Author Topic: Have you been out today? (Read 3901010 times)

mzjo · « **Reply #24925 on:** 10 November, 2021, 11:03:06 am »

Quote from: JennyB on 08 November, 2021, 11:08:58 am

Quote from: hatler on 08 November, 2021, 09:22:22 am

We went for a walk on Dartmoor a couple of weeks ago. Up the hill was into a steady 30/40mph wind, with the odd gust well in to the 50s. The difference in effort required between striding up the hill in an "I'm outdoors and this walk is going to do me good" stylee with arms swinging and head up, and head down arms tucked behind my back was significant. Up to that point I hadn't appreciated how much windage one's arms cause, and on a bike, tucking your arms behind you isn't really an option.

There was a mad American pro bike rider who used to do that back in the 90's I think. Can't remember the name.

One arm behind the back is standard fare for motocrossers in races like Le Touquet with long straights to get a bit more aero!

mzjo · « **Reply #24926 on:** 11 November, 2021, 08:13:45 pm »

Out for the first time in my life (but surely not the last) with a group from the Confrérie du 650B. There was the usual 11/11 outing and in the Brenne natural park so even though I'm working and can't stay up driving up for the day was an option (even with an insanely early start. I am going back for another go on saturday as well.

After having faffed with printing off maps and loading the Garmin it was all to no avail. The Garmin decided to switch itself on and empty its batteries (for which I had forgotten to take spares). Mu love/hate relationship with the e-Trex continues. The route was changed, adapted and otherwise altered all day and so, to my great joy, I rode following the herd with no notions of time or distance. People who depend on planned lines in a device or on a map should try this from time to time, it does you a world of good to remember why you ride a bike!

Cold but dry, nice route, one of the best days out on a bike that I can remember for a long time.

They tell me that we did 85kms. Took all day to do it. Not important!!

Wowbagger · « **Reply #24927 on:** 13 November, 2021, 11:26:12 pm »

A damned fine >5 mile walk in the Derbyshire peaks. I left our accommodation near the Hope Cheshire Cheese and immediately climbed Lose Hill, and walked along the ridge to Hollins Cross, then descended into Castleton. I had coffee and cake, followed by a very fine pint of ale before trudging back to the house. I dressed for November, but as I descended with the midday sun blazing down on me, I was down to my shirtsleeves.

I have some great photos which I will add when I am back at a suitable computer. I find it far too challenging from an iThing.

T42 · « **Reply #24928 on:** 14 November, 2021, 03:14:42 pm »

Still trying to get back in condition after my violent gut upset a couple of weeks back. Set out for usual coffee/caek shop but weather was vile: cold & damp with a strong, penetrating NE wind so I stopped off at a closer shop then went home through the forest. Only did 50-odd km but relatively satisfied.

Saw a dead polecat at the entrance to the next village from home. Thought it was just a cat until I was nearly on top of it, then the bushier tail and pointy face gave it away. Nice to see, but nasty little buggers if you keep chickens. We don't, but back in the 90s a neighbour found his entire flock slaughtered. Dunno what action he took, but next day the polecat was lying dead in the chicken-run.

John Stonebridge · « **Reply #24929 on:** 14 November, 2021, 04:30:41 pm »

Out on the tandem earlier today - we wanted to get out the city so dismantled the machine and threw it in the car and headed up past Perth (UK) to Kinrossie and started there.

A a nice nearly 40km with lunch at the half way point in Meigle. No too much wildlife - a couple of buzzards (or maybe the same on twice)

https://ridewithgps.com/trips/78549387

mzjo · « **Reply #24930 on:** 14 November, 2021, 04:37:00 pm »

Yesterday but it was too late to post last night.

Confrérie de 650B take 2. Saturday in the rain (well drizzle by moments, a few cycle capes in evidence but not all. I used my trusty Gamex in the absence of a cape big enough to cover me and the bars and didn't finish up "boil in the bag" - pretty comfortable in fact!) Another ride through the flat lands with just a few lumps included. I took my Peugeot "randonneuse" after hearing one of the others talking about having used one years (decades?) before when his real randonneuse wasn't available (I felt shamed into it in a way, but mine is undoubtedly smarter, and converted to 650 as well

)

Lunch at Le Grand Pressigny, sheltering in a semi-ruined chateau converted to conference centre, overseen by a family of woolly mammouths, a sort of deer with huge antlers and a prehistoric bison with very large horns. Coffee in a bar where masks seem to have been forgotten, with a couple of Nortons parked opposite. Return to Mézières, bike in the car and rdv in the bar before apéros in the gite and supper (not needing to go to work the following day I could stay to eat). I am going to have to sweat up on my knowledge (somewhat lacking) of french films of the 70's and 80's to keep up with this lot!

All in all another very enjoyable day just following the group (sometimes upfront) and not bothering about direction or speed. Even the wet didn't spoil the fun! Apparently we did something like 82kms if my memory is correct (no gps again, didn't even get to put the batteries in!)

I had a ragondin run across the road just in front of me on the way home. Glad I was in the car and took care to avoid it - a punctured tyre from a bit of ragondin tooth wouldn't be much fun. Fortunately the wild boar were staying quiet!

Peter · « **Reply #24931 on:** 14 November, 2021, 04:51:35 pm »

Yes. Crit. d'Etat Industrielle, Rochdale. What a sunset and what a moon!

Tim Hall · « **Reply #24932 on:** 14 November, 2021, 08:17:01 pm »

Out on the Pino with The Fridays for a ghost - themed ride, led by Nick. 18 miles round central London, over to Camden, past Highgate cemetery, Hampstead Heath, back into town and a cafe in Russell Square.

We then dashed to Victoria station,getting compliments on the niceness of the Pino and barriers on the Mall opened by smiling rozzers.

Swains Lane? Not as hard as I feared.

Peter · « **Reply #24933 on:** 14 November, 2021, 09:59:39 pm »

18 miles and a cafe - my kind of riding these days. I can't believe how quickly I've "mellowed"!

T42 · « **Reply #24934 on:** 15 November, 2021, 08:54:16 am »

Quote from: mzjo on 14 November, 2021, 04:37:00 pm

Yesterday but it was too late to post last night.

Confrérie de 650B take 2...

I had a long look at 650B in 2004 at the Cerny SF: very pretty little bikes with a distinct mystique. Looked a bit dated, though, so no. Later on ordered a frame from a bloke in Thann whose thing was putting a 700c at the front and a 650B at the back - "climbs better". He never delivered, though. Just as well, since carrying two sets of spares on something like PBP would have been idiotic.

mzjo · « **Reply #24935 on:** 16 November, 2021, 01:49:38 pm »

Quote from: T42 on 15 November, 2021, 08:54:16 am

Quote from: mzjo on 14 November, 2021, 04:37:00 pm
Yesterday but it was too late to post last night.

Confrérie de 650B take 2...

I had a long look at 650B in 2004 at the Cerny SF: very pretty little bikes with a distinct mystique. Looked a bit dated, though, so no. Later on ordered a frame from a bloke in Thann whose thing was putting a 700c at the front and a 650B at the back - "climbs better". He never delivered, though. Just as well, since carrying two sets of spares on something like PBP would have been idiotic.

This is not the place to discuss the merits (or otherwise!) of a "traditional" 650B randonneuse "à la française". There's going for a ride with a nice welcoming bunch of people, there's enjoying the comfort of having a nice big air cushion under your bum (regardless of the size of tyre) and there's a slavish insistance on the merits of 1950's cycle geometry and equipment (coupled with an insistance that, against all the evidence of past failures and current industrial trends, we can make it in France). I fall happily into the first two categories but am very tepid about the third (and don't have 3000€ to put into a randonneuse, which is why I have a converted road frame of a very uncertain age and slightly dubious construction).

Having a good time is not really dependant on what you ride, more the welcome of the people you're with (and sometimes just the change of situation is enough). I had a good time!

edit: of the two bikes I used the one that is most fun and gets used most is the Gitane, which is definitely not a randonneuse (and a lower quality tubeset to boot). It would be my choice for PBP were I in that sort of game. The Peugeot is a clanking monster with a hinge in the middle but it has better mudguards, which was useful on saturday!

Wowbagger · « **Reply #24936 on:** 16 November, 2021, 03:54:13 pm »

Saturday's walk:

Canardly · « **Reply #24937 on:** 17 November, 2021, 08:56:51 pm »

Fab pics WB. My forebears were farmers thereabouts it seems.

Canardly · « **Reply #24938 on:** 17 November, 2021, 09:06:22 pm »

Small group ride of 32 miles to visit a cycle cafe in Roxton village in Beds which failed due to lock down. Wind was a bit cold but sunshine, autumn trees and skies were amazing. Food in the Cafe was really good and prices very reasonable, highly recommended to those out that way. Sadly the bike maintenance facility has moved elsewhere. Glad to see a constant trickle of visitors whilst we were there, this being mid week. We also passed an old beer house come pub in a village on the circuit which unfortunately is now a private property and delicensed but has kept the old pub sign, so good for them. What is hugely sad is that many of these villages could disappear due to planned massive housing development.

https://bedsarchives.bedford.gov.uk/CommunityHistories/Ravensden/The-Case-is-Altered-Ravensden.aspx

https://www.littleacorncafe.co.uk/

Marco Stefano · « **Reply #24939 on:** 18 November, 2021, 09:46:28 pm »

Car service & MOT yesterday, where I sat and read 'Thinking, Fast & Slow' by Daniel Kahneman for a couple of hours. After that, my mind was obviously boggled and I couldn't think at all as I left my favourite water bottle there. When home I rang and asked them not to involve it in a controlled explosion, and cycled over to pick it up today.

About 23 miles of circular Fen route, breezy but fair; first time out for some weeks due to a bad cold (no, it was a cold), so good to get out. One close pass - by a police car.

orienteer · « **Reply #24940 on:** 19 November, 2021, 04:07:23 pm »

Return trip on the Phoenix Way again on the tandem to see the autumn colours.

T42 · « **Reply #24941 on:** 20 November, 2021, 04:24:28 pm »

A cold 79 km to my usual coffee/cake place, going via as many lumps as I could fit in. Misty, cold, muddy roads, muddy beet stacked up in muddy mounds, muddy tractors doing muddy things, the odd maize harvester (muddy) hogging the road. Got sworn at by a buzzard when I stopped for a pee. Otherwise uneventful. But fun.

sg37409 · « **Reply #24942 on:** 21 November, 2021, 02:32:48 pm »

58km tandem ride round Drymen and Killearn. Beautiful morning but very cold, had to retire to the bus shelter in Drymen for our coffee and roll 'n sausage (bargain from the Spar) and then over the high level footbridge at Croftamie and up to Killearn for another (indoors this time) coffee stop. Really nice wee ride.

JellyLegs · « **Reply #24943 on:** 21 November, 2021, 03:12:45 pm »

Something like (gps stopped logging after 8 miles) a 35 mile circuit around the local Essex lanes. Beautiful sun and blue skies but a stiff northerly breeze meant it was the first time this autumn that I felt a nip in the air. My toes got very cold, despite wearing overshoes and the thought of a warming cup of tea got the better of me after a couple oh hours riding.

Suffolk Born · « **Reply #24944 on:** 21 November, 2021, 04:57:08 pm »

A chilly Tandem ride 52k, around Shotley Peninsular, stopping for coffee and cake at Alton reservoir.
First taste of the cooler temperatures to come!

cycleman · « **Reply #24945 on:** 21 November, 2021, 06:40:03 pm »

Just locally for about 8 miles on the sun ez3 and 45 minutes riding the trice on the rollers. The sun ez3 was hard work into the breeze

T42 · « **Reply #24946 on:** 26 November, 2021, 03:50:56 pm »

5k walk this morning and 28k toddle on the bike this afternoon to remind legs who they work for. 2°C ave and wet. Not supposed to go out under 5° but thermometer gadget on our landing said it was 3.6° and that's as near 5° as dammit, yeronner. Managed the bugbear climb out of the valley with no cardiac wambles so yah boo sucks to Cassandras, get youse to a nunnery, etc.

Funny one: halfway along the local cycle path between two towns there's a bend where the road alongside is banked up, and this provides a few metres of shelter on the cycle-path side. As I went past this I saw a woman half-lying against the bank with her legs pulled up, texting away on her phone. If not for the phone I'd have stopped to see if she was OK, but she didn't appear to be suffering and she could have called for help any time if she'd needed it. On the way back she was still there, still texting, so I called out "ça va?" but she just looked at me and went on thumbing away, so I didn't stop. I thought later that maybe she didn't speak French - could've been an illegal immigrant - so I could have tried English, but I didn't think of it then, and in any case she looked contented enough. Oh well. There's not a lot of traffic on the path this weather, but there are always folk walking through to the supermarket and back so if she'd needed help after all she could have got it.

Feanor · « **Reply #24947 on:** 27 November, 2021, 05:13:27 pm »

First taste of Winter
Clachnaben - first winter hike of the season.

The snow had stopped as we reached the car park, and we set off into a low watery winter sun. The winds of yesterday seemed to have passed, and we made our way up through the woods.
Above the tree line the conditions became increasingly wintery, the snow depth gradually increasing. As we crest the ridge line onto the shoulder, within the space of tens of metres, we are subject to the full blast of the vicious wind that is a constant feature of this place. The wind has picked up the snow, and ordered it and dumped it into deep accumulations, filling every hollow and path. The path had already become indistinct in places, being infilled to a depth of over a foot in places.

A trial run for some new winter kit, which went well. The new boots were excellent, but the crampons were not tested today; the conditions were not optimal for deploying them. Next outing, perhaps!

Clachnaben by Ron Lowe, on Flickr

T42 · « **Reply #24948 on:** 28 November, 2021, 01:52:58 pm »

Short ride in the rain just to keep moving. Heading into final hill, fluffed a gear change & put RD into wheel. Hanger snapped, whole shebang looks like the cat's been at the knitting. Managed to stop quickly so there's a chance the back wheel wasn't buggered.

Need to dust off the Ti Warhorse until I can get the bits to fix it. Rats. Back to 23mm tyres.

Cudzoziemiec · « **Reply #24949 on:** 28 November, 2021, 02:18:14 pm »

Dirty big rats indeed. Is the hanger replaceable?