Search results for:

Why can't you ride on a track with a quick release front wheel?

WARNING: Reader's Wives

Finally have my Surly LHT build on the road. Mosquito put it together so I could C2W the first grand, it's got a mix of Tiagra and XT, Tektro CR720 cantis (w/ v-brake pads), Ambrosio touring wheels with XT and ambrosio hubs rear and front, Nitto Radonneur bars, brooks b17, shimano spd / flat pedals with blb cages and straps, sks guards, continental touring plus 700x32 tires, and has a carradice nelson on it at the moment. it's great to ride. bit of a beast, but once it's going it keeps a good pace. loved the practicality this weekend. Pic taken in HH centre!

i was there on sat at the 13:00 session with a mate ,it was ok, not as fast as the last equivalent session I rode last year. i think it's certainly harder to maintain a higher pace on the hire bikes, they are pretty heavy, but also you're handed them just before you need to hit the track on them, so mine had a really low front tire pressure for e.g. Had a lap and a half at the front due to traffic on the team sprint training, pushed it a bit, felt it significantly more than i would do at that pace on my regular ride.

Did make me increase the priority of making my dolan track compliant as soon as possible. also, the instructors do a great job, but it can still be a bit confusing if you're doing something new for the first couple of laps. this isn't an advanced session after all, it's right to expect relatively track-inexperienced riders to be confused / take a few laps to get going.

essay over.

that's fucking hilarious. keep it topped up with fags ready to light through the holes, RAD

cheers, appreciate the suggestions

want some panniers for my new FBnpna (i hope) bike, that don't look like structured bin bags. arkels are nice but expensive. any alternatives out there that aren't made by vaude, ortlieb, carradice, are aesthetically pleasing and practical?

returning to HH tomorrow, did the induction and subsequent session previous to the card thing being introduced, would like to go to the novice training rather than repeat induction, reckon that's ok or am i forced to do the induction again? understand why etc., but would be keen not to redo the very first, i.e. 12:00 session, again as i hear you can't go straight on to the subsequent novice training session on the same day anymore.

^ amen

So excited, my long awaited and carefully spec'd functional bike is nearly here! LHT, the distributor has stopped shipping green so I've had to go blue (didn't want another black bike), can always armourtec it. Having it built so I can c2w scheme £1k of the total. Readers wives to follow when it arrives.

lol, bollocks, thanks....................... shit

Question: are there any parts of this site (I have searched) that talk about track craft / specific track disciplines, and training / preparation etc?

I'd like to read up on the various events and etiquette / lack thereof in addition to getting involved at Herne Hill. Really want to do the Keirin day late this month.

I use this calculator and it made a big difference for me.
Even with 23c front and 25c rear it feels comfortable and fast.
try it and see if it works for you.

http://www.dorkypantsr.us/bike-tire-pressure-calculator.html

ran 80psi front 115 rear pretty much in line with what this site suggested this morning, and it was pretty good. Less jarring on normal road bumps than normal, felt as grippy as it could in the conditions, and didn't feel like it was rolling 'slow'. In fact the lack of jarring made me paranoid that the tire was running a slow puncture a couple of times but (touch wood) that doesn't seem to be the case.

I use this calculator and it made a big difference for me.
Even with 23c front and 25c rear it feels comfortable and fast.
try it and see if it works for you.

http://www.dorkypantsr.us/bike-tire-pressure-calculator.html

Wow, that's giving me a mad front to rear pressure difference, 70f to 110r.... I'd be worried about pinch flats with that sort of front pressure... but i'll give it a go out of interest

don't worry you'll feel better to-marrow

ha, yeah i run mine at between 130 and 145 psi!

do you tend to sit in the middle of the pressure range suggested then? i've always gone top end to minimise the contact patch on 23s, but that's for a different type of ride.

great, cheers, glad my logic seems right. my missus has 32's on her mixte and they don't feel sluggish at all, particularly if you up the PSI to the max level for road use. looking forward to not riding on 23s all the time, pinch flats + london potholed moonscape roads = total puncture misery.

functional bike question:

should i run 28s or 32s on my forthcoming surly lht? tires - conti contact. use - road, and some trails / tow paths. will regularly be ridden with low load but occassionally fully loaded.

I had planned on 32s as I figured they weren't much slower than 28s, would be better on dust / singletrack / gravel, not that much worse on road, and would take some of the sting out of the heavy frame when i'm riding unloaded.

what do you reckon?

It's mainly questioning the necessity of needing the spring.

Go for a standard B17 and see how that suit you.

I know, but I'm secondarily trying to work out if the 'special' models are just aesthetically nicer or if copper plating stuff makes it more robust. pretty sure i'll go unsprung anyway.

Hugo (or others), re. Brooks, what's the performance benefit of special over standard build? Or is copper riveting and plating purely aesthetic?

Cheers Ed, Hugo, I'll check those pedals out. I much prefer riding with cleats but, aside from being my new touring steed, this will also be my about-town bike at the weekend and I get fed up wearing SPDs when I'm just dicking around locally. Double sided is no doubt the way forward. Presume you can't fit toeclips to those shim pedals?

Hugo, the flyer is the one I was thinking about - stiff springs, and I think it's basically a B17 in profile right? I'll have a chat in the LBS. If the springs damp potholes but don't give spongy acceleration then I'll go for it. I've never had a Brooks so I can't relate to the comfort claims for the non-sprung saddles. I've never really had a comfortable saddle. The ritchey pro streem 2 I just put on my road bike is akin to self harm, but it has dented the weight of the bike. Weight (thank god) is not a concern on this bike.

put in a deposit and ordered a custom built LHT from mosquito on saturday, really looking forward to picking it up in a few weeks time. it's got a great honest spec that's a bit better than their standard issue, and I've got nitto raddoneur bars going on there too which i'm excited about.

next task is to pick some pedals, specify which brooks saddle to go with it, and find a rack and panniers.

pedals, i'm thinking some MKS road pedals with toe clips. don't want cleats on this bike. any suggestions for supportive, well built pedals with a classic look?

saddle, either brooks b17 or the one with stiff springs on the back. not sure whether springs are a good shout. i'm about 160 pounds, reckon it'll make a difference?

grateful for any thoughts on sprung / unsprung saddle questions and the pedal search, it is a functional bike after all.

i could do with some cash. i might set up an outrageously dangerous KOM and then sue Strava for the first person that uses it. haven't accepted their new t's and c's yet anyway :-)

How recreating the Eddie Murphy sprinting-across-a-motorway scene from that '90s movie (edit: Bowfinger) as a segment on the M25?

you strava fiends heard about the US cyclist that died going for a KOM? his family are suing Strava and apparently have alleged that Strava should have marked out the segment physically with road cones. Full blown natty bonkers.

chap playing latin blues guitar jazz stuff out of his backpack on a trek road bike with rack this morning. complemented you on the tunes at traf square. awesome individual effort. if everyone does it we're f*cked though!