Tell us about your new improved government regulations compliant cycle part II

smacl

Back up to Kilmashogue woods again at lunch, a bit more snow than yesterday though not that much. Just enough to make it that bit more tiring and I was really feeling my age as a number of young MTBers nipped past me on what were probably heavier bikes. Great craic descending on the snow covered gravel and the road section was clear enough making that a bit handier. Cars were also being cautious and considerate which is a bonus.

68 lost souls

smacl wrote: »

Back up to Kilmashogue woods again at lunch, a bit more snow than yesterday though not that much. Just enough to make it that bit more tiring and I was really feeling my age as a number of young MTBers nipped past me on what were probably heavier bikes. Great craic descending on the snow covered gravel and the road section was clear enough making that a bit handier. Cars were also being cautious and considerate which is a bonus.

What sort of bike are you using for these spins? I saw in one of your other photos its a disc break frame of some sort, be interested as they are all my 5km zone too.

wheelo01

I got inspired by @mercianpro and his looping in the park - though I missed a few roads comparing maps on Strava.
38 km at 25 kph, was a lovely day for it apart from the icy gusts, glad to get out again, it's been 10 days or so.
Took a wrong turn through the hospital (thought there was a through road, it was so greasy and messy to get back up, I just decided to jump the wall



https://strava.app.link/PKntrkaGLdb

smacl

68 lost souls wrote: »

What sort of bike are you using for these spins? I saw in one of your other photos its a disc break frame of some sort, be interested as they are all my 5km zone too.

Using a Rose CX bike currently fitted with 42c Schwalbe spiked ice tyres, more usually 40c Schwalbe G-One all round tyres. I've cycled all these routes on a road bike with rim brakes and 25c Durano plus in dry conditions in the past but you need CX or gravel tyres for the mud. Even the G-Ones are a bit sketchy in the mud and I'll possibly swap for Gravel Kings at some point, which seem to be the tyre of choice for many gravel riders. One downside of rim brakes is that if you hit any sandy mud, they won't be long wearing your rims down. The can also get caked in mud and jam the wheels a bit or simply stop working properly. If you have an older bike or beater that can take > 35c tyres I'd say your good to go. I've use 35c Schwalbe CX Comps a fair bit which work well and are cheap as chips. Personally not being great technically, I also prefer pinned flat pedals to clip-ins for the off-road and use Nukeproof Neutron EVOs.

FWIW, the ice tyres are possibly not worth the effort. Heavy, sluggish and only add a few extra outdoor days. They're also a pain to get on and off, which is the main reason they're still on.

LollipopJimmy

Cycled around the Phoenix Park again today, feck me it was cold at around 5pm.

Sawba few lads setting up a large tent in the depths of the Furry Glen, looked like they were setting up for a party

Eamonnator

Seaswimmer wrote: »

2 laps of my usual Deansgrange > Killiney > Glenageary > Bakers corner circuit.

Snow flurries on the first lap and blazing sunshine on the 2nd..

as Brendan Behan was reputed to have said " With this weather you wouldn't know what to pawn"

I remember it as "The weather is so changeable, you wouldn't know what to pawn."

I seem to remember it being in a book of short stories, but so long ago, I can't properly recall.

BiggJim

Nice little spin around town earlier. Probably clocked up about 7k after work.

Mercian Pro

wheelo01 wrote: »

I got inspired by @mercianpro and his looping in the park - though I missed a few roads comparing maps on Strava.

Turned out to be a great day for it despite the cold breeze. We nearly met a few times according to Flyby and finally crossed paths on the Khyber Road possibly when I was taking photos of the deer! I was on my anti-clockwise loops whereas you were more freestyle
https://strava.app.link/LF4vlcYkNdb

fat bloke

Usual hour on the rollers. Nothing remarkable about it except that it'll be my last cycle or pedalling activity for a while. . Surgery tomorrow morning on a chronic spinal / neck issue.

dastardly00

fat bloke wrote: »

Usual hour on the rollers. Nothing remarkable about it except that it'll be my last cycle or pedalling activity for a while. . Surgery tomorrow morning on a chronic spinal / neck issue.

Best of luck with the surgery

LollipopJimmy

fat bloke wrote: »

Usual hour on the rollers. Nothing remarkable about it except that it'll be my last cycle or pedalling activity for a while. . Surgery tomorrow morning on a chronic spinal / neck issue.

Best of luck, hope all goes well

Seth Brundle

fat bloke wrote: »

Usual hour on the rollers. Nothing remarkable about it except that it'll be my last cycle or pedalling activity for a while. . Surgery tomorrow morning on a chronic spinal / neck issue.

Good luck with that FB

sy_flembeck

fat bloke wrote: »

Usual hour on the rollers. Nothing remarkable about it except that it'll be my last cycle or pedalling activity for a while. . Surgery tomorrow morning on a chronic spinal / neck issue.

Best of luck with the surgery and rehab fat bloke. I suffer with my neck, back and shoulders but clearly (and thankfully!) not at the same level. Get well soon

Agent Smyth

Hope all goes well today and you have a speedy recovery

D13exile

My daily hour of high cadence on the rollers. The bike computer says I did 48kms with a max speed of 58kph. If only that were true in "real world" cycling . However I have to admit that I actually look forward to my daily spin on the rollers. Bluetooth speaker on the kitchen counter blasting out rock music, fan blowing cooling air at me, sweatband on my head keeping the stinging sweat out of my eyes and I feel I'm smoothing out inconsistencies in my pedalling as I'm pretty stable on the rollers now. Plus I don't have to worry about ice sending me toppling off the bike, wearing layers to keep warm (I wear bib shorts in the house with the straps "off the shoulder") or gob****e motorists or pedestrians who really need to open their eyes when on the roads. Hope I don't turn into a full time indoor cyclist at this rate!!!!!

Made the stupid mistake of going out with slightly damp gear on last Sunday morning - put tights and base layer in the dryer the night before but must have turned themselves off. Didn't have time to wait until they were fully dry and took a gamble in the morning.

Bad mistake. It was a cold, windy morning as it was and when I got home I struggled to warm up. By Sunday night I had a cold, Monday a fever. Three nights in a row with 40 degree temperature, about five changes of bedsheets and en entire wardrobe of soaked t-shirts.

Covid test came back negative yesterday, as expected as haven't seen a soul since Xmas, but doctor couldn't see me until test was negative so only just got an antibiotic yesterday evening and starting to feel human again this morning.

I won't be making the same mistake again.

Not sure if the 40 degree temperatures, minding two small kids while sick and trying to work or the prospect of not getting out on my bike again for a while was the worst part of the week!

On the plus side, I did a 13k time trial around our local loops (all within my 5k) on Sunday morning and recorded my time. My brother then did the exact same later in the day and I beat him by two minutes. He was ahead of me until just before lockdown when we last cycled together, so all my loops and work on the turbo have been paying off at least.

D13exile

Made the same mistake myself last year when I forgot to bring a change of clothes to work for my cycle home and had to put on my still sweaty base layer, bib tights and thermal jersey for the return trip home. Even though I'd tried to dry them in work, they were all still pretty damp when I put them on. I thought I'd just cycle hard to warm up and dry them off from the inside out but the opposite happened, the damp clothes sucked the heat out of me and I just couldn't warm up on my 40km cycle home from work. Despite a hot shower and drink, I came down with a chill and by next day I was a shivering wreck. Several days in bed with cold sweats and head spinning until I started to feel warm again.

magicbastarder

Deleted User wrote: »

put tights and base layer in the dryer

i thought the dryer was a no-no for any cycling gear?

Stark

Should be fine on low heat I think. Meant to be good for waterproofs to tumble dry on a low heat. "Restores" the DWR or something.

magicbastarder

magicbastarder wrote: »

i thought the dryer was a no-no for any cycling gear?

Just a cool tumble. Wouldn't make a habit of it, but fine if stuck.

Ordered a load of gear off Wiggle yesterday to make sure I don't have to go down that route again.

D13exile

D13exile wrote: »

Made the same mistake myself last year when I forgot to bring a change of clothes to work for my cycle home and had to put on my still sweaty base layer, bib tights and thermal jersey for the return trip home. Even though I'd tried to dry them in work, they were all still pretty damp when I put them on. I thought I'd just cycle hard to warm up and dry them off from the inside out but the opposite happened, the damp clothes sucked the heat out of me and I just couldn't warm up on my 40km cycle home from work. Despite a hot shower and drink, I came down with a chill and by next day I was a shivering wreck. Several days in bed with cold sweats and head spinning until I started to feel warm again.

Awful experience, but now I know why my Dad, who ran competitively for years, was so obsessed with damp gear and showering the minute we got home from a match/race.

magicbastarder

this is from galibier's guidance on care:

DO NOT USE THE DRYER.

Once you’re done with the wash, you should always hang your cycling clothes or technical apparel to air dry. Many types of cycling-specific fabrics, from wool to synthetics, will not do well in the dryer. Wool can shrink and the synthetic in the legs or waist of your shorts or bibs can become damaged. Even low temperatures in the dryer may break down the integrity of the garment and its technical components over time.

Weepsie

The dryer thing is recommended for gabbas specifically and one or 2 other similar tops. Hang dry is the way to go for me, normally ok the bathroom radiator

NamelessPhil

I had to go into town today for a hospital appointment. I got sandblasted by the grit left on the road blown up by the strong wind. It has been so dry in Dublin that the grit is just building up in the gutters. I felt like a salt cod by the time I got back home with a fine layer of salt on any exposed skin.

velo.2010

NamelessPhil wrote: »

I felt like a salt cod by the time I got back home with a fine layer of salt on any exposed skin.

You'd pay good money in health spa for a treatment like that!:D

magicbastarder

some of the roads around here have gone brown with the salt ground into them.

BiggJim

Had planned on doing 20k today but the wind would blow you into the traffic at the minute.

vintcerf

what do people here use for maps? dedicated bike computers with maps seem pricey ... I just cycled into a dead end

positron

Google Maps did that to me once. Dead end with a gap in the hedge opening to a field full of something.

Of the apps I've tried so far, Komoot is by far the best. One free map (usually covers your county). Managed to do a lap of Co. Louth using their free map - easy to fine tune your route on the website, and the follow / tweak during the ride. And mainly, no dead ends.

dahat

Usual no show on the roads for me with weather etc it’s just easier do my endurance spins on the turbo.

Chose the Uber Pretzel for my spin & once my structured 3hrs were done it was suffer on especially on ADZ l, pure sufferfest bit managed to avoid going into the red on it.

Long day with 5hrs done & 4000 calories to replace.