Posts Tagged ‘British’

The other day while on Facebook, I received a friend request from someone called Onix Bikes. Intrigued by the name (especially as I had a cat named Onyx when I was a young child) and by the fact that I was received a friend request from a bike company, I thought I would check out who they are.

So surfing round on the company’s website and Facebook page, I found they had this to say about themselves:

Onix Bike components offer you high performance carbon cycling equipment with design features for the modern day cyclist. Whether its a full carbon frameset or just a carbon bottle cage Onix Bikes has everything you need in one place.  Our products are manufactured to the highest quality to help you perform to your maximum potential!

Reading further, it turns out the company is run by a group of people but rather one guy – Craig Middleton. So over the past few weeks we’ve been exchanging a few emails where Craig has been telling me more about the company, as well as sending me some images to include in the post.

So Onix Bikes is a company that produces its own racing frames, handlebars, waterbottle cages and seat posts. All made from carbon. Added to this, the company only sells these goods through its online site. This means Craig has no hassle of running a retail outlet with all the associated overheads. Most impoirtantly for all us cycling consumers, as the products are only available through this online store there is no middleman to deal with. This means the prices are better (well, hopefully) than similar products on offer at most retail cycle stores.

Getting back to the race frames, there are two on offer – the Azzuro and the Aurious.

Onix Azzuro

The top of the line in the Onix Bike offering, the Azzuro is aimed at being a stiff performance frameset. It comes standard with Campag groupset and wheels with a starting price of £1499.99.

Onix Azzuro

According to the Onix Bikes website:

Onix Azzuro offers you a high performance full carbon frameset which has low weight values along with high stiffness,sleek looks and performance. Extra layers of Onix HP Carbon have been added to the high stress areas to improve overall stiffness. Modern shaped tubing for maximum performance, Onix Unsymmetrical Chainstay technology along with a thicker downtube and an oversize bottom bracket all for increased stiffness, drive and responsiveness while sprinting or climbing. We have managed to combine all these elements while still maintaining low weight values which helps the Azzuro perform to the highest standard. It also comes with the aero Onix Bladed fork which all makes for a high performance machine! The T1000 Onix HP Carbon Fibre material used to craft the Azzuros frame is more than just a high-grade 12K carbon fibre. It’s a blend engineered to give you the incredible ride quality that makes this bike so unique. Yes, it’s light and stiff. But it’s the way it performs and looks that really makes the Azzuro stand out!!

Let’s hope it does what it says on the tin!

Onix Azzuro

Thicker downtube gives incredible stiffness and acceleration as well as reducing any lateral movement to a minimum

Onix Unsymmetrical Chainstay Technology

Rear view

Onix Aurious

The Onix Aurious offers the best of both worlds combining comfort but still maintaining high performance! These values help market the Aurious as the bike for long days in the saddle such taking on Sportives and Gran Fondo’s.

The standard Onix Aurious spec offers Campagnolo, Deda and Vittoria, with a starting price of £1249.99.

Aurious from Onix Bikes

Onix Bikes Aurious

Onix Bikes Aurious

Onix Bikes Aurious

I’m hoping that in the next few weeks I may get a chance to ride one of these bikes and hopefully give you my thoughts on its performance. watch this space.

For those of who have been keeping tabs on this blog would have seen that The Prostate Cancer Charity in the UK are trying to become the charity name behind cycling. Just the same as running is for breast cancer, they would like to make cycling the sport for prostate cancer. A natural association if you like.

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men and as a result, one man dies every hour from this horrid disease, not to mention the 35000 men that are diagnosed with it every year. So it’s not something to shy away from. But rather a disease that we need to fight against.

With that, the Charity has teamed up with The Tour of Britain to offer cyclists of all abilities the chance to ride a stage of The Tour, in The Tour Rides. Taking place in September, cyclists can try out the same routes that the pro’s get to race on in the Tour.

The same attention to detail and event planning is put into delivering a Tour Ride as staging The Tour of Britain. With extensive route signage, marshals, motorcycle support, official cars on route and neutral service, the Tour Rides offer a unique full-support experience.

Plus, there are carefully located and well stocked feed and drink stations along the route as well as hot drinks and sandwiches. I’ve been informed that this year’s Tour Rides will also incorporate timing splits and timed King of the Mountains sections (Pro Tour Ride).

The neutral service is being provided by the team at Saddleback Ltd who bring to the UK market those awesome racing machines, FELT – as currently used by the Garmin Transitions cycling team the Tour de France, as well as Lance’s groupset of choice, SRAM.

So on Tuesday 22 June, I was lucky enough to be invited by the Charity to go and try out the Stoke route of the Tour Ride. This route forms as Stage 2 of The 2010 Tour of Britain. It was a clear hot day – 22 degrees celcius. A perfect day to go out for the ride – as you will see from the pictures below. I had been looking forward to doing the ride for a whole week running up to it, especially as it was time out of the hectic schedule we were on for The Tour Series, plus I got to have my last ride on the Felt FC.

As it was a media ride, we weren’t going to do the full day’s worth of riding (ie. Pro Ride). We were only aiming to do 60+ km’s. However, we were going to take in the hilliest part of the route. Our day started off in Rocester, the home of JCB. From there we made our way to Leek taking in the stunning views of the Staffordshire Moorlands.  On the ride we took a short break in the village of Longnor, where we were welcomed with open arms by the owner of the local coffee shop called Cobbles. A true cycling fan, he offered us teas, coffees and sandwiches on the house. How could we say no to that? So if you ever in the village, make sure you stop by Cobbles.

From Longnor we made our way towards Leek, not before taking in plenty of 10% climbs and the well known, Gun Hill. I felt great at the start of the ride but the climbs were relentless and they began taking their toll. I have to say that Gun Hill was not easy at all and I can see why people gather along it when the Tour races over. There were some great downhills too (not too many of these unfortunately), but did manage to get up to speeds of 80km/h.

It was a great day out and I thoroughly enjoyed myself. If you’re on the fence about whether to take part, I would urge you to go for it. Sign up for The Tour Rides, you will not be sorry. And feel good in knowing that you are also putting money to a good cause.

I would also like to say a HUGE thanks to Andrew and team at Saddleback for providing me with the Felt FC to use on the ride! I loved riding it so much, I am now looking to buy it.

And last but not least, below are pictures taken on the day of our ride. These were taken by Joolze Dymond who is also the official photographer for The Tour of Britain and The Tour Series. If you get a chance, make sure you check out her website: www.joolzedymond.com

Remember, there are three routes to choose from and three rides at each, for the exception of London, which offers only one ride. For more details on all the Rides on offer (dates, distances, etc) in The Tour Rides, check out my previous posting on The Tour Rides.

Enjoy the pics and sign up!

Starting out in Rocester where our ride began

A beautiful day to be out riding the bike

Making the most of my last day on the Felt FC

The start of many many climbs to come

Easy for some, others not

The scenery was just spectacular

Riding on roads that were virtually clear of traffic. Made for a superb day out

You can almost see the heat come off the road

Some more uphills

Working the Felt. Plus, enjoyed the SRAM groupset. Definitely a convert to its style

How can you say no to that?

Peter and Liz helping us out on the ride, a day after the Chester round of The Tour Series

Some more ups

Peter trying the typical 'fan with water bottle' you see in the Tour de France

He was loving it

...and the fact that I was getting wet

Mind you, afterwards it did feel quite refreshing

Then just for the camera decided to do a typical rider 'response' to getting wet

Maybe over doing it a little :-)

Watch out for the BIG hand! Getting a fresh bottle from Liz

Seriously enjoying my day out on the Felt. I think I should keep it!!

And there were some downhills too

But what goes down must go up

Liz and Peter enjoying their day out of the office

Quiet roads

Coffee stop in the village of Longnor. Check out Cobbles if you are ever there

Making our way towards Gun Hill

But before we get there, a few more clims to negotiate

Boy it was hot out there

There were loads of these too - 10 per cent climbs

Doing some close ups for the Charity

Taking the mick out of Joolze who's sitting in the boot of the CRV

Suffering on the first killer section of Gun Hill

Really thankful that Paul was there to encourage me along

My legs were hurting big time

Finished the second killer section

Enjoying the fact that Gun Hill levels out towards the top

Almost there

Joolze making us sprint for the top. She loves to see us suffer

Freewheeling into Leek

Enjoying the post ride chat with Paul...

...and laugh

So I’ve been thinking of different items to place on my blog that would hopefully be of use to all those that visit this page. One thing that did come to mind was the twitter profiles of all the British professional cycling teams and riders. There isn’t a single source available where you could find this (well. not that I could find), so thought I’d give it a go.

The teams and their twitter profiles are:

CYCLEPREMIER.COM – METALTEK

TEAM @Cycle_Premier

Raphael Deinhart @GermanRacer

Ashley Finn @ash_finn

Simon Wilson @Si_Wilson

James Millard @JamesMillard

ENDURA RACING

TEAM @enduraracing

Rob Partridge @RobPartridge

David Lines @davidlines

Evan Oliphant @evantwats

James McCallum @Jimmy_mach10

Ross Creber @creber1

Scott Thwaites @Scott_Thwaites1

Gary Hand @Handinator

KUOTA – ROAD CC

TEAM @Kuota_RoadCC

Cherie Pridham @CHEZPRO

Jeroen Janssen @FlyingDutchJJ

Jon Mozley @Jon_Mozley

Jefte de Bruin @JeftedeBruin

Dan Davies @dan_davies86

Tom Martin @tommartin7

Martin Smith @Martyvelo

ORBEA – FOR GOODNESS SHAKES!

TEAM @Orbea_FGS

James Whatling @OrbeaJames

Daniel Kogan @dankogan

PENDRAGON COL COLNAGO

TEAM @PendragonSports

Yanto Barker @YBLECOL

Richard Tanguy @richtanguy

Chris Opie @SpeedyOpie

Rhys Lloyd @RhysLloyd

TEAM RALEIGH

TEAM @TeamRaleighUK

Liam Holohan @lh_holohan

Dan Fleeman @Danfleeman

Mike Cuming @mike_cuming

Peter Smith @petersmith35

Chris Truett @christruett

RAPHA CONDOR SHARP

TEAM @raphacondor

Kristian House @kristianhouse

Dean Downing @deanodown

Ben Greenwood @benjigreenwood

Matt Cronshaw @mattcronshaw

John Herety @RaphaJ

Andy Verrall @andyverbals

SIGMA-SPORT SPECIALIZED

TEAM @teamsigmasport

TEAM SKY

TEAM @TeamSky

Greg Henderson @greghenderson1

Russell Downing @russdowning

Chris Froome @chrisfroome

John Lee Augustyn @jlaugustyn

Simon Gerrans @simongerrans

Kurt Asle Arvesen @kaarvesen

Bradley Wiggins @bradwiggins

Kjell Carlstrom @kjellcarlstrom

Serge Pauwels @sergepauwels

Ben Swift @swiftybswift

These are the teams that I have so far. Obviously, when I get more, I will update this post with the additional info. I have also created a page dedicated to these teams and their online profiles. Make sure to bookmark it.

The Tour of Britain and The Prostate Cancer Charity have today revealed three new amateur cycle rides for 2010 – The Prostate Cancer Charity Tour Rides.  According to the press release, cyclists of all levels will have the opportunity to measure themselves against the pro riders from The Tour of Britain, by taking on the same full stages from Britain’s national cycle tour event.

The events – scheduled to take place in September – are:

  • Sunday 5 Sep – South West: A brand new addition to The Tour Ride roster  will see riders take on a tough route from Minehead to the South Devon Coast covering a total of 150km.
  • Saturday 18 Sep – London: The second year this event is happening, will see cyclists ride a route that takes in some of the most iconic landmarks in the capital, just before the final stage of The Tour.
  • Sunday 26 September – Stoke-on-Trent: The inaugural event in 2009 saw 1,300 plus cyclists take to the surrounding roads of Stoke. Included in that field was British Road Race Champion Kristian House (see pic below). This year sees the 145km event start and finish in Stoke (although exact route is still to be confirmed). For those who follow my blog will remember me going on a ride with 2004 Paris-Roubaix winner Magnus Backstedt on this very route last year. Read more about that here.

For the exception of London, both South West and Stoke events will also offer  challenge routes of 70km and family routes of 20km. This is great as now people of all ages and abilities can take part, allowing more people to spend their day out on the bicycle.

According to the Tour Ride website, the rides will cost £40 for the full stage distances, £30 for the 70km distances and £20 for a family of four to do the 20km Family Rides, in both Stoke-on-Trent and the South West.

Entries close on 1 September 2010 but as places are limited and expected to fill up fast, riders are being encouraged to sign up as soon as possible.

So, if this tickles your fancy and you’d like to spend a day out on the bike experiencing what life as a pro taking part in The Tour of Britain is like, then make sure to sign up for the event as soon as possible.

Last but not least, here are some pictures from the 2009 Tour Ride event in Stoke-on-Trent:

The Tour of Britain lead vehicle getting ready to lead out the riders for the Tour Ride

British Road Race Champion Kristian House and the team from Sharp4Prostate

Neutral service on The Tour Ride provided by Saddleback, distributors of SRAM, Felt and ZIPP

Free food and drinks at all the food stops on The Tour Ride

Day 2 from the National Senior Track Champs saw the woman’s sprints take place, as well as the men’s 20km scratch race. The results from the day were:

Woman’s Sprint final:

1. Victoria Pendleton, Science in Sport.com
2. Anna Blyth, VC St Raphael
3. Helen Scott, Halesowen A&CC

Victoria Pendleton showed just why she is the World and Olympic champion by beating the talented Anna Blyth in two straight runs.

Victoria Pendleton showed just why she is the World and Olympic champion by beating the talented Anna Blyth in two straight runs.

Men’s 20km Scratch Race:

1. Chris Newton, Rapha Condor Recycling
2. Andrew Magnier, Brooks Cycles
3. Jon Mould, Agiskoviner.com
4. Mark McNally, 100% ME
5. Rhys Lloyd, Rapha Condor Recycling

Race time: 24mins 20 secs

Andrew Magnier (2nd), Chris Newton (1st)  and Jon Mould (3rd)

Andrew Magnier (2nd), Chris Newton (1st) and Jon Mould (3rd)

For more  info on Day 2 and for a longer break down of the results, please click here.

Anna Blyth

Anna Blyth

Day one of the 2008 National Senior Track Champs saw both the woman’s 500m time trial and men’s kilo take place. The results of these events were:

Women’s 500m Time Trial
1. Anna Blyth VC St Raphael 35.731
2. Helen Scott Halesowen A & CC 37.180
3. Alison Chisholm Edinburgh RC 37.898
4. Janet Birkmyre XRT – elmycycles 38.205
5. Charline Joiner City of Edinburgh RC 38.428
6. Jenny Davis City of Edinburgh RC 38.615
7. Sarah Storey VC St Raphael 39.432
8. Caroline Gammell XRT – elmycycles 42.303
9. Jo-Anne Hamon Yasumitsu Schlapp 42.519
10. Louise Satherley Yasumitsu Schlapp 42.542
11. Lynn Hamel thegreenroom.com 43.380
12. Cheryl Owens RT 316 44.155

Men’s 1000m Kilo Time Trial
1. Matthew Crampton Science In Sport.com  1.03.103
2. Steven Burke 100% ME 1.03.764
3. David Daniell Cleveland Wheelers CC 1.03.928
4. Craig MacLean Plowman Craven RT 1.04.818
5. Christian Lyte Sport City Velo  1.05.556
6. Bruce Croall City of Edinburgh RC 1.05.721
7. Matt Haynes City of Edinburgh RC 1.06.463
8. Josh Hargreaves Sport City Velo  1.06.843
9. Peter Mitchell Team Terminator 1.07.030
10. Benedict Elliott VC St Raphael 1.07.721
11. Chris Pritchard Stealth RT 1.09.925
12. Toby Sherwood City of Edinburgh RC 1.10.149
13. Dave Readle Science In Sport.com  1.10,254
14. Gwyn Carless Yasumitsu Schlapp 1.10.358
15. Steven Roe Team Swift  1.11.271
16. Thomas Powell Newcastle RC 2001 1.11.909
17. Joseph Allen Evans Cycles  1.12.577
18. Steve Davies Ferryhill Whlrs 1.13.352
19. Andrew Hewitt Brooks Cycles  1.15.774
20. Neil Laing Edinburgh RC 1.16.911

For more info on day 1 results, click here.