It’s a great relief to be properly back on the bike this week after over a year of not really cycling. Following my injury last July, I felt able to cycle again about February but had problems with the bike and I didn’t feel confident about cycling anywhere other than the greenway, where it’s relatively flat. That problem fixed (it… Read more »
To say that I’m fed up would be an understatement. It’s now 11 weeks since I got injured and I’ve been off the bike ever since, watching the summer ripen and fade. And now we’re into autumn. I was, as Steve says, scrumping. I’d gotten up at 6.00am-ish to walk the dog in the cool of the morning. After a… Read more »
I bought my Endura Windchill II back in December 2016. It’s now nearly June 2017 and I haven’t worn any other jacket since. The Endura has done me all winter and is still suitable for these late May days, due to the long pit zips, which cool you down nicely when you start to overheat. In winter I wore it over… Read more »
Since it’s the close of 2016, I thought I’d do a review of the winners and losers among the things I’ve bought this year and last. Being new to cycling, I made a lot of mistakes at first, but I quickly discovered that while price is generally (though not always) a guarantee of quality, good kit can be had at… Read more »
I’ve been in two minds whether to review these items as they are no longer available except occasionally on Ebay – I bought them last year in Sheila Moon’s closing-down sale. But I’ve decided to mention them as I spent the summer in them and they give me some tips for what to look for when I need to replace… Read more »
The DH bought me the Georgia of Dublin Rainwrap as a present last year. It’s a beautiful thing, made from soft-touch waterproof fabric (I wish more jackets were made of this stuff) and packs up small enough to bung in a rackbag. You can also use it as a picnic blanket. It proved a godsend last winter and early spring in… Read more »
Woolpower is one of those makes that’s very hard to obtain except at full price. I was put off by the stonking £80 price tag of this gilet but already being the owner of a Woolpower 200 zipneck top and longjohns, I knew what good quality these items are, so I finally saved up and bit the bullet. The garments… Read more »
As all cyclists know, a good dusting powder is a must to keep yourself dry and chafe-free after a ride. I’d been using Gold Bond, which I do think is fabulous, but it’s terribly expensive to buy in Europe. Then I came across Medipure. Medipure is based on corn starch rather than talc – nice for those who prefer to avoid the… Read more »
I bought a few bits in SportPursuit’s merino sale, including this Trekmates zip-neck and crewneck tee. The Contrast Stitch Zip Top is 100% merino and 200gsm, while the Fusion Crew is 50% merino, 50% polyester and is also 200gsm. Both feature the same plentiful flatlock stitching in a contrast colour, and thumbholes in the sleeves. Both of these items seem… Read more »
I bought this Helly Hansen top on the same day as the Devold hoodie previously reviewed, being taken by its attractive contrast stitching and because I wanted to try out this popular brand. The top is 57% wool and 43% polypropylene, 215gsm and features Helly Hansen’s Lifa®Stay Dry Technology, which is meant to be non-allergenic, with ‘superior insulating and wicking properties’. … Read more »
Over the past year I’ve become a big fan of many Scandiwegian sports brands, which provide merino base layers with great design and features. These include Ulvang, Janus, Woolpower and Devold. I’m also a fan of hoodies, which are a useful extra layer on the bike. So, when I saw this merino hoodie, I jumped at it. The Devold Expedition… Read more »
I kind of lucked out with the first chamois cream I ever bought, which just happened to be the first thing I found on Ebay. Enzo’s Buttonhole Cream is based mainly on shea butter. It also contains melaleuca oil, hamamelis, the Wu-Chu-Yu herb and organic silicone compounds. Mine cost me about a tenner for 50ml on Ebay, and I went for… Read more »
About the same time as I ordered my Second Skin chamois cream, I also ordered this. Morgan Blue comes in two textures, soft and solid. I plumped for the soft as being water soluble, as I loathe scraping chamois cream off my hands before the start of a ride. This cream got reasonable reviews as a good product for rides… Read more »
As I was getting to the end of my Enzo’s Buttonhole chamois cream and couldn’t find a stockist, I decided to look around for some other brands, and came across this. Xenofit is a German brand, made by Hirschtalg, and Second Skin contains deer tallow (which turns out to be a classic German skin softener – who knew?) and lanolin…. Read more »
I was on the hunt for a stretch, windproof, high-vis gilet when I spotted the DHB Women’s Flashlight vest – DHB is Wiggle’s own brand. The vest and the matching long-sleeved jersey are available in fluo yellow as well as this fluo pink, which is rather darker than the usual fluo pink, so although very bright in daylight, in lower light conditions it’s… Read more »
