New to cycling - Page 30

**MercurySilver** · 24-01-2013, 11:30 AM

nice work prydey

thats some serious hill riding right there

sgt_doofey · 24-01-2013, 06:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by prydey

Stage 4 - Humbug Scrub - 4.0% 6.3km

Thank Christ for that! I'm glad to see it's only 4% grade tomorrow. Gonna be blowing a gale though!

Good luck all!

[Buckets] · 24-01-2013, 06:50 PM

Time for a new bike!

ratter · 24-01-2013, 07:00 PM

yeeep

blueoval · 25-01-2013, 12:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by [290_BOSS]

Time for a new bike!

image

geez that's pretty bad. plenty of bikes out there to be had.

sgt_doofey · 26-01-2013, 08:49 AM

Well, I finished the BUPA challenge yesterday. Did the 127km ride in a total time of 6 hours 44 minutes, which included rest/drink stops along the way. I was one of the last few people to finish under the arch before they closed it off for the peleton.
We were about 500m from the crash in the sprint for the finish too! It looked pretty nasty but it is amazing how quick they pick themselves up and keep going! A couple of riders were being helped along by their team mates though!

**MercurySilver** · 26-01-2013, 11:27 AM

nice work doofey

ratter · 26-01-2013, 04:45 PM

great finish by Gerrans

geckoGT · 28-01-2013, 03:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by [290_BOSS]

Time for a new bike!

image

Ouch, how did it happen?

geckoGT · 28-01-2013, 03:15 PM

If anyone is interested, I have started a new group on Face Book for discussion, links, pics etc on cycling.

It is an open group, just do a search for Cycling Mad. Everyone is welcome so spread the word.

blueoval · 29-01-2013, 05:14 PM

Rode around Saturday and went to a few vantage points to watch the TDU Willunga Stage. First went to Snapper Point and watched the sprinters points for the first 2 laps, then rode up Willunga Hill and ended up getting an amazing spot to watch the riders go up Old Willunga Hill twice. Incredible speed they can achieve up there. Well done to Simon Gerrans for the stage win and also Tom Slagter for overall honors for the tour. Incredible week of cycling here in SA and I hope it stays for years to come.

ratter · 29-01-2013, 05:18 PM

hopefully channel 9 can improve their coverage if it stays

[Buckets] · 29-01-2013, 05:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by geckoGT

Ouch, how did it happen?

Just riding at Mt Stromlo, it gets ridden fairly hard and fast but its a mountain bike! Will see if Giant will honour their claimed "lifetime" warranty on the frame. If not, I'll be rebuilding it with a new frame

I had the camera running when it broke but haven't had a chance to check the footage yet.

**MercurySilver** · 30-01-2013, 01:28 PM

the guy at work that did one of the stages (he said he did the one thru kersbrook, so not sure what stage that was but he said he didnt do checker hill road)
he did the 127 km in 4 hrs and 52 mins

blueoval · 30-01-2013, 01:33 PM

thats a 28km average. Not bad at all.

sgt_doofey · 30-01-2013, 10:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MercurySilver

the guy at work that did one of the stages (he said he did the one thru kersbrook, so not sure what stage that was but he said he didnt do checker hill road)
he did the 127 km in 4 hrs and 52 mins

That's the BUPA challenge - Modbury to Tanunda. Same ride I did, albeit a little quicker than what I did it in.

DBourne · 31-01-2013, 03:00 PM

Well I took part in the January challenge on Strava just as some fun.

Ended up getting my 400 mile badge today and have done 647km for Jan. I know that's not a lot compared to those on here, but I'm pretty happy with that

ratter · 31-01-2013, 03:29 PM

was hoping to get 600 but had to have nearly a week off with saddle sores currently at 479 miles and will get maybe another 30 klms with tonight's racing so may crack 500 miles, would have been close to the 600 for the month but poo happens

DBourne · 31-01-2013, 03:36 PM

Still a great number to crack (500)

ratter · 31-01-2013, 03:41 PM

thanks mate, but not there yet, possible rain this arvo and if it does, racing will probably be cancelled, 400 miles is also a fair effort and something a few months ago i could only dream of, congrats on your badge

blueoval · 31-01-2013, 03:44 PM

Get some chamois cream Mick. Its a god send, I kid you not.

I use this stuff http://aussiebuttcream.com/product.html

Works a treat and inexpensive. Should help clear those sores in no time.

ratter · 31-01-2013, 03:47 PM

that's what I started using for my ride on sunday, so far, so good and have been using antibiotics since last monday

ratter · 31-01-2013, 08:43 PM

well race got cancelled but the coach had me do a windtrainer set to replace racing, finished the set, downloaded to strava..........

499.1 miles

I was going to get back on the windtrainer and do the extra distance to get my 500 miles, the wife was calling me all sorts of weird names, when I checked my Garmin data I had actually done 823 klms for the month, so I found a race warm up lap and loaded that to strava...

502 miles

my wife says I need help

one of the around the bay in a day rides was advertised as 100 klms, by the time I got back to the car I had only done something like 98, so I rode around the block until the 100 ticked over..........

maybe I do have a problem ??????

DBourne · 01-02-2013, 08:48 AM

haha, good work mate

Stats do funny things to men.

blueoval · 01-02-2013, 11:32 AM

haha. my mate did 97km the other day before the end of the ride and while we sat having coffee at a cafe, he got back on the bike and rode around for 10mins to clock up the last 3km to crack the tonne. Call it what you will, but I think its a mental milestone when you are able to crack something as far as number as concerned. Bit like a dyno. Who wants 199rwkw when you can pull off the airbox cover and crack the 200!!! hahaha

LANKY 1 · 09-02-2013, 04:53 PM

Looking for opinions.
Today I went to a few bike shops and have now got 3 different bikes i'm interested in.
1st bike at standish cycles is a TREK 8.2 DS: http://www.trekbikes.com/au/en/bikes...eries/8_2_ds/#
Being the 1st bike I tried I was impressed with it it right away, nothing overly fancy, suspension didn't have a lock-out but that's alright.
2nd bike was at Giant bicycles. the Roam 2: http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-au/...2/12052/57484/
They didn't have 1 in XL size so didn't actually take it for a ride. It did have the locking suspension on it though. Wasn't overly excited about it for some reason. I did sit on a Boulder 1 which is what ive been eyeing off, but was extremly surprised at how little stopping power the mechanical disc brakes had. you could have the brakes on and still make the wheel turn easily.
3rd bike was at JT cycles, was a Specialized hardrock:http://www.jtcycles.com.au/mountain-...x?sc=8121-8715 This one was a XXL size. felt good to have a bike I can stretch my legs on. Also had hydraulic disc brakes and the lockable suspension so pretty much everything I was looking for in a bike. 100 bucks off atm for 600 bucks so that is quite handy.

So think I'll narrow it down to the TREK or the Hardrock but they are also at opposite ends of the scale but for an extra 80 bucks I can get alot more bike

Gonna try and find some review about them now

LANKY 1 · 10-02-2013, 09:48 PM

After reading some reviews.
The TREK has got fantastic reviews, if any problem maybe the shifters.
The Hardrock which i'm really keen on is let down by the front forks.

Think where i'm getting stuck is the Hardrock is everything I want in a bike, and looks fantastic, but because I don't think i'm gonna get much trail riding the Trek would suit me perfectly for my once or twice trip a week to the beach and back.

blueoval · 11-02-2013, 03:49 PM

Hey Dan, it comes down to the level of work you intend on doing on any other those frames. The Trek is indeed a nice frame but the lock out forks would come in handy if u were to ride on tarmac.

The Specialized Hardrock seems to tick all the boxes, and I know u said the forks were the weak point, but if anything were to happen, wouldnt it be covered under warranty/insurance? Surely the front forks arent that weak or poorly constructed.

Again, horses for courses. You need to work out what kind of terrain you intend on riding before making the decision.

LANKY 1 · 11-02-2013, 04:54 PM

The forks are not weak, people who have reviewed them have found them to rebound to quickly or something like that, and it isn't a nice smooth action. otherwise it's a great bike. For me I don't think the front forks will be too much of an issue.

Ive very nearly fully decided to go get the Hardrock, but then the thought of being able to go quicker on the Trek gets in my head. reviews have also said it's capable off road on minor trails.

Shav, you have a Hybrid? I can't remember what specs it is. What is it like if you go off the pavement?

And how much will not being able to lock the front fork suspension affect the ride? It is possible to make it stiffer if I need to.

blueoval · 11-02-2013, 06:01 PM

I have the fixed forks on my Kona Dew Plus. Has the Hydraulic brakes and rapid fire shifters. Rides fine as far as Im concerned over dirt and gravel. Bear in mind I havent taken it further than that, or done jumps on it. I used it for fitness reasons. Its designed to handle commuting and wet weather better as it still had the skinnier tires but had some tread pattern on it. It allowed a bit more speed and lower rolling resistance. So basically it was made for urban efficiency and comfort on a range of surfaces rather than all out tarmac or all out off road. The geometry of that bike was setup for comfort to help your lower back with hours in the saddle rather than bunny hops, rock jumping or fast downhills.

With the forks not locked you'll find on the tarmac that you will be working harder to push the pedals to maintain speed.

Think of it this way, every stroke you take you expect the bike to push faster, if the forks are not locked out, that energy is absorbed back into the forks and not propelling the bike as fast as you should. Pretty much wasting your energy trying to get to speed instead of maintaining it.

The suspension forks in non lock out are there to help provide comfort and rebound on bumpy surfaces as you know.

It will boil down to how much tarmac/hard surface riding you do over off road terrain stuff. If you do 70% hard surface, you would be fine with solid forks, or the hardrock with lock outs. Also note you can change the pressure off those forks too to suit your tastes. Just because it may not suit some people doesnt mean its not modifiable to suit another.