Category Archives: Cycling

Mid-winter outing.

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I rode Arrow with MapMyRide+! Distance: 57.97km, time: 02:34:39, pace: 2:40min/km, speed: 22.49km/h.

http://mapmyride.com/workout/1966783052​

Doing shorter rides in this cold weather. This morning was still icy so I waited. This gives me smaller slot to complete a ride before it becomes dark. The 19th of January is on average, the coldest day in the northern hemisphere. For now, some cold, foggy days.
Normally, I’d manage the cold by riding for about two hours then taking a cafe break to warm up. This week, I’m under pressure with work stress.

Southport beach.

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7°C, brisk NW wind.dry, some sun.

I rode The Jake with MapMyRide+! Distance:56.91km, time: 03:11:38, pace: 3:22min/km, speed: 17.82km/h.

http://mapmyride.com/workout/1951884761

These tyres are great in the thick mud that is all around at the moment. This ride was over more tarmac than ideal, tyre year is a worry.​

These photos were taken on Southport sea wall. I threw the gloves on the ground so they wouldn’t blow away in the strong wind. I’m starting to get used to the HDR app. It’s best to keep settings low to avoid over-doing the effect.

Bad weather problem.

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1°C, gales, had and snow.
Or, why I have not cycled much this week.​


Fizzy legs prevent sleep, and disrupt concentration. It only comes on when I’ve missed exercise.
This has been a week of gales with gusts of 55mph. Other days have seen ice, and now- snow.

New year, reset and look forwards.

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Currently, my milage list stands at:
Racelite: 394.3
Arrow: 1646.4
Kona Jake: 528
Kona Paddy Wagon: 925.4
Raleigh Mustang: =1,634.9*
TOTAL MILEAGE: 5,129
Raleigh Mustang; ??, * That figure includes bikes hired on holiday, and miles hiked. I’ll have to work this part out, the relevant speedometer does not record total milage.​

Annual summary.

That’s it for 2016

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I rode with MapMyRide+! Distance: 63.29km, time: 02:52:05, pace: 2:43min/km, speed: 22.07km/h.

http://mapmyride.com/workout/1927260194

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Last ride of the year. Adding up the odometers, the total is about 4,500 miles, down considerably on last year. However, I took weeks out for hiking. In the summer holiday, I barely rode at all.
Also, one of my cycle computers doesn’t record total milage so I will rely on the gps app Mapmyride for its summary to be released on New Year’s Day.

Between Barbara and Conor.

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10°C, westerly gale, mostly dry but grey.
I rode The Jake with MapMyRide+! Distance: 31.77km, time: 02:10:51, pace: 4:07min/km, speed: 14.57km/h.

http://mapmyride.com/workout/1919957957​

Barbara is the name given to the second storm of the winter. Conor, the third. Today marks a respite between the two storms which means dry weather, but very strong wind.

I had a mishap ten miles from home. I rode through a puddle, nothing remarkable about that. This one hid a sharp edge which have the whole bike a severe jolt. I was lucky not to fall off but then I looked down. The back tyre was completely flat. The sharp edge caused a pinch puncture that was not repairable.
At this point, I found a brake pad in my hand. Replacing the wheel dislodged the pad. It’s a tiny thing and I have never serviced disk brakes before. I don’t really know how to assemble them and now was not the time to learn how. After some nervous fidgeting it back into the slot, it seemed to work.
I swapped the inner-tube and carefully rode home on a tyre softer than ideal. Low tyre pressure is the likely cause of all this to begin with.

Ninety minutes on the canal.

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  11°C, still, clear and drying out.

I rode Jake with MapMyRide+! Distance: 23.71km, time: 01:30:56, pace: 3:50min/km, speed: 15.64km/h.​

Towpath pause.

http://mapmyride.com/workout/1912095641


The mud is soft, black and deep now. This confused the wheels who couldn’t decide whether to go the same way. The whole bike feels different when veering about on soft tyres. That aspect is fun with only a certain frisson of dread because the canal water looks deep and cold. I grinned most of the time, probably.