Quick fire general knowledge round!

zedders

Hi all.
Can I be cheeky and ask a few quick questions that will hopefully help me improve MY riding experience? Recently been up'ing my game & average, and am looking to 'try' and take it to the next level. Its one point per answer and a bonus 5 points if you can answer all My Q's are:

1) After riding my thighs ache like stink! Calfs and rest of my body is ok. But thighs? Even hours or days later, running up stairs etc and I feel the burn!! Anything I can do to take away the achy thighs? Ice, Cold shower, magic cream??? I think lactic acid is stuck in there!

2) Just general tiredness after riding more than 25 miles? Quick, easy, cheap, simple recovery drink suggestion? I was thinking a glass of semi skimmed milk? Any other better suggestions? I'm not dragging the juicer or blender out! So called work mates are saying I look like an old man walking into the office after a 15mile commute!

3) I've now started to ride longer and further, and am looking at some sort of energy food? A mate has suggested some torq gels? I normally only take out a bottle or two of PSP22 which in the past has lasted me up to two hours or so? Any suggestions for a quck hit? I think I would prefer a small gel or bar or something similar.

4) On the new Ribble the double ten speed gears are slightly rubbing! Unfortunately a mechanic I ain't. All gears are working fine except one. On the inner chainring and smallest sprocket the outside of the chain is slightly catching the right side of the front derailleurs, making a slight grinding noise? Any help for a non mechanically minded bloke? I ain't getting my so called expert mate to look at it, cos every time he tinkers with chains/gears things break? And apparently it's not his fault!

5) Been caught (not recently in the heat wave!) in a few showers. I want a really small, and lightweight waterproof / showerproof rain mac / jacket? Max £40. Something small enough for the back pocket? Any good suggestions? Clothing in general isn't my strong point. Just ask the misses!

6) Who finished top scorer in the 1982 World Cup finals in Spain? (No cheating / looking on the internet)!

Just for info. Being going at it for two years now. Not a member of a club. Don't race. Just like to ride faster than my mates. Am currently riding 15 x2 (commute), 25 (social) or 35-40 miles (Sunday) per outing. Have gone from 14mph to 18.5mph ave. (That's not adding 1 mph NapD!) and looking to improve a little bit! Any help will be much appreciated. Pls fill your boots with suggestions, and see how many points you can get!

Cheers: ZEDDERS.

redddraggon

zedders wrote:

4) On the new Ribble the double ten speed gears are slightly rubbing! Unfortunately a mechanic I ain't. All gears are working fine except one. On the inner chainring and smallest sprocket the outside of the chain is slightly catching the right side of the front derailleurs, making a slight grinding noise? Any help for a non mechanically minded bloke? I ain't getting my so called expert mate to look at it, cos every time he tinkers with chains/gears things break? And apparently it's not his fault.

When in "little-little" the chain will nearly always rub on the big chainring (it won't be the front mech), that's normal, you should be avoiding little-little anyway.

softlad

1) could be related to your riding position

2) Mars milk

3) honey or marmalade sarnies - seriously. wrap a few in some tin foil and put them in your back pocket

4) adjust the limit screws on the mechs. turn each of them in & out a few times and you will soon understand how they work...

5) rain mac from Aldi - cheap and works a treat

6) dunno

zedders

redddraggon wrote:

zedders wrote:

4) On the new Ribble the double ten speed gears are slightly rubbing! Unfortunately a mechanic I ain't. All gears are working fine except one. On the inner chainring and smallest sprocket the outside of the chain is slightly catching the right side of the front derailleurs, making a slight grinding noise? Any help for a non mechanically minded bloke? I ain't getting my so called expert mate to look at it, cos every time he tinkers with chains/gears things break? And apparently it's not his fault.

When in "little-little" the chain will nearly always rub on the big chainring (it won't be the front mech), that's normal, you should be avoiding little-little anyway.

Soz. Don't think I mean little little gear. I mean the smallest sprocket in size. 10th gear, just before needing to go onto the bigger chainring.

mask of sanity

What Reddragon's saying is that you shouldn't have the chain going from two extremes! e.g. 50/25 or 34/11 (using my gear set up as an example). Doing this puts the chain at a bad angle and will increase wear to the chain and the teeth. Hope this makes sense

bobpzero

3. ive tried psp22, go and powerbar performance drink and finally decided to stick with high5 4:1 because even tho its like half a milkshake its been more beneficial than the others.
my dad loves the non-caffeinated powerbar gel, seems to help him but everyones different.

5. £40 max?! dont want to be bringer of discouragement but all ur going to get is a boil in the bag stay puff jacket. its not worth it just let urself dry out on the ride.

just for info. that gives me hope as im a non club rider.

ride_whenever

1. Warm up and down properly.

2. Chocolate milk is one of the best recovery drinks!!!!

3. Banana, flap jack, jelly babies. Just about anything will do, the trick is to keep eating throughout the ride, not just once your energy starts to drop

4. as red said, don't cross the chain.

5. Altura pocket rocket is fairly nice, remember skin is waterproof.

redddraggon

zedders wrote:

redddraggon wrote:

zedders wrote:

4) On the new Ribble the double ten speed gears are slightly rubbing! Unfortunately a mechanic I ain't. All gears are working fine except one. On the inner chainring and smallest sprocket the outside of the chain is slightly catching the right side of the front derailleurs, making a slight grinding noise? Any help for a non mechanically minded bloke? I ain't getting my so called expert mate to look at it, cos every time he tinkers with chains/gears things break? And apparently it's not his fault.

When in "little-little" the chain will nearly always rub on the big chainring (it won't be the front mech), that's normal, you should be avoiding little-little anyway.

Soz. Don't think I mean little little gear. I mean the smallest sprocket in size. 10th gear, just before needing to go onto the bigger chainring.

Yeh little little = little chainring little sprocket

and big big mean big chainring big sprocket.

When in little little with a compact you'll find the chain with rub on the inside of the big chainring.

Gears are not consecutive - you don't use all the sprockets with the little chainring before going back to the biggest sprocket and changing to the big ring - because that's just silly. Just change at the back for small changes in cadence, and if you need a large change in cadence change at the front.

antfly

6. I think it was Paolo Rossi, he had been banned for match-fixing or something.

knedlicky

1 You need to cycle more (uphill) or do exercises of the type downhill skiers do, to strengthen the thighs. Don’t try and avoid the aches: think if it aches, it must be learning how to get better.

2. Tiredness after only 25 miles sounds like not enough condition for cycling. Still, your semi-skilled milk sounds good as recovery, except I’d also add something like Ovaltine to it (the type you add to warm milk, not that you add to water). To eat as recovery, I’d suggest 1-2 rounds of toast, spread with Marmite and Peanut Butter.

3. You don’t need any energy food if you’re not in competition, or not trying to achieve a PB in a sportive. Cheap muesli bars from Aldi, malt loaf, waffles, homemade sandwiches, dried fruit, bananas, in fact whatever takes your fancy, is enough for any ride up to 100 km (if you eat sensibly in the hours beforehand).
Actually, you also shouldn’t need anything for 60 km. However, just make sure you’ve always got something to eat with, in case you feel the need (often a psychologcal rather than a physical need) - like a banana or cheap muesli bar.

6. I remember the 1982 World Cup finals in Spain, but I don’t know who was top scorer, although I remember Paolo Rossi was a hero for me as he scored the decisive goal?

Alex_Simmons/RST

1. check your bike fit. well fitted bikes will see a relatively even use of muscles in proportion to their contribution to the effort of riding a bike. usually one muscle group bearing the brunt suggests bike bike needs attention

2. train more. obviously eating properly after a ride helps but a 25-mile ride isn't going to take that much out of your system requiring super special recovery techniques.

3. jam sandwich. banana. can of coke, fig newtons. lots and lots of cheap things to use instead of those specialist gels/bars (some of which are very good, just not always necessary). You don't need much for rides up to 2 hours. perhaps some sports drink in one bidon.

4. that's cross chaining, don't do it. large ring and largest cog or small ring and smallest cog is a bad idea for anything other than short durations when you know you'll be back to a more sensible ring-cog combination. if you are cross chaining, then change rings and ride a better gear combo.

5. should be plenty at a decent LBS or online stores

6. Hmmm. Paolo Rossi? Karl Heinz Rummenigge? (sp?)
will have to look it up now!! OK, that wasn't a bad guess on my part

CiB

On the rings, your two front / 10 rear setup gives you three effective ranges. Assume 39/52 and 12-25...

First range uses the 39 ring and gears 1 to 6 maybe 7. Any higher on the cassette and you're pulling your chain too far out of line.

The top range is on the 52 in gears 3 to 4 up to 10. In the reverse of the situation on the 39 ring, if you drop down below 3rd on the cassette you're starting to pull the chain out of line again.

The mid range is between the other two ranges [obviously]. It's the middle gears on the cassette, and either ring on the front. You should find that you can find a good cadence around 90-100 I'd guess for how you've described your riding, using either the 39 / higher end of gears 5-7, or the 52 and gears 4-8, to maintain a good cruising speed.

You haven't got 20 ratios with a 2 x 10 arrangement, more like around 14 with a lot of duplicates. In the mid-range gears you'll find the same ratio using different combinations of front & rear. Like redddragon said, you don't go all the way to 10th on the 39 before hopping onto the 52.

CiB

2) & 3) are just fitness levels. Do more rides at higher speeds & longer distances and the tiredness will go. Energy foods? A bowl of porridge & a coffee should see you through 40 miles without the need for anything except water or diluted apple juice. It's training, not magic fixes & snake oil that gets you there. The more miles you do, the more miles you can do.

5) When out on a bike you get wet, either from rain or sweat. Live with it. Enjoy it. Save your £40 for a proper upgrade.

6) Was it Geoff Hurst? Lineker?

antfly

ChrisInBicester wrote:

6) Was it Geoff Hurst? Lineker?

In 1982 , are you avin a laff ?

CiB

antfly wrote:

ChrisInBicester wrote:

6) Was it Geoff Hurst? Lineker?

In 1982 , are you avin a laff ?

Errr... yes.

Re Softlad's advice - "4) adjust the limit screws on the mechs. turn each of them in & out a few times and you will soon understand how they work..." - Don't. If you get it wrong and don't fully understand what you're doing (you've said you're a non mechanically minded bloke) you'll end up with your gears mashed in with the spokes and a large bill to fix it.

zedders

cheers for the replies guys.
Answers so far:

1) I'll not worry about the thighs and just keep at it. But will try and check my riding position again.

2) Don't like choc milk, so will stick with a glass of semi skimmed milk after a tiring ride!

3) I don't need a pick me up? YES I DO! I give a cheese and jam sandwich a go.

4) Gears. I never knew anything about 'little - little & big - big' and ranges and stuff, so I now know my gears are sound. Cheers. (Ribble must have sorted them proper when they build up the bike!) Just quick though, now I've done a few hundred miles on the new ribble, do I need to do anything with the gears, or if its not broke don't try and fix it?

5) I've been living with rain for two years. If its cold I'll but a proper jacket on other wise I'll probably stick with getting wet. Might have a look at the 'pocket rocket' ? for autum though.

6) Rossi was then man. 6 goals. a trick against Brazil, (zico and his boys!) Scored in the final, and came back into the national squad after just serving a two year ban for match fixing I think.

Geoff Hurst ? Lineker?

softlad

ChrisInBicester wrote:

Re Softlad's advice - "4) adjust the limit screws on the mechs. turn each of them in & out a few times and you will soon understand how they work..." - Don't. If you get it wrong and don't fully understand what you're doing (you've said you're a non mechanically minded bloke) you'll end up with your gears mashed in with the spokes and a large bill to fix it.

away with you - its not rocket science. You don't need to be a mechanical genius to work out the effects of twiddling a screwdriver on the front & rear mechs. It's not like I'm advising him on performing open heart surgery, is it..?

Besides, I misunderstood that question 4 totally, so my original answer was not relevant anyway....

joosed

The Problems with Cross-Chaining.....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24vfX2Pt ... 0&index=59

More on Cross-Chaining.....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDPc1WqT ... re=channel

Don't Do It!

CiB

softlad wrote:

ChrisInBicester wrote:

Re Softlad's advice - "4) adjust the limit screws on the mechs. turn each of them in & out a few times and you will soon understand how they work..." - Don't. If you get it wrong and don't fully understand what you're doing (you've said you're a non mechanically minded bloke) you'll end up with your gears mashed in with the spokes and a large bill to fix it.

away with you - its not rocket science. You don't need to be a mechanical genius to work out the effects of twiddling a screwdriver on the front & rear mechs. It's not like I'm advising him on performing open heart surgery, is it..?

Besides, I misunderstood that question 4 totally, so my original answer was not relevant anyway....

I read it as a throwaway 'see what happens if you do this', and as anyone knows if you get the adjustment wrong and sail off down the road the most likely outcome is gears in spokes when you change down; sods law. No good being wise after the event.

antfly

zedders wrote:

cheers for the replies guys.
Answers so far:

6) Rossi was then man. 6 goals. a trick against Brazil, (zico and his boys!) Scored in the final, and came back into the national squad after just serving a two year ban for match fixing I think.

Geoff Hurst ? Lineker?

I already said that, do I get a prize for being the first to get it right?

paulieb2006

1. Its possible that your saddle could be too low.just had my position checked and had to drop my saddle quite a bit and feel it a lot more in my Quads.
By the way how is the Ribble. Still havent ordered mine. Waiting to get paid for a job.
Paul

antfly

I went past Ribble Cycles on my bike today during a 63 mile ride and all the windows were completely covered with signs about mailorder so I don`t know if their shop is closed or what. It`s not usually like that.
Edit. I see on their website it is closed for renovation.

zedders

paulieb2006 wrote:

1. Its possible that your saddle could be too low.just had my position checked and had to drop my saddle quite a bit and feel it a lot more in my Quads.
By the way how is the Ribble. Still havent ordered mine. Waiting to get paid for a job.
Paul

Yeah mate. The Ribbles going great guns. Obviously knowing jack, I thought I had a problem with one of the gears. Obviously not. Went out last night and did 37 miles. Done about 350 miles in the last few weeks. No probs at all. Brakes, wheels, frame, seat, etc all appear ok. Nothings come loose or fallen off. All in working order. Still looks the daddy after 6 wks.

The biggest difference from the bianchi has to be a smoother ride, and the being able to put the power down through the gears. It flies.

zedders

antfly wrote:

zedders wrote:

cheers for the replies guys.
Answers so far:

6) Rossi was then man. 6 goals. a trick against Brazil, (zico and his boys!) Scored in the final, and came back into the national squad after just serving a two year ban for match fixing I think.

Geoff Hurst ? Lineker?

I already said that, do I get a prize for being the first to get it right?

you wish!
Urmm? You only answered one question out of 6! My actual biking Q's you didn't answer? Good football trivia skills though mate.

EdZed

[quote
3) honey or marmalade sarnies - seriously. wrap a few in some tin foil and put them in your back pocket

][/quote]

Ughh! that's got to end in a sticky mess... :shock: