About bikes, cycling and cycle to work - Tredz Blog

Dangerous Dave game

The Tredz game with Dangerous Dave and Brutal Bob has certainly got its fans. Literally thousands of you have swung Bob's bat and laughed as it connects with Dave. After about 40 goes we usually find laughter is replaced by pure anger for Dave and the moles who may/may not be helping.

Some have taken Dave's distances to new levels and we've had all sorts of claims over the summer. There've been email claims of 1,570, 1,625 and even a 1,790 but this is the best substantiated distance so far - well done to Mike C. (it doesn’t say how long he'd played to get here).

Send in your results too - perhaps we'll get some sort of leader board going here.

Specialized bikes and their history

Last weekend my boss asked me to read Specialized Stumpjumper 25 years of Mountain Biking. I admit I wasn’t too keen as I’d rather ride my bike than read about other people riding theirs. Having read the book I’ve changed my opinion.

Being pretty new to the MTB scene and getting told that ‘Specialized is the best company out there’ on all the forums and when I was riding my Hardrock I did start wondering why. This book helped solve that mystery.

It’s a book about the humble beginnings of Mike Sinyard  (a.k.a. Mr S) who went from ‘writing his catalogue on yellow legal paper and coaxing employees to sleep overnight cozyed up to piles of tyres that couldn’t fit into what little storage there was at Specialized world headquarters.’ to ‘struggling to hang on to the tiger’s tail, otherwise known as the Stumpjumper.’

Mr S broke the mould with the Stumpjumper and ran ads like: "IT’S NOT JUST A NEW BIKE, IT’S A NEW SPORT" and for the 1984 (personally one of my favourites) "IF YOU’RE ON A PINK BIKE, YOU BETTER BE FAST." They’d made one of the world’s most respected and well loved bikes out there.

This book shows the evolution from the 1981 Blue tig welded, 15 speed with golf club fork design through the 1994 Specialized S-works FSR and on to the 2006 S-Works FSR Carbon full suspension 27 speed demon that is the king of the market for 2006.

The best thing is this book gives you the history of Specialized AND it gives you the background of MTB, it’s beginnings and the stories of those who made the sport. This is a big must for anyone who rides, and an even bigger must for those who ride Specialized.

Buy the Stumpjumper book here.
Posted by Simon

Tredz rider places 4th at Fort Bill

Tredz downhill rider Jules Poffley raced round 4 of the NPS downill at glorious Fort William in Scotland last weekend and despite not expecting to place well (usual misplaced modesty) he finished 4th in his class (men/master). He lost out on 3rd by the narrowest of margins to Andrew Titley of the Kona team. We havent unable to congratulate him in person as yet, or indeed to find out how chuffed he is with his winnings (whatever they were), as his van suffered a major mechanical and last we heard he was stranded in Fort Bill (there are worse places to be stuck!). Anyway our congratulations to him, nice one.

Check out full report and results at fort bill results.
Posted by Chris

Keeping the sunshine rides alive

One lucky Tredz employee went on a cycling holiday this month. He was so impressed we placed a banner for them on TredzTalk (a first for us). As they say, here is his story….

We spent a week in an amazing part of Andalucia, Southern Spain near the awesome El Chorro gorge.  The gorge is a popular destination for climbers, but the whole area is equally brilliant for a superb mountain bike holiday. Check out the photos here.

Blazing Trails offer comfortable self-catering accommodation for 2-3 (4 at a push) in a purpose built ‘casita’ which is built away from the host’s main house. It’s within 10 minutes of El Chorro village and 15 minutes to the Ardales lakes. They have an 8mx4m pool with terrace and welcome sun loungers for guests, which is just what we needed after a hard ride.  The views from both the casita and pool were really spectacular.

John, the Blazing Trails guide, has a great knowledge of local rides, most of which were reached directly from the casita.  He charges 70€ per day – well worth it to sample some of the great trails and familiarise ourselves with the surroundings.

How NOT to use a cycle rack

Viscount Linley was photographed  riding his bike on the King's Road in London yesterday. Ordinarily, this would be hailed as responsible transportation - beating the congestion charge and saving the environment. Unless, that is, you've got a 4-year-old sitting on the rear rack (who’s 14th in line to the throne) holding on to your back pocket. The whole scene looks like Bambi on ice. The Daily Mail covers it best here.

Golfers go for longer

Let's leave aside all the bumper-sticker jokes for a second and look at the question of time. My favourite mountain bike route (the wall at Afan Argoed) takes about two hours. Add post-ride food/chat (30 mins), the commute (45 mins) and clean-up time (30 mins) and the whole thing takes the thick end of 4 hours. With work and family commitments I can usually manage to squeeze this in about once or twice a month.

A good friend of mine runs a busy and successful business with his father. He has two stores, a wife and two little girls to look after. When asked ‘How’s the golf going?’ he either talks up or down his game and his handicap, but rarely the lack of activity. He manages to play nearly every week. And there’s mid week tournament games. And practicing. And inter-club competitions around the UK.

A round of golf takes, on average, 4 hours. By the time you’ve added transport and bar time, the sport has eaten 5 – 6 hours from a weekend. Overall it must be one of the most time-consuming sports/hobbies you could take up. Perhaps I should tell the wife I’m going for a round of golf. I could leave and get changed into cycling gear ride my two favourite loops and then shower change back with my extra time?

Just how on earth do most golfers manage to play so often and for so damn long? Answers on a post card to…

New lifestyle magazine launched

A complimentary magazine has just landed on my desk and very nice it is too. We know the mag's founders and issue 1 of Beyond925 has been a long and difficult task for them so they must be well pleased to finally make their dream a reality. The 50 pages are eclectic mix of insights into adventure and endurance sports. Their Editor’s Bit reads:

Many of these sports can be very intimidating to the uninitiated, but this mag will act as gateway into the things that you have always wanted to try.

Tredz will be despatching complimentary copies with all orders but you can also get your hands on a FREE copy by sending a self addressed envelope (C5 or larger) to:

Tredz (nice guys)
Kingsway
Swansea West Ind. Est.
SWANSEA
SA5 4DL

Put your email address in and we'll add you to our mailing list for special offers.

Always recycle. Yeah right

We've had a spending spree at TredzTalk this week. Our generous proprietors have taken pity on our eyes and the office karma by upgrading our screens. A credit card was located (legally of course), eBuyer was logged into and flat screens arrived aplenty.

Now I wouldn't say I'm the greenest of citizens but it is 2006 and I/we are aware of environmental responsibilities. Imagine how we reacted when no-one would take these screens off our hands. Not a recycler, not a charity, not a foreign aid organisation (PCs to 3rd World etc) and not even the council. We made 10+ calls to 6+ organisations. None offered a solution, all said scrap them.

Increasing popularity of flat screens and the short life-span of PCs in general (as they tend to be upgraded every few years and the old becomes redundant) must make this a larger problem then our dozen or so VDUs. I'm sure that fridges pose a larger threat to our environment, but surely there's a better home for unloved PCs and monitors than our skip?

Could you work with Clarkson?

There are a handful of dream jobs out there for most of us. It's a personal and subjective list that can probably be counted on one hand. My school boy wishes include fighter pilot and international rugby captain. It also includes presenting the BBC's Top Gear programme and I suspect this is true for 80% of males who've reached puberty.

One of the three lucky gents to hold that job title, Richard Hammond, is in hospital following a major accident while filming. The BBC writes "The 36-year-old presenter was taken by air ambulance to Leeds General Infirmary's neurological unit... he had been driving a dragster-style car capable of reaching speeds of up to 300mph." Unbelievably, Hammond was looking to break the British land speed record and was doing a second run when the accident happened.

A member of the fire services at the scene said "He was regaining consciousness at that point and said he had some lower back pain. But he was drifting in and out of consciousness a little bit." I hope he recovers fully and rejoins the show ASAP. He and the other two fools make me laugh and open up a car show to far more than just break horse power and number of valves.

And Jeremy, if you're looking for a stand in, I, and about 20 million other guys in the UK, would love to keep Richard's seat warm until he recovers (weekend work you understand boss).

Kona Primo 2 in 1 jacket review

I needed to buy a jacket 12 months ago as I'd pretty much worn out my Altura Attitude. Being inherently frugal, despite substantial staff discounts, I was looking at spending no more than £100. I wanted a lightweight, water proofish qualities, breathable and fairly hard wearing (I fall off quite a bit) cycle jacket. I had no real brand preferences. When shopping I found the Kona Primo ticked all those boxes and more but for far less - just £54.99 SRP. At first I honestly thought it's either a price error or the thing will last two months. Not at all.

I've used it for over a year now and washed it plenty of times so let's see what's good and bad about my jacket. Bad first because there isn't much:

- the neck is quite narrow. Whilst this stops a draft hitting your chest it can be too restrictive even for a skinny guy like me;
- if the neck is open a couple of inches the top is a bit rough and will need adjusting from time to time;
- it's lightweightedness (oops, no such word) means I often underestimate my layering and go overboard with a fleece (obviously my flaw, not the jacket's).

What's great:

- the arms come off. This means I use it with long sleeved base layer and go running in it in winter;
- the sleeves have thumb loops which give extra draft protection (good if not wearing gloves);
- lightweight. Not roll up into the size of an apple but definitely fit into my Camelbak Mule;
- there's enough pocket storage for on and off bike stuff;
- it's extremely cheap with loads of bang for buck;
- it's not too cycling specific (loads of drop back) to be geeky. I've worn it to the rugby a few times.

I also want to try and see the difference with a more expensive jacket, perhaps the Gore ALP-X but don't have the cash at the mo (hint hint boss - long term test/blag). But all-in-all the Kona Primo could well be the best value jacket on the market and it will certainly last me another winter in Afan.

British Heart Foundation challenge - Oct 1st

Are you looking for a team challenge to test your physical and mental capabilities? Well the British Heart Foundation are challenging teams of up to six people to complete various activities in eight hours all within the Afan Forest, South Wales (Sun 1st Oct). There will be some very fit people taking part but also a good number of fun-run types as well.

With an 8am start teams will run alongside and in the Afan river, mountain bike across one of the world’s best bike trails, undergo mental agility challenges, run 5k and cross a lake. A six person team can have two people sit out events and complete the stage with just four (allowing you to relay competitors).

Sponsorship efforts will help the British Heart Foundation (BHF) fight the UK’s biggest killer – heart disease. I bet you didn’t know that the BHF spend £190 every two minutes of every day on life-saving heart research. With someone in the UK having a heart attack every two minutes, that money gets spent quickly.

Stage 1: 5k run in Gnoll Country Park
Stage 2: 19k Mountain bike from Gnoll Country Park to Afan Argoed
Stage 3: Team Agility Test at Afan Forest Visitor Centre
Stage 4: 5k Run including River crossings
Stage 5: 19k Cycle from Afan Argoed to Gnoll Country Park
Stage 6: Final Challenge - short run where you could get dirty!

This made a great team building exercise last year for companies that entered, but it can also appeal to a bunch of mates looking to raise some money and push themselves off the sofa.  Registration forms are available from the Wales Events Office on 0800 7836970 or by email walesevents@bhf.org.uk

Al Gore and his Inconvenient Truths

Saw this on a blog I like called Marketing Tom penned by Alun John. Without analysing the Kyoto Protocol's whys and wherefores, Mr Gore, the 'ex-next president of the United States', seems to be finally putting a reasonable, measured and hard hitting political voice to global warming. All the more reason to be gutted he didn't make it to the Oval Office then.

Over 2.3 million Americans have watched the documentary to date. Here's a clip to help you add your face to the UK turnout...

2007 bike video from Euro bike show

We've posted recently about new bikes we've been viewing at the swish (and sometimes not so swish) bikes shows. The swishest of all bike shows and bible of every new is Interbike in Las Vegas. If you don't fancy the air fair and hours of queueing at customs in California then the next best thing is Eurobike. Get booking for September 2007.

Perhaps this short video will bring an end to us banging on about new 2007 things. Then again its unlikely.

My first iPod

Okay so I admit it, I've only just bought an iPod. No, I'm not 87 and no, I haven't been held hostage in Baghdad since the millennium. I just hadn't got round to forking out £108 (on Amazon with free delivery cos I was willing to wait a week) on getting one. A couple of years ago I bought a Nike/Phillips mp3 which is pretty useless on storage and battery life. But no more with the also-rans. I am now officially a Steve jobs supporter - albeit 5 years late.

My new Nano (2GB I'll have you know) is swish and black and lovely. I've also bought the Nike+ running kit (tells how far and fast you're running) and Nike armband case from JD Sports which arrived yesterday and remain hidden from the wife in my glove box. The case has had loads of runners complaining on forums that there's no window so they cant see the track/menu - I'm going to cut a hole in mine; a shame but necessary me thinks.

My only fear now is that:
  a) I'm going to spend 8 hours a night and mega spondoons on iTunes; and
  b) I have less of an excuse for being such a poor runner and need to slash personal best times everywhere.

A happy chap indeed

Although we're only 'doing our jobs' it's always nice to get a thank you from customers. I am continually amazed at the amount of people willing to take time out of their busy lives to scribble words of praise to us, about our service/products/couriers. If I'm honest I think I've only ever writen such a letter once. I guess email makes it easier, but we appreciate it just the same.

Stuart B recently wrote: Hi guys, the giant scr 3.0 bikes that you sent up to Edinburgh are LOVELY. We are all enjoying them very much. They are the first road bikes that we have had and the difference is amazing! Every bit of pedalling effort makes you go quicker.

We must be doing something right - right?

Get a pony tail not a peek?

A friend pointed me to an article on the BBC from Monday (here) which discusses research that claims wearing a helmet on the road is more dangerous than not. How could I possibly have missed that!?

Dr Ian Walker published the research earlier this year. The gist of the findings insinuate that when drivers see a helmeted cyclist they presume the rider to be competent and safe and give him/her less room when overtaking. The Doc then tested his theory further by riding with a long wig rather than a lid and found that drivers gave him a wider birth. His future research will investigate why drivers are more cautious of (apparently) female cyclists, allowing them more room: because women cyclists are more erratic or because they are seen less often than men on the road. Don't shout at me, it's the Docs question.

Regardless of the sexist arguments I think my chances are a damn site better off if I'm underneath my Specialized Instinct than a pony tail, thank you very much.

Kona 2007 bikes change in part

The line up of Kona 2007 bikes looks very familiar at first glance. Kona have never been guys pushing the envolope, they design and build bikes they like end of story. You can have your carbon this and your integrated that; I'll have this cool looking thing over here that rides great and is pretty much indistrucable. They mill about in coffee houses in Cananda figuring out how to make things better for the many world and national champions on their books.

Highlighted changes for 2007 Konas:

• Stabs, Stinkys and Coilers get increased standover
• Stinky gets longer cockpit and reinforced linkage plates
• Lockout suspension fork on all mid-top end MTBs
• Hei Hei is all new XC Scandium frame with 2.5" of travel
• A 29" single speed bike - the Uni2-9
• Extended Lisa range increasing the womens specific line

Availability is likely to be October for the majority but check out Tredz as things come online.

Scott 2007 bikes push the weight envelope

Tredz were invited to the exclusive launch of the Scott 2007 bike line up at Basildon Park near Reading today. Scott bikes follow their American competitors and launch next year's cycles in the late summer (Scott are actually a Swiss company despite their livery Scott USA), hence 2007 bikes being shown in August/September.

As per usual, the line up is as good looking as ever with the design team picking great colours for their paint work (some informal photos here). But the engineers have been much busier. They've managed to create the world's lightest full suspension XC mountain bike and the lightest production road bike frame.

Amazing Service

George from Belfast wrote to us mentioning how pleased he was with our service.

Gents,
bike arrived safely the day after I had ordered it. Amazing service. Many thanks.

George

Kimi breaks my heart without the chance of breaking Michael’s

I know its nothing to do with bikes, but I was fixated this Sunday afternoon as the Italian Grand Prix brought the announcement that Mr Schumacher will indeed bow out of Formula One - as a driver at least. The 37-year-old, record-breaking, peerless, seven-time world champion will cease to drive for the Marenello team at the end of this season in three races' time. It was fitting that he announced his retirement whilst increasing his arguably unbeatable grand prix win tally to 90. The boy done good. V. good. He now sits just two points behind this year's leader, Fernando Alonso.

However, for my money, of the 22 drivers in this most elitist of sports, Kimi Raikkonen is pound-for-pound the best of them. By some margin. Now Kimi, aka the Mute One (he really doesn’t talk much), might not be a marketing director’s wet dream, but he will have broken the hearts of all who work at the Technology Centre in Woking this year.

Get your free cycling DVD on Saturday

The wife prefers the red-tops, with their celebrity sex gossip and the latest Eastenders storyline but it’s The Times, not the Sun, on today’s shopping list as there’s a free cycling film enclosed. The classic French movie by Sylvian Chomet, Belleville Rendez-vous:

           Noticing that her grandson, Champion, is a lonely little boy, Madame Souza buys him his first bicycle. Years go by, and with Madame Souza putting him through his paces, Champion becomes worthy of his name. Now he is ready to enter the world's most famous cycling competition, the Tour de France. But, no sooner than the race has begun, two mysterious men in black kidnap him and its up to Madame Souza and her faithful dog, Bruno, to rescue him. Soon, their quest takes them to a giant metropolis, called Bellville, where they encounter three eccentric female music hall stars of the 1930s and do battle with the evil French mafia. But can they rescue Champion?

Shrek this ain't, but it’s a nice movie nonetheless.

Outsider 2006

This weekend the first annual (well we hope so) Outsider street sports event. It was organised in part by Tredz and by Wheelies Cycles (tredz's original store). It took place in singleton park in sunny Swansea and it rocked a biggun (down with kids and all that).

Rained off on Saturday, the weather held for Sunday and things went brilliantly well, skating, punk and more importantly the main event, BMX dirt! Tredz team rider Ed wowed the crowds with trick after trick (fuelled by cheese and onion sandwiches, the food of champions) for 8 HOURS SOLID! The whole of the Swansea jumping crowd turned out and really opened some eyes as to the skills, dedication and physical fitness of these guys, not to mention they're resistance to repeated hard slams. As for local rider Danny Pace doing flip whips (back-flip tail-whips) well lets just say there were some confused, gob-smacked faces in the crowd; perhaps now the lovely Swansea public will see those "pesky kids" in a new light.

I'll let the pictures speak for themselves as I'm waffling a treat...

Xterra race results now published

The Xterra race results have finally been published. The timing company has them here and Xterra here. Bizarrely, neither company list entrant nationalities for this international event! They also fail to list distances which changed on the Sunday to become a duathlon (run, bike, run), rather than a triathlon (swim, bike, run).

Bike Ride 35k Enduro (amended to 27k) 53 finishers
Pos |  Name (Sex)        | Time
1.      C Rhodes    (M)      01:19:47
2.      J Mant        (M)      01:26:11
3.      D Cooper     (F)      01:30:56

Bike Ride 75k Enduro 40 finishers
1.     G Beetham   (M)      03:08:37
2.     P Cooper      (M)      03:18:54
3.     P Turnball    (M)      03:24:42

Sport Duathlon 106 finishers
                           Run      | 17k bike   | 5k run    |  Total
1. R Bowles  (M) 00:09:14    00:53:20    00:12:15  01:14:50
2. M Barclay (M) 00:09:44    00:52:18    00:13:09  01:15:12
3. D Knespl   (M) 00:09:41  00:55:07    00:14:20    01:19:09

49.L Woodman(M) 00:12:54  01:09:55   00:19:23  01:42:13 (Tredz contributor)

Xterra Duathlon 193 finishers
                              Run      | 32k bike  | 10k run   |  Total
1. S Wealing (M)  00:08:34    01:23:47    00:40:16    02:12:38
2. E Llanos    (M)  00:08:42    01:26:06    00:41:00    02:15:48
3. K Hoehler  (M)  00:08:34    01:26:24    00:41:15    02:16:24

36.P Marland (M) 00:09:47    01:41:48  00:51:59    02:42:35 (Tredz contributor)

For the record, the Xterra champion was an American, followed by a Spaniard and a German. Well done to everyone who took part in the extreme races in the extremely tough conditions that the course and the weather threw at them.

Practical parenting

Becoming a father last December has seen my looking into all sorts of child transport systems. The obvious and urgent one to buy was our pram which is great. But then comes the question of how to move about at speed or off road? Hence I've been looking at strollers that I can jog with and rucksacks that I can carry my little princess in.

But last week I've also discovered this wonderfully designed child and adult bike (above). It's made by a Dutch company called Triobike. Here is their website. The front cradle detaches and becomes a push chair for two kids and the bike can then have its front wheel fitted to be ridden separately. I love such attractive, practical and (apparently) well made inventions.

Short and sweet

Adino .M left us this short and sweet email

Tredz,
My order arrived this morning in excellent condition.

Thanks,

Andino.

Xterra triathlon news

Xterra triathlon fought difficult weather conditions and actually went ahead. The enduro mountain bike races rode out early on Saturday morning but by the time the 35k riders were coming in conditions were horrendous. By 1pm the wind was viscous, the rain was 90 degrees sideways and the valley's lush green mountains were a blanket of dark grey.

Tredz and others retailers desperately held onto tents and bikes as things got very twitchy indeed. The wind was so powerful that mountain bikers later commented they were pedalling in the granny ring to go downhill! Toilets blew over and, most dangerously, the scaffold start/finish line went down. Thankfully nobody was hurt (or stuck in the loo) but the police and organisers had seen enough and pulled the plug on the afternoon trail runs. More Xterra photos here.

However the Xterra triathlon went ahead in the much more pleasant Sunday morning. Except the event became a duathlon as the waterside was too boggy to support any emergency vehicles. The swim became a 2k run and the split transition became one.

Results will be posted when organisers publish final places but the top 10 gents were largely international entrants.