Ditching road cleats completely – marginal losses. Views & Opinion by MuddyGoose - December 29, 2021January 18, 20220 There are times when you do something because 'that's the way it should be' or because 'that's what everyone else does'. And because it seems to be right or best you never bother to question it. Then maybe you have one of those moments of realisation and decide that actually, 'there's a better way'. That's what happened for me when I questioned why I was riding single sided road pedals, road specific shoes and LOOK Keo cleats. When I bought a road bike back in 2012 to have alongside my mountain bike, I actually started off with mountain bike pedals and cleats on it but for the reasons mentioned I changed to 'proper' road shoes, cleats and pedals. I guess it
Added a SRAM AXS power meter to my Force groupset Maintenance Product Reviews Views & Opinion by MuddyGoose - June 1, 2021June 1, 20210 Should I buy a power meter? It's one of those questions that has been discussed amongst friends, within clubs and across internet forums for decades. The experts will tell you that you'll see bigger gains if you train by power. All the pros use power meters, at least in training if not also in races. You can more easily regulate your efforts with the use of power data, to ensure that you don't blow up before the top of that long climb or before the final run in of your race. Of course all of this just explains the usefulness of power meters but doesn't answer the question of 'should I buy one?' as that question surely boils down to
Cycling plans for 2021 Views & Opinion by MuddyGoose - April 1, 2021April 1, 20210 So it's April already. That's 3 months gone and into the 2nd quarter of the year. But in terms of the plans of a cycling enthusiast, it's been 3 months of lockdown and there have been no cycling events going ahead at all. Even club rides and local group rides have been none existent, not to mention organised events such as Sportives, Races etc. Usually on a normal year, by this time I would have ridden the Yaxley Riders Reliability Ride and have been planning ahead to other organised events. And maybe managed to squeeze in a couple of rides in different parts of the UK as my day job allowed. But not this year. Things
2020 Cycling Year in Review Views & Opinion by MuddyGoose - March 5, 2021March 5, 20214 OK, I know. It's now March. I'm a bit late on this post, it should really be completed by the end of January I suppose. To be honest I did think about leaving it out this time around and starting my year on the blog with something different but 2020 was definitely a year with plenty to talk about! So 2020 will be remembered for the year of the COVID19 pandemic. The virus outbreak began in 2019 in East Asia but it was March 2020 before it hit the UK and the affects were felt worldwide. For me, I began 2020 with quite a lot of work trips. Once up to Aberdeen in Scotland, across to the company
I may have found my dream tyres – Vittoria Terreno Zero 700x32c Product Reviews Views & Opinion by MuddyGoose - October 7, 2020October 7, 202010 Tyres, tyres, tyres. (or even tires if you're from the US). This won't be the first time that I've blogged about tyres and it may not be the last time either. But when this set of tyres wears out, it may well be the first time I replace like for like. So have I finally found a tyre that I'm happy to keep buying and riding year after year? Very possibly. Towards the end of 2019, I decided to buy some tyres for the winter which could double up as suitable for light gravel riding. At the time I struggled to decide between the Vittoria Terreno Dry and the Vittoria Terreno Zero. The Dry being more treaded and classed by Vittoria
Giving the new gravel tyres a true test in the Yorkshire Dales Product Reviews Views & Opinion Yorkshire Yorkshire Dales by MuddyGoose - November 9, 2019April 17, 20203 Anyone who's had their ear to the ground will know about my recent purchase of some gravel tyres. For me they are going to be my road bike winter tyres too. I have had them for a few weeks now and on my way up to Scotland for work I found a good opportunity to give them a good and proper testing! In the Yorkshire Dales riding out from Settle. I don't intend this to be a review of my tyres. That will be saved until another day/blog post but I may well mention them a few times all the same. Instead this is my remarks on riding in the Yorkshire Dales, on road, off road and up hills. Including a
My Kinesis RTD Build Product Reviews Views & Opinion by MuddyGoose - August 15, 2019August 15, 20198 So in my last blog post I wrote about my new frameset and the fact that I had chosen a Kinesis RTD as my new bike. However what I didn't go on to talk about was the build - the parts chosen to complete the bike. So let's delve into the world of bike components and take a look at what I've put together. And I might even indulge you and give you the build weight too. As mentioned in my previous post (or at least I hope it was), the RTD is a frameset only option from Kinesis. If you see it available in your local bike shop, or online as a complete bike it's the bike shop's build, not
How does my bike fit, Guru? Views & Opinion by MuddyGoose - February 9, 20170 There's always a guru in all walks of life. Someone who'll tell you how things should be, give you that little bit of insight that you just didn't have before. In the case of the Guru Bike Fit system, I'm not sure if I should apply the name 'guru' to the system or the operator! 1070
My cycling year – 2016 in review Views & Opinion by MuddyGoose - January 23, 20170 I know it's now 2017 and the TV shows have moved on from reviewing last year but I haven't and maybe by posting this a little later than usual people won't be in the 'not another one' mood. Either way, this is what it is. It's a review of my cycling year 2016. 1050
Winter Riding Advice – 2. Staying Safe in Winter Conditions Views & Opinion by MuddyGoose - December 23, 20160 OK, so you've got your kit and you're wrapped up just nicely to keep out the elements and maintain the heat you'll be producing. Let's hit the roads and get some winter training under our tyres ahead of the 2017 season. Through the village or town is fine but as soon as you hit the country roads, everything is suddenly looking pretty icy. What now? Bail, turn around and go home disappointed? Ride really slowly completing the planned route but on tenterhooks? Not necessarily, often you can have a good ride in bad conditions. 1025