Tips to get ready for summer cycling

With winter and spring fading into memory, it’s time to get ready for summer cycling.

Starting with some basic housekeeping and then plotting your course for all the fun of warm-weather pedalling ahead.

Summer is the time to get energised and to roll out something new – to change, to adjust, to challenge yourself.

With that in mind, here are six tips to help inspire your best summer cycling season.

Visit your bike shop for a tune-up

If you’ve been riding all winter, your bike might be gunked up due to deferred maintenance during the cold weather. And, if your bike has spent the winter on a wall-rack in your flat, you may be looking at flat tyres, a dry chain or other issues that need attention. Either way, get your ride over to a mechanic.

Fill in missing pieces

If you own cycling clothes, take them out of the drawers and closets and give them a once-over. Have your cycling gloves disappeared? Socks mismatched? Grippers on your bike shorts feeling flabby? Better to find out now than on the night before the group ride you signed up for.

Build gradually

Especially if you’ve been off your bike for the winter, or you’re a beginner rider. Take the first few outings slowly, in a low-traffic area, to acclimate your body to pedaling and your street skills to cycling in the city. Like anything else, those skills, which affect your confidence in traffic, improve with practice.

Make pedaling a part of your fitness plan

Warm weather means dialing down those trips to the gym and pumping up the volume on outdoor exercise. Options abound for raising your heart rate by turning the cranks. Depending on your goals, these can range from adding bicycle commuting to your weekday routine to joining early-morning training on weekends with friends. Registering for a longer ride – whether that means a first attempt or beating last year’s personal best – will help motivate you and keep you on track to boosting strength and endurance.

Sign up for a cycling event

Participating in an organised ride is a great way to meet new people, to build fitness and to check out destinations which you might not venture to on your own. Doing this can be a practice run for bigger cycling events, like the Cape Town Cycle Tour coming up in early 2017. With a group ride, someone else has already laid out the route for you, so you don’t have to worry about navigating and can focus on enjoying the sights and the ride.

Get your family involved

Share your passion. Kids love to ride bikes and car-free parks and greenways are logical places to ride safely together. What if your child doesn’t have a bike? No problem. There’s a lot of kids bikes for sale at affordable prices. Family-friendly bikes and well-designed gear for children continue to proliferate. Of course, family isn’t limited to your kids. Get your mom, dad and members of your extended family on bikes. They’ll thank you for it.