Dura Ace C50....

So why did I get these ? Cheap! Never to repeat Price!! :P

My idea was to get more speed, nothing is more exhilarating then having wind generated from speed... Carbon wheels are the way to go... but what is the price to pay?

actually... that will be in dollars and weight...

DA C50 wheels are reknown for... value.. not for weight, not for speed.. but value.. which means in a nutshell ... what you get is... something that is not too low end.. but it may leave you wanting more in the long run...

DA C50... are fast wheels, only if you are a fast rider.. the Aero, doesn't come into effect not until around and above 35km/h. certainly not something which you want if you are casually spinning. Its not exactly a fast wheel... particular if you are talking about spin ups...

But the price that I paid for it was pretty good.. although after a couple of weeks later, I found out that I was able to get them for about 500 bucks cheaper.. but those were Chiong stuff.. you dun want to mess about with Chiong stuff...

After having them for a couple of months now.. all I can say is...

1. these are great training wheels

2. can I use them for races? Depends on the race distance. For any given distance, if you are able to keep at 35km/h and above for 70% of the time and distance.. you will certainly get an advantage.. the aero advantage... anything else.. effort to overcome the weight will be detrimental.

3.weight of these guys are not too light, but they not exactly heavy

Speedplays...

These candy looking things dun come cheap.. but are they worth it ? Well.. for a fact.. they ARE really alot easier to disengage... using a radically different engineering approach the design is a marked difference for the usual pedals found on the Road Bikes..

In hindsight, I would have chosen the black coloured ones.. as the white ones, really stain so darn easily.. The cleats are HUMONGOUS.. and enough is said about them, especially walking on them! Those Coffee shop cleat covers are an absolute must if you're gonna have those rides and eat sessions!

So how do they perform? Well.. I went from a PB of 52.9km/h to a 54.6km/h. I think the float adjustments does help abit. The biggest thing about them is the way they clip and unclip and the fact that they keep my feet from too much movement and also being close to the spindles. Initially it really takes some use to, you really need to dial them in, in terms of the heel in or heel out position. But once that is dialled in, its just a matter of getting yourself out there and training hard! On a scale from 1 to 10, on how much these have given me performance in terms of dollarts spend? Well, I am not too sure about it though, I think that Shimanos or the Keos or the Look would have probably done the same thing, only these lollypops are alot more expensive, nicer to look at and alot lighter! I'd give them a 4 for value.. as they are darn expensive. But I'd give them a high 8 or even a 9, as far as the ease of use is concerned. a 10 for cosmetics.. they are really really cute! Sigh.. the cost of ownership!

The wall.. again...

2009 started with alot of optimism.. a new job.. and a fitter me.. or so I thought.. a couple weeks into the new year and I started to experience cramps that I have never felt before.. cramping at both thighs... I've tried everything... binging on isotonic drinks, creatine, Vit C's and B's... everything.. but nothing can revise the misfortune of aging... hopes of ever completing my half marathon seems to be just so remote now...

After laying off for about a month or two.. I decided to run again.. and what a mistake... stretching sure didnt help... 3/4 of the way and the right thigh started to do the funky thing.. cramping.. it was on the down slope...

Half way up Henderson road, and I was cussing, I hate running.. I absolutely HATE it! I thought.. I should just give it up... I decided to forgo the target of doing 2 half marathons.. and instead... just concentrated on the Stand Chart... at least that will give me more time to train...

But really.. I was just so down and out today.. I just felt like giving up.. could it just be that all that cycling just killed it?