Perspective

My observations on this mornings commute:

Number of cyclists running red lights - 0
Number of motorists running red lights - 4

Number of cyclists riding on pavement - 0
Number of motorists using bus lane - lots (well over 10)

Number of cyclists without lights - 1
Number of motorists without lights - 7

Number of people using a mobile phone whilst cycling - 0
Number of people using a mobile phone whilst driving - 8

Chainring tattoos

As possessed by every 'proper' cyclist! Actually given the oil, grease, broken skin and blood with this one it'll probably end up a real tat.

Manchester's fantastic car spearing bollards

Some car drivers who try to tail-gate buses into part of Manchester city centre are getting more than they bargained for. Raising bollards have been installed to prevent vehicles other than authorised ones from entering St Mary's Gate. Hilariously, cars have been speared when they have tailgated behind a bus. See here from some excellent video footage of idiots getting their just deserts...

Route 6, squirrels and punctures

View across lake from Newstead Abbey

Spent most of yesterday pootling from Derby along route NCN route 6 to Worksop and very nice it was too. Most of the route is very flat and on well surfaced tracks and minor roads away from busy traffic. Well at least it is when you don't get lost as we did in Long Eaton, Nottingham (twice) and then near Blidworth. In these instances we resorted to main roads to get ourselves back on track including a stretch on the very busy A614 which wasn't that pleasant. All of these detours added quite a bit to the mileage so in the end we'd done 65 miles instead of 54. Generally though, the route is well signposted. It was just us being crap.

From Derby the well surfaced track follows the River Derwent to Borrowash where you then join minor roads and tarmaced tracks through to Beeston and Nottingham. My only criticism of the section between Long Eaton and Nottingham is that the route seems to go 'round the houses' (literally in some instances) with lots of road crossings and so on. Can't comment on the route through Nottingham as we ended up in the city centre and took a main road North to rejoin route 6 near New Basford.

The route then crosses the railway line where you have to drag your bike up and down some steep steps. There are some helpful 'wheel tracks' so you can push your bike up rather than carry it. Never come across these before. I can imagine that these are useless though if you are trying to get a loaded/heavy bike down them as as soon as you touch the brakes the wheel skids. Got lost again shortly afterwards and ended up going in a big circle near some park in North Nottingham.

After this it was back to quiet routes and the picturesque route through Newstead Abbey shortly followed by beer and food at a pub near Ravenshead (Little John Inn I think). After a long lunch we proceeded to get lost again taking quite a long detour on a busy road before rejoining the route in Sherwood Forest where the tracks became much rougher and my 28mm tyres were only just coping. It was here that a squirrel decided to have an argument with my bike! This particular little critter couldn't make up his mind which side of the track he wanted to go for as I bore down upon him. He just made it under my front wheel and was soundly clonked about his body by my left foot and pedal. Although it probably hurt it a lot it did keep us (very) amused for ages afterwards. No more than a mile or so later I had another close encounter with one of the little tree rats. Its possible that the squirrel population of Sherwood Forest has a particularly low IQ.

However, karma was soon balanced as I suffered a front and rear p*nct*re at the same time (one of which was actually over another patch!). We could see the squirrels laughing at the side of the track. Only one spare tube (bugger) so had to fix one. Didn't do a good job though as this later started to very slowly deflate (double bugger). It was now starting to get a bit dark and so on went the lights.

The rapidly failing light combined with leaves and small branches covering a very rough track and a slow puncture inside a 28mm tyre made for an interesting ride through the rest of the forest. In hindsight we rode this with a bit too much of a gung ho attitude as we wanted to get a particular train in Worksop. One big branch or big pothole and we would have been toast.

We did make our train (with a minute to spare) but not before a big van tried to wipe us out in Worksop city centre. Pete's loud slap on the side of it probably made them think they'd got one of us.

Overall a great day on a very nice route but definitely one for taking your time on and I'm grateful to those who advised against 23mm tyres!

Thieving scumbags

At the weekend I acquired a nice second hand Specialized Hardrock MTB in the hope of doing a bit of off-road stuff. Last night some thieving bastard(s) forced open the shed and nicked it. I'd only had it 4 days! Basically its the one below but with a different saddle (black and yellow), some better wheels (Specialized hubs and Alex DM20 rims) and a new deore chainset. Only saving grace was that my other bikes were ignored but I'm still gutted.

If anyone sees it around Sheffield please let me know.

The Mercian slims down

And loses the unnecessary dangly bits. I've been meaning to 'fix' this bike for a little while and have finally got round to it, although it still needs more work. Clipless pedals, better wheels and a better brake mainly. That old 1960's single pivot might look right on the bike but it doesn't give you a great deal of confidence!

RLJs and pavement cycling

Maybe its just me but the increase in numbers of cyclists in Sheffield of late seems to have produced a disproportionate increase in the number running red lights or using the pavement? Recent jaw dropping acts of stupidness witnessed by myself have included:

Twit1 trying to avoid red light at junction of London Road/Boston Street by cutting on to the pavement and shooting across the junction. Except his timing was off and the cars in front of me were turning left just as he was crossing at speed.

Twit2 deciding to ride at speed down London Road (even though there is a flippin' bus/cycle lane there) causing peds to scatter.

I think that both Twit1 and Twit2 deserved the very unflattering appelations thrown at them from myself and others.

I bring this issue up as I came across an incident on a cycling forum where a cyclist ran a red light at a ped crossing in London recently and ran into someone who has subsequently died of their injuries. The git on the bike apparently got up remounted and rode off. See the cycling through red lights thread here for the source of the info.

The wonders of whisky

When feeling slightly knackered after numerous hilly miles how best to prepare for the 2 mile slog from Beeley up to the top of Beeley Moor? Easy! Stop at Devonshire Arms and refuel with a large Malt Whisky. Worked for me anyway as I got up there faster than I have ever done before. No pics from the top as visibility was stupidly poor in the fog. Probably less than 40 yards.

How (not) to bodge a dodgy mudguard

The bolts on Pete's rear mudguard stays decided to fly away resulting in hideous noises as the guard rubbed on the tyre and stays clattered against spokes. With no tools to effect a repair or actually remove the damn thing this seemed like a reasonable thing to do at the time! My guess is that it'll still be like that when the rest of the bike dies (the tightarse).

Winter approaches

And its time for Green Vernon (as oposed to Blue Vernon with the Dangly Bits) to wake from his shed slumber. He's a simple reliable soul who is easy to please and pleases easily.

Some might consider him to be a bit of a luddite with his single fixed gear, ancient Brooks saddle, Carradice saddlebag and centre-pull brakes but he's efficient and does exactly what he's supposed to do with the minimum of fuss. As long as you keep his tyres up to pressure and lube/tighten his chain every once in a while he's a happy bunny who never complains.

Cycling to school

My 7 year old lad has caught the bug.

Yesterday and today constituted his first 'commute to school by bike' days and he's hooked. Its not much more than half a mile but it includes a nice run through the park and relatively little on-road riding. Its quite a hill though. I was rather impressed on the way home that he managed to ride most of the way up through Meersbrook Park on his rusty little singlespeed bike. He only got off and walked on the steeper bits.

Sadly he is in a tiny minority at his school. Only 1 or 2 other bikes ever get locked to the railings there and although a lot DO walk; far, far more are driven the short distance from their home to the gates which is very disappointing.

For those born before the 80's

Found somewhere on t'internet. I was born in 1967 and it certainly reminds me of my own childhood. I like the conclusions.

First, we survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they carried us.They took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing and didn't get tested for diabetes. Then after that trauma, our baby cribs were covered with bright colored lead-based paints.

We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets, not to mention, the risks we took hitchhiking.

As children, we would ride in cars with no seat belts or air bags. Riding in the back of the milkvan on a summer day day was always a special treat.

We drank water from the garden hose and not from a bottle. We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle and no one actually died from this.

We ate cupcakes, bread and butter and drank soda pop with sugar in it, but we weren't overweight because we were always outside playing! We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the streetlights came on. No one was able to reach us all day. And we were o.k.

We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then ride down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. After running into the bushes a few times, we learned to solve the problem.

We did not have Playstations, Nintendo's, X-boxes, no video games at all, no 99 channels on cable, no video tape movies, no surround sound, no mobile phones, no personal computers, no internet or internet chat rooms. We had friends and we went outside and found them! We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no lawsuits from these accidents.

We made up games with sticks and tennis balls and ate worms and although we were told it would happen, we did not put out very many eyes, nor did the worms live in us forever.

We rode bikes or walked to a friend's house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just walked in and talked to them!

School football teams had trials and not everyone made the team. Those who didn't had to learn to deal with disappointment. Imagine that!

The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law!

This generation has produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers and inventors ever! The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas. We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned how to deal with it all!

And you are one of them! Congratulations! We had the luck to grow up as kids, before the lawyers and the government regulated our lives for our own good."

Squirrels and spokes

Many is the time that a little tree rat has caused a brown trouser moment as they dart across right in front of me. But this news story highlights what might happen. It also reminded me of this nice collection of squirrel versus bicycle wheel piccies.

Tour of Britain stage 3

What a wet day that was! Took a ride out to Hope to meet Alan and go watch some of yesterdays stage. Wasn't too bad coming out of Sheffield but going over the top at Burbage was awful - in the clouds, windy and driving rain. The descent into Hathersage was quite scary given the conditions and lots of crap all over the road.

We decided to watch them come up the hill at Millstone Edge and so set off via Hathersage and Grindleford with time for a couple of drinks at Fox House beforehand. In spite of the awful weather there were plenty of people up there. The lead group came up at a hell of a lick with a big gap between them and the chasing group. The next two groups came up at a much more leisurely pace. I could have kept up with them assuming I hadn't ridden 100 hilly miles beforehand!

The ride back to Sheffield afterwards was even wetter. I don't think I've been so soaked after a ride before.

Anyway - nice that we treated the pros to some proper British summer weather!

You WILL use the cycle path...

Astoundingly, the Telford cyclist - Daniel Cadden - who was prosecuted for cycling on the carriageway instead of an adjoining cycle path was found guilty. See here

It sounds like the district judge had made his mind up and decided that Mr Cadden inconvenienced motorists where he could have reasonably used the cycle path. I am not aware of any law that requires a cyclist to use a cycle path and the road in question was not 'out of bounds' for cyclists. The judge dismissed evidence from an expert witnes (John Franklin of Cyclecraft fame), did not accept that cycle routes round the edge of roundabouts were dangerous or that poorly maintained cycle paths were potentially unsafe.

What a shocking decision. I sincerely hope this goes to appeal but if it is upheld then it is a very worrying precedent.

The new steed

Well new frameset actually. All other bits transferred from a bike that was a bit too big.

Hmmmm. Shiny.

I've been riding my lovely old Mercian a lot recently. Earlier this year I shellaced the bars on it. This was quite popular in days gone by and I was inspired by a few examples I'd seen on various websites. Basically its just blue cloth tape, hemp twine to finish the ends (NOT electrical tape) and about a dozen coats of clear shellac to cover and protect. Bit of a chore to do as you need to let each coat dry for a couple of hours before the next application but I think they look rather spiffy and well worth the effort! It certainly keeps the bars looking pristine and by all accounts they'll stay that way for years.

2 bikes per train?

One of my regular trips to Hull with my bike today. I'd understood that Northern Rail were supposed to be getting stricter with their two bikes per train 'rule'. This didn't seem to be the case on the 7.41am from Sheffield today where four bikes got on. Two in the (completely inadequate) little 'box' where cycles are supposed to go, one in the vestibule next to it and another one somewhere up the other end of the train. No complaints, no problems.

New section of 5WW open

Quick trip out yesterday lunchtime to check out the new section between the Cobweb Bridge and Norfolk Bridge. This section takes you via a restored Bailey Bridge and eliminates the need to cycle along Effingham Street. Its been very well done. I wonder if there is any intention to grow anything over all those arches as they have done further done the walk?

Apparently this phase of the 5WW has cost in the region of £1.6m!

Phew it's hot

And as usual far too nice a day to take the shortest route to work so up out of Sheffield through Graves Park, Greenhill and Holmesfield to Owler Bar. Caught up with a bloke who was riding out to Baslow and Chatsworth and it was very tempting to keep going with him but the day ahead was just too busy and so from Owler Bar bombed back down through Totley and on to Abbeydale Road into the city centre. No more than about 15-16 miles in about 70 mins but a lovely start to the day. Intended to do the same route on the way home but the heat was just too much when I left at 5.00. How The Tour riders managed those 3 huge climbs today in that sort of heat is just beyond me.

Don't forget your breakfast

This morning as I started climbing up through Whirlow and towards Long Line about 5 miles into a bit of an extended commute I began to think to myself "this is harder than it should be". What could it be? Carting too much stuff to work? Possibly but its not that unusual that I carry more than I need. Low tyre pressure? Nope. Brake blocks rubbing on the rims? Not that either. So why so lethargic? Then the thought hit me that I'd been in such a hurry to get out this morning that I'd had nothing to eat or drink. It had to be that. Felt very similar to approaching that point in a longer ride when you know its time to stop and eat something.

Anyway the view of a very sunny Sheffield from the top of Greenhouse Lane near Ringinglow was worth the effort.

Back on the bike

After a couple of weeks off as a result of my ankle injury I decided that I was fed up of not cycling and so saddled up again today. No problems other than trying to unclip (ouch - I'll need to loosen the bindings) and pulling up during the pedal stroke (I can avoid that for a while). Aches a little bit this evening but that might be attributable to the physiotherapy at lunchtime rather than the cycling.

Didn't go far, just an extended commute but it was nice to be riding again. Perhaps it might have been more sensible to go out on a geared bike rather than a fixie but that was the one I got my hands on first and I was in a hurry.

And the weather was fantastically hot. Looking forward to leaving extra early tomorrow morning just to squeeze a few miles in on the way to work!

Most useful cycling accessories

An accessory defined as something that didn't come with the bike, is not essential to forward progress or basic comfort but has been found to be inordinately useful to me as a cyclist. These are in no particular order and I'm still not sure if I've missed something. I'm not including a puncture repair kit and spare inner tubes as I'd consider these essential requirements. Anyway these are 10 of my favourites.

1. Decent framefit pump. Either the Zefal HPX or the Blackburn version.
   
2. Track pump. So easy to ensure tyres are up to pressure. One of the best things I've ever bought.
   
3. Mudguards (and, for the regular winter bike: mudflaps). I don't enjoy dirty clothes or bike. And I think they look right.
   
4. Carradice saddlebags (especially my olive green Barley). OK - I can see you are starting to think 'mudguards AND a Carradice saddlebag! Must have a beard and sandals.' Nope.
   
5. Bagman support for Carradice saddlebags. Keeps it upright so things don't fall out of the side pockets and stops it from chafing the backs of your thighs.
   
6. Cycle computer. I don't have one on all of my bikes but its great to see how far you have gone. Its also depressing to see how slowly you have done it.
   
7. Good lights. No point in skimping on something so essential to safety. However, I'm not in the same league as Ian Loasby when it comes to lighting up half of Sheffield when I'm riding at night.
   
8. Toestraps. Only use toeclips and straps on one bike. All the rest are clipless but they are just so useful for attaching things to racks, saddlebags, panniers, handlebars, frame etc. Don't go anywhere without them. Same goes for cable ties. Always have a few in the saddlebag.
9. Rear rack. Only have one on the touring bike but it makes the bike so versatile.
10. Cycling mitts/gloves. Make a difference on long rides and saves the skin on your palms when you fall.
    

I've tried to differentiate between accessories and developments/ improvements. For example you could say that a clipless pedal system is an accessory based on my definition above but I'd actually class that as an advance in design. I'll get round to listing a few 'best of and worst of' cycling developments soon.

Bit of a hiatus

Blimey, things have been quiet on here. Better kick start this blog again.

Anyway - off the bike for a while owing to a torn ATFL in my right ankle.