12°C, moderate SW, dry later and warmer.
I started out with all these plans to do a loop approaching Preston but the drizzle turned to proper rain so I dove into my favourite café. The afternoon was far better and more mild at 12C.
The Mustang has Schwalbe CX 30c tyres which are actually rather good for January. I was too lazy to repair the puncture on the Marathon+ tyre.
9°C, light breeze with drizzle and bouts of heavier rain.
Passed this large glasshouse in Banks. Look at the strange neon magenta glow.
End of year: later I’ll add the annual milage to the end of this page.
Annual Summary: below
Mustang: grey damp and no wind
Pushed back the ride to get some maintenance done. The Zing has a new chain that I failed to fit. Shimano chains have a single-use pin to close the chain. I broke it. The Jake also has a new KMC chain which was easy to fit but there’s a problem. The cassette is worn out on about 4 cogs. It’s the original on a 2015 bike, so that’s a decent life. The jockey wheels were almost toothless. Changed them too.
Great, an hour’s work and now 2 bikes are unrideable. At least I got a run this morning.
8-3°C, ice on Sollom Bridge. Clear sky, sun in my eyes but dry. No wind
The Raleigh Mustang feels so heavy and slow. My other regular ride bikes are not like this. Yesterday, I whizzed along at an enjoyable pace on the race bike. It’s not my legs, the bike is the problem. Maybe I’ll try riding in on the cross (Jake) before I fit the winter tyres, as an experiment.
The mist that never gets closer . That ride time is long thanks to a puncture half way. Thanks.
8°C, cloudless blue sky, light Northerly.
Mawdsley pumping station.
50 miles in the sun. Okay, it wasn’t that warm but I had a new base layer to test. It feels like merino wool but isn’t. After 3 hours it was still not clammy and remained warm. Excellent for £22.
8°C, stiff W breeze. Dry and sunny.
After the weather we’ve had! 3 named storms last week and some bouts of heavy showered including hail. My average milage has really suffered.
The original idea was to go out on the cross bike. Infuriatingly, it has a flat tyre. It didn’t respond to reinflation so I left it for today and headed out on the heavy Mustang.
4°C, dense fog.
About 1/5th of drivers didn’t put their lights on in this dense fog. I saw 2 cyclists riding with their hands in their pockets. Another two wore all black and had no lights. Nutters!
The speedo was over-reading today. Tchoh!
9°C, mist and drizzle higher up. Still.
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.
9°C, brisk W
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:
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.
Micycle 