The cycling connection

My earlier post on early review of Hercules Ryders ACT 105 Max still receives lot of hits from cycling enthusiasts and also has helped a lot of them (apparently evident from the comments & Bikeszone forum)

It’s is about time that the early review is updated and a brief on how it feels to be on the saddle and pedal longer more than 6 months down the line. I would write up one soon.

On and off the saddle …
A lot of greasy dust has been accumulated on the chain and gear cogs and cleaned already. Rains are not expected for the next 6-7 months and the redundant fiber mudguards are already gone.

Even after being on and off the pedal due to intermittent rains, niggling lateral knee ligament and climbing / trekking bias, cycling has been relatively closer and always there.

The real & the virtual connection…
A trip to Dombivali, a leisurely 30 mins, ring route rides after office actually connected me to the activity. Beside, the ever effervescent plans of a long ride, being a silent member at Bikeszone, cleaning my bike, plans of riding to work (its more than 44 kms one way) and other such things keeping me in sync virtually. Either way I feel good and feel connected to the sport and the fraternity.

Cycling is really the ‘in’ (*read the foot note) thing now and it delivers the feel-good thing with every pedal that I do. The feeling of cool breeze hitting me and evapourating the volatile sweat-drops on my arms & forehead gives a contentment that only I (or rather the cycling enthusiast) can understand and thrive upon.

Lets take a look if it is a personal thing or just one because of the mass wave.

The state of cycling across the country?
Realistically, it is improving. We are just shaken out of our coma and beginning to feel and take cognizance. As everything that happens around a nuclear focus, cycling as an activity is centred around a few cities in the country.

Lets state them in the descending order of their followers -

• Bengaluru
• Pune
• Mumbai
• Delhi

Ok. So these cities are seeing a rising trend of the phenomenon called as cycling. The city pedallers are gaining exposure to global standards and equipments. Brands like Merida, Trek, Bianchi, Canondale have made entry into the Indian market and the number of dealers are mushrooming as well.

Another aspect, the cycling tour organisers are also jumping in and joining the bandwagon by offering tailor-made trails for the enthusiasts. Bengaluru leading the way again (BOTS Blog – http://blog.bumsonthesaddle.com/2009/11/20/cyclo-tours-in-india)

Countryside India (an outdoor adventure club more into trekking activities) does a few cycling trips near Mumbai.

The knowledge quotient
Like in any other sport, one of a fellow Bikeszone member call us (the Indian’s) genetically fuc*** up! (in the sporting quotients), the knowledge about cycling is nothing to be excited about.

The knowledge of bicycles, associated injuries and prevention, health care, standards, equipment care, gear systems, doing routes and other cardinals that an individual must know as one takes up the sport.

Where can one find the information?
Google, Bikeszone, city groups, fellow cyclists.

How does cycling help?

• You stay fitter
• Good for your heart, body & soul
• Conserve petrol / diesel
• Reduce costs – Petroleum resources aren’t getting any cheaper
• Reduce carbon footprint / delay the inevitable – Global Warming
• Infuse enthusiasm into others to follow your suite
• Make a style statement (vague / baseless – still one can derive the joy)

When do I cycle?

• Anytime you feel like.
• Daily errands
• Commute to work (if you reside at a reasonable distance  from your office)
• A visit to a friend / relatives (in the same city)
• Hanging out
• And realistically anytime and anywhere ..

The brands, the cities, the trend, benefits, how, what, when and all that can be possibly connected to the cycling as an activity has been listed down, albeit in a apparently disconnected manner. But behold, just read in between the lines and you get the connection; the cycling connection.

Footnote* – What is this ‘in’ thing?
The thing that is harboured with’in’ our minds and hence it was always an ‘in’ thing for me. Just that the virulence took some time before the relapse. The time when I academically graduated from School boy to college guy and mentally graduated from a one amongst the crowd to a biker.

Biker and mo-biker

Being a passionate mo-biker and biker  in not easy. Why? Read on..

1. I keep on tapping the right pedal with my toe whenever I intend to brake the bike.
2. I frantically search for the button on my left handle bar to turn on the indicator before taking a turn; however later just extend my arms out and make the signal [just wondering if I can get some illuminated / radium arm band to signal at night;)]
3. Before overtaking at night, I search for the pass light and later giggle about my all-in-vain efforts.
4. For the unmindful pedestrians who take the biker granted, I always intend to have a harsh honking horn in their faces, but then grudingly vent out all the frustration through the tring tring that my modest bell manages.
5. Last but not the least – I love mo-biking as I rev up the throttle and I love my biking too as I rev up the gears, not compromising on my cadence though.

Cycling – Cadence vs Gear Ratios

Just had an interesting 45 minutes -

Did 8 Kms of cycling in 30 minutes flat; time inclusive of some idiots who pay no heed to approaching cycle thus disturbing the rhythm, cadence and energy and some suffocating traffic for about 5 minutes that stagnated the pedalling.

During the better part of the ride I managed to stick to what Sheldon Brown says, don’t have a slower cadence in bargain for higher gears, rather say on a rhythmic cadence by shifting to proper gear ratios. This helps in -

1. Conserving energy
2. Better muscle training
3. Lesser muscle injury

Secondly intermittently did not know what exactly was niggling -

1. Bums
2. Thighs
3. or the lower back

Stopped at an ATM to withdraw some cash while returning, parked the bike, locked it and went inside the ATM cabin. Somehow, wasn’t completely assured and constantly keep peeping out of the glass door through the non-frosted parts to have a look at my still-not-stolen-bike Was happy to get my bum back on the saddle and pedal back home.

Sweaty and not-so-stinking self while writing this one. Clicking the post button just as I am rushing to have the shower.

Cheers ~

Note -

Cadence – The speed / rhythm of pedalling. In crude terms number of revolutions per unit time.

Higher gears result in more pedalling power and hence suually slower cadence. It is always better to maintain the cadence by down shifting than to have higher gears and slower / disturbed cadence.

Malshej ghat ride plans

Some points that a stumbler would like to extract out of this post -

• Prepare your bike (bicycle) well before the ride
• Study the route to be undertaken for the bike ride and have a proper schedule charted
• Set realistic targets – or just beyond it
• Prepare well and try hard – but hot harder to achieve the target
• Chuck rigidity – Always be flexible with your plans; be prepared for a U-turn when deemed necessary
• Stay hydrated and have energy-rich food stuffs to munch on
• Keep in mind about the return journey

Now that you have required excerpts from the below-mentioned blog post – you may or may not want to read further -

My first weekend with the ACT is coming and I am really concerned about getting my front derailleur adjusted before weekend knocks. Well, I will get it done today or tomorrow and then my bigger concern would be finalising on a destination for the weekend ride.

I would be cycling long distance after a gap of many years and hence I wouldn’t be setting myself unrealistic targets – Malshej ghat surely is an unrealistic one.  So I will set myself a target of Naneghat milestone – around 60 kms from Kalyan. To and fro 120 kms – again seems unrealistic for me. Well, I will try and give it a shot – but I’ll also remember not to stress out too much and will be prepared for a u-turn whenever prudence gets the better of my grit.

The most important thing herein would be to start early and try and cover Murbad (30 kms) well before the Sun begins to get harsher – before 8.00 AM; I just cannot afford to start post 6.00 AM. After a refresher of no more than 15 minutes, I should try and cover the remaining distance in another 3/4 hours, considering that involves considerable up hill gradient. When the sun is shining hot overhead at around 12.30 – 1.00 AM I would have reached my target (hopefully) and would be totally exasperated.

I will have a relaxer and will thoroughly replenish myself with lot of fluids and some energy stuff before embarking on the return journey. Brimming my Camel-bak before the return journey is cardinal – I will be riding back in blazing heat and staying hydrated would be important, more so when I would be riding alone. I would most probably make it back in 8.00 PM.

I hope that the schedule works out well and that I can execute the planned stuff. The immediate task is to get the front derailleur adjusted tonight – prior to that wrap up the office work at my desk.

Cheers ~

Hercules Ryders ACT 105 Max – Early Review

Yesterday I went cycling once again on my new Hercules Ryder ACT 105 Max and realized a few pointers, which I find worthy enough to share -

The gears –
Shimano Tourney are decent and OK; just get the mechanical adjustments done from your dealer properly.

The rear derailleurs on mine were good except for smoothness while down shifting. I would have loved them to be a bit more smoother. (Up shifting was smoother than downshifting and moving to lower gears – 1,2,3 was not very smooth)

The mechanical adjustments on the front derailleurs were improper. The derailleur did not seem budge even with extreme efforts. The dealer has to attend this today evening.

However, while I state this, remember that all the above mentioned irks are due to the mechanical adjustments and not a faulty gear system. You have to try it out and then settle on the smoothest mechanical adjustment; and with just 2 days after purchase I am still finding that perfect adjustment.

Revo shifts work for me, specifically when I am just ‘graduating’ from mo-bikes to bikes. The shifting is easy to handle and the revo mechanism doesn’t require you to change your grip or any other adjustment.

The rear gear also has a small indicator to sow which gear is engaged while riding, but for me it is practically of no use, because the position of the gear indicator is such that you just cannot see it in your normal riding position.

Weight –
The aluminum alloy frame is light enough to be comfortable carried along the stairs of my apartments. I reside on second floor and carrying the bike is no task.

The frame –
The frame looks sturdy and promising enough to bear some shocks on off road trails. Just tried some bumpy ride and the bike seems to have responded well.

As for the frame size – Any one around and above 5 feet 6 inches will require adjustment of seat height. The seat post provided with the bike is too short for my liking and if you are taller than 5′8′, you will require to get a longer seat post.

The tyres –
The rims are black in colour and looks nice with the over all colour combo. The tyres are firm and offers reasonable grip on the gravel n’ sandy trails. Also tried them on wet surface and it was nicely stable without any trace imbalance or skidding.

Also note that the tyres mentions a maximum load bearing capacity of 90 Kgs. So if you are on the heavier side of the scale, this bike probably will not hold good under you.  The tyre states a recommended pressure of 45 PSI.

The brakes –
The V-brakes respond nicely and offered near immediate halts from good speeds. Tried the brakes on gravel and wet surfaces and was happy with the result. It confirms the fact that unless you are doing down hills on wet and slushy surfaces you don’t really need disc brakes.

Aesthetics –
The paint job and over all colour combination are good. The bike looks chic and attracts attention. I was surprised to see that me riding the bike through the lanes made people turn their heads. I never had this privilege on my Honda Shine mo-bike. Hmm.. Kalyan is yet rising to the biking spirits, but my ACT 105 definitely proved to be a head turner.

The saddle –
The seat are comfortable and well cushioned. It doesn’t follow the hard-saddle principle that Merida follows and would definitely be comfortable on longer and bumpy trails. However, I would have liked the seat post to be longer. The provided seat post isn’t long enough to adequately adjust to my height and I would soon be getting a longer seat post.

The front suspensions –
The are set hard and doesn’t unnecessarily absorb small shocks of the uneven tarmac. This will help to prevent unnecessary wastage of pedaling energy on longer rides.

Others -
The side stand is adjustable and although not a cardinal feature, but can be helpful while parking bikes on uneven surfaces.

Also mudguards are fibre bodies and really a show-piece than anything else – they won’t serve the purpose on wet trails. I will prefer my mud-guards tucked in the cup board than to have them on the bike because they really serve no purpose. If you want to use the bike for daily commute, you would want to think of a nice metal mudguard and compromise with few extra lbs added to your bike.

The lock provided is no good and can be easily shredded. Get your bike a nice and strong lock as you don’t want to ride your luck and tempt the stealers!

Overall ride -
I have done around 35 Kms of riding in 2 days on this bike and immediately developed a liking for the bike. Owing to its alloy frame it is really light, which helps on steep gradients. Secondly the gear system attached is decent enough, especially for the price it comes (Rs 6600). The over all aesthetics and feel of the bike is nice and comfy. It doesn’t seem tire you out even on gradients (please note I am yet to do steep gradients – Weekend ride to Malshej ghat would be a real tester)

All in all – the early reviews of this bike has been good and definitely gets a thumbs up. First impressions have been good and it definitely helps!

Why I chose a lemonade over Chivas Regal?

Simple. Because I never knew the art of enjoying Chivas Regal. As a starter, when one just weans from nipple-bottle fluids, I wanted to learn the art of enjoying a beverage drink first. Maximize the pleasure, and as they say immerse in every sip I gulped.

Lemonade, of course doesn’t stand a chance against the biggies like Chivas Regal, but again it is the one that introduces a toddler to beverage. Without knowing the essence of a beverage, gulping down the fluid becomes worthless.

The analogy [Cheap : Poor quality] is not always applicable. In this particular case, [Cheap - get started and maximize to full potential] –> [learn the skills of maximizing better] before trying to maximize a potential biggie, often the more expensive one.

Well, that answers why I started with a Hercules Ryder Act 105 and not a Merida 40D or even more absurdly a Trek 6500D.

Cycling – What for?

Not blogging because of work is a very common excuse among the irregular bloggers, but blogging from office because of no work is quite an offering to post a new blog entry. Well, am not exactly in this sort of a fix at the moment, because even though the to-do list is completed, to-be-done can be started with. Just that my blog has been long bearing the brunt of procrastinator in me and a post would help if to hold on for some time longer… if not eternal.

Well, getting back to this particular blog post. I am bitten by the cycling bug and no wonder it is evident from the fact that bikes / cycling doesn’t esacpe my conversation with my friends, work place colleagues and at home. So much that I even started a thread on cycling and relevant on our company intranet and I un-surprisingly it has so far received a luke-warm response from the fellow office mates.

Even as I converse with my friends and co-workers about cycling. it comes to a point where in the eternal question is kya fayda? The I religiously explain them the ‘faydas and nuksaans’ of cycling and just when I began to feel a sense of triumph on the litsener I realise that it has all fallen on deaf ears – talk of environment friendly and they mention of electric bikes (Yo bikes for example); talk of fitness and they talk of gyms and treadmills; talk of economic means and they talk cost of bicycle purchase.

With all this, I definitely have understood one thing that it is not easy to change the mindset and inculcate the value of something such as cycling in a typical, always rushed-for-time and space Mumbaikar’s mind. However, it just teaches me the importance of patience and all this just bolsters my will to emphasize and re-emphasize the importance of cycling to them again and again.

Well isn’t it more stylish, happening and cool to bike than to just commute? Wuld get back to work again until the next post.

Cheers till then ~~~

Biking –> Hooked to Merida Matts 40MD

I took a bit of time to coming with terms to the fact that ‘Biking’ connotes cycling and not motorcycling. In India, generally population at large uses the term ‘bike’ for a motorcycle and ‘biking’ for motorcycling. I was one of them not too long ago; but not anymore.

I do mo-biking extensively and am fond of good mo-bikes as well. However, the new found love for ‘biking’ and ‘bikes’ has been profound enough to displace the passion for mo-biking to a secondary place.

Although I would be using my bike (errr… mo-bike) to commute to my office daily (5 days a week), which is around 45kms one side journey, I will be biking daily for short distances and for longer distances on weekends.

I am completely rolled over by Merida and Trek. I would be opting for Merida more or less – Matts 40MD (Rs 25,000). Merida TFS 100V (Rs 26,000) is also good, but for my mountain biking purposes, I believe the mechanical discs on 40MD would be more suitable.

It is a good MTB with mechanical disc brakes, which will serve my endeavours of mountain biking well without much hassles.

Another competitor to Matts 40MD is Trek 4300D (Rs 28,000). However Merida is all over my minds.

Hoping to shell out the dough sooner than later and get my bums on the saddle, albeit this time around and henceforth more excited to pedal rather than to rev the throttle.

Cheers ~~~