n+1 accident - not even Kim's fault

[CrinklyLion]

So, when are you going to take it out on a Warty, barakta?

Cos then, you see, it would be a special occasion Warty, and I'd have to come along to meet you.  And possibly feed you cake

[Charlotte]

Very good point, Crinkles.  I think Peter ought to organise a WARTY suitable for n00by tandamistas 

[Butterfly]

Very good point, Crinkles.  I think Peter ought to organise a WARTY suitable for n00by tandamistas 

And recently rebuilt tandems with shiny paint?

[Martin109]

And French ones called 'Bertie' the Bertin, that have been converted from 18-speed, downtube shiftered oldness, to 24-speed, STI-controlled like-newness!

[Kim]

Your stoker still has a failed vestibular system which could make her rather wobbly too!

I believe your words on the subject yesterday amounted to "Sod it, let's give my balance something proper to worry about!"   

Next week is a better bet!  Although I just realised we have my mum incoming, so have to move bicycles to accommodate her!

I don't rate our chances of getting her on a bicycle...



Anyway, this WARTY idea seems like a good one, assuming we develop a basic level of competence on the thing first, and the BloodyTrains issues aren't insurmountable (concerned that boab may have used up all the tandem-transportation karma on the last one)...   

[Polar Bear]

Time for another Random Tandem methinks...   

[clarion]

Having had some good news about Delilah, I would have to agree

[onb]

Why Why Why ?

[clarion]

Forgive me.  I just couldn't take any more.

[barakta]

So, when are you going to take it out on a Warty, barakta?

I'll have to see if I can sustain riding first - I was able to do 25km ish on the folder but my joints did not like it one bit so I decided that was a mug's game (my physio would have a fit).

Cos then, you see, it would be a special occasion Warty, and I'd have to come along to meet you.  And possibly feed you cake

Cake on the other hand...  Might be a temptation to get good at this tandeming lark - just have to try it out after kim gets back from the Dynamo next week  

I'll definitely report back to YACF when we achieve more than 'round the block swearing at one another' on the tandem!

[Martin109]

It's all gone quiet, and we need new pics too!

[Kim]

It's all gone quiet, and we need new pics too!

I had a "can we go out on the tandem?" request earlier, so we did.  

Three only slightly wobbly laps of the local park, plus there and back (maybe 6km in all).  The rear axle stayed put.  The front brake-shaped-object was disappointingly naff (I'll tweak it a bit, see if I can get a bit more braking force out of it).  Barakta got the hang of the PowerGrips straight away - they seem like an excellent foot-retention option for non-clipless stokers.  The FMGenie-stuffed-in-the-bra method ensured reasonably reliable captain-stoker communication, while barakta adopted the traditional shouting-in-my-ear method for full duplex.

Both her arms are still attached, my shins aren't bleeding and at no point was divorce mentioned.  If that's not a huge success for a first proper ride, what is?  



Next mission: proper stoker bars.

[clarion]

Both her arms are still attached, my shins aren't bleeding and at no point was divorce mentioned.  If that's not a huge success for a first proper ride, what is?   

[Kim]

Quick update to say that while my shin may be bleeding copiously, it's in no way barakta's fault, and that some shiny new (and scarily lightweight) Thorn stoker bars and a sensibly sized chainring arrived this morning. 

[Martin109]

Looks like the tandem is really taking shape, thanks to copious fettling, and purchasing!

Do you think the sus forks bring any advantage?

Hope your shin heals up in time for the RT ride in October!

[Kim]

Do you think the sus forks bring any advantage?

Cheapness for the manufacturer, mostly.  It's presumably easier to get a sufficiently sturdy fork in low-end mountain bike flavours than anything else.  It's hideously bouncy at certain cadences, but does at least do a fairly good job of absorbing the bumps, which is probably advantageous given barakta's arms.

Hope your shin heals up in time for the RT ride in October!

It's coming to Mildenhall, dammit!  Even if I don't do much riding.

[Kim]

Quick ride this afternoon to try out the new bars, which were a success all round, in spite of my inability to fit a bar end to the stoker bars on account of the larger diameter:



We chased a random guy on a SS with a disc front wheel (who was then seen using his shoe as a brake on the rear tyre, for some reason), did an emergency stop for an ice cream van, and survived various potholes and wandering children without problems.

I put on a bit of mustard and had it up to almost 20mph on the way back, which resulted in nervous laughter followed by a bollocking for the noise my lungs were making from the copilot's seat.  Need to train barakta to spin faster - we're currently having a bit of a petrol vs diesel issue in terms of optimal power output.

 

[CrinklyLion]

Hurrah! 

If you want an abundant supply of cheap'n'nasty bar ends to experiment with I can start collecting them at the bike rescue, by the way.

[Kim]

If you want an abundant supply of cheap'n'nasty bar ends to experiment with I can start collecting them at the bike rescue, by the way.

Ooh, that would be handy, I think.  I think we're after boring straight ones, rather than anything with a clever ergonomic shape.  Narrow is better.  Steel might be easier to abuse the clamp to road bar diameter.