Cycling thread

Black Belt Jones said:
Have you done the Alpe? I've barely done any riding around the world on my own but should try that climb.

Be interested to see the longevity of the racing - really enjoying it right now but wonder about the shelf life, if the one-dimensionality eventually gets boring. Did a time trial on it the other week with a friend who is a v strong tester IRL, knows his 20 min power to the Watt and can deliver it reliably. Does the event at 350W I think for a good time and that's basically it - there is no real point in repeating this other than for the workout. He's well trained, a good weight, so the time can't really be improved.

Although being a purebreed tester he was immediately talking about levelling up to get some more aero e-kit :)
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Yeah, a few of the races go up the Alpe. The one I did at the weekend was four times up the Innsbruck climb. Time trials are only good for training really (imo). Might do a bit of z2 before and then 20 minutes at threshold as fatigue resistance work.
 
With working from home the last few weeks and having the kids at home we've been doing a lot more cycling as a family so rides of about 5-10 miles at a reasonably slow pace but it's really made me want to go out and do much longer rides on my own for a bit more fitness. As I'm in my mid-40s and not in great shape I was thinking of getting an electric bike to help my knees out a little bit. I can get it on the cycle to work scheme but my budget won't be huge, probably about the £1k mark. I currently have a mountain bike with big chunky tyres so it's not the fastest bike to ride. I don't really want a proper road bike so I was thinking a hybrid would be best.

I was thinking about something like this but would welcome any advice or recommendations of what to look for and where to buy from.

https://www.halfords.com/bikes/hybr...-mens-electric-hybrid-bike---21in-157374.html
 
-Rob- said:
With working from home the last few weeks and having the kids at home we've been doing a lot more cycling as a family so rides of about 5-10 miles at a reasonably slow pace but it's really made me want to go out and do much longer rides on my own for a bit more fitness. As I'm in my mid-40s and not in great shape I was thinking of getting an electric bike to help my knees out a little bit. I can get it on the cycle to work scheme but my budget won't be huge, probably about the £1k mark. I currently have a mountain bike with big chunky tyres so it's not the fastest bike to ride. I don't really want a proper road bike so I was thinking a hybrid would be best.

I was thinking about something like this but would welcome any advice or recommendations of what to look for and where to buy from.

https://www.halfords.com/bikes/hybr...-mens-electric-hybrid-bike---21in-157374.html
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Are you very tall? That is an x large frame - the risk in buying from Halfords is that the staff are clueless, so would in fact try and sell something like that to a normal sized bloke. But being a v large company, they can of course offer much lower prices than the typical independent bike shop.

Don't really know what to think about that bike - problem is that e-bikes are expensive so 1K is entry level, so you can't expect too much. If it will get you out and about cycling then that is the bottom line. Cycling is good for knees, btw, for most people a properly fitting bike will strengthen them. Serious knee injuries are a different proposition, like if they're ruined from 30 years of proper hard graft - an e-bike can be a huge help in this case.

Another option is to retro-fit the motor and battery to your existing bike. This is the cheapest way of going electric but is only worth doing if your mountain bike is half decent. Bit of a project to do yourself - although an easy one if you're handy, but a local independent might be able to do it. Quite a few are becoming e-bike specialists as that is the market these days.
 
BlueToff said:
Mentioned in the keeping active thread but the amount my general fitness has improved in the last month since I started cycling is really great.

I've had the weekend off from it. Was far too hungover on Saturday morning and it was a bit horrid here this afternoon, so did a run instead like yesterday - but I'm easily hitting pace I hadn't in a while and that I was struggling to get to before cycling due to constant niggling injuries.

Really chuffed I've got into cycling and a few of my mates have too, so we're all on strava and it's a bit of fun. Not bothered about competing for the top goals or anything, just good to have some aims with a bit of competition!

Only worry for me is when the roads do get back to normal as i'm very wary of it, but I'm pretty confident at the moment so sure it'll be fine.
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Nice one mate. I was always a distance runner, but took up cycling six years ago. Its a great activity, less impact on your joints. I'm in my 60's now so much better for me than running. Keep sensible when the roads get busier and you will be fine. Some lovely routes in Britain to do.
 
Black Belt Jones said:
Are you very tall? That is an x large frame - the risk in buying from Halfords is that the staff are clueless, so would in fact try and sell something like that to a normal sized bloke. But being a v large company, they can of course offer much lower prices than the typical independent bike shop.

Don't really know what to think about that bike - problem is that e-bikes are expensive so 1K is entry level, so you can't expect too much. If it will get you out and about cycling then that is the bottom line. Cycling is good for knees, btw, for most people a properly fitting bike will strengthen them. Serious knee injuries are a different proposition, like if they're ruined from 30 years of proper hard graft - an e-bike can be a huge help in this case.

Another option is to retro-fit the motor and battery to your existing bike. This is the cheapest way of going electric but is only worth doing if your mountain bike is half decent. Bit of a project to do yourself - although an easy one if you're handy, but a local independent might be able to do it. Quite a few are becoming e-bike specialists as that is the market these days.
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I'm 6ft5 so yeah, a big bike is essential.

Definitely not going to risk turning my existing bike electric. It's a half decent bike but it's 8 years old so I'd rather get a new one. I know Halfords have a bad reputation for the build quality of their bikes but I know the guy at my local branch, he's a very keen cyclist and been building bikes for years so I'd trust him.

Any tips on where else to look other than Halfords? Everywhere else seems to start at £1,500+.
 
-Rob- said:
I'm 6ft5 so yeah, a big bike is essential.

Definitely not going to risk turning my existing bike electric. It's a half decent bike but it's 8 years old so I'd rather get a new one. I know Halfords have a bad reputation for the build quality of their bikes but I know the guy at my local branch, he's a very keen cyclist and been building bikes for years so I'd trust him.

Any tips on where else to look other than Halfords? Everywhere else seems to start at £1,500+.
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In the UK it's Halfords, Decathlon, and GoOutdoors which are the large bricks and mortar retailers for bikes - unlike in the old days when they sold absolute tat, they all now offer very solid lines (plus some absolute tat). If you know your local Halfords man is actually a cyclist then that's obv a big selling point.

You prob know this but the C2W cap was removed last year, largely in response to the cost of e-bikes. So the old 1K limit is gone - depending on your tax band a 1500 ebike might translate to sub 1K in real money, plus you get to repay it over 12 months.
 
sbbefc said:
Big news. https://www.dcrainmaker.com/2020/05...-reduces-3rd-party-apps-for-all-and-more.html
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That is big news.

I have a premium subscription (mainly for the gpx function) but was planning on letting it go this year. I think racing segments and KOMs on strava is a thing of the past really for 99.9% of people - it was only in the first couple of years from launch that that felt like a big deal. Comparing your own times on strava segments like @Bruce Wayne mentions there is absolutely a big deal, though. Not clear if you will still be able to do that?
 
Black Belt Jones said:
That is big news.

I have a premium subscription (mainly for the gpx function) but was planning on letting it go this year. I think racing segments and KOMs on strava is a thing of the past really for 99.9% of people - it was only in the first couple of years from launch that that felt like a big deal. Comparing your own times on strava segments like @Bruce Wayne mentions there is absolutely a big deal, though. Not clear if you will still be able to do that?
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It's weird that the news is on third party sites before any messages to users too. They've dropped a clanger here I feel.
 
Black Belt Jones said:
That is big news.

I have a premium subscription (mainly for the gpx function) but was planning on letting it go this year. I think racing segments and KOMs on strava is a thing of the past really for 99.9% of people - it was only in the first couple of years from launch that that felt like a big deal. Comparing your own times on strava segments like @Bruce Wayne mentions there is absolutely a big deal, though. Not clear if you will still be able to do that?
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That's true, I'm rarely anywhere near KOM, but I do like the competitiveness between friends on some segments. Not sure how far they're going to go. Bit of a shame really. I have 6 weeks left on my free subscription, and I'll probably cancel.
 
sbbefc said:
Are they both on it?
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I saw L Baines on it a few weeks ago but thought little of it.
When I saw him today it looked like he was out with one of his kids so it could be him or his kid on it. Class thing about Baines is how laid back he is so there aren't loads of stories about what him and his family get up to.

As for Big Vic, it could be anyone. But if you could make up a name, would you pick him. Again, could be. Only picture on there for Anichebe is an expensive looking road bike next to what looks like a 4x4 with black alloys.

There is no way I should be quicker than him though. Not if he's on that road bike and I'm on a fairly entry level hybrid!
 

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