Author Topic: Have you been out today? (Read 3926773 times)

perpetual dan · « **Reply #22450 on:** 21 April, 2019, 06:01:01 pm »

71km of along and 700-ish m of climb in 28C warm here. Mostly familiar lanes, a hint of bridleway, and just enough new road to fill in some veloviewer squares. Lots of hellos to other cylists, birdsong, stopping for photos and an ice cream break - the ideal ride!

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sg37409 · « **Reply #22451 on:** 21 April, 2019, 09:32:11 pm »

Went over to Inveraray for a 200 km tour of Argyll. Some old roads and new: Cool hazy start to the day but it warmed up loads leaving me to regret only having one bottle and missed opportunities to top it up. That stretch from Kilmelford to Ford though. Phew !

mzjo · « **Reply #22452 on:** 21 April, 2019, 10:51:29 pm »

It's a day late but yesterday I did my first randonnée Marcel Jourde (mentioned up post somewhere). I was worried about bike acceptance before the day but really I didn't need to; there were even a few post-1987 bikes in the lot (including one of my clubmates). There was an interesting exhibition of old bikes and a bloke showing how, with a Penny in our part of the world, you can walk down hill as much as you can walk uphill.
The route option that I took was the 50km, which I reckoned about the limit with the gearing limitations of my Osgear. I had not reserved a meal and it was only when I got going that I discovered the ride was in two parts with lunch in between! Fortunately one of the two clubmates lives in the village and invited me back to lunch with him.
The circuit was what we call "selective", not to say "très selective"! The organisers had found all the steepest and most notorious climbs. I had been warned about this but had to take a chance on a 55" bottom gear (4.4m) being sufficient, lower not being possible. The big circuit seemed to be almost exclusively racers, all the ancient stuff and the fancy dress was on the 30km route. Nothing much to record about the ride, it went up and down on small bumpy roads and got very warm, - eventually! The bumps played havoc with my gear changing, resulting in my losing the chain 5 times during the day and my pump 4 times but otherwise a fine time was had by all. The nicest bike for us was an immaculate all chrome Pinarello, but it didn't get a prize.
I took a few photos (with my phone and not very good). The riders are at the ravito on the morning circuit

My clubmates discussing with the owner of the Pinarello, sorry I couldn't get more

Among the bikes in the exhibition was this 'bent from late 1930's (I think they came out in 1937). I had seen pictures before, it was nice to see one in the flesh. Ravat Véloriz made by Wonder in St Etienne

and this 1950's english trike (I think the make was Stringfellow but can't read my notes!) Supposed to be a racing model but with pressures, a 3speed Cyclo gear and a drum brake rhs rear I had my doubts

LittleWheelsandBig · « **Reply #22453 on:** 21 April, 2019, 11:54:06 pm »

I've never heard of a Stringfellow trike but there is lots of trikie stuff that I don't know. That name doesn't show on https://tricycleassociation.org.uk/history/ Somebody on the TA forum may be able to properly identify the trike from that photo but my wild guess would be Higgins.

Cudzoziemiec · « **Reply #22454 on:** 22 April, 2019, 10:36:48 am »

CTC ride on Saturday, about ten of us including IanN otp who was on only his second CTC ride since he joined in 1972 (other dates may be applicable). Anyway, he beat me up all the hills. It never used to be that way! We rode to Nailsworth where we had lunch at a pub with no food. We knew about this do had brought packed lunches – all very old skool (not sure if anyone had a tartan thermos... ). I had a pint of vegan pale ale (no fish guts), which was very good. The pub brews its own beer and if you took a wrong turning on the way to the toilet, you could see the brewery (the location being coincidental... surely?). Glorious sunshine, hot day, one puncture, quite a few hills but nothing mega. Oh, and on the way back we stopped at the cafe in Wickwar but discovered it closes at 12.30 on Saturday; pretty useless really!

Wowbagger · « **Reply #22455 on:** 22 April, 2019, 05:59:03 pm »

27 solo-machine miles with Jan from St. Andrews to Crail and back. Flattish by Scottish standards but precipitous by Essex ones. My dear wife has done very little riding in the past few years and her solo machine has been lying idle in the garage. She did fantastically well and we are now rewarding ourselves with Kingdom of Fife raspberry jam on toast, and later I shall prepare dinner whilst she wallows in a hot bath.

I can heartily recommend the fish and chip shop in Crail, not so much the rather substandard old railway track heading south towards Crail. We came back along a B road and it was not busy and had a decent surface.

mzjo · « **Reply #22456 on:** 22 April, 2019, 07:43:55 pm »

Quote from: LittleWheelsandBig on 21 April, 2019, 11:54:06 pm

I've never heard of a Stringfellow trike but there is lots of trikie stuff that I don't know. That name doesn't show on https://tricycleassociation.org.uk/history/ Somebody on the TA forum may be able to properly identify the trike from that photo but my wild guess would be Higgins.

I feel very stupid not having taken a decent photo of the info plaque, I knew I would forget the name. It definitely wasn't Higgins on the downtube. The axle might give a clue, the brake backplate bolted straight onto a flange that looked original and well thought out. I would have expected a racing trike to have been on fixed at this period or, if on gears, to have a double caliper arrangement (which would be lighter) or a conventional drum on the front wheel (which would be simpler). I will have to wait for the Vélos de Jacques to get installed in their new home and go and visit.
I of course know stuff all about trikes; I just have an insane desire to try riding one - it can't be that much harder than driving an unbraked sidecar outfit!

rogerzilla · « **Reply #22457 on:** 24 April, 2019, 09:10:22 pm »

30 mile thrash after work. Both of us on fixies, Sam for his first proper ride on one. Got round faster than usual despite the stiff wind, and somehow dodged the rain AND got dry roads. For once, I was the one waiting for him but he has just spent a week on the beer in Suffolk and that offsets the 20 year age difference

T42 · « **Reply #22458 on:** 25 April, 2019, 10:12:08 am »

Yesterday: 90k cake'n'coffee crawl. Sunny, windy, roadworks on favourite bits. Bigger tyres on Ti Clotheshorse improve comfort dramatically. Happy with that.

mzjo · « **Reply #22459 on:** 27 April, 2019, 09:10:04 pm »

Today the 100km of the club. Georges had created a circuit in the north of the Haute Vienne and a good bit in the Vienne. As is our custom the main group left mid-morning for a lunch stop after about 35kms. Weather a mixture of showers and sunshine and quite windy but at least the rain held off for the picnic (and we did profit from a tailwind at least some of the time). Some different roads and a change of scenery topped off by the customary apéro d'arrivé (although perhaps I should have gone a bit easier on the rosé before going home).

Faune sauvage at St Maur le Mault

Water mill 2kms before Le Dorat at the end of the ride (the wheel was turning but I didn't try for a video of it).

Hunt for the blades of a wind generator that is just over the horizon. Didn't come out as well as I had hoped, I take terrible photos with my phone

essexian · « **Reply #22460 on:** 29 April, 2019, 07:39:18 am »

I was down to do the Nova Raiders Route 33 ride on Saturday but frankly, the idea of spending two and a bit hours in the pouring rain and wind did not appeal so instead I went out for a five mile walk....in the rain and wind!

So onto Sunday. I must do some riding as I have done so little this year and have a tour planned for later in the year so need to get fit. However....its raining again so do I really want to bother....by 10am I had finally got my self into gear and out I went for a 23 mile ride around Haughton, Eccleshall, High Offley, Norbury Junction, Gnosall and Church Eaton.

While the ride was enjoyable if a bit lumpy; nearly 1 000 feet of climbing which for around here (excluding the Chase) is quite a lot. One slight issue when the bracket holding my back light on broke sending the light into the middle of the road. I was able to recover it before it was hit by anything thankfully. However, almost £10 for a replacement bracket!!!!

And sorry to the other cyclist who caught me just outside Eccleshall. Sorry if I didn't seem to want to chat and turned off towards High Offley almost straight away but I was going that way..... I hate the small climb into Bishops Offley so tend to try to avoid it.

Didn't feel too bad after the ride. No chest pains or breathlessness which strangely don't seem to come on during exercise but do at other times without seemingly any reason to do so. My Doctor isn't worried as she said if I can cycle 20 mile plus without issues, then its not my heart....

Socks · « **Reply #22461 on:** 29 April, 2019, 10:13:52 am »

A moderately fantastic bike ride yesterday, doing the 100k option of the 'York Rally sportive'. Unlike many sportives, organised and run by volunteers to raise funds for a worthwhile cause rather than for commercial profit. (In this case, to support the York cycle rally). And why was it such a good day?

- cake - home made, delicious cake before the start; at a stop part way through in Marton, thanks to the local WI; and at the finish
- socialising, a relatively small event in sportive terms with a relaxed feel, more like an audax event with opportunities to chat with other participants
- good route, heading North from York into Farndale and back through Hutton le Hole
- weather - cool with a headwind at first, warmed up and became a tailwind on the way back

MikeFromLFE · « **Reply #22462 on:** 29 April, 2019, 03:41:04 pm »

Just the usual Monday Morning ride to collect Mrs M from the gym (she drives there, I get proper exersise) - with a subtext of letting off some steam by hurting the legs.
It was about the same distance as usual - only 25k - but a lot more lumpy, as I wanted to go up to my favourite bluebell wood to get a couple of snaps. No photos here, as they're on film and I won't be sending it for processing for another week or two.
Only one mildly entertaining incident - documented in the 'Fords' thread : yes, the ford was slippery, and no, I didn't take the advice to dismount

Bad words were said, but I did remain upright!

T42 · « **Reply #22463 on:** 29 April, 2019, 04:39:03 pm »

An irritating 48k with El Prez who seemed determined not to go over 17 kph for the first half-hour despite the throbbing power of his electric flivver. Weather forecast was sunny with a bit of cloud & 17°C, what got delivered was 10/10 black & brooding with the odd drop, chilling wind and 11°C, so we repaired to a local coffee hole in disgust then buggered off home.

rogerzilla · « **Reply #22464 on:** 29 April, 2019, 07:12:17 pm »

Took the Ron Cooper out for a spin. 16 miles in an hour, which isn't bad considering there are four bastard hills and two miles of slow psyclepath. I still don't get to use the 53T much at this time of year.

It climbs rather well and is smooth over the bumps. Mr Cooper knew how to knock up a frame.

ElyDave · « **Reply #22465 on:** 04 May, 2019, 05:05:46 pm »

I had planned on getting out on the M5 recumbent today, but it was not a day for that kind of bike, or any bike really, so I took the opportiunity to set up the new laptop with the turbo. Cue 15 minutes of faffing while trying to get things to talk to each other, gave up on the Tacx RLVs and ended up with only 50 mins of turboing. NOt a bad output though, 175-200W at 145-150bpm

perpetual dan · « **Reply #22466 on:** 04 May, 2019, 09:12:10 pm »

I rode a loop out to Wilmington this afternoon, nice enough to have an ice cream on the beach at Seaford and lovely changing light (even a rainbow), but hard work with wind and blustery showers. A couple of off road sections, one a bit overgrown with nettles near Selmeston - but leading to trees arching over bluebells. I feel like I’ve ridden further than 60km, and my legs are all tingly from the stings!

https://twitter.com/between_beyond/status/1124758087003463680?s=21

rogerzilla · « **Reply #22467 on:** 06 May, 2019, 11:30:37 am »

33 mile cafe run on the Moulton (riding on the roughest bits of the road for the hell of it). It's not very warm. Saw a recently dead cat by Blunsdon station

ElyDave · « **Reply #22468 on:** 06 May, 2019, 08:17:02 pm »

25km on the M5, getting used to the handling again, and rembering how that thing can shift.

T42 · « **Reply #22469 on:** 07 May, 2019, 09:05:56 am »

Yesterday, set out underdressed (Météo France living up to their initials again), got worried about toes turning deep purple again and limped/wimped home with a measly 57k on the clock. They didn't.

mzjo · « **Reply #22470 on:** 12 May, 2019, 12:53:52 pm »

Randonnée du CAPO at Limoges today. Free, with ravito and apéro at the finishh. Announced as 40 and 60kms, we had done 17lms before the ravito at half distance (on the '40 circuit, the 60km bunch were at 23kms!). And that was halfway! Fortunately I rode to and from the finish. I finished with 49kms for the morning. Very chilly at the start - not shorts weather. The ravito was at the new vélodrome (in the carpark).

Kim · « **Reply #22471 on:** 12 May, 2019, 05:26:58 pm »

Back from the ALC AGM at Kingsbury, taking an orbital route outside the M42 of approximately double the required distance to avoid as much Birmingham as possible. Spectacularly failed to avoid the Velo Birmingham road closures, but nobody seemed to care about a bit of bicycular interloping, which is just as well, as a loaded touring recumbent wasn't exactly subtle.

The inevitable shouts of encouragement from the spectators were a bit embarrassing, thobut. What sort of idiot would take all their camping kit on a 100-mile ride?

The Family Cyclist · « **Reply #22472 on:** 12 May, 2019, 06:54:07 pm »

Yes. Busy day today so alarm set for 0545 and out the door by 6. Back by 0730 after a chilly misty beautiful sunny ride with more cyclists, walkers and runners then cars for the first hour or so. Bike seemed to get a wobble on down a hill that's covered in gravel but think was actually operator error.... I'm crap a descending

Feanor · « **Reply #22473 on:** 12 May, 2019, 07:48:27 pm »

Mrs F. has gotten chugged into riding a 2-day event later this year, and has tasked me with taking her out on some longer rides than she's done before.

Yesterday, we did a 150k loop from Edinburgh up to Comrie, and back via Corrieris café at Causewayhead.
This is her longest ride to date, and it went fine.

The route has a strong Audaxy whiff about it, being a cut-n-paste of various Audax rides I've done in that area.
The return route was from the Auld Alliance 400 from a couple of weeks ago!

https://www.strava.com/activities/2359360494

Wowbagger · « **Reply #22474 on:** 12 May, 2019, 08:13:45 pm »

An 18-mile human-powered tandem ride with Jan. Lovely and sunny, but still that easterly is very unpleasant until it's behind you. Then all of a sudden it's quite welcome assistance.

We had a look at Wakering Stairs because a friend heard a cuckoo there last week (I still haven't heard one this year). There was a guy milling about with a very expensive-looking spotting scope so we stopped and had a chat to him. He said he's seen a cuckoo and heard a nightingale but was hoping for some turtle doves. We went to the end of the road, had a look at the sea and Whitstable the other side of it and then turned back. A couple of hundred yards later we met the same guy, scope in use, gazing into the distance. I had a look in that direction and saw a large bird flapping about in a harrierish kind of way and said to him "Is that a harrier over there?". "I was watching a buzzard," he replied. I then pointed out the bird I had seen and he agreed that it was a marsh harrier. Pleased about that.

We dropped in on our pal Penny. Penny is going for a cataract operation on Wednesday and she asked me to pick her papers up on Thursday. She gave me the pre-paid vouchers.

Author Topic: Have you been out today? (Read 3926773 times)

essexian