I am a lifelong mountain biker who rarely lacks motivation. I had always ridden bikes off road like most kids but in 1976 I bought a “scrambler” for 70 pence. This was a bike which was dedicated to off road use. In 1977 I added a homemade suspension fork. I used the front suspension unitsContinue reading “Why I’m writing this….”
Real progress with the boat.
I finished some modifications to my newly built boat yesterday, with the intention of testing today. After my last test I thought that I needed to gear up the paddle wheel to make it rotate more quickly. After a little thought I realised that this would be the wrong approach. I simply hadn’t been gettingContinue reading “Real progress with the boat.”
Flower of the Week, 6th June 2023.
We have spread our Camasias to several places in the garden. The only problem is that they are also a prolific self seeder. The trick is to enjoy the flowers then mercilessly cut the seed heads off before they spread seed everywhere. Our camasias are the rarer white variety. A blue form is far moreContinue reading “Flower of the Week, 6th June 2023.”
An unusual ride.
Normally I like a twisty trail in the hills to add action and excitement to a ride. Today, though, I chose a different type of ride on my mountain bike. I rode for around 17 miles, mainly along the canal bank. The main reason for this is that I had suffered some tendonitis in myContinue reading “An unusual ride.”
Testing the new boat again.
After my first test of my newly built boat I was pleased with its stability on the water. I tried a pedal to paddle propulsion system but wasn’t getting much power into the water, meaning that it was very slow. I decided that it looked impossible to develope this propulsion system so chose to buildContinue reading “Testing the new boat again.”
The joys of summer.
It doesn’t seem to have rained in weeks, though, due to global warming, it hasn’t been all that warm until the last couple of days. The ground was baked hard on my ride 2 days ago, which I have my excuses for not writing about until now, and the trails were running fast. I rodeContinue reading “The joys of summer.”
Flower of the Week, 28th May 2023.
Irises give a spectacular if ephemeral display at this time of year. The bearded iris likes to have its tubers exposed, not buried under the soil. Our smaller Iris Sibirica were donated to us by a neighbour and are very attractive to bees.
Why you should ride repeated circuits.
Back in the day, before my riding companions decided they were too old for mountain biking, we would never ride repeated circuits. Everyone seemed to think it was boring to ride a section of trail more than once but my view always differed. For one thing you can perfect the speed at which you rideContinue reading “Why you should ride repeated circuits.”
Back on the bike at last.
Normally my mountain biking life is very steady. I rarely leave home for more than a week at a time and sometimes when I have, I’ve taken a bike with me. This month, though, I had a trip to the island of Jersey by scooter, with friends. This kept me off the bike for 6Continue reading “Back on the bike at last.”
Flower of the Week, 20th May 2023.
I returned from my recent trip to Jersey, where wild flowers were many weeks ahead of those of my home in Lancashire, only to develop a stinking cold. It’s really hit me hard so I haven’t been able to get out on my mountain bike and have felt far too delicate to make much progressContinue reading “Flower of the Week, 20th May 2023.”
Visiting Jersey by scooter.
I’ve never been to the Channel Islands before but over the last week I’ve been on a trip there by scooter. I chose to ride what turned out to be 265 miles to the port of Poole in one go. I’d gone to the Bay Horse to meet the rest before they left on theContinue reading “Visiting Jersey by scooter.”
A pilgrimage.
On my last mountain bike ride I tried to do something which has become an annual pilgrimage. Riding to a curiously shaped hump known as the Egg Hillock. I tried to cut across a section of trackless moorland and decided that I didn’t have time to reach my objective. Yesterday I wanted to repeat theContinue reading “A pilgrimage.”
Flower of the Week, 4th May 2023.
We have around a dozen Acer Palmatum or Japanese Maples. Many are green but here is one which starts a very bright red. It turns gradually green during the summer before giving a spectacular display of autumn colours.
Lost on the Moors.
Today I decided to engage in a mountain bike ride which has become a bit of an annual pilgrimage. I ride to a distant and curiously shape hump called the Egg Hillock. It rises from a wild and desolate area of moorland and makes a very testing, longer ride. The problem with the route I’veContinue reading “Lost on the Moors.”
Great Hill in the sunshine.
I haven’t ridden my mountain bike since last weekend but I did get some good exercise launching my newly built pedal powered boat on Wednesday. Today, though, I wanted to get a good training ride in with plenty of climbing. I covered 15.14 miles with 1,521 feet of ascent. I always think that 100 feetContinue reading “Great Hill in the sunshine.”
Splash!
I launched my newly built boat for the first time today. I was worried about its performance so didn’t take my phone for photos and therefore didn’t record my progress on Strava. I’d been worried that it may be rather heavy to pull, on its inbuilt wheels, a half mile to the canal but itContinue reading “Splash!”
Close to launching my new boat.
I’ve been working on my boat again today, between dog walks, and I’m clise to finishing. I may launch tomorrow! I’m excited but there’s a certain trepidation. I’ll be higher above the water than I was in the dinghy so even with more buoyancy it may feel more “lively”. In addition the paddles which propelContinue reading “Close to launching my new boat.”
Good training.
On my last ride I felt extremely tired. I’d found a problem with a loose bottom bracket which was rubbing and making it hard to turn the pedals but didn’t know if this was the whole story. Perhaps my fitness had also fallen? Yesterday I chose to ride to our local hill, Healey Nab, toContinue reading “Good training.”
Flower of the Week, 23rd April.
Last year our cherry tree had been butchered by someone posing as a tree surgeon. It barely flowered so I didn’t feature it. This year it’s back on form.
Harder work than it should have been.
I wanted to do a good ride to improve my fitness yesterday and that’s what I got. Not, however, because I rode more quickly than usual but because I had a mechanical problem. I chose to ride to the top of Great Hill, a ride of 15 miles with around 1,500 feet of ascent. TheContinue reading “Harder work than it should have been.”
Trial build of my new boat.
I’ve managed to make almost all the componenet parts for my second boat build, so today I laid the parts on the drive to see what it looked like. Obviously with no paint on the frame it didn’t look anything like finished but I was able at least to sit on board. It feels surprisinglyContinue reading “Trial build of my new boat.”
Mountainbiker 