Riding your bicycle in the winter nights.

Cycling is a healthy green, inexpensive way of traveling.
Be seen and be safe.
Just today I se in the news another cyclist has been killed in London.
 Five Cyclists have died in the last nine days, I am not going to go into what the politicians say.
As a Cyclist myself I se people doing stupid things on bikes, WAKE  UP YOU LOT.
Riding with out lights is one of the most common things I see, what the hell is wrong with you people.
A set of lights cost next to nothing, not only that they may actually save your life.
As a bonus you may be able to see where you are going.
A high visibility  jacket  or reflective clothing, also costs next to nothing.
Seriously people Safety Safety Safety, no  excuses here.
I also se people with only one brake, very poor fitting bikes etc etc etc.
SHOULD YOU HAVE NO LIGHTS GO GET A SET.
Remember you only get what you pay for, if you se a set for 3.99 they will not be as good as a 30 pound set.
At the end of the day its your money and your life, but being a dick reflects on us all ok.
I am lucky and can do all my own repairs,  and fit my own lights .
Should you be unsure of anything rather than hope your bike is safe, take it to a shop.
Get them to check it over, it wont cost a fortune.
If your kids have bikes especialy teenagers, make sure they have lights working brakes as well.
The other night I saw 2 lads on bikes with no lights, riding in a country lane.
It is pitch black around here of a night, there is no excuses people.
Do the right thing keep your kids bikes safe.
Be seen be safe this winter.......

cycling in bedfordshire

cycling in Bedfordshire.
Well this update is way overdue, smoking thing all over with and back on the bike again.
Its been over 5 months since I last smoked and at last I se results.
I can now cycle for longer and still breathe, I am way to heavy but working hard on the bike.
Things looking good for me at the moment, and had a result at Halfords (again)
While giving my summer bike a bit of A CLEAN I noticed that part of my new pump had fallen off.
Its an on bike top peak , mini dual.
I was gutted when I saw it, but took the pump and receipt to Halfords in Bedford and the fella just replaced the missing part.
Thank you Halfords.
The pump cost me 17.99 last year and I would have replaced it with another one.
I have been out on the bike today but only did 2 miles as my legs are still screwed after the other day.
I have had a top speed on the bike computer of 28mph for about 2 years, the other day I passed that to 31.3 mph.
I gotta say that was down hill :o) even so I had to push to achieve that.
loads more biking stuff to follow .
Another little cycling update,
Yesterday 2 things happened, firstly my new top speed is 32.5 mph..
I also had a flat tire, the indestructible gatorskin
now has a hole in the side wall.
I stupidly had no pump spare tube, or no one to ring to come pick me up.
After a nearly 5 mile walk I will not make that mistake again.
I had hoped that some of the viewers of this site may make comment, if for some reason you cant .
Please drop me an email at joyboy@hushmail.me
I will do my best to sort out any problems .



Bedfordshire cycling.

Cycling in Bedfordshire

Cycling in Bedfordshire.
As you will have noticed, Cycling in Bedfordshire is a very wet experience right now.
We have some localised flooding, so i am updating this site.

The latest page is the Cycling directory, feel free to ad your cycling related website to it.
If anyone requests a link from my list of pages, i can make a  link direct to your website.
Today is new years day ,2013.
New years resolution are to Quit smoking, get out on the bike more. ((to name but a few)
So far so good day one of stopping smoking A OK (so far)
Today is 3/1/2013
So far so good , although I been craving nicotine for all day.
Well its day five I'm still off of the cigarettes, that ride to Luton will be a definite possibility.
The weather is still not good but looks to be better than last week, I cant cycle when its either really damp or cold.
My asthma really kicks in if I over do things, i tend to ride well within my limits.
I have a lot of things on the go right now, the forum to finish seo research etc etc.
day 8 still not smoking.
Im starting to feel a bit better now, even went to halfords looking for a rear rack for my winter bike.
How is it that such a simple task as fitting a bike rack, looks so complicated.
Its an easy job of course, but the racks don't seem to have all the fittings for my bike.
Either that or, the ones that bolt to the seat post looks like its going to be sitting at an OD angle.

I Se that this little site is getting more and more visitors now, im not going to update the forum until i Se a few registering on it.
I am about nearly every day updating here and there, this cycling site is not the only one i have.
I do my best but could really do with some comments now, even if its some advice for what else could be of help to fellow cyclists.
Everyone likes pictures :o) now where is that camera...
I have put some pictures of my winter bike, on a new page.
On the rhs you wil se a page saying, winter bike.
The bike may be old , but rides quite nice.
Gears all index pretty good, and cost me 20 quid so im not complaining.
Well im still off the nicotine its now been 6 weeks or more.
I took the winter bike around the block and it nearly killed me.
My lungs always play up when I quit, and what with the cold weather .....
I did it though then the next day it snowed, so what can I do??










To all the silent readers, be seen and be safe

Cycling in Bedfordshire
While out shopping i picked up a new set of bike lights, £7.99 from the Bedford maplin.
If you go there just ask a member of staff to point you in the right direction.
I have tried them, both front and back lights are brilliant.
The front light is 3w, and is way brighter than my other front light that cost me £34.00.
Modes are full 50% and flashing, powered by 2 AA batteries.
The rear light is powered by 2 AAA batteries and has 2 modes, flashing and constant.
More on the front light.
   On a dark country lane  it lights up both kerbs, then the beam reaches out to a fairly tight beam.
As i said before , it is very bright, im not sure how long the batteries will last, but for the money its a very good light.
 The rear light is way better than anything i have had before, dont be put off by the low price.

They are half price at the moment, i am sure you will be very pleased with them.
More to follow .
Bedfordshire cyclist.

Cycling in Bedfordshire

Cycling in Bedfordshire.
Im doing my best to ad new cycling related pages, on a nigh on daily basis.
While the weather is naff, im going to concentrate on this blog.
Bedfordshire is a great place to cycle,especially north beds.
Even though i have all the kit for wet weather riding, right now i cant find the motivation.
My winter bike is an old Peugot mtb, with front suspention.
To be honest i only bought it as it was up for sale for 20 quid.
What drew me to it was the bar ends lol, on closer inspection i noticed both wheels were running true.
When i got the bike home i looked it over, and realised it had hardly been ridden.
Everything on the bike was original, so i pumped the tires up a little and took it for a spin.
After re adjusting the saddle, i setoff around the block.
All the gears worked very slickly, im starting to smile by now.
Brakes were better tha my other bike and it was surprising easy to peddle.
I have never liked mountain bikes, but found myself warming to this old girl.
My trip around the block took me through, Stevington, Oakley then back to Pavenham.
Its just over seven miles, since i picked up this bike ive replaced the tires, from knobbly 1.95 to some slimmer 1.5 kevlar road ones.
Ok the bike is no lightweight , but is both comfortable and good enough for winter riding.
Gearing wise it has a tripple up front, and top gear is a lot higher than i imagined.
As for the smaller sprocket on the front, your legs gonna be a blur to get any speed. :o)
Its now rigged out with lights, heart rate monitor etc.
I am going to put a rack on the back for my luton jaunt.
I picked up a small rucksack, thinking it would be ok to ride with but, after trying it i dont get on very well with it on my back.
I intend to put some pictures on here, of both bikes and some of the Bedfordshire rides i go on.

Here is another bedfordshire cycling website.
http://bedfordshirecyclist.wordpress.com

This time of year im not so keen to get out on the bike, but when i do i want to make sure A im warm enough and B im easy to se in the dark. Cycling in the dark around this part of Bedfordshire means exactly that. This may sound obvious to most people but a good set of lights is amust for 2 reasons. Firstly you can se where you are going and se anything lyng in the road, secondly motorists will know you are there. On my bike i have an led type of light on the front, it has a good beam and lasts for hours. I also have a ight mounted on my helmet, the flashing type. Also on the back of the helmet is a red flashing light. Then i also have a rear light that also flashes, with these lights and a high vis waistcoat type jacket thats about all i can do. I find that the light on the helmet also illuminates my bike computer. I have seen a woman around here with no lights on her bike what so ever, when she either falls off or gets knocked off her bike she may well buy some. Safety while riding should be more important than anything else. When i turn left and head for Stevington there is no street lighting, or houses till i get there. Stevington is approx 3 miles. Three miles on these dark bumpy country roads is not good even with a good set of lights. North Bedfordshire sure is a pretty place, without having to go far for some nice country views. Now that my back has got better im hoping to really put some miles in in the new year, all be it at an average of 12mph. On my wish list is a trip to Luton (my home town) There and back will be around 60 miles, so thank god i have a nice relationship with my saddle. Wel im off to start another page on bike security, something i passed on and got my Last hybrid stolen.

Cycling in Bedfordshire.

Cycling in Bedfordshire. Hi im Steve and Cycle a lot in Bedfordshire, im just north of Bedford. As i se so many cyclists going through my village, i thought i would make a site where cycling related info could be found. Bedforsdhire has some great cycling routes, Around here there is very little traffic and some nice scenic rides. I live in Pavenham, its about 3m north of Bedford, like many people i cycle alone at the moment. I'm an average cyclist no speed demon but have been cycling and building / repairing bikes since i was a kid. (im 50 now) Cycling has changed a lot over the years and now days a lot of people wont ride a bike unless, it is about the same weight as a crisp packet. More on that later. If you are looking for a nice route to cycle through, Oakley Pavenham, Bromham, Stevington is quite scenic. To get here from say bedford is easy enough, follow the A6 out of Bedford towards Kettering. The A6 is a busy fast road but does have a cycle lane, from Bedford you will only be on it for about 3 miles. Take the Pavenham exit and follow the pavenham signs, stay on this road and you will go through Pavenham,Stevington,,Bromham. Once you go down the hill at Bromham , you come to a t junction. Turn left to go back into Bedford. There are hills but nothing major, very little traffic. This route is good but the roads around here can be a little bumpy. Cycling around this part of Bedfordshire you could easily think you was in Devon. The people around here are great, i once got a flat and had 2 people offer help in the space of less than a mile.


Bedfordshire cyclist.