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...
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.
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!
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!
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!
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!
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.
