Going Long

episode 16: end of the ZRL season 1 – titans grove

Sun, 31 Mar 2024 17:17:02 +0000

The Zwift Racing League season is ending. The team's place in the League table is yet to be finalised. The previous five races have been well subscribed and hard fought. This final race report includes some background in the run up to the start gun, the outcome and ultimately the results from all the team's hard work.

Thanks for listening. Feel free to check out the Going Long blog at www.goinglong.co.uk. Don't forget to subscribe. If you want to buy me a coffee, it helps me bring you more content and supports the podcast. #CoffeeAndBikes

episode 15: popping out for some crisp sea air

Sun, 24 Mar 2024 18:01:36 +0000

I hardly need an excuse to tap out a quick century bike ride. When an excuse does rear its ugly head I'm all over it. Following and incident that required me to travel from London to Poole to collect something, I jumped at the chance to go by bike. It's a lovely route that has been tweaked over many years to go through some stunning English countryside. This is all about how the ride went.

episode 14: a short story of dentistry and money

Sun, 17 Mar 2024 03:00:00 +0000

Many have fear of the dentist. Few are as fearful as me. Rather than dwell too much on dentistry, this episode takes a tiny detour from the usual content and tells tale of a brief meeting with an old friend in my beloved Soho, where I lived for most of my adult life and brought up my three kids with my life partner...

episode 13: how to restore a v1 wahoo kickr

Sun, 10 Mar 2024 00:10:00 +0000

Having been handed a heavy box of broken parts that once was a V1 Wahoo Kicker, there soon came a time to put it all together and make it work. This episode details the deep rabbit hole I ventured down to eventually get that to happen. My journey takes me to the far flung reaches of the internet as well as places like Windsor and Richmond IRL. Did I succeed in my quest? Have a listen to find out...

episode 12: the arrival of a broken wahoo kickr

Sat, 10 Feb 2024 21:40:21 +0000

It was a dark night around 10 p.m. in a car park outside an Olympic velodrome somewhere in London, where the exchange took place. A small group of people huddled around the back of a car, stuffing a mysterious cardboard box into its boot. An onlooker may have thought something sinister was afoot. Have a listen to this episode to find out what was really going on.

episode 11:- how to captain a zwift team of strangers

Sun, 14 Jan 2024 00:30:00 +0000

What's it like to captain your cycling club's Zwift racing team? Follow the process from the initial idea through recruiting to the final reward of seeing the results come in. Get an insight into the challenges, the camaraderie, the excitement, and the sort of things that can and do go wrong. It's not as easy as you might think, but leading a diverse group of individuals towards a common goal in the world of online cycling racing is incredibly rewarding!

Thanks for listening. Feel free to check out the Going Long blog at www.goinglong.co.uk. Don't forget to subscribe. If you want to buy me a coffee, it would really help me bring you more content and support the podcast. #CoffeeAndBikes

episode 10:- a loop of the uk’s côte d’azur

Fri, 15 Dec 2023 14:16:39 +0000

There's something very special about a short spin around Pool Harbour on a late summer evening when the light is fading. I have a regular loop from where we stay when visiting family that leads you out to Sandbanks, past the ferry crossing, and back. It's around 10 miles and cuts through one of the wealthiest areas in the UK. In this episode, I chat you through this ride, where I stop for a while, have a ponder, and take a few pictures before getting back to the family.

episode 9: - hill climb racing up london's swains lane

Tue, 12 Dec 2023 13:09:08 +0000

Hill Climb Racing is a cycling discipline unique to the UK that's been around for more than 100 years. The season runs over the course of a few weeks, just before winter breaks. It's simple. Cycle up a short, sharp UK hill as fast as you can! You can ride any bike or be of any age or persuasion. There's nothing quite like it. It's a fantastic spectacle of different riders on a wide variety of bikes, from some of the fittest athletes on exotic feather-light bicycles costing as much as a new car to retirees dusting off their step-through shoppers carrying children, pets, and beer. Join me as a start-line marshal responsible for setting riders off up London's notorious Swain's Lane, which cuts through Highgate Cemetery, where many of the world's famous have their final resting place.

Woman sketching: @alison.gardinaire.art

The Urban Hill Climb Hosts: London Cycling Campaign

episode 8:- moonrakers and sunseekers

Sat, 21 Oct 2023 21:27:50 +0000

Moonrakers And Sunseekers is a long distance bike ride from Bristol to Poole on the South coast and back, taking in some fantastic roads and amazing countryside. The route leads me and my good friend Alex down memory lane, through roads and places I knew from my teenage years. Starting at night and ending late the next day, this is a ride to remember and share.

episode 7:- return of the zwift - back on the gain train

Wed, 11 Oct 2023 19:52:45 +0000

When summer fades and the weather closes in, the natural tendency for our creature known as The Cyclist, is to drag out the indoor trainer, switch on the fan and sweat it out in their warm dry shed, garage, hall or even front room. This static indoor 'training' usually involves staring at a computer screen running an app called Zwift. In this episode, we learn of the shock to the system this causes our two wheeled friend. He chooses to join an event on Zwift called The Hotchillee Gain Train. Take a listen to find out how he gets on...

episode 6:- getting to know one of the death machines

Tue, 15 Aug 2023 02:00:00 +0000

I talk about makerspaces, places where you can access all manner of tools that enable you to make and fix all sorts of things, including bikes and bike related stuff.. You'll also hear how I get inducted to use industrial machine tools, in particular and Bridgeport milling machine, which then helps me to machine the things I design.

episode 5:- my first zwift experience

Tue, 08 Aug 2023 02:00:00 +0000

This is how I got into virtual cycling, with the help and encouragement of my clubmates. I delve into getting and setting up the trainer and describe taking my first tentative steps on the Zwift platform. I recount what it was like to see my power data for the first time, and I also tell of how the process affected my fitness and eventually led me to becoming the captain of a Zwift racing team...

episode 4:- my fourth dunwich dynamo - the suffering

Tue, 01 Aug 2023 02:00:00 +0000

A report on some of the ups and downs of doing the Dunwich Dynamo night ride for the fourth time at midsummer, when temperatures reached 36 degrees in the UK. On this magical journey, you start out from London in the evening, follow the twinkle of taillights through bustling English villages, and reach the seaside in Dunwich for daybreak. Having covered the 110 miles, there's a little respite for breakfast before the return leg, which throws up more than a few almost insurmountable challenges...

episode 3:- a boy and a bicycle pt2

Wed, 26 Jul 2023 02:00:00 +0000

This very short episode puts the final touches on a picture of a teen torn between the love of riding his bike and playing guitar. You discover the reason why he eventually succumbed to the allure of a rock and roll lifestyle, left home for London, and eschewed any thought of sport or fitness to seek fame and fortune.

episode 2:- a boy and a bicycle - pt1

Thu, 13 Jul 2023 20:00:00 +0000

In this episode, I recall some of my memories of when carbon fibre bikes were only a dream. I describe the culture of the UK cycling scene as I experienced it at the time. For example, I recall how we fearlessly followed inches behind fast-moving vehicles in their draft, and I reminisce about the weekly club runs. Also, I talk about the weekly track training and weight lifting we did and how we maintained our bikes. Finally, I tell a tale of that all important new bike day, when I collected my bespoke hand-made track bike from London.

episode 1:- my backstory

Sat, 08 Jul 2023 09:51:28 +0000

This is the 1st episode of Going Long, about all things bike. I go back in time to when, as a teen, I became inspired to ride. I touch on how I got selected to race for the South Of England juniors and how my life choices lead me from a healthy lifestyle on two wheels into carrying 22 stone (308 lbs/ 139 kg), struggling to walk. The story continues to where I am today.