About bikes, cycling and cycle to work - Tredz Blog

Bikes for Beijing

On one of my frequent trips to the kitchen (where the location of my peanut butter is a closely guarded secret), I happened to walk past this:

Even the thought of my impending toasted bagel wasn’t enough to drag myself away from it.

But why was this Cervelo P3C, a TT animal, hanging around in our warehouse? I got the answer to my question as soon as I popped my head into our Swansea store.

Not everyone has one of these tattoos (or those tan lines), and Simon Richardson was pretty happy to show his off. As well as his new Isaac Sonic frame that we are helping build.

My god that thing is light. 880g frame weight on a 54. According to Isaac’s burbling page: “The mere sight of a Sonic will inspire powerful envy and painful longing. Isaac offers no apology. Ownership is the sole remedy.”

Well quite.

Anyways after a pronlonged spell of powerful envy and painful longing on my part, Simon told me he was off to Switzerland for some chocolates. Or intense training. I forget which.

Seriously, the entire get up was very impressive and we wish him and the rest of the GB Paralympians the best of luck in the build up to Beijing.

The race begins...

Like every office monkey, I live for the weekend. Not least, for the time being, because I can actually get to watch some Tour de France. This weekend I got lucky with stage fifteen.

It felt like I got to watch the Tour start proper, as the battle for the Maillot Jaune got blown wide open by CSC Saxo Bank's pressure on Cadel Evans. He got dropped by Frank Schleck by eight seconds, whilst the stage was won by Simon Gerrans in part of an epic race long breakaway.

Awesome!

On top of a day of very changeable weather, nasty crashes (how about that double sided roundabout collapse) and a frantic Italian crowd I reckon I got my value for money.

Now its back to the live text updates from the BBC for my kicks...

Bike finance

We all love bikes here at Tredz. All the way from the highest director to the lowliest blogger; we all want to be able to ride the very best bikes out there.

Unfortunately, the lowliest blogger occasionally has trouble feeding his passion. What with the credit crunch, rent and keeping his girlfriend in the lifestyle to which she’s become accustomed (hey, McDonalds ain’t cheap), I can’t always afford what I want.

Thank the lord then for bike finance. Helping people who want to spread the cost of bikes over a longer period. We’ve teamed up with V12 finance to offer you a range of options, all of which makes that Reign or Roubaix all the more attainable.

Ride now, pay later...

Tour de France highlights

The Tour de France 2008 is proving pretty unmissable, for both good and bad reasons. No out and out front runner, but with some out and out speed, a few dopers and a faction rearing up before us there is no knowing what's coming next. It's certainly more exciting than Lance getting delivered by US Postal to Paris every year... At least we think so anyway.

Highlights so far though:

-Team Columbia's Mark Cavendish winning a couple of sprints, adding further weight to both his claim to be the fast sprinter alive and his head. Expect both to continue growing if he ends up winning stage twelve.

-The dopers getting caught. Is Beltran actually trying to cycle away from the testers? It's still lame to see them around, but we agree with David MiIllar:

Asked if he was surprised that in 2008 a rider had used EPO, Millar responded: "It makes me f***ing pissed off when people are surprised that this happens.

"We've been decades to get to this point, and if anybody's naïve and foolish enough to think that we're never going to have a positive control again then you may as well go home and not cover this race.

"The media has a responsibility to understand that this is no way going to be the last positive test we're going to have; it's going to go on for years. That's professional sport – as long as there are doping controls, there will be positives. At least this shows the controls are working. (Nicked from Cycling Weekly)

-Cadel Evans winning a stage despite not having a great team round him. It would be great to see this likable and oddly tranquil (well, usually) Ozzie go all the way.

2009 Specialized bikes

We're starting to see some of the 2009 Specialized range of bikes. Here's a quick run down on the bikes that caught our attention...

Giro getting all cool

The Giro Xen helmet has been available with the fabric cover for a while now, but the first two we had sold straight away. We’ve finally gotten a top up and an excuse to rave about them.

Aside from being a very solid design (great venting, very comfortable and easy to fit), the canvas style cover really gives it a unique look – and offers a fantastic alternative to the legions of plasticky lids out there. 

It ain’t easy for helmet designers to be different, but Giro have definitely done something worth talking about with the distinctive Xen fabric helmet. By this Christmas we reckon most brands will have their own version.

On top of the Xen, Giro’s glasses department has obviously been busy this last year too. Their new range looks pretty fantastic. Subtlety being the keyword here, none of that flashy, attention grabbing angular stuff that has dominated the cycling optic scene for so long – this stuff is just cool.

Take the Giro Semi for example. Like the Xen they have some very technical features and also genuinely look good enough to keep on when you step off the bike and head down the beach.

This stuff performs and satisfies my vanity. Staff discount time I reckon...

50 Best bikes (according to a non-cyclist)

The Independent recently put out a list of “The 50 Best Bicycles.”

Well, it’s certainly a list. No denying that. But best? That's a big word to attach to such a disparate group of machines.
You’ve got a four and a half grand time trial super bike next to a kids push a long wooden ride. How do those two make the same list?

Bless the Independent for doing a bike list at all; we know they’ve got to come up with an easy reading list for the non-bike riding public. But it would’ve been nice to seen a common sense list. Maybe a commuter heavy list seeing as how that would appeal to more of their readers. To be honest, I can’t see too many budding downhillers taking bike advice from the Indy.

What they really need is more than one list…

The fastest production bikes
The coolest bikes (which may have been the title for the Indy’s list)
The ultimate single speed/fixie
City slickers
Best singletrack stead
Best entry road bike

Now those lists would be worth reading.

Calling all city planners

If you're a council transport organiser/manager/planner/chief and your city doesn’t appear on this list, don’t you have to ask yourself why? Shouldn’t that be a major part of your mission? Are your meetings focused around this? Does your boss know it’s something to tackle and become one of her team’s aims?

My personal favourite is Portland (check out this popular blog). In the country most associated with the motorcar, Portland has flown the flag for alternative modes of travel. From traffic calming and a definite bike infrastructure, to one of the most thriving bike cultures around. No wonder it's the home of the American Handmade Bike Show.

It's said now that no politician in Portland can get elected without the support of the bicycle community.

Mega Avalanche

Ever heard of the Mega Avalanche? It’s an insane downhill event that takes riders over 20 miles, starts in snow, covers a glacier and is mostly black run downhill. Like we said, insane.

So a big shout out to Chris, who has gone to fly the Tredz flag this weekend at what has to be the craziest bike race in the planet.

He’ll be attacking the race on a Rocky Mountain Slayer, which he’s hoping will cope with the descent thanks to its 6” travel, but still be able to perform in the sections where you have to pedal rather than slide (watch the video to see what we mean…). Combine that with a Fox 36 fork, some Maxxis Minions in a super tacky compound and you’ve got a winning combination. Although Chris would probably settle for a finishing combination at the moment.

Good luck Chris. Hope you get down in one piece…

Cwm Carn test day

Another test bike day coming up. This one is taking place at Cwm Carn on Sunday 13th. Go to to our Test bike website, pick your bike from our  range of full suspension rides, then give us a phone on 01792 799508 to book it and avoid disappointment.

You should be able to find something you want to ride, whether thats the Giant Trance 2, the Specialized Enduro or the Scott Gambler.

For those of you who don't know Cwm Carn too well, it's very conveniently located just 20 miles from the Severn bridge. It has some of the best singletrack either side of the bridge - and if you stop for long enough to catch your breath you'll get some awesome South Wales views.

Specialized Allez 2009

We've just had our first Specialized Allez 2009 in one of our shops. First impressions?

Well the obvious one you can see for yourselves. Look at that top tube. Remind you of anything? The trickle down of technology that keeps Specialized's low end bike ranges competitive is clearly in operation here. That bowed tube is nicked straight from Specialized's top end Tarmac range of bikes.

It gives the new Allez a very, very modern look and, according to Spesh, helps it ride more efficiently - more vertical compliance, better power transfer, increased sex appeal etc etc.

Dunno about that, seeing as how all we could do was take it for a test ride (we ride every bike before you do) for ten minutes outside the shop. It did feel very similar to the old Allez though, which is a good thing for those of us who have grown to love the relaxed sporty fit. It's got the same components as last year's basic Allez: Shimano Sora and Spesh's own carbon fork, post and headset.

Once we've had a chance to give it a bit more of a battering we'll let you know. But back to the original question - first impressions? The new Specialized Allez 2009 is a very good looking bike for the price. If it rides anything like the Allez of old it'll be a very popular bike.

Cardiff now open to cyclists

Yippee it's open!!

Cardiff's cyclists have been waiting years for the barrage to be open allowing access to Penarth across the bay. Well wait no more. As of 12:30 today cyclists and pedestrians can pootle across between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. daily. This will make a massive difference in time and safety for those who cycle to work in Cardiff.

View Larger Map

Gower bike ride

The Gower bike ride is a local event that raises money for the British Heart Foundation. A very worthy cause that is deserving of peoples support anyway, luckily, the Gower bike ride is a very enjoyable event in itself.

Taking a 16 or 29 mile route through some stunning Gower scenery, it's not difficult to see why this easy going ride is an essential annual event for many locals. This year was no exception despite the adverse weather conditions.

Enzo Maccarinell, Cruiserweight and local legend completed the ride using a Specialized Stumpjumper from our test bike range (haven't had it back yet - we're drawing short straws to chase him up).

And another (very), local legend, our Gus - competed the 29 mile ride with his 7 year old son Rhys attatched to his bike on a tag a long. No mean feat. Keep reading for his account of it...

The road to Bejing

Whilst some of us are still unsure of whether or not we've made the final cut for Bejing (I'm assuming the selectors are just being coy about my chances), some people - people who've got the required quota of talent and determination, are getting into full preperation mode.

Take Jody Cundy. He recently dropped us a note telling us what he's been up to since his successful World Cup. And it was just too cool to keep to ourselves...

Cycle to Work with smugness

Anyone who cycles to work can usually do so with an element of pride verging on smugness. After all, the benefits of this practise are well documented:

• saving money on ludicrous fuel costs;
• getting fit whilst commuting;
• doing your bit to make Al Gore your mate;
• starting the day with energy not traffic queues.

But there's a huge bonus when the motorway you'd normally use is a car park. This is the M4 at 6:45 this morning. An oil spill had produced a massive tailback and made everyone very late. Well, my ride time also had 2 minutes added to it while I took a couple of photos if it makes those drivers any happier.

Le Tour with aplomb?

We were all pretty disillusioned with le Tour, weren’t we? Personally I didn’t care if the whole thing imploded on itself – but now it’s a whole new year and I am ready to forgive. I’ve picked out my afternoon snacks, scheduled Mrs F to visit Granny with Miss F for 2:30pm when I turn on ITV4 to start the coverage from Brest (Sky and Virgin have 100% coverage but Barney/CBBC needs to be back on the box by about 5pm).

Few reasons I’m looking forward to it this year:

• Cadel Evans is 5/2 at bookies (not that I’m anyone you should take betting tips from)
• The highest paved mountain pass in Europe
• Cavendish head to head with McEwan on several sprint finishes

But don’t expect to see insightful comment and informed critique here. I don't wear anywhere near enough lycra for that. Get over to Quickrelease.tv and read Carlton’s take (he’s in Brittany now!) or to the peerless Masiguy (good to see him getting much better) they REALLY know their onions (…pun intended).

Olympic MTB course

A couple of months ago the International Cycling Union decided that the proposed course at Weald Park in Essex was too flat for the Olympic mountain bike discipline.

Well, duh.

The suggestion, that they should think about popping up the M4 corridor to hold it at one of our local world class venues, on a mountain no less, is being given serious consideration by Seb and Co. Terrible pun intended.

End 2 End

Scott Sports head honcho (UK branch), Ian Hughes recently sent us details on his charity ride and all being well it should've finished by the time you read this. End 2 End 2008 involved several guys (including a World Rally Championship competitor), cycling the infamous John O' Groats to Lands End ride and hopefully riasing a lot of money for some very good causes in the process.

You can see how they got on via their Youtube channel.

Even though the event will be finished by the time you read this, you can still donate... Hope it went well guys!

(More details on the ride nad how to donate can be found below).

A great article

Just read this awesome article on Velonews. And it sort of struck a nerve. Who of us hasn't been that hamster at some point?

The energy crisis might not be solved by the health crisis, but we certainly shouldn't be compounding the problem.

Next time you drive to work, only to spend the first few hours working off the petrol, think! Buy a bike and cycle to work, save your money, your health and our energy.

Customer feedback

Just wanted to let you know that I was very impressed with your customer service. I really
appreciated the phone calls informing me about the delivery status.I now have my glasses and am very happy with my purchase and think they are great value for money.

Thanks very much

Zak

Thanks Zak! We're working as hard as we can to ensure our customers get the best products, at the best price AND a real live (after tea and biscuits), human to ensure they are kept updated. It always means a lot when we know we're doing ok.