Road Cycling Essentials

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Had to abandon the dragon ride with a knee problem

Absolutely gutted - was climbing really well but I started getting issues in my left knee. To make matters worse, my di2 battery started dying as well! Despite all that, 144km in and 2300m ascent done I had an average moving speed of 26km/h

Really worried now as I'm off to the Pyrenees in 2 weeks
 
oli collett said:
:(

It's frustrating sitting here waiting to get back - it's fine off the bike but on it it was agony. I think it could just be down to over training
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I feel your pain, I am planning a trip to France somewhere near year for cycling and my biggest fear is getting injured before I go. Hope it improves enough.
 
Anyone have any experience of Rapha summer mitts or ASSOS?

I get pins and needles in my left hand on any ride over 30 miles, used some cheapo summer mitts last couple of rides which seem to help fair amount.

Reading online nobody seems to have an opinion on them, but moan about cheaper gloves falling to bits.

Any first hand experiences?
 
Rapha Grand Tour mitts are fantastic but I'd struggle to justify paying full whack for them.

Before shelling out, make sure your ride position isn't putting too much weight in your hands and there are no uncomfortable lumps on your bars. SRAM shifters are particularly bad for that.
 
One More Solo said:
Rapha Grand Tour mitts are fantastic but I'd struggle to justify paying full whack for them.

Before shelling out, make sure your ride position isn't putting too much weight in your hands and there are no uncomfortable lumps on your bars. SRAM shifters are particularly bad for that.
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Ride position should be OK as I had a bike fit start of the year. Yeah the grand tour mitts look good but not a chance at £130. I was looking more towards the Classic Mitts for £70. Does that discount code still work ?
 
Th0nt said:
With the traffic lights and it being a busy area, unless you can close the roads it would be hard to seal that off - just pure luck on the day. He quoted "TT" to imply it is an unofficial one I would say. :)
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Yep, it was indeed to imply that it's not a proper TT route, though it is a good stretch of largely uninterrupted road, so you can see why someone has named the segment like that. I think I probably did benefit from a bit of a tailwind to be honest, but I'm still pleased with it ;) I've looked at creating a proper 10 mile TT type segment along that road which would go out and back, starting from a layby a bit before the roundabout that the segment I did starts at, and turning at one of the roundabouts, which could work.

There's another 10 mile stretch of road with just a couple of sets of lights near the start, which is also pretty good, but it is very lumpy. The first half is a fairly big climb and the second half ends up being pretty fast due to being largely downhill - you can easily hit 35mph or so on the rolling bits of the moors without even trying. It's a good stretch, but I've not done it in ages as it's a bit out of the way to do the full length of it.

The nearest proper TT that I know of is over on the Rainford bypass, which is nearly 20 miles away as it is. A mate of mine goes and does the TT there on a Tuesday night on a fairly regular basis. He has a proper TT bike and everything. One of these days I might see if he can take me along and I could have a go... Can you just turn up and have a go? I'm not a member of British cycling or anything, but I think I've read that you can just turn up and pay, so I might give it a shot.
 
So Froome
wins
the opening stage of the Dauphine and the Facebook comments are just full of people bitching at team sky for "abandoning" wiggins by leaving him out of the team for the tour. Pathetic.
 
Vonhelmet said:
So Froome
wins
the opening stage of the Dauphine and the Facebook comments are just full of people bitching at team sky for "abandoning" wiggins by leaving him out of the team for the tour. Pathetic.
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Leaving wiggins out of the tour because they're worried him and Froome won't get on is a ridiculous decision though.
 
oli collett said:
Leaving wiggins out of the tour because they're worried him and Froome won't get on is a ridiculous decision though.
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How many teams send two GC contenders to a tour? It doesn't make sense to do it.

Well, I guess you could do it if they were both super duper and could get on and take 1st and 2nd or whatever, but presumably that isn't the case here...

I'd be happy to see wiggins go to oge - spread the wealth.
 
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Vonhelmet said:
How many teams send two GC contenders to a tour? It doesn't make sense to do it.

Well, I guess you could do it if they were both super duper and could get on and take 1st and 2nd or whatever, but presumably that isn't the case here...

I'd be happy to see wiggins go to oge - spread the wealth.
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How many teams have two genuine GC contenders? Why shouldn't it make sense if one is there as a super-domestique? Putting aside whether Wiggins could realistically win the tour, if he performs well in Switzerland and is left out of TdF then it isn't tactical, it's personal.
 
I can see why people are disappointed that Wiggins isn't there, even in a support role. I for one am disappointed he isn't there. The thing about Team Sky is its almost analogous to a super group band, all the ingredients are high end but when you put them all together the dish just isn't right. And that is probably what is going on at Sky at the moment, though I bet the harmony of the team is the main reason! :)
 
beating my 2013 distance!

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happy.
 
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