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the self sufficient cyclist - guy kesteven. illustrated by aikaterini paraskevopoulou. rapha editions/bluetrain publishing paperback. 144pp illus. £12

self sufficient cyclist - guy kesteven

i have a very nice italian bicycle on review at present. it's not brand new, having obviously been ridden before and probably by somebody a lot faster than me. in the majority of cases, review bicycles have been expertly setup at the warehouse or factory prior to despatch; it's pretty much always a simple case of straightening the handlebars, setting the seatpost to the correct height, screwing a pair of pedals into the cranks and riding off into the sunrise.

occasionally, however, there are minor adjustments to be made to brakes (less necessary on disc-equipped models) or gears. the latter occasionally refuse to shift smoothly up or down the block, mostly cured by altering the cable tension via the adjuster on the rear mech. i know this because, not only have i been reviewing bicycles for more than a decade, but i've been riding them for well over thirty years, since the pre-index days, when the levers were mounted on the downtube and brake cables exited the top of the levers. at that time, disc brakes were the preserve of sports cars and mountain bikes were scarcely a glimmer in the eyes of joe breeze and tom ritchey.

in short, i have acquired bike-related experience.

it's easy to forget that at one time i incorrectly dismantled a freewheel and spread a myriad of tiny ball-bearings all over the garage floor. a colleague of mine once removed all the spokes from a bicycle wheel in order to better clean the rim. we've all done stupid stuff, blissfully unaware, at the time, that it was stupid. mr benzie, who owned the bicycle shop in the town in which i grew up, could be disturbingly scathing towards those who knew not how to fix a puncture or adjust a sturmey-archer three-speed hub gear. and if your bike was dirty when you took it in for repair, he'd send you home to clean it first. we've all been newbies at one time or another; some still are, even after long years of cycling and it is those individuals at whom 'the self sufficient cyclist' is aimed.

self sufficient cyclist - guy kesteven

but before you can garner a wealth of experience that might aid your enjoyment of self-sufficient cycling, the bike needs to fit. i have witnessed oh so many riders with the saddle set too low, even on bicycles destined for hundreds of miles of riding across continents. step one, therefore, probably ought to be making sure the bicycle fits properly. there are specialists for this, but few of those about to enter the world of velocipedinal joy will necessarily be aware, or perhaps in a position to pay for such a service. mr kesteven thus ensures that the basics are covered, beginning with the saddle. he clearly advises on fore and aft positioning, as well as the all important setting of a practical height. the latter is a subject likely to incur as much discussion as a no-deal brexit.

"It still feels weird running the saddle a bit lower but I've had a really strong year on the bike since making the change."

for the practised or veteran cyclist, much of the information included within the pages of 'the self-sufficient cyclist' will be surplus to requirements. but then again, we're never too old to learn something new, or to discover that you've been doing something wrong all these years. for instance, though i'm an average climber, despite all those years of riding bicycles, i'm distinctly crap at descending. just ask the folks at the late-lamented rapha travel. bluetrain's guy andrews offers sidebar advice on how best to deal with the fear of descending, while joe rafferty points out the advantages of having your knees in the right places when cornering downhill.

but if you're truly going to be self-sufficient across all velocipedinal eventualities, you'll need to know a darned sight more than how to descend quickly and safely. this is not a handbook for racing cyclists, but for you and me in everyday situations. for instance, what kind of helmet do you need? what's the difference between road cleats and 'spuds'? do you really need disc brakes? if you have to eat on longer rides, what's the best stuff to have in a back pocket? and even though it's britain, do i need to wear suncream when it's sunny?

self sufficient cyclist - guy kesteven

all these questions, and a great deal more, are either answered, or mr kesteven and his accomplices provide the benefit of their expertise to help you make your own choice/decision/purchase.

illustrator aikaterini paraskevopoulou has possibly the longest and arguably unpronounceable name i've come across recently, but her colourful illustrations are a delightful augmentation to this most necessary of books. in fact, i'd be persuaded to refer to this as more of a manual; and though i'm aware of the archetypal manual being usually confined to the status of 'last resort', something to be investigated only if all else fails, if you're about to embark on the long, satisfying journey towards being 'a cyclist', this third in the series of rapha handbooks is as necessary as the first two.

between them, rapha and bluetrain are addressing a definitive, yet difficult to satisfy need. with the world's roads becoming ever more fraught with traffic, preparation is everything. of course, whether the apprentice cyclist is likely to start the journey at rapha, is something of a moot point, but i'd be very happy indeed to be proved wrong on that point.

the self-sufficient cyclist

sunday 11 august 2019

twmp ..........................................................................................................................................................................................................