Christmas gifts for cyclists
Here's our selection of some of the best gifts to treat the cyclist in your life without breaking the bank
Here's our selection of some of the best gifts to treat the cyclist in your life without breaking the bank
Whether it's for your mum, dad, brother, sister, friend, significant other or even... a nice little treat for yourself (you deserve it), you don't have to spend a ton of money to impress this Christmas.
This article contains links to retailers. Purchases made after clicking on those links may help support Iconic Cycling Events by earning us a commission but this list has been curated with care by the Iconic Team.
ICONIC gift vouchers
Of course we’re going to start our list here….what better gift is there for the cyclist in your life than an ICONIC Gift Voucher? This is the perfect hassle-free Christmas gift, just choose your price - £10, £30 or £50 (or any combination of the three), enter your recipients email address and voila! a thoughtful gist that doesn’t require any wrapping at all! Gift vouchers are valid for 6 months, so there’s plenty of time to pick an event (or be savvy, and wait until our sales periods), they can be used across all events - Bath, Oxford, Canterbury, Chester or Cotswold, and any monies left over after paying for an event, will automatically be held in credit on their account to go towards their next ICONIC Event!
CYCLING bOOKS
It’s the time of year for curling up in front of the fire and getting stuck in to a good book, and we know that. cyclists love nothing more on a cold winter’s night, than reading about cycling/cyclists.
Here are five cycling books that we’ve read recently which would make a fantastic stocking filler:
The Maurice Burton Way: Britain's First Black Cycling Champion - Maurice Burton
Bloody Minded: My Life in Cycling - Alex Dowsett
The Death of Marco Pantani: A Biography - Matt Rendell
CYCLING essentials
When you’re trying to find the perfect stocking filler for a cyclist, you can not go wrong with the cycling essentials: Think inner tubes, multi tools, pumps or even bottle cages. Here’s a quick shake down:
INNER TUBES
You always need more inner tubes, but you might not necessarily consider them an investment - that’s why they are the perfect Christmas gift. Pirelli P Zero SmarTubes are lightweight & compact: Made from TPU - they’re much lighter and smaller than standard butyl tubes, saving rotating weight and space in a saddlebag as well as being super puncture-resistant
multitool
The Prestacycle Prestaratchet Go is a very handy on-the-go tool. Covering pretty much every fastening need on a modern bike. It's also a quick-link breaker, valve core tool, tyre lever and tubeless plugger. With a five-year warranty and a decent price, it's a strong alternative to traditional folding multi-tools.
mini e-pump
Cycplus do a range of different electric pumps of varying sizes and powers, but for me, this AS2 Pro Tiny E-Pump is the perfect cycling companion. This pump fits in a jersey pocket, inflates to custom psi, has great battery life and is the perfect roadside inflator. OIF you’re looking for som thing to leave in the garage/garden shed Cycplus also do the slightly more reasonably priced Electric Air Pump A2 Pro.
bottle cages
This Side Release Bottle Cage from Restrap allows convenient access to your water bottle by featuring a side entry. This makes it ideal for bikes with compact frames, or for when using a frame bag may affect clearances on bottles.
With a foldable base, it offers the flexibility of being mountable in two different positions, giving you the choice to have the opening on either the left or the right side.
The cage also has a rubber retention loop which keeps bottles even more secure on rough and bumpy terrain. Adjustable fit means this cage can fit on any bike, using any bottle mounts available on the frame or forks.
Water bottle
Every cyclist has a cupboard full of water bottles that they’ve picked up over the years, that they really have thrown away by now. That’s why a sparkly new water bottle makes an ideal stocking filler. The Camelbak Podium Chill Sports Water Bottle delivers in every way you would want a water bottle to. The anti-leak lids really works, the double-walled construction keeps water cold twice as long and there are lots of colours to choose from.
SOMETHING EXTRA
Brick Caps
Brick Caps make a fun, quirky Christmas gift, especially for cyclists, by transforming genuine LEGO minifigure heads into unique tyre valve caps. vailable in various themes like superheroes or custom characters, they come in both Presta and Schrader valve types, with options to mix and match heads and hair for a custom look.
CUBE ACID Towingsystem
Go further and explore more places without a weaker rider / young rider having a meltdown! Cube's Acid Towing System is a handy and safe way of towing another rider.
The system easily attaches to the underneath of your saddle, and the 1.9-metre cable is a self-retracting system to keep tension for stress-free towing. It's great for kids who are building confidence but perhaps struggle with longer climbs or tougher terrain, but it can also handle adults too.
Le Col x Wizard Works Lil Presto Barrel Bag
The Le Col x Wizard Works Lil Presto Barrel Bag is an ergonomically designed and water-resistant handlebar bag made to keep you prepared for anything the ride brings. Sized to carry extra layers, lunch, snacks and phone within easy reach, it’s the perfect companion for a sportive. This limited edition reflective design will also add an extra bit of visibility when the nights draw in.
6 top tips for your first sportive
The key to having a good sportive is in the preparation. Not only in training for the event, but also what you do on the day. From the spares you pack, to your pacing strategy, even what you wear and what you eat - we've got a few tips that will help you get the best out of yourself on the day.
6 top tips for your first sportive
The key to having a good sportive is in the preparation. Not only in training for the event, but also what you do on the day. From the spares you pack, to your pacing strategy, even what you wear and what you eat - we've got a few tips that will help you get the best out of yourself on the day.
Bike set-up
If you’re new to cycling or are building up your mileage, you should expect to be a little achy – it will take a period of time for your body to adapt to the new strains and positions that riding demands. However, you shouldn’t be in pain or picking up cycling injuries while riding your bike. Either is a sure sign that something is wrong.
There are a number of easy ways you can tweak the fit of your bike and making sure your saddle and handlebars are set up correctly will give you a much more comfortable and efficient ride and avoid picking up an injury.
Getting your saddle height right is possibly the most important aspect of road bike positioning and is the first adjustment for building a new position. As a general rule of thumb, your knee should have a slight bend in it when you’re at the bottom of the pedal stroke. As a starting point, you can achieve this by setting a saddle height that, with your heel on the pedal and pedalling backwards slowly, your knee just barely locks out at the point of maximum extension. If you have to reach, it’s too high. If you don’t quite lock out your knee, it’s too low.
Well-positioned handlebars are crucial for your comfort and important for control of your steering and brakes. A good position to start is with your handlebars at the same height as your saddle. For a more ‘head up’ riding position that’s easier on your back and gives confidence in traffic, you can raise the bars a little.
Bike maintenance
You want to make sure your equipment is on point for event day, your bike needs to be in tip top condition. This is the big day you’ve been training for so you don’t want to ruin it by having a mechanical 5 miles in. If you’re mechanically minded you can check the bike yourself but if not, your local bike shop will happily check it over for you.
You want to make sure your brake pads aren’t worn down, your chain is lubed, the tyres aren’t getting too thin and you have them pumped up to the right level, and your gears are indexed or if required, you have your di2 charged up because, believe me, you don’t want to be mid-ride with no gears and a hilly ride home.
Carry spares
Spare inner tubes on a sportive are absolutely essential but very easy to forget. If you do get a puncture there is often a mechanical support vehicle trailing the route but you don’t want to be waiting on the side of the road for them to come past. A saddle pack is ideal for carrying spare tubes, tyre levers and a multitool. If you haven’t changed a tyre before it would be a great idea to get a bit of practice in before your big event.
Fuel right
The night before you want a high-carb/low-fat meal. Good examples are: pasta with grilled salmon/chicken or the traditional pre-ride favourite spaghetti bolognese. In the morning you want to try to ensure you have your pre-event breakfast 2-3 hours before to allow enough time to digest it before you set off. Opt for something that’s light on the stomach and high in carbohydrate. Good examples are: Porridge, scrambled egg on toast or cereal with semi skimmed milk.
On the ride you want to ensure you are carrying enough water so you can drink whenever you get thirsty and enough provisions to eat little and often - stick to what you’re used to, be that energy bars, flapjack, bananas, sweets - don’t use the big event as your test bed for trying out new exotic gels.
Pace yourself
Don’t get carried away starting your ride in a big group and wanting to go at a pace that’s too much for you. You don’t want to get drawn into riding hard on climbs or riding at a pace with a group that’s way outside of your comfort zone, especially if you are tackling a distance you are either not used to or have never done before. Take it steady and build up to the back end of the sportive if you’re feeling fresh.
Clothing
Clothing is really important, it has the potential to make or break your ride. Depending on the weather, a packable rain jacket, a gilet or a set of arm warmers can go in the back pocket or a top tube bag to give you the versatility of layering up or down and maintaining an optimum temperature to enjoy your ride.