Silly commuting racing

frogonabike

Had to take evasive action to avoid colliding with a police van after he pulled out on me. Gave him my standard disapproving look and shake of the head - definitely had a moment of "should I have done that" and looked back to see if he followed me after my next turn

Not much SCR recently as I've been off getting fatter in the United States of Fatland, nice fresh legs now though which makes a change!

jacemano

Asprilla wrote:

Do we need to organise a Sky / Ineos style train to make sure you win?

Best mate has already volunteered to turn it into a two man chaingang

Also it would be embarrassing to lose, considering at the moment I'm putting in 10-13 hours a week on the bike between training and commuting.

Also if any of you guys crit race in london, if you can point me in the right direction to get some experience, would be much appreciated. I'm currently slamming TrainerRoad to get ready for a proper season next year.

cruff

jacemano wrote:

Asprilla wrote:

Do we need to organise a Sky / Ineos style train to make sure you win?

Best mate has already volunteered to turn it into a two man chaingang

Also it would be embarrassing to lose, considering at the moment I'm putting in 10-13 hours a week on the bike between training and commuting.

Also if any of you guys crit race in london, if you can point me in the right direction to get some experience, would be much appreciated. I'm currently slamming TrainerRoad to get ready for a proper season next year.

Hillingdon - flat, wide, non-technical
Hog Hill - Has a hill in it. Sometimes. Different configurations used for different races - some have it every lap, some less frequently, some hardly at all. Non-technical
Velopark (Lee Valley) - More corners, but nothing too bad, and flat
Palace - Proper race circuit. Not what you want to be doing when first starting out - technical, real corners and two drags each lap (one short, one longer). I left London before I started racing, but would love to go back and do Palace one day - mates used to race there and it's far more interesting than the usual closed circuit crits (like the three listed above)

jacemano

Cruff wrote:

Hillingdon - flat, wide, non-technical
Hog Hill - Has a hill in it. Sometimes. Different configurations used for different races - some have it every lap, some less frequently, some hardly at all. Non-technical
Velopark (Lee Valley) - More corners, but nothing too bad, and flat
Palace - Proper race circuit. Not what you want to be doing when first starting out - technical, real corners and two drags each lap (one short, one longer). I left London before I started racing, but would love to go back and do Palace one day - mates used to race there and it's far more interesting than the usual closed circuit crits (like the three listed above)

Cheers, didn't know about hog hill.

Basically come January, going to build myself a nice disc aero bike and get going. Also Hillingdon is so flat it looks like my kind of dream. Wouldn't have to worry about all the useless top heavy muscle I acquired

anonymousblackfg

jacemano wrote:

Cruff wrote:

Hillingdon - flat, wide, non-technical
Hog Hill - Has a hill in it. Sometimes. Different configurations used for different races - some have it every lap, some less frequently, some hardly at all. Non-technical
Velopark (Lee Valley) - More corners, but nothing too bad, and flat
Palace - Proper race circuit. Not what you want to be doing when first starting out - technical, real corners and two drags each lap (one short, one longer). I left London before I started racing, but would love to go back and do Palace one day - mates used to race there and it's far more interesting than the usual closed circuit crits (like the three listed above)

Cheers, didn't know about hog hill.

Basically come January, going to build myself a nice disc aero bike and get going. Also Hillingdon is so flat it looks like my kind of dream. Wouldn't have to worry about all the useless top heavy muscle I acquired

Sounds a good rig for when taken out by some ex rower realises he doesn't know how to hold his line in the first corner, Hillingdon isn't known as the carbon graveyard for nothing...

jacemano

anonymousblackfg wrote:

jacemano wrote:

Cruff wrote:

Hillingdon - flat, wide, non-technical
Hog Hill - Has a hill in it. Sometimes. Different configurations used for different races - some have it every lap, some less frequently, some hardly at all. Non-technical
Velopark (Lee Valley) - More corners, but nothing too bad, and flat
Palace - Proper race circuit. Not what you want to be doing when first starting out - technical, real corners and two drags each lap (one short, one longer). I left London before I started racing, but would love to go back and do Palace one day - mates used to race there and it's far more interesting than the usual closed circuit crits (like the three listed above)

Cheers, didn't know about hog hill.

Basically come January, going to build myself a nice disc aero bike and get going. Also Hillingdon is so flat it looks like my kind of dream. Wouldn't have to worry about all the useless top heavy muscle I acquired

Sounds a good rig for when taken out by some ex rower realises he doesn't know how to hold his line in the first corner, Hillingdon isn't known as the carbon graveyard for nothing...

My current bike is heavy AF though. I mean maybe I should live with it till I get out of cat 4, because I too have heard bad things.

cruff

anonymousblackfg wrote:

jacemano wrote:

Cruff wrote:

Hillingdon - flat, wide, non-technical
Hog Hill - Has a hill in it. Sometimes. Different configurations used for different races - some have it every lap, some less frequently, some hardly at all. Non-technical
Velopark (Lee Valley) - More corners, but nothing too bad, and flat
Palace - Proper race circuit. Not what you want to be doing when first starting out - technical, real corners and two drags each lap (one short, one longer). I left London before I started racing, but would love to go back and do Palace one day - mates used to race there and it's far more interesting than the usual closed circuit crits (like the three listed above)

Cheers, didn't know about hog hill.

Basically come January, going to build myself a nice disc aero bike and get going. Also Hillingdon is so flat it looks like my kind of dream. Wouldn't have to worry about all the useless top heavy muscle I acquired

Sounds a good rig for when taken out by some ex rower realises he doesn't know how to hold his line in the first corner, Hillingdon isn't known as the carbon graveyard for nothing...

WATCH YOUR LINE!
F*** OFF - CONCENTRATE ON YOUR OWN RACE MATE
CHOPPER
NO, YOU'RE A CHOPPER
Repeat to fade...

sgt.pepper

anonymousblackfg wrote:

jacemano wrote:

Cruff wrote:

Hillingdon - flat, wide, non-technical
Hog Hill - Has a hill in it. Sometimes. Different configurations used for different races - some have it every lap, some less frequently, some hardly at all. Non-technical
Velopark (Lee Valley) - More corners, but nothing too bad, and flat
Palace - Proper race circuit. Not what you want to be doing when first starting out - technical, real corners and two drags each lap (one short, one longer). I left London before I started racing, but would love to go back and do Palace one day - mates used to race there and it's far more interesting than the usual closed circuit crits (like the three listed above)

Cheers, didn't know about hog hill.

Basically come January, going to build myself a nice disc aero bike and get going. Also Hillingdon is so flat it looks like my kind of dream. Wouldn't have to worry about all the useless top heavy muscle I acquired

Sounds a good rig for when taken out by some ex rower realises he doesn't know how to hold his line in the first corner, Hillingdon isn't known as the carbon graveyard for nothing...

Should all be on steel.

It's real, you know.

asprilla

Are there any shoe covers that can keep water out for more than 20 minutes?

45 minute commute in London: Sealskin cap, Gore ShakeDry jacket, Endura Stealth Lite 2 bib tights and ProViz waterproof show covers. Bibs over the covers, not under.

Head is dry, arms and torso as slightly sweat damp, legs slightly sweat damp, shoes and socks are soaking from Kingston onwards.

cruff

Asprilla wrote:

Are there any shoe covers that can keep water out for more than 20 minutes?

45 minute commute in London: Sealskin cap, Gore ShakeDry jacket, Endura Stealth Lite 2 bib tights and ProViz waterproof show covers. Bibs over the covers, not under.

Head is dry, arms and torso as slightly sweat damp, legs slightly sweat damp, shoes and socks are soaking from Kingston onwards.

Nope

anonymousblackfg

Cruff wrote:

Asprilla wrote:

Are there any shoe covers that can keep water out for more than 20 minutes?

45 minute commute in London: Sealskin cap, Gore ShakeDry jacket, Endura Stealth Lite 2 bib tights and ProViz waterproof show covers. Bibs over the covers, not under.

Head is dry, arms and torso as slightly sweat damp, legs slightly sweat damp, shoes and socks are soaking from Kingston onwards.

Nope

Yep, https://www.decathlon.co.uk/wds-1-fishi ... YDEALw_wcB

cruff

anonymousblackfg wrote:

Cruff wrote:

Asprilla wrote:

Are there any shoe covers that can keep water out for more than 20 minutes?

45 minute commute in London: Sealskin cap, Gore ShakeDry jacket, Endura Stealth Lite 2 bib tights and ProViz waterproof show covers. Bibs over the covers, not under.

Head is dry, arms and torso as slightly sweat damp, legs slightly sweat damp, shoes and socks are soaking from Kingston onwards.

Nope

Yep, https://www.decathlon.co.uk/wds-1-fishi ... YDEALw_wcB

State of my mate at his cross race yesterday he'd have gone better in those...

hopkinb

Grade a October grimness. Shoes stuffed with newspaper. No hope of socks being dry later, but I'm hopeful for everything else.

itboffin

Even though I no longer commute by bike I still have a spare set of everything at work, never will I ride again in damp kit, I've even ridden in the rain with a spare pair of gloves to change mid ride

frogonabike

Not a rant, more a bewildered comment. It amazes me how many people don't have mudguards and seem content to trash their entire outfit as a result. I get it if you're caught out by some not-forecasted sneaky sneaky rain but it was clearly always going to be chucking it down all day

Saw KTM guy giving it a good go this morning in knee length Spatz overshoes and no mudguards.. not sure if he's on here. If you are then whyyyyyy?

anonymousblackfg

frogonabike wrote:

Not a rant, more a bewildered comment. It amazes me how many people don't have mudguards and seem content to trash their entire outfit as a result. I get it if you're caught out by some not-forecasted sneaky sneaky rain but it was clearly always going to be chucking it down all day

Saw KTM guy giving it a good go this morning in knee length Spatz overshoes and no mudguards.. not sure if he's on here. If you are then whyyyyyy?

That's the guy I saw the other day, £85, I decided I could buy a second pair of shoes and keep them at work for the return leg for that...

Just with neoprene hugely work toe covers I made it 12 km before I first felt toe dampness, but fully soaked by end of the ride. For home i've just ordered a dehumidifier and will order a tumbledryer once I have management sign off later. As such, all rain will be bannished for the next few months and you can all thank me.

Longshot

frogonabike wrote:

Not a rant, more a bewildered comment. It amazes me how many people don't have mudguards and seem content to trash their entire outfit as a result. I get it if you're caught out by some not-forecasted sneaky sneaky rain but it was clearly always going to be chucking it down all day

Saw KTM guy giving it a good go this morning in knee length Spatz overshoes and no mudguards.. not sure if he's on here. If you are then whyyyyyy?

Because I hate the look of mudguards on a road bike and will never, ever fit them. I clean and dry my bike if it gets wet. I would rather get wet and muddy than have mudguards. If you're behind me well either go past or drop back. Your choice.

W1

Longshot wrote:

frogonabike wrote:

Not a rant, more a bewildered comment. It amazes me how many people don't have mudguards and seem content to trash their entire outfit as a result. I get it if you're caught out by some not-forecasted sneaky sneaky rain but it was clearly always going to be chucking it down all day

Saw KTM guy giving it a good go this morning in knee length Spatz overshoes and no mudguards.. not sure if he's on here. If you are then whyyyyyy?

Because I hate the look of mudguards on a road bike and will never, ever fit them. I clean and dry my bike if it gets wet. I would rather get wet and muddy than have mudguards. If you're behind me well either go past or drop back. Your choice.

Yeah, the "disaster in the colonic irrigation parlour" look is much better.

And it's all well and good saying "go past or drop back" but so many choppers come past and then just cut in front, spraying road-crud all over the rider behind. Apart from anchoring on what are you supposed to do?

Mudguards should be mandatory....

frogonabike

Ha! Oh dear I've started something now...

I am definitely firmly in the keeping myself and my kit clean and dry camp. I don't necessarily mind so much on the bike (apart from wet ar$e, that's just grim) it's more when I get to my destination and have to deal with the aftermath

And to be fair, when I was rolling in nice and easy, you came past and kept out wide but the guy doing a bad job of trying to hang on to you cut straight back in and gave me a nice face full of CS7. As per W1's point

(I'll say hi next time, I think I've enjoyed a few fast commutes with you)

tgotb

I believe in freedom of choice when it comes to mudguards (but, as W1 says, please don't cut in immediately after overtaking, that's a selfish d*ck move).

However I really don't understand this "spoils the look of the bike" thing. It's a bike. You can't even see most of it when you're riding it, and I can't believe people spend much time gazing at their bikes when they're not riding them. Why the obsession with its appearance?

Longshot

TGOTB wrote:

Why the obsession with its appearance?

If you are asking the question seriously then there's no point in me trying to explain because you won't understand the answer. I mean that without any side, I just think we come at things from very different places.

keef66

Was musing the same this morning as I sat in my dry, tin box. Significant numbers of hardy cycling commuters with no guards and a huge wet stripe up their backs. I can just about accept the hardened roadies in full kit who presumably shower and change, but quite a few were ladies in office clothes. Just why??

frogonabike

I actually think mudguards look good, on the right bike. Aero road bikes not so much but on a lot of others - all day long

Gallywomack

Strange to think that we could put a man on the moon a half-century ago, but still haven't figured out a way to ride a bike in the wet without getting wet feet. Ah well, I'm not very hard but tend to think putting wet shoes on for a 45 min ride home is just about within the category of things I can survive.

I'm struggling more with my new route atm (recently moved to Beckenham/Eden Park area). Currently doing Anerley Hill then through Dulwich, Denmark Hill, Camberwell - Oval - Lambeth or Westminster Bridge. First part isn't too bad but can get very busy on narrow roads, especially up Anerley Hill, but everything from Denmark Hill onwards is just so congested and slow with very annoying light sequencing meaning I'm spending an inordinate amount of time waiting at reds. Any suggestions for a better way to get from the top of Sydenham Hill to Trafalgar Square?

ryan_w-2

What a bunch of bellends round Westminster and Bank... Doing a great job of pi$$ing everyone off on a wet Monday morning...

As for mudguards, I appreciate they do an ok job of keeping you slightly drier than if not using any at all, however, they will never be on any of my bikes since I’ve come to terms with getting wet if riding in the rain...

HamishD

Gallywomack wrote:

Any suggestions for a better way to get from the top of Sydenham Hill to Trafalgar Square?

better route to Sydenham HIll from Eden Park is Clock House Road from EE roundabout, Crystal Palace Park Road. Anerley Hill in traffic is just horrid.

Once through Dulwich Village you can do Red Post Hill/Herne Hill Road and then Loughbourough (SIC) Road/Akermans/Foxley to get to Oval if you fancy a change and can't be bothered with Elephant or the Camberwell New Road.

Embrace the slowness; there is no escaping it.

tgotb

Gallywomack wrote:

Strange to think that we could put a man on the moon a half-century ago, but still haven't figured out a way to ride a bike in the wet without getting wet feet. Ah well, I'm not very hard but tend to think putting wet shoes on for a 45 min ride home is just about within the category of things I can survive.

I wonder whether Velotoze would do the job? The ankle is pretty much like a drysuit seal, so it might stop the water-running-down-the-leg issue.

WFH today, after spraining my thumb in a CX race yesterday. I lost the front wheel on a fast right-hander; as you'd imagine, the right-hand side of my skinsuit is covered in mud, but all the scrapes and bruises (and sprained thumb) are on my left-hand side. How does that even happen?!?

jonginge

TGOTB wrote:

Gallywomack wrote:

Strange to think that we could put a man on the moon a half-century ago, but still haven't figured out a way to ride a bike in the wet without getting wet feet. Ah well, I'm not very hard but tend to think putting wet shoes on for a 45 min ride home is just about within the category of things I can survive.

I wonder whether Velotoze would do the job? The ankle is pretty much like a drysuit seal, so it might stop the water-running-down-the-leg issue.

These worked a treat this morning:
https://www.wiggle.co.uk/gripgrab-hi-vi ... =100384192

Much more robust than Velotoze, maybe easier to put on...

asprilla

Are velotoze robust enough? Maybe velotoze with neoprene toe warmers glues over the top...

No need for gaiters as my waterproof bin longs go over my overshoes anyway.

tgotb

Asprilla wrote:

Are velotoze robust enough?

Not for every day use, even with something over the top. Even just used for racing they seem to have a finite (and probably fairly short) life. I was more thinking that it must be possible to build something more robust and user-friendly that works on the same principle.