Tell us about your cycle today part III

Luxman

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119427681#Comment_119427681

I'd the the same, would only pick up bits of that segment, its 9k long and more often than not into a wind, and it rolls up and down quite a bit. Today was a sidewind and I managed some hedge shelter on the way too.

magicbastarder

my finish point when i'm out that part of the world is kilsallaghan, so i'm usually on the last leg home at that stage. and that means facing into a headwind on tired legs.

Mercian Pro

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119423663#Comment_119423663

That's why I didn't do the extra 1.27km or even go for a swim in Carlingford. Normally the sailing in Howth is reasonably sedate but it was full-on that night. Slept well after it.

mr spuckler

It was like a car free day in the Dublin mountains this morning. Once I turned off from Ballinascorney onto Shankill road heading to to Sally gap until the bottom of Cruagh a long time later I literally barely met a single car. Bliss!

traco

Short spin this morning for you lot but a long one for a noob like me. Was aiming for two hours in the saddle and didn't have a GPS route only a rough idea in my head.

Lovely morning for it though and was on my own for most of it untill the last few Kms home. What's the protocol with cycling traffic?

I came up on a guy on a mountain bike so that was an easy pass. Then a group of three so hung back but they turned off so I could pick up my pace again as I was a small but quicker.

Coming through Malahide there was a guy that caught me but stayed behind. I reckon he was quicker so should I have called him on.

Then we caught another group of three. I hung back as I was turning off a couple of Kms up the road but I would have been a bit quicker than them and I felt like I was making a mess of it for the guy behind me.

Advice on above appreciated.

That aside, cycle was good. Small back track as I turned into an estate cos I didn't really know where I was. I don't like hills so much work needed there. I'm 115kg wet and 6'3"/4"ish so not very aero. Must address the kg issue as that's where most gains will be got.

Bike went well. Rear shift a little sticky the odd time but will install new cables, chain, rear cassette and clean it all in the next few weeks and hopefully that sorts that.

Backside was a bit achy so Lidl padded shorts aren't cutting it and neither are the runners on the pedal inserts. Guess shoes and shorts next on the shopping list.

Overall though a very enjoyable morning!

Weepsie

Go your own pace, ignore everyone else

magicbastarder

reasonably leisurely 84km this morning (30km of which was cycling with my wife at an average of probably 20km/h), topping off what i think might be the most cycling i've done in a week, according to strava - finished the week on 327km.

was continuing to take on roads i've not been on before, so found myself on some i'd usually avoid. one being the R132 between the N2 (ie. at the junction near the snailbox) and duleek; where i had 3 or more stupid overtakes - one lad overtook me into oncoming traffic and bizarrely the lad behind accelerated to do it to and clearly realised at the last second it was a stupid idea; it's a little unnerving hearing a car behind you lose traction under braking, albeit for probably only half a second.

magicbastarder

I felt like I was making a mess of it for the guy behind me.

if he wants to overtake, let him make that decision himself - he may have been happy to shelter behind you for a bit...

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119440734#Comment_119440734

R152 you mean surely? I hate driving that stretch let alone cycling it for the reason you mentioned. I've had some absolutely crazy over takes there in the car over the years.

magicbastarder

sorry, yeah, the R152.

silverharp

yesterday, went out the Royal canal with a mate, ended up in Enfield, had been to Maynooth last month, the route really improves past Maynooth. Not been cycling much in the last couple of months with covid and holidays, we probably had a wind assist on the way back which helped. went for a nap after and conked out for 2 hours lol

beggars_bush

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119441330#Comment_119441330

get train down to eg mullingar and cycle back

silverharp

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119442574#Comment_119442574

we were thinking about it but hadnt checked the trains, next time we might do that

magicbastarder

passed a lad with race numbers on his bike, in ashbourne earlier (there had been racing on at the coolquay circuit) with a bottle of white wine in his jersy pocket.

soon after i passed a woman out cycling in a jersey which had the union jack printed on it, taking up the entire jersey. cyclists get enough stick on the roads without painting an almost literal target on you like that...

nigeldaniel

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119440320#Comment_119440320

100% agree with this.

positron

Saw some cyclists going thru Buncrana last week - followed by support cars. Must have been Donegal 333 / 555. At least one guy was doing 40-45kmph leaving Buncrana (ahead of me in my car), and if I got the route right, this is after already lapping Innishowen including Mamore Gap and still have hundreds of kms to go. Crazy strong riders.

patrickc

I bought a new Cannondale Supersix evo a couple of months ago, which had a few niggles. They are mostly ironed out now and i went for a 101km at 29.1 average this morning on my own as ever.

Happy enough with that I went Carlow-PortLaoise-Monastervin-towards Kildare- back to Athy and to Carlow.

magicbastarder

i did four laps of the coolquay circuit this morning for the laugh; basically simulating the race swords would put on monthly there. there was a strava segment for a single lap, so i've just created one for the four laps. strava is still calculating and adding riders i think, but i am currently sitting at 60th place out of 60 riders. i wish i could say that is because i stopped for a breather...

also, at one point i had a big sunburnty faced lad driving a van alongside me, shouting out the window at me in an eastern european accent. 'WHOAH MISTER! FIFTY! FIFTY KILOMETERS!'

i of course gave him a big cheery wave, but his speedo is way off. i was doing 37 i think.

retalivity

Did the tour of kildare this morning with only 2 gears. Rear derailleur cable snapped after about 6k and left me stuck in the smallest sprocket the whole way round. Thankfully it was mostly flat but there were a few climbs towards the end that were torture, weaving over and back the road and lads spinning past me wondering wtf am I at.

https://www.strava.com/activities/7636545423

secman

Club spin, out an hour earlier than normal. Gorey to Arklow, Woodenbridge and on to Rathdrum, up Rathdrum hill, out to the turn for Deputy's Pass. Left at bottom and out on to old N11 at Beehive. Back by old N11 to Jack Whites, Arklow and back to Gorey. 88km, 600 + meters and avg 32.4kph. 🔥 🥵

hesker

Out early this morning to avoid the worst of the heat for what has become an annual visit to the Wicklow mountains. Well known to many of you probably.

Starting and finishing in Glencree a figure of 8 loop through the Sally gap down to Laragh, back through Roundwood and Sally Gap again before looping west, then north and back to Glencree.

That last bit up The Wall and The Tough Bit segments really were bloody tough. Stunning scenery and some beautiful roads.

Daroxtar

Did a fantastic route today up around the Cooley's and Sleive Gullion. Unashamedly stole it off @Mercian Pro from a week or two ago.

I have a bit of a head cold and didn't fancy being pulled asunder on a fast club spin so a nice change of scenery was just the ticket. The weather was perfect apart from having a headwind that seemed to be in my face no matter which direction I turned. The roads were very quiet despite it being a sunny Sunday morning. There were a few sketchy descents and my childhood recollection of better tar across the border seem to be a long distant memory. By and large though, the surfaces were fine.

The scenery on the climbs up to Claremont Cairn and the Ring of Gullion was superb. The climb to Claremont was as tough as I expected but the Ring of Gullion caught me off guard. Garmin told me it was about 5km @5%. Was it F*#k!!! Constant ramps hitting well into double figures followed by little dips and more ramps, I seemed to be climbing nearly the whole time until the last km of a 9km loop!!

The head cold was really starting to take toll and legs were well shot by the time I got back up to Long Woman's Grave and the descent most of the way back to Carlingford was most appreciated.

I'll definitely be back there again, great cycling country altogether.

Just over 100km, just under 2000m climbing

https://strava.app.link/4LY5eh3Eusb

spudpicker2022

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119473324#Comment_119473324

gullion is very deceiving!!! but worth it. Even the downhill part has a ~9% ramp thrown in and you can't really see it coming either so it's easy to be in teh wrong gear.

camlough mountain is another nice climb (for next day!). a smoother consistent climb too. it has barriers on both sides and if doing it i recommend ascending from the north side as decending that section could be tricky as the trees totally cover the light getting through in places and it could be slippy.

cracking spin though 👍

Large bottle small glass

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119472061#Comment_119472061

In the future you have a few options.

I've snapped a cable only once out on the road, but before it goes the shifting goes to sh1te; that's your time to pick a gear and then stop moving rear derailleur.

If it goes snap you can dial in the high limit screw to maybe use a 14/15 rather than 11/12.

If the cable hasn't broken in shifter you can remove it and run it in reverse to pick whatever single gear you want; i.e. with cable head in rear derailleur and use clamp.

loyatemu

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119472061#Comment_119472061

I think we passed you early on, unless there was someone else trying to do the whole thing in their hardest gear. You still went around faster than me!

retalivity

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119475871#Comment_119475871

It probably was, don't think anyone else was as unlucky/stubborn/stupid as me!

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119475842#Comment_119475842

Yeah the shifting was dodgy starting off, thankfully it snapped when I was in the initial flat run out of Naas with the main group, so was motoring along in the highest gear. The first few climbs around Allen weren't too bad as they were generally short and gentle enough, just took a good run at them and powered through. From Ballitore onwards though, they started getting longer and steeper, that's when the grinding through and the weaving started!

Trekker09

Did the Royal Canal greenway at the weekend, from Maynooth to Longford. Wild camped friday & saturday nights and caught the train back to Maynooth yesterday afternoon. Nice, but a tad underwhelmed with the lack of facilities. The heat was tough but bearable, though it was very quiet the whole weekend!

Special mention must go to Morans pub in Hill of Down. Extremely friendly, great atmosphere and James is a gent! He told me that I could have camped in the garden section and used the facilities there. All I'll say is that Saturday morning was tough getting on the bike again!

Seth Brundle

Went out with a few from the club for a midweek spin. The evening was nice but cooled down early enough. I brought a gilet for use after our usual stop in McEvoys in Hazelhatch but ended up needing it a third of the way into the spin - summer is nearing an end 😢

Within 1 km of us all starting out we had a dickhead in a 04D transit beeping and frantically waving at us to get out of his way as if we were delaying him getting a dying patient to a hospital. This was on the approach to the canal at Adamstown. Nonetheless, he had no difficulty in passing us (with a huge plume of black diesel smoke) so not sure what his hissy fit was about.

Just after the canal we had dickhead number 2 in an artic come up behind us beeping his horn at us. After he passed us (which again wasn't difficult for him) he braked tested us by slamming on the brakes before driving off.

Needless to say, we caught up with him at the next set of lights and apparently his anger was because the eight of us travelling in or around 30km/h weren't doing so on the adjacent cycle lane/footpath. 🙄

I really couldn't be arsed reporting either of them though.

Still, nice midweek group spin with a little tipple at the end. 58km with 320m at 29.9km/h - https://strava.app.link/MWxpOkxoLsb

ARX

Got a flat on the descent from Glencree to Enniskerry yesterday evening. Pulled in, turned the bike upside down, pulled off the rear wheel and then the flies descended. Hundreds of them. Mother of God, it was horrendous. Flies in my ears, on my face, all over my hands, my arms, my legs. Had to give up and walk down the road for what seemed like hours until I got to a slightly more open spot with a bit of a breeze where the flies were merely annoying rather than driving me demented. So I won't be going up in the hills of an evening without insect repellent for a few weeks!

patrickc

I had planned on a 200k this summer , my first.

I did 220km yesterday Carlow - midlands-Mullingar and back around with 1100m of up.

Tired legs today but well worth it.