Rapha Swift jersey now in stock

Okay Rapha fans,  if you want a jersey with birds on it your luck is in because Rapha’s Swift jersey ‘has arrived’. We liked the look of this little black number when we saw Rapha’s Spring/Summer collection a few weeks back. It’s the one with the fast-moving relative of the swallow embossed on it as … Read more

We’re back! (again)

The good ship road.cc was temporarily capsized by a tidal wave of traffic yesterday and again this morning which knocked out our server, so apologies to anyone who spent time trying to get on to the site and who couldn’t.We’re working to make sure the problem doesn’t happen again which will probably involve, like the … Read more

Just in: Viner Light Audax

Viner have just dropped off a couple of bikes for us to test, from their new C2W range. C2W is, of course, Cycle 2 Work and the bikes are designed to appeal to people buying bikes through a cycle-to-work scheme such as Cyclescheme. First up is the Light Audax, which retails at £1180. This is … Read more

Specialized Bar Phat bar tape

Bar phat is not so much a tape as a damping system designed to reduce pressure on the hands; Specialized claim by as much as fifty percent. This makes it an obvious choice for Audax but also useful for cross and similar disciplines. Far from simply being another gel tape, the system uses four elastomer … Read more

Lance Watch 9. Nuts… and why you should rub ’em?

Whatever you think of Lance Armstrong, and around here we’ve had to make a conscious effort not to hold those trainers against him, there’s no escaping the fact that apart from riding a bike and commiting fashion crimes with footwear – he does do some important stuff in the fight against cancer.That includes funding research … Read more

Topeak Joe Blow Sport track pump

At just over £30 Topeak’s Joe Blow Sport is not an expensive pump but it certainly performs like one. The construction and operation are pretty hard to fault, making it a good home workshop investment. The Joe Blow range is extensive, going from £25 for the Max II to £85 for the twin-barrelled Race. The … Read more

Helmet laws fail maths test

The hotly contested issue of whether bicycle helmets should be made mandatory benefits from some new, mathematical, evidence today.According to a new study, by Piet de Jong, a mathematician at Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia, the answer is no. He says bicycle helmet laws would cost the US $4.8 billion per year, Netherlands $1.9 billion, … Read more

Council puts cyclists’ expenses on a par with motorists’

Councillors who cycle can claim 40p per mile expenses from Cheshire West and Chester Council as an incentive to leave their cars at home. The council believes it is the first in the country to offer the preferential rate, and has also reduced the car mileage rage from 52p per mile to 40p to add … Read more

Helmets. Legislate and it’ll cost you…

Ah, the great helmet debate. This time it’s reared its ugly head in the form of a dry paper entitled Evaluating the health benefit of bicycle helmet laws by Piet de Jonga of Macquarie University in Australia.The paper is attached below. I won’t pretend to understand the formulae it contains but essentially it’s an exercise … Read more