Cycling Thread - All Peddlers and Pedallers welcome.

[VivaLeBeaver]

Have started a new thread as the other one is very nearly full.

Shame Simon !

Chops, it was DH's winter commuter - something he never worried about leaving anywhere, he did 40 miles 3 x a week on it to work and thinks it is a great bike for the money. Bit flash looking for traditional old me but never mind.

As DD would say OMG, I have agreed to sending my frame off for a respray sooner than I had planned (Jan/Feb - weather related really) because ...... DH and I are going to ride the tandem while it is away, takes 6 weeks.

I have asked for it to be delivered next week as DH is away until then but we have named it 'Carry On'. What a lark , bought for DD but put to use already, it is making us laugh and it isn't even here.

Thinking of looking for a khaki outfit like the woman in Carry on Camping wore on hers!

DH & I rode 20 miles today (stopped for homemade tea and shortbread officially old).

Back to my usual quiet roads after my trip last week - thought you might like to see the state of them - seriously, that grass needs cutting .... entire ride on roads like this apart from 500m through a large village.

Awesome, well done - was it fun?

I haven't ridden since Sunday evening, a rare as rocking horse shit opportunity to ride with DP and it was the crappest ride I've had in ages - feeling very dejected!
I just didn't have the legs, couldn't breathe or stop my heart hammering, couldn't get up the technical bits I've managed in the past. Very gutted. Got some fab downhill times but not on the bit I wanted.

Still - I know you have to have rubbish rides from time to time, they make the good rides outstanding!

It was fun Puffy. I don't know anything about your sort of riding at all so I don't have anything useful to say - always looks a bit scary to dear old me, but then I don't like downhills on anything really, horse, bike, even car if it is steep.

Look what came this evening .....

Carry on indeed. A bit disappointing really, the box was knackered with cranks sticking out of the bottom. There is a carrier bag of odd bolts and bits that mean nothing to me, the rear seat post and saddle is missing, as are both sets of pedals - bit bloody shoddy for a new tandem me thinks.

Am having major downer here. DH is away so the thing will sit there looking like it needs attention until Tuesday, I did try to delay delivery but it was despatched anyway - has taken the shine off it for me until I see it ready to go.

I need Chops to pop up to Norfolk to sort me out I think.

When I say odd bolts and bits I mean loose, not even coupled together, with a big hole in the bag - might open a bottle of wine and I am rubbish at drinking.

Tandem sounds fab Lavender. I love that racing green colour too ????

Tandem sounds fab Lavender. I love that racing green colour too ????

Sorry posted twice! I'm testing the new app and it keeps adding random question marks in to my posts too so please ignore!

Of course we will be speeding along Felix , not downhill though, DH said he will disable the disc brake if I start having kittens when we go downhill which is a regular occurrence as it is behind his seat for some reason unknown to me!

On our ride on Monday we were pushing on on the way home and I could tell that he was surprised at how fast I was going ... so I went faster. He kept grinning at me (happy that his horse riding wife is riding a bike with him) and he changed gear, then again, then again, then again - he said bloody hell Lavender you are fast! - I will dine out on that for a while - must admit to thinking this is fine - fast, good visibility ahead, nothing behind - lovely ... hope nothing hops out of the hedge!

God, I have just read the most depressing reviews. We bought the tandem from Winstanley bikes because it was £500 less than RRP - and we preferred the green colour to the current blue grey job.

It looks like they are a complete nightmare. DH says not to worry, we have seat post/saddle/sets of spare pedals etc., but that is really not the point, and he is so laid back he is horizontal.

I will be getting tough tomorrow but life is too short for grief .

There are people on their Facebook page (and I am not even on Facebook - it just came up on reviews) complaining that they haven't received any sort of a response - very very recently.

Awww lavender that sucks :( try and keep your chin up, although it sounds as though you are just about managing to! Lots of complaining to be done? Very shoddy service, wouldn't have expected that from winstanleys

Thanks for the sympathy puffy , less fed up today, just dreading wasting my time on the phone.

I don't even know who Winstanleys are puffy, only bought it from them on price and because they had the green - now realise that they are a big online warehouse and wonder what the odds on them finding the missing bits are.

If I don't get any joy I will go to Dawes I think. I will make a lot of fuss, no doubt about that.

Well, despite the reviews to the contrary the attitude of Winstanleys was really lovely - they are going to order everything missing from Dawes (hopefully quickly). There is a scratch on the frame but not significant and for £500 off we would have probably bought it anyway.

We are not precious about our bikes and it will have a scratch or two soon enough.

Fingers crossed it gets resolved and DH doesn't spot anything else missing.

My checklist was two wheels, two - no one - saddle and seat post, four - no zero pedals, etc, etc..

No more wine needed. Don't know why I bother really a cup of tea and 10 mins to myself has the same effect.

Glad it's been sorted Lavender. When I bought my Specialized it didn't have pedals. Luckily I went to pick it up. Manager tried arguing it didn't come with pedals. I pointed out there were pedals (even if only really cheap ones) on their website photo of the bike.......he put pedals on it!

Oh blimey, lavender! Hope it's all sorted soon. Shame I'm not closer!

FWIW, I bought Dawes bikes for the dts first 'proper' bikes and I found them absolutely fantastic. When the brakes broke on one quite early on, I called Dawes to ask if they stocked a spare part, and they sent a whole new brake system for free. I was very impressed! Hopefully you will get your parts soon. AND my old dawes saddle was the most comfty I've ever had, so I'm glad they are sending the parts out.

I've had a busy week, 5 days of Bikeability, a few new cyclists up and riding at after school lessons and a full day tomo of new clients. Still no time to ride myself, but I'm keeping next Sunday free. AND I might even be getting a new bike!!

A squirrel jumped out of a hedge in front of me once. I'm afraid I squished it!

I was thinking of Lavender earlier when I was in our local bike shop, and someone had dropped off a totally epic tandem for servicing. Deep rim Zipp wheels, aerobars on the front, agressive set up, the works! Looked fab.

Hello dear cyclists - it is still sat here looking sorry for itself, but, Winstanleys have been very nice and apologetic and basically we are waiting for DH to come home, assemble it and make a list of what is missing. Then Dawes will send the missing bits directly to us.

Dh is going to alter the braking system for the rear disc brake, the swine, I am almost certain that it is to stop me having any sort of control!

Wow Chops, that sounds busy, yay a new bike . I wanted an old one CMOT, but DH gets a bit carried away and as he will be the pilot with DD on the back most of the time I just let him get on with it - reckon it will be used for 5 years in the Lavender household.

I have a tag along that I am trying to give away (£0) if anyone is interested - have put notices up in a few places but no interest at all. Not sure what to do with it!

I am driving to Coventry to pick up the Orbit I bought for DD on Sunday.

Seems to be all about bikes here since my lovely horse retired.

DH has rebuilt my bike with original style new components and it is going to Dave Yates (who he considered for a frame) for a respray so it will be completely restored. I am having a new bike for xmas, am getting measured for it next week, did I just say that Xmas word - Bob Jackson World Tour, mainly because I love the paint job.

Ooh that's great that they're sorting you out! Another Dawes vote here, ds first bike as a 2 year old was a Dawes blowfish and it's seen some serious abuse over the years. He was even riding it as a stunt bike for practicing jumps and drop offs last year - at 8

I had a great little ride this morning, not too taxing, sunny and some really fun downhill bits, I appreciated it that much more after Sunday's disaster. And fab news we are off to Llandegla for a camping biking weekend in 2 weeks, yippee! Probably the last trip away of the season.

My boys have their last outdoor BMX race tomorrow, and ds1 has badgered persuaded DP to take him to Cannock on Sunday (I'm not jealous at all, ooooh no not me so it's a really active weekend for us!

Sounds like a full weekend puffy! We love camping, haven't done it for a month because I am sick of getting wet this summer - hope the sun shines for you! Does a mountain biker like wet weather because it makes it more challenging? Clueless here.

My current bike is a Dawes, but 20 years old. The more mature chaps at the CTC told me that they are not what they used to be . I just stuck my fingers in my ears at that point! It will be fine, DH will sort it out and we will have fun for 5 years or so til DD can manage a good amount of mileage.

The reason for my new bike is that I can carry more, front and back, like a Mule. We now need a tent for cycle camping .... the list is endless.

You kind of just have to accept that mud and muck comes with the mountain bike territory, really.. It's amazing when it's sunny and dry, but if we stuck to just biking in those conditions we'd hardly ever get out! Some decent tyres and wet weather gear and off we go. I quite like it actually, except for when you get a mouthful of flying mud swiftly followed by an eyeful. The last time we went to llandegla, it was absolutely hammering it down, so we just accepted we were going to get wet through and went and had lots of fun.

It does make it scarier though! And oh boy, the washing pile stinks...

Dp has an old 20 year old Dawes hybrid, which he used to go everywhere on, they did make good bikes. I'm very tempted by a tandem, dp has very strong legs

Loving the idea of a cycle tent, but wouldn't one of these be better

www.pedelecs.co.uk/forum/threads/two-birth-camper-can-be-towed-by-cycle.19607/

Wow, puffy, not sure MTB could ever be for me , and I am often scruffy from horse stuff - but it is a bit more sedate I think. I wear a long Musto coat (like the Queen ), walk downhill and only go fast when I want to!!

Can you imagine towing that thing?? I am looking at a tent that weighs about 3kg, my bike will carry a lot of weight - like 60kgs. Can you imagine carrying that much weight, not sure I can. I think my legs will be like your DP's puffy or like jelly.

I mtb more in the winter. TBH I've had more offs when it's been dry and dusty rather than mud. I guess I end up being more careful if it's muddy! It was fab when we moved here, as we now have a shower right by the back door to clean up after a good ride. Last time I went I had an off on a fast session and totally pringled my front wheel and I've fixed it but haven't had chance to go out again since.

at your shower by the back door!