December 2015.

7th December: I headed out after work tonight to do the local 21 but after deciding very quickly that it was far too windy to cycle with traffic (we had storm Desmond yesterday and the day before, goodness knows what happened to storm Clodagh, it's been very windy recently...) I decided to do something I'd thought about doing for ages, cycling up and down the bypass on the cycle path.

I can't claim it was an interesting ride but it was rather strange in one respect. With the wind behind me going up the bypass it was like cycling in a vacuum; I was flying along at top speed and it was almost silent. As soon as I turned around and started heading back, into the wind, it was like cycling on the deck of a trawler with the wind howling off the fields - quite strange. Anyhow it wasn't an interesting ride but it was 20.4 miles to start December off.

9th December: I did the local 21 tonight after work. It was extremely blowy, but thankfully dry, and I spent a fair amount of the ride leaning slightly into the wind to stay upright; always a good time to remind yourself that cycling into a strong wind must be good training, surely? Despite the weather it was a fairly enjoyable ride, especially when the wind was behind me, and it's another 20.2 miles for December.

12th December: It had been been peeing down all day today so when it finally stopped at about six I dragged myself out to do the local 21. That was the plan anyway but a couple of indecisive moments saw the actual route I did being a hybrid of various local rides.

It was windy and there was a heck of a lot of standing water and semi-flooded roads but it was quite an enjoyable ride and my legs felt good and it was a much needed 20.9 more miles for December.

16th December: I had the day off work today to catch up on some chores so I managed to get out and do the same ride as above in the afternoon. It was blowy but dry so quite a nice ride overall. It was a day ride so my first ride in a while without my Diablo lighting the way which was nice and 21.4 more miles.

20th December: It was a gorgeous day today with sunshine and blue skies so I decided to head out and do the local 21. That was the plan until I got onto the bypass and found it was extremely windy and, as often happens on my rides, I decided to go exploring instead. I wanted to know where the road goes if you go past Warbrecks nursery and turn left at the the T-junction and ended up in Ormskirk coming home via Edge Hill college. The weather was warm enough but the wind was dangerous; there's a stretch of the road back from Ormskirk that's single carriageway with open fields on either side that had me leaning into the wind constantly and trying not to cycle into the pavement every time there was a brief lull in the wind. Anyhow, I survived and another much needed 15.6 miles for the month.

22nd December: I was knackered after work today but I manfully necked a cup of full-strength Bourbon Espresso, made in my stove top, and headed out into the night. I ended up doing another hybrid of my various local rides aiming to avoid as much traffic as possible.

It was windy (the beginning of storm Eva as it turned out) but much less than it has been recently and I felt great all the way around so a very enjoyable ride over all and 18.8 more miles for December.

28th December: I took Awesom-O today on the last day of the Christmas holidays and did the full local 24 miler. It was fairly windy (the start of storm Frank as it turned out) but not dangerously so like it was the other day and my legs felt strangely awesome all the way round which was a bonus. Anyhow, 24.4 more miles.

Well, I didn't make it out again for various reasons so the total for December was 141.7 and 2015 ended up at 2264.3 miles. Given the poor weather in January and a couple of bad months with my knee, ending up just over half a month down for the year was not a bad result overall. Also, I've just found out I might be being dragged on a week long family holiday 'probably somewhere in Spain' where I'll probably hire a road bike and disappear each day so here's looking forward to 2016!

Review: Schwalbe tyre levers.

Because I use Continental tyres, which tend to be fairly tight fitting, I've been using bog standard metal tyre levers for the past couple of years. They work well but they can scratch the anodising on your rims so I decided to try Schwalbe's plastic tyre levers instead. They are widely available and usually priced at around £3 for three.

I've used Park plastic tyre levers in the past and wasn't impressed, they tended to bend when trying to wrestle a particularly stubborn tyre on, so I was really hoping these would be better. By complete coincidence, when I examined the front tyre after hitting the pothole at the end of November it was flat so I decided to try the new levers. As it turned out, there was a thorn in the tyre which was quickly sorted with a new tube. The tyre levers are fantastic, they're very thin which makes them a cinch to get under the bead and they're extremely strong, they barely bend at all.

Overall, very impressed!

November 2015.

6th November: I took the Giant out this afternoon to try a new ride. I wanted to test the new Edge 20 so I drew a route than combined the new route into Kirby that I got wrong the other night and a new way up to Billinge from the East Lancs.

The weather was overcast and blowy but very warm for the time of year and I felt great on the ride. The new way up to Billinge was fun. It starts by going across the dam, then through some woodland and finishes up along a fairly steep street before emerging on the main road through Billinge. It started pouring down as I headed away from Billinge and by the time I called in at my dads on the way home I was absolutely covered in road grime and the Giant was the filthiest it's ever been; I hosed it down in the garden but it still needs a proper wash and I ended up stripping off in the back porch and having a hot bath straight away when I got in. A wet ride but 26.9 miles to kick November off.

7th November: I was determined to get out the house for a quick ride today so ended up making what might have been a very daft decision! It had rained most of the previous night so I knew it might be slippy but when I got there I found a lot of the road was covered with a very thick layer of dead leaves; needless to say I rode the entire length of the Coach Road very, very gingerly and was very surprised not to have been dumped off the bike by the end of it. Anyhow, 15.5 more miles.

10th November: It's proving to be an extremely windy week this week so I'm determined to get out whenever I can, even if it's just shortish rides. With that in mind I drew this route in Garmin Connect and headed out.

It was extremely windy (the stirrings of storm Abigail as it turned out) but very warm so quite enjoyable overall with a few miles of completely unlit road which made me glad I had the Diablo lighting the road. Another 16.5 miles for November.

14th November: I took Awesom-O out for a blast this afternoon and did the ride above but with the Industrial Park added on, the BBC are predicting 40+ mph winds this evening so I decided to head out in the afternoon while I could. It was pouring down and there were huge puddles everywhere but by slowing right down through the huge puddles I made it round in one piece (I've seen the Youtube videos of riders flying over the bars after hitting submerged potholes!) Despite the wind and the rain it was actually a very enjoyable ride. 20.8 miles for the spreadsheet.

16th November: I took Awesom-O out today for a late afternoon wander. It was very windy (the stirrings of storm Barney as it turned out) and a bit miserable so I did a bit of a loop through Crank, King's Moss and Crawford and then plugged up and down the by-pass to add a few miles to the ride.

To reduce the boredom of the bypass, I took a little detour along a local nature trail and around a small fishing pond which explains the tiny loop on the left hand side! I ended up out and about during rush hour which means it took ages every time I needed to stop to cross a main road which was a pain but, overall, a fairly reasonable ride and another 17.2 miles for November.

19th November: It was very windy tonight (the tail end of storm Barney) but reasonably warm so I took Awesom-O out to do the ride I'm going to call the 'Local 21' from now on.

It was blowing a hooley, especially on the exposed sections through the open fields, and started raining three times but this was one of those strangely enjoyable rides; my legs felt great and I managed to stay fairly dry so another 21.2 miles for November.

21st November: I had a bad case of the 'can't be arseds' today so I waited until 6 o'clock for the traffic to die down and dragged myself out to do the Old Coach Road. It was the first properly cold day of the year so I replaced my fleece with a more wind-proof top and had my choob covering my ears. It wasn't too windy for a change but it was FREEZING! The BBC said it was 2c but some of the puddles along the Old Coach Road were freezing over so I guess it was about 0c in the more rural parts of the ride. My face felt like it was going to freeze off for the first couple of miles but I soon warmed up and had quite an enjoyable ride. 15.2 more miles.

22nd November: I managed to get out the house this afternoon to do the Old Coach Road again. It was warmer than last night but not by much, at least there was no ice around. I might abandon this ride until spring anyhow because it's potato harvest at the moment and the road is covered with mud and I think I've done very well so far managing not to fall off! 15.3 more miles.

25th November: I headed out after work today to do the new local 21 again. It was dry but very windy but at least the wind was fairly constant so not too sketchy. The temperature's are mild again so a good ride and my legs felt as good as they have for ages which was cool. 20.7 more miles.

26th November: I'm low on miles for the month so I did the local 21 again after work tonight. It was warm enough and the wind wasn't too bad but the rain was that weird sort of rain that seems to stay in the air rather than actually falling. This meant that most of the ride felt like I was cycling with fresnel lenses in my glasses, which was sketchy, especially in the traffic-y areas, but I made it 'round unscathed for curry and chips in the village at the end and another 21.1 miles.

30th November: I needed 9.6 miles to get to the magic 200 so I set out to do a shorter version of the Old Coach Road after work tonight. It wasn't a brilliant start because I hit a pothole with a very loud crack just as I got to the base of the railway bridge. I was convinced I'd blown a tyre but I got off and checked and they seemed to be ok. It was very soft this morning which will need investigating but I'll do that when I've got more time. Anyhow, it was another 11.8 miles for the month giving a total of 202.8 not too bad I reckon!

I've finally replaced my defunct Edge 200...

The Edge Touring plus works perfectly for basic ride recording but it is huge and can't navigate routes reliably so I decided to free up some cockpit space and buy an Edge 20. One thing I have to mention that the reviews don't quite get over is just how tiny this thing is - it's actually cute!

One minor annoyance is that you can't just drop .gpx files on it, you have to draw a route in Garmin Connect and 'send' it to the device instead. I've re-drawn one of my routes and I'm taking it out for it's inaugural ride this afternoon. Report to follow...

First ride impressions? I'm very pleased so far. The bread crumb mode is a sort of enhanced version, it displays the bread crumb line but when you get 800 feet from a turn it beeps and indicates which way to turn with an arrow. It's pretty waterproof as well, it chucked it down for the last half hour of the ride and it survived it just fine. The fact it has 4 contact pads rather than a USB socket means the device is far better sealed than USB charged devices. The downside, of course, is that you can't easily run it with a power pack to enhance the endurance of the device.

Topping up the sealant in my new wheels.

I've read in various places that tubeless tyre sealant dries up and ought to be replaced every 3 to 6 months. Given that my new wheels are six months old, I ordered a bottle of Stan's sealant from Amazon.

Once it had arrived, I managed to get a couple of inches of the tyre off the rim (not as hard a job as I'd feared) and poured in an old film containers worth of sealant which went into the tyre perfectly. It was when I went to pump it up again that it all went pear shaped... I was pumping as hard and fast as I could but a lot more of the tyre bead had come loose and there was latex vapour blowing out of parts of it and liquid latex spraying out of others so I had to think of a plan B. I took the whole thing apart and washed the latex off everything and ordered an Airshot tool and a couple of 50ml syringes off ebay (these are really cool as they come with a finer nozzle you can push on the end which is perfect for filling coreless Presta valves).

I removed the core from the Presta valve as recommended, pumped the Airshot to 140 PSI (surprisingly hard work even with a good track pump), connected it to the valve and let it rip. It almost worked but didn't quite seat the bead properly all the way around. I then went round the circumference of the rim and tyre with a cloth soaked in soapy water and tried again. This time it worked perfectly with the bead popping on all the way around. I then used the syringe to inject approx. 35ml of sealant into the tyre, screwed the valve core back in and pumped it to it's usual 80 psi. I then gave the wheel a good shake around and a spin and it's been holding air perfectly ever since.

September 2015.

September 6th: I did the local 24 again this afternoon. It was warm but pretty windy but I averaged 17.1 mph so I must have been doing something right. I ended up at the pub meeting my mum and dad for lunch so 24.3 miles to start September off.

September 8th: Autumn's on the way, aaargh! I did the local 24 again last night but only managed to set off at about twenty past six and the sun was setting as I got back in so it looks like 'bike light season' is here again. It was a fairly windy but very pleasant ride except for my legs. I started off absolutely flying but my legs gave up after a few miles and I struggled a bit for the rest of the ride. My average was 16.6mph so they can't have held me back too much, It would have faster but I got stuck behind a tractor towing a hay rake for about a mile on the farm track section. Still, 24.0 more miles for September.

12th September: I decided to take Awesom-O out today because it's been raining a lot lately and I thought the roads would be soaking. I made a decent job of truing the dinged back wheel beforehand and realised, whilst de-greasing the cassette in the bath, that the bladed spokes had all twisted so I ended up untwisting them with the spoke key and holding the blade of the spoke in an adjustable Bahco spanner and guesstimating the nipple rotation again. The chain then needed a thorough de-greasing because the Muc-Off wet lube had actually completely dried into a weird dry dirt that took a lot of scrubbing off. Anyhow, I lubed the chain with the recommended 2 layers of Purple Extreme, allowed a couple of hours for it to dry, and set off on the local 24. It was very windy and overcast but a lot of the clouds cleared by half way so quite a nice ride and 24.4 more miles.

15th September: Did the local 24 last night on Awesom-O again. I noticed on Saturday's ride that the stem and the front wheel weren't quite aligned properly so I sorted that before I went out because it's extremely irritating, a view I suspect I'm not alone in holding! The weather was windy and chillier than it has been recently but a very enjoyable ride overall and 24.5 more miles for September.

19th September: The weather was gorgeous today so I headed out to do the local 24. Because the weather was so nice however, I decided to go exploring instead. I ended up on the rural part of the route and took a road I've never been down before and ended up cycling through Aughton and into Ormskirk.

It was quite a tough start but once my legs kicked in it was quite an enjoyable ride. It's a depressing fact that the weather can only go downhill now that autumn's arrived but you can't hold back the seasons I guess. Anyhow, 26.0 more miles for September.

20th September: I wanted to get out of the house for a bit today but didn't really fancy doing a full ride as the weather was grey, overcast and chilly. In the end I decided to do the old coach road as I haven't done it for a while. Despite the less than awesome weather I felt extremely strong and really enjoyed the ride and it was 15.7 more miles for September.

22nd September: I did the local 24 tonight after work. I knew I'd be setting out fairly latish so it's officially the first ride of the year where I had to go out with full lights. This sucks, obviously, but my new Exposure Diablo was pretty epic coming back along the shared use path through the village pushing out 1,300 lumens! It only runs for an hour at full pelt like this but I've found out since I bought it that Exposure do add on battery packs that plug in and extend the run time which is pretty cool. 24.0 more miles for the month.

27th September: Well, it finally arrived! The 2015 British Heart Foundation Blackpool to Manchester night ride has rolled around again. This year, like last year, was blessed with calm dry weather and I got to the Trafford Centre pretty early and managed to get into the second 'pod' of riders and was on the road by about ten past midnight.

I spent the first half of the ride with a bloke who'd finished his first LEJOG a few days previously and we were soon overtaking some of the slower riders. I then lost him and ended up following a tall guy on a Trek (really nice guy with tattoos covering his head, face and neck!). As we got to around ten miles from Blackpool I took a turn on the front. This went well but I was starting to flag slightly in the last couple of miles and as the guy's mates shot past with about a mile to go, he joined them and shot off towards the finish.

Anyhow, I made it in the end beating last year's time by 4 minutes with 2h 53m which was awesome. It might have been faster still but the tattooed guy and I got diverted into both feed stations which neither us wanted to do - something to avoid next year. It was freezing cold in Blackpool and the buses and vans for the trip back took ages to leave but that seems to be par for the course with BHF night rides. I'm pretty sure I'll be able to get under 2h 50m next year if I get my calorie intake right throughout the night but it was quite fun and 51.4 more miles for September.

30th September: It was a gorgeous warm sunny day today so I went out to stretch my legs after work. I didn't fancy the full 24 so I did the old coach road and then the full length of the shared use path that runs through the village. Anyhow, a good ride and 18.7 miles to conclude September giving a monthly total of 233.1 miles.

August 2015.

Determined to start clawing some mileage back for the year, and with my knee seemingly sorted, I am going to try getting out on the bike every other day for August.

1st August: Did the extended 22 today on the Giant. It was quite hot and humid but very windy. Nonetheless, it was quite a fun ride and I felt strong and averaged a hair under 17 mph so pretty good and 24.0 more for August.

3rd August: Did the same again tonight after work in what proved an eventful ride... First of all a taxi driver in a Mondeo narrowly missed removing my right kidney with his wing mirror, then one of a gang of young kids yelled "Bike wanker!" at me as I shot past (I can't really object because I get the almost uncontrollable urge to yell "Golf wankers!" whenever I see people playing golf...) followed by an Audi that overtook me on the industrial park that ran over something made of black plastic in the road which shattered flinging a small piece right past my face like a ninja throwing star. Still, it was hot and sunny so a good ride for the tan and 24.2 more miles.

5th August: Same again today... I decided to clean the chain on the Giant because it was looking fairly manky and ended up deciding to stop using Muc-off wet lube. The chain was a bit dry and dirty but the chain rings were gross. There was a thick black crust of dirt and congealed oil that actually came off in lumps as I scraped it. Muc-off is a vegetable oil based lube and the problem is that the vegetable oil oxidises and solidifies in use (a process known as resinification). I'm switching to Purple Extreme next time I change the chain but until then I'm going to use Finish Line ceramic wet lube which is petroleum based and not prone to solidifying. Anyhow, a great ride for topping up the tan (although it was mentally windy!) and 24.3 more miles for August

8th August: Same again today. It was a bit overcast and quite windy but warm, the wind dropped as I was waiting at the main traffic lights in Kirby and it was like standing in a commercial oven. I'd replaced the chain before this ride with a freshly degreased and Purple Extremed KMC X11EL (quite a posh chain, I must have bought it in a sale for the spares box...) so the shifting was extra smooth and crisp which is always a bit of a treat. A good ride with an average of 17.0 mph and 24.1 more miles

12th August: The BBC weather website was predicting a hot and sunny day all day today so a bit of frantic synchronised applying for leave saw James and I doing the 'Southport the long way' ride we did last spring.

It was a fun ride and there were a couple of times, there and back, where we were holding a steady 23 mph for several miles which backs up my theory that hot sunny weather makes you cycle faster. Southport itself was absolutely rammed so that killed our average speeds for the day but we had a huge chip balm each for lunch which was awesome and it was 40.7 miles for the day.

15th August: Did the extended 22 again today. It was a fun, uneventful ride except for the weather. It was hot and sunny but with a very cold wind which was strange for August. Any how, 24.1 more miles for August.

17th August: And again... The weather was warm and sunny but very windy but pleasant enough overall. I have spag bol at my mum and dad's on a Monday evening at 7ish so I had to set out at twenty past five so the traffic was mental but another 24.0 miles.

22nd August: And again! The weather was overcast but a bit less windy than it's been recently which was a relief. It was deceptively warm though and I was a sweaty mess by the time I got back in but 24.0 more miles for August.

26th August: Did it again on my day off. It was hot and sunny but about as windy as I ever want to ride in again, I actually felt the wind tug on my front wheel several times which is unusual because the Hunt wheels are pretty shallow rimmed. Anyhow, 24.1 more for August. My current total for the month is currently 233.5 miles so I've got a few days left to really start nibbling away at the current deficit.

28th August: Did it again today and apart from a minicab driver nearly pulling out onto me as I cycled up the by-pass it was a fairly uneventful ride. It was warm and windy but the wind wasn't as bad as it was a couple of days ago which was a relief. 24.0 more miles.

30th August: Met James today to do a ride we did earlier this year in the spring. It was overcast but fairly warm and only slighly breezy for a change!

I'm beginning to regret James buying a proper road bike because our average speed is definitely getting faster! Anyhow, a great ride and it's always nice to catch up with James and 30.0 more miles to finish August off.

It's been a good month for getting the rides in due to the warm (occasionally very windy!) weather so I've taken a good bite out of the annual deficit with a monthly total for August of 287.5.

July 2015.

5th July: Did the extended 22 again this afternoon on the Dave Yates, it was breezy but warm and quite an enjoyable ride without too much knee twingery. One thing I definitely noticed that I didn't in Manchester is the weight! I think the Dave Yates weighs about twice what the Giant does and I really felt it on every incline; no longer will I scoff when I read things like "Of course, I really noticed the extra 7 ounces of bike A over bike B when going up the hills" in website bike reviews. 24.1 miles to start July off.

12th July: It was warm but incredibly windy so I went exploring again on the Dave Yates. It's fun but it takes about ten times more effort to get up to speed than the Giant does because it's so heavy. Still, I guess that makes it better for training on!

Anyhow, apart from getting lashed by a bramble on the cycle path that left blood running about six inches down my arm, it was quite a fun ride and my knee barely twinged at all. 24.1 more miles for July.

25th July: Well, after nearly two weeks off the bike, I dragged myself out of the house to do the extended 22. As has happened a lot recently, it was extremely windy so I went exploring again.

Aside from getting slightly lost near Skem at one point, it was a pretty fun ride, I took the Giant out and didn't even get a twinge in my knee which was awesome. On the advice of a comment I read on a cycling forum, I've been doing a lot of basic quad stretches (pictured. And no, that isn't me!) which definitely seem to be helping.

It was windy but the sun was quite hot so a good ride for topping up the tan and 25.2 more miles.

30th July: I did the extended 22 again tonight after work, I was knackered but a strong mug of Old Brown Java got me out of the house. It was incredibly windy but quite hot and sunny so quite enjoyable. I didn't get any knee pain again either, which was great, and I averaged 17.1 mph which was fantastic. Another 24.4 miles for July.

I was determined to get out for one more ride this month to at least match June but I've got a rotten sore throat and ended up spending the evening getting my website hosting sorted out  at last. Very frustrating overall but www.micrak12.com is finally back on the web! Only 97.8 miles to show for the month but I'm fairly sure my knee is sorted now so I'm going to try and have a mega-high-mileage August!

Review: Purple Extreme chain lube.

Being a complete sucker for a new chain lube, and always looking for the holy grail of a wet lube that doesn't pick up grit and rubbish from the road, I had to try Purple Extreme. It's produced by a Texan company that makes lubes for chains that operate mining and undersea equipment so they should know the ins and outs of making a decent lube; they claim it's extremely water resistant and should last upto 400 miles between applications!

Purple Extreme recommend starting with a perfectly degreased and clean drive train and chain before applying and, because it works by going on wet and drying, I applied it by drizzling it on whilst rotating the chain rather than putting a drip on each link. I expected this would be quite messy but it wasn't, after the recommended overnight drying period my chain still looked pretty clean which was promising. I then cleaned the outside of the chain by running it through a rag (the outer plates are plated so don't need lube and this helps reduce grit pick up) and did the Great Manchester Cycle on the Sunday. 26 miles is a long way short of 400, but I can report that the chain ran silently and shifted perfectly and still looked pretty spotless at the end of the ride so it's definitely a promising start!

Final verdict: Well, after the recent half hour cycle in filthy conditions and pouring rain I found the chain looking dry and with a few rust spots on it so it's time for a thorough clean and re-lube. The mileage? Exactly 342.0 miles! I can well imagine that if you live in a less rainy country then the UK, this stuff will easily do 400 miles between applications. My cassette and jockey wheels are Pretty darned clean as well so I'm pretty sure my holy grail search for the best chain lube is finally over!

June 2015.

9th June: I gave my knee a good 8 day break to make sure it was definitely rested properly and went out to do the extended 22 tonight. My knee started twinging at about the 17 mile mark, which I guess is some kind of progress, but still gutted it hasn't gone away completely. I'm going to lower my saddle another 1/4" and do the ride again tomorrow. Anyhow, 23.5 miles to kick June off.

16th June: I did the extended 22 again tonight with the slightly lowered seat. The weather was warm and breezy so quite pleasant and my knee twinged a bit but didn't flare up at all so it's looking vaguely promising in that department. 24.1 more miles for June. 

20th June: Did the extended 22 today. It was very windy but very hot and I got a pretty decent average speed of 16.9 mph so not bad. The knee twinged a bit but didn't flare up and it was another 24.1 miles for June. 

22nd June: I did the extended 22 again this evening for 24.0 miles. It was all going fine until I was heading back along the East Lancs road and my knee really flared up badly. It went down a bit and I got home with no issues but I am abandoning June and sorting my knee out. I'm not a great believer in doctors and have no idea who my GP actually is but I've made an appointment with him next Wednesday in the hope of being referred for a scan.

It's the Great Manchester Cycle on Sunday so I'm not cycling at all until then to let my knee heal and I've dusted off the Dave Yates in the hopes the more upright position will let me complete the ride successfully.

28th June: Well, I believe Manchester started warm and rainy but it was drying off nicely as it approached quarter to midday when the 26 miler was due to start. I was on the Dave Yates because I suspect something about the Giant is aggravating my knee; I suspect the Dave Yates weighs three times what the Giant weighs but it's been stuck in the house for ages so it deserved a day out. It was hot but very windy at times but overall a very enjoyable ride.

My official time was 1h 27m 58s so faster than 2013 but not quite as fast as last year; not bad really considering the howling wind! My knee did start twinging a bit over the last few miles but it didn't flare up which was a bonus, hopefully the doc will point me in the right direction on Wednesday. Anyhow, 26.1 more miles for June.

Well, June ended with a paltry 121.8 on the clock. Not good but having a 'new' dodgy knee doesn't help. The doctor examined it and said it may well be IBT syndrome and to come back if it gets any worse - thanks, I could have diagnosed that myself...

Review: Disco Brakes brake rotors.

As I mentioned in another post, I decided to buy new rotors for my new Hunt wheels so that if I ever need to swap wheels I wouldn't be faffing about swapping rotors. For some reason the fact that most disc rotors aren't plain round has always mildly annoyed me so after endless Googling, I was chuffed to find Disco Brakes sell *plain rotors!

At less than eight quid each for the 160mm version I was a bit wary about these rotors but was actually amazed when they turned up, the quality is fantastic. They are perfectly flat, you can see the machining across the whole surface where they've been ground and even the edges are slightly bevelled to reduce the risks of getting cut in a crash. Overall verdict? Fantastic!

*Admittedly, these aren't going to be the lightest rotors ever but given that a disc brake works by converting kinetic energy into heat and then dissipating it, I think this is a moot point. Being a weight weenie isn't always good for your health - take a look at this article: skinny rotors.

How to install 6 bolt rotors with centrelock adaptors.

At long last my new Hope Mason wheels have arrived! I decided to buy new rotors for it so that if I ever have to use the Giant wheels again, I wouldn't have to faff around swapping rotors. For reasons I'll mention in a different post, I bought 6 bolt rotors so I had to use the 6 bolt to splined adaptors provided with the new wheels. Here's how to fit them:

Firstly remove the quick release from the wheel, this isn't necessary but stops it getting in the way later.

Now seat the adaptor onto the hub with the protruding metal pins facing outwards.

Next place the new disc so that the holes line up with the pins of the adaptor ensuring the disc is the correct way around.

Now place the thin stainless steel plate over the protruding end of the pins.

Now screw the locking ring into the hub. The tightening torque on mine was 30nm (approx. 22ft/lbs) but yours should have the value etched on it like mine did. The splines in the lock ring are the same as you get on a cassette lock ring so use the same tool.

Now just refit the skewer, put your wheels back on your bike and go for a bike ride!

May 2015.

4th May: It was a gorgeous day today so I decided to do the extended 22 this afternoon. It was all going well until I was going through Knowsley Industrial Park and noticed the display had frozen on my Garmin Edge 200. Not to worry I thought, I'll reset it when I get home and use the default mileage from when I drew the route in MMR. But no, my faithful companion of around 4,000 miles is no more, no combination of warming it up or factory resetting it can bring it back to life. So, an expensive start to May but 23.6 miles to kick off with.

7th May: Another gorgeous (but windy) day so I dragged myself out after a gruelling day at work and did the extended 22. It was rush hour which restricts overtaking ability somewhat so I did get stuck behind a couple of other cyclists for a while but generally a very pleasant ride and 23.6 more miles for May. 

16th May: Another gorgeous but extremely windy day today and I nearly turned around after getting hit by the first roaring gust but I'm struggling with miles this month so I went for a wander.

It wasn't very long but the route has a few decent hills so definitely better that nothing! Anyhow, 12.1 more miles for May.

23rd May: Did the extended 22 today on the new Hunt wheels which were awesome. It was windy but the first day of the year when I thought 'Wow, it's hot' when I stopped at traffic lights so maybe summer really is on the way? 23.6 more miles for May.

25th May: It was very windy today so, true to form, I went exploring again. I've been having very bad pain on the outside edge of my knee on the last few rides so I did a bit of Googling and found it was probably something call IBT syndrome or 'runner's knee'.

I've suspected that the saddle on the Giant was a bit high so I lowered it exactly 3/8" before the ride. I basically just went wandering deciding whether to turn left or right as I arrived at each junction I came to. Despite the wind and a fair hangover, it was a very enjoyable ride and I felt pretty strong and I didn't have a any knee twinges at all. I suspect a combination of a better bike set-up and the lighter Hunt wheels certainly contributed to a very enjoyable ride and exactly 19.0 miles in the bag.

26th May: Did the extended 22 tonight, it was beautifully sunny but the wind was roaring down the bypass so on the way back I got off the bypass and cut through the industrial estate and onto the shared use path through the middle of the village. I'm pretty sure I've got the setup of the Giant spot on now because despite the wind I felt really strong all the way around and I'm getting no knee pain at all any more which is a big relief. 24.1 more miles.

28th May: Did the extended 22 again. Like Tuesday it was gloriously sunny but the wind was howling down the bypass so I cut along the shared-use path on the way back. 24.2 more miles. Only 50 to go with 2 days left...

30th May: I really need the miles at the moment so I did the extended 22 and kept on to the end of the by-pass and back at the end of the ride. It was sunny but very windy and my IBT came back with a vengeance which was a total bummer but it was a much needed 30.0 miles.

31st May: Today was the windiest day of the year so far and I'd far rather have had a rest day but I was determined not to miss a second month so I headed out exploring.

I moved my saddle forward 1/4" in the hope of finally finding a position that doesn't aggrevate my knee and set off for a wander. Despite my knee being very twingey and the incredible wind it was actually quite an enjoyable ride. I slightly mis-remembered the mileage I needed to hit 200 and ended up with 199.3 for the month, close enough!

James has bought a road bike!

Well, after starting on a Specialized MTB that he completely wore out, moving onto a Merida 29er MTB, James has bought a road bike at last.

The bike is a Mekk Poggio 1.5. It has a full carbon frame and forks and a Shimano Sora groupset bar the Mekk cranks and rings. One really cool thing about it is that Mekk use the same frame for the whole Poggio range so it's ripe for some future upgrades once the Sora starts wearing out. I'm meeting it, and James, later on today so I'll get to see it in the carbon and we'll look like a proper pair of roadies for the first time!

April 2015.

4th April: Did the extended 22 again today. The weather was perfect blue skies with that weirdly clear air that makes things miles away look just as clear as things nearby. The BBC weather said 5 or 6 mph of wind but it was howling so I spent half the ride flying along at 20+ and half fighting into the wind but it's 23.6 miles to kick April off.

 5th April: I met James today and we had another crack at the route I needed rescuing on because of the Garmin Edge Touring a while back.

I was using the Edge Touring again and for a fair few miles it worked perfectly normally giving me good visible direction indicators every time we approached a turn or junction. However, true to form, it then turned itself off and lost the first few miles of the ride. I turned it back on but it seems to lose interest after a few miles and so I ended up following James. This was easier said than done because we'd both forgotten about the massive hill at about mile seven which really wrecked my legs and James was flying along on his new Mekk... Anyhow, a hard ride but it was 34.4 more miles for April.

8th April: Did the extended 22 tonight again. The weather was fantastic and it was the first ride of the year in short sleeves and cycling shorts which was awesome. I finally got around to buying a Charge Scoop for the Giant. James and I both experienced some chafing on Sunday's ride which wasn't pleasant (thank god for Sudocrem!) so this ride was a much more pleasant experience and it was 23.9 more miles for April.

14th April: Did the extended 22 again today. The weather was gorgeous, hot and sunny with hardly any wind, so it was the official first ride of the year with just a t-shirt and shorts! Another 24.4 for April.

19th April: The weather was fairly bright and sunny today so I set out to do the extended 24. However, as soon as I hit the bypass I noticed it was pretty windy so I did something I've wanted to do for ages - explore! 

It was quite fun and I saw all sorts of things I didn't know were there. It wasn't perfect though, at one point I ended up following an older chap on a road bike and nearly went up Shaley Brow, one of the most evil climbs in our area at an average of 7.2% and a peak of 27% so a tactical turn around in the entranceway to the golf club restaurant car park saved me from that! An interesting ride and and 17.5 miles for April.

20th April: Had the day off work today and the sun was cracking the flags so I did the extended 22. It was pretty windy (BBC weather website said 1 to 2 mph - thanks...) but it was hot and sunny so a pretty nice ride and 23.7 more miles in the bag. 

21st April: Another hot and sunny day so I did the extended 22 again after work. It was warm and sunny but, once again, it was very windy which was quite annoying. Anyhow, another 23.3 miles in the bag.

26th April: Another gorgeous, sunny April day so I set out to do the extended 22. Once again however, the wind was howling down the bypass right into my face so I decided to explore again.

Quite a fun ride but I must get Awesom-O's back wheel trued and ready to roll. Exploring involves cycling some really bad terrain such as farm tracks and rocky, potholed lanes which really pound the hell out of the wheels and tyres, not to mention my wrists, which isn't really fair on the Defy. Anyhow, good fun and 21.6 more miles.

30th April: after a crazy day at work I was in no mood for a bike ride but, determined not to miss another month, I dragged myself out of the house.

Nothing exciting, just a pootle 'round the village for 10.4 miles and a monthly total of 202.4, I was hoping to do a couple of longer rides this week to try and make up for January's deficit but the sunny weather dissappeared and the cold and wind came back with a vengeance but you can't have everything I suppose!

Rim damage from my recent puncture.

On the way home last night, after repairing the puncture, I could feel a slight dink, dink, dink from the rear wheel which was a bit ominous. Feeling around the rim I could feel a dint but I left it until tonight to take the tyre off and have a proper look. One side of the rim was relatively unscathed but there was bit of  bulge on the other side.

It wasn't bad enough to warrant hammering it flat (not a brilliant idea on aluminium anyhow) but it did need sorting. In the end, I filed the slight bulge off with a file. I'm not sure if it's a keeper yet, only riding it will answer that one, but it's worth a try to avoid forking out £81 for a new wheel. I only filed off 10 or 15 thou so I'm pretty sure the rim is perfectly safe, I'll have to give it a try when this ridiculous wind drops a bit.

Disco brakes pads revisited.

Shortly after buying the new Giant I decided the brakes lacked bite so I searched online for some replacements and found seller Bikefridge again. The kevlar pads I used on the Whyte were ok but were a bit grabby and noisy in the wet so this time I went for the semi-metallic.

From the time these were fitted, I was impressed. The stock pads had barely buffed up the rotors after 180 miles of use but these polished them up on the first ride which indicates there is plenty of friction going on. They also have a very reassuring feel, you can feel the friction between the pads and the metal of the discs as you apply the brakes. Very pleased so far!

'A few hundred miles later' update: Perfect pads basically. No noise, great performance dry or wet and none of the fork judder I experienced with the kevlar version. 

Some titanium bolts for the new Giant.

I admit it, it's a weakness. I like titanium. I was browsing ebay the other day and idly searched for titanium bike bolts; mere seconds later, a set of twelve M5x10mm titanium disc rotor bolts were winging their way to me...

I replaced the stock black steel bolts one at a time in a star pattern making sure to add a blob of Loctite 243 to each one to keep it tight and I think it looks pretty bloomin' awesome. The icing on the cake is that my bike is now a staggering 12 grams lighter - BOOM!

March 2015.

6th March: Did a variation on the local 22 tonight that involved exploring Knowsley Industrial park a bit more to up the distance a bit.

It was the first time this year I wore my cycling shorts and two top layers so long may it continue and roll on summer! 23.5 miles to start March off.

8th March: The weather was windy but absolutely gorgeous today so I did the local 22 with the extended industrial park and Alec's hill tacked onto the end for a total of 25.0 miles.

10th March: Did the local 22 again tonight after work. It's been a gorgeous day and the wind was forecast to be pretty calm so I was looking forward to this ride. It didn't occur to me however that sunny days are usually followed by cold nights and my toes were like blocks of ice when I got back in. I also got a puncture in the middle of Kirkby and got slightly lost in the industrial park but it was still quite an enjoyable ride and 23.9 more miles for March. 

15th March: Did the longer 22 today. It wasn't too windy and the sun came out half way around the ride so a pretty nice ride overall and 23.6 more miles. 

16th March: I had the day off work today so I did the extended 22 again. There was virtually no wind for the first half but then in my face all the way back down the Lancs which was quite annoying. On a positive note, I saw a kestrel looking for food and a buzzard enjoying the sun over the fields on the farm track section which was very cool. 23.8 more miles for March.

18th March: Cool and breezy after work today but did the extended 22 again. Not the warmest ride ever but quite enjoyable, there's definitely something fun about bombing around a deserted industrial estate at night on a decent road bike. 23.9 more miles for March.

21st March: I really couldn't be arsed going out today but the weather was glorious so I dragged myself out and did the old coach road for 15.0 miles. The Giant is quite forgiving generally but the front end pounded my wrists into submission so I may leave this ride for Awesom-O in future.

22nd March: I met up with James today for the first time since December which was awesome. We did a 30 miler I found on plotaroute.com that started in a village called Lea on the edge of Preston.

The day provided almost perfect cycling weather with glorious sunshine and a cool, fresh wind. This would be a great route for family cycling with the kids as, although there are a few sections of A road, it's mainly quiet country lanes. The ride should have been 30.0 miles but we sort of got a bit lost a couple of miles from the end so ended up with 30.5 miles on the clock and a great start to the year.

30th March: With winds from midnight tonight to tomorrow evening predicted to be 55-60 mph according to BBC weather, I had to get out tonight and do at least 10.2 miles or miss the monthly target... It was chucking it down and windy but I headed out for a pootle anyway. I did roads I normally ride but went exploring down an unpaved farm track until I could get no further, I was cycling through liquid mud six or seven inches deep in places which was great fun and really brings out the inner kid.

I was dreaming of a hot bath on the way back when I cycled over a small submerged pothole followed instantly by 'PSSSSHHHHHH!' and a rear tyre as flat as a pancake. Changing a tube in the pissing rain on a bike which had been almost up to it's hubs in mud only minutes ago wasn't much fun but I was on my way in under 10 minutes. The rear rim has a big ding in it which may or may not be repairable but overall a fun ride and 13.5 miles making a total for March of 202.7 miles.

New light to replace the Exposure Strada.

A few weeks ago after using it for two or three rides, my new Exposure Strada stopped working completely. In fact it was as dead as a door nail, there was no response at all to the power button or when attaching the charger. Anyhow, Rutland Cycles were great and paid the postage for it to go back to USE who repaired it and sent it back with a repair note saying 'reprogrammed'.

This time it lasted one more ride and again conked out, this time the five red charge lights came on when attaching the charger but that was all. This time Rutland cycles declared they didn't have any new Stradas and repaid my money so back to the drawing board...

With the refunded money rapidly burning a hole in my Paypal account I did a lot of research and chose the Exposure Diablo Mk.6, this time from Wiggle. This thing is tiny compared to the Strada but can chuck out a massive 1,300 lumens for one hour or the usual variants thereof depending on what mode it's in - 650 lumens for two hours or 260 lumens for five hours etc. I've only used it around the village so far, and very impressive it is, but I can't wait to try it on the four miles of unlit farm track on the local 22!