Official P&b Cycling Thread

[well fan for life]

Very much enjoyed the lad with his full DJ set up after the descent as well. Picked up the mood a fair bit. 

Was thinking about going for Caledonia as well next year which I've heard some good things about.

[The_Craig]

Anyone doing the Ride to the Sun this year? Has any P&Bers done it before? 

https://www.ridetothesun.co.uk/

I'm thinking about doing it as it sounds like a cracking event. I'm just waiting on my riding buddy letting me know if he's free that weekend. 

[Leith Green]

Did the route of the Tour of the Borders earlier today.

One of the climbs was an utter b*****d. Subsequently discovered it's known as the "wall of Talla" - well named......... horrible.

Some great scenery tho

[Archie McSquackle]

I've signed up for Tour of the Borders, the shorter Challenge option. Already heard horror stories about Talla. [emoji848]

[Benjamin_Nevis]

10 hours ago, The_Craig said:

Anyone doing the Ride to the Sun this year? Has any P&Bers done it before? 

https://www.ridetothesun.co.uk/

I'm thinking about doing it as it sounds like a cracking event. I'm just waiting on my riding buddy letting me know if he's free that weekend. 

Yeah I did it in 2019. My mates in Carlisle persuaded me to ride it both ways. f**k ever doing that again 

It's a tremendous event though and as centuries go, is pretty straightforward. Just don't forget gloves and leg/arm warmers. Descending the Devil's beeftub in the middle of the night, even in June, can be a chilly affair. There's a few of us doing it this year, just the one way though. 

[Leith Green]

8 hours ago, Archie McSquackle said:

I've signed up for Tour of the Borders, the shorter Challenge option. Already heard horror stories about Talla.

Took a snip off the profile from Garmin connect - have a guess which bit is the Talla Wall 

[Sherrif John Bunnell]

I did 44 miles today on my MTB between Aviemore and Inverness. Its by far the longest I've ever cycled without stopping. I reckon the first 39 miles went fine, but my legs completely gave up on a short climb just before Culloden battlefield. The last 5 miles into the town were utterly brutal. I'll definitely be using a hybrid or road bike if I ever attempt that again. 

[Benjamin_Nevis]

4 minutes ago, Sherrif John Bunnell said:

I did 44 miles today on my MTB between Aviemore and Inverness. Its by far the longest I've ever cycled without stopping. I reckon the first 39 miles went fine, but my legs completely gave up on a short climb just before Culloden battlefield. The last 5 miles into the town were utterly brutal. I'll definitely be using a hybrid or road bike if I ever attempt that again. 

Was that the bit just after Clava Cairns? 

I remember walking that route a while back for a charity event. We left Culloden, took the road your were probably in to reach Tomatin. We got the Aviemore on the second day - assuming you did the same route in reverse, that's a fair amount of climbing

I was out today, standard fare of suffering a brutal headwind west for 22 miles then belting home with a glorious tailwind. 

[Futureboy]

On 22/03/2022 at 13:23, velo army said:

Any of you fowk toured/carried loads on a gravel bike before?

I'm replacing my bike and, while I'm probably going to just build the same bike (Thorn Sherpa, stolen back in January) I'm tempted by the Ribble steel gravel bike. 

Old post, but yeah I have. Mostly for a max of three days. I use a mix of Alpkit and Apidura packs and Salsa Anything cages on the forks rather than panniers. Other than a bit off wobble from the saddle pack if poorly packed it's fine. I'm either carrying a Laser Comp tent or a tarp. 

Stands up to off-road no bother. 

 

[Sherrif John Bunnell]

15 minutes ago, Day of the Lords said:

Was that the bit just after Clava Cairns? 

I remember walking that route a while back for a charity event. We left Culloden, took the road your were probably in to reach Tomatin. We got the Aviemore on the second day - assuming you did the same route in reverse, that's a fair amount of climbing

I was out today, standard fare of suffering a brutal headwind west for 22 miles then belting home with a glorious tailwind. 

That's exactly the climb. I stay on that side of Inverness, so it's one I've managed plenty of times before on short local rides (usually immediately followed up with a pitstop at the Keppoch Inn).

The climbing didn't feel too bad until then. There was quite a tough one just past Cartridge, but I was pleasantly surprised when I reached the top of the Slochd without feeling too exhausted.

[velo army]

1 minute ago, Futureboy said:

Old post, but yeah I have. Mostly for a max of three days. I use a mix of Alpkit and Apidura packs and Salsa Anything cages on the forks rather than panniers. Other than a bit off wobble from the saddle pack if poorly packed it's fine. I'm either carrying a Laser Comp tent or a tarp. 

Stands up to off-road no bother. 

 

Thanks for that. I'm just going to go ahead and buy the same bike I got stolen which was a Thorn Sherpa. I'm feeling the desire to go some proper long touring again.

[Futureboy]

2 minutes ago, velo army said:

Thanks for that. I'm just going to go ahead and buy the same bike I got stolen which was a Thorn Sherpa. I'm feeling the desire to go some proper long touring again.

Probably suits your needs better. I like the gravel bike for off road, but not sure i'd fancy it as a long touring bike. 

[Leith Green]

2 hours ago, Day of the Lords said:

I was out today, standard fare of suffering a brutal headwind west

They were indeed brutal in exposed areas today.

I did the Tour de Forth earlier and the headwinds got us for about the first 35 miles.........made for a slow slog on what's usually the easy section before the - rather more hilly - second half.

Brilliant organisation, marshalling and snacks !

I will sleep well tonight...........

[Benjamin_Nevis]

19 minutes ago, Leith Green said:

They were indeed brutal in exposed areas today.

I did the Tour de Forth earlier and the headwinds got us for about the first 35 miles.........made for a slow slog on what's usually the easy section before the - rather more hilly - second half.

Brilliant organisation, marshalling and snacks !

I will sleep well tonight...........

A couple of my pals did that as well. Similar stories of pain

Not as bad as the Snow Roads yesterday though. Winds in Glenshee were so bad most riders had to walk DOWN the hill at the ski centre due to 45+mph sideways gusts. One boy was also t-boned by a deer

[broon-loon]

8 hours ago, velo army said:

Thanks for that. I'm just going to go ahead and buy the same bike I got stolen which was a Thorn Sherpa. I'm feeling the desire to go some proper long touring again.

Did a 'google' on Thorn Sherpa and this came up, I presume you'll have read this?

https://trailplanner.co.uk/2018/05/28/thoughts-on-the-thorn-sherpa/

Been a while since I loaded up the bike and did some touring. I like heading to somewhere on the train (Berwick or Stranraer) and work my way home visiting certain towns or locations.

I bought an Orange P7 a good few years ago because of the steel frame. Stick on road tyres, rear cycle rack/panniers and it does the road touring OK.

Never included off road on any tours, but thinking I should in future? 

 

 

[velo army]

3 hours ago, broon-loon said:

Did a 'google' on Thorn Sherpa and this came up, I presume you'll have read this?

https://trailplanner.co.uk/2018/05/28/thoughts-on-the-thorn-sherpa/

Been a while since I loaded up the bike and did some touring. I like heading to somewhere on the train (Berwick or Stranraer) and work my way home visiting certain towns or locations.

I bought an Orange P7 a good few years ago because of the steel frame. Stick on road tyres, rear cycle rack/panniers and it does the road touring OK.

Never included off road on any tours, but thinking I should in future? 

 

 

Nah I hadn't read that. I did now and I found some of his complaints odd. Not being able to find a chain to fit I thought was unlikely, and it's absolutely fine for transmission to wear down after 6k. You're carrying loads in the heat. Wtf kind of riding is he doing that his brake blocks wear out so fast? I managed three months in the states on two sets of blocks. 

Anyway.

What do you mean by off road? I wouldn't mind going on the occasional LR track if necessary. Is it a hard-tail you've got? 

[broon-loon]

47 minutes ago, velo army said:

 

What do you mean by off road? I wouldn't mind going on the occasional LR track if necessary. Is it a hard-tail you've got? 

It's an Orange P7 pro hardtail, recommended for it's versatility on and off road. It's on 26 inch wheels as was the norm when I bought it.

I've only really used it a few times off-road, the people I was with were a bit extreme, most with full suspension. I was totally out of my comfort zone in truth.

Was thinking it would be nice to escape the main road for a bit, but still end up roughly where the road would take me? 

The weight of the panniers on the rear would limit what could be done in fear of punctures and of course the overall handling of the bike. It's probably not a great idea in hindsight?

 

[velo army]

8 minutes ago, broon-loon said:

It's an Orange P7 pro hardtail, recommended for it's versatility on and off road. It's on 26 inch wheels as was the norm when I bought it.

I've only really used it a few times off-road, the people I was with were a bit extreme, most with full suspension. I was totally out of my comfort zone in truth.

Was thinking it would be nice to escape the main road for a bit, but still end up roughly where the road would take me? 

The weight of the panniers on the rear would limit what could be done in fear of punctures and of course the overall handling of the bike. It's probably not a great idea in hindsight?

 

I actually think that sounds perfect. When people are thinking of getting into touring I always recommend that they buy a hard-tail MTB. 26in wheels are perfect for stability, and also, in an emergency, even the most backwater bike shop will have 26in tyres. For long distance touring comfort is the most important thing, more than fitness. Stick a Brooks saddle on that thing and you're away.

I'd recommend spreading the weight by putting some bags on the front. You can get low-riders for forks without braze-ons, or you can speak to your nearest framebuilder/local bike shop about welding braze-ons to your front fork. You've alluded to bike packing stuff so that's obviously an option too.

Aye if you're wanting off road doing something that hardcore MTB-ers would do sounds no fun at all. I guess if you go off road you may have to accept getting off and wheeling it when things get hairy, but riding through, for instance, Glen Affric on those tracks would be heaven.

E.T.A I da ken far you are, but regarding the braze ons for the front fork I recommend speaking to Alistair at Wheelcraft in Clachan o Campsite (central belt). He's mostly a wheelbuilder but is a general know-all when it comes to bikes. He's a massive blether though so allow for some raconteuring time .

Edited June 13, 2022 by velo army

[broon-loon]

27 minutes ago, velo army said:

I actually think that sounds perfect. When people are thinking of getting into touring I always recommend that they buy a hard-tail MTB. 26in wheels are perfect for stability, and also, in an emergency, even the most backwater bike shop will have 26in tyres. For long distance touring comfort is the most important thing, more than fitness. Stick a Brooks saddle on that thing and you're away.

I'd recommend spreading the weight by putting some bags on the front. You can get low-riders for forks without braze-ons, or you can speak to your nearest framebuilder/local bike shop about welding braze-ons to your front fork. You've alluded to bike packing stuff so that's obviously an option too.

Aye if you're wanting off road doing something that hardcore MTB-ers would do sounds no fun at all. I guess if you go off road you may have to accept getting off and wheeling it when things get hairy, but riding through, for instance, Glen Affric on those tracks would be heaven.

E.T.A I da ken far you are, but regarding the braze ons for the front fork I recommend speaking to Alistair at Wheelcraft in Clachan o Campsite (central belt). He's mostly a wheelbuilder but is a general know-all when it comes to bikes. He's a massive blether though so allow for some raconteuring time .

If I was to put bags on the front I would probably just fit an old pair of forks that suited. Mind you it gets complicated re disc & caliper.

I know you get handlebar bags maybe that's an option?

Maybe should get an old single speed Butcher's bike... that would make any tour a challenge.. 

 

[velo army]

4 minutes ago, broon-loon said:

If I was to put bags on the front I would probably just fit an old pair of forks that suited. Mind you it gets complicated re disc & caliper.

I know you get handlebar bags maybe that's an option?

Maybe should get an old single speed Butcher's bike... that would make any tour a challenge.. 

 

Aye you get all sorts of front bags. Bar bags are still quite wee. Ach I managed a month long tour in Spain and France on an old Raleigh Randonneur with all my stuff on the back. A hard tail MTB will handle it just fine 

A butcher's bike? Why stop there? Stick a few bags on a Penny Farthing and you're off!