Yet Another Cycling Forum
General Category => Freewheeling => Topic started by: Cudzoziemiec on 03 February, 2012, 06:39:19 pm
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We don't seem to have one of these, strangely. So I'll start one...
Yesterday morning I saw a man on a fairly old but semi-decent, way too small - his thighs might reached horizontal at their lowest - red bike with a.... Ever Ready Night Rider front lamp! Remember those? I had one, with the super bright ultra-radium bulb, but this was the bog standard model - you can tell by the colour of the casing.
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Funnily enough, you've just reminded me of driving past a young lady yesterday. She was cycling (on the pavement) on what appeared to have been a decent bike at some stage in its dim and distant past. Step-through frame, looked like a single-speed til I noticed a very odd-looking very retrofitted white cable going to the back hub-which was filthy and rusty. The frame said it was a Phillips, so that would confirm the "elderly" rating I gave it, having Googled it.
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Ooooh, our elderly neighbour gave us a Phillips way back in the 80s. She'd had it since new in the 50s. It was a big chunky frame with bolted-on seat stays, black with red and yellow (could have been white?) lining on the tubes and mudguards. Single speed, rim brakes - very ineffective, big, shiny, "all-rounder" bars in one-piece with the stem, and even a wicker basket. Lovely, but not what I'd choose to ride on the edge of the Cotswolds - luckily I was young enough not to be bothered back then!
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I recently built a new pair of wheels for my MTB as the rims on the old ones looked rather worn. Having done so there's always the nagging doubt that there was nowt wrong with the old ones. There's only one way to find out so it took a while to persuade myself to do it. What does the panel think?
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4419/36600912320_51aa0c74de_b.jpg)
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4419/36162294344_08ba4382b4_b.jpg)
It is a smidge under 22mm at the widest point.
The replacement rear got some bedding in, the new front wheel was less than 24 hours old when it set out on a weeks thinning from Oxenholme to Berwick on Tweed.
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Looks thin, but how much has been worn?
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Heard a new reason to always carry plenty of water on a bike recently. Someone told me they'd swallowed a bee while cycling. Riding along, summer, whizzing down a hill, then... "That wasn't a fly. It's furry. It's lodged in my throat and it's buzzing." So she drank, drank, swallowed, ate, gulped down water, anything to wash it down before it stung her inside her throat.
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Heard a new reason to always carry plenty of water on a bike recently. Someone told me they'd swallowed a bee while cycling. Riding along, summer, whizzing down a hill, then... "That wasn't a fly. It's furry. It's lodged in my throat and it's buzzing." So she drank, drank, swallowed, ate, gulped down water, anything to wash it down before it stung her inside her throat.
As one who is firmly in the slack-jawed, mouth-breathing camp when it comes to cycling... that is utterly terrifying.
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I ran into an old friend today. He's a member of the Mighty VC167, only when I asked him about it he went into a massive rant about how long distance cycling is a total waste of time, and a stupid concept, and a good way to spoil a good sport!
He'd better not say that at the club night or they'll burn him at the stake ;D
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Blimey, I haven't seen MSeries in aages.
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Now there's a blast from the past!
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He's on Twitter.
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My Brompton's lights have a peculiar characteristic, because of the combination of components.
SON front hub
B&M Front light with an on-off switch, and a standlicht (pardon my German) capacitor
B&M Rear light with no switch, and a similar capacitor.
When I'm riding, with the switch set to "off", then both lights are out (assuming the capacitors are discharged).
If I switch the switch to "on", and then turn the front wheel, both lights come on. When I stop, the lights stay on (although the front one dims noticeably) for some time due to the capacitors. During this time, if I turn the switch to "off", the front light goes out, but the rear red light stays on until its capacitor is discharged.
Normally, this wouldn't be a problem.
But carrying a Brompton with a lit red light on a station platform is one of those things up with which I will not put. (I got given a huge earful by a train guard on a Winter's evening in 1985 on Shenfield station, when my dynamo light lit up as I ran towards the guard's van, and the guard nearly mistook this for the platform dispatcher's hand-lamp. The lesson has stayed with me. Lights on Railway Premises are railway lights or none at all. Helped by my busman's holiday job as a signalman on a heritage railway line.)
So Diver300 (otp) helped me to fit a "discharge" button to the rear light, that shorts out the capacitor. If I press it, the light goes out. If I hold it pressed for 15 seconds, then the light stays out when I let go.
I successfully used this "discharge" button this morning, after the 2-mile bike portion of my commute, before climbing the steps to Willington platform for the 10 minute train journey. Willington was dark enough that a red light on the platform would have been a definite no-no.
Anyone else got lights they can't turn off?
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Yes, I've been known to solve the problem by covering the offending light with a glove or buff. On one occassion I dropped my brand new glove on the track as a result :facepalm: Fortunately it was still there next day and a member of staff retrieved it for me. :)
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One of the reasons I got a B&M Toplight Line Plus is that it has a discharge button. It's a shame they're not fitted to all dynamo rear lights.
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An open letter to the twenty-something cyclist I was stopped beside on my way home tonight, I was skiving off early so I could ride in the sun.
I am very, very pleased you misheard me, which is obvious that you did. Because, after looking a little taken aback, you appeared very pleased and made a comment on how I was probably more suitably dressed for cycling.
What I had said was "Isn't it lovely" in an enthusiastic tone. Well, because it was a glorious afternoon and we were on bikes and we had smiled at each other.
After the trouble you had gone to matching the fabric flower in your hair to your flowery dress, you deserved to hear "You look lovely" which you did.
I may be finding the advantages of turning into an old fart. I hope it made your ride home that bit more cheerful, because it did mine.
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So Diver300 (otp) helped me to fit a "discharge" button to the rear light, that shorts out the capacitor. If I press it, the light goes out. If I hold it pressed for 15 seconds, then the light stays out when I let go.
I solved this particular problem with one of those ball-bearing-in-a-tube[1] tilt/vibration sensors (and a low-value shunt resistor). With the Brompton unfolded, the light works as normal (transient contact due to road vibration isn't long enough to noticably affect performance), but the flip-the-wheel-under first stage of the fold discharges it in about 10 seconds. Meant I didn't have to make any holes in anything, and I usually use the first-stage fold to stand the bike upright while I faff about removing gloves and digging for tickets. The downside is a tiny rattling noise (it's a Brompton, it makes enough noise while riding that you only notice this one when carrying it up stairs) and that my standlight won't work reliably in zero-g conditions.
While I was hot-gluing the sensor at the appropriate angle, I took the opportunity to liberally embed the standlight capacitor in the stuff. Mechanical failure of the legs seems to be a common failure mode of these lights.
[1] I've actually got a couple of mercury switches in my random components collection, which wouldn't rattle, but I've heard horror stories about mercury and aluminium.
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One of the reasons I got a B&M Toplight Line Plus is that it has a discharge button. It's a shame they're not fitted to all dynamo rear lights.
I've got one of those. I actually used the discharge button once, too. (The Red Baron isn't very train friendly, so hasn't spend much time on railway platforms.) It's a good light.
(My other dyanamo-lit bikes have 4DToplight Multi rear lights, for hysterical raisins[1]. These have an AA-powered 'standlight', and a corresponding off switch.)
[1] At the time they were the best dynamo rear light for side visibility I could find.
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[1] I've actually got a couple of mercury switches in my random components collection, which wouldn't rattle, but I've heard horror stories about mercury and aluminium.
Nothing horrific. The mercury merely penetrates the grain boundaries between the crystals of aluminium causing the latter to fall apart! (We covered that in my degree course, but I'd completely forgotten until now).
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(http://www.citymetric.com/sites/default/files/styles/nodeimage/public/article_2017/10/gettyimages-3141323.jpg?itok=m7AK5XFR)
An exciting new form of bike being tested in Birmingham, 1935. It did not catch on. Image: Hulton Archive/Getty.
From here. (http://www.citymetric.com/transport/more-people-are-cycling-britain-s-major-cities-except-two-3438)
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Valiant, take note https://www.theguardian.com/cities/gallery/2017/nov/10/pump-up-velo-palermo-teenagers-bikes-stereos-in-pictures
'No one puts up with us, so what do we do?’ says one. ‘Let’s raise the volume’
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Thanks rower, for that helpful advice. I also get annoyed by red lights on platforms, but have not had a dynamo powered one before. Now I have. It's a Secula, and this is, to my shame, something I had not considered. I'm not even sure if it has its own Standlicht, or discharge button :-[
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Has anyone managed to get into a Secula without Undue Use of Force? I'm not fond of the downward-facing holes the wires go into. Bunging them up with silicone is inelegant, and standard tags won't go through the wee plugs they derisively supply.
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The Secula has its own standlight but no means of discharging it. Not sure there's any way of getting into it either. If there is, maybe Kim would know...
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I recently built a new pair of wheels for my MTB as the rims on the old ones looked rather worn. Having done so there's always the nagging doubt that there was nowt wrong with the old ones. There's only one way to find out so it took a while to persuade myself to do it. What does the panel think?
[ Pics removed]
It is a smidge under 22mm at the widest point.
The replacement rear got some bedding in, the new front wheel was less than 24 hours old when it set out on a weeks thinning from Oxenholme to Berwick on Tweed.
I'd say you cut them up prematurely. There's still quite a bit of metal on the brake track there. The extra circle part looks like a part of a wear indicator, it's thinner than the main brake track area and the room looks like it has been designed to be structurally safe when the top section has worn away.
Here's a pic from cyclechat that shows when it would definitely have been time to change:
(https://www.cyclechat.net/attachments/rim1-jpg.226760/)
Not all rims are designed with extra structural safety like this so I use a rim gauge caliper (like this: https://i.pinimg.com/originals/3b/25/94/3b25942d0e95d454c77d00b771a3882d.jpg) to check mine (mostly Mavic Open Pro rims).
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The Secula has its own standlight but no means of discharging it. Not sure there's any way of getting into it either. If there is, maybe Kim would know...
No experience of the Secula. It's a truism that with a Dremel and a flathead screwdriver, everything has user-servicable parts inside. It's getting them back together again that's the tricky bit...
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Ah, destructive maintenance.
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That applies to everything except the Dremel itself. My Maxicraft Dremel-equivalent has a broken contact inside and is resisting every attempt to open it.
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That applies to everything except the Dremel EQUIVALENT itself. My Maxicraft Dremel-equivalent has a broken contact inside and is resisting every attempt to open it.
Ahem.
ETA
(https://www.ereplacementparts.com/images/dremel/4000_WW_1.gif)
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Owning a second Dremel would have ensured that the original Dremel would not have broken.
I currently own 0 Dremels. This will be resolved this Christmas.
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That applies to everything except the Dremel EQUIVALENT itself. My Maxicraft Dremel-equivalent has a broken contact inside and is resisting every attempt to open it.
Ahem.
ETA
(https://www.ereplacementparts.com/images/dremel/4000_WW_1.gif)
Obviously I inherited the wrong gadget. Careless of me.
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On a ride into town to the bike shop today, 2 minutes into the return journey the sole of my boot parted company from the rest of the boot when I tried to unclip at traffic lights.
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4728/24230839527_4911b3af19_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/CVcopi)
Boot fail (https://flic.kr/p/CVcopi) by Ron Lowe (https://www.flickr.com/photos/62966413@N04/), on Flickr
Back to the bike shop.
Do they have winter boots?
Why no, they do not.
So I had to ride home like that, using the still-clipped-in sole as a platform.
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Last night (when in car) I drove passed someone cycling, with no bike lights or reflectives, on a busy nthbd A34 (DCwy) just before Oxford. :o :o Never seen anyone cycling that stretch before.
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At Feanor Outpost in Edinburgh, each of the 3 blocks has it's own bike storage room, which also houses some utility stuff.
One night last week, all 3 were broken into ( by hoofing the door open ), and *all* the bikes were stolen.
All that was left was the remains of cable locks, cut with bolt cutters it looks like to me.
We had no bikes in storage at the time, so I've not lost anything.
The doors were pretty poorly secured.
They were double doors, with the lock on the RH door, locking into the LH door.
You'd expect the LH door would have a couple of decent bolts top and bottom on the inside.
But no, it was mostly secured with Thoughts and Prayers.
So I reckon even leaning against the mid-point of the 2 doors a bit firmly could have popped it open.
They are looking into securing it better, but I don't know that that means.
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>:(
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Today I espied a Thorn Nomad (derailleur version) velocipede locked to a post only about 100 yards from my house.
Apart from our own bikes, and those of occasional visitors, I don't think I have ever before seen another Thorn bike in Southend.
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Schwalbe launch a solid tyre (https://cyclingindustry.news/schwalbe-enters-airless-tyre-arena-with-bike-shop-exclusive-product/), could be interesting, they rarely get things totally wrong. I do wonder what the tools are though.
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They're going to be a hard sell.
$SupplierRepresentative called with a rival brand before Xmas. Retail is approx 100 quid a pair.
'How do I fit them?'
'You need the fitting tool'
'How much is that?'
'Around 200 quid inc VAT'
'Bye . . . !'
I'd have to fit around 10 sets before breaking even. Don't think I get that many enquiries in a year and I've got far more useful things to spend that kind of money on.
Cynical? Moi?
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There have been so many attempts at solid tyres in the past which have just not caught on. Will be interesting to see what happens here.
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Yes, a lotta dosh for a tyre that will still just wear out.
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Tannus solid tyres have been going a few years now and show no signs of going away. I hate them but they seem quite popular with some people.
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I guess it's a bit different though, a specialist brand like Tannus compared to a mega (in the small world of cycle tyres) like Schwalbe.
Requiring special tooling to install, the product comes well suited to physical bike shop installation, as opposed to online sales.
!!!
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I'm assuming Tannus is the other brand Torslanda was referring to but I wouldn't expect him to confirm or deny that. They also require an expensive special tool for fitting so are not a DIY job any more than the Schwalbe ones - and I can tell you from bitter experience that they are a feckin' nightmare to get off too. In fact, I believe it's not actually possible to remove them without destroying them.
None the less, they have their fans.
The mind boggles.
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I'm assuming Tannus is the other brand Torslanda was referring to but I wouldn't expect him to confirm or deny that. They also require an expensive special tool for fitting so are not a DIY job any more than the Schwalbe ones - and I can tell you from bitter experience that they are a feckin' nightmare to get off too. In fact, I believe it's not actually possible to remove them without destroying them.
None the less, they have their fans.
The mind boggles.
But surely the only time you need to remove them is when they are worn out, so destroying them isn't an issue?
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Time will tell whether Schwalbe doing solids means the time has come (maybe in conjunction with electric bikes?) or it's the tyre equivalent of Shimano's 10mm pitch chain. Or even just another iteration of the saga, like elliptical chain rings.
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Until some new wonder material is invented, solid tyres will always have significantly more drag than pneumatics.
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If they can achieve a decent grip and not too harsh a ride, there may be a future for them on e-bikes where drag and weight are relatively unimportant.
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The blurb does say they can cope with ebikes, the other obvious application is bike share, where the ability to remove them is not wanted, I'd have thought Schwalbe would be a bit pricey for that though.
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I'm assuming Tannus is the other brand Torslanda was referring to but I wouldn't expect him to confirm or deny that. They also require an expensive special tool for fitting so are not a DIY job any more than the Schwalbe ones - and I can tell you from bitter experience that they are a feckin' nightmare to get off too. In fact, I believe it's not actually possible to remove them without destroying them.
None the less, they have their fans.
The mind boggles.
But surely the only time you need to remove them is when they are worn out, so destroying them isn't an issue?
It's not inconceivable that you might want to remove them before they're worn out, eg if you want to swap them onto a different wheel, or need to replace a broken spoke. Or you might just want to use them for winter riding and change to lightweight pneumatics in summer.
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All of the dockless hire bikes currently littering the capital's/nation's/world's pavements use solid tyres, so there's likely more in existence and - very occasionally - in use than there ever has been.
I've ridden them before I noticed this and it didn't jump out at me that the tyres were solid, but the expectations on those bikes are so low that it's hard to tell.
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I had a very quick look at one of the Yo Bikes this morning, I didn't notice the manufacturer's name but I did see a marking on the sidewall "Inflate to 40-65 PSI". Quite who, when and where does the inflation is a moot point.
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I don't know where you are - in Oxford YoBikes have an account with (at least) one of the indy bike shops (I think it's Reg Harris) who do all the repairs and stuff maybe they (or the guys who move the bikes back to useful locations) check the tyre pressure?
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Ah, hadn't heard of them. The ones I've seen operating in London (o, mo, ofo, urbo) are all solid tyre.
They seem to receive a fair bit of attention from their companies. Mobike in particular like to arrange theirs into imaginary docking stations in my neck of the woods.
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This morning, whilst returning from Two Tree Island, I spied a pair of velicopedestrians riding along on the pavement opposite. Thebloke on teh leading bike had a very shiny new Rohloff hub and fattish tyres - I reckon they were 26*1.75s. My money is on it being a Thorn Nomad or some such - almost certainly a bike verging on £3000. And he was riding it on the pavement beside a not-terribly-busyroad.
They could well have been heading for Richardson's Bike Shop. I might find an excuse to go in there tomorrow and find out if they cyclists did drop in.
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We've just had a safety alert round the whole of the company in the UK. A colleague dropped his bike at ~30mph while descending south of Buxton. A nice open left hand bend on a single track road with a pile of gravel in the middle. Unfortunately he had to change his line through the bend due to a loose dog and subsequently ran wide, off the road and into a post and wire fence.
Two days in hospital three bust ribs and two more cracked, impressive road rash bust thumb and shoulder. Oh and a busted helmet that deformed and broke in the intended manner whilst preventing either head injuries or whiplash.
No evidence what he would have been like without it but it is being used as anecdotal evidence to encourage use to wear helmets when cycling.
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A life lived to the full.
R.I.P. (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-suffolk-44174853)
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Spotted someone riding two bikes down the Pershore Road this evening. He was doing quite well.
n+1 in action, I suppose.
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Encountered a new towpath hazard recently. We're used to fishermen taking up the path with their rods and nets. We're used to oncoming cyclists doing the same, sometimes unable to hold a line due to indulgence in alcohol. On the Sharpness Canal I met a fisherman on a bike, with his rods and nets slung over his back at an angle so they took up the whole width of the path.
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In better news, there seems to have been an outbreak of common sense among parents recently, at least in rural areas. Perhaps a result of the sunny weather. I've seen numerous groups of kids – say 10 to 14 years old – riding around unchaperoned and (gasp!) with neither helmets nor hi-viz! There does seem to be a marked rural-urban divide in this though.
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Riding through Fen Ditton on the cruzbike on my way to my appointment at Addenbrookes this morning, I thought I saw a blond haired youngster on a tagalong behind his mum.
As I got closer It turned into two kids and mum on a trandem.
Cue mutual waves and exchanges of "cool bike!"
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My wife just made a massive tactical error! I was outside fettling the Moulton and she walked past, squinted at it and said " is that a new bike?" Now, I've owned it a couple of years, so this means that she just admitted that she has absolutely no idea what bikes I have or what they look like, even one as distinctive as the Moulton. I may feel an N+1 coming on ;D
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Riding through Fen Ditton on the cruzbike ...
I rode through Fen Ditton on the Brompton on Wed. Car was having new discs and pads fitted in south Cambridge, so took Brompton for a ride round Cambridge then out on the cycle tracks through the meadows to the villages beyond. Passed Newmarket park and ride and noted it was free for up to 18 hours. Useful to know should I do an audax starting from Cambridge.
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I'm sure we've got a thread devoted to bike recyling charities somewhere, but do you think I can find it? Can I cocoa.
Anyway.
The Harbour Project, Swindon.
On the look out for adult bikes in any condition (even wrecks which will be stripped for spares) to fettle and hand on to asylum seekers.
www.harbourproject.org.uk
They will collect, but I don't what their maximum radius of operations is. Contact Richard O'Brien on 01367 850233 to arrange a collection.
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My wife just made a massive tactical error! I was outside fettling the Moulton and she walked past, squinted at it and said " is that a new bike?" Now, I've owned it a couple of years, so this means that she just admitted that she has absolutely no idea what bikes I have or what they look like, even one as distinctive as the Moulton. I may feel an N+1 coming on ;D
Are you sure she wasn't just taking the piss out of how filthy it was before?
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At the weekend I met the local legend, the semi-mythical cyclist who lives in Rosedale and commutes to work up Chimney Bank every day.
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Cav will be waving the starting flag for some sportive or other in Cheltenham on Sunday the 5th.
Local press on the subject. Report includes link to the sportive site if you're that way inclined and want to enter.
http://www.wiltsglosstandard.co.uk/news/16387995.mark-cavendish-to-start-challenging-cotswolds-cycle-event/
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Rode into Bath today and was chatting to a bloke on a very shiny Salsa Marrakesh (roughly Salsa's equivalent of a Long Haul Trucker) with bar end shifters. He said they are fiddly to use – 10-speed so the increments of lever movement are very small – but pointed out a benefit I'd never have suspected; they encourage you to use the drops more, not just when slogging into a headwind or barrelling down a hill, but in situations when you might want to change gear frequently. So in traffic, for instance, you'll be using the drops; in fact the drops become your main position, and this "helps make the bike more stable."
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Attended a 35 wedding anniversary party last night, thought I'd share the (blurry likely due to incohol consumption) photo of the centerpiece
(https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eTYkgHLbucU/W4udiI77FmI/AAAAAAAC09I/kJjSar1DNeMFyuWui5NLXi0tHPO9BeGdQCKgBGAs/s1600/IMG_20180901_224551.jpg)
(note, this is not a new item, but one that has recently been used to tour Japan, Alaska etc....)
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https://youtu.be/taqGZ1FNGOU
Art for safe cycling:
Zoe Power used to regularly cycle along Festival Way and after narrowly avoiding a collision with somebody walking along the stretch near Bedminster Cricket Club at night, decided that she must do something about this dangerous section of the path.
https://www.bristol247.com/culture/art/new-artwork-incorporates-led-lighting-illuminate-dark-pathway/
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Free bikes for kids if they get mum and dad to stop smoking!
To get a bike, children must meet three requirements: they must get a smoker relative to quit, maintain strong grades while improving a weak area of study, and promise to ride for an hour a day.
It's in Turkey.
https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2018/dec/11/cycles-for-cigarettes-turkish-city-gives-children-bikes-if-relative-quits-smoking-kilis
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an hour a day on top of all that :o my 14 YO doesn't seem to have a spare hour, certainly not in the light this time of year
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Free bikes for kids if they get mum and dad to stop smoking!
To get a bike, children must meet three requirements: they must get a smoker relative to quit, maintain strong grades while improving a weak area of study, and promise to ride for an hour a day.
It's in Turkey.
https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2018/dec/11/cycles-for-cigarettes-turkish-city-gives-children-bikes-if-relative-quits-smoking-kilis
Seems a bit unfair on the kids. Smokers are crap.
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I note, with interest, that Waltham Forest Council have taken it upon themselves to grit/salt the segregated cycle track outside of my place of work, and also the pavement outside Blackhorse Lane tube station.
No such treatment appears to have been applied to the adjacent roads.
Who would've thunk it?
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:thumbsup:
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Meant to post this last week, as soon as we got back, but was distracted by shingles. :(
Mrs B & I went to Japan for a couple of weeks to see her family. I'd not been for almost two years, & I noticed one significant change - e-mamas everywhere! Electric bikes have soared in popularity. Hordes of the buggers outside nurseries, shops etc., mostly with at least one child seat. The standard model seems to be almost cargo-bike like, step through frame, solid (some built-in) rear rack, & very often (mostly?) with a motor built into the bottom bracket & a girt big battery behind the downtube. Not the most agile of things, but stable & easy to get on & off of.
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/lxFVLrNOssA6WkzjRSq70QbIyMRHELQpnLMZmVz_KsZbb9kh9NIY1CBkAJZI00FunBT0ynXfwa_uGUNvJHeaQcD2I5ThpDFjWdMEi7irIvZy-dQuXHw8VAumzH0jxILN4Z2ZYYceQbtuTHNqJZE28fY1lxodbC4UjV8EdwnvmYUs7kzP5RRnQ1Vh9r24NhQmIKhIa9qeLEhd-_P7vRG9K2_bIxPWJZUMwzzb5lK4gpoXoXkxY_f7IgmyzC04NorvhNXnkyUMwqijAUIBci2ndDTIwJRzW5_lEFl3L-6tNQlC5BogQnc-HK0iNFrEeCoUHi57q6H8mK97osRR2WLuW0NOrykoHI7_aTlqQGBRzieUgd0rt0zdLN9u3iLBBw0pPlhGcVK1UNls252rwkBmmTJIrvQaOELDXAh7xHMrmsmSMKSRKTmgEIbW3pa4K7kxfNKGB_GuGWXcFeg5eOXmnpTCN1fC00Et6sf3xJpSjdgKevMenmX-_YU5fXz89t-5Q4TS-n2L1kzT9q44BW2Gbc2d8wvtBmaMXshVZPEf5oq_N0sXdtCRTnqpJfTCt8SYYpqnRYRqU0OoMMxRZ0snf3LpcKwB9KOu2qHhoCYC-krG1O5gv5FIeu35VGcMJuc-gsMIlRX13PNihHShhZM4Lpol=w1044-h783-no)
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Dunno if this has been here before, but if not, I give you this -
https://www.messums.com/artworks/view/54145
(https://s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/messums/artworks/33644_w_900.jpg)
The new organiser of the Kennet Valley Audax!
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Is there a name for the phenomenon where, approaching two walkers from behind (this was a shared use path), and alerting them to your presence, they swap sides?
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Dunno if this has been here before, but if not, I give you this -
https://www.messums.com/artworks/view/54145
(https://s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/messums/artworks/33644_w_900.jpg)
The new organiser of the Kennet Valley Audax!
That must've been painted a while back.
He's been upgraded to Inspector for some time now.
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Well, suppose it's one way to get your buddy home...
Seen in Theale - pair with snapped / dead chain, so they'd cobbled a 'tow rope' from two inner tubes :o
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was trying to think where to put this story
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-47318231
(https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-47318231)
101 bikes found after investigating a single theft. :o
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Does it count as Comedy Off-Roading if it's on perfectly good tarmac? (The comedy element being provided by a combination of steamed-up glasses and Mildly Inappropriate Weather...)
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Possibly, but only if actually left the road. Otherwise it's just comedy wet-weather-sun-was-in-my-eyes.
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Possibly, but only if actually left the road. Otherwise it's just comedy wet-weather-sun-was-in-my-eyes.
Race track, innit. More mud than sun. Also, I had a less-than-technically-correct dismount into an oily puddle, which must add comedy value.
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Comedy track racing? Excellent! Extra points for rarity value. Are you "second in the world in silly weather racing"? ;D
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Comedy track racing? Excellent! Extra points for rarity value. Are you "second in the world in silly weather racing"? ;D
Second in the slow race, pending an official ruling from the Timelords by a gnat's crotchet. Obviously I'd have been in first position, except I was relying on the rain tasting of mud to know I was going in the right direction. ;D
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Diiving home yesterday afternoon, just after 5pm, I was distracted by a light on the opposite carriageway. This resolved itself into an older gentleman on a bicycle with smaller that average wheels, and a front light that was extremely bright and flashing at around 300bpm! Horrid.
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https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-england-derbyshire-47467438/penny-farthing-teacher-s-1000-mile-challenge (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-england-derbyshire-47467438/penny-farthing-teacher-s-1000-mile-challenge)
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Do gilets jaunes attract insects?
This seldom seems an issue in the winter but with spring's approach, do others find fluo yellow is a magnet for critters?
There are sound biological reasons...
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Yellow things in general. Kingcycle front fairings, for example.
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https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-england-derbyshire-47467438/penny-farthing-teacher-s-1000-mile-challenge (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-england-derbyshire-47467438/penny-farthing-teacher-s-1000-mile-challenge)
Shirley someone must have complained that Le-Jog is much less than 1000 miles? I can't be the first to spot this :o
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Hurrah!
https://www.forbes.com/sites/carltonreid/2019/03/21/historic-and-wonderful-cyclist-and-pedestrian-tunnel-under-river-tyne-re-opens-soon/#4390868a79d5
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https://newsthump.com/2019/03/27/cycling-world-stunned-as-male-rider-confesses-he-would-prefer-a-comfortable-saddle/?utm_medium=webnotifications&utm_source=browser&utm_campaign=wordpress&utm_content=newpost&fbclid=IwAR0O-g1EIqgZYwZ_3eonPBHmz-Mb1EBRLdBQ2822zYgiyWrqIUdm-V-V1uA
An honourable mention for our sister forum there... :)
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I use the Santander hire bikes regularly to ride between Victoria and the office. The current manifestation of the app is great - you can check there are actually bikes in the station before you get there and request a release code, so you can just walk up, dib it in and be away in seconds.
I amuse myself by looking for patterns in the release codes - not much scope for variety with a 5-digit base-3 system but I did enjoy the fact that yesterday the codes for both my morning and evening journeys were palindromic. Even better, one of them was the roadie's release code - 12121
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Even better, one of them was the roadie's release code - 12121
What does that mean? ???
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Even better, one of them was the roadie's release code - 12121
What does that mean? ???
Roadies doing a sound check are known to be unable to count to 3.
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Even better, one of them was the roadie's release code - 12121
What does that mean? ???
Consider it a test. ;)
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Even better, one of them was the roadie's release code - 12121
What does that mean? ???
Roadies doing a sound check are known to be unable to count to 3.
That's soundies. Roadies are the ones with drop handlebars and no sense of humour who lift on '3'.
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And the ones with matching components are groupies?
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An equestrian Twitterfriend posted today she'd put some alloy tackle in her dishwasher and it had gone dull grey and left black marks everywhere.
Oh dear!
Dishwasher detergent is STRONGLY alkaline and damages aluminium.
DON'T DO IT!
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Even better, one of them was the roadie's release code - 12121
What does that mean? ???
Roadies doing a sound check are known to be unable to count to 3.
That's soundies. Roadies are the ones with drop handlebars and no sense of humour who lift on '3'.
How many roadies soundies does it take to change a light bulb? Two. Two. One two.
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Even better, one of them was the roadie's release code - 12121
What does that mean? ???
Roadies doing a sound check are known to be unable to count to 3.
That's soundies. Roadies are the ones with drop handlebars and no sense of humour who lift on '3'.
How many roadies soundies does it take to change a light bulb? Two. Two. One two.
It's not a bulb, it's a lamp, and don't touch it!
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An equestrian Twitterfriend posted today she'd put some alloy tackle in her dishwasher and it had gone dull grey and left black marks everywhere.
Oh dear!
Dishwasher detergent is STRONGLY alkaline and damages aluminium.
DON'T DO IT!
It surprises me how many highly educated people seem to be unaware of this. And fail to make the connection and repeat the mistake.
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An equestrian Twitterfriend posted today she'd put some alloy tackle in her dishwasher and it had gone dull grey and left black marks everywhere.
Oh dear!
Dishwasher detergent is STRONGLY alkaline and damages aluminium.
DON'T DO IT!
It surprises me how many highly educated people seem to be unaware of this. And fail to make the connection and repeat the mistake.
This is a medical bod.
I thought all medics had A Level Chemistry or equivalent.
Seems some education didn't stick or get applied.
:( :'(
BY THE WAY, DON'T PUT ALUMINIUM ALLOY IN THE DISHWASHER!
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My favoured chain lubricant is Purple Extreme. Finding some in stock is quite a challenge.
If you are in a work environment, it is probably best that you do not search for "Purple Extreme lubricant" on Amazon...
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What about Blue Extreme lubricant?
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Just completed working out the gain ratios for the fleet of bikes. I've done one or two of them umpteen times for comparison but lost all the scraps of paper. Doing the lot in a manner I'll find when needed is a job I've wanted to do for ages but all the tuits I could find have been the wrong shape 'till now. Very satisfying.
(https://oi429.photobucket.com/albums/qq18/SoreTween/Misc/BikeGears_zpszc1cjf1o.jpg)
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BY THE WAY, DON'T PUT ALUMINIUM ALLOY IN THE DISHWASHER!
Or, as my wife would say:
BY THE WAY, DON'T PUT *ANY* BIKE PARTS IN THE DISHWASHER *EVER*!
Although, tbh, I wouldn't put steel parts in the dishwasher either due to the salt.
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BY THE WAY, DON'T PUT ALUMINIUM ALLOY IN THE DISHWASHER!
Or, as my wife would say:
BY THE WAY, DON'T PUT *ANY* BIKE PARTS IN THE DISHWASHER *EVER*!
Although, tbh, I wouldn't put steel parts in the dishwasher either due to the salt.
Yeah, dishwashers are for crockery, and IBM Model M keyboards.
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And salmon, ISTR.
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(https://live.staticflickr.com/7883/32630571847_20237488cf_c.jpg)
Guardian of the LBS
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(https://live.staticflickr.com/7883/32630571847_20237488cf_c.jpg)
Guardian of the LBS
Has he been on an audax?
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He's about 250km into a 400 and he's out of flapjack.
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https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?action=profile;u=276
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Ha! I had a feeling I'd seen it somewhere before. His is outdoors though. But I don't recall seeing it in the LBS (Mud Dock) before, so maybe it's recently been put in there. I'll have to go in and ask.
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I came across Itchy Feet (http://www.itchyfeetcomic.com/) cartoon strip a while back (https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=70466.msg1926148#msg1926148), thought I'd share this one
(https://i.imgur.com/fuvn8lE.png)
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On the off chance anyone here was listening to shaun keavney on 6 music yesterday afternoon he does MASO (middle age shout out) where you send in the middle age and or middle class things your doing over the weekend. I got one for fitting my new mudguards to my thorn.
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Spotted!
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Any knowledge?
https://twitter.com/dianapeychev/status/1129247989875257344
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Any knowledge?
https://twitter.com/dianapeychev/status/1129247989875257344
Also posted on LFGSS - No reply so far. My superhero cape was at the dry cleaners at this time.
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Hase have excelled themselves this time, with a steampunk kettwiesel-strandbeest hybrid. Night ride to Whitby anyone?
https://youtu.be/UDz3Dg1qnz0?t=342
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It looks like steering is by interupting the drive to one side so cornering at any speed is impossible.
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Excellent! Good use of red reflectors. Disappointing lack of FIRE but as it's Germany, I trust there was CAKE and BEER. Good theatre. Thank goodness for subtitles, not only because mein Deutch is sehr rusty but the sound was unimpressive. Perhaps a long term project for Wobbly John and helpers?
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It looks like steering is by interupting the drive to one side so cornering at any speed is impossible.
I'm guessing a diff-based Kettwiesel drivetrain and what looks like a disc brake either side. Presumably it's a bit analogue, though still steers like a tank and feet wear is likely to be an issue. But I suspect that's the least of its problems. That roll cage must be there for a reason...
Nevertheless it's awesome. I wouldn't be surprised if they encounter the same problem that ICE did after building Maria Leijerstam's trike, and end up having to manufacture them commercially.
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I wonder if they could adapt one to look like an AT-AT and sell them to squoogles of kids, fanboiz and Rogerzilla?
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It looks like steering is by interupting the drive to one side so cornering at any speed is impossible.
I'm guessing a diff-based Kettwiesel drivetrain and what looks like a disc brake either side. Presumably it's a bit analogue, though still steers like a tank and feet wear is likely to be an issue. But I suspect that's the least of its problems. That roll cage must be there for a reason...
Nevertheless it's awesome. I wouldn't be surprised if they encounter the same problem that ICE did after building Maria Leijerstam's trike, and end up having to manufacture them commercially.
I'd buy one for winter in the fens, better traction than wheels on the lanes
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I wonder if they could adapt one to look like an AT-AT and sell them to squoogles of kids, fanboiz and Rogerzilla?
Too many feet for an AT-AT - I'm getting more a Discworld Luggage vibe from it.
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Downhilling on a Disabled E-Mountain Bike Tandem - Madness ;D
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=onoeq45G6ec
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The “never in a million years” thread seems to have been merged into here!
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Downhilling an a Disabled E-Mountain Bike Tandem - Madness ;D
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=onoeq45G6ec
Goes along with the latest Danny Macaskill - "Danny Day Care"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jj0CmnxuTaQ
Tricks with a child trailer
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The much-anticipated Silly Oak to Mordor A38 cycleway is officially opening today.
As the cones have been removed the first untaxed Audi has parked in it.
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For anyone in Radio Suffolkland, (or, presumably, the internet), there should be a slot on Monday 17th evening (some time between 7 and 10pm) (https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p07bhw6n) when I will be talking about Audax.
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Looks like Wendy (not here for 3+ years) has taken his vigilante-ism to the next level (https://road.cc/content/news/262213-live-blog-video-cyclist-wont-let-motorist-take-shortcut-down-wrong-side-road). Looking at his YouTube vids (https://www.youtube.com/user/CyclingMikey/videos) he appears to station himself waiting for people to carry out that dodgy right turn. The years don't appear to have mellowed him (although in my experience he is a really nice chap - apart from this crusading).
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I dunno. He seemed perfectly mellow on there. I don't think I'd have the courage.
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Looks like Wendy (not here for 3+ years) has taken his vigilante-ism to the next level (https://road.cc/content/news/262213-live-blog-video-cyclist-wont-let-motorist-take-shortcut-down-wrong-side-road). Looking at his YouTube vids (https://www.youtube.com/user/CyclingMikey/videos) he appears to station himself waiting for people to carry out that dodgy right turn. The years don't appear to have mellowed him (although in my experience he is a really nice chap - apart from this crusading).
Good for him. It isn't a dodgy right turn, it's motorists deciding that their ghastly little rat run is more valuable than the humans coming around the bend and driving down the wrong side of the road around a blind corner. He isn't a 'vigilante', he isn't shooting people or illegally kidnapping them, he's reporting them to the fuzz which is eminently the right thing to do.
His 'crusading' in part comes from his own dad having been killed by a drunken motorist.
If I see him when I'm doing laps I'll buy him a coffee.
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He's just Facebooked he'll be on Radio 2 with Jeremy Vine next Friday.
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Never met him so can't comment on vigilantism etc but just pointing out, in case it needed it, that "Cycling Mikey" and "Bikey Mikey" are two separate people!
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Which is why I used Wendy.
And, standing on a corner waiting for miscreants is vigilant action in anyone book.
By the bye, much as I personally don't care for using cameras, Wendy has always been an exemplar of how to do it properly
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Yes, you used Wendy, but he's Cycling Mikey on road.cc.
As for the vigilantism, crusading, neighbourhood watch or whatever you want to call it, one of my initial thoughts was that he/people do it in part because there are few police nowadays – but having watched the video, the cops turn up almost instantly.
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I didn't know holding on to a moving vehicle was called skitching.
https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/illegal-back-future-phenomenon-hits-2995811
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Best example of that I ever saw was a chap dressed as a posh waiter, holding a laden tray in the approved shoulder-height-stylee, on rollerblades and hanging onto the fuel filler cap of an FX4 taxi on Shaftesbury Avenue.
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(https://i2-prod.bristolpost.co.uk/incoming/article1900363.ece/ALTERNATES/s810/1_cyclists-racing.jpg)
What does this photo depict? A sportive? Charity ride? Tour of Britain perhaps? Yes, probably. Certainly they all look slick and sleek. But according to the Bristol Post it's an Extinction Rebellion mass ride. https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/traffic-cyclists-bristol-extinction-rebellion-2999411 Somehow I don't expect the actual event to look quite the same.
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Over on the @EEVBlog twitter feed, they've been celebrating bad-stock-photos-of-people-using-multimeters. While the average advertising model has a slightly better idea of how to use a bike than a soldering iron, it occurs to me that we could have a thread for least appropriate choice of cycling stock photos... I'm reminded of We are Cycling UK using a picture of a mountain biker getting air on the trails to illustrate a piece about e-bikes.
While lycra-brigade photos to illustrate articles about cycle infrastructure etc. are relatively common, bonus points will be awarded for use of photos of everyday cyclists to illustrate events aimed firmly at sport cyclists.
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Once you've started it, we shall feed it. :thumbsup:
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(https://i2-prod.bristolpost.co.uk/incoming/article1900363.ece/ALTERNATES/s810/1_cyclists-racing.jpg)
What does this photo depict? A sportive? Charity ride? Tour of Britain perhaps? Yes, probably. Certainly they all look slick and sleek. But according to the Bristol Post it's an Extinction Rebellion mass ride. https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/traffic-cyclists-bristol-extinction-rebellion-2999411 Somehow I don't expect the actual event to look quite the same.
Without intending to, I saw the XR ride. I'd say there were 30-40 riders and they were, perhaps surprisingly, about 50% road bikes. The rest were hybrids, mtbs, one or two cargo bikes. But no lycra. And lots of flags.
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Interesting piece about Oskar Svendsen and his astonishingly high VO2max:
https://www.outsideonline.com/2398524/highest-ever-vo2max-cyclist-oskar-svendsen
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This morning, whilst I was parking my bike at the Sheffield stands at Southend hospital (do they have Southend stands at Sheffield hospital, I wonder?) some chap turned up on a very attractive green Francis Barnett electric bike. I was quite surprised to see that name on a relatively modern bike. I occasionally used to ride a Francis Barnett 250cc motor bike in my youth. That would probably have been manufactured about 70 years ago.
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Wheeled the bike through the "garden" and noticed the front tyre was soft. Didn't want to unlock the house, so used the pump on the bike. This has a hose with a screw-on adapter. Pump, pump, nice firm 60 (wide tyres), unscrew the hose... and the valve core came out with it. So I went in to get the track pump and a pair of pliers. I thought about getting a pump with a thumblock thingy to replace that one, but instead it seems more sensible to replace the tweezers in that bike's tool kit (there for taking thorns out of deep-treaded tyres) with a pair of pointy nosed pliers which will serve both tasks.
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My front disc brake (mechanical) isn't biting as hard as I'd like, I think it is owed to a small rotor imbalance but could it also be old cables? I've had the bike since November and have done about 5000 km on it. I appreciate this isn't a precise science but since a chain (I'm told) is good for about 4000 might it be worth thinking about swapping them out? Or is it a 'run it till it's bust' sort of affair?
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My front disc brake (mechanical) isn't biting as hard as I'd like, I think it is owed to a small rotor imbalance but could it also be old cables? I've had the bike since November and have done about 5000 km on it. I appreciate this isn't a precise science but since a chain (I'm told) is good for about 4000 might it be worth thinking about swapping them out? Or is it a 'run it till it's bust' sort of affair?
Usual failure mode of cables is that they fray and snap, or they gum up with corrosion and become stiff. The latter is greatly exacerbated if the inner isn't proper stainless steel, or if the outer forms a loop where water can accumulate (eg. on folding bikes and USS recumbents).
Gears are, for obvious reasons, much more sensitive to cable problems than brakes. I'd usually expect them to show signs of needing replacing first (assuming all were fitted at the same time). On the other hand, it's certainly worth trying if you've adjusted the brakes and are reasonably sure it's not pad contamination. I've had similar symptoms on BB7s with gunked up cables.
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Cheers I think I have resolved it - the metal spring thing that holds the pads apart seemed to have been warped somehow. Bent it around a bit and now all working kosher.
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Spotted my first pavement cyclist eschewing the new A38 cycleway yesterday. I've seen a couple using the road, presumably because they intended to make turns that the cycle route makes difficult, but I'm not sure why anyone would choose the footway over the actually decent bit of cycle infra ???
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Next time you're in Wales keep a lookout for this poster at take aways in Ceredigion.
https://twitter.com/CeredigionCC/status/1145603263485620224?s=19
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Is it an easy thing to swap out my Tiagra bike's front chainrings for smaller ones? Currently I'm running 34-50 but I think it would benefit me to get lower gears for loaded touring particularly rough stuff. All the 'how to get lower gears' guides seem to privilege derailleur hanger extenders and mountain bike cassettes and whatnot, I hoped there might be an easier way with just allen keys and chainring swaps.
Or rather will I have to swap out to a whole new set of cranks? e.g. https://www.spacycles.co.uk/m2b0s109p3383/SPA-CYCLES-TD-2-Super-Compact-Chainset-with-Zicral-Rings Would this then require fettling the front derailleur to make it able to shunt the chain over appropriately?
My front mech is braze-on if it matters.
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I think 33 is the smallest chainring you can fit on a 110BCD spider. I've got that same Spa super compact and yes it pretty much just works but you will need a new BB and you'll have to move the FD down a few mm – I can't remember how many (obviously it depends on what rings you go for) but it's an easy calculation and it's a small amount, but a brazed on mech might make it impossible.
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Hm in that case I think the rear derailleur stuff might be a bit easier to get a grip on. I can already fit a 34 tooth rear sprocket, I'd hope with my 34 front chainring that would be enough wiggle room (I never ran out of gears doing loaded rides in Mallorca...) but the last place to find out that you've not got enough is 1/3 the way through the Raid Pyrenean with the kitchen sink hanging off the seatpost.
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You can tell that it's summer.
All of the twats who haven't a clue how to cycle, are out on their bikes.
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You can tell that it's summer.
All of the twats who haven't a clue how to cycle, are out on their bikes.
Yep.
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You can tell that it's summer.
All of the twats who haven't a clue how to cycle, are out on their bikes.
Yep.
And long may it continue. It means they're not in their cars.
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WHILE I WAS CYCLING TO WORK THIS MORNING SOME WOMAN WALKED OUT IN FRONT OF ME WITHOUT LOOKING BECAUSE SHE WAS TOO BUSY STARING AT HER FUCKING PHONE!!!!!!!!
So I just slowed down, and when she noticed me and did the frozen rabbit thing, I just waved her across with a smile, then went on with my journey. No one died. The sun kept shining. It was a lovely day.
The real shit stuff only started when I got to the office...
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Someone walked out in front of me yesterday reading a hefty paperback. Old school.
Couldn't see what it was, evidently engrossing as she didn't notice Borough High Street, not looking up once across four entire lanes...
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Someone walked out in front of me yesterday reading a hefty paperback. Old school.
Couldn't see what it was, evidently engrossing as she didn't notice Borough High Street, not looking up once across four entire lanes...
Probably the Necronomicon. It has that effect on some people.
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Ooo, is that out in paperback? My copy is the size of a dinner tray and bound in human skin. Reading it in the bath is a nightmare. I've given up waiting for the Kindle version. Licensing and rights issues, apparently.
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I have a beater that serves pretty much daily use to transport me locally. Anyone listening in on what passes for thought rattling through the space between my ears over the last few weeks while riding, might have heard stuff like:
"Hark! that's a noise. Not a good noise"
"I wonder what it is? sounds like a crank noise"
"Still there"
"Actually it's getting worse"
"What? now there's a chain scraping noise"
"Hmmm...... will it get better or worse in different gears?"
"No, this really isn't going away on its own"
"all a bit intermittent though. I suppose I could ask on the forum what might make such a dreadful racket"
"This is really bad now"
"I suppose I should have a look at it some time, instead of just hopping off and leaving it down my side alley."
I might be able to diagnose this. About an inch of play at the crank end. That'll do it.
:-[ :-[ ;D
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My beater has been sitting unused for approximately 'too long' as I have not been able to identify the cause of the clunking sound coming from the rear. I suspect it's the hub, which means taking the bike to professional and handing over £££. As I've been skint - and have other bikes - I have taken no action. But now the accounts are looking better, and the rear derailleur of the bike I'm using currently is starting to show signs of age, I should probably do something. I haven't ridden bike #3 since last summer, but knowing my luck something has worn out on that one as well. :-\
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On Sunday morning I was riding along a smooth surfaced, level path, wondering what the noise coming from my bike was. I remembered I had had doubts about the rear wheel bearings, but this didn't sound like bearings, it certainly didn't feel like bearings and it seemed to be coming from the front wheel. It was a sort of ticking, a bit like a freewheel, but it was there whether I pedalled or freewheeled – and seemed to be from the front wheel. I stopped, spun each wheel; nothing. Twiddled and prodded, nothing. Started riding again, and as soon as I was over a fast walking speed, the noise came again. There was nothing stuck in a mudguard. Stopped again. Looked again. Ah ha! There was a loop of wire out of the dynamo that was brushing lightly on the spokes. It hadn't been there when I span the wheel by hand, either because of the angle at which I was holding the wheel or because there was no slipstream to blow the wires towards the wheel.
Easily fixed and no harm done. But there are so many variables when you start to consider that single loop of wire! Should it go forward or backward from the fork? To the inside or outside of the fork? Length? I'd settled on forward, because that's the most convenient place for the connectors and the most noticeable place for them, so I don't go and pull the wires off the spades by forgetting them when removing the wheel ( :facepalm:); to the inside of the fork, I can't quite remember why but I think it might have been to minimise opportunities to catch on undergrowth; and longish, in order to have a bit of give if it should catch rather than just breaking. Might have to revise the second two.
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Felt rather sorry for s Polish couple, both towing large child trailers, grimly making their way through the pouring rain in Llandysul this morning.
Witamy w Walii.
I wanted to offer them coffee and shelter, but they seemed intent on plodding on rather than stopping to talk.
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I've just had a look at the tube that failed last Sunday. I noticed that there was a little bit of plastic backing still stuck on one point of the edge of the patch that leaked, and it was exactly there that it had been leaking. Cause or coincidence? Don't know. Anyway, I peeled off the whole patch, figuring that if I was going to repair it, it would be better to start from new, and if I wasn't, it didn't make any difference what I did with the patch. Underneath was a lateral slit along a moulding ridge, about 15mm long. I don't reckon I'll be repairing that... The last puncture I remember on that bike was last summer, so it's lasted pretty well considering. The awkward thing is I now only have tubes with short valve stems and I really need longer ones with those Archetype rims.
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Snorbens seems a poor choice for the cycling commuter...
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-49154673 (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-49154673)
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Cyclocross - the most fun a grown-up can have on a bike. Or off a bike. Mostly off it, tbh...
https://youtu.be/c4XxUWcZeJs
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It rained this morning but had stopped when I went for the bread. Result - a wet bum. Inspired me to fit the mudguards that have been waiting patiently since I took them off the last 650b tourer. It didn't rain this afternoon so I did it. Don't disc brakes and a bikepark fork make a right fugly combination for fitting mudguards to!! 25mm of spacer one side to clear the fork and the caliper ( the fork blades are 34mm tubes and the mudguard fits to convenient holes in front of the blade). The rear is almost pretty by comparison!!
Still motivated I then fitted the guards to Gwen's bike (that originally came from the one with discs, before the discs). That was easy, apart from the V-brake cable fouling a bit on the bridge support.
That done I think I can claim total responsibility for the next six months drought in the Limousin :facepalm:
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What is a "bikepark fork"?
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https://www.transportxtra.com/publications/local-transport-today/news/61869/nextbike-stripped-of-contract-to-operate-west-mids-bike-hire
"Oh, for fuck's sake!" said Kim, the words coming easily through force of habit.
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It did get flagged up at the Wolverhampton Cycle Forum meeting on 25/7/19. I wasn't there but from what I hear what was said by the council wasn't as informative as the link you give.
The 25 bikes put in Wolverhampton town centre (5 stations within the ring rd) were always described as a trial to test the technology and how people coped with it. They appeared to, although not in very great numbers. Not particularly surprising as all you really would have done is cycle from one side of the town centre to another. The one councillor (a regular cyclist) who usually chairs the meeting had used them and had a reasonably positive report of the bikes themselves.
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Derby has just scrapped its own scheme. Vandalism, apparently.
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What is a "bikepark fork"?
One of these intended for bikes that do jumps and stunts and generally getting bashed into lumps of concrete in bike parks. It weighs nearly 1.5kg and they got taken off the market as far as I can tell because they broke at the fork crown or the steerer (the posts that I saw originated in the Philipines!)
(https://i.imgur.com/Xr8CvYl.jpg?1) (https://i.imgur.com/msGoGGp.jpg?1) (https://i.imgur.com/E0E8MlP.jpg)
As I say fugly in all senses. For info this fork has two sets of V-brake mounts, for 24" and 26" mtb wheels. It doesn't work that well off-road!
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Not sure about fugly, it has a rather nicely angled arch to the top. And with three sets of brake mounts, it's versatile!
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Left the bike in the sun at lunchtime and it got quite warm.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48626371896_36577d90cd_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2h5WSfm)
IMG_3751_01 (https://flic.kr/p/2h5WSfm) by The Pingus (https://www.flickr.com/photos/the_pingus/), on Flickr
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Left the bike in the sun at lunchtime and it got quite warm.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48626371896_36577d90cd_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2h5WSfm)
IMG_3751_01 (https://flic.kr/p/2h5WSfm) by The Pingus (https://www.flickr.com/photos/the_pingus/), on Flickr
Well done, I don't think I've seen higher than mid-40s on mine (that was the time the screen protector unpeeled from the eTrex in the heat).
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I saw 35.x whilst riding yesterday
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Replacing my beater has opened my eyes to the oddities of the secondhand market. Do the majority of people really not know that bikes come in different sizes? I'd estimate that upwards of 80% of adverts (at least at the bottom end of the market) don't put frame size in their advert.
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We take it for granted how much we know about bikes relative to 99% of society. Most people can name the components 'wheels, tyres, pedals and handlebars' and that is about it. A great many bike sales photos are taken from the wrong side so you have to email to ask what the componentry is, invariably the reply is 'shimano'.
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Most people would have no idea what size their bike was. Except maybe 'small ' or 'medium ' etc. They would also have no idea what to measure.
The reply I once got was "26 inch tyres "
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The reply I once got was "26 inch tyres "
I've just fixed[1] a p*nct*r* for a bloke (found looking sorry for himself at the roadside, while a passing motorcyclist apologised for not being equipped with anything remotely useful) who claimed his bike was shod with such. I peered at the wheel in my hand. I peered at the 26" wheel on the back of my bike. I peered at the "38-622" written on the tyre I'd just removed. Yeah.
(The moment of doubt was caused entirely by the tyre's apathy towards staying on the rim. Serious loosey-goosey, but not that bad a size mismatch!)
I suppose identifying bikes by their wheel size makes sense if 90% of your experience of bicycles is toys for children.
[1] No score draw: Hole identified and patched, foreign object picked out of tyre. There was also a leak from the valve stem, which was knackered, but slow enough that his chances of getting to the nearest pub using stop-and-pump-it-back-up tactics seemed reasonable.
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Riding along by the river on Monday, I saw a flotilla of swans swimming along. There were five of them and their different progresses reminded me of a group of cyclists. First came one on his/her own (I'm sure I used to know how to tell male from female swans, something to do with their beaks), swimming strongly, creating a great V-shaped wake and increasing his lead over the group. Then some way behind was a group of two, side by side chatting. Just behind them another, keeping up. And at the back a last solo bird, swimming at a reasonable pace but looking around, veering off to the side to investigate things on the river bank, stopping to eat, and as a consequence dawdling ever further behind.
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I've just measured my two best fitting bikes, with a view to a new one that is somewhere between the two in use. They're more different than i realised, despite having fairly similar distances between contact points.
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Hi-viz thoughts from yesterday's rides (I think we had a hi-viz thread but I can't find it now). About half a mile ahead of me on a straight road I saw a white horse. It was in the shadow of trees on an otherwise sunny day and I couldn't see the rider. There was no other traffic. When I got to about half the distance, I saw there was also a brown horse alongside the white one. It was only at this point I saw the riders. The white horse;s rider was wearing black (one of those body armour suits that horse riders wear), the brown horse's rider was wearing hi-viz: flo-yo vest with reflective stripes. So the white horse showed up long before the rider in hi-viz, who only showed up at the same time as the brown horse and rider in black. I put this down partly to positioning (the white horse was on the right) but mostly size.
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This one? https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=111184.0
I remember seeing a horse in the distance recently that turned into a woman with incredibly long legs and Big Hair as I approached. To be fair, I was on the lookout for horses, having just passed some fresh horsepoo on the left of the road.
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Might have been that one, but even if I'd found that one it wouldn't have been entirely appropriate as this was in bright sunshine but in deep shade. No fog.
Some people do have incredibly long legs and pony tails but...
On other horse thoughts, I saw two little girls (estimated ages 10 and 7) out riding large ponies (or small horses – I'm sure there's a technical difference but I don't know what) in the middle of nowhere with no adults around and wondered if their nice middle-class parents* would let them do the same on bikes. (Both horses were brown, neither girl had hi-viz, though one of them had a white top.)
*Assumed on grounds of horse-riding.
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large ponies (or small horses – I'm sure there's a technical difference but I don't know what)
AUIU you measure the virtual seat tube length in silly horsist units.
Some time ago I coined the term "Islahorses" (https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=50667.msg1152361#msg1152361) for this sort of thing.
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Making the Isla Bikes "Icons" (https://www.islabikes.co.uk/icons/) range the equivalent of old nags?
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:D
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Alpkit appear to have launched a special male-specific range of bikepacking luggage (https://alpkit.com/featured/limited-edition-camo-print-bikepacking-bags).
Naturally I'll be sticking to my Ortliebs until the PINK version comes out[1]...
[1] This statement may contain lies or traces of lies.
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There are various things that could be said about camo prints but... they do have women in the army now.
Perhaps they should combine the stereotypes by producing pink camo pattern luggage? (Rapha might already have done this.)
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I was in the local horriblemarket a couple of hours ago, queuing behind a couple both wearing camouflage gear, and no, they weren't both blokes. This is Utah.
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Couples always end up looking a bit like each other, thobut.
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I do find this very odd. My favourite bike shop (planet x...) have subcontracted bike assembly from their Yorkshire warehouse to... Italy.
ostensibly this is to "keep up with demand". Wonder if the currency carryings on has anything to do with it. I don't understand the cycling industry at all. Anyone got any knowledge to weigh in with?
https://www.planetx.co.uk/c/q/bikes/limited-production-models?deal=HOFF15&fbclid=IwAR1G-afVveBPPOYw79UDLY0tXKBqZiep1brEW2H3hKDXNt0fTAiScBuMq-o
(https://i.imgur.com/dT67irz.png)
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Significant Other got a new aero road bike. On her old bike keeping up with her was almost do-able, mainly cos I'd catch up (and recover a bit) on the downhills. Did 50 miles with her on the new bike on Sunday and it nearly killed me. I need to do some sneaky training without her realising :D
(it's a Trek Madone with fancy wheels. Don't encourage your SO get get one if you want to keep riding together)
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I do find this very odd. My favourite bike shop (planet x...) have subcontracted bike assembly from their Yorkshire warehouse to... Italy.
ostensibly this is to "keep up with demand". Wonder if the currency carryings on has anything to do with it. I don't understand the cycling industry at all. Anyone got any knowledge to weigh in with?
https://www.planetx.co.uk/c/q/bikes/limited-production-models?deal=HOFF15&fbclid=IwAR1G-afVveBPPOYw79UDLY0tXKBqZiep1brEW2H3hKDXNt0fTAiScBuMq-o
(https://i.imgur.com/dT67irz.png)
No industry knowledge, just ill-informed speculation ( :hand:). But if PX are earning mostly GBP and their Italian subcontractor presumably bills them in EUR, then as the GBP falls surely this will cost PX more for the same bills?
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Last week was unusual, in that there was another bike (i.e. not mine) parked in the sheffield stands at my local (*) station. This was rare enough that I decided the bike warranted closer inspection. This revealed it to be not only a BSO, but one with front forks back-to-front. I left a note in the brake lever to suggest that getting a cycle mechanic to check it over wouldn't be the worst decision the rider ever took, with a bit of an explanation as to why, which may have included the words "You might crash".
Imagine my surprise when, a few days later, (the bike having vanished from the sheffield stands and then re-appeared), I saw my note in the brake lever again, with the words "Thank you, I'm getting it checked this weekend" and a smiley face written/drawn thereon.
(*) "A Local Station For Local People". Train service (in the loosest possible meaning) of 7 trains per day in each direction; roughly 2-hour intervals between trains, doubling to hourly for the morning and evening peak. And it's still a 15 min cycle ride from the village I live in. Don't get me started on the safety (or otherwise) of the B5008 between the two.
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:thumbsup:
Last reversed-fork I came across was in a pile of donated bikes that were going to be recycled for charity. Been a while since I encountered one in the wild.
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Reversed-fork bike spotted again, now all fixed! :thumbsup:
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A good deed well done. :thumbsup:
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Would it be very wrong to add an omafiets (https://www.fietsenopfietsen.nl/altec-roma-omafiets-28-inch.html) to the stable? I suspect so, because their endearment to me is more about how and where I was riding this last week than the quality of ride (fascinatingly relaxed).
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Would it be very wrong to add an omafiets (https://www.fietsenopfietsen.nl/altec-roma-omafiets-28-inch.html) to the stable? I suspect so, because their endearment to me is more about how and where I was riding this last week than the quality of ride (fascinatingly relaxed).
Will there be hills? If so, a heavy single-speed without the full legal complement of brakes would seem unwise.
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To the dimwit riding on the road between Ely and our village after dark o'clock today, wearing black
GET SOME FUCKING LIGHTS YOU TIT!
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To the dimwit riding on the road between Ely and our village after dark o'clock today, wearing black
GET SOME FUCKING LIGHTS YOU TIT!
https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=76283.0 :)
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Would it be very wrong to add an omafiets (https://www.fietsenopfietsen.nl/altec-roma-omafiets-28-inch.html) to the stable? I suspect so, because their endearment to me is more about how and where I was riding this last week than the quality of ride (fascinatingly relaxed).
Will there be hills? If so, a heavy single-speed without the full legal complement of brakes would seem unwise.
Hills? London? nah.
Actually, the omafiets came as a surprise (there is also actually an opafiets with a crossbar rather than step through). It is a lot higher than expected, with a strange handling characteristics resulting from the high CoG and castor angle. Not sure what the gearing was - maybe 60" or thereabouts? So hills shouldn't be too much an issue, and the rear coaster is up to the performance.
But no, I think I will be resisting.
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To the dimwit riding on the road between Ely and our village after dark o'clock today, wearing black
GET SOME FUCKING LIGHTS YOU TIT!
https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=76283.0 :)
:-*
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It's that time of year again. The one where you can identify the nationality of the freshers by how they react to bicycle bells.
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In Cambridge tourists and students alike seem to think the the cyclists will do all the work in avoidance, even on normal roads, which get treated as pavements
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Hills? London? nah.
Miss von Brandenburg, as a resident of Pystal Crapace, might disagree but then in Saarrff London the dragons need somewhere to nest.
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El Prez is just back from presiding over an FFCT holiday in Hendaye. Over 50% of participants were on ebikes.
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I did a sample session at a turbo trainer studio today, using Wahoo Kickr trainers. I was astonished at how good they were. The way the ergo mode feature 'locks on' to a wattage in particular is brilliant. Far better than the magnetic trainers that I've used before. Not cheap though...!
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It's a right skogfest out there today, with bonus flooding.
Won't be long until chutney season is upon us. I noticed that one bit of lane smelled like November.
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Don't know about November (though "as ugly as November" is a Polish phrase which I think transfers rather well into English) but there's a genuine October Lane down here in the Capital of WoE. http://www.streetmap.co.uk/map.srf?X=360012&Y=176537&A=Y&Z=106
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It's a right skogfest out there today, with bonus flooding.
Won't be long until chutney season is upon us. I noticed that one bit of lane smelled like November.
soem funny smells around here as well, a mix of fermenting fruit and burning rubber somehow
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Check out the footware required for a Welsh Cycling event held in Llandysmul. :)
https://twitter.com/rhiannonwalton/status/1178357672707592192?s=19
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Gravity doesn't have to get you down. (https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2019/oct/02/we-live-for-gravity-biking-deadly-sport-is-way-of-life-in-medellin)
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A lot of beech trees around here.. I can tell you that very thick beech nut and husk chutney is much worse than traditional leaf chutney. Particularly when descending one of our local chevrons with poorly adjusted rim breaks.
Decided to dismount on the hair pin, shoulder first.
No damage.
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At least there was no canal!
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No. But there is the Teifi, which in its current state would be much, much worse.
I must improve my upper body strength, so when I use my upper arm as a fall cushion, there is actually some cushion. :-[
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I've got my Brompton, a highly prized and exceptionally rideable cycle, folded into something similar to the size of a triple gatefold-sleeve lp set of albums by Yes. It's the next best thing we have on the planet to a Harry Potter invisibility cloak.
Peter Finch, Edging the Estuary, 2013
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I've got my Brompton, a highly prized and exceptionally rideable cycle, folded into something similar to the size of a triple gatefold-sleeve lp set of albums by Yes. It's the next best thing we have on the planet to a Harry Potter invisibility cloak.
Peter Finch, Edging the Estuary, 2013
"Invisibility cloak" describes the effect they have on drivers, too.
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I was wondering recently whether I like cycling or whether what I actually like is bikes.
Before anyone deletes my account, I really do like cycling, love it, indeed. But there are times when I think I might love bikes more. I know it's not really an either/or thing. For example, part of what I love about bikes is the fact that they can be ridden. And I'm not crazy about the idea of a bike that will never be ridden (unless it's beyond riding, maybe).
But there are certainly times when I think I'd rather be fettling/cleaning than riding.
I don't care about this much (hence putting it here), but thought I'd mention it.
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Who TF designs a rim brake frame with the seat stay rack eyelets level with the brake bridge?
I mean it works fine as long as you don’t want to install a back brake and a rear rack at the same time.
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Answer to above may be Thorn. I've been trying a few racks I had and two of them foul the v brakes. Suppose I could run a rear canto or more likely will modify the rack to bolt on inside of stays. I was actually complaining about this last night to Jan
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The other day, I got my last remaining set of rim brake wheels out to clean them up a bit before donating them to the local recycling place. However, I noticed not one, but two spokes had completely come away from the front wheel - on closer inspection, the hub had actually cracked across the two spoke holes.
Whilst I wasn't too bothered, as I don't need the wheel and wasn't going to ride it, I was rather concerned. The wheels have been sitting around doing nothing for 6 months, and were intact when I last rode them. I wonder whether the crack had actually started when I was riding around on that wheel? ??? :o
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Saw someone riding in Lewes earlier with a front pannier and a tin of baked beans in each bottle cage. Was it one of you?
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Oh look, it's another set of electric cycling indicators! And how innovative, for these you use your hands. Hang on....
Well never mind, Indik8a is a really kool name. Indyk is also Polish for turkey. Why does that seem appropriate?
https://www.indik8a.com
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Oh my my. In so many ways
(https://www.indik8a.com/i/images/home/Product/hero.jpg)
Vibrates while indicating, so you know it’s on without looking.
Where's the ROFL emoji when you want one
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:o
On an unrelated note, I'm officially down to n=2. Hopefully, this should give me space in the bike room to set up the turbo (rather than it taking up the spare room). I'm going to try and resist the n+1 urge...
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A good Friday read, Grayson Perry on cycling
https://www.cyclist.co.uk/news/7298/grayson-perry-on-cycling-chris-boardman-moutain-bike-racing-cycling-as-transport
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Miss Ham's partner has my old Pompetamine, in single speed guise, which he enjoys, it's disc braked on drops (BB7). Friday night he was in the pub and decided to leave said steed locked, discretion being the better part and all that. On arrival to pick it up the next day, in his words "Something wasn't right". It took the LBS to point out to him that someone had nicked his front wheel - so far, so not surprising, but had replaced the disc wheel with a non-disc one. Weird.
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A considerate thief? Sort of. ???
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I saw three youths today with Sadiq Cycles. So far, so normal. They were in Three Bridges, Sussex, some 25 miles from London's famous London, so either they're looking at a lot of hire fees or the bikes were nicked.
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I saw three youths today with Sadiq Cycles. So far, so normal. They were in Three Bridges, Sussex, some 25 miles from London's famous London, so either they're looking at a lot of hire fees or the bikes were nicked.
How do they nick them? I assume they're not mugging legitimate users. Can the bikes be liberated from the docks with simple tools or applied ultra-violence? I suppose you must get people failing to re-dock them properly now and then.
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I saw three youths today with Sadiq Cycles. So far, so normal. They were in Three Bridges, Sussex, some 25 miles from London's famous London, so either they're looking at a lot of hire fees or the bikes were nicked.
How do they nick them? I assume they're not mugging legitimate users. Can the bikes be liberated from the docks with simple tools or applied ultra-violence? I suppose you must get people failing to re-dock them properly now and then.
The Evening Standard suggests shoulder surfing a legitimate user when the release code is issued is one way. Then there's this in the Telegraph:
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/11405649/Serco-employee-stole-54-Boris-bikes-worth-50k.html (https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/11405649/Serco-employee-stole-54-Boris-bikes-worth-50k.html)
Summary: Serco bike fettler has a key to release damaged bikes from the dock. Key gets put to nefarious use, bike fettler ends up with 54 bikes.
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The ticket you get to undock them has a simple code (digits 123 only) in massive writing on it. It’s very easy for someone shoulder surfing to memorise it and stick it in before a dozy tourist picks a bike and enters it.
I’m sure there are also plenty liberated from tourists who’ve stopped to take pictures or whatever.
On preview: what Tim says. When the fettlers are moving bikes around there are stacks of unlocked bikes setting on their truck that it’d be easy to wander off with.
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The ticket you get to undock them has a simple code (digits 123 only) in massive writing on it. It’s very easy for someone shoulder surfing to memorise it and stick it in before a dozy tourist picks a bike and enters it.
Hm, you could probably position yourself at a busy dock away from the Boris computer and brute-force codes until you happen to stumble on one that's currently active. Fighting with the docks isn't particularly suspicious behaviour.
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The ticket you get to undock them has a simple code (digits 123 only) in massive writing on it. It’s very easy for someone shoulder surfing to memorise it and stick it in before a dozy tourist picks a bike and enters it.
Hm, you could probably position yourself at a busy dock away from the Boris computer and brute-force codes until you happen to stumble on one that's currently active. Fighting with the docks isn't particularly suspicious behaviour.
It's 4 digit number consisting of 1, 2 or 3, so umm, 3^4 = 81 permutations. Is that right? The code is valid for 10 minutes from issuing, so that's a rate of one code every 7.4 seconds. Your chances of getting a hit increase with the number of active codes at that station.
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The code's valid until the legitimate user finds a bike with a working seatpost clamp in a dock with undamaged membrane switches, so probably much less than 10 minutes. But that doesn't really matter if there's a constant supply of new users (and neither does exhaustively searching the code space[1], for that matter).
I'd say certainly possible, but not something you'd rely on for quick getaways.
[1] There's a rule of thumb that says you should never underestimate the mathematical ability of oikery if there's profit in it.
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Friday 1/11 I went circuit checking in a 6 hour downpour. Everything got soaked very thoroughly, including the bar tape. Wind on the film to 11/11 when I converted this bike to 650B wheels which meant a change of brakes (we are talking very old school calipers). The rear brake didn't want to work properly, brake cable seized. Stripping the accessible bits and lubing traced the problem to the bars and the lever (which is an old school brake lever aero style with cables under the bar tape? None of this STI stuff!.
Well the brake works but a bit half-heartedly. Oh pxxxx. Only thing to do is going to be unwrap the bars and clean/replace the cable as necessary. Oh the joys of hidden cabling.
There are those who would say with discs this sort of thing doesn't happen. Not an option on this frame but if I had discs they would probably be cable so that changes nothing. Perhaps this is a good argument for road hydraulics but until manufacturers are offering the levers without STI (or equivalent) I am not interested. Can't use STI, causes too much pain in my arthritic thumb!
Does anyone have any experience of water seeping through cable outer under bartape? Or does it only come through the lever (in which the cable nipple faces forwards)? PITA having to retape the bars just as a result of riding in the rain (big argument for having old school flappy cables).
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The code's valid until the legitimate user finds a bike with a working seatpost clamp in a dock with undamaged membrane switches, so probably much less than 10 minutes. But that doesn't really matter if there's a constant supply of new users (and neither does exhaustively searching the code space[1], for that matter).
I'd say certainly possible, but not something you'd rely on for quick getaways.
[1] There's a rule of thumb that says you should never underestimate the mathematical ability of oikery if there's profit in it.
It's nothing so clever, the usual MO is that a group of them work down a rack, giving each bike a yank, looking for any bike that hasn't been properly docked, and once they find one, ride off on it.
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It's nothing so clever, the usual MO is that a group of them work down a rack, giving each bike a yank, looking for any bike that hasn't been properly docked, and once they find one, ride off on it.
I suppose you must get people failing to re-dock them properly now and then.
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Friday 1/11 I went circuit checking in a 6 hour downpour. Everything got soaked very thoroughly, including the bar tape. Wind on the film to 11/11 when I converted this bike to 650B wheels which meant a change of brakes (we are talking very old school calipers). The rear brake didn't want to work properly, brake cable seized. Stripping the accessible bits and lubing traced the problem to the bars and the lever (which is an old school brake lever aero style with cables under the bar tape? None of this STI stuff!.
Well the brake works but a bit half-heartedly. Oh pxxxx. Only thing to do is going to be unwrap the bars and clean/replace the cable as necessary. Oh the joys of hidden cabling.
There are those who would say with discs this sort of thing doesn't happen. Not an option on this frame but if I had discs they would probably be cable so that changes nothing. Perhaps this is a good argument for road hydraulics but until manufacturers are offering the levers without STI (or equivalent) I am not interested. Can't use STI, causes too much pain in my arthritic thumb!
Does anyone have any experience of water seeping through cable outer under bartape? Or does it only come through the lever (in which the cable nipple faces forwards)? PITA having to retape the bars just as a result of riding in the rain (big argument for having old school flappy cables).
Can't help with the cable seepage problem, though perhaps it implies a crack in the housing somewhere under the bar tape? But interesting – in a bad way :( – that STI causes you pain in your thumb. Are you thinking of the old type where you had a thumb lever on the inside of the hoods for changing up (or was it down?) or is this a consequence of having your hands on the hoods more? Or something else?
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It's nothing so clever, the usual MO is that a group of them work down a rack, giving each bike a yank, looking for any bike that hasn't been properly docked, and once they find one, ride off on it.
I suppose you must get people failing to re-dock them properly now and then.
Rule of least resistance, innit. You see gangs of them going at it. There are enough racks around for it be a reliable stratagem. It's not that unusual to see permanently hired bikes in front gardens, it's practically de riguer – I noted – in Edmonton the other week.
Best one I ever saw had been – cunningly – entirely spray painted silver. Because. No. One. Will. Ever. Notice. How to make a Santander bike look indisputably stolen in one easy step.
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I saw three youths today with Sadiq Cycles. So far, so normal. They were in Three Bridges, Sussex, some 25 miles from London's famous London, so either they're looking at a lot of hire fees or the bikes were nicked.
I know people from my uni who've cycled from Bloomsbury to Epping Forest and back on them, coupled with using a train it's not impossible.
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Friday 1/11 I went circuit checking in a 6 hour downpour. Everything got soaked very thoroughly, including the bar tape. Wind on the film to 11/11 when I converted this bike to 650B wheels which meant a change of brakes (we are talking very old school calipers). The rear brake didn't want to work properly, brake cable seized. Stripping the accessible bits and lubing traced the problem to the bars and the lever (which is an old school brake lever aero style with cables under the bar tape? None of this STI stuff!.
Well the brake works but a bit half-heartedly. Oh pxxxx. Only thing to do is going to be unwrap the bars and clean/replace the cable as necessary. Oh the joys of hidden cabling.
There are those who would say with discs this sort of thing doesn't happen. Not an option on this frame but if I had discs they would probably be cable so that changes nothing. Perhaps this is a good argument for road hydraulics but until manufacturers are offering the levers without STI (or equivalent) I am not interested. Can't use STI, causes too much pain in my arthritic thumb!
Does anyone have any experience of water seeping through cable outer under bartape? Or does it only come through the lever (in which the cable nipple faces forwards)? PITA having to retape the bars just as a result of riding in the rain (big argument for having old school flappy cables).
Can't help with the cable seepage problem, though perhaps it implies a crack in the housing somewhere under the bar tape? But interesting – in a bad way :( – that STI causes you pain in your thumb. Are you thinking of the old type where you had a thumb lever on the inside of the hoods for changing up (or was it down?) or is this a consequence of having your hands on the hoods more? Or something else?
I don't like road levers, so didn't realise they suffered this problem. Water getting into the cables is a standard problem on USS recumbents, where you typically have MTB brake levers (and various flavours of shifters) mounted vertically with the cable exiting downwards. I've found that covering the cable-fitting slot in the front of the lever with tape greatly reduces the amount of water that gets in (as does covering the bars with something if leaving the bike out in the rain).
I can't imagine water seeping through the side of a cable outer, unless it's damaged. Which I'd expect to happen on an exposed loop of cable that can snag on things, not the bit that's safely taped to the bars. If it gets in somewhere it will propagate along the whole cable though, and it's not always obvious when an outer has been damaged.
If your levers are particularly prone to this, you could perhaps fit an oiler port (or suitable in-line cable adjuster) to facilitate squirting GT85 or similar through the cable to drive out the water. I've found this extends the useful life somewhat, but (particularly for gears) is no substitute for a fresh cable.
The other thought is to use that stuff that Shimano supply with bar-end shifters to provide a channel under the bar tape, in the hope that it will allow you to pull through some fresh outers without disturbing the tape. (It works for me with foam grips[1], but my bars are nearly straight, not sure how it would handle a 90 degree bend.) I've no idea what it's called, but it's the white stuff in this picture:
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/TwtjdJwWWotJsSdh__fuLPk18-11UmyB_WJUdew2FnowQ9KxmTRHRpW5hIwjy_u7Jln4XFGWUHTIV06EsQFe9-Q5OQg=s390-l75-e7)
[1] When the grip outlives the cable.
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Friday 1/11 I went circuit checking in a 6 hour downpour. Everything got soaked very thoroughly, including the bar tape. Wind on the film to 11/11 when I converted this bike to 650B wheels which meant a change of brakes (we are talking very old school calipers). The rear brake didn't want to work properly, brake cable seized. Stripping the accessible bits and lubing traced the problem to the bars and the lever (which is an old school brake lever aero style with cables under the bar tape? None of this STI stuff!.
Well the brake works but a bit half-heartedly. Oh pxxxx. Only thing to do is going to be unwrap the bars and clean/replace the cable as necessary. Oh the joys of hidden cabling.
There are those who would say with discs this sort of thing doesn't happen. Not an option on this frame but if I had discs they would probably be cable so that changes nothing. Perhaps this is a good argument for road hydraulics but until manufacturers are offering the levers without STI (or equivalent) I am not interested. Can't use STI, causes too much pain in my arthritic thumb!
Does anyone have any experience of water seeping through cable outer under bartape? Or does it only come through the lever (in which the cable nipple faces forwards)? PITA having to retape the bars just as a result of riding in the rain (big argument for having old school flappy cables).
Can't help with the cable seepage problem, though perhaps it implies a crack in the housing somewhere under the bar tape? But interesting – in a bad way :( – that STI causes you pain in your thumb. Are you thinking of the old type where you had a thumb lever on the inside of the hoods for changing up (or was it down?) or is this a consequence of having your hands on the hoods more? Or something else?
It is "something else" :( It is in fact a semi-permanent pain at the base of the thumb. The STI levers that I have are admittedly fairly old but quite sweet to use except that twisting or pushing with my hand to push the lever out (must be changing down I think) puts the load on the thumb and is very painful. Liveable with for 20kms, out of the question for anywhere further. The trigger shifter on the Alfine poses the same problem but in a much lesser degree. I can live with it but I wouldn't replace the trigger with the same thing in case of breakdown. The next shifter will be a twist grip, if I can get one. The Gitane and the Vitus are both using dt levers, indexed on the Gitane, friction on the Vitus. I work the dt levers with the palm of my hand.
Friday 1/11 I went circuit checking in a 6 hour downpour. Everything got soaked very thoroughly, including the bar tape. Wind on the film to 11/11 when I converted this bike to 650B wheels which meant a change of brakes (we are talking very old school calipers). The rear brake didn't want to work properly, brake cable seized. Stripping the accessible bits and lubing traced the problem to the bars and the lever (which is an old school brake lever aero style with cables under the bar tape? None of this STI stuff!.
Well the brake works but a bit half-heartedly. Oh pxxxx. Only thing to do is going to be unwrap the bars and clean/replace the cable as necessary. Oh the joys of hidden cabling.
There are those who would say with discs this sort of thing doesn't happen. Not an option on this frame but if I had discs they would probably be cable so that changes nothing. Perhaps this is a good argument for road hydraulics but until manufacturers are offering the levers without STI (or equivalent) I am not interested. Can't use STI, causes too much pain in my arthritic thumb!
Does anyone have any experience of water seeping through cable outer under bartape? Or does it only come through the lever (in which the cable nipple faces forwards)? PITA having to retape the bars just as a result of riding in the rain (big argument for having old school flappy cables).
Can't help with the cable seepage problem, though perhaps it implies a crack in the housing somewhere under the bar tape? But interesting – in a bad way :( – that STI causes you pain in your thumb. Are you thinking of the old type where you had a thumb lever on the inside of the hoods for changing up (or was it down?) or is this a consequence of having your hands on the hoods more? Or something else?
I don't like road levers, so didn't realise they suffered this problem. Water getting into the cables is a standard problem on USS recumbents, where you typically have MTB brake levers (and various flavours of shifters) mounted vertically with the cable exiting downwards. I've found that covering the cable-fitting slot in the front of the lever with tape greatly reduces the amount of water that gets in (as does covering the bars with something if leaving the bike out in the rain).
I can't imagine water seeping through the side of a cable outer, unless it's damaged. Which I'd expect to happen on an exposed loop of cable that can snag on things, not the bit that's safely taped to the bars. If it gets in somewhere it will propagate along the whole cable though, and it's not always obvious when an outer has been damaged.
If your levers are particularly prone to this, you could perhaps fit an oiler port (or suitable in-line cable adjuster) to facilitate squirting GT85 or similar through the cable to drive out the water. I've found this extends the useful life somewhat, but (particularly for gears) is no substitute for a fresh cable.
The other thought is to use that stuff that Shimano supply with bar-end shifters to provide a channel under the bar tape, in the hope that it will allow you to pull through some fresh outers without disturbing the tape. (It works for me with foam grips[1], but my bars are nearly straight, not sure how it would handle a 90 degree bend.) I've no idea what it's called, but it's the white stuff in this picture:
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/TwtjdJwWWotJsSdh__fuLPk18-11UmyB_WJUdew2FnowQ9KxmTRHRpW5hIwjy_u7Jln4XFGWUHTIV06EsQFe9-Q5OQg=s390-l75-e7)
[1] When the grip outlives the cable.
I have come to the conclusion that it is getting in through the front of the lever under braking. There is a sizeable forward facing gap with the nipple of the cable staring out straight in front. It could get in where the cable goes into the frame and seep back into the cable (cable enters frame from underneath) but much more likely through the lever. Something that would be easily cured with a decent (very large) cycle cape that would go right round the bars and over the levers (but I don't have one :facepalm: )
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Condom over the lever[1]? ;D
[1] Suggestion ©2011 Charlotte OTP
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I'm not sure what sort of STI levers you have that require the lever to be pushed outwards. I only know ones where both levers push inwards, but clearly there are various types I'm not familiar with. In terms of twist grips, I had a SRAM twistgrip for several years on a flat-barred bike and it had two problems: when new it was crisp and easy to use but over time, the internal gubbins wore away and it became rather imprecise in action; and more significantly for you, it did put load on the joint of the thumb and palm. I'd have thought down-tube levers, or maybe bar ends, would be better in your case. But it sounds worth experimenting with different shifting systems to find what works for you.
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I'm not sure what sort of STI levers you have that require the lever to be pushed outwards. I only know ones where both levers push inwards, but clearly there are various types I'm not familiar with. In terms of twist grips, I had a SRAM twistgrip for several years on a flat-barred bike and it had two problems: when new it was crisp and easy to use but over time, the internal gubbins wore away and it became rather imprecise in action; and more significantly for you, it did put load on the joint of the thumb and palm. I'd have thought down-tube levers, or maybe bar ends, would be better in your case. But it sounds worth experimenting with different shifting systems to find what works for you.
I was thinking the other night "got that wrong!" but the STI ones that I have (and that even though they're old work very sweetly) have the brake lever that moves to pull the cable and a parallel lever underneath (or inside if you like) that releases it. I think it must be the inside lever that plays havoc with my thumb but since I am not using them (although the levers are still on the 992, just operating the brakes!) and the bike is on the rack for the winter I am not going to go out and check it.
3kms with the Alfin bike tonight riding back from dropping off a company car and I felt every minute of it with the shifters. This is on flat bars so the only other option to me looks to be twistgrip. They're cheap as well.
Both the dérailleur drop bar bikes are on downtube shifters, indexed on the Gitane and friction on the 992. As Brucey has remarked, modern sprocket profiles and shifting technology make dt levers a joy compared to what they were in my youth (but indexed is the top, even with my cheap Sunrace levers).
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:D How to save all up weight. I love a cafe stop. However I have a bad habit of just throwing the change from the tea and cake into my bike bag. After the holidays (I take the Ti mugs even to a hotel with an electric kettle so we can always have tea in our room) I was putting stuff back and thought I would just tidy my bag. Change ammounting to 300grm was removed from the bag, proably worth 10's of pounds sterling of weight saving TI bits for a Brompton as well as paying for several weeks of tea and cake.
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Locking my bike up outside a friend's house, she pointed out to me that my lights were on.
"That's okay, it's just the standlight. They'll turn themselves off in a minute."
"Do your lights call the ambulance if you fall off?"
" ???"
"My foster son's just spent a year choosing some bike lights – he's had the bike five years and I don't think he's ridden it yet – and he's chosen some lights with a built-in alarm that calls 999 if he falls off."
" ::-)"
(foster son is about 35 and no he's not an expeditioner in remote places)
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I'd heard that those were a thing. From the people who keep bringing us bike indicators.
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Hase have excelled themselves this time, with a steampunk kettwiesel-strandbeest hybrid. Night ride to Whitby anyone?
https://youtu.be/UDz3Dg1qnz0?t=342
...and here's how to convert your bike to Strandbeest drive: https://youtu.be/fXXJ1LOqHEk
:D
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Chain's a bit slack.
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Half watching some Icelandic/nordic/cold crime thing on telly t'other night. The bad guy from central police who had been sent to investigate the liked local cop cycled but in lycra etc. It was clear that they didn't like the guy and this seemed to be part of the character build up to show he is a bit of a twat. Many jokes about must have a sore bottom etc
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Found this video on the internet
https://www.instagram.com/tv/B7zGJ4-luoA/
feeling personally attacked ;D
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Had a fondle at a cow-orker’s Gocycle today. It weighted an absolute bloody ton, to my surprise, but in fairness 1) it is the first e-bike I have lifted and 2) it had a Carradice Barley on the back of it with unknown contents.
But I don’t think it was the bag.
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Half watching some Icelandic/nordic/cold crime thing on telly t'other night. The bad guy from central police who had been sent to investigate the liked local cop cycled but in lycra etc. It was clear that they didn't like the guy and this seemed to be part of the character build up to show he is a bit of a twat. Many jokes about must have a sore bottom etc
Yes, we saw that too :demon:
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This looks lovely. The main road is shite.
https://www.northumberland.gov.uk/News/2020/Jan/Full-steam-ahead-for-new-cycleway.aspx
Eagle-eyed observers might recognise aptstarfish, once OTP.
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First time on an Azuma with a bike, and I'm pretty sure I've knackered a mudflap trying to wrangle the bike into the space.
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This looks lovely. The main road is shite.
https://www.northumberland.gov.uk/News/2020/Jan/Full-steam-ahead-for-new-cycleway.aspx
Eagle-eyed observers might recognise aptstarfish, once OTP.
That path from Warkworth to Hipsburn means that drivers are tossers if you ride on the road. I hope this is a better path.
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First time on an Azuma with a bike, and I'm pretty sure I've knackered a mudflap trying to wrangle the bike into the space.
Azuma bike spaces are shit. I lost the plastic bit off a bar end shifter last time I used the space. Plus needed the other cyclist to get their bike out before I could retrieve mine.
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The mudflap is fine, but the mudguard is fucked.
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This looks lovely. The main road is shite.
https://www.northumberland.gov.uk/News/2020/Jan/Full-steam-ahead-for-new-cycleway.aspx
Eagle-eyed observers might recognise aptstarfish, once OTP.
That path from Warkworth to Hipsburn means that drivers are tossers if you ride on the road. I hope this is a better path.
Away from the road, so hopefully not.
And hopefully they'll start opening up the rest of the railway too (must ask Alex).
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This looks lovely. The main road is shite.
https://www.northumberland.gov.uk/News/2020/Jan/Full-steam-ahead-for-new-cycleway.aspx
Eagle-eyed observers might recognise aptstarfish, once OTP.
Thanks for highlighting that. As you say the main road is a bugger.
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First time on an Azuma with a bike, and I'm pretty sure I've knackered a mudflap trying to wrangle the bike into the space.
Azuma bike spaces are shit. I lost the plastic bit off a bar end shifter last time I used the space. Plus needed the other cyclist to get their bike out before I could retrieve mine.
The mudflap is fine, but the mudguard is fucked.
Probably worth grinking the TOC every time this stuff happens, if only so they can't claim that they haven't had any complaints about it. Who knows, they might give you some rail vouchers or something...
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Good point, Kim - I have done.
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Two things. My mad and entirely un ecological minded Egyptian neighbours sold his car as no where to park it and is buying him and his son new bikes so can cycle to school like they did before he got a car. I think this was prompted by him getting a ticket recently for being parked in the road during the hour your not so as commuters don't all day. This was good to hear
Less so my member of staff at work told me her mid thirties daughter who works between two hospital sites isn't going to work at one due to them saying the parking permit they have to buy will no longer cover them but will at local park and ride. She will have to drive 3 or so miles past the hospital to get to said park and ride
I suggested she gets a bike. Google has it as 25 minutes from her house to work cycling and 20 minutes driving when traffic is usual. You'd have thought I suggested drinking raw sewage from the look I got
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Took the new fixed gear (Aventon Cordoba) out on the roads today. God I love aluminium frames. I always knew that they were good, my first road bike of my own was an alloy frame, and it's such a great feeling bike. Carbon fork to take the buzz off but it feels really, really good to ride around.
Think whenever there is a 'next bike' it's going to be an alloy frame and carbon forks. The value for money cannot be beat and it feels great.
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Moon Nebula 2 rear light.
For gods’ sakes. That is bloody insane. There are only a few of those modes that I would dare inflict on others.
Neat little job though.
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I’m about to turn N into N+1 and am rapidly approaching Mrs WM’s tolerance limit for storing bikes in the dining room. Am considering buying a bike shed and storing some of the bikes outdoors, but concerned about the effect of damp. Is this concern valid or misplaced? Is the answer dependent upon frame material? All advice / experience welcomed.
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I wouldn't be concerned about it - I'd recommend the Asgard steel sheds. It'd be of more concern if you're near the sea. My family's been keeping bikes in sheds for decades, only problem so far is that they seem to fill up very quickly, necessitating another shed...
At one point my dad peaked at 3 full sized sheds
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I bought and erected a couple of cheap "Yardmaster" 6x4 sheds from Argos to store the bikes that I don't use often. These sheds get mixed reviews but I've found that they do build up into a nice rigid structure and are pretty much maintenance free. I'm able to get 2 bikes in each with space available for storing spare wheels and the like.
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I would advise weighing them down with some ballast though - some old paving blocks do the trick in the family's!
I just came off the phone with East Midlands rail to reserve a bike space for a return trip to Sheffield in May for All Points North. I'd already decided which trains I wanted to use.
The call took 26 minutes.
FFS.
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My son has destroyed what were I think my first pair of cycling-specific full-finger gloves. It would have been the winter of either 2000/01 or 01/02 I bought them. In addition to whatever I put on them, they've served him two winters of paper round, so I'm satisfied.
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Rode along with a tandem crew for a couple of minutes , just before Traquair village ( nr Peebles ) .The pilot looked at my bike and said " oh i see you have Spa cycles chain rings fitted I work for them " .I replied " I Though Spa cycles were one of the last decent tourist cycle shops left . He thanked me then we parted . Dear God He must live on carrots to spot that or if you don a VC167 Top do you get super human powers .
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That's Flat Earth Bob.
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Bugger !!! I was hoping he was called " The Bicycle Repair man " , and would vanish in to a phone box at the mere sight of a broken touring bike . Don the VC167 Top and be able to fix knackered rohloff hubs with only gaffer tape and choice words . I should stop eating foreign food it do weird things to my head .That Scots pie and Iron brew at Selkirk was a bad choice , tasty but bad .
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A usanian bike mechanic mate has a blog (https://citizenrider.blogspot.com/)and recently wrote this, in relation to bike engineering, which I thought might chime with a few here
....looking back over my life I realize that I have lost every war I was ever in. The industry sold its soul to planned obsolescence in the 1990s, and the addicts who depend on it live in a world viewed through their perceived need.
MiniDisk and Betamax never took off outside of people who needed to use them for a living, either.
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Objection: Minidisc was a successful consumer product, for the few short years between its 1996 renaissance and Moore's Law rendering it obsolete. Just not in the way the record companies hoped.
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Still use minidisc... In the car.
Sent from my BKL-L09 using Tapatalk
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Objection: Minidisc was a successful consumer product, for the few short years between its 1996 renaissance and Moore's Law rendering it obsolete. Just not in the way the record companies hoped.
I always thought Minidisc was the size (or slightly smaller than) the size CDs should have been. if the apocyphal sony boss had preferred a shorter classical piece:
given that Sony made the cassette tape walkman which fitted nicely in (most?) human hands it seems a pity they did not consider the size of portable players: a five inch wide player is just awkward:
if a even 4in disc could have done 45-50 mins..... perhaps the BBC could have licenced them a 16bit 48khz nicam?
and if all the studio equipment used 48khz then use 48khz sample rate on CD....
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The story I'd heard was that the CD was intended to go into the slot for a standard car radio.
Don't think anyone had even thought about making them portable.
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Obligatory link to the pocket size Sony CD player:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AowJGns66_4
44.1 KHz was derived from early systems that stored digital audio on video tapes. I think 48 KHz came later.
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Obligatory link to the pocket size Sony CD player:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AowJGns66_4
44.1 KHz was derived from early systems that stored digital audio on video tapes. I think 48 KHz came later.
We had a couple of those, they had recording capability, too, along with astonishing run time off a single AA
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Objection: Minidisc was a successful consumer product, for the few short years between its 1996 renaissance and Moore's Law rendering it obsolete. Just not in the way the record companies hoped.
Objection overruled. The Minidisc never got much traction in the consumer market, although it was ubiquitous in the pro market, much in the way Betamax fared. I suspect (?) that the consumer Betamax peak (which almost certainly exceeded the Minidisc market share) probably occurred earlier in your life, making it less evident? Only a suggestion.
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Objection: Minidisc was a successful consumer product, for the few short years between its 1996 renaissance and Moore's Law rendering it obsolete. Just not in the way the record companies hoped.
Objection overruled. The Minidisc never got much traction in the consumer market, although it was ubiquitous in the pro market, much in the way Betamax fared. I suspect (?) that the consumer Betamax peak (which almost certainly exceeded the Minidisc market share) probably occurred earlier in your life, making it less evident? Only a suggestion.
I didn't even have a telly until Betamax had failed. One of my brother's friends parents had one, which was considered a tragic novelty.
But in my teens I watched Minidisc go from a convenient alternative to Fidelipac and hand-spliced open reel tape for theatre and radio, to the preferred portable music format amongst my peers[1]. What was notable was that (outside the studio) this was almost entirely portables[2], and I think I saw a pre-recorded Minidisc in the wild once.
That may not have been reflected in overall market share, but I expect it would have replaced cassette, with cheap recorders becoming ubiquitous, if MP3 and flash memory hadn't rendered them irrelevant in the early 2000s. It was a good tech, with natural consumer appeal. The main barrier was price (not least because you effectively needed a CD player to go with it). I had a conversation recently with a friend (a few years younger than me) who called me 'retro' for having a cassette walkman in secondary school - I think she straddled the transition from MD and mainstream CD-R to MP3 players.
(AIUI Sony shot themselves in the foot by making the data version deliberately incompatible with the music discs; they might otherwise have scooped up the Zip disk market too.)
[1] Tech-savvy middle class teenagers. A few were unfortunate enough to have already invested in portable CD players. Cassette remained popular amongst those who weren't that interested in music, had access to a car, or didn't want an expensive walkman.
[2] I knew a couple of people at university had integrated sound systems with a MD recorder, and then a playback-only walkman.
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Rode along with a tandem crew for a couple of minutes , just before Traquair village ( nr Peebles ) .The pilot looked at my bike and said " oh i see you have Spa cycles chain rings fitted I work for them " .I replied " I Though Spa cycles were one of the last decent tourist cycle shops left . He thanked me then we parted . Dear God He must live on carrots to spot that or if you don a VC167 Top do you get super human powers .
Jan and I hired a Thorn tandem in that area from a guy called Christopher Rainbow quite a few years ago. I think it was before we bought our Thorn, so that would probably have been the summer of 2006. I wonder if he is still in business? I think he also used to make dulcimers and was a postman in his spare time.
Edit: https://cyclescottishborders.com/attraction/christopher-rainbow-tandem-and-bike-hire/
He still has a web presence!
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.... I watched Minidisc go from a convenient alternative to Fidelipac and hand-spliced open reel tape for theatre and radio, to the preferred portable music format amongst my peers
And there you have it. It reflects well on you showing your somewhat exclusive perspective, but I'd have a shilling on the side that there are close to zero readers* who even knew that Fidelipac was a thing. QED.
*outside of those involved in broadcast of some nature
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.... I watched Minidisc go from a convenient alternative to Fidelipac and hand-spliced open reel tape for theatre and radio, to the preferred portable music format amongst my peers
And there you have it. It reflects well on you showing your somewhat exclusive perspective, but I'd have a shilling on the side that there are close to zero readers* who even knew that Fidelipac was a thing. QED.
I don't see what that proves: For my peers, Minidisc was something new that was invented in 1996.
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One of my ex-bosses was still having minidisc players installed into his BMW company cars as an option in or around 2006, just so he didn't have to throw his collection away
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Happy anniversary to me! Well, not quite, but according to Strava, on 27th April it will be exactly one year since my last 'proper' bike ride - ie cycling as a leisure/sporting activity, for its own sake, rather than primarily for utility purposes. That ride a year ago was my aborted attempt at the Oasts & Coasts 300 - a 290km DNF, including the ride to the start. (I don't think my 16km ride last week counts because that was mainly for the purpose of buying beer.)
I was getting close to being ready to get out there again until the lockdown kicked in... and now I don't feel any great desire to be out on the roads.
Might spend this weekend doing some maintenance on the MTB so I can go out on the trails at least.
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Rather frivolous by comparison, i realised today now much i miss having a compass on a bike. (I used to have one on a bell, but that bell didn't fit the new bike.)
Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
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Encountered a group of three mountain bikers while walking the dog this morning. They were coming the other way down the trail I was following.
The leader of the group was in the process of picking himself up off the ground. He had ducked to ride under a tree that had fallen across the path, but that tree was obscuring his view of a second fallen tree behind it... ouch!
He seemed fine. I was concerned about the possibility of concussion but he seemed more concerned about grazed limbs.
After negotiating the fallen trees themselves and helping him up, his two companions carried on without waiting for him, so I guess they weren't too bothered either. ::-)
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https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cycling/52283598 (https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cycling/52283598)
Just thought this was an interesting g article on cycling culture
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Road space redistribution in Leicester.
"With traffic in the city having fallen to a fraction of its usual levels, highways bosses at Leicester City Council have created a temporary cycle route by coning off one lane of Aylestone Road between its junction with Almond Road and its junction with Welford Road, outside the Tigers rugby ground.
https://road.cc/content/news/better-painting-bloody-rainbows-road-273059
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That nice Mr Boardman's influence extends to India (even though they get his name wrong).
(https://14561186466480818149.googlegroups.com/attach/30bfe25011343/95602139_1095412187498182_4386764005679562752_n.jpg?part=0.1&view=1&vt=ANaJVrFPnTIlSGuRvlPehXjjQMSbzphUNWD_SoistRuZvKNiACRJ-GPCXV6_mceHVg83rObXGoCG18dK6TcbuCX1TzwyQ1b5tKOc5WjsKI0_cSi0cfWuNgY)
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n+0.5
(https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jpVqhtrv_mA/Xq8yB6q9RKI/AAAAAAADOjo/z6oRDjpn-nwRgevXL7bxGH8AePijpkKcACPcBGAsYHg/s1600/IMG_20200503_185306.jpg)
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n+0.5
(https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jpVqhtrv_mA/Xq8yB6q9RKI/AAAAAAADOjo/z6oRDjpn-nwRgevXL7bxGH8AePijpkKcACPcBGAsYHg/s1600/IMG_20200503_185306.jpg)
Not sure that's UCI legal, thobut.
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[insert obligatory chain comment]
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Just saw that Mavic are in receivership. :o
https://www.boursorama.com/bourse/actualites/le-specialiste-francais-du-velo-mavic-en-redressement-judiciaire-09057b2dfc46c494552fc3bba44bf26d
No more yellow cars on the TdF if that falls through.
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n+0.5
(https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jpVqhtrv_mA/Xq8yB6q9RKI/AAAAAAADOjo/z6oRDjpn-nwRgevXL7bxGH8AePijpkKcACPcBGAsYHg/s1600/IMG_20200503_185306.jpg)
:thumbsup: :thumbsup: ;D
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https://twitter.com/theJeremyVine/status/1259466341330890754
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https://twitter.com/theJeremyVine/status/1259466341330890754
Catch the woman on the scooter about 45 secs in ;D
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<kim> there's an old guy on a mountain bike doing lengths of [our road]
<gerwin> Well, it's exercise innit
<kim> he's just abandoned the bike and got into a car outside our house
<kim> ...and got out of the car, back on the bike and has ridden off up [adjacent road]
<gerwin> ...
* kim wonders if he was meeting his drug dealer
<kim> or he was the drug dealer
<kim> evidently not a very good one, judging by the state of his bike
<kim> nevertheless that's the most exciting thing that's happened on our road since the bin men started coming a day early
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I'm lending a mate a bike. It's a Merida Race lite so a decent enough bike. Just put a set of cheap plastic pedals on it so he can use it..... My word they look hideous on it. I feel bad enough using mountain bike type spd pedals normally as my knees suffer with road ones but this is a new level of wrong.
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Someone just ride past my window in an actual rain cape.
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Random cycling thing that occurred to me while in pedestrian mode: now that car traffic is back to 80-90% of pre-covid levels and pedestrian traffic about 70% (here anyway), those pedestrians trying not to inhale strangers' breath particles or subject others to their own droplets, are experiencing routine close passes while on foot. Probably a few punishment passes too.
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Someone just ride past my window in an actual rain cape.
Was it Canardly?
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Someone just ride past my window in an actual rain cape.
Was it Canardly?
Nah, not his cycling gait. There were other clues, too.
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(https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c23f2b7a2de42fdca157a01db8336e2a18f8ef13/0_0_1464_974/master/1464.jpg?width=1010&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=144d99a1a941dfec2df4ecf502169829)
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/gallery/2020/jun/04/pedal-power-zambias-female-farmers-go-further-by-bike-in-pictures
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The local oiks appear to be having a pushing-female-cyclists-into-the-canal spree. Fuckers.
https://twitter.com/swat_transport/status/1271506381703610368
https://twitter.com/swat_transport/status/1271545794701791234
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Bristol’s hills put off many people from cycling more regularly.
But this could soon end thanks to an invention imported from Norway which sees cyclists carried up a steep gradient by an escalator known as the Trampe lift or CycloCable.
A group of architects and city planners want to see the UK’s first CycloCable installed on Park Street to encourage more people to cycle in a post-Covid Bristol.
Comes around every couple of years.
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I expect that'll get installed after they've finished the Faculty of Engineering chair-lift from Stoke Bishop to Queens Building.
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That's going to be a hyperloop tunnel under the Downs connecting to a zipwire from the Water Tower to the Wills Memorial Building.
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I remember doing some back-of-the-envelope calculations in some faculty design[1] lecture to work out how long it would take for the hill to erode away through the natural action of mud from the Downs accumulating on the trousers and Sensible Footwear of SCIENCE and engineering students, drying and being shed over the course of the day, and removed by the cleaners in the evening.
I can't remember the numbers, but we concluded it would be on an equivalent timescale to the successful repair of Shite Bunker's roof, so the chair lift seemed a better bet.
The zipwire experience can be reproduced by cycling down Black Boy Hill on a borrowed bike with brakes adjusted for Cambridge (DAHIKT).
[1] The bit where they round everyone up and witter on about concrete without there being an exam at the end.
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It can even be your own bike with 1980s suicide levers, chromed steel rims and rain.
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Saw a Brompton with tan sidewall tyres on my ride to work this morning. It looked very smart indeed.
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Electric balance bikes are now a thing.
https://ebiketips.road.cc/content/news/mondraker-launch-the-grommy-e-balance-bike-2465
I'm sure it's fun but I'm not sure it functions as an introduction to cycling. Maybe though?
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Seems fair enough, in as much as it looks like a much better-designed piece of kit than many of the electric ridable things you see children on, and as a two-wheeler it requires bicycle-balancing skills. Same legal problem as the scooters and skateboards and so on, of course.
Legality aside, I can imagine an adult version (possibly with a step-through frame) being a useful mobility aid, on or off road.
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This Unit will shortly be contacting divers vulture capitalists with a view to obtaining funding for an electric exercise bike. No, not anything like a Peloton, fool, although the really expensive one will have Internet of Shit connectivity.
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So you can use an app to check what clothes are hanging from it?
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So you can use an app to check what clothes are hanging from it?
;D :thumbsup:
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I used the Woolwich Free Ferry today, for the first time since they took delivery of their made in Polska boats.
Well impressed with the electromagnetic mooring system.
Two huge f*ck off electromagnets (about 6ft2) mounted on hydraulic arms fitted to a pontoon which rises with the tide on dolphins.
Boat comes up to the pontoon and bumps into the fenders.
Hydraulic arm extends the magnets so they come into contact with the hull.
Switch on the current, and the boat becomes locked to the pontoon.
Most excellent work. :thumbsup:
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I used the Woolwich Free Ferry today, for the first time since they took delivery of their made in Polska boats.
Well impressed with the electromagnetic mooring system.
Clever stuff. I found this informative:
https://mampaey.com/magnetic-auto-mooring-at-the-woolwich-ferry/
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I am familiar with the Cavotec Moormaster pneumatic system but magnetic mooring is a new one for me.
http://www.cavotec.com/en/your-applications/ports-maritime/automated-mooring
The fast turnaround and reduced crew involvement of these mooring systems is worth real money for ferries but less so for most other port operations. An exception is for exposed berths where ship movements from waves slow down cranes. Some container ports use these systems to hold the ship steady, making it easier and faster for crane operators. Another exception are oil/gas terminals where you want to be able to get ships away quickly in the event of an emergency.
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The fast turnaround and reduced crew involvement of these mooring systems is worth real money for ferries but less so for most other port operations.
I think though for the Woolwich ferry the turn around time is significantly longer than the old "just hold it against the pier with the engine running" technique. It certainly feels like it takes an age for the ferry to finally manouvre into exactly the right position and for the magnets to extend. And of course the barriers are now fully interlocked, whereas on the old boats the crew operated them and they would be pretty much open by the time the ramp has descended.
Someone will now doubt come along with actual figures which show it's actually no slower but it definitely seems that it is.
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I meant when mooring systems are compared with using mooring lines and bollards. Nothing is faster than just keeping the ferry nudged up against the fenders but that is fairly fuel-hungry and relies on the engines doing their thing to prevent motorists ending up wet. Mooring systems keep working for a time even when the power stops. I suspect that a risk assessment of "what happens when the ferry's engine stops at the wrong time" was a big factor in the change.
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The fast turnaround and reduced crew involvement of these mooring systems is worth real money for ferries but less so for most other port operations.
I think though for the Woolwich ferry the turn around time is significantly longer than the old "just hold it against the pier with the engine running" technique. It certainly feels like it takes an age for the ferry to finally manouvre into exactly the right position and for the magnets to extend. And of course the barriers are now fully interlocked, whereas on the old boats the crew operated them and they would be pretty much open by the time the ramp has descended.
Someone will now doubt come along with actual figures which show it's actually no slower but it definitely seems that it is.
Inclined to agree with this.
It did seem to take quite a while for everything to be sufficiently tickety-boo for the ramp to drop.
And, as mentioned, everything seems to be interlocked, with significant time-lag between any actions.
Doubtless, for safety.
As well as running the service with fewer crew.
In a similar way, the now fully automated lifts at the Greenwich Foot Tunnel, have significant time-lag between, say, landing and all of the lockouts checking that it is safe to open the doors.
Progress, eh?
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New Guiness WR for Tandem around the world,
Now we know how Covid 19 spread so quickly ;D
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-oxfordshire-53567668 (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-oxfordshire-53567668)
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Today I discovered that an ill-fitting mesh seat can cause almost saddle-esque amounts of damage to completely different parts of your body. I've got swelling on exactly one of my vertebrae, bruised shoulder blades and precision bashing to the inside of my elbows.
★☆☆☆☆ Would not recommend.
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I've had a lot of issues with visitations recently. Different bikes and decent tyres pumped properly but seem to be having a run. I did think I'd missed something in one tyre as already had a repair on the tube 3" from the valve and found another hole 3 " from the valve the other way so if I'd put the tube in the other way round could have been the same thing but the stone I removed was pretty unmissable and would have punctured again straight away whereas I'd used the bike repeatedly since the first repair
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Today I discovered that an ill-fitting mesh seat can cause almost saddle-esque amounts of damage to completely different parts of your body. I've got swelling on exactly one of my vertebrae, bruised shoulder blades and precision bashing to the inside of my elbows.
★☆☆☆☆ Would not recommend.
Wot teh blazes have u been riding, Kim? And, er, why?
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Today I discovered that an ill-fitting mesh seat can cause almost saddle-esque amounts of damage to completely different parts of your body. I've got swelling on exactly one of my vertebrae, bruised shoulder blades and precision bashing to the inside of my elbows.
★☆☆☆☆ Would not recommend.
Wot teh blazes have u been riding, Kim? And, er, why?
Teh baraktacycle (minus the electrickery and plus some rock-hard Kojaks), on the basis that I might as well have a go at the whole multitrack[1] thing for the partially-arsed 2020 BHPC racing season (https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=113381.msg2519617#msg2519617), before unleashing the upgraded Baron in order to resume my usual failing-to-keep-up-with-John-Lucian service in 2021.
I couldn't apply sufficient ham-fisted monkeyforce to the tensioning thinger to prevent the mesh bottoming out against the strap in the middle of my back, knobbling the bony bit for the duration of Sunday's racing[2]. 30 minutes of alternately shuffling up and overextending my left ankle and shuffling down and b0rking my knees into yesterday's 2-hour race, I was debating pulling over and stealing some extra padding from the pedal car girls. Then it occurred to me that I could try loosening it, instead. This a) provided instant relief and b) meant I could keep going without c) mugging any tweenagers but d) shifted the pressure to where my shoulder blades pushed against ...something hard.
The elbows were unfortunate, and could probably be rectified by a minor forward tweaking of the handlebars. I had no idea it was going on. Also, my medial nerves objected to the afore-mentioned rock-hard Kojaks, and it took a couple of hours for the sensation to return in my fingers. I think I need to take a leaf out of one of the handcyclists' book, and spend more time riding one-handed[3].
Insult was added to injury last night when barakta, having inspected my back to assess this damage, decided to give me a friendly jab in the quads[4]. Like I hadn't just been slogging my guts out on a mildy inappropriate recumbent to come 24th in the wacky races. Bah!
[1] On the dubious logic that I might Protect the NHS! by riding something I'd have to try a bit harder to fall off, and protect the untested timing software by not being in the fast race with Andrew.
[2] Where I was somewhat preoccupied by the gears being generally annoying, vis rattling noises, occasional slippage and too wide ratios.
[3] :o
[4] Read: Dead leg.
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I thought the idea of mesh seats was, in part, that they didn't need to be fitted to the rider's anatomy in the way of conventional saddles but rather conformed to the occupant in the way of a hammock. Evidently I was teh wrong (which isn't very surprising).
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I thought the idea of mesh seats was, in part, that they didn't need to be fitted to the rider's anatomy in the way of conventional saddles but rather conformed to the occupant in the way of a hammock. Evidently I was teh wrong (which isn't very surprising).
Mesh seats are the big squishy saddles of the recumbent world - they're relatively forgiving, but are best suited for shorter rides and a relatively upright position. You can adjust them by altering the amount of tension in the mesh, which is about as adequate as the ergonomic adjustment available in the average car seat[1]. What you definitely don't want to happen is for anything sensitive to be resting on the metal frame or - as I've just discovered - the tensioning straps behind the seat.
I'm going to try loosening everything off and starting again. I've definitely ridden it for longer rides without issue, but not working as hard, and I brought more of my own, erm, padding...
[1] Which is to say: Pretty good, unless you're used to a well-fitting hardshell recumbent seat, at which point they tend to cause bad swears.
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So it's kind of sort of a bit like a hammock that's resting on a branch. That does sound sub-optimal.
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You *should* be able to tension it enough that the mesh doesn't rest on anything (except the surrounding frame, which should be sized not to knobble anything important). I've obviously changed shape a bit since I last rode it properly and/or it's gone a bit slack.
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I found that lots of beefy zipties allowed good zonal adjustment of mesh seat tension. Tension could be cranked up to ridiculous levels if careless, which tended to kill eyelets.
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The ICE seat doesn't have eyelets, it's got webbing straps sewn in. I've released the tension completely and will attack it with renewed vigour once my everything stops aching.
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The ICE seat doesn't have eyelets, it's got webbing straps sewn in. I've released the tension completely and will attack it with renewed vigour once my everything stops aching.
Nope, not a chance. I 've got it a little tighter and it's fine until I put serious force into the pedals, at which point my back and shoulders bottom out against the straps in the places that are currently bruised. This wouldn't happen for very long in normal riding (it's a trike, the whole point is that you can twiddle your way up bastard hills at your leisure), but does appear to be a problem for mildly inappropriate cycle racing.
I'm reluctant to apply anything with leverage to the tensioning straps, as that's only going to end in broken wossnames on a seat that's perfectly fine for what it normally gets used for.
Best obvious bodge I've found with the materials to hand is to place the closed-cell foam pad from a hardshell seat over the top of the seat, spreading the load a bit. Wedging some foam between the mesh and the straps is surprisingly ineffective, as it just gets crushed.
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I’m about to turn N into N+1 and am rapidly approaching Mrs WM’s tolerance limit for storing bikes in the dining room. Am considering buying a bike shed and storing some of the bikes outdoors, but concerned about the effect of damp. Is this concern valid or misplaced? Is the answer dependent upon frame material? All advice / experience welcomed.
I've got a pretty sturdy wooden shed with a pair of bolted in ground anchors. The bikes "hide" behind a clutter of chairs placed carefully in front of them. Between the ground anchors and chains, security lighting and nosey neighbours I think it's an OK solution.
I do see a bit of surface mould on leather saddles and I wouldn't put away a wet saddle or saddlebag, but otherwise there's no signs of rust on the frames or exposed metalwork. I actually think the wood helps balance humidity changes.
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Is this the ultimate saddle bag?
(https://cdn.thewoodscyclery.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/09143347/Wizard-bags-green-colourway-4-scaled-1-1000x667.jpg)
Obviously it's the ultimate in stylish saddle bags (?) and it's also, being hand stitched in tough materials, the ultimate in durability. And you can use it as a bar bag as well as a shoulder or hand bag, the ultimate in adaptable bike luggage! At 22l it isn't quite the ultimate in capacity but it's close.
But the way in which it must surely be the ultimate is...
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A Moulton AM "Sew What" bag (made in the US) is more than that!
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I did expect there'd be something!
Link to the bag: https://www.thewoodscyclery.co.uk/shop/bags/wizard-works-the-woods-cyclery-shazam-bar-saddle-bag-xpac-and-splatter/
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I think the posher Gilles Berthoud bags are probably that order of magnitude, and the tweed Brompton/Chapman bags were over £300 weren't they? Though as ever, if you compare prices with fashion gear, that seems positively reasonable...
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Bristol University have published images of how their yet to be built Temple campus might look once it's finished and then expanded.
(https://i2-prod.bristolpost.co.uk/incoming/article4543364.ece/ALTERNATES/s615b/0_University-of-Bristol-Temple-Quarter-campus-expansion-plans.jpg)
Great, lovely, an inspirational learning environment... but why is that bloke carrying his bike over his shoulder? Perhaps it's a pedestrianised area with no cycling allowed, but then why draw him in at all (because their plan puts cycle parking in the middle of the no-cycling area, maybe?) and why isn't he just pushing it like a normal person?
Well, maybe he's a cyclocrosser.
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They've just used a cycle lane and their tyres are fucked.
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Fakenger chic?
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To use as a weapon to fend off that enormous shitehawk that's circling.
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That's totally unrealistic. Only one?
Still, looking at the illustration again, I've got to give the artist credit for actually including those lesser known details of bicycle construction like pedals, sprockets and spokes.
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https://www.cyclist.co.uk/8745/campagnolo-ekar-13-speed-1x-gravel-groupset?_mout=1&utm_campaign=cyclist_newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter (https://www.cyclist.co.uk/8745/campagnolo-ekar-13-speed-1x-gravel-groupset?_mout=1&utm_campaign=cyclist_newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter)
13 speed anyone?
I'm still on 10
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Great, lovely, an inspirational learning environment... but why is that bloke carrying his bike over his shoulder?
Maybe it’s Victoria Pendleton on her way to a photo shoot?
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Great, lovely, an inspirational learning environment... but why is that bloke carrying his bike over his shoulder?
Maybe it’s Victoria Pendleton on her way to a photo shoot?
Can't be Pendleton. He's wearing clothes.
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Anyone know why there was a cyclist riding east on the A30 in Berks last night?
Nothing too odd about that but they were clothed as a storm trooper and had a van as an escort vehicle. :o
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Imperial or Third Reich?
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Imperial. Riding in that headgear looked hot to say the leaat.
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"Oh look, a horse!" I said to the horse, as I slowed down and prepared for equine shenanigans on a narrow lane. Horse gave obvious 'I'm not happy' indications, so I stopped. The horse seemed happier about this, and I stayed put so it could pass.
Except the horse decided to come and investigate. "She's only a baby," explained the rider, in that voice that dog-owners use to explain their slobbering hell-hound is only being friendly, "she hasn't seen one like that before.". Next thing I know I've got a horse's head in my lap (my left foot is still clipped in at this point, and I feared what might happen if I made a sudden loud clicking noise) having a good sniff of the chainset and Garmin. I made like Lex with the X-Files torch (https://youtu.be/WSM8GcShChk?t=146) and held still in the hope that I wouldn't get eaten.
Fortunately, I did not get eaten. I've no idea if horses can spread COVID-19 though, because it was rubbish at social distancing and wasn't wearing a mask.
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Better finding an horse's head in your lap than in your bed, or so I'm told.
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From the New Yorker https://www.newyorker.com/cartoon/a18932
(https://media.newyorker.com/cartoons/593b615b3adc75471b34b39f/master/w_1280%2Cc_limit/150309_a18932.jpg)
“Goodbye, Kevin. I could look the other way with the boozing and the skirt-chasing, but I did not sign up for bicycle clothes.”
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https://twitter.com/CyclingInASkirt/status/1313929549768425473
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From the New Yorker https://www.newyorker.com/cartoon/a18932
(https://media.newyorker.com/cartoons/593b615b3adc75471b34b39f/master/w_1280%2Cc_limit/150309_a18932.jpg)
“Goodbye, Kevin. I could look the other way with the boozing and the skirt-chasing, but I did not sign up for bicycle clothes.”
Odd thing is, he actually looks more like a football referee (soccer umpire to the New Yorker?). It's the bald patch and the glasses as much as anything.
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Odd thing is, he actually looks more like a football referee (soccer umpire to the New Yorker?). It's the bald patch and the glasses as much as anything.
Looks like he's shaved his legs though.
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I need this in my life. ;D
(https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/1356/6275/products/BikefastBrownWineBidonWhiteBackground_1200x.jpg)
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Ha!
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I know the lockdown is due to a pandemic of a disease which is really killing people. And people here may know victims.
That aside I have been out beside the Thames in London yesterday and today. There are hundreds of people out walking and cycling.
The quiet and the quietness of the roads seems to bring people out for well, a quieter time.
How can we encourage this post-lockdown?
A point for discussion - like many people I go to the shops of a weekend to amuse myself. Not particularly to buy anything, but to kill time and be inspired.
With no shops open people like me go out for a walk.
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What quietness of the roads?
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What quietness of the roads?
In April there was barely a car, van or lorry on the road.
The fact that this is not the case now, with mostly the same rules, clearly shows that 100% of road traffic is caused by schools being open.
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What quietness of the roads?
In April there was barely a car, van or lorry on the road.
The fact that this is not the case now, with mostly the same rules, clearly shows that 100% of road traffic is caused by schools being open.
Not the same rules at all.
Construction is now classed as an essential industry-- Dr Google says that's 2.2 million workers-- 6% of all jobs.
And schools *were* open last time-- it was just that most children weren't there. Apparently the NHS employs 1.4 million. Half a million employed in education.
I'm not disputing the assertion that schools account for a lot of traffic, we all breathe a sigh of relief when half term rolls around, but they're not everything.
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Schools contribute to morning and afternoon peaks. They account for virtually none of the midday, evening, night, weekend traffic, of which there is still (in non-pandemic years) lots.
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IIRC the school run accounts for something like 10-15% more traffic, it just seems like a lot more because congestion isn't a linear function of traffic volume. (And presumably traffic evaporation means that demand self-regulates to maintain a congested morning peak.)
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it just seems like a lot more because congestion isn't a linear function of traffic volume.
I saw a good video once upon a time demonstrating how congestion was vastly relieved by getting 10% (or some small number, I can't remember the details) of car drivers onto motorbikes. Presumably if they were on pedal cycles instead it would be even less congestion, all for the same number of people travelling. Not to mention buses of course.
I wonder how much traffic evaporation there is in morning peak though, as most people at that time are there because they have to get to work? There will be mode shift, reducing congestion, but that's not quite the same. Obviously some people will decide not to take that job on the other side of town because the journey's too congested.
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What quietness of the roads?
In April there was barely a car, van or lorry on the road.
The fact that this is not the case now, with mostly the same rules, clearly shows that 100% of road traffic is caused by schools being open.
Not the same rules at all.
Construction is now classed as an essential industry-- Dr Google says that's 2.2 million workers-- 6% of all jobs.
And schools *were* open last time-- it was just that most children weren't there. Apparently the NHS employs 1.4 million. Half a million employed in education.
I'm not disputing the assertion that schools account for a lot of traffic, we all breathe a sigh of relief when half term rolls around, but they're not everything.
I know, I was being facetious.
In the first lockdown the roads were extremely quiet. This time round they are not much different to a couple of weeks ago. Either the difference is accounted for by the differences (children attending school, construction workers) or there are a lot more people ignoring the rules.
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Traffic at the weekend here was significantly down on the previous few weeks (which were like 2019) but still closer to those than to lockdown one. I think the drop off compared to the previous weeks is mostly cos the shops are (largely) closed. But one of the reasons it isn't as quiet as April, in addition to schools etc (I don't know about construction, that didn't seem to stop) is the people are no longer scared.
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I wonder how much traffic evaporation there is in morning peak though, as most people at that time are there because they have to get to work? There will be mode shift, reducing congestion, but that's not quite the same. Obviously some people will decide not to take that job on the other side of town because the journey's too congested.
Maybe traffic evaporation isn't really the right term, but if the road capacity stays constant, it should be self-limiting. People won't keep driving to work the same way if it doesn't get them there on time; they'll leave earlier (spreading the peak), take a different route, work different hours, use a different mode, move house, not take that job, whatever.
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Yeah, I know what you mean, although I can't think of the handy phrase to sum it up either. Traffic reshaping?
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Was going to have another go on Zwift this evening but just found the turbo bike has a flat rear tyre. WTAF ???
I use a dedicated turbo tyre which has seen no outdoor use, so no chance it has picked up any nasties, and I checked inside the rim before fitting the tyre for protruding spokes etc...
On investigation, it seems to be a slow puncture where the valve joins the tube, so probably my fault for fitting it badly. FFS.
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Was going to have another go on Zwift this evening but just found the turbo bike has a flat rear tyre. WTAF ???
You're not trying hard enough. The cool kids get front wheel flats on the turbo.
On investigation, it seems to be a slow puncture where the valve joins the tube, so probably my fault for fitting it badly. FFS.
I tend to consider this failure to be 'natural causes'. It's the obvious weak point, and if the tube avoids catastrophic fairy entanglements and the valve works properly, it's bound to go eventually from repeated pump attachment/detachment wiggling.
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I tend to consider this failure to be 'natural causes'. It's the obvious weak point, and if the tube avoids catastrophic fairy entanglements and the valve works properly, it's bound to go eventually from repeated pump attachment/detachment wiggling.
I've replaced it with a brand new tube. Let's see how long that lasts...
PS no chance of me ever being one of the cool kids - and thank god if that's the result.
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Was going to have another go on Zwift this evening but just found the turbo bike has a flat rear tyre. WTAF ???
I use a dedicated turbo tyre which has seen no outdoor use, so no chance it has picked up any nasties, and I checked inside the rim before fitting the tyre for protruding spokes etc...
On investigation, it seems to be a slow puncture where the valve joins the tube, so probably my fault for fitting it badly. FFS.
I'm not so sure.
I've had batches of tubes fail at this point and thin it's a manufacturing issue.
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PCSOs buy e-bikes to chase "youths riding motorbikes dangerously".
https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/police-buy-e-bikes-crack-4689069
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Schools were mostly shut for most of the last lockdown with a few exceptions for key workers kids etc
Quite simply in my opinion this isn't really a lock down as I'm seeing landscape companies I know through work are operating where as they were shut down last time. The roads are pretty much at normal levels for my commute where as in lockdown MK1 I could use cruise control for about 15 miles of A road without having to touch the pedals most days
However as Highway England are closing the A12 tonight till Tuesday I've borrowed a folder and getting the train to work tomorrow and Monday
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Eeewwwwww! This has been done here?
https://twitter.com/weaniejeanie53/status/1327562443611119618
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Eeewwwwww! This has been done here?
https://twitter.com/weaniejeanie53/status/1327562443611119618
To be fair, if I had glutes and thighs like his, I would want to show them off too.
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Mesh clothing is a bit chilly this time of year ... and it shows.
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Mesh clothing is a bit chilly this time of year ... and it shows.
More likely a side-effect of the steroids, surely?
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All I can think of is the chafing.
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I've just discovered that my collet tool (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Zipp-Vuka-Collet-VukaAero-VukaClip/dp/B00NIONG4C) from an old defunct set of tribars, which I'd hitherto been using as a decorative keyring, is an excellent bottle opener.
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I’ve checked and this is real:
https://road.cc/content/tech-news/rapha-collaborate-robyn-lynch-new-collection-279081
Dear God.
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I can see you in that jacket. ;)
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I’ve checked and this is real:
https://road.cc/content/tech-news/rapha-collaborate-robyn-lynch-new-collection-279081
Dear God.
That is utterly horrid. Worse than the awful jumpers my grandmother lovingly bought for my father combined with hi-vis.... :sick:
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Hideous. But also, of course, high design.
https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/fashion/article/rapha-robyn-lynch-2020
https://www.brownsfashion.com/uk/article/rapha-robyn-lynch-collaboration
“Rapha’s level of construction on all of its garments really fascinates me,” says Lynch of the collection, speaking exclusively to GQ. “The team has specific pattern-cutting techniques which follow the form and function of a body when moving and cycling and these manipulation techniques are really interesting. The secret pockets for different functions are an inspiration to me when I am in the early stages of design and research.
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I can see you in that jacket. ;)
I was thinking that the cable-knit hi-viz thing does have something of the Audax bus-shelter vibe.
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What would you expect to pay in a lbs for an inner tube. I think around a fiver is pretty standard although I must admit in normal times I often pop to Halfords as easy access from work and they often have deals like three for a tenner
I ask as my friend who was trying to support his LBS got charged £9 for some Michelin ones which the online shops are selling for around £4 and they didn't have any other types
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That's about what I've paid in other LBSes. £4 for the tube and £5 to keep the place open.
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Ah maybe I just haven't bought any for a while. I'm pretty good at repairing if possible. Don't get me wrong I try my hardest to shop local even when the shops don't make it easy but just thought seemed expensive
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Turf wars
The night-riding mum who cycles 10 hours a day (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-55350295)
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The plumber is a cyclist, completely at random, off the back of pressurising expansion tanks with a track pump, he starts telling me about his Ti Croix de Fer. Cue 10 mins of bike discussion while he drinks his tea.
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these are beautiful
https://www.twmpacycles.co.uk/ (https://www.twmpacycles.co.uk/)
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(Sings)
Twmpa, Twmpa, you’re gonna need a jumper
It gets a bit chilly on top of Lord Hereford’s Knob
(Bows to audience, splits trousis)
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(https://polyp.org.uk/images/slideshows/ordinary/polyp_cartoon_Microsoft.jpg)
The cartoonist seems not to be familiar with the ways of Shimano!
https://polyp.org.uk/regular_strips/ordinary1.html
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(https://polyp.org.uk/images/slideshows/ordinary/polyp_cartoon_Microsoft.jpg)
The cartoonist seems not to be familiar with the ways of Shimano!
https://polyp.org.uk/regular_strips/ordinary1.html
Not just Shimano, the whole cycle industry. Manufacturers seem to have decided that disc brakes are compulsory, consigning hundreds of expensive wheels to the scrap heap. More gears are added every year, and availability of wear items for older iterations becomes a niche ( and ever more expensive) market.
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Also, since it's their fanatical devotion to backwards-compatibility that makes Microsoft's operating systems such a [REDACTED - Ed], the cycle industry is arguably worse.
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Yep. I don't know how old the cartoon is, judging by the shape of the till and the Microsoft logo it's quite a few years old and probably pre-dates things like thru-axles and road disc brakes. I suppose 'If bike shops behaved like Microsoft, they would refuse to service your five year old bike until you replaced its components with brand new ones at your own cost' is a bit much to fit in two panels!
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Yep. I don't know how old the cartoon is, judging by the shape of the till and the Microsoft logo it's quite a few years old and probably pre-dates things like thru-axles and road disc brakes. I suppose 'If bike shops behaved like Microsoft, they would refuse to service your five year old bike until you replaced its components with brand new ones at your own cost' is a bit much to fit in two panels!
While I totally understand the gripe about the bike industry, I think that's really harsh on MS. They offered free upgrades from Windows 7 to Windows 10 when 7 went out of life last year - Windows 7 was released 10 years previously. To me, that's above and beyond.
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A mate* who is a bike mechanic on the wrong side of the water just wrote this, a story that might appeal to many
https://citizenrider.blogspot.com/2021/01/there-go-my-google-reviews.html
*strictly speaking, the brother of a mate, but this is Teh Internets, and it's been a load of years, so that qualifies for a direct relationship.
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these are beautiful
https://www.twmpacycles.co.uk/ (https://www.twmpacycles.co.uk/)
Want.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jd0vt5v37B0
I watched that with MrsH - she enjoys watching the racing and some of the "Top Gear" style stuff GCN does. At the end, they said the frameset is about £3k. MrsH surprised me by saying that wasn't that much for the craftsmanship, and about how value there is in of having something you love as the bike you ride. Do I take that as permission to get my place in the build queue reserved?
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That recurring argument on whether cycle route signs should mention distances or journey times has just gained an extra dimension; the Dutch are using calories expended...
https://twitter.com/Cycling_Embassy/status/1351439482206244865
(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EsFHDCLXUAEwa2A?format=jpg&name=small)
It seems that Dutch cyclists use 1320 kcal an hour. No wonder they have to eat so many pancakes!
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That's because they haven't discovered bicycle pumps.
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https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-asia-55724995
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Komoot can detect whether I am doing my commute on an e-bike or on a normal bike.
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Some architecture students have designed a cycle path.
(https://www.bristol247.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Masterplan-for-St-Philips-Marsh-includes-the-creation-of-more-sustainable-transport-routes-image-courtesy-of-Marsh-Maker-group-scaled-e1612441390561-1600x900.jpg)
Doesn't it look useful. :hand:
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Yesterday I went to my LBS 'cos I needed a couple of inner tubes. The process taught me why we all need to adopt tubeless as rapidly as possible. I just wanted bog standard 650B tubes. Once upon a time there were two sizes of tube for 27" and for 26" and that covered about everything except kids bikes and wheelchairs. Jeremy's pa and I searched through a pile of tubes all proclaiming marginal differences in dimension for 650b or 27.5. I came away with what I wanted but I can see all the interest for a LBS to promote tubeless and its undoubted advantages for just about everything except your wallet.
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Yesterday I went to my LBS 'cos I needed a couple of inner tubes. The process taught me why we all need to adopt tubeless as rapidly as possible.
Wait until you hear about the millions of tubeless standards, which largely boil down to asking around if anyone has used X tyre on Y rim and whether it was a massive pain in the arse.
I just wanted bog standard 650B tubes. Once upon a time there were two sizes of tube for 27" and for 26" and that covered about everything except kids bikes and wheelchairs. Jeremy's pa and I searched through a pile of tubes all proclaiming marginal differences in dimension for 650b or 27.5.
The metric system is your friend. ETRTO or GTFO.
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Yesterday I went to my LBS 'cos I needed a couple of inner tubes. The process taught me why we all need to adopt tubeless as rapidly as possible.
Wait until you hear about the millions of tubeless standards, which largely boil down to asking around if anyone has used X tyre on Y rim and whether it was a massive pain in the arse.
To which the answer is invariably 'yes'.
The metric system is your friend. ETRTO or GTFO.
This.
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I was out in the car yesterday, following a group of cyclists through a village, going very slowly because it wasn't safe to overtake (blind bend, parked cars etc), but the motorist behind me was less patient so sounded his horn, at which one of the cyclists turned her head and gave me the dirtiest look. I mouthed the words "It wasn't me" but I have no way of knowing if she understood.
Very frustrating!
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Tom Ravenscroft was on the radio yesterday covering Steve Lamacqs show. He mentioned getting a p@#cture on his bike. When I emailed in for the feature I pointed out he shouldn't say the P word as it can encourage them.
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Tom Ravenscroft was on the radio yesterday covering Steve Lamacqs show. He mentioned getting a p@#cture on his bike. When I emailed in for the feature I pointed out he shouldn't say the P word as it can encourage them.
He seemed very impressed at how quick the chap in the shop was able to repair it...
You could have pointed out that he might have saved himself a lot of bother if he learned how to fix punctures himself, instead of needing to run into the nearest bike shop and playing the 'I'm a celebrity' card to jump the queue.
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I'll pull him up on that next time I communicate or post him a visitation repair kit
What with him and shaun Keaveney regularly cycling in I might offer to go and be their cycle mechanic
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Is there a name for the hobby or practice of riding round with a [boombox/ghetto blaster/portable music device] in a backpack? Several practitioners out today.
Also a band (percussion, xylophone or something similar, flute) playing in the Staple Hill tunnel.
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There's 'sodcasting' for blaring music from your phone in public, but I'm not sure if there's a specific term for the bicycle-mobile version. Other than 'Critical Mass' and 'Christmas ride', where such things are compulsory.
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Nah, this wasn't blaring out music for a whole group of riders, this was personal and mobile. I've noticed some delivery riders doing it. A form of 'sodcasting' I suppose but being mobile, it's less likely to be annoying (unless you happen to be riding in the same direction at the same pace, but then you can always speed up or fall back if it's really annoying you).
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I've been sperimenting with BSO maintenance techniques for my hack bike for the last couple of years. To be fair, I do squirt the chain with gt40 now and again, but otherwise it has to take life as it finds it. Normally it is used only for shopping and allotment runs so I figured that break down would do little damage. Anyhow, using it this morning for a six mile ride (!) I discovered two things. First, a disadvantage of this method. Dropping a chain off the top end of the block can be inconvenient. This is a negative aspect of BSO maintenance. However, replacing it doesn't get your fingers oily. This has to be considered a positive aspect.
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I thought "BSO maintenance" meant 'unhooking the V-brake noodle when the tyre starts to rub'.
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I just take to be, none. Leave it outside, ride when you need it. I'm curious to see how this pans out. Frankly if it died now after 3 years I think it would be most economical to simply replace for the purchase price (£70), recycling to the local scheme.
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https://www.cambridgeindependent.co.uk/news/amp/thefts-prompt-disbelief-at-design-of-bike-sheds-on-cambridge-9159815/
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https://www.cambridgeindependent.co.uk/news/amp/thefts-prompt-disbelief-at-design-of-bike-sheds-on-cambridge-9159815/
The design was fine. Unfortunately the basket of vipers was omitted during construction.
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From the complaints we get (as the local cycling campaign) shared bike rooms without holes in the wall are no more secure.
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Where does this fit?
hand held thermite vs bike locks, courtesy of the Lock Buggeringup Lawyer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0gksOCqp4I
ETA, in case you fancy https://breachpen.com/collections/breaching/products/breachpen
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Where does this fit?
hand held thermite vs bike locks, courtesy of the Lock Buggeringup Lawyer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0gksOCqp4I
ETA, in case you fancy https://breachpen.com/collections/breaching/products/breachpen
“One more time so you can see it wasn’t a fluke because it’s FUN playing with fire!”
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ETA, in case you fancy https://breachpen.com/collections/breaching/products/breachpen
Oh, I fancy very much - just not so much the £90 a pop...
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Argos have put their prices up by between 20 and 60% for resprays and repairs. I assume this is due to high demand rather than Brexit/Covid, but :o
Sale prices of vintage frames have always factored in the cost of a refurb, but this may push some workaday Holdsworths and Carltons off the edge of the bench.
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ETA, in case you fancy https://breachpen.com/collections/breaching/products/breachpen
Oh, I fancy very much - just not so much the £90 a pop...
Hopefully the price will restrict them to professional thieves only. >:(
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Argos have put their prices up by between 20 and 60% for resprays and repairs. I assume this is due to high demand rather than Brexit/Covid, but :o
Sale prices of vintage frames have always factored in the cost of a refurb, but this may push some workaday Holdsworths and Carltons off the edge of the bench.
:o :o :o
I was planning on sending Fingal down to Argos to get the current Argos paintjob redone. That's put a mouse poo in the garibaldi.
Sam
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£90 for an extra colour! I paid about £105 to have him done in metallic black and silver last time (admittedly just shy of 20 years ago). This would make the total £285!!!
:o :o :o :o :o :o :o
Sam
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It was £150 for a single colour when I asked about four years ago.
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£150 - £195 seems like a bit of a steep hike for four years. That's a 30% increase.
Sam
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Yes. They are very busy though. Perhaps busier than they can handle? And I guess there isn't much competition for old-skool three-pack frame painting.
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Is there any competition?
Sam
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Mercian? Bob Jackson?
Mercian seem to charge £160 and up. https://www.merciancycles.co.uk/renovations/
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I read somewhere else on here that Bob Jackson was retiring. Mercian might be worth a shout though, thanks!
Sam
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I think Bob Jackson retired and then ended up un-retiring. Or retired and someone else has taken over. Something like that.
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Mercian pricing is so similar it's bobbins difference. Bob Jackson just says, "A new beginning is coming soon..."
Honestly, if the original Orbit paint job hadn't been so terrible, and I trusted the people who now own Orbit, I'd take advantage of their refurb programme. But it was terrible, and I don't trust them.
I will probably end up sending him to Argos anyway.
Sam
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Dolan cycles in Ormskirk are not as eye watering . I don't think they do fancy lug lining ect . Vernon Barker do a good Job and are very reasonably priced but have closed the book .
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Catherine Neary at Universal Cycles in Maltby does very nice refinishing for classic frames. It’s Dave Marsh’s shop, and he’s an expert in classic bikes - especially Raleigh SBU and Carltons as he worked there and has all the records.
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I used to get frames re-enamelled for £30 through Roger Page Cycles in Birmingham. 30 years ago, but not much else has gone up 550% since then!
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I used to get frames re-enamelled for £30 through Roger Page Cycles in Birmingham. 30 years ago, but not much else has gone up 550% since then!
House prices.
https://www.home.co.uk/guides/house_prices_report.htm?location=bristol&all=1
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Brooks saddles aren't far off. A new B17 was about £30 a few years ago and now it's £90. I was buying immaculate, lightly-used Swallows for £35 four years ago. Now I'm afraid to park the bike outside, as it's an easy £120 for a scrote with an allen key.
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I remember the original MBUK article!
https://www.retrobike.co.uk/threads/onza-octopus-reissue-tyres.426326/
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I came across Hollie McNish (cf POBI thread) and found this poem, which very much belongs here.
https://holliepoetry.com/2015/10/05/cocoon/
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Moulton, doing their own thing as usual, choose to put the rear gear cable guides on top of the TSR chainstay.
This means I can't slip a stepped ferrule into the last one and have a neat way to cable up a SA hub. I have to use a clamp-on fulcrum clip instead, because the cable adjuster/connector fouls the chainstay due to its downward angle towards the rear wheel. Why couldn't they run the cable underneath, like everyone else does?
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Moulton aren't the only ones to put gear cables on top of the chainstay. Still seems like a bad place though.
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I came across Hollie McNish (cf POBI thread) and found this poem, which very much belongs here.
https://holliepoetry.com/2015/10/05/cocoon/
Lovely, thanks.
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This is a very sad news story https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/apr/05/tributes-as-two-week-old-baby-dies-after-car-hits-pram-in-midlands, I don't want to comment on the substance but I was very much struck by the reporting language
who was killed when his pram was hit by a motorist
he was struck by a person driving a BMW
We've waited for that for a long time, a great shame the first time I've seen it is in these circumstances.
ETA since reading that I've been shouting in my head (to some unspecified person(s) ) "See? it wasn't that difficult was it?"
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This is a very sad news story https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/apr/05/tributes-as-two-week-old-baby-dies-after-car-hits-pram-in-midlands, I don't want to comment on the substance but I was very much struck by the reporting language
who was killed when his pram was hit by a motorist
he was struck by a person driving a BMW
We've waited for that for a long time, a great shame the first time I've seen it is in these circumstances.
ETA since reading that I've been shouting in my head (to some unspecified person(s) ) "See? it wasn't that difficult was it?"
I often grink when I read the-car-did-it language. I've got a few mealy we-can't-prejudice replies which are nonsensical since vehicle are (still) by definition driven by someone and a few yeah-that-was-tortuous-language-we're-not-sure-why.
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I read a news report yesterday about a fatal collision that elided the existence of a car at all for about three paragraphs, referring solely to the driver. It's about time.
Sam
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This is a very sad news story https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/apr/05/tributes-as-two-week-old-baby-dies-after-car-hits-pram-in-midlands, I don't want to comment on the substance but I was very much struck by the reporting language
who was killed when his pram was hit by a motorist
he was struck by a person driving a BMW
We've waited for that for a long time, a great shame the first time I've seen it is in these circumstances.
ETA since reading that I've been shouting in my head (to some unspecified person(s) ) "See? it wasn't that difficult was it?"
I often grink when I read the-car-did-it language. I've got a few mealy we-can't-prejudice replies which are nonsensical since vehicle are (still) by definition driven by someone and a few yeah-that-was-tortuous-language-we're-not-sure-why.
Oh my fucking god.
The sub has re-written it now. No mention of the driver, it's the car wot did it.
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Am I the only one here wanting to know more about the engineering of this hybrid?
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/cars/news/cyclist-who-added-petrol-engine-to-push-bike-is-fined-240-at-court/ar-BB1g3V53?ocid=msedgntp
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£100 kit from China. No engineering by the "cyclist" required.
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Am I the only one here wanting to know more about the engineering of this hybrid?
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/cars/news/cyclist-who-added-petrol-engine-to-push-bike-is-fined-240-at-court/ar-BB1g3V53?ocid=msedgntp
I came across one of those on Critical Mass, back in the days when Birmingham had Critical Mass, and thought much the same thing. I was rather disappointed to learn that it was a...
£100 kit from China. No engineering by the "cyclist" required.
Regardless, if you're going to do crimes, it's best not to do really noisy ones.
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Regardless, if you're going to do crimes, it's best not to do really noisy ones.
Unless you make them so noisy that everyone's stunned, deafened or even dead.
But these DIY wannabe Mobylette/Velosolex things seem like a big danger to other road users and indeed non-road users, and an even bigger danger to the rider. I should think they make a good fire though.
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I do have to admit that the owner does rather resemble a KNOB
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Ms Beardy the younger has just bought a bicycle. She says she can’t cope with a top tube, but didn’t really want a town bike so she compromised and got a mixi framed hybrid. Nothing fancy, but not a BSO and she bought it from a LBS rather than online or from a chain store. She wants some panniers now.
Discussions on the use of a helmet are currently ongoing.
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A mixte is what I would have, or will have, when I am old and arthritic and can't cope with a cross bar. So that's a good choice by Ms Beardy the younger.
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Is it only me who sees Joseph Kuosac "pimp my Brompton" products and reads Jack Kerouac?
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Things I have seen while riding my bike in the past couple of weeks:
A woman running in a multicoloured tutu, with a race number indicating she was doing so for charity.
A family on matching bikes – a fleet of one make of brown step-throughs.
Several generations of another family, obviously not a "cycling family" cos mtbsos and wearing jeans and t-shirts, teens racing off the front, then mum, then little kids, then a looong gap followed by granny huffing and puffing, and an even loooonger gap with dad taking up the rear pulling a child trailer while the dog ran alongside, lead wrapped round the bike.
A man in a t-shirt bearing the slogan "Conservatives are targeting everybody now".
A number of cargo bikes and a couple of tadpole trike child-carriers.
Heard but not seen:
A cuckoo.
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Cycling family variation that I've noticed a couple of times recently: The elder generation and/or women whizzing up the hill with electron-assistance, while fit young men bring up the rear under their own steam. :thumbsup:
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Cycling family variation that I've noticed a couple of times recently: The elder generation and/or women whizzing up the hill with electron-assistance, while fit young men bring up the rear under their own steam. :thumbsup:
On Saturday, I was overtaken going up a hill on the Crab & Winkle Way (https://www.sustrans.org.uk/find-a-route-on-the-national-cycle-network/crab-and-winkle-way) by two older gents on electron-assisted bikes. I caught up with them further along, on a flat bit. One of the bikes was a rather lovely looking Cube, and I made the obligatory "nice bike" comment to the rider as I passed. "Yes, it helps me go further," was his reply. I wholeheartedly endorse this sentiment. Made me think I should try to persuade the ageing pater to get an e-bike for himself, then we could go out for a good long ride together (ideally one involving pubs).
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Those are very good uses of anbaronic assistance. I imagine both Puffing Granny and Laden Dad would have appreciated an ebike. The dog might have been less impressed.
I suppose though that until the secondhand market becomes fairly saturated with them, ebikes are going to remain an investment out of reach of only-casually cycling families. Day hires might go some way to fill the gap if you live somewhere appropriate.
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My ageing pater (87) has converted his Brompton to e-assist (there's another thread on his trials and tribulations with it). I went riding with him a few weeks ago on my non e-assist Brompton and he said I was too slow! But he is certainly enjoying being out and about.
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I'm going in to the office next Thursday. Seriously considering cycle commuting all the way. It's more or less exactly 100km, depending on the route (a bit over if I choose the quieter roads). At this time of year, it will already be light by the time I have to set off, and if I don't fancy riding home at the end of the day, I can take the train.
Only down sides are having to work out how to carry office clothes on the bike, and the fact that we don't have showers in the office, so it will have to be baby wipes. Will also need to arrange access to the secure parking - don't fancy leaving it unattended near Marble Arch all day, even with a hefty lock (and don't fancy carrying the hefty lock either).
Obviously it's much too far to consider doing this regularly, especially with the lack of showers, but as a one-off, on one of the longest days of the year, it might even be fun!
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For those who may not be aware, there's a Major Sporting Event going on at the moment. The good news for cyclists across England and Scotland (but maybe not Wales) is that the roads are likely to be very empty from around 8pm tomorrow evening.
Get out there and enjoy it while you can!
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Happiness is your first bike.
(https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TbJ1lj7kpgo/YNEJV3_hubI/AAAAAAADdIk/s7ZHeivZFvYOleIXA7M-Jpu-Dx6A99D7QCPcBGAsYHg/s1024/PXL_20210620_103350073.jpg)
In action here (https://photos.app.goo.gl/zGy6N9mTe91YFyG19)
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Go the mini-Ham-let!
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The topic of not assuming lack of mechanical knowledge and under what conditions it might be good or not to proffer cycling advice to strangers was recently hot and controversial. I had a related experience this morning. I'd been shopping, which I normally do on foot, and was walking past one of those on-street bike maintenance stands (something similar to this (https://www.cyclehoop.com/product/pumps-stations/repair-stand/)), where a woman, probably in her 20s, asked me if I could hold her bike for her while she pumped up her front tyre, as the pavement was on a slope and the heavily laden bike kept rolling away. So I held her bike and she pumped, the pressure gauge on the pump shot up but the chunky Marathons stayed soft. Good job she hadn't asked some non-cyclist as I was able to tell her she needed to undo the lock nut on top of the Presta valve.
More interestingly, she was on her way to perform an outdoor saxophone gig. Her alto sax was poking out of her left pannier, with loads of other stuff in the right and on top.
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I'm in the process of planning a 600km DIY audax ride. It's what you might call a game of two halves.
The first 310km has a total of 2466m of climbing.
The next 323km has 5206m of climbing - and 1102m of that comes within a 53km segment.
Beginning to wonder if this is such a good idea.
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Sounds a bit like my 600k DIY* for this weekend, but probably with more climbing.
During the ride I'll visit the fens and the penines. Sadly the penines are at the far end of my one-way ride (overall: uphill)
*though I'm not going to enter as such, any more than my other DIYs over the past year few months (2x200 and 1x300).
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Sounds a bit like my 600k DIY* for this weekend, but probably with more climbing.
During the ride I'll visit the fens and the penines. Sadly the penines are at the far end of my one-way ride (overall: uphill)
*though I'm not going to enter as such, any more than my other DIYs over the past year few months (2x200 and 1x300).
Mine is also a one-way - from my house in Kent to my brother's place at the northern end of the Lake District. It's something I've been meaning to do for years but have never got round to it.
The first half is pretty flat - going via Cambridge. The halfway point is somewhere north of Nottingham. Because I want it to be a nice ride, not just slogging through the distance for the sake of it, I routed through the Peaks, Dales and Lakes rather than around them, with deliberate diversions to take in Winnats and Kirkstone Passes. Still lots of fine-tuning needed to perfect the route, but I think it could be a corker. Just don't think I've got the legs for it at the moment. I could make it a lot easier, but where's the fun in that?
Enjoy your ride - sounds great, let us know how you get on.
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Saw a post on Instagram earlier about Rapha’s new book, Black Champions In Cycling.
The comments are disappointingly predictable. (Plenty of positive comments as well, to be fair.)
https://www.instagram.com/p/CRmMA8krjN6/?utm_medium=copy_link
What is wrong with people?
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I think the author is the same chap who popped up on one of ITV4's TdF rest day shows last year talking about (the lack of) black riders in the pro pelican.
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Sounds a bit like my 600k DIY* for this weekend, but probably with more climbing.
During the ride I'll visit the fens and the penines. Sadly the penines are at the far end of my one-way ride (overall: uphill)
*though I'm not going to enter as such, any more than my other DIYs over the past year few months (2x200 and 1x300).
Mine is also a one-way - from my house in Kent to my brother's place at the northern end of the Lake District. It's something I've been meaning to do for years but have never got round to it.
The first half is pretty flat - going via Cambridge. The halfway point is somewhere north of Nottingham. Because I want it to be a nice ride, not just slogging through the distance for the sake of it, I routed through the Peaks, Dales and Lakes rather than around them, with deliberate diversions to take in Winnats and Kirkstone Passes. Still lots of fine-tuning needed to perfect the route, but I think it could be a corker. Just don't think I've got the legs for it at the moment. I could make it a lot easier, but where's the fun in that?
Enjoy your ride - sounds great, let us know how you get on.
depends on how much time I spend catching up with folks whose houses I pass on Saturday. I'm ending up in the Eden Valley.
Due to starting a bit further north I have a few km to play with so start by going East and end by going South. fwiw the bit in the middle is: St Ives, Spalding, Lincoln, Thorne, Ripon, (Winston Bridge), Barnard Castle, Brampton. So I've reused bits of LEL 2009, the Gt Eastern and my 1-way trip to Donny a couple of years back. Plus a few new bits. Half way must be around Gainsborough. Report may or may not follow, depending on success. I'm most worried about finding stuff that says it's open isn't due to our favourite pandemic, thus no refuelling opportunities. (Lincoln around 11pm, Thorne in small hours, Knaresborough/Ripon early Sunday morning. Catterick should be OK then not much until BC.)
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sadly the lack of miles in my legs, and loss of the ability to digest ridiculous quantities of food at frequent intervals meant I only made it half way (the flat half). Thus I flaked out in the porch of Premier inn (it was full up and icba to trek round further), Lincoln, until someone threw their chips at me "how old are you?" was as withering as I could muster at 2:xx a.m. . I repaired to the 24hr McD next to the uni instead and was the only person there over the age of 25, apart from the staff, of whom thumbs up to one of them who checked I wasn't actually ill etc.
So for Sunday I made do with NCN647* or somesuch from Lincoln to Retford for a mainline train Northwards (it's great if you don't mind a gravel track once it splits off from the NCN64*). Alas for me most trains don't stop at Retford so with that and delayed trains thus missed connections, it took me most of Sunday to get the rest of the way.
Saturday was lovely though, apart from a headwind when I turned N at St Ives, saw both friends as planned and had a couple of enjoyable catch-ups.
*if planning on using, be ware I may have misrememebred the #. iirc, NCN64 goes to Newark and includes Lincoln.
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Having seen ads for Weezy, a grocery devilry service, for a few weeks, today I saw Weezy in action. A Weezy branded bike, whose rider was looking for an address. The bike was pale pink, North Road style bars, rear basket, step thru. The rider also had a Deliveroo backpack (old style black one) so could have been on Deliveroo duty concerning this address.
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I've decided that the collective noun for scooterboys is a 'near miss'.
I was proceeding down[1] the A38 cycleway, and encountered a group of about 8 scooterboys heading towards me. At the front was Kenny[2], who was having trouble seeing where he was going, and was weaving about while trying to adjust his hoodie one-handed. The following three or four scooterboys, on the other hand, had used their unimpaired vision to detect the approaching Woman On An Unusual Bike, and were preparing to make testosterone noises[3] at the critical moment. Naturally this left a deficit of attention for the trajectory of the rider in front...
You can imagine the rest, but suffice to say I didn't get to say "Oh my god, you killed Kenny!".
[1] In the railway sense.
[2] In the South Park sense.
[3] "Oy oy!" "Wahey!" and so on.
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Once upon a time, before South Park was a thing, I almost ended up living in Killed Kenny Lane. It would have been almost the last and one of the highest houses in Bath, requiring riding up the Wellsway on my over-geared 1985 Dawes and then climbing a step ladder to get into the attic, where I would have been living. That would've been easy, getting down might have killed me (and I'm not Kenny). The views would've been magnificent and it would have got me fit (or killed me) but I ended up living at the top of a different, shorter, steeper hill instead. Nowadays, of course, I could just get an e-bike.
https://www.google.com/maps/@51.354119,-2.3850451,467m/data=!3m1!1e3
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I’ve just seen Alan Yentob on an orange Brompton.
That’s almost a tongue twister.
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I've managed two consecutive Sunday rides.
Last sunday: 10.6 miles, 12.7 mph moving average
This sunday: 15.0 miles, 13.1 mph moving average
Here is to hoping I can keep this up. (Being on-call for half my free time doesn't help).
Hard to believe 8 years ago I was doing nearly 40 miles each day with an average speed in the high teens.
The main thing is, I'm back on a bike and saddle-soreness aside, really enjoying it.
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:thumbsup: Suggestion: find a nice place to stop for half an hour 10 - 15 miles away. Ride there, have a coffee & some cake then ride home again. Don't worry too much about speed, just enjoy it.
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(https://peter.chesspod.com/gallery/d/1832-3/DSC01263.jpg)
New bike, 22/02/2006
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/5MZeGRi_9yZ2oCN1SxgexcR40TdHOeYyclBj_UO-IacmUMAmmbutH6sMbR6nl25DUMvMwUY23O5BIBnnYts6gCDJ7glC9BMVC38ZmbWyDYbDATViy_IAepbHXc0LUjOao-BoM_p39wE=w2400)
Same bike on its 15th birthday, more than 40000 miles later.
Original parts still in use:
frame
front hub (Schmidt, yet to be serviced)
rear hub (Rohloff - I've never broken a flange on this one)
bottle cages
rear rack (Blackburn)
stem
headset
bars
V-brakes
brake levers
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The grass hasn’t faired so well.
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You can tell it's a recent pic though - thanks to the trendy paddleboarders in the background
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The grass hasn’t faired so well.
The two photos were taken about 8 miles apart.
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I did put this in the grow your own thread but today I (with hill and wind assistance) cruise a good miles or so above 30kmh with a 7kg pumpkin in my pannier amongst other veg
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The grass hasn’t faired so well.
The two photos were taken about 8 miles apart.
You took the scenic route then? :D
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The grass hasn’t faired so well.
The two photos were taken about 8 miles apart.
I thought they were taken 40,000 miles apart ;D
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If you're pedalling in France, watch out when you piddle. Driver down south stopped, pee'd at the edge of a field, and got stung 135€ for "spilling an insalubrious fluid in an unauthorised location". Never mind what the farmer had sprayed on the field and what animals do in them all the time. On that score, I could have been short of ~400€ yesterday.
Come to that, I wonder where the flics get rid of their beer after lunch.
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I for one look forward to les flics nicking half the TdF pelican for alfresco wazzing. Surely a bit of controversy is part of the game’s appeal?
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Wash the wall, my darling, where the gentlemen went by.
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Cycling meets football. And elephants...
Me-Triumphantly: "I climbed non-stop from Harohalli to Jigani, and without even using the Granny Gears!"
Wife: "So you are finally a Cycling Yogi?"
Me: "No, it is the hand of God."
W: "Midlife crisis turning you into a Religious nut, or a football fan?"
Me: "Actually God-Curry's men flattened the climbs in improving the road for truckers."
Eavesdropping Eco-activist son: "What about the Elephants?"
Me-Flippantly: "I did not see any."
https://paragrinations.blogspot.com/2021/10/cycling-elephants-and-fishy-fables.html
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Driving out earlier, couple of cyclists went across in front of me at a junction so following them. The lady had some problem with her bike and had to stop. Problem wad the guy in front didn't notice even when she shouted which we heard in the car
We were a little way back as I'd had to wait to go past her before she moved off road and he was moving at a decent pace so we had the fun of following him still indicating pot holes etc not realising there was no one behind him. We caught him at thr lights and told him
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I have just fitted the "randonneuse" with full lighting off the hub. The rear light is a fairly cheap Trelock with a standlight (it seems to be marked for a bottle dynamo and has no switch but the switch on the front does everything which suits me).
I used the lights to go to the boulangerie this morning. I've never had a standlight before and was expecting it to last about 30 seconds. It stayed on all the time I was in the queue outside and afterwards in the shop. I didn't time it but it was a good long time. I was surprised that no-one mentioned that I had left my lights on! I was well impressed with the light!
Obviously the Trelock would not be the recommendation for people on station platforms. I was looking at it and thinking that a little fabric cover would be the answer to that problem.
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Some dyno rears from B&M and maybe other manufacturers have a capacitor discharge switch to turn the standlight off in that situation. I don't think any have an actual on/off switch though cos as you say that's all done at the front.
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Major Taylor has for some reason popped up on the BBC.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cycling/59063160
The classic photo:
(https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/onesport/cps/800/cpsprodpb/118B7/production/_121236817_taylor_getty.jpg)
Marshall 'Major' Taylor was a trailblazing African American sportsman. He was in New York that day to take part in a race they most definitely don't run now: the six-day endurance event.
Well, kind of.
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Bah, I've bought a temporary replacement wheel to stand in for a nexus8 hub geared wheel. Just a cheapy singlespeed wheel. 24" for my Dahon folder. Now I'd clocked that the OLN is a bit too big (135mm wheel vs 130-131 frame) but that's easy, there's a steel spacer that I can take 4 or 5mm off with the lathe at work tomorrow. However I hadn't realised/accounted for the fact that it seems the nexus sprocket sits much more outboard than the singlespeed one.
How far out does a singlespeed chainline need to be before it causes problems?
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From COP26 today, this picture popped up in my feed.
Look at the smile on this wee one :)
(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FDgqEZDXsAMZufh?format=jpg&name=small)
https://twitter.com/magnatom/status/1456960771636748289
Now that made me smile and love cycling just wee bit more :)
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I felt as though I should check the date when I saw Alpkit advertising its gravel bike... with flat bars and suspension.
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I felt as though I should check the date when I saw Alpkit advertising its gravel bike... with flat bars and suspension.
And so it came to pass that the Molehill Bike was born.
(I just went to look and broke the Alpkit website. :-[)
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I'm waiting for the urban gravel bike, with North Road bars, a sprung saddle, mudguards, hub gears, full chain guard...
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Wow!! Bikes are good. New Zealand politician Julie Anne Genter cycles to hospital to give birth https://t.co/59Ug6fruAg
https://twitter.com/Gary_Fisher/status/1464910031803994113
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As you travel from Whitechapel to Stratford along the A11, just before Bow Flyover the road divides into two, forming a dual carriageway.
There is a church, Bow Church, in the centre reservation.
In front of the church there is a statue of William Gladstone.
The statue has red hands (you can check this on Streetview).
The story behind this is that back in 1870…..something, William Gladstone wanted to put a tax on matches.
This caused outcry and much panic buying of matches amongst the population as this was the only means by which people had to light fires.
Bryant, of Bryant & May the match makers who had their factory adjacent to what is now the north portal to the Blackwall Tunnel, was equally outraged as this would mean a cut in his profit margins.
Eventually, Gladstone elected to not impose the tax on matches.
Bryant was so delighted with this decision, that he decided to honour Gladstone by paying to have a statue of him cast in bronze, and placed at the location where it is today.
Only Bryant didn’t pay for the statue.
What he did was he stopped one shilling from each of the girl’s and women’s wages who worked for him, to pay for the statue.
I can only guess that in 1870 one shilling would’ve been a significant amount of money.
Needless to say that this wasn’t well recieved by the women who worked for him.
On the day the statue was unveiled, a number of them attended the ceremony.
They cut their arms and bled onto the plinth on which the statue was erected.
To this day, Gladstone statue’s hands remain painted red.
The council clean off the red paint periodically.
The hands get re-painted again in red..
~150 years on from the event.
I find that extraordinary.
I’ll bet it isn’t a man wielding the paint brush.
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Though the skimming of the women's wages may have been an urban myth:
https://romanroadlondon.com/red-hands-william-gladstone-statue/
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The struggle for workers’ rights that raged around the statue has long since been won.
No victory is ever permanent.
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Last June/July I ordered online a Rixen Kaul nipple kit for a bar bag extender from Swinnerton cycles (one of the few providers that carry the bits in stock). After it had not turned up after some days I contacted them and they duly posted out the next day. Today, December 21st, I have received the same order again. How bizarre! I have emailed them to point this out as their phone is not being answered. They need to check their systems I think.
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I rode past that church almost daily for at least seven years and never noticed WE Gladstone at all.
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Megavalanche.
This possibly deserves it's own "who the fuck would do this stuff" thread.
Might be bikes, but it's carnage, for eg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZWU9I30Gxg
Annual event. People do it more than once.
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I think that belongs in the "Jamais en million ans" thread.
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Just wow.
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that's just a big weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
I'm rather disappointed that the person under the camera didn't go weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
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I always thought that joyriding meant nicking cars and taking them for a spin, often when drunk. It was what some of the wayward lads did on the Chingford Hall council estate where I grew up. So, I was surprised when the Waltham Forest newsletter reported a different kind of joyriding: a cycling group that is free, for women, and that loans bikes to the members who need them. It has grown since its inception, but JoyRiders started right here in my borough where we have an infrastructure of 27km of cycle paths, known as Mini Holland.
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2022/jan/15/how-weekly-bike-rides-with-a-group-of-supportive-women-showed-me-a-route-to-joy
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My cousin shared a pic on fb this morning asking if anyone could identify the strange valve on her bike tyre, which she was finding impossible to pump up.
It was just a standard Presta valve, but obviously she's used to only seeing Schrader valves. I pointed out that she'd need a different pump. But then I got to wondering why she has found herself with one tyre with a different kind of valve...
Turns out her bike is a Brompton, and the bike shop have recently replaced the tube. FFS. I've told her to take it back to the shop and tell them to put the right kind of tube in.
Looking forward to her next post of the bike with a Dunlop tube fitted!
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FWIW the Brompton-issue pump has a reversible thingy and works fine with Presta valves.
(I run Presta on my Brompton so all my bikes use can use the same pumps. Of course, nobody wants two different valves on the same bike. Or three, if you're a trike rider.)
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You could even get four on a bike: eg Presta on the front, Schrader on the back, two spares, one of which is Dunlop, the other Woods. (I'm never quite sure if Dunlop and Woods are actually different... )
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FWIW the Brompton-issue pump has a reversible thingy and works fine with Presta valves.
Oh god, the Brompton-issue pump... I think I binned mine, and use something decent instead. (Mine was an ancient model - current versions may be better.)
I run Presta on my Brompton
Do you use any form of adapter/shim around the valve hole?
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FWIW the Brompton-issue pump has a reversible thingy and works fine with Presta valves.
Oh god, the Brompton-issue pump... I think I binned mine, and use something decent instead. (Mine was an ancient model - current versions may be better.)
It does the job, though much of the time the job is inserting a couple of puffs of air into the new tube before fitting the tyre and fully inflating with CO2. Its main feature is that there's a place to mount it on the bike.
I run Presta on my Brompton
Do you use any form of adapter/shim around the valve hole?
Yeah, those little metal ones from SJS. Best installed under the rim tape, so they don't go walkies during a puncture repair. Same on barakta's trike, which is also drilled for Schrader.
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Yeah, those little metal ones from SJS. Best installed under the rim tape, so they don't go walkies during a puncture repair. Same on barakta's trike, which is also drilled for Schrader.
Good to know. I suspect in my cousin's case it's the bike shop person being slapdash rather than a conscious decision, so I would hazard a guess they've not thought to fit an adapter.
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Today, I noticed some "secure" bike cages which have recently been installed in Central Southend. I don't know how they are going to work, given that there were 3 or 4 Sheffield stands within a cage, and the cage had a door with a keyed lock. They were not yet in use, but assuming they do work, they will prevent scrotes from removing bits from a locked bike.
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Today, I noticed some "secure" bike cages which have recently been installed in Central Southend. I don't know how they are going to work, given that there were 3 or 4 Sheffield stands within a cage, and the cage had a door with a keyed lock. They were not yet in use, but assuming they do work, they will prevent scrotes from removing bits from a locked bike.
I think the lockable cages are a temporary solution to stop material theft during the works. AFAIK the stands will remain along with the seating and possibly the cage sides.
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A couple of those cages have just been installed at Whitstable station. There's a sign up saying you can rent storage for a day, week, month or year. Rates seem quite reasonable.
I do wonder, though, what's to stop a scrote signing up then using their legitimate access to remove the contents? They might have to do it over several trips, one bike at a time, to avoid arousing suspicion, but I can't see that stopping a determined thief.
The one thing they will prevent is casual vandalism - I've twice had bikes vandalised there while left secured to one of the open Sheffield stands. And yes, they will prevent casual theft of parts.
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Don't know about those ones but they are more usually installed in residential areas. Residents pay a small(?) fee to get a key and a space.
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A couple of those cages have just been installed at Whitstable station. There's a sign up saying you can rent storage for a day, week, month or year. Rates seem quite reasonable.
I do wonder, though, what's to stop a scrote signing up then using their legitimate access to remove the contents? They might have to do it over several trips, one bike at a time, to avoid arousing suspicion, but I can't see that stopping a determined thief.
The one thing they will prevent is casual vandalism - I've twice had bikes vandalised there while left secured to one of the open Sheffield stands. And yes, they will prevent casual theft of parts.
If they only have about four spaces and sufficient ID is taken that should make it less likely.
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Don't know about those ones but they are more usually installed in residential areas. Residents pay a small(?) fee to get a key and a space.
Yes, you see quite a lot of those around London, mainly in areas with lots of flats. There are similar on the University of Kent campus. Good idea, and better than nothing, but I wouldn't be hugely confident of leaving my bike in one.
If they only have about four spaces and sufficient ID is taken that should make it less likely.
There are two cages, one on the up side, one on the down side, with space for about a dozen bikes in each, at a guess. I haven't looked into the process of signing up yet, so no idea about the security measures.
I suppose most bike thieves do tend to go for the lower hanging fruit.
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Your station lockers sound like something a bit different from the residential ones I've seen then. Larger at least.
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Your station lockers sound like something a bit different from the residential ones I've seen then. Larger at least.
Yes, larger but basically the same thing.
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it's the perfect bike for exploring the woods, moors, byways and potholed pavement here in the UK. Pretty much every non-major road here is fast becoming sketchy double track, one of the few advantages of a decade of government cuts.
https://bikepacking.com/bikes/lucas-fairlight-faran-2/
(it's in the comments)
almost pobi but it's an ill wind, austeribonus, and all that. For some anyway.
(actually I disagree, I don't think the roads are as bad as they're suggesting, but hey, local variation and all that)
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it's the perfect bike for exploring the woods, moors, byways and potholed pavement here in the UK. Pretty much every non-major road here is fast becoming sketchy double track, one of the few advantages of a decade of government cuts.
https://bikepacking.com/bikes/lucas-fairlight-faran-2/
(it's in the comments)
almost pobi but it's an ill wind, austeribonus, and all that. For some anyway.
(actually I disagree, I don't think the roads are as bad as they're suggesting, but hey, local variation and all that)
That's good to know, I have a frameset on order, and the roads round here truly are @*#!
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Can't find a link anywhere but BBC Londonton News has just run a story about a family in Camden who bought a cargo bike to transport their kiddiewinks and installed a Sheds in front of their residence to keep it in, because it won’t fit inside.
Natch the council has taken umbrage and decreed that The Sheds Must Go :(
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Follow up to this story from last year https://road.cc/content/news/councils-criticised-mixed-messages-over-bike-sheds-283753 ?
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I did find the original story wot accompanies the pictures at the top of that one, where at least the council has allowed them to keep their Sheds, but not the one from London’s famous London. Still no sign of it on the BBC's webby SCIENCE chiz.
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Paging Regulator. Regulator to the green courtesy phone please... (https://betriton.com/)
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Plumbers on cargo e-bikes, or rather quads.
https://www.bristol247.com/business/news-business/plumbers-on-bikes-service-launches-in-bristol/
https://www.bristol247.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/nippy-checks-on-the-streets-of-Bristol-photo-nippy-checks-1536x1034.jpg
They aim to "do for plumbing and heating what Deliveroo has done for food."
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Loads of cycle tourists appearing on the roads of Harris and Lewis.
Stopped at a pub, maybe 12 bikes outside. Most of them very decent newish 'gravel' bike types, with bikepacking type bags.
And off-road gravel tyres.
There isn't a lot of gravel riding here. Most of the road surfacess are pretty good.
My guess is that those tyres are what was supplied with the bike.
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A gravel bike seems like an eminently suitable n=1, assuming you're happy with the bikepacking approach to luggage.
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A gravel bike seems like an eminently suitable n=1, assuming you're happy with the bikepacking approach to luggage.
The bikes seem suitable, particularly as they usually come with sensible bottom gears.
It is the tyres that get me. Miles of windy undulating tarmac roads and they have off-road tyres.
There are a substantial number of the cyclists seem under-experienced. Couple of guys riding side-by-side; one in one lane, the other in the other lane. Suspect that might have been exhaustion-induced, since they'd just come over the only big hill on the island.
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Off-road tyres are eminently suitable for inexperienced cyclists, who are frequently allergic to motor traffic and have yet to learn that Sustrans signs are a trap. Even the idea of choosing the right tyres for a trip is a relatively advanced cyclist skill, let alone having the confidence to specify and fit something different.
There does seem to be something of a culture where people do what we might loosely describe as cycle touring as their flavour of adventuring for the year. The next year they might run marathons. Or do something watersportsy. Which is fair enough IMHO, but would seem to preclude getting decently experienced at their chosen activity.
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When did Ribble stop selling tyres? Used to be reliable, cheap source of Vittoria. Now, nothing at all (according to their website).
Rant; Why why why did Vittoria Hypers stop being produced? One of the best fat road tyres ever. (After years of wear, mine are cut to smithereens). Grand Prix Urbans seem a suitable replacement, but are like hen's teeth.
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When did Ribble stop selling tyres? Used to be reliable, cheap source of Vittoria. Now, nothing at all (according to their website).
Rant; Why why why did Vittoria Hypers stop being produced? One of the best fat road tyres ever. (After years of wear, mine are cut to smithereens). Grand Prix Urbans seem a suitable replacement, but are like hen's teeth.
What size are you after? I have a pair of 37-622 stored in the dark, fitted once and ridden for 20 km or so. I decided the clearance was too tight for touring in case of a slight buckle to the wheel.
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When did Ribble stop selling tyres? Used to be reliable, cheap source of Vittoria. Now, nothing at all (according to their website).
Rant; Why why why did Vittoria Hypers stop being produced? One of the best fat road tyres ever. (After years of wear, mine are cut to smithereens). Grand Prix Urbans seem a suitable replacement, but are like hen's teeth.
What size are you after? I have a pair of 37-622 stored in the dark, fitted once and ridden for 20 km or so. I decided the clearance was too tight for touring in case of a slight buckle to the wheel.
37 or 35 - I have 37 fitted now.
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Looking through some of my FiL's old papers I came across this, from 1943, that I thought might be of interest
(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn4HyzIUN4cIGttYeHdOJY9Ve8ewGuoxB2bP36tIoadVBl5AjsHinl0yWQsGxW4-EPZu3Y40_LMke__6jwWomnVUTT7_f470A9QYRgIrzzRx28QvgFgZ2glGZUFcXF4Z8t7BzRKg15Tqt0R6wYVVIZuu0pU48H0xtOar_ZVT8mhxm4lumgrZ4Ymn8F/s1024/PXL_20220515_175059699.jpg)
(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3lX94XKlyv7MSmCv1fcGGXOCD983dCED-QhoaO8hHFP831Nak5_8RQepmWHinj5N3H58FkjP-OrPsBxiIaNxkmDgrLREzJ7hYxhHb7LvkYazGXKIxnWts11zQSlkOpB_xGY9p_j7QGnp0Xgn9Dy2Y2KKkFwv2HYboRkIY7y8RJax-ssm3CjzLkB85/s1024/PXL_20220515_175103162.jpg)
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My Young Lady has taken to calling her Rain Legs "Wet Legs" on account of being down with the kids and an admirer of the Popular Beat Combo from the Isle of Wight.
I commend this to the house.
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https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/jun/18/joe-biden-falls-off-bike-video
Joe Biden has a clipless moment.
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Someone, possibly a student, just cycled past my window whooping and singing.
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Basil isn't mentioned...
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2022/jul/28/bicycle-graveyards-why-do-so-many-bikes-end-up-underwater
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Rene Herse, old skool darling, have produced a one-by, hated by traditionalists almost as much as disc brakes and electronic shifting. Some hedz gunna asplode!
(https://www.renehersecycles.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/rene-herse_4616_sq_s_wm070620-600x600.jpg)
https://www.renehersecycles.com/shop/components/cranks/rene-herse-one-by-crank/
Perhaps they should just call it a single-ring crankset?
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Motto: It's quicker by Herse?
---o0o---
Meanwhile, I noticed yesterday that the back tyre (Schwalbe Durano blah blah 700x25c folding) on the eBrute was looking a little worn and went looking for a replacement. Was smackëd in ze gobbe by the number on offer: zilch² unless I wanted to pay ~5€ more than the last one cost including delivery. Plenty of wired-bead versions going: I loathe horrible things but I got one anyway, even with a 2-week wait for delivery. Last time around it was 3 days. I'll do the bothersome front=>back swap before I mount it, though.
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Motto: It's quicker by Herse?
:D
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Perhaps they should just call it a single-ring crankset?
It's got narrow-wide teeth, which you only need if you're running derailleur gears at the back. So definitely 1x-specific.
Don't worry, it's still square taper. When they start selling external cup integrated spindle gubbins, we'll know the kingdomrepublic has fallen.
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It's got old fashioned good looks, with its sculpted cranks and cloverleaf chainring, all shiny and polished. I can see it turning appearing on American bikepackers and the non-racy end of gravel.
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More "not car" than "cycling related", but it suggests (to me) that it ought to be possible, eventually, to overturn the "cars own the road" mindset that has been prevalant this last 100 years. Well, one can hope.
https://thereader.mitpress.mit.edu/when-cities-treated-cars-as-dangerous-intruders/
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C&B Seen has gone. They used to sell some bike lights & relevant accessories, including better batteries than most Chinese eBay sellers. Company dissolved March this year.
I suspected something when I looked at the website a while ago & everything was out of stock.
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Just been involved in a discussion with colleagues about updating the entry in our house style guide for bicycles/bikes.
We currently say:
Do not use, refer to cycles - this is more inclusive for different types of cycle
But some people think "cycles" sounds too stiffly formal and unnatural, which I agree with, and there are contexts where you don't need to be inclusive, ie you're talking specifically about bikes, so we're modifying it to allow people to say bikes when they mean bikes.
M'colleague also suggested adding a qualifier to explain what we mean by "different types of cycle", viz:
Do not use, refer to cycles - this is more inclusive for different types of cycle (monocycles, bicycles, handcycles etc).
"Monocycles" made me wince. I presume this is the term that has been adopted to describe those motorised single-wheelers to distinguish them from pedal-powered unicycles. Ugh. I suggested leaving that out - they're a bit of an outlier and not really "cycles" in this sense - and mentioning tricycles instead.
M'colleague also said she thought about including tandems but I pointed out that most tandems are bikes. This got me thinking, though - is there such a thing as a tandem unicycle?
<google>
Of course there is!
https://road.cc/content/blog/12044-tandem-unicycle-positively-unbalanced
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I followed the link to a youtube clip and it's insanely wonderful. Evidently a great way to confuse dogs too!
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"Monocycles" made me wince. I presume this is the term that has been adopted to describe those motorised single-wheelers to distinguish them from pedal-powered unicycles. Ugh. I suggested leaving that out - they're a bit of an outlier and not really "cycles" in this sense - and mentioning tricycles instead.
Electric unicycles are usually abbreviated EUC. I've seen monocycle used by non-English speaking unicyclists, presumably as a direct translation of their native term. A quick google turns up users of both, but most popular English sites favouring uni-.
I shouldn't have started looking at this. I see that some argue the prefixes mono- and uni- are greek and latin respectively, and hence should be applied depending on the origin of the rest of the word. In this case, latin cyclus appears closer than greek kyklos?
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Wiktionary offers this as a monocycle:
(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/09/Monowheel.jpg/220px-Monowheel.jpg)
while Wikipedia has a photo of the same machine to illustrate 'monowheel'.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monowheel
While the first hit I get for 'uniwheel' is a motorised device:
https://personalelectrictransport.co.uk/shop/uncategorised/uniwheel-electric-unicycle/
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I followed the link to a youtube clip and it's insanely wonderful. Evidently a great way to confuse dogs too!
Crazy Germans. Nuff said.
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In similar vein, does anyone know of a single word that can be used to cover both walking and the use of wheeled mobility aids? That might include a bike used as a support or ridden on a pavement at low speed but not cycling as we normally think of it. Context:
When we refer to ‘walking’ or ‘pedestrian’ we mean to include those who use mobility aids, such as wheelchairs or mobility scooters, or who may be pushing children in buggies or otherwise moving at walking pace on a pavement or path in the public realm.
Some mobility aid users are happy to use ‘walking’ or ‘going for a walk’ when moving around outdoors and do not wish to be separately categorised. However, others have pointed out that the term ‘walking’ may be taken to exclude those who use wheeled mobility aids.
?
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'Active transport' seems to be the one that people use to cover walking, cycling and wheelchair use, though it gets blurry when there's electron involvement.
I'm not sure if there's a term that specifically excludes cycling in the usual sense. I know wheelchair users tend to use 'wheeling', particularly when using an electric wheelchair at higher speed for what would be a decent-length walk or short cycle journey. As in "I'll wheel from the station, saves faffing about with taxis."
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Yeah, 'wheeling' has been suggested. 'Active transport' seems to usually include buses and trains, so somewhat different.
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Sounds like someone being over-sensitive - I can't see how "walking" excludes those who use mobility aids. It's still essentially moving forwards by putting one foot in front of the other.
This sounds like the kind of thing we might have an official opinion on, so I'll ask m'colleagues in the office tomorrow. Could be one for the D&I team.(Although our style guide says not to refer to people as pedestrians but people walking.)
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Sounds like someone being over-sensitive - I can't see how "walking" excludes those who use mobility aids. It's still essentially moving forwards by putting one foot in front of the other.
Unless you're not using your feet...
(The wheelchair users I know personally seem happy for walking to include travelling at walking pace with a mobility aid. Particularly when it pertains to which part of the road they're using.)
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Unless you're not using your feet...
Sorry! Me being dense... for a change. I got mentally fixated on the image of someone using a bicycle as a support rather than riding it and forgot we were talking about wheelchairs too.
What about perambulating? It usually but not specifically means walking, and historically meant pushing a baby around in a perambulator, which seems to fit the bill.
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The DWP uses the ghastly term "mobilising" which cunningly excludes wheelchair users from the DWP definition of mobility impaired in certain benefits... No recognition of how poorly wheelchair accessible many places and transport are.
Many of my wheelchair using friends use "walk" and aren't fussed by it, but have then had people tell them they "MUST BE LYING" about being legit disabled for using that term rather than wheel or similar...
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What about perambulating? It usually but not specifically means walking, and historically meant pushing a baby around in a perambulator, which seems to fit the bill.
Good suggestion. Possibly slightly formal sounding but that's not necessarily a problem.
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The DWP uses the ghastly term...
This could easily be the introduction to many different sentences.
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I know we've discussed the banning of e-bikes on trains in the past. Something that has come up in relation to a thing I'm working on this morning is that London Underground have banned all privately owned e-scooters and e-unicycles [sic] but still allow folding e-bikes. The rationale being that e-bikes are usually manufactured to a higher standard and the batteries are therefore less likely to be damaged and explode. Interesting distinction.
So if I park my e-bike at the station and remove the battery so it doesn't get nicked, then get on a Tube train while carrying the battery in my backpack, I'm probably in some kind of legal grey area.
As far as I know, Southeastern failways still have no ban on any e-contraptions - you do see quite a few e-scooters on commuter trains. I know it's different from a safety pov when the train isn't enclosed underground, but the HS1 does spend quite a large chunk of the route in tunnels.
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In other e-bike news, Santander Cycles is launching e-bikes from Monday. (Which seems to be one of the few things that is still going ahead despite yesterday's events.)
The pricing structure of the scheme is changing at the same time - instead of paying £2 for a 24-hour access period, with unlimited 30-minute journeys in that 24 hours, it will be £1.65 per trip up to 30 minutes, and an extra £1.65 for each additional 30 minutes. (This is to match the current £1.65 flat-rate bus fare in London.)
Hiring the e-bikes is going to cost extra on top of that, but given that there will only be 500 in operation from Monday, it's a bit of a moot point - chances of actually seeing an e-bike in the wild will be slim (the fleet is 12,000 bikes overall and there are around 800 docking stations).
Annual membership is going up from £90 to £120 but that includes unlimited rides up to 60 minutes (up from the current 30 minutes). They're also introducing monthly membership (unlimited 60-minute rides for £20 a month).
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That change from 30 to 60 minutes is quite significant if you live somewhere like me. I generally can't get from home to anywhere in central London in less than 30 mins, certainly after allowing locking up time etc. Having to change bikes kept the costs down but was a faff. But 60 minutes covers the vast majority of journeys I would want to make - the last time I hired a bike was to get from home (Isle of Dogs) to Paddington station.
It means an annual payment of £120 would get you most journeys you would want to make as a single trip, so a really practical way to get around and not worry about your bike being stolen!
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I only use the bikes occasionally these days - unfortunately, not enough to justify the cost of annual membership, but I agree that change to 60 minutes is a big deal and a very good thing.
It's rare that I make a journey on the bikes of more than 30 minutes - though I've occasionally had to pedal extra hard to get to my destination inside the cutoff. And yes, I've also done the thing of stopping and changing bikes to avoid the extra charge.
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Changing hire bikes mid-journey sounds a bit like split ticketing on the trains.
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Very much the same principle.
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I've seen an incredible number of cargo bikes today, including at one point three at one junction: two Tern GSDs and one other sort. Then various others later in the day. They're taking over! (and about time too)
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Has anyone else had Cycling UK lift multiple direct debits from their bank accounts? I think they've taken four months' money form my account in the past week. I've had a couple of emails apologising profusely. They say they've identified the problem and the money should be refunded shortly.
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A neighbour went to visit a friend in York earlier this year. York bloke transported her round the city in a trailer – not sure whether two or one-wheel – in which she sat facing backwards. She waved at the drivers as they overtook. Apparently York bloke was subsequently contacted by the city council and told that if he's to transport passengers in his trailer, they must face forwards and not distract drivers. Or so it was reported to me. ???
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A neighbour went to visit a friend in York earlier this year. York bloke transported her round the city in a trailer – not sure whether two or one-wheel – in which she sat facing backwards. She waved at the drivers as they overtook. Apparently York bloke was subsequently contacted by the city council and told that if he's to transport passengers in his trailer, they must face forwards and not distract drivers. Or so it was reported to me. ???
Where does that leave drivers of estate cars with rear-facing seats in the "boot"? Or push-me-pull-you tandems where the stoker faces backwards?
I'm sure there's no such law and York City Council can safely be told to do what is, in the modern vernacular, one.
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York council is also incredibly disablist. They blocked disabled councillors from a vote on blue badge parking "vested interest" despite other drivers being allowed to vote on regular parking! They also banned ALL cars with no blue badge parking from a huge area and just assumed disabled people could use their shuttle services (which not all can) and are currently being sued for their lack of consultation with local disability groups.
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As it happens, both my neighbour and York bloke are disabled, though in different ways, and I think YB is probably well known to the council. He's even been in the graun!
I don't think they claimed an actual law had been broken (though I expect they could have found something about type approval for carrying passengers in a trailer if they'd wanted to) just that it was "distracting".
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As it happens, both my neighbour and York bloke are disabled, though in different ways, and I think YB is probably well known to the council. He's even been in the graun!
I don't think they claimed an actual law had been broken (though I expect they could have found something about type approval for carrying passengers in a trailer if they'd wanted to) just that it was "distracting".
Unless YB is operating as a taxi driver, I don't think that - even if a law were being broken - the council has any jurisdiction. Blimey - they must have time and money to burn.
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even if a law were being broken - the council has any jurisdiction. Blimey - they must have time and money to burn.
Eh? It's a council with an unlimited fund called 'the rates' to use, they probably get lippier just around when renewal calculation is due as they can create a reason to collect any extra - or maybe that's just Wirral....
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https://www.bristol247.com/lifestyle/cycling-lifestyle/worlds-steepest-climb-on-bike-in-bristol/
I'm going to try this tomorrow.
Oh, that was a Johnson. As you knew. And even if, by some freaky chance, I managed to walk up it, I'd need mountain rescue to get me down again.
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In other e-bike news, Santander Cycles is launching e-bikes from Monday. (Which seems to be one of the few things that is still going ahead despite yesterday's events.)
The launch was delayed in the end, but the Santander e-bikes are now out in the wild.
https://tfl.gov.uk/info-for/media/press-releases/2022/october/docked-e-bikes-now-available-for-hire-as-part-of-london-s-record-breaking-santander-cycles-scheme
Good luck finding one, though - I've just checked the app and none of the docking stations near the office have an e-bike available.
ETA: I've managed to locate some just a couple of miles away - tempted to go for a test ride at lunchtime.
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Mission accomplished. I don't think it's an exaggeration to say that these will be a real gamechanger - as long as they can roll them out in sufficient numbers to make them a reliable option.
The general handling and ride feel is almost identical to the standard bikes, except in the fundamental detail that you don't feel like you're pedalling through treacle.
The LED display on the down tube includes a speedo. Interestingly, at one point when I was cruising along on a flat road, it was showing 31kmh.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52408711074_e62625a9bc.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2nRbkUN)
Santander e-bikes (https://flic.kr/p/2nRbkUN) by citoyen (https://www.flickr.com/photos/103760266@N08/), on Flickr
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52407923257_bafc0562ea.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2nR7iHK)
Santander e-bikes (https://flic.kr/p/2nR7iHK) by citoyen (https://www.flickr.com/photos/103760266@N08/), on Flickr
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52408868465_d9ae709854.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2nRc9Gr)
Santander e-bikes (https://flic.kr/p/2nRc9Gr) by citoyen (https://www.flickr.com/photos/103760266@N08/), on Flickr
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52407923317_447a48c7bf.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2nR7iJM)
Santander e-bikes (https://flic.kr/p/2nR7iJM) by citoyen (https://www.flickr.com/photos/103760266@N08/), on Flickr
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I've still to try the electric beryl bikes, which we've had here for a while. They seem to be reasonably popular, on account of the Wet Midlands having hills, but there's a lot of competition from the Voi scooters in Birmingham.
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The electric Bird bikes (Big Issue launch) were withdrawn from Bristol due to, apparently, excessive vandalism. I'm not sure if they're still running in other places.
Re the last photo, blowing bubbles!
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Re the last photo, blowing bubbles!
Indeed - the office is right next door.
Will be interesting to see how long the Santander e-bikes last before they are vandalised into oblivion.
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Re the last photo, blowing bubbles!
Indeed - the office is right next door.
I prefer to think of it as being the location of the biggest gig I've ever performed in...
...which was followed by some minor sporting event, or something! ;)
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Cargo bikes, particularly e ones which seem to be the normal. I wish were affordable or government supported like electric cars and vans were. Seem to start at North of 3 grand and often 5 or 6. I know they say oh will replace second car but we only have one car and I've never paid anywhere near that for a car or a cycle for that matter
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I wonder if banks are still thinking the same. Few years back I talked to a carless couple in that there London. They wanter a cargo bike and didn't have to coin to be able to afford one.
Asked bank to borrow 3k for a bike - nope, a what bike, no, you what now, nada, 3k for a bike, something about tall African animals, no can do.
Asked bank to borrow 15k for a car - sign here and which account do you want it in?
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https://twitter.com/HistoryInPics/status/1602054011368378368
Cyclists were even hated back in 1897
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A relative asked me to deliver his BSO to a very nice chap nearby who checks such things over & sells them with all profits going to the local hospice. This led to the 'tween household becoming n-2 as I've subsequently delivered our tandem1 and ex-electric trike2 to the same chap. 'Nice to get machines in good order for a change' he quoth.
Between deliveries 1 & 2 said very nice chap received a message from the Hospice, the total from his fund raising efforts has just passed £57k :o In just 4 years :o :o
1I spent a fair chunk of time & money getting it in good order but it's never going to be usable by two adults without upgrading a hell of a lot of parts to cope with the mass. Everything on it is standard bike parts. Better it goes to an adult plus child user. He was quite excited about this as he gets tandems rarely.
2Delivered pretty much as we got it it. Far beyond my ability to figure out... well most things on it. The two chief items being how to make the rear brake function and how to give it gears suitable for this part of the world. Needs selling on to someone in Norfolk or the Netherlands.
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A relative asked me to deliver his BSO to a very nice chap nearby who checks such things over & sells them with all profits going to the local hospice. This led to the 'tween household becoming n-2 as I've subsequently delivered our tandem1 and ex-electric trike2 to the same chap. 'Nice to get machines in good order for a change' he quoth.
Between deliveries 1 & 2 said very nice chap received a message from the Hospice, the total from his fund raising efforts has just passed £57k :o In just 4 years :o :o
1I spent a fair chunk of time & money getting it in good order but it's never going to be usable by two adults without upgrading a hell of a lot of parts to cope with the mass. Everything on it is standard bike parts. Better it goes to an adult plus child user. He was quite excited about this as he gets tandems rarely.
2Delivered pretty much as we got it it. Far beyond my ability to figure out... well most things on it. The two chief items being how to make the rear brake function and how to give it gears suitable for this part of the world. Needs selling on to someone in Norfolk or the Netherlands.
This guy: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2022/jul/04/people-making-a-difference-pushbike-paul-the-man-whos-restored-thousands-of-bikes-to-fund-a-hospice?
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This is news, apparently
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/jan/09/entrenched-car-culture-leaves-millions-of-britons-in-transport-poverty
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My in laws went to my sister in laws for Christmas. Her brother in law was also there and apparently bought expensive Christmas crackers. This resulted in my in laws giving us two sets of bike lights. Just the kinds rubber ones that take 2032 batteries but better then the usual tat you get in crackers
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Some [“Uncle Monty” – The Invigilator] has cut through one of the Sheffield stands outside Mr Sainsbury’s House of Toothy Comestibles. Natch I only discovered this when unlocking the Perfectly Good Gentleman’s Mountain Bicycle after finishing my weekly visit to thee Temple ov
Doom Capitalism.
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My phone got so cold during today’s ride it switched itself off, then lied about the remaining charge (16%) when I rebooted it. Plugged it in when home: 85%.
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https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-europe-64354089 .
Shows how far behind cycle infrastructure in the UK is. I love the big trike :thumbsup:
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https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-europe-64354089 .
Shows how far behind cycle infrastructure in the UK is. I love the big trike :thumbsup:
The final comment is pretty good too.
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BBC News showing a piece on Tanks For Ukraine, during which a chap on a large-wheeled unicycle rode past a T-34 on display in Berlin.
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The Mgt of Mr Sainsbury’s House of Toothy Comestibles has finally done something about the sawn-through Sheffield Stand at my local branch, viz. wrapped the b0rked part in hazard tape. I'm sure this will be more than enough to send the tea-leaves of E4 scurrying up the road to Morrisons.
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What with diversity in cycling having been a hot forum topic recently, I thought I'd mention that today I saw a middle-aged Sikh riding an electric cargo trike (tadpole variety). No idea what he was cargoing, I'm afraid.
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(https://i.imgur.com/N1ngY8P.mp4)
Source (https://imgur.com/gallery/G309skp)
Cudzo mentioned diversity in cycling.
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That's brilliant!
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That is certainly a diverse form of cycling!
But I wonder if it's as inefficient as the poster seems to think it is? Wouldn't the use of gearing make it a more efficient form of rowing, just like cycling is more efficient than walking?
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Interesting question. Obviously a propeller is a more efficient way to convert rotary motion into movement through water than paddles, but presumably cycling is a more efficient way to get mechanical motion out of a human than rowing, if only because you're not accelerating all that mass forwards and backwards with every stroke. I wouldn't be surprised if there's a bio-mechanical advantage to using leg muscles to do all the work, too.
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Interesting question. Obviously a propeller is a more efficient way to convert rotary motion into movement through water than paddles, but presumably cycling is a more efficient way to get mechanical motion out of a human than rowing, if only because you're not accelerating all that mass forwards and backwards with every stroke. I wouldn't be surprised if there's a bio-mechanical advantage to using leg muscles to do all the work, too.
Rowing with a sliding seat is mostly about leg power, the arms and torso make only a small contribution. Although human-powered hydrofoils are pedal powered so there is probably an advantage to pedalling.
Competive rowing has a UCI like governing body that limits technology: boats where the feet and oar pivots slide while the seat remains fixed have been developed, They did prove to be a bit faster, but are banned in competition. Competitive rowing technology is a bit like competitive cycling technology, nobody really knows what design is best; even apparently simple things like the best shape for the oar blade.
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A rower will be along in a minute – but doesn't rowing, if done properly, use pretty much the whole body?
Ed: Was typing while philip was posting above!
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How will he stop?
Where.Are.The.Brakes?!!!
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And where's his magic hat?
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And no high viz !!!
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(https://cdn.masto.host/tootwales/media_attachments/files/110/039/779/194/526/883/original/65cedf558bcf0d69.jpg)
A chap who now lives in the Llandysul house that we lived in 12 years ago, turned over an old piece of metal he found on a small piece of wasteland yards from the house.
Wish I'd seen it back in the day, perhaps there might have been a little more of it left.
Hudson Cycles Birmingham.
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^^^
And thanks to Wowbagger for patiently explaining how to post images direct from Mastodon.
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A relative asked me to deliver his BSO to a very nice chap nearby who checks such things over & sells them with all profits going to the local hospice. This led to the 'tween household becoming n-2 as I've subsequently delivered our tandem1 and ex-electric trike2 to the same chap. 'Nice to get machines in good order for a change' he quoth.
Between deliveries 1 & 2 said very nice chap received a message from the Hospice, the total from his fund raising efforts has just passed £57k :o In just 4 years :o :o
1I spent a fair chunk of time & money getting it in good order but it's never going to be usable by two adults without upgrading a hell of a lot of parts to cope with the mass. Everything on it is standard bike parts. Better it goes to an adult plus child user. He was quite excited about this as he gets tandems rarely.
2Delivered pretty much as we got it it. Far beyond my ability to figure out... well most things on it. The two chief items being how to make the rear brake function and how to give it gears suitable for this part of the world. Needs selling on to someone in Norfolk or the Netherlands.
This guy: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2022/jul/04/people-making-a-difference-pushbike-paul-the-man-whos-restored-thousands-of-bikes-to-fund-a-hospice?
No but similar. Les is the gent on the left:
https://www.foresthub.co.uk/community-news/kw-bell-helps-les-to-keep-raising-money-for-charity
That's the only link I can find other than ones to bookface, none of which work on a browser with privacy set to ODFO.
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Properly proud of the eldest monkey who did bikeability level 3 yesterday at school
Apparently she helped the instructor who didn't know the area very well and was riding at the front when an ambulance needed to come through. Not sure if she was instructed to or not but lead over to the path while buses moved over on opposite side of the road to allow ambulance through
Apparently one of the bus drivers shouted well done little girl to her as they got back on the road after ambulance had gone through
She also helped the instructor pronounce some of the road names which are unique to our town
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:thumbsup:
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\o/
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I just found my old Cycling Proficiency certificate.
Gosh 61 years ago this week.
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And are you still proficient?
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Hell yeah!
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And for those wondering. Obviously one could take the proficiency test at aged 3 in those days. O:-)
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And for those wondering. Obviously one could take the proficiency test at aged 3 in those days. O:-)
Nice try Grandad, you ain't fooling us with that.
Has the little one arrived yet, you can update the other thread if you prefer
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Has the little one arrived yet, you can update the other thread if you prefer
Not yet. 2 days before assumed due date still
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I saw one of the yellow Yo! hire bikes yesterday, a couple of years after they were all supposedly withdrawn. It appeared to belong to, or be in use by,* one of the homeless people who sit outside the little Sainsbury's. It also appeared to have been fished out of the docks.
*Presumably in legal terms it still belongs to the Yo! people but I don't suppose they'll want it back.
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What are Genesis up to? Building frames like a Boss. Loadsa bosses actually.
https://www.genesisbikes.co.uk/framesets
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Bosses are useful. I was wondering when frames started being sold with seat posts and stems, but looking at the specs, it seems those are 'for illustration only'.
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Cycling notes: resist the temptation to take liquids – archive, 1895
29 April 1895: Constantly drinking can cause uncomfortable heat while riding, plus tips on hill climbing and using a hairpin for small repairs (https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2023/apr/28/cycling-resist-the-temptation-to-take-liquids-1895)
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It's what they used to use before they invented cable ties.
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Which leads to the obvious question, when was the first recorded instance of a cable tie being used to hold an elaborate hairdo in place? I'll be mightily disappointed if someone otp hasn't done it.
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I became a bikeabilty trainer with Cycling Scotland (after a 4 day course) today :)
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I became a bikeabilty trainer with Cycling Scotland (after a 4 day course) today :)
:thumbsup:
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I became a bikeabilty trainer with Cycling Scotland (after a 4 day course) today :-)
Well done. I have seen for myself the joyful launch of youngsters and indeed elder folk on their bikes after a bikeability session as our Sustrans guy at the time was a Bikeability bod.
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Today was "LBS day". One of those things it might have made more sense to publicise before the event not after, but it probably doesn't make much difference.
https://road.cc/content/news/local-bike-shop-day-2023-300935
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Someone has decided to ride the Hellenic Mountain Race on a cargo bike.
(https://bikepacking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Levente-2023-hmr-rigs-1536x1024.jpg)
I decided to put a challenge in the already challenging inaugural edition of the HMR, and opted to do it on a Ten:07 Unicorn Cargo Bike. I believe that cargo bikes are the missing link between cars and bikes and if I manage to pull this out, I hope there will be more people going for cargos rather than second or third cars. This bike right here is transfrankenstein’ed with a few parts from my fully, like the whole 29″ rear wheel (which fit snuggly in the 28″ frame), shifting system and cockpit. Other than that it’s the stock model, without the fenders and I believe the kickstand will remain home as well. The bike already had a full SON lightning system on it. Oh, and I’ve upped the discs to 180. I really think that there are not many mountain cargos with TT bars running around with a purpose.
https://bikepacking.com/bikes/2023-hellenic-mountain-race-rigs/
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I am going up the Smoke for a test ride of a Tern GSD next Tuesday. ;D
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I am going up the Smoke for a test ride of a Tern GSD next Tuesday. ;D
A most excellent test riding session on four bikes and four different gear options, although I am only interested in hub geared and belt drive systems so I had to mix and match to test all the bits.
My Edge tour has borkened. :'( After a long(ish) service, 6 years I think, the on/off button has disintegrated, and although it's no longer weather proof it can still be turned on/off with a dexterous digit and suitably pointy nail to shove in its innards to probe the switch.
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I "stole" my wife's bike today. As usual she only contacts me during the day if I need to do something. I get a message saying she'd snapped key in bike lock. Was outside school which thankfully is 2 minutes from a mate who has tools so skived off work a bit early, picked up a set of bolt cutters and an battery angle grinder and went for bike
The lock was never something I'd trust with a decent bike but was maybe 20mm thick, turned out about 15mm of that was the rubber coating. The cutters went through like a lie through Boris johnsons lips
Hardest part was dismantling to get in back of colleagues fiesta van as she'd borrowed my work transit to do some deliveries that wouldn't fit in her van.
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Musing on gearing: I've just been reading about the Giro.
Judging by yesterday’s finale – which saw Roglič surge past Thomas at the death to chip three seconds off the Welshman’s lead – the Jumbo-Visma rider’s Cervélo R5’s rear cassette has been swapped out for SRAM’s XPLR XG-1271, part of a gravel and off-road oriented subdivision of the brand’s top-tier Red groupset, which offers 10-44t gearing at the back.
The gravel cassette is 1x compatible only, forcing Roglič to opt for a single chainring up front, leaving him with the option of anywhere between 38t and 46t. While it’s not yet been confirmed what size of front ring the Slovenian has opted for, most onlookers have concluded that it should be around 44t.
https://road.cc/content/tech-news/primoz-roglic-uses-gravel-gearing-decisive-giro-tt-301511
They then discuss the advantages of this set-up in terms of chainline, aerodynamics, yada yoda, but what struck me was the ratio. That's a bottom gear of 44 x 44, 1:1, about 27". For a superbly fit, massively powerful athlete at the peak of his performance, riding a bike that weighs less than a discarded inner tube. And carrying no luggage, bar a water bottle, if you can even call that luggage. The steepest parts of the climb reach 22%, which is very steep, but in most parts of the world you don't have to go far to find a hill of similar gradient. So why don't road bikes as sold to the general public come with such gearing as standard? It would be helpful.
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Deposit paid, and I should be collecting a sage green Tern GSD S00 Gen2 in about a fortnight. 8)
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So having obtained a Bobbin shopper, I'm thinking of converting the bike to a mini velo style bike, with gravel bars and a 3 speed bar end shifter. Now trying to source tyres...
Oh and the standard front rack. Anyone know of any for sale?
So found a moulton f frame on facebook and due to a plan change I can't collect this afternoon/evening.... as I am all about the small wheels now ;)
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I like Thomas https://www.cyclingnews.com/news/thomas-de-gendt-set-to-miss-tour-de-france-for-12-day-cycling-trip/
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I thought Headbangersaurus belgicae was planning on retiring at the end of last season, which just goes to show something although I'm sure I don’t know what.
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So having obtained a Bobbin shopper, I'm thinking of converting the bike to a mini velo style bike, with gravel bars and a 3 speed bar end shifter. Now trying to source tyres...
Oh and the standard front rack. Anyone know of any for sale?
So found a moulton f frame on facebook and due to a plan change I can't collect this afternoon/evening.... as I am all about the small wheels now ;)
You forgot to say what colour ::-).
I decided to put brand new Marathon Plus tyres on my tourer. Wish me luck. I’m going in.
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I found that there is a list of members of the Cape Wrath Fellowship. I found myself there - 2011!
https://www.cyclinguk.org/article/cape-wrath-fellowship-members
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On the basis that many don't visit the Review board (includes me), but some may be looking for a kid trailer, here's my review of the Allen https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=126243.0 TL;DR - stonking value
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I just learned of a docu-film about Greg LeMond, "The Last Rider" which was released in USA y'day and coming to "on demand" platforms in August. Hope that means either Netflix or Prime.
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Cycling home from allotment yesterday evening two exemplary overtakes by a poo tanker and a van from the same company. Roe environmental for the record. Both drivers waited and went fully over centre line. Messaged company to praise drivers which I know shouldn't be necessary but I'd complain if was a bad overtake so works both ways
Looked in their Facebook page this morning and they recently did a cycle awareness course which appears to have worked.
Edit got a lovely reply from a member of the family who run it thanking me, saying she's a cyclist so it's drummed into the staff ans has passed on my thanks
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If you are planning to travel in the Barmouth area take note:
https://www.expressandstar.com/news/2023/08/28/barmouths-iconic-viaduct-closes-for-30-million-restoration/ (https://www.expressandstar.com/news/2023/08/28/barmouths-iconic-viaduct-closes-for-30-million-restoration/)
We were there for a week a month back, on the Fairbourne side of the estuary and did notice a build up of activity at the end of the viaduct.
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Led the local CTC group ride yesterday. A 54km route from Lockerbie with lunch at Eskdalemuir hub. I rode out to the start and home after the ride. 88km in total. My first 89km/50 mile plus ride since lat April before being diagnosed with PMR. Tired today though.
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:thumbsup:
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Have a look at this, love the disc brake, going to see if have any in my spares box. Do wish people would stop using butchers bikes for displays though and use them for cycling and delivering
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/in-pictures-66658979
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Have a look at this, love the disc brake, going to see if have any in my spares box.
Better than taping gel to it would be those melty beads the craftists use for stained glass effect jewelery type stuff. You could do all the small gaps...
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Random bike noise no. 761b.
This morning, Jan's crochet pal Dennis came round for some routine bike maintenance. He had an intermittent front wheel puncture which turned out to be the valve coming loose from its moorings. New tube time. It was at that point he learned, from me, that he can no longer go to Wilko's for his cheap inner tubes as they have gone bust. He went to a proper bike shop instead.
The bike in question is a very basic steel-framed steel-wheeled Falcon that I gave him about 7 years ago. It sees daily use and is his means of getting about. We bought it new for our older daughter when she was in the later part of her secondary schooling. She's now 42, so that gives an idea of its age.
After a considerable effort, I managed to get the new tube in, the tyre settled and inflated. It's a pretty skinny tyre and it took quite a bit of effort on my part, and I employed my special tyre lever to put it back on - that worked very well. I bunged the wheel back in and he took it out for a test ride. "It's making an odd noise!" he said, when he returned. He had recorded the noise on his phone, and it was too indistinct to be sure what it was. I took it for a ride and it did indeed make an odd noise - the sort of noise that a newly-built wheel makes when its spokes settle. But it happened all the time when the bike was under load, not just on the first few revolutions.
I couldn't think of anything at all that I had done to make this noise suddenly appear and I couldn't see anything catching in the spokes. On a whim, I took the bike back home and simply turned the front wheel round. I took it out for another ride, and the noise had gone.
That's a new one on me: I'm sure it was spoke noises, but I can't really understand why in one direction, but not the other.
Can the panel advise why the spokes would make noise in one direction and not the other? Bear in mind it's a cheap, crap front wheel that's been on the bike since about 1994.
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Speaking of random bike noises, I found myself behind a person on a decent-looking road bike that was making a noise almost but not quite like a horse in second gear. As I drew closer, I deduced this was probably related to the rear wheel, which looked distinctly off true. What was notable was that he was riding in a manner completely inappropriate for limping home with a dodgy wheel.
I turned off before he collapsed in a tangle of aero spokes and carbon fibre.
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I suspect someone needs to introduce this lad to Audax (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-suffolk-66735917)
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T'other day the eBrute went through the 11111 km mark. Should've got a pic but was on a hill and didn't want to lose wellie.
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Cycling home from allotment yesterday evening two exemplary overtakes by a poo tanker and a van from the same company. Roe environmental for the record. Both drivers waited and went fully over centre line. Messaged company to praise drivers which I know shouldn't be necessary but I'd complain if was a bad overtake so works both ways
Looked in their Facebook page this morning and they recently did a cycle awareness course which appears to have worked.
Edit got a lovely reply from a member of the family who run it thanking me, saying she's a cyclist so it's drummed into the staff ans has passed on my thanks
:thumbsup:
Positive reinforcement is very much a good thing. If the drivers feel their efforts are appreciated, they're more likely to stick to the good habits.
I contacted a local coach operator recently for similar - I live on a road that is twisty and narrow in places, with several blind crests and bends. The driver hung back until forward visibility was genuinely good enough to ensure he could overtake safely, which meant waiting patiently for several hundred metres of road (and I wasn't going fast at all), and when he did overtake he gave me plenty of room.
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In similar vein, I had an overtake today by, of all things, a camper van, that was so patient and then so wide that I felt compelled to give them a wave I hope they saw in their mirror. In fact I don't think I had a single bad pass the whole ride, but then the sun is shining and I had panniers.
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In similar vein, I had an overtake today by, of all things, a camper van, that was so patient and then so wide that I felt compelled to give them a wave I hope they saw in their mirror. In fact I don't think I had a single bad pass the whole ride, but then the sun is shining and I had panniers.
I always give a wave or thumbs up when there has been an obvious safe overtake. The subsequent
couple of cars behind who witness it (feel guilty) will generally give a wide berth.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3yQbT9tunFo&ab_channel=UnveilingTheAmazing
I'm not sure if this deserves a thread of its own or not. But a game demanding a remarkable range of skills.
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Travelling home yesterday on the train with two of The Blokes at the end of our European long weekend. This means there are three bikes stacked in the space by the disabled loo: The Pretty Bike (Bob Jackson Vulcan which is a Curly Hetchins copy , BRG with decorative lugs, contrasting head tube and other loveliness), a Spesh Sirus and a dark green Cannondale e assist lump of a step through tourer.
Enter stage left the Train Manager, full of admiration: "Whose is the British Racing Green" my ears prick up "Canondale? It's gorgeous ". Ears prick back down again.
No soul, some people.
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My new bike is delayed and probably won't arrive until the end of the week... :(
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The wife's chain came off her bike this morning before leaving for school run which is then followed by cycling to work
I was at work by this point and eldest had left for big school so the wife took my bike. This was interesting as mines a drop bar tourer with bar end shifters and saddle at correct height for me (although with women having longer legs and her being not much shorter then me probably OK for her)
She said was hard which it would be with her never having ridden a drop bar and also the bar end shifter had got knocked so was on the smallest cog at back and with a fairly big middle ring on the triple front would have taken some pushing for school run with youngest speeds
She then sent me a picture of eldest who got home from school and despite having fake nails from a wedding at weekend had fixed in no time.
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Bringing them up right there! :thumbsup:
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Trying to fit in 25 hilly miles in the hour and a half while smileyson minor was at cubs, I descended, at speed, in the dark and wet, a road I haven't ridden for several years. Potholes took me by surprise and I was rewarded with a flat rear tyre, and my already fragile rear mudguard was shaken to pieces. Electrical tape and a bit of epoxy will fix most of it, but I've lost a bolt. Any idea what size the little allenhead bolt at the base of the mudguard stays might be? SKS Raceblade Longs - no info on their website.
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The one that attaches the stay to the threaded lug on the bike? M5.
I've got loads.
I've also got the slidy nut and bolt combo that attach the guard to the stay
Where can I send them?
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Yesterday I saw the young bloke next door teaching his small daughter to ride a bike. This brightened my day no end.
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The one that attaches the stay to the threaded lug on the bike? M5.
I've got loads.
I've also got the slidy nut and bolt combo that attach the guard to the stay
Where can I send them?
It was the slidy nut and bolt combo I meant; thank you very much for the offer, but while riding home last night, lamenting how much more it was disintegrating en route, it occurred to me that I can sub in the complete mudguard stay set from my old front mudguard (the old rear one having died a death after the bike came off the car roof on the way to the start of LEL). And my wife thinks I'm a hoarder, whereas prudent spares storage means that I've just saved myself £40 on a replacement set
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the old rear one having died a death after the bike came off the car roof on the way to the start of LEL)
Ouch. That must have been a bit traumatic.
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yes, yes it was. at 50mph on a dual carriageway, but apart from the mudguard, bent mech hanger, and a pulverised be-seen front light, no lasting damage
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Waiting for friends to turn up for a ride t'other night and three riders went past me, greetings exchanged. I then noticed two od the group had really long gaps in the flashes of their rear lights. Is there any reason for this other then them being one of those sensing lights
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Presumably so the manufacturer can claim they last 500,000 hours while also being visible from 100 miles away.
I’m not sure anyone really cares about that nowadays unless they run off button cells.
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Perhaps a daytime mode?
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Out on the Pino yesterday on a shared use path, we approached some pedestrians
"Shall I ring the bell?" asked my Young Lady
"Yes. One ping only"
She wondered why I was attempting to sound like Sean Connery.
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Apropos of nothing, the first time I drove a Nissan Leaf with barakta on board, I issued the command to "Engage battery system and make revolutions for 20 knots", which, predictably, had the same effect.
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Out on the Pino yesterday on a shared use path, we approached some pedestrians
"Shall I ring the bell?" asked my Young Lady
"Yes. One ping only"
She wondered why I was attempting to sound like Sean Connery.
You didn't add "Vaseline".
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It's freshertime. Hordes of uni-zombies wandering around half-lost, unable to proceed faster than two paces a minute, etc. But I've just chanced on a Bike Register scheme set up to deal with the cyclo-studes, so got some fancy stickers for my bike too.
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I remember Fresher's Week 1965 in Edinburgh. Not much of it, though; but then that was already the case the week after.
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road.cc is not the grass roots pub it started off as, but all those years of having them in my feed was worth it, just to be notified about Chris Froome's send up of Bentley ad. https://road.cc/content/news/cycling-live-blog-25-september-2023-304065
Do watch with sound. It is worth it.
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https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=56363.msg2837908#msg2837908
Arising from the above, chap is back with more front wheel noises. This time, it's the bearings, I'm sure - the old-fashioned sort which need to be settled one at a time in a bed of grease. He's gone to the bike shop to buy a new front wheel, this time with an alloy rim. I found one in the garage with a Wolber rim and a Campag Record Sport hub, and a little hole to drip your 3-in-1 oil in when necessary, but I'm, certain that's 27" and came off the vintage 1960 Mercian I bought from a forummer many moons ago somewhere near Worksop.
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A small random question. I have just put these tyres on my local Freecycle https://www.trekbikes.com/gb/en_GB/equipment/cycling-components/bike-tyres/gravel-and-cyclocross-bike-tyres/bontrager-gr1-team-issue-gravel-tyre/p/24706/ (https://www.trekbikes.com/gb/en_GB/equipment/cycling-components/bike-tyres/gravel-and-cyclocross-bike-tyres/bontrager-gr1-team-issue-gravel-tyre/p/24706/)
and a guy responded saying he'd like them for his e-bike. I know nothing about e-bike suitable tyres, beyond that the only tyres in our stable which are labelled "e-bike ready" are sturdy beaded things like 20" Marathon plus. Luckily someone else wanted the tyres so I could turn this guy down without being rude. These tyres are folding and seem somewhat floppy - I can imagine them not being up to the torque of an e-bike, and a brief Google suggests that's right. But it's hard to sift through the advertorial and maybe I'm barking up the wrong tree. So just a general question out of interest: are there tyres that you would avoid using on an e-bike?
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So just a general question out of interest: are there tyres that you would avoid using on an e-bike?
Bear in mind that many bike tyres are made in countries where it's legal to use higher performance e-bikes than the 25kph/250W pedalecs we have on the road.
But I think it's mainly marketing nonsense. On the basis that there's nothing an e-bike does that either a) a laden touring/utility bike or b) a sport bike ridden by a sufficiently powerful and fearless rider doesn't do.
In my mind the main e-bike specific consideration would be puncture-resistance where there's an awkward-to-remove hub motor involved. But in general it does make sense that if you don't care about the weight of the bike so much, you might as well have sturdier tyres.
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Jan and I decided to use a tandem today, but since it's a year since we've ridden one, and the Thorn really needs some attention because the pilot's right crank has decided loosen itself repeatedly, I got the Circe out. It was at that point that I realised that Some Nefarious Git has been in our garage.
We have an old-fashioned up-and-over garage door, with a solitary catch in the middle at the top. It's not at all difficult to open these from the outside, so I've taken to putting robust bits of metal in the way of the door, by hanging them over the spring. But when I got into the garage via the side door today, and wanted to open the up-and-over door from the inside, I found that my homespun "security" devices had been moved. Whoever had been in, it certainly wasn't that recently because there were some quite advanced cobwebs all over the place. As you have probably surmised, dear reader, we don't go in our garage very often and it's full of TPCs dating back a decade or more.
I had a bicycle count, and I couldn't see anything missing that would have upset me if it wasn't there. Both tandems are secured by our Docsquid Ground Anchor. The 1960 Mercian was still there, and the Ridgeback I bought for my daughter, and she didn't ride very much, was also there. So I extricated the Circe and took it up to the house for some TLC before riding. I discovered that the front tyre was flat, so pumped it up, and also that the rear brake needed more fluid, as squeezing the lever made no difference at all. But by the time the brake fluid level was OK, the tyre had gone flat again. We abandoned our ride and went in the car instead.
I've just fixed the puncture. It was quite a signifiant perforation through the side wall, and clearly wasn't there last time we rode the bike. I think it was inflicted on our bike by whoever it was who effected an entrance some time ago. It seems OK now.
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To the little shitebag who stole my brand new Lezyne pump and front light when locked up in Woolwich today. A pox upon you.
If you really are so hard up that selling a pump for a couple of quid stops you going hungry then fair play.
But I suspect you are a thieving little shite and I hope the pump fails you when you need it most.
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Might have bagged an audax bike with Campag Veloce groupset for £90. It's built on a Quest Audax aluminum frame. Be nice to have a 'fastish' bike again that can take full mudguards.
Seller seems to be legit (when I asked to confirm the frame size he sent me a diagram he'd drawn with all the measurements). It needs a 'gear service' so I'll take that to mean it needs a new cassette and a new chain.
That means I'm back up to three bikes. Space is tight so that means possibly letting the old hybrid go.
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Last night (when in car) I drove passed someone cycling, with no bike lights or reflectives, on a busy nthbd A34 (DCwy) just before Oxford. :o :o Never seen anyone cycling that stretch before.
The only person I know to use that stretch is/was Cycleman, he once came to visit and despite detailed directions to Kidlington went "astray", when I finally contacted him my knees wibbled and I went a tad faint as he uttered the words on his mobile (above the traffic roar) A34
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A nice quiet lane as I recall it :demon:
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A nice quiet lane as I recall it :demon:
The man on a fixie I was chatting to (I had asked him had he seen someone on a two and a half wheeled trike) uttered the most amazing stream of omg and wtf etc etc when we were speaking and you said the magic words "I'm on the A34"
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;D
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I used to live in a house straight off the A34 and thus cycled on it almost daily. That was nearer the northern-most end of it though.
I've picked up the £90 Audax bike. The seller was absolutely genuine - doesn't have storage for it any longer. Much relief about it not being stolen etc..
It's build on one of these (https://www.questbikes.co.uk/acatalog/Quest-Training-Audax-Frameset-69.html) framesets. A quick inspection has turned up a couple of issues - but nothing to make any fuss about at that kind of price.
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Twice in the past 10 or so days have rung my bell when approaching dog walkers on shared paths and been thanked
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I had a sort of clipless moment yesterday afternoon but managed to stop myself hitting the deck by inelegantly shoulder barging/head butting the back of a Range Rover :-[
The occupants were concerned about me (I was just embarrassed) but not in the slightest bit concerned about their car - which I think I had merely scuffed a bit of muck off :thumbsup:
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Got gritted cycling home tonight. TBF didn't actually feel the grit hit but my lips were very salty and didn't see them stop spreading as they passed
More evidence the bike needs a dam good clean on weekend
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In January I have spent pretty much exactly a day on my bike. 23hrs and 40ish minutes recorded on Strava and have been a few short rides I've not logged. Would get more monthly breakdown of distances if went premium but for now it's just YTD
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I've ridden a lot this winter, certainly over 1000km in all conditions and my poor bikes showing it. Had to WD40 (my proper spray lube is at work) the rear brake cable as starting to seize.
Less then a fortnight till get two weeks off and giving the bike a full service is on the list
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https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc3M8CbLHBhsadVHayZljMT75BvU550nDNiH5La3hbKxVzBLA/viewform?fbzx=-3224727202165449160
A shit petition, allegedly launched by Tower Hamlets Council.
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https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc3M8CbLHBhsadVHayZljMT75BvU550nDNiH5La3hbKxVzBLA/viewform?fbzx=-3224727202165449160
A shit petition, allegedly launched by Tower Hamlets Council.
Anonymously ?
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Cycled into work yesterday (see on the commute thread). Good job really as one of the other staff collered me and asked if I had. He runs tubeless and had a fairly major puncture which had sealed but couldn't get much pressure with his tiny saddlebag pump. I have one that clips onto a bracket fitted unset the bottle cage so much easier to get a good pressure