Cycling UK Forum

Thanks all for your comments
Removing the remains of the old decals was fun, and not as difficult as I imagined, I scraped most of the letters off with my thumb nail. I now have nice clean tubes waiting for my decals to arrive.
I plan to follow fastpedallers advice, and use the varnish and method he described.
I will report back when the work is done.

A 40mm tyre that doesn't seem to fit your criteria, not slick, not that light, is the Marathon Efficiency, yet IMO it's still worthy of consideration. Schwalbe claim this is their fastest ever touring tyre, it's the replacement for the Supreme, which I preferred to the Hyper:
https://www.cyclinguk.org/cycle-magazin ... efficiency

Hi everyone,

Thanks for your response.

I just wanted to give an update, since I've now been here for 8 days.

I've commuted to work almost every day, 20km to site. 25km+ on the way back, I have enjoyed taking a longer routes back to the hotel.

I hired a bike. And the company, City Bikes were really helpful. The options for 7 day hire were Trek Emonda ($500) or a Scott (carbon something or other) or newer Cannondale Synapse ($250)

I ended up with the Synapse

There roads have been fine to ride on in honesty, a little debris in the cycle lanes at times and I've come across some interesting road kill now and again.

The roads are busy, but I often used the quieter streets that run parallel to the main ones. The most difficulty I've had was navigating large junctions that, like a commenter has mentioned, aren't set up for bikes. However, I have seen many markings on the road that suggest more cycle lanes. Most of the main roads I have ridden have had reasonable cycle lanes.

Most drivers have taken an extreme wide berth, more so than what I sometimes experience in London!

It has been warm but it hasnt stopped me, only slowed me down.27degrees C + most days.

Planning a 100km ride for my day off along the islands by the coast, Biscayne Bay.

As for dangerous, I have remained vigilant as I would in any city but experienced no issues.

I have seen Iguanas, land crabs, tropical birds and burrowing owls. Along the Snake Creek canal I saw a large splash underneath a bridge, this could have been a fish however this was around a fair few crocodile warning signs!

Call me stupid or naive but I don't feel ive taken any risks. Used lights front and rear the whole time. And always aware of my surroundings. Never had to turn round due to unsavoury types, infact I've been waving to many locals along my routes. (You can take a Yorkshire man out of Yorkshire, but....)

Curious to hear any more experiences people have had in Miami. I would certainly hire a bike here again.

Cheers

Plus one for the advice in the last 2 posts. If you're doing it yourself, you do have the considerable benefit of being able to try your intended coating on a tiny cut-off corner of the decal, so you can be sure ahead of its application.

what is your budget?

a word of caution; every transfer has it's Achilles' heel; ie. there is a substance out there which will do terrible things to your transfer. You would expect that such substances would never find their way into paints and varnishes, but you would be quite wrong. In fact you need to be quite sure that the varnish is not only compatible with the transfer but compatible with the topcoat too. Needless to say, it can be a bit of a minefield.

now I look more carefully at your pictures, there seems to be a plastic sleeve inside the BB shell. If so, please ignore what I said about a cardboard tube.

All I can suggest here is that there's a need to get involve/organise.

If there is a local cycling advocacy group, join (even if all you do is send some emails and add weight of numbers)

Contact opposition politicians and candidates and make it known this is important to you (this is of course part of the problem - people who are relatively happy tend not to contact councillors etc, but you can be damn sure people who feel they've something to complain about will be doing) and that you are not alone.

Consider joining an opposition party that best fits your political views.

Standing back and complaining while doing nothing isn't a viable option.

I had an annoying ticking from the drivetrain which took 2 years to find and it was the quick release. It looks like your bike has through axle wheel mounting, and I really don't know if they can suffer from the same problem, but "if all else fails". Addition of a bit of grease on the surfaces greatly reduced the problem, but in the end a change of quick release solved it. If I put the original QR in the wheel, the ticking comes back. Just a suggestion, but the symptoms sound similar.

Brucey wrote: ↑3 May 2025, 12:06pm It sounds very much like spoke crossing rub to me. I know you have already looked at this, but you can find out if it is this or not unequivocally, using this simple test. Go for a wee ride with a piece of paper in your pocket until the noise starts up. All you need to do is install a paper fragment at each spoke crossing. I suggest that you do one side of the wheel at a time, starting with the NDS. There should be enough spoke tension to retain the scraps of paper whilst the bike is being ridden; if there isn't, this may indicate that the spoke tension isn't high enough. Needless to say, if the noise quits, you have probably just put a scrap of paper in the relevant spoke crossing.

IME NDS spokes are the most likely culprit for such noises, usually at a crossing, but occasionally at one end. Diagnosis via lubrication (eg. using a small bottle of oil) is usually possible too.

Thanks. I'll check. The spokes don't actually touch one another at crossovers, but that may change with weight on and in motion.

^^^

Different folks, different strokes, I guess, but I much prefer the “no booking, walk on with your bike” services, to the degree where I avoid using the ones that involve booking, and silly cupboards, and all that. And, I’ve fortunately never had hassle, even on grossly crowded trains; people seem to cheerfully “muck in”.

The most crowded so far was last summer when I went St Pancras to Ashford on the SE high speed, with loaded bike, and there were a couple from NL with super-loaded e-bikes, a woman confined to a large electric wheelchair, and the population of small city, with all their luggage, all of us rammed into one bike area and vestibule, and everyone remained fine!

The route given first of all is fine for Waterloo.

But I have frequently got the train to Portsmouth from London (Clapham Junction) when setting off on tours, including one last May with my wife and her heavy Pashley.

I would strongly advise avoiding the Croydon / Gatwick / Chichester line (17 stops) and use the Woking, Guildford, Haslemere etc. It can be direct, or changing at Woking, which may not even involve changing platforms and can be only 7 stops then to Portsmouth.

In May last year we found a very crowded mid-day train on the Croydon / Gatwick / Chichester line, and loads of people use it to get to towns along the south coast. People did make an issue of the bikes; and there was nasty argument, not directly involving us although we were taking up space. The Woking, Guildford, Haslemere line is more for commuters, and far less busy at mid-day, in my experience.

Travelling with loaded bikes on trains is very stressful: this week I came back from Shrewsbury / Birmingham New Street choosing to travel with Avanti West Coast, a more expensive ticket, purely because it has a bike reservation.

10am to 3pm would be optimal times with fewer people.

And there is no booking for bikes on either SWR (via Woking) or Southern (via Gatwick), which is an additional cause of stress.

Getting the right line and the best time for Portsmouth with heavy loaded bikes is a bigger deal than crossing to Waterloo.

My ferries have usually been over-night ones. But I still aim to get to Portsmouth for mid-afternoon, because I want to avoid crowded trains. Spend the time exploring old Portsmouth, or go off to Portchester Castle down the cycling paths.

Nomad007 wrote: ↑1 May 2025, 4:32pm

Nearholmer wrote: ↑30 Apr 2025, 5:49pm Aha!

Thameslink from St Pancras to East Croydon or Gatwick, change at either for a Southern train to Portsmouth train.

For example:

IMG_3303.jpeg

No tangling with London, and both services are very easy to use with bikes, and I think that considering the cross London time to Waterloo with a bike, this might actually be marginally quicker, certainly no slower.

I agree with taking the Thameslink at Kings Cross. I've used it many times when travelling with my bike to and from my home in south London, and also taking the Portsmouth train from East Croydon to my partner's mum who lives between Chichester and Portsmouth.

Be aware that you'll need to use two small-ish lifts to get to the platform. When they're working, you might have to wait several minutes while people with massive suitcases, pushchairs, wheelchairs use them first. If one or both of them aren't working (as I've experienced more than several times) you might have to carry your bike and panniers down the stairs.

Secondly, it might be better changing for the Portsmouth train at Gatwick. This is because depending on the day, time of day, and any previous cancellations between London terminals and Gatwick, the Portsmouth train can be very busy with travellers going to Gatwick, including taking up the area of the specific carriage(s) for bikes (where the accessible toilet is) with their luggage. As many/most of the passengers get off at Gatwick, they'll be a much better chance of getting your bikes into the designates areas. The only thing is the Thameslink train might stop on a different platform from where the Portsmouth train departs, and you might have to use the lifts to change platforms. Check National Rail live departures to see which platforms the trains are stopping at and departing from.

Thirdly, make sure you're in the right part of the train for Portsmouth. Because at Horsham (about 20 mins after Gatwick) the train divides into two, with one train going to Bognor Regis.

Lastly, it's beautiful countryside between Horsham and Chichester, with a view of Arundel castle , flood plains, and the South Downs. Enjoy!
+

It sounds very much like spoke crossing rub to me. I know you have already looked at this, but you can find out if it is this or not unequivocally, using this simple test. Go for a wee ride with a piece of paper in your pocket until the noise starts up. All you need to do is install a paper fragment at each spoke crossing. I suggest that you do one side of the wheel at a time, starting with the NDS. There should be enough spoke tension to retain the scraps of paper whilst the bike is being ridden; if there isn't, this may indicate that the spoke tension isn't high enough. Needless to say, if the noise quits, you have probably just put a scrap of paper in the relevant spoke crossing.

IME NDS spokes are the most likely culprit for such noises, usually at a crossing, but occasionally at one end. Diagnosis via lubrication (eg. using a small bottle of oil) is usually possible too.

To get started, you don't need a jig, use your forks & a pencil/ruler to measure how far out of true the rim is.

Make sure you know if your rim is an A or a B, this determines which spokes to start lacing up with.

Don't be tempted to screw the nipples on too quickly, just a few turns at a time, all around the wheel, then when it has become less floppy, just one turn, & as it tightens up, only half a turn.

Doing it this way should keep it reasonably true as you build it - adding in 'dishing' is another game, but you will figure it out after a couple of builds, (at least, I did).

It's a great feeling knowing that you can take care of your own wheels, go for it!

AndyK wrote: ↑2 May 2025, 6:09pm

irc wrote: ↑1 May 2025, 12:44pm I reported a road fault at 0836 this morning to East Dunbartonshire Council by email. At 1202 I got a reply saying it was repaired. What a fast response!

Defect has been there for weeks. A 1ft square 6" deep hole to the immediate offside of a kerbside drain.

On the one hand it wasn't serious because I never ride that close to the kerb. On the other hand anyone that did hit it was very likely crashing.

So, credit where it is due but am I the only person that reports faults?

Hundreds of cyclists and thousands of cars will have passed it in the time it was there.

Have you considered the possibility that someone else did report it, several weeks ago, and your report just happened to coincide with the scheduled repair date? Seems more likely to me.

No. I got a job number on submission of my report then a reply later that day quoting my ref number and saying it was fixed. Under 5 hours for the fix. The hole had been there for weeks so it would be stretching coincidence that they were sitting on a previous report.

"Thank you for contacting East Dunbartonshire Council on Thu, 01 May 2025 08:24 am. Your Case Reference is ROA1025."

"1 May 2025, 12:02
Your enquiry ROA1025 has been finalised and the work has been completed Defect repaired.

Kind regards

East Dunbartonshire Council"


As it happens the roads dept seems to be on the ball. Another major road which is actually not that bad is getting closed for resurfacing on the 11th.
More to do elsewhere but I can't say they are not working on the roads