Show us your.......newbie progress! [4 Sep 2012 - 4 Oct 2014]

[Mo1959]

I get it next Saturday - can't get back to the lbs before then. They recommended leaving the stock tyres on it, will give you my feedback after I have taken it for a good ride

Mind you, mine is a 2012 bike, they may be different tyres now. Think they are Specialized Nimbus with flack jacket.

 

[Supersuperleeds]

Mind you, mine is a 2012 bike, they may be different tyres now. Think they are Specialized Nimbus with flack jacket.

Same tyre as on mine, if need be I will ditch them and go to my trusted marathon plus

 

[Reece]

Great ride, don't know if I would fancy riding up six hills, was the traffic busy?

I was a bit in 2 minds about riding due to being on the A46 but it wasn't at all bad last night. No dodgy drivers and plenty of space given for me. Not to busy either.

 

[starthms]

HI all,
been back cycling 3 weeks now. I have cycled in total so far 100km with longest ride of 25km. I am trying to commute to work 3 times a weeks( biggest pain is the storing of clothes to have in work so i can get changed loL). With my rides getting over 25km wanted to ask the group a question on how much water do you take on rides and is a often and small amount or one or 2 stops and large intake of water ?.

Loving the sun and cycling hope to ride like this with increasing the distance for next 7 or 8 weeks then look at getting a roadie he he

P.S great post almost read it all !!!!

 

[Leescfc79]

Off for 3 days now, but with a Stone Roses all day gig Friday, and a friends 40th birthday on Saturday (which may get a bit messy) only leaves Sunday for a ride, so looking forward to that, haven't been out since my sportive and getting restless.

Enjoy the gig, I am off to see them Saturday and I must admit feel like a teenager again....just a tad excited!

 

[SpokeyDokey]

HI all,
been back cycling 3 weeks now. I have cycled in total so far 100km with longest ride of 25km. I am trying to commute to work 3 times a weeks( biggest pain is the storing of clothes to have in work so i can get changed loL). With my rides getting over 25km wanted to ask the group a question on how much water do you take on rides and is a often and small amount or one or 2 stops and large intake of water ?.

Loving the sun and cycling hope to ride like this with increasing the distance for next 7 or 8 weeks then look at getting a roadie he he

P.S great post almost read it all !!!!

Good progress there - keep at it!

Personally I wouldn't bother with taking water on rides that length and more. However a) that may be crap advice from a physiological perspective, b) I am not very good at keeping myself hydrated and c) I may just be an old fool talking twaddle.

 

[Reece]

HI all,
been back cycling 3 weeks now. I have cycled in total so far 100km with longest ride of 25km. I am trying to commute to work 3 times a weeks( biggest pain is the storing of clothes to have in work so i can get changed loL). With my rides getting over 25km wanted to ask the group a question on how much water do you take on rides and is a often and small amount or one or 2 stops and large intake of water ?.

Loving the sun and cycling hope to ride like this with increasing the distance for next 7 or 8 weeks then look at getting a roadie he he

P.S great post almost read it all !!!!

Great on getting out.

Personally on water intake I do little and often but my rides are usually between 30-70miles. I've read in several places if you're already well hydrated then the first 30-45mins you won't need to drink but do whatever feels right to you. Just don't get thirsty as by then you'll already be dehydrated.

On average I drink around 1.5l over 65miles which I feel suits me. All depends on weather too!

 

[MaxInc]

HI all,
been back cycling 3 weeks now. I have cycled in total so far 100km with longest ride of 25km. I am trying to commute to work 3 times a weeks( biggest pain is the storing of clothes to have in work so i can get changed loL). With my rides getting over 25km wanted to ask the group a question on how much water do you take on rides and is a often and small amount or one or 2 stops and large intake of water ?.

Loving the sun and cycling hope to ride like this with increasing the distance for next 7 or 8 weeks then look at getting a roadie he he

P.S great post almost read it all !!!!

Well done so far and keep it up! You need to start saving because the whole cycling thingy get addictive pretty quickly and with it come the urge for longer rides and more accessories, pedals, bikes and colour matching clothes and all that

Regarding hydration it depends a lot on how hot it is outside, how hard you are riding and how you feel overall. If you're thirsty and your mouth is dry you should drink after the first mile if necessary. On my longest ride so far (about 50km in 2.5 hours) I drank about 300ml of water on a relaxed pace at 10-12C ambient temperature. Yesterday it was hot at noon and I was pushing a little bit, sweating and all. I drank 1.5L in a little over an hour (23km) and was still thirsty when I got back home ... So there is no rule as to how much and how often but it is very important to be properly hydrated. On the other hand if it fells like while cycling, you probably had a bit too much to drink.

 

[MaxInc]

Got my SPD's today and I'm must admit they're great so far. After reading so much into them I was expecting at least some sort of learning curve but they clicked instantly. Clipping in an out it's so easy and natural, it's difficult to imagine how a clipless moment might happen (although I'm sure I'll find out rather soon) So far they seem a lot easier and safer than the clip toes / cages that I'm so used to. Shoes are as comfortable as my trainers, although a bit stiffer Need to remember to take them off at the door before I scratch the floors and upset the spirits in the household.

Tomorrow first club run after the holiday break, hope to get some good miles for the challenge and be back in one piece.

 

[Nigelnaturist]

Got my SPD's today and I'm must admit they're great so far. After reading so much into them I was expecting at least some sort of learning curve but they clicked instantly. Clipping in an out it's so easy and natural, it's difficult to imagine how a clipless moment might happen (although I'm sure I'll find out rather soon) So far they seem a lot easier and safer than the clip toes / cages that I'm so used to. Shoes are as comfortable as my trainers, although a bit stiffer Need to remember to take them off at the door before I scratch the floors and upset the spirits in the household.

Tomorrow first club run after the holiday break, hope to get some good miles for the challenge and be back in one piece.

not forced to i haven't

 

[mfc1876]

Just started riding regularly the last month or so. Been doing 4-5 miles so far at average speeds of between 10 and 11mph. The last ride I did was 10.75 miles with a time of 59:52 and an average speed of 10.8mph. I'm only riding on a cheap £100 (when I bought it grrr) mountain bike from Halfords to gain some fitness but I do enjoy it. I've got my eye on some different tyres I want to change from the stock ones which I think might make my speeds/times a little better, cos let's face it, even though I'm riding primarily for fun and fitness it would be nice to see some improvements. I ride mainly on the road (I think I bought the wrong bike?) and I think the new tyres would be more suitable.

It's my dream that one day I will own a proper road bike which I'm hoping will help me go further, faster...

 

[Mo1959]

Got my SPD's today and I'm must admit they're great so far. After reading so much into them I was expecting at least some sort of learning curve but they clicked instantly. Clipping in an out it's so easy and natural, it's difficult to imagine how a clipless moment might happen (although I'm sure I'll find out rather soon) So far they seem a lot easier and safer than the clip toes / cages that I'm so used to. Shoes are as comfortable as my trainers, although a bit stiffer Need to remember to take them off at the door before I scratch the floors and upset the spirits in the household.

Tomorrow first club run after the holiday break, hope to get some good miles for the challenge and be back in one piece.

I keep resisting changing from my flats, although I'm slightly tempted. Bit worried that having my feet fixed in position may lead to more aches and pains than I already have!

 

[Nigelnaturist]

I keep resisting changing from my flats, although I'm slightly tempted. Bit worried that having my feet fixed in position may lead to more aches and pains than I already have!

I just put them on a loose setting, and can hardly tell the difference apart from your feet dont come off, mind I have slipped a little trying to clip in on occasion

 

[Nigelnaturist]

Just started riding regularly the last month or so. Been doing 4-5 miles so far at average speeds of between 10 and 11mph. The last ride I did was 10.75 miles with a time of 59:52 and an average speed of 10.8mph. I'm only riding on a cheap £100 (when I bought it grrr) mountain bike from Halfords to gain some fitness but I do enjoy it. I've got my eye on some different tyres I want to change from the stock ones which I think might make my speeds/times a little better, cos let's face it, even though I'm riding primarily for fun and fitness it would be nice to see some improvements. I ride mainly on the road (I think I bought the wrong bike?) and I think the new tyres would be more suitable.

It's my dream that one day I will own a proper road bike which I'm hoping will help me go further, faster...

I never liked m.t.b.'s (but thats a personal choice) but as you say it's a starting point, and not a lot of money to get wrong.
Any cycling will improve fitness, so it's all to the good. More slick tyres will help you improve you speeds a little, but bear this in mind when I started last June I was no faster than that over the same sort of distance. and that was on a road bike, all be it not a very good one in comparison to some, but these days on that same bike I avg 15mph+ over almost any route I do, (but again that has only been a recent improvement)
So just keep at it and work as hard as you can at it to improve.

 

[RWright]

I keep resisting changing from my flats, although I'm slightly tempted. Bit worried that having my feet fixed in position may lead to more aches and pains than I already have!

I was afraid of knee pain and tried to be very careful setting mine up. It is hard for me to imagine riding without them and climbing hard or accelerating hard now. They are also great in the rain. I haven't really started working on my pedaling technique to improve speed with them yet but that will happen soon I think. Give them a shot. I just got a new pair of shoes yesterday, haven't taken them out yet because it is raining.