The Cycling Thread

[pookie]

just quick note crc have a sale on at the moment and have applied their last 15% discount on top of the 15% from the previous 24hrs on top of sale prices.

[maviczap]

Be careful when buying things in the 'sales' promotion

I bought this jacket a few weeks ago on Wiggle for £134 and I don't remember it being in any special promotion

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/gore-bike-we...2012/?pr=1154/

Today, £170 @ Wiggle with 10% off!

This was more expensive than Evans, which was selling them for £163

Don't know if Wiggle had made a boo boo on the price when I bought it?

[Luckypants]

Broken.... Just completed Wild Wales Challenge sportive, geez its the hardest ride I've done all year. Sooooo tired!

Sent from my phone.

[maviczap]

Can't be broken, you still have enough strength to post

Got myself some aero bars fitted onto the moda (replacing the drops completely).

Wow, what a difference. I need to fiddle with my position as I felt that I couldn't pedal as effectively as normal, and my legs were fairly tired anyway, but managed an average of 21mph over 24 miles which I was real happy with. Feels a lot easier than on drops!

[maviczap]

dats cos you're more aero dynamic, that's why its easier.

But with those big miles you've done, its obviously paying off

[fizzwheel]

You guys are putting me to shame. I went out with Liz this morning and did 15 miles on our road bikes...

We went to the LBS yesterday and I've been looking at cross bikes again. I want a winter commuter but also something that can handle a bit of off roading. Off road cycle paths, forest tracks and rough stuff that I wouldnt take my look over.

So needs to have eyelets for guards and I would like a disc braked bike. I'm looking way forward to next year now and I would like to keep my milleage up over the winter and not have to worry about the winter weather trashing my Look, even with the crud guards on it, its not ideal and I have noticed one or two very slight rub marks from the crud guard brackets where I have used it with those on.

I've narrowed my choices down to

http://www.konaworld.com/bike.cfm?content=rove#1

Or

http://www.konaworld.com/bike.cfm?content=jake

The Jake fits my budget better and I have spare Shimano drive train parts that could go on it. Where as the Rove has Sram.

I've been looking at the Whyte King Cross / Charing Cross bikes as well but i havent seen a favourable review of it.

I dont want another carbon bike, I have one of those already so that the Major Jake our and the Jake the Snake doesnt have disc's

Alot of the higher end cross bikes dont have eyelets for guards which kocks them on the head anyway. But anything else I should look at ? ( Apart from the Boardman CX which could also be an option )

Oh and lucky - I did want to do that ride as it looked like a killer but things just didn't work out - well done for completing it!

I'm doing a half ironman next year in exmoor and the cycle ride is only 56 miles, but 2,000m of climbing

[garynortheast]

Blimey, you lot are making me feel like a cheapskate with my 11 year old Halfords Apollo bikes! They do the job for me though, with a bit of fettling here and there.

Had the forks from the fully suspended one out and apart yesterday for a clean and service. After a 30 mile ride out around Dyfant forest and Llyn Efyrnwy the left leg had compressed and wouldn't return. Water had got into them at some point and there was some rust to be dealt with. What little grease had been applied at the Vietnamese factory all those years ago was long gone, so when I reassembled them I sealed up the bottom bolt with an o ring and poured a small amount of fork oil into each leg. After a few compressions of the legs they are now smoother than they were when I bought the bike. Took it for a ride over the top of the hill behind my house and back down the road, nice and comfortable now and no more jarring of the wrists at every bump.

Next job is to replace the rubbish bottom crank bearing in the other bike with a new one. My local cycle shop has some Shimano cartridge bearings to fit it for £22 so that could well be the task for the week.

[maviczap]

Originally Posted by fizzwheel

You guys are putting me to shame. I went out with Liz this morning and did 15 miles on our road bikes...

We went to the LBS yesterday and I've been looking at cross bikes again. I want a winter commuter but also something that can handle a bit of off roading. Off road cycle paths, forest tracks and rough stuff that I wouldnt take my look over.

So needs to have eyelets for guards and I would like a disc braked bike. I'm looking way forward to next year now and I would like to keep my milleage up over the winter and not have to worry about the winter weather trashing my Look, even with the crud guards on it, its not ideal and I have noticed one or two very slight rub marks from the crud guard brackets where I have used it with those on.

I've narrowed my choices down to

http://www.konaworld.com/bike.cfm?content=rove#1

Or

http://www.konaworld.com/bike.cfm?content=jake

The Jake fits my budget better and I have spare Shimano drive train parts that could go on it. Where as the Rove has Sram.

I've been looking at the Whyte King Cross / Charing Cross bikes as well but i havent seen a favourable review of it.

I dont want another carbon bike, I have one of those already so that the Major Jake our and the Jake the Snake doesnt have disc's

Alot of the higher end cross bikes dont have eyelets for guards which kocks them on the head anyway. But anything else I should look at ? ( Apart from the Boardman CX which could also be an option )

Fizz,
Its early days for cross bikes with discs, as I think the UCI only approved their use in competition recently. So until all the manufacturers start speccing discs on bikes, its going to limit your choices.

I expect there will be an explosion of disc braked bikes appearing, for road use as well.

You could get a frame made to your spec, how about looking at what the UK frame makers are doing, Argos (no not them), Dave Hinde, Dolan, Ribble.

Get the frame and get it equipped with the groupset to fit your budget