Pedal Power Thread

TopBanana said:
My new bike should be waiting for me when I get home (assuming my wife agreed to sign for it :lol:). Don't think I'll be venturing out onto the roads for quite a while though - would probably go up and down the kitchen a couple of times though to try it :D
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Similar here Tim

Picked up my new bike last weekend as well as my youngests and then my wife's new bike on Wednesday all ready for a weekend family outing etc.:shake:

Oh well, off to sledge and snowball instead - happy days :)
 
Good point - there's the rest of the year for cycling whereas we only get a handful of days of sledging and snowball fights!
 
TopBanana said:
Don't think I'll be venturing out onto the roads for quite a while though - would probably go up and down the kitchen a couple of times though to try it :D
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TriggerHappy said:
The roads have been so icy I genuinely wouldn't feel safe and now I'm looking out the window at 4 inches of snow!
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A bit of snow and ice is no reason to stay indoors ;) :lol:

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chris321 said:
A bit of snow and ice is no reason to stay indoors ;) :lol:
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It is if you ride a road bike with 25mm slicks surrounded by un-gritted country roads ;)

Good photos though! I'm guessing you were behind the camera and not on the bike?
 
Commuted to work Tuesday on a later shift, so cycled back at 10pm, but only 7 miles or so each way. Still undecided on a new bike, but got some tights for the first time ever and really felt the difference. Just had a merino wool top and a windproof jacket on, was pretty hot by the time I got home. Not cycled since though....Great thing about London commuting when it's a bit colder \ raining is there are so many fewer cyclists on the road compared to normal, and even less that overtake you when you are waiting at the lights and then accelerate at 1mph.
 
You will love the Hans Dampf i run them all year round now, such a great all round tyre.
 
TriggerHappy said:
I often check there to see what their prices are. So often they offer absolute bargains compared to elsewhere. Never actually ordered from them yet though so let me know what the delivery time is like if you would.
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I buy bits from 'em all the time - usually (and outside freak weather conditions obviously) orders placed before Lunchtime have been with me the following day if it's something jiffy-bag sized, parcels maybe the day after. And if they do ever screw up (it's possible - they are human) one quick email and they'll arrange correct delivery and collection of the stuff sent in error.

Happened to me a few months ago - ordered a new pair of Sidi's and a set of SPD cleats to go with 'em, Next day a big and suspiciously heavy box arrived. The picker has sent a "outer" of SPD cleats (a box of 10 pairs of them).

I dropped them an email, they were a) effusive in their thanks for my being honest and b) great in sorting the problem - asked when it would be convenient to collect - and if it'd help they'd arrange it from my works or wherever. As I work from home it was no bother, so as instructed I removed the 1 pair of cleats I ordered, taped up the box and it was collected the following day. 2 days later, email arrived with a £30 voucher as a "thankyou"

Cracking company - highly recommended ;)
 
Excellent, good to hear positive opinions of a company! I hope they serve you well :)
 
TriggerHappy said:
Excellent, good to hear positive opinions of a company! I hope they serve you well :)
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yeah im happy, most people say they arrive next day but i can only imagine there is a backlog due to the weather. i know southampton docks was shut over the weekend for example.

wouldnt hesitate to purchase more from them. wonder what prices they have on forks..
 
What forks do you have, i have loads of clearance with marz 66 and hans dampf, hoping my new lyriks will have enough room.
 
Cant wait for my new forks to come but not looking forward to taking my frame to the LBS to get the new tapered bottom cup put in.
 
I have thought about doing it myself, can make my own for about £2m suppose i could use a screwdriver and hammer to knock the old one out.

Doesn't matter now though TF Tuned got back this morning saying they sold the last one, there stock control sucks.
 
Beginning to wish i'd done something similar - bought a new frame before christmas, and all the "oily bits and contact points" in the post festive sales. Problem is, I've now a spanking new carbon flying machine with full Ultegra hanging in the spare room taunting me. I reckon it's going to be another 2 months before it'll be fit to take the damned thing out for a ride :(

Still managed to get my 800 mile badge in the Strava Base Mile Blast though - fortunately, i've got something less fancy for the winter training season.
 
Just completed my first ride since 1st of Jan after a very pathetic 2 months off. The country roads have been absolutely ruined by the bad weather. 2 foot deep sections of Tarmac have crumbled away from the edges of single track country lanes, leaving big pot holes, rubble everywhere and floods where I've never seen water lying before. Add to that howling winds and a rather hairy moment as I dropped down a steep section of road and my handlebars rotated down (my mistake for not tightening them enough last night) and I haven't had the best ride. Luckily I always carry a cycle tool so could straighten them up and continue on!

I did a short 9km but hilly ride which normally takes me 30 minutes. Today? 45 minutes :lol:
 
Very late to this thread but here is my enduro expert that i built from a frameset 12 years ago and still going strong.

Xt components (apart from deore front mech) and hope m4s

Sorry about the picture, a quick snap from phone before i headed out on my traditional xmas day mtb ride.

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Drift HD attached to handlebars to capture the inevitable stack! :)
 
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Am about to pull the trigger on my first road bike, an Orbea Aqua 105. Going for last year's model as it's about £300 cheaper than this years, and therefore also within my C2W scheme allowance. Was considering a CaaD 8 Tiagra as well but my local shots don't do them and I would prefer to buy locally.

It is in many ways totally irrational. It's main use will be for commuting (6-7 miles each way), on London roads. I also plan 1-2 triathlons this year but in no way shape or form will I be competing on any sort of decent level (though I hope to beat my brother and brother in law).

I really should be going for a CX bike. The Orbea only goes to 25mm, cannot have full mudguards. The CX makes sense on many levels.

But the Orbea looks nice and feels nice to ride (though not quite used to this odd riding position yet).

Anyone want to talk me out of it \ talk some sense into me? This is definitely a want over need.
 
I got fed up with the constant adjustments I had to make to the too many gears on my mountain bike so I now have a 1970s Hercules Balmoral with three speed Sturmey Archer hub gears.


Steve.
 
Steve Smith said:
I got fed up with the constant adjustments I had to make to the too many gears on my mountain bike so I now have a 1970s Hercules Balmoral with three speed Sturmey Archer hub gears.


Steve.
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You shouldn't have to make any adjustments once correctly set up. It's not uncommon for the cable to stretch in the early stages of use but once you set the inner and outer limit it should all work flawlessly unless there's a specific mechanical problem.
 
akr said:
Am about to pull the trigger on my first road bike, an Orbea Aqua 105. Going for last year's model as it's about £300 cheaper than this years, and therefore also within my C2W scheme allowance. Was considering a CaaD 8 Tiagra as well but my local shots don't do them and I would prefer to buy locally.

It is in many ways totally irrational. It's main use will be for commuting (6-7 miles each way), on London roads. I also plan 1-2 triathlons this year but in no way shape or form will I be competing on any sort of decent level (though I hope to beat my brother and brother in law).

I really should be going for a CX bike. The Orbea only goes to 25mm, cannot have full mudguards. The CX makes sense on many levels.

But the Orbea looks nice and feels nice to ride (though not quite used to this odd riding position yet).

Anyone want to talk me out of it \ talk some sense into me? This is definitely a want over need.
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CX are definitely the more versatile option, but if versatility is the aim then a mountain bike with locking suspension and a choice of knobbly and slick tyres opens the most doors. Orbeas are lovely bikes though, and the pleasure of riding a proper road bike makes it more than worthwhile if you have no intention of going onto any rough stuff. The only slight disadvantage is how the road bike handles ice because of the narrow, slick tyres, but on London roads that shouldn't be nearly as much of a problem as on country lanes.

For a full mudguard set have a look at this: http://www.wiggle.co.uk/crud-roadracer-mk2-mudguard-set/
It's a fiddly thing to install, but it doesn't require mudguard mounts, can fit on most road bikes and has very long blades to cover more of the wheel. They get rave reviews from most people. I intended to buy a set this winter but instead persevered without any at all. My back and shins get muddy but I don't care too much!

Basically, just go for it :D
 
My latest addition to my bike.

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Does anyone here use an indoor turbo trainer? After a winter that's absolutely ruined my riding and fitness I'm seriously considering adding some type of fluid turbo trainer so that I can keep up the exercise when the weather is miserable. I would love to hear people's opinions on them if you have any experience!
 
I was toying with getting some rollers (a fixed trainer won't work with my trek and its abp) and slicks. Supposed to be a bit more involved than fixed as you still have to balance.
 
I'm pretty much decided on getting one, it's more a case of which one! There's about 4 in my price bracket which all have different things going for them. I think I've decided against a set of rollers though.

Also, I know as soon as I get one I'm going to want a heart rate monitor and a speed/cadence sensor which is inevitably going to result in the purchase of something like a Garmin Edge 500 to replace using my iPhone to track my rides.
 
TriggerHappy said:
Does anyone here use an indoor turbo trainer? After a winter that's absolutely ruined my riding and fitness I'm seriously considering adding some type of fluid turbo trainer so that I can keep up the exercise when the weather is miserable. I would love to hear people's opinions on them if you have any experience!
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Definitely - i've a Tacx Genius system with one of the old roadbikes pretty much permanently rigged up in the garage from october onwards until we hit some decent weather (on last year's evidence, that'll be something like may for a week and a half!)

I went for the Genius because of the VR riding capabilities - strap the trainer to a laptop via Ant+ (same protocol that the Garmin 800 and power meter work on), fire up the training software, and you can be riding anywhere in the world. The software controls the resistance to emulate climbing/descending, and it takes the elevation profile from either

a) A pre-recorded .TCX file from a ride you've done yourself (or you've downloaded from t'internet, or created in mapping websites like mapmyride or gpsies.com) or

b) a pre-recorded DVD video route that Tacx produce, which are pretty stunning (especially of you've a video projector strapped to the laptop, and a big white wall in the garage facing the trainer bike)

This might seem like overkill, but at the moment I'm riding 3 days on, 1 day off, for a minimum of 2 hours a day - and frankly, trying to get out that often in the weather we're having at the moment is just not happening, and - well - frankly, 2 hours on a normal turbo or rollers is just soul destroying!

It's doing the trick though - my FTP's improved by 63% and I've dropped a little over 30kg from getting the trainer and properly training, rather than just riding my bike aimlessly.
 
TheBigYin said:
Definitely - i've a Tacx Genius system with one of the old roadbikes pretty much permanently rigged up in the garage from october onwards until we hit some decent weather (on last year's evidence, that'll be something like may for a week and a half!)

I went for the Genius because of the VR riding capabilities - strap the trainer to a laptop via Ant+ (same protocol that the Garmin 800 and power meter work on), fire up the training software, and you can be riding anywhere in the world. The software controls the resistance to emulate climbing/descending, and it takes the elevation profile from either

a) A pre-recorded .TCX file from a ride you've done yourself (or you've downloaded from t'internet, or created in mapping websites like mapmyride or gpsies.com) or

b) a pre-recorded DVD video route that Tacx produce, which are pretty stunning (especially of you've a video projector strapped to the laptop, and a big white wall in the garage facing the trainer bike)

This might seem like overkill, but at the moment I'm riding 3 days on, 1 day off, for a minimum of 2 hours a day - and frankly, trying to get out that often in the weather we're having at the moment is just not happening, and - well - frankly, 2 hours on a normal turbo or rollers is just soul destroying!

It's doing the trick though - my FTP's improved by 63% and I've dropped a little over 30kg from getting the trainer and properly training, rather than just riding my bike aimlessly.
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Systems like that are a little beyond my budget for now! I'm looking at spending £200-300 on either the Kurt Kinetic Road Machine, Cycleops Jet Fluid Pro or their Fluid 2.
 
I've had my Minoura RDA for a fews years but really don't use it enough.

I rode along to a youtube vid (full screen) on loop as it was only 7mins or so long. No doubt I could build up a playlist :lol:

How do you guys keep cool on the trainer? Floor standing or 'clip-on' fan?
 
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