Cycling is a race for many people, even if the only people they race with are their imaginary opponents on a cycle path. There is nothing quite like hearing someone change down gears after you have passed them, to then bury themselves to regain their imaginary first place from you. You watch their bodies rock and sway, their head slowly dropping lower as their energy dwindles. Their body starts to sag, hanging from their hands, which hold onto their bars with a death grip, all while you wonder, “Why?”
Continue reading “The Cycle Path Olympics”Tag: bike
Squid SO-EZ Quick Tracklocross Bike Check
Up on YouTube is a quick look at my Squid SO-EZ build. The SO-EZ is my go-to tracklocross bike for when the trail gets a bit more technical. It reminds me of a 90’s mountain bike and makes me want to skid around every corner with a huge smile across my face.
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Ulysses the Tracklocross
As we head into winter, I always feel the urge to ride my bike more. I guess this may seem strange to some people, particularly those of the fair-weather cyclist variety, but I hate the heat and riding in summer makes me mostly feel horrible. I guess this is because I am Scottish, and my beard tries to be ginger.
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YouTube Video Series: What is Tracklocross
I’ve started a new series on YouTube exploring what is tracklocross. The first is a quick video explaining what tracklocross is to me; I hope you’ll find it a fun little video. Next week there will be video uploads exploring the parts of tracklocross bikes and possibly a rant on why steel is best.
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Riding Uphill on a Tracklocross Bike
Riding uphill is often considered the bane of riding a fixed gear or tracklocross bike, but it isn’t. I will give you the number one tip for going uphill right here. See if you want to get off and push or sit down for a minute? Do it. You shouldn’t care what anyone else says. The people who want to suffer can suffer. Keep cycling fun, and do you and don’t feel pressure to be superhuman.
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Tracklocross: In Praise of a Simple Bike
The other day at work, I built up a wheelie bike for a new project. It struck me that this bike is so simple. The wheelie bike has stripped away what you don’t need, and you have a bike that is just simply a bike. It is a bike that will work, and you don’t need any bike trade marketing to dictate the features on the bike. The kid pulling wheelies down your road is who the bike is designed around, not marketing. In short, this is why I also love tracklocross.
Continue reading “Tracklocross: In Praise of a Simple Bike”A Slow TV Tracklocross Ride From Luss, Along Loch Lomond to Firkin Point
I shared the first part of this journey, where YouTube somehow won’t show the HD version, now we have the second half of the cycle up to Firkin Point. Sadly, for a January ride, there is no snow but we do have a nice low hanging winter sun as I ride the tracklocross bike alongside one of Scotland’s most famous tourist spots.
Tracklosalmon
Tracklosalmon is a tracklocross race that I held last weekend. The basic principle was to run a tracklocross race similar to a dual slalom event. I set out a 40-second course, with a Le Man’s start, a sharp climb and technical downhill. It was to try and run a different style of tracklocross event. One that I felt would have been a laugh.
Continue reading “Tracklosalmon”Slow TV Tracklocross Ride to Loch Lomond at Luss
The other day I went out a cycle along the NCN7 and then onto the West Loch Lomond Cycle Path up to Luss for a great view of Ben Lomond. The West Lomond Cycle Path is a 17-mile path up the west side of Loch Lomond, as you would imagine. It is advertised as for all bikes but with the path degradation and general hazards on the path, a wider tyred bike would be a better bet.
Continue reading “Slow TV Tracklocross Ride to Loch Lomond at Luss”Slow TV Tracklocross Ride Around Pollok Park
The other day, I took the Surly Steamroller for a tracklocross ride around Pollok Park. As you can see, it was one of the few proper winter days that we have had in Glasgow this winter.