[JustChris]

Originally Posted by Rbrown

Finally, a stage I could have completed!

The famous sitting on a bus as it's raining stage.

[GMT234]

Originally Posted by Rbrown

Quick update.

Collected the bike today and went down the mountain bike pedal route. Wasn't really aware this was an option! Shimano SPD pedals and shoes now purchased!

So (as usual) thank you very much for all the excellent advice!

Have had first near miss of getting stuck in pedals...think I need to practice a bit!

Went for Cube SL Road Race 2021 bike. So much lighter than my old bike!!! Looking forward to getting used to it (and the pedals!).

No good pictures so far...but thought I would add this as we do like our pictures!!!!

I was looking at getting that exact bike or the Cube SL Road SL from the same family. But can't find stock anywhere. Can I ask where you got yours from?

[Rbrown]

Originally Posted by GMT234

I was looking at getting that exact bike or the Cube SL Road SL from the same family. But can't find stock anywhere. Can I ask where you got yours from?

I got the only one at Dales Cycles.

Have a look at a wiggle. They have the larger frame size at 59cm. It's a great bike for the money - they are like hen's teeth at the moment.


https://www.wiggle.co.uk/cube-sl-road-race-bike-2021

[Ennoch]

So for those of you who run winter bikes to protect their shiny summer bikes from a tiny bit of water on the road, I'll raise you this:



You just can't beat a day of sliding around on steep and rooty trails in the mud. Would you believe that the first Karcher I bought was a petrol one and used for washing bikes multiple times a day when I was racing, rather than cleaning cars? This is why I would have gone for a black alcantara interior over the white opal leather I actually have if I'd been in charge of the original BMW order for my car!

Oh, and the dig at winter bikes is clearly in jest...

[JR1664]

Originally Posted by Ennoch

So for those of you who run winter bikes to protect their shiny summer bikes from a tiny bit of water on the road, I'll raise you this:



You just can't beat a day of sliding around on steep and rooty trails in the mud. Would you believe that the first Karcher I bought was a petrol one and used for washing bikes multiple times a day when I was racing, rather than cleaning cars? This is why I would have gone for a black alcantara interior over the white opal leather I actually have if I'd been in charge of the original BMW order for my car!

Oh, and the dig at winter bikes is clearly in jest...

Clean your bike mate

Can I borrow your rear cassette

[Ennoch]

Originally Posted by JR1664

Clean your bike mate

Can I borrow your rear cassette

Sure! But only if you borrow the tyres too

[JR1664]

Originally Posted by Ennoch

Sure! But only if you borrow the tyres too

What do you use for wet lube ?

I guess its jetwash, GT85 all round then lube when dry ?

[Ennoch]

Originally Posted by JR1664

What do you use for wet lube ?

I guess its jetwash, GT85 all round then lube when dry ?

You'd cringe if you saw my maintenance regime...it's a bit lax. Back when I was racing seriously my bikes were absolutely impeccable, and that usually involved jet washing, silicone spray to keep the bike looking shiny and stop the mud sticking, and decent lubes (despite being sent a lot to test I always used Juice Lubes Viking Juice). Now it tends to be a bit more relaxed, and quite often the bike just gets washed using the dirt worker and then shoved in the corner until the next time it's ridden.

My go to for lube is Progold Prolink, partly as my mate sells it in his shop, but also because it's an awesome thin film oil. It needs put on the night before ideally, but it's super thin and helps to disperse water from the links and prevent corrosion. It's good for dripping into pivots, suspension seals (to help lift dirt out) and bushes too as it creeps well. I do use Finish Line XC wet lube though too as I've got a 25 year old gallon jug in the garage that refuses to run out from back when we'd ride as a family. It's a bit sticky and makes the chain a bit black but it's decent enough if it's really muddy.

My main one though is preventative, I build everything up with thick marine grease (including popping bearing seals off, rinsing out the thin OEM stuff and then rebuilding with this glue). It's amazing for keeping water out and helping things last longer, although I do also use Hope stuff with stainless bearings which helps too, especially on the wheels where you don't want the friction of the marine stuff. A far cry from when I'd remove seals from bearings to make them spin faster, and just replace them once a month! On the faster alpine race tracks that could make seconds of difference over four minutes, enough to drop you from top ten to top 30/40.

Oh, and as for the cassette size...you need it when the bike weighs 38lb!

[JustChris]

Originally Posted by Ennoch

So for those of you who run winter bikes to protect their shiny summer bikes from a tiny bit of water on the road, I'll raise you this:



You just can't beat a day of sliding around on steep and rooty trails in the mud. Would you believe that the first Karcher I bought was a petrol one and used for washing bikes multiple times a day when I was racing, rather than cleaning cars? This is why I would have gone for a black alcantara interior over the white opal leather I actually have if I'd been in charge of the original BMW order for my car!

Oh, and the dig at winter bikes is clearly in jest...

White Opal leather ... challenging

[Bibbles]

Originally Posted by JustChris

White Opal leather ... challenging

I've got oyster leather in mine. Even with the hatch bag there's still bits of leather exposed when the seats are down. Best thing I've bought is a Hippo Mega Bag. Bike goes out and gets covered in crap in Wolburn or Surrey Hills etc, gets put straight in the hippo bag and lobbed in the back of the car, then washed when I get home. £13 from Wickes and far tougher than any expensive bike cover.

[Ennoch]

Originally Posted by Bibbles

I've got oyster leather in mine. Even with the hatch bag there's still bits of leather exposed when the seats are down. Best thing I've bought is a Hippo Mega Bag. Bike goes out and gets covered in crap in Wolburn or Surrey Hills etc, gets put straight in the hippo bag and lobbed in the back of the car, then washed when I get home. £13 from Wickes and far tougher than any expensive bike cover.

Yup, the Hatchbag is pretty useless if you fold the seats down. Unfortunately that's how I carry the bike given the number of bike thefts up here. I ended up complaining to them and got a load of extra material to make some proper flaps to cover the side bolsters, as well as a better flap to protect the headrests etc. Effective but then I do also wrap the frame in a few sheets and have some wheel bags. The Hippo bag looks a good shout, I've been considering getting something proper to wrap the bike in.

We had another day out today in the rain. Quite amazing as it was exploring some new trails in the borders which were built in the main by a mate of mine I used to race with and they're proper mental. Some were average 41% gradient, and they're rooty, slimy, rocky and wet as sin. I haven't been that cold and wet in a long time. It was actually a struggle to get enough heat into the brakes and suspension to get them to actually work properly! Some fairly committing low speed 6-7ft drops too. Wild, and just the sort of janky technical stuff I love, and a complete contrast to the popularity of 'flow' trails that seem to be everywhere now. I can see why they were good World Cup training tracks!

This is what the day started like, it didn't look like this at the end:



As a bike it's pretty old for the amount of abuse it's had, but it's still going strong and I can't find anything I desperately want to change it for. On the steep stuff it's all about angles anyway, rather than suspension, and it's got some offset shock bushes in there to drop the rear end down and slacken the head angle to 63deg. The brakes are 7 years old (rebuilt with new seals during lockdown), the wheels are 8 years old, or at least the hubs are, and the Shimano XT cranks I've had on every bike since 2011! And after the rear Maxle snapped last month I can happily say there now isn't one piece of plasticky SRAM junk on the entire bike.

[gangzoom]

Lovely ride today, quite slippery though. Still cannot quite believe how well these things last. The only other thing in my life from 2011 which gives me so much joy is SWMBO



Spent the afternoon chasing my daughter on her bike, hopefully one day she'll be smashing my segment times on Strava

[SantaEugence]

Chaps can anyone recommend a cheap but passable set of lights? Need something bright on the front so I can see where I'm going now the nights are drawing in fast, thanks!

[Rbrown]

Originally Posted by SantaEugence

Chaps can anyone recommend a cheap but passable set of lights? Need something bright on the front so I can see where I'm going now the nights are drawing in fast, thanks!

I like this one...


https://www.dalescycles.com/cateye-v...able-light-set

[gangzoom]

I've got these on my commuter bike, but on the road bike if its dark enough to need front lights I don't take the road bike. Far too many pot holes, mud, generally unsighted opportunities to knacker a 23mm tyre/wheel.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/OCOOPA-Rech...cycling&sr=1-6

[BBri89]

Originally Posted by SantaEugence

Chaps can anyone recommend a cheap but passable set of lights? Need something bright on the front so I can see where I'm going now the nights are drawing in fast, thanks!

I can recommend a cheap set, and I can recommend a good set.
I can't recommend any that fulfil both requirements. Maybe others can.

I spent £90 on a Moon Meteor Storm Pro and would definitely recommend getting a good high-output light. But they're not necessarily cheap.

[SantaEugence]

Originally Posted by Rbrown

I like this one...


https://www.dalescycles.com/cateye-v...able-light-set

Is 200lm bright enough on an unlit path do you think or more for making yourself visible?

Originally Posted by gangzoom

I've got these on my commuter bike, but on the road bike if its dark enough to need front lights I don't take the road bike. Far too many pot holes, mud, generally unsighted opportunities to knacker a 23mm tyre/wheel.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/OCOOPA-Rech...ing&sr=1-6

That's very cheap for the output! How bright are they in real life?

Originally Posted by BBri89

I can recommend a cheap set, and I can recommend a good set.
I can't recommend any that fulfil both requirements. Maybe others can.

I spent £90 on a Moon Meteor Storm Pro and would definitely recommend getting a good high-output light. But they're not necessarily cheap.

I suspected that could be the case! Had a quick browse on wiggle and around £60 seemed to get an ok light output but then I don't know what would be a good level for biking

[Ridg]

Originally Posted by SantaEugence

Is 200lm bright enough on an unlit path do you think or more for making yourself visible?

Not really ideal have a look at https://road.cc/content/buyers-guide...-212914?page=6

The cateye volt 200 is 200lm so will give you an idea of what to expect, I'd say you'd want 800+ for unlit riding

Originally Posted by SantaEugence

I suspected that could be the case! Had a quick browse on wiggle and around £60 seemed to get an ok light output but then I don't know what would be a good level for biking

you generally get what you pay for, for the sake of being seen expect to pay £30+, for seeing £60-75+
How fast you plan on going does factor in e.g. you'll want a longer throw if you plan on going at speed.

[Ennoch]

Originally Posted by SantaEugence

Is 200lm bright enough on an unlit path do you think or more for making yourself visible?

I don't know what lumens compares to in old incandescent wattage money but having raced 4 up downhill (Red Bull Night Quad Descender - what were they thinking?!) in a wood in November years back with a 5W Cateye on my head and a 10W on the bars I wholeheartedly recommend getting something more than 200 lumens if you want to actually pick up trail definition!

200 lumen would be fine for seeing a bit as a get you home in an emergency light, but if you're going to be doing it regularly then 4-500 lumens is probably closer to what you want, albeit beam pattern would also have an effect on this. My choice would be to go for a spread rather than spot if you're only going to have one light.

[Nibbles]

Originally Posted by SantaEugence

Chaps can anyone recommend a cheap but passable set of lights? Need something bright on the front so I can see where I'm going now the nights are drawing in fast, thanks!

The halfords advanced 1600 lumen light gets good reviews and is comparable to a lot more expensive front lights.

[JR1664]

Strong southerly today but mild. Managed to get in a 30 mile loop, no dramas as avoided the school run mums.

Changed the diet over the last few months. Cut out peanut butter on toast every lunchtime (since time began) for weetabix but more so the late night choccie fest for some 90 calory choc bar thingy .

5 kilo loss with the usual rides and turbo...diet does it more than anything but I've always over compensated for long rides (reward syndrome)

Can't quite bring myself to cut out the ale mind

[Rbrown]

Originally Posted by JR1664

Strong southerly today but mild. Managed to get in a 30 mile loop, no dramas as avoided the school run mums.

Changed the diet over the last few months. Cut out peanut butter on toast every lunchtime (since time began) for weetabix but more so the late night choccie fest for some 90 calory choc bar thingy .

5 kilo loss with the usual rides and turbo...diet does it more than anything but I've always over compensated for long rides (reward syndrome)

Can't quite bring myself to cut out the ale mind

All sounds good!!!

My body let me down today.

Not been stretching enough - piriformis playing up....it's a pain in the butt!!!!