YOUR FEEDBACK | LETTERS

Your opinions Write to Cycle Cycle, PO Box 313, Scarborough, YO12 6WZ. Or email [email protected] The star letter wins a pair of Compass tyres, courtesy of Sven Cycles, worth up to £116! These lightweight, supple tyres will LETTERS transform the ride feel of your bike. They’re THIS MONTH MORE DURABLE BIKES, ‘FAKE’ available in a range of designs and widths in 700C, 650B and 26in diameters, and PHOTOGRAPHY, DRIVERLESS , HEAVY-DUTY particularly suit touring bikes, gravel bikes, BIKES, BIKES ON TRAINS, AND MORE and road-plus bikes. For more information about these plush, easy-rolling tyres, or to purchase a set of your own, go online to svencycles.com Imagine Project bike Left: Islabikes

it sparked an entertaining discussion on the Cycling UK Forum. See: bit.ly/cycle-itsafake. Top marks to Bez on the forum Technology for referencing Father Ted: ‘These ones are small. But the ones out B U I L T there are far away.’ Letter TO LAST of the DRIVERLESS CARS month If Christian Wolmar’s book, was interested to read the article about the Driverless Cars: On a Road to I Islabikes Imagine Project, designing totally Nowhere, is to be believed, then recyclable bikes for a very long life. It sounds like they will Martin Budden (Letters, Aug/Sep be fantastic. My fear is that they will only reach the top ’18) has little to worry about. end of the market as they will not be cheap. It seems we are further from It is possible to get some way towards the same aims at a driverless utopia than we are mass market price levels using design and technology that led to believe. There are still no has been around for decades. I help run Resurrection IT’S A FAKE! driverless cars anywhere in the Bikes, which you featured in the article. We have had I’m aware of adverts doctoring world today – not in the sense thousands of donated bikes. Many of the modern budget the photographs to make them of a driverless vehicle that could bikes we receive have failing bearings, bottom ‘better’, but a front cover of a be trusted to navigate streets or brackets, and brakes, despite little signs of use. It’s largely mag about cycling? Look at the A-roads. At a recent Autonomous because they use very poorly designed/manufactured parts ‘photo’ and see how not only have Vehicle exhibition in Stuttgart and virtually no grease in the moving parts. the cyclists been superimposed with 80 exhibitors, actual vehicle When we compare that to the bikes we receive dating on a backdrop of a lovely village manufacturers were noticeable from two, three and four decades ago, it’s a different story. in Cheshire, but they’ve ruined by their absence as they still If basic bikes were designed with tubular frames, the picture of the lady at the front. have nothing to show. And the good quality paintwork, moving parts manufactured to a She’s got seemingly extra limbs driverless dream will evaporate decent standard, and assembled with sensible quantities and her left foot has gone, only when terrorists hack into an AV’s of grease, we could have bikes that would cost only a little to replaced by that of the person software to cause mayhem. more than those we see today but would last a long time. who’s been obliterated (bar his or Hugh Davis John Rowe, Resurrection Bikes her foot). And she doesn’t seem Google’s to have her own left leg at all! Waymo The Imagine Project bikes won’t be cheap, but they’re going Very, very shoddy indeed.

to rented rather than sold. As for the failings of today’s Mick Fairhurst Left: Alamy -shaped objects… Well, they’re built to a price, with the results you’ve seen. Decent cheap bikes exist (e.g. There’s a rider behind, and Decathlon) but are relatively rare. largely obscured by, the lady in front. It’s a real photo that hasn’t been doctored. However,

CYCLINGUK.ORG CYCLE 35 LETTERS | YOUR FEEDBACK

Tout Terrain to nearly miss the train, as the Silkroad Photo of the month platform was announced only five minutes before departure. The bike ‘compartment’ was a cupboard with hooks to hang two bikes. Hanging mine was a fiddle. The photo shows the provision on a German IC train. Their BIKE FOR A HEAVY compartments accommodate up RIDER to about 20 bikes. This is what I’m 6'5" and heavy. I lost nine GWR should be providing. stone, down from 22 stone, David Naylor cycling a round-trip of 26 miles a day to work in the hilly terrain A German IC train around Bath. It took me 13 months to achieve the weight loss, and I got through three bikes doing it. The weakest part of a bike, when loaded heavily, seems to be the . Two or three of these were breaking every week. Eventually I used the money THE FIRE STILL I saved on food to buy a Tout BURNS Terrain Silkroad, and can vouch The article in the latest magazine for its strength. I often carry huge entitled ‘The fire still burns’ ranks loads spread across four panniers. as the most enjoyable article Broken spokes still happen, I’ve read in years. I know little

especially now our roads are so about time trialling and nothing Photo: Jason Patient potholed, but with care it’s rare. at all about that part of Scotland, ‘This maintenance stand, with pump and tools, appeared in August at Dave ‘Tiny’ French but the article was a great Tweedbank railway station. It’s free to use for all cyclists.’ Jason Patient example of inspiration, nostalgia, RAILING AT companionship, and sheer Join the conversation LIMITATIONS enjoyment. More of the same The problems Nicolas Sawyer would be very welcome! CYCLING UK FORUM draws attention to regarding bikes Bob Forster Get immediate feedback from other on trains (Letters, Aug/Sep ’18) is Cycling UK members on the Cycling UK widespread. forum: forum.cyclinguk.org. Here’s an I travelled from Paddington to abridged extract from a recent thread: Swansea on one of GWR’s new bit.ly/cycle-customwheels. Hitachi trains. It was a 12-coach train, which could accommodate CUSTOM WHEEL had three different only four bikes; the 125s they BUILDERS sets off him, very AM7: Buy replaced carried six. There were Kralen: Any good . Roger Musson’s wheelbuilding e-book no bike signs, so I walked the recommendations? dcrwheels.co.uk Looking for a good chris_suffolk: Where for £9 (bit.ly/cycle- length of the train before I found BEST BAR NONE set of wheels for a are you based? mussonwheels), where to put it. This caused me What a great magazine Cycle is. road bike (Bianchi Madgetts of Diss which tells you Unfortunately, it is read in a day, Aria). (south Norfolk) everything you need mattsccm: Plenty have an excellent to know. It really is cover to cover, and then passed of decent people reputation easier than it looks. on to my wife, and then further. online but I would be Retour64: Have a Herts Audax: Key to This latest magazine has a asking in my local go yourself. I have a good build is being methodical and write-up about wrist problems. decent bike shop or built wheels with the OBITUARIES the local club. help of online patient. Why is there no mention of the Are now being published althebike: I used calculators. I have to LollyKat: After Jones H-Bar? I have found that Wheelsmith in true them much less encouragement from online at cyclinguk. my husband and this handlebar is the answer Scotland for a while. than machine-built org/obituaries. Send Good wheels but the wheels once they this forum (thanks, obituaries, with a digital to my problem. Its swept back ones I liked were are being used. Brucey), I recently photo if you wish, to design is a far more natural way getting expensive. De Sisti: How do did my first wheel [email protected]. for the hands to hold on for best I am using Borg you work out what build, replacing a worn rear rim. I know comfort. I use large diameter wheels now. They spoke pattern to seem bulletproof. use? What about it’s not a big deal for foam grips. Ant…: Dave Hunt calculating spoke a lot of you but I’m Colin McKenzie at DCR wheels. I’ve length? proud of myself!

LETTERSare edited for space (especially if above 150 words), clarity, FACEBOOK T W E E T U S How to and, if necessary, legality. Please note that if you have specific complaint or Tell us what you think Read the latest query about Cycling UK policy, you should address it to the relevant national office staff on Cycling UK’s Facebook updates and get in contact Cycle member. Letters & emails for the Dec/Jan issue must arrive by 31 October. Write to: page: facebook.com/ touch on Twitter [email protected] or Cycle, PO Box 313, Scarborough, YO12 6WZ CyclingUK @wearecyclinguk

36 CYCLE OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2018