Month: September 2015

Orfos Flares are some of the brightest bike lights I’ve owned, if you want to be visible whilst riding in the dark these are the lights for you.

They are made up of half watt Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) encased in a clear reflective fully waterproof housing providing 360 degrees visibility. It has a single press button that controls the three functions (On/Off, Mode Selection and Brightness).

Orfos Flares – 360 Degrees Visibility

Specifications: –

Modes – Solid, Pulse, Flash and Strobe

Size – 73.5mm x 23.5mm x 28.5mm

Lumens* – Red 500 / White 300

Rechargeable – Yes, via Micro USB (cable supplied)

Battery Life – 24 hours on LOW / 90 Minutes on FULL

Mounting System – Magnet and Cable Ties

Weight** – Red 86g / White 81g / Magnet (mount) 107g

Waterproof – Yes 100%

Price – $119 each or $229 for a pair with 4 mounts

I initially saw these flares on KickStarter and immediately backed the project, my pair of flares were some of the first to arrive in Europe in March 2015, so I’ve been using them for the last six months now.

Orfos Flare

The mounting system is simple and fuss free, it’s essentially an extremely strong magnet attached to the bike with three cable ties. This system means there’s no more fumbling with clips and brackets to release the lights especially in gloved hands and is brilliant for transferring the lights between bikes.

Magnetic mounting system.

For steel frames there is no need to use the cable ties, I’ve found this to be extremely useful on my Brompton, the entire mount is removable so it does not impede the folding process like most other mounting systems.

Mounting on a Brompton (steel frame) without the cable ties

They need to be mounted vertically as this ensures the best magnetic holding strength, in the horizontal position the mounts are very susceptible to impact shocks and the flare can easily become detached. When mounted vertically this will not be an issue for you, I’ve fitted them to my mountain bike and rode a few local trails with jumps and they didn’t move at all.

However, it does restrict where you can mount the flares. The manual does not specify a preferred mounting position, although with the vertical mounting requirement the only real feasible position for the front flare is the head tube. Like most bikes my head tube isn’t perpendicular to the ground and leans back at an angle of 74 degrees. This results in the flare being angled up too much and even on the low setting I’ve had several cars flash me, this means they can definitely see me but I am probably dazzling them.

There needs to be some way of dipping the beam as without it I’m reluctant to ride dazzling on coming traffic. My current solution is to use a cheap bar extender rotated through ninety degrees, I don’t like the look of it but it works. I’m thinking of gluing a Go Pro mount to the top of the magnet so that I can attach it to a K-Edge handle bar mount instead. I’ll post a follow-up if I do this! It would be good if Orfos could look into some form of official bar mount as an optional accessory.

The single button makes them very easy to use, the first press turns them on, subsequent quick presses cycle through the modes (Solid, Pulse, Flash and Strobe) pressing for half a second cycles through the brightness settings (Low, Medium and High) and to turn off you press and hold for three seconds.

Although, a disadvantage of this single button process is that I have found that I often end up changing modes by accident when trying to lower the brightness settings, which can be a little frustrating at times as you have to cycle through them to get back to the mode you want.

Recharging is as simple as connecting the supplied Micro USB cable to any powered USB port, making it remarkably easy to charge, no need for separate chargers. Just ninety minutes can give you a whole day of light on the low setting. When the battery needs recharging the flare will switch to low power mode, this is a slow flash on the lowest brightest setting and will give you thirty minutes of light before switching off.

The white front flare gives off enough illumination that it can easily light up a small room, as seen in the picture below of my kitchen, the only light source is the Flare magnetically attached to the metal cooker hood. Whilst I haven’t been camping since a child I can see that this would make an excellent tent light or for other activities such as fell walking where an all round light is required. The magnetic mounting system also means that you can easily attach it to fabric by putting the magnet one side and the flare the other.

Kitchen Illuminated only by the Orfos Flare on full

Overall they are an exceptional set of lights, they are expensive but worth it, especially when you think of the all round visibility they give you (please do take a look at the two videos above to see the lights in action). I deliberately took the photos and videos from the side to show the level of visibility, how many other lights have you seen that can do that?

I am extremely happy with them and would recommend them every time.

Hopefully this review has made you think about your lighting needs now that the nights (in the UK at least) are getting longer. Please be safe and be seen.

I made the new mount for the front flare by joining a go pro tripod adapter to the top of the supplied Orfos magnet with cable ties and Sugru to make a secure and durable connection. It withstands vibrations whilst out on the road and is strong enough that you can still pull the flare off the magnet. Total cost of the mount about £4 in parts and 30 minutes to put to together.

Sugru / Go Pro Mount

UPDATE 2nd March 2016

Following up on a comment from Rob, the video below shows the rear flare on pulse in the daylight. It is difficult to get an accurate representation of the light during the day as the camera exposure settings make the flare look dimmer than it actually is.

To further help gauge the brightest of the flare during the day, the video below is a selection of common rear lights (all with new batteries) from left to right Cateye TL-LD130/150, Camden Gear XML T-6, Orfos Flare, Lezyne Femto and Cateye TL-LD260

You may have heard of the expression “Pay it Forward” or a “Suspended Coffee” in cafes and coffee shops. If not, pay it forward is a random act of kindness by buying the drink for the person in the queue behind you as well as your own and a suspended coffee is where you pay for an additional drink in advance for someone in need, i.e. a homeless person can ask if there are any suspended coffees, the coffee shop will then give them the drink you paid for earlier.

As I travel a lot with work I often stop at motorway services for a coffee, usually a medium latte. That’s approximately 250 calories, before you consider the fat content in the milk and then there’s the caffeine, it’s not good for me!

I need to stop/reduce this additional coffee intake, so I’m taking this principle of a random act of kindness and changing it slightly – instead of buying someone a drink, I’m going to donate the money I would have spent on a cup of coffee to a charity (£2.50 a week) and drink a glass of water instead.

I normally support the British Heart Foundation (BHF) and have raised £1700 for them by cycling over the years . I could have just chosen the BHF for this donation and setup a monthly direct debit for £10 each month. However, I want to highlight all the smaller less known charities, ideally heart related, that make a major difference to peoples lives on a significantly smaller budgets. Therefore, each month I’m going to search for “justgiving cycling heart” or “justgiving running heart” on Twitter and select a tweet at random to give my coffee money to.

Considering this was the first tweet in the search results I’m amazed at the similarity to my history – below is an extract from Lee’s story from his JustGiving page: –

After having a Heart Attack while out running at age 37 in October 2012 I became involved with this amazing charity running my first half marathon for them a year later in October 2013.

I am doing a challenge a month to push myself and to raise money for my chosen charity which is Heart Beat of Sport.

I don’t want anything in return for this, but perhaps you could “Pay It Forward” and donate your coffee money to either this charity or another smaller charity. If you do it would be good to know, so please tweet me (@coeurcycliste) to say you have with the name of the charity, supporter and hashtag #DonateYourCoffee

Perhaps the simple action of you sharing this post on Facebook and Twitter will benefit a local charity close to your heart or one of your followers hearts?

Go on click those buttons at the bottom and let’s help those smaller charities raise some much needed funds… it’s two simple clicks that could make the difference to someone’s life!

If you had an accident whilst out cycling or running, do you have means of letting first responders know who you are and your emergency details? Would someone look through your jersey pockets or bags to find your ID?

Given my medical history (see previous posts) its important, no vital, that if the unthinkable does happen to me that any first responders can be made aware of my history, medication and emergency contact details as fast as possible.

Therefore, I’ve chosen to wear an engraved identification wristband, this is far more likely to be noticed before anything in your pockets.

RoadID.com Sport Wristband (brighter colours are available)

All of my information can easily be made available to any first responder by entering my serial number and personal identification number (from the back of my wristband) onto a website or over the telephone. If the first responder cannot access the internet or telephone, at least the first two lines of the wristband will let them know my name, age and that I have a heart condition.

I’ve had my wristband and shoe IDs for over four years now, hopefully I will never need anyone to use them, but for a small annual fee I have that peace of mind that I and my medical notes can be identified at the road side.

Shoe ID from RoadID.com

Various companies offer these types of wristband, who you choose is entirely up to you, I got mine from RoadID.com for less than £13, including the first years subscription. When you consider the price of most cycling accessories and components it’s next to nothing.

The sport band is unobtrusive whilst riding, I don’t even notice or feel that I’m wearing it, yet it’s easily accessible to first responders.

Even if you don’t have a medical history, I strongly recommend that you have some form of easily accessible identification for first responders.

First things first, if you have any kind of heart condition talk to your Doctor before taking up any exercise. I don’t want to put anyone off, but all heart conditions are different and only you and your Doctor know your condition in any detail. This post is about my experiences and what worked for me, hopefully it will inspire others to start cycling to improve their health, but PLEASE always seek medical advice prior to starting any new exercise regime. I cannot stress this enough.

If you have read my first post you will know that 4½ years ago I had a Myocardial Infarction (MI), more commonly known as a heart attack, and that I took up cycling again as a way to improve my fitness and overall heart health.

I say took up again, that’s probably taking the phrase too far, as other than my morning paper round in the 1980’s I hadn’t done much cycling prior to my MI in 2011. My most active year on the bike prior to that was 2009 when I headed out just sixteen times over the summer. This was in a time before the likes of Strava so I recorded my rides in Excel, looking back I had clocked up a wapping 260 miles with an average speed of 11mph. I did actually ride with a heart rate monitor back then, my averages over those rides were: max heart rate (MHR) 172 and heart rate (HR) 140.

The longest ride that year was the 45 mile Palace to Palace (Buckingham Palace to Windsor Castle) in aid of the Princes Trust. My family were shocked when I said I was entering.

A 260lb me finishing the Palace to Palace ride – Sept 2009

Return to the bike…

I took it easy for the first couple of weeks after being discharged from hospital before I started any real exercise. Initially by walking around the garden, increasing the distance each day until I felt I could manage a lap around the block. Within a couple more weeks I was walking into the local town centre to pick up a paper and pint of milk.

It was twelve weeks before I felt comfortable venturing out on two wheels, I got the bike out of the shed, the first time it had seen daylight since Palace to Palace almost two years earlier. That first ride was a venture into the unknown – I don’t know who was more nervous at the time, me or my partner. I’m thinking, is this the right thing to do and would it bring on another MI, whilst Sue was at home thinking exactly the same whilst waiting for the phone to ring again….. I cycled 3.3 miles in 17 minutes (average speed 11mph, MHR 155 and average HR 135) probably one of the longest 17 minutes of Sue’s life.

It’s not just about the person who has the heart condition, loved ones are affected just as much, if not more.

For me those 3.3 miles / 17 minutes were the start of my return to cycling, this time it was serious. Over the next six months to the end of 2011 I was to cycle a further 1170 miles on my road to recovery, culminating in a 62 mile ride around the Isle of Wight (on a cold and windy day in December) in the Wiggle Wight Winter Sportive, details and full stats on Garmin Connect.

Tackling a 62 mile ride just 9 months after a MI might seem a bit irresponsible, I didn’t just decide to ride this distance out of the blue. I had built up to this distance over time, regularly riding 11 miles during the week and 15 – 20 miles at the weekends. Leading up to the event I did a couple of 40 milers and a 50 mile ride.

Distance over time – 2011 (Strava data presented in Veloviewer)

Riding with a Heart Rate Monitor

Obviously I don’t want another heart attack, so the most important item I ride with is a heart rate monitor. I bought a Garmin Edge head unit as I also wanted to record my routes as well as all the other stats.

Just having the heart rate monitor isn’t enough, you need to understand your own heart, so much so that I became obsessed with it.

I set about working out my MHR, I didn’t know there were so many different ways and views on how to calculate it, having spent ages with the various different formulas, collating all the results and then taking an average of them all my MHR should be 178.6 If you want to know what your MHR is, save all the complicated formulas and just subtract your age from 220. I’m 42 so my MHR is 178.

Having got my theoretical maximum, I needed to know my resting heart rate. This is an average of your waking heart rate taken every morning for a week. Rather than sleep with your heart monitor on all night just to see your waking heart rate I used a great smartphone app from Azumio – all you have to do is put you finger over the camera lens and hold there for thirty seconds. I have found it to be extremely accurate. Yes, I’ve tested it by wearing my Garmin chest strap whilst taking my blood pressure (did I say I was obsessed) to my utter amazement all three had the same result. My resting HR is 54

Azumio iPhone Instant Heart Rate App

Having a resting HR of 54 bpm is normally a sign of somebody who is very fit or a professional sportsperson – prior to my MI my resting HR was in the 70 to 80 range. I was doing a lot of cycling at the time, but I was still overweight with a 40 inch plus waist, so I wasn’t that fit! Having spoken to my Doctor my lower HR is a result of my medication, in this case a beta blocker called Bisoprolol Fumarate.

Before the calls of “doper!”, I’ve checked all my medication against the WADA prohibited list for cycling in the UK and none of them are prohibited. Not that it matters as I cycle purely for fitness, but it’s nice to know I could compete if I wanted to. Now, archery is a different matter as the slower heart rate means you gain an advantage as you will have a steadier hand to hold the bow, thereby increasing your accuracy.

I mention the effect of the beta blocker as if it effects my minimum HR I need to consider if it has a similar effect on my maximum. Therefore and to err on the side of caution I’ve set my MHR at 171. If you are starting out exercising speak to your Doctor, Cardiologist and/or Heart Failure/Rehab Nurse about what your heart rate should be.

Knowing your min and max heart rates allows you to calculate your exercise zones, I do this through Garmin Connect but there are numerous websites available that you can use to calculate yours.

Garmin Heart Rate Zones

When I started out cycling after the MI I would try and avoid going above 153 bpm (85% of MHR) which would give be a buffer up to 165 bpm and I would still be under by MHR.

I probably have too much data on my Garmin training pages, although you will notice that every one shows my heart rate.

My Garmin Edge 800 screens all showing my heart rate

I normally ride with the last page showing the graph and HR in bpm and %max. I’m quite happy to let it go up to the high 160’s now for short periods of time, but like to keep it below 85% for the majority of the ride.

The point I’m trying to make is I know what my limit is, if I hit 172bpm my Garmin will alert me and it’s time to ease off, if that means getting off and walking up a hill, I get off and walk. I have no problem in getting off and walking, I would rather get to the top by walking than not at all. It does not matter what other people/riders think or say, it’s my heart and I would like to keep it.

It’s only a hill, it will still be there the next day and the day after that, just make sure you are still here to attempt it again.

Knowing my limits and training has allowed me to enjoy my cycling and improve my fitness. By pacing myself and utilising the gears/cadence to stay in the different heart rate zones I can now get up most hills without walking, occasionally one will still get the better of me.

The photo below was taken almost one year to the day after my heart attack, yes that is me 45lbs lighter and climbing Blissford Hill (25% gradient) in the New Forest whilst staying under my self imposed 171 MHR limit.

Me at 215lbs – New Forest Spring Sportive – April 2012

As I said at the very start of the post, if you have a heart condition please seek medical advice first, but I hope that my story has inspired you to consider cycling as a fitness option. Remember you don’t need to be doing 60 mile rides with lots of climbing, a regular easy spin around the block for twenty to thirty minutes three times a week could do wonders for you, just speak to your Doctor before you start.

Garmin have held an annual Ride Out in the New Forest with their professional cycling team for at least the last four years. The ride out is invitation only, after expressing an interest through links on Garmin’s social media channels, every year I have entered and every year I have been unsuccessful. Its a very popular event and is always over subscribed, this year over 6000 riders applied for one of the 500 places.

This year the rider announcement date came and went with no notification, so I thought there’s always next year to try again. Then out of the blue in early August I received this email from Garmin:-

Good news – we’ve been able to create additional places at this year’s Garmin Ride Out and you are invited to attend.

I was over the moon and couldn’t wait to sign up!

This year the ride out was on Friday 4th September, luckily I was already on leave from work so would be able to attend. It was to be an early start to get to the New Forest from the Midlands so I had packed the car the night before.

The alarm went off at 04:55, I made sure that I had everything I needed for the day, had a quick breakfast of porridge and a mug of freshly brewed coffee. I was out the door and heading south for the motorway by 05:30 thinking I had plenty of time to get to registration at 08:00.

Turning onto the M5 I saw the dreaded “ROAD CLOSED” signs for overnight maintenance work, I quickly tried to workout a different route in my head to avoid the closure, ending up going down the M42 and A34. As a result of the diversion and the normal queues in Lyndhurst I was one of the last to arrive at about 08:30, I parked up and headed straight to registration.

Having arrived late the majority of the other riders had already registered and were tucking into the free breakfast (bacon or sausage roll) and a hot drink, so it was quick and easy for me to sign in and collect my rider number, goodie bag and free jersey.

Garmin Ride Out Jersey, supplied by Primal

The jersey is one of the best quality free jersey’s I’ve ever had as part of a give away at a sportive/ride and is now a regular sight around my local training routes. It’s an Evo custom jersey from Primal and fitted me perfectly – looking around it appeared that everyone else had a perfect fit as well.

After getting my bike ready and having my second breakfast of the day, this time a bacon roll and coffee (5 hours after my first – so it’s not that bad) it was time to gather in the main marquee for the team presentation.

The morning was hosted by Daniel Lloyd and featured interviews with sponsors and the Madison Genesis and Cannonade-Garmin professional cycling teams who would be competing in the Tour of Britain that started on the Sunday. I only had my phone and now wish I had taken a better camera with me.

Cannondale Garmin – Tour of Britain 2015 Team

After the interviews the raffle was drawn by Daniel Lloyd and Frances Benali (from Southampton FC). The prizes were fantastic – Garmin Edge head unit, Cannonade Bike, Boardman frame, Southampton FC shirt signed by the entire 1st team to name but a few. I had bought several tickets, but unfortunately didn’t win.

Daniel Lloyd and Frances Benali draw the raffle

Now that the presentations and raffle draw were complete it was time to take to the road. With the increase of cycling popularity the New Forest has developed a cycling code to ensure the safety of not only the riders, but equally if not more importantly the wildlife and other users of the Forest. The code does allow for large organised events of this type, but asks that riders set off in small groups rather than a mass start as seen at other types of sporting events.

Knowing that it would take a while to get all the riders off in small groups and rather than rush to the start, I took a look around the sponsors trade stands and got my bike ready.

At 11:30 I headed off into the Forest on the fully signed and marshalled 47.5 mile ride. Unfortunately, being one of the last to set off I didn’t get to ride alongside any of the professionals (always next year!) but that didn’t spoil the day in any way.

As it was a Friday the New Forest roads were nice and quiet which made riding on them even more enjoyable. The route took us to Brockenhurst, up the lovely Rhinefield Ornamental Drive and over the A35 to Bolderwood.

Video taken with my Garmin Virb (sorry I’m slow up hills!)

Crossing under the A31 we soon turned right onto the old RAF Stoney Cross runway, as we left the trees of the Bolderwood Aboretum behind us the breeze started to pick up, causing a headwind to cycle into, why do I never seem to get a tailwind?

Turning onto Roger Penny Way (every time I see that road name I think of the Beatles song Penny Lane – so much so that I’ve now got the tune going over and over in my head) I notice the clouds starting to build and I’m convinced I felt a drop of rain, looking down my Garmin Edge my thoughts are confirmed as I see little droplets of water on the screen. Luckily, it was just that and the rain did hold off for the rest of the ride.

Riders 353 and 394 on Roger Penny Way @ approx 20 miles (still taken from my Garmin Virb Elite)

From Roger Penny Way it was down through Godshill and on towards Blissford. Having done several rides in the Forest I was expecting to have to climb the short but sharp 25% gradient of Blissford Hill, however today the ride took the easier route round and up to the feed station.

I decided not to stop and went straight past the feed station as I had an almost full water bottle, a pack of jelly babies and a couple of gels in my jersey pockets – I always end up carrying too much food, either that or I don’t eat and drink enough whilst riding – after the feed station it was a nice easy spin to Ringwood, Burley and then to the finish.

I was very pleased to roll over the finishing line in a time of 2 hours and 55 minutes, as with my current form I was expecting to be somewhere around the 3 hour 20 minute mark. I had averaged just over 16mph over the 47.5 miles!

I was 38 years old, eighteen and half stone (260 pounds) in weight, living a sedentary lifestyle, eating far too much, smoking too much, not doing any exercise, sitting behind a desk and computer screen working often late into the night. All of this and not thinking anything of it.

On this particular Monday morning I was working from home, instead of the office in London, as I was due in Scotland the following day. The plan was to work from home in the morning, fly to Edinburgh in the afternoon, hire a car, stay in a hotel overnight, work Tuesday and then fly back that evening.

I got as far as the hotel…

I’m a keen photographer and that weekend I had bought myself a Panasonic Lumix GF1 Micro Four Thirds camera. My flight arrived in Edinburgh late in the afternoon, leaving me with an ideal opportunity to grab the new camera and take some photos. I hired the car and drove off in search of something to snap, it wasn’t long until I saw a signpost to the Pentland Hills Country Park – sounds good I thought.

Having parked the car, I took out my cigars and lit one up. Whilst it’s only a short flight to Edinburgh, it had been at least four hours since my last smoke and I was craving my nicotine fix. I set off camera in hand, puffing plumes of smoke into the atmosphere.

The view from the country park towards Edinburgh and the large rock formation known as Arthur’s Seat was looking great and I set about taking photos.

Edinburgh from Pentland Hills

It wasn’t long after this that I started to feel some pains in my chest, thinking it was indigestion I continued onwards towards a reservoir in the distance. As I got closer the pain was increasing, damn indigestion, I shouldn’t have had that all-day breakfast panini and large latte at the airport… I was now starting to sweat.

Reaching the reservoir the sweat was pouring out of me, whilst I am normally a heavy sweater I didn’t think it had been that much of a strenuous walk up to the reservoir. With the indigestion getting worse I started taking photos of Torduff Reservoir

Torduff Reservoir, Bonaly Country Park, Pentland Hills

The chest pains were increasing in intensity and the sweat was pouring off my head whilst I took the photo above. Now starting to think this is something more than ingestion – “andwhy am I so hot” – I decide to head back to the car, with thoughts of getting to the hotel as quickly as I can.

Denial…

As I walk back to the car, I start to think that I might be having a heart attack – now at this point I should have phoned 999 and got to hospital there and then – no not me! Still in denial, I go back to the car and drive myself to the hotel, check in, drop my bags off and lie on the bed fully clothed – I’m still sweating, even after having the air-con full in the car? It’s only now that I admit to myself that something is seriously wrong and I ask the hotel receptionist to call an ambulance for me. The chest pain now feels as if an elephant is sitting on my chest and I look like someone has poured a bucket of water over my head.

I spent three nights in hospital (at the other end of the country from home!) and a further eight weeks at home recovering.

I had a suffered a Myocardial Infarction (MI) at the age of 38. An MI is generally referred to as a heart attack and occurred when the blood flow to part of my heart was blocked for long enough, that part of my heart muscle was damaged and died (the human heart is incapable of repairing itself).

That was four and half years ago and there have been some major changes to my lifestyle – I haven’t smoked since that day and I lost nearly 55 pounds weight mainly through dieting and cycling over 7000 miles.

Even though that day is etched into memory, I’m starting this blog as reminder to myself of why I cycle and the need to eat healthily. It also serves to document my experiences, cycle rides and show everyone there is a future after a heart attack.

Coeur Cycliste is French for Heart Cyclist – I’m cycling to improve my overall wellbeing and keep my heart as healthy as possible.

Hopefully this is the first of many posts on my new blog …

IMPORTANT – PLEASE READ

If you have any kind of heart condition talk to your Doctor before taking up any exercise. This blog is about my experiences and what worked for me,It is not medical advice.

Hopefully it will inspire you and others to start cycling to improve your health, but PLEASE always seek medical advice prior to starting any new exercise regime.