Been satisfied with the bike you have, enjoy it ,just ride!

paulpc1

Hi after lurking on here for a year this is my first post....So I gave up the car a year ago when it failed abysmally the MOT..at first I took to commuting by bike as a means to an end till the car was back on the road....out came my 19 years old Raleigh pioneer trail hybrid...but the bug bit...it's only a 10 mile round trip to work,pretty soon as I got fitter i was making it longer to 20 miles round trip....then as I read forums like this I discovered that apparently my bike is not only out of date (it cost me £250 new 19 years ago) with it's 7 speed cassette but Hybrids are supposed to be rubbish....BUT I sorta love mine...It's got a really good 4130 chrome alloy frame,700 x38c wheels that offer a nice compromise between rolling resistance and going over potholes ect,it's comfortable with my nice Brooks B17 leather saddle and I feel reasonably nippy ( average speed of 17mph and have had it up to 34 mph down a steep hill.legs going like pistons). ...So my point is love whatever bike you ride,enjoy it and stop worrying ....That said I had a go on my sons £99 BSO the other day and thought no wonder he goes to work on the bus (we work at the same place) so maybe ...just a little bit of snob is creeping in as I also love burning off MTBs and ensure that for a roadie to overtake me he/she has to be going some and be about 20 years younger (I'm 45) and even then they never seem to get too far ahead LOL i think it's just they see the "bloke on a hybrid with a big rucksack and no helmet" and feel compelled to show me who's boss!...LOL
Anyways I have learnt a lot from this forum about cycling....I sold the car and now and one of those types who pissed me off as a fat middle aged unfit car driver.... you know the type, who in a 30mph zone you have to break the speed limit to overtake and who claims his part of the road instead of " pootelling along the pavement where all bikes should be" and who WILL ride past parked cars wide in case some dick opens the door on him and is confident and assertive....That said I obey the rules..never RLJ and generally hold my turn at traffic queues unless it's a real jam that I can safely get around and have 2 sets of lights front and back ...sure Ive had a few beeps but as I wear headphones I assume as it was when I used to go running that any shouts from drivers are words of encouragement like "well done...good for you mate" ect and are responded from me with a smile and a cheery wave LOL...

tailwindhome

Yours isn't a hybrid.

It predates this name, which is just a marketing term for what is more commonly known as a bicycle.

meanredspider

Welcome
£250 19 years ago probably makes it a pretty nice bike for its type so I bet it goes fairly well. My Old Kona Cinder Cone was about £450 10 years ago - a bike of similar quality (specs change so there's no point in comparing with today's Kona) would be probably double that now. I'd imagine your bike is something equivalent to £900-£1000 at today's prices.

kenan

um, get a helmet please?

asprilla

kenan wrote:

um, get a helmet please?

OSOH

Well said!! I cycle (if you can really call my pottering "cycling") for enjoyment rather than speed, and tend to take it easy, so a bit different to you...however, while other bikes have come and gone (Carrera Vanquish road bike, couple of MTBs and a Giant lightweight flat-barred road bike) I have always returned to my 20+ year old Raleigh Pioneer. Just find it more comfy and enjoyable than anything else I've had! Probably one of my best investments, the bike cost me £10 about 4 years ago and seems to just keep going, whereas the newer bikes have seemed to need more frequent adjustments and repairs.

notsoblue

Horses for courses, innit.

I really like my slow comfy Day 01 for the commute, and I love my PX for training/fast rides.

Oh and F anyone who shouts at you for wearing headphones :P

meanredspider

notsoblue wrote:

Oh and F anyone who shouts at you for wearing headphones :P

They're only shouting because you didn't hear them the first (second or 3rd) time....

notsoblue

meanredspider wrote:

notsoblue wrote:

Oh and F anyone who shouts at you for wearing headphones :P

They're only shouting because you didn't hear them the first (second or 3rd) time....

Blah blah :P I like listening to the Today Programme when I ride into work, if I can hear busybodies muttering under their breath, I can hear the traffic. Plus in this weather, they keep my ears warm.

meanredspider

notsoblue wrote:

Blah blah :P I like listening to the Today Programme when I ride into work, if I can hear busybodies muttering under their breath, I can hear the traffic. Plus in this weather, they keep my ears warm.

It the peds & cyclists that jump out of their skin when they finally realise I'm behind them (normally crossing the Kessock Bridge) that I find silly

BelgianBeerGeek

Nice one OP, welcome along. You can indeed commute on anything on two wheels. Take care out there, some would make you believe it can be hazardous !

the_fuggler

The earphones thing is an interesting one. Most of my riding is rural, with a lot of blind bends and areas with poor visibility, so I find I'm completely reliant on my hearing to tell whether anything is coming or not. I just can't ride with earphones in. I guess it must be different in town, where there is so much ambient noise anyway, that hearing is a less prominent sense.

t4tomo

So people who ride with headphones in, are they depriving themselves of one sense or do they have no sense at all?

the_fuggler

t4tomo wrote:

So people who ride with headphones in, are they depriving themselves of one sense or do they have no sense at all?

I think all these things are down to the individual, unless otherwise legislated (rightly or wrongly). Just because it doesn't work for me, doesn't mean it doesn't work for everyone. I'm not really sure how you would test it, as any incident is always a result of a number of different factors.

hegyestomi

Riding in the city is defo more noise. Riding above a certain speed is even more noiser (the wind not the bike).
Some people like it some doesn't.
I should start a rant about all thoose car drivers listening their RADIOs and CDs in the car!!!
And all the peds walking around having earphones on!!
When will they ever learn?!?!

walkingbootweather

t4tomo wrote:

So people who ride with headphones in, are they depriving themselves of one sense or do they have no sense at all?

What?

You may as well say:

So people who ride with gloves on, are they depriving themselves of one sense or do they have no sense at all?

or

So people who ride with snotty noses, are they depriving themselves of one sense or do they have no sense at all?

or perhaps

So people who don't ride with their tougue out, are they depriving themselves of one sense or do they have no sense at all?

Should we ban the deaf or partially sighted from riding a bike or should the individual be allowed to assess risks for themselves?

Personally I wouldn't choose to wear headphones when riding in traffic, but can't see a problem with it when riding on quiet cycle-specific routes.

notsoblue

The Fuggler wrote:

The earphones thing is an interesting one. Most of my riding is rural, with a lot of blind bends and areas with poor visibility, so I find I'm completely reliant on my hearing to tell whether anything is coming or not. I just can't ride with earphones in. I guess it must be different in town, where there is so much ambient noise anyway, that hearing is a less prominent sense.

There is so much traffic noise on my commute that I'm not specifically listening out for car engines in the quiet like you are on rural roads. The sound I find important is that of a vehicle or bike coming up close behind me, and I can hear that fine with my overear, vented . Personally, I'd feel very disoriented with in ear headphones that cut out all external sound. But wearing open headphones doesn't deprive you of your sense of hearing at all.

What I think is far more important to cycle safety is how road aware you are. Frequent over the shoulder glances and just generally keeping a safe distance from other road users is more important than whether or not you have Charlotte Green whispering sweet nothings into your ears. Only this morning I had to deal with a guy on a hybrid who seemed to think he was Lucas Brunelle. Completely oblivious to other cyclists and cars, squeezing between riders, undertaking etc... He didn't particularly come close to colliding with anyone, but that was mainly because people seemed to be trying to give him a wide berth. He was oblivious to them.

the_fuggler

Think you've summed it up perfectly NSB - and I forgot about using open backed 'phones.

Mind you, if I commuted with Charlotte Green's rich tones in my ears, it would be more like a magic carpet ride. Such a shame that she is leaving the BBC.

Bustacapp

Have you ever heard of a full stop?

DrLex

Bustacapp wrote:

Have you ever heard of a full stop?

I think I've got their Peel Sessions somewhere in my tape drawer...
(You're going to be busy on the internet correcting grammar, punctuation and spelling, chap!)

As to hearing and cycling, I find that a wee speaker on the 'bars connected to my smartphone gives me commuting music/radio without the faff of wires or fully masking aural cues from following traffic.

walkingbootweather

DrLex wrote:

As to hearing and cycling, I find that a wee speaker on the 'bars connected to my smartphone gives me commuting music/radio without the faff of wires or fully masking aural cues from following traffic.

Something like this?

asprilla

The 80's vintage Raleigh Vector had a radio in the top tube didn't it?

Obviously all bikes since then have been a retrograde step.

DrLex

walkingbootweather wrote:

DrLex wrote:

As to hearing and cycling, I find that a wee speaker on the 'bars connected to my smartphone gives me commuting music/radio without the faff of wires or fully masking aural cues from following traffic.

Something like this?

If only; mine's a £10 x-mini with a Smart mount superglued to the base.

walkingbootweather

I want one of these. Do you think it receives DAB?

paulpc1

Thanks for all the replies....