Not all Londoners have access to a brand new, top of the range bicycle. Many, have a 10 year old hand me down mountain bike from their sister. One such person is my friend Laura. She recently asked me: What do you think of the bike? As someone who ...
Archives for August 2012
Police cracking down on cyclists in London’s parks
A few weeks back, I was trying to become a little less pasty, by catching the sun near the Highgate Ponds in Hampstead Heath. Being a people (and bike) watcher, I observed the number of cyclists pedalling past. All of them were riding respectfully ...
When Should You Replace Your Bike Chain? Chain Wear Advice
Like it or not, bike chains “stretch” over time. Only by a small amount, but multiply that by the number of times each link passes over your chainrings, cassette and jockey wheels and you’ll quickly wear them out, if you don’t regularly replace your ...
Give your bike a comprehensive service and clean for 50% less than what most cyclists would pay
Just a few months ago I had a bike that was: Squeaking each time I pedalled up hill With brake pads that needed replacing A wobbly back wheel Full of road muck that I hadn’t found the time to clean off. Then, I took it in for a visit at Lunar ...
Cardiff charity ride
A good friend of mine, has been asked to raise funds for a local charity by organising a cycling event. If you believe you’ll be finding yourself anywhere near Cardiff on Sunday 23rd of September, then do consider taking part in the ride. The funds ...
A guide to the Tour of Britain for the uninitiated
This summer, cycling heroes such as Bradley Wiggins and Chris Hoy brought the games and cycling in particular to the forefront of many people’s attention, through exciting performances. Even the traditionally less popular events such as the BMX ...
A short cycle to Covent Garden illustrates what I don’t get about transport planning
I’m definitely not an urban planning expert. I know this, because my neighbours are studying it and whenever they get in to a heated debate about it, my eyes glaze over. However, on a short bike ride to Covent Garden there are a number of things ...
What do you do to prevent your bike being one of the 26,000 stolen last year?
More than 26,000 bicycles were reported stolen to the Metropolitan Police last year, up a third on five years ago, BBC London has learned. That’s bad news and the report does not get any better as you read on: Only 4% of bikes recovered Most people ...
It’s my birthday! Cue the mandatory cycling cards!
Today is my 25th birthday! The 24th to the 25th is a big one – it’s like transitioning from plastic pedals to metal ones. One day perhaps I’ll even use clipless. Fortunately, my family is on hand to provide me with artwork for my birthday blog post, ...
Five of the Most Common Bike Maintenance Tools You’ll Need
If you want to be able to look after your bike yourself, you’ll need a basic set of tools to start off with. Allen Keys Also called hex keys, Allen keys are an essential for bike maintenance. Everything from adjusting your brakes, to tightening ...
Google Maps vs CycleStreets: Battle for the best route planner
Which is the best service to use when you are planning your cycle route? I needed to cycle up to Hampstead to see a friend, so I decided to put the two route planners to the test. Entering my route I loaded up the two services in to my web ...
Is a two day cycling event what London’s cyclists really need?
Next year there will be a two day cycling event that will provide a lasting legacy for the 2012 Olympic Games. This is according to an announcement today by London’s mayor Boris Johnson. The two day festival will be held on August the 3rd and 4th. ...
Favourite moment from the Olympics?
As soon as the medals started coming in, it’s clear most people changed their views about the Olympics and enjoyed the spirit of the games. Whilst there’s no doubt there’s plenty of controversy behind it all, I thought today would be a good time for ...
Get your videos in the news
There’s a new site on the block called Newsflare. It's a place for people to upload their newsworthy videos which are then syndicated to news organisations. Any clips that are sold, you then get paid. To promote it, they’ve decided to partner up ...
Knog Blinder 4V Review
It’s fate. Just as my Knog Skink LED Rear Light decided it no longer wished to serve me, and packed up, leaving me riding home with my front light on the rear of the bike, Knog got in touch with me about the Knog Blinder 4V. Would I like to ...
Let the Games begin! Try some cycling challenges in Wales
This is a guest post by Hannah of Visit Wales mountain biking website. Well, it’s proving to be a fantastic summer of sport isn’t it? To build on the excitement of the greatest sporting event in the world taking place on our doorstep, Visit ...
Could this be the most beautiful bicycle book ever?
Taking off to Newquay last weekend to see how my balance translates from a bicycle on to a surfboard, I was particularly excited about one item I was taking with me. Bicycle, is a new book by illustrator Ugo Gattoni. For the cycling enthusiast, it is ...
The tennis ball trick for single speed bikes
This is one of those little bike maintenance tricks that I just had to share! For a while I struggled with punctures on my single speed bike. The problem was, it was difficult to pull the wheel back to get the chain adequately tensioned and at the ...
Got any old bikes or parts taking up space? Donate them to Re Cycle!
“Millions of bicycles are thrown away or left to rust in the UK while millions of people in Africa are forced by lack of transport to walk up to 4-hours per day, to school, work or fetching water.” “Re~Cycle ships donated bikes (41,000 thus far), ...
Cycling destinations outside of London
If you want to break out of London for the weekend then where can you cycle to? That was the question posed to me by London Cyclist reader David. Below I post some of the classic destinations along with route suggestions where possible. Feel free ...