About bikes, cycling and cycle to work - Tredz Blog

Cheap bikes vs human rights

Although you might not think it, our bikes are cheap (I mean every bike in every shop, although Tredz bikes are undoubtedly cheaper and more handsome than most), but could the days of cheap bikes and components be coming to an end?
Well if China continues on it’s, frankly unreasonable project of improving their human rights and labour regulations, than an end product might mean our bikes (not just ours, everyone’s, although ours will still be more handsome), begin to be priced at a more realistic rate.

When ‘Made in China’ is no longer a byword for cheaply produced bike goods you can safely assume that a lot of components will increase in price. More info can be found over at Bike Europe, but our advice? Buy! Quick!

Suits on bikes

What do Google, Yahoo and Ikea have in common, apart from all being incredibly successful companies?
Bicycles!

We’ve already written about how companies like these (companies that want a healthy workforce, a happy workforce and a great public image that is), are beginning to sign up to cycling to work en mass.

Judging from the amount of phone calls we receive the two wheeled corporate revolution is just beginning and It's not only companies that are seeking the benifits of cycling; we've supplied custom built bikes to the army, the Police and Ambulance services too. For further info check out our corporate page or give us a call on 01792 560651.
Guaranteed the person on the end of the phone will be able chew your ear off about the benefits of cycling to work.

The future of cycling

Cycling, as a form of transport currently has an annual budget of £10 million from the Department from Transport. Over the next three years that is going to go up, £20 million next year then £60 million for the two following years.

This is noted in the €˜A Sustainable Future for Cycling€™ report from the Department of Transport, just a couple of lines below a bullet point showing how current air pollution levels cost the UK up to £20 billion each year.

More please.

Tredz big night in

This Thursday (31st Jan), come and see what we get up to in one of our stores after hours at Tredz big night in.

We’ve got:

    * Insight into pro-riding with National Champion Nick Craig
    * Nutritional advice from international SIS guru
    * The low-down on the Trans Wales XC event from the organiser
    * Qualified masseur on hand for training fatigue advice and help
    * Village Gym offers
    * And you can meet Olympic GOLD medallist and world-champion Jody Cundy.

For anyone seriously interested in looking at improving their cycling performance, or simply at a loose end on Thursday (or not, ditch the date this’ll be more interesting), come along to our Swansea store and check it out. Doors re-open at 6:30 PM when our teaboy/general manager will be on hand to dish out the hot drinks.

Bike safety

Where there are bikes there are bike thieves. Unfortunate, but the sub-human bridge dwelling scum are a constant in the bike scene, which is why we have to spend such a large amount of money on locks and other security devices. Gear that has absolutely no impact on our bike riding pleasure, but just keeps the knuckle scraping inbreeds at bay for as long as possible, whilst we pop in the shop to get our milk. Only to return and find the bike missing – in it’s place only an easily twisted, bargain bin D-lock laughing at me from the floor (I’ve learnt my lesson and gotten a Sold Secure rated Abus Granit 54 X-Plus).

Until we can sort out the legal issues and start using South African anti-car theft style measures on our rides (the fatal ones), any small jump in the wellbeing of our bikes is very welcome, so we were impressed with the work being done at Leeds university. They’ve created a CCTV system that automatically recognises differences between the person that left the bike and the person that illicitly tries to take it. Admittedly that person is likely to be a hideous aberration (warts, scales etc), but hey, that’s pretty cool technology all the same.

Lance for President!

Nah not really, but on this slow Tuesday morning and in the midst of all the pre-pre presidential election palaver in the states, I thought I’d point you in the direction of this article in the Denton Record-Chronicle (yup, that slow) – where the Mayor of New York and Lance Armstrong compliment each other with ‘bright political future’ platitudes.
Couldn’t really ask for a better ready-made public image than Lance Armstrong could you?

Arch 2 Arc Triathlon

Ever heard of the Arch 2 Arc triathlon? It calls itself the most gruelling endurance event around and the staggering numbers involved back this up.

Spesh contest winner

A winner has been chosen in Specialized’s Innovate or Die contest. The judges chose this:

According to the rules of the competition (something like saving the world through pedal power, green face paint and hummus) then the winning entry was worthy and well deserved. I honestly thought the party bike of the future was a shoe in, but providing clean drinking water is more important than saving a party, I 'spose.

We're on a roll

We don’t much like blowing our own trumpet here at Tredz (present company excluded), as such we don't usually like to post positive customer feedback too often. But how could I not post this from Colin in Birmingham:

"Could I thank you for assistance and guidance in purchasing the correct bike for me? Your staff who appears to prioritise technical advice over Sales, comforting when making purchase over Internet. Have continued to sing your praises on my experience and recommend you to all."

Aww shucks.

Cycle Faster!

Cycling coaches are everywhere on the internet, all of them promising to make you go quicker, longer and end up better looking by the time you get to the finishing line. These guys take a fresh approach though: "Our program is based on three fundamentals: Exercise, Diet, and Ridicule..."
Check out the Nega-Coach website! It's a genuinely funny take on the proliferation of exercise 'experts'.

Tredz at Cwm Carn

Despite all the crap weather we’ve been seeing lately, we’re a leathery old lot here at Tredz (just take a look at those two). Not the sorts of people to let the odd biblical deluge get us down, we recently took some of our full suss demo bikes for a little jolly up to Cwm Carn. It might not rain, right?

Yeah right... Still, a great day out and when the rain did occasionally stop the views were as spectacular as ever.

New year, good old customer care

Just received this message:

I just took delivery of a 14" Giant Rock, I would like to say thank you! Its hopefully what my daughter is after (I’ll find out on the 13th jan, her b'day). Rest assured I’ll be passing your www. to friends and family with the recommendation of giving you their business. To all at Tredz, best wishes for the new year!

Happy new year right back at you Mr Fielding and a very happy birthday to your daughter. Hope she likes her new bike!

Innovate or Die finish

Specialized’s innovate or die competition, in which the challenge is "to invent and build machines that transform pedalling energy into new and useful purposes." Has come to an end.

The results will be released on the 15th of January but you can view the entries here. My personal favourite is the pedal powered party bike - yeah it's not gonna save the planet but I'm sure that post apocalyptic party contraption would either pep up a flagging get together or get you kicked out sharpish. So win win.

Cape epic blog

I like cycling up hills. Call me crazy but the satisfaction of powering up a hill is at least equal to the satisfaction of going down the other side. 'Crazy' doesn't really do justice to the nutters taking on the Absa Cape Epic though. The course profiles for the 9 day, 950km MTB race are simply ridiculous, with nearly every day featuring 10 hour rides that cover hills (totalling 18000m) that would make me run, nay walk, for the nearest chair lift.
Luckily Matt Davies from BBC news is writing an interesting blog of his participation and the training leading up to it. Call it the diary of a madman.

Autopilot Bike

When I fall off my bike it invariably lands on me. This guy's wants to win the race for him...

Bike squad bikes for sale

Bike Squad was a one-off show broadcast on ITV last Friday evening. It wasn’t exactly laugh a minute, or even laugh an hour according to those in the office who watched it. Although the comedy lacked the neccessary, uh, comedy and is probably not going to get a full season (although My Family seems to be doing pretty well for itself), there are some positives to be drawn from it. Most obviously it’s great to see coppers on TV on Specialized bikes and hopefully, the powers that be can see the obvious benefits: hugely increased beat coverage, speed of response and of course increased fitness. And if anyone tried doing a fugitive through Afan forest they'd be stuffed.
The police in the Bike Squad were riding Specialized Rockhopper police bicycles, which are available en masse to police forces across the country - we supplied a few dozen to local constabularies in 2007. If there are any wannabe police cyclists out there get in touch and we’ll gladly help you set up your own Bike Squad.

All cyclists are littering yobs

“What’s smug and deserves to be decapitated?”
Don’t know the answer? Read Matthew Parris’ delightful and well balanced judgement of us “panting, sugar-gulping, chocolate-chewing, Lycra-clad leisure-cyclist’s.”
It’s shocking to be honest. His portrayal (in which he also calls helmets "ludicrous items"), of me and many of my friends and colleagues as littering yobs is not only wrong but dangerous. Encouraging violence against cyclists? My daily commute is littered with near misses anyway and with leading papers like the Times publishing crap like this the future is a depressing place.
After what must have been a large number of complaints the Times themselves published a rebuttal entitled “A joke that will sicken cyclists”. The illogical rantings of Parris should sicken not only cyclists but all right thinking people.

Update:
Since I wrote the original blog post, the bike trade magazine BikeBiz has offered a retort, including an offer to take Parris out for a cycle. Watch out for that fish wire Matt!

Jody on the BBC

Jody Cundy, Tredz sponsored rider, world Champion and all round good egg has been featured on BBC2's  drivetime Chris Evans show. Best of all it doesn't feature Chris Evans (he's on holiday).

Check out Jody on radio 2 here, he appears about an hour and forty minutes into the broadcast if you want to skip the Jeremy Clarkson inspired rock.

Tredz vacancies

Love bikes? Come and work for us! We've got full and part time vacancies in our Swansea and Cardiff stores. Drop your CV off in store or e-mail it to us: jobs@tredz.co.uk

Best of Tredz 2007

It’s been a busy year for Tredz; continuing to expand ("world domination" our boss cackles), sponsored events and getting out of the office on our bikes just enough to remember why we love this sport. We’ve been all over the country, ridden down mountains, over ramps and into walls. It’s been a blast and we’re just glad that enough of you out there want to do the same thing.

Anyways, here’s the obligatory misty eyed look back at 2007:

Ride of the year:
I haven't had a chance to go and see White's after the extension, 'Energy', was built. Which is a bloody shame as everyone that has goes a little bit dreamy when they talk about it.

Bike of the year:
We're only allowing Tredz employees bikes in on this one - we'll let the rest of the world argue over whether the Pitch is a better bike than the 08 Stumpy (it is). Which means there's only really one competitor here; Suffice to say none of the rest of us spent over 2 grand on a bike this year, so by default, Tredz bike of the year is Fiddy's Commencal Furious 08. Now stop stroking the damn thing and ride it!

Rider of the year:
Hmm, toughie. There’s a lot to choose from here, what with all of the Tredz riders doing so well at their various disciplines. Julian Poffley, Jody Cundy and Phil Marland ended the year with a healthy spread of winners medals, whilst the peoples champion, Gus, lost a load of weight during his cycling weight loss programme. However without letting all our success go to our head, the undisputed champ of 2007 must be…
Councillor Gwyn Roberts, Mayor of Penarth.
He sedately conquered the Tredz Downtown Race, retaining his dignity and deservedly getting the days biggest cheer.

Nothing NEW about it

Little sleep. Hangover. Good trail. Under-prepared thighs. Knackered all afternoon. That’s normal Sunday riding isn’t it? Perhaps because this was a Tuesday it really was New.