Author Archives: essiep

Purloin the comestibles

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3C. Heavy rain/sleet.
End of term. It’s getting faster- the passage of time. This certainly has been a long and tiring term. But, less tiring than usual. I credit those extended rides home for the feelings of refreshment and satisfaction. Some nights I clocked up 38 miles, made possible with those new lights. I should have bought them years ago. It’s. A feeling of freedom.
The season is about to change, officially speaking. Autumn was a remarkably mild and dry one. Dry roads reflect headlights well and we have seen little frost. This morning’s ride to work was a little nervous. A thin strip of had lined the gutters from a night of freezing rain.
Now, rest is within reach, but the stress of shopping looms. Fortunately, Christmas is early so we can get on and enjoy the holiday once it’s over..

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Life Of Pi.

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10C, some rain.
Cycle- Distance: 50.20mi, time: 03:40:21, speed: 13.67mi/h.
http://mapmyride.com/workout/446467589
Pretty low speed ride, but my back is so stiff. This time of year, many cafes are closed. Some don’t open until February.
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Film- Life Of Pi. A film that works on many levels. There are various religious threads, one of which doesn’t appear until near the end. The lead character, Pi asks about two stories given about the survival at sea. Which was the better story; the first one, or the second true one? It seems to be a question posed by the nature of religion. Should we believe what is true, or what is beautiful?
The mistake that religious followers make is that they choose the latter.
I could not decide whether this was presented as a critique or a support of faith.

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Rain please.

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9°C, light S. Wind. CA-28 miles.
Rain is forecast tomorrow, and I know this will sound odd, but I hope it is heavy. The roads are so greasy and slimey, the grip is a bit unpredictable in places. Yesterday, I checked Tyre pressures in case view were soft. No, it wasn’t that. Today, a colleague told up how she bumped her car, the emergency stop skidded.
So, the tarmac needs a good rinse.
My legs are empty, so I will drive anyway.

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Old clubmate.

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7°C, light SW wind. Clear and dry.
CA-38 miles.
On the extended ride home. I happened across an old clubmate in the darkness. We illuminated the night with white headlights and talked of times old and new. The cycling club now has 300 members. Wow! There used to be about 25.
Also, never seen this before- a group of about 8 cyclists, also using their white lights for a night ride in the lanes.
Like a kid, I have been looking forward to this ride all day, and it worked out even better than I hoped.
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This left the evening shorter; so food, fire, and bed.

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Broken saddle.

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CK-56 miles, 11C, SW wind, mostly dry.
Made it up Bannister hill; I knew it would work before I even set off. I had the fizzy legs. Even braking my saddle didn’t stop me riding to Parbold. I have had so many break over the years, I knew what to do. Slide the rails so the fracture is between the two clamps on the seat-post.
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Easy autumn

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8°C, mostly dry and calm.

November has been a forgiving month, despite the Daily Express headline that promised Arctic Blasts and a blanket of snow. We had a couple of frosty nights.decemberRides
It looks as though I am heading towards completing a 5,000 miles year cycling. Was it really only 15 years ago when I rode 8,000 miles each year?
I am visiting. When I come here, I can use bathroom scales. Yesterday, it said 15st 2lbs, this morning- 14st 9lbs. 5lbs in one night?

Colour in the hedges.

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CA-26 miles.
I rode with MapMyRide! Distance: 16.40mi, time: 01:08:30, speed: 14.4mi/h.
http://mapmyride.com/workout/442756169
That new IZONE Arc 600, I planned to use as a second light, will now become my main bike front. The Asteri 3 is rated at 200 lumen, but this new one is 600 lumen and the spread is greater too.
It does a trick where it runs on low and flashing at the same time, useful. I can charge it up at work on the computer in a short time. Double useful. The old lights, with NiCad cells, need an overnight charge.
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Amusingly, the moths like the lights too. They came at me from the hedges on the unlight roads. Funny little animals.

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December ride.

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5°C, getting windy, clear and cold.
CA-34 miles.
MapMyRide! Distance: 23.98mi, time: 01:39:18, speed: 14.5mi/h.
http://mapmyride.com/workout/441808821
Glints in the December gloom; each morning there is a fine sunrise over my left shoulder as I ride to work. Evenings, an extended ride in good visibility. Venus is bright after sunset, and in the other direction- Jupiter.
You have to take any boosts you can in this time of year.

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Related articles

Dark lanes after work.

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7°C,still, dry.
I rode with MapMyRide! Distance: 24.14mi, time: 01:38min, speed: 14.7mi/h.
http://mapmyride.com/workout/441210425
Thirty-five miles today, a work day! That’s not bad, and after feeling so off yesterday. I could have ridden more but I got hungry.
The old lights have a charger fault, there is a poor connection that means it does not always charge fully. I will have in get the soldering iron out soon.

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Traffic Police.

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9°C, windy.
Desperate for a break, this weekend will have to do.
Motorway cops- a documentary series on BBC television is easy watching. None of the sensational drama that seems to encourage crime as found on other channels. It did leave me with some questions.
One incident closed the motorway because of a multi-car crash. The front car driver said red car braked in front and then 4 more collided in a cascade. It was never established who caused it all, so no charges were filed. Breathalysers were used but no checks were made on mobile phones. Also, none of the following cars were prosecuted for tail-gating.
The most disturbing incident involved the death of a cyclist. The body was found on the busy, fast section of the A10, late at night with fast traffic still passing. Police spent time searching for alter and were interrupted by a phone call. Police went round to a mini driver’s house where a badly damaged car was parked. The wind-screen was broken on the near-side and the driver thought she had hit an animal. When told of the death of a man, she collapsed and threw up.
Back at the accident scene, was the body dressed in dark clothes, a mangled bike with no lights or reflectors. The victim was also very drunk.
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I felt rather sorry for the mini driver. She will have to come to terms with killing someone, which was in no way, her fault.
A troubling programme. She was breathalized, a standard procedure. But why are mobile phones not checked as standard procedure? Distraction would explain at least 3 of the unexplained accidents, and phone companies hold those records.
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