Most recent activity
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Went and did Stage 1; seemed to be a doddle. As I was leaving they convinced me to stay and do Stage 2 the same night!
Stage 1 seemed to be all about learning about the bike and just experience riding with others on the track so there was nothing there I wasn't familiar with.
Stage 2 was a different kettle of fish but despite being 'told off' a couple of times I passed that also. At the end of the session the coach told us he had spent most of the session just training us for Stage 3 anyway.
Stage 3 now booked... -
milk is better than water for hydration too
I've was hearing this for a while from my non-vegan cycling friends so decided to do a little digging. It turns out that the person who published this study (who happens to work in the dairy industry) was somewhat disingenuous when it came to the results.
While it is true that Milk will hydrate the body faster than water alone, what the study actually concluded was that consuming ANY combination of carb/fat/protein at the same time as water would hydrate the human body more efficiently than the consumption of water alone.
So basically, an energy (protein / nut / whatever food) bar at the same time as water; as in, what we've been doing for years, is just as effective. No technical advantage to slurping down the moo-juice; unless you just like that kind of thing... -
OK thanks. Yeah seems I have to start from scratch but no worries; hopefully it's just a formality and I haven't picked up any bad habits!
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Accreditation. If you have some drome experience (taster sessions) and regularly ride fixed gear, do you still have to 'officially' go through the motions for Stage 1 accreditation just to have an email to say you have it?
Or can you go straight to stage 2? -
So.... if I went the hoods/drops route again, would a tourer / audax type bike be more comfortable but still offer the variety of hand positions? Maybe a Condor Fratello or similar?
Certainly can be comfortable. I think hoods and drops offer a much more natural position whereas with flat bars, your fore arms are twisted. Much like ergo-mice vs regular flat mice. No doubt there are millions of MTB riders who would disagree but I prefer not to ride for more than about an hour on flat bars.
I have a much bigger saddle to bar drop than the bike in your picture and ride 70 or 80 miles every Sunday without discomfort. This really depends on the length of your arms so a picture doesn't give much away.
My commuter has flat bars which are better for riding in traffic but it's not so much for visibility; more just for the constant steering changes and terrible surfaces I ride on. Position isn't too dissimilar from my weekend bikes.... -
Everyone; or at least everyone in all the businesses I'm dealing with today!
- Need some home window tinting; email a local company with all the details. They email me and ask for my phone number! I email back and say that I can't talk to them during the day; just after ballpark numbers. NO RESPONSE.
- Need rear pads on the car. Phone my local garage and they cut me off 8 TIMES!
- Get an email about some audio equipment I've ordered from Europe to say it'll be a month late. I email back to discuss alternatives. NO RESPONSE.
- I email a composite door company about hardware options. NO RESPONSE.
Has everyone just gone the fuck to sleep today? Maybe staff levels are low as it's half term.
I don't know the reason but days like this I think I should just quit trying to get anything done and just continue to merely 'exist'. My reliance on anyone else to do anything is obviously expecting too much! How entitled of me..... - Need some home window tinting; email a local company with all the details. They email me and ask for my phone number! I email back and say that I can't talk to them during the day; just after ballpark numbers. NO RESPONSE.
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- in my head - widening my arms would make me lower on the bike / less upright, which would be tiring after a while.
IME good old fashioned drops and hoods provide the best position for longer rides.
Arse back, hands forward!
A too 'upright' position is actually much harder on your shoulders as they will likely be bearing too much weight. Move the centre of gravity back and transfer the weight to your arse. Then counteract this by transferring the load to your pedals.
It then becomes easier to lower your front as it isn't bearing any weight... - in my head - widening my arms would make me lower on the bike / less upright, which would be tiring after a while.
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If you don't mind importing from Japan, Dura-Ace High Flange come in 28hx28h, are cup and cone and silver.
For some reason UK distributors can only get 32 and 36h.
I use these on two bikes.
I also use Mack which cost a bit more but are lighter and cartridge bearings if that's what floats yer boat...
Yes. Also, knee pain almost ALWAYS manifests itself 'after' the ride rather than during unless something is seriously wrong!
This sounds very similar to an issue I had a few years ago. It was only really a lot of trial and error and ultimately a bike whisperer bike fit that sorted it.
In my case I was using a specialized power. At 143mm it 'should' have been exactly the right width for me and was 'on paper' the same width as its predecessor which had been fine for years.
However, after a long hilly ride in Wales I started to get exactly as you describe, like shin splints. I also had unusually sore quads which I just put down to riding fixed up hills etc.
I went to a physio who even suggested I perhaps should stop riding fixed if I was prone to injury! The horror!!!
So upshot was, after seeing some photo and video of me riding it became apparent that I was only using about 50% of the saddle, the front 50% as the rear profile was actually much too wide.
What this was doing was shoving me almost a couple of inches too far forward. I admit I should have noticed the change but as it was a new saddle I just did the math, set it up and rode it.
I've since changed to a narrower but still noseless saddle with a profile that suits me much better and have no aches at all.
I do long hilly club rides weekly totally pain free these days :-)
Can't guarantee you have the same problem but could be worth looking into...