[eye30]

I drew this to out Velocipede riding friend and his reply was 'I only use it for going up hills'.

Yeah Right 

True..... Don't need use of the power going down hills..... So true.....

[eye30]

... tackle the trails on our supadupa ebikes

Neat pics, but does this ebike still count as a "pushie"?

Just askin' ....

I still have to peddle, sort of.... .

[eye30]

Had it just over 3 weeks now and although I resisted the idea of an ebike for a long time as I thought it would take the pleasure out of cycling, I really really love riding it and will not be returning to my pushie.

Has 4 speed levels with estimated max distance

Eco. 90 miles
Tour 48 miles
Sport 32 miles
Turbo 28 miles.

When riding you alternate between all 4  levels depending on the conditions such as level, or inclines etc.

I'm averaging around 60 miles from a full recharge.

[Aussie Keith]

Had it just over 3 weeks now and although I resisted the idea of an ebike for a long time as I thought it would take the pleasure out of cycling, I really really love riding it and will not be returning to my pushie.

Has 4 speed levels with estimated max distance

Eco. 90 miles
Tour 48 miles
Sport 32 miles
Turbo 28 miles.

When riding you alternate between all 4  levels depending on the conditions such as level, or inclines etc.

I'm averaging around 60 miles from a full recharge.

These are the business. I was chatting to some folks in NZ with trail bikes so equipped. They said it gave them a lot more access than they had previously and with the engine for my bikes not in peak condition atm, I fully get that.

Looking forward to more tales from the road now you have had your range extended.

[eye30]

Had it just over 3 weeks now and although I resisted the idea of an ebike for a long time as I thought it would take the pleasure out of cycling, I really really love riding it and will not be returning to my pushie.

Has 4 speed levels with estimated max distance

Eco. 90 miles
Tour 48 miles
Sport 32 miles
Turbo 28 miles.

When riding you alternate between all 4  levels depending on the conditions such as level, or inclines etc.

I'm averaging around 60 miles from a full recharge.

These are the business. I was chatting to some folks in NZ with trail bikes so equipped. They said it gave them a lot more access than they had previously and with the engine for my bikes not in peak condition atm, I fully get that.

Looking forward to more tales from the road now you have had your range extended.

Was out on sunday and would usually do around 15 to a max of 20 miles along the Wirral coastal route.

Ended up doing 35 miles.

With the added bonus of the motor to help going up the inclines, fatigue didn't kick in so just kept peddling away.....

[eye30]

Few photo's from my ride yesterday along the coast from Crosby/Waterloo to Ainsdale and back via a disused railway line.

[Shambles]

He looks pleased to see you

[eye30]

Out today for a ride from Abergele to Talacre.

Normally the our rides pass without any mishaps but today we both picked up punctures.

I got one in the rear tube just as we arrived at our lunch stop.

Fortunately I carry a repair kit so after we had our freshly made pasties from the bakery I was able to fixed it.

Pete wasn't so lucky.
On our way back his front tube just blew as if fireworks had gone off and white liquid, suppossed to be puncture repair gel that didn't work today, spurted out.

We could see the tube was beyond repair as there was at least 6 punctures.

On examining the tyre it was peppered with small tacks.

No spare tube and I didn't think patches would work, Pete decided to do his boy scout stuff and stuffed the tyre with GRASS......... needless to say he only got 50 feet before the tyre collapsed.

As we where about 10 miles back to the cars a new tube was required.
Luckily we had passed a bike shop in Rhyl some 3 miles away, so I shot off to buy one.

As done this ride before just a few new pictures for you to enjoy...

[Dazzler]

Jeepers, sounds like sabotage. That is crazy!

[eye30]

Went for a short'ish ride after lunch as the weather improved.

Got to the prom and the wind was really blowing hard.
If I'd had my old bike I would have gone straight home as there was no way I could of cycled in that wind but the new bike just glided through the wind effortlessly.

Just 2 pictures.
One looking across the choppy River Mersey to the '3 Graces' (Liver Building, Port ofLiverpool Building and Cunard Building) at the Pier Head.
The other of a destination sign in New Brighton.
On the sign is locations in the general area, give or take a few hundred miles, to where my Australian and New Zealand cousins live.

[Aussie Keith]

Hopefully some ripping tales from the road coming up soon. Meanwhile Red is now on the road.

Red - Keith and Joan's Gallery

[Dazzler]

Hopefully some ripping tales from the road coming up soon. Meanwhile Red is now on the road.

Red - Keith and Joan's Gallery

Wow! I had no idea anyone could make cycling and push bikes so interesting. Not only are you a talented photographer, but quite the  wordsmith too!

[eye30]

Hopefully some ripping tales from the road coming up soon. Meanwhile Red is now on the road.

Red - Keith and Joan's Gallery

as you are coming into the better weather looking forward to the pictures and stories as you are able to get out and about more ......

[Aussie Keith]

Hopefully some ripping tales from the road coming up soon. Meanwhile Red is now on the road.

Red - Keith and Joan's Gallery

as you are coming into the better weather looking forward to the pictures and stories as you are able to get out and about more ......

Heading up to one of my favourite places Sunday and looking forward to making it an interesting experience for others as well. So here's hoping for good weather and lots of great images to share.

[Aussie Keith]

A brief ride report from my one and only brevet this season This route is a great ride but with temps in the high 30's I was not prepared to spend too much time out in the weather. Although its not obvious from the photo, there was a thick smoke haze from all the bushfires, the sunrise was dim and red. It wasn't really the best weather for a long ride in the hills.

It was Frank's first brevet and so there was that aspect as well. Frank behaved, but I was still reacquainting with downtube shifters in the hills where you really do need to make your gear changes well in advance given there is no indexing.

Some months later Frank spat out his bottom bracket... I am glad it happened closer to home when it broke. Reliability issues should now all be sorted, because Frank will be off to the Noosa Strade Bianche next year and then off to Italy for l'Eroica. That's the plan anyway.

Peachey Mee 50km 2019 – Audax Australia

Strava here including more images (a koala rescue in the wild): Follow Keith on Strava to see this activity. Join for free.

[Aussie Keith]

Yesterday Tim and I headed up and over the Great Dividing Range to Clifton on the Darling Downs and back. It's 110km of which there's 30km of steady incline and the odd lump followed by the ride up the range at up to 7%. The next 10km to the highway have a two long and comparatively steep climbs followed by fast descents.








In yesterdays conditions, we found ourselves cruising up to an easy 45km/h at the top of the range and up to 55+ km/h coming off the hills and rolling into Clifton at about 35km/h. It absolutely wasn't a smashfest, but the conditions made the ride out surprisingly fast from the top of the range. This on country roads as well which are often far from smooth and typically coarse chipseal which is not a fast surface.








The return journey into the wind was a grind in places, but the descent from Hirstglen averaged 35km/h for over 10 km. The final 10km to Ma Ma Creek was a grind though with the wind and heat.







Speeds: 11km @ 35km/h average, 4km @ close to 40km/h. Sections at 50 to 55km/h. That's why we go there.

Three things became fairly obvious:
 - Red performs brilliantly and is a very capable ride.
 - I need to drop some weight to aid the ascending. I really do.
 - I need to start riding hills again. Its huge amounts of fun.

[eye30]

Enjoyed the pics etc.

What weight is the bike and what psi do you run your tyres on the roads.

[Aussie Keith]

Enjoyed the pics etc.

What weight is the bike and what psi do you run your tyres on the roads.

Thanks for the kind words.

Red is a 1985-ish Rossin Strada Professional with a modern Potenza groupset and modern Campagnolo mildly aero wheels. So a classic mid 80's steel frame with modern running gear. It's about 10kg so not heavy, but then bottles + spares + lights + a big fat engine. So all up I'd say about 110kg with me on it.

The carbon Defy was about 13kg before I got on it, about 8kg without lights and stuff. So not a great difference. The Orbea (carbon) is about 7.5kg and I really don't notice a significant difference from the weight alone the way I ride. Its been built for going very fast and is a savage. Its not intended for long distances.

What does make a difference between the steel bikes (all of them really) is the gearing and I've geared Red taller for long distance/higher speed. Its definitely fast and noticeably faster than Bling which is an earlier version of the same bike, same running gear but with lower gearing and box section wheels.

Tires are 25mm Vredestein Fortezza which is a robust road tire and what I have on all the bikes. I run 90psi front and back. The ride on steel framed bikes is more compliant than carbon and 80-90 seems to be the sweet spot for comfort/performance. For all its hi tech wizardry, the Defy was never a comfortable place to be on a long ride which is why we parted company. 

On Frank I have 28mm tires, but run 80-90 as well. Frank has all the gears and so can tackle steep climbs as well as roll easily down the road quickly. And Frank is intended for historical events and dirt too hence the downtube shifters, bigger tires and so forth. But on this occasion, I wanted to take the new kid for a spin in the hills.



Frank - Keith and Joan's Gallery

Red - Keith and Joan's Gallery

Bling - Keith and Joan's Gallery

[Dazzler]

As usual very interesting Keith... I love the detail you can go into with stuff like this without me losing interest. With most things now I've got the attention span of a gnat!
 

[eye30]

Reading about your bikes compared to yours mine is a 22kg snail.
Light'ish for a emtb.

I will tootal along off road tracks at around 15 to 25kph as over 25 kph the motor cuts out and since buying the bike I enjoy the added help!

Tend to keep away from roads as much as I can due to the amount of traffic.

Since lockdown the government/local government have  introduced "pop up" cycle lanes on several major roads in the area.
That has had a knock on with motorists as most are on 2 lane roads were the road lanes have been reduced from 2 to 1 eachway and cyclists are regarded as the enemy.

[Aussie Keith]

Reading about your bikes compared to yours mine is a 22kg snail.
Light'ish for a emtb.

I will tootal along off road tracks at around 15 to 25kph as over 25 kph the motor cuts out and since buying the bike I enjoy the added help!

Tend to keep away from roads as much as I can due to the amount of traffic.

Since lockdown the government/local government have  introduced "pop up" cycle lanes on several major roads in the area.
That has had a knock on with motorists as most are on 2 lane roads were the road lanes have been reduced from 2 to 1 eachway and cyclists are regarded as the enemy.

Although right now its enjoyable to take a fast road bike out into the hills I know that's not always going to be possible. When the time comes there will be a bike like yours with volts to help me get where I want to go and back again.

A bike like yours is perfect for places I cannot go for lack of a suitable steed.We have here the longest bike trail in the country nearby and I lack a suitable bike to go there, for now at least anyway. Horses for courses.

Brisbane Valley Rail Trail

As for cyclists being the enemy, same here too. Some folks think cyclists get special treatment, should pay for the roads (they do, same as everyone else), you know the story. If only they got out on a bicycle now and then they might be less angry.

[Aussie Keith]

Wondering about ebikes? Here's a useful vid. I put this here since this is where the conversation was.

Electric Bikes: Everything You Need To Know. - YouTube

[Aussie Keith]

From the ride to Clifton. 

[Dazzler]

How does that work Keith is that meant to be average rather than peak?   

[simon@mgr]

I've lashed out and replaced my mountain bike with a fat e-bike.
So far I have only done about 50 km, 15 of which were on local dirt roads.



The photo is at the local sugar mill in Ingham, Far North Queensland.

[Aussie Keith]

How does that work Keith is that meant to be average rather than peak?   

I believe so. I know at the top of the range we were flying for a good while and same on the descent heading back as well. Not riding especially hard either. I have hit 80 smashing down the hills there in the past but on this occasion we were just cruising. 

[Aussie Keith]

Unrelated to this particular outing, but a road you know fairly well Daz, ridden maybe 5 years ago on a bike that doesn't handle anywhere near as good as Red. Averaging between 50-60 on the way down.

Mt Mee Descent - YouTube

[Dazzler]

Cheers Keith I do enjoy that onboard footage. 

[eye30]

Came across this firemans bike from 1903.

Can anyone help of country of origin

[The Gonz]

Actually 1905, used by the British to respond to petrochemical fires. While this specific model was designed by BSA, Australia and France used similar designs.

La Bicicleta bombero | mobeo.es