Utilitarian Adventures

[Ruthie]

Just into town to meet with a mate, then down the hill for a cheeky Nando's, parked our bikes up outside, went to see Bridget Jones, then rode up together back to town before a quick hug and we peeled off to our respective homes.

Love playing out on bikes with my friends.

There was so much broken glass everywhere.  Unbelievable.  Amazed the faerie didn't show her face frankly.

[seraphina]

Jakob - the nice thing about hauling kids around is I find that when I have the bike to myself I am loads quicker

Took the elder to a party at the weekend in full princess regalia (her, not me). Fun riding a bike with balloons on the back seat.

[Jakob W]

Hah, yes - I have pondered heading out to explore the lanes near their nursery after dropping them off, though even unloaded the bakfiets remains a somewhat stately ride...

[cycleman]

A tesco run yesterday towing the old burley child trailer which ended up full .I regret no pictures as I have not go a new camera ye  . And today 2 trips into town once to the doctors and then to get a cake cooling rack and some eating irons 

[mike]

Cycled into Cambridge to pick up new spectacles and reminded myself just how pants the route is for cycles from Trumpington to the too-small bike park at the Grand Arcade. Consoled myself by imagining the running commentary of my bell.

what???  the guided bus way to the railway station then backroads across mill road through to norfolk street, stop for a coffee at the deli (hot numbers' coffee seems to have taken a turn for the worse) then wiggle through to the bike racks outside the unspeakable cath kid5on shop.  Do the shopping then get 250 grams of bliss from the coffee man, a bunch of flowers from the stall beside him then head home via hobsons conduit and the much better cycleway out of town to trumpton. Lovely adventure.

[seraphina]

Cycled into Cambridge to pick up new spectacles and reminded myself just how pants the route is for cycles from Trumpington to the too-small bike park at the Grand Arcade. Consoled myself by imagining the running commentary of my bell.

what???  the guided bus way to the railway station then backroads across mill road through to norfolk street, stop for a coffee at the deli (hot numbers' coffee seems to have taken a turn for the worse) then wiggle through to the bike racks outside the unspeakable cath kid5on shop.  Do the shopping then get 250 grams of bliss from the coffee man, a bunch of flowers from the stall beside him then head home via hobsons conduit and the much better cycleway out of town to trumpton. Lovely adventure.

+1 to deli and coffee man at the market, but the route in is a disaster IMO...

Come over the M11 on the new cycleway - all fine. This dumps you out at the entry to park and ride. Cycleway signs to Shelfords and Addenbrooke's, no signs for City Centre. Take the bus road through the Park and Ride car park, use local knowledge to navigate roundabout (mainly used by coaches) to entry to guided busway (note: total absense of signage from new traffic lights with regards to how to get to station/city centre on bike). Or follow the cycle path (well, foothpath with token blue sign) up over the staggered ped/cycle crossings at the new development (maximum cycle inconvenience), past Waitrose (again, you either mix it with the traffic on the roads or spend ages waiting for pedestrians on the pavements), fight past the Shell garage until you finally get to the decent stretch of cycle way which does whisk you into town.

You're right that the guided busway to the station and then up across Parker's Piece is the better option though - I had been avoiding that because of the chaos at the station. What gets my goat is that the P&R,new housing and Guided Busway are all new developments and could/should have been planned to maximise cycle/pedestrian flowthrough; instead we have maximum inconveinence (staggered crossings so you have to wait for two sets of lights to cross a road, one for each lane), no signage and non-obvious routes.

On a totally unrelated note, do you know how the coffee is at Relevant Records?

[mike]

Cycled into Cambridge to pick up new spectacles and reminded myself just how pants the route is for cycles from Trumpington to the too-small bike park at the Grand Arcade. Consoled myself by imagining the running commentary of my bell.

what???  the guided bus way to the railway station then backroads across mill road through to norfolk street, stop for a coffee at the deli (hot numbers' coffee seems to have taken a turn for the worse) then wiggle through to the bike racks outside the unspeakable cath kid5on shop.  Do the shopping then get 250 grams of bliss from the coffee man, a bunch of flowers from the stall beside him then head home via hobsons conduit and the much better cycleway out of town to trumpton. Lovely adventure.

+1 to deli and coffee man at the market, but the route in is a disaster IMO...

Come over the M11 on the new cycleway - all fine. This dumps you out at the entry to park and ride. Cycleway signs to Shelfords and Addenbrooke's, no signs for City Centre. Take the bus road through the Park and Ride car park, use local knowledge to navigate roundabout (mainly used by coaches) to entry to guided busway (note: total absense of signage from new traffic lights with regards to how to get to station/city centre on bike). Or follow the cycle path (well, foothpath with token blue sign) up over the staggered ped/cycle crossings at the new development (maximum cycle inconvenience), past Waitrose (again, you either mix it with the traffic on the roads or spend ages waiting for pedestrians on the pavements), fight past the Shell garage until you finally get to the decent stretch of cycle way which does whisk you into town.

You're right that the guided busway to the station and then up across Parker's Piece is the better option though - I had been avoiding that because of the chaos at the station. What gets my goat is that the P&R,new housing and Guided Busway are all new developments and could/should have been planned to maximise cycle/pedestrian flowthrough; instead we have maximum inconveinence (staggered crossings so you have to wait for two sets of lights to cross a road, one for each lane), no signage and non-obvious routes.

On a totally unrelated note, do you know how the coffee is at Relevant Records?

it's excellent!  They're my favourite place on mill road, and their sausage sandwich is very good!!  I had an awful coffee and something I thought was impossible - bad tiffin cake - from Garden Kitchen up near the new titchy sainsburys yesterday, not sure I'll rush back there.  A new one called Toms cakes is about to open just upstream of there too.

and while we're on the subject, Black Cat cafe used to be great, now it's full of screaming kids and Urban Larder is trying a bit hard to be hipster. I had a lovely cup of tea at the one that looks like a piano shop opposite the co-op, and quite a good bacon sandwich at the slightly antiseptic-feeling cornerstone cafe. 

All I want is a good breakfast place for those hungover mornings.  None of the above opens early enough or does a good greasy breakfast.  And don't get me started on Stir.

hey, don't judge. I live on mawson road and work from home a lot, so escaping for a coffee & cake is an important once-a-week treat! 

[seraphina]

mike - it is getting increasingly difficult to find a good fryup in town, isn't it? Will get to Relevant Records next time I'm in town. Haven't been to Black Cat in ages for precicely the reasons you state. Espresso Library is OK, but I was expecting more out of a coffee machine that costs more than I earn in a year. Tudor Rose was good, though. 

My favourite place centrally is Savinos. And if I lived where you did, I'd make the most of it too!

[Joe.B]

I cycled about half a mile today with PECs worth £250K in each of my paniers.  It was raining and the ortliebs seemed like the best way of keeping them dry

[Cudzoziemiec]

All my shopping and stuff for the whole of September came to a grand total of... 61km! omigodhoweverdoistandthearduosity

[Cudzoziemiec]

That works out at one shopping trip every two days.

[cycleman]

Yesterday me and Apollo rode out to the Toby carvery for a meal . today Dad went to Iceland 

[Cudzoziemiec]

All my shopping and stuff for the whole of September came to a grand total of... 61km! omigodhoweverdoistandthearduosity

Whereas 50km in one week now, just cos of a few trips to ye pubbe and some different shoppes. Moste randome.

[cycleman]

To the big tesco in Slough this morning to get bread and kitten food . 

[ian]

Wholefood Market to be nauseatingly middle class (sad to say, their bags are the perfect size to slip in an Ortlieb pannier, which makes the entire affair worthwhile). Plus it makes me nostalgic for America and the grocery bags.

Soggy Wandle Path navigation home. Should have been annoyed by the rain but quite enjoyed it. Bike was splashing through every puddle it could. Not even the fact the bridge was closed in Morden Hall Park could faze me (really, National Trust, a little diversion map as too much?). I've now been to Morden. I feel completed. It's a lot nicer than Mitcham, I suppose.

The rain did at least stop the annoying clicks and creaks my bike has been making lately, which is win, because they were starting to sound terminal.

[Jakob W]

My longest day yet on the bakfiets yesterday; thought I'd see whether I could make twins club in the morning then head for the lunchtime nursery drop-off. This was a mistake; I made OK time getting to the club, but hadn't realised I'd had a (slight) tailwind; on the way back of course this was now a headwind and had picked up, and it was rather dispiriting ripping my legs off whilst barely managing a crawl uphill. Then I had to go and run various errands before doing the nursery run again; over 60K in total for the day. My legs were not happy when I got into bed, but they're pleasantly OK this morning.

[hatler]

Four lots of utility today.


First off a run in to Wimbledon with the Bike Hod returning a whole bunch of stuff that was surplus to requirements. (I discovered that Bike Hods can capsize if you're out of the saddle and honking.)

Then to Putney to get some waterproof troos for mini-h in readiness for some Dartmoor walks we have planned.

Then to Kingston with mini himself (he's 5' 10" BTW) to get some more clothes.

And finally to Streatham to collect my just-MoTed vehicle.

I'm feeling quite virtuous.

[mcshroom]

Just a trip down to church and round to the Coop to get some stuff for dinner. I think I'm getting used to pootling on fixed now, and I'm more and more impressed with my Osprey Black Jack courier bag which seems to swallow a larger volume shopping than it looks lit should, and without becoming uncomfortable to wear

[Jakob W]

Half term this week so no nursery runs; instead I headed to Lidl and loaded the bakfiets with an oil-filled radiator and a week's shopping - just about managed to get it all under the rain cover, though it was a bit of a squeeze getting the girls in as well.

[mcshroom]

I got the hybrid back on the road (minus front derailleur which I can't find, even after ordering it's replacement ) so took it for a trip to the supermarket to check it over. Leaf covered off road cycle paths aren't the easiest things to navigate in the dark, and I wish the supermarket was at the top of the hill and my house at the bottom, instead of the other way round, though my bike took pity on me and shifted itself from the middle to granny ring on the way back which did make things easier

[Cudzoziemiec]

A bike with sympathy. 

[Cudzoziemiec]

It's from Ikea, so bulky but light.

[Jakob W]

Slow and a bit stiff on the nursery run today; as yesterday was the first day back after half term I'm hoping it's just unfamiliarity. Then realised I'd left the big chain at home, so am now sitting at home with a cuppa before heading back to pick the girls up. Still it's lovely and sunny out, and it's all miles in the legs.

[HeltorChasca]

It's from Ikea, so bulky but light.

Let me guess: A giant Swedish brush hook? Similar to the billhook of Britain, but used for meatball preparation.

Go on. Tell us.

[Kim]

Dining chair.  You can tell by the picture of the, well, dining chair.