Training Rides
So I aimed for a 70 mile ride today, the weather is windy, big black clouds are looming on the horizon .. ah well .. so taking to the road . The first mile is flat and then its up the first hill – guess what? The wind is blowing down the hill! Typical! The sun is trying to creep through though so its not all bad. The new Bar Bag is heavy and distracting on the handle bars, when I stop for my first break I will tweek the mounting .. as it is making the steering a little unstable. - not good on tyres the width of a strand of cotton! It could be a fun first 20 miles!
So I tweek the mounting of the bag .. it improves as I moved it lower, but it is still not great. When I get going again the front wheel is beginning to make a noise, squeaky bearing I think .. interesting, I hope it lasts. But I am think that I may make this a slightly shorter ride todayas I want to make it home in one piece without damaging the bike if possible – It’s only a few weeks till JOGLE and I need the bike for that! So apart from the noise from the front wheel all goes well for the next 28 miles, power up the hills, keep good pace, until I go through a puddle. This particular puddle was disguising a big pothole and I heard a hiss … it’s the tyre! My first puncture on the road for years but hang on it is not just one puncture – both tyres are flat as I come to a halt very quickly. So with an already aching back I flip the bike over and get the tools out – rear wheel first then. After pulling the inner tube out I search for the problem only it is hiding from me, it turns out to be a double slit in the tyre close to the valve, Patches out and prep the tube and on it goes. Now let’s blow the tube up to see if there are any others – wouldn’t be the first time! In the meantime I put the only spare tube I have on me into the rear wheel and hope that the repair works on the other one for the front! This time luck is on my side as the patch worked and both tyres are inflated again. 25 minutes & 2 punctures later I am back on the road. I must say somewhat relieved as the prospect of carrying the bike home for 8 miles was on my mind for a while.Phew!!
