Tag Archives: Southport

Normal weather again.

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8°C, light S breeze, light cloud.

I rode Paddy Wagon with MapMyRide+! Distance: 49.59km, time: 02:03:55, pace: 2:30min/km, speed: 24.01km/h.
http://mapmyride.com/workout/2747744446

Running at speed, I had a very enjoyable spin. Once I passed my new house, I headed south along the coast rode and faced this amazing atmospheric effect. There was a fan of crepuscular rays reading down beyond the pier. The most remarkable part, in my opinion, is that the rays didn’t seem to suite touch the sea. They ran out of energy in an impossible way. ‘Beautiful’ describes it mildly.

Break in a Mustang,

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19°C, sunny with brisk S wind.

I rode Raleigh Mustang with MapMyRide+! Distance: 62.68km, time: 03:00:20, pace: 2:53min/km, speed: 20.86km/h.

http://mapmyride.com/workout/1740798932

In a word- versatile. On its first outing, I went on trail, road, beach and canal. This bike handled all with ease. It was a good choice.

In this photo, taken by the canal, the steerer is visible above the stem. I finished the ride with it lowered as far as possible.​

As for the ride, I sampled every terrain: road, towpath, gravel trail and beach. The Southport Air Show interrupted the route. Passing through the town, I looked down a side street, above a Lancaster readily moved south. A Spitfire and Hurricane was there too, so I turned towards the sea. Plenty of other people gadwtgd same idea. The big bird flew up and down a few times and eventually left to the north. Visibility was crystal clear, Blackpool Tower seemed closer than ever.
Back on the bike and to the north end of the beach, a chance to ride on the sand.
The sea seemed to have gone all the way to Ireland. A small jet whizzed overhead.
A friendly looking couple used kid beach as their viewpoint. I asked “is that a Mig 15?”. They thought so. Never have I seem one in the air before. On the ground, they are tiny.My mission for the day was still incomplete, the bike shop. On the way back to base, the route crossed a canal and the towpath appeared inviting. There were fewer fishermen than usual. That’s good because they have an annoying habit of blocking the path with very long poles. Wind blew strong.
I was a bit disappointed by the milage (39 miles) but I did sample the thrills of an airshow.

Gravel lanes

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20°C, sunny start but building clouds and light S breeze.
I rode Cyclocross with MapMyRide+! Distance: 74.35km, time: 03:30:43, pace: 2:50min/km, speed: 21.17km/h.
http://mapmyride.com/workout/1548544646
Main feature- weaving through the gravel lanes behind Southport. There are many signs forbidding access to private roads, but they are not marked as such on the map. So, I pressed on. This time, I carried a 1:25k map which is suffering from the damp now. Note to self, it needs replacing.
The bike ran smoothly and the gravel tyres remain a good choice for days like this.
image
At the time of writing, heavy rain has set in.

Angry green van.

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CK- Distance: 44.37mi, time: 02:57:05, speed: 15.03mi/h.
http://mapmyride.com/workout/452001445
Wet roads; overnight rain has washed off problem mud, so the roads were good today.
Southport has advanced stop lines (for bikes). The first one, on the southern approach to Southport has a left filter lane so I stood on the left edge of the middle lane, ready to in straight on. Behind me was a small metallic green van. When the lights changed, I clipped in and rode on pulling left for traffic. The van hovered threateningly only a yard behind. Next, he overtook and swerved in twice before driving away. All the while, he was staring at me, shouting and gesturing. I could not hear any of it. Very strange, I puzzled over this for the rest of the ride- 45 miles.

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Posted from a mobile.

Eleventh hour.

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9°C, NE light, sunny. CK:48.8 miles.
Rode along the coast to Southport. Before I got there I came upon a memorial ceremony at just before 11am. So, I pulled over and stood there. And watched. I removed my helmet for the duration.

On the drive home this evening, we stopped on Cannock Chase for a night-time walk in the forest. We’ve done this a few times now. Autumn has it’s own sensations that can not be experienced at any other time of year. I look forward to the onset of deep winter under the same circumstance. Night walks away from street lights is a vivid experience in snow. Could this mean I an finally finding ways to enjoy the season. Will my annual loathing of Christmas start to recede?

Change gear

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Southport Pier

Southport Pier (Photo credit: Steve’s Wildlife)

6°C, light winds light cloud

To change gear, you have to flick a lever, or twist a grip. If you have a fixed, however, you have to ride to the nearest bike shop and buy the new gear that you want. I want a 17 tooth for mine, the 16t that came with it is certainly too tall. Even on almost flat ground, it feels as if I’m grinding the pedals too slowly. Today I rode through Southport, with almost still air on almost flat roads. Formby cycles didn’t have the right sprocket in stock.

Again, the ride was relatively short at only 33 miles, but my legs felt as if they’d had a real workout, probably because there is almost no coasting on a fixed. You can tell that I really like this bike, I don’t mind (for once) that it’s something ‘trendy’, that means there are lots in the shops. Good for me and good for the fashion victims.