Cycling UK Forum

This is our Landscape tandem on a recent trip round the Cotswolds.

As part of my diagnosis of a serious creaking noise on the tandem I have removed and re-installed the chain ring bolts on the timing chain.
The female bits are the same length as the spider holes, but longer than the holes in the chain ring due to the chain ring being much thinner.
Is there a correct way I should install these bolts and inserts ?
a) insert the female bit into the spider and the bolt through the chain ring.
b) insert the female bit into the chain ring so it extends into the spider holes a short way and but the bolt through spider.

Option B seems to offer more strength as it means the chain ring cannot move as much.
Any opinions greatfully received.

I have also applied grease to the chain ring bolt threads and the bolt head, should I apply grease to the outside of the female bits ?
thanks
Neil

In 2018 I arrived in Skye on the ferry from Tarbet to Uig. I chose to cycle south on the A87 towards Portree but turned west at Borve to on the A85 to Dunvegan. The A87 had light traffic and the road to Dunvegan was quiet but hilly. Dunvegan is a nice place for an over night stay. The next day I cycled
to Sligachan which again was quiet.
At Sligachan I joined the A87 which was busy until Broadford, the road is narrow in places and there were lots of busses and campervans. There is a quiet road which turns off just after Sconser and follows the coast round, this misses out the big hill but this was marked as closed. This would have been a better route had it been open.
From Broadford I took the A851 to Armadale which was quiet. There are still stretches of the old road in place which are really quiet. With a bit of thought the council could eaily turn these into a dedicated cycle path.
I left by the ferry to Mallaig from Armadale.

I am planning this trip for next year.
I have booked a return ticket with BA to Buenos Aires, I contacted the help line and added my bike as luggage for which there was a £50 charge.
I have booked a ticket with Aerolinas Argentina to San Carlos Barloche and contacted their english speaking help desk to add my bike as luggage. there is a charge to pay at the airport for oversize luggage. I booked the flight which leaves from EZE airport, which is the same airport as I arrive so I have also booked an overnight stay in an airport hotel. this saves having to trek across BA with a bike in a box.

From San Carlos Barloche it is possible to cycle to the start of the Carretera Austral by a couple of routes, I am planning to cycle south in Argentina and then cross to the CA at Futaleufu.

I haven't worked out how I am going to get back to Buenos Aires yet, this will depend on how far I get.

Can't say if this is will work or not, only time will tell.

I suggest trying one for a day or so before taking the plunge. Tandem riding is great but very different than riding solo bikes.
When we were looking into buying a tandem we went to https://www.tandeming.co.uk/ for the tandem experience day. They provided us with loads of advice on stopping, starting and riding a tandem which was good as neither of us had been on one before. Then we went out for the day on a ride.

Tandems don't suit everyone as it requires a lot of trust by the stoker, I would try first before buying.
There are other providers out there that offer similar tandem trial experiences in addition to my link.

Thanks mjr. I wasn't aware of those sites. I now have some more ideas for cycling tours.

Hi, I have planned a route from Northern France to Croatia which can be seen here https://cycle.travel/map/journey/91778?lat=46.0117&lon=11.7735&zoom=11

When I zoom in to the 1660 distance marker there is a route named "VIA" on the map. Is there a way of using cycle.travel to find out more about this (or any other) route, or highlighting the route so I can see it in full ?

thanks
Neil.

When we purchased our tandem we went here for an experience day just to try them out. We found in most useful https://www.tandeming.co.uk

They might also hire out tandems.

Is your lad happy with the idea of being on the back of a tandem? My daughter was ok at 8 years old but by 14 it was way not cool and would "die of embarrassment" if she was seen on the back of a bike with parents.

I can confirm that the Shieldaig campsite is closed. I was up there in September and there was a notice that the site was closed for improvement and will be open next year.
I cycled on to the campsite at Torridon.

From memory there were opportunities for wild camping on the way out of Lochcarron.

I recently cycled down Skye from Uig to Armadale. The section from Uig to Dunvegan was quiet and provided some good cycling. From Dunvegan to Sligachan was also good. From Sligachan to Broadford wasnt so nice, I found it busy with lorries, campers and coaches. Broadford.to Armadale was also good.

Dunvegan is a nice place to base yourself as the village has shops, pubs, cafes and restaurants.

There were midges in early September.

I have recently replaced my Vango Spirit 200+ tent as it got old and suffered pole breakage.
I chose the Vango Halo300 Pro tent purchased from go outdoors https://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/vango-halo-pro-300-tent-p453077.

I choose it because of the weight 4.2Kg was light enough when split between 2 or 3 people
2 porches / entrances
Internal space - adequate for 3, roomy for 2, massive for 1.
Pitches fly and inner together, or fly first. So ideal when pitching in the rain.
Sensible price.

So far I am happy with the tent, but I have only used it on a couple of times this summer so it hasn't been tested in rain or a storm.

Hope this helps.

We took our 12 year old daughter 3 years ago on a cycling tour of Holland, and last year repeated the trip with my Nieces and Nephews aged between 8 and 14. Our trip started and ended in Europort so is a little further south than your trip.

We stayed in Stayokay hostels, which were clean, friendly and offered reasonably priced breakfasts and evening meals.

The highlight for the Children was the theme park / water park at Duinrell. Both trips we stayed for 3 nights in one of the Caravans. https://www.duinrell.com.

Amsterdam was busy and hectic to cycle round, but was ok with careful route choice.

We wanted to go to the windmill museum https://www.dezaanseschans.nl/en/ as this was on the way from Amsterdam to the coast but ran out of time.

We also liked the mini Holland museum at Madurodam near The Hague. https://www.madurodam.nl/en


Overall cycling in Holland is excellent. Plenty of safe routes along canal banks and through the dunes. We used the VVV maps to plan our journey.

Hope this helps.

how about this site http://www.sncf.com/fr/trains/ter

I have used his book to build 2 wheels and both are still true after a years use.
I found the book easy to read and use.

We used the vvv maps in 2015 and found them to be accurate and easy to use. They had all the correct route numbers and junction points.

We purchased them from http://www.themapshop.co.uk/.