16°C, moderate SW, full sun.
That was refreshing! After supper, the sun was glorious so out ce.the Jake CX from the shed. It’s got a new headset from Hope and a new bottom bracket. Wow, that made a difference. It’s so silky and light at the front end. Next job ought to be the wheel bearings. The Chaim has plenty of life.
18°C, light SW. Sunny
My old shoes for the summer bike were Carnac. They’ve lasted a decade but I’ve noticed a waggle of my left knee which has reduced down-force. They must have lost their shape over the years and it’s ruined my cadence. Now that’s all fixed. I had to stop 4 times to make adjustments to the shoe-plates but now, all is good.
Apart fdrom this, several repairs are complete this week on the Kona Jake CX. It has a new Hope headset and Shimano bottom bracket. I’ll report if I notice any difference in handling. The wheel bearings still need doing.
In a way, this marks half-way. Milage so far 3,152km, I make that 1,940 miles. Milage is down while working on DofE because that’s many weekends where I can’t ride.
24°C, full sun, 0 cloud, dry and close.
What an excellent day out. Okay, my legs complained about doing another 50 two days after the previous. Conditions were perfect. Warm days like this cause quite a thirst. On the return, I was stuck for somewhere to get a refill. then I spotted a standpipe in a driveway. It didn’t look like anybody was home so I sneaked in and got a litre. that saved the day.
Summary for the week. Warming up after a cool weekend. Strong sun and little rain.
Ridden the Zing, Jake and the Paddy Wagon this week. The first day felt hard and was rather disheartening, but as the week wore on – it felt more natural. I’ve worked away most weekends on DofE so that has interrupted my cycling habits.
Rides were 36.1+ 51.7+27.9+ 21.5+32.6 = 169.8km
So that’s 104 miles in 5 days. I’m happy with that even with the low pace of several.
Some repairs are pending. My summer road shoes are falling out of shape, the left tends to tilt my foot outwards which then changes the whole leg. My left knee sweeps outwards with each stroke and lowers the prower into the pedal that side. Those Carnac shoes are ancient, I’ve forgotten when I bought them, probably in the 90s. A new pair are on order.
Secondly, the headset on the Jake cross bike has gone notchy so I’ll get replacement races soon too. Next problem is lubrication in gear cables. Muc-off lube tends to dry up quickly making gear changes hit & miss. I’m going to try a heavier grade of oil. Maybe confine the thin dry lube to the shifter mechaisms.
Micycle 