Happy New Year!

Well, finished work again until after the New Year.. will be doing a ride tomorrow but may have to wait until my return to work before writing it up. I guess all that's left is to wish all readers a Happy New Year!

New bike riding component reviews

I've added some new reviews to the site, this time on the Bikehut shock absorber pump, and the Specialized Hemisphere MTB road tyres. Enjoy!

Replacement bike light(s)..

As riding home from work in the Winter evenings is decidedly dodgy, I decided, as per my post yesterday, to buy a new rear light, after the existing one was destroyed when my bike rack fell from the wall in the garage. So at lunchtime, I took a walk up to Evans again to see what was on offer. The TL-LD130-R, which was the one I had previously but got in a pack with a front light, was priced at £7.99 on its' own, which is less than I thought it'd be, so I took a look at some other models. I finally decided on another TL-LD130-R, as well as a TL-LD150-R at £9.99, which looks to be exactly the same model but with five LEDs instead of the three of the TL-LD130-R. I've fitted these both to the bike, planning on having one on constant beam and one on flashing. Should be great for visibility.

More new bike riding clothing..

I never have the days between Christmas and New Year off of work; because the office is so empty, it's a great chance to do the various important I.T house-keeping tasks that are hard to do when the office is fully staffed. This also gave me a great chance to go shopping at lunch, to spend the rest of my Christmas money!

I was after a lightweight, wind-proof, breathable jacket, and wasn't prepared to spend much more than £50. I had a look in the Bikehut near my office, but there was nothing anywhere near this price, apart from a fluorescent yellow waterproof jacket which didn't look breathable.

So I took a look in Evans, where I found a jacket by Altura for £60 (the "Night Vision"), which met my criteria. Whilst there, I also decided to have a look at the legging-type things which I personally associate more with roadies, but have been seeing more on MTB riders. I wouldn't wear these on their own, but I reckoned they'd be perfect for wearing underneath some trackies; its' easy to build up insulation on the top half of your body through layering than it is the bottom. I ended up with a pair of black leggings, designed for use predominantly in the summer - I felt Winter ones would be too warm to wear in the Summer, whereas these could potentially be worn all year round.

These were also by Altura (The model is "Cruiser 06"); their stuff is very good value, but I am wary that I'm starting to look like a walking advert for them at the moment ; )

So, I'm pretty sorted for riding to work now, which I actually did this morning - wearing only my Kona riding top and the above Altura jacket, along with my riding shorts (also Altura - see what I mean about being a walking advert?), riding gloves, legging things and some standard trackies - and I was absolutely snug for the whole 8 mile ride; I really think I've got it sussed with the balance between flexibility / breathability / warmth.

As I've invested a fair amount of cash in enabling myself to ride the 8 miles back and forth from work every day (over £200 for a service, £25 for Cateye lights, another £25 for new saddle / seatpost, goodness knows how much for clothing, etc etc), I was hoping that I wouldn't have to do so for a while. However, just before Christmas, the wall mounted bike holder that I'd lovingly installed in the garage was ripped off the wall about 20 minutes after putting the Fire Mountain on there in addition to the Dawg. To say I was a bit gutted would be an understatement; we used the recommended fixtures for the job, and the rack did say it could hold up to two bikes, but alas, it was not to be. Casualties so far include a flat tyre on the Dawg, and a smashed-to-smitherines rear Cateye light - so it looks like another trip to the bike shop at lunch to get a new one. Doh!

I've not had a chance to ride the Dawg since, but did check the frame over for dings, and span the wheels to make sure the discs weren't damaged, and it seemed fine - next ride is booked for Sat, so I guess I'll see then..

General bike riding news..

Now got my Dawg back from Evans, having ridden in to work on Tuesday to get it there by 9:00AM. Got the spoke fixed, so it's basically back to full health, apart from the bottom bracket sizing, which isn't stopping it being ridden as such. The spoke replacement plus wheel truing cost £15; not too bad.

I also decided to ride to work today, but didn't want to ride the Dawg, and didn't have the Fire Mountain at my new place - it's still in my garage at my parents. So, I rode the moped to my parents in the morning, and rode the Fire Mountain from there to work, with a view to riding it back to my place tonight.

So, this week so far (including Sunday), I would've ridden 61 miles by the time I get back home this evening - not bad going! Riding to work's going to prove difficult for the rest of the week, as it's the Christmas party tomorrow..

Brighton to Lewes and back again..

This Sunday, we did the Brighton to Lewes ride again - a good short-medium distance ride with, as described on the gallery, a good get out point half-way through, if required.

The ride from our start point was about 18 miles; however, due to the fact that I have now moved, to about 10 miles away from our start point, it was more like 40 miles for me. My injured finger was fine, except for the fact that I couldn't straighten it after the ride - it had bent to the shape of the handlebar, and I had to do lots of my physiotherapy exercises to get it straight again!

Nothing much to report, the ride was pretty good fun, especially on the only downhill bit, where we were sliding all over the place, and taken at an easy pace. On the way home from town, along the sea front, I managed to snap another spoke (doh!) doing a little bunny-hop - this is booked in to Evans tomorrow - again, I've used them because they have very little work on at the moment. I also spoke to them about getting my bottom bracket replaced, which hasn't been done since Bikehut replaced it with one the wrong size on the London to Brighton bike ride; this has the effect of changing the chain line, and causes extra wear and tear on the drive train. However, Evans charge £40 for doing this - sounds absolutely extortionate to me considering the Bottom Bracket I want (an FSA Platinum, like my current one but the right size), is £38.99!

Finally - an off-road ride!!

Had my first off-road ride in twelve weeks on Saturday; this followed the River Adur from Shoreham up to Bramber castle. Nothing spectacular, about 10 miles, and very flat, but it wasn't too bad as a first ride in what seemed like an age.

The ride just followed the River Adur as it meanders North from Shoreham up to Bramber; the castle is about 1/4 mile along the road once you get in to Bramber.

More bike riding accessories..

Once again updated the bike riding accessories page, this time to include the new components fitted in my service - these include Specialized Hemisphere tyres, new drivetrain (almost!), and some new brake components.

Bike riding update

As I'm moving home at the weekend, and planning to ride the 8 miles each way at least three times a week, I thought I'd have a go and see how it went.

The ride took an hour (with a strong headwind!), including a stop off to buy some Lucozade for when I got to my destination! I'm not really used to riding more than a few miles without at least a little break / drink, but I didn't find it too bad, just being a little hot by the time I got there - I suspect that this will improve after a few weeks. I also had to ride the 5 miles back to my house from there in the morning - not the best experience at 7:00AM, but bearable.

Today it is officially 12 weeks since I had the operation to repair the tendon in my finger; I have about 80% of movement back in my finger, and have been using the hand pretty much normally for a while now, probably not doing my exercises as regularly as I should, but still making an effort. I've been riding my motorbike for about three weeks now and riding my MTB to work for about two, and everything seems to be fine, so hopefully will get a chance to ride off-road at the weekend, although this may not happen due to my moving in. Already booked a ride for a week Sunday though - nothing'll stop me going on that one!

I've boshed in another review in the Reviews section, this time it's my Cateye lights.