The Science Of The Tour

This looks interesting; a discussion, at the Science Museum, of what exactly it takes to complete the Tour De France. Plus you can have a beer while you listen. I wonder if they'll touch on the more "pharamceutical" aspects (in the news again, thanks to Floyd Landis)

Raphé

Despite the best efforts of various pubs, London's not really had somewhere you can watch the Tour De France and have coffee/beer/Special Brew. Hopefully that will change with the opening of Rapha's Cycle Club (basically a cafe-cum-exhibition-space, for the duration of the summer, in Farringdon). They'll be showing the Tour live, along with the Giro and other road races. No doubt the drinks will be oh-so-stylish and possibly a little expensive, but if it's a nice place to catch some cycling, I won't be complaining.

Bargain Merino

High tech fabrics are great and everything, but for breathability, wicking and a general nice feeling against the skin, you can't beat merino wool. I've recently snapped up a pair of Smartwool Light Mini Cycling Socks for £5 from the Howies store in Carnaby Street. I'm not sure if they've got any left, but if not I notice this place has them for £7.95.

Possibly even more bargain-tastic, On-One have long-sleeve, merino zip tops reduced to £27.50. Stock up now, for next winter.

Great bike blog

Not mine! This one http://www.londoncyclist.co.uk/ :-)

Nice Team Sky Paris Roubaix Video

If you don't know the Paris Roubaix bike race (aka Hell Of The North) is reknowned for the rain- and wind-blasted cobbles that the riders have to travel across. Michael Barry from Team Sky has made this nice video of their training run across them, which captures the experience rather well.

Securing Your Bike Storage

If, like me, you've recently moved and want to plan how to store your bike securely, this two-part article on Bike Radar has a lot of good advice

Potholes

Having just started cycling again (see previous post), my first thought after "Wow, this is great" was "Where have all those holes come from?". The roads around my way seemed to be a minefield of hollows and ditches,

'Turns out that it's the harsh winter's fault. Some of these are hugely dangerous to cyclists, so the LCC are encouraging you to report them to the TFL.

Back On The Bike

After moving house and having a baby I'm finally back on my bike, and thankfully it's coincided with the last two days' glorious riding weather. Not only does it feel great to stretch the legs, but it's turning out to be fun trying to find a route to my office that does not involve Sydenham Hill or the centre of Peckham.

In the meanwhile, there's a nice summary of the forthcoming bike racing season at The Bike Show up at The Racing Year With Lionel Birnie. A nice intro if you want to know the difference between your Dauphine Libere and your Ronde van Vlaanderen.