Utilitarian Adventures

[Basil]

I found out ages ago that I could completely fill a shallow trolley and it would fit easily into two large rear panniers and two small front ones.  Only once did I get completely carried away and had to phone the boy.
"Put your panniers on your bike and get down to the co-op"
Wine went in the bottle cages.
I always buy bog and kitchen roll at the garage Tesco Express opposite our house as the are light but voluminous.

I have to be more careful these days as I've taken the pannier racks off the front of the bike now.

[Kim]

I seem to have something of a knack for estimating the volume of shopping with respect to the size of panniers.  I reckon it's proof that all those hours spent playing Tetris on the GameBoy weren't wasted after all.

Where I tend to get caught out is long thing objects that almost but don't quite fit.  But those can usually be bungeed to the rack directly.

[Cudzoziemiec]

With the exception of my foray to foreign parts, my contributions to this thread are turning out to be as dull as I initially feared.

Today's report: 1 mile (total) to the village and back. Two fellow utilitarian adventurers (unemployed pub goers, I suspect) and about seven "cyclists".

First ride of the month and some warm Spring sun albeit with a backdrop of dark cloud towering to the West.

Further observations of riding abroad: an awful lot of utility riders. Girls with sun brollies, chaps with kids in tow, and blokes with half a tonne of bananas precariously aboard. Everything rusty and unoiled and a variety of home constructed trailers. Impressed. Also, around the towns, a fair few lycra-d roadies and MTB-ers. I am awed at their ability to do climbs (or the flat, even) in that unbearable heat. I also saw the utility types riding in rush hour (and it is a rush - total whacky races) in darkness - it was unnerving to even watch. The only lights I saw were on a lycra-d, serious looking commuter - and those were both white fore and aft.

Anyway, I'm back in the saddle in the UK and loving both!

I've seen exactly the same in Belgium. In Liege, in fact, which seemed a city I do not want to return to, but my opinion might be jaundiced by our having arrived there at the end of a long day driving and getting completely lost in the city.

[cycleman]

I pottered down the a 4 to the Evans at bishop's gate to pick up a tandem brake and gear cable. About 6 miles 

[Pancho]

Today I need to acquire a cauliflower (http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/baked-cauliflower-pizzaiola).

I'll be riding the same roads as my old commute but utility riding really is a different kettle of fish. I can choose to miss the traffic. I can decide to wait out the rain. I could even head in the other direction to another cauliflower shop. Or go tomorrow. I sort of miss the "it's 0600 and you're going, come hell or high water" commute discipline. Sort of.

[RibbleRouser]

Today I need to acquire a cauliflower (http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/baked-cauliflower-pizzaiola).

I'll be riding the same roads as my old commute but utility riding really is a different kettle of fish. I can choose to miss the traffic. I can decide to wait out the rain. I could even head in the other direction to another cauliflower shop. Or go tomorrow. I sort of miss the "it's 0600 and you're going, come hell or high water" commute discipline. Sort of.

If you avoid morning rush hour and the school run, it's a whole new world out there.
Don't do what I did t'other day though, and and take a Aldi shopping basket out of the door to take your groceries to your panniers.........unless you like the sound of alarm bells going off....

[Basil]

Don't do what I did t'other day though, and and take a Aldi shopping basket out of the door to take your groceries to your panniers.........unless you like the sound of alarm bells going off....

Ah yes.  I did that once in Northfield.  Luckily my bike was parked quite near the door, so I was able to take my basket back in and put it down just inside the door where I could keep an eye on it while I went to bring the bike in.

[Cudzoziemiec]

Today I need to acquire a cauliflower (http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/baked-cauliflower-pizzaiola).

Somewhat disappointed. I always thought of you as the kind of chap who would just walk in to the garden and pick from the vast variety of veg growing there. Or at least pay the deputy under-gardener to do it.

[Pancho]

Today I need to acquire a cauliflower (http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/baked-cauliflower-pizzaiola).

Somewhat disappointed. I always thought of you as the kind of chap who would just walk in to the garden and pick from the vast variety of veg growing there. Or at least pay the deputy under-gardener to do it.

I *am* the deputy under-gardener. Sadly, I've been otherwise engaged for the past couple of years and everything's returned to nature. Unless I get my arse into gear this year (go away, rain), my entire harvest will again consist of blackberries.

[Pancho]

Yes! At last I've done a double figure day.

To town and back to buy cauliflower[1]: 16 miles.
Weather: fine (because I waited out the rain and used a rain radar to make sure I wasn't being suckered into a trap)
Roads: damp and puddly (was glad I'd decided to do overtrousers)
Other Cyclists: not many but a fair few bikes in racks in town and one POB memorable because she had a surprising turn of speed despite rusty BSO and guttersniping

[1] How much should one pay for a cauliflower? I reckoned I was being seen off by the £1.50 the market bloke wanted but Aldi was no better at 90p for a v small one. I thought somewhere between a quid and £1.20 should be a fair price. I suppose we must in that gap between winter and summer cauliflowers.

[Pancho]

Forget to mention Interesting Sights.

In the hazy distance I saw the French Navy invading Gosport. If my ship recog skills haven't faded too much, their amphibious support vessel, Dixmude and a frigate or two were sending their landing craft ashore. Fortunately, BULWARK and other RN vessels were keeping them company. I think it was an exercise of the UK-French rapid deployment force. They had a good day for it - flat calm and almost sunny.

[Cudzoziemiec]

It fills every ENGLISHMAN'S heart to bursting point with pride to know that HER MAJESTY'S ROYAL NAVY is able to invade Gosport on calm, sunny morning. At least it will keep the dastardly Frogs out, eh what?!

Oh, er, hang on... Moi, pour un, dit "Bienvenue" a nos nouveaux grenouille surlords. Ou qqc comme ca.

[Ruthie]

Forget to mention Interesting Sights.

In the hazy distance I saw the French Navy invading Gosport. If my ship recog skills haven't faded too much, their amphibious support vessel, Dixmude and a frigate or two were sending their landing craft ashore. Fortunately, BULWARK and other RN vessels were keeping them company. I think it was an exercise of the UK-French rapid deployment force. They had a good day for it - flat calm and almost sunny.

My ex served on the previous Bulwark (R08).  Somewhere I might have a bit of her decommissioning pennant.  Most likely it went in the bin though.

[hatler]

Four mile round trip to drop some forgotten homework off at mini-h's school. When will he learn ??

[Pancho]

Forget to mention Interesting Sights.

In the hazy distance I saw the French Navy invading Gosport. If my ship recog skills haven't faded too much, their amphibious support vessel, Dixmude and a frigate or two were sending their landing craft ashore. Fortunately, BULWARK and other RN vessels were keeping them company. I think it was an exercise of the UK-French rapid deployment force. They had a good day for it - flat calm and almost sunny.

My ex served on the previous Bulwark (R08).  Somewhere I might have a bit of her decommissioning pennant.  Most likely it went in the bin though.

I'd not imagined you as Navy wife/girlfriend!

[Pancho]

Glorious out there, isn't it? I was in the garden all morning and realised I needed carrots for supper so nipped out.

To village and back: 1 mile
Weather: awesome - sunny, not too hot, and no wind
Other Cyclists: village bike racks full with serious utility bikes (mudguards, Altura, etc). Plus one bloke haring down the hill "towing" a trailer with lawnmower in it.
Interesting sights: bumped into a pal and stopped for a chinwag.

[Pancho]

Four mile round trip to drop some forgotten homework off at mini-h's school. When will he learn ??

Probably depends how often you bail him out!

[hatler]

Four mile round trip to drop some forgotten homework off at mini-h's school. When will he learn ??

Probably depends how often you bail him out!

Very conscious of that effect.

[jsabine]

Four mile round trip to drop some forgotten homework off at mini-h's school. When will he learn ??

Probably depends how often you bail him out!

Very conscious of that effect.

Possibly when you make it *his* four-mile round trip?

[Jules]

On the bike for the first time this year (on YACF for the first time this year!)

My day off and the sun's shining so along the Thames to Kingston to buy a new shirt and job lot of tomatoes and peppers from the market. Back to build a Peperonata for dinner.

[Ruthie]

Forget to mention Interesting Sights.

In the hazy distance I saw the French Navy invading Gosport. If my ship recog skills haven't faded too much, their amphibious support vessel, Dixmude and a frigate or two were sending their landing craft ashore. Fortunately, BULWARK and other RN vessels were keeping them company. I think it was an exercise of the UK-French rapid deployment force. They had a good day for it - flat calm and almost sunny.

My ex served on the previous Bulwark (R08).  Somewhere I might have a bit of her decommissioning pennant.  Most likely it went in the bin though.

I'd not imagined you as Navy wife/girlfriend!

Okay, I'll bite!

I've moved on since then Pancho.  It was a long, long time ago 

[Ruthie]

Just been on an errand, probably about 2.5km there and back, and my hands are absolutely frozzen now.  It's very, very cold out there.  And wet.  Very wet.

The lake in my back alley has come back, with the slippery cobblestones underneath, that's always a bit of excitement.

Just a short trip to a fellowship meeting and back, but that was enough tonight!

[Pingu]

Cycled to the Beach retail centre on Sunday to get some cat food. I was going to drive and pick up some cat litter (not urgent) at the same time but I'm glad I didn't - traffic mayhem  6.3km 

And again (plus a notverysupermarket visit), dodging the wintry showers.

[cycleman]

Pottered into Slough towing the trailer behind the trice to Iceland.
I used the carry freedom trailer in its handcart mode and loaded it at the checkout process 

[matthew]

trundled to Wokingham station for a train into Reading to play with the Brass Band on Reading Station. Then after cleaning and servicing the bike I went down to the supermarket for my shake down ride.