WOTR day 3 and fin. Great achievement for three people who are in their late 50s and 60 yo me. A few years ago, 10 miles was a struggle. 170 miles and 10,000 ft climbed in 3 days. Despite be warned about the weather, we only got wet once. Not sure what’s next.
Some years ago I had DVLT in my left leg as I kept getting ill, with flu like symptoms, I’m grateful it’s been a great success. I also had a severe infection in my right leg whilst travelling in China, I flew home and was carted straight to hospital to spend 11 days on IV antibiotics. No lasting damage, but my right calf is 2” larger. Over the last few days whilst riding I’ve been diligently drinking electrolytes, before, during and the long rides with no cramps. I was also carefully avoiding pushing any harder than necessary.
Lower gearing is a must if you have any health issues IMO. I can still get up the hills without issues on my regular routes with what I have, however I'm looking at reducing the load on my bits by adding a larger cassette and an MTB derailleur. I know a few roadies in hillier areas that have bought a road bike and added GRX. Great for bike packing as well.
I think my next bike, when it’s released will be the new 2024 Cervélo Aspero with GRX/di2. Silly, but with all the climbing I missed the ability to scroll through screens on my Garmin using the buttons on top of the brake hoods. My road bike has the facility, which i first thought a gimmick. Di2 Ultegra has so far it’s been a perfect gear change every time. I wouldn’t mind a bit more top end, but not at the cost of the bottom gear.
I'm an analog/technophobe sort a bloke, I'll be sticking to cables. I hadn't appreciated you'd only been cycling for a few years...Double well done! Respec' as the young folk say...Actually probably not...
I honestly never appreciated just how stunning Yorkshire is, mainly because most of my time spent there was when the coal mines were operating. The whole ride was just fantastic view, followed by pretty village and nice towns. York surprisingly was cycle friendly, although obviously the Minster is not an impressive as Salisbury Cathedral . We will definitely be back, whether that’s cycling, motorbiking or in the camper is yet to be determined. We stayed at The Midland hotel in Morecombe, an Art Deco masterpiece, The Devonshire Arms at Cracoe, wonderful dinner and breakfast, followed by Burythorpe House. The latter owned by Eric Clapton, although sadly not in residence. All worthy of a stay.
I was out today on one of my usual 50 milers when I bumped into this local legend ‘Wiltshire Man’. Check his content on YouTube. He almost lost his life about 10 years ago due to a brain tumour, hence the wonky smile. He’s into cycling, bike packing, wild camping, local history and microlighting, to name just a few.
I often watch Sandys YouTube. I’m from S. Wiltshire, when I’m oop norf nr Swindon I keep an eye out for him. I’d thought about buying one of his knives, but I have several I already don’t use.
I've seen him and Dave out and about a few times, however this is the first time I've managed to catch him for a chat. He was with Dave and their partners, off for a stone baked pizza at the water park. It was a pleasure to meet him, like you I've followed his Channel for sometime and gained a lot of local knowledge from it. Legend.
You won’t change peoples ingrained behaviour or opinion IMO. A certain kind of entitled road user thinks the other is the problem.
I expect you’re right about entitled road users. Though I also reckon unconfident drivers can be a problem because they don’t feel comfortable offside, close-passing through lack of confidence. They could benefit from seeing Reg’s video. Also, I’ve had numerous drivers pass me with 2m or more of space … but starting the overtake as they go into a blind bend. Reg’s video might help.
I’ve watched a number of RegLocals YouTubes and like them. I rarely cycle in urban locations, mainly rural, and these are my observations as a commuter and social cyclist. Many cyclists are also car drivers and when driving their car give other cyclists plenty of space and time, easily identified. I find HGV drivers give cyclists space and time. Local bus drivers are not so patient, but far worse are parents on the school run. Motorcyclists are a bit of a mixed bag, some feel the need to get as close as possible. Plan to follow, prepare to pass isn’t just for vehicle drivers to handle cyclists it should be for every thing that’s in the roadway and slower than you, whether you are driving or riding. I did like the Regs comment about you know who wears black, the SAS. Cycle trousers/shorts come in black, they sometimes have a bit of reflective or small areas of colour but black is the main colour. I try to wear coloured tops and hi viz in addition to lights. Entitled road users, or ignorant/lazy?
I think you've hit on a good point here, the last time I was cycling near Woking very early in the morning, there was no other explanation but the above on several occasions, and came to the conclusion that there is a sector of drivers who just will not drive "on the wrong side of the road" if at all possible, and so avoid doing this, even if it means passing too close to a cyclist.
Women. Every time I had a near miss, it was a dozy Doris. They pick a line and hate deviating from it… They don’t like reversing either… weird…
I always wear a bright/ fluorescent top and use blinky lights, I noticed a marked change in drivers passes when I started using the lights, more time to plan perhaps, or get over the initial 'bloody cyclists' thought, then settle into the pass. I think the 'cool' clothing brands like Rapha have been producing dark coloured clothing for a while now, which explains why a certain element are dressed that way. GCN always used to wear black Castelli kit, although that has recently changed. As motorcyclist we know you have to do your bit and can't rely on other road users to look out for you. It's unfortunate that (in the UK at least) hatred toward cyclists is fed to people with their mother's milk, there's even been the occasional meme on this thread.
