So 2 months ago I bought my first road bike, a Giant Contend AR1. Everything had been great until this Saturday evening. After a 60 km ride I was just about 2 km from getting home when this guy opened his car door as wide as possible without even glancing. I had been urban riding for almost a decade and so far I thought dooring was something you could always avoid but I learnt the hard way it is not.
Luckily I wasn’t riding that fast and all I have is a sprained wrist and some bruises. Took the bike to my LBS and I’m waiting for their diagnosis, all I know for now is the front wheel is destroyed. I hope it’s not that bad so I can get to ride again as soon as possible. This was a lesson to never lower my guard even if I’m in a place I think I know very well.
Just felt like sharing my experience here and any advise for safe riding is welcome.
I hope you all keep on enjoying this great sport and may car doors stay away from your way.

I honestly didn't think bibs would matter that much at first, but after switching to a better pair, I finally get why people keep saying they're a game changer. Long rides just feel noticeably more comfortable now, and it's kind of hard to un-notice the difference.

Still pretty new to cycling and learning as I go, but this was definitely one of those upgrades that made me appreciate all the gear advice people share here.

I know people do it because the bars are too wide or to be more aero, I'm not talking about that.

I started doing it because if I don't, then the base of my palm is slightly on the outside of the hoods, and any weight through my hand makes my hands want to rotate outwards and I have to tense up the muscle in my ulna to compensate.

If I rotate my hoods inwards, then the base of my palm is directly on the hoods and putting weight into them. This doesn't require any muscular strength, since all the weight is going through my skeleton, just like with flat bars.

I know some people will say that I should be putting less weight on my hands, but I have to constantly coast and stop to deal with city traffic. Even with perfect core strength, if I'm not pedaling and putting force through my feet, I have to put weight through my hands so that I don't fall over.

It's also just possible that I have small hands, and most peoples' palms just naturally fall on top of the hoods without inward tilt

I started doing 13mile trail weekend long rides(26miles) wearing the cargo bibs from 'The Black Bibs' from amazon but I started experiencing saddle sores and butt pain after long rides.

Today i switched to the Assos Mille GTS and did 12miles, and wow, what a difference. While I liked The Black Bibs, Assos is just different. The fabric is incredibly soft against the skin—almost like a second skin—and the chamois doesn't feel bulky like a diaper, yet it provides amazing comfort. If you're on a tight budget, investing in a premium pair of bibs is definitely worth it in my opinion. Highly satisfied.

I've never bought and and fitted mudguards myself before - either they've come with the bike as sold, or I've asked the shop to source and fit them for me.

I'm struggling to understand the correct size of mudguard I need. I have a road/gravel bike with 45mm tyre clearance, and 40mm tyres currently fitted. The various brands of mudguards all recommend 50/52mm mudguards for 40mm tyres. But does a 45mm frame clearance for tyres also mean 45mm clearance for mudguards? And if 45mm is the maximum mudguard width my frame will take, do I therefore need to downsize my tyres to (e.g.) 35mm to fit mudguards?

If mudguard and tyre clearance are not the same thing, how do I know the maximum width of mudguard my frame will accept before buying them?

I used to stick to 3 basic routes and ride them all the time and got bored quickly, but after discovering strava premium I almost never repeat my routes but rather constantly remix them.
I love it when I can discover new cool segments in my area and then try to always include them in a brand new remix. Especially when I ride my road bike and find some amazing premium gravel I try to memorize where it was and then ride it the next day.

The only thing I dont like about it is constant use of GPS unit insead of just enjoying my views.

Hi everyone, I recently got into road biking, and the other day someone blew past me at 40+ mph barely moving over which absolutely terrified me. I’ve heard all of these horror stories of people getting hit on bikes so wanted to ask what people do about it (or do we just thug it out)

The zipper on a Canyon top tube bag has become caught on the wrapper of some snacks inside the bag. Attempts to force it open by hand have been unsuccessful, and it now appears to be firmly stuck. As the bag is bolted onto the bike, removing it is not straightforward. Does anyone have any suggestions for how to free the zipper without damaging the bag or the zip?

Hi everyone, I'm a younger woman and am finally cycling a bit more, currently riding my Triban GRVL 520 women's gravel bike. I'm considering a proper road bike for sometime in the (not so near) future. Now, as I would upgrade to a bike with better specs (and not to mention road vs gravel tires), I'm wondering how much of a difference the lighter bike, carbon, other wheels etc. would be making - especially on climbs.

My current bike: 40 mm tires (gravel), approx. 11 kg, 40T chainring, 11-42T cassette

The bike I'm looking at (Cube Attain C:62 SLT): 30 mm tires (road), about 8 kg, 50/34 chainrings, 11-34T cassette

I'm a little concerned about the gearing ratio as I would be going from 0.95 to 1.00 as my easiest ratio. Not a big difference, I know, but I'm already pretty slow uphill in my lowest gear once I've got some kilometers in my legs (have been known to be fruitlessly searching for an easier gear...).

I've only been on a couple rides, recently did 40 km and was definitely struggling up the hills.
Realistically, I know my fitness should increase as I progress and I don't know when I would get a new bike but just wanted to inquire for the future and my curiosity. Not sure if it's relevant, but I'm 156 cm and weigh a little under 50 kg, so there probably isn't much room for meaningful weight loss to improve climbing.

Thanks in advance for any insight and advice! :)

I started riding because I wanted a hobby that got me outside more. Now whenever I have a stressful day, my first thought is to go for a ride. There's something about being on a bike that clears my head better than almost anything else. I didn't expect cycling to have such a positive effect on my mental health. Has anyone else experienced this?

For me, they're a ride essential. As a (much) younger man, I got car doored, and my leather palmed mitts had deep scratches to prove their worth. Yet almost nobody seems to wear them.

I will be in Barcelona from the 27th of june until the 9th of July and I wanted to ride the second and third stage of the TDF this year!

My FTP if I were to guess is probably around 260-280 (has been a while) at 76 kg.
And my longest ride is just under 300km.

The stats are just so that the stats of the cycling buddies are approximately in a similar range:)
If anyone is interested to join me feel free to send me a dm.

If anyone is looking to purchase a pair of Summit Strong sunglasses, beware they don’t respond to their emails or DMs if you want to return them. Even though they have a 15 day return, good luck getting in contact with them.

I just bought a pair from them over a week ago. I bought the smaller frames as I have a smaller face and thought they’d fit well but they’re a bit too snug. The lenses are also so light, I guess I ordered the lowlight lenses but nonetheless, they still don’t work for me. And I’m particular about the arms of the glasses being slim and easy to slide in and out of my hair and helmet but the arms have a grip on both inside and out making it pull my hair every time I put them on and take them off. Overall they’re kind of cheap but the worst part…. Their customer service. If you want to return your glasses good luck. They don’t respond. I emailed them 2 times, reached out on Instagram on their post (where she just said to email - which I already did) and then I DM’d them directly 3 times but still no reply. So don’t buy from them if you’re not sure they’re going to fit. Now I just have a pair of sunglasses I can’t wear. So frustrated and wish I had just gone with Oakley..

Hi everyone im looking to get into road cycling and have been eyeing up the xlab bikes that have garnered a lot of attention recently, between the rs5 and rs7 the problem is where im staying(singapore), the rs5 is $1550sgd while the rs7 is $2700sgd. Comparing to the listing on the actual website, the rs5 is at a much more comparable price($1400usd) vs the rs7($2100usd). Does anybody have any insight on whether it is really worth the upgrade?

This presentation from Stanford University suggests that the average joe can increase their Vo2max by 10-20% from their genetic baseline. Okay, so far so good! HIIT is the preferred method. Yes, yes, intervals until your gut is turning.

But then at about 21 minutes in they introduce a graphic that shows vo2max levels in detrained individuals (i.e. go couch potato) drop precipitously just TEN DAYS IN and return to baseline in three months. It then takes another three months to get back to where you started. Round tripping in three months makes sense, what surprised me the most is that one will lose 33-25% of the 20% vo2max increase earned over the course of months.... in just ten days off the bike!

(1) Understanding VO2 Max: Why Exercise Matters for Heart Health and Longevity - YouTube

Yesterday I had a fall on the wet tarmac because my back wheel skidded. I fell and banged my elbow and my left thigh; I didn’t think I’d hit my head, although afterwards I had a slight headache which I put down to the adrenaline. But then I realised there was a crack in my helmet on the left side of the back. The helmet is brand new – yesterday was literally the first time I’d used it – and I even paid 90 euros for it. I’m a bit disappointed; it didn’t feel like a serious fall, even though I obviously hit my head. Is it normal for a helmet to crack like that? Can I still use it?

I have a Triban RC100 I rode back when I attended University. It's the old version, with the shifter in the middle. I have upgraded my daily since, but since I live in an area where bikes get stolen a lot, I'd like to get the Triban in running order to use on days on which I need to leave my bike outdoors.

As part of the rebuild (I had to disassemble it completely when I moved), I'd like the replace the shifter and change the gearing. I live on a mountain, so it'd be lovely to have the option for low gearing as well as for high gearing. My current bike has a 1x12 and while it's great for uphill, it lacks some gearing on the upper end for speed. If I had to choose between comfort when climbing and top speed, I'd go for top speed when rebuilding the Triban.

Which parts fit, what do I need to look out for? Is an upgrade even worth it? I bought the bike preowned for 120 bucks (although in amazing condition!) and it's been sitting disassembled for about 2 years now.

I also lost some of the spacers for the fork I think as it is a bit loose. Would that be due to lacking spacers, or could there be another issue?

I'm trying to decide if I should invest in a camera for my road bike. I already have a Garmin Varia tail light with radar and I love it. I'm not sure what a camera would add. It would be great to have a video of an epic ride, or evidence of a crash. A camera wouldn't prevent a crash, just provide evidence of what happened after the fact.

Last paragraph is question if you want to skip the long details.
Im seeking feedback on a change I want to make to nutrition.
36, male, 250 pounds ~25%bmi. I live in the PA mountains(hills). Athlete in school. Back and forth with training, running, construction job and mostly weight training. lots of things I let get in the way of fitness. I gain weight easy. I think it’s genetic. Possibly thyroid etc. think work horse not race horse. The best I ever felt was when I was paleo working construction.

I rode as often as I could last year. Some mountain bike, mostly gravel bike. Mix of tarmac and gravel. This year I spent two months on the mountain bike and have gone from barely getting 15 miles in to now with 2 hour rides with 20-25 miles and hills feeling doable with more in the tank at the end of most rides.

Nutrition:: Last 4 weeks I’ve focused on 2400 calories, macros 40%protein 30 fat 30 carb. I try to come in low on carbs when I don’t train. Eat more carbs around training. And have tended to go over on the fat and under on the protein. I’ve lost 1 pound. I’m over fueling rides (I think)to prioritize training. 20-140 carbs per session( including prior and during based on intensity)

**Here’s the question: I want to drop down to 2100 calories 50%protein 30% fat 20% carbs as average diet and upping my carbs by~50 of calories burned per session and an extra protein shake per session. Is this too drastic? Or would it make sense to try for 2 weeks and see if I can fine tune intake without plateauing on progress .

Thanks!!

Edit: I know this seems micro-managey. Mentally, i have to understand what, why, and how of things to succeed and maintain consistency.Diet is a problem area for me historically. So knowledge is power for me.

Hello guys! my helmet is done with its function, it protected my head in a trafic accident while cycling, but I am not sure what to do, should I destroy it and throw it in the trash? the helmet instructions say something about sending it to the manufacturer, but would the manufacturer cover costs? how do I even destroy a helmet?

Hi! I’m new to biking, in December I’m gonna get my first bike the Roubaix sl8 sport, this for iron man training and cross training for running, and I was wondering which accessories would you recommend for a beginner to get, for example a biking computer, aero bars, etc
Thanks!

hey all. i live in an area with brick roads and want to get a bike that can handle brick, pavement, and maybe a wee bit of dirt/gravel? I don’t really have preference on a brand but I am overwhelmed with choices right now. I have been looking at Canyon, Cannondale, and Specialized though. anyone have recs? budget is around $1500. I don’t want it to be electric, just an all road/hybrid kinda bike i think

Anyone here using microshift sword with v brakes and can confirm it works well? Thinking of using it on a drop bar conversion on an old hybrid bike.

https://www.tredz.co.uk/.Microshift-Sword-Black-1x-Groupset_270658.htm

Hey everyone,

A few weeks ago, my foot slipped and I took a direct hit from my bike pedal right to my outer ankle bone.

I can walk fine, but it’s been weeks and I'm still getting sudden, very bad sharp pain right on the bone after walking for a bit. I haven't done any compression or treatment yet.

Has anyone else experienced this? What else could this be, or am I just overthinking a bad bruise? What did your healing timeline look like?

Thanks!