Letters

Opinion Letters

THIS MONTH ALL-ABILITY CYCLING, E-BIKE SOLUTIONS, BIKES ON TRAINS, BIKES FOR SMALL WOMEN, AND MORE

Neil Russell and Buster the dog near Balliekine, Arran

Letter of the month Access for all

Iread Neil Russell’s Hebrides by Hand article with great interest. What a journey! I’ve done the round-Arran ride on a tadpole recumbent – I’m a wheelchair user who can, to a point, use crutches. Neil’s point about carrying the other mobility paraphernalia is right. Without a trailer, where do you put the crutches and the wheelchair? I didn’t camp; I cheated and stayed in a B&B overnight with a host who went to the extra mile to support a disabled rider. Kate Ball’s active travel article also made for interesting reading. Infrastructure is a real challenge. We have a fabulous coastal path from Dolgellau to the sea, then across the Barmouth Bridge. The rub is that I can’t do it on my own as there are gates at various intervals. I’ve been fortunate that, in most cases, others will offer help if needed – and then engage you in a detailed discussion about recumbents and their technical specifications! There have, however, been plenty of times when I have had to admit defeat by turning round and retracing my steps. I have often had conversations with park rangers and other countryside staff about how making a minor modification would make an area so much more accessible. So there is hope yet.

Andrew Ebben

Jess Paul Left:

Win a Green Oil bike care kit worth £64.99

The letter of the month wins an Eco Rider Deluxe set, courtesy of Green Oil. Green Oil’s plant-based lubes and cleaners are fully biodegradable and contain no PTFE. The kit comprises: Green Oil Wet Chain Lube; Ecogrease; Green Clean Bike Cleaner; Clean Chain Degreaser; FSC Drive Chain Brush; two Bike Armour cable-rub protectors; an EcoRag; a reusable plastic tub for water or storage; and some seeds to grow your own food! For details, or to order Green Oil products, visit green-oil.net LETTERS are edited for space, clarity and, if necessary, legality. The editor reads and acknowledges all members’ letters but publishes only a selection and doesn’t enter into correspondence. Feedback for the next issue must arrive by 31 October. Please include your membership number. WRITE TO: Cycle, PO Box 313, Scarborough, YO12 6WZ or email editor@cyclinguk.org

Charge point

The letter about e-bike battery fires in the Aug/Sep issue was timely. I have converted my late father’s 1970s’ Raleigh tourer into a e-bike and it has proved to be a very useful machine. I had concerns about the battery. Although it appears to be robust, I believe it should be protected as much as possible from damage and/ or the elements. To this end, when the battery is off the bike I store it in a Lipo battery bag (from Amazon). I also place the battery in this during the recharging process in case there is a problem. It gives me peace of mind and is surely better than leaving the battery exposed.

Kevin Harvey

E-asy does it

Wanting to ride further and with less stress on my knees, I had been toying with the idea of an e-bike. Instead I bought a conversion kit from Cytronex after trying a friend’s. I liked being able to remove the battery and cycle normally, unaided, on shorter rides. The Cytronex C1 kit is slightly more expensive (£995) than some e-bike kits, though it’s less expensive (and less powerful) than an off-the-peg e-bike. A single battery charge lasts me from 30-40 miles. I am converted by this conversion kit and now go for longer rides, much more easily and slightly faster than before, and I go up ascents on routes previously avoided.

Bob Broad

Obituaries

You’re welcome

Are published online at cyclinguk. org/obituaries. Contact publicity@

cyclinguk.org

I thought you’d like some feedback on the response to your article which included the Itteringham Village Shop. You probably tick along from month to month uncertain whether your efforts make a difference.

Last weekend we were extremely busy in the shop and café. Why? Because cyclists were coming to find our village shop, having read the Cycle magazine article. Some brought their copies with them to show us and say how amazing it was to see us featured. At one point on Sunday we had 21 customers being served at the same time. It’s normally much more paced out.

Thank you for creating the opportunity for us. Long may it continue! Mike Hemsley, Itteringham Village Shop volunteer Lost GPX files Bikes in cubbyholes

I would like to add to John Morfrey’s letter in the Aug/Sep issue about bikes on trains. I have just returned from a lovely bike trip along the Forth & Clyde and Union canals between Glasgow and Edinburgh. As I live in Newcastle Upon Tyne, I used the LNER trains to and from Edinburgh.

It was almost impossible and very stressful to hang up the bikes (one of which was an e-bike) in the ‘wardrobes’ on the train. Can you influence the train companies to facilitate bike carriage ?

Jane Loughridge

Small bike finder

I was interested in the Bike Finder article in the Aug/Sep issue about a small, light bikepacking bike as I too am a small woman (5ft 2in) and I spent a long time trying to find a suitable touring bike. I would be surprised if the Sonder Camino had a low enough step-over for Katy Hill. I have tried allegedly ‘small’ bikes to find they are for someone much bigger than me! The Whyte bike, meanwhile, needs so many changes that it seems it is just not the right bike at all. I know you will have struggled with this challenge!

May I put in a word for Oxford Bike Works? Richard had a smaller frame made for me (and also for my equally small husband). He accommodated all my needs, including very low gearing. It fitted easily into Katy’s budget.

Linda Rutledge

Jack Thurston’s Lost Lanes Books definitely raised the bar for cycling guides for great rides, inspiring photographs, and an aim to make the routes accessible by rail if possible. However, an important feature missed by your reviewer is that each ride has a dedicated Lost Lanes web page, where the route can be downloaded as a GPX or TCX file. An OS map can also be viewed and printed, together with a PDF of turnby-turn instructions.

David Elder

Bike going cheap

On a ride today, my wife came alongside and mentioned that her bike sounded like a nest of chaffinches. She was right. It may have been the right response from a maintenance point of view, but my few drops of oil on the chain killed both the chaffinches and all the poetry of the observation.

Mark Shelton

Photo of the month Elementary: a Watsonian

Yes, we are still in this world, albeit at 99 years old, and still riding the bikes. The picture of Joyce on her bike with a sidecar attached was taken at Easter in 1949. Watsonian sidecar manufacture was discontinued in 1963, from memory. At the time it was our eldest son at three weeks old who was bedded down in the sidecar, which could be detached for storage.

Lionel Joseph

CYCLING UK FORUM

Get immediate feedback from other members at forum.cyclinguk.org. Here’s an abridged extract from a recent thread: cyclinguk.org/

fixed-gear-knees

FIXED GEAR AND KNEES

3speednut: I have recently got into fixedgear/singlespeed. At 60, I don’t want my enthusiasm for this to damage my knees. I have it geared quite low (46/18) and avoid the worst of the local hills. I don’t feel like I’m doing damage but I don’t want to ruin it. Jdsk: Calendar years aren’t that important from here on. Exercise and having fun are. I wouldn’t worry about damaging joints with one important exception… don’t push through pain. If you don’t feel as if you’re doing damage then you probably aren’t. Tigerbiten: Do you or your family have any history of arthritic type damage in any joints, not just knees? If not then you’re probably fine, go for it. djnotts: I rode fixed as a teen and then for five years in my late 50s, early 60s. My knees are one of the few parts of my body that are just fine. Just don’t push big gears! Carlton green: On a 27" wheel I make 48/16 a 69" gear. To me that seems to be too high. Wayfarer, a very experienced fixed-gear cyclist, used 63" . 531colin: 68 or 69 inches used to be regarded as about the right place to start; I found I preferred 64 inches.

NATURAL ANKLING:

High gears won’t damage your knees just bad foot articulation (natural = like walking and running). Just get those calfs subtle with exercises. fossala: In my experience you have a higher chance of knee pain on gears than fixed. mig: It’s probably more critical to have your bike set up correctly if you’re planning significant miles on a fixed-gear, especially saddle height.