Cycling Plus

Cycling Plus is the manual for the modern road cyclist. Whether you're cycling weekly, an occasional new rider or a Tour de France fan you’ll find everything you need. Each issue is packed with buying advice and tests of essential cycling gear - everything from bikes to bags! Cycling Plus is the place to find training advice, nutrition secrets and practical tips guaranteed to improve your bicycling. It's also full of inspirational rides, real-life cycling stories and entertaining riding-related features.

FROM THE EDITOR…

HUB

THE SPIN ORGANISED CHAOS • The demise of the Tour de Yorkshire epitomises the challenge of staging pro bike races

FIDLOCK VACUUM PHONE MOUNT AND CASE • £29.99 (Mount) £29.99 (Case) Ingenious phone sucker

FOUR ESSENTIALS

NORTHAMPTON • Quiet lanes through orange-stone thatched villages

GUILT EDGED • Some new cyclists feel guilty about ‘car bothering’ bike lanes. They shouldn’t be, says Rob Ainsley…

Hope HB.TT • £15,000 Hope’s time trial take on its GB Olympic gold medal-winning track bike

GORILLA COFFEE • With its fine fodder and friendly vibe, this is a one of the best coffee stops in the Midlands

METAL MILITIA • Rise up! It’s time to elevate the status of aluminium bikes to meet their carbon counterparts. We test four of the best to buy right now…

JARGON BUSTER

THE BIKES ON TEST…

SPECIALIZED ALLEZ SPORT • £999 A great frameset that’s only slightly dulled by a ho-hum spec

CANNONDALE CAAD13 DISC 105 • £2250 Ignore the specs and enjoy the ride

KINESIS AITHEIN DISC • £800 frameset, £2680 (suggested RRP for build) Fast and furious aluminium

BOWMAN PALACE 3 ULTEGRA R8000 DISC • £2750 Aluminium fit for a king

CANNONDALE CAAD13 DISC 105 • The king of alloy retains its crown

POWER STRUGGLE • FTP – functional threshold power - is the ubiquitous cornerstone of many riders’ training plans. But is this metric the panacea it’s mooted to be? Cycling Plus investigates…

RIDE FOR A REASON • Thriving fundraisers reveal the ups and downs of the cycling challenges they set themselves and their tried-and-tested tips for turbocharging donations

CYCLE TO EVERY LIFEBOAT STATION IN MAINLAND BRITAIN

A PERSONAL MILEAGE RECORD

BREAK THE CROSS-BRITAIN TANDEM RECORD

RIDE FROM LONDON TO PARIS

Penny for your thoughts • Daniel Johansson’s dreams of racing a penny-farthing are realised in the inaugural Sweden 3 Days event

Penny into pounds • How to get the hang of a 150-year-old bike

NEW BIKES & GEAR • THE UK'S BEST TEST FOR NEARLY 30 YEARS

Going Dutch • £1998 (+£315 PowerBank spare battery) Smart and stylish urban ebike

New beginnings • Genesis Tour de Fer 30

ZIPP 353 NSW • £3200 Zipp’s new flagship race wheel

SPECIALIZED RIME FLAT SHOES

SCOTT MTB AR SHOES

MET MANTA MIPS • £220 Premium aero lid gets a redesign

GAERNE CARBON G.STL • £379.90 Handmade Italian race-ready kicks

RESERVE 32 GRAVEL 700C DT 350 • £1599 Go fast or go home

RAPHA CORE BIBS & JERSEY • Relaxed, everyday Rapha for women

BIKE JERSEYS • £80-185 We test six top-end tops to find the best for performance, fit and comfort

POWER METERS • What are the benefits of training with power? And do you really need a meter? We delve into the world of wattage to find out

FIVE KEY POWER METER QUESTIONS

SEVEN THINGS TO CONSIDER… • All you need to know before buying a power meter

GEAR TEST

OUR FRIENDS ELECTRIC • As cyclists increasingly finding joy in electrical assistance, we look at three traction-boosting, smile-inducing e-gravel bikes that are making off-road...