About bikes, cycling and cycle to work - Tredz Blog

Where to ride this Jubilee

With the long four day weekend upon us, there is no better time to get out on your bike and get some miles in. We'd like to thank the Queen for that, although we're not sure we'll ever be seeing her on a bike...

 

Here are some of our local routes that we may well be riding this weekend. If you aren’t in Wales, don’t worry, the British Cycling website has a full, regional guide to your local cycle routes.

 

 

The Taff Trail

Summary: Wide variety of urban and suburban cycle trails, featuring both on and off-road trails. The Taff rail is a multi-purpose route. However, some sections would not be suitable for small children due to the gradients. A good map is always advisable. 

Essential Information: Junction 33 off M4 following signs for Penarth on A4232. Head towards Cardiff Bay and come off at the junction signposted Techniquest/Mermaid Quay. Can also be accessed by rail. Parking available at Mermaid Quay and various pubs and restaurants en route. The trail is suitable for use all year round.
 
Other Attractions: Techniquest in Cardiff Bay has over 150 hands-on exhibits covering everything from rocks, music to dinosaurs. Also see the Millennium Stadium, Castell Coch, Brecon Beacons and more. 

 

 

Coed Llandegla

Summary: Award winning North Wales trail centre with a host of trails for all abilities. Over 21km of black graded trail for mountain bike enthusiasts and shorter distances of 5km for family rides – with plenty in between, await you and your bike at Llandegla.

Essential Information: Purpose built man-made trails, fireroad, singletrack with jumps, berms and North Shore features. Trails include; Family Route - 2.5 miles; Green Route - 7.5 miles; Intermediate Route - 11 miles; 2 black runs of 2km and 1.1km (both of which are accessed via the red route). To get there, from the A483 take the A525 at Wrexham, through Coedpoeth - follow signs for Llandegla - Coed Llandegla is signposted on the left. 

Opening times (Facilities)
Mon: CLOSED
Tues: 10:00 - 17.30
Wed: 10:00 - 17.30
Thurs: 10:00 - 17.30
Fri: 10:00 - 17.30
Sat: 10:00 - 17.30
Sun 10:00 - 17.30
 
The car park (and trails) open at 8.30am and close at dusk. Open every day except Christmas Day.

Facilities include eco-friendly visitor centre with full bike shop, café, classroom, bike hire, and plasma screen, bike wash, parking, toilets/changing area.

Other Attractions:  Themed forest walks. Offa's Dyke long distance path cuts through the forest.

 

 

Llyn Peninsula

Summary: Being a peninsula, the road here is noticeably quieter without any 'through traffic' which means you can cycle along the lanes for miles with only the cows to whizz past! Although you might find there are a lot of tourists in the area on a bank holiday so take care. A fairly easy, but beautiful ride. 

Essential Information: Coming from the East from the direction of Porthmadog, take the A497 and then the B4354 into the village of Chwilog. Coming from the North take the A487 to Porthmadog and then follow the above directions.


Other Attractions: Golden sandy beaches, a Michelin star restaurant and villages that have fallen behind our busy times, the Llyn Peninsula is one of the most varied and interesting places you could hope to visit. A highlight is the lane of Y Lon Goed which is lined with beech and oak.

 

Information: British Cycling

 

Hamax Kiss child seat review

Child seats

are a great way of getting the family out and about in the summer and the Hamax Kiss (£53.00) is one of our favourites. Not only is it a lightweight and really strong way of carrying your child, it’s a safe and comfortable one as well.

 

Is my child old enough for a child seat?

It’s not so much a question of age, more of ability. When your child can sit upright, unassisted, they will be able to ride in a child seat. Suggested weight is 9kgs, so the same as a front-facing car seat. Also bear in mind that a long journey might go one of two ways with a very young child – the rocking motion might send them nicely off to sleep, or their short attention span might make for some loud complaints from the back of your bike.

Kiss

The Hamax Kiss is available in red and green and has height adjustable foot rests. This means the seat will grow with your child, which is great for those all too frequent growth spurts. It’s also really easy to assemble and remove from the bike – the bracket mounts your bicycle's seat tube and all but the mounting bracket can be removed when not in use. It will also fit over your bicycle's existing pannier racks so there is no need to remove them, which is great.

 

Safety

Hamax rigorously test all their child seats by using a drop test to simulate emergency manoeuvres from high pavements (280 mm) or in extreme off-road terrain and a dynamic test to simulate practical usage over a long period of time, which involves 50,000 shakes and tilts. Stretch test are also carried out on the plastic buckles and webbing, so there’s nothing amiss in the safety stakes.

 

Test Drive

Sal from Tredz tested the Hamax Kiss on 13 month-old Arthur. "Even with a particularly wriggly toddler and a complete armoury of baby gear in tow, I found the Hamax Kiss really easy to use. As with all child seats, having a higher Centre of Gravity takes a bit of getting used to, but this seat looks great and is good value for money."

 

Summary

The Hamax Kiss is the perfect accessory for all parents this summer and makes for a safe and reliable way to ride with your family.

Hydration packs

Why use a hydration pack

For me a hydration pack is an absolute essential item. Working as a mountain bike guide you need one to carry large amounts of equipment, but even when you head out on your own you need to carry a few bits and pieces.

I actually own three hydration packs – not because I’m some sort of hydration pack collector or because I can afford to, but they really have great functions that can suit your ride and what you are doing.  I have a small Camelbak Lobo which I have had for years – this smaller pack is great for short rides or when racing Enduro. I use a larger Osprey Raptor 14 pack for all day or the majority of trail rides and a Camelbak Hawg NV 30 when guiding and I need to carry all the extra equipment.

 

Benefits of a dedicated hydration pack:

• The ability to carry up to three litres of water.
• Access your drink without removing the pack – also hands free when riding.
• Carry ALL your extra equipment like tools, tubes and extra clothing as well as your lunch.
• Being on your back, the weight won’t affect the handling of the bike as the mass is applied at the cranks and therefore the bike’s centre of gravity isn’t affected – as it would be if you had a litre of water strapped to the frame.
• Dedicated packs are more comfortable to wear than a standard back pack and are designed to be used while cycling.

Hydration packs are essential for summer mountain biking whether you are riding at the local trail centre or in the Alps – get one and you’ll soon see.

How much should I spend on a lock?

A lock is a must have if you are going to be leaving your bike ANYWHERE. These days you hear of someone having a bike stolen every week, and every time I hear a theft story, my heart sinks thinking about how bad that must feel.

Investing in a good lock is advisable, as is insurance. Remember your home insurance won’t really cover your bike unless it’s listed so be careful and don’t assume anything.

So how much should you spend?

The generally advised number at least 10% of the value of the bike, and "at least" is the operative part of that sentence. That is a minimum – if you can afford to spend more, then do it. It’s not a sales pitch, it’s a valuable piece of advice. The sad fact is that most people don’t take notice until it’s too late.

Remember, it's your pride and joy you're protecting, so definitely a worthy investment.

View all locks

 

Specialized Carve Expert 2012 review

Specialized Carve Expert £1300

The Specialized Carve range was only introduced this year. The Carve is a purpose built 29er hardtail and is a bit like a 29er version of the Specialized Hardrock range. The Carve is designed as a 29er so the angles and geometry are slightly better than you get with some of the 26” bikes that are made to work as a 29er.

29ers

The whole "Are 29ers better?" argument is old news now. We know that they excel in certain areas over a 26” equivalent, but there are areas where you are going to enjoy a 26” bike more.

For trail centre use, and we are talking singletrack with flowy corners and grade reversals, switchbacks and berms, a 26” bike is going to be more fun. There is an argument that a 29er can be quicker… yeah but it’s never going to be as much fun at a trail centre – and that’s what biking is all about.

Where 29ers excel is in cross country(XC) territory and open moorland. The larger wheel will rollover rough ground better and the rolling efficiency of the larger wheel will carry more speed. It’s just a case of riding one and seeing which works better for you.

 

Frame and forks

The Carve is built with Specialized’s M4SL aluminium alloy which is both light and strong but is also super stiff. The frame is designed with XC geometry so it’s going to really favour climbing and long rides and the head tube is both integrated and tapered for maximal stiffness.

At the front the Carve is fitted with an air sprung Rock Shox Recon, 29er specific fork. The recon is a great for the kind of riding you’ll be doing on a 29er and its light weight means the bikes weight will remain low.

 

Groupset

With its 10-speed groupset the Carve Expert definitely has a good spread of gear options. An 11-36 rear cassette combined with a triple 42/32/24t combo at the front gives you a massive range of gears as well as a large number – the range of gears is far more important that how many you have in total. That ability to run a 24:36 ratio means you don’t need the legs of a track sprinter to get up the hills. It would also mean you can run a 1X10 drive train if you want to remove the front mech and opt for a lighter chain device.

The Carve Expert also comes with Shimano BR-M505 brakes; Shimano are widely recognised as one of the best brake manufacturers and their performance, reliability and ease of service are second to none.

 

Wheels

The Carve Expert has Specialized’s on Carve rims built onto Formula hubs with 32 spoke construction. The rubber comes in the form of The Captain Control tyres 29x2.0. The Captain Tyres are a really fast rolling and grippy tyre that will work on and off the mountain. They are also 2Bliss (tubeless) ready so you can convert them if you wanted to.

 

 

Overall

The Carve Expert is a great mountain bike for XC and open land. It will feel a bit heavy at a trail centre but will roll fast and smoothly. Yes, you could commute on the Carve although you might want to stick to shorter distances – or change the tyres for something like the fast rolling Maxxis Crossmark, but the Carve will certainly eat up the miles with its larger wheels.

 

Also consider:

Giant XTC 29er 

Scott Scale 29er Team