Cyclist
In the Drops: OnGuard’s impressive new lock, ‘King of Sports’ book, Flo’s do-it-all bag and Heed the Call
September has arrived and it really feels like summer’s over. Stage race season is ending, temperatures are dropping and the grind begins in earnest once more.
This week has been a big one for us, mainly thanks to the Vuelta coming to its conclusion and the Tour of Britain taking over once again. We’ve celebrated by imagining what a British Grand Tour would look like – with a full 21-stage route. We’ve also started looking ahead to the upcoming autumn Classics season and the last big stage race of the women’s season.
Elsewhere we’ve been getting into buyer’s guide season with a bit of revamping to our best bike locks, best kids’ bikes and best endurance road bikes guides as well as our guides to the best road bike upgrades and best gravel bike upgrades – with plenty more still to come.
The latest episode of the Cyclist Magazine Podcast also came out this week and it’s a scorcher, we were joined by Nico Roche, who spoke to us about the Vuelta, Tadej Pogačar and his racing career.
Let’s get In the Drops.
OnGuard RockSolid lock
OnGuard claims its new RockSolid lock is the world’s lightest angle-grinder resistant D lock (or U lock, whichever you prefer, but I prefer D lock because U implies it’s not actually locked).
It’s made from what OnGuard says is ultra-high-strength diamond-ceramic materials, with several extra layers of defence and a locking bolt that secures the crossbar in four places. The brand describes it as ‘virtually impervious to the cutting force of angle grinders’. It also has a thick rubber cover on the U bar to make it easy on your frame’s paint job.
It’s Sold Secure Diamond rated unsurprisingly and weighs just 1.4kg, which OnGuard says makes it the lightest angle grinder resistant lock available. On top of that it also features plenty of ergonomic touches, which makes it a pleasure to use.
- Buy now from Tweeks Cycles (£199.99)
King of Sports by Peter Ward
King of Sports was first written in 1967 and was Peter Ward’s guide to everything cycling, from lifestyle to racing and for beginners and experts alike. It includes yoga exercises, mechanics, race tactics, race organisation, nutrition and clothing advice and much more in between with graphs and diagrams to demonstrate including a fun pictogram of forming echelons.
It has been described as the ‘encyclopaedia of cycling’ and this is the first time it has been republished for a modern audience. It’s not something to take word for word for your next training plan but it’s a lovely little insight into the past – and there might be a few useful things in there.
It also has some really nice old pictures of Ward and his contemporaries, as well as some of his stories, which he uses to demonstrate certain lessons. The book also finishes up with some of his most memorable events, including the tale of when he finished first at the National Championships but was disqualified (he thought unjustly) for being given an aspirin outside the official feed zone (he didn’t even consume it).
- Buy now from Pendle Press (£15)
Flo Aid Bag
Imagine having everything you need for all potential bike ride disasters in your saddle bag. You don’t have to, it’s the Flo Aid Bag.
It all sits inside the Flo Saddle Bag, a 1L bag that has ‘extreme weather resistance’, a Boa strap and safety loop for closure, and it splits in half, which Flo has to separate Bike Aid from First AId.
In the Bike Aid section it has: a multi-tool, CO2 regulator, tyre lever, 5.5 hex, tubeless seal, tube patches, zip ties and latex gloves. The products are Flo’s own so it really is a complete kit, the multi-tool has a load of useful functions including a tubeless plug, valve core tool, chain breaker, several hexes, Torx 20/25, spoke wrenches and a bottle opener. Flo says there is still space for a tube and/or CO2 canister but personal preference/shipping issues mean they’re not included.
The First Aid side includes: Tegaderm dressings, a tourniquet, blister covers, plasters, gauze wrap and tape, saline, saddle cream, suncream, shears and gloves. That’s right there are two whole pairs of glove in this one bag!
But you get the picture it literally has everything.
- It looks like the full kit is out of stock at the moment, but you can find all the inside stuff including the bag, multi-tool, CO2 regulator, and tyre levers at FloCycling.
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What we’re into this week: Heed the Call podcast
Football is back! Not that football though, sorry. The NFL season kicked off last night after a long off-season. This year’s seven-month break felt longer than usual for me and many others because everyone’s favourite NFL podcast, Around the NFL, was unexpectedly cancelled by shadowy league figures with no explanation or official word. We waited and speculated before the end was finally announced.
In its place has risen two shows, Gregg Rosenthal’s NFL Daily has officially taken the old podcast’s feed (and I am keeping up with that), but the magic of Around the NFL has been reborn in the form of the Heed the Call podcast with Dan Hanzus, Marc Sessler and Justin Graver (plus guests). And it’s the real deal, it’s Around the NFL unshackled and set free and it saved the summer.
If you’re a fan of the NFL and you don’t already listen (chances are low) then I can’t recommend it enough. If you aren’t a fan, then it’s a great way to help get you into the sport.
While we’re here, it’s time for another In the Drops playlist of new music released since the last time I was here. It’s a compact edition this time out because I’ve been busy living, but it still has plenty of good music including new stuff from Fontaines DC, Sports Team and Sunflower Bean as well as a couple of exciting artists I’d not listened to before, Wunderhorse and The Dare. For good measure there are also picks from Post Malone’s country album and Sabrina Carpenter.
And while I’m here shoutout English Teacher for winning the Mercury Prize.
- Listen to In the Drops #22 on Spotify
- Check out all my In the Drops playlists
The post In the Drops: OnGuard’s impressive new lock, ‘King of Sports’ book, Flo’s do-it-all bag and Heed the Call appeared first on Cyclist.