Life In The Saddle

Fed up with a wet back (and crack), and want some protection from road and trail spray? This new Rain Fly guard from Tate Labs could well be the solution... Many readers will have seen and/or used an  Ass Saver  mudguard. The neat laser-cut plastic flap slots underneath your saddle, and provides valuable protection for your rear; while adding only minimal weight and aerodynamic drag. It is a KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid) approach, to reducing the "mud-slick" effect. The Ass Saver works well; but it isn't without its faults... The most significant downfall for the Swedish designed product, is that it rather too easily goes askew; exposing your back to your rear wheel. The second, is that it doesn't really provide protection for the back of your legs, or for a saddlebag or rear light housed on your seatpost. The new Tate Labs Bar Fly Rain Fly promises to follow in the lightweight minimalist footsteps of the Ass Saver, but to overcome the two short-comings. The...

Last weekend, I was fortunate enough to get to ride in the fields and valleys around Copenhagen; with the friendly team from GripGrab . I thought I'd share a few of the stunning photos from the short spin; taken by the very talented GripGrab Media Crew... Early morning - Preparing to ride Spring was showing its true colours in Denmark Knuckling down Rolling Great roads, and great company I'm impressed with the Castelli Perfetto jersey, and the GripGrab Light Arm Warmers My ride was the Eastway Zener D2 - a superb capable bike Tree-lined roads, and sunshine Out onto the open plains A few sign sprints to loosen the legs before the GripGrab H12 MTB Race Spring colours Rolling roads Arriving back at base camp All smiles, after a great ride! The first proper springtime ride; always puts a smile on riders' faces GripGrab Easy Rider Mitts - one of my favourites Check the metric...

The sound. The sound of flints and gravel; pinging and crunching beneath wheels. The sound, of tubeless tyres hitting tarmac, momentarily; buzzing like an angry bee. The sound of friends, wincing and shouting; as they fly down chalk downland and rutted single-track, slightly out of control. The sound, of cyclocross. Today, I rode a CX Century. 100 miles of chalk, gravel and mud; intermingled with very occasional tarmac respite. I rode 100km of it with great friends; old friends and new. It was a superb day to be in the saddle of the Kona Private Jake - a bike which has affirmed itself as my new favourite. Here's a photo essay, to sum up the day's events... I've reached 1000km on the Kona Private Jake to date. She is quite frankly, superb. Ben unfortunately punctured early on, and the huge sidewall gash put end to his ride. My Kona Private Jake, and Chris's Kona Rove. Sitting pretty. Worth the climb. Green and Blue. Café stop - #...

Welcome to September, the month of change. The month of darker evenings and misty mornings; of single digit temperatures on still dusty trails and dry roads. Also, the month of increased rainfall, the start of autumnal gales, and the need for incredibly versatile and adaptable riding kit. Enter the Fiandre range, from Sportful. This is a set of products that I've been keen to test for a long time, and I finally broke the fast, with the Fiandre Light NoRain Long Sleeve Top. Le Fiandre, or Vlaanderen , refers to the Flanders region of northern Europe. It's an area that is famed for its unpredictable weather, Spring Classics and hard riding. This name, and the apparel within this Sportful range, promise to be kit that is perfect for the changeable autumn riding conditions in the UK. I've been giving this piece a good test run... For most of September in the UK, as well as October (if we're lucky), we still get reasonable riding temperatures. The challenge of the...

The first race of the season is always a tough one: a rude awakening as to how your winter of training has fared, and an indication of what still needs to be done. It's even more of a baptism of fire when spring conditions rear their head in full magnitude, with gale force winds and driving rain. That's what today's James Atherton Road Race near Winchester was all about for me. I've made a conscious decision this year to focus more on road races, and less on short circuit races. The longer stuff works better for me, and it makes travelling to events from the Isle of Wight more worthwhile. For that reason, I haven't done the usual winter series of circuit races this year, and today's 100km road race was my first competitive event of the year. Conditions held true to the forecast, and this morning's wake-up alarm brought with it the sound of wind and rain battering the windows. You know it's windy when the Fast Cat is cancelled! Luckily my 8am (it felt...

Martin and Peter Velits are a unique pair of riders. Not only are both brothers riders in the professional peloton, they are also twins, and the only two to have competed in the same Tour de France as such. Isadore Apparel is the brainchild of Martin Velits, and represents his venture into the world of cycle clothing, with a select line of clean and original designs.  Isadore takes pride in being a brand that doesn't out-source its production to the far east; everything is designed by the team in Slovakia, then produced there too. That's a rare case of vertical integration, which is quite refreshing in a trade where so much is sent far away to be produced.  I took delivery of Isadore's Long Sleeve Jersey for review, and as spring temperatures gradually increase and the winter jackets are put away, I've been testing it out on the bike.  The design of all the Isadore Apparel is in the 'classic' style; featuring wool blends, raised seams and ornate d...