your daily bicycle log

Had epic w/end in Wales. Rode The Raven at Brechfa, Penhydd and The Wall at Afan, and White's Level at Glyncorrwg ponds. Took a while to find my downhill form but my new Trek is amazing at climbing, it just floats uphill. Had a few tumbles including two spectacular over-the-bars jobs. No major injuries. Videos to come.

did a little over 30 miles in a little under 2 hours today and climbed gleniffer road to, notorious dogging hotspot, the "car park in the sky"
http://img.skitch.com/20091029-bg89g7wbn45iin9du38w6gsfss.jpg

krakow - next time we get a forecast for decent sunday weather, fancy doing a crow road loop? or glasgow -> crow road -> tak ma doon -> glasgow

we ended up with 25 inches of snow this am, so i busted out snow bike and rode down to light rail, about 5 miles. actually rode with just front studded tire because i didnt want to mount the rear one. they are the hardest tires ive ever mounted.

coz, I'd love to, but unfortunately I work Sundays. :-(

My days off are usually Tuesdays and Thursdays. Are you a weekday worker or might those be any good at some point?

Just had a week's break from work and managed to fit in 130-odd miles of riding: three rides in Dorset and one in Sussex. I got caught out by the freakishly mild late October weather - I only had my full-on winter clothes with me. Did a couple of nasty climbs in preparation for an end-of-season hill cimb race I'm doing next weekend. Will upload them coz-style once I've worked out how to.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2492/4061549489_aec9d1888a_o.jpg
The Bostal, Steyning (Sussex)

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2608/4062294690_c342132c75_o.jpg
Bulbarrow Hill, Dorset

Hmmmm....that didn't really work. One more try:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/captainzep/4061549489/sizes/o/

My saga with tyre continues.

So I have durano plus 700x25 on my salsa delgados and when I got into work the tyre flatted with the bike sitting next to my desk because the tube had lifted the tyre off the rim. New tube installed, levae it 5 minutes and the same thing happened with a more dramatic bang. I think the stiffness off the kevlar prevents the bead from bedding correctly in the rim by not allowing the tyre to assume the best shape.

Pain in the arse and now I need to get a bigger tyre I think. Gbx, you have these rims, any recommends,

Ed, when you've fit the tube but before pumping, push the valve right into the tyre so that it's not at all trapped by the bead. This does work, I promise you.

I do this, having learnt from bitter experience the folly of not doing so. Not the cause of the problem, the whole tyre is being pushed off the rim and then trapping the tube between rim and bead.

Ed: the only tire i've used on my delgado (rear wheel only, fwiw) has been soma everwear (700x26). i've replaced one, will probably have to replace the replacement soon-ish, maybe.

they're heavy, and v rubbery, but i never, ever worry about getting flats, ever

do you pump to 25psi or so and then completely deflate/reseat before proper inflation?

it could be an incompatibility, but this has always seemed to sort things out for me.

took a friend round the (well-traveled by me) capital trail loop yesterday morning. i accidentally rode off on him up a couple of hills, haha. perhaps i am getting ok at this!

might go out again later on for a bit once i've done the washing.

did some nightime riding this week, 17mile loop around the city. pretty shonky roads, and traffic lights to contend with = not so fun

needing a pee when in bibs: epic dud

and why is that?

cos there's no easy way to do it! unless you have a massive, massive schlong

brilliant, brilliant ride today. 43 miles over the crow road and down the fintry hill (the right way round this time), the sun was absolutely blazing and ridiculously enough I had to wear sunglasses (november in scotland.) threw myself up every hill at a high cadence and 'accidentally' (!) whacked my HR up to 197 (!!) on the crow road. whack my washing in and then I'm off to replenish my electrolytes (w/IPA) while watching man u vs chelsea. what a day

the only annoying thing is I put off going on my first club run today because I don't have mudguards yet: but the roads were absolutely stone dry :/

60 miles today. 80 miles yesterday. really wonderful autumn weather here in new york. probably the nicest day today.

Heading out for a 30-40 miler in the countryside - making the most of a late midwestern indian summer.

enjoy!

ima rake leaves, then fold laundry. :(

oh shit I have to do those thirngs too :(

rode around all morning tho, maybe fifteen miles of cruising in the city. beautiful here

my saddle cracked yesterday!

so pissed.

how do i shot new saddle?

what kind was it

specialized toupe :-(

pretty sure that crack is from laying it down a couple months ago that just spidered but how do i get BITSA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sbv6oeY8PTc

(aerosmi throcks)

I have 3 spare saddles in my drawer, but only one Toupé and that's on my head bike.

Can send you my Concept saddle if you like - white, does a decent job, came as standard with my ($3,000) Focus Cayo Expert (it's their in-house brand)?

yeah i can send you the pos WTB saddle that came w/my $600 cross-check, too

everyone else getting autumn weather, down here it was 38 deg celsius yesterday :0

6 degrees C when I leave for work tomorrow. Nippy but dealable-with.

0 C today round here.

too bloody warm round here, too many layer for banging up and down hills between the factory and the university. Too warm in school now the heat is on too.

horrifically cold here

Still shorts weather though! I'm trying for the whole winter this year.

I was out at 7am on the bike and wind chill ws unholy

not much cycling this week, just to and from the station before work. best thing about my new job: there are lots of cyclists to chat with abt cycling. might see if I can rope my dad into a sunday run this week

too much videogames too little cycling

sadly have only played like 3 hours of MW2 all-in this week. busy busy : /

forgot to relay my hair moments from last sunday's run: descending at 35mph one of my bottle cages decided to dislodge itself and come flying off, earlier in the run the bottle from that cage popped out and I somehow managed to catch it between my leg and chain while flying along at 20mph. thankfully it was in my back pocket when the cage went flying.

hairy moments*

there have been no hair moments, touch wood

Absolutely atrocious weather today. My club was supposed to have a training session at Hog Hill on descending and cornering at speed. I don't know why I bothered going: there was never any chance of it happening. Obviously when I got there I found it had been cancelled. I had a 19-mile round trip in gale force winds that were nearly blowing me off the road at times with horizontal torrential rain that felt like bullets being fired into my face.

Meh. That ^ was the last time I've been able to ride a bike. Haven't ridden at all for 18 days and counting: first because the stormy weather continued, then I got ill with a vomiting bug that turned into a weird dizziness virus that turned into a sore throat that has turned into a hacking cough (been ill for about 13 days now). I was hoping to do the winter series of races at Hog Hill that starts this Saturday, but even if I'm well enough to ride by then I'll be in no shape to race.

^yup, me too : / felt like the rain was relentless throughout the end of november. I'm on holiday right now so am going to do a quick twenty in the next 30, if the weather holds

oh man tht ws good but surprisingly hard going. didn't help tht it's freezing cold out there

krakow, do you really gad about in shorts in this weather?!

time to start riding indoors boys. coz if u could sit on the trainer and simultaneously play MW2 that would work.

what movie do u watch when u train cutty

there isn't like one movie i watch. but i tend to gravitate towards the lofty 2-3 hour epics.

heat, imo