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Saturday 5th, 29F, another hard, white frost. Some more brightness promised. I keep waking up early and have to get up. It was 5.30 again this morning.
I started my morning walk not long after 7.30. Hoping to avoid the crash test dummies. There was very little traffic so it must have worked. The new boots are not yet comfortable. They are pressing on top of my big toes. Perhaps I should try thinner socks.
I checked my blood pressure yesterday. First try was 200/100. After
five minutes of relaxing in an armchair it was down to 148/88. Same
again after another ten minutes. I tend to get nose bleeds when I exert myself foolishly. Like pushing my heavy trailer uphill to hitch it onto the car. I haven't arranged any attachment for the boat winch yet. The old one had a length of 2x 4 fitted. To give me something to clamp to the trailer's pull bars.
My blood pressure reading was following a day of considerable exercise. Clearing the trike shed again. Back and forth carrying heavy boxes outside. Then repeat in reverse as the sky darkened. Now I have another trailer full of junk from the trike shed to take to the recycling yard. Mostly packaging kept for returns which were never needed. Decades worth.
I have put off dumping all the cycle stuff for the moment. Except for the hundreds of punctured inner tubes. Which will have to go. I had used some of them for clamping woodwork projects but that was years ago. It was always easier to replace a tube. Than to repair a wet tube beside the road. I just had to be absolutely sure there weren't any thorns or flints still left in the tire.
If only I had been advised earlier on about the remarkable puncture free benefits of Schwalbe Durano Plus tires. I could have saved a fortune and completed many more rides, much more quickly. What is the point of racing from A to B on light tires? If you have to waste time repairing punctures? It makes a complete mockery of your efforts.
I have been saying for years that elite racing cyclist should be required to mend punctures beside the road. NO mechanics. NO swapping wheels. I guarantee punctures would be history for the elite inside a season! All it takes is for the TV cameras to watch the yellow jersey struggle with a puncture. Within easy walking distance of the summit after breaking away! It will never happen. There is far too much easy money to be made from the copycat, weekend warriors!
Another valuable tip is to have a track pump at home. A couple of pushes on the big T-handle and the tires are at the correct pressure. Not some guesstimate after frantically pumping on a frame-fit or micro-pump. I ran my tires at far too low a pressure for decades until I finally bought a track pump. Most of my countless punctures were probably pinch flats before that.
My thumb pressure test always felt rock hard at only 55-60PSI. Which I only discovered later with the track pump gauge. I ran/run the Durano Plus at 90PSI. It made all the difference in reduced rolling resistance. Without affecting comfort.
The Duranos have a quick and rubbery feel on the road. Despite the slightly increased weight over all the tires that puncture far too easily. The worst tires I ever wasted money on were Continental Grand Prix 4000! Puncture magnets could not have been better designed to fail on every trip. Absolute garbage! And by far the most uncomfortable tires I ever rode on.
I had to change my familiar routes just to avoid stretches of cobbles! The Duranos provided suspension and made the cobble stretches seem like fun. BTW: Trikes greatly exaggerate cobbles. Because the machine rocks from side to side. As well as fore and aft. Cobbles will find every rattle. Including your teeth. So keep your mouth closed tight. Or lose them!
I managed another full trailer tour to the recycling yard. More room in the trike shed if I can tidy up what is left. More hours clearing up the aftermath in the afternoon. The fine, dry weather has helped enormously. I can drag stuff outside the shed without worrying about rain.
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