Back on the saddle...
Discussion
I'm thinking about a few upgrades for my bike. As well as an overdue chain, crank and sprocket swap. I've broken the thirty minute barrier with a heavy fork, flat bars and a ruck sack. I now have a rear rack and panniers so if I put the original forks back for this weekend and have another crack before it gets too hot. I might make my twenty minute drive to work a thirty minute ride. 
No punctures, no broken spokes, no snapped chains and no other issues. Why did I use a £1,595 dual suspension bike on sicks when a £279 bike with a couple of bits has done a far, far better job?
No punctures, no broken spokes, no snapped chains and no other issues. Why did I use a £1,595 dual suspension bike on sicks when a £279 bike with a couple of bits has done a far, far better job?
Edited by Liquid Knight on Thursday 12th May 13:04
Okay. Day one withe the panniers was a bit of an event. Full loaded the bike handled like crap but was good up hills with the weight over the rear wheel. Empty on the way home and it felt like I had a puncture when the wind hit it.
Day two and a lighter load was okay this morning, but the bike still felt strange in bends.
On the way home tonight I had to wobble up a hill in a headwind and one of the bags hot the spokes. Not enough to do any serious damage or take me off but I have a few changes to make it safe.
Day two and a lighter load was okay this morning, but the bike still felt strange in bends.
On the way home tonight I had to wobble up a hill in a headwind and one of the bags hot the spokes. Not enough to do any serious damage or take me off but I have a few changes to make it safe.
This is the world first for the internet.
A modified rack without half moon scars...
...I used my lip making tool to slowly bend the aluminum bracket, drilled bigger holes for the solar light holders and used long screws so I have an extra couple of hooking points if I ever need a bungee.
Next I cut an old number plate in half and stuck it to the back of the side bags. Hopefully this will stop any future spoke collision when I need to wobble up a hill or headwind now it's sea breeze season.
A modified rack without half moon scars...
...I used my lip making tool to slowly bend the aluminum bracket, drilled bigger holes for the solar light holders and used long screws so I have an extra couple of hooking points if I ever need a bungee.
Next I cut an old number plate in half and stuck it to the back of the side bags. Hopefully this will stop any future spoke collision when I need to wobble up a hill or headwind now it's sea breeze season.
Well the panniers no longer hit my spokes. I'm on average six minutes slower. I'm sure this will improve as I get use to the weight distribution. I'm noticing bolts are being shaken loose by the state of the roads. There are loads of sections that have been "repaired" but are worse than the potholes they replaced, kitty litter on sections to hide the pot holes so there's a slither of loose gravel on what was the safer line and lines everywhere marking holes and cracks that are visible probably to be "repaired" at a later date. Only the visible ones because they've filled the rest with kitty litter.
Almost makes me want to drive to work.
Almost makes me want to drive to work.
"repaired" is highlighted as it can be replaced with haphazardly bodged to a piss poor standard and made worse.
Damn it! I'm supposed to be more positive.
Okay here are my top five things I like about cycling to work.
1/ Fresh air and exercise. I pity people who roll out of bed into their car and sleep walk to the office only to sleepwalk to the gym look at themselves making constipated faces in an air conditioned hall of mirrors humid due to recycled sweat vapor, full of people fitter than them because they practically live there and call each other "Bra". My days have been so much more productive since riding to work.
2/ Less stressful (believe it or not). On a bike you never get stuck behind a caravan and if you see a tractor you get in the draft.
3/ Wildlife. All the things you barely have time to notice as your barreling along at the speed limit is something to savor on a bike. The plague of baby Rabbits this year, murder of tenacious Crows who wait until the last second before casually stepping out of the way like a crowd of rally fans, my Barn Owl buddy who follows me along the road until I disturb a verge dweller, Kestrels hovering overhead, the Little Owl who turned his/her head one eighty degrees to see me as he/she sat on a post next to the road the other day, The big Buzzard looking bird of prey I've only seen a few times but looks majestic and of course the Cows (not strictly wildlife I know) who always make me smile when stare at me as I go past.
4/ Other road users. Some give me all the time in the world and all the space I could need; some don't. One gives me hope for humanity and the other reminds me to be thankful I'm alive after my last off. Something that always cheers me up is when I get overtaken by a line of traffic, those who give me plenty of space get a wave and/or a thumb up those who don't look visibly disappointed checking their mirror as they go and see both hands are on my bars. The next time I see them sometimes they pass safe, get a wave and I get a friendly "beep" or wave back. More effective than YouTube shaming.
5/ Record times and taking my time. The thing about driving, especially to work is all you can do is go with the flow, follow the speed limits and get there. This is one of the reasons I fall out with cars I have wanted since I was little. Every day is basically the same. Seventeen to twenty minutes of tedium depending on traffic. Okay I can take different routes but it doesn't make much difference. On my bike if I've had a bad day I can take it out on the pedals, if I've had a good day I can set a pace and enjoy the scenery. If I've had an average day I can do both. I've set record times on good days and been hit with a headwind on bad days. It doesn't matter in the end as it's me making the effort and I'm not sat bored in a car either bottling up the bad or spoiling the good.
Okay here are my top five things I like about cycling to work.
1/ Fresh air and exercise. I pity people who roll out of bed into their car and sleep walk to the office only to sleepwalk to the gym look at themselves making constipated faces in an air conditioned hall of mirrors humid due to recycled sweat vapor, full of people fitter than them because they practically live there and call each other "Bra". My days have been so much more productive since riding to work.
2/ Less stressful (believe it or not). On a bike you never get stuck behind a caravan and if you see a tractor you get in the draft.
3/ Wildlife. All the things you barely have time to notice as your barreling along at the speed limit is something to savor on a bike. The plague of baby Rabbits this year, murder of tenacious Crows who wait until the last second before casually stepping out of the way like a crowd of rally fans, my Barn Owl buddy who follows me along the road until I disturb a verge dweller, Kestrels hovering overhead, the Little Owl who turned his/her head one eighty degrees to see me as he/she sat on a post next to the road the other day, The big Buzzard looking bird of prey I've only seen a few times but looks majestic and of course the Cows (not strictly wildlife I know) who always make me smile when stare at me as I go past.
4/ Other road users. Some give me all the time in the world and all the space I could need; some don't. One gives me hope for humanity and the other reminds me to be thankful I'm alive after my last off. Something that always cheers me up is when I get overtaken by a line of traffic, those who give me plenty of space get a wave and/or a thumb up those who don't look visibly disappointed checking their mirror as they go and see both hands are on my bars. The next time I see them sometimes they pass safe, get a wave and I get a friendly "beep" or wave back. More effective than YouTube shaming.
5/ Record times and taking my time. The thing about driving, especially to work is all you can do is go with the flow, follow the speed limits and get there. This is one of the reasons I fall out with cars I have wanted since I was little. Every day is basically the same. Seventeen to twenty minutes of tedium depending on traffic. Okay I can take different routes but it doesn't make much difference. On my bike if I've had a bad day I can take it out on the pedals, if I've had a good day I can set a pace and enjoy the scenery. If I've had an average day I can do both. I've set record times on good days and been hit with a headwind on bad days. It doesn't matter in the end as it's me making the effort and I'm not sat bored in a car either bottling up the bad or spoiling the good.
Edited by Liquid Knight on Wednesday 18th May 14:36
My bike will be two years old soon and no longer covered by my car insurance.
http://www.cycleplan.co.uk/
Are these guys any good?
http://www.cycleplan.co.uk/
Are these guys any good?
So an old fire extinguisher bracket, longer screw for the front, new screw and nut for the back and a couple of old camera straps...
Ta da!
...I can now carry water in a stable way and use the side bags for food and clothes.
No need for the sweaty back pack and I can try some alternatives to hi-viz.
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
Ta da!
...I can now carry water in a stable way and use the side bags for food and clothes.
No need for the sweaty back pack and I can try some alternatives to hi-viz.
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
Success! The bottle in the middle worked brilliantly and I was knocking on thirty four minutes.
Failure. The hairy sunburned fat bloke t'shirt worked well with oncoming traffic but made little to no difference to overtakers. Maybe because it was Sunday and they are in their own little world.
Failure. The hairy sunburned fat bloke t'shirt worked well with oncoming traffic but made little to no difference to overtakers. Maybe because it was Sunday and they are in their own little world.
Today was a sad day. 
I've lost a very good and loyal friend.
My solar charged light fell off the bracket and was run over by the next car that came along.
It was the original £6.99 one I bought four years ago. The top cover was sun faded, the switch was sticky and temperamental but it was so much brighter than the newer, cheaper Chinese copies.
I think I loosened it due to the sticky switch and it was shaken off by the road vibration that was worse than usual due to my going slower against the headwind. I pulled over and picked all the pieces up so no other road users would get a puncture.
My next rear light won't be solar ones as they're all cheap copies now. Maybe a few hundred Lumens.
I've lost a very good and loyal friend.
My solar charged light fell off the bracket and was run over by the next car that came along.
It was the original £6.99 one I bought four years ago. The top cover was sun faded, the switch was sticky and temperamental but it was so much brighter than the newer, cheaper Chinese copies.
I think I loosened it due to the sticky switch and it was shaken off by the road vibration that was worse than usual due to my going slower against the headwind. I pulled over and picked all the pieces up so no other road users would get a puncture.
My next rear light won't be solar ones as they're all cheap copies now. Maybe a few hundred Lumens.
Great news! 
The smashed light still works. Needs a new switch and casing but I'll take the newer Chinese one apart and use the brighter LED's and better battery from the older one.
In the mean time I'm about to set off with my old Helmet light held on my rack with a couple of cable ties.
The smashed light still works. Needs a new switch and casing but I'll take the newer Chinese one apart and use the brighter LED's and better battery from the older one.
In the mean time I'm about to set off with my old Helmet light held on my rack with a couple of cable ties.
I'm glad I reshelled my old light. I needed it in this morning's fog. After a few miles of near misses due to idiots with no lights on in less than thirty meters visibility I decided to take the proper back roads. Surface that resembles the Moon but I was the only vehicle on there. A few field mice, Deer and a Woodpecker for company. I'll have to go that way more often.
How to make friends and influence people.
To some it was the moment Terrorvision sold out. To others it's a book written by an obnoxious pillock who probably gets paid to stand in front of a crowd of bored middle management types and say the word "Team" with varying levels of pedantic intent.
To me it happened last night on the way into work. I had stopped for a red light and a Taxi had drawn up beside me when a Lycraist filtered past us both, jumping the red light and as he made his escape on the path I shouted...
"Hoi you inbred,
, , ! It's a red light you pillock!"
...the Taxi driver opened his window and said...
" nice one mate!"
...and the light changed.
On the way home this morning...
"Beeep, beep, b,b,b,beep, beeeeep! Whe-heeeeeey!"
...as the same Taxi went past.
To some it was the moment Terrorvision sold out. To others it's a book written by an obnoxious pillock who probably gets paid to stand in front of a crowd of bored middle management types and say the word "Team" with varying levels of pedantic intent.
To me it happened last night on the way into work. I had stopped for a red light and a Taxi had drawn up beside me when a Lycraist filtered past us both, jumping the red light and as he made his escape on the path I shouted...
"Hoi you inbred,
, , ! It's a red light you pillock!"...the Taxi driver opened his window and said...
"
nice one mate!"...and the light changed.
On the way home this morning...
"Beeep, beep, b,b,b,beep, beeeeep! Whe-heeeeeey!"
...as the same Taxi went past.
I drove to work Tuesday as I had stuff to carry that wouldn't fit on my bike.
Wednesday I cycled in, tailwind for the first section so I was in top gear and riding to a sensible pace, second stage was side and three quarter head wind and was okay, third section was a headwind. This is why I paced myself in the first stage so I wasn't burned out for the third. Forty minutes in near gale force winds wasn't bad in my opinion.
The ride home? Not so much. I only had a tailwind for about a third of a mile the first two sections were side, three quarter head and tree line funnel headwinds and the third section was all headwind with a few gusts of sea breeze for extra measure. Forty eight minutes home and I was feeling pretty good until I got out of the shower and my right knee was roughly the same size as my head.
Drove in yesterday. Cycling tonight as my alternative hi-viz...
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
...paint spill t'shirt has arrived yesterday and I want to test it.
In other news. Even though I have fixed my old solar powered light I have come to the conclusion that new ones will be the cheap Chinese made crap with ropy circuit boards, dim LED's and batteries that die after a few months. Cheaper but the whole point is I want a long term solar rechargeable decent rear light.
So I'm looking at minimum 75 to 100 Lumen with USB charging so I can use a USB solar panel to top the batteries up in Summer and if needs be (due to the lack of sunshine) plug in during Winter.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Claud-Butler-Bion-Solar-...
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Portable-Solar-Charger-1...
This solar charger could also act as a spare front light "just in case".
Could work.
Wednesday I cycled in, tailwind for the first section so I was in top gear and riding to a sensible pace, second stage was side and three quarter head wind and was okay, third section was a headwind. This is why I paced myself in the first stage so I wasn't burned out for the third. Forty minutes in near gale force winds wasn't bad in my opinion.
The ride home? Not so much. I only had a tailwind for about a third of a mile the first two sections were side, three quarter head and tree line funnel headwinds and the third section was all headwind with a few gusts of sea breeze for extra measure. Forty eight minutes home and I was feeling pretty good until I got out of the shower and my right knee was roughly the same size as my head.
Drove in yesterday. Cycling tonight as my alternative hi-viz...
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
...paint spill t'shirt has arrived yesterday and I want to test it.
In other news. Even though I have fixed my old solar powered light I have come to the conclusion that new ones will be the cheap Chinese made crap with ropy circuit boards, dim LED's and batteries that die after a few months. Cheaper but the whole point is I want a long term solar rechargeable decent rear light.
So I'm looking at minimum 75 to 100 Lumen with USB charging so I can use a USB solar panel to top the batteries up in Summer and if needs be (due to the lack of sunshine) plug in during Winter.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Claud-Butler-Bion-Solar-...
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Portable-Solar-Charger-1...
This solar charger could also act as a spare front light "just in case".
Could work.
I haven't been 100% all week. My times have been ten to twelve minutes down. I have got home, had a shower, had something to eat and basically fallen asleep.
There have been a few unsettling issues at work but instead of insomnia I have been exhausted. Struggling to stay away at the office (more than usual), eating crap and generally nonchalant about the situation.
The weather hasn't been great either, hot, humid and sea breeze head wind or head wind. Yesterday was nice though. I had a bank of rain follow me into work and a sharp shower an hour before I set off.
It feels like I'm putting as much effort in but I'm riding in slow motion. Weird.
There have been a few unsettling issues at work but instead of insomnia I have been exhausted. Struggling to stay away at the office (more than usual), eating crap and generally nonchalant about the situation.
The weather hasn't been great either, hot, humid and sea breeze head wind or head wind. Yesterday was nice though. I had a bank of rain follow me into work and a sharp shower an hour before I set off.
It feels like I'm putting as much effort in but I'm riding in slow motion. Weird.
So not feeling 100% and I managed to pop my ribs moving an engine from one side of my garden to the other I thought I would take it easy and left early for work last night. Then it rained, I got bored and arrived thirty one minutes later.
Must have blown the cobwebs out as this morning was a clean and clear thirty four including stopping for the daily papers.
The technicolour vortex t'shirt worked well but it was a typical Monday and I had to be a little more assertive as I approached roundabouts and junctions. Pulling out to the right while signalling left so I don't get overtaken twenty feet from the "Give Way" line.
I'm looking at cyclocross bikes again so I can have a little aerodynamic advantage with a bike capable of taking the potholes and crap. Then again how hard would it be to convert my bike?
Must have blown the cobwebs out as this morning was a clean and clear thirty four including stopping for the daily papers.
The technicolour vortex t'shirt worked well but it was a typical Monday and I had to be a little more assertive as I approached roundabouts and junctions. Pulling out to the right while signalling left so I don't get overtaken twenty feet from the "Give Way" line.
I'm looking at cyclocross bikes again so I can have a little aerodynamic advantage with a bike capable of taking the potholes and crap. Then again how hard would it be to convert my bike?
Lazy get I had to drive last night to drop stuff round my sisters on the way in. Instead of getting another bike I've ordered some triathlon bars for mine. Just a cheap set so if it doesn't work it won't cost much and I'll have somewhere to mount lights in the Winter and a bottle if I keep going in this tropical heat.
It's been a dull couple of days, rain, tropical heat, head, side, tail winds. They usual and then on my way home yesterday my Barn Owl buddy hovered about six feet above the ground on the other side of the road as I went past. She dived for her breakfast before I could get my camera out but was completely oblivious to m and my bike.
Looking forward to the ride in tonight.
Looking forward to the ride in tonight.
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