I’ve had a these retrofitted to two skinsuits, less for the supposed 10W aero benefit and more for the avoidance of pin holes in expensive skinsuits, which inevitably shorten the garment’s lifespan.I rode my club skinsuit in a club event, and had my partner put the number in while I was wearing the skinsuit. This was very difficult, and you certainly wouldn’t want to ask someone you’re not intimate with to do this! On the second occasion I was using a Castelli Bodypaint skinsuit, and pushed the number in before putting the skinsuit on. Even that was a bit of fiddle, but mostly because my hands were cold.In use, the number pockets are great - none of that pricking fingers when putting a number on, or pins coming loose while warming up or racing. While the number is held really snug and with no flapping, I’ve no idea if there’s really a discernible aero benefit, but at least the days of pinholes in cycle clothing are receding!

Not new to the market, these stubby aerohats were popularised by Team Sky over the last few seasons. Very expensive, particularly when they were first released, Team Grumpy refer to these as “smurf hats” because of the slightly downturned aero tail!I can’t really comment on the helmet’s aero characteristics, other than to say that I would imagine the Bambino might be superior if you do a lot of looking down or around - this pushes the tail of a ‘normal’ aero helmet into the wind. In terms of fit, the helmet is reassuring in how stable the fit is on the head. The visor didn’t steam up, as per complaints of the early versions of the helmet. In use, I was aware of sweat in the helmet, but it didn’t dribble down onto the visor, which remained clear throughout the ’25’. I don’t know if there will be problems when racing in warmer conditions.Team Grumpy bought matte black Bambini - with the mirrored visor as shown above, they really remind me of the Power Rangers (I will leave you to Google that...). So maybe that’s the new team descriptor for them...

Thorn Cycles have a 100 day return policy (with some obvious conditions). Those 100 days are pretty much expired. Will we send the new tandem back? Absolutely not. See the multi-part review for the explanation.

This is merely a brief addendum to the previous four parts of this tandem review, and really addresses any additions and/or modifications to the original spec of the tandem as delivered. While I think this tandem is a real tandemist's tandem - by which I mean that the frame and component choice have been really well chosen - I do think that fine-tuning even such a high quality tandem is inevitable.

One of the main reasons for buying a new tandem was an improvement in transportation. Not, I add, in transporting us and our luggage but in transporting the tandem by car. In the UK it's pretty much impossible to travel by train with a tandem, so each time we plan a cycle tour, we need to allow for getting the tandem to the starting point using our car.

This was forecast to be one of the, if not the, hottest days of the year. It was also our first long ride on the new tandem - a 63 mile trip involving some steep gradients, notably the 10% climb of Tram Hill that takes one up to Brill itself and so representing a test of gears and brakes.  The ride itself was something of a shakedown ride, being an opportunity to make sure that the bike was spot on in its setup for both riders - very important, given that the intention is to tour on this bike.

Astonishingly, two weeks after I placed the order for the new tandem, I received an email notifying me that it had been built and was ready for dispatch. I say 'astonishingly' because I'd been led to believe it would take about 6 weeks for delivery. And so I took delivery of an enormous and unwieldy box.

We have had our Dawes Super Galaxy tandem for around 20 years, and it was second hand then. Of course in the intervening time, most of the components have had to be replaced due to wear or occasionally upgrades (see Trigger's Broom, and Theseus' Paradox). Indeed, as far as I can recall, the only original components that remain are the front seat pin, rear handlebar stem and the Arai drum brake. Also, two of the frame tubes were replaced after an incident when the front top tube had a bit of an accident involving a wooden gate post in Durness. The bike has served us well over the years - see the various accounts of cycle tours accessible via the menu above. For the past seven years it has been our main vehicle for commuting to work.