October 2019.

5th October: After another long spell of rainy days it was overcast and bright today so I took Awesom-O out for a spin expecting a lot of puddles. It was around 12 °C and quite windy so my new B'Twin long sleeved top was finally the correct top for the job.

I don't know why but the two big puddle on the farm path seem to have permanently disappeared but there was a huge puddle on Intake Lane that spanned the whole road so I was very glad I wasn't on the Strael. Anyhow, I did two ups and downs of the farm path and a loop around Barrow Nook to add a bit of distance for a quite enjoyable 19.9 miles.

12th October: After another week of rain it was an absolutely gorgeous day today, largely blue skies and not a lot of wind so I took Awesom-O out for a spin. having said that, the ride nearly didn't happen. I'd barely got 100 yards when the bike started making a weird rubbing noise. I stopped and found the front mudguard was rubbing which was odd because none of the bolts had come loose.

Anyhow, I fixed it by setting the guard slightly away from the tyre and started the ride again. It was the inaugural ride of my new rear light, an Exposure Blaze Mk 3, today. I've had one of each generation of See.sense lights and none of them have been entirely satisfactory so hopefully I'm onto a winner with the Exposure. Anyway, a very pleasant ride indeed and 25.1 miles.

The end (for now).

September 2019.

1st September: Apart from a couple of motons, it was a fairly good ride today. My dad's had a leg removed so I had to be free to push him to the pub for lunch at 2 o'clock so I decided to get out for a fairly early ride. Awesom-O's had some minor surgery, a replacement right-hand shifter lever, new inner brake and gear cables and new bar tape, so I was happy to take him out for a late summer spin. It was warmish but extremely windy, heading out and up the track extremely windy - I was struggling to maintain 13 mph at times but coming back down the track was great fun with the wind behind me.

I did two ups and downs of the farm track and headed back through the village. I had a minor close pass from a van on the way out but as I was cycling through the village a woman in a large white car waiting to turn right waited until I was almost on her to pull out in front of me. I don't think she'll forget me bellowing "MORON!!!" through her window as she passed me in a hurry! Anyhow, an early start to September in more way than one and 19.4 miles.

7th September: After a ridiculous amount of rain recently it was a gorgeous early autumn day today so I took the Strael out for a spin. It was fairly warm and sunny without much wind but it's that time of year when you can feel a bit chilly at the start of a ride so I've ordered a cheap long sleeved jersey from B'Twin which I'll review after a couple of rides. There was definitely a bit of the 'autumn's here' in the air because there were lots of cyclists out enjoying the sun while they could. Anyhow, a very pleasant ride and 20.1 more miles.

14th September: After several days of yet more rain it was a gorgeous early autumn day today, warm and sunny and not too windy so the Strael got a run out. I was going to get back to doing the usual three ups and downs of the path but made something of a clothing mistake that rendered that unwise. Being autumn I decided to wear my new B'Twin 500 long sleeved top thinking it was just a light weight jersey. It isn't, the material is quite thick and it's brushed on the inside so I basically ended up melting and ended up cycling with it half unzipped.

Aside from that, I had one of the cutest animal encounters I've ever had. I was heading down a bosky section of the path i call insect alley when I saw a small grey squirrel and two juveniles on the path about eight feet in front of me. They didn't seem remotely concerned with the two young ones clambering over each other playing. I stood still and they all started walking towards me in a line. They eventually all walked right past me and dived back into the trees at the side of the path and disappeared - amazing! Anyhow, another 20.1 miles.

Photo credit: Joel Sartore.

21st September: Well, it hasn't rained for a few days and there's an area of high pressure sitting over the UK at the moment so it was a lovely warm sunny day to take the Strael out for a spin. Beofre I left, I was looking for something in my bike parts tub when I found a set of Shimano replacement SPD cleats. The cleats on my shoes looked pretty worn so I replaced them with the new ones using blue Loctite on the bolts. I started with a lap of the fishing pond at Siding Lane and then headed for the farm track. I was going to do three ups and downs but it was extremely windy so I ended up just doing two before heading home. Apart from nearly being taken out by an elderly man driving a Ford pickup (see the theme again?) it was a very enjoyable ride, the fresh cleats clipped in and out a lot more efficiently which surprised me,  and certainly one of the last chances this year to top up the tan. 20.1 miles.

22nd September: It was even warmer than it was yesterday, 22 °C according to the Wahoo, so the Strael got another spin out today. Once again I was going to do three ups and downs but it was even windier than it was yesterday which was weird. It was like cycling in the summer sun but with a winter wind which was very odd. Anyhow, because of the wind, and the fact I'd wet shaved my head this morning and didn't want to risk burning it, I only did two ups and downs plus a look up Back Lane and back for a rather pleasant 20.3 miles.

Well September ended with another week of heavy rain so I didn't manage to get out again. This meant September goes out with a mere 100.0 miles on the clock. If this is global warming, and I suspect it is, we're screwed. Go Greta!

August 2019.

2nd August: We've had a bizarre amount of rain for the time of year recently, a small town in the UK, Whaley Bridge, has been evacuated because a dam's been damaged and there are roads washed away in Yorkshire but today was actually quite pleasant. It was semi-overcast and around 22 °C so I took Awesom-O for another spin as I wasn't sure how much standing water would still be around. As it turns out, I could have taken the Strael as it was pretty dry overall. It was a pretty uneventful ride and a nice chance to top off the tan a bit. 25.0 miles.

3rd August: Another overcast warm day today so, knowing it was dry, I took the Strael out for a spin. I obviously wasn't the only person who decided to take advantage of the nice weather. The farmers were out harvesting the wheat and baling the straw and there were other cyclists and people walking on the path. On a side note, I think I've sorted the angle on my new Specialized saddle.

It's now pointing ever so slightly up and it's not perfect but it's liveable with. Anyhow an enjoyable ride and another cool 'wildlife' encounter. There are a couple of Buddleia bushes growing out of the hedge near the house where I found the rabbit a couple of winters ago. I thought I saw something moving and when I went to take a look, they were covered with Red Admiral and Peacock butterflies which was amazing to see. Another 25.0 miles.

Photo credit: Jessica Godfrey.

17th August: The weather this year is proving to be rather odd. We've had tons of rain over the last few days, I've lost count of the number of commutes up the M6 recently where the rain is pouring and everyone's driving through the spray with their headlights on (except for a lot of Ford drivers, obviously). Anyhow, today was overcast but reasonably warm so, anticipating a lot of standing water, I took Awsom-O out for a spin. It was very windy, around 15 mph according to the BBC website, but it was still an enjoyable ride. The wind was in my face heading up the track so at least it would be with me on the way home. Around half way through the ride a lot of the clouds seemed to dissipate and it was actually a gorgeous sunny day and a very enjoyable ride. 25.1 miles.

24th August: Well, after more rain than you'd ever expect to see in August, an area of high pressure has finally moved in and it was hot and sunny today. I took the Strael out to do the usual and ended up having another odd animal encounter. There's an area of hard standing at the end of the farm track that appears to have been created as a caravan park. As I was starting my first 'down', a soaking wet black pug puppy ran under the gate and onto the path. It was extremely friendly and ran straight towards me so I lay the Strael down in the grass and managed to pick it up and hand it back to it's owner who'd walked over. A nice rescue but my gloves stank of wet dog for the rest of the ride and went straight in the wash when I got back. Despite the warmth, 26 °c according to the Wahoo, it was very windy so I decided to cut the ride to two ups and downs and get more, shorter rides in because I've booked next week off work. Anyhow, 19.4 hot and sweaty miles.

25th August: I forgot to write this ride up but I remember that it was warm but overcast and very windy. I went out on the Strael to do the usual but for some reason there cars and tractors all over the place so I did a complete up and down of the path and then did the road to Holt Green and back. A windy ride but satisfying. 21.2 miles.

30th August: The BBC had been threatening 40 mph winds today but my dad challenged me to get out for a ride. It was windy but nowhere near 40 mph so I grabbed the Strael and headed out. I did two ups and downs of the farm path and a lap of the pond at Siding Lane to add a bit of distance on the way home. It wasn't 40 mph the wind but it was extremely windy, at some points going up the track I was either leaning the bike into wind or it was dancing around underneath me. This has been a very weird August for weather, most of it has been more like November so I hope we get an Indian summer! 20.3 miles.

Well I got all togged up on the 31st and headed out at my usual time just as the heavens open. It wasn't a particularly warm day and I was wearing my summer gear so I called her a cigrit and headed back in. Not a great month at 136.0 miles but not too bad given the state of the year so now I'm really hoping for an Indian summer!

July 2019.

6th July: Well, the big project at work is in the tidying up phase so it was definitely time to give more thought to riding. It had been a rather strange day so far, raining and cold for July but it had dried off and brightened up by the afternoon so I decided to take the Strael out for a spin. As I set off it struck me that although it was fairly sunny, the air itself felt fairly cold for the time of year. I guess it depends on where the general air mass over an area is coming in from; anyhow, I carried on and soon forgot the cold. I did the usual three ups and downs and then came back via the OCR.

I made the big mistake of stopping for a pee on the side of the road and getting my legs shredded by the brambles, my legs felt like I was bathing in acid when I had my post-ride bath. One cool thing worth adding was that as I was coming back up the path at the part where Outlet Lane run both ways around a couple of houses, there was a beautiful young fox standing on the path in front of me! He took off and a fair rate of speed along the tree-line but an amazing thing to see! 25.4 miles to start July off.

Photo credit: Tambako The Jaguar.

13th July: After a few days of not very July-like weather it was quite pleasant today, overcast with the odd patch of blue sky appearing so I took the Strael out for a ride. It was pleasant enough although very windy on the 'up' part of the farm path and I saw a few other roadies out enjoying the weather. I'm still not sure about my new Toupe saddle. It definitely makes my bum ache but I think that's exacerbated by my Orro shorts which aren't much good at all. Anyhow, the bolt on the Hope seat-post keeps coming undone so, whilst removing the bolt to apply some blue Loctite, I tilted it down slightly more than it was to see if that helps at all. Another 25.3 miles.

21st July: Well after a couple of days of heavy rain I finally managed to get out today. I decided to take Awesom-O out for a rare summer ride in case there was stranding water everywhere but I needn't have worried. It was overcast with the occasional blue patch and not too windy so it started out as a quite enjoyable ride. I say started because the ride quickly went downhill. As I was heading around the corner onto Lodge lane I noticed my front tyre was rapidly going down. I stopped on the corner to change the tube but in my haste I think I shredded the tube as the CO2 just whooshed straight out the tyre again. As I was changing the tube, I noticed several large black mosquitoes buzzing around but didn't think anything of it. I had a tube and a CO2 left but I couldn't be arsed fitting another one so decided to walk the 1.8 miles home. I didn't notice anything that afternoon but the next day I had six huge mosquito bites! I'm definitely applying some Jungle Formula before the next ride... Anyhow, a final total of 25.3 miles.

24th July: It's been pretty warm today, I drove home from work with my air-con on full blast which I don't like doing, so I was determined to get out for a ride. Awesom-O is still out of action with a punctured front wheel so I took the Strael out figuring it must be dry after all this heat. It was breezy but not too bad and overcast with a fair bit of blue sky so a pretty pleasant ride overall. I'd slathered myself in Jungle Formula No.4 mosquito repellent after getting bitten last time. I felt a bit like a greased pig but I didn't get bitten. One thing i wanted to mention on here is that I switched to using a safety razor a few weeks ago and have been absolutely loving it! A good razor can be bought for £8-£40, lasts forever, and involves zero plastic packaging as they, and the blades, are packaged in paper and card.

It's way better for your skin causing way fewer ingrowing hairs and shaving spots and it's massively eco-friendly. The blades cost as little as 7p a shot and last 2-6 shaves depending on your beard growth and if you use a synthetic shaving brush and a refillable pot of shaving cream or soap, you aren't exposing your skin to harsh chemicals and there's no steel can to recycle - it's a massive win all-round! The Muhle R89 in the picture was around £32 and is a good, mild razor ideal for people starting shaving with a safety razor. Anyhow, 25.0 pretty enjoyable miles.

27th July: Well today was a good lesson in avoiding puddles when it's raining! It was absolutely pouring down so I decided to take Awesom-O out for a spin. If nothing else, it would be a good test of just how rain resistant my current lube of choice (White Lightning Wet Ride) really was. Anyhow, I decided to do a lap of the fishing pond and as I was riding up Siding Lane there was a huge puddle across the path. As I went to cycle through it, my front wheel hit something and stopped and I got launched off the bike! I think the fact I landed in three inches of water helped as my clothes were fine but I had a real bump on my head and I've grazed down the outside of right calf. Awesom-O was fine but the bar tape on the right hand side is wrecked. It was raining so heavily that I wasn't any wetter than I had been pre-crash so I decided to carry on. I was wearing a bright yellow water-proof jacket that I bought from Go Outdoors a few years ago. It was waterproof but it was soon as wet on the inside from sweat as it was on the outside so I decided a hot bath was a better idea and headed back for a piddly 11.3 miles.

Well, for various reasons, including an unseasonable amount of rain, I didn't manage to get out again so July goes out with a less than ideal 112.6 miles. On the plus side, the White Lightning Wet Ride lube is a keeper. Awesom-O's chain has completely dried out and there isn't a speck of rust on it!

June 2019.

22nd June: Finally! The huge project at work was finally over so I was looking forward to getting out on the bike but the weather had other ideas. It's rained for the last fortnight and it's been more like a miserable November than June but a high pressure area has arrived and today was hot and fairly sunny. I'd been dying to take the Strael out because I've bought a new saddle for it, a Specialized Toupe expert, so I set out with a slight sense of trepidation. I was worried about my fitness levels after three weeks off the bike but I needn't have worried, my legs felt pretty good and I averaged 16.2 mph which was decent enough. The new saddle initially felt very comfortable, it really eliminates any weight on your gentlemen's bits, but I soon started feeling it where my sit bones contact the saddle so I'll give it a few more rides to let my butt adapt. Anyhow, it was nice to get out on the bike again and 25.4 miles to finally start June off.

Well, that was the lowest monthly mileage ever! We've had a lot of miserable weather and I've had a couple of overnight trips to help the guys out up at Sellafield but our massive project is over and things can get back to normal at last.

May 2019.

6th May: It was a fairly cool today at around 10 °C but otherwise fairly pleasant so I took Awesom-O out for a spin. It's rained a bit over the last few days and drizzled this morning so I figured it probably wasn't ideal weather for the Strael. Incidentally, I bought a new chain checker recently, a Birzman one that measures 0.5%, 0.75% and 1% wear and when I checked Awesom-O, the 1% tester dropped straight through the chain so I decided to fit a new one. I checked my spreadsheet however and found one more ride would take him over the 1,000 mile mark so I left it on and went for a spin. I wore full winter togs, long bibs, merino, overshoes etc but with mitts rather than gloves and was perfectly dressed for a change. The roads were fairly wet so taking Awesom-O was a good idea. It was a bit windy heading 'up' the track but otherwise a fairly enjoyable ride and 25.1 miles to kick May off.

12th May: After a few days of cold wet weather it was an absolutely gorgeous day today, warm and sunny. Because it was so nice I took the Strael out but I was kind of hoping to take Awesom-O out. I decided to replace his chain recently because the new checker said it was completely pooched so I fitted a new cassette at the same. Anyhow, the test ride can wait until it next rains and the Strael got a run out today. The BBC said it would be around 16 °C so I wore my Castelli jacket over my stolen goat jersey and my new Orro bib shorts but took the jacket off when I got to the track. My arms were a bit chilly for a while and was soon enjoying topping up my sun tan. An uneventful ride and another 25.0 miles.

15th May: Another gorgeous sunny day today so the Strael got another spin after work. It had cooled to maybe 16 °C by the time I set off but it was still nice and warm so i wore my stolen goat jersey and short bibs and set off to do the usual. It was a pretty bog standard ride aside from the slightly higher than normal number of cyclists and walkers out and about. One thing I'm starting to get mildly annoyed about is encountering insects as I ride. On this ride I almost got something large and furry in my mouth but just dodged it and I also got whacked in the face under my left eye by something quite weighty which smarted somewhat.

There's been a gauze mesh type device on sale in America for years but it velcros onto the rim of your helmet and I don't wear one so that's out the window. Something like a small dust mask but made out of mesh would work. I might look into the matter further... Oh, and I almost forgot, I saw a young hare cross the path and dive into the vegetation and a buzzard perched on a telegraph pole, both cool encounters. Anyhow, 25.2 miles.

19th May: I don't remember a lot about this ride because it was a few days ago and I've been away on business for a couple of days since but I do remember the BBC website said it was around 15 to 16 °C but my Wahoo said it was 14 °C as we rode along. Either way, I wore my short sleeved top and shorts and, although my arms occasionally felt a bit fresh, it was rather pleasant in the sun. I'm spending five nights up near Sellafield soon with work so I'm planning some potential routes and it will interesting to see what it's like. Anyhow, another 25.0 miles.

25th May: It was cloudy today but warmish and not too windy so the Strael got a run out. We've got a huge project on at work at the moment so I've either been too knackered or working to get as much riding in as I want. Anyhow, I set off with my summer gear on but with the Castelli jacket on top and headed for the farm track. Oddly, as I was cycling along the bypass it started drizzing slightly which wasn't forecast but I like cycling in the rain when it's warm so I carried on. It dried off at the track so I took my jacket off and did my usual three ups and downs. My legs felt good and it was quite an enjoyable ride with a few other cyclists out enjoying the warmer weather. About half way around the ride a constant drizzle started which got me rather damp. I must have looked quite Rule #9 as I stood in the queue waiting to pay for a bag of Hula Hoops in the Co-Op on the way home though! Anyhow, another 25.0 miles.

28th May: After a lot of reading on-line about crank lengths on bikes, when I bought my Ultegra 8000 cranks recently I went with the 170 mm version rather than the 105 ones that were fitted previously which were 172.5 mm. Since then, the seat has felt ever so slightly low so before today's ride I raised it about 3 mm to compensate for the shorter cranks. Surprisingly, and I've had this conversation with my dad, it was extremely noticeable on the bike. It felt more efficient but it also gave me some minor muscle twinges, I think where bike fit is concerned, you really do adapt to a bike and the tiniest change is quite noticeable. Anyhow, it was extremely windy going up the track but pleasantly warm when the sun came out so a quite enjoyable ride overall and another 25.0 more miles.

Well, the final stage of our huge project at work has finally started so we're getting one day a week off and working twelve hour plus days so I didn't manage to get out on the bike again and May finishes with a less than ideal 150.3 miles. The project at work will be over in a couple of weeks so I'm hoping to get back to more regular cycling after that!

Review: Garbaruk anodised Aheadset stem cap.

I can't remember if I've mentioned this little part but I found it when I was building the Strael. When I bought the Strael, I opted for the optional orange Hope Aheadset and seat clamp so was looking for other orange bits to go with the overall theme.

A quick search on Google images found Garbaruk components who were based in Ukraine when I bought my cap but moved to Poland this year. The cap is CNC-machined from 7075-T651 alloy and are available in anodised orange, yellow, red, blue, green, silver, black or purple. It's a lovely little finishing touch to any bike and at €10.50 from r2-bike.com it won't break the bank!

The reach adjustment screw on Shimano ST-RS685 hydraulic shifters.

Finally! Ever since I read that the ST-RS685 shifters on the Strael do have a reach adjustment feature I've meant to find out how it's actually done. I did a bit of searching this morning on Youtube and finally found where the screw is located.

If you roll the rear of the hood rubber forward as far as you can and then look into the back of the mechanism on the inboard side, you will see a 2 mm screw head. This is the reach adjustment screw, it seems to be glued in but if you use a good quality 2 mm allen key you can crack it loose and and adjust the reach of your levers!

April 2019.

6th April: We've had a few days of strong winds and a lot of rain but it was a gorgeous day today so the Strael got another outing. I've been dying to get out because the Strael's had a bit of an upgrade. I've been toying with going one-by for a while so I bought an Ultegra RX-800 rear mech and fitted it only to discover the clutch lever hit the drop-out and didn't work. Undeterred, I sold it on and bought an Ultegra R8000 derailleur and fitted it instead. Then my OCD kicked in and I replaced the 105 front derailleur with an R8000 model as well. They were very easy to install because the JIS screws have been replaced with 2 mm Allen screws instead.

Anyhow, I set out to do the farm track but got bored after one up and down so I did the rest of what I used to call the 27 miler. The new mech's were brilliant. I've never had much luck setting up front derailleurs because I don't use my big ring much but this new style front derailleur was brilliant. You can cycle along in quite a hard gear and swing both the brake levers in and it instantly and silently changes to a similar gear but using the big ring - very impressive! Anyhow, the weather was lovely so an enjoyable ride overall. The photo shows an empty office block in the middle of Knowsley Industrial Park, it's supposed to be empty but I could hear yelling coming from inside it so I guess the local kids have found a way in! Anyhow, 25.4 miles to kick April off.

9th April: A gorgeous sunny day again so I took the Strael out for an evening spin. The weather was supposed to be 11 °C dropping to 8 °C and I've been a bit warm on last couple of rides so I adopted the bold strategy of wearing long bibs with overshoes but my stolen goat short sleeved jersey under the Castelli with mitts. I felt a bit cold on my upper half initially but soon felt OK, it's definitely better to start a ride slightly cold rather than slightly warm if you want to avoid cooking. It was dry and sunny but there was quite a strong wind. Going up the track was great fun cruising at 18-22 mph but a struggle to maintain 14 mph coming back down it. Anyhow, I did three uneventful ups and downs calling in at the 'rents on the way back to pick up a delivery for another 25.3 miles.

19th April: Finally, after a few days of cold windy weather, the first hot and sunny day of the year! The BBC were predicting pure sunshine and 22-23 °C temperatures so I was itching to get out today. To go with the new Ultegra R8000 mech's, I'd bought and fitted the matching crankset because the clash with the 105 kit was triggering my OCD. I'd also let the brake levers out a bit and quick-bled the brakes so as well as the lovely weather, there was some testing to be done.

I wore my stolen goat jersey and new Orro bibs and headed out to do the usual. Apart from seeing a few more cyclists than usual, and a few walkers, it was a pretty standard ride. The cranks are lovely, light and stiff, but I might just wind the levers in a bit like they were before. I have pretty normal sized hands and thw way they came from the factory actually feels a bit better. Anyhow, a great ride to start the sun tan off again and 25.4 miles.

20th April: Another hot day, 23 °C according to the BBC website, so another trip out on the Strael. As I've ridden it this year, I'd started to feel that the Strael felt a bit 'sit up and beg' posture-wise. I originally set it up with two 10 mm spacers under the stem and one above it so I switched it to one 10 mm spacer under the stem and two on top. I headed out to do the Siding lane plus the usual and found the bike felt a lot better so I've ordered some 5 mm spacers and I'll trim the steerer when they arrive. The brake levers felt good back in their original positions and it was fun ride overall, the weather was very hot and a lot less windy than it had been yesterday and it was an odd ride in one other respect.

I can't remember another ride when I've had to spit out so many flies, including a large furry one that landed in the right hand corner of my mouth which I managed to manoeuvre and spit out fairly quickly. Another thing I don't recall seeing before occurred on this ride. A couple of times on the ride, I saw what looked like huge plumes of smoke billowing high up in the air. As I got closer, I could see it was farmers in tractors either tilling or ploughing and causing huge amounts of dust from the soil to rise up and float away. Having caught laryngitis breathing a load of dust in following a tractor a couple of winters ago, I made sure to hold my breath and I passed by. Another 25.8 miles.

28th April: After a few days of very windy weather, culminating with storm Hannah yesterday when it rained all day, I managed to get out for a ride today. I was pretty sure there's be standing water and puddles everywhere so Awesom-O got his first trip out for a couple of weeks. The BBC weather said it would be around 12-13 C so I wore my merino under-layer for the first time in ages with my Castelli jacket over it and my new Orro bib shorts and hoped for the best. It turned out to be quite windy but not too cold and quite an enjoyable ride once my legs woke up. I had a couple of cool wildlife encounters on this ride which made it quite memorable. Firstly, I saw the biggest grey heron I've ever seen flying over then field, it's wingspan was easily six feet which was impressive. Then, later on in the ride, I was cycling back down the path when a young hare ran out in front of me from the field on the right hand side, ran across in front of me and ran down into the field on my left - very cool! A much needed ride and another 25.2 miles

30th April: Well we've had a couple of dry days so I was glad to be able to take the Strael out for a spin for a couple of reasons. As you probably know, I run a waxed chain on the Strael. This is great from a cleanliness and chain wear perspective but I find it a bit noisy because as the chain is effectively dry there is nothing to dampen the noise. I replaced my Park Tool chain checker recently with a new one that measures 0.5 mm, 0.75 mm and 1.0 mm and when I checked the Strael's chain, it barely even registered 0.5 mm wear which was amazing given it has just over 1,750 miles on it.

There was quite a lot of lateral wear though which was noticeably affecting the shifting so I decided to switch back to wet lube and fitted a new KMC X11EL chain and lubed it with White Lightning Wet Ride. I'm hoping the Wet Ride will be the lube I hoped the Pedro's would be ie not too thick and claggy and keep the chain from rusting. Anyhow, it was great being out on the Strael again, especially since I lowered the bars recently, and another 25.0 miles. Not a brilliant month with a total of 152.1 miles but hopefully the weather will stabilise a bit soon and I can start getting some proper miles in.

Top winter cycling tip if you ride in summer shoes.

As anyone who reads this blog will know, I suffer badly from frozen toes in winter. I'm sure part of this is down to poor circulation in my feet but the fact I ride in cycling shoes with mesh panels in doesn't help. The panels are to let your feet breathe when the weather's hot and you're riding hard but they let a lot of cold air in.

I'm not sure where I first heard of it but this is a great tip. Pull out about nine inches of foil and fold it in half width-wise. Now put it across the toe end of your shoes and tuck the edges down and underneath around the front of your shoe. Now simply put your overshoes on as normal, over the foil, and no drafts will get through and you should have much warmer feet! 

A useful tip for keeping your shifting sweet and accurate.

I flipped the bike up onto it's back wheel the other night to wheel it into the back yard and happened to noticed how dry and dirty the under bottom bracket cable guide looked. I wheeled the bike over to the lawn and flipped it upside down (apologies to disciples of rule #49...) and brushed out the cable guide and lubed the cable where it ran through it. 

For this sort of lubrication, cables especially, I like to use a semi-wet lube. In this case White Lightning Epic Ride which I didn't rate much for chains but is great for this sort of job. Anyhow, slightly to my own surprise, the rear shifting is noticeably smoother and more accurate following this simple job. One to keep on top of in future!

March 2019.

3rd March: The weather was looking pretty poor today but I've started taking vitamin D again and was keen to get out. I took it last winter and felt it really helped my cycling so I was eager to get out for a ride. To that end, it was back into the stolen goat and long bibs and I took Awesom-O out to do the usual. We must have had a lot of rain recently, although I don't particularly remember it, because there were puddles everywhere on the ride although the two big were still mysteriously absent. It wasn't cold, maybe 8-10 °C, but it started out drizzling and ended up raining pretty consistently and I was soaked by the time I got in. It turns out the stolen goat climb and conquer is largely waterproof although, rather strangely,it was the points of my elbows that felt wet first. Anyhow, despite the wind and rain I felt perfectly warm and it was actually a very enjoyable ride and 25.0 to kick March off.

20th March: Well, after the longest break I can remember taking, I finally got out for a ride tonight. We had a week or so of crappy wet weather earlier in March followed by a good week of ridiculously windy weather centred around storm Gareth but, finally, an area of high pressure has arrived over the UK. The temperature display in my car read 19 °C at lunchtime today and there was barely any wind so I was looking forward to the ride. It had cooled down by evening but I wore my new Orro bib shorts with the Castelli over my merino underlayer with my Giro mitts and headed out.

It felt fresher that it should have done and my legs felt a bit off at first but I soon got into it and had a really enjoyable ride in the end. It was still just about daylight when I headed out and night fell as I rode which was interesting, bats flitted across the path in front of me on several occasions chasing the flying insects which was very cool. Anyhow, I did the usual and then headed back via the kebab shop for a very enjoyable 25.1 miles.

23rd March:  It was quite a pleasant, sunny day today and it hasn't rained for a while so I took the Strael out for it's second spin of the year. Because it was quite sunny, I wore my new Orro shorts and my Giro mitts and then realised it was actually only 8 °C or so but it was OK when I warmed up. Talking of the weather, I have finally replaced my cycling shoes! My Shimano MT31s are at least 19 years old and they've always felt slightly tight, I suspect that's why I get frozen toes so easily because they restrict the circulation. The Giros are a lovely fit and it feels like there is room around the toes to keep the circulation going in winter so fingers crossed. Anyhow, it was very enjoyable ride and I saw loads of other cyclists out enjoying the sun which is always good and another 25.0 miles on the clock.

25th March: I wanted to get three rides in this weekend because I had Monday booked off but Sunday was ridiculously windy so I stayed home and gave the Strael a much needed wash instead. Anyhow, the weather was gorgeous, lots of blue skies and around 9 C, on Monday so took the freshly washed Strael out for another ride. I didn't do anything unusual, a quick look up Siding Lane and the usual three ups and downs of the farm path. Because I set off at about half two, I knew there'd be a small flurry of cars at one point as the local schools finished and parents picked their kids up. On my second down I saw a freshly run over hedgehog on the path which I'm sure I'd have noticed on my first 'up' if it had been there. I can only assume one of the cars got it as it tried to cross the path. Unfortunate but we live a car oriented society unfortunately. Anyhow, 25.4 miles.

27th March: The area of high pressure is still with us and it was a very pleasant sunny day today so I took the Strael out for a spin after work. It had been quite warm today but I heard on Radio 4 that some areas of the UK could freeze overnight so I was in something of a quandary as to what to wear. It was a bit chilly so I wore my Castelli bib longs and decided not bother with overshoes. As I set off, it did feel cool and my fingers were cold as I was wearing my mitts because they're so much more convenient than gloves which get sweaty and hard to take off and on. I soon warmed up and my hands were fine but at around 8 o'clock, as I was coming down the last 'down' the temperature absolutely plummeted and the the Wahoo said it was 36 °F which is 2.2 °C. I don't think it was that cold but by that point my feet were in agony and my fingers were starting to get really cold. One thing I forgot to mention is that as I was cycling along Barrow Nook Lane, I glanced up and it was a huge heron, it looked to have a good five foot wingspan. You see them all the time driving along the M62 to and from Manchester but I haven't seen one around here before. Anyhow, I manfully made it back and stopped for a warming kebab on the way home for another 25.1 wintery miles.

28th March: It was supposed to stay cloudy today and be a bit warmer than it was yesterday so I wore the same gear as I did yesterday and headed out to do the same ride. Like the ride yesterday, my legs felt great but the sky was fairly clear and I ended up with cold feet again so from now on I'm adopting a new rule: If it's cold enough for long bibs, wear overshoes! Anyhow, I had another strange animal encounter on this ride. I was on my second 'down' and was just puzzling over why about fifteen youngsters were coming along the path in dribs and drabs in the opposite direction to me (without a single light between them...) when I came across four miniature horses just milling around in the path.

Not wanting them to wander off and get run over I headed to the big horse farm half a mile up the path and cycled into the yard and chatted to a very nice young girl who said she thought she knew who they belonged to and would round them up on her way home, result! My feet were cold by this point so I headed home and cycled right down the bypass and came back through the industrial estate and the shared use path for 22.7 miles.

30th March: Today's ride turned out to be rather longer than anticipated. It was slightly warmer than it has been recently so I headed out to do three ups and downs of the farm path. I'd done two when I stopped to check something on my phone. As I put my phone away and was about to set off, I noticed a kid on a mountain bike passing me who said "Race, race, I'll race you on them skinny tyres!" I laughed and carried on soon proving that mountain bikes aren't as fast as road bikes and then decided I was bored of the farm path so I decided to do the 27 mile route because I've not done it for ages. As I was riding along, I noticed a rattling sound which was very hollow and plasticy and getting louder.

I stopped at the top of the overpass behind Kirkby and found that the screw holding the plastic cap on the top of my left brake lever was loose. I was paranoid about the screw falling out and disappearing so I had a quick think and then tore a small amount of grass from the verge and stuffed it into the gap between the lever and the shifter body, no more rattling and the screw trapped in place - sorted! I took the screw, and the one from the other side, out when I got home and refitted them with some blue Loctite. Another 29.3 miles.

31st March: Finally, a completed month!!! The weather was slightly warmer today so the new Orro bib shorts got an outing. I took the newly quiet Strael out to do the usual and initially thought, 'Hmmm... not much wind today, this is fun!" before I got to the end of the track and turned around and realised it was because I'd been cycling with the wind - doh! Anyhow, I was getting bored of the track so I did two full ups and downs of the farm track and the road to Holt Green as far as the Derby Arms pub and back for a total of 25.5 miles and a monthly total of 203.1 miles.

February 2019.

February 13th: After two weeks of cold, wet, windy weather an area of high pressure has settled over the UK and I could finally get out for a ride! I took Awesom-O out to do the usual and ended up having a rather strange start to my ride. As I was cycling up the bypass, I saw two guys on mountain bikes heading towards me riding two abreast. I was sure they would see me and move into single file so I squeezed to the left of the path to make room. As it turned out, they didn't move into single file and the right hand of one of them crashed into my right arm as we passed. The guy let out a rather startled "OOF!" so I suspect, rather than anything malicious, he just hadn't been watching where he was going. Anyhow, no one came off so I carried on going expecting a reasonable bruise on my arm in the morning. The ride itself was fine, a barn owl swooped across the path ahead of me which was cool, and it was reasonably warm at around 8 °C without much wind and my legs felt pretty reasonable despite the enforced break. 25.1 miles to finally start February off.

February 15th: It was a bit of an unusual ride today. My colleague Adam and I were doing a big office reshuffle at work so we decided to start at lunchtime and work into the evening. This left the morning free so I took Awesom-O out to do the usual. As a bit of an experiment, I had a pizza for breakfast just before I set out to see how it would affect how I felt on the ride. Anyhow, it was cold. The BBC weather site said it would be 5 °C rising to 8 °C but it felt a lot colder when I set off. Other than the cold, it was a gorgeous late winter day with blue skies and the sun feeling quote warm.

The wind ruined it slightly with a pretty consistent southerly wind that didn't let up at all. The wind, combined with riding straight after a meal, meant I never really felt like I got going properly and it wasn't the most enjoyable ride ever. It was tempered slightly by another cool wild life encounter though. As I was doing the last 'down', something made me look up to my left and there was a young buzzard flying along side me and we look at each other for a few seconds as we paralleled each other which was really cool. Anyhow, I only noticed when updating my spreadsheet that this was the ride that took Awesom-O over the 5,000 mile mark and another 25.0 miles for February.

February 21st: After weeks of crappy weather, it was a rather amazing 15 °C today so I was looking forward to getting out for a spin on Awesom-O after work. The temperature was around 9 or 10 C so I wore the Castelli Alpha over my merino for the first time in ages and set out. I did two ups and downs of the farm path and then got bored so I did a loop of the time trialler's loop, taking in an up and down of Church Lane to add some distance and then came home first via the kebab shop (ahem...) and then my parents house to collect some deliveries (it was interesting trying to fit nine Veloforte bars, a pot of wood filler and five bottles of Marie Sharp's Fiery Habanero Sauce into my small cycling rucksack) and onto home for 24.0 miles.

February 23rd: Today's ride was something of a milestone, the temperature was around 15 °C so it was the first ride of the year in short bibs! I shaved my legs before the ride and, although I'm not a particularly hairy bloke, the bath looked like someone had shaved a monkey in it afterwards. Anyhow, it hasn't rained for a while so I fired up the slow cooker and re-waxed the Strael's chain before the ride as I couldn't remember what state the chain was in lube-wise since I'd last done it. Anyhow, I set off and although it was warm, it was overcast and very windy so not as enjoyable ride as I'd been anticipating.

I wore the Castelli over my merino underlayer and I struggled to stay cool enough. It wasn't helped by my Lusso shorts. They've got a few thousand miles on them and my bum was feeling it for most of the ride so I Googled the matter and I've ordered some Orro bib shorts which the road.cc review said were awesome for people who's bums can suffer on longer rides. They were less than a hundred quid, I find two hundred pound plus cycling shorts bemusing, so I'll review them when they arrive. Anyhow, a slightly less pleasant than expected 26.7 miles.

Well, some less than stellar weather and the stressy week from hell at work meant I didn't manage to get out again this month so February goes out with rather poor mileage of 100.8. Is it nearly summer yet?

January 2019.

2nd Jan: I was feeling a bit partied out today after all the festivities so I took Awesom-O out for a spin to clear my head. It was overcast and pretty cold so I donned the stolen goat and headed out. Weirdly, despite being hungover and not having eaten, my legs felt better than they have for years and I absolutely flew the whole ride. I had a couple of very cool wild life encounters on the ride as well. At one point, I was cycling along watching a flock of at least 30 goldfinches swarming up to land on a telephone wire when they changed their minds because there was a kestrel already sitting on the wire, cool! At a later stage of the ride, I was cycling back down the track when a flock of 4- to 500 starlings lifted into the air ahead of me and could decided which side of the path to alight on so I was cycling along with a massive half torus of starlings in front of me. That was extremely cool and it happened again on a subsequent 'down'. Anyhow, a fun, fast ride and 25.1 miles to kick the ride off with.

6th Jan: Awesom-O was absolutely filthy before today's ride, virtually every square centimetre was covered in dried mud, so I gave him a good wash. I also t-shirted the cassette, gave the chain a really good wipe to get any grit and excess oil off and treated all the pivots on the rear mech to a drop of Purple Extreme. That done, we headed off to the farm track. There was barely any wind and it was around 8 °C so not particularly cold and quite a fun ride. There were a lot of corvids around for some reason, there was a murder of maybe 5- or 600 hundred crows on one of the fields because the farmer was tilling it as I rode and most of them lifted into the air each time I went past. After two ups and downs, I headed to Holt Green and there was freshly tilled field on the right hand side there with 2- or 300 rooks mixed in with a few crows so a very corvid rich ride! Anyhow, it was a fun ride and another 25.2 miles.

20th January: It's been a mad couple of weeks recently which meant I haven't been out on the bike for ages. I had a crazy week at work including a lot of travel and an overnight stay and then we had a week of windy, rainy weather afterwards. Anyhow, I managed to take Awesom-O out for a ride today. Because he has mudguards, it isn't easy to see what state his tyres are in so I flipped him upside down and took a look. The front was fine but the back tyre was quite flat and fairly cut up with a couple of holes where you could clearly see the anti-puncture belt under the tread. Coincidentally, the next morning I was sitting in the car looking at Instagram on my phone when I saw an ad showing Sigma Sports were doing the same tyres for thirty quid each so I ordered a couple.

I fitted them yesterday and boy were they a pig! Anyhow, I used lots of talc on everything and managed to get them fitted without sacrificing any inner tubes and was looking forward to the riding the smooth new rubber today. It was an OK day, overcast but bright and not too cold at around 5 °C and barely any wind, so I did a lap of the fishing pond followed by the usual. I saw quite an odd thing bolted to a telephone pole on the last 'down' so I stopped and took a pic. It had a laser warning sticker on so I guess it's something to do with broadband? Anyhow, a quite enjoyable 26.0 miles.

28th January: I read an article on road.cc a while back about dealing with smelly cycling clothing. One of the things they mentioned was gloves. This bamboozled me slightly because I thought 'How can gloves stink'? As it turns out, my gloves do stink. The odour is rather reminiscent of smelly feet so they're definitely going in the wash after this ride! Anyhow, It's been another long break from the bike, we've had some snow and a couple of really freezing nights and yesterday was incredibly windy, but I managed to take Awesom-O out for a spin today. By happy coincidence I'd booked the day off and it was a beautiful day, around 4 °C with clear blue skies and not too much wind. I only did the usual but, apart from a close pass by a prat in a Range Rover who'd obviously taken umbrage with me moving to the centre of the road to turn right at a t-junction, it was a very enjoyable ride. I felt a bit meh initially but I soon perked up and it was another 25.1 miles.

Well, another poor month. It snowed on Wednesday which made getting to work an adventure! They hadn't gritted the village, the bypass or the East Lancs so every traffic lights was 'am I going to be able to get moving again?' which was nerve racking. It's been around freezing since and there's still snow remnants everywhere so I've been stuck indoors. Anyhow, the monthly total was a poor 101.4 miles. Here's hoping it warms up soon...