Cycling chat

[Nearholmer]

Many types of cells, including Lion, are quite temperature sensitive, both to high and low temperatures, which can affect both immediate performance and life-span, so keeping them at “cool room temperature” when not in use is no bad idea. Once in use on a cold day, the current flow through them should be enough to keep things ticking along nicely.

 

 

Edited June 4, 2022 by Nearholmer

[Mark Forrest]

I've not posted here for a while.  Currently trying to get some fitness back after catching Covid about a month ago.

Have done a couple local lanes/bridleway rides on the gravel bike, now managing 40 miles without too much trouble.   On the MTB though, my fitness still seems to be lacking so we're gradually increasing distance and elevation as have the Long Mynd Batch Burner ride on 25th June and I don't feel remotely ready for it!

 

A couple of weeks ago, we headed over to Penmachno - hadn't ridden there before, quite impressed with the place, very natural feeling trails (although several of them were more like streams).

 

 

 

 

Since then, another training setback; one of our dogs needed surgery for a ruptured cruciate ligament,  so trips to the vet and looking after him have been priority. 

 

Did manage to get the tools out and install a few upgrades on Wifey's bike though.   12 speed SRAM AXS wireless mech and a Garbaruk 10-52 cassette.

Despite being a self-confessed Shimano fan, I have to say I'm impressed with the setup; it's got me thinking maybe I need a 52 tooth cassette to make up for my lack of fitness!

 

[Nearholmer]

Sorry to hear you copped covid, and glad that you are on the road to full fitness again, if not quite there yet.

 

I’m finding that even now, eight weeks after testing free of it, I’m still not quite where I would expect to be, so it seems to take a fair while.
 

Individual rides of about the highest intensity I’d usually do are OK, but I know I’m not yet ready for a week-long path tour, the first one of which for this year I’d hoped to have done by now; I reckon I’m good for two days demanding (by my modest standards!) riding in succession, but then need a rest day.

[Mark Forrest]

For me it seems to be the short but steep punchy climbs that are the biggest problem post-Covid; heart rate and breathing just seem to increase too quickly. I feel OK riding at a steady pace on road on the gravel bike, but trails are much more challenging.  Last MTB ride got the distance up to just under 20 miles with 2500' elevation.  The Batch Burner is around 26 miles, which doesn't sound too bad, but last time we did it (in 2019) it was over 4000' elevation, so expecting the climbs to be tough going in my current condition.  Hopefully I'm off over to Long Mynd tomorrow to see how I cope with a few proper climbs!

[jcredfer]

22 minutes ago, Mark Forrest said:

For me it seems to be the short but steep punchy climbs that are the biggest problem post-Covid; heart rate and breathing just seem to increase too quickly. I feel OK riding at a steady pace on road on the gravel bike, but trails are much more challenging.....

  

 

Covid goes for the heart & lungs, so you get a system where the Skeletal system can perform much as before, but the respiratory system can't quite keep up, so it goes into overdrive, in the attempt.

 

It's pretty alarming to watch, sometimes, as a climb, which was previously only just into zone 5, rapidly races up to the top and above.

 

[Nearholmer]

45 minutes ago, Mark Forrest said:

it seems to be the short but steep punchy climbs that are the biggest problem post-Covid; heart rate and breathing just seem to increase too quickly.

Based on my experience, that “easily puffed out” phase passes somewhere around a month after testing negative, so with luck you should be out of it soonish, after which it seems to be a case of rebuilding stamina/endurance, rather than ability to make intense efforts.

[Mark Forrest]

2 hours ago, jcredfer said:

 

Covid goes for the heart & lungs, so you get a system where the Skeletal system can perform much as before, but the respiratory system can't quite keep up, so it goes into overdrive, in the attempt.

 

It's pretty alarming to watch, sometimes, as a climb, which was previously only just into zone 5, rapidly races up to the top and above.

 

Yes, that sounds exactly like what I'm seeing.

 

1 hour ago, Nearholmer said:

Based on my experience, that “easily puffed out” phase passes somewhere around a month after testing negative, so with luck you should be out of it soonish, after which it seems to be a case of rebuilding stamina/endurance, rather than ability to make intense efforts.

I do hope so, fingers crossed.

 

Tomorrow's ride should be interesting, the plan is to repeat a ride from this time last year; same bike, similar weather conditions, so I'll be able to compare data between the two rides.

[Mark Forrest]

The results of today's little experiment. 22 mile ride, 3500' elevation gain (three and a half ascents of the Mynd).  Moving time was 7 minutes slower than this time last year; we lost 5 of those minutes on the final climb of the day - which I'd (somehow) set an usually fast PR on last time we did it.  Lost a bit of time on the descents too as it turned out to be a bit slippery in places. 

Regarding the point above about Covid impacts on heart rate, this time last year:

 

Today:

 

Difference isn't huge, but does match up with how it's feeling.  Overall though I'm very pleased (and somewhat relieved) with that set of numbers.

 

Great ride too, weather overcast but dry, not much wind.

 

 

 

[Nearholmer]

Well done!

 

To my amatuer eye, those numbers look the same, within the margin of difference that could be accounted for by different conditions, breakfast, sleep last night etc.

[BR traction instructor]

Bikes on the carrier tonight to reach a twenty mile circuit from Newton Arlosh to Anthorn/Bowness on Solway…

 

BeRTIe

Edited June 6, 2022 by BR traction instructor

[big jim]

I appear to have bought another bike!

 

another cube attain but this one is bigger and carbon fibre, a 58cm frame this time, upgraded with shimano ultegra group set and gatorskin tyres etc 

 

 

I’ll get the handlebars and stem off the existing cube onto this and get the bike fit guy to set it up for me again with my existing measurements

 

As I’ve bought this I’m now going to have to sell the trek pilot (as planned) but I’ll also sell the whyte mountain bike as I’ve never used it since buying it and once the bits are swapped over I’ll sell the cube on too 

 

just need to plan a trip over to the far side of Suffolk to collect it next week! 

[SteamingWales]

Hello all

 

Just discovered this thread. Question for everyone to start. Which are you choosing to get back to Aberystwyth???

 

 

 

[Nearholmer]

3 hours ago, big jim said:

 

I appear to have bought another bike!

 

What you need is a Triceratops.

 

Once you’ve got one of those, get one bike in a matching colour, then stop.

 

 

Ot worked for me (well, mostly it worked).

[Butler Henderson]

Flip, the panniers do not fit the ebikes pannier rack. Due to the battery being at the top the vertical elements are on the outside and the quick release mechanism on the panniers clashes with them.  Best part of £10 to the post office coming up to return them. Have got an elderly pair of Lidl panniers, from back in the day when Lidl and Aldi had pretty good verging on excellent quality cycling products, which I put into use yesterday due to a days attendance required in the office. A bit awkward to get on but come off easilly. Saw the phyiso again today as whilst the foot pain had ceased the previous dullness of the ankle had become more noticeable once the foot pain stopped. Damaged ankle ligaments apparently with daily leg excercises, walking and cycling needed. Taking that to mean a lot of ebiking as with the amount of hills locally I think use of any other bike could be asking for trouble.

[big jim]

After the 520 miles covered last month for the challenge, doing over 125 miles a week I’ve only managed to cover 6 miles this week what with work shifts and no rest days!

 

gave the bike a wash and polish earlier and have ridden it to work as my job has been amended and i finish in basford hall later instead of bescot so can ride home at the end 

 

i rode it to the station and the next bit of my trip is derby to toton which I’m going to do via the national cycle route alongside the river derwent, only 10 mile but it says an hour, 40 mins if I go via the shorter route on the road but I’ve got plenty of time so I’ll have an amble along the river bank 

 

[Michael Edge]

Nice run out yesterday round Castleford and Ferrybridge, 36 miles mostly on quite roads and trails.

Plenty of water going down the Calder and over Castleford weir, photo taken on the new footbridge.

Ferrybridge lock on the Aire and Calder Navigation.

When I say "quiet roads" it's still strange to be riding along what was until quite recently the mad busy A1. This is part of the 1950s bypass of the old Roman road through Castleford, now itself bypassed with a new stretch of A1(M).

 

[Nearholmer]

My rides this week have been “bridleway bashing”, covering paths which are only sensibly cyclable in very dry weather. It’s a pretty slow, and surprisingly demanding form of cycling, but I enjoy it because it gets me into little nooks and crannies of the countryside that are only otherwise accessible on foot. Despite having done a fair bit of this on the past few summers, there are still miles of bridleway within c15 miles of home that I haven’t yet touched.

 

 

 

 

[njee20]

Sorry, image heavy post!

 

New bike day! Finally got my ‘cycle to work’ bike. Turns out it’s quite a convoluted process with lots of back and forth on vouchers and what not, but hey, it’s here!

 

It’s very blue! It’ll now be going on a bit of a diet as I swap parts about!
 

As delivered:

 
 

Not an overly impressive weight:

 

id already built up some new wheels for it, using Chinese carbon rims and some cheap hubs. Even with 30c tyres (up from the stock 28c) there was a chunk of weight to come off here:

Old wheels with tyres/tubes: 1495/1317g:

 
 

Replacements are 1121g and 1007g, and they’re blue!

 

 

A saddle swap to something a bit less bulky also saved a chunk! A tried and tested Specialized Toupe makes it onto a 4th bike!

 

 

 

Chainset swap off an older bike, I want to swap all the gearing too, but I need a new BB tool to get into the frame to route the wiring for the electronic gears. First world problems if ever they existed! Only 33g saved from the chainset (maybe slightly more once I cleaned it!), but I don’t really like the black finish on the stock one, so I’ll swap them regardless! 

 

 

 

So still with the mechanical gears, but now over 1.5lbs lighter. I need to find my steerer tube cutting guide, could probably impale myself on that! Will likely swap to a longer stem too, but may as well take it for a bit of a shakedown as it is! 

 

 

 

Off to the Alps in 10 days, so really ought just get a few miles in and check it’s alright! 

Edited June 10, 2022 by njee20

[big jim]

Nice, is that carbon fibre? 

 

[Nearholmer]

I keep reading the figures as kg, and thinking “not too bad, but could do with loosing a few more”. 

[big jim]

13 minutes ago, Nearholmer said:

I keep reading the figures as kg, and thinking “not too bad, but could do with loosing a few more”. 

same here at first I though, crikey that weighs as much as my electric bike did! 

[njee20]

1 hour ago, big jim said:

Nice, is that carbon fibre? 

 

Indeed it is. With the 30c tyres it’s

certainly a nice comfy ride! I’ve never ridden wider than 25s on the road, they look enormous!

 

8.25kg in new money! I still always think of bike weights in pounds; although component weights in grams. No idea why. Hopefully a bit more to come off with the other groupset plus a lighter stem, and potentially bars too, as I’m not sure about the shape on these.  

 

Took it out for a quick spin on my short lunch loop. Definitely needs a longer stem, and I’ll move the shifters down the bars when I change them, they’re in an oddly high position, but it felt great, and was my quickest time for a while on the loop, clearly ‘new bike syndrome’ adding a bit!

 

 

there’s a total dearth of interesting railways around here, a quick moving picture of Barns Green level crossing on the Arun Valley line was the best I could manage!

 

[Nearholmer]

The chuckle is for the level crossing, not the ride, which is twice as fast as I frequently average (maybe I should get a bike half the weight, with tyres half as fat).

[njee20]

I was just pleased I managed to get any element of the level crossing into shot and didn’t drop my phone! 🤪

[big jim]

Nice little ride between derby and toton earlier via the derwent and old canal to sandiacre, the Komoot app said it would take an hour but I did it in 40 minutes, certainly one I’ll be doing again, the whole ride was lovely and flat and about 80% traffic free, up to the outskirts of derby it’s tarmac then it goes to compacted gravel to draycott onto the road then back to compacted gravel to the outskirts of long Eaton/sandiacre, I wouldn’t want to do it on the road bike but the hybrid handled it well 

 

it was actually over 10 miles as I stopped recording at the Lidl near the depot before starting a fresh recording for the last bit into the depot, for some reason I cant pause the garmin like I can with Komoot or the Apple Watch while it’s recording, unless I’m missing something in the instructions

 

Toton depot 

 

the other thing I’ve done is sync my wahoo heart monitor up to the garmin to use instead of the Apple Watch heart rate