#4564

At night time?

#4565

just now, aye

#4566

Impressive

#4567

I always put too much on then panic and remove the excess with a rag

1 Like
#4568

FAO any London-based cyclists: if you take an old pair of cycling socks into Cafe du Cycliste over the next few days they’ll swap 'em for a new pair: https://www.cafeducycliste.com/sock-amnesty

#4569

their jerseys any good? they’re quite expensive

#4570

Yeah, though their sizing (for women at least) is all over the place. Tried on an XL at the last sample sale and it was very short (I’m not even tall!) and I couldn’t even do it up. I have a pair of their bibs and they’re the comfiest and nicest I have.

#4571

FFS guys, you could have saved it for Thursday…

2 Likes
#4572

I am actually quite scared of getting back out on my bike, haven’t been able to cycle for about two months and have lost all confidence.

Also need to clean and lube my chain, to continue lube chat.

#4573

always get anxious about getting back outside if i’ve been off the bike for any length of time. it gets worse the longer you’ve been off too. mostly about being unfit or whatever rather than worried about cars and that.

but then every single time without fail i’m outside for about five minutes and i’m like “oh yeah this is great, wtf was i worried about” and it just feels amazing. bikes are great.

5 Likes
#4574

Thing is, I am not worried about the fitness aspect as I would probably start off just with 10km rides at a comfortable pace. It is the cars I am worried about, and thr pedestrians, dog walkers, crappy pavements, postboxes in the middle of cycle paths, the fact the I have never really mastered stating and stopping…

Kind of feel like I would be more comfortable if I went ahead and got a new bike that wasn’t a bit too bignfor me, but am worried it would be a waste of I didn’t get my confidence back.

Basically my brain just likes to sabotage me.

#4575

I have brain blocks and get anxious about rides all the time. Not about my ability to ride a bike as such, but more everything else. Too many hills? Will this be the time I have a debilitating crash? What if I’m on a group ride and I can’t keep up? What if… the list goes on. I never even feel particularly nervous about doing long rides ever, it’s everything else that my brain worries about. I guess because I know I can ride far, but I don’t know all the other shit that might happen.

In reality nothing bad ever happens and I always feel better for having gone out.

I don’t know if it’s possible for you, but some sort of Bikeability thing might be a good shout if you’re able to get to one: https://saferessexroads.org/road-users/cycling/ (really annoying they don’t seem to offer any one-to-one stuff like many London councils.)

2 Likes
#4576

Wotcha.

Going to buy a helmet to try and protect myself from the savages behind the wheel. Are all bicycle helmets pretty reliable for protecting your head? Or do I need to do a bit of research.

#4577

As long as they conform to BSEN1078 you’re alright (they all will). The next level up is the SNELL standard but I don’t think I’ve ever seen one of those :man_shrugging:

There’s also MIPS bollocks which helps with concussion apparently. I recently bought a £13 Planet X Notus Evo which I am very happy with. I’ll never buy another ££ helmet again.

2 Likes
#4578

every helmet sold in the uk has to meet a certain safety specification, so a £10 one out of halfords should be as safe as a £200 fancy one

having said that, some of the newer ones have features like MIPS which the manufacturers claim are better in a crash. don’t think anyone really knows for sure though because head injuries are complicated as fuck.

tl;dr get whatever one you want, it’s probably fine

#4579

I’d deffo try it on in a shop or be prepared to send it back via post etc. Some are more comfy than others (and doesn’t relate to price)

3 Likes
#4580

oh yeah, that’s a great point^

#4581

Halfords was just what I had in mind, it’s the handiest nearby store

1 Like
#4582

Actually cleaned my bike like a proper bikewanker this morning, doing that actually made me feel a bit more confident to actually look at my bike and realise it isn’t so scary after all. Hopefully I can get a ride in tomorrow morning :crossed_fingers:

2 Likes
#4583

Two weekends of long rides: think I’m ready for Ronde van Vlaanderen. Only two weeks to go!

1 Like