Isle of Wight Holiday - Arrival and Settling In (Days 1-2)

We enjoyed our weekend on the Isle of Wight in May so much that we decided to go back again for our summer holiday. We booked a house for one week, in Bonchurch near Ventnor. Adam and I travelled down by bicycle and train, while Adam's adult daughter Amiiee and her boyfriend Liam came down by car - with the bulk of our luggage!

We arrived mid-afternoon on Saturday and set about settling in.

The 100 Mile SMILE Ride (8 Sept 2013)

A few pics from yesterday's event. Adam and I went to the Hub for a group "off" at 8am. We cycled to Bedford, where we then caught the train to Leagrave, from which we had a straight dash (punctuated by a puncture) home. 75km for us.

(c) Alvina Farrow/Travel Choices

The 100 Mile SMILE Ride

I've been just a bit preoccupied the past few weeks planning this:

Not sure if this is work or play. Both really.

Sartorial Identity Crisis?

Sorry for the radio silence in the past few weeks - I've been working, cycling, bike fitting, new gear testing and continuing to investigate the world of custom bikes, all of which are grist to my mill and will feature here shortly.

Meanwhile, it occurred to me today that my jersey wardrobe has Jekyll & Hyde characteristics.

On the one hand, there are the classy merino jerseys by Vulpine, Ibex and Smartwool, which, to be honest are what I wear most often -

But then there are the 'novelty' jerseys, for which I have no credible excuse -

Any other ladies out there want to confess about their lycra?

CYCLING LOG: 1-7 July 2013

Not a very exciting week this week -- 95.51 fairly routine kilometres. The exciting stuff all kicks off tomorrow!

Sun, Jul 7, 2013 - 9.10 km
9.10 km in 00:32:02 hours at 17.04 km/h on Surly Cross Check. Home to Aldi (Hatters Lane) for the cycling sale; then back home - conquered the mountain up Chaul End Road for the first time! end odo 1404.9
Sat, Jul 6, 2013 - 19.55 km
19.55 km in 01:18:38 hours at 14.92 km/h on Surly Cross Check. Home to Creasey Park football grounds, then to the Hub, then to Lark Rise school, then home. end odo 1395.8.
Fri, Jul 5, 2013 - 13.48 km
13.48 km in 00:46:13 hours at 17.50 km/h on Surly Cross Check. Home to the Hub and back. end odo 1376.2
Thu, Jul 4, 2013 - 13.70 km
13.70 km in 00:47:23 hours at 17.35 km/h on Surly Cross Check. Home to the Hub and back. end odo 1362.7
Wed, Jul 3, 2013 - 19.66 km
19.66 km in 01:28:06 hours at 13.39 km/h on Surly Cross Check. Home to the Hub, then round Dunstable doing the cycle parking audit, then home. end odo 1349.0
Mon, Jul 1, 2013 - 20.02 km
20.02 km in 01:09:45 hours at 17.22 km/h on Surly Pacer. Home to Harpenden for a full-body sports massage - bliss! Was so relaxed, couldn't work up much speed on the return journey. end odo 3282.8

Collecting Potholes

As in many areas, our rural roads suffered a lot last winter. Unfortunately, the local authorities are not in a position to undertake systematic patches/repairs. If a pothole is not individually reported, it won't get filled.

Here are the ones I am reporting this week. I don't 'worry' much about rough surfaces per se. I take note of holes that are big/deep/rough enough to (a) potentially bring down a cyclist if hit with a front wheel or (b) cause a cyclist a lot of difficulty if he's being crowded by a fast vehicle behind or overtaking.

Slip End by the PAIGE car park.
While not particularly deep, a cyclist not already familiar with
its location is presented with a last-minute
"which way to go round it" decision to make,
usually with a few cars that had to wait behind you
at the traffic lights now itching to get past!

In Woodside: a rough and bumpy mess on a sharp descent
to a T-junction. Negotiating this while braking hard
and preparing to indicate is not fun. 

Manor Road between Woodside and Caddington:
another "which way to go" dilemma for the unwary. 

Manor Road:   just... ouch.  Hate this. 

I hope these will be filled in sometime this month.

CYCLING LOG: 24-30 June 2013

97.11 km this week... and 641.86 km for the month. Sun, Jun 30, 2013 - 31.35 km	Max Speed: 52.80 Calories: 344.2
31.35 km in 02:21:10 hours at 13.32 km/h on Surly Pacer. Home to the Hub for Ride Leader Training, which included two lengthy practical sessions and assessments. Got sunburnt in bright humid sunshine - summer for a day? end odo 3262.8
Sat, Jun 29, 2013 - 13.58 km	Max Speed: 59.80 Calories: 209.9
13.58 km in 00:44:23 hours at 18.36 km/h on Surly Pacer. Home to the Hub and back. end odo 3231.5
Thu, Jun 27, 2013 - 26.02 km	Max Speed: 53.20
26.02 km in 01:54:41 hours at 13.61 km/h on Surly Cross Check. Home to the Hub; out to Houghton Regis to record levels of bicycle parking at nine areas with bike parking stands, back to the Hub; then home. end odo 1329.3
Wed, Jun 26, 2013 - 12.69 km	Max Speed: 40.60
12.69 km in 01:03:55 hours at 11.91 km/h on Surly Pacer. Home to Luton Airport Parkway station; Farringdon station to Look Mum No Hands, then to Cyclefit (Macklin Street) then to Cycle Surgery (Procter Street), back to Cyclefit, then to Specialized Concept Store (Mercer Street) then to Leather Lane for dinner then to Farringdon Station. Forgot to put computer back on bike for one/more segments of travel today. end odo 3217.9
Tue, Jun 25, 2013 - 13.47 km	Max Speed: 53.50
13.47 km in 00:45:11 hours at 17.89 km/h on Surly Cross Check. Home to the Hub and back. end odo 1303.3

Carbon Test Ride #2 - Er, Aborted.

I found myself in London on Wednesday and popped into "my" CycleSurgery store.

I say "my" because, before I started cycling again as an adult and even before I started window shopping for a bicycle, I shopped around for a bike shop first. And the CycleSurgery ("CS") on Procter Street (near Holborn tube station) was where I felt more welcome, best listened to. I bought my first adult bike there. I bought a few more bikes elsewhere in the year that followed, but then went back to CS for a second Brompton. And very nearly bought my first light road bike there -- a 2012 Specialized Ruby Comp -- only to be scuppered by my finance application being rejected.

On the strength of the relationship with CS, I popped in and asked if they happened to have a 51cm Ruby in stock available for a test ride. They didn't. However, they have a close partnership with the Specialized Concept Store ("SCS") just down the road near Seven Dials, so they picked up the phone and found that, yes, the SCS had a 51cm Ruby on the shop floor. I was told it was being set aside for me, available for a test ride anytime before 7pm that day.

I turned up at the SCS around 5.45pm. The three people I chatted with were friendly and helpful. But it all began to go wrong when the young sales assistant said to me, as he knelt down to remove my pedals from my Pacer for fitting to the Ruby --

"Oh and you'll have to have your credit card swiped for a deposit while you're out on the Ruby".

No problem, getting prior authorisation on a token sum (up to £50) is typical, so that the store knows your card is valid.

"Fine, how much?" I asked.

"The full value of the bike," he answered.

A trifle shocked, my reply was nonetheless calm and firm:

"While I do have that kind of money -- thank you very much -- and wouldn't be here otherwise, you've just closed the door to a possible sale, because I am not having £2,500 effectively removed from my account for 7-10 days" (as that's how long it can take for an unclaimed authorisation to drop away).

So -- no test ride.

I've still not ridden a Specialized carbon bicycle. Now it looks like I never will.

Meanwhile, however, my investigations into titanium continue and indeed are looking rather hopeful...

CYCLING LOG: 17-22 June 2013

130.34 km this week - phew!

Sat, Jun 22, 2013	Max Speed: 38.30
11.02 km in 00:51:28 hours at 12.85 km/h on Surly Cross Check. Home to the Hub with empty trailer; to Priory Academy and back to Hub with loaded trailer; home with empty trailer. Had to walk/push up Caddington Hill. end odo 1289.6
Fri, Jun 21, 2013	Max Speed: 36.10
37.24 km in 02:43:09 hours at 13.70 km/h on Surly Cross Check. From the Hub to Leighton Buzzard via the Sewell Greenway; round Leighton Buzzard delivering leaflets; back to the Hub via the Greenway again, and then up. Another successful ascent of Caddington Hill! end odo 1278.6
Thu, Jun 20, 2013	Max Speed: 57.00
7.77 km in 00:28:40 hours at 16.26 km/h on Surly Cross Check. Home to the Hub, to Furness Avenue for a led walk then back to the Hub. end odo 1241.3
Wed, Jun 19, 2013 evening	Calories: 350.3
28.21 km in 01:42:12 hours at 16.56 km/h on Surly Pacer. Home to Creasey Park, then on a Led Ride to Stanbridge and back; home via Caddington Hill (success!). end odo 3205.2
Wed, Jun 19, 2013	Max Speed: 56.30
21.39 km in 01:39:23 hours at 12.91 km/h on Surly Cross Check. Home to Hadrians Academy via Chaul End Road and Hatters Way; to the Hub; then home. Walked up Caddington Hill. end odo 1233.5
Tue, Jun 18, 2013	Max Speed: 59.60 Calories: 226.5
15.78 km in 00:55:31 hours at 17.05 km/h on Surly Pacer. Home to the Hub, then to White Lion Retail Park then home. end odo 3177.0
Mon, Jun 17, 2013	Max Speed: 50.00
8.63 km in 00:35:21 hours at 14.65 km/h on Surly Cross Check. Home to Streetfield Middle School and back. end odo 1212.1

Carbon Test Ride #1.

In pursuit of test riding a carbon-framed bicycle, I visited Pedalworks in Dunstable on Wednesday. Brian, the owner, took the time to set me up with a carbon-framed bicycle on a trainer to get a decent fit -- including swapping out for a shorter stem and even a faster set of wheels!  Fantastic service there (though Brian is a bit of a Marmite character!)

The bike I rode was the Trek Domane 4.3 WSD: