Cycling questions
Discussion
I hope this is taken as non-inflammatory (if so, please remove or move), but I’ve got a few genuine questions about cycling and there seems to be a few on here.
Driving my youngest son around North Yorkshire on Sunday, we came across a loads of cyclists. Some riding alone, some in small groups. None caused us any problems, all moved to allow us past where possible, none held us up for any more than 5 or 10 seconds but it generated 1001 questions. I ride a bike with my kids, and used to ride as a kid, but I don’t have much experience.
All the riders we came up behind moved from side by side to single file as soon as they saw/heard us, most waved us past. Why don’t they ride in single file anyway?
The ones riding alone moved a lot from being a few inches from the left edge to nearer the middle of the lane. Why? Are they just wobbling? Wind?
Most of the bikes had skinny little tyres except mountain bikes which had big tyres. Aren’t skinny tyres harder and less comfortable? Why would you ride with them?
Some were in tight cycling clothes, others in normal clothes. The former were the faster. Is it the faster riders that like the cycling kit, or is it the cycling kit that makes them fast?
Some had long socks pulled up half way to their knees. Is that aerodynamics?
The ones in cycling clothes had big pockets on the back stuffed full. What do you carry?
Why don’t racing bikes with drop handle bars have suspension like mountain bikes?
Why do some suddenly stand up to peddle even when they are not on a hill?
Plenty were going at well over 20mph. Is that fast?
Driving my youngest son around North Yorkshire on Sunday, we came across a loads of cyclists. Some riding alone, some in small groups. None caused us any problems, all moved to allow us past where possible, none held us up for any more than 5 or 10 seconds but it generated 1001 questions. I ride a bike with my kids, and used to ride as a kid, but I don’t have much experience.
All the riders we came up behind moved from side by side to single file as soon as they saw/heard us, most waved us past. Why don’t they ride in single file anyway?
The ones riding alone moved a lot from being a few inches from the left edge to nearer the middle of the lane. Why? Are they just wobbling? Wind?
Most of the bikes had skinny little tyres except mountain bikes which had big tyres. Aren’t skinny tyres harder and less comfortable? Why would you ride with them?
Some were in tight cycling clothes, others in normal clothes. The former were the faster. Is it the faster riders that like the cycling kit, or is it the cycling kit that makes them fast?
Some had long socks pulled up half way to their knees. Is that aerodynamics?
The ones in cycling clothes had big pockets on the back stuffed full. What do you carry?
Why don’t racing bikes with drop handle bars have suspension like mountain bikes?
Why do some suddenly stand up to peddle even when they are not on a hill?
Plenty were going at well over 20mph. Is that fast?
Road bikes have skinny tyres, drop bars, no suspension and higher gearing. This makes them fast on tarmac and allows them to generate less wind resistance.
Mountain bikes are built for off road so they have suspension, thicker frames, and bigger nobbly tyres. This makes them slower but able to handle harsher terrain.
Lycra clad riders have less wind resistance than normal clothed cyclists, so again its about saving weight and going faster/easier.
Cyclists will move into the middle of the lane if they don't want to be overtaken by drivers in close quarters. Most drivers don't give a full car width like they should.
Mountain bikes are built for off road so they have suspension, thicker frames, and bigger nobbly tyres. This makes them slower but able to handle harsher terrain.
Lycra clad riders have less wind resistance than normal clothed cyclists, so again its about saving weight and going faster/easier.
Cyclists will move into the middle of the lane if they don't want to be overtaken by drivers in close quarters. Most drivers don't give a full car width like they should.
Assuming this isn't a piss-take and you're genuinely interested....
Wardy78 said:
I hope this is taken as non-inflammatory (if so, please remove or move), but I’ve got a few genuine questions about cycling and there seems to be a few on here.
Driving my youngest son around North Yorkshire on Sunday, we came across a loads of cyclists. Some riding alone, some in small groups. None caused us any problems, all moved to allow us past where possible, none held us up for any more than 5 or 10 seconds but it generated 1001 questions. I ride a bike with my kids, and used to ride as a kid, but I don’t have much experience.
All the riders we came up behind moved from side by side to single file as soon as they saw/heard us, most waved us past. Why don’t they ride in single file anyway? Probably because they're on a social ride so are having a chat. It's not that much fun staring at your mate's arse for a couple of hours and if you're travelling at any speed, wind noise makes conversation almost impossible if you're not next to each other.
The ones riding alone moved a lot from being a few inches from the left edge to nearer the middle of the lane. Why? Are they just wobbling? Wind? It could be wind, particularly if you're running deeper section rims which can get easily caught by crosswinds. Mainly it's because the road surface is pretty awful in lots of places in the UK so you're avoiding potholes or sections of lumpy tarmac.
Most of the bikes had skinny little tyres except mountain bikes which had big tyres. Aren’t skinny tyres harder and less comfortable? Why would you ride with them? Most road bikes now run 25/28mm tyres (or wider) which are not only more comfortable, but apparently more efficient too. The bottom line is that road cyclists are generally looking to go as fast as possible for the least effort and are therefore happy to trade a bit of comfort for some extra speed.
Some were in tight cycling clothes, others in normal clothes. The former were the faster. Is it the faster riders that like the cycling kit, or is it the cycling kit that makes them fast? Probably a bit of both. Tight clothing is definitely faster since anything loose just billows in the wind and slows you down, especially as speeds rise. But faster riders are also likely to be more serious riders and therefore have the right kit for the job. It's a bit like asking the joggers in your local park why they're running in trainers rather the steel toe-capped boots.
Some had long socks pulled up half way to their knees. Is that aerodynamics? Apparently.
The ones in cycling clothes had big pockets on the back stuffed full. What do you carry? Spare tubes, pumps, tools, gels, nibbles, sometimes gilets or rain jackets.
Why don’t racing bikes with drop handle bars have suspension like mountain bikes? Some do and have a limited amount of suspension in the stem. The bottom line is that a good racing bike is stiff which means that as much of the energy you put into the pedals is translated into forward motion. The last thing you want is energy being sapped by the suspension.
Why do some suddenly stand up to peddle even when they are not on a hill? To stretch their legs.
Plenty were going at well over 20mph. Is that fast? Yep, that's fairly quick. If you can average 20mph + on a ride of a decent distance, you're going reasonably quickly.
Driving my youngest son around North Yorkshire on Sunday, we came across a loads of cyclists. Some riding alone, some in small groups. None caused us any problems, all moved to allow us past where possible, none held us up for any more than 5 or 10 seconds but it generated 1001 questions. I ride a bike with my kids, and used to ride as a kid, but I don’t have much experience.
All the riders we came up behind moved from side by side to single file as soon as they saw/heard us, most waved us past. Why don’t they ride in single file anyway? Probably because they're on a social ride so are having a chat. It's not that much fun staring at your mate's arse for a couple of hours and if you're travelling at any speed, wind noise makes conversation almost impossible if you're not next to each other.
The ones riding alone moved a lot from being a few inches from the left edge to nearer the middle of the lane. Why? Are they just wobbling? Wind? It could be wind, particularly if you're running deeper section rims which can get easily caught by crosswinds. Mainly it's because the road surface is pretty awful in lots of places in the UK so you're avoiding potholes or sections of lumpy tarmac.
Most of the bikes had skinny little tyres except mountain bikes which had big tyres. Aren’t skinny tyres harder and less comfortable? Why would you ride with them? Most road bikes now run 25/28mm tyres (or wider) which are not only more comfortable, but apparently more efficient too. The bottom line is that road cyclists are generally looking to go as fast as possible for the least effort and are therefore happy to trade a bit of comfort for some extra speed.
Some were in tight cycling clothes, others in normal clothes. The former were the faster. Is it the faster riders that like the cycling kit, or is it the cycling kit that makes them fast? Probably a bit of both. Tight clothing is definitely faster since anything loose just billows in the wind and slows you down, especially as speeds rise. But faster riders are also likely to be more serious riders and therefore have the right kit for the job. It's a bit like asking the joggers in your local park why they're running in trainers rather the steel toe-capped boots.
Some had long socks pulled up half way to their knees. Is that aerodynamics? Apparently.
The ones in cycling clothes had big pockets on the back stuffed full. What do you carry? Spare tubes, pumps, tools, gels, nibbles, sometimes gilets or rain jackets.
Why don’t racing bikes with drop handle bars have suspension like mountain bikes? Some do and have a limited amount of suspension in the stem. The bottom line is that a good racing bike is stiff which means that as much of the energy you put into the pedals is translated into forward motion. The last thing you want is energy being sapped by the suspension.
Why do some suddenly stand up to peddle even when they are not on a hill? To stretch their legs.
Plenty were going at well over 20mph. Is that fast? Yep, that's fairly quick. If you can average 20mph + on a ride of a decent distance, you're going reasonably quickly.
Wardy78 said:
I hope this is taken as non-inflammatory (if so, please remove or move), but I’ve got a few genuine questions about cycling and there seems to be a few on here.
I'll try my best. I'm mainly a runner, but do enjoy cycling.Wardy78 said:
All the riders we came up behind moved from side by side to single file as soon as they saw/heard us, most waved us past. Why don’t they ride in single file anyway?
There's two schools of thought on this: side by side makes for a shorter obstruction to overtake, but wider; single file makes for a narrower obstruction to pass, but longer. The Highway Code states you should always give cyclists as much room as a car when passing, so because of this most cyclists favour side by side - if a car's going right out to pass anyway, you might as well make it a shorter overtake. The reason for the Highway Code rule is in the answer to your next question:Wardy78 said:
The ones riding alone moved a lot from being a few inches from the left edge to nearer the middle of the lane. Why? Are they just wobbling? Wind?
It can be wind, but more normally it's avoiding potholes, nasty adverse cambers, or seams in the road. A road (aka racing) bike doesn't really get on with things like that, they can damage the bike or even have you off. Some of that is the speed you're riding at compared to a mountain bike, and some is the lack of weight and skinnier tyres.Wardy78 said:
Most of the bikes had skinny little tyres except mountain bikes which had big tyres. Aren’t skinny tyres harder and less comfortable? Why would you ride with them?
Less rolling resistance makes the bike faster, and therefore more enjoyable. I have two bikes: a hybrid for popping around locally to the train station, shops etc, and a road bike. The road bike is so much nicer to ride - it's like comparing an Elise with a Mondeo. A mountain bike is the cycling equivalent of an SUV - great off road but s
t on the road. Skinnier tyres are also much firmer and more positive when riding fast - again, it's like an Elise vs a boring front drive saloon.Wardy78 said:
Some were in tight cycling clothes, others in normal clothes. The former were the faster. Is it the faster riders that like the cycling kit, or is it the cycling kit that makes them fast?
It's the faster riders that like the cycling kit. Normal clothes flap about far too much, and if you're riding for a long time (as opposed to just popping to the shops) it's uncomfortable to wear normal clothes. I wear a normal t-shirt and shorts on my hybrid, doing 8-15mph, sometimes 20mph, popping to the shops; but always cycling clothes on my road bike going 15-40mph, going out for hours on end. How many serious runners do you see running in normal clothes? Same thing.
Wardy78 said:
Some had long socks pulled up half way to their knees. Is that aerodynamics?
Compression clothing. I don't buy into it myself, but many do. The jury's out scientifically.Wardy78 said:
The ones in cycling clothes had big pockets on the back stuffed full. What do you carry?
Rain jacket, food, puncture repair kit, phone, etc.Wardy78 said:
Why don’t racing bikes with drop handle bars have suspension like mountain bikes?
It's far too heavy for a performance bike, and when you pedal some of your energy goes into compressing the suspension, losing power.Wardy78 said:
Why do some suddenly stand up to peddle even when they are not on a hill?
Sounds strange - maybe just stretching their legs. It can help with balance at very low speeds (your feet are attached to the pedals on a road bike, so stopping is a faff).Wardy78 said:
Plenty were going at well over 20mph. Is that fast?
Most road cyclists will average 15-20mph, depending on ability, and do 30-40mph down hills. On the flat most cruise at around 18-25mph. For example I'm most often sat at around 20-22mph on my road bike on a smooth flat road. The lower overall mean average comes from going up hills, which is very slow.Edited by RobM77 on Tuesday 28th July 14:56
stargazer30 said:
Road bikes have skinny tyres, drop bars, no suspension and higher gearing. This makes them fast on tarmac and allows them to generate less wind resistance.
Mountain bikes are built for off road so they have suspension, thicker frames, and bigger nobbly tyres. This makes them slower but able to handle harsher terrain.
Lycra clad riders have less wind resistance than normal clothed cyclists, so again its about saving weight and going faster/easier.
Cyclists will move into the middle of the lane if they don't want to be overtaken by drivers in close quarters. Most drivers don't give a full car width like they should.
Thanks. Tyres and suspension really make that much difference to wind resistance?Mountain bikes are built for off road so they have suspension, thicker frames, and bigger nobbly tyres. This makes them slower but able to handle harsher terrain.
Lycra clad riders have less wind resistance than normal clothed cyclists, so again its about saving weight and going faster/easier.
Cyclists will move into the middle of the lane if they don't want to be overtaken by drivers in close quarters. Most drivers don't give a full car width like they should.
The middle of the lane riders were normally on straight roads well before we got there? And often going left to middle a lot like weaving around, not holding the line?
lauda said:
Assuming this isn't a piss-take and you're genuinely interested....
Genuinely and thanks. All makes sense, especially the potholes!Wardy78 said:
I hope this is taken as non-inflammatory (if so, please remove or move), but I’ve got a few genuine questions about cycling and there seems to be a few on here.
Driving my youngest son around North Yorkshire on Sunday, we came across a loads of cyclists. Some riding alone, some in small groups. None caused us any problems, all moved to allow us past where possible, none held us up for any more than 5 or 10 seconds but it generated 1001 questions. I ride a bike with my kids, and used to ride as a kid, but I don’t have much experience.
All the riders we came up behind moved from side by side to single file as soon as they saw/heard us, most waved us past. Why don’t they ride in single file anyway? Probably because they're on a social ride so are having a chat. It's not that much fun staring at your mate's arse for a couple of hours and if you're travelling at any speed, wind noise makes conversation almost impossible if you're not next to each other.
The ones riding alone moved a lot from being a few inches from the left edge to nearer the middle of the lane. Why? Are they just wobbling? Wind? It could be wind, particularly if you're running deeper section rims which can get easily caught by crosswinds. Mainly it's because the road surface is pretty awful in lots of places in the UK so you're avoiding potholes or sections of lumpy tarmac.
Most of the bikes had skinny little tyres except mountain bikes which had big tyres. Aren’t skinny tyres harder and less comfortable? Why would you ride with them? Most road bikes now run 25/28mm tyres (or wider) which are not only more comfortable, but apparently more efficient too. The bottom line is that road cyclists are generally looking to go as fast as possible for the least effort and are therefore happy to trade a bit of comfort for some extra speed.
Some were in tight cycling clothes, others in normal clothes. The former were the faster. Is it the faster riders that like the cycling kit, or is it the cycling kit that makes them fast? Probably a bit of both. Tight clothing is definitely faster since anything loose just billows in the wind and slows you down, especially as speeds rise. But faster riders are also likely to be more serious riders and therefore have the right kit for the job. It's a bit like asking the joggers in your local park why they're running in trainers rather the steel toe-capped boots.
Some had long socks pulled up half way to their knees. Is that aerodynamics? Apparently.
The ones in cycling clothes had big pockets on the back stuffed full. What do you carry? Spare tubes, pumps, tools, gels, nibbles, sometimes gilets or rain jackets.
Why don’t racing bikes with drop handle bars have suspension like mountain bikes? Some do and have a limited amount of suspension in the stem. The bottom line is that a good racing bike is stiff which means that as much of the energy you put into the pedals is translated into forward motion. The last thing you want is energy being sapped by the suspension.
Why do some suddenly stand up to peddle even when they are not on a hill? To stretch their legs.
Plenty were going at well over 20mph. Is that fast? Yep, that's fairly quick. If you can average 20mph + on a ride of a decent distance, you're going reasonably quickly.
Driving my youngest son around North Yorkshire on Sunday, we came across a loads of cyclists. Some riding alone, some in small groups. None caused us any problems, all moved to allow us past where possible, none held us up for any more than 5 or 10 seconds but it generated 1001 questions. I ride a bike with my kids, and used to ride as a kid, but I don’t have much experience.
All the riders we came up behind moved from side by side to single file as soon as they saw/heard us, most waved us past. Why don’t they ride in single file anyway? Probably because they're on a social ride so are having a chat. It's not that much fun staring at your mate's arse for a couple of hours and if you're travelling at any speed, wind noise makes conversation almost impossible if you're not next to each other.
The ones riding alone moved a lot from being a few inches from the left edge to nearer the middle of the lane. Why? Are they just wobbling? Wind? It could be wind, particularly if you're running deeper section rims which can get easily caught by crosswinds. Mainly it's because the road surface is pretty awful in lots of places in the UK so you're avoiding potholes or sections of lumpy tarmac.
Most of the bikes had skinny little tyres except mountain bikes which had big tyres. Aren’t skinny tyres harder and less comfortable? Why would you ride with them? Most road bikes now run 25/28mm tyres (or wider) which are not only more comfortable, but apparently more efficient too. The bottom line is that road cyclists are generally looking to go as fast as possible for the least effort and are therefore happy to trade a bit of comfort for some extra speed.
Some were in tight cycling clothes, others in normal clothes. The former were the faster. Is it the faster riders that like the cycling kit, or is it the cycling kit that makes them fast? Probably a bit of both. Tight clothing is definitely faster since anything loose just billows in the wind and slows you down, especially as speeds rise. But faster riders are also likely to be more serious riders and therefore have the right kit for the job. It's a bit like asking the joggers in your local park why they're running in trainers rather the steel toe-capped boots.
Some had long socks pulled up half way to their knees. Is that aerodynamics? Apparently.
The ones in cycling clothes had big pockets on the back stuffed full. What do you carry? Spare tubes, pumps, tools, gels, nibbles, sometimes gilets or rain jackets.
Why don’t racing bikes with drop handle bars have suspension like mountain bikes? Some do and have a limited amount of suspension in the stem. The bottom line is that a good racing bike is stiff which means that as much of the energy you put into the pedals is translated into forward motion. The last thing you want is energy being sapped by the suspension.
Why do some suddenly stand up to peddle even when they are not on a hill? To stretch their legs.
Plenty were going at well over 20mph. Is that fast? Yep, that's fairly quick. If you can average 20mph + on a ride of a decent distance, you're going reasonably quickly.
Wardy78 said:
stargazer30 said:
Road bikes have skinny tyres, drop bars, no suspension and higher gearing. This makes them fast on tarmac and allows them to generate less wind resistance.
Mountain bikes are built for off road so they have suspension, thicker frames, and bigger nobbly tyres. This makes them slower but able to handle harsher terrain.
Lycra clad riders have less wind resistance than normal clothed cyclists, so again its about saving weight and going faster/easier.
Cyclists will move into the middle of the lane if they don't want to be overtaken by drivers in close quarters. Most drivers don't give a full car width like they should.
Thanks. Tyres and suspension really make that much difference to wind resistance?Mountain bikes are built for off road so they have suspension, thicker frames, and bigger nobbly tyres. This makes them slower but able to handle harsher terrain.
Lycra clad riders have less wind resistance than normal clothed cyclists, so again its about saving weight and going faster/easier.
Cyclists will move into the middle of the lane if they don't want to be overtaken by drivers in close quarters. Most drivers don't give a full car width like they should.
The middle of the lane riders were normally on straight roads well before we got there? And often going left to middle a lot like weaving around, not holding the line?
If a rider's avoiding the edge of the road for a long period of time, rather than just dodging a pothole, it's normally camber. There are some lanes around where I live where you virtually can't run or cycle at all at the usual distance from the edge due to extreme camber.
RobM77 said:
Wardy78 said:
I hope this is taken as non-inflammatory (if so, please remove or move), but I’ve got a few genuine questions about cycling and there seems to be a few on here.
I'll try my best. I'm mainly a runner, but do enjoy cycling.Wardy78 said:
All the riders we came up behind moved from side by side to single file as soon as they saw/heard us, most waved us past. Why don’t they ride in single file anyway?
There's two schools of thought on this: side by side makes for a shorter obstruction to overtake, but wider; single file makes for a narrower obstruction to pass, but longer. The Highway Code states you should always give cyclists as much room as a car when passing, so because of this most cyclists favour side by side - if a car's going right out to pass anyway, you might as well make it a shorter overtake. The reason for the Highway Code rule is in the answer to your next question:Wardy78 said:
The ones riding alone moved a lot from being a few inches from the left edge to nearer the middle of the lane. Why? Are they just wobbling? Wind?
It can be wind, but more normally it's avoiding potholes, nasty adverse cambers, or seams in the road. A road (aka racing) bike doesn't really get on with things like that, they can damage the bike or even have you off. Some of that is the speed you're riding at compared to a mountain bike, and some is the lack of weight and skinnier tyres.Wardy78 said:
Most of the bikes had skinny little tyres except mountain bikes which had big tyres. Aren’t skinny tyres harder and less comfortable? Why would you ride with them?
Less rolling resistance makes the bike faster, and therefore more enjoyable. I have two bikes: a hybrid for popping around locally to the train station, shops etc, and a road bike. The road bike is so much nicer to drive - it's like comparing an Elise with a Mondeo. A mountain bike is the cycling equivalent of an SUV. Skinnier tyres are also much firmer and more positive when riding fast - again, it's like an Elise vs a boring front drive saloon.Wardy78 said:
Some were in tight cycling clothes, others in normal clothes. The former were the faster. Is it the faster riders that like the cycling kit, or is it the cycling kit that makes them fast?
It's the faster riders that like the cycling kit. Normal clothes flap about far too much, and if you're riding for a long time (as opposed to just popping to the shops) it's uncomfortable to wear normal clothes. I wear a normal t-shirt and shorts on my hybrid, doing 8-15mph, sometimes 20mph, popping to the shops; but always cycling clothes on my road bike going 15-40mph, going out for hours on end.Wardy78 said:
Some had long socks pulled up half way to their knees. Is that aerodynamics?
Compression clothing. I don't buy into it myself, but many do. The jury's out scientifically.Wardy78 said:
The ones in cycling clothes had big pockets on the back stuffed full. What do you carry?
Rain jacket, food, puncture repair kit, phone, etc.Wardy78 said:
Why don’t racing bikes with drop handle bars have suspension like mountain bikes?
It's far too heavy for a performance bike, and when you pedal some of your energy goes into compressing the suspension, losing power.Wardy78 said:
Why do some suddenly stand up to peddle even when they are not on a hill?
Sounds strange - maybe just stretching their legs. It can help with balance at very low speeds (your feet are attached to the pedals on a road bike, so stopping is a faff).Wardy78 said:
Plenty were going at well over 20mph. Is that fast?
Most road cyclists will average 15-20mph and do 30-40mph down hills. On the flat most cruise at around 20-25mph - the lower average comes from going up hills.Just googled the weight of road bikes against mountain. Wow.
Wardy78 said:
Thank you as well. Hadn't thought of the suspension compression and weight.
Just googled the weight of road bikes against mountain. Wow.
No worries. My road bike weighs just under 7kg - as a consequence it's utterly amazing to ride; like a Caterham if you're used to 1 tonne plus cars. My hybrid (so not a mountain bike at all, with no suspension and no massive tyres etc) is 12.5kg!! almost double...Just googled the weight of road bikes against mountain. Wow.
Many mountain bikes have a feature to lock the suspension when you don't need it. The whole system though is just far too heavy for a road bike. It's just like comparing an SUV with an Elise.
Wardy78 said:
All the riders we came up behind moved from side by side to single file as soon as they saw/heard us, most waved us past. Why don’t they ride in single file anyway?
They do a thing in school now called "Bikeability": it's a modern take on the Cycling Proficiency thing we old folks did as kids.My son has done it and tells me cyclists are taught to do this so they are easier to spot to approaching motorists but move to single file once they know you've seen them so they're easier to pass.
It's weird, but as a kid in the eighties I used to cycle everywhere, really quickly, on the road and without a helmet. Now I find it terrifying to cycle on the road, wear a helmet every time I go out (even if popping to the Co Op) and try to use the red cycle ways where I live (MK) as much as I can, despite their grotty state of repair.
Wardy78 said:
Thanks. Tyres and suspension really make that much difference to wind resistance?
The middle of the lane riders were normally on straight roads well before we got there? And often going left to middle a lot like weaving around, not holding the line?
They make a huge difference to overall resistance, not just wind. Suspension = weight, which is inertia when you are accelerating and painful to carry up hills. Wheels are just like car wheels - light wheels accelerate more easily. You notice this a bit in a car, but you notice it a lot when you are personally providing the power. And then you have the wind resistance of the big section tyres. The middle of the lane riders were normally on straight roads well before we got there? And often going left to middle a lot like weaving around, not holding the line?
As to riding position - I adopted "over to the left but not in the gutter". The nice thing about cars is that they crush all the sharp things on the roads. This is why cycle lanes in London are largely unusable - they're covered in broken glass. So I tend to go roughly where the left hand wheel on a car would be. In traffic, I will lift the bike over potholes, no need to swerve - a technique I learned doing the elevated section of the A/M4 in Hammersmith.
No idea about riding in groups, I hated riding with other cyclists as there was always a t
t in the group who got into an argument.Wardy78 said:
I hope this is taken as non-inflammatory (if so, please remove or move), but I’ve got a few genuine questions about cycling and there seems to be a few on here.
Driving my youngest son around North Yorkshire on Sunday, we came across a loads of cyclists. Some riding alone, some in small groups. None caused us any problems, all moved to allow us past where possible, none held us up for any more than 5 or 10 seconds but it generated 1001 questions. I ride a bike with my kids, and used to ride as a kid, but I don’t have much experience.
All the riders we came up behind moved from side by side to single file as soon as they saw/heard us, most waved us past. Why don’t they ride in single file anyway?
So they can chat to each other easierDriving my youngest son around North Yorkshire on Sunday, we came across a loads of cyclists. Some riding alone, some in small groups. None caused us any problems, all moved to allow us past where possible, none held us up for any more than 5 or 10 seconds but it generated 1001 questions. I ride a bike with my kids, and used to ride as a kid, but I don’t have much experience.
All the riders we came up behind moved from side by side to single file as soon as they saw/heard us, most waved us past. Why don’t they ride in single file anyway?
Wardy78 said:
The ones riding alone moved a lot from being a few inches from the left edge to nearer the middle of the lane. Why? Are they just wobbling? Wind?
Tiredness/balance up a hill, or more likely road surface/pot hole avoidance (linked to your skinny tyres comment below)Wardy78 said:
Most of the bikes had skinny little tyres except mountain bikes which had big tyres. Aren’t skinny tyres harder and less comfortable? Why would you ride with them?
They are harder and less comfortable, but they have lower rolling resistance so you can go further and/or faster for the same effort (its amazing the difference to the effort you have to put in)Wardy78 said:
Some were in tight cycling clothes, others in normal clothes. The former were the faster. Is it the faster riders that like the cycling kit, or is it the cycling kit that makes them fast?
If you are going to ride an uncomfortable tyred bike to go fast then you are going to maximise this by wearing low drag clothes. Normal clothes are casual/off road cyclists or going somewhere for something rather than a circular fitness route. Wardy78 said:
Some had long socks pulled up half way to their knees. Is that aerodynamics?
Or thermal (unlikely this time of the year) Wardy78 said:
The ones in cycling clothes had big pockets on the back stuffed full. What do you carry?
Power/energy bars? phone? even puncture repair tools.Wardy78 said:
Why don’t racing bikes with drop handle bars have suspension like mountain bikes?
Suspension saps/wastes power so you'd expend more energy to go as fast/far as non suspension bikes. It also adds weight which is also saps energy which is what racing bikes avoid at all costs. Wardy78 said:
Why do some suddenly stand up to peddle even when they are not on a hill?
For a burst of speed, to rest the butt, or change position to use slightly different muscle groups to help alleviate lactic acid build up.....Wardy78 said:
Plenty were going at well over 20mph. Is that fast?
It's a healthy average speed, for all the talk of weight and tyres etc the cyclists real enemy is drag and that goes up the square of speed and so each mph is harder fought, hence the tight clothing. Wind on the day can make the same route pleasant or hellish. 'Weaving' will generally be roadies who cant hit low gully's, manholes, potholes and edge erosion as someone like myself on a 160mm trail bike can.
The UK highway network is largely in a pretty terrible state and I really don't get how the roadie guys tolerate it and just craic on with it!
The UK highway network is largely in a pretty terrible state and I really don't get how the roadie guys tolerate it and just craic on with it!
I'm just teasing, anticipating the more vociferous pro-cyclists that post elsewhere on here. Wardy78 said:
All the riders we came up behind moved from side by side to single file as soon as they saw/heard us, most waved us past. Why don’t they ride in single file anyway?
When I'm driving I prefer cyclists to ride in a group 2+ abreast, if they're strung out behind one another it makes it harder to overtake safely. When I'm cycling with friends I feel like it might piss of drivers when cycling two abreast so revert to single file 
Gassing Station | Pedal Powered | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff