Anyone into Tour de France on here? Ben Healy (currently in the yellow jersey) is a local Black Country lad where i’m from. Think he was born in the same hospital down the road!
Also, was watching this Rapha video and Boo Johnson is in it. Checked out his Insta - had no idea he was such a big cyclist.
Slammed on my bike this morning. Crossing footbridge, keeping to my side. Two idiot cyclists coming in opposite direction full pelt so I naturally edged closed to my side and clipped my handle bar on the barrier. Bruised and Steering jammed. Had to leave the bike where it is. Not stoked because it’s not a great area. My insurance has assistance but when I arrange to meet them after work it could take up to 4 hours for them to arrive.
Usually as a cyclist I bag on cars but recently cyclists have been the biggest fabricunts.
5km walk in the woods yesterday and saw numerous gravel bikers hurtle past families with children. Knobs.
Yep, see this sort of thing all the time, obviously I’ve seen more than my fair share of lunatic behaviour from car drivers but I’m more often shocked at the speeds people will do when they’re cycling close to pedestrians.
I don’t get what’s going through their heads.
The biggest enemy of the cyclist is other cyclists, more precisely the cyclist that thinks every day is race day and they have to beat their last Strava time. It makes me sound old but the woods are for everyone, slowing down for other people gives everyone a better image of cyclists and there’s always the chance they have a dog. Can’t tell you how many dogs I’ve petted while using the phrase “aww, you just want to be pals”
My current gripe with London cyclists are those who whistle instead of using a bell. I’ve seen some close calls recently becuase people don’t react to someone whistling in the same way as a bell, it doesn’t cut through.
Noise cancelling headphones and phones dont help either
Plantar/achilles have ruined skating and running. Tennis elbow has ruined the gym. I need to start cycling to get some exercise. Don’t know much about bikes - is there a type which will handle road cycling as well as some off road (dirt tracks, not like downhill through forests) but that isn’t the super forward leaning position of a pure road bike? Is that even a thing?
Gravel bike, like a road bike but leaning more towards a mountain bike, you can get both drop bar and flat bar versions depending on your taste
example
They do hybrid bikes. They look like a mountain bike but with slim tyres. I got one about a year ago and been using it about twice a week for an hour or 2 at a time in roads and canal toe paths. Good fun but not fixed my knees yet.
I’ve ridden hybrid city/trek or touring bikes for the last ten years. I tried switching to a gravel but just didn’t like the forward position and drop bars. I found the brakes/gears positions very impractical for cycling in city traffic.
Switched back to a Cube Nature Pro and consider it a highly reliable machine for commuting and the odd bit of dirt trail.
Cube are a german brand. They have very good quality bikes for realistic prices.
Currently seriously contemplating selling my ebike to go full analog.
Thinking about it, if it’s for light trails and that, a 29er hardtail mountain bike mike be the most forgiving. I do nothing close to mental but this is the best compromise for me, bigger tyres and a more upright position with a slacker head angle over the head forward position of a gravel bike
BCP157
You tried it? Heard about it and am curious but can’t find any trials showing it’s safe or works.
Really long road rides look a bit boring and you’re dealing with cars all the time. There aren’t many proper trails near me. So it’d be a mix of the two. Sounds like hybrid is about right.
Done 2 cycles now. One shoulder tear and one knee problem nobody could fix. Did TB500 with it, injections both times. My friend sent it to me from the states who has links to legit companies who make it as a lot of uk sites are oral or payment with crypto only so will either get stitched or receive oil.
I love the pain because the pain is the truth.
Saw the worst of both worlds this morning. The cyclist dressed in black, no lights, no helmet. A veritable shadow riding before daybreak.
Then the polar opposite which I actually find pretty bad too, a cyclist with a really harsh flashing headlamp. I get you want to see where you’re going and want to be seen but somr of the lights cyclists have are stronger than full beams and even more blinding and distracting when they flash.