[Anna Marie Hughes]

With the coronavirus restrictions there haven’t been as many opportunities lately to go on rides with groups of friends or join in on a club ride. It’s been harder to pick up those little bits of cycling know-how here and there as a beginner, so…

We want to compile a guide with the best snippets of things you wish you’d known when you started out and the best advice you were ever given.

Share in the comments below or email to tech@road.cc

Topic

[Captain Badger]

OnYerBike wrote:

You don’t have to spend a lot on a bike, but I would think if your budget is <£500 you’re better served by buying something second hand. Not that it’s impossible to get a worthwhile new bike around that mark (especially if you are happy to upgrade components down the line) just second hand is likely to be much better value.

That indeed is also true, although if you’re a newbie, finding a 2nd hand one can be quite daunting as guidance is less available.

[OnYerBike]

don simon fbpe wrote:

Learn to fix a puncture, as a minimum. I’ve seen how much shops charge, and it’s a joke.

More importantly, how often do you puncture right outside a bike shop? Sometimes you’ll get a slow puncture and only notice the following day when you find your bike with a flat tyre in the shed, but more often if you puncture you will need to fix it then and there or else be faced with a long walk or calling a taxi/significant other/very good friend for a rescue!

[OnYerBike]

You don’t have to spend a lot

You don’t have to spend a lot on a bike, but I would think if your budget is <£500 you’re better served by buying something second hand. Not that it’s impossible to get a worthwhile new bike around that mark (especially if you are happy to upgrade components down the line) just second hand is likely to be much better value.

[SimonAY]

1. Learn your local geography

1. Learn your local geography and topography and look at wind direction and strength before heading out. Much nicer to ride out into a headwind where you are sheltered by hills/trees and then ride home with a tailwind on exposed, flatter roads

2. if you can, try to make the last couple of miles of a long ride downhill, gives you a nice boost if you’re flagging when nearly home

[Awavey]

My Boardman hybrid was a mere
My Boardman hybrid was a mere £275 I think 5 years ago, fair enough they start at £500 now, but I think you spend as much as you can afford rather than set a price point to aim for.

My advice to newbies on things like NMOTD is accept they happen

[Captain Badger]

kil0ran wrote:

Buy the right bike to start with. That’s actually pretty tricky but it’s important – first impressions count. Generally, don’t spend less than £500 on a new bike, pretty much anything else in the UK market costing less than that isn’t worth it.

Agree with most of what you say, except the £500 bit. – seems a bit arbitrary. My road bike is a £300 giant FCR3. Had it about 10-15 y* , it was the cheapest decent bike I could find. I first bought it to commute, and now is my go-to utility. About 5 y I put drops on it (it started as a fitness/hybrid), and recently upgraded the wheels. I use a Bobyak, and the BY QR skewer is on this more than my MTB.

I group ride occasionally with one of my daughter’s friends and his mates – I’m no fitness freak but the set up doesn’t let me down in the slightest

When I upgrade my MTB, I’ll be spending more probably about 1500 ish, but that isn’t out of necessity.

Agreed, avoid BSOs from Costco etc, but a low price doesn’t indicate a shoddy bike

kil0ran wrote:

 

Don’t watch NMOTD or follow Jeremy Vine on Twitter, it’ll put you off.

Ain’t that the truth, or in my case increases general bolshiness. Riding with a camera I find helps calm me down, and is cathartic when uploading evidence

 

*edit: in fairness would need to adjust for inflation. BoE calculator says £420 if bought in 2007

[kil0ran]

Buy the right bike to start

Buy the right bike to start with. That’s actually pretty tricky but it’s important – first impressions count. Generally, don’t spend less than £500 on a new bike, pretty much anything else in the UK market costing less than that isn’t worth it.

Ignore groupsets – you absolutely don’t need 105/Rival on your bike. Bike tech is so good across the whole range from both manufacturers that you won’t notice the difference as a novice between Claris & 105.

Learn basic maintenance – how to fix a puncture, how to lube your chain, how to set your saddle height, how to use barrel adjusters to tweak the gears so they work on that new bike after a few miles. Learning to fix a puncture in the comfort of your shed/kitchen/living room is the best way to learn, rather than on a wet Tuesday evening in Stoke. 

Ride essentials: spare tube, tyre levers, puncture repair kit, pump, something to eat and drink, multitool.

Build up slowly and plan your routes. Start off with a 5 mile circular route so you can bail if you’re getting tired.

Ride primary and assertively, never in the gutter.

Don’t splash out on bib shorts, cycling shoes, jerseys and so on right away. They’re expensive, and if you don’t catch the bug you’ve wasted ~£150. If you’re riding for less than an hour you probably don’t need padded shorts, particularly if you’re on large volume tyres.

Do splash out on gloves – if you fall off your hands will be thankful

Ride flat pedals in trainers. 

Realise that you’ll probably want to upgrade/change your bike within a year.

Don’t follow the hype. Disc brakes, gravel bikes, tubeless, frame bags, all that stuff can wait.

Get a cheap lightset from Decathlon – they’re compact, lightweight, charge quickly and are perfect “be seen” lights.

Don’t watch NMOTD or follow Jeremy Vine on Twitter, it’ll put you off.

[Woldsman]

Just ride.

Just ride.

Learn how to fix a puncture. 

For maintenance/servicing watch the Park Tool videos (but don’t slavishly buy their tools). 

If your bike has one carry a replacement derailleur hanger (and the tools to replace it).

Don’t put tools or anything else that is hard or pointy in your rear jersey pockets. 

Take emergency grub. 

If you don’t already live there move to Yorkshire. The usual stuff. 
 

 

[David9694]

Captain Badger wrote:

These components have remained largely unchanged for decades.

In petit peu sweeping, n’est-ce-pas?
Quill stems vs A-head, d12, cassettes vs freewheels, SPD, horrid non-standard bottom brackets, the development of CF, frames and components, Kevlar in tyres, lovely German hub dynamos, brifters, thru axles, various cartridge bearings that you can never find replacements for, disc brakes, hydraulic controls, £40 handlebar tape

[Grahamd]

Get a track pump, so you can

Get a track pump, so you can easily inflate your tyres and know you have the correct pressure.

 

[don simon fbpe]

Learn to fix a puncture, as a

Learn to fix a puncture, as a minimum. I’ve seen how much shops charge, and it’s a joke.

[TheBillder]

Shoes are good on eBay too –
Shoes are good on eBay too – if they don’t fit, you can clean them up and resell.

[David9694]

work on your core muscles –

work on your core muscles – they will IME be the first thing to give you gyp on a ride. 

Rule 5. 

minimise unwanted lateral movement at the three contact-points. No springy saddles.  

Cheap, strong, light – pick any two. 

You don’t need to be head to toe in Lycra, but “civilian” clothes are more likely to absorb moisture and chafe after a time. Look after your extremities at this time of year  – hands and feet.  Cover your shoulders in summer. Wear a base layer. 

Are you sure that village store/cafe is open on a Sunday? 

A “cafe lock” is a useful accessory. mini pliers and zip ties, pump multi tool, patches, spare gilet, spare bolts, chain link. Shop around for these things – standards tools are cheap and plentiful. 

ViewRanger for navigation on your phone doesn’t rely on a signal to work.

if you buy new, take up the offer of going back after 2-3 weeks – bolts have a strange habit of loosening. Cleat bolts too if you have them.

Don’t leave random clunks, bumps and clatters uninvestigated. A clean drive train and wheels true add to the experience.

chapeau! Means I raise my hat to you 

N+1 – the correct number of bikes/5mm Allen keys. 

Left hand pedal – left hand thread. 

nod/ extend your right-hand fingers when you meet other cyclists* – they will do likewise. 

stick it to Brexit by counting kilometres 

* obviously not triathletes, e-bikers; MTBers: use your discretion, but not if they’ve got baggy shorts over long tights and drive an Audi estate with racks on and you think “ohh he’s a bike owner he’ll be sensible when he comes by,” but he drives like an absolute tool.

Oh all right then, e-bikers: at least they’re having a go. They might take up cycling in the future. 

 

 

 

[the little onion]

Don’t ride in teh gutter.

Don’t ride in teh gutter. Learn to ride “primary” where necessary. It may seem counterintuitive, but it really is safer.

 

Treat painted cycle lanes as random splodges of paint which can be ignored if you want

[cyclefaster]

I’ve also got plenty of Aldi

I’ve also got plenty of Aldi kit that is still going strong after a number of years including shorts, base layers and jackets. Even if it isn’t my best gear, it gets plenty of use on the turbo trainer at the moment. 

[Author]

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