Road Cycling Essentials

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Matutu said:
Hey Guys,

Ive got a Giant Alliance Defy 2010, which I am looking on increasing distances now quite high, is they anything I should think about upgrading from stock?

At this time everything is how I got it and seems to be going quite well, oh except ofcourse clipped in pedals.

Thankyou!
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Wheels and contact points are the usual upgrades. Unless your bars and saddle are uncomfortable I wouldn't bother. Pedals; go clipless.

Wheels, look for something lighter than you already have with smoother hubs and you shoudl notice a big difference.
 
Tr Insanity said:
Where did you get the wheelset from? Or did you build it up yourself?

Looking for a decent fixed wheelset myself:)
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Not sure if i can link directly to it, but have a look for a thread by Varno on the LFGSS forum. He sells hand built wheelsets that come highly recommended.

Personally i build my own :)
 
Good run out Saundie.

Did 66 mile 5 hills run with the club this morning including Coombe Bottom, Box Hill and West Humble. Coombe Bottom had me gasping. Also forgot to put sun tan lotion on. Oops.

Different group to the one I usually go out with and discipline was awful. Shouts of 'car back' didn't seem to mean anything to half of them as the continued two and three abreast. A few of us will be complaining on the forum
I feel.
 
Good run out Saundie.

Did 66 mile 5 hills run with the club this morning including Coombe Bottom, Box Hill and West Humble. Coombe Bottom had me gasping. Also forgot to put sun tan lotion on. Oops.

Different group to the one I usually go out with and discipline was awful. Shouts of 'car back' didn't seem to mean anything to half of them as the continued two and three abreast. A few of us will be complaining on the forum
I feel.
 
[DOD]Asprilla;19457243 said:
Good run out Saundie.

Did 66 mile 5 hills run with the club this morning including Coombe Bottom, Box Hill and West Humble. Coombe Bottom had me gasping. Also forgot to put sun tan lotion on. Oops.
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Compared to your run, you could say it was pathetic. You'd be right, too. Don't you like going out on your own?
 
[DOD]Asprilla;19457244 said:
Different group to the one I usually go out with and discipline was awful. Shouts of 'car back' didn't seem to mean anything to half of them as the continued two and three abreast. A few of us will be complaining on the forum
I feel.
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Might just be different ways of doing things. All of the groups i'v been out with would continue 2 abreast (unless its a single track road). Its usually just seen as a warning that something might try to overtake soon. Usually followed by 'Coming up' when it does start to overtake.

Being in a disorganised group is rubbish tho (and usually quite dangerous).
 
Gotta love the British weather for keeping you guessing. I went through 2x800ml bottles, 1x750ml bottle, 2 cups of coffee, can of coke and a bottle of powerade on the club ride. Caught quite a few people out for clothing too. One guy turned up with 3 layers on and full finger gloves. That probably would have cooked me in a blizzard.
 
touch said:
Might just be different ways of doing things. All of the groups i'v been out with would continue 2 abreast (unless its a single track road). Its usually just seen as a warning that something might try to overtake soon. Usually followed by 'Coming up' when it does start to overtake.

Being in a disorganised group is rubbish tho (and usually quite dangerous).
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A lot of this was narrow country roads, some single track and some 50 limits.

Saundie; not a massive fan of going out on my own since you can go further in a group and find new routes.
 
Completed the 52 mile London Bikeathon today in searing heat. Found it incredibly difficult after the 35 mile point and at one stage I was thinking seriously about giving up but I soldiered on. I did a 45 mile ride last week and found it quite easy but the weather today was a killer making a massive difference. This is my longest ever ride but I don't plan to do anything like that on a mountain bike ever again!!
 
Hi all,

just to let you al know the British Heart Foundation charity ride went great today.
Completed 102.5 miles in 5 hours 44 mins, average speed of 17.9 mph.

Weather was stupidly hot though, got a great tan on the plus side though. :P

Once again many many thanks to everyone who made donations & offered words of support & advice.
So far it's looking like I should manage to raise around £200.

If anyone would like to add to the donations please see the link below.
http://www.justgiving.com/Robert-Williams27
 
The talk on some forums about cheap chinese carbon frames has piqued my interest, so I'm going to build a budget carbon bike and see how it goes.

Current spec:
Chinese carbon frame/fork (probably 56cm FM028/RB002)
SRAM Force groupo (already bought secondhand)
Bars, stem, seatpost, seat, all chinese carbon
Pedals- not sure, possibly eggbeaters
Wheels- dunno- any suggestions for a decent durable wheelset, as light as possible for around £200-£250?

I reckon I can get it together for just over a grand (Groupset was £300). I'm aware you can get perfectly decent carbon bikes for that, but it's more fun to build it yerself!
 
CGrieves said:
I reckon I can get it together for just over a grand (Groupset was £300). I'm aware you can get perfectly decent carbon bikes for that, but it's more fun to build it yerself!
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I'm interested in this tactic also. Surely you get more for your money than buying pre-built, a la building a PC? Or is that not the case? Are there pitfalls doing this such as not all crank sets fit all frames etc.?

The things I like about it:

- You are not paying for branding.
- You have ultimate flexibility in the spec of the bike.

The things I don't like about it are:

- Warranty is harder, no one retailer to chuck it back to.
- One might need to buy a load of new tools to build the bike, which might push it into the realms of expensive.
 
There are many possible pitfalls I guess- warranty is one, quality can often be lower- not in terms of safety or strength, but finishing of the frames more than anything, removal of excess carbon internally, cosmetic flaws etc. They're still competitively light though.

So far I can't find any definite reports of parts failing, just niggly things like alignment of cable guides etc. It's said that these manufacturers do supply European companies with frames for rebranding anyway.

If it works out, you can definitely get more for your money as the frame's only costing £300-£350, not such a financially drastic component of the bike as a whole. I figure if I build it up and get a couple of years out of it, then move on to another frame, or another cheap Chinese one. Who knows, maybe it'll last longer.

Although to be honest, I'm not completely driven by cost, it just seems a good way to build something personalised and unique.
 
oddjob62 said:
Not sure if i can link directly to it, but have a look for a thread by Varno on the LFGSS forum. He sells hand built wheelsets that come highly recommended.

Personally i build my own :)
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Yep I've looked at Varno's V-Sprint wheelsets before, only thing I'm dubious about is the Quando hubs (looking for a budget set), however peoples impressions of the wheelsets seem to be great.
 
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All packed! :) See you 7 days and 600km later!
 
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