Road Cycling

Soldato
Joined
18 Oct 2002
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Hereford
In other news... Went for a quick blast Saturday morning, had 'less than 2 hours' to burn (after thinking I'd only have an hour) so drew a blank for something any more imaginative. Still good to get out and get some volume/effort into the legs!

https://www.strava.com/activities/2507980845

Played around with aero bars and saddle (just changed to Power). Getting there but do think I need j bends for a more powerful and comfortable position (less wrist strain). Will swap the ones I have with the ones from the turbo as I think the wider elbow pads will also help my breathing better. Saddle feels loads firmer than my used/abused Phenom which came on the Diverge, although I've struggled with saddle sores/multiple hours on firmer saddles before but have done 2 hours on the turbo on a Power and now this and actually pretty good 'after effects' (no sores/far less!). Time will tell...

One the way out I passed 2 other guys stopped at a junction (usual hi & wave as you'd expect). A few miles later they came past me pushing a good pace (considering I was sat on my aerobars trying to maintain my speed). I asked if it was ok I jumped on - no response. I hang back a little with a gap and kept with them up a slight rise (looking at it now fairly gassed myself!), letting them go on the descent and flat afterwards. The real climb which comes afterwards (Tin Hill) I carried good speed onto and pacing it felt good enough to push the second half. Actually caught and passing them loads quicker than I thought! No response to my asking where they where heading. They came passed me on the descent, again without a comment as I said 'have a good ride'. Half hoping I annoyed them as made them look very average on the climb. Have no time for ignorant riders! Being foreign is no excuse! Fair play they did a monster ride, could forgive them if they kept that pace (they didn't #stravastalking). :confused::eek:

Bore off antisocial weekend riders :rolleyes::D
 
Soldato
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17 Sep 2006
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Gloucestershire
I'm still not sure what the etiquette is for people catching you up or vice versa. I overtook a guy on the way to our club ride, I didn't fly past, put we were clearly doing different speeds. I happened to look back after a few minutes and saw he was on my wheel! After upping the wattage by 100 or so for a bit he was soon gone!
I find it a bit cheeky people just wheel sucking with no interaction whatsoever.
 
Soldato
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25 Oct 2006
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5,386
If I get overtaken by someone doing a good pace I'll often just sit 5 bike lengths back and use them as pacing motivation. Not sure if that is annoying but probably less annoying than someone sitting 1 inch behind.
 
Soldato
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29 Oct 2004
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10,884
I'm still not sure what the etiquette is for people catching you up or vice versa. I overtook a guy on the way to our club ride, I didn't fly past, put we were clearly doing different speeds. I happened to look back after a few minutes and saw he was on my wheel! After upping the wattage by 100 or so for a bit he was soon gone!
I find it a bit cheeky people just wheel sucking with no interaction whatsoever.

Not just cheeky, but potentially dangerous as well. Riding in close formation is fine, when you know that's what you're doing. I'm with Lethal` - a few bike lengths is fine, or if you're going to maintain a similar speed, doesn't hurt to ask if they want to work together.
 
Soldato
Joined
23 Nov 2004
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10,646
I don't usually get caught :D

When I did the FTP thing with Gary a guy charged past us as we pootled along.

Once we started we must have came by about 3 times his speed and never saw him again.

I'm a ***** with people who don't wave or say hi though
 
Associate
Joined
26 Sep 2013
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326
Location
London
Just had a quote from local bike guy to fit and bleed some hydraulic brakes. £200!! Is this totally ridiculous or am I being cheap?
i did mine in london back end of last year, swapping out existing Formula C1 hydraulics to Shimano Saint on my mountain bike including internal routing and bleeding. £15 each side, £30 in total.

EDIT: just saw you are in based in London as well. My local shop is near Putney Bridge, not sure if this is too far for you. let me know if you want to know exactly which shop.
 
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Associate
Joined
26 Sep 2013
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326
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London
I noticed no-one seems to even give a nod :( I figured it was like you say, the same as motorbiking. Out in the sticks, everyone nods. In London, there's just too many and so most don't bother.
yes. early in the morning when there are hardly anyone then i will do it, but any time after 8am, it's too busy to do so.
 
Soldato
Joined
18 Oct 2002
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4,617
Which '11 speed 105' did you swap to? 5800 or R7000? So you're saying you tried one of the 5800 cassettes on those wheels first and it didn't fit. Then the larger 11-34 R7000 afterwards which did? There should be no difference between cassette 'widths' between 5800 and R7000. Sure there wasn't a spacer on the freehub you accidentally removed with the 5800 cassette...?


soooo

Officially speaking, 11 speed MTB cassettes *are* compatible with 10 speed wheels because the big sprocket (which is bigger than most roadie ones) is "cranked" a little over the hub flange and the "base" width is smaller, while the smaller top sprocket on roadie ones isn't big enough to do that, so the whole cassette and by extension freehub has to be wider.

but I have heard that the newer "really big" road cassettes also do this although it's not an official capability....
 
Soldato
Joined
18 Oct 2002
Posts
8,420
Location
Hereford
I'm still not sure what the etiquette is for people catching you up or vice versa. I overtook a guy on the way to our club ride, I didn't fly past, put we were clearly doing different speeds. I happened to look back after a few minutes and saw he was on my wheel! After upping the wattage by 100 or so for a bit he was soon gone!
I find it a bit cheeky people just wheel sucking with no interaction whatsoever.
Yup I'm fairly sure that annoys us all, but equally I'm sure if someone shouted 'hi' or 'can I jump/sit on' we'd all be ok with it.

To be honest as I'd had no response from them (as they came past on a climb) I didn't really change pace, actually sitting up on the descent and let a gap open. The way they'd passed me and the gap at the next climb easily being 15-20 bike lengths I didn't expect to catch them. When it was obvious I was I commented something like 'I've still got my climbing legs! Have a good ride' as I went past.

Just fit and bleed - maybe I should fit them myself and just take them down for a bleeding?
Extortionate price. Get the kit for around 1/4 that cost and learn to do it yourself!

Even buying the Shimano kit, funnel & fluid should cost less than £25-30 total. Mine certainly did and it's not a hard skill to learn. Easier than say replacing both gear cables and indexing. Easier than fitting tubeless!

If I get overtaken by someone doing a good pace I'll often just sit 5 bike lengths back and use them as pacing motivation. Not sure if that is annoying but probably less annoying than someone sitting 1 inch behind.
Yup, I always consider if I'm/someone else is more than a bike length then it's 'safe'. No chance of overlapping wheels and enough space for braking distance variation. I know I'm a proficient enough rider to suck an unknown group rider who knows I'm there's wheel fairly safely (any of us riding in groups is fairly used to this!), but if they don't know you're there or are not a comfortable group rider then I think a bike length should be the minimum.

Good pacing motivation. Much of the time I'll think 'they're riding well/easily wonder how that feels' and usually end up putting myself in the red a few minutes later thinking 'that was a stupid Haydn'. :D

I'm a ***** with people who don't wave or say hi though
Yup bugs me. Especially as around here you probably only see someone every 10-20 miles in the summer months.

Then again I'm one of those annoying people - I'll acknowledge most riders even when commuting. Riders without a helmet usually not. Riders on the pavement riding slowly/not confident enough for road yes. Riders with flat bars generally just a nod. Riders with drop bars, road helmets and kit generally get a wave and a 'hi'. During the summer months even my ~10 minute 2.4 mile commute on average I'll see 2-3 riders in the mornings and then 5-6 on the longer (30-40 min) Nursery pickups in the afternoons. I'm just a happy chappie when I'm on my bike! :D

In London, there's just too many and so most don't bother.
Typical lazy self centred city folk mentality :p
 
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Soldato
Joined
18 Oct 2002
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Hereford
@Roady - have you done this Sportive before?

http://www.rideventures.co.uk/autumnepic/maps.html#epic100

Bit of a hike to the start for me, so probably an early start but chance to hit some new roads.

Sorry for the delayed reply. I'd opened it and had a good read but forgot to quote your post here to respond to. I've not ridden it, but I had heard of the name mentioned. But I also hadn't realised the start point or route - basically all around mid wales where I grew up. Start point (Knighton) is 6-7 miles away from where my parents currently live. Thanks for putting it on my radar... Might be the 'missing' challenge I need this year! But what a challenge...

Getting there for you, there would be ample parking in Knighton. It's not a busy town but built right on top of a hill, with hills all around, rail could be a good option though? The railway there runs to Shrewsbury/Crewe. Should be several B&B's there if required as it's a bit of a hub for walking Offas Dyke. Might/should be pub/hotel kinda places too with rooms. Certainly used to be.

Route is brutal, no other way to describe it. Basically taking in many of the direct hilly back lanes that the main roads stick to the valleys to avoid. :o

The climb at the start towards Newtown (up Dolfor) is quite a long one, relentless in a small car, nevermind on a bike. One I had wanted to cross off at some point! The ride across the top to Bwlch y Sarnau, is an amazing road I've driven a few times and memorable enough that I've been meaning to get over there on my bike, but although amazing scenery/views it would be hard going in any wind/rain weather as very very exposed. Shame they didn't come through St Harmon though. Abbeycymhir things get much more enclosed and rolling. Have meant to ride there and experience some of the roads around where Mike Hall lived and loved (his wife and kids are still there). Elan Valley dams. Say no more. Should be on everyones bucket list! The road then over the top from Howey to Hundred House (I know well as worked in Hundred House for ~11 years) has several cattlegrids and ramps there. Dodgy descent with at least 2 blind hairpins, one with a rock wall at the side and I think the other straight onto a cattlegrid. Then over the top through Cregina will be such a sapping route. There's around 20 miles there from around the 68 mile marker which are total back-lanes, grippy rough surfaces on winding single lane with very little respite. Then drop down through Dolyhir onto some nice roads (passing where I grew up for 31 years), Knill and through Presteigne will be good to ride as generally flat/smooth rolling roads at that point as you'll need to recover for the climb through Norton onto the top of Rhos-y-Meirch. That will really empty any reserves but a nice long descent on good roads to finish.

Wow I hadn't meant to review the route haha! :D
 
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Soldato
Joined
18 Oct 2002
Posts
8,420
Location
Hereford
Driven a lot of those roads when crewing for horse endurance races starting from Builth Wells. That would be a brutal ride.
Oh cool, which events?

Beautiful part of the world. Of course I say that now, but living there and working around there (did on site IT support) I really didn't totally appreciate it at the time. The rides I've done that way have all been utterly brutal, yet none had a parcours quite as hard as that... Makes it more of an audax type ride than a Sportive!

https://www.strava.com/activities/1086358814
https://www.strava.com/activities/1704631750
https://www.strava.com/activities/636534730
 
Soldato
Joined
18 Oct 2002
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8,420
Location
Hereford
Ahhh ok, nice. Not one I'm familiar with (not that I know many). I work with someone who does dressage, cross country and showjumping. She has a bunch of horses!

You still involved with horses/ponies? My mum had a massive fell pony when I was young and a couple of others we rode, so was around horses quite a bit then. Not at all now though! Kinda do miss it/them though.

Back to the cycling... Damn how humid is it these last few days guys?! I've been ok commuting, generally pacing myself with towing the chariot but then utterly melting once I'm stopped without any of the cooling winds you get while moving. It felt a little cooler last night so I jumped on Zwift. I didn't feel too bad, a generally easy ride with sprint efforts but damn I lost so many fluids! Drinking 1.2L in 45 mins without needing a pee afterwards must be a new record for me. 800ml recovery shake afterwards and around another pint of squash over the next hour before bed and still wasn't bursting. :o

Although had a 3am wake up to a really poorly wee man, meant a trip down to A+E and sitting around for 5 hours until we got discharged. Was in A+E longer this morning than I slept last night. That really won't help with recovery. So Tired. :eek: But he's lots better now. Got a virus and temperature, then he seemed to overheat overnight causing him to struggle breathing. Frantic couple of hours pretty worrying times until we A+E'd it. After a trip in the car he was loads better, even more so after a dose of ibuprofen. He was jumping up and down on the hospital bed giggling 20 mins afterwards. Then just the waiting around for a Doctor. Hope he doesn't think we'll do that every morning now! :D:rolleyes::o:eek::)

Interesting comparison - running late yesterday morning trying to maintain pace using power. Heading in today pushing on but pacing by RPE, no head unit (in bag). ~40s faster and ~60W higher average without the head unit.
 
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