Pre-Cycle Checklist

[mbul]

Just a quick list for beginners of what is needed for a Sunday beginner cycle.

1. Water
2. Food (Chocolate bars/ Fig Rolls/ bananas/ my personal favourite- NutriGrain bars that have been lying in the bottom of your Camelbak for two weeks)
3. Gloves (stops your hands from getting callouses from the grips and prevents them from being ripped into pieces if you crash. also in the dead of winter, stops them freezing). If you don't have some, the club has quite good gloves available for use.
4. Raincoat (check the forecast - if it ain't raining you obviously don't need one!)
5. Money for the shop stop at lunch time for a snack. There isn't a shop on every cycle, but there is on most. If we're going to Cratloe, Ballyhouras or Kilalloe there's a shop. Most other places too.
6. Bring a bag to put the above in, along with a towel, spare shoes, socks and a change of clothes. You'll need this lot if someone's giving you a lift somewhere in their car.

Not essential, but recommended to ensure you get to cycle:
7. A bike helmet. We have a number of helmets so there's normally no problem with borrowing one.
8. A bike (Must be in good working order). If you don't have one we have some very good club bikes and there's enough that it's very rare you won't get one.

If you need a bike or a helmet email us beforehand to reserve them or post here on the forum. There's normally a topic in the 'cycles' section for each cycle. Post there.

Since bike helmets cost from ¤19 up - (www.chainreactioncycles.com) it's worth buying your own. Then you're sure of a perfect fit (no messing around adjusting the helmet before every cycle) and won't have to worry about there not being enough. Nobody is allowed cycle off road with us without a helmet for insurance reasons.

For helmet sizing call to the bike shops in Limerick and try a few for size - different brands have slightly different shapes, so if you find a comfortable helmet you can't afford, cheaper ones from the same company will often fit just as well.