Inhaltsverzeichnis für December 2020 in Cycling Plus

When we were deep into lockdown 1.0 I ‘treated’ myself to a couple of kettlebells. I figured that I could use my time inside to build washboard abs and a v-shaped back or something. Needless to say, after an initial flurry of Joe Wicksian enthusiasm they’re now just getting in the way of the step ladder and bike cleaning bucket. After reading our core strength piece on p64 I’m determined to dust them off and make more of an effort to work my aging mid-section. If nothing else, it’ll make access to the chain cleaner a lot easier. SUBSCRIBE TODAY FOR ACCESS TO EXCLUSIVE OFFERS & COMPETITIONS AS PART OF OUR SUBSCRIBER CLUB! HIGHLIGHTS… ELECTRIC AVENUES I’ve been using an ebike and, gradually, I’m being converted. It’ll never replace my…

£1999.99 A slimmed, trimmed racer Following the launch of its heavily revamped Energie EVO cyclocross racer, Vitus has updated its Vitesse EVO road race bike, shedding weight, adding aero profiles and upping stiffness throughout. The new Vitesse EVO is disc-only and sports a frame weighing a claimed 840g or 910g with paint. According to Vitus marketing manager Chris McGlinchey, the new bike represents “a step back into high-end pro level race bikes” and will be raced by UCI Continental team Vitus Pro Cycling p/b Brother UK. Vitus has upped lateral stiffness in all the key areas and, while there are no specific claims about drag reduction, the new design features aero-tube profiles. Like so many others, the new Vitesse EVO also moves to dropped seatstays, a favourite way for designers…

When they work, press-fit bottom brackets (BB) are a smart, simple and lightweight way of fitting cranks to your bike. Unfortunately, when they don’t, you can be plagued by a creaky, squeaky heart of a bike that’s diffcult to cure and if you don’t have a professional BB press, fitting a new set of bottom bracket bearings is a job best left to bike shop mechanics because it’s misaligned bearings that will cause issues in the first place. Token says it has come up with the answer with the NINJA BB. The two halves of the NINJA BB thread together, making for a set of perfectly aligned bearings. Token claims this significantly improves stiffness and solves the noise problem. This modular system has everything you need contained within the box.…

The Boardman ADV 8.8 is the cheapest bike in this test, but we’ve often found that bikes from Boardman punch above their weight. Putting together a build to suit any budget requires trade-offs and at this price it takes attention to what makes a bike work well to avoid producing a dud. There are several interesting component choices intended to reduce cost in one area so that better equipment can be used in another. For example, a full carbon fork, which will increase front-end stiffness and make for more responsive handling, is a reasonably expensive choice. However, the fork comes with quick-release dropouts (1): a cheaper option than the disc-brake optimal bolt-thru option. Quick-release wheels aren’t as stiff as bolt-thru arrangements but are easier to remove. Using a threaded square-taper…

One thing surprisingly missing from the Arkose is the flared handlebar that can be found on other bikes in this test. What is present, however, are huge 45mm tan-walled WTB tyres, a black paint job set off by reflective graphics, and a test-highest spec, which is no great surprise being a third more expensive than the Boardman. At this end of the market that translates to two groupset tiers higher than the Marin. It ought to blow the rest of the bikes out of the water then, really. Mudguard and rack mounts give the bike all-round versatility credentials. The removable seatstay bridge (1) is a nice touch because it adds mud clearance. However, mudguards may be somewhat awkward to fit with the stock tyres, but dropping to 40mm or even…

FIZIK TEMPO ARGO R5 £89.99 Fizik’s short saddle range is split into two options: the Vento is race focused while the Tempo is designed for longer endurance rides. Weights and measures The Tempo Argo is 10mm longer than the San Marco at 260mm and is 150mm wide. This R5 model uses Fizik’s standard 7mm-diameter K:ium (titanium alloy) rails and tips the scales at 246.7g. Fizik also offers the Tempo in a 160mm version. To ensure you choose the correct width, use the online saddle finder or get measured by a Fizik dealer. Take comfort The Tempo uses Fizik’s Type 2 padding. It’s a dense, memory foamlike material that has plenty of elasticity, so along with the very flexible hull the Tempo is exceptionably comfortable. The heel of the saddle gently…

FROM THE EDITOR… As if the chance to save 30 per cent and having every issue of Cycling Plus delivered direct to your door wasn’t enough of an incentive, this issue we’re also giving new subscribers a great gift – the choice of either a Lezyne front light or Lezyne rear light, worth £57 and £47 respectively. Now that the nights are drawing in, these rechargeable lights will ensure you’re easily visible to other road users and the front Lite Drive 700XL will illuminate your way too. Be safe, be seen! PLUS ACCESS TO EXCLUSIVE OFFERS & COMPETITIONS AS PART OF OUR SUBSCRIBER CLUB! HURRY! OFFER ENDS 30 NOVEMBER 2020 GREAT REASONS TO SUBSCRIBE •Choose either a Lezyne Zecto rear light OR Lezyne Lite Drive 700XL front light • Save…

Gearing, like so many aspects of road cycling, has advanced over the years and while the pro riders often lead the way in establishing techniques and habits we’re all keen to follow, it’s worth remembering that the gear selection of an elite rider – whose life evolves around racing and generating power in the saddle – may be far from the right choice for you. “Gears are used to keep you in your optimal cadence range, making you more efficient across different terrain. Gears may seem simple enough but I often see mistakes, even among the elite riders, when it comes to mastering them,” says Liam Holohan. Neverthless, there are some lessons to learn from the pros when it comes to finding the right gear setup for you. 01 READ…

“The True Grit is designed for gravel racing, with geometry that says ‘Let’s go fast’”TOM MARVIN While I might not be a regular face in Cycling Plus (I’m more often found in the pages of sister mountain bike magazine MBUK or online at bikeradar.com), I’ve long been riding curly handlebars and, like many of us, have fallen head over heels for gravel bikes. Lauf might not be a brand you’ve heard of before, but it began making mountain bike suspension forks, then launched its Grit gravel fork and later, in 2018, the True Grit gravel race bike. I’ve been riding a True Grit since launch, so I jumped at the opportunity to run its latest model as a long-termer in Cycling Plus. The Grit fork is a 30mm suspension fork…

I’ve no shame in admitting to being the fairest of fair-weather cyclists. However, it wasn’t all that long ago when I’d be out on my bike in all weathers, feeling the cold in my bones and loving it, in a weird sort of way. I can’t put an exact date on it, but it was probably pre-Zwift’s Eric Min musing on his indoor training revolution. The idea behind this supplement, then, was both to remind us of the upsides to riding through winter and of some of the alternative ways to stay sharp through this period, away from the road bike. On p4, Trevor Ward, a man with a 12-month cycling season, talks up the benefits of winter cycling, and then rides a long way on the shortest day of…

BIKE - BUYING ADVICE YOU CAN TRUST… We take our testing very seriously at Cycling Plus. For more than 25 years – an age when disc brakes, Di2 and super-wide 1x gearing weren’t even a glint in a designer’s eye – we have been putting road cycling products through their paces. Our Senior Technical Editor Warren Rossiter, has nearly a quarter of a century of riding experience in just about every discipline. He can separate the great from the also-rans when it comes to bikes, clothing, accessories – and more. If it gets our seal of approval you can be sure that you’ll be bagging a great buy! THE TECH TEAM’S SENIOR TECHNICAL EDITOR PREVIEWS HIS ISSUE HIGHLIGHTS… WARREN ROSSITER SENIOR TECHNICAL EDITOR ‘Versatility’ is a buzz word in bicycle…

THE BIG PICTURE PREMATURE EVALUATION Riders celebrating too early is a frequent sight in pro cycling and it can make them look very silly. It was new world champion Julian Alaphilippe’s turn in his first outing in the rainbow jersey at Liège–Bastogne–Liège. He was inched out on the line by a lunging Primož Roglič, who went some way to exorcising his Tour de France heartbreak. Embarrassment continued for Alaphilippe, as he was demoted to fifth for an irregular sprint.…

The capital is a riot of cyclists these days. And as you’d expect in a world city, they’re a diverse bunch. You share the often excellent fast, segregated cycle paths with all manner of people and machines – from 10-grand superbike models to 50 quid 1980s racers repurposed as town hackers. Hire-bike wobblers, and hire e-bike whizzers, are everywhere too. And London’s not short of vibrant, trendy/urban/chic cycle-cafes. But Look Mum No Hands! (LMNH!) in Old Street was one of the first and it still makes all the ‘best of’ lists. It’s a frequent post-ride stop for road cyclists, but during the day it’s mainly utility bikes parked in the courtyard, while their owners sip coffee, munch cakes and work on laptops in a variety of globally important languages. Co-owner…

Having been at the forefront of the original 1980s mountain bike movement in the Californian county after which it is named, it should come as no surprise to see Marin doing something a little different with the Gestalt. Its Beyond Road category is a range of drop-bar bikes including some all-out, off road weapons. The Gestalt models stop shy of being the mountain bike-lite interpretation of gravel and are positioned by Marin as capable touring-style machines. Their touring credentials are backed up by 32mm WTB Exposures (1) as standard. Up to 40mm tyres could be fitted, but that would leave less clearance if mudguards were fitted, for which there are mountings. Plus, the alloy fork has low-rider rack mounts suggesting it’s aimed at the traditional commuting or touring market. On…

Multi-role road bike, perfect for full-time commuting and weekend long-distance cafe rides taking in the odd unpaved road, too When faced with four such different bikes it’s exceptionally difficult to choose a winner. The Marin Gestalt is a hugely fun bike to ride and has lots of potential, but some of the component choices used to get the bike to its relatively affordable £835 price tag dent the performance. The impressive brakes on the less expensive Boardman show that these are a component that doesn’t have to be compromised, nor should it. Three different tiers of Shimano’s groupset range are represented; one 8-speed Claris, two 9-speed Sora and one 10-speed Tiagra. Claris operates perfectly well and Tiagra performs magnificently, but in my opinion Sora is close enough to the higher-level…

All the key components of good cycling performance – from power output and pedalling effciency to aerodynamic posture and muscle endurance – are dependent on one vital but often overlooked quality: core strength. Without a solid core, you won’t channel as much power through your pedals, you’ll suffer an unbalanced pedalling technique, you won’t be able to hold an aero position and you’ll become vulnerable to aches and injuries. “A strong core will optimise your ability to produce power because you will have a more solid base,” explains Bianca Broadbent (@thecyclephysio), specialist sports physiotherapist at Spire Healthcare and bike fitter at Fit Your Bike. “There’s an old saying: ‘You wouldn’t fire a cannonball from a raft.’ And you especially need a strong core at low cadences, like going uphill or…

So you know all about Alpe d’Huez. Everyone does. It’s an icon, a target, a dream. It’s a t-shirt, a poster, a tattoo. You’ve followed the battles and counted the hairpins and maybe even been among the street-corner parties that watch it all go by. But you don’t really know Alpe d’Huez, not until you’ve ridden it, not until you’ve ridden it in the Tour. Alpe d’Huez is all those things, but it’s also a drag queen. During the day, when there’s no one around and all is calm, it’s a straight-laced businessman. It’s neat and organised and clean. When the night comes, when the punters are in and the bar’s packed and everyone’s watching – then it’s showtime. Out comes the flamboyance and the colour, the noise and the madness,…

Most pro cyclists have arms as skinny as wheel spokes, but neglecting to strengthen your upper body is a big mistake, according to cycling physio Bianca Broadbent (Twitter @thecyclephysio). “A cyclist needs to be able to transfer force through their body to produce power at the pedal, but what many may not realise is that their upper body contributes to the production of these forces,” she explains. “It also serves a role of increasing importance as the workload intensifies. And it helps you to stabilise your riding position, steer the bike and ride out of the saddle.” But lifting dumbbells is not the best option for road cyclists who need lean muscle not heavy bulk. “As cycling is essentially a sagittal-plane exercise – involving a movement forwards and backwards –…

Andy’s wiry frame and the 32-sprocket on his bike are already ringing alarm bells The view over the Cheshire countryside from the beer garden of my hotel extends all the way to the distant skyscrapers of Liverpool. There’s hardly a lump on the landscape as the sun sets over the Mersey. “Tomorrow should be a piece of cake,” I think, while savouring a piece of rather fine cake. Whether it’s the late evening August sunshine or the sugar rush from my dessert, I have lost sight of the glaring contradiction to my assessment of Cheshire’s topography. The only reason I’m enjoying such a spectacular view is because my hotel is perched on a hill. A hill whose summit is a not inconsiderable 182 metres above sea level. And behind it…

I once went to extreme lengths to beat the wind on my bike. I attempted to plot a route that made use of all available resources, man-made and natural, that were likely to offer me shelter from the prevailing south-westerly winds that regularly assault the land mass of Great Britain. I live on the north-east coast of Scotland, so know all about being pummelled into a sobbing wreck by relentless headwinds. Using my knowledge of the local roads and an Ordnance Survey map, I spent months constructing a parcours that utilised the protection offered by walls, woods, embankments, gradients and buildings. The closest I got was a 50-mile loop that spent the first 10 miles traversing hedgerow-lined lanes in a north-westerly direction before turning into the wind. The struggle of…

Rob, I think it would be most sensible for you to put these on.” I’ve just returned from the changing room in my Cycling Plus Lycra when Mike Kluge presents me with a set of mountain-biking arm and knee pads. Photographer Steve Behr is smiling conspiratorially. I’m confused. The three of us are at Redbridge Cycling Centre – or Hog Hill as it’s also known – on the north-east edge of London for, what I at least thought was going to be, a reasonably chilled-out, low-risk, Sunday morning of cyclocross tuition. Mike, the founder of Focus bikes and a former CX world champion, seems to have other ideas. And, judging by the look on his face, Steve is complicit. Reluctantly, I pull on the knee and elbow pads and we…

£5799 Cervélo creates a performance endurance bike Cervélo’s primary goal was to create a bike for a wider audience, a true endurance bike Cervélo is a brand that’s totally focused on racing, with a commitment to aerodynamics from its very inception. Its S-series bikes define aerodynamic race bikes and inspired the likes of Trek’s Madone and Cannondale’s SystemSix. The R-series bikes built for Grand Tour racing combine light weight with aero shapes, and the Aspero gravel race machine blends lightness and aero tubes. So the Caledonia is a big departure for Cervélo. Its primary goal was to create a bike for a wider audience, a true endurance bike to compete with the likes of the Giant Defy, Cannondale Synapse, Trek Domane and Specialized Roubaix. Though this being Cervélo, it also…

We know that plenty of readers are astonished, angry even, at the prices of some of the bikes we test in Cycling Plus. (If that’s you then skip the luxury e-road bike test on p88!). In our defence, brands are always keen for us to review their newest, shiniest – and, yes, priciest models so they can be simpler to get hold of – especially at present. However, we also realise that for a huge number of cyclists – many of us included – £1000 is a considerable outlay on a bike and, more than likely, that’ll be money that’s spare to spend on one bike and one bike alone. So, we’ve tested four roughly £1000 machines that on paper offer levels of versatility that will make them astute purchases…

Originally a mountain bike brand, Whyte has been a road-bike builder ever since one of the company’s designers converted his mountain bike into a commuter by swapping out the off-road wheels and bouncy fork for road tyres and a rigid fork. As Whyte’s naming schema suggests, it’s still a proudly British brand – other bikes include the Wessex, Gisburn and the Glencoe – and perhaps this explains why the Dorset is the only bike in this test to come with UK winter essential mudguards as standard (1). Versatility is enhanced with the inclusion of rear rack mounts and twin bottle bosses. The ’guards and mounts are suited to adventure and commuting, with the needs of the latter aided by the security skewers with a single, removable key. While the geometry…

We all wish we could tear apart the Tour de France with the youthful vigour of 21-year-old Tadej Pogačar on the last important day of the grandest of tours. Sadly, however, age and finite fitness levels are going to stand in your way. But what if you could ride a bike that handled with the same sort of vibrancy as the legendary Cannondale SuperSix EVO, or coarse road-crushing Specialized Roubaix, while giving you a massive 250-watt power boost? A bike you ride just like your own but which, when it comes to the toughest of climbs, helps you achieve elite-level ascending speeds for amateur-level efforts? Welcome to the world of elite e-road bikes. In the past, ebikes came in two distinct flavours. There’s the mid-mounted (bottom bracket), motor-driven bikes that…

MATT GRANT, CYCLES MANAGER, ACTIVATE CYCLE ACADEMY “A Cytech-accredited home mechanic short course covers a range of bike maintenance topics designed to give any bike enthusiast the desired level of mechanical ability needed to tackle everyday maintenance jobs that would otherwise be handled by a local bike shop. It is very much a hands-on course, so be prepared to get dirty. Upon completion, you will be able to undertake basic service and repair work on your bike, as well as have an understanding of the correct terminology, trouble shooting, set-up and adjustment of your bike, what parts are most likely to need regular replacement and how to care for your bike for optimal performance and reliable cycling. The course covers the anatomy of the bike, fault finding, hubs and wheels,…

HOW HAS CYCLING CHANGED YOUR LIFE? “Cycling has transformed my life and has helped me lose weight – but in a really fun way. The funny thing is that although I learned to ride when I was 10 years old, I only bought my first adult bike during lockdown. I got into cycling for two major reasons: largely to get fit but also to get on my bike and ride out more for recreation purposes.” WHAT DO YOU RIDE AND HOW OFTEN? “I ride an Ecosmo foldable bike as much as I possibly can; I would say I’m out riding at least every other day. I live in Essex and sometimes I put the bike into the car and drive into London then cycle to see the sights. During lockdown,…

If you’re looking to get the most out of your winter training, then you’re already going to be head and shoulders above those cyclists who go into hibernation come autumn, only to return in the spring once the temperature is back in double digits. Winter can be a tough time to be a cyclist, though — and that’s just the challenging conditions on the roads and trails. That doesn’t mean you should give up and join the fair-weather cyclists on the sofa. Here are 10 training mistakes to avoid between now and spring, along with advice on how you can overcome them. 01 / NOT HAVING THE RIGHT KIT First things first… Having the right kit is essential to surviving winter on the bike. While your bravery is admired if…

Before I turned pro, I was a swimmer. I’ve swum my whole career in the off-season and, when I can, during it. I’m not doing anything structured; it’s really as a release and a change from the norm. I’m into freestyle and bashing out a few hundred metres for recovery with a pull buoy [a foam swimming aid]. It’s good when the weather’s not so great and still works the cardio for an hour. I can just dip straight back into it, but for guys who’ve just been riding bikes their whole lives it will take a bit more perseverance. I’ve been lucky that the teams I’ve ridden for have encouraged me to swim. Cycling has so much tradition and they worry it’s going to build muscle up, but I’ve…

It’s just after eight o’clock in the morning of 21 December and we are standing shivering at the end of a pier beneath the Forth rail bridge, waiting for the sun to appear. Members of the local lifeboat crew walk past carrying a human torso. Closer inspection thankfully reveals it to be a plastic one for use in firstaid demonstrations. “Where will the sun come up?” I ask one of them. “Over there,” comes the reply, pointing to a dark promontory jutting out into the river. The sky is already starting to turn a dull amber glow in that direction. It’s time to clip in. Sunrise here in South Queensferry will officially be at 8.42am. Our plan is to race the celestial orb across Scotland and arrive in Helensburgh on…