Saturday Social Ride - My birthday weekend

The day after my 44th birthday and many people asked me would I be doing anything special? The answer is yes, because it's the weekend and for me every weekend is special. I'm spoiled and frankly I think my life is brilliant. The best bit is the support my wife gives me which means I get to spend the weekend doing lots of things I want and the thing I want is to spend Saturday and Sunday getting some good miles in on my bike.

Lets go back to Friday though. I had some serious birthday spending power in the form of cash and C&D vouchers. I decided to indulge myself with a new helmet. I wasn't sure what to get but thought I'd stick a team SKY KASK on my head to see how it felt. Well it felt great so that was an easy decision. £120 (minus club discount,) is a lot more than you need to spend on a helmet but if you do, a bit like buying other expensive gear, it doesn't half feel good! However when I got home I went to put my heavier less comfortable helmet in the bin, it's made it to the bin but isn't yet in! I can't do it. That trusty GIRO lid has served me well since 2005, we've done so much together. I think I'm going to have to turn it into some sort of cycling memorabilia art! I also needed to get new C&D bib shorts because my old ones are well used and nearing retirement and also because I wanted the ones with the British Cycling branding. The club is allowed to use this due to being members. I'm sure Andy and Chris are rightly proud of this and getting it on the kit is wholly appropriate. Then it was just some bits and paying for the new tyre I had last weekend.

My old helmet, near but not in, the bin!

In the shop Andy asked if I could lead the social ride as he had romantic interests to pursue (good for him, I hope it goes well mate - you deserve it!) He also asked for a route and suggested my Sibbertoft loop. No problem that was just a matter of recycling from Map My Ride and I posted it on the shop page. Unfortunately Steve who was leading the fast group hadn't seen it so we had to do a quick recap at the shop. Despite my very specific instructions they still managed to go the wrong way and add a monster hill to an already undulating ride. Claire made a good suggestion. It is hard to find the route on the shop page and we should dual post it to the club page where it will be more obvious. Point noted Claire, I'll do that in future. What I will ask of others though is this, if someone has posted a route, have a look and if you have time make sure you know it. Better still if you have the right GPS gizmo, upload it.

Due to that investment in a new gator I had a puncture free ride. Others weren't so lucky and we had barely got out of Kettering before Marie needed a new tube. "Give it to  Rich," they said "he's had lots of practise with punctures..." cheers everyone! It's true however and even with the 74 year old superhero, Stuart, with us, I'm probably still the most experienced tyre changer. Marie didn't have a spare but that never stops us and Michael donated his. Marie did the right thing and replaced this back at the shop. Michael now has a spare not bought from the devil (see below.) Marie also wanted us to leave her...we don't do that! Rule 1: no one gets left behind...rule 2: always follow rule 1.

Yes that does say Halfords

The rest of the ride passed without incident. Again there's a video with the ride highlights for you all to see which can never be surpassed simply by words. Things of interest on the ride were that Stuart at 74 can still kick all our butts; Alison is able to take being teased about her excessive clothing more suited to a South Pole ride than an average November day; and finally that everyone can have a bad day with the super fit Simon Astrop blowing up coming out of Rushton. I'd like to thank my group once again for being an absolute pleasure. We just need to keep working at the communication and we will really will have this group riding thing cracked.

New bags in the shop

You should join the club

Alison's beautiful new steed - not fitted for Arctic conditions

The world famous Guinness cake provided by the most magnificent Mrs Lindsley

New lid

New club bib shorts with the British Cycling branding

Very necessary new cleats

You can never have enough GT85

Back at the shop we were treated to tea and more importantly cake from my talented wife. My gears were a bit out and without quibble Chris agreed to having a tinker, he sorted it quickly and also got Ross to tighten up the cassette, it felt a lot better on the trip home so thanks again for a fantastic service.

Thta's it. I'm hoping for better weather than last Sunday so I can get out for one of Steve's mystery tours. As Neil isn't joining us the weather is already jinxed but hey did I mention it was my birthday? Surely mother nature won't be unkind. Enjoy the video.

Happy Pedalling

Saturday club ride - The Fast Show

I thought I wouldn't do this until 2015 but once the leaders were announced for the Saturday club rides I thought that's it...I'm having a crack at the fast group. This goes against the grain of what I've been saying about Saturday being about the club and Sunday being my day for personal goals. I did however think Claire would do a great job of leading the banter bunch and that others would help her. As far as I know that's exactly how things panned out in the other group.

 I was up by half six and feeling a bit stiff in the back I made sure I did my Pilates before breakfast. Really I should do this every morning, it takes 5 minutes and it makes a big difference to my back. Also it strengthens my core and all cyclists should do this type of work. Kit was on and I got the bike out ready to leave at quarter past and there was a flat back tyre again! I changed it as quick as I could but all of a sudden I was leaving at half past to join a ride in fifteen minutes and the journey to the shop usually takes me twenty. Oh well it was a good warm up for what was to come and I whipped past the shop with the banter bunch pointing up the road and caught the quickies at the lights!

So I just carried on hoping I was up to it. Once again there were compliments about my weight loss and I have to say I'm really noticing the benefit. Today was big evidence because although I found it hard at times I never felt like I couldn't keep up. Going up the Brigstock Bumps final climb I got a shout "come on Rich drag me up here!" It was Rich McNab who I though had gone with the banter bunch so it was quite a surprise to see him. Cool though, he made a late decision to go with the quicks and had been on the back for ages. So I guess that means I hadn't been at the back much then!

I have some velominati rules of cycling infringements to discuss. The worst offender is Stuart who insists on wearing a camel back to ride a road bike. I've let this go for a few weeks but I can't hold my silence any longer. Rule #32 Humps are for camels no hydration packs.  http://www.velominati.com/the-rules/

oh...looks like I forgot the rule about frame mounted pumps!

Yes you Stuart!

OK joking aside let's talk about something serious. Steve's arse! Bear with me here I haven't developed a man crush for the Prince of Profanity's perfect posterior, I've just realised something very crucial to my own cycling development. Steve led this ride today like the road warrior he is. Most of us allowed him to pull us along which means he rode quick today and did the majority of work taking the headwind. If Phil is the 'beast' the Steve is a mega monster! So I've realised if I want to keep the average heading in the right direction I need to spend a lot more time keeping up with Steve and ultimately looking at his bum from the closest safe distance. With that in mind I chose my track for this weeks ride video.


Having kept up so well I was absolutely fed up when I got another puncture. Only Ken from the group heard my shout so we got left on our own. Massive thanks to Ken for staying with me and there are now a couple of bottles of the good stuff with your name on it! So more punctures? This is getting ridiculous. Back at the shop I had a decision to make and I decided to ditch my back tyre. To be fair it's done about 4000 miles so I've had my moneys worth. As there was no GP4S available I went for another gator but matched the sizes so I finally have two 25mm tyres. Close inspection of the old tyre revealed tonnes of little holes and most of these had sharp stones in them. So my guess is these have been intermittently working their way towards the tube and causing the issue. As ever great service from the shop and I guess I've started spending my birthday money already!

Back at the shop we were treated to some more cake genius from my wife, the Queen of cakes. This is her entry for the NCC bake off and if I was judging she'd win. Her famous Guinness cake got her through to the final so we'll see. People were asking for the recipe so here you go:
http://www.foodnetwork.co.uk/recipes/black-beer-ginger-bread.html

cake!

Well that's it for today but as you know tomorrow is Sunday and that means a bit further but thankfully not faster! We're going back up Neville Holt apparently. I'm guessing Steve's butt will disappear from view unless I'm on my very top form!

Happy Pedalling

Filthy Franz

So I managed another off road commute today. This 29er malarkey still feels abit alien but...I bloody love it. Well it's cycling isn't it and it's a bit different so its livened up my journey to work.

Today was very muddy! This off road stuff is like that I understand. The worst bit was the Glendon to Rushton track which was just a big puddle in places. It was also dark but as you all know I have that very bright light. Talking of which the old one23 lit up several bunnies and a bambi in Weekly Woods. FG hThe j - sorry my dog Harvey is jealous of the iPad and decided to add to the blog. Anyway on my return home it was a rinse down for both Franz and I - no need to let standards slip!

Do you think I need a shower darling? 

I've solved my potential puncture problem the easy way with a bottle of Joe's no flats yellow gel. I know Stan's is a superior solution but this was only a tenner and as my tubes had removeable valve cores it was easy peasy. Being able to cycle over the rough stuff with confidence and a reduced fear of flats really does improve the cycling experience. Hopefully I can do it all again tomorrow!

Happy pedalling 

Steve's Super Sunday Smashing Remembrance Ride

My word what a brilliant ride this was! For starters this was a huge group for a Sunday ride. Steve picked a fantastic route visiting former WWII airfields at Chelveston, Kimbolton, Poletobrook and Grafton Underwood plus a bomber crash site between Oundle and Brigstock. A very fitting tribute ride to this very special Remembrance Sunday.

I've gone a bit picture mad but it was worth it given the places we visited and the beautiful day we had in contrast to yesterday. So that's two weekends in a row with polar opposite days! Steve being a mine of information took us to the surviving flying fortress hangar where apparently Errol Flynn was based. Then Steve's quote of the day: "he must have fathered loads of kids round here as he was a bit of a Lothario!" The Prince of profanity's capacity to surprise is always...erm a bit of a surprise.

Enjoy the pictures:

Nat gets mechanical assistance from ghost Neil

Monument at Chelveston

close up

Kimbolton airfield monument

Still Kimbolton

A conversation about topiary

Monument Polebrook

Massive hangar originally for B52s'

What a beautiful day

Lancaster Bomber Crash Site

Lovely little monument to the crew

Group gathers at Grafton Underwood

Monument to a massive airfield

Another group shot

Frank's magnificent moustache

On the ride, as usual the banter flowed and as usual there was a fair bit of smut. The Prince of Profanity lacking his usual rival was taken on by the Princess of Profanity in Nat. She's getting out of hand really and is trying way too hard to keep up with the lads! I won't elaborate though - what goes on the ride stays on the ride!

For me personally I think this was my best ride of 2014. We had some really group riding with a good peloton at times and safety was well observed. My legs had never felt stronger until they started to go at 50+ miles. I think the weight loss is starting to help and I'm also encouraged by some very kind comments about my shrinking girth.

Clive was filthy so I gave him a once over. This might not be the best thing to say but I've given up on specialist chain degreasers having discovered that GT85 does just as good a job for half the price. So rinse down, degrease and re-oil was the order of the day. It only takes ten minutes and is well worth the effort.

Finally a big shout to my Mum & Dad for a splendid Sunday lunch with a well deserved beer. They also took the dogs out for me so I could get on with this. Sam helped me edit the video and I was pleased to learn from him that the minis at KRFC observed a minutes silence too. Sam is now furiously promoting my youtube account in the hope that we will get rich on my bike videos!

I'm going to say it again: Steve that route was magnificent, thank you so much. I can't wait for next weekend!

Happy Pedalling

C&DCC Saturday Social Ride 8th November 2014

It always is and always will be my favourite ride of the week. It's not the quickest or the longest but it's where the club started and I feel we should never lose sight of that. The route is one people have seen before, taking in the monster that is East Farndon Hill and was created by Jonesy.



Andy toddled off with the speed freaks and I led the social group with Jonesy as my tail gunner. I'm not sure how it was for the quicks but my group were superb. It certainly had more leaders than the two of us which really helps.

Andy and his special name badge

Back at the death star we were treated royally. Firstly the bikes were watched by the shop lads to prevent any thefts. Then a combo of Jonesy and Mrs Smith provided us with a plethora of very good cakes. More of this and Mrs Lindsley's crown of Queen of Cakes might slip. On that I informed Rich that Guinness cake had been made but not for him, he said publicly he would put on a brave face but would probably weep in private later.

Cake by Martin and Mrs Smith

The trouble with providing a video is you kind of know about the ride. So for interest I'm going to review some of my new kit. First of all I have a pair of seal skin waterproof socks. I think they're fantastic and certainly when paired with my overshoes it's very comfortable. It's also made me take the tape off the ventilation on my shoes which has added to the comfort. On a day like today that was all very welcome. So £25 is a lot for a pair of socks but these are a lot more than a pair of socks.

My other bit of kit is the Garmin Virb Elite camera. I like it a lot. Right now I have it on the handlebar mount, meaning it can be a bit bouncy at times or if I'm swerving around you'll get a bit seasick, I do like the functionality of it being on the bars though. I'll be interested to see Rob's chest mounted Go Pro footage for comparison. I did tease him at the shop about 'tit cam,' but it's all in good fun. I don't really want to start a Garmin v Go Pro war! One of the good things about the Virb is the chunky buttons making it easy to use even in gloves. So far so good. I hope others are enjoying the videos. I'm enjoying putting them together.

Not my actual camera - it can't take pictures of itself

Right well Steve has a special remembrance ride planned for tomorrow. Im looking forward to that, especially as there's still plenty of cake to refuel on.

Happy Pedaling

Camera issues sorted plus some news from the world of cycling

Big news I've resolved IT issues and can post videos. Here's footage from last weekend's club rides.

Two big pieces of news both from the cycling weekly website:

Cycling boosts economy  cycling weekly

Dani King crashes http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest-news/dani-king-injured-pothole-crash-wales-143462

Franz second pre work adventure

Flipping freezing would be my early assessment this morning after a few weeks of indecisive weather we had a proper frost. My cycling sartorial elegance was disgarded for every bit of cold weather clobber I could find.  Winter bib tights plus mtb shorts, winter Jersey, medium weight rain jacket, full finger gloves and my buff as an ear warmer.

I really like my gloves.  They look as though they shouldn't be warm but the comfort gel warms up as you ride meaning you get warm but ventilated hands. I've never successful discovered if this is by design or just a happy coincidence. All I know is I will be sad when they're worn out.

It may have been cold but it was also beautiful. There's something lovely about a sunny frosty morning. I find it induces a very happy mood. Well it does on a bike. All the car commuters continued to look miserable as sin.

stunning

So my two routes were a little different to yesterday and thankfully without incident which was lucky because I took the wrong spares kit and only had 700c tubes which don't exactly fit. Not that it mattered because I also forgot my pump! Anyway no repeat of yesterday's drama. 

On the way home I used the track from Glendon to Rushton with my way once again lit up beautifully by my superb light. This was a different surface for my new 29er with a rutted track and then grass. It was great fun. I love this new bike.

This track is one I used to bring Sam down on the bike seat to look at the trains. Then he'd nod off on the way home and I'd end up tipping him back up the right way by leaning the opposite way on the bike. Here's some nostalgic pics of the way we used to do it.

That's the bike seat but it's Niamh not Sam at Center Parcs

Go Super Sam

Center Parcs again...sorry for my irresponsible boardman attitude to helmets!

Love this pic of Lee and Sam

So this is Sam on the Glendon to Rushton track

I hope no one minds the trip down memory lane!

Happy pedalling