For US based cyclist whom want to follow the Tour, I see that USA network is broadcasting Stage 3 today, with Phil, Bob, Christian, and Steve. So other ways than Peacock and NBC Sports to get it.
The Manx Missile looks to be spooling up at the moment 
Thank You
In order to move the cycling discussion away from the where are you photos thread I’ll continue here.
In addition to my commuter bike I am currently looking at road bikes as well. Since there is a certified canyon partner for repairs and maintenance close by and Trek and Specialized get you less bang for your buck in Germany (the other options that have partner shops nearby), I am leaning heavily towards a Canyon.
I am currently considering two options, either an aero bike (Canyon Aeroad CF SLX 8 DI2) or a climbing bike (Canyon Ultimate CF SLX 8 DI2). Budget is up to 7000€ so those two fit right in (including pedals, bike stand and SPD-SL shoes - I am using SPD clipless pedals on my commuter bike for comfort reasons)
Personally I am thinking Aeroad as it’s only ~600g heavier than the Ultimate and aerodynamics definitely play a role at the speeds I am usually riding. Both weigh just over half as much as my commuter bike.
They come with electronic shifting and a powermeter, if I go with Trek or Specialized instead, a powermeter is not within my budget and instead of ultegra di2 it’s going to be 105 di2 (not that that’s bad).
The fact that the Canyon bikes come with a Powermeter is a huge plus and the only thing Trek has going for it is that the bike shop is only a few km away. The Specialized partner is about the same distance as the Canyon partner shop so I have not really considered it.
Thoughts?
I bought the Canyon Endurace 7 for 1500€ last month. It’s great value for the money.
Personally, I couldn’t justify spending 7k for a bicycle. For me that’s way to deep in the land of diminishing returns. I bought used cars and motocycles for half the price…
But you probably ride more kms a week than I do in one year so it might be worth it for you.
You are right of course, I don’t need it and it’s only going to be used as a “Sunday” bike and on holidays but it’s something I have dreamed of for a long time. That’s why I am willing to spend this kind of money on something that’s basically an expensive toy. I guess I will ride a bike like this for maybe 2500-3000km per year while my steel bike sees 13000-15000km per year in any weather.
Both are in a similar price range, the steel bike being about 1000€ less expensive which basically comes down to not having a power meter and DI2
If anyone is interested you can see the config for my new bike here:
http://konfigurator.selfhost.eu:8086/patria_configurator/step-1.jsf
Click on “Öffnen” at the top right, enter 173801 and confirm with “Öffnen”
Not included in the config are my tyres of choice (32mm Conti GP 4-Season) and the 12mm through axles which add about 250€ to the price. Saddle and pedals are also not included.
One of the things you can do is buy the older version bike when a newer version is released.
I have a Cervelo S5, usually silly money that I could justify, but I bought the 2013-2015 version when they switched to the newer model in 2017. It was in your budget range and is way more bike than I need.
I didnt go Di2, but the Ultegra groupset. Again it’s enough for me, it have the option to upgrade. I could do with a power meter though and like the idea of your bike coming with one, as it saves the faff of sorting out the crank.
Sorry to go off on a tangent here, but I’ve been reading a lot about waxed chains lately and that got me thinking about chain maintenance. I like to take reasonably good care of my equipment, but depending on the lubricant, chains are a filthy subject. Cleaning the chain with solvents is a mess and some people think that it removes lubricant from places you can’t get it back easily (without bathing it in hot oil or paraffin if that is your weapon of choice). Any thoughts on the matter since some of you ride their bikes a lot in adverse conditions.
My bike always has some dirt on it and the only thing I regularly clean properly is the drive train the rest is a quick rinse and then dry it off with an old towel. During winter I am much more diligent though. If there’s salt on the roads and it’s wet I do a quick rinse and dry it off, then a thorough cleaning on the weekend.
Drive Train - a buddy swears by wax for his road bike and it’s something I might explore in future.
Right now I use Muc off wet lube as it was pretty rainy the last weeks but I will clean my drive train this weekend and switch to dry lube as there’s not really any rain in sight over the next 10 days and it attracts barely any dirt. I don’t swear by any certain brand but I do like muc off products and F100 lube
For a complete clean-up of the drivetrain my usual routine is to take out the rear wheel, clean the cassette with Muc Off drivetrain cleaner (be careful to avoid getting anything on the brake rotor).
It’s very effective, bio degradable and it smells nice (the stuff is fantastic at removing any lubricant so be careful around anything that needs to be greased). For the pulleys and chainrings I use a cloth dipped in drivetrain cleaner. I also have a tool called chain doc that attaches to the can and you pull the chain through, it’s so effective that it feels a little like magic. Finally, after I clean the chain, I dry everything off with a woollen cloth and apply a drop of lube to every chain link.
If I haven’t ridden in the wet it’s usually enough to clean and regrease the chain once a week (I ride about 300km per week, sometimes more, rarely less). If it’s dry and you’re only riding asphalt you can even get away without cleaning and just a little lube.
Does perhaps anyone have experience with squirt? I’ve been hearing good things about it, but you need to completely degrease your chain before switching to it.
Apart from wax based lubes, the whole proper waxing thing seems like overkill to me, I don’t ride enough to justify the work. You need a special pot to melt the wax without it getting too hot and it’s only worth it if you wax a few chains at once and cycle between them when the wax wears off, which is why you also “need” reusable master chain links, those come with specialized tools asf. It’s a bit steep.
There’s several waxed lubes I’ve used on both my Mountain bike and my road bike.
White lightning and Muc off Dry lube
Both are similar, you put the lube on your chain and wipe off the excess. They both worth to keep your chain clean and lubed, by the dirt clinging to the wax and dropping off.
All is great…… however….
Wax lube needs more application, doesn’t last as long and the killer bit, when you do want to clean your chain, which you will eventually, usual degreasers do not work. It leaves a really clingy waxed bit in the links between the plates and requires either putting the chain in boiling water or scraping with a screwdriver.
As a result after using wax lubes for years, I’ve now switched back to wet lubes and use the same one as Derbyseiger. (Muc of Wet lube). It works really well, comes off with a normal chain cleaner and degreaser.
TLDR: YMMV, but use wet lube, it’s less hassle IMHO.
I use Muc-Off (dry lube for me because I am to sensitive to bike in the rain 
) for cleaning my bike as well. I like the products and do a ‘deep clean’ every month or so. Maybe two.
I ended up with a Di2 system by accident. Yeah. I know. How do you accidentally get Di2 shifters? Well. My latest bike is a Trek Domane SL 6, and when I ordered it the model didn’t come with Di2 - that was for the next level up. But because of when I ordered, I actually ended up with the next year model and the Di2 system had dropped to the next model down the list … the SL 6! I didn’t know (really, didn’t look at it after I ordered and would have been happy with the older model SL 6) but when I saw the bike, it was a pleasant surprise. I have been impressed with it ever since.
The local bike shop was trying to sell me on the wax setup … but it would have mean going to them more often for maintenance. I give them enough money as it is and settled on the Moc-Off dry lube.
I sheared off my pedal in the crank arm yesterday….but no worries….I Macgyvered it!!! I won’t be denied my Weiss Beer Calorie Burner!!!*
Mudspikers having an in-depth discussion about lube… now I’ve seen it all. 
Lube is serious business. You don’t want unwanted friction rubbing at things. 
Good job
I got a new mountain bike back in July and I… think I love it more than anything I’ve operated that isn’t capable of flight.
It’s a Kent Trouvaille and, at $400, it’s a steal of a mountain bike. I wouldn’t want to take it to hard trails out of the box, but this is a bike built to an extremely good standard for the asking price.
For something you aren’t getting at a bike shop, it’s real good.
Well, security is usually a sign of maturity. 
Col du Tourmalet finish today in the Vuelta and a US rider in Rojo! Peacock has a $5.99 for 3 mos deal if anyone wants to test their employer’s content filtering service 
Just rewatched the stage on GCN+ as I was out cycling at the time yesterday. Utter domination by TJV, crazy stage with constant action.
