4.10.2024 Another 68km and the 0.885 constant.

 ~o~

  Friday 4th 39F/4C [8.20] Misty [300m] with a thick mist warning. We are on the eastern edge of the affected area. Another sunny day promised after a cold night. First autumn frost in some places. A very light, northerly breeze.

 Up at 7.30 after an unusually quiet night with weird dreams. Lower back pain again.

 Given the perfect weather conditions I ought to have a ride. Dressed warmly. Don't ask me where. I'll have a look at Google Maps. Eeny-meany...

 14.15 Returned from a 68km ride. The wind was so light that all the turbines were still. I looped around the familiar charity shops to my north. Not that I found anything interesting to buy. I disturbed a male kestrel sitting on a lamppost. It decided it was a hare, or a pheasant and flew alongside me for quite some distance. I have been inundated with pheasants at home but I digress.

 I started feeling saddle sensitivity at 25km. After that it just got much worse. I tried adjusting saddle height repeatedly. This being easy to manage with a dropper post with a little practice. Press the lever gently and let yourself sink ever so slightly. It's not very accurate but certainly worth a try.  

 Sometimes it helped. At others not at all. While raising the saddle to its original height also helped at other times. I was wearing Wiggle's DHB racing shorts under my cargo trousers. The idea being to avoid friction.

 YouTube spontaneously produced a couple of helpful videos. One young lady mentioned measuring leg length with a book under the crutch. Then marking the wall with a pencil at the [book] spine. Heels against the wall in sock feet. It took several attempts before the marks closely agreed. 

 I then used her multiplier of 0.885 to find my saddle was [theoretically] 2cm too high. Almost an inch in olde money. Assuming she was right of course. I've never heard of the 0.885 rule before. I'll give it a try tomorrow. My choice of shoes also affects matters. My Sorel winter boots have much thicker soles than my trainers.

 My saddle is deliberately set nose up. Only today did I bother to check the ground was actually level under the bike wheels. Which was certainly a first for me! The builder's level showed it was roughly 2cm higher at the front wheel. So I added a 2cm board under the back wheel and rechecked the saddle. Still nose up. I carry the correct hex key in my jacket pocket. It fits both the saddle clamp and the frame clamp. Handy.

 Interestingly [?] the dropper post's collar is now resting on the frame clamp. It is unable to go any lower at minimum extension. Which gives me the minimum possible saddle height when fully lowered. For safely reaching the ground while at a standstill. 

 Any height, down to the minimum, is possible with a touch of the handlebar lever while riding normally. Ideal for those who prefer the "BMX look." I find that lowering the saddle below optimum feels very unnatural. It is as if my my knees are up in the air.

 Dinner was fried chicken, mushrooms and oven ready chips. All in sunflower oil. The jury is still out on whether this is healthy.

 

 ~o~