September 2016 -

You need to work on the art of pedalling a road bike

September 27, 2016 Nicola Bike skills, training, Women cycling

When I first took up road bike riding I thought that there wasn’t a great deal to learn about technique or skills, but I was wrong – there are plenty of skills to learn and central amongst them is the art of pedalling a road bike. I’m no authority on this subject so I’ve borrowed some expert words that appear below. The key principle behind the technique, and featured in just about every article I’ve read on the subject, is the need to pedal in nice smooth circles. Sounds easy, but there’s a little more to it. This article was originally

Look out for angry birds swooping cyclists

September 20, 2016 Nicola Women cycling

It’s Spring in my home town, and while it’s an awesome time of the year to ride a bike, it also means that there’ll be lots of angry birds swooping cyclists in the next month or so. In my local area we have a couple of very vicious butcherbirds that re-emerge at this time of year to protect their babies. So the talk in the local cafes is all focused on whether he’s back in action, and sadly I’ve already had a few reports of being swooped. Native birds such as Australian Magpies are highly protective of their eggs, nest

Set yourself a cycling goal – sign up for a mass participation bike ride

September 13, 2016 Nicola charity bike ride, training, Women cycling

One of my favourite mantras is that you only improve your cycling when you set a goal, and a mass participation bike ride is a great target to set for new cyclists, as well as seasoned ones. There are a number of them around Australia, most are in scenic locations. Here’s a selection of the ones I’ve done before. I’m sure there are plenty of others so please share your experiences. An added bonus of many of these rides is that they are involved with charity partners so participants have the opportunity to help fundraise at the same time. New South

Female cyclists – Why not give bib shorts a go?

September 6, 2016 Nicola Lycra cycle clothing, Women cycling

Whether you wear bib shorts (also known as bib knicks) or non bib shorts is a personal decision but I urge all female riders to at least give bib shorts a go. However there are two things that I think are non-negotiable if you want to be part of the crowd. One is that you should wear shorts, rather than shorts or gym pants, and secondly you shouldn’t wear any underwear underneath them. They are designed to be worn without undies and as long as they are not see-through it should be fine to do so without causing offence to