Photos taken on your cycle.

slideshow bob

Minaun, Achill on Sunday evening. This segment on Strava which took about half an hour on an MTB. Bit faster coming down, but had to keep stopping to let the brakes cool . Need to find out how brake with discs!

Dark and grey, but was the driest part of the day.


Cloud line just above the turn.


Visibility at the top was ~50m. Got a scare when three telecoms vans appeared out of the mist as I approached the top, the first honking his horn to warn the others I guess.

delynet

I did that Minuan climb a few weeks ago on a road bike. Was very hard to keep the brakes on, surface not good enough to go fast on the way down. It's so steep in places that my front wheel was lifting at times when pushing down on the pedals climbing it.

http://www.strava.com/activities/139913695

slideshow bob

Derroura Mountain Trail today.

Ascent.


Lovely weather, lovely birdsong, splashes of colour amongst the many greens.


Boardwalks over the bog.

G1032

slideshow bob wrote: »

Minaun, Achill on Sunday evening. This segment on Strava which took about half an hour on an MTB. Bit faster coming down, but had to keep stopping to let the brakes cool . Need to find out how brake with discs!

delynet wrote: »

I did that Minuan climb a few weeks ago on a road bike. Was very hard to keep the brakes on, surface not good enough to go fast on the way down. It's so steep in places that my front wheel was lifting at times when pushing down on the pedals climbing it.

http://www.strava.com/activities/139913695

Nice photos. I have this on my to-do list very soon (hopefully within the next month)
I have it built up in my mind as an absolute savage beast of a climb. I'll be doing it with a 39/25 gearing
Tell me how brutal it is............!!!! Is it as bad as one would imagine?

delynet

Its a tough one, I kept going over and back the road to take the worst out of it. I was with a group of 8, one did not get the top as his deraileur ended up mangled into his back wheel. He thinks it was a bad link that caused it.

One had to walk a bit as the biggest problem is trying to get started again if you stop. Road is narrow so its hard to push off and clip into cleats. I did it using a 34/25 and could have done with more gears.

Going up is not the real problem, you will make it. Massive views if the clouds clear. The problem is coming down. Make sure you have good brake pads as you will need them.

G1032

delynet wrote: »

Its a tough one, I kept going over and back the road to take the worst out of it. I was with a group of 8, one did not get the top as his deraileur ended up mangled into his back wheel. He thinks it was a bad link that caused it.

One had to walk a bit as the biggest problem is trying to get started again if you stop. Road is narrow so its hard to push off and clip into cleats. I did it using a 34/25 and could have done with more gears.

Going up is not the real problem, you will make it. Massive views if the clouds clear. The problem is coming down. Make sure you have good brake pads as you will need them.

Thanks. I can get a loan of a rear wheel with a 12-28 cassette which I now think I will use. The 28 over the 25 will give me that little bit extra. Looking forward to this now but dreading the descent!!

slideshow bob

G1032 wrote: »

Is it as bad as one would imagine?

It is. I had terrible visibility so couldn't see what was in front of me. That was an advantage going up.

I had some avoidable complications - it was after 7pm when I started and light was poor due to weather. I was on my own; on a new to me MTB; the tyres were under-inflated and I'd no pump for the weekend; I had no food with me so had to keep my heart rate under a limit to avoid bonking.

I was in the next-to-lowest gear (lowest gear had the derailleur in the spokes) so going up was an effort but doable. On the way up I got increasingly concerned about how the brakes would hold up on the descent. Going up wasn't easy, but it was safe.

Very quickly on the descent the brakes worried me. It was hard work for them and they heated to the point of hissing several times. I jogged down a couple of the steeper sections to give the brakes time to cool. The descent would have been easier with better visibility, after I'd faith in the bike, it set up the way I need it to be, and after I understand disc brakes better.

Under the cloud ceiling I saw the drop to the side of the road was very steep, so maybe better visibility would have been a disadvantage. I might get a lift down if I do it again.

MrCreosote

The best part of my cycle today!

blobbie

What is the paper / article ?

route66

slideshow bob wrote: »

I had some avoidable complications - it was after 7pm when I started and light was poor due to weather. I was on my own; on a new to me MTB; the tyres were under-inflated and I'd no pump for the weekend; I had no food with me so had to keep my heart rate under a limit to avoid bonking.

I was in the next-to-lowest gear (lowest gear had the derailleur in the spokes)

:eek:

But other than these minor issues, everything else was optimal ?

route66

blobbie wrote: »

What is the paper / article ?

This one!

MrCreosote

blobbie wrote: »

What is the paper / article ?

Some guy went for his first cycle in years and enjoyed it. I wish I could say it was the Kerryman, South Kerry edition but it was in fact "The Dominion Post"- our local rag in Wellington, NZ. (That explains the fab coffee too!)

Here it is: http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/opinion/columnists/joe-bennett/10116171/Joe-Bennett-takes-a-wild-Dyers-Pass-ride

Edit: Wow! Beaten to the post by Route66!

Thargor

The last bike of my life was a heavy iron beast that I bought tenth-hand on my first day at university. And on my last day at university I lifted it above my head and, in the manner of a Viking sacrificing to the gods before embarking on a raid by long ship, I hurled it into the river.

Why would you boast about that? What is it about journalists that makes them so backwards when it comes to cycling? And you can use a generalisation there.

MrCreosote

That guys particular angle is being a curmudgeonly old codger. That article is not directly antagonistic to cyclists though, which makes it many steps above the usual media bullsh*t spouted here.

lg123

MrCreosote wrote: »

.............(That explains the fab coffee too!)........

funny, was thinking the same thing.

route66

MrCreosote wrote: »

Some guy went for his first cycle in years and enjoyed it. I wish I could say it was the Kerryman, South Kerry edition but it was in fact "The Dominion Post"- our local rag in Wellington, NZ. (That explains the fab coffee too!)

Here it is: http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/opinion/columnists/joe-bennett/10116171/Joe-Bennett-takes-a-wild-Dyers-Pass-ride

Edit: Wow! Beaten to the post by Route66!

Google is great!

Garzard

Tonight's sunset over Knocklyon. Shame I didn't have a better view.

blobbie

lg123 wrote: »

funny, was thinking the same thing.

Flat white ?

I must say that for the ar$e end of the world (kidding) they do make good coffee in NZ

MrCreosote

blobbie wrote: »

Flat white ?

I must say that for the ar$e end of the world (kidding) they do make good coffee in NZ

Yes indeed! This one made by a hipster barista in a bike shop, and was just perfect.

Ole Rodrigo

Ermita de Betlem

Ole Rodrigo

Tramuntana Mountains

coolemon

Grand Canal on the bank holiday just gone.

Mercian Pro

coolemon wrote: »

Grand Canal on the bank holiday just gone.

Nice photos but the Style Police will be after you for not propping the bike. It does look dead lying on the ground like that!

What stretch of the canal is that and how did you manage with road tyres?

coolemon

Mercian Pro wrote: »

Nice photos but the Style Police will be after you for not propping the bike. It does look dead lying on the ground like that!

What stretch of the canal is that and how did you manage with road tyres?

Couldn't find anywhere to prop the bike lol.

The photo's were taken at different points on the canal. But I cycled from Dublin and camped on the bank near Rhode/Edenderry. It was a complete disaster on many levels. I was rushing and forgot to bring a couple of things (like a spare tube!) and the grass and gravel with the road tyres was incredibly difficult to cycle on. Much of the route was hardened muck so the vibration through the handlebars left me a little numb. If it had rained, well that would have presented lots of other challenges. I had no choice but to cycle back by road.

I would recommend a hardtail mountain bike!

padjo5

Bellewstown, looking down towards drogheda/laytown direction this morning, the best of the day!

Photo finally attached, must not try attach on phone in future! Thanks Eamo....

Eamonnator

padjo5 wrote: »

Bellewstown, looking down towards drogheda/laytown direction this morning, the best of the day!

I have a lovely mental picture of this in my head.

Thargor

coolemon wrote: »

Grand Canal on the bank holiday just gone.

How do you do that second pic on thin tyres? Were you carrying the bike a lot of the time? Is a lot of the canal like that?

coolemon

Thargor wrote: »

How do you do that second pic on thin tyres? Were you carrying the bike a lot of the time? Is a lot of the canal like that?

With great difficulty!

I can only speak of it as far as Rhode, but more of the canal than expected was grass, hard muck and stone. I would say at least 60-70% of it was (or in terms of time spent.) I did not carry the bike at any point.

The second photo perhaps captures the grass higher than what it was and there would have been a trail through the high grass that cannot be seen in the photo. The thin tyres were mainly a problem with the hard muck than with the grass, although they mostly went hand in hand. The thin tyres kind of slice through the grass and I would wonder whether wider tyres or mountain bike tyres would be any better on grass. As I say, it was the hard muck that was the problem. That's not to say cycling on grass was easy it was tough going.

I had to turn around as I just wasn't prepared for the terrain along the canal. Front suspension and wider tyres I think would be a must if I attempt it again.

lismore7

SomeFool

^ thats a great photo at the vee!