Innehållsförteckning för February 2020 från Cycling Plus

SUBSCRIBE! NEW SUBSCRIBERS TO CYCLING PLUS CAN GET A LUSSO DRYLINE BASE LAYER WORTH £32.50 ALREADY A SUBSCRIBER? Get access to exclusive content, competitions and offers. Turn to p70 When Team GB introduces a new bike for another tilt at Olympic glory, it’s always worth taking a look. When it launches one as striking as the Hope HB.T, it demands close attention. What is with those seatstays? How wide is that fork? How do you even make a bike that looks like that? We wanted to know and we found the people at Hope Technology happy to welcome us to their Lancashire home for a poke around and a chat. You can read more about this fascinating project on p88, and keep an eye out for the bike in Tokyo…

Reilly Gradient Mark Reilly is a famed British bike builder specialising in titanium. His decades in the industry have led to his eponymous brand working with fellow builder and designer Damon Fisher on bikes made from steel, carbon and Reilly’s speciality titanium. Like any metal, titanium needs to be manipulated correctly to enable the best to come to the fore. The Gradient’s frame does exactly that with what Reilly defines as ultra-butted tubing, which it calls Reilly Axis. This multi-wall thickness material imbues the Gradient with a lively, light-feeling ride that’s complemented by the full carbon fork. The liveliness is increased further by the use of Hunt’s 1629g 4Season tubeless-ready alloy gravel wheelset, here shod with Panaracer’s excellent Gravel King SK tyres. The 43c beauties offer tenacious grip on dry…

THE BIG PICTURE FULL CIRCLE We’ve cycled a loop of Loch Ness before, and good fun it was too, but that was on tarmac. In October we headed off-road, riding the Loch Ness 360° Trail, a 129km, 3000m, almost entirely gravel route, which fills in the gap between two existing trails. It’s as tough as the days you’ve got spare to ride. This first ride was a leisurely three days, but next summer, we’ve entered the already-oversubscribed, one-day Loch Ness 360° Mountain Bike Challenge on our gravel bikes.…

Down at its south-east corner, the ‘Garden of England’ offers the cycling pilgrim more than a visit to historic Canterbury. The A2 may have changed a bit since Chaucer’s time, but rural day-riding around this part of Kent is as good as anywhere, with characterful and individual towns (Sandwich, Ramsgate, Broadstairs, Whitstable), lovely rich countryside, fine pubs, mild weather and cool cafes. If quality coffee, artisan food and the spirit of Marco Pantani is the sort of quest you had in mind, then the Independent Pedaler five miles south of Canterbury, just off the A2 or NCN16, is the place to head for a trendy, premium-price, cool cycle-cafe vibe. Cheap and cheerful tea-and-cake local it ain’t. The Independent Pedaler is in a large, light, classily converted warehouse. Unusually situated in…

GIANT DEFY ADVANCED PRO 2 £3499 Giant’s long-standing Defy (which is incidentally also its best-selling road bike) boasts a design that’s become renowned for its vibration-crushing ride. With this latest incarnation, the Defy Advanced Pro 2, it gains vibration damping bars and seatpost, not to mention carbon wheels and new tubeless tyres as standard. We put it all to the test. CANNONDALE SYNAPSE CARBON DISC DURA-ACE £3999.99 Cannnodale’s Synapse features its innovative SAVE (Synapse Active Vibration Elimination) carbon technology that’s proven to reduce shocks and vibrations transmitted through the frame. This version of the Synapse is its sportiest model so far, but it’s one that doesn’t sacrifice comfort for speed. SIMPLON KIARO DISC £4406 Simplon is a small-volume brand that was “born and raised in Austria”. It may be a…

WE SAY… The Kiaro Disc may look simple but there is a lot going on under neat hits understated skin You’d be forgiven for not knowing much about Simplon. The Austrian brand started life as a family bike shop back in 1930, with the name Simplon referencing the towering 2005m Simplon pass in Austria. The brand was the first to bring Shimano to Austria and the first to introduce mountain bikes to its home country, too. The Kiaro Disc was designed around what the engineering team call “comfort concept”. This consists of manipulating the hi-mod carbon fibres with the frame to offer compliance where needed and stiffness in critical areas dealing with load – ie the head tube for steering duties and the bottom bracket for pedalling forces. Elsewhere, the…

It’s rare that the cheapest bike in a line-up also proves to be the best, but the stealthy, speedy Defy deserves its crown I would be more than happy to ride every bike in this test until I have to hang up my cleats. Each one is claimed to be an ‘endurance’ bike, but they all are much more exciting than their slow and steady marathon tag would suggest. Trek’s Domane combines its IsoSpeed smoothness with aerodynamics, great specification and all-road potential. Its limousine-like riding quality makes this an assured, sure-footed option. It does, however, come at a price. Cannondale’s Synapse takes more from racing than recreation and the superb chassis with its lively handling and vibration-nulling ride has the potential to be all the road bike you’d ever need.…

WE SAY… Ritchey’s habit of making excellent handle bars and stems continues with this pairing £96.95 £93.95 Sleek Ritcheys The WCS Streem III is Ritchey’s premier alloy road handlebar, available in widths from 38 to 46cm. Our 42cm bar weighs 277g and offers 73mm reach with 128mm drop. It uses triple-butted 7050 aluminium alloy to form a modern compact drop shape, and the wing-like tops are swept back by 4.7 degrees. The central round section alongside the stem has been widened for clip-on, tri-bar fitting, and the right side bar end can accept Shimano’s Di2 junction box. The Chicane stem offers a sleek, integrated look. It’s made from 2014 alloy, comes in lengths of 80 to 130mm, with a 10-degree angle, and our 100mm sample weighs 196g. It’s around 70g…

WE SAY… The user-friendly AMPP1100 provides plenty of high-quality light to safely illuminate almost any ride £109.99 Night light The AMPP’s built-in 2500mAh lithium-ion battery has a fast recharging circuit and can be fully charged via its Micro-USB to USB cable in three to five hours, depending on the specific power supply used. Cateye says it can be fully charged and discharged around 300 times, and even then should still have a rated capacity of 70 per cent. The light measures 105 x 48 x 34mm, and ours weighed 207g. Cateye’s tough FlexTight bracket quickly fits on to handlebars up to 35mm in diameter, tightening with a knurled, threaded knob from behind and gripping securely, thanks to its integral rubber strip. Optional brackets are available for helmet and fork crown…

Two bikes with one important thing in common – they’re designed for the modern phenomenon that is gravel riding. But there is more that separates them. For starters, and this is a big one, one is made from titanium and the other from carbon fibre. What else? Well, one has a ‘classic’ Shimano compact double chainset, the second features the more modern 1x setup from SRAM. Perhaps the most important difference – for some, anyway – is that the carbon bike emanates from Lancashire’s long-established Merlin Cycles while its titanium competitor is from Sheffeld’s Planet X, so it’s a War of the Roses for the ‘Northern Powerhouse’ era. Both carbon and titanium are renowned for offering comfort and Merlin and Planet X are well recognised for producing great-value bikes. These…

READER’S TIPS FOR NEW CYCLISTS @TRI2SURFBEN “Make sure your gloves or arms have some reflective material, no point signalling if no one can see you” @BARRYENSTEN “Stick to well-known routes, so you are aware of potholes etc” @JIFDAVE “Zwift!” MATT WOODCOCK, CYCLING UK TRAINING MANAGER “Riding in the dark requires the cyclist to ensure they’re seen and can see the road surface clearly, without dazzling other road users. If you’re riding along unlit country lanes you’ll need a different lighting setup to riding in an urban setting – or you may need to have a mix of lights if you’re riding though both environments. Wherever you are, it’s crucial that you are seen and you need to consider having reflectors on your bike and your clothing as well as lights.…

With resolutions firmly sworn in, events entered while half cut and a few too many mince pies consumed, now is a good time to have a look at your setup. Is the gearing appropriate for that mountain sportive you’ve lined up? Could you do with a bike fit at the same time as you buy those aero bars for your time-trialling dreams? Get to know your bike a bit better while you’re possibly riding a little less. What are the exact specs of the drivetrain? Which headset bearings will you need when the time comes? Sure, you’ll be able to bore your non-cycling friends to tears, but the shop staff you’ve been plying with biscuits appreciate it when you know what you’re asking them for, and it’ll give you more…

Staying healthy during winter is a challenge, but vitamin D3 is known to improve our 25(OH)D (vitamin D) blood serum levels and it has been directly linked to our ability to prevent illness. During winter, even if we get direct sunlight here in the UK, we won’t be getting the UV rays we need to improve blood serum levels, so it is recommended by Public Health England to supplement at least 400iU or 10Ug a day over winter to help immunity. This number is increased for those of us who exercise, and it’s worth getting a blood test to see where your levels are. If they’re <75nmol/L supplementing with 2000-4000iU a day can be recommended. Another factor in the fight against illness is within our saliva, an antibody called IgA,…

PRICE £5599.99 UPGRADES £1330 (INCL £271.15 ON 650B WHEELS), TOPEAK NINJA BOTTLE CAGE WITH TOOL KIT, BONTRAGER AEOLUS PRO V3 TUBELESSREADY CARBON WHEELS, CONTINENTAL GP5000 TL TYRES MILES RIDDEN 915 Recently, I’ve been concentrating on getting the HVRT back out on the road. While I’m more than impressed with the deep section Hunt x Rondo carbon road wheels that the bike came with, I’ve opted to switch in a set of Bontrager’s impressive new Aeolus Pro 3V TLR wheels. These weigh in at an excellent 1590g a pair and are set-up tubeless with Continental’s brilliant GP5000 TL tyres. The Bontragers are much shallower than the Hunts and, as we are now in the depths of a windy, wet winter, the 3Vs are better at coping with adverse conditions. With the…

£1299 Outdoor online specialists take on a tourer Exclusive to UK-based online outdoor clothing specialists Alpkit, Sonder has an interesting range of British-designed bikes covering a wide range of mainly off-road models in steel, titanium and carbon, and even tandems. The Santiago is Sonder’s take on a traditional tourer and can be found in both 650b and 700c wheel sizes and various 1x and 2x drivetrain options. We’ve opted for the 1x option with a very touring-friendly 40 x 11-42 gearing setup, rough-stuff ready 650b wheels and big volume 47c WTB tyres, though the star of the show here is the Santiago’s chassis. The main frame is constructed using Reynolds’s ever-reliable, cold-worked and air-hardened 631 grade steel for the front half of the frame (head tube, seat tube and down…

JOHN WHITNEY: Can British climbs ever be considered, for want of a better word, sexy? SIMON WARREN: Of course they can. There are hairpin bends in Britain that sweep every bit as gloriously as anything in the Alps. British climbs often stand alone, with a single defining feature, whether a perfect corner or patch of vicious gradient - such as the 33 per cent stretch on Rosedale Chimney or the first hairpin on Park Rash - that adds a vital touch of colour and creates a focal point for a day’s adventure. TREVOR WARD: I think they can, but they’re generally a different beast than what you find in the Alps. They call for a different kind of mental fortitude. Instead of concealing themselves behind beautifully engineered switchbacks, British climbs…

WE SAY… On the road the Defy is gloriously composed with a wonderful ride quality The Defy defined a genre. It took the best elements of Giant’s racing TCR and combined them into a ride position that’s not at pro-level extremes of long and low. The Defy comes with some very clever bits of design and execution in the form of Giant’s D-Fuse concept. The D-shaped seatpost (1) debuted on Giant’s TCX and the Defy adopts something similar. The D-shape of the tube maintains lateral rigidity but allows the post to move enough to smooth vibrations from poor road surfaces. Giant has rolled the D-Fuse technology into the handlebar. This is a tricky proposition as you don’t want bars that flex all the time. Here the D-shape is orientated so…

WE SAY… The ground-breaking Future Shock is a key factor in the Roubaix’s unique ride The 2020 Specialized Roubaix takes the ground-breaking Future Shock-equipped machine that debuted in 2017 and evolves it into a racier version of the cobble-crushing design. The Roubaix is a suspension-equipped road bike. When it comes to front suspension there are two types: splay, which relies on the fork being able to move fore and aft (like on the Domane), and Axial, where the fork moves vertically up and down below the head tube – like a mountain bike suspension fork. According to Specialized’s Roubaix boffins, neither way is perfect for a road bike. With splay, the fore and aft movement can slow you down, and axial suspension has a tendency to ‘bob’ up and down…

01 ENDURA BAABAA BLEND £44.99 Endura’s BaaBaa Blend mixes Lyocell – a form of rayon – with 20 per cent merino. The Lyocell gives some stretch and a super-soft, itch-free feel while the non-mulesed Merino kept this whiff-free after a hard day in the saddle (mulesing is a controversial method of removing a section of wool-bearing skin). It’s good value and it also works perfectly as a long-sleeve t-shirt. 02 DHB MERINO £48 We used dhb’s Merino jersey as a baselayer and top layer – and the polyamide, 35 per cent Merino and polypropylene worked in both settings. It has hem grippers, pockets, rear reflective details and a full-length zip but it’s a low-bulk top with stretch from the polyamide. This is every inch a three-season top that’ll take you…

WE SAY… Light and flexible shoes for the gravel rider who’s looking for road-shoe style fit £219.99 Stripped-down shoes for gravel riders Up until now, Shimano’s offerings for the off-road roadie have come direct from its cross-country mountain bike stable, topped by the brilliant but expensive S-Phyre XC-9 (£319.99). Those are light at 754g (size 45) but the RX8s better that by some margin at 628g (size 45). Just how has Shimano shaved over 100g from its premium off-road shoe and given it a price of £100 less? First, it has stripped down the elements of an off-road shoe and combined it with the lightweight PU upper of a road shoe. The upper is constructed in one piece, perforated for breathability and finished in a multi-coloured silver camo finish with…

FROM THE EDITOR… As if the chance to save 30 per cent and having every issue of Cycling Plus delivered direct to your door wasn’t enough of an incentive, we’re also giving new subscribers a free Lusso Dryline Base Layer. Available in men’s and women’s sizes, the Lusso Base Layer is made from polypropylene fabric and is lightweight and soft with good insulation. The perfect accessory to keep your core toasty on all those chilly winter rides. HURRY OFFER ENDS 22 JANUARY 2020 GREAT REASONS TO SUBSCRIBE • Receive a Lusso Dryline SS Base Layer • Save 30% off the UK shop price – pay just £24.99 every 6 issues by Direct Debit • Every issue delivered straight to your door • Never miss an action-packed issue or supplement again…

When Hope Technology recently announced the HB.T track bike, created in collaboration with British racing car and bicycle manufacturer Lotus, from a British Cycling design, it had everyone talking. Its radical front end and those seatstays. It seemed to come out of nowhere. We knew we had to see it for ourselves as soon as possible. But to understand how this small Lancashire firm rose to the top of the cycling world, it helps to first look back at how Hope began, to find out how it got involved in such a radical bike. In 1989, two former Rolls Royce aerospace engineers had a problem: the cantilever brakes on their mountain bikes weren’t good enough, especially compared to the disc brakes on their trials motorbikes. It sounds counter-intuitive, but if you…

THE GOLDEN RULE KEEP CONSISTENT Pick a periodisation model that fits with your lifestyle and objectives, then stick to it and stay consistent MEET THE COACH LIAM HOLOHAN Ex-pro rider for UCI teams Team Wiggins, Rapha Condor and Madison Genesis now coaching in Shrewsbury at Holohan Coaching “In many ways, working with professional athletes is easier when it comes to the prescription of training. Each week they have a blank slate from which to work from,” says Liam Holohan. “All day, every day, is available to them for training.” The challenge comes for the ‘time-crunched cyclist’, who must also fit in family life and a normal job to their week. “When it comes to training, you can only control two things; volume and intensity; or, how much and how hard.…

THE WINNING TIP! CLIP OUT If you want to ride off-road, invest in some mountain bike shoes with SPD cleats and pedals. Unlike the bigger Shimano SPDSL or Look cleats often used by road cyclists, mountain bike shoes feature smaller SPD cleats, which are recessed into the soles of the shoes so they don’t get caked in mud and it is easier to clip in and out on the trails. MEET THE AUTHOR MARK BAILEY A sports writer and four-time Haute Route finisher, Mark regularly interviews pro cyclists and experts to explore the latest health insights From speed-chasing road cyclists to mud-soaked mountain bikers, cycling can seem a strangely tribal activity. But if you want to be the best road cyclist you can be, it is worth occasionally swapping your…

PIPPA’S TOP RIDING TIPS … HAVE A GOAL… “My ride is providing me with something to work towards and something I can be in control of” BUILD SLOWLY… “Slow down and take it in. Breathe deeply and appreciate what you can do – it’s something I learnt never to take for granted but I’m sure many people do” AIM HIGH… “Set yourself demanding challenges. For me, every hill I get up without having to stop to breath is an achievement” HELP OTHERS… “Register as an organ donor and have a conversation with loved ones about your wishes” WHAT’S GOT YOU ON THE BIKE? Two and a half years ago I underwent a life-saving, double-lung transplant at Papworth Hospital in Cambridgeshire. Before the transplant, due to cystic fibrosis, I could no…

It is only fitting that our route should follow the trail of the Pendle Witches Brian Cookson wears a haunted look as we set off on a Halloween ride around his local roads in Lancashire’s Ribble Valley. He’s been averaging 300 kilometres a week recently but he still can’t get far enough away from the ghosts of his spells in charge of British Cycling and the world governing body, the UCI. We will discuss these later but, as we head out of the bustling market town of Clitheroe, it’s actually something far more personal and recent that’s weighing on his mind. Earlier this month he had narrowly missed out on becoming a world champion cyclist at the age of 68 at the World Masters track cycling event in Manchester. He’d…

The new year is often a time of renewal. A renewal of body after the excesses of Christmas; of mind, as the clutter of the previous 12 months is sieved away; and of motivation, as your goals for the coming season take shape and crystallise. So it seems an appropriate fit that renewal is the theme of this 28-page guide. We offer you inspiration in revitalising your ride on p4 with new ideas, skill and challenges, and how to lose weight by eating more, not less, on p10. Then there’s the things you can cut down on in 2020 to make you speed up (p16) and the small changes you can make to all aspects of your cycling to reap those big rewards (p22). 2020 really is yours to lose!…

Pinnacle Arkose D1 WHO’S IN THE FRAME? The 2020 Arkose is a genuine gravel bike with thru-axles, clearance for 650x52mm or 700x45mm tyres and Di2 compatibility. Even with its 45mm tyres there’s room for mudguards and fittings, including a neat one-sided rear bridge. There are three sets of bottle bosses on both sides of the down tube and the seat tube. WHO’S THE KING OF THE KIT? With 9-speed Sora and mechanical disc brakes this is behind Decathlon’s Triban, but WTB’s wheel and tyre pairing is tubeless ready. The gearing is lower than the Triban with 48/32 chainset and 11-32 cassette. WHAT OF THE RIDE? The compact aluminium frame, full-carbon fork and super-wide tyres offer supreme comfort on the road, but with an 11kg weight it's never going to be…

SIZE MATTERS 01 The Activ5 pebble is small enough to fit into a bag when you travel, so you can keep up your isometric exercise plan wherever you are PRESSURE MOUNTS 02 With the pebble able to measure 200lb of pressure, you can get a proper resistance workout GAMING FOR FITNESS 03 Activ5’s mini-games, including gems such as sumo wrestling, puppy training and flying, are all available from app stores The Activ5 unit is a tactile, pebble-sized connected measurement tool that works as a very accurate pressure pad. It can measure the pressure ‘squeezed’ upon it, and when used in conjunction with set exercises and the app, it quantifies your efforts and can personalise your exercises with up to 100 separate full-body conditioning workouts. The training and exercise plans are…

Endurance bikes are more often than not overlooked. They may not have the glamour of an aero road bike or a weight weenie racer but that doesn’t mean they haven’t been laboured on and developed as much by designers and engineers as their glamorous stablemates. Each of the five bikes on test here has been worked on by the aerodynamic fairies. Take the Giant Defy with its noise reducing D-Fuse components and integrated aero approach: it’s every bit as ‘advanced’ as the Giant TCR or Propel. Cannondale’s Synapse has evolved into a light sports machine with tube-shape manipulation working in conjunction with carbon layup to make the ride as smooth as possible. Simplon, with the Kiaro, has kept up its ground-breaking lightweight carbon with its comfort-concept, design-flattening tube shapes and…

WE SAY… The Synapse frame is a clean piece of design with purposeful curves The Synapse has evolved from an upright riding positioned, long-distance bike to this latest generation that combines a lightweight chassis and sorted endurance-biased but speed-focused geometry. The 610mm stack and 393mm reach on my 58c test bike is combined with a wheelbase that’s just 9mm over a metre. It has a 58mm trail for the fork, which enables a nice snap to the steering without compromising stability. Cannondale also introduces a change in the bottom bracket drop to 70mm, reducing the drop to make the bike feel right with the trend towards bigger tyres. The Synapse frame is a very clean piece of design. There are purposeful curves at the junctions and shape transitions throughout the…

WE SAY… The key feature of the Domane is Trek’s unique I so Speed ‘decoupling’ system The third iteration of the Domane sees significant improvements when it comes to aerodynamics. Looking at the chassis you can see plenty of design influence from the buttery-smooth slipperiness that is the brilliant Madone. The front end’s, sculpted head tube integrates smoothly into the wide fork crown (1) with its huge clearance for 38mm tyres. You’ll find the requisite ISO standard of 4mm clearance for the max-tyre size. The front end has been cleaned up aero wise with all of the cables now running through the bars and around the back of the stem. This Domane, Trek claims, will save you a minute an hour over the previous generation. The key feature of the…

WE SAY… Good helmet for urban and day-to-day riding with a handy rear light ABUS HYBAN URBAN HELMET £54.99 The German company’s Hyban helmet is a heavyweight at 481g but it has a lot of features and an attractive price. It’s well-padded and has a small removable peak that proved surprisingly effective against rain. And it’s well finished too, but the hard plastic outer shell doesn’t extend over the bottom of the helmet, making it vulnerable to damage. Air intakes We found the venting fine for commuting. There are 18 large vents – 13 intakes, five exhausts – with bug mesh over the front three. Riding up to about 15mph these provide good airflow and there was little noise from the lid. Get closer to 20mph and you’re likely to…

There are three certainties about riding your bike in the winter: you’ll get wet, you’ll get cold, and you’ll get no sympathy from non-cycling friends, family or colleagues. Just accept their cynicism – it’s one of the unspoken hazards of cycling at this time of year, and a reminder that surviving a British winter is about much more than just wearing the right kit. Route planning, risk assessment and self-motivation are all crucial, too. Here is our 10-step guide to surviving the cruellest season…. 01 WINTERISE YOUR KIT CYCLING IS FULL of profound proverbs – ‘Eat before you’re hungry’, ‘The only way down is up’ – but none rings truer than, ‘There’s no such thing as bad weather, just bad kit’. And with the range of technical fabrics available these…

Chris Boardman, who rode the Lotus bike in Barcelona, and for years headed up British Cycling’s ‘secret squirrel club’ that equipped the team with the fastest bikes, gives his thoughts on the Hope HB.T. “For the last 30 years, bike designers have focused on making a bike that was as slippery as possible," he says. "Meanwhile, in motor sport, due to the need to create downforce, they concentrated on managing and even utilising the drag created by the car to make the overall time faster. In a sense, they lost some battles by creating drag for downforce in order to win the war, leading to faster cornering and, ultimately, faster lap times. "This holistic philosophy was brought into the Team GB Research and Development team in 2008, when CFD [computational…

Can the answer to losing weight and improving body composition really involve eating more food? In some circumstances, definitely, as Cycling Plus columnist and sports nutritionist Will Girling explained when we met up at Allianz Park, the home of Saracens rugby club, where he would run some tests on me ahead of offering guidance on getting lean. Despite a visit to the GP seeing me positioned slap-bang in the middle of the ideal BMI range for my height, I’ve been concerned about where the weight lies – in fat, around my waist. This was no doubt due in part to the ever-ready office doughnut supply (some days we put the Twin Peaks Sheriff's Department to shame), but I was running what I thought was a calorie deficit (1500 per day…