Irish commuter cyclist shows Canadians how to cycle through winter

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2K4j42VZS58]   Barry www.worldwidecycles.com

Worldwidecycles on RTE News

Fran McNulty from RTE recently paid us a visit . Here are the results ; RTÉ.ie Extra Video – RTÉ News Player.   Barry www.worldwidecycles.com

How to build a bicycle wheel with no previous experience .

A friend of worldwidecycles , Paul McCarthy recently decided that he would like to build a set of wheels for his day to day commuter bike from scratch . Having never attempted to do so in the past he set about finding out how to do it correctly and keep it within budget . Here’s …

The Big Move !

Once the ball was rolling it took less than four weeks to fit out the new shop and completely relocate our business . We had a huge amount of help from friends and family and there were some pretty long days put in . A 5am start to a 10pm finish was not unusual . Now that we are getting settled in , it’s great to see the reaction of customers who have all been very positive about our new store .

Bert the shirt !

Alberto Bolero Contadero was always a little bit different from the rest of his school friends . Whilst the rest of his schoolmates in the Spanish hillside village were content to wear subtle pastel olive coloured workshirts to school , young Alberto had a penchant for bright colours especially yellow and pink thus earning himself …

Custom Orthotics

I got my first orthotic at the age of seven and have gone through many different variations since . Prices that I have paid have ranged from €40 to €300 per pair . There are many different practitioners but yesterday I visited the best of them all . Over 20 years ago Jempi Wilssens made …

Why and what next !

This year there has been a huge surge in the amount of interest in cycling and the number of cyclists on Irish roads . There are three contributing factors which have helped to spur this on ; 1 – The Government Cycle to Work initiative – When an average PAYE worker is given the chance …

Cycling Books

Every now and then someone will ask ‘ can you recommend any good books on cycling ‘ . Well , here are a few of my favourites but please feel free to add a few of your own to the list too ; Le Metier – The seasons of a professional cyclist Michael Barrys fantastic …

Once we were warriors !

What happens to a professional bike rider after he retires? The guys at the top are usually financially secure enough to pick and choose what they do next. Some become directeur sportifs, others get into tv commentary or punditry. Some will buy a small business or farm to run just to keep themselves occupied. But …

Bike pure – a quiet revolution .

The anti doping tests that are carried out may also have an inherent flaw . The deterrent aspect is good but cyclists by their nature are competitive . The drug tests are seen by some as just another opponent to be beaten . Some riders live in a bubble where success and winning is all that matters . They do not spend much time thinking about whether they may be cheating or not .

2010 Sean Kelly Tour

Today I was impressed by many people at The Sean Kelly Tour . The huge team of over 300 volunteers who gave up their Sunday to help out , and many gave a good deal more time than that . The 3700 determined cyclists who were all so cheerful and friendly to each other and …

2010 Sean Kelly Tour – Pre entry only !

worldwidecycles The entries for the 2010 Sean Kelly Tour of Waterford are flooding in as the closing date approaches . This promises to be the best event yet so be sure to get your entry in before the closing date of Friday the 20th of August as there will be no entry on the day …

Dan the Man

On Saturday Daniel Martin , the nephew of Stephen Roche , cousin of Nicolas and son of former professional Neil Martin won a race . The race was the Tour of Poland , the first national tour victory by Irish rider since Kelly’s victory in Spain in 1988 and uncle Stephens wins in France and …

The day Paidi met Tom Boonen !

A couple of years ago I was a mechanic on the Irish team during the Tour of Britain . Each day after the stage the riders would recount different events that had occurred . One of the highlights was the day that Paidi O’Brien , all 5 ft 2 inches of him , came up …

2010 Ring of Kerry

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSqgV8-LpD8]

The Playstation Generation

There is an article in today’s Irish independant about a new initiative in Mayo where 1000 cyclists will be using number plates on their bikes . The reason given is to highlight road safety for cyclists as the number plates are reflective . I think that many cyclists are slightly ahead of the curve on …

Have a good one !

I was asked recently what the best way to train for an event in 4 months time would be . After explaining the benefits of tapering and working back from the date of the event and training in 4 week blocks ,I began to wonder just how much the person would actually enjoy riding their …

Cancellaras’ Electric bike ???

Whilst watching this years Paris Roubaix I wondered to myself why Fabian Cancellara had a bike change for no obvious apparent reason . He is the biggest powerhouse of the modern era but the following video poses a few questions ; [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Nd13ARuvVE] Barry www.worldwidecycles.com

Lance and Landis – The truth is out there !

Lance Armstrong is the great American hero . He survived cancer to come back and win the Tour 7 times . He is a hero to millions of not just cycling fans but sports fans in general , and more importantly cancer victims . His Livestrong foundation appears to be doing more to fight cancer than any other organisation worldwide . I look down at my own wrist as I type and see a yellow band , a livestrong band . Is this because I am a Lance Armstrong supporter and fan , no , it’s my link to someone lost to cancer . The yellow band is a symbol of hope for those with cancer and a reminder of the person who did not win their own personal battle for those who lost someone to the disease .

Know when to stop pushing !

Have you ever gone out for a spin on a bike just after a shower of rain in summer time . The air is clear and the grass and trees are greener , and there is a really clean fresh healthy smell in the air . Have you ever pedaled up a tough climb and …