Riding on thin ice

4°C, full sun but ice patches remain light NE breeze

Cheshire Lines.

This is Cheshire lines which runs up the side of Lancashire. It looks icy but there were no problems with grip. It was a fine day and I was so glad to be out.The muddiest part is by a sewage works and though the puddles look large, the best line is straight through the middle of them. Around there should stink but now it doesn’t. That is a Covid problem – I can’t smell bad things. You’d think that was good, but actualy it’s a nuisance. How can I tell if food is off, or whether a shirt needs a wash?

Grey, gloomy November.

9°C, mist and drizzle higher up. Still.

High Moor.

It felt cold in he damp air today. Nominally, 9°C should be comfortable but not so today. Higher up, near High Moor there was light rain too. I need to fit another water bottle, I was so dehydrated by the time I got home.

Now the speedometer is playing up again. The speed often read double what it should be and he distance was about 30% below. I will have to replace it. This time, it will not be wireless.

1 day warmup

9°C, brisk W

Short route

4 days without a ride and feeling frustrated and fidgety. A short blast is such a good way to clear that feeling.

I’ve had an annoying time with repairs not working out well:

  • Fit new chain but it skips on the old cassette – so changed it.
  • Spare cassette also skips so must be worn out too.It’s been in storage for years.
  • Decided to pull out the commuting/gravel bike and it has a puncture.
  • Eventually went out on the commuter with its gravel wheels.
  • 2 cassettes and 1 chain binned. Replacements ordered.

The problem is keeping track of how old componants are on bikes when you have 6. It was easier when I only had 2 or 3 bikes. Now it seems like a cluster of repears have come together.

Yesterday’s warmup worked

Two rides

15°C, sunny with a brisk SW.

Sunday’s ride on mixed terrain

Sunday: pulled the bike out and found the front tyre flat. I decided to swap to the gravel wheels and take in some non-road routes. Though the distance is no big deal, the time reveals a decent day out.

Tuesday: fixed the puncture and put the road wheels back in. The fault was a punch puncture. I did find fitting the tyres rather difficult.

Friday the 13th

Damp but some sun. Light SW wind, 11°C.

November is normally the wettest month here, this year is no different. There is lots of surface water around and nowhere for it to drain in this flat landscape. I rode the Mustang with its Marathon tyres. Before setting off, I bloew the pressures up and that makes more difference to handling than with any other tyre. The last ride felt like the brakes were on. I have mixed feelings about those tyres.