....gave the new treader a test ride today and its amazing how my motorised bike riding skills are the same, as is the boredom of riding alone! No real close calls, although plenty could have been, but as I assumed everyone else is Mr Magoo and/or just trying to kill me it seems a great place to start And just like the other bikes I ride, its so much more boring and harder to stay motivated when on your own... not too bad a start doing 16 miles at 13mph average so somewhere to build from on my 3 months garden leave :biggrin: guessing there are a few cyclists in Ducati land? Any training tips to get me up to my goal of 50 miles in the saddle, which btw left me feeling like Bubba had a great time at my expense...
I have a 20 mile route that I do on a regular basis so, even when you're on your own, you've got something to aim for, i.e. your last/fastest time. I also use routes that include most of the steepest hills around here so that also gives a target, i.e. getting up them without resorting to the granny gears. Have fun. :smile:
Get a Mountain Bike, find some mates who are into it, get out there and enjoy it. Loads more fun than grinding along on a road bike which does require a much more disciplined approach. Getting off the road means you can forget about Mr Magoo for most of your riding. I have always ridden bikes but only for fun, never been skillful or competetive enough to race, started riding on the road regularly when I turned 40 to try to maintain some sort of fitness instead of turning into a slob. Got my first MTB about 6 years ago and rarely use my road bike now.
Got an MB but no mates plus I am easily led, competitive beyond any sense and dont crash that well, so figured road was safer!
I really enjoy the MTB to the point I can say I enjoy being out on the MTB rather than the Juwcarti sometimes. Can get a bit mucky though
Need to start using mine again after my SMIDSY this year, got a turbo trainer to keep my legs spinning Up at Llandegla, Mr C recognise the run?
I mentioned this to her indoors yesterday, was toying with going up there in the next week or two just to try the blue to test my knee... which will no doubt mean red then black before I know it
Ahh yes, forgot to mention, you have budget plenty of time for cleaning and maintenance. There aren't many hills here in Lincolnshire, but this time of year you can soon be carrying a few extra kilos of boulder clay on your wheels and frame to make the legs work .
Download garmin fit app interesting way of measuring solo runs as a method of setting and beating what you did before.It works for me anyway.
I enjoy my riding in the new forest, I'm there in two minutes from my house, I know what you mean about riding alone, but I iPod tunes takes the boredom away, hoping to do a lot more when the evenings become lighter! This is my occasional riding buddy though, tends to be a lot slower and more level
Paul, change the seat angle (up probably) to get a more comfortable ride. You'll probably need to change the saddle tho to get something that works for you. If you're up this way, pop into SigmaSport - they have a fitting service that puts you 'sit' bones on the saddle, rather than your gentlemen's parts.
Enjoy your new bike bradders. The best training advice I can give you is to get out on your bike as much as you can. Start off with short distances and slowly increase them. Don't worry too much about going fast to start with. Then once you are able to ride for an hour or so you can try to tailor your training a bit more. Make sure you have a good pair of padded shorts and a decent saddle. And take a puncture repair kit with you. There is a good forum on bikeradar.com where you can get lots of help and advice about starting cycling/training etc. Have fun :biggrin:
The single best mod that you'll ever do to a cycle...check out the Selle SMP range, they look weird, but are just soooo comfortable :smile:
Yep thanks for the advice, probably a better saddle would help, am thinking of just switching my MB one over and see what that is like. Am resisting ipod as on road I want to be alert. Gonna add some vas to tender parts and see how that helps I have a habit of all or nothing, so pretty much flat out as long as I can. Pretty flat round here too and other than the sea not much scenery... I ride with a mate and we are aiming a longish ride every Sat, mix of some road miles one week then MB the next. Said we must come over to the new forest, only half hour of so to the edge for us this time of year without the summer traffic
Best bit of cycling kit I've bought recently; a pair of Humvee pants from Endura Loads of secure pockets, velcro adjusters at ankle/calf and some optional cycling shorts that fit in with plastic pop-studs.
