not blip

bike 180 - ride 43

minutes after i took this, the side blew out of the rim on the back wheel - bugger!

photo

my entries into the ecovelo photo contest
some really great photos have been enetered. that and being on the other side of the atlantic to the organisers makes me think that my entries might not be good enough...

flap

bike 180 - ride 41

sorry folks, no time for descriptions just lately but you get the idea.

me, riding to work etc

http://www.flickr.com/groups/bike180/pool/

noo shoos

bike 180 - ride 36

and the last in my trusty old specialised bg shoes.
i've had them for three years or so and so they must have done around 12,000 miles of riding.
they started off the same shape as the new ones on the right.
i hope that my body isn't wearing at the same rate...

dull

bike 180 - ride day 35
first ride home in shorts this year and so the first outing for my swift tattoo.

a pretty dull day all round.
the usual stuff at work - just marking time really before the credit crunch finally catches up with us and shakes up the business and by extension, the lives of everyone that works there.
rumours are rife. redundancies or short-hours.
i'm not sure what it'd be like only working 4 days a week. obviously it is preferable to not working any.
money will of course be the problem. we should be ok but things would become tight. the luxuries, weekends away and the new bike bits will all have to be carefully considered.
on the plus side, i will be able to get an extra long ride in each week. maybe i'll see more of the kids. i may even get to take them to school once a week - something i really miss.
it'll screw up my plans for a big 40th birthday bash. maybe i can have the big party when i'm 41, or even 42 if this depression really takes hold.
i wonder if the band i was planning on having play the party will still be together in two years time!
and the chances of me still buying the custom built bike frame i was planning for my 40th birthday present looks decidedly remote.

still, its friday tomorrow...

murk

bike 180 - ride day 34

the weather on my ride in this morning was what my non-english future wife calls 'english weather'

today was a bad day.

0kph

a quick snap taken on the way home from work.
it shows the computer mount hanging from the bars. this is because, despite having had the battery changed, the wiring checked and a piece of tinfoil packing the space between terminals, it had been flashing on and off at me over the last few weeks.
for some reason, when the on the way in today, the signal stopped and i was presented with 0kph, i ripped it from the bars and hurled it into the hedge

having considered some of the comments to this post from VO, i'm not sure if i'll bother replacing it

dressed in the dark

bike 180 - ride 32

my first ride in lycra shorts of a colour other than black. they felt garish to say the least!

the flickr version with added info

we call upon the author to explain

me

cropston sunset

bike 180 - ride 31

more of that sunset

no rush to get home.
no problems to park up and watch the sun go down.
bicycle commuting 125 points; going by car 1 point

crash

bike 180 - ride 30

new camera pandas

and yes, i did crash while getting my new camera out of my pocket to take a panda.
and yes, i did drop my new camera.
and yes, the battery cover did come open.
and you guessed it, the camera did slide 6 feet in the snow...

stoopid!

http://www.flickr.com/groups/pandaportraits/pool/
http://www.flickr.com/groups/bike180/pool/

ice ride

my first audax today. 105km plus another 25 to get to the start and back.
pretty dicy conditions in places but for the most part sunshine and fantastic views.

very tired now - a little too early in the season for such a distance

corporate speak

favourite new word, heard today from a woman who has been overcome by jargonitis...

bucketized!

great isn't it? it is corporate speak for categorized, pigeon-holed, sorted, ranked &c. anything but f'kin 'bucketized'!

no worries

some days, i feel even more smug than usual about riding a bike to work. today is one of those days...
because i commute by bike, i don't have to worry about the price of a barrel of oil and if it's being subsidised to make us feel better about the rest of the economy.

i don't mind if the roads are icy (i just use the mountain bike).
or about the fact that our council is trying to import salt/grit from spain because they've run out.

i don't have to set out early to get a parking space closer to work.

i never have to scrape the windows of my car.
or buy de-icer.

i don't have to worry about eating chocolate bars, chips and curries.
or 'watch what i eat'

i don't complain about how busy the roads are having just sat in a traffic jam (think about it people).

i don't have to make time to exercise.

i could go on...

more snow

bike 180 - ride 24

riding on snow doesn't happen very often for us in the midlands of england so when it does we have to make the most of it.
there is something special (for us at least) about breaking fresh snow either on skis, wheels or foot

snow

bike 180 - ride 22

people often express amazement or tell me i'm daft when i say that i have ridden a bike to work, especially at this time of year. but moments like i had on my ride in today are the only explanation i believe is needed.
while my car reliant colleagues were getting frustrated at the snail's pace that traffic was moving at this morning, i sat on a bench halfway up old john enjoying this view...

snieg

bike 180 - ride 21

out of the house at 5.15am to have a play in the fresh snow. rode up old john and back down. out for only 40 minutes.
back home for coffee and then rode to work.
sent home early and so rode home in daylight. two photos are at the same spot, 11 hours apart

january stats:
14 days commuting by bike (265 miles)
4 days commuting by car (i was ill and didn't want to get iller*)
6 social rides (181 miles)

*iller IS a word - westwood says it!