The most efficient bicycle chain runs in a perfectly straight line, in fact, a drivetrain without gears (singlespeed) can operate with 97% efficiency. The result is that 97% of the power that you put into the pedals goes into driving your rear wheel. When we add derailleur gears to a bike, the chain has to bend in a number of ways as it...
A good seatpost is the key to achieving a comfortable ride. That's because along with your tyres, seatposts actually make up the bulk of your bike's comfort - in fact, a well-designed carbon seatpost flexes at a rate 7x greater than a steel frame!
The Ergon CF3 carbon seatpost requires 69N of force to flex one vertical millimetre...
Gearbox systems are becoming more and more popular on touring bikes. The most common form of gearbox is the internally geared rear hub, which has actually been available since the late-1800s. The earlier ones were a two-speed design, but these days we have the 14-speed Rohloff hub as our benchmark.
More recently you will find internal...
Dynamo hubs are quite widely adopted in the bicycle touring, bikepacking and ultra racing scenes. With LED light technology allowing for 1300 lumen (or 100+ lux) light outputs, USB charging for gadgets and lithium ion battery storage – dynamo hubs feel like the right way to harvest energy.
But where does this energy come from, and...
Punctures are the bane of a cyclist's existence. Often unexpected, punctures seem to always stop you in your tracks in the least convenient of places. We can combat most punctures by using heavy/slow touring tyres. But is there an all-around touring tyre that is light, fast and puncture resistant?
The website Bicycle Rolling...
A few weeks ago I published a piece stating that hills are NOT harder to cycle than the flat. And it's all true. With the right gears, you can (mostly) overcome the effects of gravity.
I had a few people request how to calculate their 'gradient threshold', that is, the gradient at which they can keep up their cadence (pedalling...
People tell me all the time about how much they struggle in the hills. And that makes sense, right? You have to move your heavy touring bike and all your gear up a steep road, requiring LOTS of hard pedal pushing along the way.
Actually, that's simply not true.
If you struggle in the hills, you're doing it wrong. Let me...
Bicycle Rolling Resistance is a website that conducts lab testing of bike tyres. They focus mostly on rolling resistance but also test the puncture resistance of the tread and sidewalls. We are fortunate enough to have data available for 19 different touring tyre models to examine.
Recommended reading: what is the most puncture...
A few months ago I spent a day testing different weights in my panniers to determine how those differences would affect my travelling speed. On one test run I decided to use front instead of rear panniers, and realised there was a speed difference. It worked out to be around five minutes on a hilly 100km ride, or the equivalent of...
Front loading has recently become a popular way of carrying panniers. The setup has been made trendy by manufacturers like Specialized with their AWOL x POLER touring bike, or any number of the touring bikes featured on bicycle lifestyle website, The Radavist.
But is front loading a better place to locate your gear on a touring...
