Got in a Commute, at last

This morning saw a nice still and mild start to an uneventful ride, 27.4km and the expected NE sea breeze was a ENE so more a cross wind for the afternoon return which clocked 25.5kms?

 

The cheap ALDI Tronica Wireless Cycling Computer for $20.00 seems to register 99km/hr at times when you are stationary or wheeling the bike... ahhhh the price of crap

Over Analyse

Just a quick commute today to Pottsville for an on-site job. Rounded the trip out by riding around the Kanes/Wabba Road loop through to Cabba before home again. Managing a 27.0 km/hr average. Never dropping below middle ring and 4th gear, Why? I'm still trying to build up to the power/cadence required for successful little hill climbing on the Shogun. This requires me to unlearn all the easy riding gear habits of my lower geared Hybrid's. Hopefully it won't be much longer. Sometimes it takes a little bit of the enjoyment out of riding when you analyse everything during a ride....  

Distance: 31.5 km on the Cypress.

Looping Daydream

Rode the loop on the cypress, this arvo. The only thing that came from it was the ability to daydream, hopefully I was concentrating when required! The main focus of the thoughts was not obvious just random thoughts... Such as when I recently rode over the Cudgera Creek Interchange there was a highway patrol vehicle sitting there doing the freeway radar bit... anyway as I approached I noticed the tinted side window being wound up... Why? was it just a coincidence?or, was it a privacy issue based on policy? or, a subconscious technique by the patrol(wo)man to avoid any personal interaction?

Or something along the lines of must clean the bike  etc or when will I drop the ride in for it's first service?

Other thoughts drifted to riding technique, like cornering and trying to ride in higher gears to prepare for the drop bar rides etc

So really a blah blah ride... but a pleasant wind down to the day's endeavors

Tanked

Last 2 days I have been trying to get the plumbing done on the old 1000 gallon water tank. But as an amature the swearing has been the most successful part of the impression! What a bitch to get the bung out until i realised I needed to get at the nut on the inside of the tank! and that also meant having another arm about 15 feet long with a strong hand on the end!

So the solution was? Maneuver the tank, after emptying it, to a location I could ti it on it's side rotate it until the large Inlet hole was close enough to the ground wiggle inside after propping a pair of Stiltons to the outside nut/bolt securely so that they wouldn't fall off! 

After squeezing myself inside ( with the sides chocked to stop me becoming part of a mixing machine) I stood over the outlet nut and gave a gentle push on the second pair of Stiltsons I had with me, torch secured into my mouth. No worries the nut rotated smooth as though it was brand new, better even! 

Next task is to try to quickly find a 1¼ inch inlet bung supplier! Hopefully before it rains again!

Also been mucking around with a couple of scripts at night ie the Ride Stats Plugin and the Google Feed Reader Linking Widgit.... both were ok after a bit of tweaking of code to work better in Wordpress 2.6.x

A Day Catching Up...

Didn't ride today, unusually! I did manage to get a few tasks completed in the yard and shed which have been on the "todo list" for a while so it was to be a leisure paced day with a few items crossed off the list and a couple of others added, as usual... maintain the status quo

I have a couple of plumbing connections to pick up this week so will see about riding to South Tweed and make a visit to bunnings on the Shogun tomorrow if work commitments allow.

Wabba-Solo

Rode off today without too many plans. I turned onto the road as a shower was passing over at about 12:30pm with the intention to ride a loop on the Cypress. As I rode down Kanes Rd the rain stopped but the clouds stayed around. As it wasn't raining and was quite cool still I thought a little climb of Cudgera Creek Road would be appropriate.... When I managed to put together a climb above 9 km/hr. It seemed a possibility to ride Wabba Rd through the Mooball Forest. I was a little unsure as it is a little isolated to ride solo, but what the heck! Just do it. After reading ChrisL's ride recent report, I thought conditions would be excellent it turned out that that is what it was like. Very short grass, dry gravel patches etc and few if any large rocks strewn on the track. The only obstacle was a fallen tree across the track, and that was easily negotiated.

[caption id="attachment_287" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Wabba-Solo elevation"][/caption]

The most common creature beside birds were Goanna's scurrying away as I rode past. I didn't see another vehicle from the time I left the freeway interchange at Pottsville until I got to the Pistol Range at Murwillumbah when a 1930's car went past towards Wardrop Valley. About 2 hours of complete solitude, bliss.
The ride was undertaken without sufficent water or any food... not something I want to repeat!

Occasionally toward the end of the ride the bike started to act up on a few of the changes down to the small ring as I was climbing Reserve Creek Road, but it was suffer-able.

The distance: 50 kilometers
Average Speed: 14 km/hr
Duration: 3 hours 30 mins

Still Shovelling.....

Well I have finally managed to sieve two of the 8x10 cubic metre truckloads of the Terranora Red. Completed building the first stage of the vegie garden and planted it out... started with seedlings this time mainly as it is a little late to plant seeds for most crops... But have not managed any rides of any length this week... the energy and need has not been there. My arms, especially, as well as the rest of the body aches and groans. The hot weather has also been difficult wearing long trousers and long sleeve shirts in the full sun to ward off any more photosensitivity. I have found usng my bike gear (actually long sleeve ice-hockey shirt) to be the best alllowing the perspiration to evaporate rather than drench me!

Picked up an ALDI Tronica Wireless Cycling Computer for $20.00 for the Shogun. I will see how this very cheap computer holds up and post again later about it!

I will ride a couple of short 10km commutes tomorrow on the Cypress and  maybe a lop to finish off the day. I will post again after the outcome is clear and therefore more concise.

Too much digging!

Well, the last few days has seen me only put together some small commutes for computer system repairs and some of the standard training loops. All the earth moving through the sieve by shovel has created a rather stiff upper back and neck. 50kms and longer rides have been light on the ground.

The standing around in the sun with shorts and thongs ( Note: sifting soil ) has also seen the remergence of my photosensitvity, especially my feet and lower legs, but thankfully, the Aloe Vera lotion Joyann discovered has been a godsend in relieving the itch!

This means I just might have to get the longer night rides happening once again this year now that the evenings are getting warmer! I noticed last njigts moon came up very late and was quite bright.

I've only got to shovel another 7 truckloads of the Terranora Red and I will be finished creating the new massive vegie garden and also maybe ward off the stiff neck/back? A little each day is a good recipe!

At last some precipitation!

Tonight saw the beginning of this years Early Summer storms. Even though there was no lightning and thunder, locally, the build-up was there and the rain has begun. Hopefully the tank will get a fresh supply if we get at least 25mm plus, that is. I have noticed the water carter about over the last week or so. Now also the mangoe tree will not set fruit for another year with the full tree of flowers getting wet! Also the possibility of a bush fire has been put on hold for another couple of weeks...

It looked like rain all day but we only had a light isolated shower last night showing on the roads during this mornings 50km ride. I have managed to sift one of the eight truckloads of Terranora soil for the NEW raised Vegie garden, so that only took me 4 days, lets see that's another 28 days left to go! and the dumped loads are only going to getting further and further away from where I want the soil to be so more and more wheelbarrow work to come as time goes by... I was desperatly in need of some upper-body workout so it's convenient really??? All up I rode about 65kms today riding to Hastings twice and Cabarita once to get some replacement tubes after todays puncture.

One thing I didn't say about this mornings ride2work was that during the 52k trip I saw only one other rider!

Ride2Work day? What Work?

Let's see... to participate in the National Ride-2-Work day I decided to commute although I had nowhere to commute to! I was going to test ride my new (second-hand) Shogun cro-mo commuter I have got hold of and put together with some new parts from both Cecil Walker Cycles (Shimano105 2x10 groupset $629) and Cell Bikes ($50 no-name wheelset) with an added bonus of being able to see what time I could anticipate getting to South Tweed from home on this commuter rather than the old Giant Elwood (2007 model).

Well I was enjoying the ride, even the fairly easy Southern climb of Sextons Hill, when the next thing I know I've run over one of the bloody new Cat-Eye reflectors at about 80km/hr on the Northern descent and got myself a snake-bite flat on the rear..... so onto fixing that... bugger no tyre levers but I was carrying the spare and repair kit.... searched the side of the road in the debris looking for bits of plastic and metal for a 100 meters and managed finding some make do levers.... but the now rushed repair was not good enough and was later going to have to involve me in replacing the tube on the uphill climb returning back over Sextons Hill... called into South Tweed Bicycles to get the pressure checked but it wouldn't hold it. that was it! the end of testing the time to do a standard commute.... Changing a tube on both legs with no tyre levers, which I found I need to get the bead off but not back on the 19mm rim! unlike on the Giant Hybrid 25mm rim which I can do with just my hands, on and off.

anyway heres the Shogun with the new 105 groupset....

[caption id="attachment_278" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="The Shogun Samurai Commuter"][/caption]

Sextons Hill - "The Scary Bit"

Just thought I would post an image of the only part of My Commute which always scares me! You have been cruising along at about 30-35kms/hr with the 60kms/hour traffic to hit the climb to the top of Sextons Hill where the traffic merges to 80kms/hour and you have been riding along the 800-900mm verge against an Steel Armco Railing with lots of past evidence of bad driving only to hit this little beauty about 1/2 way up and no way of looking leisurely behind to see if trucks, 4WD's or buses are about to take the left turn into Banora etc only to be confronted by NO Road surface space to make it past the Very Badly positioned Traffic Island. Sometimes I just ride over it and others I will turn into the intersection and wait for the traffic to clear before doing a U-turn to get back onto the Pacific Highway.

[caption id="attachment_276" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="The Scary Bit on the ascent of Sextons Hill South Tweed Heads NSW"][/caption]

Thanks to Google Maps Street View....

Reminder

It's National Ride2Work day on the 15th of October.

Just like last year I'll try to get the energy to make the distance!

It's Here

Today, after I finished welding the Sieve {900 x 1.8 weldmesh} I will be using to remove the rocks from the 8 truckloads of TerranoraVolcanic Soil over the summer for a vegie garden, my new Giant Cypress arrived at Cabarita Beach Cycles. Excellent!

I got a lift down with Joyann taking the helmet and a full water bottle... anticipation....

Gee it looked nice and clean, well lets put paid to that! So after quickly finalising the fit it's on the bike... rode along Clothiers Creek Road to the freeway to take a flat smooth 15kms to check out the feel... I was suprised at the speed and power that was available from the 24 gears with the front suspension locked out, but I must try out the handling on the dirt with it unlocked... so onto Cudgera Creek Road and off the tar onto the gravel of Reserve Creek Road and then further onto Round Mountain gravel so about 15kms of loose dusty gravel... not so clean now! The hill climbing was surprisingly easy but there was still no need to use the granny gear! I'll have to try somewhere else for this experience, maybe Cudgera Creek Road tomorrow?

Handling was throughly enjoyable with no nasty surprises! There was still some time left before sunset, ( I haven't added any lights yet! and I must remember to take a pump next time just in case that is) so rode off along Kanes Road through to Pottsville and rode over the forge hill at a speed I have never achieved before! the bike seemed to maintain it's momentum easily ah beautiful! Then it was a bit of a windout along the Coast Road at a high cadence with the wind finally on my back to be amazed that I will need to find more energy to get the ride into top ring and attain the highest speed possible on this bike. I was still able to peddle riding down some hills that i know top out on the old Elwood as soon as your speed reached 40kms/hr. Wow! I might be able to increase my long term average speed above 19kms/hr on this bike! 

Ah the pleasure of taking the first run on a new ride!

I'll post some more later about the second hand commuter with drop bars I have also just bought, but I don't want to lose the feeling of breaking in a new steed just yet!

I will need to readjust the front derailleur before tomorrow's ride it seemed a little askew and shifts between the three front rings was quite hit and miss during todays ride!

 



 

All in all I felt like an 8 year old on Christmas day!

[caption id="attachment_281" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="The new all purpose ride bought in October 2008"][/caption]

Bike2Bruns Ride Report C-

Well what could you say? The event, to me was a quite over-rated affair.

A number of standouts being..

• Totally unco-ordinated


• Losing a bike rider less than 5kms from the start!


• No signs or signallers at critical intersections.

these were for the ride itself, which featured for me at least a couple of brushes with Eastern Brown Snakes and a 2 foot Goanna although NO Magpies! Also a long slog against an ever increasing NE headwind on the return ride (25-40 km/hr) with no shelter by anything resembling hills!

The Event, at which I lasted 10 minutes, was also, as classified by me, as...

• General feeling about the event - "A big group hug, with indifference to outsiders".


• Lacking general information for "Guests" (ie upon arrival, which was done in drips and drabs by the riders of Route #4 because of the lost rider [who was found safe and well riding with the leader], there was no marshaling areas etc)


• The person on the registration desk at the end was more interested in talking to their BUG mates than providing any pertinent information, even when queried!


• There was far too limited secure/safe parking


• Everything seemed disjointed and chaotic.


• Rider leaders etc were more interested in BUG fundraising by way of a raffel than the actual Bike2Bruns event.


• If you didn't want to join their BUG then and there you were conveyed a pleasant feeling of irrelevance with a casual air of indifference. (ie left standing there with the same "You are dismissed" feeling you get after receiving a tongue lashing from a headmaster.)

All up a nice enough very FLAT 60 kilometer ride spoilt slightly by the addition of a lot of unnecessary crap. It will be quite a while before I bother to undertake another group ride such as this.