Cycling UK Forum

Look at the entry level CX bikes - most will take guards and racks, have Sti's fitted, lowish gearing and not weigh a ton - oh and come in well under a grand! Not looked for a bit but the likes of Focus, Cube and even the big three (Spesh, Trek and Gigant) are good starting points. Without wanting t...

My favourites are the Tacx ones - quite cheap, choice of colours and they clip together - each of my bikes has a set in a different colour! My personal experience of the Park levers is that they can be a bit brittle - i've broken quite a few in my time. Some of the cheaper offerings have a tendency ...

If there was no difference in performance it wouldn't be necessary for anyone to need more than one bike. All things being equal you could use any bike for any job but clearly some will do each job better than others. Indeed, at the height of my racing prowess, I used a mountain bike on the club rid...

I decided long ago that my build is just not great for climbing. At 178 and 85-7kg I'm too heavily built and heavy to do it well, my power to weight ratio is appalling! I can happily ride for hours, I can ride up pretty much anything but not at anything resembling speed! Particularly on longer climb...

Sometimes road position can make a difference but not always. For example, on Thursday last I approached a TI where I turn right, done it hundreds of times over the years, look, signal, pull into outside of the now 2 lanes. However on Thursday an people carrier decided he had to overtake me at this ...

The 10 speed chain will be marginally more flexible. When I rebuilt my old race bike with 70's 2x6 drivetrain I tried several chains before settling on one that worked well and quietly. What is it? Well it's actually a 10sp. Yup I tried 7,8 and 9 speed in different iterations before finding one that...

There is a point where the effect of spending more money will have smaller and smaller advantage. At the lower price points you can see quite a lot of advantage as you spend more, better quality frames, more robust wheels, higher quality components. Weight will drop, durability of parts will improve...

mjr wrote:There are no NS bike time restrictions July and August but trains may still be busy.

And you should be able to pick up the Dutch rail system a bit closer by riding the short way from Hook to The Hague.

One of my bikes! (I had a big hand in speccing and developing the Ventura to replace the old Silver Medal models) Someone - not at the factory, has clearly added the 531 decal! The Ventura was indeed made from 520 tubing (well some used 525 which is the same stuff from a different factory) Reynolds ...

Much like 'running lights', helmets and registration schemes, the 'dimwits' behind compulsory bells will of course be automotive lobby and their self serving associates, the ramblers. I was thanked by a couple of walkers for shouting a warning yesterday, they would, in my experience have ignored a b...

jazzkitten wrote:Thank you Paulatic! I'm learning every day. Is there a website or other resource that has information about rules and regs of cycling?

The Highway Code is your starting point - it's not exhaustive but gives a basic grounding.

Thanks very much for your advice. I've actually got an old Tortec expedition rack. Seems to fit okay at the hub. I've ordered a couple of 350mm stays from SJS. Would anyone know where to get replacement rack screws to attach the rack to the bike at the eyelets on bottom of rack and the stays? I gue...

It's flat and can be very windy with little shelter if it rains.
I'd dump the first bit and get a ferry to Hook of Holland or if you can - Zeebrugge. Unless you fly or ride getting back is a pain now there are no ferrys landing north of Ijmuiden.

Mistik-ka wrote:The World Wildlife Fund estimates the number of badgers killed on the roads at 47,000 per year.
https://www.wwf.org.uk/updates/wildlife-and-roads-47000-badgers-killed-each-year

If that were actually true the population in the UK would be about zero.

Apart from getting on / off being easier on a smaller tandem frame, a smaller frame will also be stiffer. There's nothing quite like being on the back of a Galaxy tandem that feels like it's actually bending in the middle everytime you make a turn! I rode several over the years and they were all the...