He knew not everyone had equal opportunities to encounter the same obstacles on a road, which is why some get flat tires while others don’t. What does it mean to live in a world with many tandem friendly roads, but guarantees nothing? Every ride is a chance to either beat the odds and have a problem-free experience, or to fall victim to an unseen road hazard that strands you on a ride in the middle of nowhere with a fatal mechanical failure.
(A twist on Death of a Salesman’s Main Point)
On the bright side, in our story the ‘House of Tandems‘ from Houston, Texas, Support And Gear (SAG) vehicle driven for something like the 9th time at the Georgia Tandem Rally by the intrepid and our good friends Ric and Marsha Becker, came upon us moments after our terminal mechanical event, giving us and our crippled tandem safe and easy passage back to the host hotel.
We owe them both a debt of gratitude and then some for their priceless assistance. Seriously, there’s a business case for doing all that they do, but it’s still a tremendous amount of effort to make a 750-mile drive from Houston, Texas, to Thomasville, Georgia, and then spend every waking hour thereafter fixing people’s tandems, listening to their problems but also their stories, driving a few hundred miles along all the different rally routes during the rides on the lookout-for or waiting for an S.O.S. call from a stranded tandem team, while remaining calm, cool and collective, never mind just being a really enjoyable couple who have a sincere desire to help folks better-enjoy their cycling experience.
And, our thanks as always to our GTR Co-Directors, Roger & Eve. Another great event, even if we only were able to enjoy 1.3 of the 3.0 rides! We’ll definitely be back for our 24th, so long as it’s within our control!
Our 2023 GTR Experience
Thursday, May 18th, began as a somewhat busy morning where domestic chores that needed to be taken care of before leaving for a long weekend needed to be attended-to. By 10:30am, the truck was packed with our luggage, tandem and the related accouterments for three days of tandem cycling and we headed-off on what was actually a very the trash and getting everything packed in the truck before heading off on a very relaxing, easy but long-feeling drive through Columbus, Georgia on Interstate 85 and Interstate 185 and other backroads instead of down Interstate 75. Some 4.5-hours and 274-miles later we arrived in Thomasville, Georgia, at the Best Western Plus, host hotel.
One of the mysteries of the host hotel was why none of the staff members could explain what the “Plus” meant, even making its way into one of GTR Co-Direct Roger S’s monologue at Saturday’s riders meeting. So, being I curious and always wanting to share what I’ve learned, “Best Western Plus is slightly more upscale than Best Western. Most of the differences lie in the exterior décor, quality of the common areas, and slightly newer guest rooms.”
We joined the other folks from the rally at Hubs & Hops for registration check-in, a meet & greet and dinner where we ran into quite a few old friends who weren’t GTR regulars. After dinner at Hubs and Hops — a very tasty meatloaf sandwich — we heading back to the hotel for an early turn-in as I’d not slept well for the past few nights and hoped to catch up on my sleep.
Friday, May 19th began early at 6:30am, given we had to be at the riders meeting 20-minutes away from the hotel by 8:30am. The breakfast fare was par for the course of similar IHG and Hilton peer-brand properties, but the hotel lobby did really have the seating capacity needed for the throughput of 100 or so guests in the space of 60-minutes.
We had a good ride, saw a lot of old friends and rode well on the 36-mile-long route where we were always riding with a few other couples. The terrain was very nice, tandem-friendly and we had zero issues with motorists, which is nice.
Following the ride, we drove back to downtown Thomasville, parked and wandered down the main drag — Broad Street, with the lovely county courthouse at the center of town –– and were pleasantly pleased to find a Mexican cantina called Coyoacana. We both enjoyed a very tasty post-ride Margarita and light but filling fare for lunch.
Back at the hotel while watching golf, the local news break at 6:00pm aired the video report produced earlier in the day at the Georgia Tandem Rally remote start, which was well-done… perhaps with some directing tips from our GTR co-directors who are both retired CNN Corp. news directors. After splitting an appetized for our dinner Longhorn Steakhouse, we headed to the ice cream social back in downtown Thomasville, Georgia. Once again, we were able to catch up and visit with quite a few friends, many we’d not seen in quite a while, before heading back to the hotel to catch some of the Stanley Cup Playoffs before turning-in.
It was on Saturday, May 20th when what started-out as another enjoyable start of the day with a convenient ride start from our host hotel went from fabulous to failure in a mere 11-miles. Being mindful of our scant riding time and miles over the past year, particularly during the first half of 2023, we opted to take the short (32-mile) route again. It turned-out to be a mixed-blessing for us.
Death of a Derailleur
We we’re actually feeling really good and riding well, that was right up and until the 11-mile mark. As we slowed while coming up to an intersection, my attention was focused on checking for cross traffic and then it happened!
In retrospect, as we transitioned from coasting to pedaling ahead of the stop-sign and turn, we apparently ran-over a large piece of heavy-gauge wire at sitting on the chip-seal road surface with the front tire. Like many things with any length laying on the road — think nails, screws, etc. — the piece of wire was kicked-up and bounced… right into our drive chain where it was pulled into the rear derailleur.
After coming to very quick stop by locking-up the rear wheel based on the carnage I was hearing from behind me, dismounting and then moving the the rear of the tandem, it was apparent we’d not even be able to convert the tandem into a single-speed based on what had happened. No, my initial assessment was, our ride was over and we’d need SAG support to get back to the the hotel.
We were very fortunate to have been riding with our friends Joanne & Alan as well as Mark and Teresa when this happened, both of whom stopped to help and support us. However, in A Stroke of Good Luck, about the time Joanne had called the rally’s SAG support folks from The House of Tandems — our friends Ric and Marsha — they just happened upon us. Our friends rode on now that we were in good the good hands of Ric and Marsha, as Ric helped to confirm our Calfee was now in roadkill status and was able to give us and the disabled tandem a ride back to the hotel. Whew, good thing we weren’t riding the triplet when that happened: another Stroke of Good Luck.
Once back my truck in the hotel parking lot, I pulled out some medium-size crescent wrenches to see if there was any hope of straightening the rear hanger before going on a scavenger hunt for an older Shimano 9/10 speed SGS rear derailleur: a new chain and cable were at hand. However, it quickly became clear this was not something I wanted to ‘react‘ to and needed to take home and look at after a good night’s rest the following day.
However, based on my triage, here’s what happened:
- A 13-in long piece of large gauge wire with a hook on one end had been kicked-up and somehow ended up landing on the top-side of the bottom, return run of the drive chain…. what were the odds of that happening?
- Once captured by the moving chain, it was pulled-into the rear idler wheel and derailleur cage.
- As it made contact with the cage it was immediately pressed into the cage and idler wheel by the chain
- The chain plates were deformed and twisted around the wire as the idler wheel end of the derailleur hanger was pushed back and left into the rotating spoke network.
- The leverage and loads cause as the cage was caught and twisted by the rear wheel, added more loading to the wire/chain being pulled into the idler wheel, while deforming the jockey wheel end of the cage and also tearing it away from the derailleur body at the spring-pivot.
- These twisting loads on the derailleur firmly affixed by an M10x1 bolt to the titanium hanger, in turn, bent and twisted the derailleur hanger end of the rear drop-out inward, merely deforming some of the M10 bolt’s threads in the process (Discovered when removing the rear derailleur on the road).
- The twisting movement of the derailleur also bent the threaded skewer at the skewer nut (Also discovered when working to clear the rear wheel and rear derailleur parts from the frame at the side of the road).
- As you’d expect, the rear wheel was also now out of true with several drive-side, nicked spokes making the future status of the wheel suspect, even with re-truing.
At left, above, is the wire that somehow found it’s way onto the drive chain of our tandem. At right is the mangled rear derailleur body, cage plates and idler wheel with the bent chain links where the wire, chain and idler wheel all met.
Given the tools we had to work with where we were and the need for an older-model Shimano 9/10 speed derailleur that was compatible with our shifters, the rest of our time at the rally was likely at an end. While titanium is more mailable than aluminum or steel, it is incredibly hard and needed to be rigidly supported above and below the bend with large levers to focus the bending forces where they were needed to reverse the damage, as well as some very sturdy bracing on on the frame during the bending process. A folding work stand and tool-box tools just wouldn’t be up to the task. In fact, my initial instinct was it might even have to go back to Calfee once I could look at it more closely and compare it to some older photos relative to some marks on the rear-radius of the hanger.
Given we were now without a tandem, there was no point in spending another afternoon in Thomasville where it was graduation day at both high schools and all of the ‘good restaurants’ would likely be packed that evening — just as we found last night — so we opted to pass on the Taco Buffet lunch at the hotel, packed-up and headed home early. Thankfully, it was another easy drive that had us back at home shortly after 3:00pm.
Sorting Out The Frame, Wheel and Replacing the Derailleur
Sunday, 21 May: I began my day early out in the garage where I believed I’d be able to straighten-out the titanium rear derailleur hanger now that I had access to my sturdy work-stand, a large and padded Lally Column for bracing the tandem’s frame and some really big 12″ crescent wrenches. Sure enough, with the proper two-point leverage above and below the bend in the very malleable, but also very hard titanium part, I was able to straighten it back out, mitigating the need to send it off to Calfee in California for repair or replacement.
With the frame looking like it may not need to go back to Calfee for repair — at least near term, I’ll have to keep an eye on that right rear-drop-out going forward — I went in search of a derailleur replacement. I found a new-in-box (NIB) 1999 Shimano RD-M952 SGS XTR rear derailleur up in Oregon to replace the one that was destroyed, but it was listed on an Ebay-like website with an asking price of $175 + $10 shipping. I’d say that seems steep, but there are some folks out there asking insane amounts for even used M952 derailleurs. I attempted to make an offer on it, but the auction system never notified the seller there was an offer pending review, something I discovered only after cooling my heels for 18-hours before sending a note withdrawing my offer. I may still go back to it if it remains out there and find I’m unhappy with my other options or what I end up with.
To make a long story short, as I searched for other rear derailleur options remembering that I’m running older Shimano Ultegra 6703 model, 10 speed shifters and HG 10-speed cassettes, I quickly discovered that a lot has changed in Shimano componentry over the years.
While I had no problem running the 1999 XTR 9 speed derailleur with the 6703 10 speed shifters, the shifting ratios were changed for mountain bike components a few years back such that I can’t use newer XT RD-M786 SGS 10-speed mountain bike rear derailleurs. It also turns out, that even the newer Ultegra RD R8000 GS 11-speed rear derailleurs use a different shifting ratio making them non-compatible with my 6703 10 speed shifters. That’ll teach me to fall behind, and I’m way behind. Thankfully, I was able to return two of the three shifters I bought by mistake and I have the 3rd listed on Ebay as the seller doesn’t accept returns.
What I ultimately ended up with was a older NIB Shimano Deore RD-M591 SGS 9 speed rear derailleur that should be here on 29 May. While not as iconic as the XTR with it’s grey/bronze finish and distinctive body shape, the lowly black Deore should work just as well for about one-third the cost… as if cost is really an object in my penny-wise, pound-foolish world.
Monday, 22 May: I spent some of my time re-sealing the tubeless tires on our Fandango fat-tire, gravel tandem in case we could find the time and energy to head down to the Silver Comet for a ride this coming week as the Calfee would still be waiting on a derailleur and out of service. This assumes that after having a chunk of skin on my scalp removed tomorrow I’ll be able to so something like go out for a bicycle ride, hike, etc.
Wednesday, 24 May: As mentioned earlier, the XT RD-M786 SGS rear-derailleur I purchased for the Calfee arrived and I discovered while it’s designated as a Shimano 10-speed model, it’s not compatible with older mountain or road bicycle shifters, so that one’s going back along with an XT RD-M786 GS model that has the same problem. So, I’m still in a holding pattern waiting for the Shimano Deore RD-M591 SGS rear derailleur that’s almost a week-out. I went ahead and also re-trued/tensioned the rear wheel on the Calfee since I had some spare time and I had the bike down and in the workstand making it a no-brainer to pull the rear wheel and put it in the truing stand. Oh yeah, no bike rides, hikes, etc. until 30 May at the earliest and I now know why: ugg.
Tuesday, 30 May: Well, I won’t suggest it’s as good as new since I still have some spokes that may need replacement, and I’ve not yet had a chance to buy or borrow a Park Tool DAG-2.2 Derailleur Hanger Alignment Gauge to check the alignment, my MA1-eyeball alignment gauge and the function of the RD after being installed suggests it’s pretty darn close to where it should be. While vanity suggested I should have dropped $185 for the NIB XTR RD-M952 SGS rear derailleur to replace the one that was destroyed, prudence suggested the Deore RD-M591 SGS will work just as well, even if it doesn’t ‘look’ as chi-chi as the XTR.
Most importantly, it shifted well in the work-stand and I dialed-it-in riding solo around the neighborhood today. I’ll be anxious to see how it does with both of us putting a load into the drivetrain in terms of shifting performance, seeing if the rear wheel remains true with its ‘nicked’ spokes and making sure the nick in the rear derailleur hanger doesn’t ‘grow’ over time. And, well, who knows what other yet-discovered evils may lurk in other parts that were ‘stressed’ by the ‘event.
Update: Shakedown Ride
Thursday, 1 June: Miss Debbie and I were able to get out on the Calfee for a 15-mile shake-down ride from the house. The shifting performance was really quite good, almost back where it was with the exception of some occasional skipping when riding in the 12T and 13T cogs which seemed to coincide with the SRAM PowerLock Chain Connector passing through the cassette. My guess was, I may have inadvertently installed a used 9-speed PowerLock instead of a 10-speed model as the new one that came with the new SRAM X10 chain went missing.
Once back at the house, a visual check and inspection of the PowerLock link confirmed its fit wasn’t as tight as I would have expected. So, I think we’re good-to-go, aside from keeping an eye on the rear wheel’s true given the 2-3 ‘nicked’ spokes, and of course keeping an eye on the rear hanger’s nick for any signs of crack propagation I went ahead and ordered a Park Tool DAG 2.2 Derailleur Alignment Gauge that will be here tomorrow (a) because I tend to come up with reasons why I need new tools, (b) it will be interesting to see how well-aligned I was able to get it based on eye-sight and instinct, (c) check the rest of our bicycle fleet, and (d) the opportunity cost isn’t all that much given the time/cost of travelling to a bike shop to borrow one.
Dialing-it-in with the DAG 2.2
Wow! Somewhat analogous to looking at something under a microscope where everything is magnified, the Park Tool DAG 2.2 Derailleur Alignment Gauge does just that with the geometry of the rear derailleur hanger’s alignment with the rear wheel.
#1: You have to be sure your rear wheel’s rim & brake track is running true to the drop-outs in the frame.
#2: The DAG 2.2 once installed in the hanger drop-out in place of the rear derailleur will magnify the difference of the angle of incidence between the hanger and the wheel at the four critical points: 0° and 180°, and 90° and 270°.
#3: My MA-1 eyeball said it was pretty close, the DAG 2.2 said it was not, in both dimensions.
#4: Using the depth rod of a dial-caliper, it took all of 5-minutes to get the four points aligned to the same off-set on the DAG’s indicator rod.
#5: With the derailleur back on the bike, the shifting was flawless. Here’s hoping we see the same on the road, and I suspect we will.
It’s all in the attention to details, following “the book” and having both the right equipment and discipline to use it!
The TandemGeek's Blog 