Cycle routes?

On Tue, 09 Aug 2005 20:28:56 GMT, "°°°Rachel°°°" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

Today I bought my first bike since I was..... coooooo.... about 12! Being
at the ripe old age of 31 I tentatively went out on it this afternoon and
came back after 3 hours loving my new toy!!

Me too, recently. Fun, eh :-)

Quoted message said:

I was wondering whether you lot could recommend any websites that show local
cycle routes.

Try this one: http://www.sustrans.org/default.asp?sID=1090412763593

Best wishes,
--
,,
(**)PeeWiglet~~
/ \ / \ pee AT [guessthisbit].co.uk

"The future will be better tomorrow."
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This signature was made by SigChanger.
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°°°Rachel°°° said:

I was wondering whether you lot could recommend any websites that
show local cycle routes.

http://www.streetmap.co.uk

in message <[email hidden]>, °°°Rache

°°° (') said:

Today I bought my first bike since I was..... coooooo.... about 12!
Being at the ripe old age of 31 I tentatively went out on it this
afternoon and came back after 3 hours loving my new toy!!

I was wondering whether you lot could recommend any websites that show
local cycle routes.

Where's local?

If you ask in your local bike shop, they'll probably know of local
cycling groups and clubs, some less serious than others, who you can go
out with while you learn the good places (and cafes) to cycle around
where you are.

--
[email hidden] (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/
;; If Python is executable pseudocode,
;; then Perl is executable line noise
-- seen on Slashdot.

°°°Rachel°°° said:

Today I bought my first bike since I was..... coooooo.... about 12!
Being at the ripe old age of 31 I tentatively went out on it this
afternoon and came back after 3 hours loving my new toy!!

Way cool! What you bought?

Quoted message said:

I was wondering whether you lot could recommend any websites that
show local cycle routes.

Well the one from Newlands to Deblins Green, Powick and along the
river into Worcester city centre is a very nice one for me but I guess
you don't live around here 😉 Where are you interested in?

Chris
--
Chris Eilbeck
MARS Flight Crew http://www.mars.org.uk/
UKRA #1108 Level 2 UYB
Tripoli UK Member #9527 LSMR

On Tue, 09 Aug 2005 20:28:56 GMT someone who may be "°°°Rachel°°°"
<[email hidden]> wrote this:-

Quoted message said:

I tentatively went out on it this afternoon and
came back after 3 hours loving my new toy!!

Good.

Quoted message said:

I was wondering whether you lot could recommend any websites that show local
cycle routes.

http://www.cyclecityguides.co.uk/

Note that the best network of cycle routes are the roads.

--
David Hansen, Edinburgh | PGP email preferred-key number F566DA0E
I will always explain revoked keys, unless the UK government
prevents me by using the RIP Act 2000.

°°°Rachel°°° said:

I was wondering whether you lot could recommend any websites that show local
cycle routes.

Besides linking up with the local CTC group, one of the great pleasures
IMO is to get the local OS map (1:50,000) and to work out some routes
from the map and the presence/severity of any hills to climb and
descend. Its a great way of exploring the local area and finding your
own favourite bits. After a while you will know the area really well
and can string routes together as you go, making a choice of where shall
I go next at each junction. I've often set out for a quick hour ride
and ended up rolling home three or four hours later with a big grin from
just cycling where the fancy took me.

--
Tony

"I did make a mistake once - I thought I'd made a mistake but I hadn't"
Anon

°°°Rachel°°° said:

I was wondering whether you lot could recommend any websites that show local
cycle routes.

I just got some maps from these guys.....

http://www.goldeneyemaps.com/

These are excellent laminated maps with loads of useful info.

They do two types of particular interest to cyclists - 'MTB guides' and 'Country Lanes and Byways' 🙂

Wow! Thank you lots! That's really helpful! I shall peruse them all.

Rachel
--
~ , ~ = ^.'''.^=
~ ^

"Chris Eilbeck" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

°°°Rachel°°° said:

Today I bought my first bike since I was..... coooooo.... about 12!
Being at the ripe old age of 31 I tentatively went out on it this
afternoon and came back after 3 hours loving my new toy!!

Way cool! What you bought?

Well, its a mountain bike, I had to get a mans because apparently I am too
tall for a ladies bike! *blub* I just chose one that was comfortable in a
colour I liked. I got a comfy seat for it and water holder thingy. Im
really happy with it. I dont really know about bikes so bought from a local
cycle shop.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I was wondering whether you lot could recommend any websites that
show local cycle routes.

Quoted message said:

Well the one from Newlands to Deblins Green, Powick and along the
river into Worcester city centre is a very nice one for me but I guess
you don't live around here 😉 Where are you interested in?

I live in Warwickshire, just near the boarder to Leicestershire. I have
found signs to one cycle route but was looking for some different ones
nearby.

--
~ , ~ = ^.'''.^=
~ ^

°°°Rachel°°° said:

Well, its a mountain bike, I had to get a mans because apparently I
am too tall for a ladies bike! *blub*

Awww 🙁

Quoted message said:

I just chose one that was comfortable in a colour I liked. I got a
comfy seat for it and water holder thingy. Im really happy with it.
I dont really know about bikes so bought from a local cycle shop.

Sounds very sensible to me. Did they offer you a free service after
4-6 weeks?

If you're riding mainly on roads and made-up paths then you may like
to consider changing your tyres for something more appropriate (I'm
guessing you have knobbly tyres). People seem to recommend Schwalbe
Marathons, I'm using Specialized Nimbus EXs which my local bike shop
suggested and I'm happy with them (on a MTB chosen for a tall/fat
bloke). It's certainly easier on the road with these and no tyre
drone.

Quoted message said:

I live in Warwickshire, just near the boarder to Leicestershire. I
have found signs to one cycle route but was looking for some
different ones nearby.

As others have suggested, getting a few maps and going exploring is
good fun. There are more and more cycle routes signs appearing around
here but I've just been following the "I wonder what's down here/I
wonder where this comes out at" approach this summer.

Have fun!

Chris
--
Chris Eilbeck
MARS Flight Crew http://www.mars.org.uk/
UKRA #1108 Level 2 UYB
Tripoli UK Member #9527 LSMR

"°°°Rachel°°°" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Today I bought my first bike since I was..... coooooo.... about 12!

Being

Quoted message said:

at the ripe old age of 31 I tentatively went out on it this

afternoon and

Quoted message said:

came back after 3 hours loving my new toy!!

I was wondering whether you lot could recommend any websites that

show local

Quoted message said:

cycle routes.

When you say "local", I presume you mean, "starting at your front
door". I suggest maps rather than official routes. Official routes
depend on the official who dreamed them up. Sometimes a "bicycle
route" is merely a device to declare that most roads and streets are
"not bicycle routes" and the council doesn't really want you outside
your bicycle bantustan.

Sustrans routes are usually scenic, usually indirect, sometimes
poorly surfaced, but usually good.

A few years ago there was a fashion for inventing the "somethingshire
county cycleway" round whatever county it is. They usually use
country lanes, are signposted, and have a leaflet with a map,if you
know where to get it. The ultimate of that school is the "National
Byway"

The new editions of Ordnance Survey maps (1:25000 and 1:50000) now
show the special bike routes for the area the map covers, and in
addition any little yellow road out in the country is worth
exploring, the littler and wigglier the better. Bridlepaths can be
wonderful or horrible. You just have to go and look. Sometimes they
are long driveways past a stately home, landscaped by Capability
Brown, sometimes ankle deep mud, ploughed up by horses and tractors.

Exploring towns can be interesting, too, but you need something like
an A-Z map. Some towns have bike maps that show sneak routes through
back streets, and where bikes can get through what are cul-de-sacs
for cars, and routes through parks, alongside rivers, and so on. On
Sunday mornings, before the shops open, towns can be pretty quiet.
OS maps show all the streets, but don't give names. You really need
a map that shows conservation areas, parks and listed buildings.
Such a thing never really exists, but your local council may have a
leaflet which vaguely indicates conservation areas, so you can choose
a pretty district to explore

And if you get bored with your local area, remember that you can
probably jump on a train with your bike, and explore somewhere up the
line. However, check this. The regulations get ever more bizarre.

I hope this helps

Jeremy Parker

Chris Eilbeck said:

If you're riding mainly on roads and made-up paths then you may like
to consider changing your tyres for something more appropriate (I'm
guessing you have knobbly tyres). People seem to recommend Schwalbe
Marathons, I'm using Specialized Nimbus EXs which my local bike shop
suggested and I'm happy with them (on a MTB chosen for a tall/fat
bloke). It's certainly easier on the road with these and no tyre
drone.

This is absolutely the best thing I did to my MTB.

I'm delighted with my Schwalbe City Jets, and Wiggle is still doing
their offer of a pair of City Jets and a pair of inner tubes for 24
quid.

--
Keith Willoughby http://flat222.org/keith/
Bush/Cheney 1984

In message id <[email hidden]> on Wed, 10 Aug
2005 16:52:12 GMT, °°°Rachel°°° wrote in uk.rec.cycling :

Quoted message said:

"Chris Eilbeck" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

°°°Rachel°°° said:

Today I bought my first bike since I was..... coooooo.... about 12!
Being at the ripe old age of 31 I tentatively went out on it this
afternoon and came back after 3 hours loving my new toy!!

Way cool! What you bought?

Well, its a mountain bike, I had to get a mans because apparently I am too
tall for a ladies bike! *blub* I just chose one that was comfortable in a
colour I liked. I got a comfy seat for it and water holder thingy. Im
really happy with it. I dont really know about bikes so bought from a local
cycle shop.

It works the other way as well. As a chap with short legs all the nice
looking metal on the LBS shop floor is just too tall if I have any
thoughts of safeguarding my undercarriage.

I am going to try a couple more (6th and 7th choices) this weekend
hopefully and I may just end up "having" to get a "ladies" spec.
*blub*

Having said that, I am coming around to the thinking "But why should
it matter?"

I am looking for the same as you. A lump of metal to jump on to get
from A to B quickly and conveniently. Something that will allow me to
do the commute and be enough of a joy to ride that I will use any
excuse to hop onto it for a 20, 30, 40, 50mile joyride.

Why should I get hung up over where the cross bar is if all the other
components are in the right place and do the right thing?

Isn't it time to de-gender bike frames?

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Well the one from Newlands to Deblins Green, Powick and along the
river into Worcester city centre is a very nice one for me but I guess
you don't live around here 😉 Where are you interested in?

Ahh Worcester. A beautiful place in this green and pleasant land...

In message id <[email hidden]> on Wed, 10 Aug 2005
09:28:54 +0100, Tony Raven wrote in uk.rec.cycling :

Quoted message said:

°°°Rachel°°° said:

I was wondering whether you lot could recommend any websites that show local
cycle routes.

Besides linking up with the local CTC group, one of the great pleasures
IMO is to get the local OS map (1:50,000) and to work out some routes
from the map and the presence/severity of any hills to climb and
descend. Its a great way of exploring the local area and finding your
own favourite bits. After a while you will know the area really well
and can string routes together as you go, making a choice of where shall
I go next at each junction. I've often set out for a quick hour ride
and ended up rolling home three or four hours later with a big grin from
just cycling where the fancy took me.

A joy rider - just as I wanna be - again....

"John Blake" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Isn't it time to de-gender bike frames?

I've had some comments thrown my way by non-cycling acquaintences about how
I ride a "man's bike" as Gino & Luigi have crossbars. Vernon has had the odd
strange look when he's been on my hybrid which is seen as a "lady's bike".

Cheers, helen s

John Blake said:

It works the other way as well. As a chap with short legs all the nice
looking metal on the LBS shop floor is just too tall if I have any
thoughts of safeguarding my undercarriage.

I am going to try a couple more (6th and 7th choices) this weekend
hopefully and I may just end up "having" to get a "ladies" spec.
*blub*

Depends on what you are looking to spend (the cheaper bikes tend to come
with very limited choices) but a number of manufacturers do unisex
frames of small and very small sizes and quite a few unisex frames have
sloping top tubes which will deal with safeguarding the family tree.
Kona comes to mind but I am sure others here can make other suggestions.

Outside cheap bike again the frames are almost totally unisex in
appearance although there are a number of women-specific versions of the
traditional "male" frame design. The Trek WSD frames come to mind.

--
Tony

"I did make a mistake once - I thought I'd made a mistake but I hadn't"
Anon

"wheelist" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I just got some maps from these guys.....

http://www.goldeneyemaps.com/

These are excellent laminated maps with loads of useful info.

They do two types of particular interest to cyclists - 'MTB guides'
and 'Country Lanes and Byways' 🙂

--
wheelist

Thanks for the tip. Just ordered their map covering Dartmoor MTB routes for
my trip in September.

Cheers,
Dave

in message <[email hidden]>, John Blake

(') said:

I am going to try a couple more (6th and 7th choices) this weekend
hopefully and I may just end up "having" to get a "ladies" spec.
blub

Having said that, I am coming around to the thinking "But why should
it matter?"

It doesn't work like that. 'Womens Specific Geometry' or any of the other
words which mean the same thing is about the relationship between the
top tube length and the seat tube length. Women normally have longer
legs in proportion to their torsos than men, so 'womens bikes' have
shorter top-tube length in proportion to their seat-tube length. So if
you're a normally proportioned but short man, a 'womens bike' isn't
going to fit you (you might try a child's bike), and if you're a tall
but normally proportioned woman a 'mans bike' isn't going to fit you. By
contrast if you're an abnormally long legged man you'll be more
comfortable on a 'womans bike' and if you're an abnormally short legged
woman you'll be more comfortable on a 'mans bike'.

--
[email hidden] (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/

;; MS Windows: A thirty-two bit extension ... to a sixteen bit
;; patch to an eight bit operating system originally coded for a
;; four bit microprocessor and sold by a two-bit company that
;; can't stand one bit of competition -- anonymous

On Thu, 11 Aug 2005 02:27:38 +0100 someone who may be John Blake
<[email hidden]> wrote this:-

Quoted message said:

Why should I get hung up over where the cross bar is if all the other
components are in the right place and do the right thing?

Isn't it time to de-gender bike frames?

If one is looking at transport bikes then they tend not to be
"genderised". After all one is trying to get from A to B without
contortions getting on the bike, or the possibility (especially for
persons of the male persuasion) of a nasty accident when on the
bike.

On the other hand if one is looking for the "ultimate" sporting bike
then the "male" arrangement is stiffer, oh er Mrs. Of course persons
of the female persuasion are perfectly capable of getting on a
"male" bike with less problems than someone of the male persuasion,
though it may not be "ladylike".

Meanwhile the ultimate sporting bike has none of this silliness,
because the recumbent position involves none of this nonsense.

--
David Hansen, Edinburgh | PGP email preferred-key number F566DA0E
I will always explain revoked keys, unless the UK government
prevents me by using the RIP Act 2000.