Official P&b Cycling Thread

[Ingo ohne Flamingo]

On 25/04/2020 at 20:41, C. Muir said:

Running is a non starter for a lazy, unfit c**t like me so thought cycling would be the next best thing. The experienced riders (heh heh) on the thread will probably snigger at these times but first 5k the other day in 22:43 was bettered by tonights effort at 20:38. Don't know whether to keep trying to better that time over that distance or try and tackle longer distances. My first outing was actually a 10k in total (5 to destination, 5 back) but I only timed 5k of it. The 5k back was a slog at snails pace anyway as I was blowing out my arse!  

Folk are right about the difference in mental state though. Was bored out my skull earlier resulting in a downer of a mood; amazing what difference even a short outing of 20 mins makes.

You're quite lucky where you live that you're next to the canal. Canal routes are great for the simple reason they are flat. I got back into cycling at the start of Lockdown, started out with a 16k run out increasing that to 20k, I then pushed and pushed again and now I have a 26k route that I do every day at the very least. Takes me bang on an hour to do that but as others have mentioned I wouldn't get caught up on speed. 26km/h is quite slow compared to the seasoned cyclists. 

Try cycling to the Falkirk wheel and back, then do the Kelpies and back. Take as many breaks as you want, there's no rush. 

And your last point, absolutely! My knees aren't cut out for road running plus I find it incredibly boring so the bike is great, plenty of fresh air, see plenty of places, a nice escape from the house and ultimately your fitness improves. I've lost 6kg since Lockdown and despite swapping roll & bacon or Square for rice crispies and sprite for diluting juice plus reduced the off dairy milk, my food portion sizes have not changed and still eating the same stuff. 

Definitely get in to it. Last bit of advice and one I picked up on obly recently, make sure your saddle is at the correct height! Mines wasn't for a long time and my thighs were killing me. Sat on your saddle with your toe on the pedal you should have a slight bend at the knee, your leg should be straight with your heel on the peddle. What a difference that made!! 

[Ingo ohne Flamingo]

What bike tech have guys got? Currently I don't have anything but I would like a GPS computer with a cadence sensor but no idea what to get, also don't want to break the bank for it either. 

[die hard doonhamer]

1 hour ago, Ingo ohne Flamingo said:

What bike tech have guys got? Currently I don't have anything but I would like a GPS computer with a cadence sensor but no idea what to get, also don't want to break the bank for it either. 

I've just got a basic Garmin vivoactive smart watch. It's a jack of all trades that tracks cycling/running/swimming/golf. I want to get a cadence monitor though to give me something to constantly concentrate on (as well as either a mount to put my watch out in front of me, or a proper bike computer).

 

I went a bit further on Thursday, 22.65km in an hour and 7 minutes, my back was in bits by the end of it. Think I'll look to order a new bike this week or so, I've managed to talk myself up to going for the Croix De Fer 20 rather than the 10. My concern though is what size to order, according to the size chart I sit in the small overlap between the small and medium frame, would people tend to go bigger or smaller?

[dorlomin]

I use my phone and Strava. About as cheap  as it gets. 

[Benjamin_Nevis]

I got Wahoo Elemnt Bolt about 18 months ago which came with speed and cadence sensors. I think they're about £190 now

[Ingo ohne Flamingo]

3 hours ago, dorlomin said:

I use my phone and Strava. About as cheap  as it gets. 

Aye that's what I'm using just now. Seems to be doing the job. Definitely want a cadence sensor though and something to take my heartbeat.

[dorlomin]

1 minute ago, Ingo ohne Flamingo said:

Aye that's what I'm using just now. Seems to be doing the job. Definitely want a cadence sensor though and something to take my heartbeat.

HRM and cadence sensor can be picked up for about £30 or so online to hook up to a phone. You can get them and a GPS for the bike, but its probably north of £100 these days. 

 

[Ingo ohne Flamingo]

Decided to go for a bigger run out today. The Forth-Clyde Canal between Grangemouth and Maryhill is great but this was the first time on the Union Canal between Linlithgow and the Falkirk Wheel, probably be my last. The Avon Aqueduct however is stunning but the paths are too narrow and the bridges a pain in the arse.
 

Once lockdown is eased off I'm going to attempt Larbert to Largs and get the train back, eventually I want to see if I can manage a journey of around 200km!

[Bold Rover]

^^ I did the canal run in February a few years ago when those narrow paths and the canal itself were icy! Enjoyed it though, especially the aqueduct and the Falkirk tunnel.

[Ingo ohne Flamingo]

44 minutes ago, Bold Rover said:

^^ I did the canal run in February a few years ago when those narrow paths and the canal itself were icy! Enjoyed it though, especially the aqueduct and the Falkirk tunnel.

The Falkirk tunnel was really cool! Was half way through thinking it was dark as f**k and couldn't see anything, then remembered I had sunglasses on . Interesting to see that tunnel is nearly 200 years old

[printer]

I've been getting out regularly during lockdown as I'm WFH and have some days off. Built up to 100 miles a week (over 4 trips) and trying to hit that each week. Not done much for the six months before that and my body has complained a couple of time, but a few days rest soon sorts that.

Going out on Saturday and Sunday is great with the roads so quiet.

[Bairnardo]

34 km today which is my longest ride I have done. Really enjoyed it though despite the breeze being stiff and cold on some parts. Changed my route which provided welcome distraction.

Averaged 25km/h. Is that a respectable speed for pretty much a novice?

[Ingo ohne Flamingo]

1 hour ago, Bairnardo said:

34 km today which is my longest ride I have done. Really enjoyed it though despite the breeze being stiff and cold on some parts. Changed my route which provided welcome distraction.

Averaged 25km/h. Is that a respectable speed for pretty much a novice?

I range between 23 and 26 just now so I'd say 25 is good. I'm not a seasoned cycler though and it's a hybrid bike I have, not a road bike. 

Giving today a miss as I've got a shitload of things to do at home but hoping to get back out tomorrow. I'm quite enjoying these longer run outs. I set my Strava aim to 100km a week but last week I done 240km so will probably aim for 200km a week. 

[Gnash]

2 hours ago, Bairnardo said:

34 km today which is my longest ride I have done. Really enjoyed it though despite the breeze being stiff and cold on some parts. Changed my route which provided welcome distraction.

Averaged 25km/h. Is that a respectable speed for pretty much a novice?

Going out at any speed is respectable.  You're getting fitter and enjoying it too.  

If you're interested in where you compare against other people, you have to take age, gender, route difficulty etc. into account.  As a very rough guide, you'd probably fit into the middle group (of 5) of group rides that my bike club runs (or did before the lockdown).

[Bairnardo]

23 minutes ago, Gnash said:

Going out at any speed is respectable.  You're getting fitter and enjoying it too.  

If you're interested in where you compare against other people, you have to take age, gender, route difficulty etc. into account.  As a very rough guide, you'd probably fit into the middle group (of 5) of group rides that my bike club runs (or did before the lockdown).

Yeah dont get me wrong I'm not overly fussed about it and wont be pursuing speed at the expense of enjoyment. But in the end of the day I am doing it as part of my attempts to stave off lockdown rot and keep fit so I just want to make sure I know at least some benchmarks and have some aims. I want to get the distance up, to do that I need to improve my fitness, improve my knowledge of the cycle path network around me and also improve my confidence in road use, specially as they seem set to get busier again. 

[die hard doonhamer]

Cycle2work vouchers ordered, but can apparently take about 3 weeks to come through at my work, then the bike I want looks to have a delivery time of about a fortnight, so I've got at least another month before I get on my new bike.

I want it already!

[Hank Scorpio]

My bike desperately needs a service. Gears are jumping all over the place, especially when going up hill and I’m pedalling quite hard and the brakes need tightened up. Usually I’d just have a watch of some YouTube videos and have a stab at it but with it being my primary mode of transport to work and back every day and reluctant to try it incase I make an arse of it. Got out again last night and had a frustrating 20 miles with the above issues. I’m attempting 500 miles this month and last night took me to 245, so I’m pretty much on track in terms of how far through the month I am, but the gears issue is really fucking annoying.

[Bairnardo]

My bike desperately needs a service. Gears are jumping all over the place, especially when going up hill and I’m pedalling quite hard and the brakes need tightened up. Usually I’d just have a watch of some YouTube videos and have a stab at it but with it being my primary mode of transport to work and back every day and reluctant to try it incase I make an arse of it. Got out again last night and had a frustrating 20 miles with the above issues. I’m attempting 500 miles this month and last night took me to 245, so I’m pretty much on track in terms of how far through the month I am, but the gears issue is really fucking annoying.

I'm the same have posted about it loads on here but too scared to follow a video since if I f**k it up, I could come a cropper a long way from home!

While on the subject, my chain came off the other day and when I was sorting it I noticed some of the teeth on the front chain rings have either been worn or broken down to much smaller than they should be. My bike really hasnt done a lot of miles, is this normal or indicative of a problem?

[Benjamin_Nevis]

21 minutes ago, Hank Scorpio said:

My bike desperately needs a service. Gears are jumping all over the place, especially when going up hill and I’m pedalling quite hard and the brakes need tightened up. Usually I’d just have a watch of some YouTube videos and have a stab at it but with it being my primary mode of transport to work and back every day and reluctant to try it incase I make an arse of it. Got out again last night and had a frustrating 20 miles with the above issues. I’m attempting 500 miles this month and last night took me to 245, so I’m pretty much on track in terms of how far through the month I am, but the gears issue is really fucking annoying.

Sorting your gears can be as easy as a couple of turns on the barrel adjuster where the gear cable enters the rear dereailleur. I'm no bike mechanic but i was having issues with really a shitty shifts into bigger gears. A couple of turns on the barrel adjuster and it's fine. If that doesn't work, your gears need indexed most likely, which is a bit fiddlier, but still doable without any specialist tools. However for peace of mind, a local bike shop should be able to sort that in no time at all, and for not much money. 

9 minutes ago, Bairnardo said:

I'm the same have posted about it loads on here but too scared to follow a video since if I f**k it up, I could come a cropper a long way from home!

While on the subject, my chain came off the other day and when I was sorting it I noticed some of the teeth on the front chain rings have either been worn or broken down to much smaller than they should be. My bike really hasnt done a lot of miles, is this normal or indicative of a problem?

Your front chainrings shouldn't be wearing like that unless you've done a good few thousand miles. What groupset do you have? I've got a Shimano 105 R5800 on my old bike which has done 5000 miles and there's no wear on the front chainrings at all. Do you know what sort of mileage you've done?

If you don't de-grease and lube the chain regularly it'll collect road debris which over time will wear your components away, especially in the winter months. But if you've only done a handful of miles and bought the bike new I'd be asking the shop that sold you it some pretty searching questions. 

[Bairnardo]

2 minutes ago, Day of the Lords said:

Sorting your gears can be as easy as a couple of turns on the barrel adjuster where the gear cable enters the rear dereailleur. I'm no bike mechanic but i was having issues with really a shitty shifts into bigger gears. A couple of turns on the barrel adjuster and it's fine. If that doesn't work, your gears need indexed most likely, which is a bit fiddlier, but still doable without any specialist tools. However for peace of mind, a local bike shop should be able to sort that in no time at all, and for not much money. 

Your front chainrings shouldn't be wearing like that unless you've done a good few thousand miles. What groupset do you have? I've got a Shimano 105 R5800 on my old bike which has done 5000 miles and there's no wear on the front chainrings at all. Do you know what sort of mileage you've done?

If you don't de-grease and lube the chain regularly it'll collect road debris which over time will wear your components away, especially in the winter months. But if you've only done a handful of miles and bought the bike new I'd be asking the shop that sold you it some pretty searching questions. 

I did google this and read some folk saying the teeth on chain rings all look different by design and wear like this is borderline impossible. Someone had posted a pic which looked like mine and basically was told it's how it's meant to be, so maybe it's just my own lack of knowledge. It's all Shimano stuff on my bike, although I believe its lower end but still, I doubt it's that bad. 

I shall accept that explanation for now....