Innholdsfortegnelse for May 2018 i Cycling Plus

The Agwe is Halford’s urban hybrid bike, equipped with a 1x10 drivetrain, wide-ish fast rolling tyres, a comfortable, easy riding position and geometry inspired by mountain bikes. The frame is a simple, well-built alloy affair. The kinked top-tube increases standover height for when you’re waiting at traffic lights, the external cable routing is easy to maintain, there’s plenty of clearance for wider tyres and mudguards and mounting points for a rear luggage rack. For £500 you might be surprised at the kit Voodoo has been able to spec. The drivetrain is centred around Shimano Deore’s groupset, with crisp and clean shifting and reliable components. The cassette has an 11-42 range, which should be good for all but the hilliest of cities. Tektro’s hydraulic disc brakes provide ample power and, with…

MIGHTY MUM Laura Kenny returned to the track at the UCI World Championships in Apeldoorn, Holland, to pick up a silver medal with the GB women’s pursuit team just six months after the birth of her first child. MUDDY MARVELLOUS “Go hard or go home,” said cyclocross world champion Wout Van Aert after cramping and having to walk some of the final climb on his way to third place at a gloriously muddy Strade Bianche. Tiejs Benoot was a worthy winner and Romain Bardet an honourable second. PAVÉ THE WAY It’s cobble time as the Tour of Flanders on 1 April and Queen of the Classics, Paris-Roubaix, on 8 April pit the pros against the rough stuff of Belgium and northern France. DARK SKY Its riders may be racing in…

VIRTUAL CHAMPS Online training platform Zwift has announced its men’s and women’s national championship, where riders from the top 15 countries (ones with the most Zwifters) will compete to wear a virtual national jersey for a year. ALL KITTED OUT The 2018 kit for Sir Bradley Wiggins’ pro team, Team Wiggins, has a patriotic tone. The red, white and blue jerseys from Le Col represent the team’s roots, and the gold highlights nod to Wiggins’ Olympic success. TASTY TREATS Torq is well-known for providing classic dessert flavours in its energy gels. Two new flavours - Lemon Drizzle and Cherry Bakewell – have now joined the lineup, each containing 30g of carbs. FOR ALL THE LATEST BIKE & GEAR NEWS VISIT…

My road chums talk about Type 1 and Type 2 fun. Type 1 is all fun; Type 2 wasn’t at the time but feels good in retrospect. Said friends are audax cyclists, who ride 300km through the night and sleep in bus shelters, so they have a particular idea of what constitutes as ‘fun’. Being a maths geek, I reckon this isn’t systematic enough. I see eight types of fun. Experiences are enjoyable, or not, in three stages: before, during and after. For each, score 1 for fun, 0 for none. Convert this binary number into decimal to give you a type of fun from nought to seven. For example, some things are unpleasant to contemplate, experience, and think back on. Having a bike stolen, say, so that scores 0-0-0.…

Straight, square section seatstays complete the frame circuit The Venon has always been up there in the value stakes, and Vitus has invested in a new carbon frame and fork with contemporary axle and brake standards plus increased tyre clearance for 2018. That has cost it in terms of componentry. The full carbon fork has a 12mm thru-axle and a flat brake mount with internal routing through the tapered leg. Vitus has used a big boxy design to keep the tall 170mm headtube stiff. That also gives plenty of space for fully internal cable routing to enter just behind the head-tube, and the brake and rear gear cable don’t reappear until way down the chainstays. The down-tube is boxy too, with the unidirectional T700 carbon weave glinting clear through the…

While the distance bike market seems to have gone disc brake mad, Dolan’s Dual proves that there are still lots of advantages to sticking with conventional calliper brakes. There are some imbalances with the ride character though and the wheels on the default kit don’t do justice to its performance potential. The most obvious advantage of using rim brakes rather than discs is that they’re lighter. You can also use a lighter frame and fork as braking stress is located away from the tips where leverage has most effect. That reverse engineering is clear in the relatively skinny fork legs. There are no braking forces at the hub trying to tear the wheel out of its mounts so the quick-release skewers in open dropout slots are perfectly safe, and Dolan…

HIGHS Feature packed, battery life, slick design LOWS On-the-fly navigation, high price PACKED WITH FEATURES AND CONNECTIVITY, the Edge 1030 replaced the Edge 1000, bringing the top-of-the-range device in line with the Edge 820’s clean, modern aesthetic. The most noticeable feature of the Edge 1030 is the new 3.5in screen, which occupies most of the face of the device. The 1030 will display up to 10 fields per page of data, and you can customise things to your heart’s content, adding or taking away pages and fields to create your ideal display. The touchscreen works with (some) gloves, and in the rain. Layouts are profile-specific, and by default, there are Road, Mountain and Indoor ones. There’s nothing to stop you creating your own; you might want a more stripped down…

“TURKEY CONTAINS BETA-ALANINE, WHICH CAN REDUCE FATIGUE AND IMPROVE PERFORMANCE” 10 Turkey Spaghetti Bolognese SERVES 4 “This is a lighter and healthier version than beef mince Bolognese. Turkey is loaded with B vitamins, phosphorus, potassium, iron, selenium and zinc,” explains Anita Bean, sports nutritionist, champion athlete and author of The Runner’s Cookbook (Bloomsbury). “Turkey also contains beta-alanine, which can reduce fatigue and improve performance during highintensity exercise.” INGREDIENTS 250g wholewheat spaghetti1 tbsp olive oil1 onion, chopped500g turkey mince2 celery sticks, chopped2 garlic cloves, crushed2 carrots, peeled and diced2 × 400g tins chopped tomatoes2 tbsp tomato purée1 tsp dried oregano (or 2 tbsp fresh oregano)1 bay leafDash of Worcestershire sauce Salt and black pepper to season 2 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese Serve with green vegetables, such as spring greens or cabbage METHOD…

FOR THE LOVE OF IT We tend to over complicate things in life these days. I’m often telling folk to ‘do it cos you love it’. I sign books with that too. When there’s no pleasure in your cycling you need to take stock of why you’re doing it. I get the greatest enjoyment in riding alone, lest it disturbs the pace and rhythm. I moved to where I live now, in Ayrshire, specifically because of the wonderful cycling I have here; the relative peace of the roads and the challenges they hold too. BE GRATEFUL I’m thankful for where I get to ride and I need to get that feeling that cycling gives the muscles. Cycling saved my life and I know that whenever I want to feel better…

Mike Duff, co-founder of the Wolf Pack 500km ride, shares his tips 1 WHERE THERE’S A WILL… Find your motivation – charity or to prove something – to train yourself to a new level. Last year we rode for refugee children. This year’s Wolf Pack ride is to raise awareness of climate change. 2 DO THE NUMBERS Pore over maps, profiles, timings, flights, weights, logistics, battery levels - everything! Know your route and have a backup plan should passes be closed, for example 3 EMBRACE CHANGE Weather conditions and temperatures can change, so you need to have the right kit to suit. Do some sleep loading too, you can store some up over the week before the event. 4 FORGET THE KS So your longest ever ride is only 200km?…

With winter finally behind us after a final, brutal flourish, it’s time to start looking ahead to a summer packed with cycling. And whatever your goal event(s) this year, this Sportive Guide is packed with the advice you need to perform at your best. We’ve got top tips from the pros, training and nutrition advice to get the most out of yourself, plus all the information you need to make the right gear and bike choices. And if you haven’t decided on an event yet, well, we’ve got a few suggestions for you… both at home and abroad.…

£1699 The chassis The Crosshill’s flattened profile toptube arcs back from the tall head-tube to meet the seat-tube much lower down than a standard frame, so there is plenty of exposed seatpost for extra give when the going gets rough. Not that the Crosshill needs much extra comfort thanks to its huge 1.9in tyres. The alloy frame uses external cable routing all round, which is great for home servicing and, unlike some internal routing, it’s rattle free, but you do need to stay on top of cleaning. The handling You get a commanding see-all position when riding in traffic, but when the terrain gets rougher, the compact fit makes for a stable yet quick-to-turn bike that’s very capable on gravel. It’s also keen and confident on hardpacked dirt and singletrack.…

1 Safe style French brand Ekoi has a new range of road kit designed to get you seen and help keep you safe. The new short sleeve jersey is made in Italy and features a blend of highly breathable mesh panels on the back and underarms, with a thicker blend front for wind protection. 2 Simple signage On the back, alongside the three traditional pockets, is a Share The Road graphic, illustrating the recommended overtake distance for cars. The jersey is available with graphics for both left and right-hand drive countries and in both imperial and metric distances (5ft/1.5m). 3 Protection included Ekoi also has a neat new electronic warning widget, which sits alongside the clothing range, and comes as standard with its Competition 10 winter jackets. The tiny 7g…

It’s only since I retired that I’ve started to appreciate the social side of cycling, it’s gone beyond fitness My first bike wasn’t exactly cutting edge. It was by Tunturi, a Finnish brand - it had pedal brakes (the ones where you backpedal to stop) and no gears. But I was so proud of it. It was around the same time my parents hired a go-kart for me to ride at a local track. The rest, as they say, is history. Where I grew up everybody cycled, it was the number one way to get about. That’s no longer the case, as cars now dominate. Monaco would be perfect for cycle commuting, if only more people chose to do it. I’ve retired and gone to cycling heaven. The south of…

Previous rim brake versions of Canyon’s Endurace bike have won top honours in our tests and its very clean looking frame creates a brisk, high-clarity character. A harsh ride, despite quality 28mm tyres, higher cost than before and lack of everyday practicality count against it when compared to the latest crop of contenders. The alloy frame wears its welds proudly but the multi-shaped pressure-formed tubes still look super-clean, right down to blanking plugs for the 12mm thru-axles. At a claimed 1350g for a medium frame it’s a good weight for a metal frame too. Signature Canyon features like the stiffness-boosted asymmetric flared Maximus seat-tube are carried over from the carbon Endurace. A lack of bridges on the straight stays gives ample room for the 28mm rubber, and will take 33mm…

Boardman’s SLR Endurance frame has been around for a while, which shows in certain detail elements. You’re also getting previous generation Ultegra rather than the latest 8000 version. The upside is that because it’s not the latest gear Boardman has dropped the price by £400, bringing it into the right bracket for this test. While the brakes and axle standards might be a bit dated, the C10 carbon fibre chassis is a seriously light, high-performance piece. Boardman definitely emphasises the SuperLightRace part of its name over a more traditional laidback, soft focus endurance character. The lightweight frame has a claimed weight of under 900g and uses the same T1000 and T800 composites as Boardman’s top race bikes. It’s built into big boxy mainframe tubes behind a tapered head-tube for extra…

WE SAY Cutting-edge aero helmet with optics thrown in GIRO WAS THE FORERUNNER IN the aero-road helmet genre, launching the Air Attack in 2013. Since then, Giro has been working hard on its replacement, the Vanquish. Giro says it better understands the aerodynamics of using a shield – the magnetic clip-on visor first seen on the Attack – and how to place and shape vents for comfort without compromising the shape’s aero benefits. The helmet’s pseudo two-piece hard outer shell steps down just past the crown to create an aero ‘trip’ layer, which makes the air flow smoothly back as if you were wearing a full-on teardrop-style time trial helmet. In the front the Vanquish has four large vents and the internal channelling offers plenty of breathable room. A MIPS…

There I am, getting ready to ride a bike on a cold March morning. My first pre-ride checks are the essential ones. Tyres inflated, brakes checked, clothes fit for the weather. So far, so simple… But this is 2018. Pre-ride checks these days resemble launch procedures surrounding a missile test in their technological tinkering, with every moment of my riding being logged, controlled and monitored, an Orwellian nightmare on two wheels. Some of these ‘enhancements’ are useful. Most, however, are superfluous and in our audited society this is becoming the norm. Obsessing over Strava by craving kudos from people you barely know, or don’t know at all, along with logging or blogging rides on Instagram or Twitter. Riding has become just another facet of social media in society’s endless quest…

Track cycling has provided some of the titans of UK cycling. Chris Hoy, Bradley Wiggins, Victoria Pendleton and Mark Cavendish all cut their teeth on the wooden oval boards, while the likes of Laura Kenny and her husband Jason are current household names, despite remaining on wood, rather than tarmac, for the bulk of their careers. Come the Olympics the television schedules barely seem to shift from the velodrome, such is the variety of events and the record-breaking medal prospects Team GB has every time. So why is it still relatively niche for everyday drop-barred cyclists? It’s perhaps due to a lack of tracks, but the bikes are simpler and cheaper, and, on the surface, the only skill you need to master is turning left, right? Wrong. Open invitation My…

British Airways includes a bike as part of your 23kg checked luggage allowance. Along with hand luggage (maximum dimensions 40x30x15cm, 23kg max weight), it’s easy to come in underweight. An extra 23kg bag will cost £25-£120 (booked online in advance) each way depending on your ticket, destination and departure airport. Small electronic luggage scales, which can be bought for under £10, are invaluable when it comes to hitting all the different weight limits. Similarly, Virgin Airlines, a popular option for transatlantic flights, includes your bike as part of your 23kg baggage allowance. When combined with hand luggage (maximum dimensions 23x36x56cm, 10kg maximum weight), it’s usually sufficient for short trips. An extra bag will cost you £65 each way. EasyJet, who offers a wide range of affordable European flights, charge for…

09:00 Highest testosterone secretion (but no impact on performance) Your alarm clock pierces your ears, drilling into your synapses in a vain attempt to rouse you for the Saturday morning ride. It’s 7am, a hint of last night’s Proper Job nestles on your breath and your entire being’s in a state of turmoil as you force a grin to greet your clubmates. One of them – let’s call him Stanley Albert Utamol – woke up on the right side of his performanceboosting mattress and resembles an energy drink-fuelled kids’ TV presenter, rapidly reporting how wonderful he’s feeling. The conflict in moods carries over to the ride, ol’ Stanley and his fellow early birds leaving you and your fellow grumps lagging behind. It seems every single one of us has a…

YOUR EXPERT Rob Brown is a physiotherapist at the Centre for Health & Human Performance (chhp.com) WHAT ARE THEY? The abdominals consist of four muscles - the transversus abdominis, external oblique, internal oblique and the rectus abdominis - located over your stomach and attached from the ribs to the pelvis. HOW DO THEY WORK? The abs support the trunk, allow movement and hold organs in place by regulating internal abdominal pressure. The ideal cycling position and its non-weight bearing makeup mean the role of the abs in cycling gets questioned, but they seem to control the movement and position of the spine and pelvis as well as transferring and attenuating forces during the pedal stroke. As the intensity of a ride increases so does the activity of the abs. WHAT…

YOUR EXPERT Sebastian Nittke is team mechanic with the Canyon//SRAM UCI Women’s WorldTour pro team 1 FORWARD LOOKING With the crankset off (see last month) you will need an Allen key of the correct size to fit the bolt on the front of your outside chainring, but don’t turn it yet. 2 REAR VIEW You will also need another Allen key, often 1mm larger, to hold the chainring nut in place on the rear of the small ring. Secure the nut and unscrew the bolts anti-clockwise. 3 DESK TIDY Keep everything together and tidy so that when it comes time to put it all back again you will know exactly where the parts are. Give the bits you will be keeping a wipe and lube. 4 RING THE CHANGES When…

1 THAT’S WHAT FRIENDS ARE FOR… Nothing beats cycling with your mates but, without being a party pooper, don’t let them distract you from your sportive goals. “Weekend rides can compromise physiological improvements if the riders aren’t of similar ability, resulting in some (you) being spat out the back,” says Eddie Fletcher, head sports scientist at Wattbike (wattbike.com/uk). “Your group needs to be disciplined. If it is, these rides are worth it because they raise motivation and have you riding longer than you would solo. “The key to these sessions is not working too hard. Aim for an average overall heart rate range equivalent to zone 2/3 (around 60-80 per cent of your maximum heart rate – you should be able to talk among yourselves, though not always easily) and…

MARATONA DLES DOLOMITES 1 July 2018 Northern Italy You will need your hill legs on for this one as there’s little in the way of flat roads, and that’s whether you’re competing over the 55, 106 or 138km option. You’ll have to be fit – and that means medically fit – as the organisers insist on a medical certificate before allowing you to ride. maratona.it James Witts Various LA MARMOTTE 8 July 2018 Alps, France Similar in magnitude and popularity as L’Étape du Tour (see below), the key difference being its route doesn’t change from year to year. And what a route it is, consuming 174km and over 5000m of climbing from Bourg d’Oisans to Alpe d’Huez. Even with 7500 places available, it’s usually a sell-out; so check to see if charity…

James Witts Robert Smith START SLOW, FINISH STRONG Focus on keeping the intensity low for the first few miles and avoid competitive instincts on the day’s first climb. Once you’ve settled into your rhythm, you can decide whether or not you feel like pushing a little harder. AVOID SURGING Most sportive riders don’t need to cover attacks or break away from a group, so think about managing effort – conserving on the hills, recovering on descents and avoiding spikes in effort. LISTEN TO YOUR BODY The thump of your heart in your throat; back muscles that need stretching; a craving for salt – all these things and more inform your effort levels and nutrition status. A one to 10 scale of perceived rate of exertion is a great way to…

NEW BIKES AND KIT A mixed testing month has seen me ride and rate Lapierre’s Crosshill 300 (p20) and Merida’s Silex 9000 (p22), plus Selle Italia’s Novus Boost saddle (p72) and Métier’s Beacon jacket with added LEDs (p80). Warren Rossiter, Senior technical editor NEW BIKES & KIT Not quite Alpe d’Huez, but short steep Cotswold climbs were the test ground for Look’s 785 Huez RS (p16), I’ve also tested two walletfriendly first road bikes in Giant’s Contend 2 and B’Twin’s Triban 500 (p24). Simon Withers, Technical writer GROUP TEST As thoughts turn to booking spring training camps and summer holidays, I’ve reviewed six bike carriers, three hard cases and three soft bags, to make your life easier when taking your bike abroad (p120). Ian Osborne, Freelance writer RATINGS EXPLAINED EXCEPTIONAL A…

The £274.99 V4s are Pearl Izumi’s lightest, stiffest and most breathable shoes to date. They combine a seamless upper with twin Boa dials mounted on the asymmetric tongue, which the company claims provides equal tensioning for a close yet comfortable fit. The understated upper is mated to the most bling metallic flame finished soles we’ve seen. Perfect for showing your riding mates a clean set of heels.…

Editor-in-chief Rob Spedding spends the day with the bike fit experts at Specialized “If YOUR BIKE ISN’T set up correctly there’s a good chance you’ll feel ‘disconnected’ from it…” That’s the considered opinion of Mark ‘Murph’ Murphy, Specialized UK’s Retül Fit Training Instructor, as we chat before I undertake a full Retül bike fit at Specialized UK HQ in Surrey. “As well as that disconnection, symptoms of a bad setup often include foot pain, numbness, saddle sores, hand numbness, knee pain, lower back pain and neck strain.” These are things I can relate to. I’m lucky and get to ride a lot of bikes but, even though I’ve had a couple of bike fits in the past, I’m pretty lazy when it comes to setting up my rides. Usually I…

Decathlon’s hypermarché house brand is coming into this test hot off a win in our £500 head to head (issue 337). The Ultra is another top-value alloy all-rounder that shames a lot more expensive bikes. Coming in at just under £1300, you might expect some compromise with the alloy chassis, and at a claimed 1470g (M) it is fairly heavy. The only obvious cost-saving elements are the external gear cables and brake hoses, although they are bonuses in terms of minimal friction gear operation and easy servicing. The mainframe tubes are triple butted (three different thicknesses in each tube) and the rectangular top-and down-tubes are smooth welded onto a short (150mm) tapered head-tube. Add the 390mm reach for a potential predatory ride position, if you remove all the carbon fibre…

You can fit full’guards with a 28mm tyre or go up to a 32mm tyre without them The Dolomite frame isn’t new, but the 4 gets the benefit of the latest Shimano Ultegra 8000 gears and disc brakes mounted to a thoroughly practical frame. What you can’t tell from its stealthy looks is that it’s a really smooth yet encouragingly responsive ride. At 160mm the tapered head-tube is tall enough for extra lift and comfort, but not so tall you can’t get a more race-style position if you pull out the spacers. The top-tube is double butted, having thicker ends than the centre, and the down-tube is triple butted, with the brake and gear cables routed internally into it. The outward angle to remove the chance of paint rub means…

BEST ON TEST ELITE BYASI £7.95 This completely weatherproof 750ml bottle has a drop-in 60mm deep cup that nestles in the top to prevent smaller items like patches, a multi-tool or keys from dropping out of sight. The 200mm tall main body can carry a couple of 35mm tubes, tyre levers, and if you choose to omit the top cup, a good mini pump too. RACE ONE PR-1 BOX £17.99 Race One’s PR-1 has over 600ml capacity, and easily swallows a 35mm tube, levers, multi-tool and repair kit, but with internal height limited to 165mm, few pumps fit. The screw-on lower cap has a shallow 20-25mm recessed space for patches or small spares below the lid, and it’s impervious to bad weather. SYNCROS TOOL CAN £9.99 The Tool Can comes…

WE SAY Be safe and seen in Métier’s well-lit jacket MÉTIER IS PRETTY NEW TO the cycling apparel arena, with just two products available so far, this rain jacket and a gilet with the same inbuilt technology. Mounted on both shoulders is a flat ribbon LED light unit with three LEDs on each side, which put out a claimed 180 lumens. The drop tail features a five-LED panel with a claimed 22 lumens. The battery/control box takes three hours to charge and gives the jacket’s in-built lights a runtime of 12 hours on constant or up to 72 hours in flash modes. The lights are switched on using the control box, itself not much bigger than a matchbox at 55x40x20mm. It plugs into the jacket via a watertight 10-pin connection,…

The breakaway is a skill that can be used in club runs – if you agree beforehand – during chaingang rides, and perfected with some intense training. To get it right requires anticipation, timing, positioning, commitment, experience and plenty of energy left. In the professional teams there are riders who specialise in breaking away, often sacrificing personal glory for the team. On the Tour de France especially, these guys are often involved in the most spectacular sequences. Recently Irish rider Connor Dunne, from Aqua Blue Sport, has featured as a standout breakaway rider. Other riders who have mastered it include Belgian Thomas De Gendt and Frenchman Thomas Voeckler. 1 Major races like the TdF can feature attack after attack, with breaks occurring from riders who not only have the anaerobic…

I have spent a fair amount of time in the desert over the last couple of years. I’ve not been there for any form of spiritual retreat, or messianic isolation. Mostly, I’ve been sitting in an aluminium shed, watching a small telly as a bunch of professional riders chat to each other while they trundle up a 10-lane motorway in a straight line, before turning around a roundabout and trundling back again. You can call this a waste of time if you wish. I call it commentating on the Tours of Dubai and Abu Dhabi. It’s easy to mock, and it’s important, occasionally, to mock. After all, with their limitless funds and overbearing pretension, these races do rather over-egg their own selfimportance, especially when you consider the almost total lack…