Any of you Tossers ride a pushbike?
- Thread starter y2blade
- Start date
Photos are great y2Blade - where were you? Wouldn't mind sampling a few of those trails myself!
Did a challenging 106 miler through Rutland, Northants & Leicester on Saturday in pretty horrible weather.
Really enjoyed it but was amazed to see Martin Johnson on his bike with us. It was a long & hilly course for a big bloke like him but he zipped round in no time at all - fair play to the lad. And he was in good spirit & very chatty before the off.
Really enjoyed it but was amazed to see Martin Johnson on his bike with us. It was a long & hilly course for a big bloke like him but he zipped round in no time at all - fair play to the lad. And he was in good spirit & very chatty before the off.
richie
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Did first ride of "season yesterday" 50 KM hilly 2 hours, a few charity events to do this year 2 day 90 mile each way, one day 90 miler and rebel tour 100 miles. So things to aim for.
Gonzo
Registered user
Did the Cambridge 100 on Sunday. Sounds like a lot but with virtually no hills pretty straightforward. Apart from a bit of a breeze on the outward stretch.
Rehydrating in Cambridge afterwards was rather nice.
Rehydrating in Cambridge afterwards was rather nice.
Aurelius
Registered user
The last week has been particularly fruitful in terms of meeting some goals I set for myself long ago. Five personal records fell, placing me among the top ten fastest riders on four Strava segments (not including several top ten records I already held). These are in no particular order:
9th out of 969 riders
2nd out of 1240 riders
1st out of 430 riders
2nd out of 925 riders
The one I'm most proud of however, isn't any of those: it's a 37th place finish out of 848 on the longest and steepest segment, where I was previously ranked 116th. Being 30 years older and 40 lbs heavier than the club racers I'm competing against presents a serious disadvantage when working against gravity.
How great the disadvantage is becomes apparent when comparing my power output on these climbs with the others. On this particular climb, I was only two seconds faster than Jason Guillen, a young racer I know who would be considered 'skinny' even by racer standards. Because of our weight difference, I had to produce roughly 50% more power than Jason did to match his speed. Out of curiosity I sorted the results by age, and found that I'm ranked 9th. Nice to see that there are still a number of geriatrics capable of achieving this level of performance. 
9th out of 969 riders
2nd out of 1240 riders
1st out of 430 riders
2nd out of 925 riders
The one I'm most proud of however, isn't any of those: it's a 37th place finish out of 848 on the longest and steepest segment, where I was previously ranked 116th. Being 30 years older and 40 lbs heavier than the club racers I'm competing against presents a serious disadvantage when working against gravity.
How great the disadvantage is becomes apparent when comparing my power output on these climbs with the others. On this particular climb, I was only two seconds faster than Jason Guillen, a young racer I know who would be considered 'skinny' even by racer standards. Because of our weight difference, I had to produce roughly 50% more power than Jason did to match his speed. Out of curiosity I sorted the results by age, and found that I'm ranked 9th. Nice to see that there are still a number of geriatrics capable of achieving this level of performance. 
Gonzo
Registered user
That's a final drive waiting to go wrong.
What sort of oil would one need for it?
What sort of oil would one need for it?
That's a final drive waiting to go wrong.
What sort of oil would one need for it?
I can't see a breather anywhere either.....
did my first 10 mile time trial of the year (only did the last one of the year last year) despite being over a stone lighter, getting some turbo trainer in over the winter and a new carbon bike i only managed 31m 2s which i was a bit disappointed in but at least i beat my time of last year which was 33m 43sec. i was pleased with the effort i put in though as i was pushing all the way. my target now is to get under 30mins. i was 3rd. slowest but was beaten (just) by a 76yo 
but at 65 was the 2nd. oldest in the field
but at 65 was the 2nd. oldest in the field Always promised myself that one day I'd get to the Isle Of Man...... Well we've just got back , ....from the IOM youth tour , my boy was racing (did ok , finishing midway after 3 hard days) what a lovely place , our weekend was crammed with cycling of course , but managed to see and drive the TT course......flippin 'eck it's awesome when you think of the speeds those guys get up to ! ...so I'm still promising myself to get there ....but for TT week maybe !
stevemersey
Registered user
Rode both loops at Penmacno at the weekend. Thought it would never end. Some significant climbing on single track and I am just not fit enough or too old. I can go at my own pace uphill on the forest roads but am not fast enough to carry over the obstacles on uphill singletrack. Some very enjoyable bits though. Highly recommended and the weather was perfect.
Aurelius
Registered user
did my first 10 mile time trial of the year (only did the last one of the year last year) despite being over a stone lighter, getting some turbo trainer in over the winter and a new carbon bike i only managed 31m 2s which i was a bit disappointed in but at least i beat my time of last year which was 33m 43sec. i was pleased with the effort i put in though as i was pushing all the way. my target now is to get under 30mins. i was 3rd. slowest but was beaten (just) by a 76yo
I'm told that you have to train specifically for a 10 mile TT if you expect to see significant progress. For example, my sprint times have improved tremendously in the past two years. In sprints of 1-2 miles, I'm always ranked in the top 5 or top 10, beating club racers 30 years younger and 30 lbs lighter than me. I wrongly assumed that this huge increase in performance would also translate into huge increases in a TT race, so last weekend I took my TT bike out to a five mile course. The result? A pitiful 110th place on the Strava leader board - far behind other riders I routinely beat on shorter distances. The power graph tells the story: during the first two miles I was running strong, and I felt confident I'd be able to hold my 26 mph pace until the end. But after that point, fatigue rapidly set in and my power output dropped like a stone. By the time I crossed the finish line, it was all I could do to maintain a speed of 20 mph.
Deleted account 231002001
Registered user
Question for the cyclists: How much different on the road would I find this to my Hybrid? Apparently it is set up for a more comfortable ride so the geometry isn't too radical. I like my hybrid but the bloke in the shop says this would be so much quicker and easier. Going to do the ride to work a couple of times next week and see how the current bike fairs before deciding whether to change it.
http://www.ralphcolman.co.uk/collections/bikes-price-asc/products/orbea-avant-h50
http://www.ralphcolman.co.uk/collections/bikes-price-asc/products/orbea-avant-h50
Big Lee
Registered user
Looks a nice bit of kit but depends what your hybrid is like. See if you can get a go on one, try and ride your own to the shop so you`ve a direct comparison tyre pressures can make a difference to how lively a bike feels and having the drops also gives you more hand positions
tyre pressures can make a difference to how lively a bike feels and having the drops also gives you more hand positions
If you haven't got one, go an buy a decent stirrup pump and always ensure that your tyres are inflated to the maximum pressure quoted on the sidewall.
I get more of a workout inflating tyres on my roadbike to 120psi than I get from a 10 mile ride!!!
Deleted account 231002001
Registered user
Yeah bought one of those pumps and it does make a lot of difference. My ride to work will be 11 miles each way, couple of hills but nothing too bad. My Hybrid is a Ridgeback Momentum.
If you haven't got one, go an buy a decent stirrup pump and always ensure that your tyres are inflated to the maximum pressure quoted on the sidewall.
I get more of a workout inflating tyres on my roadbike to 120psi than I get from a 10 mile ride!!!
You're dead right, but why do I find it all so scarey?
My road bike tyres are '125 PSI Max' and I just shit myself pushing the stirrup pump for that last 10 PSI....
Reminds me of when my lad was young......'Can you pump my ball up Dad' ?.......Pump/Pump/Pump.....BANG !!!!!!!!!!........
sven
Registered user
I actually rode my mountain bike on Saturday for the first time this year 
It felt good though, especially with all this scenery just minutes from home (hardly surprising the Tour de France is coming through here), just need to get some better pads for the brakes as it doesn't stop as well as it goes...
It felt good though, especially with all this scenery just minutes from home (hardly surprising the Tour de France is coming through here), just need to get some better pads for the brakes as it doesn't stop as well as it goes...
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