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I hear that her cousin is Norma Stitz
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I planned to use it in 2015 when was I doing a lap of the M25 (well obvs can't ride a bike on the M25 so we used A roads etc.) but we were arriving at Dartford too early for the bus so headed to Gravesend instead and got the ferry across to Tilbury. If you think Gravesend is a shithole just wait until you arrive in Tilbury.
You can get a similar minibus and trailer crossing on the Eurotunnel too.
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yup that was my favourite. The run from Borough market to the City on my singlespeed 48:16 although in fairness no weekend warriors in this clip
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Ha, just scrolled up and saw my previous posts. That is the Spesh allez mentioned above
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I have a rim brake Spesh Allez comp circa 2007 which I bought crash damaged from a mate for £150 and have covered over errrr...checks Strava ... 25,000 recorded km on it (I had it for a few years before Strava existed so have done more). Alu frame and carbon forks it now sits on my turbo trainer and is still one of the comfiest road bikes I have ever ridden.
I also have a Spesh Diverge E5 circa 2017 which I bought 2nd hand from Facebook marketplace 18 months ago for £600 and have ridden 3,300 km on including the Traka 100 last April. It's now my go to bike as i mainly ride gravel. I'm looking for a newer version (2nd hand) as they have increased tyre clearance. Aside from that, not much has changed since 2017. Alu frame.
Depends on how much off road you ride. I find that the cheaper models have been downgraded in terms of finishing kit since the noughties and aren't as good value as they once were.
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You men eat your dinner, eat your pork and beans
I eat more chicken than a man ever seen -
Jason Manford does something about his kids growing up posh and rich down south (his words not mine) and how when they go back up to Manchester to see his very working class family his twin girls see mushy peas and ask 'daddy, is this smashed avocado?'
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wow those gold decals really ping. Great work.
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First time back on an MTB this morning since my alpine trip in July 2022 and probably shouldn't have lugged the YT Capra around Swinley forest as I was blowing at the end but it was great fun and great to be back.
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two weeds actually as many people also view montbretia/crocosmia as a weed
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Amen to that brother.
Avoid ivy at all costs
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I only ever used to hire lucky people.
So divide the applications into two piles, bin one half and select the recruit from those that are left.
Job done.
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Yes I rode it back in 2018 as a celebration for a good mates 50th birthday as part of a group of 15 riders. My mate arranged for us all to have matching kit which I felt could have been a bit cheesy but was a really great motivation on the day. It also helped the multiple photographers on the top section to recognise us and cheer us on during the second and third ascents.
We did the standard Bedoin, Malaucene and Sault ascents in that order and I would suggest sticking with that. Another mate who is a much better climber than me attempted it with the Malaucene attempt last and found it really tough going.
Choose your day wisely. We were fortunate with the weather even in late June. Start early (circa 7:30) and we were at the top by 9:30. I took arm warmers and a gilet for the descents as even though it was a warm day we were wet through from sweat and the descents could give you a chill as it was still relatively early in the day.
Coffee and croissant at the foot of the first descent and then another 2 hour climb to the top. Fortunately there was cloud cover to keep the temperature down. Somebody had a hip flask which we all shared (pre-COVID days) before the descent.
It was really hot, low 30s by now and we were feeling it in our legs and that’s why it was useful the last ascent from Sault is the most straightforward. A stop at Chalet Reynard for some supplies and then we crested the final tim before heading back down to Bedoin for celebratory beers.
I said pick your day carefully. I returned in 2019 taking another mate and we tackled the Bedoin ascent. This happened to coincide with the hottest temperature ever recorded in France at 45 degrees c at Carpentras which is where we had started the ride. The BBC were in Bedoin reporting back and bike shops were refusing to hire bikes as it was so dangerous and the climb took us something like five hours as it was simply exhausting. It was all we could do at the top to roll back downhill which was like descending into a furnace and head home. There was no way a dongles was happening on that day.
Top tips, as already mentioned start early and pace yourself. I never ever ride to heart rate but I chose a number I felt comfortable with and stuck at that all day. In fact it was due to this that I realised I was bonking on the final climb (I just couldn’t raise my HR to the level I had set and was slipping out the back door of the group) and had to stop at a feed station for a group from Belgium who were doing one of the climbs.
I am lucky enough to have a very understanding wife and have had some awesome cycling experiences over the last 30 years in may different countries and this is definitely the number one so do it, you won’t regret it.
Finally, make a weekend of it and do the Gorges de la Nesque the nest day as a recovery ride. It’s a beautiful ride and very different to Ventoux.
Here’s a video of the day.
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Frankie Says
RELAX
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Or perhaps it should be described as a unique style. Either way I liked this one
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This guy made his way separately into my feed. This was quite good. He has a strange style.
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Riding the alps in July with my best buds. Just climbed the col du Pre and about to descend to the Barrage de Roselend, ride across that and head up the Cormet on the other side
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Saw this and thought I would check out the Strava of my gravel buddy who lives in Bromley and rip a decent route off him but he just seems to cycle commute into Canary Wharf and ride Zwift.
So here's a random Google search
https://www.komoot.com/collection/1175117/-gravel-bike-kent-surrey-sussex
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Have you selected 'Cycling' under activity type or are you displaying running or swimming data by mistake?
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Just checking back in to see when I last posted re my HRM battery. Hmmmm... Only a year ago (screen shot below).
Sure I usually get more than 12 months out of a battery but was on the turbo yesterday and heart rate was all over the place.
Either I'm dying or the battery is low again. I'm still here today so it must be the battery and this is my reminder to leave the HRM alone for a few minutes before adding new battery.
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I was raised on ricicles and Nutella. :/
I read that as "I was raised on ridicules and Nutella"
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Weather's turned to shit again so it's time to look at those summer alpine vids and dream of next year.
Here's @tmevans chasing me down a run somewhere in the porte du soleil
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I don't commute anymore so have to live vicariously through other people's commutes.
Props to the male rider in olde London towne who told my quite large and intimidating looking Serbian cycle buddy this morning that "Mate, I don’t mean anything bad but your bib shorts are almost transparent!"
My mate has a great sense of humour and couldn’t stop laughing.
LFGSS
London Fixed Gear and Single-Speed is a community of fixed gear and single-speed cyclists.
Not sure if this goes in MTB or grav-grav. Think I will post it in both
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/zKoGt8sSUA8