Tell us about your new improved government regulations compliant cycle part II

magicbastarder

beautiful day out there, should have worn shorts. roads were very busy in a few spots - howth road between st annes park and sutton cross was a near car park, as was kinsealy heading back inbound.

i will admit to having let out an intemperate and profane yell at a motorist on howth hill though. going up howth (village side) was not helped by the rush job i did indexing my gears after changing cables a few days back.

Rob987

Did nice 59km spin. Sandyford, Rathfarnham, Sally Gap, Manor Kilbride, Ballinascorney then home. Just under 1,000m of climbing. Super day for it 😎

Weepsie

magicbastarder wrote: »

heh, i can remember the first time i got back on the bike in about 5 years, about 3 years ago. did 13k (probably gunned it a little too much) and felt like death warmed up for half an hour.

My girlfriend reminded me of a text I sent her 3 years ago when I just started cycling for my own pleasure for the first time since being a child. "30 km done, shattered". She reminded me of that today after I'd done 70 km, much of it uphill, with a minimum of 35 km to get back home. Everyone starts out the same, so just enjoy it.

Anyway. I took on the hill climb challenge, I got lost on the way as despite being from Dublin, I really don't know my way around it at times. Finally found stocking lane, dragged myself up it, then instead of going home headed towards Glencree, I got brave and headed for the Sally Gap. Headed for Roundwood, Greystones and then home back to Dublin.

110 km in 4 hrs 40 mins and I am shattered!

Also asked a Garda for directions to Greystones just outside Roundwood. He started directing me one way, then said "Do you like hills? Of course you do, go Right and head towards Newtown Mount Kennedy". I was too tired to tell him I probably had enough hills for the day, but I was the only cyclist for the next 20 km.

Anyway here's mine

https://www.strava.com/activities/913975056

Chuchote

Matt.ie wrote: »

It was a competitive cycler who sold me the bike. He spent time adjusting the saddle and height to suit me. I am new to cycling. Haven't cycled in over 30 years or more so some pain is expected to begin with.

Hmm. Ok. One tip, if you've just come back to cycling: try to cycle in as easy a gear as possible and keep your legs going relaxedly around, rather than pushing the bike and then freewheeling, then pushing, then freewheeling. A lot less effort to do it the first way.

smacl

Had planned on a slightly longer one today, thinking of maybe 120k with 2k of climbing, ended up with 117k and 1.9k of climbing which suggests I should pay a tiny bit more attention to my Garmin. Also hit a max speed of 69.8kph coming off the Sally gap, so a bit of a day of almost but not quite. Route was Ballyboden, Sally Gap, Manor Kilbride, Blessington, St Kevins Way, Wicklow Gap, Laragh, Sally gap, so lumpy enough but given the stonkingly good weather no hardship at all. Bumped into Coastwatch at the Hippy Café for a pleasant chat, and said hi again to him as he sped past me going up Glenmacnass, giving me a decent opportunity to congratulate myself for not entering the boards hill climb challenge. Didn't pass anyone going up any hills today, though going down was a different story. Gravity loves a trier!

Weepsie

Mentioned in the hill climb challenge thread, but passed a guy going up stocking lane on a hybrid wearing his jeans and hoody. I assumed he was local. I had stopped a bit before Kippure to answer a call. Was chatting for a few minutes and he goes by me again. Chapeau to that man I say.

Also met The Spokesman (one of my "LBS" options) out on his club spin and when I was stopped on the phone had someone ask if I was in trouble. A good lot them cyclists. Great driving all round from all. Got ample space and patience from al.

Don't Chute!

Wow, what a day! 100 kms with 1400m of climbing. Greystones up the Long Hill to Roundwood Laragh up the Wickow Gap up Turlough Hill and back the same way. The weather was absolutely glorious on the Gap my garmin said it was 23 degrees!! First short sleeve spin this year and I can even feel on my face I've gotten a colour! Oddly saw very few cyclists out, thought there would be hoards of them!

https://www.strava.com/activities/914115679

magicbastarder

Don't Chute! wrote: »

Oddly saw very few cyclists out, thought there would be hoards of them!

i was cycling around howth and malahide, and the roads were black with cyclists.

Weepsie

Don't Chute! wrote: »

Wow, what a day! 100 kms with 1400m of climbing. Greystones up the Long Hill to Roundwood Laragh up the Wickow Gap up Turlough Hill and back the same way. The weather was absolutely glorious on the Gap my garmin said it was 23 degrees!! First short sleeve spin this year and I can even feel on my face I've gotten a colour! Oddly saw very few cyclists out, thought there would be hoards of them!

https://www.strava.com/activities/914115679

They were all tackling stocking lane

Don't Chute!

Also had a crazy amount of really close passes today. Way more than usual.

Mercian Pro

Weepsie wrote: »

They were all tackling stocking lane

....and the Wicklow Gap 😅

Weepsie

Don't Chute! wrote: »

Also had a crazy amount of really close passes today. Way more than usual.

I imagine Glendalough was heaving. I stopped in Greystones to meet the OH for lunch before heading home. Loads of traffic passing through and Bray was much the same.

secman

A flatfish course for me today .up to ballyedmund, ballycanew, Gorey, inch, Castletown, Ballymoney, courtown and back to Ballygarrett , killenagh and home.

63 km Avg 24.2 kph. Seem to be struggling with Avg at the moment for some reason. ?
Stiff enough breeze down here today and temp never got above 13 degrees.

magicbastarder

Lovely morning for it. 47km around NCD, 25k average. Quite a few out on the roads.

secman

Feeling a bit leggy today so went out with a local leisure group, in first 20 km sorted a sheep in distress, she was in lamb and couldnt get up off her back. Probably would have died according to the locals, stopped for photos and a 20 min coffee break, certainly different . Managed to do just under 45 km , Avg 22.5 kmph . Still have a strong north easterly down here keeping temp to about 12 or 13 degrees . Lovely morning otherwise , all you can see in the sky are criss crossing of jet trails.

LollipopJimmy

50kms of stomach cramps... dominos and beer last night sapped some of my enjoyment today. I do apologise to anybody who may have been behind me on the north strand and howth head today

smacl

Weepsie wrote: »

I imagine Glendalough was heaving.

Wicklow gap was ok, but Glendalough was choca-bloc and I caught the tail end of some pretty aggressive road rage behind me as I headed to Laragh. As a walking venue best avoided these days at weekends, unless of course you cycle to get there

velo.2010

Avoid the Straffan road in Maynooth for the moment. Very dodgy with the road works. Don't know why they just couldn't re-surface the road and leave as it is. The new layout does nothing for cyclists - puts them in more danger IMO - and looks a pain for car users too.

There is something about a stiff breeze that I find harder than a really windy day. Constant and no let up.

Miklos

Raced the Kilmessan GP in A4, really enjoyed it. Lumpy enough circuit and a tough uphill finish line. Quite a lot of crashes though.

Daroxtar

Lovely day out there. Went off up the hills with a good buddy for the first time in a while and felt every last inch of it by the time I was finished. Legs were ripped to bits coming around the lake after Valleymount and into a stiff headwind from Blessington back to base. I'm just getting back to myself after a dirty aul dose two weeks ago so that's my excuse. Hopefully I'll be right for the Orwell Randonee.

Plenty of the aforementioned close passes. I used some sign language every now and then. Seemed to work with the next car coming if the close pass was part of a convoy
Despite the sunshine it definitely was not summer. The breeze up on Turlough Hill was absolutely Baltic.
104km with 1500m climbing in 4:26
Bohernabreena -Cunard -Sally Gap -Laragh -Wicklow Gap -Turlough Hill -Valleymount -Blessington -Tallaght
https://www.strava.com/activities/915203291

davef1000

81k approx with the club today, including 660m climbing. Cycled Ladies Brae in Sligo for the first time and managed to do it without stopping on the way up. I don't have average speeds because the garmin went a bit loopy, which is annoying because it's the farthest I've gone in a long while.

Unknown Soldier

davef1000 wrote: »

81k approx with the club today, including 660m climbing. Cycled Ladies Brae in Sligo for the first time and managed to do it without stopping on the way up. I don't have average speeds because the garmin went a bit loopy, which is annoying because it's the farthest I've gone in a long while.

Do you delete the old rides from it? Or was the GPS wonky?

While I'm here. 112km yesterday with 750m odd climbing, but it wasn't a climbing day. They be a coming!
As Daroxter mentioned above, might be sunny out, but it is still freezing in places!

One has a climbing bike out of hibernation now, so looking forward to the weeks ahead.

https://www.strava.com/activities/913951732

Weepsie

My own Garmin lost an hour of data today. Visiting parents for the day thats in it. Took a longer route, 30 km. Did it at 28 kmh. Forgot to turn it off and it auto turned off. Turned it back on a couple of hours later when heading back and it wouldnt't get beyond "working for ages". I fired up Strava anyway which got 23 kms.

In all I did 52 or so km but that's annoyed me.

f1000

First 50k spin in 8 months. Would have been raging if I didn't make use of this weather. Having problems with Strava lately as it seems to be dropping signal and ends up show parts of my rides as the crow flies?

dahat

Dungarvan GP today, went for a long Sprint and blew up in spectacular fashion...

On we go for the next one...

ezra_

75k, half of which over ****ty back roads with potholes and gravel galore. talking to a local farmer afterwards, he was shocked anyone would bike around the area. Twice my mudguard was removed from bangs on the road.

however, views and the weather made up for it. What a day to be out.

Wishbone Ash

Weepsie wrote: »

.. Forgot to turn it off and it auto turned off. Turned it back on a couple of hours later when heading back and it wouldnt't get beyond "working for ages"....

My 810 seems to give continual problems. If I leave it alone at a coffee stop, occasionally it switches off or freezes.

If I turn it off and back on again after a break, the elevation graph looks like I fell off a cliff at the break point. If I use the 'correct elevation' feature, I often end up losing most of the climbing (compared to others in the same group - recently it reduced me from 800m to 120m after I corrected it).

davef1000

Unknown Soldier wrote: »

Do you delete the old rides from it? Or was the GPS wonky?

The ride was very stop/start, with punctures, stopping to let slow riders catch up etc, and I kept pausing and unpausing the device. At one point it was paused for too long and switched off, and I lost a chunk of data from the middle of the route.

Wishbone Ash

davef1000 wrote: »

... and I kept pausing and unpausing the device. At one point it was paused for too long and switched off...

Do you not have it set to auto-pause?

(By any chance did the battery die hence it switching off?)

davef1000

I used to have it set to auto-pause, and now I don't, for some reason! I'll have to figure out again why I did that...