How to enjoy riding a 50lb bike...

Last week I took a fifty pound bicycle for a couple of rides and enjoyed every minute. No, I'm not talking about some mega-travel downhill rig: I'm far too scared to take one of those anywhere near what they are capable of; nor am I about to be certified insane, as far as I am aware. The bike in question was a Dutch shopping bike, with a sit-up-and-beg riding position, and built with a construction philosophy that the designer of the Panzerkampfwagen IV would have approved of. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the Montego Elan.

The Elan belongs to my mother and the background scenery is Murcia in Spain, where my parents reside. She very kindly allowed me to let it loose on the hilly terrain around their house and I was able to sustain an average of 14.2mph, dressed in my everyday clothes.  The secret, as the eagle-eyed among you will have picked up on, is the electric motor in the rear hub, supplied with power from the battery pack above the luggage rack.

I haven't ridden a hybrid before and it really is something every cyclist should try. The motor assists the rider on the 'Pedelec' principle, kicking in when the rider exerts a given level of effort, the threshold being determined by a controller on the handlebars. You have to keep pedalling, but the motor helps when the going gets tough. While the motor is no powerhouse and you have to make full use of the seven gears, it's pretty effective and would give you an hour and a half or so of assistance on the 'full' setting. The riding position is awful, the saddle far too wide and the tyres squeal at the slightest hint of a corner, but somehow the absurdity of it all makes it hilarious.

I gather the Chinese have gone in for these bikes in a big way and see no reason why they should not become more popular in other countries, particularly for the non-enthusiast cyclist, who wants to commute, ride to the shops or keep up with the kids at the weekend, for example. I can even see interesting  applications for the keen cyclist, particularly using a more powerful motor and lithium-ion batteries.

For someone who wants to commute a longer distance, electrical assistance could reduce the time  of the journey to something that can be fitted in with other commitments.  It would have the advantages of low cost,  and could enable getting to work without becoming hot and sweaty. The motor cold be used in conjunction with  a single-speed,  keeping the bike simple, allowing a decent gear for speed on the flat, with assistance for the hills, or with a tandem, which can be a bit of a slog when the road goes up.

Of course no self-respecting sporty cyclist would touch one, let alone a racer. Or would they...?

(Click the 'full screen' symbol for best effect)


Following on from my previous blog, the weight loss monitoring is now going to commence in the New Year, fortified with a resolution. Blame this on my parents' hospitality, electrically-assisted cycling and the impending Christmas festivities. Poor excuse, I know!

Weight Weenie

On the face of it, I've had a good cycling year. I've put in a reasonable number of miles, according to Strava:
YEAR-TO-DATE
Distance 2,793.0mi
Time 208hr 59m
Elev Gain 61,378ft
Rides 174
I've participated in a few XC races, cycled off road in Wales, the South Downs and the Alps, so some wonderful contrasts to flat ol’ East Anglia and I've built up a decent stable of bikes to satisfy my inner techno geek. The thing is though, I've found it rather hard work and this is manifest in a number of ways:

• My average speed is nothing to write home about (15-16 mph average for solo road rides).
• I struggle on steep climbs with the 34x36 bottom gear on my Whyte 146.
• I keep getting dropped by my younger brother, who hasn't done as much cycling as me. This is the worst thing!

Now I accept that being in my mid-fifties, I should expect everything to start going downhill, but I know that this needn't be the case as many ‘grand-vet’ – 50 year-old+ competitors in XC races post times close to those in the younger age categories, so it’s not necessarily an issue of age. No, my theory is that the key element is bike weight and I am determined to reduce the heft of all my bikes significantly. There are two approaches to making a difference in this area.
The first method is to invest in lightweight componentry. Thing is, my bikes are pretty light anyway and I know that sinking a small fortune into exotic parts will make no significant difference. No the only way forward is the second option: to reduce the weight of the largest single component, the rider (me) and this is clearly an overweight component. At 5’8” tall, and weighing 83.7Kg, there is scope for some significant weight trimming and I am anticipating three benefits:

1. Improved climbing and acceleration. I'm hoping to be able to push that 1x10 setup on the Whyte with ease, improve my race placings and stop being dropped by younger brother (important, that one)
2. Saving money – no need for silly equipment purchases (we’ll see…)
3. Looking better. This is a difficult one, because weight gain is an insidious thing. Mentally, I think of myself looking pretty much the same as I did as a teenager, but the physical reality was brought home to me by recent photo (when I clearly wasn't ‘sucking it in’) posted on Facebook by one of my riding buddies, Brendan (yeah, cheers old boy!). I am including it, together with the associated words of reassurance, with great sense of personal shame, to illustrate the extent of the problem. Ouch!

Brendan Baxter

18 October 

Julian appears to have stuffed his bladder under his rain jacket !! — with Julian Greaves and Gawain Edwards at Coed y Brenin.

Like ·  · 

• Gawain Edwards likes this.
• 

  Julian Greaves Now I know why the hills were hard. I'll be better when I've given birth!

  18 October at 18:49 · Like · 1
• 

  Brendan Baxter At least we now know where that chicken of yours went !!

  18 October at 19:04 · Like · 1
• 

  Julian Greaves I just need the Sylvester-stylee feathers round my chops!

  18 October at 19:05 · Like · 2
• 

  Gawain Edwards I am now at one with my physique as I am also pregnant!

  18 October at 19:11 · Unlike · 1
• 

  Julian Greaves (In the voice of Inspector Blake out of 'On The Buses') Uuh, I'll get you Baxter!

  19 October at 18:39 · Like · 1
• 

  Tony Greaves All I can say is, you boys need to work on your poses. Looks like an asylum manager has said 'go on then lads, put on yer daygloes and get some exercise'...

  20 October at 07:50 · Like · 2

Well, that’s got that out of the way. Harsh but fair, I suppose (pause to wipe tear). Anyhoo, the plan is to lose 10kg, which will put me firmly in my ‘normal’ BMI zone, before the next ‘Mud, Sweat & Gears’ race in the Spring and we’ll see if that makes a difference. The weight loss programme is going to be a simple one, namely to eat less and exercise more and in order to achieve this I am following these simple principles:

• Three meals per day, with nothing in between, unless on a long ride.
• Drinking sensibly. Booze on only two nights of the week.
• At least six hours of cycling per week.

There. Simple. Just so that I don’t stray from the plan, I will be publishing my progress on a weekly basis, together with any deviations.
Here goes!

My weight: 83.7kg. 10.7kg to go. My weight goal is 73kg http://withings.com