Cycling UK Forum

Annoying Twit wrote:

fatboy wrote:+1 see my post. In fact early Spa tourers came with 24/36/46 chainsets

How much difference does a 24T front cog make compared to a 28T?

I can calculate that it will give a 16.666% lower gear (unless I used the wrong method), but how much different does 16.6666% lower feel in practice?

A big difference. Even 2 teeth is very noticeable I find. I originally went from a 22 to a 26, but soon swapped for a 24.

It is, indeed, refreshing to see such positive ideas for the future of the organisation put forward. However, I would maintain that the correct time to air these views and have them considered would have been before any firm decision on rebranding had been taken. The fact that they weren't would tend to suggest an arrogance on the part of the decision makers and a distain for the membership that I for one find objectionable. Either that or they're so stupid that it never occurred to them to ask us or that some people might be alienated by their actions. Either way, I'm not sure they deserve our support going forward.

I love cycling and especially cycle touring. I was happy to subscribe to be a member of a club which represented cycle tourists and I wore my CTC jersey with pride. I didn't get much back in terms of things I actually needed. The much vaunted insurance is duplicated by my home cover and holiday insurance, the magazine was no more than a good 15 minutes read once you had stripped out all the adverts and flyers and the scant touring specific info on the website was often so out of date as to be useless, but it was nice to be part of a tradition. Now that's been swept away, I don't feel much inclined to continue my relationship as I already give to charities far more deserving than this.

Erudin wrote:Latest Email: "We hope you like the fresh look of today’s CycleClips as part of our new branding as Cycling UK"

Well I did not, have unsubscribed and will not renew membership when it expires in June.

+1

andymiller wrote:

Personally I always found the word 'club' off-putting, and there are an awful lot of cyclists who don't go cycle touring.

And a complete shock? I'm sure you were posting about it weeks ago.

Personally, I found the word "club" a pretty accurate description when it was a club and there are indeed many cyclists who don't tour just as there are many organisations to cater for them. I however, thought that "The Cyclists Touring Club" might be a club for cyclists who tour. My bad obviously.

andymiller wrote:'spin out' is a fairly subjective term. If I'm in a spin class and the instructor wants us to do more than say 120 rpm then I am tempted to start protesting as my legs aren't up to it.

A quick look at one of the gear-speed calculators suggests that if you're in the top gear of 46x11, with 700c wheels, then you'll be hitting 28mph at a little over 80 rpm. It may not be a cadence that many people would want to maintain for a long period but I'm not sure it's really 'spinning-out' (whatever that means anyway).

By spinning out I simply meant that I'd reach a cadence which was unsustainable for long periods and it was, therefore, my effective maximum touring speed on the flat. I ain't sprinting with 25Kg on the bike unless a dog is chasing me!

robgul wrote:

mullinsm wrote:You may be cycling, but I'm still touring. Anyone know of a club for cycle tourists by any chance?

... there's an embryonic initiative gathering pace .... http://www.touringcyclistclub.org.uk

We are expecting to have the initial "offering" in marketing parlance in the next 4-6 weeks

Rob

Thanks for that. Count me in.

You may be cycling, but I'm still touring. Anyone know of a club for cycle tourists by any chance?

al_yrpal wrote:
It feels like our CTC has been stolen. Time to call it a day I think…

Al

What he said....

Sweep wrote:

NATURAL ANKLING wrote:But who would really need more than 42 x 11 on a 700 x 35, you wont keep it up long even with no load so the top gears over 100 " are a bit academic, 53 x 11 is for he-men

I have 11-34 and 22-32-42 on a very very well used 8-speed bike - used for load lugging/day rides/around town.

Touring will often be on 37/38 tyres, zapping around town 28mm.

Have you never felt the need for a 44T big ring?

I have been considering it.

I changed from a Deore 22/34/44 to a Spa cycles 24/36/46 last year and have done Dunkirk to Perpignan and a tour of South Island since. I'm on 700 rims with 35mm tyres and 11-34 cassette and I use both extremes on a daily basis. The 22 or 24 I find essential on long, steep climbs and would struggle with anything higher (I struggle anyhow!) and use the highest gears when I pick up a tail wind or on descents. I find it spins out at about 28mph and there were a couple of times on both tours where I swallowed up miles at that sort of speed due to tail winds. Felt so sorry for the poor people coming the other way....

molzor wrote:
But what I am wondering is, how so many tourers, audaxers, british weather cyclists. Can so strongly recommend a brooks saddle, when its not even supposed to get wet?

Because they are, by a long way, the most comfortable saddle for touring (in my humble opinion anyhow). Yes, you're best to protect them from rain when you're not riding them (plastic bag, shower cap, condom, whatever floats your boat), but having said that mines been left out overnight and been rained on without ill-effects. The top of the saddle is fairly water-repellent if it's been treated with Proofide, so it's the underside that's most at risk. As long as you've followed the recommended care guide and ride with a mudguard on the rear, you shouldn't have a problem.

I've got two B17 Standards and a B17 Titanium and, having tried just about every other design on the market prior to giving in to 150 year old technology, I wouldn't ride anything else. (Apart from a Selle Anatomica which is just a Brooks made in USA with softer leather. It's not quite as comfy, but they are a bit lighter and available in white....)

Finally, I've never experienced this legendary "breaking-in" phenomon. I've always found them comfortable straight out of the box. I did however need to break my buttock in to riding a saddle with no padding.

I would agree with those who said buy a bike and take it with you. I've flown with a bike a couple of times and, whilst it can be stressful, it's worth the trouble. Check the conditions of your carrier to make sure you're within size and weight limits and print off the relevant page just in case the person at check-in hasn't read them. Having said that, I've never had any trouble with a boxed bike.

I wouldn't pay £850 for an old second hand bike when you can buy a really good tourer for that kind of money brand new. A great deal at the moment is Winstanley Cycles selling off the 2015 Ridgeback Panorama Deluxe for £999. The frame alone costs £750! Shop around. The other problem with older tourers is that they very often didn't feature the low gearing that laden touring in mountainous areas really requires. It's only recently that manufacturers have started putting sensible group sets on tourers and still many don't. Most people really don't understand how much more effort it takes to propel a bike with panniers and tent etc. on until they actually try it. Do not fall into this trap!

As for clothing, it's a personal thing but with any sort of endurance cycling, comfort is all. You might think that cycling specific shorts look a bit suspect, but if you've ever tried riding for hours with a sore buttock, you'll soon get over it.

Finally and most importantly, in 54 years I've never found anything that makes me feel more alive that solo touring on a bike and, believe me, I've tried a few things..... Go and enjoy it!

Having read all of the above (and said some of it) I've just had a look at a few US cycle touring forums. Unless they're all liars, there seem to be lots of people in the US who engage in the activity of cycle touring in the US and didn't get murdered (yet).

I think I'll give it a go next year.......

According to Wiki, there are 112.6 guns per 100 people in the US. So, statistically speaking at least, everyone has a gun. I never said that she'd been to the US once. As a Canadian, she may have been many times. She tried cycle touring in the Mid-west once. Evidently it was enough for her.

I've never been to the US, but would love to tour there. On my recent trip to NZ I met a group of yanks from Iowa who were touring on a weird selection of bikes and got into conversation with them on the subject of biking in the US. They confirmed that there are many scary places - they mentioned Chicago in particular as a place to avoid - but that "you should be OK in the Mid-west".

A few days later I met a girl from Quebec who had toured all over Europe and I asked her if she had any experience of the US and she replied that she had started a tour of the Mid-west but abandoned it after a few days as she was scared for her safety. "There are guns everywhere. Everyone carries a gun. It's terrifying" She didn't strike me as the kind of girl who scared easily and as she comes from a country with a similar level of gun ownership to the US, I can't imagine she'd never seen one before.

I recently read a travelogue called The Road Headed West about a guy who cycled across the US. At one point he was invited to stay at someone's house and ended up fleeing for his life in the middle of the night when his host had a few too many and looked like he was going to start shooting.

A client of mine has lived and travelled in the US and I asked his opinion of the safety aspects of cycle touring there and he said to avoid cities altogether, but also remote areas. He mentioned that the Carolinas in particular have a reputation for people just "vanishing". "There are some very odd people around out in the sticks" is what he said. Finally, after much serious deliberation, he advised me not to bother at all.

I suppose you can get into scrapes anywhere and there are weirdoes in Europe too, but the ones in the US have guns. It's a shame though.....

A couple of years ago I was touring in France when my bottom bracket expired just outside Angouleme. It was pouring with rain and, having waited two hours for them to finish lunch and reopen, the very helpful bike shop informed me that they didn't have a replacement and a phone call to the other shop in town confirmed they didn't either. It would seem the external bearing cups haven't made it that far south, or hadn't at that time.

As a result I had to get a train to Poitiers in the hope of finding a bigger bike shop there (which I did) so I went down to the local station and managed to get onto a train, complete with bike and soggy panniers, with no trouble at all. The staff at the station were incredibly helpful to me as I can't speak a word of French and the whole experience confirmed my high opinion of France in general and the French people in particular. It also convinced me to revert to a square taper bottom bracket......