Ooh!!! Here we are! Anyone up for a general cycling chat thread?

[GudrunBrangwen]

Hello! Yes, as long as we can have wine, what with it being a Friday night

Brilliant

I can use it as a spurious excuse to boastmention that Scotland is doing well tonight (leading on the last update from one of the parents there) at the track events of the Sainsbury's School Games at Manchester velodrome

Omg - so glad we have the new topic!

I'm sitting watching the Vuelta with wine, and also with very sore sit bones after today's ride.

Yay!

I've been storing up things to ask about for when we got a cycling topic and now I can't remember anything... But it is Friday night and I have had a drink.

I have just signed up to do the Breeze Challenge ride in Warwickshire on September 20th. !00K! Better get some practice in tomorrow

I have had to find answers to my cycling questions in actual real life - horrendous!

Anyway...have a wee double triathlon next weekend. Biggest cycle is 50 miles but VAIR hilly. Hoping to find some kind of bum anaesthetic between now & next Friday.

Breeze sounds brilliant. Not sure if there are many in Scotland though.

Breeze has changed my life to be honest. I recently took part in a world record attempt organised by Breeze to produce the most mechanical energy produced by a bikes at Manchester Veledrome. It was so much fun. I would recommend finding out about them to anyone who wants to get into cycling.

Manchester velodrome is ace. Although we tend to utilise clayton vale, the mountain bike skills area and the BMX track more than anything else...

morning to everyone, we are on route to Cannock for a day on our bikes in the sun, yippee :)

The Scotland team is storming the inter-regional Schools Championship currently underway at Manchester Velodrome. They had a 92 point lead (93 points v North West - who were 2nd - on 195) going into today's events - the team sprints and team pursuit.

They've just won the Boys' Team Sprint (with a National record) and the Girls got silver.

The Glasgow velodrome is showing its worth!

We'll be seeing more of these kids in the future - both on the road and on track.

Hello [crashes into thread]. Does anyone have any tips on improving MTB skills / confidence? I was reading another thread which I've now lost where someone was a beginner about two years ago and can now ride red trails. I've been mountain biking (and road cycling, which is my main thing) for about 10 years but still too scared to ride red trails! i did a skills course and then attempted a slightly harder blue than normal, but I just ended up carrying my bike down the scary singletrack bits... I think the skills course actually made me wrose because I realised how much I didn't know...

Bear - I was thinking about doing the Warwickshire Breeze challenge, but am doing a duathlon (10km run, 25km ride, 5km run) instead that day.

Floppity - I don't do MTB, but I did see a women only MTB training thing advertised which looked really good, and designed to make you realise what you could do. Though my neighbour who used to be a pro international MTB rider says she thinks you progress by riding tracks you are comfortablish with over and over so you really feel in control, and then try slightly harder and try and ride a bit more each time. And don't worry about walking when you feel the need.

The skills course was ladies only and it made perfect sense in theory but of course MTB is so fast and my brain struggles to keep up, you need to be so alert!

Very true. I have problems turning words into physical actions, so swimming meant doing things over and over till it stuck in my brain as to what the coach meant

That was me floppity
It's all time in the saddle and I would definitely agree with the above post about riding the same trail over and over to build confidence.

I like obsessed with GMBN videos on YouTube for tips.

I also like following the boys around, as they play a lot. My 8 year old has taught me loads! Most of the skills like drop offs bunny hops and wheelies can be practised off kerbs on your local trading estate!

I still ride around chanting in my head... 'Relax hands, heels down, weight back, don't use front brake, throw my bike, speed is your friend, the bike can do this' etc etc etc!

I was lucky enough to get an ex display fab full sus Giant Trance last year that for a while I shared with my husband, it's really responsive and let's you get away with lots

And there's nothing wrong with walking!
I'm still getting to grips with getting my weight correct on berms, and I've only been hitting drops offs really well for a few months, technical climbing I find quite difficult. I learnt how to bunny hop and lift my front and back wheels only this summer, it's good fun - I learnt that on the tissington trail... My 8 year old is currently teaching me how to jump

Hitting your local BMX race track is also a great way to learn how to pump and suck up the bike. Also, try joining a ladies only ride, we visited the Forest of Dean this summer and hopped on to a Dame bike ride which was great. Also the blue and brown at Coed Y Brenin are fantastic trails for learning on, and coedy has a fantastic skills area to play on, especially the pump track!

I might hit my local trail centre more regularly then! BTW I have set myself a general cycling challenge to get my Garmin Edge to 1500 miles by Xmas. Only another 625 or so to go! DH is going to wonder why I'm offering to pop to the shops all the time...

Where is local to you? I shall be very jealous, we have to trek for an hour to get to a trail centre.

I'm very battered and bruised today, having been up our local rock last night and come off several times

Well I'm lucky to live near to the Olympic venue which I understand now has a blue and red, as well as black, trails, plus a skills area and pump track. I usually go to the nearby Lidl on my bike for supplies. It's not the biggest trail centre though. The new trails have opened only quite recently and the only time I have been was to watch the Olympics. They've built more / adapted the venue since then.

Can I have a small brag please? My 9 year old did 51 miles today, at an average of 12.4mph. He decided he wanted to do a 50 mile event this year (for no apparent actual reason), and he did . I am outrageously proud mummy, and had an enjoyable ride myself

CMOTDibbler, that's awesome!

CMOT that is fab. I have been out today and did 20 at a average speed of 9mph It was in the Peak District and extremely hilly but I was not having a good day today!

cmot that's amazing, well done mini CMOT! Don't you just love it when the kids are also so passionate! I am constantly amazed by my 8 year olds skills

Bear, this was in the Somerset levels, so blissfully flat. In fact too flat as ds commented that it meant you never got to freewheel - this did change right at the end.

On Saturday I was volunteering at a cyclocross event being run for the first time as part of local cycling festival, and seeing the grinning faces of the under 8's coming to find out their times - and get their trophies/certificates was wonderful. Esp the couple of really small girls.

OTOH, the inability of some adults to not get 'sorry, I'm just working out the times and rankings, can you come back in 5 minutes' and stand there staring and reading what I was writing down was not so attractive

Omg how did I miss this topic? Seriously excited about a new place to post that doesn't involve kids, work or AIBU

It's now Spring (looks outside at the snow ) so about time to resurrect a zombie bike chat thread!

Well, I did my first 'proper' bike ride of the year on Thursday having had surgery, a chest infection and a house move since Christmas.

30 miles with DH ........I ate three breakfasts yesterday . I woke up starving after riding.