[eyesice]

Another query to dear forum members:

Can you suggest a good portable (Hand?) pump that I can fit on my frame? I had a basic Firefox hand pump and I could never get it to pump above 55 psi maybe due to my lack of upper body strength! I am basically looking for a pump preferably with a gauge that I can carry on my rides which can do the job reasonably well.

[harish]

Finally getting back into riding after 3 years! Picked up a Cannondale Synapse 105. And I'm loving it! Hope to cover a lot of miles with this.

[sanjbmw2001]

Originally Posted by eyesice

Another query to dear forum members:


Can you suggest a good portable (Hand?) pump that I can fit on my frame? I had a basic firefox hand pump and I could never get it to pump above 55 psi maybe due to my lack of upper body strength! I am basically looking for a pump preferably with a gauge that I can carry on my rides which can do the job reasonably well.

Try Decathlon pumps.

[roadjourno]

Hello all, is there any suggestion to replace the narrow seat of btwin with a comfortable wide seats e.g. like from Hero with springs? Has anyone done that, is it a straight swap ?

[aravind.anand]

Originally Posted by roadjourno

Hello all, is there any suggestion to replace the narrow seat of btwin with a comfortable wide seats e.g. like from Hero with springs? Has anyone done that, is it a straight swap ?

Well you certainly can replace the seat with wider more comfortable options, but never heard of anyone fitting a Hero cycle seat with springs though. Newbies usually find a gel seat cover to improve comfort, but I was warned that it does more damage than good so stayed away from it.

Either way, if you really want to get something like that done, please take your cycle to a decent showroom nearby - BOTS or Track & Trail outlet. They would assist you with this.

[roadjourno]

Originally Posted by aravind.anand

Well you certainly can replace the seat with wider more comfortable options, but never heard of anyone fitting a Hero cycle seat with springs though. Newbies usually find a gel seat cover to improve comfort, but I was warned that it does more damage than good so stayed away from it.

Either way, if you really want to get something like that done, please take your cycle to a decent showroom nearby - BOTS or Track & Trail outlet. They would assist you with this.

Yes okay thanks, I missed clarifying Lady Bird Seat of Hero cycles they come with very comfortable seats with springs.
I also saw this online...https://www.decathlon.in/p/8389349_1...ke-saddle.html is anyone on the forum using this ? What are your reviews if you replaced with these on Riverside 120 ?

[satya180]

Originally Posted by roadjourno

Yes okay thanks, I missed clarifying Lady Bird Seat of Hero cycles they come with very comfortable seats with springs.
I also saw this online...https://www.decathlon.in/p/8389349_1...ke-saddle.html is anyone on the forum using this ? What are your reviews if you replaced with these on Riverside 120 ?

I am using this https://www.decathlon.in/p/8315962_t...dle.html#/254- seat
with their suspension seat post https://www.decathlon.in/p/8350484_s...m-adaptor.html
Have used it for 80km rides and its very comfortable, can vouch for this.

[sanjbmw2001]

Originally Posted by roadjourno

Hello all, is there any suggestion to replace the narrow seat of btwin with a comfortable wide seats e.g. like from Hero with springs? Has anyone done that, is it a straight swap ?

Not sure but have you tried cycling shorts and a basic bike fit to get more comfortable?
Over long rides a more rigid (hard) saddle is more comfortable.

Maybe you could give the current saddle sometime for your backside to adapt. (if you haven't done that)

Hope this helps.

[roadjourno]

Originally Posted by satya180

I am using this https://www.decathlon.in/p/8315962_t...dle.html#/254- seat
with their suspension seat post https://www.decathlon.in/p/8350484_s...m-adaptor.html
Have used it for 80km rides and its very comfortable, can vouch for this.

Seat post sounds interesting. Interim i bought the wider seat of btwin. Much better then original one. https://www.decathlon.in/p/8389349_1...ke-saddle.html

Originally Posted by sanjbmw2001

Not sure but have you tried cycling shorts and a basic bike fit to get more comfortable?
Over long rides a more rigid (hard) saddle is more comfortable.

Maybe you could give the current saddle sometime for your backside to adapt. (if you haven't done that)

Hope this helps.

Well thank you for your suggestion, but wider seat is my preference This seems comfortable so far and may go for a seat post later.

[lohithrao]

After a long break got back to cycling, I always felt "cycling" is the best way to explore.
Last weekend took one of my favorite and easy routes.

Here is a short video which captures the pleasure of cycling on a pleasant Sunday morning

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2obwP7wYwU&t=5s

[The Rationalist]

Hi guys, This lockdown has allowed me to tick one out of my bucket list: learn to ride a bicycle, at the age of 41! I was not allowed to learn by my dad, that’s a long story. I want advice regarding a good bicycle for beginner. I’m 5.11” and 70 kgs. My use will be mainly on city roads. And what all safety gear needs to be worn while cycling? Thanks in advance.

[dark.knight]

Originally Posted by The Rationalist

My use will be mainly on city roads. And what all safety gear needs to be worn while cycling? Thanks in advance.

Just get a normal, gearless cycle for starters, Hercules Streetcat/Rambo or BMX brand or those sorts.. lighter the weight the better, cheaper the better. Safety gear is the regular fare, helmet, elbow guards, half gloves, and knee guards. Pair them with good shoes and safety won't be a worry for the most part.

Look into using training wheels till you're 100% confident of the balance in various terrains, potholes and speedbreakers.

[ast.ggn]

Came across an article from Hindu sharing an amazing tale of young Parsi men from Mumbai (then Bombay) who went on cycling expedition around the world in 1920-30s. Did a little google search and found few more interesting articles covering their gigantic feat.

Link to the articles:

https://www.thehindu.com/life-and-st...le25605839.ece

https://scroll.in/magazine/904856/th...-a-century-ago

https://parsikhabar.net/sports/10-in...cceeded/18994/

Few highlights from the articles:

All of them were members of Bombay Weightlifting club.

Total 10 men embarked on their journey.

Amongst the first batch of 6 men who set for the trip, Adi B Hakim, Jal P Bapasola and Rustom B Bhumgara completed their journey in four and half year and covering over 71000 kms. They started in 1923 and came back home in 1928.

Nariman B Kapadia returned home from Tehran due to personal reasons.

Gustad G Hathiram and Keki D Pochkhanawala reached USA, Gustad decided to stay back in USA and Keki decided to sail back home.

Framroze Davar, started in 1924 and came back to India in 1931 covering 1,10,000 kms and 52 countries.



Last of the lot, Keki J Kharas, Rustam D Ghandhi and Rutton D Shroff set off in 1933 and came back in 1942.



Their journey has been captured in various books and autobiographies, one of which "With cyclists around the world" had a foreword by Pt. Jawahar Lal Nehru.

Some of them had to spend nights in prison as they were suspected of being spies.

Few excerpts from the articles:

On their expedition, the cyclists pedalled through Punjab and Baluchistan, crossing Prospect Point in Ziarat, 11,000 feet above sea level and in snow, reaching Iran and then Baghdad. Braving sandstorms, parched throats, temperatures over 57°C and saved from imminent death by Bedouins, they set a record by crossing the 956-km Mesopotamian desert from Baghdad to Aleppo in Syria, in 23 days.

They sailed to Italy, rode over the Alps, across Europe, finally reaching Britain. Three weeks later, they sailed to New York. The threesome cycled 8,400 km across the East to West Coast over five months and boarded S S Tenyo Maru to Japan, a leisurely cruise after months of grilling rides.

Continuing their journeys, they reached the ‘Hermit Kingdom’ of Korea — the first bikers to do so — and on to Manchuria and China. On their last leg, they cycled through Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Burma, North Eastern India, Calcutta and Southern India, returning to Bombay on March 18, 1928. They recalled being “surrounded by people who had come to receive us.

In Vienna, he met Gustav Sztavjanik, his cycling mate for the next seven years. The duo cycled through Western and Eastern Europe, rode over the Alps and Mont Blanc mountain, pedalled through parts of erstwhile Soviet Union, Baltic countries, Poland, and Scandinavia, including Lapland, and returned to France 18 months later, to sail to Algiers in Africa. They tortured themselves through the Sahara, counting 156 camel skeletons along the way, surviving eight sandstorms, and a malaria attack. After cycling through Africa for another six months, they boarded a ship from Dakar to Rio de Janeiro, to take on their next big challenge, riding over the mighty Andes. Six months and 2,700 km later, they reached Argentina from Brazil, and scaled the Andes up to a height of 5,200m.

America was a relief. They got back to their saddles, cycling from the East to West Coast, lecturing and meeting dignitaries, including President Herbert Hoover and tycoon Henry Ford, before sailing to Japan. They sailed to Shanghai, cycled through Hong Kong, Singapore, Sumatra, Burma, Calcutta and Bombay on March 22, 1931.

In Afghanistan, we were marooned in the desert for three successive days and nights without either food or water and traversed on camel and donkey tracks; we were snow-bound in northern Iran; and were suspected as British spies in eastern Turkey.

In 1937, the trio sailed from South Africa to Argentina and cruised through South and Central America until they reached Mexico and rode into USA from Texas. They spent a year cycling through the ‘New World’ and touching the borders of Canada. From USA, they sailed to Japan and cycled across Japan, China, Australia, Singapore and Burma, before reaching Bombay on January 29, 1942. In slightly less than nine years, Kharas, Ghandhi and Shroff had traversed 84,000 km, spanning five continents.

When the two reached Burma, they found themselves amidst a herd of wild elephants. Sztavjanik was injured and hospitalised for a month.

Once, he [Jal Bapasola] narrated how they approached the Raleigh Cycle Co of England in Bombay about [the company] sponsoring the cycles,” Babani was told by Bapasola’s 82-year-old son Noshir Bapasola, who lives in New Jersey. “The company refused. “But when they reached England, he said the company was begging them to use their cycles. He asked them why they had a change of heart and was told quite bluntly ‘we did not believe that you boys would be so successful

Pics and articles credits to respective owners.

[Ronak_7]

Hello fellow BHPians,
I am new to the cycling world and have decided to buy one bicycle after the lockdown. From past few weeks I have been researching online about Geared v/s Gearless with retro-fitted gears v/s Gearless. I will be cycling 3 days atmost every week for not more than 10 kms and mainly withing the city limits with an once in a while trip to some hilly areas nearby Pune (Just moved 2 months back, what a timing right? )

My main aim is to get back in shape while traveling to new locations in and around city. It would be very helpful if you all can shed some light on which bicycle I should be going forward to with the given aim? I am on a tight budget say 5-6 k .
Thank you all!

[ast.ggn]

Originally Posted by Ronak_7

I am new to the cycling world and have decided to buy one bicycle after the lockdown. From past few weeks I have been researching online about Geared v/s Gearless with retro-fitted gears v/s Gearless.

Since you have budget constraint, I would suggest you to explore pre-owned market (if you can find any decent brand, it will be difficult in that price range) or new gearless. (This will fall in your budget).

Other option would be to wait for a while, save up a little and go for any entry level hyrbid. It will serve you for a long time. You can find good options in used market around 10-12k and new ones around 20k.

I don't have any experience in retro fitted gears on a gearless, so I cannot comment on it's feasibility. May be any fellow BHPian can throw some light.