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How's your 'Hood?

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  1. Stepdoh
    Member

    So we all know embra is the greatest cycling city in the world, but are it's parts as good as the sum, or better?

    Who has the best cycling hood? (this also includes east, west and mid-lothian)

    Leith

    Pros:
    - Great connections to the NCN 1 and 75 cycle routes.
    - Good route to seafield/portobello/the world out east.
    - It's downhill from the city. And Leith walk is a joy to ride down.
    - Nice local bike show (Leith Bikes)
    - Cycle Friendly pubbing down the shore (thinking legs dangling off the wall)

    Cons

    - I wouldn't leave my bike happily locked on the street for any extended period (in certain bits) more for random damage rather than theft reasons.
    - Some cracking pinch points on the roads.
    - Leith Walk is crap to ride up, and the tramlines may make it a nightmare to ride on generally.
    - Town is uphill.
    - Foot o' the walk is not a nice junction (or even a Great Junction (boom,boom))

    Posted 13 years ago #

  2. steveo
    Member

    Gorgie(ish)

    Pros: Easy access to the dell or the quiet roads into the hills
    errrmm, errrr, nah thats it

    Cons: Thieving b**s!!!!

    I'm sure there are more on both sides but i can't think of them just now

    Posted 13 years ago #

  3. wee folding bike
    Member

    I thought nobody knew where west Lothian was.

    In Airdrie the main good thing is a bit like Tiggers. Since I'm the only one I can be holier than everybody.

    Posted 13 years ago #

  4. Kirst
    Member

    St Leonards - easy access to the Engine Shed, the Innocent and the Meadows, and the police station right outside my front door might deter thieves! Cons - cobbles, uneven cobbles, slippery cobbles.

    Posted 13 years ago #

  5. recombodna
    Member

    Polwarth
    Pro's
    Close to Canal and harrison pk
    Handy for meadows
    fairly quiet neighbourhood with great neighbours
    Fairly near roseburn cycle path to crammond etc
    Cycling distance from school for kids

    con's
    Idiotic plumbers vans driving past my door like they're at silverstone!
    Guy in scotmid that constantly overcharges / short changes me

    Posted 13 years ago #

  6. miggy_magic
    Member

    Viewforth

    Pros:
    - close to so many bike shops
    - close to the Meadows and canal path for easy rides with Mrs miggy_magic and sprogs
    - Most places in town are only 10 mins away by bike

    Cons:
    - close to so many bike shops (too easy to spend my money)
    - cycling home uphill and into the prevailing SW wind from Leith, where I work, can be dispiriting
    - only 2 bike stands outside the Scotmid in Home Street which sometimes makes popping in for an emergency pork pie a fraught and anxious experience with an un-padlocked bike outside

    Posted 13 years ago #

  7. Kim
    Member

    The Southside

    Pros: has the best bike shops in Edinburgh

    Cons: cobbles, uneven cobbles, slippery cobbles.

    Posted 13 years ago #

  8. 1lesscar
    Member

    I commute into Edinburgh from Midlothian via Lasswade Road, Meadows and Stockbridge. The roads themselves are probably better in town.

    The big pro of staying out this way (and indeed anywhere not in the city) is the access to nice rolling, quiet country roads when I'm not commuting, and access to NCN1. I've only been cycling seriously for a year and a bit, and find the local roads ideal for getting the miles in on the saddle.

    Posted 13 years ago #

  9. gembo
    Member

    Balerno is the place if you want mountain biking, water of leith, canal, quiet backroads or 50 mile blast on Lang Whang. And Danny McCaskill at the Gala tomorrow

    Posted 13 years ago #

  10. PS
    Member

    Bellevue

    Pros
    Excellent bike shop @ The Bike Chain;
    Good cafes (essential cycling accessory, even if you're just taking Artisan Roast beans away to make espresso at home);
    Easy access to the North Ed off-road Cycle network (Rodney St tunnel has made a big difference);
    Quite a few quiet or bollarded lane options if you want to avoid the traffic;
    Lots of uneven cobbles for when you want to re-enact Paris-Roubaix;
    It takes 30 mins to get out of Town no matter which direction you go, so there's no predisposition to a particular area for long ride - just pick the one that you feel like, and you'll be warmed up when you get into the countryside;
    There's currently some very smooth tarmac on Broughton Street, which makes it a pleasure to ride down;
    It's downhill from the Southside/the Old Town, which means it's fun coming home.

    Cons
    It takes half an hour to get out of town, so it's all too easy to not bother going out for a long ride in the evening, because an hour of it will be done in town, which is less fun;
    Lots of uneven cobbles when you don't want to re-enact Paris-Roubaix;
    Picardy Place is a pain in the ****, and you pretty much have to go through it, unless you're heading west.

    Posted 13 years ago #

  11. spytfyre
    Member

    Shandon

    Pros
    Parks
    Canal
    Freewheelin bike shop nearby with friendly staff and quick service
    Not far from the Roseburn path

    Cons
    George Watsons school run at rush hour, queue all the way from one set of lights at bottom of Harrison Road to the lights at Polwarth church...

    Posted 13 years ago #

  12. recombodna
    Member

    Ha ha freewheelin bike shop!!! I went in there for some single stack chainring bolts. The guy said "why do you want those?" I said "coz I only have one chainring" He said"I can't think what sort of bike they would be for" I said "they used to use them on old BMX's" then he comes out with "BMX's don't have chainring bolts" I said" not so much these days but they used to." he continued "I have never in my life seen a BMX with chainring bolts. You'll not find any in Edinburgh" at which point I left and cycled up to the Bicycle works where they had about ten packets hanging on a rack. I bought a pack for £4.50 and returned home . He was also after £20 for a chain the same chain I got for about £6 at the bicycle works which is a shame coz he's the nearest bike shop to my house and I won't be going back.

    Posted 13 years ago #

  13. Arellcat
    Moderator

    Swanston/Fairmilehead (+ Braids)

    Pros:
    - Everywhere is downhill from here
    - Pretty quiet suburban roads
    - Braidburn Valley Park nearby
    - Easy access to Midlothian routes and the ring road to Burdiehouse, Lasswade, Colinton, NCN75, etc.
    - Close to the Pentlands for mountain biking.

    Cons:
    - It's always uphill going home!
    - Very few marked cycle lanes (or is that a Pro?)
    - Very busy heading around the Fairmilehead crossroads in the rush hour, and most of the arterial roads see 40-50mph traffic, boy racers and sportsbikes
    - No bike shops in the area
    - No cafes in the area (except Tusitala, sort of)

    Posted 13 years ago #

  14. cb
    Member

    "No cafes in the area (except Tusitala, sort of)"

    Is there not a new cafe at the shops where Braid Road joins Comiston Road?

    Posted 13 years ago #

  15. Cyclingmollie
    Member

    Musselburgh, East Lothian
    Pros:
    - can be in the countryside in five minutes
    - good cycle paths into Edinburgh
    - has a cycling club
    - is close to Edinburgh

    Cons:
    - our branch of McDonalds Cycles closed last year
    - everywhere is uphill from here
    - roads round here tend to have 40mph limits
    - ELC do try but this is pot-hole land

    Posted 13 years ago #

  16. gembo
    Member

    @Recombodna - I feel compelled to defend Mr Freewheelin (the clue is in the name, he is very Freewheelin with his comments). I popped in recently (had been in before so knew his patter would be forthcoming). He was able to fix something for me at short notice and I then asked him if he could take my pedals off as I needed to put new ones on, he said he would put them on as he was doing the other repair anyway. I then showed him the pedals which had come off my new EBC bike to work bike. HE said EBC had given me girls pedals and it transpired that they were tiny and my feet would have struggled in and out of the clips. I then bought quite dear pedals and clips from him which he attached At same time he tuned gears but pointed out another bike shop in LEith (LBC) had put an 8 gear rear mech mountain bike bit of kit on my 9 -gear road bike. Also took great delight in telling me Tricross had wrong brakes (true fact and I might still see if Specialized will change them on my model as they have done on the new one). Then charged me £7 for a gear cable and outer rubber casing but as we had agreed no more than £60 for whole job (new pedals, new brakes, gear cable and tuning) I was happy and found his dissing of my bike refreshing in the service industry. I might go back, perhaps I am a masochist?

    Posted 13 years ago #

  17. Dave
    Member

    Don't know anything about the shop, but it's a myth that rear mechs are speed-specific.

    Sheldon says so but should that not be sufficient, I'm running a 9-speed cassette on my originally 8-speed hardtail just now, with only a change in shifter. The cassette itself was recycled off the lowracer so it really was a very cheap upgrade (£20 or something).

    Perhaps what he meant is that your fitted mech has a longer-than-necessary cage, but I'm not sure it's something to loose sleep over (when I built my better half's commuter, I just got a Deore mech - it's a racer).

    Posted 13 years ago #

  18. recombodna
    Member

    @Gembo yeah that's the sort of flannel I can do without when I go to a bike shop.I do all my repairs myself and if I go to a bike shop for a component I know what I want.I don't need some guy telling me I don't know what I'm talking about when I know I know what I'm talking about....if you get my drift.I just want to buy the part if they've got it or go elsewhere if they don't. If I go to my local veg shop and ask for mushrooms I don't expect the guy behind the counter to start Quizing me on the type of food I'm gonna cook........."ye see son ye cannae put mushrooms in a lasagne and tesco's have sold ye the wrong herbs there ye want basil not oregano.......blah blah" ;-)

    Posted 13 years ago #

  19. gembo
    Member

    @dave - good point - the rear mech works fine [he was just getting the get out clause in first, it is the wrong mech as it was a tiagra that went through the spokes of the dearest back wheel I ever bought - Mavic Aksium - after only one week, do not get me started on that fiasco also from the Leith Shop. And to cut costs [as they were doing it for me as a 'favour'] it is an Accera that it was replaced with

    @recombodna - you see I knew the guy was like that as I had been in his shop before so I knew what to expect. I therefore was expecting it and was able to treat the thing as a kind of performance art theatre piece entitled "How to Diss Your Customers" plus I was able to negotiate a deal [possibly as he was committed to the performance - he is big on the Method Style of acting} that kept my costs down (when I do my own repairs, unless quite straightforward I have to go back to bike shop with broken bike - I am good at taking it to pieces but not putting it back together).

    In a way Mr Freewheelin is like this forum in that he challenges commonly held conceptions [e.g. the service industry needs vendors to be civil to customers etc]

    Posted 13 years ago #

  20. recombodna
    Member

    @Gembo Yeah I can see how you'd get entertainment out of him like that. If you're a fan of the Obtuse vendor I suggest you pay a visit to Corson's Hardware in Stockbridge.....I don't know how that guy stays in business. anyhoo his thread's gone way off topic I'm outta here before the thread lock squad arrive ;-)

    Posted 13 years ago #

  21. chdot
    Admin

    "I'm outta here before the thread lock squad arrive ;-)"

    Doesn't work that.

    The (very few) shuts threads were curtailed because of degrees of animosity and perhaps repetitive boredom injury (mine).

    Off at a tangent is fine.

    Staring a new topic is better.

    How about "service in shops" or "Jocky Allen's wit and wisdom - does he have an heir?" or

    "bike shop style - how much 'engagement' do you like"

    I recently saw an article from a customer which basically argued that bike shops should understand that (some) customers regarded local shop as "theirs", which is why they spent money there (particularly instead of online).

    I suspect that in Edinburgh there is a bit less 'loyalty' due to the range of shops which all due things differently so lead people to use more than for different reasons - convenience, stock, brand, service, price etc.

    New topic anyone?

    And/or back to 'hood.

    Mine (without being wholly disingenuous) is Edinburgh.

    Good points - reasonably 'cycle friendly' (though I'm not sure I know what means anymore).

    LOTS of great places to cycle away from traffic. Big enough to have most things you 'need' -culturally and materially.

    Basically safe - walk/cycle most places/most times of day with confidence.

    Bad points - not enough political will to confront the (normal UK) attitude that cars are more important than people.

    Posted 13 years ago #

  22. wee folding bike
    Member

    Alistair Gow takes the micky out of everybody. It's an equal opportunity thing.

    Posted 13 years ago #

  23. chdot
    Admin

    "Alistair Gow takes the micky out of everybody. It's an equal opportunity thing."

    New topic??

    Posted 13 years ago #

  24. SRD
    Moderator

    Getting this thread back on target (if only briefly), have to second recombodna on great joys and virtues of Polwarth - diverse local shops, nice neighbours :), canal, parks, good bus routes.

    Posted 13 years ago #

  25. Stepdoh
    Member

    Another tick for Leith, Wilkinson Fabricators on Arthur Street, perfect for getting all those strange bolts you can't get elsewhere. (and big ups to Leith Cyles for pointing me round the corner to get a replacement seat bolt there)

    Posted 13 years ago #

  26. recombodna
    Member

    I LOVE wilkinsons. The old guy and his brother are great characters.

    Posted 13 years ago #

  27. chdot
    Admin

    http://www.wilkinsonmachinery.com

    Did it used to (still?) have shop on Leith Walk?

    Posted 13 years ago #

  28. Stepdoh
    Member

    it's just behind on Arthur St. Don't think they have a shop on the walk, but I may be wrong. :)

    Chap in there v nice, put a lot of effort into my 80p sale.

    Posted 13 years ago #

  29. Wilmington's Cow
    Member

    Duddingston

    Pros
    Utterly residential, so loads of side streets and the like to get about that are pretty quiet.
    About 4 minutes on the bike from Findlay's Butcher, Kitchener's Deli, and The Edinburgh Wine Co. in Porty (which is also easier by bike given parking around there).
    Cash that gets you a flat in town gets you a garage and garden thrown in with the house in the sticks, ergo LOADS of bike fettling and storage space.
    Not far from the Innocent Path.

    Cons
    Residential (again) so get people either not quite fully awake (leaving home) or switched off (almost back home) while driving.
    Not really any bike shops (though I guess there's one in Porty, near the shops mentioned above).

    Posted 13 years ago #

  30. kaputnik
    Moderator

    Meadows

    Pros
    you can count the numbers of doors down from the bicycle works on 1 hand
    also Bycyclerepairman, TBS, McDonald Cycles, Velo Ecosse, EBC and Biketrax all within under a mile
    spoilt for choice of fruit and veg shops (even if the staff are generally a bit surly. maybe I have that effect on people)
    easy access to town along Melville Drive and/or MMW
    easy access to Holyrood Park and Comiston Road for putting some burn in the thighs
    easy access to Warrender Baths Swim Centre

    Cons
    My bikes don't look nearly "retro" enough to be locked in public without getting disapproving looks

    Posted 13 years ago #

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