The concluding section of Tori Bortman’s The Bicycling Big Book of Cycling for Beginners makes the claim that ‘teaching, bicycles, and writing are Tori Bortman’s passions’. By the time the reader encounters this line, the truth of it has become clear.
Bortman has provided beginner (and, I would say, that face-saving term ‘advanced beginner’) cyclists with a jargon-free, highly readable companion for the first thousand miles on thin rubber tires.
These pages contain no in-house tech talk meant to bolster anyone’s credentials and squeeze the newbies into their corner. Instead, a gifted teacher who really wants her students to love the sport as much as she does builds our understanding from the ground up, step by step, brick by brick, ride by ride.
I’m finishing my first thousand miles and cannot think of a more amiable companion that The Bicycling Big Book for Beginners and the ambitiously empathetic voice it channels to riders whose gasping lungs and pumping legs are just beginning to know their strength.
Don’t ride without this.
It may help if I clarify that I made a value choice when I ordered these bike shorts. I’m not a competitive biker and was not looking to pay top dollar for a slight performance edge or for the panache of a high-dollar brand.
Well constructed, comfortably fitting, good looking, apparently durable solution for the cyclist’s feet during log rides. Note that they are slightly higher above the ankle than some similar socks.
Why has it never before occurred to me to buy ‘glasses straps’ in quantity instead of holding on to the old one until it had all the zippy tautness of a deceased night-crawler?
This marvelously versatile and well-conceived tool is perfect for small to medium adjustments at home and even as an on-ride security blanket for those who fear the worst when the wheels are rolling.
I had to stare awkwardly at my shoes for a while before springing for this Thule product when others that cost less were available. But I figure I’ll likely own only one of those puppies, which reduces the window for recovery from a bad choice. So I sprang not only for the Thule but for the three-bike as opposed to the two-bike option.
The very first words of the product description read ‘Easy entry and exit due to a fluoropolymer material …’ and I’m finding this to be true after two weeks of debuting these Look KEO cleats. They’re significantly easier on this front than my previous cleats. As a relative novice on a road bike, I’m finding this feature to be useful in avoiding needless and embarrassing low-speed Road Rash.
I’m getting back into riding after seven years on my feet. I ordered this yellow Spotti jersey as part of the campaign to get the right gear in place without breaking the bank. After a first ride, I immediately ordered a blue one.
You don’t have to sell the children to get a decent bike helmet these days, but you also don’t want to skimp on your brain bucket. Too much is in play.
Canter Bridge 