# Cycling



## dkoernert (May 31, 2011)

Are there any cyclists around here? I think I have seen random mention of cycling in a few threads. Post your ride(s) if you care to!


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## Langham (Nov 7, 2012)

I'm quite a keen cyclist, although it comes a distant second to horse-riding. I have a 1930s Raleigh roadster, a 1940s Raleigh, and a much more modern bike whose name I can't actually remember but it's American - Trek possibly. I prefer the 1930s Raleigh usually, except for anything x-country.

When I lived in London it was certainly the best way to get around, although I now think London traffic too dangerous - there were still horse-drawn brewery deliveries when I lived there. 

The Raleighs have entirely enclosed chains and an upright posture, which makes them compatible with gentlemen's clothing - I refuse to be seen in anything lycra, fluorescent or streamlined.


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## Reldresal (Oct 13, 2011)

I am a total amateur, but I do enjoy riding the bike on weekends. I usually make my way to Long Beach, New York to ride the boardwalk there, flexing my 11 inch biceps for the ladies. Looks like I need to find somewhere else this years as that boardwalk is a long way from replacement.

I'd like to ride around Manhattan, but the drivers, and even worse, the pedestrians fall into two categories: inattentive narcissists and aggressive psychopaths.


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## dkoernert (May 31, 2011)

Langham, got any photos of the Raleigh? I love old bikes! I am a roadie (yes I wear spandex, sorry). I started on a Fuji aluminum bike, and just recently moved to a Bianchi Pista fixed gear for daily riding. I also have an old Specialized Hard Rock I converted into a singlespeed with a rack for commuting.


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## A world beyond fleece (Feb 20, 2008)

I would ride more if the clothes had a more enhanced cool factor.
When wil we see functional but interesting cycling clothes?

​


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## Langham (Nov 7, 2012)

dkoernert said:


> Langham, got any photos of the Raleigh? I love old bikes! I am a roadie (yes I wear spandex, sorry). I started on a Fuji aluminum bike, and just recently moved to a Bianchi Pista fixed gear for daily riding. I also have an old Specialized Hard Rock I converted into a singlespeed with a rack for commuting.


No photos at the moment, but I will see what I can do when I have time.

The Raleigh is a surprisingly fast ride (and not just downhill) - it has the less common rod-operated hub brakes.


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## Chouan (Nov 11, 2009)

I can't abide cyclists as a class. Individual cyclists are, I'm sure, quite reasonable people, but once they've got their plastic skins on, they, as a class, turn into pompous, self-righteous menaces, who either forget or ignore the Highway Code, especially where it rules on riding two, or more, abreast, and the use of Pedestrian Crossings and Traffic lights. I'm sure there must be exceptions, but, in my experience, once they've donned lycra, they cease to be people and become "Cyclists". I loathe and despise them. People who ride bikes, however, seem to have a different attitude, tend to obey the Highway Code, tend to make proper signals, and tend not to be self-righteous and pompous about their travel preferences. Perhaps going to work on a bike isn't as much of a social statement as being a Cyclist?


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## Shaver (May 2, 2012)

Chouan said:


> I can't abide cyclists as a class. Individual cyclists are, I'm sure, quite reasonable people, but once they've got their plastic skins on, they, as a class, turn into pompous, self-righteous menaces, who either forget or ignore the Highway Code, especially where it rules on riding two, or more, abreast, and the use of Pedestrian Crossings and Traffic lights. I'm sure there must be exceptions, but, in my experience, once they've donned lycra, they cease to be people and become "Cyclists". I loathe and despise them. People who ride bikes, however, seem to have a different attitude, tend to obey the Highway Code, tend to make proper signals, and tend not to be self-righteous and pompous about their travel preferences. Perhaps going to work on a bike isn't as much of a social statement as being a Cyclist?


In cities those people who ride their bicycles on the pavement should have their teeth kicked in. And if they ride them too near me, there is a very good chance that will actually happen. Same goes for skateboarders, too. :mad2:


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## Langham (Nov 7, 2012)

Chouan said:


> I can't abide cyclists as a class. Individual cyclists are, I'm sure, quite reasonable people, but once they've got their plastic skins on, they, as a class, turn into pompous, self-righteous menaces, who either forget or ignore the Highway Code, especially where it rules on riding two, or more, abreast, and the use of Pedestrian Crossings and Traffic lights. I'm sure there must be exceptions, but, in my experience, once they've donned lycra, they cease to be people and become "Cyclists". I loathe and despise them. People who ride bikes, however, seem to have a different attitude, tend to obey the Highway Code, tend to make proper signals, and tend not to be self-righteous and pompous about their travel preferences. Perhaps going to work on a bike isn't as much of a social statement as being a Cyclist?


What a bizarre and illogical rant, Chouan. I can only think that someone who harbours such burning resentment must have endured bitter disappointment in a former existence - in which case, I offer my sympathy to you.

For me, the cyclists were one of the better moments of last year's Olympics.


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## Langham (Nov 7, 2012)

Shaver said:


> In cities those people who ride their bicycles on the pavement should have their teeth kicked in. And if they ride them too near me, there is a very good chance that will actually happen. Same goes for skateboarders, too. :mad2:


I've just had those special sickle-like Boadicea projections fitted to my roadster, for my forthcoming tour of Manchester and the north country.


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## Shaver (May 2, 2012)

Langham said:


> I've just had those special sickle-like Boadicea projections fitted to my roadster, for my forthcoming tour of Manchester and the north country.


:icon_smile:

Seriously, though, I would be *very* surprised if you were the type of chap who whizzes off-road and onto the sidewalk, without any warning, simply to avoid red lights.


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## Langham (Nov 7, 2012)

^ 'Sidewalk' Shaver? No, seriously I would never do that, although when I was younger I frequently went up one-way roads the wrong way, after I'd had a few.


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## VictorRomeo (Sep 11, 2009)

If you ride a bike over long distances, you quickly learn that shorts/leggings with a chamois insert are your best friend. I'm an avid cyclist - yes cyclist - and could hit fifty or sixty miles on my Sunday ride. I tend to ride alone and am not part of any club - not for years - as I too find the behaviour of the group ride wrong. I used to race mountain bikes competitively back in the '90s, but a nasty accident and spinal injury put an end to that. So canal paths are the extent of my off-road riding these days. I also used to tour with friends and cycled a fair bit across continental Europe. I'm a nerd when it comes to my bikes and I've something of a collection of old components. 

However, I'm not one of those who go for the brightest coloured outfits when I ride. Like any sport, when you achieve a certain standard - equipment is very important. And for me - as mentioned padded shorts are essential. I also find decent gloved with padded inserts to absorb shock essential too.


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## Shaver (May 2, 2012)

Sidewalk, pavement, boulevard, byway, footpath - it's much of a muchness to me. :redface:


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## Langham (Nov 7, 2012)

I haven't ridden long distances since my youth, VR - usually I'm just going to the pub or the post office, but at weekends might ride out into the countryside for the afternoon. So just my ordinary clothes are fine - moleskin trousers usually, with ankle boots and a tweed jacket to be in keeping with the bike, but I forgo the flat cap.


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## VictorRomeo (Sep 11, 2009)

Don;t get me wrong, it's most certainly not all about the 'tech' for me. I too love a nice spin out to the shops on a Saturday for the weekend papers and perhaps some fresh bread from my local bakery. While that bike might not be a vintage 'high nelly' as they are known over here, it's a classic upright self-build based on a vintage - and rare - Peugeot PX-10 with 753 tubing frame (seriously, my bike nerdieness knows no bounds!) and some 80's Campagnolo and Suntour components! I had his stripped down to bare metal, powder coated and resprayed a flat matt black. Love that bike and while it's clean, it's not something your common-or-garden bicycle thieving scrote would be attracted to or even know its value.


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## dkoernert (May 31, 2011)

As a cyclist I do understand others frustrations with the group ride mentality. I ride by myself, simply because it is a chance for me to get outdoors, clear my head, and just have some time to myself. I obey all traffic signs, signal all my movements, and try to stay out of the way of traffic as much as possible. I understand that people would rather us ride on the sidewalk, but it really is more dangerous for both cyclists and pedestrians for us to be riding on the sidewalk.


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## Langham (Nov 7, 2012)

^^ I carried out a similar rebuild of my Raleigh - childhood familiarity with Meccano is as advanced as my engineering skills ever progressed, but that was sufficient for everything other than the Sturmey Archer which needed specialist attention. I was able to replace the original Brookes saddle with an identical new one - that cost a lot more than the bike itself. I too had a theory that an old bike would be immune to theft, but having invested so much time, have now become rather neurotic about leaving it anywhere.


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## Langham (Nov 7, 2012)

dkoernert said:


> ...I understand that people would rather us ride on the sidewalk, but it really is more dangerous for both cyclists and pedestrians for us to be riding on the sidewalk.


 That's illegal over here - you must stay on the road. That was Shaver's issue with bikes.


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## dkoernert (May 31, 2011)

Langham said:


> That's illegal over here - you must stay on the road. That was Shaver's issue with bikes.


Ah, I see. Its illegal in some areas here as well.


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## Shaver (May 2, 2012)

dkoernert said:


> As a cyclist I do understand others frustrations with the group ride mentality. I ride by myself, simply because it is a chance for me to get outdoors, clear my head, and just have some time to myself. I obey all traffic signs, signal all my movements, and try to stay out of the way of traffic as much as possible. I understand that people would rather us ride on the sidewalk, but it really is more dangerous for both cyclists and pedestrians for us to be riding on the sidewalk.


What fool would prefer cyclists on the sidewalk!?! Send them my way and I will explain to them the error of their belief. Concluded with some punctuating emphasis from the toe of my boot, probably.


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## Balfour (Mar 23, 2012)

I'm not anti-bicycling. Pootling around 'small towns' (US usage) like Cambridge, Oxford, York, etc. very pleasant, but far too dangerous in London. 

I am anti-militant cyclists who assume in their virtue in cycling they have right of way in both pavement and road alike.


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## dkoernert (May 31, 2011)

Shaver said:


> What fool would prefer cyclists on the sidewalk!?! Send them my way and I will explain to them the error of their belief. Concluded with some punctuating emphasis from the toe of my boot, probably.


Every time I ride I can guarantee at least one person rolls down their window to "inform" me I should be riding on the sidewalk.


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## Langham (Nov 7, 2012)

Sadly little tolerance is shown for cyclists - sometimes rather oddly on the basis that cyclists pay no vehicle excise duty. There is a death every other week in London due to congestion and blind spots. It has to be acknowledged that not all cyclists here seem fully cognisant of the highway code.


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## dkoernert (May 31, 2011)

Same situation here. Every time there is a death or an accident involving a cyclist on the road, people come out complaining about bicyclists not paying taxes to use the roads.


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## Reldresal (Oct 13, 2011)

dkoernert said:


> Every time I ride I can guarantee at least one person rolls down their window to "inform" me I should be riding on the sidewalk.


Yeah, I get this too. Typically in suburban environments. In New York bicycles are subject to confiscation, if ridden on sidewalks. GFY.


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## Reldresal (Oct 13, 2011)

It is true though that the great majority of cyclists I see do NOT obey the Vehicle and Traffic Law as they are required. That annoys me as a cyclist, driver, and pedestrian. Not to be racist, but man...look out for Chinese food delivery guy. There are no rules.


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## VictorRomeo (Sep 11, 2009)

Well I've seen some of the most unbelievably stupid behaviour on both sides. There are some motorists who behave in an extremely vindictive fashion when dealing with cyclists and all one has to do is to visit YouTube to view helmet cam footage and incidents that occur are usually utterly avoidable. In the same breath, there is a certain breed of kamikaze cyclist with little regard for themselves or others who really should know better - given they are supposedly experienced cyclists (bombing about required a certain amount of skill!). For a motorist/motorcyclist there is a highway code that must be adhered to and failure to do so can lead to prosecution. That same code should apply - where practically applicable of course - to cyclists. It's almost at the stage now where the same licensing, registration and insurance regulations that are applied to motorists and their vehicles be applied to cyclists.

That said, Dublin is recognised as one of the most bike-friendly cities in the world. We have a fantastic free-bike scheme and plenty of dedicated lanes. We also have a HGV ban in the city centre and that has seriously reduced fatalities on the roads. But, stupid cyclists do stupid things and it at times it does not end well when they do.


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## Tilton (Nov 27, 2011)

As a cyclist, I generally have a lot of patience for other cyclists when I'm driving. However, what really gets my goat is when a cyclist takes the lane, which is his right, and I'm fine with it, but then blatantly disobeys traffic lights and signs. If a rider wants to command respect from drivers by taking a lane, they need to respect the traffic laws that drivers do as well. 

I'll admit, I've blown through a stop sign or red light here and there, but never when cars/pedestrians were present.


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## dkoernert (May 31, 2011)

Most cyclists are pretty conscious of the rules of the road around here. Its the younger folks on their bmx bikes and such that have no regard for traffic laws.


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## Chouan (Nov 11, 2009)

When I was at Cambridge I and my colleagues all became cyclists, although without the lycra. I found that motor vehicle drivers were ridiculously intolerant of my riding, just because I treated red lights as advice rather than as instruction; stopped at the kerb whilst waiting to turn right in front of accelerating cars and lorries, used pedestrian crossings whilst on my bike, signalled (if I bothered) by holding my upper arm rigidly against my body, with my arm from the elbow indicating my intended direction, and rarely used lights, as I considered them unnecessary. Using a bike saved the drag of having to walk back from pubs with a skinfull as well, with the added attraction of being able to race down Long Road 5 or 6 abreast! Great fun.
​Now I find that cyclists can be a real nuisance.....


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## Langham (Nov 7, 2012)

^Too funny Chouan, too funny.

​A whole thread awaits this topic, surely.


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## Shaver (May 2, 2012)

dkoernert said:


> Every time I ride I can guarantee at least one person rolls down their window to "inform" me I should be riding on the sidewalk.


Well you tell them that their foolish opinion makes Shaver very unhappy indeed - _very unhappy_. Then make a note of their registration number and send it to me, so I can add them to my 'list'*.

*Although in truth it is already a very long list and I doubt I will find time to get around to catching up with everyone on it.


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## jbarwick (Nov 17, 2012)

I am a cyclist! I ride a Cannondale CAAD10. I understand that people do not like cyclists in general but you will always get a bad bunch that ruins it for everyone. I ride recreationally a few times a week but here in Nashville there is a large racer community that I am not trying to keep up with.


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## Reldresal (Oct 13, 2011)

jbarwick said:


> you will always get a bad bunch that ruins it for everyone.


This is true. It applies to drivers of autos just as well.


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## jbarwick (Nov 17, 2012)

Reldresal said:


> This is true. It applies to drivers of autos just as well.


Seems the current trend is to yell at BMW and Audi drivers but I find Toyota Sedans to be the ones I yell at


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## Reldresal (Oct 13, 2011)

jbarwick said:


> Seems the current trend is to yell at BMW and Audi drivers but I find Toyota Sedans to be the ones I yell at


Minivans, Highlanderish things, and rice burners imo.


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## Earl of Ormonde (Sep 5, 2008)

Bikes and cycling? Yes, cycling and bikes are my main pastime and a small business I have in addtion to my Civil Service job. My garage has been a bicycle workshop for several years, I do repairs, conversions and paintjobs for people, I also build & convert secondhand bikes and sell them. As well as having about 30 in my own private collection. I also enter road racing competitions and at the other extreme ride one of my old bikes in the annual Bike in Tweed in Stockholm.

Here is my blog that I started about 3 years ago, https://jamescyclist.blogspot.se/ It includes photos and video footage of some of my bikes. As well as my views & wonderings on the world of cycling, as well as my own experiences.


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## dkoernert (May 31, 2011)

Earl of Ormonde said:


> Bikes and cycling? Yes, cycling and bikes are my main pastime and a small business I have in addtion to my Civil Service job. My garage has been a bicycle workshop for several years, I do repairs, conversions and paintjobs for people, I also build & convert secondhand bikes and sell them. As well as having about 30 in my own private collection. I also enter road racing competitions and at the other extreme ride one of my old bikes in the annual Bike in Tweed in Stockholm.
> 
> Here is my blog that I started about 3 years ago, https://jamescyclist.blogspot.se/ It includes photos and video footage of some of my bikes. As well as my views & wonderings on the world of cycling, as well as my own experiences.


Nice blog, very well done! Someday, I'd love to have a handbuilt steel frame.


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## Earl of Ormonde (Sep 5, 2008)

dkoernert said:


> Nice blog, very well done! Someday, I'd love to have a handbuilt steel frame.


Yea, me too. I got a very nice German aluminium racer when I turned 50. An English artisan built steel racer or tourer when I turn 60 perhaps.


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## VictorRomeo (Sep 11, 2009)

Thought some of you fellows might enjoy these pics floating about the hinterwebs today....

From a fascinating book called "Things Come Apart"


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## dkoernert (May 31, 2011)

This guy makes some of my favorite frames. I'm trying to save up a bit for one of his frames. 

[url]https://www.kirkframeworks.com/

[/URL]


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## Earl of Ormonde (Sep 5, 2008)

That blue Kirk is lovely, if it were mine I'd lose the deep V wheels and put standard wheels on to make it look more traditional.


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## VictorRomeo (Sep 11, 2009)

Anyone got any thoughts on a Waterford Bikes frame? I've always fancied one of those.


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## Tilton (Nov 27, 2011)

This is a cool steel frame builder in VA: https://sixelevenbicycleco.com/

The guy's father in law did some work with the group I used to work with. Beautiful bikes!


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## dkoernert (May 31, 2011)

Those are INCREDIBLE. I had no idea there was a framebuilder in VA.


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## jbarwick (Nov 17, 2012)

Those are some beautiful bikes


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## Tilton (Nov 27, 2011)

He's a cool dude to boot. I have seen a number of them in person - the pics don't do much justice. Aaron is a true artisan. He's also an airforce vet. If I had the coin and the need, I'd do it in a heartbeat. Alas, I'm stuck on the Fuji pro team for the foreseeable future.


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## Tilton (Nov 27, 2011)

Don't know if y'all saw his CX bike, but it is sweeeeeet. <17lbs full built, too. His cable hangers are out of this world (especially the one I posted above, but this one is pretty sweet too).


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## dkoernert (May 31, 2011)

Amazing. I'd love to have one of his track bikes someday.


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## Snow Hill Pond (Aug 10, 2011)

Chouan said:


> I can't abide cyclists as a class. Individual cyclists are, I'm sure, quite reasonable people, but once they've got their plastic skins on, they, as a class, turn into pompous, self-righteous menaces, who either forget or ignore the Highway Code, especially where it rules on riding two, or more, abreast, and the use of Pedestrian Crossings and Traffic lights. I'm sure there must be exceptions, but, in my experience, once they've donned lycra, they cease to be people and become "Cyclists". I loathe and despise them. People who ride bikes, however, seem to have a different attitude, tend to obey the Highway Code, tend to make proper signals, and tend not to be self-righteous and pompous about their travel preferences. Perhaps going to work on a bike isn't as much of a social statement as being a Cyclist?


"Self-righteous" and "pompous" are not words that I would use to describe all cyclists, just most. However, I do not blame them for their behavior. Nor do I blame the odd driver who loses his cool at the appearance of a cyclist on the road.

They're both just victims of a culture that encourages and forces the cyclists to use the same roads as automobiles ("Share the Road"), the roads that were not meant for both autos and bicycles. And so the inevitable tension that surfaces from time to time between rider and driver is predictable. Separate cycle paths are one answer that makes sense to me.


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## adoucett (Nov 16, 2012)

I was about to start a similar thread but noticed this one had already been established. I acquired my first _road_ bike after riding a more commuter style bike for the past few years. It's a Specialized Roubaix comp, pretty excited to get on it once I have it all configured right.


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