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August 31st 03, 07:18 PM
from rec.bicycles.racing:

(I wish I could read Dutch. He also gives a speed, heart rate,
cadence graph for one Mt. Ventoux. Can anyone tell what kind
of uni he has; what crank length, wheel size, etc.?)

Did you see this nutter? He climbed the Mont Ventoux 3 times on 1 day
on his unicycle: http://www.lopa.be/ (pictures, and report in Dutch).

john_childs
August 31st 03, 08:09 PM
There is an online translator that can translate Dutch web pages into
English at 'www.worldlingo.com' (http://www.worldlingo.com/)
'Direct link to online translator' (http://tinyurl.com/3x7j)

The translation is still not very readable. :(

It's interesting that he's using clipless pedals.


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Klaas Bil
August 31st 03, 11:14 PM
On Sun, 31 Aug 2003 18:18:06 GMT, wrote:

>from rec.bicycles.racing:
>
>(I wish I could read Dutch. He also gives a speed, heart rate,
>cadence graph for one Mt. Ventoux. Can anyone tell what kind
>of uni he has; what crank length, wheel size, etc.?)
>
>Did you see this nutter? He climbed the Mont Ventoux 3 times on 1 day
>on his unicycle: http://www.lopa.be/ (pictures, and report in Dutch).

The page seems to be written for non-unicyclists and does not contain
a lot of uni-specific info. The uni is described as a standard 21"
model, adapted to accept a 28" wheel. The crank size is unspecified;
from the pictures I think they might be 170 or 175 mm. Slope on the Mt
Ventoux is stated as "very steep, up to 12%" (which I don't think is
very steep but of course the total vertical difference still kills
you). The speed/heartrate/etc graph on the web page is not of an
actual Mt Ventoux climb but of a training session on a "hometrainer".

I have e-mailed him for some more details.

Klaas Bil - Newsgroup Addict
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Klaas Bil
September 1st 03, 12:25 AM
On Sun, 31 Aug 2003 18:18:06 GMT, wrote:

>from rec.bicycles.racing:
>
>(I wish I could read Dutch. He also gives a speed, heart rate,
>cadence graph for one Mt. Ventoux. Can anyone tell what kind
>of uni he has; what crank length, wheel size, etc.?)
>
>Did you see this nutter? He climbed the Mont Ventoux 3 times on 1 day
>on his unicycle: http://www.lopa.be/ (pictures, and report in Dutch).

The page seems to be written for non-unicyclists and does not contain a
lot of uni-specific info. The uni is described as a standard 21" model,
adapted to accept a 28" wheel. The crank size is unspecified; from the
pictures I think they might be 170 or 175 mm. Slope on the Mt Ventoux is
stated as "very steep, up to 12%" (which I don't think is very steep but
of course the total vertical difference still kills you). The
speed/heartrate/etc graph on the web page is not of an actual Mt Ventoux
climb but of a training session on a "hometrainer".

I have e-mailed him for some more details.

Klaas Bil

(reposted on forum since newsgroup post didn't propagate here)


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joemc
September 1st 03, 09:27 PM
I lived at the foot of the Ventoux (in a tiny village called St Leger du
Ventoux) for almost a year, and know the climb well. It's a clear
vertical mile from the river at the southern foot (le toulourenc) to the
summit, a good day's walk up and back just once. I'm amazed anyone could
ride it in one go on a uni, let alone 3 times in a day. I've been
meaning to go back and visit and ride it on the 2 wheeler, but maybe
i'll just take the 1 instead, after lots more training...


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Klaas Bil
September 3rd 03, 01:49 AM
Some more details on this epic ride, supplied to me in Dutch by the
rider himself (Belgian unicyclist Lode De Paepe):

Preparation was mainly on a 'home-trainer" (stationary bike) rather than
on the unicycle. Riding in itself is not the problem, stamina is and the
training was more controlled at home (PC connected to hometrainer, heart
beat monitor etc).

Cranks were 155 mm from a child's bike. Wheel 28".

Seat is a standard Viscount, no airseat or other mod.

He used so-called SPD pedals and shoes, which I understand to be
clipless. They helped for climbing because he could also pull on the
pedals. For the first half hour he managed to unclip his shoes in the
case of a fall, thereafter he was too tired and just crashed into the
tarmac. From this description and the fact that the total riding time
was 9 hours, I guess it happened quite often. This is a new approach to
falling for me. Possibly it makes more sense because the speed is low
and the tarmac is near in case of a forward fall (because you climb).

I find this triple Mt Ventoux an awsome endeavour and way beyond what I
could imagine doing.

Klaas Bil

(Reposted once more because after some 3 hours I get impatient when a
post isn't relayed. It just should be.)


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john_childs
September 3rd 03, 02:09 AM
Klaas Bil wrote:
> *
> I find this triple Mt Ventoux an awsome endeavour and way beyond what
> I could imagine doing.
> *

Yes, I'm impressed.
But why Mt. Ventoux? That mountain is like a moonscape up at the top.
It's just ugly up there. Pick a climb that's more visually attractive
if you're going to do something like that.


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tomblackwood
September 3rd 03, 07:31 AM
wrote:
> *from rec.bicycles.racing:
>
> (I wish I could read Dutch. He also gives a speed, heart rate,
> cadence graph for one Mt. Ventoux. Can anyone tell what kind
> of uni he has; what crank length, wheel size, etc.?)*

Looks like the posts above answered most of these questions, but I
didn't see an answer to "what kind". The single picture of the uni (the
one without rider) shows a Pashley Muni. Pashley coined the term "MUni"
for Mountain Unicycle, although their technology has not kept pace with
the advances in that sport.


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Lode De Paepe
September 3rd 03, 10:05 PM
> He used so-called SPD pedals and shoes, which I understand to be
> clipless. They helped for climbing because he could also pull on the
> pedals. For the first half hour he managed to unclip his shoes in the
> case of a fall, thereafter he was too tired and just crashed into the
> tarmac. From this description and the fact that the total riding time
> was 9 hours, I guess it happened quite often. This is a new approach
> to falling for me. Possibly it makes more sense because the speed is
> low and the tarmac is near in case of a forward fall (because you
> climb).

It certainly looks like I am promoting a new trend in 'how to get off
a unicycle the hard way'... well, I'm not! ;-)
I only 'crashed' once during the 3-fold climb, in the last bend, about
50 meters from the summet (last climb). It was close to 10 pm,
completely dark and the car that followed me had to take the turn at
the inside (another car was coming down) => no light for me => crash.
The most difficult part in riding with clipless pedals is to get the
confidence, knowing that one single moment of distraction is likely to
end in a dive...
Obviously, the use of clipless pedals only makes sense (at leat it
does to me) when riding on normal roads. Using them for off-road /
MUNI is probably not a good idea.

So far for now. I will put a page in english on the web in the near
future, describing the 3-fold Mt Ventoux climb from a unicyclers point
of view (unlike the dutch page that is aimed to a 'normal' audience).

Regards,
Lode De Paepe

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