Winterisation of road bikes

Yes its that time of year again and time to start getting the bikes ready for the cold, dark and dirt/grime. I have an old Litespeed which is converted for winter riding which stays the same spec all year but after dragging it out of the cave it was time for some new rubber. I fitted some Conti GP 4 Season 23c tyres on it back in July 2010. Since then I havent swapped them from to back or even had them off the rims. The rear was getting flat in the middle but the front still had a small ridge of rubber. The only problem i found was they were a small section tyre and with the amount of pot holes it was time to up date to the 25c version. Shop around and there are some cracking deals on them at the mo. The new ones have exactley the same tread pattern just alittle wider and i mean alittle. I fitted them to the rims, pumped them up and could hardly notice any difference in width to the 23c's. Since then they have done approx half a dozen rides and are scuffing in nicely with no problems.
Now on to the mud guards these are full guards and remain on the bike 12 months of the year. I normally get the SKS models but Westbrook Cycles recommended Tortec which were cheaper to purchase. The section of the guard etc is the same as the SKS inc fittings etc. I had some tweaking to do for the front mech but apart from that no problems. In use they are very ridgid and i get very little tyre rub even with the 25c tyres on. In the wet you get very little spary and do a very good job of keeping your rear dry on a stinker of a day. They come in silver and black option inc reflective side strips, more info here they also come without the reflective strips if you want to save a fiver.

Onto the boys Caad10, now this is a different kettle of fish. He uses this bike on and off all year and he dosent have a seperate winter road bike. With this beig a full on race bike tolerances are tight and you can only fit a couple of designs of mudguards. I used to use the Crudracer Mk1's but they dropped to pieces after a year or so and didnt give much protection but it was better than none. The MK2's came out so time to give them a try. They offer alot better protection but are still very flexy and fragile. They take a long time to set up on the bike and need adjusting after the first two or three rides after they settle in. With them being very flexi they do suffer alot of rim/tyre rub at times. One trick we have learnt is to glue the plastic nuts/bolts together as they are always coming apart and you can easily over tighten them. We will see how they last over the winter. Angus took his Michy Pro Race's off and got the my old Conti 4 seasons, swapping the back to the front and vice versa. Still plenty of miles left in them.   
Blog to follow on the Winterisation of the Fat / Offroad bike fleet and yesterday adventure on the Super X.

The old 23c version

The new 25c version

Front MK2 Crudracer

Just starting to run flat in the middle, they are wearing very well or should that be slowly

Rear MK2 with longer extensions on both ends of the guard

My Brooks is still going strong on my winter bike and is super comfy, will probably last longer than me !

Outskirts of Durham on the Fat Bikes

Not many rides in this week due to workload, so decided to have a chill out ride this morning with kids looping around Durhams out skirts then call in past the City Centre on the way home. The forecast was fantastic but the sun never came out and was overcast & chilly. The tracks are starting to get muddy now and puddles after yesterdays storms. We covered 24 miles and nearly 1500ft climbing but was steady away riding. Below is a gallery of some photos of the ride. The camera battery was flat and is it was not playing ball, apologies.

Farmer has just left enough to ride along

Ploding along the lines

Just rode up this !

Following the boyos

Angus having another practice lap from Wednesday night

Time for a quick break under the tree

Head for the middle arch boys

Waiting for the electric gates to open

Found these en route

Four of them stacked up

Wonder what the cow looking over the gate was thinking?

Also come across another bike

Very bright front wheel

No ice cream today

Dont you just love the local kids sense of humour



CX Spotive & Etape Pennines This Weekend

This is a new Cyclo Cross Event for the North, Sunday 6th October and looks like a right good hard route as well. There are two different distances / routes on the day, Massif 62 miles and Min Massif 44 miles - both leaving from the beautiful town of Keswick. Full information on the event is here and on line entry is here from a very reasonable £25. The route map is below as well.
Also this Sunday is the BIGGEST Cycling Event taking place in Co Durham Etape Pennines. There will be loads of local roads closed for the event and starts / finishes in Barnard Castle this year. Full info here and full route map here

One Peak Results & Photos - 3 Peaks Riders Good Luck

Well thats the One Peak of Hetton / Neccl RD2 done and dusted. What a cracking day with fantastic weather conditions for the event. The results are done and you can find them here and the photos will be uploaded into the gallery here with more added by Ian Dunn over the next few days, well after he has recovered from the 3 Peaks Cyclo Cross tomorrow. On that note good luck to all the NE riders who are brave enough to tackle the beast. The weather is going to be better than last years flooding so quick times should be on the cards if the wind keeps away .
All the best MBE  

One Peak is ready @ Three Peaks Cyclo Cross this Sunday

The One Peak of Hetton 2013 is ready. Course inspection is done and everything is looking good. Ground conditions are excellent with the course flowing/riding very fast. Weather forecast is excellent. Prizes are all sorted. Sign on will be open from 11.15am in the morning. Plenty free carparking so get yourself along for a cracking days racing @ Hetton Lyons Country Park. Below is few photos of the views from the top of the One Peak.  

A full set of Results and Photo gallery will be uploaded asap on here on the Saturday afternoon / evening.

On Sunday 29th is the Three Peaks Cyclo Cross. Is is always an excellent event to go and watch / support the NE riders. Full info is here
Also the Wiggle Hell of Hexham Sportive is also on Sunday with three different courses and entry on the day as well, some cracking routes with proper hills in as well. Full info here .
Also the 'Ride for Michael Bonney Sportive' from over in Penrith is also on Sunday. Entries close Midnight tonight. Full info here its for a great charity.

MBE ONE PEAK Details

MBE One Peak of Hetton / NECCL RD2

Saturday 28th September 2013 @ Hetton Lyons Country Park, Hetton Le Hole.

U12/10/8 12.00 Midday £1 15mins
U14/16 12.30pm £3 30mins
Sen/Vet/Lady/Jun 1.30pm £7 mem / £12 non mem 50-60min

The prize list is opposite. After the main race if you can drop your numbers in the box there will be a prize draw for all the riders who havent already won a prize.

There will also be loads of goodies for all the kids.

As per normal free cake and refreshments after the main race as well.

Course details are here this is provisional and may be altered on the day to take into account weather / ground conditions. The course is 100% rideable and very fast flowing. The climbs are gentle and no run up's.  
The event is open to all ages and abilities from complete noive to experts. You can race on any suitable offroad bike inc mountain bikes. Registration is on the day so turn up early and allow enough time to get your bike sorted, signed on and a practice lap in. If you have the right money it would be a great help.
All the best MBE

RD1 Hardwick Park, Sedgefield - Results, Photos etc

What a fantastic days racing at Sedgefield. The weather was smashing and so was the course. No muddy bikes to wash for riders this year. The full results are here and a gallery of pics are here . Next up is the ONE PEAK OF HETTON / NECCL RD2 @ HETTON LYONS COUNTRY PARK Sat 28th Sept. Full details inc courses etc will be posted asap. You can download the flyer from the One Peak Section, top right of website.

Regards

MBE 

CX @ Sedgefield Today

What a lovely day for some offroad racing. The course is out and the ground conditions are perfect. Its running very fast under tyre and no mud plugging. There is plenty parking and registration will be open from around 11am for signing on. Goodies for all the little ones and cash prizes for all the age cat's.

Not long now to Rd 1 @ Hardwick Park, Sedgefield

Round 1 Saturday 21st September 2013

Hardwick Park Visitors Centre, Sedgefield, County Durham. TS21 2DN

Directions- Hardwick Park is on the A177 Durham to Stockton road on the west side of Sedgefield, two and a half miles from A1(M) Junction 60 (well sign-posted).

Facilities – Plenty hard standing car parking. Signing on. Toilets. Cafe. Visitors Centre. Childrens new play areas
More info here and here
Organiser – Ian Dunn. Ferryhill Wheelers CC.

Ian has also a arranged for when riders sign on they receive a 20% off discount voucher for the cracking cafe. This year the course has been revised and can be viewed here. The venue is ideal for begineers through to experts and always holds up well even to the worst weather conditions.
Entry is on the day, so turn up early and allow enough time to get signed on, sort your bike and get a practice lap in. You dont have to pre register / complete a form or purchase a number. Its the cheapest racing in UK - £7* for upto 60 mins racing
U12’s 12:00 noon, entry fee £1, 10-15 mins
U14/16’s/Novice Lady, 12:30pm, entry fee £3, 30 mins
Sen/Vet/Lady/Junior, 1:30pm, £7* TLI Memebrs, £12 non TLI Members, 50-60min

The new Garmin Edge 510 on test vs Edge 800

I have been using Gamin bike gps for many years now and I am currently using the Garmin Edge 800. From new the set up was easy and navigation through the menus is not too complicated. It has had a couple of blips with satellites on a few occasions when out a ride but apart from that no major problems. The rubber flap on the charging / card ports are not the best and on a wet ride water can creep behind. I just pop the bungs out and let it dry out in the house.
Angus had saved up some money and wanted an early Christmas present so orderd a Garmin Edge 510. Setting it up was very quick and easy. He got the bundle package with HR strap and Cadenece kit. The kit now comes with a fly mount as well as the normal twist & turn mounts. He has fitted the kit to his Cannondale Caad10 with no problems. It is easy to use when out on a ride and uploads the ride data through Garmin Connect when he gets back in. We both did a ride yesterday am and recorded exactly the same ride. The data was all the same which was good to hear apart from Edge 800 recorded alot less elevation gained! I thought that might be the case as i have suspected that mine was getting slow in recording gain when going up a climb. If a road is undualting and i hit it at speed the elevation dosent change even though you can clearly see that I have climb several feet. Not sure if its because the memory is getting full and I need to clear off some old data to free it up? One other difference we found was the cover on the 510 is made from a different silicone and alot less grippy / flexible compaired to the cover for the 800. We will be playing around with it over the next few months and see how the unit performs.
As the weather has now changed its time to get the bikes set up ready for winter / some dirty riding. We have spent some time getting a few bikes ready and a report will follow inc a test on Conti 4 Season Road Tyres.