Formby shifting sands

Posted on 27th Nov 2011 by essiep

8~5°C, gales with sun, scudding clouds

I have sand in my hair, my ears and eyes. The dunes on Formby beach were fuzzy with drifting sands, so I climbed up to the top of the dunes to escape. It was no better up there, the swirls of sand were whipped up the slopes by the gales and took off on the mini-summits. The force of the blast made steady photos impossible too.

PC frustration- I have new CDs and can’t load them to my iPod. The external wireless receiver failed in install properly tonight. I nuisance when iTunes runs on that computer not this laptop. Annoyance grows when it takes so long trying all the alternative methods with a few re-starts thrown in. It even began to look as if the USB ports were not working properly. Maybe the motherboard drivers have a problem. The list goes on.

Greyland

Posted on 20th Nov 2011 by essiep

7°C, fog. CA:29 miles.

Got the ride, but the air was thick grey which sucked all the colour out of the land (except the orange streetlights I suppose).

Formby Beach

Formby

Posted on 13th Nov 2011 by essiep

14°C, SE winds, sunny. CK:48 miles.

Mushroom forest

Posted on 6th Nov 2011 by essiep

12C, clear, NE light. CR:61 miles

Mushrooms live rather well on roadside verges, this was an un-missable display, like clusters of eggs.

Coprinus comatus, the Shaggy Inkcap?

And yes, I know they are not plants.

Even on this small scale, you can see it’s a fuzzy photo. I carry my phone with its pinhole camera on bike rides. Sometime this winter, an upgrade- but to what? My next phone should have a really good camera, and by that, it must have a good lens, control over exposure, colour balance and optical zoom. Does such a camera-phone even exist?

Dogs’ puzzle

Posted on 30th Oct 2011 by essiep

17C, rain then sun, wind lightening. CR:70.2 miles

After a few days off the bike, today’s ride felt easy, right up to the 70th mile. Only early sunset stopped me doing more. Home, the dogs were caught working on a puzzle. the chocolate box must have had a second layer, it just had to!

Track stand

Posted on 24th Oct 2011 by essiep

15C, clear but winds strong. CK19 miles.

Not up to a full ride today so playtime on the fixed-gear bike instead. I tried doing a track stand on a quiet road. Erm, it’s not as easy as it seems. The problem, for me I suppose, is fear of falling off. Very slow speed control is okay, but kicking backwards to cancel a leftwards fall is, so far, impossible.

More time another day.

Sunday morning rain.

Posted on 25th Sep 2011 by essiep

14°C, rain. CR:?

It would be dry if I'd left it in the house

Sunday is cyclingday, so I wake to rain and a washingline full of wet clothes. I face a grim choice: finish the last bit of painting in the attic, or attack the pile of marking while I wait for the clouds to lift. It’s a tough life.

Silly cows

Posted on 18th Sep 2011 by essiep

16°C, towering cumulonimbus- they missed me, just. CR:48 miles

Late ride today, with only limited time before sunset at 19.15, so you want to freesteady miles, unimpeded by traffic, then this happens- it’s milking time. Those ladies weren’t in a hurry, many stopped at that big puddle on the right to drink, others just toddled off on their daily routine.
Blimey, those ladies looked full.

Strap on your bag and ride into dusk

Posted on 14th Sep 2011 by essiep

17C, lighter WSW wind, CA:45 miles

Extended my ride home tonight. Up the High Street of desolation that is Brownhills, straight on, along a canal tow-path and then onto Cannock Chase. Eventually clocked up 45 miles arriving home in fading light. I shalln’t do this for much longer, though it’s done the job of making up for tomorrow’s drive. Not looking forward to open evening- it makes for such a long day.

After work ride

Posted on 6th Sep 2011 by essiep

Windy & cooler, CR:25 miles

Rode after work today, the shower has been cleaned of legionnaires, but is has to be tested before I am allowed to use it. Early evening light is fading fast now it’s September, but at least I could ride the ‘best’ bike and choose my route. A real feature of holiday rides is the effect of proper rest. Real athletes must benefit so much from deep rest, the effect on your energy levels is so strong.

Missing a day’s ride in the holidays feels just like stress, by the end of the six weeks, you need to ride.

Micycle

Mike thinks b/hikes

Category Archives: Travel