Another Recommended Century: Sacramento Wheelmen Sierra Century

The Sacramento Wheelmen do an outstanding job running this century.



I started doing this ride several years back. It's sort of known as the "wandering century." Over the 39-years the Sacramento Wheelmen have hosted this ride, it's apparently covered a few different routes, beginning at different locations. When I first rode it, we started out of Rocklin CA. In 2012, they moved it back to the "Slug Gulch" route, beginning from the Plymouth CA fairgrounds. Truly world class here. An excellent selection of roads, with well supported and nicely spaced rest stops.

The route takes you through some very interesting and quaint little towns full of California gold rush history that are off the beaten path.

I highly recommend the "double century" option if you're up for it. Although the regular century is no weakling ride either. Both tackle Slug Gulch beginning at about mile 77.

Here's what the Sacramento Wheelmen say about Slug Gulch (copied from their website):

"How tough is the climb up Slug Gulch?

Slug Gulch Road is a 5.4 mile 1300 feet climb that begins at Mile 77 on the Century and Double Metric Challenge routes. The most difficult part of the climb is the first 1 1/2 miles which include grades of up to 15 percent near the start and around the one mile point. After the first 1 1/2 miles, the road grade becomes more moderate and varied in the single digit range for about another mile. At about mile 2.5 of the road, the road takes a short steep hairpin turn after which the rest of the climb is moderate and increasingly gentle and even flat near the end. Riders who reach the Rest Stop at Indian Diggings School at the end of the climb are awarded the Slug Gulch Pin. Despite its name, the road includes several ranches, residences, and wineries as well as many scenic vistas and usually at least a few curious and supportive spectators."


How did Slug Gulch gets its name?

The website of the Oakstone Winery–which is located on Slug Gulch Road–offers the following history of the road's name:

"Like almost all of California's gold rush, the truth is clouded by countless retellings of oral history, but the prevailing version is that a prospector was poking around an old river bed at about the 3000 foot elevation of southern El Dorado County when he first came across a piece of gold the size of (pick one) a man's thumb, or a man's fist. Gold comes in dust, flakes, nuggets and slugs, with slugs this size being very desirable, indeed (the $50 gold piece of the late 1800's was known colloquially as a "slug" as well). The name was applied to the name of the mine that was developed at the site, and then to the road that led from the settlement in Fair Play to the mine."

Rather than use a plain and obscure-looking slug of gold for its logo, the Sierra Century founders decided to adopt instead a friendly, athletic version of the shell-less terrestrial gastropod mollusc commonly know as a slug. Some local residents have suggested that the logo is more like a metaphor or icon for how fast most century rides move up Slug Gulch Road.


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During your ride, you will want to stay aware of your time though. If you're not at the top of Slug Gulch by 2:00pm, you'll be re-routed to the regular century route. This means that you will miss-out on an extra 1000' of climbing. We started at about 7:00am. We kept our stops brief and even skipped one or two rest stops. We hit the top of Slug Gulch at about 1:30pm.

I'd recommend this as a good century for Death Ride training.

Vintage Dirt Drop Commando Mt Tam

Youtube wipeout video on the Commando Mt Tam

3m Scotch 2228 Tape Chainstay Protector. Cable Rub, Frame Protection Too?

I'm in the process of building a bike up from scratch and wanted to add a chainstay protector to protect the fresh paint. During my google search for a suitable product, I stumbled upon a couple of instances that referred to using 3M Scotch 2228 tape. It's a thick rubberized tape, and it's pretty easy to work with.

Here's how it worked out.


About $10 a roll at my local big-box hardware store. You might find it cheaper on-line. The product I found is 1 inch wide, by 10 feet long. The thickness is .065 (or 1.65mm)



It's a nice, thick, rubberized tape on a paper backing that easily peels off.


Cut a piece off, and shape to your liking. (Others have suggested that you want to round the corners to help prevent them from peeling. Also, shaping helps to make the protector look like a pre-made product. I cut mine pretty crude, but it works ok for me.)





Gently set it on the frame and get it aligned to your satisfaction. It's pretty sticky, but you can lift it up and re-align it pretty easy if you haven't pressed it too the frame yet. Once aligned, run a finger down the centerline to get it set, then gently press it in to place by applying pressure over the entire surface.





Added Bonus:

Can it be used as a cable rub protector too?
Something else that was on my shopping list for the new build. I was looking for the clear, thick tape to protect the frame from cable rub. After I purchased the tape for the chainstay protector, I decided to give this a try. There is a product on the market that you clip on the exterior of your cable housing that appears to function similarly.

I cut a small piece from the roll of tape (maybe 1/2 inch in length) and rolled it around the cable housing at the point the cable contacts the frame. The tape is so rubbery and pliable that you can stretch it and mold it. I didn't want the tape to overlap as it would be pretty bulky if it were double-thickness. Cutting the tape slightly short allows you to stretch the tape and bring the edges into alignment. This tape really sticks well to itself.





I thought it turned out ok. I guess time will tell if this is a good alternative.

Repairing Broken Dremel 395

I've had the Dremel 395 for most of my adult life it seems. It's been a life saver for a number of small projects over the years. I've used it to fashion small parts, clean up rough edges, sand, grind, cut... it does all sorts of helpful things. Most recently, I used it to cut a slot in a rusted allen bolt that had a stripped head. The slot allowed me to use a screw driver to finally free and remove the stubborn bolt.

Well, at the end of that task, the bit stopped turning. The motor would run and spin like you'd expect, but the bit would just sit there.

Sadly, I stared at the old tool, just then realizing how much I had used it over the years. Thinking to myself, "Well, it's been a good life for you Mr. Dremel. Time to move on. It's a disposable world now. You can always get a new one at the big box hardware store just a mile away."

But I hate that. The ol' Dremel and I have a history. I don't want a new one.

I did a quick google for something along the line of "my dremel won't turn" or whatever and within a minute I was like... Yeah, this can be fixed. Within another minute, the $6 part was on it's way to my door step.

Here's a small short tutorial on the repair.

Unscrew the nose piece, remove the wire tool hanger at the cable end, and remove the 6 small torx screws




Lift off the front of the Dremel case (no need to remove the motor assembly).


Observe the failed collar that connects the motor drive to the collet



New coupling (next to broken, old part) as received from Sears on-line ordering (they're available from many sources all over the internet).



Remove, replace and re-install


All good.

Estimated time: 5 minutes