easy riding

[Doobrie]

after going out on my new bike and being so unfit as to be knackered after only 20 mins does
anyone know of any decent flat area's to ride around in birmingham until i get some fitness back
into my legs

im talking of billiard table flat as even slight inclines are making life difficult at the moment
and i really dont want to just go out for 20 mins!

would the canal toe paths be an option?(the bikes a raleigh pioneer 120 hybrid thing - ive never
ridden them before as i always used to go on road - i used to ride about 200 miles a week several
years back and it doesnt feel good to go out of the door and be back 20 mins later (my area is
either uphill or downhill ... not what anyone would call hilly but more than a match for me at
the moment!)

 

[Tony W]

"doobrie" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> after going out on my new bike and being so unfit as to be knackered after only 20 mins does
> anyone know of any decent flat area's to ride around in birmingham until i get some fitness back
> into my legs
>
> im talking of billiard table flat as even slight inclines are making life difficult at the moment
> and i really dont want to just go out for 20 mins!
>
> would the canal toe paths be an option?(the bikes a raleigh pioneer 120 hybrid thing - ive never
> ridden them before as i always used to go on road - i used to ride about 200 miles a week several
> years back and it doesnt feel good to go out of the door and be back 20 mins later (my area is
> either uphill or downhill ... not what anyone would call hilly but more than a match for me at the
> moment!)

Don't panic. You will improve dramatically and very, very quickly.

Check that your saddle height and bike set up are right. If they are not you will be cycling MUCH
less efficiently.

Do not avoid all hills. Drop the gears down so you can continue to pedal at a nice fast rate 60 to
90 per minute ideally. Do not try to push up hills in a high gear.

Take your time. Go a bit slower to conserve energy.

It will get better fast.

T

PS Tow paths are nice -- but they always seem to have short, sharp hills on them

 

[GearóId Ó Laoi]

It does come back quickly. About 12 years ago I was injured for a year and could do no cycling. My
first cycle when I went back at it (I used to do 200m/week) was 6 miles and I got the knock. On my
second spin I did a local big hill which I'm well used to. I thought I was going to drown in my own
blood!. After 4 or 5 spins there was no problem. Do not push yourself. Just twirl.

 

[Jon Rogers]

In article <[email protected]>, doobrie wrote:
> after going out on my new bike and being so unfit as to be knackered after only 20 mins does
> anyone know of any decent flat area's to ride around in birmingham until i get some fitness back
> into my legs
>
> im talking of billiard table flat as even slight inclines are making life difficult at the moment
> and i really dont want to just go out for 20 mins!
>
> would the canal toe paths be an option?(the bikes a raleigh pioneer 120 hybrid thing - ive never
> ridden them before as i always used to go on road - i used to ride about 200 miles a week several
> years back and it doesnt feel good to go out of the door and be back 20 mins later (my area is
> either uphill or downhill ... not what anyone would call hilly but more than a match for me at the
> moment!)

Stick with it...it does get easier fairly quickly.

When I reached 20 stone a couple of months ago, I began riding as regularly as work commitments
allowed, and it was quite hard.

Now I'm doing 10-12 miles 3 or 4 times a week, and the odd 45 - 50 at weekends (although rather
frustratingly, I'm still 19 stone).

Towpaths are ok, but you need good tyres I have found, as the amount of glass, rubbish and thorns
tends to give you a lot of punctures (I'm not far from you, in Stourbridge, so I know what your
canals are like!).

Other annoyances include anglers who won't shift rods to let you past, and those anti motorcycle
gate things, that make you constantly dismount. Also, strictly speaking you should have a permit
from British Waterways to ride on towpaths.

Then again, they can be very pleasant places to ride, in rural or industrial areas. I'm particularly
enjoying watching new families of ducks and geese at the moment.

I found it important to use routes that I enjoy riding, or the appeal tends to where off. So I
ride a mix of towpaths and quiet lanes, where there are hills. You have to tackle them sometime
I suppose.

HTH

--
Jon
____________________________________________
jondotrogersatntlworlddotcom
============================================

 

[Mike Gayler]

doobrie <[email protected]> writed in news:[email protected]:

>
> would the canal toe paths be an option?(the bikes a raleigh pioneer 120 hybrid thing - ive never
> ridden them before as i always used to go on road

No!

They tend to be very variable in surface quality, there is occasional debbris /deep mud / dog poo /
gates / narrow bridgeholes

There is continual conflict with peds, anglers, other bike riders, dog walkers.....

And on top of that don't forget that *strictly* speaking you need a free BW permit to ride on most
towpaths as most are not public rights of ways (although in 35 or so years I've only ever been asked
for mine twice, and volunteered it a few more times).

Mike Leicester- UK

 

[Just Zis Guy]

On Sun, 11 May 2003 23:04:15 +0100, doobrie <[email protected]> wrote:

>after going out on my new bike and being so unfit as to be knackered after only 20 mins does
>anyone know of any decent flat area's to ride around in birmingham until i get some fitness back
>into my legs

It might be easier to use a lower gear, move the saddle up and try again

Guy
===
** WARNING ** This posting may contain traces of irony. http://www.chapmancentral.com (BT ADSL and
dynamic DNS permitting)
NOTE: BT Openworld have now blocked port 25 (without notice), so old mail addresses may no longer
work. Apologies.

 

[Dave]

"doobrie" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> after going out on my new bike and being so unfit as to be knackered after only 20 mins does
> anyone know of any decent flat area's to ride around in birmingham until i get some fitness back
> into my legs
>
> im talking of billiard table flat as even slight inclines are making life difficult at the moment
> and i really dont want to just go out for 20 mins!
>
> would the canal toe paths be an option?(the bikes a raleigh pioneer 120 hybrid thing - ive never
> ridden them before as i always used to go on road - i used to ride about 200 miles a week several
> years back and it doesnt feel good to go out of the door and be back 20 mins later (my area is
> either uphill or downhill ... not what anyone would call hilly but more than a match for me at the
> moment!)

2 things......

1. There ain't no such thing as flat on the roads, just uphill and downhill, with varying degrees
of steepness. The beauty about going uphill is the fact there's usually a downhill on the
other side ;-)

2. There are some lovely canal towpath rides around Birmingham. As I'm from the Wolverhampton /
Walsall side, I do a loop from Wolverhampton via Tipton through Spaghetti Junction to B'ham City
Centre then on up the main B'ham to Wolverhampton canal, runs alongside the railway. It's not as
'pretty' as countryside stuff but does have it's own beauty. The Jewellry Quarter section is very
interesting and lots of waterside developments going on down there. Worth popping along just for
a look. The loop is 32 miles or so and I do it on a full susser cross country so it's plenty
comfy. Don't think I'd like to do it on a rigid though due to variable surface types.

As I think others have mentioned, stick with it, improvement comes remarkably quickly and before you
know it, you won't even be getting out of breath...no, honestly ;-)

HTH, Dave.

 

[Doobrie]

In article <[email protected]>, [email protected] says...
> On Sun, 11 May 2003 23:04:15 +0100, doobrie <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> >after going out on my new bike and being so unfit as to be knackered after only 20 mins does
> >anyone know of any decent flat area's to ride around in birmingham until i get some fitness back
> >into my legs
>
> It might be easier to use a lower gear, move the saddle up and try again
>
> Guy
> ===

if the saddle went up any higher i wouldnt be able to reach the peddles

it is set up correctly ... and i am using low and high gears where appropriate - just that since an
accident about 5-6 years ago ive not done anything fitness related and my weight on top of that has
soared. ive started up swimming, walking and cycling to improve the situation but i spose i should
just tootle around my local roads in low gear for a few weeks before thinking of anything else

 

[Doobrie]

In article <[email protected]>, [email protected] says...
> doobrie <[email protected]> writed in news:[email protected]:
> > would the canal toe paths be an option?(the bikes a raleigh pioneer 120 hybrid thing - ive never
> > ridden them before as i always used to go on road
>
> No!
>
> They tend to be very variable in surface quality, there is occasional debbris /deep mud / dog poo
> / gates / narrow bridgeholes
>
> There is continual conflict with peds, anglers, other bike riders, dog walkers.....

well, i'll stick to the roads then - nothing worse than gong out minding own business and getting
dragged into conflict ...

 

[Ambrose Nankive]

In news:[email protected], doobrie <[email protected]> typed:
> In article <[email protected]>, [email protected] says...
>> On Sun, 11 May 2003 23:04:15 +0100, doobrie <[email protected]> wrote:
>>
>>> after going out on my new bike and being so unfit as to be knackered after only 20 mins does
>>> anyone know of any decent flat area's to ride around in birmingham until i get some fitness back
>>> into my legs
>>
>> It might be easier to use a lower gear, move the saddle up and try again
>
> if the saddle went up any higher i wouldnt be able to reach the peddles

I take it that means that your knee is only very slightly bent when the pedal is at the bottom of
the revolution and the ball of your foot is on the pedal. (And the other leg is off the floor;
support yourself with a hand on a wall while trying this) Anyway, it's worth stating that explicitly
for any lurkers.

> it is set up correctly ... and i am using low and high gears where appropriate - just that since
> an accident about 5-6 years ago ive not done anything fitness related and my weight on top of that
> has soared.

If you're comfortable walking for 20 minutes, you should be able to cycle at about the same level of
effort for the same length of time. Are your tyres
a) knobbly (and made of inflexible rubber) and/or b) underinflated (if you squeeze the tyre with
your thumb, with your fingers bracing themselves on the rim, as hard as you can, you still
shouldn't be able to squeeze it flat)? If so, pump up your tyres until they're pretty hard and
that should make life easier. Hopefully the shop will have sent you away with a pumpwhen they
sold you the bike.

The canals in Birmingham are good. If you're near Selly Oak, Bournville or Kings Norton, you can use
the canal to get into town, and that's a nice flat rider. Access points are at Selly Oak Triangle
(go down past Quick's the car dealers*), Bournville station and Lifford Lane respectively.

If you're near the Rea Valley cycle route (Stirchley to Canon Hill Park), that's also a nice easy
route to cycle.

Enjoy the riding, and I hope it gets easier soon.

Ambrose

*It's also very close to Selly Oak cycles, where the shop owner is very helpful, even though it's a
pretty scruffy place.

 

[Doobrie]

In article <[email protected]>,
[email protected] says...
> I take it that means that your knee is only very slightly bent when the pedal is at the bottom of
> the revolution and the ball of your foot is on the pedal. (And the other leg is off the floor;
> support yourself with a hand on a wall while trying this) Anyway, it's worth stating that
> explicitly for any lurkers.

yes, set up just like that.

> > it is set up correctly ... and i am using low and high gears where appropriate - just that since
> > an accident about 5-6 years ago ive not done anything fitness related and my weight on top of
> > that has soared.
>
> If you're comfortable walking for 20 minutes, you should be able to cycle at about the same level
> of effort for the same length of time. Are your tyres
> a) knobbly (and made of inflexible rubber) and/or b) underinflated (if you squeeze the tyre with
> your thumb, with your fingers bracing themselves on the rim, as hard as you can, you still
> shouldn't be able to squeeze it flat)? If so, pump up your tyres until they're pretty hard and
> that should make life easier. Hopefully the shop will have sent you away with a pumpwhen they
> sold you the bike.

they are definately closer to slicks than to knobbly mtb tires and are pumped up quite hard ... im a
heavy sod though at just under 23 stone so they dont look as hard as they are when im sitting on the
bike - its certainly a nice sturdy bike anyway which is what i wanted/needed until i get back into
shape .... i did very much like the look of the carera virtuoso on display so have that or similair
in mind for next year

> The canals in Birmingham are good. If you're near Selly Oak, Bournville or Kings Norton, you can
> use the canal to get into town, and that's a nice flat rider. Access points are at Selly Oak
> Triangle (go down past Quick's the car dealers*), Bournville station and Lifford Lane
> respectively.
>
> If you're near the Rea Valley cycle route (Stirchley to Canon Hill Park), that's also a nice easy
> route to cycle.
>
> Enjoy the riding, and I hope it gets easier soon.
>
> Ambrose

ive been put off the idea of the canal toe paths now and will stick to my local roads erdington way,
for a while at least - i'll try and keep my gear as low as i can and spin more than i feel
comfortable at - i dont like spinning a lot whilst moving slowly, looks/feels odd - something i'll
have to get over if i want my fitness back i spose ...

 

[John Mallard]

"doobrie" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

[...]
> ive been put off the idea of the canal toe paths now and will stick to my local roads erdington
> way, for a while at least - i'll try and keep my gear as low as i can and spin more than i feel
> comfortable at - i dont like spinning a lot whilst moving slowly, looks/feels odd - something i'll
> have to get over if i want my fitness back i spose ...

Yes, canals are worth doing once or twice, but no more than that. I once set out to cycle to
Wolverhampton along the canal. By about three quarters of the way there I was nearly braindead with
boredom so I came off and cycled home along the roads.

Why not try a few circuits of Sutton Park? If you don't want to cycle there, the Cross City Line
takes bikes for free (out side of rush hours). The bike space is in the carriage with the pantagraph
on top, at the door furthest from the pantagraph.

--
Cheerful pedalling John Mallard take out the_bike_ to reply

 

[Dave]

"doobrie" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> In article <[email protected]>, [email protected] says...
> > doobrie <[email protected]> writed in
> > news:[email protected]:
> > > would the canal toe paths be an option?(the bikes a raleigh pioneer
120
> > > hybrid thing - ive never ridden them before as i always used to go on road
> >
> > No!
> >
> > They tend to be very variable in surface quality, there is occasional debbris /deep mud / dog
> > poo / gates / narrow bridgeholes
> >
> > There is continual conflict with peds, anglers, other bike riders, dog walkers.....
>
> well, i'll stick to the roads then - nothing worse than gong out minding own business and getting
> dragged into conflict ...

Doobrie, go for it, it's nowhere as near as bad as made out in that post, certainly not what I've
experienced around the B'ham area. I find it much better on the towpaths than the road and somehow,
it just feels healthier ;-) Dave.

 

[Just Zis Guy]

On Wed, 14 May 2003 23:39:39 +0100, "Dave" <[email protected]> wrote:

>Oh go on, wots a pantagraph then ?...anyone ?...

It's the bit which picks up the sparks from overhead lines.

Guy
===
** WARNING ** This posting may contain traces of irony. http://www.chapmancentral.com (BT ADSL and
dynamic DNS permitting)
NOTE: BT Openworld have now blocked port 25 (without notice), so old mail addresses may no longer
work. Apologies.

 

[Tony Raven]

In news:[email protected], Just zis Guy, you know?
<[email protected]> typed:
> On Wed, 14 May 2003 23:39:39 +0100, "Dave" <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>> Oh go on, wots a pantagraph then ?...anyone ?...
>
> It's the bit which picks up the sparks from overhead lines.
>

And for your next question, the shape of the overhead line is?

Tony

--
http://www.raven-family.com

"All truth goes through three steps: First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed.
Finally, it is accepted as self-evident." Arthur Schopenhauer

 

[Just Zis Guy]

On Sat, 17 May 2003 14:36:18 +0100, "Tony Raven" <[email protected]> wrote:

>And for your next question, the shape of the overhead line is?

No idea - I've never seen these alleged vehicles. But I do know what a pantograph is. And how to
spell it...

I presume the line is more or less straight and supported on a catenary but I really don't know.

Guy
===
** WARNING ** This posting may contain traces of irony. http://www.chapmancentral.com (BT ADSL and
dynamic DNS permitting)
NOTE: BT Openworld have now blocked port 25 (without notice), so old mail addresses may no longer
work. Apologies.

 

[Anonymous]

"Dave" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...

> Oh go on, wots a pantagraph then ?...anyone ?...

It's a tool used by the sales divisions of underwear companies to help them predict the proportion
of frillies/woolies to make next year.

cheers, clive

(in answer to Tony's question, another one : in which plane?)

 

[Dave]

news:[email protected]...
> "Dave" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
>
> > Oh go on, wots a pantagraph then ?...anyone ?...
>
> It's a tool used by the sales divisions of underwear companies to help
them
> predict the proportion of frillies/woolies to make next year.
>
> cheers, clive
>
> (in answer to Tony's question, another one : in which plane?)
>
Damn, should've been able to have worked that one out....must try harder!! cheers, dave.