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

Did a loop round Enniskerry and back by the viewing point.

Worth avoiding Marlay park. Lots of pissed up teenagers and broken glass on the roads. One little dope intentionally jumped out in front of us as we were passing the park for a laugh. Interesting crowd this year..

wowy

Out to Howth and Malahide this morning. Serious tailwind along the coast road cycle track, so was doing a good pace. A pedestrian walking alongside the cycle track (with headphones in and looking down at phone obviously) stepped into my path to get down to the road. She never stopped looking at her phone to check if it was clear, and didn't hear me yelling at her. I just managed to swerve to avoid her and the wall by inches. When I looked back immediately afterwards she was gesticulating at me as if I was in the wrong. Sound of her. I hope the cat video she was watching was worth it.....

Unknown Soldier

RayCun wrote: »

have you ever heard of the 80:20 rule?
Most of your cycling (running, swimming, whatever) should be at an easy effort, and only some of it hard. So you can do the hard bits hard, and build volume on the easy stuff, rather than do everything at a kind-of-hard effort, not hard enough to improve much, too hard to do a lot of.

Call me old school but it's actually called, or more so originally called, Pareto's Law. Well back in the early 90s it was, mostly used for Inventory stuff.

Anyways, I have been enjoying staying offline for a few weeks, and concentrating of other aspects of life, which roughly translated means I have been catching up on a lot of box sets and films. I watch to quote my missus, " a pile of sh1te" And it doesnt help when she walks into the room and I am watching Blood Drive, and there is a bloke getting fed into a car engine

I also managed to squeeze in a 115km cycle last Saturday, which I was surprised with. Thought I'd die a death at about 70km, but was grand! Could have done more tbh, but it's hard to justify all that time on the bike to the missus! It's a fair chunk of a Saturday!

This week though I have been trying to get more sleep, trying... so I have been tootling in and out of work with a later than usual start of 7:30 am'ish. Me nerves were shot to sh1t, but I am managing OK. I'm not comfortable with doing my usual extended commutes of 24 odd km in with all the extra traffic on the road at that time versus 6:30am, so its 10/12 km either way. Still, it was 67 odd KM on the bike, so happy enough.

Hopefully I'll get out this morning too, if only to justify a Hillbilly's No3 Delux Burger later.

Best

Burger

Ever.

And I'm not a burger person!

coddlesangers

A lovely short spin this morning, 28km with 800m of a climb..



Still very slow but enjoying it.!

magicbastarder

Lovely morning for it in NCD; loads of cyclists out. Managed to get my first KOM, on an amusingly inconsequential little lane.

CrowdedHouse

A leisurely 40 km around NCT (and a bit of SWCL). Unfortunately the Sun didn't appear as much as I hoped and a bit of a thin breeze that felt I could use arm warmers at times.

New seasonal hazard of dodging random sods of turf on the roads!

Pleasant hour and a half or so all the same.

monkeyslayer

Belting down from glencree via djouce at approx 60kmph when three guys climbing three abreast brought me to a complete stop on a bend and even then the guy on the wrong side of the road didn't feel obliged to get in, somehow this fred felt I was in the wrong. Needless to say if I was in a car and had been a driver that didn't know any better at least two of them wouldv been dead. Some idiots out there.

Daroxtar

Cycled up to Sligo this morning from Longwood. Father in laws birthday so I set off ahead of the wife and figured she'd catch me along the way and I'd put bike in the car for the rest of the journey.
Tough tough spin. I was into a headwind all the way and it was getting worse as I was getting closer to the end. My legs were shredded by the end and I had a fair few moments where my resolve was tested.
Made it the first 100km to Carrick on Shannon without stopping and averaged almost exactly 30kmh for that so had a lovely coffee and banoffee for my efforts but I died a death on the rolling roads and increasing wind for the next 30 odd km past Boyle and up through the Curlews. Only got myself going again around Castlebaldwin.
That stretch after Castlebaldwin is horrible, no hard shoulder and loads of muppets flying past. I ended up cycling right in the middle of the lane for a couple of km where all the white crosses mark the places people have been killed. It worked out better for me tbh, people had to slow down then I swung in tight to let them safely past and then I pulled out wide again. I think in future I might take back roads around that area.

Continued on through Collooney and into Ballisodare and just as I turned into the in-laws driveway the wife arrived beside me. Great timing

153km with 740m climbing in 5:23@ an average of 28.5kmh. I'd genuinely say if I was going the other direction the wind would have taken a half hour off that.

https://www.strava.com/activities/1085965065

Oh ya, the birthday cake was nice

Wishbone Ash

magicbastarder wrote: »

... Managed to get my first KOM, on an amusingly inconsequential little lane.

It's a bit obscure alright. According to Strava I've done that lane dozens of times but I've no recollection of it as it has always been on a club ride.

I'll make a point of trying harder next time!

(BTW - Mercian Pro of this parish is just a few seconds behind you).

retalivity

Out ballinascorney, manor kilbride, lacken, ballysmuttan brittas and back. Got lost a few times, thought i knew those roads better...met a group with a man down waiting on an ambulance near manor kilbride, hope all went ok!

75k, 1080m climbing in 3h 8m.

https://www.strava.com/activities/1085957794

nilhg

Harvest 2017 will (weather permitting) kick off sometime this week, so impossible to plan anything till it's done so I wasn't going to miss the chance today to hit the hills even if I was a bit challenged for time.

Two of us drove over to Rosanalis and headed for the Blooms, up the Cut and on to the Glendine for my annual reminder that I don't really have enough gears, then down the lovely little road by Glenafelly to Kinnitty for refreshments in the nice new cafe. The return trip to the vans was via the Wolftrap and the Cut, if time permitted we'd have chanced the Ridge of Capard but that wasn't to be...

All in all a morning well spent, the Blooms were looking their best with the Foxgloves and Rosebay Willowherb all in bloom, a pleasure to be out and about.

https://www.strava.com/activities/1086128146

marvin80

Daroxtar wrote: »

That stretch after Castlebaldwin is horrible, no hard shoulder and loads of muppets flying past. I ended up cycling right in the middle of the lane for a couple of km where all the white crosses mark the places people have been killed. It worked out better for me tbh, people had to slow down then I swung in tight to let them safely past and then I pulled out wide again. I think in future I might take back roads around that area.

Backroads are the way to go - the roads from Ballyfarnon - Geevagh - Sooey aren't too bad, decent surface and not too many blind bends

magicbastarder

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

It's a bit obscure alright. According to Strava I've done that lane dozens of times but I've no recollection of it as it has always been on a club ride.

I'll make a point of trying harder next time!

(BTW - Mercian Pro of this parish is just a few seconds behind you).

won't take much to take it off me!

magicbastarder

Daroxtar wrote: »

153km with 740m climbing in 5:23@ an average of 28.5kmh

153km @ 28.5 into a headwind? jaysus.

Daroxtar

magicbastarder wrote: »

153km @ 28.5 into a headwind? jaysus.

I'm not very tall and I was on the drops for a lot of it

Thud

monkeyslayer wrote: »

Belting down from glencree via djouce at approx 60kmph when three guys climbing three abreast brought me to a complete stop on a bend and even then the guy on the wrong side of the road didn't feel obliged to get in, somehow this fred felt I was in the wrong. Needless to say if I was in a car and had been a driver that didn't know any better at least two of them wouldv been dead. Some idiots out there.

was that about 11.20? think I might have passed them too

positron

Cycled to work first time ever. I have been dreaming about this for years, but never had a bike or the fitness to do it, and finally everything came together today and I loved it. Tooks tips from this thread from a few years ago about what roads to take etc. R130 is a nice road indeed. Thanks for sharing the knowledge, Jawgap and others! Beautiful day for it. Narrow country lanes between Duleek & Ardcath is poor enough, and few speeding cages did put a bit of fear into me, but it wasn't too bad everything considered. Perfect weather conditions, beautiful countryside, great shower at work etc. I might do this again I think.

Drogheda-Ardcath-Garristown-Glasnevin-Dundrum. 58kms or so in 2.5 hours. Return this evening is only upto Portmarnock, will give the new cycleway a go.

Alanstrainor

positron wrote: »

Drogheda-Ardcath-Garristown-Glasnevin-Dundrum. 58kms or so in 2.5 hours. Return this evening is only upto Portmarnock, will give the new cycleway a go.

Fair play! That's a good bit of mileage for a days cycling!

I use the cycleway up to Baldoyle and then cross the road to take the coast road up to Portmarnock. Once you're out of Baldoyle on the 60km/h Coast Road just try and stay out from the side of the road a bit and you'll be grand.

magicbastarder

positron wrote: »

R130 is a nice road indeed.

they seem to have started some patchwork repairs on it south of garristown; there's one section about 200m or 300m long which they've completely resurfaced; i don't recall that section being any different from the rest.

Mercian Pro

positron wrote: »

Cycled to work first time ever.... I might do this again I think.
Drogheda-Ardcath-Garristown-Glasnevin-Dundrum. 58kms or so in 2.5 hours.

The R108 south from Drogheda is a nice road. Just before the Naul you could turn right onto the R122 that will bring you to St Margarets. From there, Charlestown, Phibsborough, Christchurch and Ranelagh will get you to Dundrum.

For years my regular commute was about 4km and, for fitness sake, I often wished it were longer. I wasn't thinking of 58km though!

Wishbone Ash

positron wrote: »

Cycled to work first time ever......

........Drogheda-Ardcath-Garristown-Glasnevin-Dundrum. 58kms or so ......

Jesus, you're not one to ease yourself into it. That's seriously impressive for a first time commute.

Weepsie

I interviewed for a job that was 30+ km away. The OH was questioning how I'd get there etc. She didn't understand that I was looking forward to a 60km round commute.

Didn't get the job...

positron

Mercian Pro wrote: »

The R108 south from Drogheda is a nice road. Just before the Naul you could turn right onto the R122 that will bring you to St Margarets. From there, Charlestown, Phibsborough, Christchurch and Ranelagh will get you to Dundrum.

For years my regular commute was about 4km and, for fitness sake, I often wished it were longer. I wasn't thinking of 58km though!

Thanks, I think I have done R108 up to Swords at least couple of times. But those hills between Drogheda and Naul... :eek: That reminds me, last time I was that way, just before reaching Naul, a bird of pray of some type had just caught a rabbit and it flew up, barely cleared the edge, and straight towards me (probably misjudged how heavy the rabbit was) and promptly dropped rabbit about 20 meters ahead of me - blood oozing everywhere, and very dead of course.

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

Jesus, you're not one to ease yourself into it. That's seriously impressive for a first time commute.

Lol, I have been going out most Sundays last two months or so, trying to build up the distance. Started at 15k, longest trip around 110k. This started off cross-training for my first marathon attempt, but then I started enjoying it too much and have a new crazy plan for end of the month. Fingers crossed.

Alanstrainor wrote: »

Fair play! That's a good bit of mileage for a days cycling!

I use the cycleway up to Baldoyle and then cross the road to take the coast road up to Portmarnock. Once you're out of Baldoyle on the 60km/h Coast Road just try and stay out from the side of the road a bit and you'll be grand.

Thanks, now I know what you meant by staying out from the side. My shoulder missed that concrete fence post leaning on to the road by less than inch. S2S was lovely though, wind was against me, and there were gangs of crazy young ones out to enjoy the sun riding wherever they feel like with their their mtb blocking the path for everyone etc, the views are fantastic and not to have to worry about cars every few meters was just brilliant. An amazing asset to that part of Dublin. It's still as horrible as ever around Point theater etc.

Anyhoo, that's another 25k today, little over an hour.

jrar

Cracking group spin yesterday in mostly sunny conditions though with a persistent "gentle" W/NW breeze which kept us honest -only sufficiently recovered to post now !

215kms with 1580M climbing with overall avg. of 29.8 i.e. just over 7 hours- great day's cycling !

LollipopJimmy

Weepsie wrote: »

I interviewed for a job that was 30+ km away. The OH was questioning how I'd get there etc. She didn't understand that I was looking forward to a 60km round commute.

Didn't get the job...

I'm a recruiter and currently filling roles in most places over the country, I can sort you out with a beast of a commute

macnab

Cycling into work this morning, doing about 32kmph in the 24 hour bus/cycle lane between Castleknock and Ashtown I hear a beep beep behind me. I look around expecting a taxi driver but its a guy on a motorbike. He says "Move over" in a slightly irate manner. The bloody cheek of him. He is going to get some land when i pull up behind him on my 1000cc superbike some morning and do the same to him ha ha.

magicbastarder

Weepsie wrote: »

I interviewed for a job that was 30+ km away. The OH was questioning how I'd get there etc. She didn't understand that I was looking forward to a 60km round commute.

Didn't get the job...

i'm doing 19.5km each way at the moment and am arriving into work thinking 'i coulda been doing with a bit more this morning'.
that said, i'm only doing it two or three times a week. five times a week might be a different story.

DominoDub

Weepsie wrote: »

I interviewed for a job that was 30+ km away. The OH was questioning how I'd get there etc. She didn't understand that I was looking forward to a 60km round commute.

Didn't get the job...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elrV-oHeSjE

Roadtoad

Bangor into Belfast along the small coastal road and coastal footpath. Then into Shankill, Falls etc to view the murals.... every gable wall gets the treatment! Very relaxed, as I wasn't intimidating myself worrying about a car with ROI plates, which was the other option.

secman

Sun. Headed for Kilmuckridge and 2nd turn out to main road, right turn for raheenduff, up to grainstore and took right down to boolavogue road, left heading for boolavogue and across to Ferns. Back to Gorey via camolin. Out old n11and right turn for Ballymoney , courtown, Ballygarrett, killenagh and home. 70 km ,avg 27.5 kph.

Today

Headed to Kilmuckridge and 2nd right for main road, right turn for raheenduff and right turn for boolavogue road, right turn back to ballyedmund. Left on main road to ballycanew and on to Gorey. Down to courtown, Ballygarrett, killenagh and home.
53 km avg 27. 6 kph.

2 lovely days for cycling. Squeezed a lot of gardening and 2 seawims in Cahore between the 2 spins