An enthusiastic look at taking life back; no stress, no harm.

Ancient Orange 5, North Downs forts; a week in Surrey.

2019-07-21T07:47:00.001-07:00

My Orange 5.

I've had this bike since early 2013, a black special edition. Bought as I'd purchased a dropper post in the CRC Black Friday sale and needed a bike to fit it to. Really! It has never been my go-to bike, and I'm not sure why. Certainly when bought I could not see why it ever got five star reviews. By heck it was heavy. For example, the dropper wasn't that much heavier then the existing seat post. The wheels were ridiculous. I'm still shaving weight as it has 1x gearing and tubeless tyres courtesy of Decathlon.

It is a bit better now, a little more fun.

Modified Orange Five

This year I've not used it much as I have a new hard tail, one of the 650b+ variety. Decided to play with the 5 this week. Oh dear. I've obviously got used to new geometry as this Five was horrid. Just an odd riding position, as if the bottom bracket was miles in front. After 20 miles my hip joints hurt. Hated it.

Got home, pondered a bit. It was fine six months ago.... Dropped the saddle 5mm, put a new saddle on, rotated the handlebars forward a tad, adjusted the gears and brakes. Two rides on and it is back to being fine. Go figure.

Glued on mudguard

I also tired of the mudguard moving around, so glued it in place. Job done. The Five is an ugly bike anyway; I've not made it worse.

Trail gremlins.

It can be a struggle riding around here. Today, on a legal trail there was a woman off to one side, standing on a patch of grass with her dogs. As I rode past, one dog barked at me, so the woman called me an idiot.

There's also been a fair bit of land owners reclaiming land. Trails that we have used for years have disappeared.

Barbed wire - not nice.

And then there are the trail fairies putting logs over the trails. I'm not sure this is anti bike so much as anti everyone. On Stane Street, an ancient Roman road and the A29 for much of its' length, somebody had dragged an iron gate across it. That's just arse.

North Downs forts.

My plan this week had been to visit a few of the 1890's forts. I started with the one over Merstham. It was overgrown.

Merstham fort

It was OK. Derelict and full of junk. Reigate one was nicer, and the Bletchingly one non-existent. Box Hill I just rode past, on my way to the one at Dorking. That turned out not to exist, so I took a photo of a church instead.

Flint church, Dorking.

Actually as a project it lacked, shall we say, interest. As an excuse to ride a little off the beaten track? Pretty cool. Even though I've been riding these trails for years, this little project found me some new ones.

Not all cycling....

Managed to squeeze in a work day in London.

Thames

Avocado people.

Elephant & Castle.

Fruit.

As I am now taking a camera out, I'm a little more observant. Taking the photo below, I spotted some wild raspberries. Made my day!

Secret raspberry location

And for every ying, there is a yang.

Fly tipping

This is in Walton, an area where the average home is over £1m. This has been dumped by a person who lives in a £1m home - only a local would know where this is, as you cannot drive to it at all.

A busy little week. Probably managed to ride over 80 miles, all off-road. Life is good.

Banstead woods and the massive thistle.

2019-06-30T06:17:00.001-07:00

Banstead Woods.

On saturday my boy and I rode over to a scouts meeting in Banstead. (Current Scouts moto: "Even though the Scout leaders are morbidly obese, they can still be role models to the youth of today!") My boy was not happy. Not only are the trails overgrown, in the shade the weather did this to us...

In the shade!

Speedy Pete happy in the sun.

Getting to Banstead.

The route over to Banstead is an odd, up and down affair as it cuts across several small valleys. A lot of the bridleways have not been cut back recently, and so it can be hard going - watch for nettles! Whilst taking this image, a Mitchell B-25 bomber flew overhead. That does not happen every day,does it?

Looking at J8 of the M25.

My route today took me up Coles Meads, over Greenclump Hill, over to Babylon, through the Smugglers Pit and over to Lambert's Shaw. Where else but the UK do you get such odd official names for places? Oh and I passed Mogador.

Flowers.

A lot of the trails north of Reigate heading towards Sutton are farmland, and this year seem to have been left to the wild flowers. Makes it all very pleasant.

Banstead wild flowers

My rides of old used to be characterised and defined by my bike. The ride would be designed to make use of the best characteristics of a particular bike. Since they dicked around with wheel sizes, I lost interest in bikes as bikes. I also lost interest in the guy I was riding with, and so my rides drifted a bit, with no purpose. Riding solo, motivation can slip. Of late I've been taking a camera out. Gradually the ride purpose has morphed into finding a particular photograph; in this instance the fantastical thistle. My bike on any given day is now just a tool to get me to a location. It's better that way, for me.

Banstead wild flowers

The 9ft thistle, Banstead

9ft thistle, Banstead

This is the thistle in question. Must stand 9ft tall in this field of flowers. As you ride down the hill, it looks really odd, like some kind of art installation.

Crappy "let's have another gate" bridleway

Of course it is not all plain sailing. I spotted the above sign near the A217. Never ridden down there before! Can see why; gate after gate after gate.

And this is a reasonable good bridleway

Middle of nowhere.

£5m house madam?

Competitive house building, Kingswood.

Rather oddly people seem engaged in competitive house-building right in Kingswood. Mega-millionaires will buy a £1m house, knock it down and put up a £5m instead. This one is small, perhaps 8 bedrooms. Others are up to 3x the size. They give them odd names, like "Gleneagles" or "Turnberry" even though we are in Surrey. I'm guessing golf is big right now?

The road they are on is a big, private estate, Kingswood Warren. I was having a nose, and found these houses (although they are not hiding!). Rather nicely the road I took terminates at a gulley running downhill. You kind of nip off the road, near an Aston-Martin, and then shoot down the gulley. It's OK - you take your pleasures where you can in Banstead.

I much prefer this one, at the foot of Box Hill.

And in London the other day....

Not sure what was going on here at Parliament.

Whyte 900 series bikes with the TRP Slate T4 brakes. Why??

2019-06-23T03:02:00.000-07:00

Slate T4 rear brake on the new 900 series mountain bikes.

Had my bike for roughly three months now, and the rear brake pads have gone. Odd, as there is loads of life left in the fronts. Had a look, and it turns out the caliper was put in at an angle, so the one pad has worn to nubbin at the rear, with almost a complete depth of material at the front. Oh well, change them. But when I looked at the caliper, it's obvious TRP never actually considered the fact that owners may one day need to, you know, adjust these things. I mean, how exactly are you supposed to get go this bolt??

I've even struggled to get a photo that doesn't look as though I am being deliberately obtuse. Grrrrrr.

I did manage to get to it, at an angle where one day the bolt will die. Not happy with this design at all.

Mirrorless with an old Prinzflex 28mm lens

2019-06-21T10:30:00.000-07:00

My old Prinzflex 28mm.

This is an old Dixons own brand lens bought for less than £10. Normally these things are pretty useless, and sit in charity shops for years. They are not so brilliant even now, as they are manual focus only. On my mirrorless, focusing can be tough on a sunny day, more luck than anything else. Bit of patience works though.

These were all taken near Tower Bridge, as I was up there for work.

Number 4

Water fountain

Before the big moment.

River Thames boats.

Dogs; they are just annoying now.

2019-06-16T07:52:00.001-07:00

Flaming June.

Fairly quiet week really. Took the fatty out for a spin, thinking I'd hate it. Oddly enough it was fine, although why they exist is a little beyond me. Sure I still get it; they can be fun and they look mad. Glad I built mine, as I have had a good few years out of it. However with the 2.8" tyres we have now, there's no real need for 4". Just too heavy, too ponderous. I'm going to keep it for winter use or those days when I'm not going anywhere.

The rest of the week, the 901. Now that's just a fast bike, and I've amended my rides to suit it, rather than force things onto it. It doesn't do miles, so now I don't. Little and often seems to be the mantra with these long, low and slack bikes. Plod up, blast down. And why not? I can easily fit a 90 minute ride in now and then, but the old 75 milers pre-children? No chance. And anyway, I'm heading for 60 years old so am happier keeping it local.

No mudguards then? Ah well.

Of course the June weather needs mention. Wet. There you go; enough about the weather!

You see that storm rolling in....

Dogs.

I used to like them. Indeed growing up we usually had a dog around, and for my teenage years I had two. I'm familiar with dogs. Times change. We had one at home the other year, a Police dog we looked after. Liked the dog, but not the concept of ownership. Always picking up poo; people want to talk to you about the dog; can't go in cafes on walks; other dogs attack yours. I'm now all for working dogs, but not general ownership. And today just tipped the balance again. On top of Reigate Hill, nobody about, minding my own business in the rain. To my left somebody opens a gate and lets a dog run out, straight into my front wheel. I fell off. Couldn't be bothered remonstrating with the owner as he had the "sorry, I'm an inept dog owner" look on his face.

Some photos of my week, as I'm moaning now!

Headley Heath pond

Headley Heath pond, Foxglove + bee.

Secret trail, Banstead Heath

Poppies, Mogador

Wonder where this goes?

That's a bloomin' big poppy!

Playing with the camera - my old chair!

My Sony Nex5 mirrorless camera with an old M42 Prinzflex 28mm lens

2019-06-11T06:34:00.002-07:00

My Nex5.

I've had this camera for ages. Bought new for around £300, they can be had for a sixth of that now off eBay. To be truthful I've never liked the Nex5. Buttons too fiddly, stuff hidden in odd sub menus and the original Sony lens was rubbish. The camera sat in a drawer for ages, unused for probably four years or so. I've revived it with a series of adaptors for old lenses. The 28mm one I have on now is a re-branded thing from Dixons. It must date back to the mid to late 1980's and is, to be fair, junk. Even with my degenerating eyes I can see that the images are not sharp. But for £18.....

With an M42-NEX adaptor the f-stop and focus shown on the lens are moot points. Especially the focus, as infinity is now actually around roughly the 3m point on the focus ring. I can work around this as I'm not after perfect images. I just want something that helps tell a story on here or Instagram. The only other negative being size, as some of these old lenses, with an adaptor fitted, are huge on the tiny Sony. Kind of renders the one benefit of the Nex - size - redundant.

I like playing with these things, and when out on the bike if the camera and lens get trashed, it's no big deal as they can all be replaced for less than £90. I'd cry if the investment was ten times that. Indeed I'd probably not take such an expensive camera out, which would render owning one slightly pointless.

For me these images are perfectly acceptable. It gives me a reason to get out, as riding solo on essentially the same trails week in, week out can mean motivation suffers. Now, instead of thinking about riding dull loops to the same cafes or pubs, I'm off out trying to find places to photograph. Keeps me happy! Anything that gets me out of the house is a good thing, eh?

Reigate Hill

Pine cone

Reigate Hill.... again

For a change.... Reigate Hill

This last image is only included as I was out on the fat bike, and it shows my tyre tracks 😊

My Whyte 901; leaving Strava; dodgy knees.

2019-06-04T06:36:00.002-07:00

Leaving Strava.

I just do not like it. Used it a few times, and each time my liking it declines from an initial it's ok, to what's the point! To me it's a very odd thing, and I think the "kudos" grates. Why do some users feel obliged to record every activity they do, and others to give kudos to the most mundane events. "Walked around the block today." Kudos! "Cycled to the park." Kudos! To my mind it is a form of on-line bullying, where some "in" users are given congratulations for conforming to a set of rules, and others ignored if they stray from the path of acceptance. I don't like the site at all, so I've de-activated my account. I'm not at all sure it is healthy being occupied, or chasing, kudos from other people.

Note that in life I do not like praise at all. If somebody compliments me, I think them strange. I know I did good, or bad; I don't need anybody to tell me. So the kudos thing always seemed odd and superfluous. The data in Strava tells you anyway; that's the point. Talking of which, that also annoyed me.... I go for a ride, then come back and look through some data? Am I an accountant or, God forbid, an economist? No.

Bye bye Strava.

Living stuff

Personally when I put a bike computer on the handlebars, and specifically go out to do Strava, a lot of the pleasure of a ride is lost. Take the little trail above. With Strava going I'd hack along at a pace, trying to beat an utterly pointless time. Turn it off, and at times I still hack along. But there are times when I'm pootling, and spot little bits of colour or a new cafe / pub. I'm not into flowers, or nature at all really, yet these things caught my eye. Why are they here? Same as the poppy below. I'm guessing people are either throwing seeds out as they walk, or these places were once gardens. These are not wild flowers after all.

I'm pleased with the poppy image. It was taken using a lens that is only worth £5 at most. Bought from a local charity shop attached to an old 35mm film camera. I did look in one of the camera magazines today, the intention being to buy something new. It advised getting a very basic starter camera at £600, or £1,200 if you were a bit more serious. They may be right, yet I carry my camera out on bike rides - really do not want to invest huge amounts in something that will get broken. It's not like I try and sell images, mine are just for my blog that is read by a select group of 5 or 6 people. I don't let everyone read this you know.....

Not hacking about generally means observing the world around you. Why, for instance, are the woods now full of make shift shelters? Every single wood now has a shelter, rope swing or fire pit. In fairness this particular one would not offer much protection for anybody.

My Whyte 901.

This week I fitted the little bell I got from Brick Lane Bikes. My life is like that, full of excitement. Kudos! Used it today and got ignored each and every time. One walker, after the third ring, said it sounded like a dog whistle. Can't win can you?

Slightly useless bell.

The bike itself is running fine. Still grates that it cannot take a rear mudguard, and that fitting a back light is a pain. And why is the bottle cage so far down? It's a right stretch to get to, as I have to reach right down to the bottom bracket. I'm still not at all convinced that modern bikes are actually that good. Sure point it down something, and it is brilliant. Best bike I own for that. Want to use it as a bike, and travel somewhere? Best keep below 25 miles then, eh? Those tyres, no matter what people say, are tough on the legs once you get to around 20 miles. And the solid rear end is tough on my rear end. Not a comfy ride at all. Very single purpose machine. OK I'm sounding old, but there was a time when a bike had to do everything not just one thing. Sure, go back to the 1990's and they were generally useless at most things. I'm talking about run-out 26" bikes, with less than 70 degree head angles, or even early 650b or 29" machines.

I think once bikes went 650b, then mutated to trail centre specific designs, they lost a bit more than they gained. My old Gary Fisher Tassajara, if I put a dropper on, would pull away from the Whyte if miles were involved. Perhaps I just bought the wrong bike for what I do. Most likely I did.

Chalk path, Reigate Hill

To be fair, at the end of a ride, facing the speedy descent that is the chalk path, the Whyte does shine. It's got more ability than me. Put me at the top of this trail, and get me to chose from my 1995 Orange Clockwork, or the Whyte. I'd soon shut up moaning then.

One last thing; jumps. This week I've been doing the odd jump now and then. Sometimes they look graceful, and I land like a Ninja. Mostly I land in a clattery mess, barely getting away with it hoping against hope that nobody saw me. Skillz bro! Anyway, one thing I have noticed is that 54 year old knees don't like jumps.....

By "jump" I mean a less than graceful arc to heights of 5" or less. Some of you out there may not actually recognise them as being jumps. Indeed if you were to watch me, from the side it would look like a bike glued to the ground whilst my head went vertically upwards for a nano second, followed closely by my feet and legs going in nine different directions. A little bit of wee may come out.

And now we talk ticks in Banstead.

2019-05-26T06:46:00.001-07:00

This week I got ticked off.

Yup, a famous Surrey tick. I know exactly where I got it; somewhere in Kingswood as the bridleways have not been cut back. Had a few of these things now, all locally. This is the first that has managed to feed on me. Annoying! It's left a little scab and red mark. Bought a tick removal tool ages ago, expecting never to use it. Seem to use it every few months, so well worth buying one and keeping it in your wallet. That or never go out?

Sunday, 26th with my 13 year old boy.

He's not a keen rider at all. Reluctant may cover his enthusiasm levels. Pity really, as he's one of the better riders I've been out with. He doesn't really break sweat going up the hills, and even cleaned the Pyramid climb on Headley. If you are local, then you know that's good going. He's a little reckless going downhill - 34mph today, much to the amusement of two aged walkers. Actually fear would be more appropriate, as stopping the bike isn't a skill he's mastered yet. One thing he is, is a gob shite.

Still, at least my aged PACE RC303 is still getting used. Oddly enough, out of my collection of 26" bikes, that's the one I no longer like riding even though it has been my main bike for 13 years. It feels small. I took the 901 out today, and it was boringly fine - apart from the rear wheel trying to escape.

Continuing my theme of playing with cameras on a ride, this image was taken with an old Cosina 50mm lens that I picked up in a charity shop for ten pounds - and that included the excellent 35mm film camera as well. Bargain. Here I attached it to an old mirror-less camera using a cheap adaptor. No idea what the flower is; a yellow one?

M25 graffiti dash - Banstead wild side.

2019-05-21T05:38:00.000-07:00

Gary Fisher Tassajara 26"

The Tassajara was the first bike I built from scratch. Bought the frame, used, for £70 and went from there. I've owned it for 14 years now, and think it perhaps represents a time when 26" peaked. Not quite tubeless, not dropper post friendly, and would be out of its' depth at a trail centre, even back when it was new 15 years ago. But back then we still only had the one bike to do it all. I used this bike to commute to work, ride cross country each Sunday, do the odd trail centre, or go on long distance rides where some road work would have been involved. It's been ridden to Guildford, Shoreham, Brighton, Eastbourne and even Rye. I took it out today, the first time since Christmas, and expected it to be awful. It was fine. OK the 560mm handlebars took a bit of getting used to, as did the 30x36t gearing. The brakes are pretty bad. 5 miles in, all was good and I was happy.

Tassajara

Perhaps the Tassajara wears its' age well as it did sport different geometry to most bikes. It was quite stretched out for the time. It's also very light for a mainstream bike - less than 25lb.

Certainly my Whyte would be more confident off-road, climbing and descending better. Mix in some road work though, and I'd rather take the red bike. Even with a leather saddle and bag it's lighter than the Whyte. So far, of my little collection of 26" bikes, only my Pace RC303 is awful to ride. Sure I'd not take any to a trail centre, but I rarely do those anyway. And if I want a fast few hours, the Whyte is enormous fun. For bimbling, or longer rides, 26" is perfectly fine as is.

I still think bike progress is now the same as for motorbikes or digital cameras. 30 years ago a GSXR1100 was a beast; then, as other bikes got more powerful, it morphed into a tourer. A 6mp camera ten years ago would have been awesome, now you can get 50mp versions. Really, though, any bike with over 100bhp is fast, and more than 10mp is wasted if you just upload on to Instagram. And with mountain bikes, a professional downhill rider on a 20 year old bike would beat you on your modern version just about anywhere. I'm not saying give up, stick to old tech, just sometimes progress has to be taken with a pinch of salt.

Banstead.

I didn't stray too far today - just over to Banstead. It's a cross country jaunt involving country lanes, so any bike is fine.

Road to Banstead

Would you believe this trail is 1 mile from the A217, or 3 miles from the M25?

M25 graffiti

Yes, I hate this bit under the M25

Little girl, suicide and a peace dove??

And then there were snails....

2019-05-19T05:52:00.001-07:00

What have the Romans ever done for us?

Snail shell

Must admit I've not seen a live one of these snails for years now. Where have they all gone?

Very quiet out and about today.

My ride was the usual Village Cafe spin out. Didn't fancy being out for hours, just wanted coffee really. Of course on the way there I pass some stunning places:

Just for balance, my rides aren't always perfect views and eternal sunshine....

Not sure who this lot are - they stopped in front of me.....

Dropper post.

A slow ride did give me time to ponder on my 901, a 2013 model 5 and a 2012 Rockshox dropper. I'd taken the Orange today. The more I ride those two bikes, the more they compliment each other. The Orange is now a great cross country machine, where the 901 is brilliant downhill and a chore cross country. Go figure!

Boring photo of a bike

And the dropper? Utterly reliable. I have had no issues in 7 years. It's not perfect. The lever is all wrong, and the action of the post itself awful - press the lever and it does not drop. You have to press the lever, get off the saddle then put all of your mass back on. Cable operated ones are so much better.

Dropper post

I'd been in a French sports shop during the week, and spotted some hiking trousers with a reinforced backside to them. Perfect for night rides? Not too warm this May, so gave them a go. Outward bound, remnants of the day, they were warm. After the pub stop? Awesome!

Grand day to be out.

Reigate and the Sussex Weald

I've been riding solo for over a year now, and it is fine. Do miss a bit of company now and then, yet there's always something to distract me. The rides with certain company over the past few years started fine, but degenerated into mutual lack of respect, which is never a good basis for friendship. Got to the stage now where we ignore each other. Now I can combine three hobbies; cycling, eating and photography. I'm only good at one, and fortunately some places do excellent food :-)

Singletrack

And whilst waiting for horses to pass....

Green stuff in the woods

Walton-on-the-pond.

Must have been something on as the town was full of bunting:

Bunting

It's my birthday, so let's go to Highgate Cemetery.

2019-05-18T09:07:00.001-07:00

It's my birthday. I'll cry if I want to.

Not sure why, ages ago I saw advertised a tour of Highgate cemetery, the place where Karl Marx is buried. I mooted that I'd like to go one day, not expecting to either remember to ever go or for my wife to book it as a birthday treat. That's the last thing anybody would buy as a gift.....

The tour started around 2pm, enough time to buy some bits in Brick Lane Bikes and a curry somewhere along the lane itself. Got my bits, yet walking along the lane we found all of the curry houses closed. I'd been looking forward to that! Ah well, we'll get something decent at Highgate. This is Islington after all.

Nope. We got there an hour before the tour and it was a wasteland in terms of places to eat. Ended up, my birthday lunch, a sarnie from Wenzels eaten in a park. You really want to be me eh?

My wife, the relic.

The tour.

It was OK. The lady doing the tour had clearly been taught what to say and when, yet she'd not revisited the lesson for some time. On the tour she was fine, it was only flicking through the guide later on that we realised she'd got gaps in her knowledge. We also realised that the tour wasn't because of safety fears, but because they could charge. I'm not against people charging for things, more a little disappointed they'd thought the ruse up and not been honest about it.

Actually her lack of knowledge becomes more annoying the more I think about it. She couldn't answer any questions that weren't in the script, so why have a guide at all? I found out more in five minutes from Google than 70 minutes with her. Some Australians were less impressed. She kept pointing out famous authors. "Have you read the book?" asked an Australian. No came the reply, or if she had, the book in question had been dull so she'd not read much. It's interesting snipets like that, that add to a tour don't you think? She was a nice lady, just not a fountain of knowledge.

If you are in the area anyway, the tour is fine. I'd not suggest travelling to it. The main drawback for me being no matter how famous the person, or interesting they were in life, a grave is a grave no matter how it is dressed up. I thought it was bigger than it was as well.

Afterwards.

Brick Lane must be open by now! Early tea, mooch about London of an evening, late train home after a bottle of wine in a snug pub....

Nope, wife wanted to see daughter as it was the day of her first exam, so home we went. Back by 5pm.

My birthday. I'd bought a little bell, a t-shirt, eaten a sarnie and looked around a graveyard. Makes you want to move to London doesn't it?

Where eagles dare - hidden Caterham Valley

2019-05-06T04:57:00.000-07:00

Caterham or bust.

Redhill from the Pilgrims' Way

My past three rides have all been over to Caterham; loops via Godstone and the North Downs. Anti clockwise is best, as then you have the gradual, woody climb up to Gravelly Hill and the fun blast down the Pilgrims' Way. Sometimes though you have to play fair, and do the initial big climb up. In the dry it is fine, 5 minutes out of your life. In the mud you'll be criticising your parents for your birth. Why me! Why me!

The whole ride is as anti trail centre as you can get - very old school cross country. Big views, old houses, country pubs, stunning views of London right over to Ally Pally. No berms, jumps or drops. It's like 1995 MTB land all over again. That said, I know of more than one descent on gravel that allows for a bit of drifting.

It's a great ride if you only have 90 minutes, or if you are hungover, or if you want to introduce somebody to mountain biking on trails that have a bit of interest. You can extend it to Westerham no bother, or go looking for off piste trails, of which there are a few. It also makes a great walk, as there is a decent pub. More busy than you expect as well.

Gravelly Hill.

Rusty Jaguar

Above Caterham it is a different time, very much hidden from the world post Year 2,000. Derelict cars, big skies and horses. Lots of horses. There are also lots of little trails. It's a bit up and down though, so an acquired taste.

The finger burner.

I've been stopping here, on Gravelly Hill, brewing my own coffee as there is no cafe. This is a bit miss and miss so far. My little coffee machine is stainless steel, as is the cup. Man, that handle vaporises skin. The coffee is also weak, as internal pressure must be low. Today, hot handle, I knocked it over. Flames.... Going to have to revise the system, as there are no cafes here and the one pub is really busy. I used to use the Green Rooms in Godstone, but service is awful if you just want coffee. Wait 15 minutes, politely ask when it is your turn: "When I'm ready!" The food is good, just the service is a bit Basil Fawlty.

Man makes fire

Of course below, along Route 21, things can also be odd:

Old train carriage with tiled roof.

Today there was one group of walkers 50 strong easily. Saw a few groups of Italian cyclists off to Paris. Lots of horse riders and dog walkers. Unlike Reigate Hill, over here people seem happy to not only share the trail, but will stop and chat. Indeed general chat with strangers is very much the order of the day.

Tubeless tyres.

I've been tubeless since Stan invented it, 4mm thick rim strips and all. I'm not convinced anybody understands the system, even 20 years later. Why? Here we have tubeless tyres on tubeless rims with tubeless fluid. Why does it leak through the sidewalls?? These are 2019 tubeless ready tyres for gawd's sake. This is not from washing the bike; this is fluid leaking out. Does my head in.

Why can't life be as simple and pleasurable as a bike ride?

2019-04-30T05:28:00.002-07:00

Two old women.

Up over at Caterham, popular trail. Two old ladies in front, I rang my bell just as another cyclist appeared coming towards us all.

One old lady: "Oh, one at the back, another at the front!"

My week so far.

Missive from my sister over the weekend: "I really do not like you, I'm not going to bother contacting you ever again."

That put a dampener on things. I rarely speak to my sister, as she moves around quite a bit, having homes in Wales and Spain. She leads a hard life, never having really worked. So for her to contact me just to say that was a bit odd. I suggested a bottle of wine, a sit down and see if she felt the same later on. Nah, still hates me, never going to speak again. Turns out when I left the Midlands, moved to London, that was the start of a slippery slope for me. Got worse when I found a job, got married, bought a house and had kids - really, these are the reasons given for not liking me any more. I was such a nice person when I was long term unemployed 35 years ago, with no qualifications or prospects. Not sure how to fix that one. Think I'll just ignore my sister for a few years.

Anyway, all a bit down after that. Monday morning, e-mail from Matt of the Muddy Moles. Not spoken to him for a good five years; different circles. His e-mail was about my recent postings, and how he largely disagrees with them. Now this I can work with! Somebody who speaks his mind, understands a blog and lives in the real world, where people can express an honest opinion without personal insults. His e-mail made me smile; I do talk crap now and then, so it is nice to have somebody say so. Really, it is - thank you Matt.

At work stopped a consignment and found hidden amongst the tat some 800kg of illegal cosmetics being smuggled in at the port - the ones that eventually give the user kidney failure. Happy find for me, and a positive result for the community. 800kg is a lot.

Today haircut and then the dentist. Both tasks I hate. The barber asked me about my bike; now that I like! And the dentist was so pleasant that I fell asleep whilst she did horrid things to my teeth with metal instruments of torture.

Bike ride it is then.

The ride.

I've been hinting at putting a 2.6" tyre on my Whyte 901, mainly to save weight. The tyre arrived yesterday, and I weighed it. Now this largely proves Matt right; I'm an utter cock, as the tyre came in at all of 60g lighter than the 2.8" Well worth £50 that.

A £50 black, round thing. There's another one on the front as well.

Ah, well out for a spin on it. Oh, the bike accelerates a little faster on the road, and is a little more frisky. Along Route 21 it flew, all of one gear higher than prior. It could just be the dry weather, I could swear the bike was so much better. At home I noticed that the existing front is a 3C Maxterra, as is the new rear where the old one was boggo basic - perhaps I've just matched a pair? One thing though - it's still frikkin awesome going downhill. Try the Pilgrim's way drop into Merstham in the dry one day; it shouldn't be legal it's so fun. Hence the 2.8" on the front stays there, as will the 2.6" - for me it is a better match, sorry Whyte.

Sustrans Route 21 - it does grow on you this one. A classic.

I'm not slagging the bike or the designer off here. The 901 was designed to winch and plummet, on 25km rides max. It was not designed to go cross country, ridden by a 54 year old bimbler. However, I do think they could ship it tubeless and shave 700g right from the off.

Stopped to pick wild garlic for my children's keep fit instructor, had a chocolate bar with avocado (eaten with a Decathlon spoon - why they call them tyre levers is beyond me!) and have just had homemade kimchii soup for lunch. Acquired taste that one.

Trailside snack with a Decathlon multi spoon. (aka tyre lever)

Camera.

Not sure why, I've always liked cameras yet dislike taking photographs. Not convinced I understand f-stops, appertures, ISO whatever - and me with a physics degree, bless. Have a collection of perhaps 12 cameras, mainly 35mm film rangefinders going back to 1967. As you may have noticed, all 12 of you readers (a select bunch), I'm playing with images in my blog now, the results of taking my old digital cameras out. Google does not like me saying which ones! This one is from an old Mr Tony Knex, 5. Much more fun than using a 'phone - also means I can leave the 'phone at home. For me bike rides and 'phones do not mix well.

The journey.

My sister clearly wants to dig in and tip the apple cart over with her negative, largely pointless comments. She wanted to upset me permanently, a little cancer raging away. By Monday morning Matt had set me on the path to recovery (although I'd be surprised if that was his intention), and life continued to put things right for me. Tuesday afternoon I'm still miffed at my sister, as she's out of order and being nearly 70 should know better, yet she's had far from the impact she wanted. Life is good and it is all about the characters you meet and what you do on the journey. It's easy to be miserable if you want, and ultimately we all die, so it is miserable. The journey doesn't have to be bad all the time though does it?

M25 looking towards East Grinstead. Life does not get any better!

Free lunch, spirit stove coffee, and a better Whyte 901. What's not to like?

2019-04-28T06:12:00.000-07:00

Day started off badly, so should have gone downhill.

Text from my sister: "Why are you such a t***? I hate you, and always have done. Never speak to me again." Kind of put a dampener on the day. She's 67, so should know better. Really, she is 67 so it was an unusual text message - certainly something that could have been said any time in the past 50 years, so why today, out of the blue? She perhaps speaks to me twice a year, sometimes never. Longest she managed was three years, no contact from her. So I set off on my bike ride with mixed thoughts. Am I a front garden? Certainly professionally, as that is what I am paid for, and I'm good at it. After a few beers, most definitely 100%. Sunday morning, pootling around? Possibly not.

The key point there being "bike ride." Nothing ever bad comes from going for a ride.

Standard UK legal requirement: Blog in April MUST contain an image of bluebells.

Indeed it didn't take long for my sister to be forgotten about altogether. All I want to do is ride a bike. And really, a ride through bluebells on a spring day? Argue with an elderly relative, or go for a spin?

Wild garlic.

April in Surrey is wild garlic season, so Caterham it was today. Millions of the things, right on the trail. I only take two or three leaves from each plant, and only enough for one meal. I leave the flower heads alone. It did mean my bag and gloves smelt of wild garlic all ride - there are worse things in life.

Wild garlic by the M25

Must be a good year for the stuff.

As I was picking it, a horse rider came past. "Oh, dinner tonight is it? Wonderful!"

Secret trail - M25 100m away, Gatwick 8 miles.

Both the M25 and Gatwick visible in this photo.

They really are. The M25 is in the second row of trees to the left. Gatwick is up on the right - there is a plane visible in my image, about to land. You don't have to go far in Surrey to find a quiet spot.

Spirit burner coffee.

There are no cafes on this route, and I do like my coffee - about time my spirit burner was used!

Spirit burner coffee

I picked a quiet spot, and set it up (and yes, the wooden seat wasn't my brightest idea). Within a minute ten army type fitness people walked by. "Coffee, can I have some?" Then some dog walkers asked what it was? Some cyclists smiled at me, and a few horse riders commented that it all looked very yummy. Now I thought this would be a solo, rather sad affair. It was far from it. How many times do you sit in a busy cafe and nobody speaks to you?

Update on the Whyte 901.

Last week I continued my moan about the mass of the thing. All I did to it this week was to change the handlebar. Put a Renthall on it. Shaved 6cm from the width, and 100g from the mass. Big deal. Oh and I binned the horrid Whyte grips in favour of any others without those silly, hard end caps. Why Whyte, why?

The bike has been transformed. It now works cross country, uphill and down. Indeed coming down the Pilgrim's Way it was utterly stupidly fast. Turns out that Renthall know more about handlebars than Whyte. I'm bemused as to how such a small change has totally changed the character of the bike. Happy.

Changes so far: gone tubeless, changed the handlebar and grips, new saddle. No investment at all; the saddle and bar I took off another bike. Tubeless was just two spare valves and some fluid. Again, from my spares box - the valves must be ten years old. Lost almost 2lb from the mass at no cost really. Why couldn't Whyte do this themselves?

I have ordered a 2.6" rear tyre, which seems to be taking ages to arrive. Hopefully that will add even more zip and should be the last thing I ever want to change. Although, really, do need a 2.8" tyre on the front?

A quiet ride?

Not at all. A great one. One of the best for a long time; I spoke to so many happy people and my bike is now spot on. Even came home with some food from some light foraging.

My sister? Still no idea what's eating her. She also commented that she hates Londoners (me) and Scottish people (you, Dear Reader, may explain that one to me!). Most likely she's having a bad, slightly racist day, but she's still bang out of order. Perhaps she needs to buy some Renthall bars to be happy?

Well that went South very quickly. #Whyte901 low cost weight saving tips

2019-04-22T02:01:00.002-07:00

Bank Holiday weekend, UK.

I live in a busy part of the world; a known beauty spot. On bank holiday weekends it gets busy, and I normally stop at home, pottering. On Sunday, however, I felt like a few hours on the bike would be in order.

Bad decision. Fine for 2 hours 50 minutes, bad the very last 10. It started well. I realised the hill would be busy, so I simply avoided it and did my favourite route around, through Mogador. It's an odd mix of industrial and country, with the country winning.

M25 graffiti

It goes up under the M25 and into farm land. You could be anywhere. I've shown quite a few people this route, and they are always surprised how nice it all is.

Bee takes flight

I like this image as it has a little bee in it.

M25 surprisingly free of traffic

I only hit the M25 twice, and the rest of the time in countryside. Of course after over two hours solo riding, having met three people, all friendly, off in my own little world, I forgot it was bank holiday. You see I headed back via the cafe on top of Reigate Hill. Yes, I should have known people never stray more than 200m from it, and I should have gone down the chalk path. In a sense everything that followed was boringly predictable.

Dogs.

Reigate Hill attracts dog walkers. They can park, have a coffee and walk their pooch 50m until it does a poo. They put the poo in a bag, and hang it from a tree, and go home. Riding toward the cafe, there was one with three dogs, all running lose, yapping. I gave them a wide berth, 3m or so, rode slowly past and then off. About 40m later one of them caught me up and started snapping at my heel. I left it another 15m or so until it got too close for comfort, and gave it a swift kick. That got a shout from the owner. Not convinced that was my fault.

Cyclists.

After my coffee, I rode off down the hill. It wasn't too busy, so I did my sneaky cut through. Group of cyclists ahead, chatting to some walkers. They rode off, and I bumped into the walkers and exchanged a "like the M25!" comment. But the cyclists had kind of stopped. Possibly chatting. I caught, and asked if I could be let by please? The last one, said sure, and moved over, and even the lead guy looked back at me. So I went to pass, no bother, plenty of room.

Except the middle guy clearly did not like that, and moved to my side of the trail, blocking me. Now I'm not a timid rider, so the block did not work. We had a little discussion.

Clearly we were both being knobs, wanting to possess the same bit of trail. We'll never get on, him and I. I suspect the dog incident tainted my view of the world, but he was also an arse. As this is my blog, he's the bigger arse.

So a bizarre end to my ride, one that had initially been quite pleasant. Indeed I'd found a new bit of trail, so it was all going well. I'm not sure that I need to apologise to anybody, and perhaps I'm actually in apology credit. But what I should have done, is stay at home.

The Whyte 901.

This was my bike today, and I can't say it is growing on me. I'm glad I bought a new bike, but think I should have waited until the new Saracen Mantra was out. The Whyte isn't rubbish, yet it is nowhere near as good as the reviews claim. It's not the best hardtail ever, not by a long way.

Too heavy at 32lb.
Handlebars are stupid wide - with grips on, 840mm.
Nowhere to put a rear mudguard.
On night rides nowhere to put a rear light. 'V' shaped top tube means a battery is hard to fit. Oh, and the bar width becomes an issue in the dark.
Tyres at 2.8" wide are just too much. I actually think this is the issue here - silly wide, heavy tyres and rims.

I'm not entirely sure the negatives are outweighed by the positives. It can be fast downhill, yet slow pointing up. It's no better really in any department than my 2012 Orange 5. If I was going to recommend a bike, it would be an older, well serviced suspension bike from when they started going 650b and 1x at the factory. Perhaps a 2013/2014 Trek for £1,300 would do it. I think the £1,500 value of the Whyte is fair. Just that the tyres and wheels drag it back a bit.

In future.

Ironically enough at the cafe there were a few free magazines. One article by Ray Mears states how he avoids cafes, and takes a little spirit burner with him for a brew. I own spirit burners, so could easily have avoided the bank holiday people.....

I've removed the wide handlebars, and have fitted a set of Renthals I had lying around. Shaved 6cm width. Nothing I can do about fitting a rear mudguard. Lights I will look at - what do roadies do, as they have swoopy frames. The tyres are an issue though. Ideally narrower rims with 2.5" or 2.6" tyres. That's easily a £600 investment, so it is not going to happen. I've gone tubeless, so have shaved 1lb already. May just look at 2.6" tyres, yet then I'm concerned over rim strength as the WTB ones seem to be made of cheese - perhaps one will fail on me, resolving the issue!

Rather sadly I just checked on my weight savings. Two inner tubes gone; 700g shaved. Lighter bar, saddle and grips; another 200g. I had all these bits in my spares box, so no investment and I've shaved almost 2lb in old weights. Not bad! It now weighs 30.5lb. A new rear tyre may well get it down to 30lb, which is OK for what it is. Any further would mean a lot more money for less return. I'm betting a 2.6" tyre will make quite a difference to the feel of the bike - hopefully a bit more playful in singletrack.

2019 #Whyte901 v. 2012 #Orange5

2019-04-14T06:29:00.002-07:00

2019 Whyte 901.

2012 Orange 5, external dropper

I've recently bought a 2019 Whyte 901 hardtail. The idea being that it would replace a 2004 Gary Fisher Tassajara, a 2006 Pace RC303 and a 2012 Orange 5 all in one hit.

Well, it's not actually good enough to replace the Orange or the Tassajara, even though they are old school 26". True if I want to set a fast Strava time downhill it would be the go to bike. But even then it is only marginally faster than the Orange. It's better everywhere than the Pace. However, the elephant in the room is mass. 2.8" tyres on fat rims = slow anywhere other than down. It's useless going uphill, and even along singletrack it can be a slog. Point to point my Orange is faster.

So, if you want a fast bike for 2019, buy a 2012 Orange 5. Modern bikes are too fat. Geometry wise, there's not much in it and the Orange is just as fast. Really, if you want a modern hardtail, avoid the 2.8" silly bikes. 2.5" or 2.6" is plenty. Oh and three weeks into ownership I've bent a rim on it. The last time I bent a rim was on Snowdon five years ago.

Why would you buy a modern bike? Trail centres. My Orange 5 is great for the Surrey Hills. At modern trail centres the rear end is just too noodly. I'm a rubbish rider, yet I notice. I'd never notice any flex on the Whyte - mainly as it is made from scaffold poles.

It sounds as though I don't like the 901. I do, yet somehow it is bland and one dimensional. Great if you are in the mood for a one dimensional ride! Exploring, riding for a chat or just going for a mooch, it's a right arse. It's not my go-to bike. If it lost 3lb or 4lb, essentially from the wheels, I honestly think little would touch it in terms of overall speed and fun. Downhill it is faster than me - I hold it back. It's everywhere else where the excess mass kills the fun. As for the rims, garbage.... I suspect it is set up as a learner bike, which sounds an odd thing to say, yet that's how it comes over. As if it is compensating for a lack of skills somewhere. Really I should have bought a 2017 Cotic.

The Pace RC303 finds a new home.

My 13 year old son has it. This was a £2,200 bike thirteen years ago; now it is a hack. We swoped bikes at one point. Eh gads it was a hard bike to ride! After the 901 it is just too small. He actually said the 901 is too heavy. Pity as I've just spent £400 bringing it up to 2019 spec. Dropper, 1x gearing, new tubeless tyres, and forks rebuilt to new. It's a full 6lb lighter than the 901, even with the ancient Pike forks fitted.

Here we are buying sausages in the sun. 5 minutes later it snowed. Easter 2019 for you.

Bluebells and stuff.

Bluebells Obligitary Photo in a Blog Act 2008

We're on the road to nowhere. Happily so!

Too many choices in life. Mogador.

My fat bike - is it history?

2019-04-07T08:27:00.002-07:00

Todays' ride.

Who ordered mist?

Woke up thinking somebody had stolen all of my sleep. More tired than when I went to bed 8 hours ago. Not in the mood for a ride. The alternative was to wash a car. Nah, go for a ride. As I wasn't in the mood, decided to take the fat bike as that always means a slow ride.

Few more riders out and about than last week. One big group from Balham invaded the cafe. I watched them park their bikes, and clearly my having taken the wall near the door hacked them off. The intrusion! For Roadies they were a quiet bunch; normally the noise in a cafe goes up considerably when a bunch descends. And they were well dressed; matching red and black, understated outfits. Only one discrete logo. Other Roadies take note! More logos, clashing colours, being gobby and having your knob and tackle shown in full anatomical detail in 0.1mm thick sheer lycra, does make you a nice human being. Tone it down.

Fat but a great personality.

And it was slow. After the Whyte 901 the fat bike felt.... awful. Heavy, slow, meandering. Just awful. What an horrid bike. No joy to it at all.

Not only fat, but ugly too.

20 miles in figured the front tyre may need air. Yup, 4psi in there. That's low but well withing acceptable fat bike tolerances. It made a slight difference; less meandering. I played with the Jones loop bars a bit, and raised the saddle. Still horrid.

As a mode of transport, fat bikes do suck. Today, dry, I'm bemused as to why it was my main bike for two years. Used to ride it everywhere. I guess compared to my other, older bikes, it wasn't so bad. Compare it to a modern plus bike, and it sucks.

I'm not going to get rid of it. It did work off piste, and once rolling it was OK. Somehow where the mass wasn't an issue last year, this year it is unacceptable. My 901 is heavy, yet the heavy there does not take away from it being playful. Two years ago I did 65 miles around Whitby on this bike, and recently would happily do 30 local miles. Quite honestly I've no idea what possessed me to do such things on a 45lb bike!

Mountain biking; is it dying a death?

2019-04-02T03:39:00.002-07:00

Banstead Woods, Stick People.

Stick People at work

I'm not really sure what the Stick People hope to achieve in doing this, the laying of twigs on a trail. Personally I think they verge on being mental, the need to possess beyond reason. Banstead is common land, open to all. The people laying the sticks appear to want to actually take control of the place. Yet they do it in this odd, passive-aggressive manner that just makes them look daft.

Balancing tree.

Fallen tree balancing on one end

Well I found it impressive!

I mean, come on!

I found it impressive. I am in a minority though, as I've not found anybody else that interested!

What has happened to mountain biking?

It seems to me that the sport has died a bit of a death. Only three magazines now, and they are getting slimmer with each passing month. None of them are really worth reading. You have to travel to find a bike shop, and then they tend to be small affairs, with hardly any stock. Even on-line there's little interest, with dedicated web sites from enthusiasts being updated infrequently, if at all. The local ones, Diary and the Moles, are pretty much extinct. Out and about in the real world, locally I hardly see anybody now. Have to go to the hot spot of Leith Hill to see the big groups.

It's almost like it was back in the early 1990's, when meeting other mountain bikers on the trails was a bit of an event. Certainly locally - on some rides I don't see anybody out on a bike at all. In the late 2000's there'd be big groups out, with up to 20 people. There'd also be lots of solo riders cracking on. Sure there's evidence of cyclists out and about; tyre tracks here and there. Nothing substantial though.

Where has everybody gone and why? I've no idea. Perhaps it is getting expensive, or elitist. Or perhaps people look at the magazines, and think not. Some are dedicated to doing things that end in pain, which always alienates people. One magazine seems to think the sport is about riding far flung places that take a week or two to get to. Product reviews are a laugh, where each item seems to involve spending a days' pay; £7k bikes, £260 jackets, tyres that cost £70 each and are weather specific.

The activity certainly isn't what it used to be. For a start there's a lot of animosity towards riders on some trails. Walkers pretending not to hear bells or spreading themselves out on the trail, blocking progress. Dog walkers with either lose dogs, dogs on those silly extending leads, or that odd sort that look at you as though you want to have sex with their dogs - what's that all about? I used to think only I held that view, yet I've been out with other cylists who have come to the same opinion. Freaks me out a little, and I'm guessing the same dog owners perhaps lay down sticks on the trail? I'm always polite, always slow down, and do try and avoid walker hot spots - yet I'm always left wondering why I bother.

Perhaps the general public have seen enough mountain bikers to now think that we are a strange bunch. Middle aged men on muddy bikes? Get a life! Go play golf. Perhaps they are right. Sometimes it does feel odd, this cycling in circles, looking for mud and getting all sweaty. I spent £1,500 on my new bike, and broke it within four rides. Try telling people that!

It's a great sport, and ultimately harmless. It's been good to me, and I'm not stopping any time soon. Just feel that I'm cycling against the tide. I think it has gotten too complex for a lot of people. Dropper posts? What do they do? No inner tubes?? Come on! Where are the gears? How big are your tyres? That's not a 26" bike is it? Why are your handlebars so wide? I bet that's expensive!

Or my favourite; grow up, get a life!

Nothing much about; quick spin around Banstead Heath.

2019-03-24T08:02:00.000-07:00

Full of cold.

Sigh, I bought a new Whyte 901 a few weeks' ago, and since then I've had cold heaped upon cold. Been really ill for almost three weeks. Miserable even. Today was the first time in ages that I could do more than a few miles; Tuesday I only managed 4 before giving up.

My garden waking up for Spring.

It was such a lovely spring morning, that even though my nose was in free-flow and my internal temperature a bit vague, it had to be done; a ride had to happen no matter how short. In the end I managed a good twelve miles - which really was about my limit. Not many people about. One guy at the top of Reigate Hill in a GMBN hoodie - on an electric bike. He was about 18 and was using it more like a motorbike; roosters up hill style. Fair one. Other than him, there were no other cyclists evident. Did catch some of the Pioneer run, which was nice.

Banstead Heath secret trails

Banstead Heath.

For once the heath was dry and relatively free of dog eggs. It's not a fast place to ride, or even very technical. Indeed it's not a brilliant place most times. What it does offer, within the M25, is a sense of space and is my gateway to proper, long rides. It's also got the Sportsman on it, but that's another story.

A place to sit.

There are few benches on the heath, so you are inclined to push on. However it is worth taking the time to just sit. I stopped here for ten minutes, and must have exchanged pleasantries with six or seven people.

Light lunch

My 901.

It's a decent bike, probably my main ride now. I'd say point-to-point it's my slowest bike. Going up or along it's not a bike to encourage speed. I seem to fall into a meandering kind of ride then, just pootle. Add a bit of gravity and it's like flicking a switch or taking drugs. The thing just picks up its' skirts and goes. I kind of like the mixed personality. It's almost as if it was designed for uplift trail centres....

Well worth it.

I left my Strava at home, as the ride was never going to be fast or even interesting. In terms of Strava, it was dull. In terms of a ride, I really enjoyed it. Didn't go anywhere, didn't do anything, did enough to make life worth living. Sometimes doing nothing is all you need to do.

In praise of the Five10

2019-03-10T07:29:00.000-07:00

My Five10.

I'm not a brand ambassador for anything. Happy to swop and change. My bike kit is a mixed bag; gardening gloves, golf jackets, running leggings. Whatever is cheapest really. My shoes? A pair of ancient Five10's that simply refuse to die on me.

They don't smell, and they've not fallen apart. Sure they are not waterproof, but then they never have been. After last weeks' deluge they took a full week to dry - even in front of our log burner for three evenings. The soles are still intact. Ten years? Call it 30,000 miles riding. I do have a newer pair, which I will use when these die on me. My new pair are now four years old though!

Suspect I'll be buried in these....

2019 Whyte 901 review

2019-03-03T08:06:00.000-08:00

Buy a bike!

I've been after a new bike for ages. All of my bikes are 26" so perhaps it is time to move on. My criteria were simple; 65 degree head angle, 11 speed Shimano, 2.6" max tyre width, and definitely not a Whyte! Everybody rides a Whyte. Oh and no way from Finch & Sons.

Brexit messed it all up. Since around Christmas nobody has had anything interesting in; the new Saracen Mantra is not available full stop. None of my local bike shops had anything in. A week ago it was sunny, and we decided to have a walk into Reigate for coffee. Passed Finch, popped in. New Whyte 901 in medium hanging up. £1,450 with pedals - which matched exactly the money I'd saved up.

Sat on it.

Bought it.

Finch then said that's the last medium they can get until May.

Riding the thing.

Hmm, the magazines will have you believe on it is the best hardtail ever (the 2019 model 901 is essentially the 2018 905). It's not, that's just silly. Any bike that weighs 31.5lb is not going to be the best. The first 25 miles were horrid. All my weight seemed to be on my wrists, so my shoulders hurt. Climbing is a bore - 2.8" tyres and a lot of mass. My going up speeds mirror my fat bike, certainly not my sub 25lb 26" bike.

Going along is dull too. It's just not that comfortable a bike.

Point it downhill, or find a wiggly trail to attack.... and my Strava times drop. Not by much, but enough to notice. The bike becomes nimble all of a sudden, and the HUGE wheel mass means stability.

My rides since the initial 25 mile one have been better. I'm probably avoiding long slog rides out. And I must say, that 2.8" Maxxis is awesome in the mud. I'm not entirely sure why people slag it off. The bike was also easy to set up tubeless - indeed the whole process was a dream. I've been using tubeless since it was invented; so have done the full pain - some rim/tyre combos took a full two days of hate and anger to get going. This bike? Actually easier to set up than using an inner tube. Tyre off, inner tube out. New valve in, tyre on, pump up with a hand pump. Job done. Two weeks later and they are still up.

Caterham 7 or Smart FourTwo.

To my mind it's like a Caterham 7. I've always wanted one of those, and have done the odd track day - which made me want one even more. Started to save up for one. Wife found that Caterham hire them out, so we took one for a spin. Bloody awful thing. 230bhp, loud side exit exhausts and from the lights you had to slip the clutch at 2,500rpm to get going smoothly. Smooth roads were fun, yet we don't have smooth roads in the UK - ours mirror Aleppo. Had it hired for a full day - took it back six hours later. On pot holed roads it felt like the world was ending; the side exit exhausts made traffic lights embarrassing; it was so low down that you cannot actually overtake anything as you have no sight lines; and sadly it never felt that fast - I used to ride motorbikes, and expected more from it.

My wife has always wanted a Smart car. One day she took the family Ford Focus in to a dealer, and came out with a two seater Smart. Stupid cow! Pointless car. Until I drove it. Big inside, nip into cycle sized gaps, and it is just fun.

26" bikes are like the Smart car; ridiculed for what they are, yet they do a simple job admirably in a functional and fun way. My 901 is not a Smart car; it's a Caterham 7. Great in some areas, slightly useless in lots of others. You'd not tour on it, yet I have on some of my 26" bikes. No way could I imagine doing 100 mile days on this thing.

So I hate the 901?

Nope. It's by far and away the best £1,450 I've spent on a bike. It's slow going up. That's OK, so am I these days, and I get exercise induced asthma anyway if I go too fast on cold days. Lots of weight on my wrists going on long, level trails? Take a different bike then! Or it may just be that 30 years working in an office has left me a bit weak. The answer is to man up. Indeed when I stop whining to myself, the tired shoulder aspect kind of goes away.

Bit of speed, point it down something.... Quite honestly I'd not want to be on a different bike. Put a bit of effort in, instead of being passive, and the 901 is something else entirely. You cannot dawdle on this bike. If you do it's too harsh a ride, too boring. Wake up, turn the dial up to 10 and it is perhaps the best hardtail ever. Not even my Orange 5 is as fast.

The 901 is just full on all the time. It's the high maintenance girlfriend who you'd never marry. If you get a chance to have a play on one, take it by the scruff of the neck and hammer down something vertical. It's a bloody wonder.

It's still overweight for what it is though.

National Trust cafe Box Hill - poor form!

2019-02-10T07:41:00.002-08:00

Sausage roll drama.

I'm not one to give up on food. Normally I can eat anything. Raw mince in Belgium, or that funny cows brain thing they do, served with chips. Sure, why not. Today I failed with the sausage roll from the cafe at Box Hill. I'd had one in the week, and it was bordering on horrid. Pink, fatty and utterly tasteless.

Today it was just a cold, greasy lump of fat in yucky, pasty pastry. I actually gagged and spat it out. Worse even than Swinley, and that's accepted as being the worstest ever cafe in the Universe. I've not done either, I should imagine the experience of eating the roll was probably like eating a raw slug or putting a cold penis into your mouth. Honest, it was easily the worst, most disgusting thing I have ever eaten, and I used to live in hotels in Weston-Super-Mare. Indeed calling it a sausage roll is an insult to food; it was a slug roll.

Worst sausage roll ever?

Thinking about it, National Trust cafes these days are usually indifferent affairs. Places designed to suck the maximum amount of money from you for the least enjoyable return. The quality has dropped over the past few years, to the point where you think twice about going in. They used to be great, where now if there's a greasy spoon nearby, that will be the better option. I've been a loyal customer of the Box Hill one for 30 years, more or less to the day. Not any more. The little, sightly grumpy cycle shop in the village is the better option these days; proper coffee, and oddly I like honest, yet grumpy service rather than false smiles.

[The National Trust have since offered me a free coffee and cake should I ever return. I never wanted that; I just wanted a nice sausage roll on the day.]

My ride.

Think mud. Mud so bad it ate both sets of brake pads in 20 miles. I wasn't so much cycling as plotting a vague Strava course. No real rain to talk of, yet what did fall was a cold, sleety stuff and my hands got really cold coming down off Box. Gradually my brakes gave up the ghost all together - the rear was down to the metal, and the front not far off; I could hear the spring making contact with the rotor. Made coming off Reigate Hill interesting, especially as I chose the steepest most muddy trail. Well why not?

Naturally the ten speed Deore conversion on my 12 year old PACE worked faultlessly. My cheap dropper wobbles a bit, and the brakes died. My waterproof jacket from Halfords proved to both lack waterproof-ness and was unbreathable, a winning combination in the cold! Perhaps I should wear it inside out? Reminded me of the two times I've managed to get hypothermia whilst cycling. Sweaty mess after a few hours on the bike, weather suddenly turns cold or damp, and so the inside of the plastic jacket works like a very efficient fridge; the more effort you make, the colder you get.

Poor sausage roll, nobody out, my brakes died and my jacket made me cold when there was no reason to be. Rubbish ride? Not at all - really enjoyed it. One of those days when it is great to be alive. Saying that, my slug roll from Box Hill may yet have the last say....

I'm not intentionally keeping a 26" mountain bike alive - I'm just old; PACE RC303

2019-02-03T08:27:00.000-08:00

The 26" thing.

Years ago we all rode 26" bikes and the world was good. We'd have one bike for the pub, downhill, uphill or adventures out. I'm not sure I was ever aware of what a head angle was, or the interior width of my rims. Tyres were 1.95" wide, or if you were a rebel or had cash to splash, you'd go to 2.1". 7x3 gearing, 540mm wide handlebars (which sometimes you'd cut down!). Invariably on a ride you'd have to adjust your rim brakes once or twice, there'd be a puncture, and quite often the 1" headset would come lose. Rides would be improbably long - my Sunday's were all day affairs, 70 miles done thank you. I was not alone in doing such.

Then you'd use the same bike Monday through Friday to ride to work. 140 miles a week, week in, week out for years.

Now we have lots of different sized bikes, all for different things. There seems to be very few, do it all bikes. It's still good though - mainly as bikes are hugely reliable things now, gradually wearing down rather than out. I now never replace even a chain as part of casual maintenance; just wait until the whole lot dies, then buy a complete Deore transmission for £90.

PACE RC303 stuck in the M23 mud.

I'd love a new bike. I work, so why not?

Well.... My Orange Clockwork cost £700 in 1995. I've still got it. My Orange 5 cost £1,800 in 2013. I've still got it. An equivalent Clockwork now is £1,400, and a 5 around £3,600. Just cannot get my head around those kind of prices. Looked at Whyte, but they seem to be made of scaffold poles. My 5 was heavy at 31lb; now 34lb is considered a good bike weight. Is it?

I don't ride trail centres you see, so for the hills I ride, my old bikes still work well enough. And well enough doesn't equate to my justifying a new bike. I'd be no faster, or ride any further.

It's boring though. I so want a new bike. Five years ago I'd not have thought twice; just buy what I fancy. I've probably turned into an old man over night, moaning about everything.

My PACE. Indeed any of my bikes.

I've looked at used bikes, specifically the Whyte T130 series. £1,400 should get a used one. Always described as having been ridden once or twice, along canal paths.... Smell a rat. Canals are a throwback to Victorian times. Who spends £2,500 on a bike just to ride a path? Nobody. Check to see how much new transmission would be. Oh, £900. I'm guessing a lot of these used bikes will need a darned good service. Possibly to the point a new bike becomes the more economical buy.

Whilst saving, I keep on top of my old bikes. The PACE for instance. New ten speed transmission, £85 as I already have a bottom bracket and crank. Just put a dropper on it; cost me £100. So an investment of £185 made my bike look like a new one. Another £100 spent fixing the forks, and it works like a new one (same frame angles really as some of the new XC Trek bikes). Out on it the other day, still set a few decent Strava times. I'm sure this is a negative feedback loop; some bizarre self justification for not moving on in life.

There's also a growing suspicion that bikes now are faster than their riders. When I did motorbikes 20 years ago, my 600cc bike would do double the speed limit. Now you can buy 220bhp bikes with traction control that accelerate faster than an F1 car. Yup, you're going to use that to full potential.... I think mountain bikes are the same. Watch one of the current crop of downhillers on some rough circuit. I'm betting nothing can get down those trails faster than they can. Nothing. You and I, born fifty odd years ago, pootling down on a £4k uber bike, aint gonna happen is it? We're not going to get anywhere near what a bike like that can do. Indeed watch some downhills from ten years ago, when they were on tiny wheeled 26" bikes - you can ride like that can you?

So for now I'm an old git riding old bikes and setting good times doing so - provided I only ride locally, on trails I've ridden hundreds of times. Move me outside of my comfort zone, to trails designed for the newer bikes, and I'm utterly screwed.

That's probably the reality of it. I've grown old with old bikes.

Time for a change, time for a new toy!

STRAVA whore.

The right kind of mud, wrong kind of age.

2019-01-06T09:42:00.000-08:00

First it was wet.

Just before Christmas, here in Surrey we had lots of rain. The trails gradually turned to mush, and my fat bike got used a lot (as did my waterproofs!). It was kind of fun. For the past few weeks the days have been dry, and tending towards cold. The trails have not dried out - instead they've gone to that lovely, damp spongy state. Not hard, not soft, just semi-hard. They're a bit like having an extra 10mm of suspension, and are probably in their fastest state of the year right now. Indeed I've been breaking some of my older Strava records without too much effort. In particular the rooty drop off Reigate Hill, where I'm now in the top five.

Then again in some places I'm way down, as in 995 out of 1,100! Must remember to take Strava with a pinch of salt.

Of course it could be my bike is just fast in some places, and I'm slow in others. My 26" Orange 5 was always slightly rubbish, and it would be my third choice of ride when I went out. I'd use a 45lb fat bike instead. One day I decided to look at it, and figure out why. The forks I sent off to TFTuned, as they seemed a little slow. Whilst playing with the forks, I noticed that the front wheel hardly spun around.... So for five years I've been riding a bike with the front brake on and badly tuned forks. No wonder it was rubbish.

Forks back, front brake I removed some fluid, and I re-greased the headset. New, wider 35mm handlebars and short-short stem. New tubeless tyres, and a 1x10 groupset. It now actually works. Instead of it holding me back, I'm clearly holding it back. First couple of rides out, I've knocked time off some fast sections. Happy now.

Well happy is relative. On eBay I've seen these Black edition five's sell for £500 to £750. I spent £100 on the forks, £80 on the gears, and £50 on tyres (26" tyres are stupid cheap). Half the value of the bike. Any real sense in that??

Of course now my Orange is fast, I'm pondering why I need a new bike, especially as I have invested money in it. Clearly I'm still rubbish and a different bike will not sort that. More time out, a few lessons, then we'll see. (This weeks' object of desire being a Cotic Rocket.)

London Defence.

All those times you've blasted past the shattered concrete on Buckland Hill, or stopped to pick the mushrooms for medicinal purposes, have you ever wondered what all that broken concrete was for? Well it's the same as Box Hill Fort or Reigate Fort; part of the outer London Defence ring. Not sure why it is all smashed up - possibly the hill gave way.

Buckland Hill defences

Sportsman.

I bumped into my daughter's self defence tutor on this ride. Had a chat, he mentioned he was heading to the Sportsman pub with his mate. Enjoy that, I said thinking no more. Later in the ride I was going to stop in Headley Heath for a shite coffee at either the caravan or the bizarre cafe (both serve truly awful coffee). It struck me that a bad coffee costs £2.50. A good beer at the Sportsman would be £4. Luck would have it that near the pub some chap on a full suspension bike zipped across my path - had to give chase and catch him up. Caught him up by the pub. Zen that.

"Pint and crisps please."

Love life, live life

And yes, my ride until now had been characterised by a certain slow meandering. After the pint, a downhill with teenage observers on jump bikes..... Certain reckless abandonment came over me.

Garmin Edge 20 / 25 does not work - not recognised issue

2019-01-03T08:34:00.000-08:00

Garmin 20 / 25.

I've had a Garmin 200 for years. Used to use it for Strava until I got the hump with that - eBikes and Crossbikes setting all the fast times! OK I only have one fast time on there, and I'm old now so unlikely to set any others.... https://www.strava.com/activities/350102438 and do you know how I set the fast time? More, why it now sucks? Well firstly it is a segment I made up after setting a good time, as you do. Local route to a few people. Secondly about a year after setting it, the National Trust put a fence in at the end.... Oh and thirdly my fast time involved an inelegant, and violent end that meant a trip to casualty for concussion and a crushed left shoulder. Another reason to dislike Strava; I'm a dick.

Anyway, decided to map some rides. Could I find my 200? Could I heck. Bought a cheap 20 as I knew as soon as I got it home I'd find the 200 - which I did! Grrr. And after two years in a tin can in my shed, it worked perfectly. Double Grrr.

The 20. Well blow me down as it didn't work. Sure it did as a recorder of ultra slow, almost static old man rides, and it charged happily from the PC. It was not, however, recognised by my PC no matter what I did. Arse. Looked on the web; solution being to try and get it recognised as a mass storage device. Hold this button, stand over there, think of a number, double it. Is the answer Argentina? Nope, nothing worked. Another idea being that my Windows is rubbish. Solution to that being to go out and get windows 10 for £120. Like that's going to happen.

Got the hump, went to work. On my long drive home I thought; if it charges, then it works. If it works, why doesn't it work? Why doesn't my PC recognise it? Figured in my head that perhaps the little connectors are not being connectors. Ordered a new connector off the internet.

So I fired it all up, and just held the connector on. That worked! It's not a brilliant fix, and I've still got the hump with it. Even the new connector was a red herring; worked long enough to download a ride, upload an update and register the sodding thing. It then just stopped. Naturally nothing will get it working on my laptop. Oddly it is fine on my wife's work laptop. Pig of a thing it is, and I'm a bit negative towards Garmin.

Annoying Garmin 20

Other people.

AD contacted me out of the blue the other day; fancy a spin? Now I'm a harsh character to get on with, and most people only last one or two rides with me. AD is fast, so I thought twice about it. On the one hand he's fast and will make me look stupid. On the other I like him; primarily as he's fast and will make me look stupid. So I went for a spin. Bugger, he's real fast now - taken up road riding with clubs. Off he went. However, I did notice all that road riding meant he was not so keen on mud.

So I picked routes that had lots of mud. He was still ahead, yet the game was on and he didn't totally kill me.

Only problem being we discussed age. It's an awful thing realising that I actually knew the 60's, where for him it is just a concept.

Work.

Whilst I'm posting images, here's one I did earlier. I work in product safety, and have to check the goods you buy are safe. Had this one in; absolutely no idea what it did or why. It's unsafe, sure, but do you know what it is? The big bit is an electric motor.

Oh, you do do you? How the devil did you know it's a motorised, multi-speed sex toy?? The mind boggles. As it is unisex, I'll have to give it a go. For professional purposes you understand.