Cycling UK Forum

Whilst touring I set great store by the Second Breakfast. Porridge in the tent at 6.30 or 7am, then tea and toast at a caff at 9 or 9.30 once I've packed up and gone at least to the nearest town/village. Then a few miles and it'll be elevenses... later there will be lunch... if I've cycled a long way and am feeling tired I can have afternoon tea.
One reason I love cycle touring is that I can eat far more than usual!

Glueman: you make some good points! As a solo traveller I'm aware I can make decisions about how I travel round that aren't available to my friends who have young families, who often feel guilty about using their cars.

Vernon: there is an article about transition towns at http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2008/ ... itiontowns and one website on transition is http://www.transitiontowns.org/. Hope that these are of interest.

I've also found that splitting journeys drastically reduces fares. You might find more help on this website:
http://www.seat61.com/UKtravel.htm
Good luck!

Similarly to previous posts, I use pages sliced out of last-year's road atlas for day to day navigation. Before my tour I add locations of campsites, places I want to visit, etc., and afterwards I can highlight my route. I usually take a 'real' map too, such as the OS 'Road' series which is 1:250,000 and has contour lines. Sometimes I use OS 1:50,000 maps if I'm doing a short tour in one area, and I usually borrow these from the library. The detail seems a luxury, and the scale gives me the impression I'm covering the miles far faster than usual!

Not at all interested in GPS or anything like that - the less nickable things and technology the happier I am when touring. But like a previous poster I would love a series of 1:100,000 maps.

When I was cycling in the Netherlands a few years ago I saw several people 'walking' their dogs whilst cycling, using a spring attachment on the bike which allowed some flexibility.

Ferrit Worrier - I've done that too - keys in my jacket pocket!

Slowrider - glad you've got it sorted, sounds like a good bike shop you've got there.

Mick, by 'step-through frame' I mean something like this:



I'm not familiar with the term 'compact geometry'. Is it what I've called 'squashed' frames? like this (some more so?) i.e., the top tube isn't horizontal. Some even go straight through to the back hub so to me they look a bit like a mixte.



There are so many different shapes of bike frames now!

NB. pics are just random ones of Google, not ones I'm specifically interested in.

Thanks for all your replies - REALLY interesting! Slightly embarrassed that I hadn't thought that getting onto a bike more easily is one of the reasons for getting a step-through, and if having a good choice of budget step-throughs is getting more women into cycling, then that's great. I also happily concede that there are some super high-end bikes made for women, though I neither need or particularly want one, great machines though they are.
I think that when I last looked for a bike, 20 years ago, there were far fewer decent bikes made for women, and that the idea then was that a diamond frame was stronger and would take the weight of loaded panniers better. I can see that modern bikes are made with materials which mean that frame geometry is far more varied but presumably as strong. Lots of mountain bikes seem to have a frame shape almost as 'squashed' as a step-through, and obviously they must be really strong. I can't like them though! Call me old-fashioned... I'm after a reasonably-decent but not too expensive hybrid which will cope with city potholes, canal towpaths and bridleways on day rides and short tours. I was a bit narked that the manufacturer I have always wanted a bike from does not do small frames in anything other than step-throughs.
I will persevere and have fun trying lots of different bikes for size.
Cheers!

I shall attempt to not let this turn into a rant! I'm thinking of getting a new bike, one with fattish tyres. I'm small, and the bike shops I've been into say that my current bike, a 19 1/2" frame, is too big. True, it's always been a bit of a reach for the brakes and for the ground! So I've been looking at a number of very reputable manufacturers and stores on the internet for women-specific bikes. I'm astonished at the number of step-through frames, and ones which are a version of mixte. I'd understand this if I was looking at shoppers or town bikes, but I've been looking at hybrids and mountain bikes. I thought that step-through frames were supposed to be weaker, and that mixte frames were better but a bit of a compromise? Or have changes in technology mean that this isn't so any more?
Anyhow, there do seem to be a few men's bikes in small sizes. And better colours - I shall resist talking about bikes in pink and aqua!

In Germany I was told off by another cyclist for cycling the wrong way on a cyclepath - I'd not realised that there was one each side of most roads, basically just splitting the footpath. Don't recall great piles of injured pedestrians, cyclists and walkers kept a sensible eye out for each other.

I've just spent a very nice few days in Paris and was impressed by the number of cyclists. But over 5 evenings I only saw 4 wearing reflective jackets, so it's obviously slow to catch on/be enforced.
Side issue - the Velibs are pretty neat, and pretty popular too.

Taking a bike always adds to the variety of the journey! I've used Crosscountry and Virgin as well as others and have come across a mixture of rolling stock on each, so it's hard to predict. I've always booked as per the 'rules', but I've found there's usually space on the next train in an hour or so if I've not wanted to book days in advance for the end of a tour.

I've found that being smiley and friendly with the platform staff really helps, and they can usually say which end of the platform the bike storage will be on. In the past I've got stressed out and irritable and this has just meant things got escalated and everybody got cross!

I've actually done a lot of touring this year using East Midlands trains (used to be Central) as they don't require bookings. Meant tours in Yorkshire started in Lincolnshire, and I visited some places I never thought I would!

Train fare tips: sometimes splitting a journey means it's way cheaper. A trip from Nottingham to Seamer cost £46. Nottingham to York was £15 (advanced). York to Seamer was £5. Also look at travelling to nearby places: Nottingham to Hull was £36 with two reservations whilst Nottingham to Barnetby (where?! see above!) was £25, I could just hop on, and I got a nice ride with views of the Ancholme valley and the Humber bridge at the end. Even better there are trains to Barton on Humber (£14) which in fact involve walking to the bus station in Hull for a bus across the bridge so whos'e going to stop you just cycling away?

As you've gathered I really like the challenge of planning the cheapest and best journey! Don't give up and go by car - the more cyclists there are the more things will (gradually) improve. Get chatting to the people on the platform and in the train - you'll meet some great people and they'll be so impressed by your exploits so that it'll be your head that won't fit through the door, not the bike panniers!

My 19-year-old Raleigh Touriste at the start of our recent tour of the Yorkshire and Lincolnshire coast. I used to paddle at this pool some years before getting the bike...



You may notice some rather plain flat handlebars - I was really struggling with reaching the brakes and these got me riding again. Did 65 miles the last day so they are OK but would not do on steeper hills - mind you I'm not fit enough either!

Next year I hope to renovate the bike for its 20th birthday, with some of those bars designed for small hands, a short stem and new wheels.

That looks a very nice neat setup Cosstick. Where are you going?

This may be of interest - US company but lots of helpful stuff on sizing.
http://www.terrybicycles.com/cycling_savvy/