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david1701

david1701

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David
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No
how the hell are you meant to build up.

I just did a nice loop thing near my house which is a triangle of roads with a down hill stretch, uphill stretch and straightish stretch 2 1/2 miles according to google maps

my thighs are burning, my head is spinning and I sweat - seriously am I that unfit :eek:

also I have a flat front tire and the gears on my bike are funny service time methinks. Letting the man with the shop do it this time as I make a bleedin mess of it :s
 
david1701 said:
also I have a flat front tire and the gears on my bike are funny service time methinks. Letting the man with the shop do it this time as I make a bleedin mess of it :s
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I think that's wise
 
seriously every time I change a tire its flat by the time I'm half way round the ride, pump it and its great, test it round the paddock/drive great, take it out on the road and dead grrrrrr
 
I felt the same when I first started cycling to work about 7 years ago(4 ish miles) give it a week and you will see a big difference.
 
david1701 said:
seriously every time I change a tire its flat by the time I'm half way round the ride, pump it and its great, test it round the paddock/drive great, take it out on the road and dead grrrrrr
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Don't worry, it's only flat at the bottom :naughty:
 
I did seriously consider cycling to work as a way to build excercise into my day but its about 12 miles and theres a nasty road there - also its in devon and I'm pretty sure one of those shifty *******s would steal my bike
 
I had to use my bike for a few weeks, while my car was being delivered, major P.I.T.A but was fun :)
 
Bike setup is most important. Saddle height to the pedal at the bottom of it's rotation. Your knee should have a slight bend where it would if you were strung up..

Clipless peddles make a huge difference as you push and pull so you are spinning the legs rather than stomp up and down.

You should aim to spin the peddles at aroun 100 rpm and not mash big gears... So keep in the middle ring on the front and use the block on the back...
 
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As a sad old git that's been riding bikes more years than I care to remember, I'll try and give a couple of pointers...

It's usually recommended that you don't try to build up mileage too quickly. The first thing you need to do is find as gentle a circuit as you can get - not too hilly - though obviously that's sort of governed by your location. If it's really hilly, get something with good wide spread of gears. When you set out, you should ideally ride at a pace that you could still hold a conversation at - certainly able to breath through your nose rather than having to pant with your mouth open! If you can keep to this, you'll find that the burning thighs won't happen - hold on, here's the science bit - it's lactic acid, caused by your muscles operating harder than you can get oxygen to them. It's supposed to be fun - you don't have to get on the bike and clog it!

Once you can get around your circuit easily enough, add on an extra loop - try not to put more than 20% extra in distance at any one time.

If you're on a MTB with the thick offroad tyres, don't expect the bike to go up hills easily - they don't - tyre-suck on the tarmac is horrible compared to a proper road bike's tyres. Still - makes for a better workout :)
 
Road cyclist here, average 200 miles per week in and around the Cotswolds and the Mendips. Nothing you can do to get better on a bike other than ride it. As Eddie Merckx once said 'Hills hurt, sofa's kill'.

I ride a Pinarello dream machine worth about 2 x D3X !

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Diego Garcia said:
I ride a Pinarello dream machine worth about 2 x D3X !

4666660610_4c10da223e.jpg
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And I bet it handles better, easier to control and takes better pics :D It even looks better :)

Not bad for a £50 bike ;)
 
Plenty of LSD required.








That's Long Slow Distance (y)

As for the puncture, bring the inner tube indoors out of the wind, inflate it and rotate it past your lips to help locate the pin-prick. Patch it, and lightly inflate before fitting the second bead of the tyre, to ensure the tube isn't pinched against the rim anywhere. Press the valve stem in to make sure, before inflating fully.
 
Some useful stuff there, my bike is a mountain big with proper fat tires (great on the fields) by sis rides a full sus roadier but not proper road bike with much thinner tires, so I'll be using that tomorrow

Yeah I live in cornwall, by the coats - hills aplenty, gonna try village and back as all the hills are smaller to build up with

so if I should pace myself so I can hold a conversation/breathe through my nose will that build me up much slower than if I sweat my guts out, I'm thinking atm to die on every ride until I get fitter then build up more slowly
 
Hmmm, considering your profile picture, I'm not sure we should encourage your use of any vehicle - motorised or otherwise!!! :D
 
If the bike is a cheapie it will be heavy and that could be part of your problem.. What is the make and model?

My last bike was worth about £4,500.. it was a custom spec titanium frame.. I covered up to 600 miles a week...

Superb looking bike Diego..
 
Rough Edges said:
If the bike is a cheapie it will be heavy and that could be part of your problem.. What is the make and model?

My last bike was worth about £4,500.. it was a custom spec titanium frame.. I covered up to 600 miles a week...

Superb looking bike Diego..
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You know you could like, buy a nice car for that? No pedelling, stay dry in the rain.. :p

Or, a nice camera.
 
david1701 said:
so if I should pace myself so I can hold a conversation/breathe through my nose will that build me up much slower than if I sweat my guts out, I'm thinking atm to die on every ride until I get fitter then build up more slowly
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It's your cardio-vascular system (heart and blood supply) that needs developing. It's not supplying enough oxygen for you to keep going. Loads of tiny blood vessels need time, and the incentive, to grow.
 
littlemonster said:
You know you could like, buy a nice car for that? No pedelling, stay dry in the rain.. :p

Or, a nice camera.
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How many times have I heard this...lol

All my bikes are individually worth more than my 'daily-driver' car, which I bought for £4,500 six years ago.

Be nice if I got to ride them once in a while.:(

David, I used to road-race, time trial and ride off-road for fun. Last time I rode seriously was in 1998.
Got on my titanium Litespeed ATB again last year for a pootle round the woods and was appalled at how hard it was - bearing in mind I run five miles 3-4 times a week. Decided I'd better build up the legs on the road-bike before tackling hills in anger again...bad idea...I was a gibbering wreck after ten miles...
Not only that, but the Flite Titanium saddle on my Joe Waugh 753 road bike seems now to be fashioned from samurai sword blades.
My butt was in agony for a week after those two days and I've not ridden since...
I did clean the Litespeed again last weekend...so the urge to get out hasn't altogether died...
 
littlemonster said:
You know you could like, buy a nice car for that? No pedelling, stay dry in the rain.. :p

Or, a nice camera.
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I forgot to mention that this was in 1996! Easy enough to spend £7, 500 now :nuts::wacky:

I replaced the chain every 6 weeks at £25.00 a time Same cost for tyres too..

I had picked up some prototype bits in titanium... pace carbon forks Syncros stem and Titanium seatpost, titanium cranks..

I still think titanium is the best frame material even though it is over shadowed by carbon fibre at the moment...
 
LOL I think it was normal kids bike money (got it when I was 16 ish) if its something I come to use every day I'd think about spending money on it, but my cameras make me money and my business needs a lot of investment and I aint got much to be throwing at bikes :s
 
Rob, Lightspeeds are nice, but now the family that used to own them Lynskey have their own company again and they are fantastic looking frames... I miss the Ti stems that they used to do and the Ibis frames and stems of the old days were stunningly beautiful.. I always had Flite Ti saddles or the Transalp version...
 
Arkady said:
How many times have I heard this...lol

All my bikes are individually worth more than my 'daily-driver' car, which I bought for £4,500 six years ago.

Be nice if I got to ride them once in a while.:(
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I should probably come clean that it's a bit of jealousy, I have err... let's go with "balance issues" and am outright dangerous on a bicycle :LOL:

Not an excuse for not being able to ride either, my balance is really bad, even with exercises to improve it! :eek:
 
david1701 said:
Some useful stuff there, my bike is a mountain big with proper fat tires (great on the fields) by sis rides a full sus roadier but not proper road bike with much thinner tires, so I'll be using that tomorrow

an MTB on tarmac will kill you

i sold mine and got this TREK for £350 - you dont need £3500
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PS I added Shwalbe Marathon Plus type [puncture proof CF strip inside]
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photon said:
As for the puncture, bring the inner tube indoors out of the wind, inflate it and rotate it past your lips to help locate the pin-prick. Patch it, and lightly inflate before fitting the second bead of the tyre, to ensure the tube isn't pinched against the rim anywhere. Press the valve stem in to make sure, before inflating fully.
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id also run your fingers around the inside of the tyre and check for thorns. might explain why they keep going flat after repair.

also if the tube has more than 3 patches.. bin it.

and if you can (if you want to keep the MTB) get slick or semi-slick tyres to make your life easier.
 
so if I have road tires on a pretty light full sus bike will it be a killer or should I start putting aside some cash?
 
david1701 said:
so if I have road tires on a pretty light full sus bike will it be a killer or should I start putting aside some cash?
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the trouble [I'm told] with a full sus bike is that a lot of the power is dissipated in the suspension

get a hardtail road bike instead
 
david1701 said:
:( I don wannnnnaaaa spend any money also the roads round here are more than a bit **** :p
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you have NOT seen potholes till you visit Glasgow mate...people have been known to disappear...:D

ok full sus road bike but add Kevlar reinforced tyres against punctures
 
You need to get some padded cycling shorts if you are doing any sort of distance. They really make saddles a load more comfortable.

I wear a pair of baggy shorts over the Lycra for decencies sake :)
 
so if you were to buy a bike for road use at the cheap as chips end of the market - where would you look?
 
When you get back to civilisation, check out Richard's Cycles (I think they're still on Pinhoe Roads) and the like to see what they've got to suit you.

Then, for a circuit, head up Pennsylvania Road to the very top, get your breath back down Wreford's Lane (beware of rat runners), head out past the Cowley Bridge Inn towards Tiverton then turn right up through Stoke Woods. Finish up with the freewheel back down Pennsylvania Hill or turn left down Stoke Valley Road and leave a bit more uphill before your final descent. It'll completely knacker you the first few times you do it but it does get easier. I would offer to accompany you on the circuits but I'm a real fat phuqu** and I'm not sure I would make it round! Could pace you on the new toy though.
 
david1701 said:
so if I have road tires on a pretty light full sus bike will it be a killer or should I start putting aside some cash?
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It is not the best bike to be on for road riding if you can lock out the suspension or stiffen it up, that would help. Road slicks for MTBs are good if pumped up properly, though your gear ratios will be slightly different..
 
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