The Cycling Thread

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Excellent another good option, I could get a 34 t rear and try it with my rear mech to see if it works? If not swap it for the apex assuming I can get a 9 speed one as that is what my shifter is? I could then maybe try and drop the smaller crank down to 30 which would give me more confidence. I can get up 15% or maybe slightly more grades with the current gearing and staying seated. It is just when you see 30% and for 2.5k i know I just cannot stand that entire time and would either blow or just not be able to push the power to get me up!!!

How did you find it and how many days did you do it over?

Just a thought, I know a said Sram Apex, but not 100% sure on Shimano/Campag/Sram shifter/mech compatbility - so worth checking against your shifters. A Shimano MTB mech would work just fine, my mate has a tourer, and it is mainly Cyclocross/Racer stuff + a Deore Mech at the rear to handle the larger cassete.

I loved the tour we did, we were carrying all gear, so that included tents/sleeping bags/mats etc. I managed to get it all on a rear rack with two panniers and the sleeping bag wrapped and strapped to the center.

This is the route:

Way of the Roses Cycle Route

... I don't fully understand or appreciate gradients etc, but I just know that two on the first day were gut busting. There were four of us, 1 who was a seasoned Rodie who had done LEJOG and TdF routes/mountains in France and he said he had not gone up such steep hills before :eek:!

I was able to ride it all, but a MTB does give you those bail out gears if needed. SPDs essential.

It took 3 days, we did the least miles on Day 1, but it was by far the most effort, the next 2 days were pretty easy going. Some stunning scenery, it avoids main roads. Will do it again one day, but others to try in the meantime.
 
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Sram stuff is compatible with Shimano. Check specific models though as cable movement may differ.
 
After having done Hadrians Cycleway this year. My first tour which I thoroughly enjoyed, me and my mates are considering the way of the roses however the climbs seem a lot worse for WOTR.

@Matrixdesign2 How did you break the route up? We are considering Morecambe to Pately bridge (60 miles ish) then onto York (another 50) then finally to Bridlington (60 miles). However I'm not sure if we should push just past pately to get all the climbs out of the way on the first day or just face the climb out of pately with fresh legs on the second day.
 
After having done Hadrians Cycleway this year. My first tour which I thoroughly enjoyed, me and my mates are considering the way of the roses however the climbs seem a lot worse for WOTR.

@Matrixdesign2 How did you break the route up? We are considering Morecambe to Pately bridge (60 miles ish) then onto York (another 50) then finally to Bridlington (60 miles). However I'm not sure if we should push just past pately to get all the climbs out of the way on the first day or just face the climb out of pately with fresh legs on the second day.

We thought the same as you, we planned it like that, but eventually settled on Cracoe as the first o/night stop (campsites/B&B/pub) - it was the right choice. As stated we were carrying all our gear, so we had additional weight to pull up the hills, and it was hard work, if needed we could have gone on to Pately Bridge, but it would have been getting dark and late, and we would have done the first half (in terms of effort) in one day. In hindsight we should have pushed on to a Appletree Wick as that was a lovely placed with more choice of sites and pubs and cafe for the am.

Another reason not to rush it, is that the best scenery / experince is with in the first half, so don't rush.

One final note, brace yourself for Bridlington, that was a weird experience, we had eggs thrown at us / young chavs giving us jip / and a blacked VW Golf shouting abuse :laugh: weird place... I can suggest a better place to stay (Flambourough).

Tell me about Hadrians Cycleway ? :)
 
Hadrians is more of a beginners route, there's only two real climbs both quite short, out of Brampton up Banks, and out of Greenhead which apparently is the steepest cycle path Sustrans has ever built.

We started in Whitehaven (as thats where we're from) rather than Ravenglass, its then a flat trip up the coast to Carlisle. The coastal route is quite nice with you having views out to Scotland over the Solway Firth. We had a support driver (intend to for WOTR as well) so the bikes weren't loaded. Its cyclepath and minor roads most of the way, with a slight off road section in Carlisle by the river, which in retrospect we could have avoided by sticking to the road.

After spending the night in Carlisle, its minor roads all the way to Once Brewed, a pretty good YHA with a great Pub next door (Twice Brewed). This is the hilliest section of the route which also passes right next to Hadrians wall for part of it (Just looked like a pile of rocks to me). As I said its a beginners route so there's nothing too strenuous but if the suns out you get some beautiful scenery going over the moors.

Next is downhill into Newcastle with you hitting a cyclepath about 10 miles from Newcastle, starts to get a bit urban (as you would expect) but it was still nice following the river Tyne into the Toon. Watch out for the people fishing along the cycle route, they won't move there rods and gear out of the way so if your in a group its single file, if they weren't there you could ride three or four abreast. Finsihed with a night out in Newcastle which was well worth it.

It was my first real tour (only done 20 or 30 mile rides previously) and I'd only been cycling seriously for 3 months (training in preparation for the trip) but I enjoyed it immensely. I don't really have anything to compare it to. A few of my mates have done the trip Inzaman is attempting (Hardknott and Wynrose) but I don't think I'm ready for those yet ! They even said it becomes about getting to the top and you don't really get to enjoy the scenery, suppose it depends on how good you are. Thats why were looking at WOTR, seems a nice compromise between the easiness of Hadrians and the challenge of Cumbrian Fells.
 
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Hadrians is more of a beginners route, there's only two real climbs both quite short, out of Brampton up Banks, and out of Greenhead which apparently is the steepest cycle path Sustrans has ever built.

We started in Whitehaven (as thats where were from) rather than Ravenglass, its then a flat trip up the coast to Carlisle. The coastal route is quite nice with you having views out to Scotland over the Solway Firth. We had a support driver (intend to for WOTR as well) so the bikes weren't loaded. Its cyclepath and minor roads most of the way, with a slight off road section in Carlisle by the river, which in retrospect we could have avoided by sticking to the road.

After spending the night in Carlisle, its minor roads all the way to Once Brewed, a pretty good YHA with a great Pub next door (Twice Brewed). This is the hilliest section of the route which also passes right next to Hadrians wall for part of it (Just looked like a pile of rocks to me). As I said its a beginners route so there's nothing too strenuous but if the suns out you get some beautiful scenery going over the moors.

Next is downhill into Newcastle with you hitting a cyclepath about 10 miles from Newcastle, starts to get a bit urban (as you would expect) but it was still nice following the river Tyne into the Toon. Watch out for the people fishing along the cycle route, they won't move there rods and gear out of the way so if your in a group its single file, if they weren't there you could ride three or four abreast. Finsihed with a night out in Newcastle which was well worth it.

It was my first real tour (only done 20 or 30 mile rides previously) and I'd only been cycling seriously for 3 months (training in preparation for the trip) but I enjoyed it immensely. I don't really have anything to compare it to. A few of my mates have done the trip Inzaman is attempting (Hardknott and Wynrose) but I don't think I'm ready for those yet ! They even said it becomes about getting to the top and you don't really get to enjoy the scenery, suppose it depends on how good you are. Thats why were looking at WOTR, seems a nice compromise between the easiness of Hadrians and the challenge of Cumbrian Fells.

Sounds good! :smashin: I used to MTB years ago, then learnt to drive and forgot about cycling, then wife/kids. Bought a new MTB last year, a racer this year and loving it, always thinking in the next ride/upgrade :D

I wish I had infinite time just to do these tours, LEJOG, and Europe and further - if only I thought about doing it before settling down :(
 
i have a few problems with my bike :(

the rear derailer is not right, it touches and bangs against the frame and takes the paint off even if you adjust it to the max, it apears a screw is missing and the one that isnt is completely mashed, had to use mole grips to get it out. also the rear break is not working properly, at high speeds even if you slam it on it doesnt have any noticable effect.
the chain and sprockets have also seen better day, they work fine, they are just very worn.

the seller didnt mention any of this, problem is i have already said thanks to the seller and said everything is good, not sure i can go saying it needs a load of work doing now :facepalm:

Pics?

Is disc or V-brakes? If rear cassette teeth (gears) look like shark fins then they are pretty worn. You'll need to replace both cassette and chain if this is the case as you can't fit a worn chain to a new cassette (and vice versa).

As for gear set-up... yes there's plenty of good tutorials on the web and you don't need any specialist tools just some allen keys, philips screwdriver and maybe a small adjustable spanner and pliers.

However.. there's sometimes other issues to look out for if your gears are slipping or not shifting crisply. I found had a bent rear mech hanger last week... this is a small piece of metal that holds the rear derailleur (or rear mech) onto the bike frame. It was slightly bent which meant the rear mech wasn't inline with the rear sprockets, so kept miss-shifting and slipping gears.

Fortunately I do some part-time volunteer work at a local bike recycling project who have all the necessary tools :)

If you're in west yorkshire you're more n welcome to bring it along as we do reasonable rates on service and basic repairs.
 
I'm getting a weird "CLUNK" from drivetrain. New BB, chain, cassette, and chainring. Not derailling. Weird.
 
I'm getting a weird "CLUNK" from drivetrain. New BB, chain, cassette, and chainring. Not derailling. Weird.

Could be a bent chain, happened to me once. The chain doesn't engage until it goes round the cog a bit then cluck.
 
Yup, it's smooth. Just occasionally get a loud clunk.
 
Sometimes it sounds like its coming from the drivetrain, but can be coming from elsewhere. Check seat clamp/seat bolts/ etc etc etc.

Does it make this sound when standing up and riding.
 
Definietly drivetrain, as feel it through crank arm. Slips a little. New chainring as well, everything up tight. Doesn't happen that often could use it for a week and no problem. Shifting is perfect no rubbing or skipping.
 
Definietly drivetrain, as feel it through crank arm. Slips a little. New chainring as well, everything up tight. Doesn't happen that often could use it for a week and no problem. Shifting is perfect no rubbing or skipping.

What you are describing feels exactly like what I had when the chain was bent slightly.
 
Or the link used to join the chain can be a bit tight and now and then it will seize up slightly.
Have seen this once in my 150 years of riding :laugh:
 
yeah do have a quicklink, supplied with KMC chain. Although when feeling the chain by hand no sticking links
 
yeah do have a quicklink, supplied with KMC chain. Although when feeling the chain by hand no sticking links

Couldn't find mine by hand, it was only when pedalling under tension that it appeared.
 
Fortunately I do some part-time volunteer work at a local bike recycling project who have all the necessary tools :)

is this it? cycle:recycle - Home

i got most of the bike sorted now, wheels are not so bad it seems and the derailer just does that apparently and its not a big deal. the back break just needed adjusting.
 
Does anyone own one of these?

Commuting bike pannier from Arkel

I am soon to be receiving a new laptop from work and want to be able to transport it on my bike during my commute making sure it is fully protected from both the elements and a little rough terrain while travelling. Can anyone recommend one of these or something similar and maybe a little cheaper?

Thanks

:thumbsup:
 
Well, after 3 weeks my letter of collection came through.:clap:

Picked my new steed up from Halfords on Monday. Despite the appalling level of customer service they offer the bike seems to be very well put together. The gears are indexing fine, the brakes are well set up and I've checked all fittings and nothing is loose.

The bike itself is great, feels very strange riding on tiny tyres when I'm used to my MTB but it's fast and feels great to ride now I've got it set how I like it.

As for the mudguards, strangely enough the display model in Halfords has no front attachment points. Mine, despite being the same bike has, whether it was a pre production cock up or what I don't know as the ones I saw had no holes. I got a set of SKS chromoplastic guards and they fit perfectly except for the front fork mount which I could have cable tied but opted to buy a 10mm longer bolt to fit (43 whole pences). They don't rub at all and are well worth the 30 quid.

So that's it now. My MTB is back to full on off road warrior and my hybrid is set up as a full on commuter. I'm just waiting on a new rear light after the old Halfords one fell apart on the way home at midnight :suicide: and that's it.

Some piccies for you all.









 
Nice one Dave, is that the Hybrid Team? What did it set you back including the pannier and bag? Do you reckon a dslr would fit in there?
 
Nice one Dave, is that the Hybrid Team? What did it set you back including the pannier and bag? Do you reckon a dslr would fit in there?

Yeah it's the team, I went for the team over the comp due to the hydraulic rather than cable discs, carbon fork and er, the colour.:blush:

The rack and bag came to around £92 IIRC. You could fit a few DSLR's in with the panniers folded out. Easily a DSLR and a few lenses if not folded. Plus it's got the quick track system which makes getting the bag on and off a doddle. Not cheap by any means but excellent quality.

b402285b.jpg
 
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Yeah nice bike Dave, like it.

I've just sold my road bike to fund my new Kayak - so down to just my MTB now. I must no longer be a real cyclist as I only have one bike now... :D
 
Yeah nice bike Dave, like it.

I've just sold my road bike to fund my new Kayak - so down to just my MTB now. I must no longer be a real cyclist as I only have one bike now... :D

Ha ha, I love having 2 because commuting and MTBing on one bike is always a compromise.

You must have to be frugal kayaking and biking, the last boat I bought was £600 (ex demo Eskimo Zwo). I couldn't afford to do both any more.
 
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