8°C, strong NW with a few showers. mostly sunny.
Round the back of Dalton are some decent climbs and sweeping descents towards Parbold. The Mustang is good on hills despite being heavy. The weight is not noticeable unless you ride with somebody else on a lighter machine.
That return leg was hard in sections exposed to strong wind. Though the thermometer said 9°, it felt much colder.
The cafe was heaving (and quite noisy). Nevertheless, the service was still excellent. Mmm, espresso!
8°C, stormy, 55mph gusts.
Woke very early, fizzing with energy. After breakfast, I got the turbo out. While on it, I recalled that I have a pair of running shoes.
A decade on, these shoes get a second run. I bought them for an event at my last school and have only used them in gyms since. They’re not ideal gym shoes but seemed fine on the slabbed pavements around here.
I feel great now, let’s run again soon. Next is a bike ride this afternoon.
Later: a third workout.
The tail end of Storm Gareth still has some force. No longer is it dangerous but the return leg was non-stop hard work
8°C, Storm force SW Mostly dry.
that was hard, riding into the wind with 50mph gusts. Along the sea wall, the wind blew lifting sand. Some of it rose above eye level. I had to ride on the footpath because I couldn’t open my eyes properly. The return ride would be fun after I used the green machines. I had the coast to myself.
Britain seems to be an increasingly angry place. Were talking about it since the Brexit vote of 2016. The papers, online, radio and TV are filled with people expressing opinions. They are talking but not listening.
Here is a letter to the local paper that characterises the Angry Letter Writer. See below.
His opinions certainly don’t reflect my 30 year’s experience cycling with clubs. However, there were times when drivers made it clear that they were angry with us. I used to notice their reactions when I lived in Bristol, but not in Staffordshire.
My strongest disagreement is with the assertion that club cyclists are the biggest problem on our roads. He has not considered motorists speeding, running red lights, having no insurance, tailgating and so on. In his mind, the nuisance of overtaking club cyclists is greater than the loss of life associated with the driving offences listed above. It is so easy to refute each argument that I won’t bother. The overall theme is anger.
The same letter was published in the Southport version of this paper but the name was withheld. In that case it was signed off as
Angry motorist, (name and address supplied). Has the paper slipped up and accidentally released his name?
8°C, sunny with a fresh SW breeze.
Climbed Bannister Hill after a stop at the favourite cafe. I like that climb, it leaves you with a refreshed feeling that lasts all day. Perhaps I will try it on the single-speed soon.
The Arrow bike is running well but it still needs an extra link in the chain.
8°C, brightening up with increasing SW wind.
1, The birds were lively today. I heard curlews, lapwings and another strange one. The latter’s sound carried a very long way but eventually I got there. A guy stopped his van and had just finished playing his bagpipes. I stopped for a chat; he played in a band in Liverpool and couldn’t practice at home.
2, Look, this is creepy;
On a lamp-post in Formby.
“WAKE UP WHITE PEOPLE
SAVE THE WHITE RACE.
Er what? Save them from what exactly? A quick search using those words returns white supremacists in the USA. What is going on in their poor little minds? I’m not offended by this crass slogan, I’m disgusted by it. Needless to say, I scraped it off.
3, Later, a puncture. The tyre is something that the rubber delaminated from the case. How did I let it get so bad? There followed a nervous ride home, it could so easily puncture again. It didn’t.
4, new pedals:
Swapped from the Arrow winter bike, semi-platform SPDs seem a more natural option on a fixed gear bike.
The black cage is actually plastic and weighs very little. Clipping in feels no different. Shimano do a very wide range of SPD pedals and I may slowly phase in this style as others wear out. It’s only the cross bike that needs the extra mud clearance offered by the minimalist design.
Occasionally, I may ride this machine in ordinary shoes so a wider footprint is necessary. They feel better too and I can see a smoother movement of my knees with less side to side motion. I had no twinges in my knees today. Problem solved!
9°C, misty start but the sun breaks through
I’m so slow to warm up. Beyond 8 miles I felt the long cranks flowing smoothly in time with the raised pace. The old bike is creaky though. It could be the bottom bracket or even the seat rails, it’s rather difficult to tell.
Best of all, my knees were free of any twinges. Old pedals should be a worry; they go out of alignment and it’s knees that hurt.
18°C, bright sun with a light S breeze.
Another record breaking warm winter’s day. That average is 1 down from the last ride but I did start a bit sluggish. All was normal after the cafe stop which included one of their wonderful espressos.
The new crankset is not usable yet for an irritating reason there is one chainring bolt missing. Turning over the garage didn’t find one so it will have to be purchased. Spinwell in Southport didn’t have one. Search on.
15°C, milky sun, warm and dry. light S.
Grabbed a ride on the Australia#¹ route after a morning of home decorating. Today is like spring a month early. The pace is good. I don’t normally get this bike out so soon in the year.
#1, it looks a bit like Australia on the route map; sort of.
13°C, sunny with light breeze.
https://www.mapmyride.com/workout/3392284945
I have a teacher’s cold (again). Since it’s an unseasonably warm sunny day, I rode the cross bike anyway. I soft-pedaled along the sea wall. The tide was high making the beach soggy. Cross tyres are too narrow to cope with we silty sand.
MapMyRide is not working properly again. It fails to share the image so here is a straight photo.
Micycle 