Turbo FM

Back to form this week with another pumping track to get you going.

Before anyone gets in there first, no it isn't me in the video.......

Spring is nearly here........

It seems that all the last few weeks have brought is rain. On the odd days where it has been dry i've been busy so haven't had the chance to get out.
I've also had an exceptional bad run of luck. A broken set of glasses was the least of my troubles (still no response from Wiggle by the way). Next to fail was my wireless router but fortunately Belkin customer service is a lot different from Wiggle. I called them, they emailed me a freepost label and i've posted the old one back for a new replacement to come by return mail. No quibbles, just great customer care.
This was the least of my worries though when we came home to a burst hot water tank. Parting with that much money when it's not a bicycle related purchase is a real shame. Could it get any worse? Yep. My 3 year old son is struck with an illness that requires 7 days off nursery and here's me with no annual leave left.
Still, it all seems to be in hand now so I can concentrate on the bike again.
The classics season is now upon us and i've decided that it's probably my favourite time in the cycling calendar, so much so in fact that i've sunk to new geek lows and have been watching the untelevised cycling on the live internet feeds.... in Belgian. Still it's good to watch and you had to feel for Juan Antonio Flecha to put in that much work and get pipped on the line on Saturday.
I dusted off the bike for the first time since last week's trip to Brighton and headed off into the country lanes with a couple of the guys. Felt good to be out and we managed to steal some Spring sunshine. The route wasn't billed as a hilly one but there was a fair bit of rolling road with a few punchy little climbs thrown in for good measure.
At this time of year, I know base miles count but i've found that my biggest progress in the last year has been my leg power and I think that comes down to sprints and hill climbs. As often as I can, I sprint up the shorter hills until my legs give out or I reach the top - whichever comes first! I think this helps with learning to recover quickly too.
In the end it was 55 pretty hard miles with a few bonus climbs thrown in at the end. I was pretty ruined by the time I got home and had to chuck a protein bar down my throat and slip into something more comfortable - my Maxgear compression tights.......

Men at “work”

It seems everywhere I go at the minute the roads resemble a war zone. Potholes, road works, temporary traffic lights, burst water mains and essential gas works. I wouldn’t mind so much but the same roads seem to be continually dug up all the time and whenever I go past the sites are always devoid of people working. There’s a “men at work” sign but no actual men at work.


I seem to be dodging the same potholes day in, day out. The same ones that I reported and have now been decorated with a ring of spray paint by the local authority. Surely it can’t take much longer to chuck a bit of tarmac in there rather than carry out road graffiti?

Even when the work does get completed, we’re left with a patchwork of repairs where savings are attempted as no contractor wants to resurface an entire stretch of road. So, what are we going to do about it? Nothing because we’re British and we just ignore it and retain that stiff upper lip.

I suppose the only benefit of these road works are seeing sights like I saw today, a workman in a mini tipper trying to get some four wheel drift on a corner…….

Was that Joe 90 on a bicycle?

I took a bit of stick on the weekend for my choice of eyewear. With the customer service chimps at Wiggle on a tea break, I had what is commonly referred to as “a situation”.

Two pairs of broken specs and a long ride to Brighton meant that I needed a quick solution. I’ve got a pair of Oakley Radar glasses on my wish list for later in the year and I don’t want to risk spending much money until I buy the Radars in case Wiggle finally get around to sending me a replacement pair, so I looked at alternatives.

The first option would be to ride without eyewear but I’ve had so many insects and stones ping off glasses in the past that it just isn’t worth the risk of riding without. Eye protection also affords the luxury of not crying after every 30mph descent. I’ve had the odd occasion where I’ve ridden without glasses and reached my destination looking like I’ve just watched E.T for the first time.

So it seems that my only other option would be to pick up a cheap set of glasses to tide me over. All I could really find without waiting for a mail order delivery were around the £15 mark which is a bit more than I wanted to pay and would require a special trip to a bike shop. I then remembered a discussion on the Bikeradar forum where people were singing the praises of safety glasses.

I had to go into town anyway so whilst I was out I called into Clas Ohlson to see what I can find. For anyone who has never been in Clas Ohlson, it’s reminiscent of Ikea minus all the cheap chipboard furniture. I can’t think of an item that Clas Ohlson doesn’t sell. It even does the odd bit of bike stuff and is particularly cheap for KMC chain links and gear/brake cables.

So I find myself hunting to see what I can find, when I come across these little beauties:

Now, I remember CAT boots from my school days but never knew they offered safety glasses too. I had to get them, just for the nostalgia. £10.98 for the clear version seemed a snip and they’d come in handy for any DIY jobs that crop up later in the year too.

I went home smug with my new bargain purchase.

That’s when the mocking started. The frames were a bit on the big side but I thought this would help protect me from the wind even if I did look a bit like Ali G in them.

How did they perform on the ride then? Absolutely faultlessly, better in fact than any glasses I’ve previously worn. I felt no wind rush around my eyes despite a 40mph descent and the optics were absolutely crystal clear with no distortion.

I’m now in an even bigger dilemma - fashion or function?

Turbo FM

Something slightly different for you this week on Turbo FM. Not much of a track to listen to on the turbo but maybe something to help you reflect on the pain after.

Sit back, relax and picture yourself having finished an epic ride, relaxing in the late evening summer's sun with a beer in hand, bathed in the smug satisfaction that a hard day in the saddle can bring.

A classic from the man in black:

The cost of saving

I have a love/hate relationship with online retailers. I love their pricing but more often than not, hate their service.

That’s why I try as much as possible to shop locally and keep the local wheels of economy turning.

I’m fortunate enough that Geoffrey Butler cycles are my local bike shop (http://www.gbcycles.co.uk/)
I've always found their staff to be really helpful and whenever I’ve had any warranty issues, they’ve gone beyond their usual duty and really looked after me. Their January sales are legendary too. I recently picked up a pair of Fulcrum Racing 3 wheels at a genuine 20% off.

Sometimes though, it’s necessary to go elsewhere, often where pricing dictate or your local bike shop don’t stock a particular brand or item. In this situation, I’ve found that I’ve been pretty happy with my purchases and occasionally make a substantial saving that warrants an online order. Regardless of the saving though, there’s one thing that often lacks - Customer Service.

I’m going to give you a few examples of differing service so you can see what I mean.

Geoffrey Butler – the STI Shimano 105 shifter on my 16 month old bike stopped working. I took it into Geoffrey Butler on the Saturday and by the following week, they’ve removed the shifter, sent it to Shimano and refitted a whole new set. The cost? £20 for some new bar tape, end caps and a token labour gesture.

Fudge Cycles (bike shop that also do mail order and online retail) – The powerlink on my SRAM chain breaks after 3 months use. Quick email to them and I receive a replacement link, free of charge in the post within a couple of days.

Wiggle (online retailer) – based on recommendation, I bought a pair of DHB glasses with interchangeable lenses which broke where the frame meets the nose section. This frame is designed to flex when the lenses are interchanged. All DHB items carry a lifetime warranty so I emailed Wiggle but received no response. I was surprised to find a replacement pair arrive in the post within a couple of days. It would have been nice to have a reply to my email but I appreciated the replacement.

Four months on, the same thing has happened on the replacement pair – a break in exactly the same spot. So, I email Wiggle. No response. I email on two more occasions. Still no response. It’s been two weeks now and I’m still without a replacement pair or a reply to any of my correspondence.

This whole incident has raised a few questions. Will an initial saving on a purchase outweigh the final cost?

When magazines recommend items, are they driven by actual real life experience or on behalf of the advertising team?

Will I ever receive a replacement set of specs?

Tune in again to find out. Guess where I’ll be shopping from now on………

A February trip to the seaside

London to Brighton on a bicycle is an iconic ride that many aspire to but for cycling enthusiasts is more a “rite of passage”, especially living in the South East.


I’ve completed the journey several times now (and back!) but arriving at Brighton Pier having got there under my own steam always fills me with a warm glow, even on a cold February morning.

Ordinarily, we save the seaside trips until a warmer season but an opportunity to palm the kids off with the in-laws meant that I was able to undertake the journey with my better half on her first bike ride to the coast, coinciding with her longest ride yet.

Whenever we head to Brighton, we take a less direct route than the British Heart Foundation annual ride and head into the country lanes. It’s slightly longer but does offer more tranquil, traffic free riding with some added lumpiness towards the end, whilst still being able to enjoy the majestic Ditchling Beacon.

Unlike the BHF annual ride, there was no walking up the Beacon yesterday and I’m pleased to say that we all made it to the coast with one puncture providing the only drama of the ride.