THE TOURING RHINOS - A RHINO RUN EXPEDITION BLOG
G!RO's very own Jordan & Danny (aka Jonty & Hansie) recently joined the Curve crew for a bike packing expedition through the western Cape of South Africa as part of the inaugural Rhino Run. We hope you enjoy this blog looking back at an unforgettable week.
Franco's Year In Ti
Star of our recent video, friend of G!RO and Curve convert Franco gives us the rundown on his year with the Belgie, Curve's fun and fast, Road Centric Frameset. A bike designed by our mates at Curve to race, ride and fear nothing. Grab a brew and let Franco transport you through his experiences of the last year riding his Curve - and be sure to catch the video if you haven't already, where we join Franco for a dawn raid of London, catch the city stillness and stunning sunrise recently. For those of you keen to learn more about the bikes, for reference, Franco rides the complete spec SRAM Force Belgie Disc V3 with Red Powermeter upgrade and Curve's own G4T wheels! Enjoy!
DownRock Diaries - Part 2
Here at G!RO we continue to share our ways of beating the global pandemic and keeping morale high! Jamie tells us how his year sampling a new style of riding on his Downrock has been a godsend in this unprecedented year!
Wow! It’s been nearly a year since that giant box, containing my new favourite bike arrived! It was March 2020, things were starting to head south globally and the UK was a few short days away from Lockdown 1.0, but spirits were high as me and head mechanic Danny tore into the box containing all the parts, and the beautiful Downrock frame Curve had just shipped us. Days were getting longer, weather was getting warmer, riding was getting easier and ignoring the global pandemic things were looking up… Except, how can you ignore a global pandemic... That’s right, you can’t!!!
GALLERY: ABDULLAH ZEINAB’S RHINO RUN WINNING CURVE GXR
Blistering heat, deep sand, long climbs and extremely remote terrain make the Rhino Run one of the hardest off-road unsupported bikepacking races in the world.
This year, Abdullah Zeinab rode his Curve GXR (AKA Kevin) to victory in just 7 days, 20 hours, and 4 minutes after an exciting hard fought battle with Kevin Benkenstein (Benky), who finished only 17 minutes later on a prototype Curve Karoo.
Curve were good enough to send us over some shots of Abdullah’s GXR when it arrived back at Curve HQ, still covered in premium Namibian dust.
Four Reasons Why Titanium Bikes are Best for Bikepacking by Jesse Carlsson
Titanium bikes have featured more prominently in bikepacking races in recent years. It's not just racing, more and more riders are choosing titanium for bikepacking and cycle touring adventures. So, why do titanium bikes work so well for this application? Jesse Carlsson, one of Curve's owners, has ridden tens of thousands of kilometers on Curve's titanium frames - from the Trans Am Bike Race and Race to the Rock to touring remote outback Australia. Here Jesse explains the four reasons why titanium bikes are best for bikepacking. Read on to learn more.
Introducing The Bike Network! A Cancer Charity making a difference through the sport of cycling!
We recently had the pleasure of meeting Adam, the incredible man behind The Bike Network, when he passed through G!RO for a Flat White on a tour of many of Londons favourite riding spots. Adam shared his poignant story (which you can read below) and how that morphed into the idea behind The Bike Network, his now fully registered charity, supporting those with cancer or recovering from cancer... Using the sport of cycling to aid the treatment and recovery as part of healthy lifestyle that helps to effectively ease both the physical and mental toll of this horrible illness. After meeting Adam, we were keen to help and get involved how we could! So we're proud to now be supporting these guys and accepting donations as part of their nationwide network of stores.
G!RO’s Guide to Winter - Vol. 3 Winter Routes
In this volume, we’ll be looking at Winter Routes, following the success of our Local Loops page, we wanted to tailor some old favourites and throw out some new routes that are perfect for this time of year! We also take a look at how to plan the perfect winter route, which roads to pick and why.. We’ll provide links to our favourites for you to try yourself, simply hit the links below to find them on strava and download them to your GPS device (something we highly recommend when navigating new roads). So grab a brew and follow our top tips for picking the best routes this winter.
G!RO's Guide to Winter - Vol. 2 How to prepare and care for your bike this winter!
With winter well and truly on the way, the lanes are filling with soggy water and salted roads are on the horizon. While winter can seem like a grim time to be outside on your bike, a few little changes can make a big difference to your riding experience, and keep you on two wheels until we see the sun again (probably sometime in July). Check out Head mechanic Danny's tips on preparing and caring for your bike throughout the winter months!
G!RO’s Guide to Winter - Vol.1 Kitting up!
Here at G!RO we love riding… It plays a huge part in our daily lives and is central to the lives of many within our community. We love to #RideWithMates, enjoy a pre-ride, mid-ride or post-ride cafe stop and use the bike as a tool to keep sane and fit. Winter, particularly UK winter, poses a threat to all this. It make’s ticking off the KM’s harder as daylight hours are slowly crushed inwards as we race towards winter solstice and gaps in the grim weather become fewer, and further between. However, here at G!RO we’re dedicated to keeping everyone riding as much as humanly possible, especially this year (2020) with all the challenges and troubles we’ve all had to face - now, more than ever we must cherish the head clearing, blood pumping goodness a bike ride can bring you. We must chase those endorphins as much as we can, and whilst winter will try and sap the goodness away; here at G!RO we’re dedicated to bring you all our favourite tips and tricks to maximise your winter riding and reap the benefits even in deepest, darkest December.
TOP 7 TIPS FOR NEW RIDERS ON THE ROAD
We’ve been seeing a big increase in the number of new cyclists out and about since the lockdown, which is absolutely fantastic. Here at G!RO, we believe the power of the bike to enable many things - a sustainable mode of transport, a freedom machine to let you see new places, through to the fast and furious sport of bike racing.
We teamed up with our good mate Francis Cade to create a video to highlight our Top 7 Tips for New Riders On The Road!
Coffee with the Coach: Keeping Fit on the Indoor Trainer
As we enter week 2 of lockdown, and the possibility of stricter measures coming into play at anytime, we spoke to resident coach Danny Roberts-Clarke to talk all things training in these difficult times and how to maximise your indoor turbo trainer sessions as we all adjust to the new normal... It's undoubtedly a massive challenge to keep fit for the upcoming summer in the hope that we return to some form of normality and start racing again, or tackling events that will be postponed to future dates. Here are some of Danny's top tips to ensure the time on the turbo is fun, engaging and productive - so you can maximise the benefits.
Daisy's Guide to Keeping Occupied
Meet Daisy, G!RO Cafe Manager extraordinaire and all round legend! Since, we took the difficult decision to close the doors of G!RO given the current unprecedented global situation, she has found herself with a bit more time on her hands at home, like many of us doing our bit for the NHS! She decided to write this awesome little blog for us on what she’s doing with all this spare time and how she’s trying to #KeepItGiro whilst we’re closed. She has plenty of awesome ideas and inspiration for how you could win our instagram competition, where you could win a G!RO mussette full of Workshop Coffee. Head over to our instagram to get involved; simply show us how you're keeping it G!RO at home, like Daisy, tag us and add the hashtag #KeepItGiro. We’ll be picking our favourite soon. Now enjoy Daisy’s insight into things that are keeping her sane in this strange, uncertain time.
How to switch to wax lube for a cleaner chain (and free watts)
In this blog, Danny shares perhaps his most valuable advice learnt over the many years he's been working on bikes. One simple change that can save you time, mess and money for the rest of your cycling career. This is a MUST READ for all cyclists, whether you're a beginner or a veteran. This blogs worth a read and will certainly provide you with some highly useful knowledge for this winter and beyond! So grab a brew and have a read of Danny's trade secrets!Get in touch
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