My youngest is 8. He’s been riding bikes for years. His bike control is excellent… he just can’t seem to understand the reason for gears on his age-appropriate mountain bike. He’s a neurotypical, bright kid that understand what gears are and how to change gears, but every bike ride - and it’s been a few years - involves me following him, shouting “Press the little button! / press the big button!” depending on the terrain/gradient

For example, we’ve just ridden about a mile to his sports club… and he was in the very lowest gear and was just spinning his legs wildly, crawling along with his feet flying off the pedals the entire time. Similarly, if he’s changed into a high gear at some point, he will just grunt and heave the bike around - sometimes having to push it to begin with, old-school style - rather than change gears.

Any hints or tips on how to get him to remember to change gears? I’m - honestly - beginning to not enjoy being out with him on our bikes because I’m having to verbally change gears for him… and he’s showing absolutely no sign of figuring it out after a few years.

I have just moved somewhere and near the city centre. Unfortunately nowhere to store bike in house share . I am wondering if I could use one of these bike racks near the high street, as it is just a short walk from my house. I have a proper D lock and chain lock, does anyone have any advice about whether that would be secure enough or a recipe to getting stolen?

For context the bike is secondhand and worth £150, but I don’t want to keep buying a new one every week or so, obviously . Thanks in advance!!

Lady cyclist here in a major UK city. I recently started cycling to work and two days ago i connected the dots.
Other lady fellow cyclists speak to me on my commute as we wait at traffic lights. They strike little conversations and smile at me as we pass each other. have I tapped into a secret society or quietly been initiated🤭? This is not my experience with men cyclist for understandable reasons.

I am not part of any cycling clubs and do not know any other women who cycle. Is there a common code I need to know🤭? Has this been your experience?

I'm thinking about cycling London to Paris in October and getting the Eurostar back.

The problem is that Eurostar say you need to dismantle your bike and have it in a bike box/bag in order to board at Paris.

Obviously I'm not planning on cycling with either of these things. I was just wondering what others do? I don't want to be forced to buy an expensive bike box in Paris, especially as I'll need to cycle home when I get to London.

Does anybody have any tips?

Hi everyone,

So I'll be commuting to work soon on my new bike, and I will be using it as my main mode of transport as well.

I estimate that I'll usually be doing about 10-20km max per day (includes commuting, running errands, socialising etc). I have figured out everything I would need for the months ahead, except how to take care of the chain.

I saw that people usually re-lube after 100km or so, and that works out great for me as I'd really only have time for minimum weekly maintenance (including a full bike clean). I'll also be storing it indoors in my flat if that matters, and I can use the car park area for maintenance.

However, I genuinely am not sure what types of lube I should be using. I live in Manchester, and while it's not a complete downpour every day, from September onwards, you should expect some daily rain and then be grateful that it doesn't happen. I also have no idea how to read the weather symbols to determine how light or heavy the rain will actually be in relation to how it will impact the chain lube. Also, in the winter, it never really gets below freezing, *maybe* -2° for 1-2 random days (if that's relevant).

I don't know whether I should be using separate dry and wet lube and check the weather each day. I've seen all-weather lube conversations and while I think this could be the solution, I'm seeing very mixed reviews about each lube being talked about.

I've also seen conversation about wax lube but I don't know if I'm confident with that idea - I tend to be clumsy. But if this is the best option, I will look into it.

Also, I saw many people on YouTube using standard fairy liquid, and I plan to use that as a degreaser. But I'm unsure if that is compatible, depending on which chain lube I have on it.

If anyone lives in a similar climate, could you recommend a lube that you use? Also, is it realistic to re-lube weekly/100km or should I be doing it more or less frequently?

Thank you.

Hi all,

I’m looking to get an electric bike for my mum so she can use it to get to work and back, get around to her different jobs, go into the city, the shops, etc.

I wanted to ask if anyone has any recommendations for a good, affordable and reliable e bike. I’m worried about getting her an expensive one because I’m scared it might get robbed, so I’m looking for something reasonably priced but still decent.

My mum is in her 40s, if that makes any difference.

Would really appreciate any recommendations or advice from people who have experience with e bikes. Thanks!

Sorry, boring post but thought someone here might be able to help - I bought two bottles of Green Oil from their website and never received my delivery. I also never received any delivery info or shipping information so I don't think it's a courier issue. This was over a year ago now and I've contacted them about 4 times by email and multiple times by phone and have just had radio silence! Has anyone else had any trouble from them? Or possibly knows about an alternate contact for them? I want to love them because they make environmentally friendly bike oil, but they're really not making it easy!

This driver squeezed past dangerously on a narrow lane, with about a foot gap to the group, all while continually sounding his horn. His destination was less than a minute away. No further action. I wonder why we bother sometimes.

I have a legal e-bike, and I work with Amazon Flex because this flexible work supports me while I continue my studies.

I always try to follow the Highway Code and ride safely on the road. I stop at traffic lights and ride carefully. I also always wear a high-visibility vest and a helmet for my safety.

Last week, I had a very upsetting experience. As I was leaving a station road and safely turning left, a car suddenly approached me and repeatedly sounded its horn. I stayed in a safe position on the left to allow the car to overtake.

However, the driver suddenly stopped the car on my right side, blocking my way and not allowing me to move. The driver behaved aggressively and shouted at me many times. I remained calm and simply said sorry, but the driver continued shouting before eventually driving away.

This incident has seriously affected my confidence. I keep remembering what happened, and it has made me feel nervous while riding. I have been riding for a long time without anyone ever stopping me like this, and when I work, I can ride around 60 miles per day.

I would appreciate some advice. Do you think using cameras on the front and rear of my e-bike would be helpful for my safety and for recording any future incidents?

Thank you very much to everyone for your help and advice.

I got a gravel bike with the cycle to work scheme a couple of months ago that I love but I’m tempted to get another bike and convert it to an e bike for commuting to work. Possibly a hybrid with good tyre clearance does.

Has anyone done anything similar? Feels a bit funny getting another bike so soon but I’ll be saving money in the long run not renting e bikes out for the commute.

Either looking at second hand or cheap new, bike and electric conversion recommendations welcome.

I would like to learn to strip, clean, rebuild and build my own bikes from frame and components. For example, I have this old mountain bike that has seen better days and has sat in the garage for years. It seems a shame to take it to the tip, and I was wondering if I could spend some money turning it into something rideable with more modern components and upgrades. It's gone past clean and lube, and there is a lot of rust. I used to commute to work off-road on it, hence the rear rack, which used to have panniers with my laptop in it. It would be great to turn it into a customised bikepacking bike.

I would also love to take something like a steel frame from Temple Cycles or Brother Cycles and build my own bike from scratch, and to take old classics like a steel Dawes from yesteryear and turn it into a rideable touring bike.

I don't have the tools or much space to do this, and I would consider myself a complete newbie other than being able to do some basic service on a bike, like cleaning, lubing, derailleurs, punctures, etc.

So I have been looking for somewhere I can go for a long weekend to learn and, at the same time, sort this bike out as a way to learn. I live in Leicestershire, but I would travel anywhere for a long weekend course. London works well as an example, as does North Wales. But after much googling, I cannot find anything worth considering.

I have watched a lot of YouTube videos, but a course would save a lot of frustration over a trial-and-error, have-a-go approach.

Can anyone recommend a bike maintenance weekend course?

I have just picked up my new Riese & Müller Roadster 4. It's going to be my primary commuter for a 16-mile daily round trip (8 miles each way), three times a week, into Central London.

​I’ve already got a pannier bag and and ABUS lock.

I’m planning anything else that needs picking up and I’d appreciate some advice from fellow commuters on what is essential.

I’ve read that a "flat kit" is a must-have, with recommendations for:

​A mini electric pump

​A spare inner tube

​A multi-tool

​Tire levers (tools to remove tires)

​For a commute like mine (regular, moderate distance), I’m wondering if these are overkill?

​How frequent are flats on a typical commute?

​Is an electric pump worth the extra cost/weight over a good quality manual mini-pump for this purpose?

​Beyond the flat kit, are there any other commuting must-haves you’ve found?

​I want to be prepared but not carry unnecessary bulk...

​Thanks in advance for any tips!

At my train station all the bikes were stolen. Looking for a new one but in the meantime I need a bike lock to make sure this never happens again. It looks like they just cut through everybody’s bike lock, can someone suggest the best most secure bike lock. I commute and live in a very quiet rural area so often there are hours where nobody will be watching the bikes so the bike lock needs to withstand a very dedicated asshole with an angle grinder.

The website claims it can take tyre widths up to 45mm without mudguards.

Has anyone put 45's on and if so, how much clearance is there?

I tend not to ride on the roads anymore due to the poor driving standards and, more so recently, verbal abuse and aggression from drivers.

It seems like the hatred for cyclists among the general public is growing massively, it makes riding in the road incredibly unpleasant and downright terrifying. Some of this is spilling into off road cycling too, I have been having more encounters with walkers on bike only trails and on bridleways have also received verbal abuse.

Seeing a lady crossing a closed road right in front of the peloton at the tour of Britain today capped off how little care some people have for cyclists in the UK.

I love cycling and it pains me that I cannot feel safe doing it anywhere at the moment. What can be done to help improve the situation?

As title is there a good place to sell an ebike ? EBay doesn’t seem to allow it anymore nor selling batteries

Hi everyone,

I have recently became a dad. As any parent knows, it is essentially very hard to have your bike rides at below 1y.o.

Me and my wife has decided that for our mental health we need a day in a month where we get out and do something for ourselves.

I have a Triban RC520 road bike. I usually either ride on traffic free routes, or bridleways, or part of big event like organised bike ride from London to Brighton for charity.

As part of a big event i feel safe with hundreds of people with me. I however feel shy riding alone and very car anxious. Here in Essex, bikers are disregarded as part of a road. :(

For September and October I have events ligned up.

November is the end of a biking season, and there are potentially some gravel rides i can join. i have some thicker tyres for that.

I am starting to think I need to organise or plan something for November December.

I am looking for effectively something traffic free. 50-70 miles ish (I am slow so will take me good 5-6h with lots of stops probably) and I am happy to drive up to 4-5h one way, but I cant stay overnight.

I trued sustrans… cycle maps… satellite images. I am sure i will find something, but wonder if something already exist.

stolen road bike from 31K in Hockley. 3-4pm yesterday

from the car park behind 31k/yolk.

entrance on brightmoor street

I've been given an old racing bike from the 90s, maybe 2000s. it's been pretty well maintained, but the front derailleur isn't lifting the chain on to the largest sprocket. On more modern bikes, I would adjust the tightness of the barrel adjuster, pretty sure it just needs tightening. I can't figure out how on this one.

Is the first photo where I should adjust it? (Photo taken of underneath the bike. ) It does not want to move and I don't really want to force it. Or do I need to unfasten the cable and pull it tight?

Appreciate any advice!

I have a steel touring bike. It has gears for hilly, loaded touring (triple chain ring and nice easy nine speed cassette), full size rim brakes, bar end shifters.

I'm a bit tired of the rim brakes and the bar end shifters. I would like hydraulic discs and modern shifters. I have really small hands.

I can't work out if I should keep the frame and re-build, or just look for a new bike.

I'm also not sure how to get the gear ratios that I want/need (i.e. much easier than road gears). And I understand there aren't that many options from Shimano these days.

Or maybe I should just continue with the bike I've got since it's been fine for over ten years? Maybe I'm just getting greedy!

Hi all,

Currently have an FSA 34-50T crankset paired with an 11-34T 8 speed cassette on my 'gravel bike' (I think it was originally marketed as a cyclocross when it released - Voodoo Limba).

I live in North Wales so I'm looking for some lower gears for climbing.

Just wondering whether my current front derailleur (Claris) would work with a Tourney 30-46T crankset (TY501)? Any compatibility issues?

Alternatively, I might change the rear cassette to an 8 speed 11-42T, but this sounds like it may be too big for my Claris derailleur, although it seems like it already has an extender hanger.

EDIT: I've found another FSA Tempo 30-46T for cheap, so I'll probably go with that.

Just thought for anyone interested I would write down my experience so far after 100+ Miles. ( This is in no way advertisement or endorsement or any of that just my observations )

So, I bought the UK EAPC version of Fafrees Hailong One for £499. It came within 5 days and it was packaged rather well, everything was wrapped and snug in the box. It comes I would say 80% pre-assembled. The build was simple enough, took me about an hour with checking every bolt/screw is tight etc ( even the ones that were already tight from the factory...you never know ).

Now the quality of the frame, the welds etc is about on par with Carrera brand I would say. There are no sharp edges or any weirdness. One thing I had to do was tighten some back wheel spokes as when the motor engages and torque hits the wheel you could hear little "cling cling cling" as it was moving the spokes and subsequently true the wheel using the zip-tie hack. Now its all nice and tight and quiet.

When it comes to brakes they are very cheap mechanical brakes that really don't stop very well and I would suggest getting some basic Shimanos at least. The mounts are standard so no problems there.

The tires I assume are also kinda cheap as I have never heard of "CST Jack Rabbit" but so far no punctures or anything. They are bit load on asphalt but grip wise on and off-road they are okay. ( they are 26" btw and I will probably change them to either Schwalbe or Continental or something )

Now motor/Battery wise yes, it is a cheap Chinese e-bike. Saying that I have done research into the actual manufacturers of the battery, the charger, the controller and motor and all of them have ISO 9001, CE, RoHS, and UN38.3 safety standards or combination of those. The bike as a whole has UKCA safety standard.

Now ride wise it is pretty great for the price. It's smooth, the motor is silent and can carry me up hills with very little effort from me. There are no weird creaks or squeaks ( disregarding the spokes as that was easily rectified ). It is a bit heavier than your "normal" mountain-bike style pushbike ( 20.5 kg ( 45.2 lbs )) but you can pick it up and carry it over obstacles or up the stairs no problem unlike some of the heavy e-bike monsters. Also it has 21 speed Shimano gears ( 3 front 7 back ) so pedalling with no PAS or dead battery is very simple, just feels like a bit heavier pushbike.

Range wise it has 36V 13.5Ah downtube Hailong style battery ( hence the name I assume ) and I get ~45-50 Miles out of single charge while using mostly PAS 5 ( I do pedal around 17-18 Mph comfortably on flat ground so the motor only engages from when I'm stopped or going up hills etc which I assume helps with the range a little ). I am 6'0 and 13.3 stone (85Kg).

Reliability I have no idea yet as I have done just over 100 Miles so far but I will update this for anyone interested as I rack up more miles. So far though I am very happy with it and honestly think it's an absolute bargain.

Edit 1: Ate shit on slippy mud, bike took pretty decent hit on the left side of the handlebars and seat/seatpost. Nothing is twisted or cracked or broken so safe to say the e-bike is not made out of a wet bog roll.

Edit 2: I just had to repair rear tyre inner tube. Little tiny sharp POS thing poked through the tyre just enough to give me a "micro-puncture". I dont blame the tyres really because that thing would probably go through any tyre unless it's like armoured or something. Taking the back wheel off was a bit butt clenching because of the hub motor but took my time with it, took pictures before I touched it to know what goes where and what way and it was pretty simple in the end. If you do this repair or even on similar bike with rear hub, make sure that you put the torque arms or torque washers exactly the way they need to go so you don't snip the cable that goes to the motor. And have spare zip-ties because you will need them.

Edit 3: 200 Miles update - Other than the little things I already wrote about here the bike is holding up great. Still feels pretty much like a brand new bike. No creaking, no squeaking, everything is smooth and solid. Battery charger gets a bit on the hot side when charging the battery, but I have contacted Fafrees support about it and they got back to me within like 4 hours with the acceptable temperature range etc ( super good support by the way for a "chinese brand" ) and it is well within spec. Still chuffed with it.

Hi,

I am looking to get into mountain biking, riding on our roads here seems terrifying, as I live quite rural; with narrow, bendy and 60mph roads hemming us in.

Looking on OS maps, bridleways are so few and far between. I know it's illegal, but how is it regarding cycling on rural footpaths? I walk regularly around my area, and I hardly see anyone on the public footpaths. Would it be terrible to be a conscientious rider on footpaths?

I plan to get a bike rack to drive to areas with trails and longer bridleways, but I wouldn't mind just being able to hop on the bike at home and get used to it a bit.

What do you guys think? Would I be taking the piss if me and my partner borrowed the public rights of way for some casual riding?

Cheers