Welcome
For one of the revisions to the Highway Code – I think it was the time before last – Cycling UK fought to ensure that there wasn’t a blanket instruction for cyclists to use cycling facilities. As a result, the advice published was: “Use facilities such as cycle lanes and tracks… where they make your journey safer and easier.”
That last bit is key. All cyclists (well, most of us) appreciate good cycling infrastructure. But plenty of the UK’s cycle lanes and tracks are a world away from adequate, let alone good. We’ve all seen examples: the cycle track with an arrow pointing at a bollard, tree or railing; the painted cycle lane narrower than a handlebar; the roadside cycle track that does a 90-degree turn into 60mph traffic.
There’s abundant evidence across the North Sea that it doesn’t have to be like this. As soon as you roll off the ferry, the Dutch roll out the red tarmac. A properly built, well-surfaced network! That goes places you want to go! With signposts and traffic signals! Without cars and lorries clipping your elbows!
It’s there because the Dutch decided it was necessary and they didn’t balk at the cost of building it. New roads there have to have cycle tracks alongside so cycling provision is baked in. In the UK… well, you know how it is. Hats off to Sustrans for getting any kind of National Cycle Network off the drawing board. Some bits are great.
But cycling provision, like road building, should really be the business of local and national governments. Even now, they’ve got the money. They just need the political will to spend it.
DAN JOYCE Editor
FEATURES
38 A ton of fun
A six-day cycle tour of North Wales for just £100
44 Some blue signs
The Netherlands has an integrated cycling network. The UK? Some blue signs. Here’s why – and what’s required to change this
52 Along the Way
E-biking the Camino de Santiago in northern Spain
PRODUCTS
24 Shop Window
A cross-section of new products
26 Gear up
Components, accessories and books
60 Adventure bikes
Spa Cycles Rove and Surly Bridge
Club on test
66 Liv Avail AR 1
An all-rounder road bike for women
69 Eco-friendly oils
Four biodegradable wet lubes compared
REGULARS
04 Freewheeling
Bits and pieces from the bike world
07 This is Cycling UK
Why we’re campaigning for women’s cycling safety; fundraising challenge events; meet our new trustees; your cycling year ahead; and more
On the cover
21 You are Cycling UK
Three of 2024’s 100 Women in
Cycling: CeCe Balfour, Iona O’Donnell and Khadija Patel
35 Letters
Your feedback on Cycle and cycling
50 Weekender
A tricycling tour of Bristol, Portishead and the River Avon
56 Cyclopedia
Questions answered, topics explained
73 Travellers’ Tales
Cycling UK members’ ride reports
CYCLING UK: Parklands, Railton Road, Guildford, GU2 9JX E: cycling@cyclinguk.org W: cyclinguk.org T: 01483 238300. Cycle promotes the work of Cycling UK Cycle’s circulation is approx. 51,000. Cycling UK is one of the UK’s largest cycling membership organisations, with approx. 70,500 members and affiliates. Chief executive: Sarah Mitchell. Cyclists’ Touring Club, a Company Limited by Guarantee, registered in England No 25185, registered as a charity in England and Wales Charity No 1147607 and in Scotland No SC042541. Registered office: Parklands, Railton Road, Guildford, GU2 9JX. CYCLE MAGAZINE: Editor: Dan Joyce E: editor@cyclinguk.org Designer: Christina Richmond Advertising: Oliver Willison T: 0203 198 3092 E: oliver.willison@jamespembrokemedia.co.uk Publisher: James Houston. Cycle is published six times per year on behalf of Cycling UK by James Pembroke Media, 90 Walcot Street, Bath, BA1 5BG. T: 01225 337777. Cycle is copyright Cycling UK, James Pembroke Media, and individual contributors. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission from Cycling UK and James Pembroke Media is forbidden. Views expressed in the magazine are those of the individual contributors and do not necessarily reflect those of the editor or the policies of Cycling UK. Advertising bookings are subject to availability, the terms and conditions of James Pembroke Media, and final approval by Cycling UK. Printed by: Acorn Web Offset Ltd, Loscoe Close, Normanton Industrial
Normanton, WF6 1TW T: 01924 220633
Cyclist in Manchester riding along an on-road cycle lane. By Joe Cotterill
Top to bottom: Getty Images, Rob Ainsley, Tim Lilley, Dr Gary Hill
Ride ideas
We’ve listed 15 more ride suggestions for spring on the website. All have GPX files. cyclinguk.org/ article/15-great-cyclingroutes-spring
Membership
YOUR YEAR IN CYCLING
With spring just around the corner, Sam Jones looks at how your Cycling UK membership can inspire and support your cycling aspirations for the year ahead
“
In February there is everything to hope for,” wrote poet Patience Strong, and such words ring true for cyclists. After the postNew Year blues, rides cancelled due to the weather, and the acceptance that winter still has some weeks to run, that hope turns into preparations for the year ahead.
You might have already settled on your 2025 plans, whether they were long in development or sparked by off-the-cuff encounters or conversation. Maybe you’re committing to commute by bike (most of the time)? Maybe you’ll be embarking on a longdistance tour in far-flung lands?
If you’ve yet to be inspired – it’s only early February, after all – and don’t have plans beyond knowing that 2025 will involve cycling in some form, Cycling UK can help. Here are some suggestions for the year ahead, with pointers on how you can make the most of your membership and all that the charity has to offer.
Spring
March-May
They say April is the cruellest month but it’s the winter just past that will have been worst for your bike – especially if, like me, you’re not on top of your postride cleaning regime. With the weather finally improving, show your steed some love with a service. If you’re not sure where to go for that tune up, make the most of your 10% discount at Halfords, which has 385 stores across the UK. Spring could also be a good time to find some new riding companions. If you’ve not given it a go before, try group riding. Cycling as an activity is a great unifier of strangers who might otherwise have nothing in common. It’s a comfort for me knowing that wherever I may end up in the UK, I’ll always be able to find a group of like-minded souls under the Cycling UK group structure (cyclinguk. org/local-groups) and have someone to ride with.
As the weather perks up, so too might your cycling ambitions. While others might kick themselves for missing out on winter sales, those discounts continue all year round with our travel partner and cycle touring specialist, Saddle Skedaddle.
Summer
June-August
If organised tours aren’t your thing, Cycling UK’s adventure routes like the award-winning King Alfred’s Way and Traws Eryri (cyclinguk. org/routes) are freely available to members, along with GPX files and online route guides. Guidebooks, with a discount for members, are also available. These routes are perfect for summer trips. They’re not just bike rides but journeys into the history, culture and natural landscape of the UK. Why not try our latest route, Marcher Castles Way, which crosses the border between England and Wales eight times (cyclinguk.org/marcher-castles-way)?
Cycling UK’s adventure routes are perfect for summer trips. They’re not just bike rides but journeys into the history, culture and natural landscape of the UK
And if you’re the kind of person who likes to give something back, you might choose one of Saddle Skedaddle’s trips on a Cycling UK route. For every mile you pedal, the company will donate 5p. That might not sound much, but from just two trips in 2024, Saddle Skedaddle raised more than £700. This has gone back to support the charity’s work to make the UK a better place for cycling.
It doesn’t hurt to make sure you’re insured on
Right: Spring into action by joining a group ride
your travels at home or abroad, and Bikmo makes sure you don’t break the bank when doing so, with a 10% discount. That should leave you with enough left over to get your touring luggage from specialists like Carradice, Ortlieb and Restrap; Cycling UK members can save money with all of them. Of course, you might strike lucky with our Summer Raffle and win the prizes you need to make your trip a success!
Those not yet off on their holidays might like to take part in Bike Week, running in mid-June. It was started by the Cyclists’ Touring Club (now
Autumn
September-November
Cycle to School Week falls in September, which is prime time for getting your young ones to take the bus – the bike bus! This fun way to travel to school keeps fledgling cyclists safe and is also a proactive protest, which helps local authorities take note (and ideally action) about the inadequacy of cycle provision in your area. Not sure where to start on this? Cycling UK’s campaigns team has you covered with this guide: cyclinguk.org/ article/how-organise-bike-bus
The clocks go back in autumn (boo!) so make sure your lights work. If not, get online and visit Halfords’ website (halfords.com), where you can enjoy a 7% discount on a range of cycling kit – including lights. That golden autumn daylight can be ideal
Cycling UK) in 1923, and with our members we’ve been celebrating cycling with a special week for more than 100 years. Find out in the coming months how you can be involved by subscribing to Cycling UK’s weekly newsletter, CycleClips. If you’re still stuck behind a desk on 7 August, it’s Cycle to Work Day. Don’t just ride in: gather your cycling colleagues and start lobbying your employer to join the increasing numbers of accredited Cycle Friendly Businesses springing up across England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales (cyclinguk.org/cycle-friendly-employer).
for photography, so embrace your inner Cartier-Bresson and capture cycling images as the season’s change is at its most dramatic. Cycling UK is always on the look out for volunteer photographers, and these days you don’t need a fancy camera; a smartphone will do. Read our guide (cyclinguk.org/guidephotographing-cycling-adventures) on how to get the best out of it. You might well find your image gracing a future edition of Cycle...
Winter
December-February
As the days shorten, it can be harder to find reasons to get out. If that sounds like you, now’s the time to begin your forays into the British Cycle Quest (cyclinguk. org/british-cycle-quest) and start having adventures from your doorstep! Covering the whole of Great Britain, the BCQ has 402 checkpoints. Each is easily reached by bike with a little planning; perhaps using our journey planner (cyclinguk. org/journey-planner) to find the flattest way? The checkpoints will give you both a reason to explore locally and an opportunity to discover interesting facts, such as how fast the common swift flies. (Clue at Durlston Head in Dorset –no Googling!)
If winter riding isn’t your cup of tea, you could retire to a comfy chair with a good (guide) book. Off-road adventurers will enjoy dipping into Guy Kesteven’s guides of Cycling UK’s bikepacking routes (£2 off for members), while road tourers can delve into Cicerone’s extensive cycling guides (with 10% off).
However you cycle in 2025, rest assured that, as a member of Cycling UK, you will always be covered with £10m third-party insurance and have a team of dedicated solicitors through Cycle SOS ready to help if things unfortunately go wrong.
Finally, make sure to take time to reflect on your past year of cycling. Flick through past editions of Cycle and perhaps pen something for Travellers’ Tales. Alternatively, it’s never too early to begin planning adventures for 2026!
Make a route like Traws Eryri the centrepiece of your summer
The BCQ gives you 402 reasons to keep riding
ROB AINSLEY
Rob collects international endto-ends and blogs about various rides at e2e.bike Fact file
BA TON OF FUN Great Rides
A week’s holiday for under £100! Using a new website, Rob Ainsley explores north-west Wales on a low-cost, high-reward tour – and shares money-saving tips
ike touring is the best-value way to see Britain. I’ve been doing it for decades, always with an eye on the budget, and I’m practised at getting bang for my buck and poke for my pound. Last summer I set myself the target of doing a week’s cycling holiday for £100 allin – accommodation, food, transport, the lot. With my Spa Cycles traditional steel tourer and Vango Banshee tent, I explored the Llŷn Peninsula, a less travelled but beautiful part of north-west Wales.
For maximum return, I included the UK’s longest possible journey. In word-length, that is: Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch to Gorsafawddachaidraigddanheddogleddollônpenrhynareurdraethceredigion. They’re only 60 miles apart, but 58 and 67 characters respectively. With a budget of £100, that’s less than a quid a letter.
You won’t find either long name on OS maps. Officially, the first (a village by the Menai Bridge) is Llanfairpwllgwyngyll, and the second (a train stop on the heritage Fairbourne Railway) is Golf Halt. The longer versions were fabricated for publicity purposes: ‘Llanfair…’ in 1869; ‘Gorsaf…’ (trying to outdo the other) in 1986. But while Llanfair PG’s long name stuck, as people took a fancy to its justabsurd-enough length, Gorsaf’s didn’t and was dropped – although it still survives in small letters on the halt’s sign.
TICKETS TO RIDE
I got there and back as I get everywhere: by bike and train. Booking in advance gives the best prices. Splitting a journey into legs run by different rail companies – or one leg into different tickets over a peak-time divide – often reduces the price significantly. (Railcards help: for example, 33% off for over-60s.) I sign up by email for train
Distance: 150 miles. Route: Llanfairpwllgwyngyll to Golf Halt near Barmouth, via Llŷn Peninsula.
Conditions: Mixed, from sunshine to Storm Lilian.
Bike used: Spa Wayfarer steel tourer.
Maps/guides: OS maps 114, 115, 123, 124; OsmAnd+ phone app.
I’m glad I had… Google Translate with Welsh downloaded. Next time I would… Explore Anglesey more.
Further info: Rob’s route is at ridewithgps.com/ routes/48732039
Total cost: Campsites
£40 + hostel £20 + coffees £9 + beers £8 + snacks £9 + trains £14 = £100.
companies’ occasional special offers (York to Edinburgh for a tenner on Transpennine; £1 flashsale tickets on Northern; and so on) and pounce.
But often I travel for free. Because often a long, multi-leg journey involves a delay somewhere. Indeed, on this trip my train there arrived over an hour late, so I qualified for a full refund under Delay Repay. Ker-ching!
For my journey back, I used another technique. Northern’s Delay Repay gives you the option of complimentary tickets anywhere on their enormous network. (Look under ‘slower options’ on the website.) I’ve transformed five-quid singles into, effectively, 60-quid returns this way. Barmouth back home to York cost me just £14 (nonNorthern ticket to Chester, then complimentary Northern single for the remainder).
I’ve been fare-efficient in other ways. England’s flat-fare scheme for buses (£3 from 2025) enables bargain journeys with a folding bike. And a few bus routes take full-size bikes: the X46 York–Hull for instance, or X62 Edinburgh–Peebles. Scotland’s Citylink coaches take bikes, even supplying a free ‘sock’ to wrap it.
EASY FOR YOU TO SAY
Those train delays meant I arrived at Llanfairfechan too late to start cycling. No problem: I camped there for a tenner. Next morning I rode along the bike path that picks its way viewfully along the coast and over Telford’s historic Menai Suspension Bridge to Anglesey. An amiable group of German engineering students were on a field trip admiring it. Yay! Britain still leads the world in 200-year-old technology!
I enjoyed several photo opportunities in Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch, most involving a wide-angle lens to accommodate the signs. The relatively snappy Llanfairpwllgwyngyll or Llanfair
The train station is referred to elsewhere as Llanfairpwll, which is just as well, seeing as it’s a request stop
Pwllgwyngyll is what appears on road signs, schools, maps and so on. The train station is referred to elsewhere as Llanfairpwll, which is just as well, seeing as it’s a request stop.
The village enthusiastically embraces its mighty moniker, even if it was a 19th-century PR stunt. It’s fair to say it is ‘actually called’ the long version, especially as it appears solemnly spelled out in full on the Co-op, Volvo concession and train station. Cycle tourers can Instagram these easily: they’re right on the Lôn Las Cymru, the excellent pan-Wales bike route.
STAYING UNDER BUDGET
Accommodation is usually the biggest expenditure in any travel budget. Camping isn’t just economical, it also gives flexibility, likely with walk-up options wherever you decide to stop cycling for the day. This trip, for instance, I could camp along with friends who happened to be in the area that day.
Thanks to a new website (well, Facebook group and Google Map), I had plenty of choice. Cycle
Money saving cycle tips
Accommodation
• Cycle Camping UK cheap sites: tinyurl. com/CycleCampingUK
• welcometomygarden. org
• Search online for bunkhouses/indie hostels
• Book direct with the accommodation
• warmshowers.com
Camping UK lists only bike-friendly sites that charge £16 a night or less. Using that, I stayed four nights in and around Llŷn for £10 a pop, including that first emergency one in Llanfairfechan. (Often, Caravan Club members-only sites take nonmember cycle campers, even if not mentioned on their website: phone to check, or just turn up.)
Camping is great in nice weather. My trip, however, coincided with Storm Lilian’s 70mph gusts. So one night I took refuge in a hostel at
• Check out special offers from YHA, Travelodge and Premier Inn Transport
• Book train tickets in advance, using split tickets – from, for example, book. splitticketing.com
• Sign up with train companies for special offers
• Groupsave tickets for
parties of three or more
• Cheapest out/back journeys are often midweek, especially Tuesdays
• Claim Delay Repay
• Use Sail & Rail tickets to Ireland (irishferries. com, stenaline.co.uk)
• Seatfrog app offers cheap first-class upgrades with free meals, lounge, snacks and showers
• Buses have £3 flat fares
• Citylink (Scotland) takes bikes, bags supplied Food
• Greggs and Wetherspoons deals
• Supermarket meal deals
• Supermarket reduction shelves
• Pub happy hours
• Too Good to Go app (free surplus food)
• Take a flask
• MoneySavingExpert suggestions: tinyurl. com/MSEFoodTips Misc
• Acquire unwanted camping gear and so on free at freecycle.com
• Reuse free hotel toiletries
Clockwise from top left: The name is a 19th-century PR stunt that’s been embraced. Beddgelert. Bridleway up to Mynyd Rhiw. Campsite with a view in Criccieth for £10. Golf Halt on Fairbourne Railway – the long name didn’t stick. Mountain road on the way to Beddgelert
SOME BLUE SIGNS
THE NETHERLANDS HAS A DENSE NETWORK OF HIGH-QUALITY CYCLING INFRASTRUCTURE. THE UK? SOME PATCHY GOOD BITS AND LOTS OF BLUE SIGNS, AS LAURA LAKER DISCOVERED
Laura is a transport journalist and the author of Potholes and Pavements, a Bumpy Ride on Britain’s National Cycle Network
Aset of stairs with a bollard on them was uniquely obstructive, even by National Cycle Network (NCN) standards. I’d had a delightful day’s riding on country lanes and magical off-road paths in the countryside around Loch Lomond but, even after a year or so’s exploration of the NCN, its good bits and bad bits, this surprised even me.
Don’t get me wrong: I love our NCN. Last year, I wrote a book detailing some of the wonderful, surprising, joyful and maddening things about it. I’d cycled to awe-inspiring places across Britain. I’d seen lives transformed by a new walking and cycling bridge reconnecting canalside communities after more than a century. I’d seen how a protected cycle lane on a busy urban road had enabled groups of Muslim women to cycle confidently for the first time.
On a macro as well as a micro level, from the politics that fund (or don’t fund) cycle routes in the UK, to the weird
details like the stairs bollard (were they expecting particularly ingenious daleks?), I’d pretty much seen it all. And while the little blue signs took me to some truly delightful places, and clearly a lot has gone right with it, it’s just as clear that a lot has gone wrong.
DOES THE NETWORK WORK?
On my travels I found myself asking: what is a cycle network? What would it look like if we were to do it properly? The answer really depends whom you’re asking. It could resemble the continuous network of dependable paths in the Netherlands that take people anywhere they need to go. Here in the UK, well, it’s a bit more complicated.
For one thing, just 26% of Brits have even heard of the National Cycle Network. I remember introducing an ex to the blue and red stickers pasted on street furniture alongside pavements and stretches of otherwise unaltered road in London, and seeing his bewilderment and wonder. Every spring, Sustrans, the
LAURA LAKER
At the latest
reckoning,
just 64% of the NCN was deemed good or very good by Sustrans, leaving 36% poor or very poor
network’s charitable custodian, prints thousands of these stickers to send out to volunteers up and down the country, marking out what is, in theory, a piece of national infrastructure. Sometimes it is little more than those blue signs.
Then there’s the quality level: if a UK cycle route takes you all the way from A to B with consistently good-quality infrastructure, that’s rare. At the latest reckoning, just 64% of the NCN was deemed good or very good by Sustrans, leaving 36% poor or very poor: bits with barriers, shared with too many vehicles,
Clockwise from left: The Eden Project, not a Dutch paradise. Barriers to progress in a housing estate (not part of the NCN). London is an outlier, with new cycle routes built and cycle usage rising.
An NCN gem: the Exe Estuary Trail
Below & centre: Getty Images. Other photos: Laura Laker
Bike finder
LIGHTWEIGHT GRAVEL BIKE
• For: Richard Whitlock, aged 70, from Sandy, Beds. • Bike needs: I’ve had a Ribble Sportive but recently enjoyed a gravel bike. I want a light bike suitable for use mainly on road and occasionally off road. Usually do 30-70 miles. I have my eye on a previous year’s Giant Revolt Advanced Pro 0. • Must have: A wide gear range. Able to take 25-50mm tyres. Maybe electronic gears. Relaxed cycling position. Lightweight. • Budget: £2,000-£3,500.
Stephen Shrubsall
You could go one of two ways here. You stipulate a relaxed geometry on a gravel bike to use primarily on the road. You can have your cake and eat it with the Santa Cruz Stigmata CC (santacruzbicycles.com). It’s a little over budget at £3,999 for the cheapest, SRAM Apex version but you may be able to find it on sale. While it doesn’t boast the more upright riding position you might want, it’s comfortable enough for 70-mile outings and, crucially, has a bias towards the blacktop. I’ve never ridden a more capable gravel bike on the road. It offers a light and lively ride with a wide enough spread of gears to hold speed on the flat and winch up steep inclines. The finishing kit comes courtesy of Easton. I rode a Santa Cruz Stigmata CC for 120 miles at the Dirty Reiver Gravel race in Northumberland and it didn’t miss a beat.
For more off-road comfort, the Giant Revolt X Advanced Pro 2 ( last year’s model reduced to £2,699 at giant-bicycles. com) is well worth consideration. While not as sprightly on the road – mostly as a result of being heavier, with increased compliance from a front suspension fork and an integrated suspension/dropper seatpost – it’s very capable in most offroad environments. I used an iteration of this machine for Traws Eryri, which is billed as a mountain bike ride, and rarely felt under-biked. However, whereas the Santa Cruz could happily hold its own on a road-bound club run, you might feel your speed ebbing on the Giant.
If you’ll be riding only occasionally on wellgroomed off-road trails, an all-roads bikes like the Sonder Colibri Ti Ultegra Di2 (£2,999 at time of writing, alpkit.com) might suit you better than a ‘full fat’ gravel bike. This bike runs 32mm tyres with mudguards or 35mm+ without, and it ticks all your boxes.
Alternatively, get a gravel bike and swap the tyres. Supple, wide tyres with a slick or file-pattern tread will transform any gravel bike’s ride on tarmac but will still work fine off road when it’s dry. Last year’s Giant Revolt Advanced Pro 0 was £5,499 so if you’ve seen it for under £3,500, that’s a good deal. I’d recommend fitting Rene Herse Snoqualmie Pass TC tyres (£82 each, rene-herse.co.uk). I’ve done century rides and fast club rides on these tubeless 44mm tyres. They’re outstanding. The Boardman ADV 9.2 (£2,250, boardmanbikes.com) is a great-value alternative to the Giant. It has a lightweight carbon frame and fork, plus the electronic gears you want: SRAM Apex XPLR AXS. This is ‘only’ a 1× setup but the 40/44 (25in) bottom gear is lower than that of most road bikes. At 9kg, I’d class it as light. If the riding position isn't relaxed enough, buy and fit a different stem and/or a riser drop bar (see ‘DIY Bike Fit', last issue). For the tyres, I’d suggest the 38mm Rene Herse Barlow Pass TC (also £82) to give plenty of mudguard clearance, although the Snoqualmie Pass tyres should fit the frame. Other fast gravel tyres, such as the Panaracer Gravelking Slick TLR (£55) in 40mm width, would also work.
Richard Whitlock
Dan Joyce
Bike test
SEAN FISHPOOL
Sean is Cycling
UK ’s digital product owner and a keen bikepacker
Adventure bikes
Gravel bikes aren’t the only option for on/off-road bikepacking. Sean Fishpool tests two flat-bar alternatives, the Surly Bridge Club and the Spa Cycles Rove
You don’t have to own the right bike to have an adventure. But if you're buying one for bikepacking, it's worth considering a comfortable, luggage-friendly, flat-bar adventure bike like the two on test.
Bikepacking routes like Cycling UK’s Marcher Castles Way combine bridleways, quiet tarmac, glorious views, solitude and tea shops. More than half your time will likely be off road, often on fairly good surfaces like forestry tracks, but sometimes on stony, rutted or steep trails that might cause a less confident rider to walk in places.
You can enjoy such routes on a gravel bike but my experience is that the bigger tyres, lower gears and more relaxed riding position of a mountain-style bike are ideal for most bikepacking, and will help you ride more comfortably and on more of the tricky bits.
The Rove, from Harrogate touring specialist Spa Cycles, and the Bridge Club, from independently minded US brand Surly, are both steel-framed adventure bikes. They’re like mountain bikes but with geometries that
try to balance good off-road manners and all-day comfort. They have mounts for racks, mudguards and bikepacking luggage. And instead of front suspension they have rigid forks that reflect their less technical intent.
The £1,599 Bridge Club 27.5 Whipped Butter has a lower front end and 27.5in wheels, with space for tyres up to 2.8in wide. The £1,695 Rove 725 2×10spd Deore Hydraulic has faster-rolling 29in wheels and a more upright position. Our test bike came with a few upgrades, principally a carbon fork (£80 extra). As Spa Cycles also sent the standard steel fork, I tried it with that as well.
My first impressions were that the Bridge Club was a more practical version of a regular MTB, whereas the Rove was a faster cross between a mountain bike and a hybrid.
Frame & fork
The Rove and the Bridge Club are both made from double-butted chrome-moly steel, with an emphasis on comfort and durability. Both have a useful but not crazy amount of braze-
First look
As much a rigid MTB as an adventure bike, especially if you fit even wider tyres
ons: front and rear rack mounts, mudguard mounts, three pairs of bottle mounts and fork luggage mounts (angled on the Rove, parallel to the wheel on the Bridge Club). The Rove also has mounts for a small toptube bag, while the Bridge Club has a mount for a kickstand.
The Bridge Club was noticeably 800g heavier than the steel-forked Rove, but this was mostly down to the wheels, tubes and tyres, not the frameset. The optional carbon fork for the Rove can really seal the difference, however, saving a further kilogram and giving a smoother ride.
There are other significant differences. In terms of fit, the Rove is shorter and taller. The reach (the horizontal distance between the bottom bracket and the head tube) is 16mm less than the Bridge Club’s, while the stack (the height of the top of the head tube above the bottom bracket) is 52mm higher. It also has a higher standover height.
Both bikes come with significantly wider tyres than most gravel bikes. The Rove is based around 29er mountain bike
wheels (ISO 622), except for the smallest XS size which uses 27.5in wheels (ISO 584). The Bridge Club 27.5 comes with 27.5in wheels in all sizes, as the name says, but will run 622 wheels with narrower (47mm) tyres if you prefer. If you stick with 27.5in wheels, however, it lives up to the ‘Fatties Fit Fine’ label on the chainstays: tyres up to 2.8in wide will fit. The Rove has clearance for 2.6in tyres. In general, the Rove has a more contemporary frameset. It takes thru-axle wheels, whereas the Bridge Club has quick-release ones. Its 44mm head tube accommodates a tapered steerer, so you can swap in a suspension fork; the geometry is fine with a 100120mm travel fork as the rigid fork has 490mm axle-to-crown height. The Rove also has adjustable dropouts, making it singlespeed compatible.
Components
Both bikes have sensible, practical components, and both are available with different build options. The Bridge Club boasts Shimano’s new Cues 1×11
The Bridge Club’s price in sterling feels out of proportion to its dollar price, and it has a relatively basic ride for that money
Tech spec SURLY BRIDGE CLUB 27.5 WHIPPED BUTTER
Price: £1,599.
Sizes: XS, S, M (tested), L, XL.
Weight: 14.3kg (31.5lb).
Frame & fork: Double-butted chrome-moly frame and fork with fittings for disc brakes, mudguards, front and rear racks, three bottles, two fork cages.
Wheels: 61-584 (27.5×2.4in) WTB Trail Boss wire-bead, tubeless-ready tyres, WTB ST i29 TCS rims on Novatec quick-release hubs, 32 spokes.
Transmission: No pedals supplied.
Shimano Cues
chainset with 32t chainring, Shimano MT501 bottom bracket, KMC chain, Shimano Cues 11-52 LinkGlide cassette. Shimano Cues shifter and rear derailleur. 11 ratios, 18-82in.
Braking: Tektro hydraulic levers and callipers, Tektro 160mm 6-bolt rotors.
Steering & seating: Velo Black grips, 740mm Salsa Bend alloy handlebar, 90mm Promax alloy stem. WTB Volt saddle, 27.2mm Promax alloy seatpost. surlybikes.com
Top: Quick-release wheels and fairly budget disc brakes
Fatties do indeed fit
Grouptest Eco-friendly chain lubes
Oiling your chain doesn’t have to mean using petrochemicals and PTFEs. Dan Joyce tests four biodegradable alternatives
While Dan is fairly lax about cleaning his bikes, all of them have quiet, well-oiled drivetrains
Bicycles use a minuscule fraction of the fossil fuels required by cars, so they’re already environmentally friendly. But every little helps. If you can oil your bike with an eco-lube that doesn’t include petroleum products or forever chemicals, while still getting comparable performance, why wouldn’t you?
For me, there’s an extra consideration: my office is also my workshop so I’m surrounded by bikes. I don’t want to sit here all day inhaling harmful chemicals. Just have a read of the labels on non-eco lubes: ‘dangerous to the environment’; ‘may cause drowsiness or dizziness’; ‘may cause skin cracking’; and so on. Eco lubes avoid these issues. Mostly. Some greenwashing does go on: a product that’s only 60% biodegradable – and which contains petrochemicals –can be described as biodegradable.
Even the greenest lubricant still has to work properly. I primarily tested these lubes on my mountain bike over the winter because that’s one of the worst-case scenarios for chains. (It’s also why there are only wet lubes here: wax lubes are not durable enough for such conditions.)
In order to test the lubes in identical conditions, I split a new chain into four with four quick links – one of which was black, so I’d know where the start was – then used a specific lube for each section. There was inevitable cross contamination but I hoped to see some differences – and did. I also used the lubes non-systematically on other bikes.
Cycle’s test promise
At Cycle, we are proudly independent. There’s no pressure to please advertisers as we’re funded by your membership. Our product reviews aren’t press releases; they’re written by experienced cyclists after thorough testing.
Details WHAT TO LOOK FOR
1 Eco credentials
Read the label (or website description) carefully to see what it says – and doesn’t say. Look for ‘fully biodegradable’, ‘no PTFEs’ and ‘100% plant based’. What about the packaging? Is it recycled plastic? (Prevented Ocean Plastic is recycled plastic that’s been collected from coastal areas at risk of ocean plastic pollution.)
2 Viscosity
The thickness and stickiness of the lube. A viscous oil sticks to the chain better and so doesn’t drip or wash off so easily. However, it may also accumulate grime quicker (which wears the chain faster), and it may have slightly more friction. Track cyclists don’t need viscous oils; UK mountain bikers absolutely do.
3 Efficiency
Lubricants reduce friction by penetrating into the rollers, enabling the chain to remain flexible and nearly silent. A well-lubricated chain can transmit power with 98.5% efficiency, and the most expensive (but noneco) lubes really can save you a few Watts. Non-racers without power meters can ignore this; just keep the chain lubed and relatively clean. (Test: can you see the letters on the chain links?)
4 Value
All prices shown are for 100ml bottles. Value isn’t as simple as pence per millilitre. A lube that’s twice the price but lasts twice as long per application is equally good value. Some lubes list a mileage per application. This is an estimate; for winter mountain biking it will be way, way off. It is, however, an indication of the lube’s longevity.
DAN JOYCE
Nepal
Himalayan mountain biking
The Annapurna Circuit is mostly tackled by backpackers but you can do it by bike, as Dr Gary Hill and four friends discovered
We arrived in Kathmandu in October 2024, aiming to conquer Nepal’s iconic Annapurna Circuit Trek (ACT). A Nepali friend living in the UK had helped us out by introducing us to his nephew, Sagar Dulal, of Freewheel Adventure Nepal. A minibus transported us and our bikes to Pokhara, a bumpy six-hour journey.
The circuit, which rewards you with jaw-dropping views of snow-covered mountains from day three onwards, takes backpackers an average of 21 days to complete. It took us 12 days on our bikes, riding around 30km a day – which was hard work on such rugged terrain. We were able to carry our own kit in small backpacks. We had warm accommodation and hot meals throughout the circuit, so had no need for the usual bikepacking gear.
Our main worry wasn’t completing the distance, as we are all regular and fit cyclists, but how we’d cope with the altitude. Sure enough, we were out of breath climbing the hotel stairs on the first day. But through careful planning, including a two-day base at Manang (3,540m), we were able to ride high and return to sleep low. We all managed to cross the Thorong La pass, the highest point on the circuit at 5,416m!
The ACT has a variety of routes. You can take ‘easy’ jeep tracks or 1,000m or longer technical descents with tight switchbacks, stairs and drops! The choice is yours and is easy to coordinate with local guides, who can plan a route to suit all cyclists.
It’s one of the best places to ride a mountain bike in the world. Don’t be put off by fears of where to go or the altitude or weather. The conditions in autumn were excellent.
Share your story
We’d love to hear your Travellers’ Tales! Email: editor@cyclinguk.org
Bruce Alexander joined a mass ride in Haddenham to show the demand for cycling infrastructure
LAST SUMMER 400 cyclists gathered in the village of Haddenham in Buckinghamshire. Their dream was to be able to cycle to Thame, three miles away. Many have friends there or want to visit the town for its shops and other facilities. There are similar dreamers in Thame who yearn to cycle to Haddenham. Apart from anything else, the two places share a railway station: Haddenham-Thame Parkway. At the moment, all any resident can do is dream on.
The A418 between the two places is just too dangerous. Occasionally a cyclist will try it. Vehicles queue up behind such a reckless loner. In spite of the Highway Code recommendation to leave 1.5 metres between car and bike, and the lack of such space for this on the A418 when it’s busy, some drivers insist on overtaking and passing much too close. Others sit on their horns.
This was why 400 cyclists went for a gentle ride round Haddenham village: to show the demand for a segregated cycling and walking route. It was organised by Haddenham Safe Walking and Cycling group. The spirit was great. Cyclists aged from three to 90 took part. Families did it. Councillors and parliamentary candidates turned out.
The campaign continues
The mood was almost celebratory. What a great feeling of cycling togetherness! But really there isn’t anything to celebrate – yet. Locals have been campaigning for more than 25 years for a greenway between the two places. Cyclists are and need to be patient people!
Heading for Lubra Valley from Manang (3,540m)
Nearing Upper Pisang (3,310m altitude)
400 cyclists rode around Haddenham