavic for a few years, that opinion is that Mavic makes mostly crap and the whole reputation of the company somehow still gets by on the quality of the Open Pro rim. Other than Open Pros, I no longer buy their stuff. But this R-sys debacle is just frigtening. Most damning to me was the following quote from the article.

Although Mavic representatives were careful not to draw conclusions — none of them saw the accident — it was suggested that perhaps rider error could have caused the wheel to fail through a loss of control.

The author appears to have done the due diligence to find third party accounts to determine that it was not rider error but I really don't care. It should be impossible to get a bicycle wheel to fail like this. There is always going to be rider error. I was in a P12 race last weekend where the rider on my inside hit his pedal in the final corner and kicked his back wheel up. We all kept sprinting like it never happened. Is that considered rider error? If his wheel had failed would Mavic have thought that was okay?

In my road racing career I've had my wheel kick out from hitting a pedal more times than I can count, I've had to hop curbs and sprint up sidewalks to avoid crashes, I've hit potholes head on, I've had peoples deraileurs in my spokes. During all that time I never crashed and none of my equipment ever failed.

Japanese Pursuit Team

"If my sleeping in entertained them, they were in for an even better treat from the Japanese team pursuit squad. Pursuit events are not usually a Japanese forte, but the team was on the line and ready to give it their best. They shot off the line at sprint pace, sustained it as long as they could, which was about two laps, and then just got slower and slower. In the end their heads were bobbing up and down. When they finished they were so done that they just collapsed on their backs in front of my stand. The best was yet to come as one of the men managed a gasping request to their coach, who pulled out a pack of cigarettes and gave them one each."

- Graeme Obree, Flying Scotsman

Twins

There's something about identical twins that's just hot. These babies are gonna be sooo much lighter than the single speed commuter bike I was racing last year. Look! they even have derailleur hangers.

Oh, and they're the first blue Stigmatas eveeeerrr.

Track Fights Update

Thanks to all our loyal Track Fighters, but we're going to be calling off the rest of the spring series. We've had a lot of fun, and some great workouts, but they seem better fitted to be a fall-only series to get 'cross riders tuned up for the season.  Keep your eyes peeled for start dates....heck, post here or email us directly with your suggestions for start dates. 

Thanks again!

 

Tonight's Race is on

Looks like it's drying up out there and the forecast doesn't call for rain for the rest of the day so I think we're good. Not much wind either so it'll be good racing conditions. I gotta go rock-paper-scissors against Kimmel to see which one of us gets to race tonight.

Finally.

It is so on tonight. We have suffered through two windy Tuesdays waiting for this. This is gonna be all about sitting around and drinking beer. Maybe a little about racing bikes but mostly about cold beer. Bring bikes and chairs. We'll bring the cooler of beer.

Holy windy Batman

its gonna be interesting, but right now the show will go on. 

Sports Basement Saves the Day Again.

Looks like you'll all have more reasons to sprint than just points. Big thanks to Sports Basement for giving us another grab bag of gift certificates again. Now everybody go buy something from 'em.

Track Fights Starts March 31st!

Spring Series

You're gonna have another reason to shave up and wear spandex at night soon.

Gear down

One of the first things my father taught me when I was learning to drive off-road was to gear down. He said,"you can rarely go to slow, and the last thing you want to do is kill the engine because you're in too big of a gear. If you kill the engine you'll stop, even lose ground, or slide off the trail, and maybe even end up stuck. So, gear down and take your time." Not race advice, but sound point A to point B training strategy.

Well, that's all well and good, as long as you have enough gears. Today, I didn't have enough gears. I haven't been on the bike in four weeks (vacation in SE Asia, followed by a forced vacation thanks to something I brought back with me), and today I got back in the saddle. I took the cross bike out and its been raining for days. Some of the trails here in Skeggs are covered in a peanut butter mud. Its sticky when you don't want it to be and slick the rest of the time. Today, this mud was actually my savior. About the time I realized my ride was about to turn into a single speed grind- the mud got so slippery it essentially gave me a few more gears. I could just sit and spin in my 38-25. Sure, I wasn't going anywhere, but I wasn't killing my engine. It may have been ruining my fuel efficiency, but after four weeks off the bike you better believe I have a full tank with some junk in the trunk that will probably burn pretty hot too and for quite some time. 

If felt good to get on the bike. Three days ago in the depth of my illness I thought taking a dump was exercise. 

Number Six

We finally added another nitwit to the blog, John Blackwell. He rides bikes 'n shit.

Base miles

To many cyclists, winter means short days, crappy weather, and long hours. Motivation is hard to find when ze program calls for a bunch of miles spent staring at a spot of pavement lit up by only a headlamp...but we all make it happen anyway. I personally think we find the ability to get out there in the elements because winter, even here in Norcal, makes us feel tougher than we actually are. 

Every car that passes reminds us that there's an easier way. Each time we ride and see no other cyclists on the road makes us feel alone...which can be a much-needed stroke to the ego when there are no finish lines to sprint for. This kind of riding also reminds us that we're not doing it for anyone else.

There are also plenty of little things about riding in the elements that you just don't get to experience much the rest of the year:

• The satisfaction of pulling off sopping wet cycling shoes
• The misery of having them still wet when you pull them on again
• The type of rain that calls for the glasses-or-no-glasses decision
• Fenders...yes, I love fenders
• Dreading the coming descent
• Keeping your fingers off the brake levers because it makes them cold
• The point at which you literally cannot get any more wet
• Discovering your lights are still on when you finish a ride after sunrise
• Enjoying a commute bag because it keeps your back warm
• A dirty road bike
• Hairy legs

Still, I can't wait for April.

What Would Pre Say?

I found this scan of Steve Prefontaine's notes from a speech he gave in 1974. Let's run down how I'm doing on the ole checklist.

• My diet consists largely of alcohol and Mexican fast food
• I'm sleeping in the living room of a home that calls itself "Casa de Chaos"
• I skipped half my workouts so far this year

w00t.

The Camel goes Corporate

Just in time for the new year, one of us snuck a little camel toe into his corporate ID badge thinger. Here's the proof...we'll see if it squeaks by the graphic design people:

Also of note, counting Darren as being half employed - we're now down to a 10% unemployment rate. Isn't that down near the CA average?