10.10.2025 67km

 ~o~

 Friday 10th 52F/11C [7.00] A dry but rather windy day is offered. The NW wind will be gusting to 12m/s after lunch. Which suggests a morning ride. 

 Up at 6.15 after a more difficult night. I got up at 4am for a drink of water feeling unwell. The moon was very bright again. Still 67F/19.4C in the room this morning. Thanks to lighting the stove last night.

 Following my online purchase of the Ryet, printed carbon fiber saddle I am being bombarded with spam [adverts from AliExpress.] Most of them for the identical saddle and all its shady? unspecified variants. 

 After a couple of days sitting at an unnamed airport the export process has started. Delivery date remains unchanged at the 20th. Still 10 days away. The sales advert clearly said 15th-20th delivery. So it has rapidly defaulted to the maximum waiting time. 

 I just hope it is worth the wait. I have owned so many saddles over the years. That I no longer have much optimism. 99% of the saddles I have tried were designed only for their looks. Never for comfort! It doesn't matter if a saddle weighs as little as a feather if it is uncomfortable beyond a few yards/meters.  

 Fortunately the boxed [reserve] Brown Brooks is behaving itself so far. I haven't laced it yet. I'll see how it progresses first. I still haven't done a longer ride on it. An unlaced B17 is just asking for a very short life and deep curves. This assumes that a high riding mileage is involved. No longer true for me any more. So this latest B17 may hold up for a bit longer than any of my previous examples. 

 8.30-9.00. My walk. I had put it off for half an hour. Because it was so dark. Thick clouds have hardly given way to a uniform, grey overcast. The wind wasn't yet a problem. The inevitable problem? Where to go? I have no need to go anywhere in particular. Head into the wind first? Let it help me back home. 

 10.100  A smidgen of misty blue through the grey lid. I had better find some cycling shorts.  

 10.15 Nearly ready. First glimpse of sunshine.  

 10.30-15.00 A 67km ride. It was mostly grey and rather windy. I visited numerous charity shops. The battery charge dropped from 100% to 12%. Close to shutting down. I had one unpleasant moment earlier when the power assistance suddenly vanished a long way from home. This happened before. It was due to a dirty speed sensor at the back hub. I managed to reset the error by switching off and waiting before restarting. A possible casualty of the error was the loss of the GPS mapping screen. It remained blank. 
 

 The B17 saddle proved its hardness. It just took longer. Before the discomfort became really noticeable. I wore my second best bibs. [padded cycle shorts with soft braces] A pair by Tactic. Which I bought from a local wholesaler many years ago. I see the name is still going in cycle wear. Sponge only about half as thick as the Assos. Not as stiff either. Twice as thick as my vintage DHB shorts from Wiggle. I thought I heard Wiggle had gone bust but they are still advertising online. 

 Anyway, the pain wasn't excruciating. Just increasingly unpleasant after 40km. Not friction. The Brooks leather was just too hard. While my legs still felt strong at the end of the ride.

 Dinner was chips and a salmon pasty. I forgot to take a picture! So here's one I took earlier. Let's pretend there were no peas today. I lit the stove. 64F/17.8C has miraculously become 66F/18.9C. 

 

  ~o~

9.10.2025 Mine's the big one!

 ~o~

  Thursday 9th 45F/7.2C [8.15] Brighter earlier but possible showers after lunch. Wind increasing steadily all day.

 Up at 7.15 after nodding off again. I do a lot of that lately. I had chest pains over my heart last night. Used the nitro spray under my tongue several times. That helped. I was pain free by bedtime. 

 Cooking class today. I replaced the ink cartridge in the printer again. To be able to print out the recipes. 

 The bathroom is getting chilly. It quickly warms to the fan heater. Rather than having it warmed continuously with an oil filled radiator. That can wait. I didn't need to light the stove last night. It was hovering around 66F/19C. So I was comfortable in a fleece jacket over a jumper.

 9.00 Off we jolly well go in the Morris. 

 14.00 Back from cooking class. Where I made sweet rolls with a cinnamon sauce. Starting from scratch with milk and yeast. Then adding all the other ingredients to make the dough. It rained lightly but briefly before I left.

 No dinner required. I made do with a cup of tea and a biscuit.

 I lit the stove and it reached 69F/20.6C by bedtime.  

  ~o~

8.10.2025 Using the lathe?

 ~o~

  Wednesday 8th 54F/12.2C [8.15] A grey, wet morning but brighter later.

  Up at 7.00 after deliberately dozing. 

  I may go into town. I need some bolts. 

  And did. It rained going both ways.

  I spent some time on the lathe in the afternoon. Making a part for my telescope.

 Then the lady from the local stately home called and stayed chatting for a couple of hours. 

 After which I had to tackle several days worth of washing up. 

 19.00 Time for dinner. 

 Dinner was a tin of tomato soup and a bread roll with cheese. 

 

  ~o~

7.10.2025 An excess of fraud.

 ~o~

  Tuesday 7th 54F/12.2C [8.15] A cool wet day is promised.

  Up at 7.30 after falling asleep at 5am again.

 A visit to my friend. It will have to be in the car. I don't deliberately cycle in rain.   

 13.15 Returning from my visit. It was extremely wet on the return journey. With lots of continuous and often deep puddles on the roads. 

 Another afternoon wasted on YouTube. Or, alternatively, educating myself on YouTube. 

 Why are politicians, who make false promises at elections? Not routinely prosecuted for fraud? They still get the well paid jobs. So gain financially from their deliberately fraudulent behaviour. Yet do not perform any of the magical tricks. Which they swore they'd do, cross their hearts, on the children's circus posters. 

 Dinner was chicken, mushrooms, peas, carrots and Bisto gravy. For the Sunday dinner I missed making. 

 

  ~o~

6.10.2025 This Ryet is a riot!

 ~o~

  Monday 6th 49F/9.4C [7.40] A smudgy sky and breezy. It should be sunny all day as the NW wind slowly subsides.

 Up at 7am after a fairly quiet night. 64F/17.8C in the room this morning. After the stove was lit from 8-10pm last night. It reached 67F/19.4C at bedtime. 

 8.30 Back from my walk. Traffic heavy. Wind strong. Lots of twigs blown out of the hedges onto the road. I tidied the largest onto the verge. I brought the recycling bin back with me. 

 11.3 Back from shopping in the village. I bought a wrist and thumb support mitt. Not sure how much good it's doing. It looks like I have early stages of arthritis. Not an injury. My hands have been hurting for years on longer rides. Hence the need for a more upright position.  

 I have been watching a lot of YouTube reviews of Ryet 3d Carbon Fiber, printed saddles. They cost so little to purchase on AliExpress that I actually ordered one. To better match the size of the Brooks B17. Which is 170x280mm and weighs just under 550g. Weight is no object on an e-bike which uses heavy batteries for pedal assistance.

 The Brook's thick, leather top is much flatter than the Ryet but a completely different shape. The Brooks sits you far back on a hard steel frame. With a row of large rivets along the back. The Ryet is widest at the sit bone position or what I call "the bench." Most saddles have a preferred or natural sitting position. 

 There is a great deal of [deliberate?] confusion about which Ryet model you get from the numerous AliExpress adverts. Which often illustrate several models in the same advert. Yet offer no buyer's choice box or drop down list. Often exactly the same dealer has numerous prices without any clear indication of why this should be! 

 I went with the advert listing the largest 150x255mm with a carbon base. The same advert and advertiser [Ryet factory] show steel or carbon rails. Again without the buyer being offered any choice. 

 My order lists it as a Ryet "Aircode." BK plastic base. 255g. Not the illustrated carbon fiber base. Which I was expecting. Steel rails and [oval] carbon rails are both mentioned. This is the product detail list copied directly from my order acceptance mail: Will the correct Ryet saddle please stand up? 

 Rail: Full Carbon
 
 Model: Aircode
 
 Padding: 3D Printed Honey Comb

 Support Structur: Toray T1000 Carbon Fiber
  
 Dimensions: 255X150mm(10 lnch x 5.9 inch) Rail UD: CR-MO Rail Ø 7x7mm (0.27 Inch x 0.27 inch)Carbon Fiber :7x9mm (0.27 Inch x 0.35 Inch)
  
 Weight : Plastic Base 255±5g(8.99 oz±0.17 oz)Full Carbon Base 165±5g (5.82 oz±0.17)---------170±5g (5.99 oz±0.17oz)--------172±5g(6 oz±0.17oz)
 
 Grafic: Black/White
 
 Warranty:1 year
 
Applicable: Road Cycling / Mountain Bike Cycling etc.

 This fuzziness in description would probably put many, more cautious people off. If these saddles weren't so "dirt cheap." So perhaps worth a slight risk. No doubt the same vagueness would contravene consumer protection laws in Europe. 

 I expect to have to pay 25% VAT [about £6?] and import clearance charges. About £20 equivalent from Post Danmark. Though the final Danish carrier is not named. I'll obviously update when I know more. 

 I was automatically offered free postage and a first purchase discount by AliExpress. There can be few saddles in the bike shops. Which will fall under the total, delivered price. Delivery is expected to take about a fortnight. ETA around the 20th October. Tracking is provided with numerous details and updates. Yet no specific names of towns or cities. Which makes it utterly pointless so far! 

 Dinner was mackerel in tomato sauce on toast. I had no tomatoes.

 

 ~o~

5.10.2025 Storm damage!

 ~o~

  Sunday 5th 50F/10C. Overcast, with continuous rain forecast until midnight tonight. A strong, gusty wind will last well into Monday. With sunshine returning on Monday morning.

 Up at 7.30 after a very quiet night and dozing. 

 The south-eastern, corner panel has been sucked out of the greenhouse again. It seems unable to resist the suction effects of high SW winds. The Bernoulli Effect or Venturi? Who can tell? I replaced the glass with clear polycarbonate sheet years ago. That sheet is now lying on the ground. The glass retention clips scattered everywhere amongst the weeds.

 Allowing shrubs and trees to grow tall out to the southern boundary seems to provide no useful protection. Perhaps the wind is channeled by the front hedge? Which runs east to west and is now only 2m high. The eastern gap by the greenhouse. Was always closed by a towering hedge in the past. It didn't help very much. When it came to stopping the wind. I vaguely remember talking about fixing that panel with screws at one point. Of course it never happened. I'll have to find some stainless steel, self-tapping screws. In the meantime I have to close that large hole in the greenhouse! 

 9.30 The panel is safely back in again. Using as many glass clips as can possibly be fitted into the space available. Just as I always have. Even in the present light wind the panel is visibly breathing. Plastic sheeting is much floppier than glass. As it flexes into a bow it shortens the path between opposite edges. The framework remains unmoved. So the polycarbonate escapes from its clips. 

 Screws are the only safe way to keep it in place. Even though it may look unsightly if badly done. Silicone would probably look much worse! It is cold out there and keeps raining hard in short showers.

 10.30 Sunshine! Walkies! 

 11.00 No sun. It rained twice.  So I sheltered under handy trees. There was a lot of small debris along the verges and road. A couple of small, rotten trees had fallen in the fields. The wind was as variable as the rain. Blowing a gale one minute. A light breeze the next. The drainage beck was only a little higher than usual.

 The day was spent online. Mostly YouTube.  

 Dinner was a huge fry-up. Chicken, mushrooms, eggs and tomatoes. Helped down by a buttered, bread roll.

 

 ~o~

4.10.2025 The city beckons.

 ~o~

  Saturday 4th 49F/9.4C. Gales and torrential rain. Worst in the early hours of this morning but slowly reducing. Rain expected to continue, unbroken for a couple of days. 

 Up at 7am after a quiet night. 

 9.30 The weather is already calming down. I have been researching plumbing fittings online for my solar telescope. Though it seems the local builder's merchants can't help. Not according to their online catalogues. So it seems I must make a trip into the city. To a big shed discount DIY store. Which doesn't do online sales but has a vast range of products at affordable prices.

 13.25 Back from a trip to the city. Returning with an assortment of clamps. 

 Dinner was cheese on toast with halved, cherry tomatoes. 

 

  ~o~

3.10.2025 Shut that door!

 ~o~

  Friday 3rd 43F/6C. A sunny day is forecast. Increasingly windy. Leading to a storm tomorrow. With heavy rain and high winds. It felt much colder in the greenhouse this morning. As I fed the fish their breakfast. 64F/17.8C indoors after the stove was lit yesterday evening. Two logs brought it up to 66F from 63F.

 Up at 7am after a quiet night and dozing.  

 8.00 Getting ready for my walk. 

 8.50 Back again. I met two neighbours. The relatively new one has a gorgeous, giant, black boxer! I took lots of pictures of the landscape. In the golden, grazing light of the autumn sunshine. Countless hundreds of small birds were foraging on the set-aside sunflowers. They were lifting in repeated clouds and rushing for the trees as I approached along the verge. Lots more 7-axle, tipper trucks passed by. Going in both directions. I wonder where they are heading? I mean those driving towards the village. Landfill? Leveling fields? 

 The apple and pair trees are laden with colourful fruit. Even the pears are red. I used to clip the trees at a useful height but not for years now. Being ignored seems not to have reduced their ability to produce fruit. Perhaps they're working class trees?

 11.30 Back from shopping. I bought a purple Cordyline plant. Young plants can be kept indoors apparently. I was going to add it to the outdoor collection. However, they like warmth, sunshine and don't like wet feet or frosts. So we'll see how it does indoors. No sign of any tipper trucks in the main shopping street. 

 I had to move the kitchen furniture. To be able to close the kitchen door again. Summer is over and the available warmth must be contained. I enjoyed having the doors out of the way. This probably means I'll have to get the storage heaters out. 

 Dinner was fish fingers and chips. With a side dish of baked beans. Well, a side plate, but let's not be picky.

 

  ~o~

2.10.2025 39km on a motorized, leather stool.

 ~o~

  Thursday 2nd 48F/9C [8.50] Sunny periods? A rather cloudy start.

 Up at 6am after a fairly quiet night.

 9.00 A glimpse of sunshine. Time for a walk. 

 9.20 Back from my walk. Sunny, but rather chilly. Despite no noticeable wind. Lots of vast, 7-axle, tipper trucks going back and forth. The pretty cat was in the drive, complaining again. I don't have the AI app. To be able to converse in fluent Cat. On the meaning of life. Is Cat a universal language? Or do they have local accents?

 I feel the need to visit a builder's merchant some 10 miles away. I'd enjoy the ride but am hesitant to spend so much time on such an errand. Though there is a charity shop nearby. Which often sports exactly what I am looking for. Failure to find the item I need would require an extensive online search. Leaving me at the mercy of Google and Chinese offerings of unknown quality. I had better go in the car. Or not. I had left the lights on and flattened the battery. Time to get the smart charger out.

 13.40 Returned from a 39km ride without having found my quarry. I did some shopping too. Lots of roadworks, excavation and building work. A chilly headwind all the way home. I resorted to Turbo mode.

 The new B17 saddle has no right to be as comfortable as it feels. I gave it a couple of doses of Brooks Proofide at the beginning. This has never achieved much going on past experience. Except to stop it being so slippery. I wore a very old pair of padded cycling shorts under my cargo trousers today. 

 39km isn't really far but it is usually enough to cause pain and misery. Yet I returned home unscathed. My wild guess is that the very wide saddles. Which I have been using on the e-bike. Trap loose folds of aging flesh. Whereas the B17 doesn't provide the large, flat areas. Which cause so much discomfort. I do admit though. That the B17 saddle was beginning to feel rather too hard as I neared home. 

 The lorry movements I had noted earlier seemed to be related. To the continuing drainage and district heating work. At the bottom of a rather hilly village. Two large excavators with huge buckets were digging clay. In the bottom of what I assumed to be a very large, emergency drainage pond. They were passing the clay up to the road level. Where another excavator was loading the waiting lorries. 

 These ponds are being established in many places to cope with potential cloudbursts. As a likely result of climate change. No doubt helping to boost the local wildlife into the bargain.

 I have just lit the stove for the third evening in a row. Dinner was beans on toast.

   

  ~o~

1st October 2025

 ~o~

 Wednesday 1st 43F/6C. A Sunny morning in prospect. 

 Up at 6am. 

 8.30 Back from my walk. Had a chat with my nice neighbor. While he was walking his dogs.

 12.30 Back indoors after spending quite some time waiting for clouds to clear the sun. I have been experimenting with different telescope accessories. Above 95% cloud cover now. So I might as well have lunch. As soon as I went indoors the sun came out. The DMI is promising more sunshine after 14.00. 

 16.30 Back in after more hours trying to capture pictures of the sun, through my telescope, with my phone. Very cloudy again! 

 Dinner was a salmon pasty, Fettuccine pasta, peas and tinned tomatoes.   

  ~o~