May 2016.

May 4th: I managed to get out and do the local 21 after work tonight. It was very sunny and warm enough to ride with my running top sleeves rolled up which was cool. It wasn't perfect though, it was very windy but that's been par for the course this year so far. Anyhow, it was pleasant enough ride and I averaged 16.8 mph which, once again, backs up my theory that sunny weather makes you cycle faster and it's 20.7 miles to kick May off.

May 6th: Yaaaaay!!! It was a hot sunny day today and the official first 'Just a t-shirt' day of the year. I decided to do the local 21 with the farm track tacked on and it was beautiful, the hedgerows were full of goldfinches and sparrows and there was a real feeling that summer's on it's way which was awesome.

There wasn't much wind either, which was a bonus, and I averaged 16.8 mph again which was cool. Anyhow, 27.2 more miles for May. Full credit for the photo above goes to Singing Wings Aviary, it's a pretty awesome pic!

May 7th: I managed to get out again this afternoon and do the same route as yesterday. It was just as hot and sunny but a lot windier which was no surprise but it was still the second t-shirt only ride of the year. The wind dropped my average to just 16.1 mph as well but it was still a very enjoyable ride and 27.2 more miles.

May 14th: I did the same ride again today. It was just as hot and sunny but with a cold northerly wind that really didn't help. There was one puzzling thing about the ride that I must look into. There were bright orange A4 notices stuck on lamp posts and fences all over the place with the Wiggle logo on and something about northern events so I'm guessing there's a mass participation run or bike ride coming up maybe? Anyhow, another 27.2 miles.

May 30th: Lanzarote at last! It was a bit too fierce to cycle in the afternoon so at 6 o'clock I set out to do a local ride I created. It started by heading a few miles up a single carriageway through the Rubicon desert and then did a huge loop around a lava field by the sea and then headed back down the same single carriageway into Playa Blanca.

There was a lot of climbing, especially around the loop section, but I really enjoyed it, the Planet X Pro Carbon climbs like a goat! One mistake I made was adding a loop at the top near El Golfo to try and add a few miles to the route. This proved to be an unpaved track that serviced a few remote properties and nearly shook my teeth out by the time I got back to the road. Anyhow, a good ride and 24.4 more miles.

Not a brilliant month with a total of only 126.7 miles but I've had Lanzarote to prepare for and I've spent a lot of time restoring the Claud Butler. Here's hoping next month's total is a bit higher.

April 2016.

April 4th: I had the day off work today and the weather was bright and sunny so I headed out to do the local 21. It was very windy (the weird kind that blows in the same direction constantly) but a gorgeous sunny day so I decided to do the farm track section and back again on the way.

I wore my cycling shorts, t-shirt and running top for only the third time this year and despite the wind I was almost warm on certain parts of the ride. Overall though it was a pretty enjoyable ride and 27.5 miles to kick April off.

April 9th: The weather was looking fairly dodgy today, overcast and fairly cold, but I decided to do the local 21 anyway. As it turned out, it started raining after a few minutes and rained steadily throughout the entire ride. It was also fairly windy so not the best ride ever although I did see a large Kestrel (thus female?) hunting over one of the fields along the edge of the village which was pretty cool. Anyhow, it was another 22.6 miles in the bag.

April 10th: It was much sunnier today and a bit warmer than yesterday so I did the local 21 again. I initially thought I was going to get a record average speed because the wind seemed to be behind me constantly, I was cruising at 21+ mph for miles. My plan was thwarted however as soon as I hit the East Lancs, the wind was howling at me diagonally and I struggled to maintain 12-14 mph at times. Anyhow, a good workout and 21.7 more miles.

April 13th: Aaaaaand again. It was sunny turning to overcast and not too cold or windy so quite a nice ride overall. I was wearing my first ever set of bib shorts for their inaugural trip. They are Lusso Pro Peleton in medium which I got for half price from Merlin in a sale. They are fantastic quality (especially compared to my medium Alturas which are baggy and misshapen) even though they do make taking a leak something of a challenge... Anyhow, I think they're a bit small so I'll go to Merlin today and get a set in large and sell the mediums on. 21.2 more miles.

April 16th: I had the day off today and started by driving up to Merlin Cycles in Buckshaw Village to pick up a pair of bib shorts in large. With that issue sorted I headed out to do the local 21. The weather was like it has been a lot recently ie absolutely beautiful sunshine but very, very windy which is a pain.

On the plus side though, the new Lusso bib shorts are fantastic. Very, very comfortable and they look good too, properly skintight unlike my baggy Altura shorts. Interestingly, unlike a lot of cycling clothes, the Lusso sizing guides are pretty spot on, I'm 5' 11" with a 32" waist and the large are a very good fit. Anyhow, 21.1 more miles.

April 17th: I was fairly short of time today so I decided to brave the Old Coach Road. Again, it was bright and sunny but fairly breezy so a pleasant enough ride. I was a bit worried that it would be over-run with dog walkers again but I didn't see any at all which was a bonus and it was another 15.5 miles for April.

20th April: I really dropped on for todays ride. One of my colleagues phoned in sick on Monday and there was no one available to cover the late shift. In desperation, my supervisor Cath said "How about you have Wednesday afternoon off if you cover the late shift?" Given that the BBC said Wednesday was going to be 'The nicest day of the year so far' I selflessly agreed to cover it!

It turned out to be a cloudless, hot, sunny spring day so I decided to do the local 21 with the farm track tacked on and then come home via Billinge. It was pretty windy at times but when the wind dropped it was hot. I rode with my running top sleeves rolled up and after 1h 56m in the sun, I'm sure my cyclists tan is starting to make a come back! A fun ride and 31.9 more miles.

23rd April: It was quite a strange ride today, It was a beautiful sunny day with blue skies and white clouds but also extremely windy. Anyhow, I headed out to do the local 21 miler again, I was going to add the farm path on to the ride but the wind put me off. One thing I forgot to mention on my last ride was the baby bunnies. There's an enormous grass verge on Dale Lane behind Kirkby and on the last ride and this one it was covered with baby rabbits, seriously cute! A hard ride but I managed to average 16.0 mph which I was pleased with and it was another 21.4 miles.

30th April: They the weather in April can be very changeable and they're not wrong! Given that we had a few very warm sunny days in the middle of April, the last week has been awful. We've had a week of wind and rain and then I found myself changing a car puncture in the middle of a snow storm in Manchester on Thursday morning! Anyhow, it was sunny but windy today and I managed to get out and do the local 21 for a final 21.5 more miles for April which finishes with 204.4 on the clock.

Fitting a K-Edge chain catcher.

Everyone's dropped a chain at some point in their cycling life. On a steel frame it doesn't cause much damage, except perhaps to the paint finish. On a carbon frame, the dropped chain can make a real mess of the relatively fragile carbon fibre.

The K-Edge chain catcher (CNC machined from 6061-T6 alloy in Boise, Idaho) is a very simple device. It is basically a narrow metal plate that bolts to your front derailleur and acts by physically stopping the chain falling off the small chainring. Fitting it is just a case of shifting onto the largest sprocket at the back and the smallest one at the front and removing the front derailleur. You then add the small adaptor, the catcher itself and one of the longer bolts in the kit and refit the derailleur. As you tighten it all back together, make sure the end of the catcher is about 0.5 mm from the chain. Job done!

A treat for Lanzarote - new pedals for the Giant.

As I knew I'd be taking my pedals off to take to Lanzarote in May, I decided to upgrade to something a bit fancier. I was initially going to go for XTR SPDs but my mate Al at work (who rides about a 1,000 miles a month!) told me that there was known issue with the locking nut inside shearing and the whole pedal body coming away from the axle.

I decided to go for the previous generation of XT pedals in the end (they're only just the previous model, their replacements are just starting to appear in shops about now). They're a bit lighter than the 520s and look a lot smarter, I copper greased the threads and installed them to 30 ft/lbs of torque and took them for a spin. They need loosening off a bit but they're very smart, very smooth and are very comfortable - Shimano for the win again!

Sudocrem, not just for babies!

There are plenty of ailments and side effects associated with cycling a lot, few of which are glamorous or pretty. A common one that I suffer from is reddening at the top of my thighs caused by my cheap Aldi cycling longs rubbing. The easiest way to get rid of it is to wash the affected area thoroughly, dry it well and smear Sudocrem generously over the reddened areas.

I find it usually goes back to normal providing you repeat the above after every bath or shower you take for a day or two. I'm sure there are dozen's of high priced cycling-specific unguents out there 'designed' for cyclists but cyclists have been using Sudocrem for many years and probably always will! As a slight aside, I believe Sudocrem is also a pretty good remedy for jogger's nipple which I also get sometime depending on which base layer I've been wearing.

March 2016.

2nd March: I had the day off work today so I was determined to get out for a ride. It was horrendously windy (Storm Jake this time) but a gorgeously sunny spring day at the same time so a bit of a quandary..?

Any how, I headed out with the only plan being to avoid the main roads because of the wind. The wind was horrendous but for some reason I was determined to stay out and enjoy the sun for as long as I could. I ended up just wandering around exploring bits of various local routes. It was fun but my legs were burning by the time I got in from fighting the wind constantly and the Giant was absolutely filthy. Anyhow, it was 32.1 miles to get March started.

5th March: I started today by sorting the original Giant wheels out. I took a tyre off one of them to check something and found the rim tape was very dry and folded over in places so it needed replacing. I ended up buying some fabric stick on stuff I've never used before but was pretty impressive. I then refitted my favourite tyres, the Conti Grand Prix GT.

I've given up with the tubeless Hunt wheels, I just cannot get them to hold air reliably, they're currently languishing in my outside toilet while I decide what to with them.

All done, I took it out to do a 20 miler that avoided main roads as much as possible due to my somewhat late start. It was basically the Old Coach Road but doing the full length of the country road bit of the 24 miler and back on the way past it.

Because it was so sunny and spring-like, I decided to divert onto the 21 miler route and extend the ride. I was obviously in explorer mode again because I decided to have a look down a farm path that I passed the end of regularly. It turned out to be  rather scenic road that ended at a farm so I took a pic of the bike with my new Sony Experia Z5 Compact. Anyhow, just as the pic was taken it started raining so I turned round and headed home. I went past the village on the bypass and came back through the industrial estate and the shared use path to lengthen the ride a bit. The Conti's are as good as I remember them; they have an extremely low rolling resistance and a creamy smoothness. Anyhow, 20.3 more miles.

March 8th: I got out tonight on the Giant and did the local 21 again. It was breezy rather than windy which was a nice change although it was fairly cold; I wore two t-shirts underneath my running top and windbreaker so it was actually more enjoyable than I thought it would be and it was 21.1 more miles for March.

March 13th: The weather was absolutely gorgeous today, warm and sunny, so I took the Giant out and did the local 21. It was the first ride of the year wearing cycling shorts (apologies for the glare from my white legs to anyone I cycled past!) and just a t-shirt and running top so an awesome ride and long may the warm weather last. I averaged 16.9 mph as well which is my fastest average for a good while. Anyhow, 21.7 more miles for March.

March 14th: I had the day off work today and was planning a longer trip than usual, maybe Southport or Leisure Lakes. As it turned out, it was warm and sunny like yesterday but there was quite a strong cold wind so I did the local 21 miler instead for 21.4 more miles. My average for the first 3/5 of the ride was looking awesome, I was cruising for miles at 20-22 mph but the wind was howling in my face all the way along the East Lancs on the way back so I only ended up with 15.9 mph.

March 17th: I had another of my amusing encounters on tonight's ride. I'd done the local 21 and was coming back down the East Lancs towards Windle island when I ended up standing next to a guy with a mountain bike who was also waiting to cross. He mentioned that my front light was so bright that he'd thought I was a motorbike approaching him. Anyhow, we had a bit of a chat about various things and as we parted he said "Anyhow mate, I just wanted to congratulate you for having the brightest front light I've ever seen!". Strange but a ringing endorsment for my Exposure Diablo I guess and 21.7 more miles for March.

March 19th: I did the local 21 again today. It was cold and quite blowy but nothing out of the ordinary except for one thing. As I was cycling along the deserted stretch of road that runs behind Kirkby to the Industrial park, I noticed the left hand STI unit was very wobbly. I stopped and peeled the hood back and the bolt was totally loose! I tightened it up and was on my way in no time but a definite first. I stopped off at my parents house on the way back to pick up my new pedals (I've treated myself for Lanzarote so more to follow) so 21.3 miles in the bag.

March 20th: I usually meet my parents for a pub lunch at 2 o'clock on a Sunday afternoon so I set out to do the Old Coach road at half twelvish. It was cool and blowy but quite bright so quite a pleasant ride. One thing you tend to forget in winter is how busy places can be as soon as the weather improves a bit, there were dog walkers everywhere! Anyhow, it was another bumpy 15.5 miles.

March 25th: I did the local 21 today, it was fairly warm but quite windy so a fairly fun ride. I ended up taking my fleece off and just wearing my running top over a t-shirt which is a sign spring is on the way hopefully. I tacked Alec's hill onto the ride on the way back which reminded me that that hill never gets easier but Lanzarote's quite hilly so I think some climbing training is probably a good idea! Anyhow, knackering but 22.4 more miles.

March 29th: I finally managed to get out today, I wanted to get out yesterday but we were experiencing Storm Katie and the wind was horrendous. I did the local 21 and it was one of those cool rides where the wind always seemed to be pushing me along wherever I was on the route, rare but always appreciated. It wasn't a perfect ride though, there were a lot of puddles around from yesterday and it chucked it down for the last few miles so I ended up hosing the bike down when I got in. Anyhow, not too bad and 21.8 more miles.

I was hoping to get another ride in for March to try and erode the deficit a little. The weather had other plans however, the high pressure has drifted away and it's been quite windy and rainy again. However, March still ended up as the first successful month of the year with a total of 219.3 miles which isn't too bad at all!

February 2016.

February 5th: I started February off with the local 21 miler It was 10 days ago so I'm don't remember the ride exactly but I rememberit fairly windy and it tried to rain a couple of times. It was a pretty uneventful ride except for my left SPD pedal trying to tip me off! I was approaching a T-junction in the industrial park and I unclipped as I slowed down to stop. When I actually stopped, my left foot was loose but wouldn't come off the pedal; I've had this happen before and I can only guess the front tip of the cleat somehow gets caught in the mechanism of the pedal. Anyhow, I managed to free my foot just before I hit the deck so disaster was averted and it was 21.1 miles to start February off.


So far, February is proving a tough month. We've had storm Henry and Imogen with the associated gales and rain and we've also had a few days of freezing weather and I don't want to risk sliding off and breaking a wrist or something so riding opportunities have been limited.

On top of this, I've started watching the walking dead because my friend Amy raves about it so much. I've subscribed to Amazon Prime for the 30 day free trial so I'm up against a time limit to get it all watched. I'm nearly at the end of season 4 so far and it is pretty awesome to be honest. Anyhow, I will persevere and try salvage something for the month...


February 15th: It was gorgeously sunny but freezing cold this weekend but by wearing my fleece scully instead of my helmet (naughty I know but a freezing head is not pleasant) I managed to get out and do the local 21 again. It's been 10 days since I managed to get out so the first few miles were a bit of an effort but my overall average was 16.0 mph which was pretty reasonable and it was another 21.5 miles.

February 23rd: It was a dry, sunny day today without much wind so I decided to take the Giant out for the first time since the end of October and do the local 21 miler. The front wheel on the Giant has had a problem since I last rode it, if you topped it off it would be fine for one ride but would be almost flat the next day. Anyhow, I removed it, cleaned all the gunked up rubber off the valve stem and used the Air Shot to re-seat the tyre. I added 40ml of sealant and replaced the valve core, inflated both the tyres and went out for a ride. The ride was fun, cold most of the ride but approaching freezing for the last few miles but thankfully hardly any wind. The good news is that the tyre is still rock hard this morning so I think the wheels is fixed and it's another 21.0 miles for February.

February 26th: I has a day booked off work today so I took the Giant out and did the local 21 again. It was an uneventful ride and it's awesome how fast it is compared to Awesom-O purely because it's so much lighter. Anyhow, 21.1 more miles for February.

Well, February ended up as another poor month due to the stormy weather with a measly 84.7. It seems to have been storm after storm after storm this autumn and winter which totally blows. If it is due to global warming, maybe the weather will compensate with longer, hotter summers? I almost hope so...