9th June 2014

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Monday 9th 62-73F, 17-23C, bright with a light breeze. It should be warm and sunny all day. I have mild hay fever and have gone deaf.

My walk was more than usually rewarding today. Three fox cubs were playing on the track to the woods. I had the usual problem of not being able to get close enough for a picture because they were so wary. This image was taken at full zoom, heavily cropped and into the sun. So has lost much of its sharpness. This cub stared at me for ages. While the other cubs kept disappearing into the crop and wrestling in the grass. They were moving too quickly to allow a shot of all three. I have seen an adult fox in the same place on the path. These foxes will have a very long walk to find any sheep to worry. A task usually reserved strictly for the farmer's own badly trained dogs where sheep are commonplace! Sheep are so completely unconcerned by foxes that they hardly glance up as the fox crosses their field in broad daylight. Their very young lambs are at far greater risk from crows and the farmer's routine idiocy. Warm and sunny for my afternoon ride. Only 10 miles. It was a bank holiday but the supermarkets were stuffed with customers.

Tuesday 10th 72F, 22C, warm and sunny with high thin cloud and rather windy. The violent lunacy, which is commuting, returned with a vengeance today. The first vehicles I met were a car overtaking a box van overtaking a scooter. All on a narrow, undulating road with double white lines and blind spots. The blond in the overtaking car must have been travelling at 70+mph as she passed me on her way to her pointless appointment with an early death. These idiots seem to forget that their doppelgängers are frequently coming the other way and behaving equally moronically! Though there are a remarkable number of solo, fatal accidents in Denmark. These usually involve trees stepping out into the road to catch them unawares. I suppose we should really blame the trees for their irresponsibility.

Posh wedding carriage at Helnæs Kirke.

The number of fox cubs had grown to 7 today! The mother was resting in the long grass in the middle of the track. While the young wrestled, pounced and popped in and out of the dense crop. I knelt down to watch them for a while but couldn't get close enough for decent pictures. I am not sure if it wasn't two families. Four cubs disappeared into the left hand side and did not re-emerge. While the others continued playing on the right. Then the mother finally rose and went off left. Leaving a couple of the more independent cubs to explore on their own. I tried sneaking up on them by hugging the edge of the crops but they both disappeared before I was close enough for a snap. No doubt the record warmth has provided perfect conditions for bringing up lots of cubs. The birds also seem to be around in huge numbers compared with the norm.

I went for a short ride before dinner. Two fuck-wits (sic) were using both sides of the road, crossing double white lines by half a car width, at twice the speed limit, leaving opposing and overtaking[!] traffic, on a blind bend, with nowhere to go! But these two morons were having a serious race and had quite low profile tyres. So that's all right then.

Then five kids came out of a side turning in the village, on their bikes, without any of them giving so much as a glance towards the oncoming traffic on their side. (Me!) I went wide to overtake the gaggle only for some other drooling moron to speed through the village on the wrong side of the road between double parked cars which were completely blocking both cycle lanes. [Again!!]

The supermarket had no stock of its special offers for the second day in a row. Then I couldn't get my loaded trike out from the cycle rack because (a) the supermarket was using most of the available car and cycle parking for displaying its fenced off (and unwatered) summer plants and pots crap. (b) Fat, idiot girls had blocked the narrow exit space from the bike rack with their bikes. Being as fat as a houses they wouldn't want to waddle the extra yard, now would they? Not while carrying several ten gallon drums of sugar, water, toxic colouring and fizz. [Burp!] Their pock-marked [cellulite enhanced] thighs might spontaneously combust from all that excess friction!

Only seven miles today but is seemed like a hundred sharing the road (and my world) with such morons in this heat. We maxed out at 78F, 26C today with high humidity and the threat of thunder. Then we had a power cut. Not that air conditioning is a feature of Chez Hovel as I sit here in 85F heat [30C] typing furiously (sic) to the competitive singing of several bløødy blackbirds! Did I ever tell you I'm not a warm weather person?!!? I'm sure I must have mentioned it before. :-))

Jun 11th 62F, 17C, overcast, suddenly very dark, tipping down with thunder and lightning! The forecast is rather unsure but it should clear up this afternoon. Germany has had awful weather! Let's hope we don't get the same! A rest day.

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3rd June 2014

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Tuesday 3rd 55-72F, 13-22C, still and bright but rather cloudy. The sun has been rationed in today's forecast with the possibility of showers. My walk today added several more hares, several more warblers and a 4WD in the woods. Not happy to have a vehicle destroying my perfect solitude. I came back via the lanes. Which seemed awfully slow and tiring compared with rough tracks. 5 miles in 2½ hours with lots of stopping and staring.The wind is picking up slightly but it has remained bright.

Very warm but breezy for my late morning ride.  Drivers not ignoring the speed limits and double white lines would probably make the national headlines! Raving lunatics! Only 17 miles.

Wednesday 4th 70F, 21C, light breeze and sunny. Excused [walking] boots today to clip (and saw) a very tall and prickly, deciduous hedge. A vicious mixture of Blackthorn and Hawthorn 6-7 metres high badly needs a haircut! An exhausting day on the hedge so it's another rest day.

Geoff Booker [Trykit] could be heard on Chris Evan's show discussing tricycles @ 2.13.00 on the BBC iPlayer.  Here's an indirect link from the TA: 

http://tricycleassociation.org.uk/geoff-booker-appears-on-chris-evans-breakfast-show/


Thursday 5th 58F, 15C, overcast and rather breezy. Rain is forecast from late morning. Rather amazingly I don't feel too bad considering I spent the entire day moving  ladders, climbing all over and even into the ridiculously tall hedge, sawing and lopping branches. Then tidying up the resulting very prickly debris. We (my wife and I) still only managed about half the length of the 30m long hedge. It's odd how one forgets what bright daylight feels like after years of relative shade. The rest of the hedge will have to wait until it stops raining. Which is an excellent excuse to allow time for our recovery. I shall have to go shopping early to avoid the rain. My rides have been getting later over time.

It started spitting but I arrived home still dry before the morning coffee ritual. Only 7 miles. Hours more hedge clipping followed. Some people pay to go to a sweaty gym to get this much exercise! I am even saving a journey to the hospital by operating on the painful thorns myself. Swab, please, nurse!

Friday 6th 53F, 12C, heavy overcast, pouring with rain, blowing a gale.The rain petered out in the afternoon but it was still blowing hard when I left. Only 7 miles. Tomorrow promises to be much better.

Mr Higgins shies away from all that salty water. The sand may have been imported. I have never seen sand on the beach before today.

Saturday 7th 58-63-68F, 14-17-20C, still and bright but overcast. Warm sunshine with light winds are promised. A four  mile walk provided sight of several pairs of Bullfinches, lots of warblers including a Whitethroat and about a dozen Yellowhammers. With such light winds it ought to be a good day for a ride and I've seen 5 cyclists out training already.

As it was such a nice day I tootled down to the end of Helnæs peninsula just for the fun of it. There was a cool onshore wind in the shade. Traffic wasn't too bad considering the time of year, the weekend and tourists. I stopped for a cheese roll, banana and apple juice in the empty seaside car park. Only for a horde to descend in multiple vehicles. I beat a hasty retreat towards the lighthouse then back along the coast enjoying the peaceful but very hilly lanes. Plenty of cyclists out and about. 43 miles. Plus 7 more later, only to be ripped off by yet another supermarket chain with no stock of the promised special offers.

Sunday 8th 62-75F, 17-24C, very cloudy with brighter periods between squally and thundery showers. The wind is supposed to very light but it keeps picking up. I have to go out anyway but may leave it until after lunch when it is supposed to brighten. So I spent a couple of hours in 74F heat in full sun working on the spiky hedge. Am I having fun yet? Ten miles shopping trip. My clothes were completely saturated with sweat for the second time today.

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1 st June 2014

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Sunday 1st 53F, 12C, still, but overcast. Sun and light winds promised for later. I had better have a walk to try and stop my hip aching. My hip was soon forgotten as I tootled through the woods.

The old smithy is looking very smart.

Trying to spot warblers is a frustrating business! They are by far the most common songbirds in the hedges and trees but are well camouflaged, agile and shy. I did see a Blackcap though. 3.3 miles in just under 2 hours. Much of which was spent staring at bushes full of noisy, but invisible, birds.

I left late morning for my ride carrying a cheese roll and banana for sustenance in place of lunch. The first long drag found me strangely breathless. After that I had no problems and was going rather well despite taking one of the hilliest routes. I even chose to stand up to ride some long hills just because I could. An amazing improvement on last year's 5 second agonising  limit when I first started climbing out of the saddle. Loads of cyclists out training either solo or in small groups.

It is amazing how many home owners are slaves to their lawns. Most have ride-on mowers these days like mini tractors. I heard them literally everywhere I went today. All spoiling the rural silence and birdsong. I saw several cars with strange aerials on the roof parked up. No idea what they were up to. Having bought six plants in the target nursery I had to get them home in one piece. So I carried them in the pink sports bag slung over my shoulder. Luckily they all survived and the weight of all the soil in the pots didn't slow me down too much. 33 miles. What next? Jogging with a rucksack full of bricks?

The verges are stuffed with Comfrey and Yarrow at the moment. This is Comfrey. Beloved of bees and serious gardeners.

Monday 2nd 55-68F, 13-20C, still and sunny. Yesterday's promised sunshine did not arrive until late afternoon. Today it arrived early. With light winds it could be another good day for a ride. I checked the Higgins tyre pressures with my thumb before going out yesterday. The tyres seemed fine but I dragged the TouPeak track pump out just to be sure. I was surprised to find they were only around 40PSI. It seems my thumb is about as useful as just staring at them to check my tyre pressures! With 85PSI the Higgins became an enjoyable machine to ride again.

I must admit that I have noticed the Higgins' narrower track compared with the Trykit. Though it doesn't have many disadvantages. It is more about rider comfort and sense of security than anything else. The Trykit is far more forgiving and feels faster and smoother but uses slightly more road width. I can hurl the Trykit into my favourite, downhill roundabout without a qualm. I sail around 270 degrees then stand up to sprint out of the third exit. Often overtaking or catching cars as I do so. The Higgins doesn't run remotely as smoothly or with the same level of stability. It corners far more roughly with far more tyre scrub.

I also need to hang much further off the side to keep the Higgins inside wheel down. Which greatly increases the risk of a tyre burn on my thigh. A narrow track may be [theoretically] slightly faster in a straight line or climbing than a wider track. The shorter axles save a tiny amount of weight and offer very slightly less drag. A time triallist might consider these slight advantages as worth the reduced stability. Only to lose lots of time on sharp bends and roundabouts. It's not a matter of skill rather than the way the narrower trike handles.

It was warm and sunny for my walk this morning. Many more birds were visible today. I saw a pair of Bullfinches, several warblers and a Tree creeper. Another deer was browsing beside the forest track. I'd need an SLR with a long lens to capture them really well but don't want to drag a huge load of equipment around with me. I am already running out of pockets in my assorted "walking" jackets.  3.5 miles in two hours suggests there is far too much hovering and not nearly enough forward motion!

Shelducks guarding their field puddle.

There is discussion in the Danish press abut the battle for road space between cyclists and motorists. As a cyclist I moan constantly about drivers. But I can certainly see how many cyclists can irritate drivers with their poor behaviour. Pelotons of club cyclists out training often use far more road than necessary. Riding two abreast with chaotic outriders is just selfish.

Though even this is absolutely no excuse to deliberately run cyclists over as reported! Too many members of both camps lack intelligence, skill and patience. Many drivers must seriously consider themselves as royalty. Nothing must impede their (often illegal) progress for even a fraction of a second. They will often risk other's lives to join the back of an endless traffic queue on a road with double white lines for miles. Which is totally ridiculous and suggests a severe lack of grey matter. Or a severe mental illness! Do they not realise that traffic free, car adverts (like most others) are aimed strictly at sub-80s IQs? Advertising workers must share the same knee high IQ levels and/or lack of real world experience as many journalists judging by their output.

Rode to Assens. Warm and sunny again with light winds.  There seems to be two kinds of shops. Those with no stock. And those with neither stock nor staff. 20 miles and a heavy load of shopping.

I thought I'd better share some cycling related porn in case you're all getting bored with Bambies and birds: 

I read reviews of the A600 touring pedals and understood that some users disliked their one-sidedness. Despite the lighter weight they sometimes struggled to clip in when wanting to set off in a hurry. 

'So I chose a very similar pedal [The M785] with opposed  pairs of clamping mechs. While still offering more foot support than the bare mechs of my previous two sets of MTB pedals. Not that I ever noticed a lack of foot support with my stiff-soled NorthWave MTB shoes. I just thought I'd give these pedals a try instead.

These pedals are supposed to look very scruffy indeed very quickly. So enjoy them brand new while you can. No doubt I shall soon be sharing images of their rapid descent into abject squalor and grunge. The seals on these are at least as "sticky" as my last "slightly upmarket" pair of  Shimano SPDs. Why can't they be as free spinning as the 520s? Perhaps I am just getting obsessed with low friction. With my limited and constantly diminishing milliwatts output, as I struggle into old age and decrepitude, I do worry about these things. (Add smiley of choice here.)

I am determined to retain MTB shoes for my [tri]cycling needs. So called "Road shoes," with exposed cleats, are absolutely useless for clomping around the supermarkets on a daily basis. There are a great many different MTB shoes to suit all tastes, widths, stiffness, fasteners and pockets. These do not hamper the user who must perambulate as often as I do.

You may ask why I included the little poly bag containing the Shimano cleats in my image. Well, I once bought a cheaper pair of replacement shoe cleats, from a very serious bike shop, on their recommendation and regretted it instantly. They never provided the snug fit and lack of slop of genuine Shimano cleats. Be careful whom you believe. Not all cleats are created equal!  

Denmark has had its second warmest spring since records began in 1874. This follows several individual months of record warmth. Methinks this explains the very short period of yellow fields due to oil seed rape. In previous years the sickly sweet smell seemed to go on for weeks.

No doubt the birds have enjoyed the unusually warm weather too. My knees certainly have. Tea-stained to a 'T'. As are the backs of my calves. While my shins are as white and hairy as they ever were. I cannot even blame constantly cycling away from the sun. Perhaps it is a lack of ankling in my pedalling style which does not expose my shins to their fair share of UVs? [Add further smiley to taste.]

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