Free time with cycling
After using our services, what will you do with all your new-found free time?
Having made the decision to outsource the important, yet possibly (to you anyway) dull admin tasks to us, you will almost certainly find that you now more free time on your hands in the evenings and weekends.
But what are you going to do with all that time, once you have caught up with your friends and family? Need a hobby? We asked some of our customers what they really enjoy doing out of hours. It seems that since the enigmatic Sir Chris Hoy won a fistfull of golds, at 3 successive Olympic Games and the side-burned wonder Bradley Wiggins became the first Brit to win the Tour de France, cycling has become the thing to do in your spare time.
Want to find a group to cycle with? Or perhaps you fancy getting into cycling a bit more, but don’t know where to start? Then Skyride might be just the thing you’ve been looking for!
They offer:
- Guided Routes, with support from trained leaders.
- Big Bike Events - traffic free cycling for all ages and abilities
- Social Rides - rides organised by their social network of cyclists
There is even a terrific blog full of cycling tips and ideas, from ways to store your bike, to how to organise your own charity cycling event!
When it comes to tools of the trade, like most things, you can spend as little, or as much as you like on cycling equipment. You can buy the top of the line super cycling sportswear with prices starting at £140 for some padded shorts or you can go out for a casual Sunday pedal in jogging bottoms and a t-shirt.
Brand new road bikes vary in price from a not insurmountable £300 to an astonishing £12,000 (and it doesn’t even have an engine)! Having said that, one of our girls recently did a 100km charity cycle round London on an old bike that she borrowed from her mum, it’s only upgrades were a comfy saddle and some new brake blocks.
And then there are the cycling gadgets, the variety of these is tremendous. From complete navigation systems for your bike to simple easy-fit lights. But before you go and invest in something bespoke, you could try adding an app to your smartphone.
Our favourite is Map My Ride, here’s why:
- You can get it for android and iPhones.
- The free version is pretty awesome, but if the ads annoy you, you can upgrade.
- It links with Facebook and Twitter easily so you can compare rides with friends.
- You can use it to find new cycling routes.
- You can also log your food, which is great if you want to watch what you’re eating.
- You can create personal goals - faster, further, longer!
- The app logs your progress.
- You can select lots of different types of work out, including swimming or walking the dog (don’t take your phone in the pool though, they tend to object!).
- It’s really easy to use.
We could go on, but we recon you should just download the free version and try it for yourself.
Do you have a favourite piece of cycling equipment? Have you got a cycling app for your smartphone? Are you a regular on Skyride?
Tell us your cycling stories, we’d love to hear them!