Month-end Ride to Anchetti

Rode to Anchetti yesterday with a number of bikers from Bangalore. Anchetti is a small village in Tamil Nadu, just across the border with Karnataka. Its claim to fame is a beautiful waterfall very close to the town, and picturesque roads that wind through the dense forests of Krishnagiri district.Beware, though, that the excruciating climbs and the undulating terrain don't catch you unawares...

Hessarghatta 55

The first ride organized by the IISc Randonneurs was a 55km populaire to Hessarghatta lake and back, through some of the most scenic roads in the region. A total of 32 riders participated, of which 24 completed within the allotted time. Details, routes and the cue sheet are here...
Some photos from the route, clicked by Bharathkumar Hegde, are below...

Number of Teeth on sprockets

The sprockets have a number stamped on it indicating how many teeth it has. Here's a closeup shot. Click on the image for a larger version...

This is the Rockrider 5.3 9 speed rear cassette, with teeth numbering 32-28-24-21-18-16-14-12-11.

[Edit: The smallest cogset is 11, not 10]

Hessarghatta Populaire Recce

These are some photos from a recce ride on Saturday along the proposed route for the first IISc Populaire to Hessarghatta organised by the IISc Randonneurs...

Hessarghatta Loop

Did a quick loop of about 40k this morning. Wanted to go all the way to Hessarghatta lake and then return, but I wanted to get back  in time for mess, and in any case I had no motivation to go see the dirty lake anyway. I rode out towards Hessarghatta via BEL circle on Outer Ring road and Gangamma circle, then a small detour to get onto the Pipeline road which is a dead straight stretch all the way to Hessarghatta main road. The initial pat of this road runs through Air Force land, which is lush green on either side. For a long stretch thereafter there is suburban development - mostly residential, which finally gives way to agricultural land on either side. The last stretch of the road is not metaled - this is the stretch just before the intersection with Hessarghatta main road. I am sure that I took a slightly different route than I have indicated on the map; but since I had no GPS I have no way of knowing for sure. I was a bit wary of stray dogs along this road, and no doubt they of me; but i managed to pass without incident.
I'd ridden non-stop this far and I had not brought anything with me - no food or water - and hardly any cash. I suppose the only place to get decent breakfast around here is Hessarghatta village a few km further on; or somewhere near IIHR. I was not interested in either of these options- I'd rather return to IISc Mess. So I continued down past IIHR and through Jalahalli Air Force Station, and back to IISc in time for breakfast at mess...

Stats:
Total Distance (Est)  : 40km
Total Time: (Est)       : 1h 40m
Avg Speed               : 24kmh

in
View Hessarghatta 40K Loop in a larger map

Setting up Fork and Disc Brakes on the Rockrider 5.3

How to set up the Front Suspension Fork:
1. Put a zip tie around one of the stanchion tubes.
2. Sit on the bike in your normal riding posture. Ask a friend to hold you in place, and slide the zip tie as low as it can go on the stanchion tube.
3. Gently get off without exterting more pressure on the fork and handlebars.
4. Measure the distance between the zip tie and the bottom of the stanchion tube.
5. This distance must be about 20-25% of the travel of the fork. (e.g. for a 100mm fork this distance must be 20-25mm)
6. To increase this distance reduce the preload and vice versa.

How to set up the disc brakes:
1. Loosen the two allen bolts holding the brake assembly on the frame so that the assembly can move a few millemeters.
2. Press the brake lever completely. This centres the assembly on the brake disk.
3. While holding the brake lever all the way down tighten the two mounting screws. Tighten the two screws by about quarter turn alternately. Do not tighten one completely before tightening the other.
4. Ride around for about 50km to allow the brakes to wear in. Performance reaches its peak only after the discs have worn-in after about that much use.

Setting up Derailers: Excellent tutorial here from pinkbikes.com.

Update: See this post for more on Disc brake adjustment.