On the commute today

[plum]

Cheers, just on my way in with the car to pick it up and get a closer look.

[Si_Co]

Last night got the closest pass I've ever had by WVM, his mirror went over my shoulder  > a word at the lights and I got "I haven't overtaken you" 

Lovely ride this morning, nice weather, no muppetry

[GruB]

100 yards from work there's a horrid crunching sensation from the back end and all motion stops. I get off and look and the [broken] chain is wrapped around the [broken] rear derailer which was wrenched off the frame and is now wedged in between a bunch of [broken] spokes and the [severely dented] right side chainstay. I think even the dropout might be broken. Everything just smashed. No idea what got tangled in what to cause it but it's definitely what I would call catastrophic. Nothing has survived, arse.

Look on the bright side - is it N+1 now 

[clarion]

Sorry to hear about your drivetrain issues, plum.  I had my own this morning, though less disastrous.

I set off into traffic after the level crossing, but got no power out.  Neutral again.  Even changing up didn't give me anything.  I got to the other side of the road without incident, fortunately, and adjusted the cable tension which seemed 'wrong'.  Riding on a bit, I realised there was a bit more to it, and discovered my wheel, which, yesterday, I had noticed seemed a bit biased to the drive side in the chainstays, was now definitely over to the other.  I stopped, inverted the bike, released cable tension, applied chain tension, then tightened the nut.  Yes, nut, for the non-drive side nut is made of Sturmey Archer Stilton, and won't catch. 

I've got some dropout screws coming, which will help, but I need a new nut (and a spare - they never last long ).

And, no, I don't put mighty ape torque onto it.  I'm a cyclist, and have the normal arm strength for that category (i.e. all but nil).

[Notsototalnewbie]

Sorry to hear of people’s mechanical woes, not good.

I was approaching a WVM today and got prepared to do battle (it is one of those roads with parked cars on both sides and no space) but to my shock he had spotted me from a way off and pulled into a space and flashed me to go past. I tried not to faint in shock and instead smiled and waved, and he did the same.

The other day I did the same for a car when the space was on my side and he just charged past without acknowledging me, so I shouted ‘and thank you too!’ through his open window. This is proof that I have become my mother; she does this in the car all the time, except they usually can’t hear her.

[jogler]

Last night got the closest pass I've ever had by WVM, his mirror went over my shoulder  > a word at the lights and I got "I haven't overtaken you" 

Lovely ride this morning, nice weather, no muppetry

You haven't cut off your pony tail have you? WVM normall sees ( what he assumes to be ) tottyonnabike from some distance.

Reading this worries the sh$t out of Si_Co's parents

[clarion]

Put 'im on ignore

[jogler]

no way

[seraphina]

Sorry to hear of people's mechanical woes.

Todays was a bit crap all round. I still have this cold but am fed up driving in and feeling sorry for myself, so hauled myself onto the bike. Muppetry from car drivers on the single-track road I take to work - a BWM shaves past me, only to have to pull in at a passing place for an oncoming car. There's plenty of room to get a bike and a car past each other on the next stretch, so I overtake and carry calmly on. Honestly, some drivers never look past their own bonnet.

Then, I encounter a deaf old man with a dog on an extendible lead (see threads passim) Extendable lead is wafer thin and almost invisible, dog is on opposite side of lane to man. I ring bell to no avail, old man is deaf as a post. I stop, and holler "Excuse me!" and eventually he twigs I'm there and hauls the dog in. He did look a bit abashed, bless him, and I don't see why he shouldn't have a nice gentle potter on a nice wee lane in the morning, but the lead thing did bother me.

[Basil]

Bugger.
A bit of minor brake fettling last night evidently ended with me not tightening the rear wheel skewer enough, as I found out when I attempted to power away into a gap at a busy roundabout.
Wheel slipped and jammed itself against the chainstay, leaving me stranded in exactly the place I would not want to be stranded. 

Much appologetic hand waving from me as I struggled to get myself and the bike back to the side of the road.

Motons quite unfazed and helpful.

[GruB]

Phew for you Basil. 

[Ham]

Today first day in summer weight short sleeve and shorts which did lead to a lively ride and - first time evah - no pedestrian phase at Oxford Circus, I thought it was baked in, turns out it isn't.

[CrinklyLion]

I is full of cold.

Rode my bike anyway

Appear to have borrowed Kim's lungs.  When they are having a bad day

Sunshine 

Very slow, with frequent 'zOMG I'm going to fall off m'bike if I cough any more!' moments 

Bunged up nose meant I could hardly smell the poo factory water treatment works 

All about the silver linings....

[clarion]

Today first day in summer weight short sleeve and shorts which did lead to a lively ride and - first time evah - no pedestrian phase at Oxford Circus, I thought it was baked in, turns out it isn't.

I considered shorts & short sleeve last night, but didn't have space in my bag for the spare clothes

Bit nippier this morning at 0700, so I wimped out with longs.

[citoyen]

27.8km/h (just over 17mph) average for my 23km this morning. Six minutes quicker than the same route yesterday!

Only negative was that because I was pushing quite hard all the way, I didn't have anything in reserve for commuter racing, so the dude on the SS Pompino who'd been drafting me through Dulwich toasted me on the short climb of Red Post Hill. Curse him! 

If it was one of you lot... why I oughta! 

d.

[citoyen]

100 yards from work there's a horrid crunching sensation from the back end and all motion stops... Nothing has survived, arse.

Oh my, that's nasty. Commiserations! 

d.

[GruB]

Today first day in summer weight short sleeve and shorts which did lead to a lively ride and - first time evah - no pedestrian phase at Oxford Circus, I thought it was baked in, turns out it isn't.

I considered shorts & short sleeve last night, but didn't have space in my bag for the spare clothes

Bit nippier this morning at 0700, so I wimped out with longs.

This is my dilemma at this time of year.  Commute in the day time for a commute home in the late night or early morning darkness.  I have been wearing my 3/4s for ages as my calf muscles don't seem to mind being cold, but it is my upper body that suffers.  It is so nice to wear fewer layers though.  Makes me feel lighter and that converts to faster in my little brain 

[citoyen]

I've ditched the longs so far this week - shorts plus knee warmers have been fine.

I have the same problem with the top half, GruB - I really could do with a new gilet. A thermal jersey would be too warm now.

d.

[L CC]

I had company.
Some (fit- in the athletic sense) bloke with RAF on his shorts, caught me up.
I said "you pace, I'll chase". "Fair enough" he says. I had to let him go after a mile or so- I can't spin fast enough on the Phillips (68"). He'd been looking over his shoulder to be sure he was keeping me (working)- nice guy.
Bloody hell though, if I didn't catch him up a bit later- UP A HILL^1,2. 

1: For Norfolk meanings of hill.
2: He was, to be fair, carrying a mahoosive pack like wot solders run with.

3/4s for me, but the summer weight variety. And just a skimpy little vest under my jersey.

[Marco Stefano]

First cycle commute for a long time, due to all sorts of things too numerous to mention.

Left off the nagging speedo ('Is that as fast as you can go?') and just flowed on; am trying to turn '1 hour 2 mins today with a tailwind' into 'that's the nth time I have cycled this week'. Apart from the usual arse in an Audi, who overtook the poor bloke who was overtaking me (& trying to give me room) on the Mildenhall road, it was good.

[simonp]

Sleeper to London Euston + walk to Kings Cross + train to Cambridge + bus * 2 to work.

Sleeper took about 7h

Walk took about 10 minutes.

Train to Cambridge took 45 minutes + 20 mins wait while I got breakfast.

Bus * 2 to work took nearly 1h. 

[matthew]

Bunged up nose meant I could hardly smell the poo factory water treatment works 

All about the silver linings....

*Pedant mode*

Water Treatment Works won't smell, Waste water treatment works will smell.

*/pedant mode*

Glad to hear you are still riding even if not feeling great.

[Feline]

I had a lovely commute in to work last night and back home this morning. I met up with a friend and two others in Ashton Court after I finished work this morning and we had a nice pootle over to Chew Valley lake cafe where I had rhubarb crumble with custard and coffee  I then carried on through the fog over the mendips home. 59 miles altogether with panniers.

[SteveC]

Can't say what it was like as I couldn't see anything!
Wish I'd not taken the rear lights off last week!

Foggy again. I put the rear lights back on. I now discover that the batteries in the front light are flat. Probably not worth recharging now.

S

[Kim]

Appear to have borrowed Kim's lungs.  When they are having a bad day

Ah, that'll be where they went.  Could you rinse the ^{_{grinding dust}} out of them when you're done, or I'll get a telling-off from barakta.