It can be tempting to poke your nose outside as rain falls from the sky in buckets, shake your head, and take the train instead - but it doesn’t have to be that way. Wet weather riding can be strangely liberating if done right – and if you can’t ...
Cycling tips
Bike kit storage that doesn’t cost the room
Cycling starts off as a lovely simple hobby – you pop on your trainers, strap a helmet to your head, jump on the bike and off you go. Then – a couple of years pass and suddenly you have multiple pedals, a collection of steeds, several helmets for ...
Here are three London bike rides taking place soon
The LFGSS rides forum is one of the best places to hear about social rides taking place in London. Here's a recently selection.. October 19th: London Borough Spiral Ride This 180km ride has been organised by the forums members. Its a spiral loop ...
RideLondon 100: Top 10 training hacks for cycle commuters
In this guest post, cycling blogger Andrew Montgomery writes about how to turn your bike commuting routine into a training programme for longer distance cycling events. After completing the inaugural 100-mile RideLondon sportive, Andrew has ...
A guide to your first triathlon
If you only listened to health news lately you’d think the entire western world is overweight and ill-prepared to do anything about it. But despite what the reports say about the number of obese people and those who lead mostly sedentary lives, ...
Professional London bike fitting review
I have to be honest and say the idea of having a professional bike fitting is not something that’s appealed to me at all in the past. At over £100, the idea of someone adjusting the bike for me seemed odd –after all, it’s something I could do myself ...
Indoor and Outdoor Bike Storage Solutions
Summer is on its way and London’s roads are filling up with cyclists, many inspired by last year’s Olympics and encouraged by the proliferation of Boris Bikes on the streets of the capital. Bicycle ownership in London increases year on year, with ...
Bike apps for the iPad
To celebrate the launch of our very own Bike Doctor iPad app, I wanted to do a roundup of some of the excellent apps available to cyclists on their iPads. Bike apps on the iPad are primarily dominated by mapping apps, cycling magazines and a ...
10 of the best cycling forums
Cyclists like connecting with fellow cyclists, whether it's at cycling events, through bike clubs or on online forums. I've picked out a list of the best cycling forums here that I've found. Feel free to add your suggestions in the comments. CTC ...
10 things I wish I’d known when I first started cycling
Use two different locks I’ll never forget the day I walked back to the bike shed after my college lessons, only to find my bike had disappeared. Confused I asked myself: Did I lock my bike? Is this a friend of mine playing a practical joke? Did I ...
Do you need a bike fitting?
You may think that a bike fitting is only for serious racer types, but as I hope to show you it is applicable to a far broader range of people than that. Do you spend a lot of time on your bike, perhaps you have a long distance commute, ride ...
How to Waterproof a Jacket with Nikwax Tech Wash
After a particularly wet weekend of walking in the Peak District, my much loved DHB waterproof jacket was letting water in. The waterproofing was failing. Fortunately, through London Cyclist readers, I’d heard about the Nikwax range of ...
Cycling in the snow
The snow is coming down over London and many cycle commuters will be having a chilly ride home, beautifully framed by snowflakes. This morning I cycled in with a friend of mine, to show her the ropes about cycling in London. Her biggest complaint: ...
Staying warm but not hot on your bike
When you are pedalling in to work, you want to feel warm on the bike but you don’t want to get so hot that you start sweating. Here’s how I achieve that. The buff The first item in my arsenal against the cold is the buff. A favourite amongst ...
Healthy eating as a cyclist
With the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) announcing that inactivity is now as big a killer as smoking, it’s a great time to keep feeling smug as a cyclist. To supplement that, I would love to know if you guys follow ...
Are you going to cycle through the winter?
The leaves are coming down, the clocks have gone back and the weather reporters are presenting us with temperatures in the single figures. Some cyclists will slowly start leaving their bikes at home. The underground will become their new daily ...
Where do you store your bike at night?
I’d be interested in hearing how many people’s hallways look like the one above! Where do you store your bike at night? Leave a comment below. I’ll start us off: As our apartment doesn’t have any secure space for storage and I don’t particularly ...
How to carry a suit on your bike
For commuting cyclists a question I’ll commonly hear is: “How do you carry your suit in to work when you are riding a bike?” There are a few different solutions. 1. Take it in by public transport and leave it at work The first option is to leave ...
Taking part in charity bike rides
“Hey mate – have you sponsored my charity bike ride?” Is a phrase many will get tired of saying and many more will get tired of hearing. However, each year millions of pounds are raised for good causes through this simple exchange. If you are ...
Cycling in a group
“Do you guys want to ride in a group? You gain around 20% efficiency”. I’d never been asked to ride in a group before, it felt new and exciting. But what is this strange foreign concept of cycling in a group? Well, I was about to have the ropes shown ...