Author Topic: Have you been out today? (Read 3918919 times)

Feanor · « **Reply #24825 on:** 08 September, 2021, 01:11:59 pm »

Yes, a sea eagle of some kind, I think.
My bird-fu is quite weak.

Big bugger of a thing, it flew low over us.
Much bigger than a buzzard.
Pinion feathers like fingers on the wingtips.
Wedge shaped tail.

It flew low over the shoreline, and then hung and hovered using intermittent powerful wing action over one spot for a while.
It slowly got lower and lower, then dived down onto something.
I saw no more of it.

rogerzilla · « **Reply #24826 on:** 08 September, 2021, 02:08:12 pm »

I'm bumming around London on a Brompton. How quickly do you lot get through brake pads?

20210908_145604 by rogerzilla, on Flickr

T42 · « **Reply #24827 on:** 12 September, 2021, 03:03:08 pm »

70k toddle w. El Prez via Italian ice-cream/coffee shop in Dahn, in the SW Pfalz. Not very enjoyable: lot of traffic compared with my usual routes, fast and showing little care about the minimum 1m50 passing clearance. A hell of a lot of elderly novice riders out as well, not to mention droves of Darth Vaders on stinking noise-machines. Ice cream & coffee were excellent but in the end it wasn't worth it. Bleh.

Oh aye, autumn crocus in the fields. Emblem of a dying summer; I hate the stuff.

hatler · « **Reply #24828 on:** 12 September, 2021, 09:33:24 pm »

Not me, but mini, who, in preparation for his Big Ride^® did his first century today, SW London to Brighton and back with New Malden Velo (with a gratuitous loop up Steyning Bostall thrown in for good measure)

It was all old blokes my age, who were fascinated by why a 20 year old was riding with them, and how he'd got into cycling (when none of their children were). Mini recounted tales of stoking his dad up Ditchling Beacon on a trailer bike on an FNRttC and they all understood.

Total distance for the day was 114 miles, which gives him the confidence he'll be able to have a good crack at London - Brighton - Oxford - London somewhere towards the end of the next three weeks.

Tim Hall · « **Reply #24829 on:** 12 September, 2021, 11:12:59 pm »

Excellent stuff there hatler. Chapeau not-so-mini-anymore.

I've been away over the weekend with The Blokes, cycling from Oakham. A couple of good, long days with almost the right amount of hills. We grabbed coffee at Wymondham Windmill, which I last visited when I did night/day one of the Fridays LonJog ride in 2012 . I remember Leggy getting more and more tetchy at the slow service on that occasion and me nodding off waiting for my food.

essexian · « **Reply #24830 on:** 13 September, 2021, 07:53:30 am »

I know a 20km ride from Penkridge down towards Brewood and then back along the misnamed "Straight Mile Road" (its 1.2miles long!!!!) is not much to report, but the ride does take me over 100km for the week (actually 110km) for the first time in nearly 2 years..... edited..... blimey, 2018.... nearly 3 years!!!!

I am going to celebrate by having a day off the bike!

Perhaps, I might be cyclist again...?

LittleWheelsandBig · « **Reply #24831 on:** 13 September, 2021, 09:28:33 am »

Yesterday, the Tom Simpson Memorial Ride. A low-key 80km flatlands ride and outdoor socialising with enthusiastic folk before and after. Some very nice machines being ridden and displayed.

https://tomsimpsonmemorialfund.co.uk/

John Stonebridge · « **Reply #24832 on:** 16 September, 2021, 10:22:43 pm »

First tandem ride since late May given stokers illness.

A short-but-classic ride from home to the wonderful @DreadnoughtPub in Leith for al fresco beers and back all on segregated paths.

22km all in and a grand evening spent blethering with many other cyclists.

T42 · « **Reply #24833 on:** 19 September, 2021, 10:20:07 am »

Yesterday, first 160k since 2017. Not as much climbing as then but >1000 metes all the same. Lots of flat & wind so climbing would have prolly been easier on the quads. Aimed for a gorge in Lorraine, the Vallée des Éclusiers, which is threaded by flight of ~10 disused locks that used to carry the Rhine/Marne canal up through ~40 metres in ~3 km. It was replaced by an inclined plane in 1969. The climb is no great shakes but coming down again is fun if you can avoid the after-lunch strollers.

(NB guardian orc upper left.)

Return via La Petite Pierre:

(old pic)

...whereafter sprinted to catch favourite patisserie before it shut, failed but picked up a pain chocolat in a bakery. This interesting beastie was parked outside:

The owner, inside, was around 70 and built like a brick shithouse. Pushing 52/23 on that he'd have to be - I popped an ACL on a similar gear in 1986. Carlen was a local bike builder who smoked too much and died of throat cancer in the 1990s. This one is from the early 90s. I bought our daughter a bike at his place in 1985: looking at the shop and the workshop behind it he wasn't building frames any more but just buying bits and assembling them.

Other high spot: I had my lovely wee J1 with its 70-300 (ish) equiv zoom along so I stopped beside a lake to snap a heron in the shallows. Lifting the camera out of the HB bag the strap caught on the bell: heron buggered off.

Got home utterly knackered. Hard to believe that on PBP we did 200k before breakfast and thought nothing of it. MrsT keeps telling me I'm not young any more, which delights me no end.

ETA just remembered that there was a regular Porscherie (from the French for pigsty) of old Stuttgarter Volkswagens abroad, all pumping out reek and trying to outdo each other for racket. The arseholes should stay their side of the border, where they'd probably be done for poisoning the forest.

Tim Hall · « **Reply #24834 on:** 20 September, 2021, 12:48:01 pm »

Up to Tooting on the fixer on Saturday to leave some bodily fluids behind. 30 miles or so, which I covered at a rate that impressed me. Either I'm a Riding God (obvs) or there was a bit ofa tail wind (surely not). The position on the fixer is different to that on the Pretty Bike. I shall have to do measuring.

After I'd donated my platelets, I took a wander to Wandsworth Cemetery in search of the grave of a VC recipient who later had it taken off him. Didn't find that, but found a whole load of Anzac troops' graves. They'd been treated at the Patriotic Royal Victoarianm Building on Wandsworth Common but died of their wounds.

Headed back home, grabbing a pint of Scruttock's Old Dirigible at a Thee Pubbe and cut price noodles from the market in Epsom, which was shutting up shop before leaping onto the train for the rest of the trip.

hatler · « **Reply #24835 on:** 20 September, 2021, 01:00:50 pm »

Out yesterday with mini on my longest ride to date - Brighton to Oxford. Great fun including a bit of mid-ride fettling to overcome a broken rear gear cable.

Feel crappy today though. Not tired legs, or sore neck, but messed up digestion from having four large coffees (I normally average about one coffee a month).

By the time we hit Oxford I was pooped, but mini carried on to Henley in preparation for his Big Ride in a week's time.

sg37409 · « **Reply #24836 on:** 20 September, 2021, 09:14:52 pm »

A cracking evening sprint out and back to Killearn. Not flat out, but paced myself well and managed a decent avg speed. First run at a higher intensity for ages and feel great for it.

Cudzoziemiec · « **Reply #24837 on:** 21 September, 2021, 09:32:24 am »

50km on the Monday night social ride, which is apparently now a thing you do when the Wednesday night pub ride is either too fast or too slow, depending which one you pick. This marks a dangerous return to socialising (party Saturday, pub yesterday) as well as riding (must have been my longest ride since July and certainly fastest for a long time). But riding back from the pub at 9:30 when it feels like 11, with Bairdy's velosound system blasting out Steppenwolf, is like being in one of those trendy gravel videos, but with a pub and without gravel, and real. Better all round!

chrisbainbridge · « **Reply #24838 on:** 23 September, 2021, 05:19:01 pm »

Got out for 50km round the Derbyshire Dales/North Staffordshire yesterday. Had a lovely warm ride in short sleeves. Was just ambling along when a young guy passed me coming out of a dip. Sorry, but I had to have him on the next one and put serious space in between us.

Stopped for a pot of tea and old fashioned cornflake slice!

T42 · « **Reply #24839 on:** 24 September, 2021, 04:50:13 pm »

Strangely satisfying 100k. Strange because I wanted 150 with a pizza halfway but, maybe because of dental abscess + antibiotics, felt tired far too soon. Also got to thinking about heart valves and caries, or whatever it is that's making free with my mandibles, and decided that it didn't need to be pumped around any more than necessary. Turned right when still 25k from pizza and looped back, which resulted in a much hillier route than I'd intended. Rather fun, though: flat is flat in more ways than one. In the end I got home well pleased.

Menu tonight: pizza.

CrazyEnglishTriathlete · « **Reply #24840 on:** 25 September, 2021, 07:49:55 pm »

Nice little 200km over to Salisbury Plain and back. Added a gratuitous gravel section to avoid Urchfont and Market Lavington. The gravel looked good so hammered along as if I was racing the Strade Bianchi. Sadly there wasn't a support car to supply a new bike when I hit some large stones at somewhat in excess of R1. Having fixed the pinch puncture carried on a little more circumspectly and had a fun lunch at the petrol station in Tilshead, sitting at the picnic table watching various motorist mosey in and mosey out again when they found out there was no petrol.

Fuelled up, headed back over the Plain through Larkhill, Everleigh and Collingbourne Ducis, before finding another fun gravel section up to Chute Causeway. The surface was good, but the 14% steep climb tested out the granny gears. Sadly it is getting towards the end of the season for such things, as the autumn rains will turn the tracks in mudfests and I will have to stick to the roads again.

Cudzoziemiec · « **Reply #24841 on:** 25 September, 2021, 08:12:27 pm »

40 miles or so around some villages in north Somerset (but not North Somerset). Exploring, bit of byway, bit of blast. Somehow, through hardly riding this summer, I seem to have gained the ability to ride no hands (for at least, ooh, two seconds) which is unexpected!

SoreTween · « **Reply #24842 on:** 26 September, 2021, 09:24:57 am »

Back to Square One

For various work & family reasons first ride in over a year yesterday. About 48km / 900 meters at a glacial pace, unsure exactly as my Garmin went flat. Legs hurt, back hurts, neck hurts, shoulders hurt, tween very swollen. 3 tiles.

mzjo · « **Reply #24843 on:** 26 September, 2021, 03:46:30 pm »

Club randonnée yesterday afternoon. I went along with the folder to have a bit of fun and because it gave me an excuse to do the short run that didn't have a camion-balai; (one of the peculiarities of this ride is that the organiser, who is also our club vice-president, likes to think he is organising a sportive and so has the two longer circuits with motorbikes to open and a broom-wagon to close, not very FFCT). Not being very quick uphill I can think of better ways to pass the afternoon than three hours breathing diesel fumes and being deafened by a motor just behind me, so I did the 40km circuit, in the company of two tandems with non-sighted stokers and our club treasurer, , who also organises the tandems (different club, Fédération of Handisport).

Lots of sun, even a bit hot (about 25°) and all went very well apart from one tandem with transmission problems which necessitated a few stops to untangle the chain. It eventually collapsed (shed it's relay chain and rear relay crank) at about 20m from the car park. Apparently one of the tandems on the longer circuit did exactly the same thing. I used to pilot for this club but I'm glad sometimes that my back stopped me! The total distance for us was 51km (rather than the 43 announced) and the folder had no trouble keeping up going uphill but span out a bit on the false flats descending; it definitely needs its transmission makeover to get an 11t sprocket in place of the 13t on it at present.

LittleWheelsandBig · « **Reply #24844 on:** 26 September, 2021, 05:14:33 pm »

Yesterday and today, some BHPC races at Gravesend Cyclopark on my upright trike. Generally placed adequately, despite not much fitness and corresponding slowness. One of the races had us lapping around a flat, short oval. Unfortunately my trike is one wheel drive and we had to circulate with my drive wheel on the inside. The result was that I had to coast about 1/3 of the total distance due to wheel-spin under power. Other more complex circuits were much more fun.

Normally I ride to their races but I didn’t fancy riding 60-odd kms across all of London’s traffic four times this weekend, so dragged the mobile shed onto the M25. Oh well, my car uses less than a tankful a month. Their last race of the year is at Hillingdon and not too far from my normal commute, so I will be back to being properly pedal-powered again.

Canardly · « **Reply #24845 on:** 26 September, 2021, 05:42:56 pm »

40 mile group ride, to Jordan's Mill, probably the last good weather 'summer' ride so made the most of it. Given the so called petrol shortage, surprised at the amount of traffic on the roads. Met a group of Cambridge Uni CC post grad students who were undertaking a 65 mile loop. Lots of Rapha in evidence, very smartly turned out and some very nice bikes.

orienteer · « **Reply #24846 on:** 26 September, 2021, 05:58:17 pm »

Joined the local CTC Loiterers for a ride from Uxbridge to Twickenham and back, mainly back roads and paths. Total of 33 miles with stops for coffee, lunch and tea. Very flat and not very speedy so no problem even with my lack of fitness. Maybe the previous two weekends in Bideford (Tarka Trail tandem ride to Barnstaple) and Bradford on Avon (Moulton Bicycle Club ride to Laycock) helped.

I was tempted by a Small Wheels ride from Havant today, but decided a 140 mile round car trip for a 15 mile ride wasn't very green; replacement bus service on the railway ruled out that option.

Kim · « **Reply #24847 on:** 26 September, 2021, 09:51:34 pm »

Yes! Managed to get out and do the winter loop in the time between barakta's toilet visits. First proper ride in three weeks, and that one was a post-lurgy slog. Cycling fitness is a distant memory at this point.

Good to hack some grot off the lungs, though.

Wowbagger · « **Reply #24848 on:** 27 September, 2021, 02:01:16 pm »

I cycled out to try on a wetsuit and swim in it in an infinity pool. I couldn;t at first decide whether to cycle or drive as the roads I had to use are very intimidating. Then I read online that the petrol station near my destination was open and that the road I needed to use was clogged up with petrolheads, so that decided it.

I used to ride those roads regularly not that many years ago but I've no idea how.There were several close passes and when I took to the pavement in self defence, found myself being assailed by brambles. I came home via a much less direct but more pleasant rural route and, as a bonus, one of the roads I used, which is normally a bit trafficky, was closed so I had it to myself. After that, much of my ride was off-road.

I'm going out again later for a swim, which will bring my total for the day over 20 miles. I've done very few decent day rides this year, but I'm doing quite a bit of utility stuff which quite often takes me into double figures for the day.

T42 · « **Reply #24849 on:** 01 October, 2021, 01:45:21 pm »

Bloody cold this morning - ~3.5°C at 07:30- so I waited and ended up setting out too late to get to my favourite pâtisserie before it closed at lunchtime. I cut it short and turned for home. 26km. Weather's supposedly warmer tomorrow, I'll get out early and try for a long one.

Author Topic: Have you been out today? (Read 3918919 times)

essexian