The CatEye TL-LD610 rear light has five red LED's and requires 2 AAA batteries.
It has four operating modes (constant, all flash, side to side flash, and random flash) and should run for 30 hours in constant mode and 60 hours in flash mode.
Like the UNO headlight, black and white versions are available.
It is fixed to the seat post with a version of CatEye's clever FlexTight mounting bracket (no tools required) and can be easily unclipped from the bracket when leaving the bike.
The light can be mounted vertically or horizontally.
A single switch on the light body turns the light on and off and changes the mode.This is a bright rear light, I use it in all flash mode, which I think is the most effective and also saves the battery.
This light is still available, but has been superceded by CatEye's new tail light the Rapid 3 (TL-LD630).
www.cateye.com
The Uno is a battery operated headlight manufactured by CatEye. It has one LED and requires only one AA size battery.
It should run for about 15 hours in constant mode or 60 hours flashing.
Black and white versions are available for the colour conscious.
It weighs in at only 73 grams with the bracket and battery.
It is fixed to the handlebar with CatEye's clever FlexTight mounting bracket (no tools required) and can be easily unclipped from the bracket when leaving the bike.
At 400 candlepower it is a reasonably bright light for roads with streetlighting - for unlit areas a brighter light is advisable.
A neat design touch provides some sideways light for safety, and the switch on the end is not easy to operate unintentionally when carrying the light around.
www.cateye.com
I purchased my first pair of Endura Spectrum glasses a year ago at £14.99 and amazingly they can still be purchased for that amount.
They have a colour coded wrap-around style and are supplied complete with a hard case and a carry pouch.
These glasses do not have swappable lenses, but at this price you can buy a different pair to suit different conditions.
The colours available are; Blue Semi-Mirror, Clear, Orange, Pink Semi-Mirror, Smoke, Soft Tint Semi-Mirror, and yellow. I have the Blue Semi-Mirror ones for sunny days and the yellow ones for dull days.
The lenses are good, mine have not become scratched but I admit to taking care not to get them scratched.
The fit is however a bit on the large side, but you can bend the arms in a bit. Also, the glasses do have a tendency to slip down your nose when riding so that you have to nudge them back into place.
I ditched the hard cases because I just could not get the glasses to fit in them.
Overall these glasses are great value for money. After all not everyone has the money for Oakley's.
www.endura.co.uk
Giro are known for their cycling helmets, gloves, and lately shoes.
I purchased a pair of Giro Bravo gloves about a year ago priced then at £17.99.
Mine are Black/Charcoal but they are available in four other colour schemes; Black/Yellow, Red/Black, White/Grey/Black, and Grey/Blue/White.
There are five sizes available (S, M, L, XL, and XXL).
I bought the large size, I've found the fit and feel of the gloves to be good apart from the thumb holes which are a bit on the large side and the velcro closures which overlap a bit too much but these issues don't make the gloves unusable.
Ventilation and padding is good and they have remained in a very reasonable condition after a years use, but perhaps beginning to show their age a bit. Also, they don't have pull loops to make removing them easier.
The best glove for the money? Well, they have been very good value for money.
Best price I could find them for now £21.50
www.giro.com
Hi and welcome to my road cycling blog!
A year has past since I had my old road bike repaired and rediscovered road cycling. In that time I have learned a lot by dint of hard work and research and would like to pass on that knowledge to others.
So I will be posting reviews of bikes and gear I've purchased and used, thoughts about training, recovery, and nutrition, links to useful road cycling websites, news items and photo's, and anything else I think of that may be helpful to other road cyclists.
One of the things I have noticed is the sheer amount of road cycling gear there is available, I think I've probably spent as much time researching and buying the right gear as I have using it. I would like to get some of the benefits of that effort into the posts I write and hope I manage to do that.
Thanks for looking and ride safely
Richard
