17.03.2023 A spin into town for new panniers.

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 Friday 17th 41F. Overcast. Up at 7.30.

 10.00 Morning coffee over. Went for a walk to the lanes. Breezy from the south but mild enough not to need gloves. The hedgerows were full of chattering birds. 

 Unsure what to do today. I need to shop but the trip to the village now seems rather tame. I might ride into town. Have a look in the bike shop for some better panniers. Those I am using are falling to pieces and came from a charity shop. They look like crap! As does the battered and weathered Carradice saddlebag.

 It was blowing a gale again as I rode to town. Where I bought a new pair of waterproof pannier bags. I didn't like the all black examples so went with the olive green. Low key but smart. They clip onto the Moustache rack perfectly. 

 In fact I quickly fitted them outside the shop. Then dumped all my old junk inside them for the ride home. The new bags have extensive roll tops. So can be considerably enlarged if it should prove necessary. Shoulder straps are provided for carrying the bags about. When off the bike. 

 The roll tops can be laid across each other on the rack and held securely with the fitted straps. Normally they would be folded outwards but my own arrangement provided a different look.

 I intend to shop as often as possible by e-bike. To avoid taking the poor old car. [1996] So I need efficiency of storage for the groceries. No more fiddling with stiff leather traps and rusted buckles outside the supermarkets. Particularly if the ground is wet and I don't want to put anything down. This demands one handed opening of the bike bags.

 A claimed capacity of 20 liters dwarfs the old panniers. I have already removed the Carradice saddle bag as superfluous. With all its stiff and rusting buckles and cracked leather straps. How can they be taken seriously? If they use rusting fasteners? Aluminium or stainless steel buckles would not have added much to their ridiculous prices. Considering their very mediocre craftsmanship, capacity, lack of waterproofing and coarse materials.

 Today's ride was yet more valuable experience on two wheels with power assistance. I rode via the familiar lanes. Over which I have ridden the trike so many times. Practicing hand signals, with my hands off the bars in the quiet lanes, was a useful exercise. I was weaving until I had tried it a few times. I still can't ride with no hands. Yet it must be possible with practice. There are YT videos with riders of an identical machine. Turning sideways to chat to the camera. Without having their hands on the bars.

 Learning which gear and assistance mode to use is still ongoing. I tend to go faster than is really necessary. Perhaps because I would normally be driving the car. The trike is so much slower that it is hard to even relate to its snail-like progress. Cruising at 30-40kph on the e-bike is so effortless. Even in Tour and Sport modes. I was following a winding and undulating route. So enjoyed adding more assistance to avoid losing speed on the short climbs. 

 The problem is when I drop back to lower assistance modes. These feel as if I have gently applied the brakes. Until I drop a gear and press harder on the pedals. Then there is a kick from the motor and it urges me onwards again. There is none of the breathlessness and burning legs. Not even at three times the trike's climbing speed. Yet my legs are aching from riding with considerable effort. My average cadence is still 90rpm.

 I wore a pair of Wiggle's DHL padded, racing shorts under my cycling trousers. So the Cambium saddle went largely unnoticed again. I haven't bought a proper, cycling, rain jacket in many years. Only dirt cheap special offers in supermarkets. Which tended to be a bit sweaty and badly made. 

 So I splashed out on an Endura jacket in tasteful blue. Dayglo yellow-green might have been higher visibility but I have my high-vis, bright yellow helmet. Plus all the reflective patches on the bags and clothing and the high powered lights. I can add a high-vis and reflective waistcoat if I do need to ride at night. The Endura jacket had a wonderful softness to the fabric. Was beautifully made and had long arms and a long tail.

 Today's ride was 29km at an average speed of 24kph. Max speed of 45kph. Mostly ridden in Tour mode. The battery charge fell from 100% to 64%. In ECO mode it told me that 100% would give me 130km range! The calculated range dropped to only 47km in Turbo mode. Still a remarkable performance at such high average speeds!

 Dinner was chicken and mushroom curry.

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