A bike lean photo in the T-Town velodrome

I snapped a quick pic during a water break while riding in the velodrome at T-Town. It's the same bike I use on the road, sans brake, with a video camera mounted under the bars. I'll post a video in here, when I figure out how to do it.

I was concerned that the 46x16 gear was too low, and I was right. 46x16 is good for the rolling hills of upstate New York, but not so hot for the track. I had changed so much on the bike--saddle, pedals, shoes, stance width, stack height--that I was reluctant to change anything more, and decided to stick with what I knew best. Next time, I'll probably bring some extra sprockets and tools to change them out, and try some different ones.

My top speed that day was 31 mph (50k ph) which required spinning at 140 rpm. How crazy is that? A low gear gives you breakaway acceleration, but it doesn't matter much once the riders with taller gears catch up. They pass you and there's just not enough gear inches to catch up. That's what happened in the race at the end of the day--a pick-up race that did't count for anything but bragging rights--where I finished in third place. Still, the riders who beat me were in their early twenties--less than half my age--so I feel pretty good about that result. I wasn't the fastest rider that day, but I was the most enthusiastic.