[bblost]

Originally Posted by batterylow

Why do you say so?

I am unable to ride long distances without them.

A hard and proper seat will support your weight on the sit bones. You can google for more info on these sit bones or you can touch you rear and find them.

If you use a gel cushion, then instead of only the sit bones supporting your weight it ends up getting distributed across your...ahem man parts.
The perineal area in particular.

http://tomrubenoff.hubpages.com/hub/...t-of-a-Bicycle

[batterylow]

I will read up on it

I guess its just a matter of riding out the initial pain.

Thanks once again!

[ninjatalli]

Originally Posted by shipnil

I am not in town on the 15th weekend but look forward to a ride anytime other than that.

Since you brought up the topic of monsoon, I'd like to ask a few questions. Since the rains started in mid july, my rides have become erratic to say the least. The reason is, a lot of muck gets onto the roads during these rains and even after a ride of 20 km, me and my bike are all dirty. My back, from bum till helmet is covered in mud. The whole drivetrain of the bike, the derailleurs are covered in thick layers of mud. If I pour water on it on my return, the bike starts making various noises the next day. It is a totally hopeless situation.
I normally ride in 25kmph to 30 kmph zone. Not sure if I have reduce it but then all the fun is gone.

My question is, don't you face these kind of issues during your rides? What do you do protect yourself as well as your bike from these muddy roads?

Well I meant a ride on the weekdays, probably in the morning if possible. Lets see how it pans out.

As for the rides in the rain, I have got a chain lube from BOTS that is suited for rain too. Most of my rain rides have been over the weekends, so I generally clean the bike every Sunday. Minor Lubing done if necessary. But so far the rides have been on concrete most of the time so muddy issues aren't that big an issue.

As for getting dirty myself, really never felt it was a problem.

Originally Posted by batterylow

Awesome stuff ninja.

And between the cannondale and RR, which is your preferred ride and why?

Thanks

Bit of both to be honest. But I prefer the Q5 for longer rides. I find the RR stem size a bit small for my physique. Btw do note I got slicks on the RR. Made a huge diff as compared to the stock mtb tires.

Originally Posted by batterylow

Why do you say so?

I am unable to ride long distances without them.

I had a friend's gel seat. Found it pretty sad as compared to the padded shorts. I would second Bblost's feedback here. Ditch the gel seat.

[batterylow]

Originally Posted by ninjatalli

Bit of both to be honest. But I prefer the Q5 for longer rides. I find the RR stem size a bit small for my physique. Btw do note I got slicks on the RR. Made a huge diff as compared to the stock mtb tires.


I had a friend's gel seat. Found it pretty sad as compared to the padded shorts. I would second Bblost's feedback here. Ditch the gel seat.

Thanks.

I will dump the MTB tires once they are worn and switch to slicks.

And will try riding without the gel seat this time and revert with feedback.

[Samar117]

Great pictures and lovely routes! @ninjatalli This has made me seriously think that I need to improve the kms I cover. I do about 30 kms a day, haven't broken that barrier even once.
I wanted to know what would you suggest, padded shorts and/or Gel seats? Because I have neither and the pain starts creeping in after 45 minutes. I cycle on my RockRider 5.1.
Thanks

[wrenchmonkee]

Originally Posted by ninjatalli

Thanks. The Cannondale story is almost 3 months back - got a really good deal and grabbed it. And the rest is history

Hi Ninja it's very nice to hear the trails of a fellow bhpian who is also and avid cyclist. You should definitely try the Lavasa road it's beautiful with some nice climbs along the way, have done it quite a few times and always excites me also you end a meeting a lot of avid cyclists. Can you please let me know how much did you get the quick 5 for and is it the 2014 or 2013 model. Plan to get one in the near future.

[samabhi]

ninjatalli - Amazing article. I really liked the detailed capture of each trip. Something that I should start learning to do for my own trips.

Thank you for sharing the info with us.

Originally Posted by bblost

I decided to wear my backpack rather than fix it on my cycle's rack.

OT :

How do you fix the backpack on the cycle rack? Using Bungee Chords? I was discouraged from using one as it won't be snug fit for the backpack on the cycle rack and there are high chances that it might even fall off unknowingly.

Can you post a picture if possible?

[bblost]

Originally Posted by samabhi

How do you fix the backpack on the cycle rack? Using Bungee Chords? I was discouraged from using one as it won't be snug fit for the backpack on the cycle rack and there are high chances that it might even fall off unknowingly.

Can you post a picture if possible?

I use bungee cords.
Only once in over 5,000 kms has the bag slipped a little.

But its only for less than 200 kms have I had a laptop in the bag. Before that I have had only a change of clothes and other stuff.

I will post a pic the next time I cycle to work. Hopefully tomorrow morning.

[ninjatalli]

Originally Posted by Samar117

Great pictures and lovely routes! @ninjatalli This has made me seriously think that I need to improve the kms I cover. I do about 30 kms a day, haven't broken that barrier even once.
I wanted to know what would you suggest, padded shorts and/or Gel seats? Because I have neither and the pain starts creeping in after 45 minutes. I cycle on my RockRider 5.1.
Thanks

Thanks!
And I'll go for padded shorts any time. Refer to @bblost's post above for more clarity on why the gel seat is not that useful.

Originally Posted by wrenchmonkee

Hi Ninja it's very nice to hear the trails of a fellow bhpian who is also and avid cyclist. You should definitely try the Lavasa road it's beautiful with some nice climbs along the way, have done it quite a few times and always excites me also you end a meeting a lot of avid cyclists. Can you please let me know how much did you get the quick 5 for and is it the 2014 or 2013 model. Plan to get one in the near future.

Thanks. Yes, I'd been wanting to do the Lavasa ride for quite some time. But I still need to practice uphill rides before I attempt that or Sinhagad.

As for the Q5, this is a 2012 model, pre-owned. The original owner had bought it in Aug 2013 and kept it completely un-used for over 6 months. Got it pretty much in packed mode, only with a few scratches on the frame. As for the price, let's say I got an excellent bargain if I compare it to the the current price

[bblost]

Another very important thing to remember is that every ride is different.

Traffic, terrain, wind conditions are all variable. They all have a big influence on how comfortable you are riding.
A ride in flat Chennai cannot be compared to a climb up Bangalore's Nandi.

In fact these variables are so strong that my home-office commute can oscillate between 40 mins to an hour. Traffic conditions could have been the same. And just the wind can slow me down by such a large margin.

[Doc_nikhil]

Originally Posted by bblost

My office commute is 18 kms one way.
Yesterday I resumed my cycling after a month long break due to Ramzan.

Its very windy in Hyderabad. Also for the first time, I decided to wear my backpack rather than fix it on my cycle's rack.

For the first time ever...I have pain in my sit bones.

Maybe you might want to check if your route is windy or you are not seated properly. I am sure the backpack messed up my position.

Also discard the gel seat. They are bad.

Yeah, actually even I have a backpack to keep my stuff in. Maybe that is the reason. But gel seats are supposed to spread the pressure over a wider area right? What is the pitfall of using one? Curious.

[batterylow]

Originally Posted by Doc_nikhil

Yeah, actually even I have a backpack to keep my stuff in. Maybe that is the reason. But gel seats are supposed to spread the pressure over a wider area right? What is the pitfall of using one? Curious.

According this this, (http://tomrubenoff.hubpages.com/hub/...t-of-a-Bicycle), you are not supposed to spread the pressure over the wider area.The pressure is only to be given on the sit bones.

[ninjatalli]

Route: Pune to Lonava (local) - Khopoli - Panvel - Turbe - Airoli - Powai (Link & Link)

Distance: 101 kms

Difficulty: Moderate

Feedback: Lonavala & Khandala in the rains. In the clouds. Near-empty roads with light drizzling rain while visibility becomes hazy in a delightful manner with the clouds descending on to the highway.


This! This! This!


If I didn't have anything else to do, I'd do this route again. And again!

I again caught the early morning 4.40 a.m. local to Lonavala. Practically with the entire train to myself by the time we reached Lonavala, it was a site for sore eyes. Lonavala needs to be visited early morning during the rains when there is no crowd, when all the chiki shops are close shut and the only movement you see on the roads are the monsoon clouds and the occasional chai tapri who has opened up at 6 in the morning. I gladly have a cuppa while the amused tapri owner keeps shooting Qs on where I'm heading, how tough is it do the ride on a cycle and so on (deja vu!)

So I start with a mild drizzle that doesn't stop me from trying out a few pics on the curves. But then I enter Khandala ghat and the rains descend on me. Heavy rains with strong winds, so hard that visibility isn't the main issue, being able to stand becomes a question mark. But its a matter of time and soon I am coasting down the curves towards Khopoli without much problem.

As if the ghat rains were only to test me, surprisingly the rains take a hike once I pass Khopoli and it's a pretty much dry run till Panvel. I wasn't complaining - I could put up a decent pace on this stretch.

Just about 10, I enter Kharghar and I start looking out for the southie laaris. I am not disappointed - they practically are there all over the suburb. And there goes down two places of idlis (8!). Now if only they'd served filter coffee too

Interestingly the rain that had taken a break the last 2 hours suddenly comes back again once I enter Vashi. This time I take a break and actually sit it out in the rain - it's quite refreshing and reduces the body tiredness to quite an extent.

And after 6+ hours since I started from Pune, I finally reach my destination Powai, where I'd hope to have a scrumptious brunch before I head to sleep.

Alas.

The ladyith had different plans. Apparently Saturday mornings are best spent sleeping than in the kitchen. lol

Ah well, a man can't have everything his way, can he




Some random photography near Lonavala station


Nil visibility beyond a few feet at Khandala. And just before the rains lash on me!


The glorious sight down the ghats

[shipnil]

Originally Posted by ninjatalli

Route: Pune to Lonava (local) - Khopoli - Panvel - Turbe - Airoli - Powai (Link & Link)

If I didn't have anything else to do, I'd do this route again. And again!

I again caught the early morning 4.40 a.m. local to Lonavala.

Beautiful, Ninja!

I have a question. For taking, bicycle on local train, is there any special ticket/process? If yes, what is it and how much does it cost?

[ninjatalli]

Originally Posted by shipnil

Beautiful, Ninja!

I have a question. For taking, bicycle on local train, is there any special ticket/process? If yes, what is it and how much does it cost?

One has to pay for luggage fare at the parcel office. This is in additional to your normal ticket. Do note The main counter where you buy your train ticket might not give you any info on this.

Btw the process for normal sleeper/express trains might be a lot more, I have only taken on the local EMUs.

Edit: Nominal cost. About 50 odd depending on the distance.