Cycling UK Forum

I have to admit that I'm too fond of comfort to engage in extreme weight-cutting. I'll happily carry a 2 kg tent to have a bit more room. On the other hand, I usually carry a plastic plate, and never use it because I eat out of the pan.

Jdsk wrote: ↑13 Apr 2021, 5:31pm

PH wrote: ↑13 Apr 2021, 5:18pmIf we're going to change rules, maybe the first ought to be that a for sale thread is between the seller and potential buyers.

That's a good principle. But I'd make exceptions for safety and legal issues, and for a third party praising an item.

Jonathan

Some people don't want even positive comments on a for sale thread.

And if it's more than a couple of sentences, they should probably post in the 'Cycling good & services - your reviews' area and post a link on the for sale item.

Paulatic wrote: ↑14 Apr 2021, 8:07am Can I ask the trouser wearers How are your knees?
Top half of me now is usually a woolly jumper but as yet I’m still a tights man below the waist. Often wonder if I’ve got very sensitive knees as I hate the drag, caused by trousers, over them. A lot of walking or cycling I wear tights. I’d gladly wear a skirt or dress all week and not just Friday nights if it was acceptable. Anything to avoid that pull over the knees and not being a postman I only wear shorts on days over 12C.
Anyone suffered this and overcome it?

This work from home thing has taught me that I don't much like trousers, and when we go back to working in the office, I'm just going to buy a load of tights & tunic style things to wear every day. I guess that might be harder for men to get away with. My son likes to wear shorts with long underwear or leggings and I've seen teenagers and young men doing the same. So that might be something you could try?

I think you should be able to wear whatever you want, but the problem is, of course, that many folks have other opinions.

Jdsk wrote: ↑14 Apr 2021, 8:49am

Vorpal wrote: ↑14 Apr 2021, 7:45amI generally avoid cotton for cycling just because it's horrid if I get caught in the rain or something.

francovendee wrote: ↑14 Apr 2021, 7:52am Another vote for walking kit, trousers and shorts, they are hard wearing and comfortable. In hot weather I prefer cotton.

A bit more on materials, please.

The problem with denim is well known. But aside from that are you both referring to pure cotton as opposed to polyester/cotton mixes?

Thanks

Jonathan

Anything cotton, or a blend that is mostly cotton & not treated to be shower proof or fast drying. It's a little difficult to say specific blends will be problematic, because I have a mostly cotton (60%?) Columbia shirt that is tight woven & treated to be be fast drying & it is fanstastic. I also have a pair of 3/4 length trousers that are a similar proportion of cotton and woven to look like a technical material that might as well be cotton terry for the water they absorb.

A cotton t-shirt can be cooler in hot weather, partly because it absorbs sweat, and the wet material increases cooling. The problem is that the same thing occurs in colder temperatures & can leave one chilled.

edited to add: in one of the links above, I recounted a time when I had worn 3/4 length cotton cargo trouser for a meal out. We got caught in a brief rain shower, and I sat and froze in the air conditioned restaurant. It was a Chinese restaurant, & I was practically hugging the complimentary tea pot to warm up. The worst was I couldn't complain because I made everyone cycle there, in the first place!

I'm not normally someone who easily feels the cold, either.

Bogawski wrote: ↑14 Apr 2021, 8:02am Quite, I sent an e-mail to Graham about a poster who seems to get an inordinate amount of bikes for sale and didn't get a reply.

Graham isn't doing much here these days.

In general, trousers made for activities such as walking, playing golf, running, etc. will be suitable as long as they are high waisted enough that they don't show a builder's bum when you are in a cycling position. I recommend trying discount racks at outfitters, or someplace like TK Maxx. Shower proof or fast drying materials seem to hold up well & stay looking nice.

I generally avoid cotton for cycling just because it's horrid if I get caught in the rain or something.

There are some earlier threads with this sort of discussion...

viewtopic.php?f=18&t=117244
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=118324

Obviously, they are older, so the products may no longer be available.

The discussion of sales methods has been split off to viewtopic.php?f=19&t=145251

mjr wrote: ↑13 Apr 2021, 3:41pm

slowster wrote: ↑13 Apr 2021, 2:50pm

661-Pete wrote: ↑13 Apr 2021, 1:51pm I'm afraid, those of my years or older, and with memories as sieve-like as yours truly's, do sometimes need that sort of reminder....

Reminder of what?

Don't know. I think it's been removed!

More seriously, silently-vanishing posts were really unhelpful when I was having medication-induced memory problems. Please could markers be left, in the interests of equality of access for people suffering memory problems?

Apologies, but I had not given that any thought. I will bring it up with the others.

Audax67 wrote: ↑13 Apr 2021, 1:59pm That saddle isn't compatible with that seatpost.

Questions to consider:

1. Does the pain come from abrasion or are there specific pressure points?
2. Do you cycle in ordinary clothes or proper cycling shorts?
3. If cycling shorts, with or without underpants?

It wasn't obvious to me that the saddle & seatpost weren't compatible. I must have missed some information.

Regarding the comfort & type of saddle.... it's really rather personal. Audax67 has asked some important questions. I can add some general information.

Firstly, a saddle problem is seldom just a saddle problem. Being comfortable on the saddle has several factors:
-position; have a look at member 531colin's DIY bike set-up http://wheel-easy.org.uk/wp-content/upl ... -2017a.pdf
-shape & material; I don't get on with hard saddles. My favourite is Serfas RX, but many experienced cyclists prefer leather saddles. It is in any case important that the shape and material suit the individual & there are many different varieties available.
-clothing; cycling clothes are designed for comfort, but not everyone gets on with cycling shorts. I prefer a minimal pad myself & no seams, but other people cycle comfortably in jeans.
-being used to it; there is a certain amount of breaking in that needs to be done, but if short trips (a few miles) are painful, look at the points above this one

I have reviewed the series of posts for which Ride-sleep-repeat was banned & sent them a pm to clarify.

661-Pete wrote: ↑13 Apr 2021, 11:49am

thirdcrank wrote: ↑13 Apr 2021, 10:17am IMO reinstating something verbatim after it had been removed by a moderator would qualify for a permanent ban (without benefit of clergy.)

I wasn't suggesting they do that. But it may help to keep a record, just so as to remind oneself how one has offended....

I would like to think that no one needs such a record.

By wide, do you mean the diameter of the rail, rather than the spacing?

I don't see that sort of information given on the link for the seat post, but if your original saddle fits, perhaps you could take some measurements and post them here?

Mike Sales wrote: ↑13 Apr 2021, 10:32am Tomorrow will be twelve weeks since my first vaccine dose.
I have had no invitation to the second, yet.
Is the schedule for this dose generally strictly kept, or is the timing just rough, varied by the contigencies of the campaign?
I don't want to start ringing round, chasing up my vaccination, unless this is needful.
If it is relevant, the vaccine was the Pfizer.

Personally I would ask. I suspect something has been lost in the system.

Ride-sleep-repeat wrote: ↑12 Apr 2021, 7:05pm Well I didn't want my first post after an involuntary week long hiatus to be negative but I am totally confused here.The message alongside the 7 day ban stated 'for breaking Forum rules regarding abusive language'.I have spent the last week trawling through page after page,topic after topic to try to assertain what I allegedly wrote that could be deemed to be worse than stuff that is there for all to see.I could find nothing.

That's because it has been removed.

Anecdotally.... Someone I know who is a child minder in England also works in catering. She is self-employed in both. Although 1 day of work in catering has typically made more money than 1 day of work child minding, because the catering income was only on weekends & holidays, most of her income for the year was from child minding.

When she could not earn money from child minding due to covid, the grants were calculated based on the worst 3 months of the year for her, and paid 80% of the average of those, which came out to less than 60% of what she usually earns. Then, on top of it, she got no compensation at all for the periods when she was allowed to work, but parents (working from home) chose not to send their kids to a child minder because she still had some clients, she was considered to be working, even though it was between 1/3 and 1/2 her normal work, and way below capacity. She also lost almost all of the income she usually earns walking kids to school (in addition to the kids she looks after as a child minder). She has more expenses to meet requirements to prevent the spread of infection, to keep kids entertained when she couldn't take them on days out, and because her daughter was home from university.

She received a higher proportion of her earnings from the catering, but both were slow in arriving. She and her daughter ended up relying on her mum quite a lot last year. If she hadn't been able to do that? I can well imagine that some folks are in desperate straits.