The Beacon Message Board

rdleaper

Shame Wiggins has stopped talking to to journalists, it's part of his job and not very good for someone who works for a communications company. Can't see him taking any time back from Nibali in the mountains and as usual, Evans is riding very intelligently. Softish pedal for the next 2 weeks and ri...

rdleaper

Froome can just leave wiggo in the mountains now to suffer pretty much, as Froome had to wait for wiggo on stage 17 when valvede won, its not like wiggo was waiting for porte and co in the mountains, so they just left em, and as froomes the leader, wiggo's just another domestique, so basically hes ...

rdleaper

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/brailsford-names-froome-as-team-skys-tour-de-france-leader So will Wiggins either be a "bit tired" and pull out of the TDF, support Froome or ride for himself? Can't really imagine him hammering himself for Froome? I think he may have to support Froome, at least init...

rdleaper

Good start for Cav, though not so for Millar! Not sure if I've seen a crash splitting the peloton like that with only about a dozen left in the front group, but surprised it doesn't happen more often when we do get crashes. Time bonuses could make things interesting as maybe Cav, with his 20-second ...

rdleaper

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cycling/22378440 Definitely no chance for Basso now then! Sounds painful for a cyclist too ;;-) Agree on your point Harry - Wiggo looked good in 2011 before his fall and broken collar bone, and if guys like Uran and Henao crash out he might be exposed to attacks in the ...

rdleaper

A lot of contenders - Contador, Valverde, Froome, Rodriguez (don't think he's in it Kevin?), Quintana etc. - sitting this out, presumably with Le Tour in mind. I'm not sure Gesink or Basso will feature at the very top; Basso seems to be found wanting in the toughest stages these days and Gesink is m...

rdleaper

Well done all especially Beaconites, some good times in there! I can barely comprehend someone doing that course in 1:36:11; that's seriously quick

rdleaper

Haha yeah saw that! Bit of a shame as if he could've kept up with Nibali (tough, but easier with a working bike) he might've won it. Still makes him ever more hungry for victories maybe?

rdleaper

No you can't use rim brakes - the article confirms a bit lower down. Looks like they'd work better for mountain bikes?

rdleaper

jonnyri wrote:I buy new when my head gets too big for my old one...

(Awaiting the onslaught)

I wonder how big Lance's got then?

And yes, I'm talking bike helmet too.

rdleaper

Great stuff! £110 and counting - you'll earn yourself a new bike by season end at this rate!

rdleaper

Have to agree - the Merckx comparison seems pretty accurate. I wonder if we'll be saying similar things about Sagan in 10 years' time? Still I reckon it's more difficult to dominate the men's circuit given the greater depth of competition, so maybe even having half Marianne Vos's success would make ...

rdleaper

Philip Whiteman wrote:But the idea of cycling around an arid dust bowl occupied by dodgy individuals spilling over the borders from Libya, Algeria or Mali did not appeal.

Well Libya or Algeria maybe, but you're safe from Malian terrorists unless they cross about 1000 miles of Algerian desert first!

rdleaper

The day before the 100 in 7 or 8 (at least that's when it was last year) so quite a convenient date for it too!

rdleaper

Pedlo Mudguardo wrote:if it takes you twenty minutes plus to change a tube at the road side you'll be in for some mutterings from your fellow riders.

Good job I haven't had one on a club run then

rdleaper

I think the guy using the protractor on Jenkin road (2nd part, near bottom of page) might have misinterpreted the percentages used in gradients on roads (unless I have). Isn't a angle of 30 degrees indicative of a hill at 1 in 1.732 (sq root of 3), or about 58%?? If so that's just ridiculous. PS I d...

rdleaper

HAZBRO wrote:if someones got thousands of gram round their waist the it pointless in terms of weight saving

...but if someone's got thousands of pounds of spare cash they might just do it anyway

rdleaper

The plastic briefcase one (not Strava but still GPS) from "more" has to be the most impressive one, if genuine.

rdleaper

Sounds like fun - might consider giving it a go!

rdleaper

Tim wrote:Who's Ian?

Maybe there are actually 3 Ian Taylors?

rdleaper

Simon - could you re-do your post from 17 January? It's a bit long!!

Cheers!

rdleaper

Philmondo wrote:...having been left bearing a partial footwear impression.

Forensic evidence maybe?

rdleaper

I've had 3 chains/cassettes replaced on a combined 7.5k miles or so on my road and commuter bikes so about the same. That seems rather excessive? Not really; it's 3 changes in total after 7.5k (1 on my road bike and 2 on my hybrid) so about every 2 to 2.5k miles (not much more often than yours). Th...

rdleaper

I've had 3 chains/cassettes replaced on a combined 7.5k miles or so on my road and commuter bikes so about the same. That seems rather excessive? Not really; it's 3 changes in total after 7.5k (1 on my road bike and 2 on my hybrid) so about every 2 to 2.5k miles (not much more often than yours). Th...

rdleaper

I'm definitely in Tim's camp! If I had a garage or garden/yard I'd wash my bike more often but I live in a flat so it's often not practical. I tend to just wipe it down with water/muc off, though I've just bought a chain cleaner. I've had 3 chains/cassettes replaced on a combined 7.5k miles or so on...

rdleaper

Seems logical to me:

http://www.thepoke.co.uk/2013/01/20/syd ... nt-events/

rdleaper

LMTT just entered. Will be delighted with anything under 2hr34 and a slight improvement on last years weather! I've just entered too - hoping for under 2.5 hours as a 1st go depending on training over next 2-3 months (which has started slowly, let's say). Looking forward to the 5 9-milers by Earlsw...

rdleaper

Must say I'm flabbergasted. Can't decide which is going to make him look worse: 90 minutes of truth or another 90 minutes of lies. Oprah may be cringeworthy in the extreme, but she's no mug, Ed ... I don't think she'll shy away from difficult questions. It's probably to help finance all the claims ...

rdleaper

Call me controversial but... The next best thing to a dedicated tri-bike might not be equipment at all... Until you've been competing for a while i suspect the greatest improvements will pretty much just come from improved training, better pacing and understanding how hard you can push yourself. Sp...

rdleaper

Cheers all; I might pop into Evans Cycles or Bike Pro and see what the options are.

rdleaper

Very deserving recipients ... and yet, I do feel slightly uncomfortable about recognising a career still in progress. I'm OK with it myself; I don't see that it does any harm. I guess there's a feeling they need to recognise the success of London 2012 soon afterwards in one go. Also there are prece...

rdleaper

Hi all I'm going to give time trials another (and hopefully better) go next year (OK last year was a decent first go but I'm looking to make big improvements). Anyway I'm thinking of getting some tri bars to fit to my existing road bike, which is a pretty basic model Specialized Allez Sport 27, and ...

rdleaper

RichK wrote:Possibly one for Brian (?)

Do we have a (provisional) list of club TT events for 2013 yet? I'm particularly interested in what we have around easter (Karen is wanting to book our easter break...)

Thanks

Richard

Yeah me too; is there a 6-miler in late March again?

rdleaper

Yep time to try out the turbo tonight methinks, especially with spin classes not on this week due to AGM.

rdleaper

Ed Moss wrote:http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_s ... 641299.stm

Today, this looks even more laughable.

Speaking of which, saw a bit of Dodgeball last night where Lance appeared. Don't think that scene works quite how it did 8 years ago.

rdleaper

http://www.velonation.com/News/ID/13155 ... eview.aspx

Be interesting to see what the commission's report says too.

rdleaper

mike mac wrote:At this time of year you will gain no benefit from high intensity sessions such as spinning

Surely once a week is OK? I didn't waste £25 on 10 sessions of it did I?

rdleaper

I think in all likelihood, given the sophistication and apparent effectiveness of the doping program at US Postal, if no-one had doped in Lance's era (including himself) he wouldn't have won 7 TdFs in a row. He may have won 1 or 2, but what I think we saw was how much more effective his drug-taking ...

rdleaper

Lance boring. ! No way, not compared to some of the riders in recent tours. Just curious to who you think were exciting riders during lance's reign and recently.? agreed, the 2003 tour was the best i've ever seen. it's not lance's fault that he was so much better then everyone else. Ah, the irony! ...

rdleaper

"Unlike Lance Armstrong, Tommy Simpson was a product and victim of an era when a drug taking culture was accepted and commonplace amongst cycling professionals" . Critically discuss. The only real difference is the way they did it. From a moral perspective they both had a choice, and chose to cheat...

rdleaper

UCI are not going to drop the Kimmage case, citing that it is a straight foward deformation case against the UCI commissioners. On the one hand they have the right to defend their reputation; on the other hand, it will only continue to drag the UCI's reputation through the dirt. McQuade appears to ...

rdleaper

I'll ask again. By what right can an American organisation disqualify the 7 times winner of the TdeF. By what authority do that operate. It's simple question. Title to the TdeF is owned by Amaury Sport Organisation and they are resposible for organising the Tour as well as other stage races and cla...

rdleaper

You know I was thinking the other day, what if I had got into cycling at an earlier age? (What-ifs aren't the most productive thing ever but I'll allow myself the odd indulgence.) Well, if by sheer hard work and a fair bit of luck I'd got to the point of being good enough to join the professional ra...

rdleaper

David Cole wrote:Great Film Laurence and Happy Birthday - not sure which day

Dave

Sunday isn't it? You coming to Croome Park Laurence?

rdleaper

Pedlo Mudguardo wrote:DECENT LIGHTS ESSENTIAL.
Nic.

I've got myself a Lezyne mini-drive front light (link here); it's 150 lumens although low battery life. Do you reckon it'll do?

rdleaper

Simon, I did a 5:04.9 last year; doesn't that count for handicaps?

rdleaper

laurence_cooley wrote: I do remember thinking half-way up that I never wanted to ride that hill ever again, and the post-climb cough is a good reminder.

Yeah and how many people have vowed not to drink ever again during a hangover? You'll be back for more next year, and so will I! Our memories are too short

rdleaper

Thanks everyone - organisers, competitors and spectators - for making what was my first ever time trial this morning so much fun. I was just aiming to break 5:00, so was really pleased with my 4:36 time. Having studied previous years' results, it seems to have been quite a fast event overall this y...

rdleaper

Well done Paddy (and Carl); it took 2 cracking times to depose John from the top. And well done to Ed, Greg and Harry for some great times too - there might be a future winner in amongst those three (and not just of the hill climb). Thanks to Dave, John, Brian and everyone else who helped out, and t...

rdleaper

I would say great pics but for the fact I look like I'm about to kill someone (not just nearly myself)!! Thankfully I'm not the only one!

The Beacon Message Board

Search found 275 matches

Re: 2013 TDF

2013 Giro (spoiler)

Tri bars

Re: Club TT Calendar 2013