your daily bicycle log

I have tried:
- GT85
- increased leverage
- pouring boiled water over it

now I'm going to try:
- bike shop

blech, cold and rainy 69 miles today. and I got told off three times by some guy who usually rides in the faster group. once because my mudguards were too short, again for not calling out a pothole (it wasn't there and then it was), and finally for half wheeling him. : /

that is why I prefer riding w/the slower group (less douches) but numbers are lower in winter

on the plus side, upgraded the wheels on my concorde so took it out today
http://distilleryimage4.ak.instagram.com/0d41d8da6a2211e3b8590a1f8b30899c_8.jpg

tbf tho he did push me up a big hill when I ws burst so he's not all bad

Omg if dude came at me 3 times in those conditions. Much credit to u for riding in those conditions.

Calf is tight as hell after five a side last night, so no riding for me today. Might manage a very brief and gentle spin tomorrow.

easy 25 miles today, was really nice on the way out then started blowing a hoolie on the return. no fun

also switching from a compact to a standard = ow, my knees. will riding a standard make me a stronger rider eventually? switching to a bike w/friction shifters really makes you appreciate the constant, minor adjustments you make to your gearing to maintain cadence at a comfortable level. worried about blowing out my knees w/the standard + friction shifters combo

Standard shouldn't be a problem, you will just have a different useful range so you may not have much use for 53x11 and might not have the lowest of climbing gears you would as a compact. All that means is you'll be able to spin less on hills and end up grinding it out sooner.

festive 500's started and haitch has already knocked it out the park

weather in aus looks ridic rn

I really need to get back on the bike again before I turn into a slug

what a lovely morning for a ride here, guys- even if it was going to work. very light traffic, very warm temps around 40, bright sun, ice off the roads.

otoh i also rode the trainer for an hour before that, and, grateful as i am to have a great workout setup, it rarely feels good. i'm doing intervals, some of which i know i cannot complete. i just go til i have to give up. it is sorta bad for morale.

I really need to get back on the bike again before I turn into a slug

this has happened to me :-/

six months into intern year and I'm probably in the worst shape of my adult life. I'd sorta taken for granted just how much value there was in the basic commuter miles I accrued while living in the city. 5-10 miles a day ain't much but it's a whole lot more than zero.

I'd hoped to commute from my current location (~9mi from work) but man, I get up at 0545-0600 with just enough time to shower and drive 20min. And then work 10-16hrs. Riding would take another 40min on the morning, easy.

Kinda hoping that I can tune my schedule and my gear better next year. Cuz the ride that my commute would entail is actually really nice (gravel rail trail along a brook for most of the way). Plus I could add some sportiness on the way home if so inclined.

But right now? Slug town

25 miles today. Want to do 10 tomorrow before breakfast and festivities.

Left my parents' place without much of a plan, random dude rolled up and asked if I wanted to do some climbing. He turned out to be a masters racer, dragged me up and down canyons for like five hours. Shot. But - also discovered an amazing descent to the ocean, a one-way road all the way, just a blast.

Sounds grim, gbx. Merry Christmas folks

12 miles for Xmas day breakfast.

think front tyre is knacked after that long Tuesday ride in the sun that I put on strava - reinflated to proper pressure for today, then 5 mins later heard loud *tsssssss*. could do without trip to my place to get replacement...

10.5 miles up to the top of Mt. Chapel in the Hollywood Hills. Cool to see other folks on the road for Xmas.

A calm and sunny (but freezing cold) Boxing Day morning, between the storms at the start of the week and the storms coming tomorrow. Did a token effort of 20 miles or so in a bid to de-slug.

Just under 14 today, tough climbs and technical bits around town, after the sunshine had gone. Windy but no rain forecast here tomorrow.

Momentary confusion: when I logged on to strava it told me that one of the people I 'follow' (who I've ridden with locally several times) was riding on Boxing Day with Ed (who I assumed was on the other side of the planet and has no reason to know this person at all). Though now I see it was a Rapha thing around Regents Park I assume there were dozens of riders who didn't all know each other.

other confusion: i don't always correlate user names b/w strava and iltrmb right away, so i'll see a ride on my strava feed and then see it described here and have to pair up the IDs mentally. before i saw ET's post above i saw his route on strava and ended zooming around LA topo maps going, wow, that looks cool, in the middle of everything, is it a hike or a ride, or what?

also, i had seen a route down tuna by i think cutty, like a couple months ago. i had no idea what that canyon was, but i was pretty impressed by the topo- i ended up looking up the road online and finding out it was a red bull road rage route in 2005. so when i saw the lukas post above, and his strava data, i was..."oh, that's tuna, i bet"... even though i've not met cutty, lukas, and have never been to LA.

i've done the same with the ed/haitch rides northeast of melb. if i ever get there again (which will never happen) i will be totally ready for some climbs.

Just under 24 miles in storm-warning conditions. Had to turn back on one of my usual routes at 8 miles in because the road was flooded; stupidly tried fording it slowly but if was way too deep and I had to sacrifice a sodden foot to turn around. 40mph cross gusts nearly had me over once of twice... Good fun though. And mostly blue skies.

I've challenged myself to do at least 10 miles each day that I'm on leave; back to work on January 6 and it'd going ok so far. Hopefully next week I can get a couple of longer rides in if the weather is decent.

if i read strava right, i can make 7000 mi this year if i ride like 90 miles by tuesday night. nothing motivates like nice round numbers.

Do it!

a thing i have never heard of til now: the river exe.

wiki notes- "the Exe estuary is an important site for wintering waders..." i suppose that means you then, nick.

so when i saw the lukas post above, and his strava data, i was..."oh, that's tuna, i bet"

Yes, well done. I was sure that titling the ride "First time down Tuna" would disguise my actions, but you saw right through me. ;)

ha, i just couldn't believe you didnt know that ride before, i love that ride. if you ever need ride advice in la, let me know. you know what else is cool? mt. chapel in hollywood hills.

That was me, although I wasn't riding with them I just took a draft before scurrying off for multiple runs over Hampstead Heath. I've been in London spending Christmas with my family and my dad rehabbed the eddy Merckx frame with Athena so I've been riding around London.

Interestingly I think I like the position on the Merckx better than on the BMC, wider handlebars and longer top tube. I'm finding it a lot easier to get out of the saddle although that may just be a fitness thing.

How long are you back in London for?

Thanks, I'm not down in LA often, but definitely need advice when I am.

brrrrr cold 100k today. some sublime scenery tho

def ambition for 2014: learn how to mechanic my own bike. will save a power of money

the hot pink concorde gets nothing but compliments on the club run

giving me a bit of knee bother tho: saddle to pedal fit is same as other bike. not using cleats for now, just cages, plus I often get caught out w/hills due to friction shifters. could either of those be it?

Are you saying you've got old-fashioned pedals with toe clips & straps? If you've got no cleats, what have you got on your feet - cycling shoes or just trainers?

And is that really you in your strava profile picture?

yea that is me - I find those big cigars are good recovery

and yeah I have flats w/straps - just took the cleats off my cycling shoes and cycle in those with overshoes on.

It might be the lack of float you get with toe straps

before i saw ET's post above i saw his route on strava and ended zooming around LA topo maps going, wow, that looks cool, in the middle of everything, is it a hike or a ride, or what?

There's a final short steep scramble up to the very top of the mountain, but other than that everything was on pavement or graded dirt. Would love to eventually get a hybrid bike and hit some of the longer fire access roads in Angeles National Forest.

Cyclocross!

36 quick miles with Al, him on a carbon Felt, me on the Tricross. Struggled a little to keep up on some hills but I'll put that down to the heavier bike.

Got new frameset built, rode it. Front end is so stable and precise, got pr on long singletrack downhill. Plus it's lighter than my roadbike even with cx clinchers, I'm totally spoiled now.

so i got through a full downhill skiing day intact. then i had to carry a 30 pound gear bag, plus a pair of kids boots, a pair of kid's skis, my skis, and four pairs of poles half a mile to car. i slipped on ice in the treacherous parking lot, went down very abruptly, my skis bounced under a moving car a foot to my left, i wrecked my back, and i can barely sit down. my skis seem ok.

i have 60 miles to go before year end to make 7k miles ~in jeopardy~.

i spent 5 minutes getting to my feet this am, it was not so good. still, i got on the trainer and did an hour, hoping things would come straight. then i rode my bike to work, which was dodgy due to ice and snow, but i made it. now i'm on vicodin. i may not be able to race this coming weekend, but i'm determined to make 7k.

Give it up!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fp7Q1OAzITM

NBS, back in Melbourne now, the weather is better.

I wish I'd bought cleats in London, I've just been to half the bike stores in town looking of a reasonably priced pair of speedplay cleats. Prices range from $49.99 to $79.99 and I had to go down to Kathy Watt cycles in Black Rock to get $49.99. Components in Australia seem to be priced by picking a number and doubling it. Kathy Watt's store seems to price fairly (Fitzroy revolution as well but they are closed of the holidays), if I can afford a new bike I'd like to get it from their selection of Willier, Colnago and Ridley.

cozen your strava instagrams are beautiful. place looks really damp tho.

That's the UK for you.

yup - scotland's west coast in particular

amazing, you are so far north, but it looks like some of the grass/groundcover is still green, even in winter? doesn't it die back in winter there? does the ground ever freeze?

27 and a bit damp miles to test my new mudguards. They're amazing! Rear light and seatpack were bone dry, brilliant. Forded a flood, climbed over some barriers where a road was closed due to subsidence (easily passable on a bike though) and got bitten by a happy dog called Treacle when I asked his nice little old lady owner for directions.

Yappy, not happy. He drew blood, the little fucker. Probably was happy, though, once he bit me.