Left work at 4:30pm yesterday. The forecast threatened light rain at about 7pm, but I wanted to get about 35 miles in. I took the Boardman, partly because of the threat of precipitation and partly because I’d noticed yesterday that the rear Disraeli is slightly loose on the hanger – the Allen bolt is nice & tight but there’s a little bit of play, as though a washer is missing.
I had no idea how or when this happened but wanted to check things, in case it’s a recent turn of events. As it turns out, the rear gears are still changing up and down very nicely. I’m guessing it’s probably something that’s gradually worn loose over time. Perhaps I’ll swap it out next time I replace the chain.
Anyway – I did a Twycross. I sort of wish I’d done something a bit more interesting as the weather looks rubbish for a few days and of course the daylight hours are shrinking now, but I just defaulted to my usual route. Conscious that I’d been a bit unimaginative, as I neared the turn to Ratcliffe I decided to keep on going down across the border into Warwickshire, and to Atherstone. I’ve been down through Atherstone a few times but to get back on the usual track from there you have to negotiate a cobbled stretch. I didn’t fancy doing that again so I pulled up short of the town centre and with the help of Google Maps, negotiated a short cut, along a road called St George’s Rd. A brief suburban interlude.
Back onto Atherstone Rd from there and along Mythe Lane, Atterton Lane as usual. I thought of trying another detour ten minutes later as I pushed along Fenn Lanes, perhaps to take in Stoke Golding – but I was unsure whether I’d have to negotiate steep climbs, and I didn’t fancy that. I must check that later, for future reference.
Back home the usual way except that I pressed on to Burgoland and approached Heather through Swepstone, rather than along Newton Road. That gave me a bit more distance and avoided a tedious hill south of Heather.
Very nice to be out in very light clothing, a short-sleeved top and shorts. Warm, certainly. And yet I spent a lot of the ride feeling grateful that it was so much cooler than the previous day. I felt a few pinpricks of moisture descend from the sky shortly after I left the house but that only persisted for about ten minutes. The last half hour of the ride was blighted by light, spotting rain. Apart from that it was dry.
I managed to break the Boardman’s mirror recently, and trialled a new one on this ride – a more upmarket model by Cateye, pictured below slightly out of focus.
I didn’t have high hopes because the mirror surface is closer to the centre line, hence I thought the rear view would be obscured by my right thigh. But in practice it works really well, perhaps because it’s slightly convex. The internal clamp that expands into the bar is very solid so it’s highly secure, and the reflected image is very steady. The only bummer is that it’s a little bit heavier. I’d be loath to fit one to one of the lighter bikes.
I was passed by a beautful E-Type Jag on the road to Twycross. Red, in near showroom condition.
So anyway – that’s another 35.38 miles in the bag, which takes me to 279 this month and 2140 this year.