Deja-Vu

A couple of quality rides on the singlespeed and a heap of gym classes later, we find ourselves packing for a weekend in the New Forest.

We went this time last year. It rained all the time, we both had flu and we saw nothing except wet ponies. We were hoping for better things this time round and decided to have a wheel-free weekend and walk everywhere. The rucsacs are packed, walking boots cleaned, field cooker checked and we are ready for the short drive down to the Hampshire coast.

Weather was sunny and cold and we saw lots - Kite, Buzzard, Tree Creeper, Fieldfare, Redwing, Heron, Wren, Green Woodpecker, Kestrel, Tawny Owl, Chaffinch and Fallow Deer ...

The base for the weekend was the rather swanky-looking Beaulieu Hotel and this was booked with the balance of our Tesco reward points ! On paper it looked nice. It was clean and the staff were friendly but it was hugely over-priced and was populated on this particular weekend by two noisy family groups with largely unsupervised children. We won't go back.

Saturday dawned cold and bright and after a substantial breakfast we headed off across the heath on a bearing of roughly 4800mils to start our little ramble. Well, we rambled and rambled and had a very pleasant morning, bumping into some more of the locals ..

.. who stood still long enough to get a few pictures. I think they are Sika deer. They even appeared quite inquisitive and came closer to check us out as we sat down on a log in the middle of the forest to watch.

After about 13 miles we stopped off in Beaulieu village to sample the soup du jour from the Old Bake House Tea Room. We can thoroughly recommend it. Full of carrot and brie soup and a mountain of granary bread, we wandered off for another few miles and arrived back at the hotel just after dark at about 17:15.

We ditched the gear in the car and opted to go straight out and eat elsewhere. A short drive led us to The Red Lion in Boldre (www.theredlionboldre.co.uk and 01590 673177). This was selected at random by scanning the OS map for a 'village off the beaten track with a pub' and it proved to be a most wise decision. Lovely food, warm welcome, log fire and a very attractive girlfriend - a perfect evening.

Sunday we went off for a recce of the Burley Manor Hotel, somewhere that Molly has fond memories of, but we left undecided about using that as a base for the next trip. Will we eventually locate somewhere in the New Forest that we can recommend ?

Nothing but Rain

... for three days, so far.

As I glance out of the office window, the sun is out for the first time in over a week. I know, however, that hard on the heels of this brief respite from the crap weather, is another band of rain and sleet. This is due to arive shortly before I meet Mike and Stu at the start line for the 2011 Friday Night Ride Club meeting #1.

Over on my other desk, the green light tells me the helmet lamp is ready, the main spotlight is still charging and my body aches from the first pretty full week back at the gym (plus a sneaky road loop on Wednesday night in the rain) since November. It has to be done though and it's good to be back on it. The first month of each year sets the tone for the rest, so there can be no excuses.

Winter weapon of choice :



Saturday morning serves a healthy portion of DOMS that is quite exquisite ! We were only out for just over two hours last night as we decided on an 'easier' circuit to ease us all back into it - although Mike had already ridden to work and back ! Nothing to report, except it's harder without gears, I need some different riding techniques and it was very, very wet .. but I got up everything on FF's SS.

All in all, a good start to the year, only Jan 11th and the excess Christmas pounds have gone already and the cross training is gaining some momentum - weights and yoga last night. Legs hurt, still un-toned and I am snuffling through the tag-end of 'man-flu', but nothing to worry about.

Only One Speed .. slow !

In order to assist the the winter fitness programme I decided to go monocog. The latest, updated member of the stable is now back-together and comprising of cheap, functional bits - some left over from other projects - draped on the re-sprayed XTC 860 frame. I got my inspiration from the beloved Yeti ARC (er, a straight copy actually) and the painting has been done by fellow Tribe-member Jamie at DoobyDoo Designs (jamie.brockway1@btopenworld.com). He does some very cool custom helmets too, so check him out.

I went cheap by design and opted for laser-cut, stick on graphics with a laquer coating, instead of the airbrushed graphics that would have been my choice on one of the long-term rides.

Looks sweet doesn't it ?

The whole exercise was a useful one as I put the bike back together with only basic knowledge and a bit of reading. However, I now have a bit more skill and a few more tools. I replaced the headset with a new one from FSA and updated the cockpit with some Nuke-Proof gear. I don't have a problem spending good money on CK headsets and the like, but I struggle with spending on Thomson, when lots of other stuff is arguably as stiff, light and good - for me anyway. I thought I would give the Nuke gear a trial over the winter and perhaps use it on the ASR 5 come the Spring.

The single-speed gubbins came from Charlie at http://www.charliethebikemonger.com/ (+44 1929 475833). Charlie is a most helpful chap and has a few sensible videos on YouTube to back up any gaps in your knowledge. I have started with the 16t out back. The kit came with a 17t for 'hilly' conditions - I'm not sure where you draw the line ?!

The first ride resulted in some minor fettling on the trail and another chain-link being removed a good few miles from home, but the adjustments appear to have worked. No problems since.

Molly and I rode yesterday - an easy 16 miles with the sole intention of staying clean and enjoying some coffee - and then she kindly drove off to a pre-arranged RV so I could have some 'turn and gurn' time. I only did about six extra, uphill miles but managed to ride the whole way on a route where I had been taking the 'granny' option in the past. No choices now. The idea is that I will either a. get much fitter over the winter or b. I shall be put off biking altogether.

By Easter there may be a Giant SS on E-Bay or I'll be saving up for some gears!

The next question is whether to take it out on Friday for the night ride with Mike and Stuart ? We are all off-the-boil after Christmas, so there may not be a better time to try it and not get my ar$e kicked too badly .... but I may change to 17t before I leave the house :-)

'Race' Debut !

A chance conversation with Jon Harper from the UK Tribe led to some investigation into our 'Brass Monkeys' series of races that are held over three weekends during Nov - Jan. It's a proper race, but also offers the keener weekend warriors the chance to stretch their legs too. With a choice of one, two or four hour races, there is something for everyone. Even with the left-over snow, temperatures hovering around zero, periodic sleet and legs full of Christmas, it wouldn't be manly not to enrol for the longer one would it ?

The attendees are mostly built like Gollum and are as fit as a butcher's dog - then there is me, and Jon. Well, almost - Jon had an attack of the man-flu at the last minute and pulled out, so I went solo. I bumped into Ruth from the Tribe at the start line and swapped Christmas wishes and good luck. I remember thinking that would be the last time I saw her ...

I think the series is organised by the Army and so we get the chance to ride a few places that are normally off limits, such as ASH ranges near Camberley, where the meet on 28th December was held. An eight mile loop with lots of singletrack, lots of mud, a few stiff climbs, a couple of big drops, some bomb holes and a few bits of doubletrack so the skinny racers can easily get past the fat nobs.

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A study in concentration as I enter the last bomb hole ... at speed - I think I need Chris Taylor over here to make me look good on film !

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I didn't really know the routine for such events, but a bit of common sense had spares, extra bottles and snacks loaded into a yellow plastic bucket at the start line so I could re-supply on the way through as necessary. Worked OK and was a common ploy, good guess ...

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The first few miles were steady, enforced by the bottlenecks where the singletrack sections started, but once everyone found their rhythm it was pretty good. At the end of lap one, I was five or six places behind Ruth and going along at a comfortable pace. I overtook a couple early in lap two and was still feeling reasonable - then the gremlins started with the mysterious chain jamming I had in the 'granny' about a month ago when I was out with Mike. I thought the issue was chain-stretch and had thought I had sorted it out. No problems since, until I really needed those 22 teeth ! Afterwards, during the clean and maintenance phase, closer inspection reveals a bent hanger, so that is now replaced and let's see if all works next time I am under pressure.

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To cut a long story short, I wasn't in good enough shape to race over that terrain in those conditions without a small ring. I started to struggle up the muddy slopes and, being paranoid about getting in anyone's way, was constantly watching over my shoulder to make sure I didn't ruin anyone else's day on the sections where overtaking was impossible. I lost a bit more time as I jumped off the trail to let the peleton from the two hour race through, by which time I realized I had learned enough for one day and stopped after the third lap.

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It was a good experience though and I expected it to be a mid-winter kick up the ar$e that would put the fitness requirements into perspective for the coming months and re-enforced the theory that we would be a lot healthier without the alcoholic excesses of December. Drinking my own bodyweight in red wine from the Commonwealth every day for a month made my race debut somewhat pitiful and is going to make January that much harder.