Tenacious Sloth
Guru
- Location
- Huntingdon, UK
Hi
My name is Graham, I’m a 53 year old software engineer who lives in Sawtry near Peterborough.
This is how I got into cycling and a bit about me…
(EDIT: Rather a lot about me actually. Sorry. Just look at the bike pictures if it gets a bit much.)
I’ve always been a fairly active person, first as a member of virtually all school teams and then as a serving member of the armed forces for the first 25 years of my adult life. In particular, My main sports were cross-country skiing, rugby, squash and also fly fishing, although we all know that’s not really a sport, right? I’ve always owned a bike, but probably did no more than 200 miles a year.
A couple of years ago (aged 51) I had my left hip replaced as it had worn out. I was gutted that i was specifically warned against playing any more Squash as this, since leaving the RAF in 2009, had become my main sporting activity. After the operation, other than some walking to build up the muscles around the new hip, I stopped playing any sports at all and this, combined with a rather sedentary occupation, resulted in my weight ballooning up to over 18 stone!. By April this year I was struggling to get into a pair of 42 inch waist trousers and finally (thank God) thought enough is enough.
I live about 10 miles from where I work and decided I’d start commuting by bicycle. I already owned a Ridgeback Adventure Hybrid (circa 1993) which, although weighing 45lbs with pannier, was perfectly suitable.
I don’t work on Wednesdays, so the plan was to cycle Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, leaving Friday free to bring in enough work clothes for the following week. My employer is very cycle-friendly and provides showers, lockers and a lockable bike shed.
And so I started. Initially I took the most direct route into work which was about 11 miles, about a third of which was through built up areas. I won’t lie, it was pretty tough, although it was a good time of year to start. Initially, I averaged about 12mph and ached a lot, but just ‘manned up’ and carried on anyway. I strongly suspected during those early days that if I missed a single day the rot would probably set in and I would give up.
So far I haven’t missed a single day, and now also cycle on Fridays. I drive in on a Wednesday or the weekend to drop shirts etc. off at work.
In July this year my company joined the Cycle to Work Scheme and I couldn’t resist the opportunity to get a faster bike an keep more of my wages away from the taxman. I chose a Merida Ride 400 from Greenwheel Cycles in Peterborough.
This initiated a real upsurge in my enthusiasm for cycling. At that time I was probably averaging about 13.5 mph on my daily commute and had dropped about a stone in weight. I couldn’t believe how much easier it was to make progress, particularly up hills. I generally averaged about 2 mph faster on the Merida than the Ridgeback. Around this time I got myself a Mio Cyclo GPS and started logging my rides on Strava.
https://www.strava.com/athletes/9944671
I also changed my route to work in order to avoid traffic and built-up areas. My new route included a steepish hill (for me anyway) and is approximately 13 miles. If it was dry I used the Merida, otherwise the Ridgeback as it had fitted mudguards and 35C tyres.
On weekends I started doing longer rides of 50-60 miles just for the sheer pleasure of being out on the bike, occasionally going out with the local Yaxley Riders cycling group. By this time I had lost another stone-and-a-half and felt disappointed if I didn’t average over 17 mph when out on the Merida (15 mph on the hybrid).
It was around this time that my real love of cycling was formed. While out riding on my own I find myself thinking what a fantastic invention the bicycle is! It’s amazing the distances that can be covered with little more effort than walking. Am I the only one who thinks this?
I do all of my own cycle maintenance. After 25 years fixing fighter aircraft there’s nothing on a bicycle that holds any fears. I recently attended a one-day wheel building course in Cambridge (highly recommended) and built a stronger set of 36 spoke wheels for the Merida with H Plus Son Archetype rims and Ultegra hubs.
Recently, I treated myself to a new winter commute bike on eBay for £650. A Cannondale CAADX 105 Disc.
This was a real bargain as it was the 2016 model, only a month old and had been ridden once! I’ve since fitted some permanent mudguards and swapped in the 35C Marathon Plus tyres from the hybrid. I’ve only ridden it for just shy of 100 miles so far, but firmly believe this is the perfect winter commute bike.
Unfortunately, this latest purchase means I have reached S-1 number of bikes. One more and I’m sure my spouse may leave me!
Some final observations based upon my limited experience so far:
1. As you get fitter it doesn’t get easier - just faster.
2. The secret to making yourself get up at sparrows-fart when the rain is lashing against your dark bedroom window for an early morning commute - is to have the correct clothing.
3. If you see another cyclist in front of you it’s mandatory to catch them up and then sit behind them for a while before overtaking worrying about whether they'll speed up and re-take you, making you look a tool!
4. No cyclist likes to be overtaken by another - no matter how much they pretend it doesn’t matter.
5. Leather saddles are more comfortable than synthetic. They break-in to your arse rather than the other way around.
6. Other than a bike and good cycling clothing the best purchase you can make is a bike maintenance stand.
If you’ve made it this far - well done and happy cycling and hope to see some of you on the road.
Graham
P.S. Spot the deliberate mistake in one of the photos.
My name is Graham, I’m a 53 year old software engineer who lives in Sawtry near Peterborough.
This is how I got into cycling and a bit about me…
(EDIT: Rather a lot about me actually. Sorry. Just look at the bike pictures if it gets a bit much.)
I’ve always been a fairly active person, first as a member of virtually all school teams and then as a serving member of the armed forces for the first 25 years of my adult life. In particular, My main sports were cross-country skiing, rugby, squash and also fly fishing, although we all know that’s not really a sport, right? I’ve always owned a bike, but probably did no more than 200 miles a year.
A couple of years ago (aged 51) I had my left hip replaced as it had worn out. I was gutted that i was specifically warned against playing any more Squash as this, since leaving the RAF in 2009, had become my main sporting activity. After the operation, other than some walking to build up the muscles around the new hip, I stopped playing any sports at all and this, combined with a rather sedentary occupation, resulted in my weight ballooning up to over 18 stone!. By April this year I was struggling to get into a pair of 42 inch waist trousers and finally (thank God) thought enough is enough.
I live about 10 miles from where I work and decided I’d start commuting by bicycle. I already owned a Ridgeback Adventure Hybrid (circa 1993) which, although weighing 45lbs with pannier, was perfectly suitable.
I don’t work on Wednesdays, so the plan was to cycle Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, leaving Friday free to bring in enough work clothes for the following week. My employer is very cycle-friendly and provides showers, lockers and a lockable bike shed.
And so I started. Initially I took the most direct route into work which was about 11 miles, about a third of which was through built up areas. I won’t lie, it was pretty tough, although it was a good time of year to start. Initially, I averaged about 12mph and ached a lot, but just ‘manned up’ and carried on anyway. I strongly suspected during those early days that if I missed a single day the rot would probably set in and I would give up.
So far I haven’t missed a single day, and now also cycle on Fridays. I drive in on a Wednesday or the weekend to drop shirts etc. off at work.
In July this year my company joined the Cycle to Work Scheme and I couldn’t resist the opportunity to get a faster bike an keep more of my wages away from the taxman. I chose a Merida Ride 400 from Greenwheel Cycles in Peterborough.
This initiated a real upsurge in my enthusiasm for cycling. At that time I was probably averaging about 13.5 mph on my daily commute and had dropped about a stone in weight. I couldn’t believe how much easier it was to make progress, particularly up hills. I generally averaged about 2 mph faster on the Merida than the Ridgeback. Around this time I got myself a Mio Cyclo GPS and started logging my rides on Strava.
https://www.strava.com/athletes/9944671
I also changed my route to work in order to avoid traffic and built-up areas. My new route included a steepish hill (for me anyway) and is approximately 13 miles. If it was dry I used the Merida, otherwise the Ridgeback as it had fitted mudguards and 35C tyres.
On weekends I started doing longer rides of 50-60 miles just for the sheer pleasure of being out on the bike, occasionally going out with the local Yaxley Riders cycling group. By this time I had lost another stone-and-a-half and felt disappointed if I didn’t average over 17 mph when out on the Merida (15 mph on the hybrid).
It was around this time that my real love of cycling was formed. While out riding on my own I find myself thinking what a fantastic invention the bicycle is! It’s amazing the distances that can be covered with little more effort than walking. Am I the only one who thinks this?
I do all of my own cycle maintenance. After 25 years fixing fighter aircraft there’s nothing on a bicycle that holds any fears. I recently attended a one-day wheel building course in Cambridge (highly recommended) and built a stronger set of 36 spoke wheels for the Merida with H Plus Son Archetype rims and Ultegra hubs.
Recently, I treated myself to a new winter commute bike on eBay for £650. A Cannondale CAADX 105 Disc.
This was a real bargain as it was the 2016 model, only a month old and had been ridden once! I’ve since fitted some permanent mudguards and swapped in the 35C Marathon Plus tyres from the hybrid. I’ve only ridden it for just shy of 100 miles so far, but firmly believe this is the perfect winter commute bike.
Unfortunately, this latest purchase means I have reached S-1 number of bikes. One more and I’m sure my spouse may leave me!
Some final observations based upon my limited experience so far:
1. As you get fitter it doesn’t get easier - just faster.
2. The secret to making yourself get up at sparrows-fart when the rain is lashing against your dark bedroom window for an early morning commute - is to have the correct clothing.
3. If you see another cyclist in front of you it’s mandatory to catch them up and then sit behind them for a while before overtaking worrying about whether they'll speed up and re-take you, making you look a tool!
4. No cyclist likes to be overtaken by another - no matter how much they pretend it doesn’t matter.
5. Leather saddles are more comfortable than synthetic. They break-in to your arse rather than the other way around.
6. Other than a bike and good cycling clothing the best purchase you can make is a bike maintenance stand.
If you’ve made it this far - well done and happy cycling and hope to see some of you on the road.
Graham
P.S. Spot the deliberate mistake in one of the photos.
. Welcome to CC..
