Show us your.......newbie progress!

[Big_Dave]

@Steady, well done for getting out, I've just come back from a 27miler and some of the roads are still quite icy.
I used to have the same problem with SPD's, more problems clipping in when I first had spd's, you'll soon get used to it, altho I did soon swapp to sh-56 cleats which are a bit more user friendly than the sh-51 cleats.

 

[Steady]

@Steady, well done for getting out, I've just come back from a 27miler and some of the roads are still quite icy.
I used to have the same problem with SPD's, more problems clipping in when I first had spd's, you'll soon get used to it, altho I did soon swapp to sh-56 cleats which are a bit more user friendly than the sh-51 cleats.

I notice your rides on Strava they're more than impressive but they go straight into my "I'll save them for Summer routes!"

Heard of those sh-56's, maybe if I keep on struggling I'll have to consider them. I was getting half way down most roads and still not clipped in, but then sometimes I'd pull away from a set of lights and clip in straight away not by skill, just luck!

 

[Nomadski]

Hello peeps, just done my first ride of the year. Sunny but cold, and the park was very busy as you would expect, being a saturday. Feel horribly sluggish, but that's what 1 ride per month does to you I suppose!

Hope everyone is well.

https://app.strava.com/activities/242273086

 

[Justinslow]

Heading out tomorrow on the ol' mtb, going round Thetford forest mtb trails again, gonna be cold but hopefully fun!

 

[Nigelnaturist]

@Steady I have had them nearly two years, and still on occasion don't clip straight in, things also get a bit better once the rough edges wear off, like a chain meshing with the gears.

 

[Berk on a Bike]

@Berk on a Bike 12/13 was the last bad one in terms of snow and temps, but the preceding two at least 11/12 and 10/11 were pretty bad as I have pictures and they are date stamped, 12/13 we had snow here (Pontefract) at least mid April and towards May I think.
Temps on this chart before Oct/Nov 13 are just averages. So the max temp is the max temp for the warmest day but that was the average for the day, I can now show max temp on a ride (and min) so that will show as the max temp in a month ect..... I still need to go back and do a load of data but can't be bothered at the moment.
View attachment 77073

The subject of winters came up last night at a family gathering (yeah, I go to the best parties) and someone backed up your memory of 12/13 winter extending well into the spring months. My memory bank must've blanked it lol.

 

[Berk on a Bike]

Extremely cold and icy in my corner of God's own you-know-what this morning. Le sigh...

 

[Nigelnaturist]

@Berk on a Bike the previous couple we had heavy snow falls but mainly Dec-Feb.

 

[Stonechat]

weather ok here so out on the bike
Nice run through Windsor Great Park, to Winkfield, and back through the park, ith a few diversions to keep up my climbing thing
42.76 miles at 14.4 mph
1772 feet climbed (dare I say it was s;ightly less than planned)

4702 metres now climbed of target if 6142 so now over 75%

https://www.strava.com/activities/242705759

 

[Effyb4]

It was my first ride out in just over 2 weeks today. Boy my feet were cold. At least the rest of me was toasty warm. I really need to get more winter rides in. My average speed has dropped dramatically.

https://www.strava.com/activities/242586711#kudos

 

[Leescfc79]

15 miles on the mtb today, muddy and cold but great fun as usual!

http://app.strava.com/activities/242698731

Hoping for some road miles tomorrow but will see how roads are in the morning, forecast is for a very cold night

 

[Stonechat]

It was my first ride out in just over 2 weeks today. Boy my feet were cold. At least the rest of me was toasty warm. I really need to get more winter rides in. My average speed has dropped dramatically.

https://www.strava.com/activities/242586711#kudos

Well I am riding regularly and my speed has dropped too
Think the cold leg muscles do not work as well

 

[SpokeyDokey]

Helvellyn by Striding Edge - bit of a tough one today. Very high winds and -17C real feel.

Led off three under-equipped walkers (no crampons/no axes) who had gotten themselves in a real mess. One woman crying and the other shouting at her husband for having been so stupid to take them up there

Lots of spindrift and ice under snow made the going hard-ish. Took a real battering from the wind on the summit plateau.

Very sadly someone fell off the parallel (Swirral Edge) yesterday after falling 1000'.

 

[Justinslow]

Went out on the mtb this morning and did a frenetic 14 miles with some other "hard cases", much harder than I've ever ridden before trying to keep up with them on their latest 1k - 3k bikes, (mine cost £180 15 years ago) the difference clearly showed. Still had a lot of fun but boy oh boy off road gives you so much more of a workout than on the road! Very close to stacking many times aswell, into trees, off roots etc on my shonky old soggy bike, pushing it beyond what it could really cope with. Great fun though on a very cold wintry day.
https://www.strava.com/activities/242659942

 

[Leescfc79]

boy oh boy off road gives you so much more of a workout than on the road!

I know what you mean, the 15 miles I did off road today feels like about 40 road miles - if not more!!