14th September 2015 On the lonliness of the long distance tractor driver...

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Monday 14th 60-66F, 16-19C, breezy, overcast. Showers possible but also clearing to sunshine. Take your pick which you trust. Forecast now changed to dry until this afternoon. Went for a walk but still no sign of the missing Coot family. Presumably they have joined the endless refugees in search of a new place to call home. Warm, sunny and windy.

I saved a life [my own] by stepping onto the grass to avoid an elderly  woman driver heading straight for me. She clipped the grass verge where I would have been standing without so much as a glance in my direction. Lots of ploughing going on to the delight of the shifting clouds of mink farm gulls. A few wet bales linger on as darkly forgotten tombstones. Raised to the memory of past harvests and their countless victims. Nobody does anything manually any more. Except me of course. Where have all the navvies gone? Long time passing.

Rode north with a tail crosswind off my right shoulder. Shopped and then returned with a cross headwind. They are all at it! Tractors raking, tilling, ploughing and sewing all on the same prairie. 14 miles.

Tuesday 15th 55-59F, 13-15C, bright and windy. Very windy, in fact. I walked towards the woods to take some pictures of a tractor ploughing the prairie. The advantage of the modern large, 4WD tractor is the sheer speed they can cover the ground. This young chap went back and forth several times by the time I had walked along the track. The entire plough flips over at the end of each furrow ready for the return journey.

My cap was in great danger of becoming road kill on my return journey. Still no coot family on the village pond. I wonder whether I should make a missing coots report? And if so... to whom? Rural policemen are even rarer than .. er.. um... er.. coots, these days. With rain forecast for after lunch I suppose I had better make an effort instead of sitting here waffling all morning.

Headwind going. Tailwind coming back. It felt rather cool when I left but the extra clothing soon came off. Luckily I missed a heavy, very localized shower at home. Another person asked where they could get a trike like mine instead of a heavy and ugly "invalid" trike. Sadly I had to point out how unstable lightweight trikes are in comparison with the cast iron, drainpipe variety. Two teenage girls admired my trike outside another supermarket. They seemed genuine enough. Kids in Denmark are infinitely better behaved than in the UK. They also seem far more self-confident and mature. A chap on a scooter came over to chat about bikes/trikes v scooters in the economy stakes. Only 15 miles.

Wednesday 16th 54-60F, 12-16C, breezy and rather cloudy. Rain again promised for the afternoon. Walked mostly across empty fields for a change of scenery. Difficult to match clothing to later warmth as temperatures climb rapidly from a rather cool start. Short ride under rather grey skies. Only 10 miles.

Thursday 17th 60F, 16C, windy with heavy overcast. Gusting to over 30 mph later.  Clomped across more harvested fields to experience the empty quarter where no humans ever tread. There were times I could literally lean on the wind as fine drizzle threatened at intervals. The only wildlife was a hunting house cat, several windblown butterflies and the swallows.

I spent another few hours clipping a ten foot tall, prickly hedge in a howling gale. It was blowing so hard the clippings were rolling away across the lawn! The task would be much easier if the hedge were not ten feet thick in places where the neighbour hasn't touched his side in the years he has been here. Wielding a massive, extended hedge clipper from the top of a ladder is not what they usually recommend as suitable weight training in the cycling manuals.

And, I'm an old fart! Which is just another excuse for another "rest day". I wonder how many people of my age can manage my "circus" tricks? [Clown on a tricycle, high wire hedge clipping, extreme stubble field rambling, limbo dancing through small holes in hedges, etc.] Thank you, thank you, thank you! No applause is necessary. I'd like to thank....

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7th September 2015 Cambium woes.

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Monday 7th 45-59F, 7-15C, cool, bright and still.  Shame it will be blowing 12 m/s, 25mph later.

I haven't mentioned the C17 Cambium saddle since I put it back on again. My first trial must have found me with saddle sores. I found it distinctly hard, unforgiving and uncomfortable. Which I put down to the ridiculous transverse curve across the back. It still isn't comfortable but is becoming tolerable for under 30 mile rides. The design department obviously came a very poor second to the hype department:

I enjoyed a pleasant walk in bright sunshine as the wind rose steadily to take the warmth off the rising temperatures. A jay complained noisily at my intrusion into his woods. Brambles seem to have taken over the tracks where I often used to walk my loop. I struggled through with the aid of my climbing gaiters against the spiky undergrowth. The secondhand [as new] Ecco boots are still working well. Though they are certainly lighter they are less supportive than the Salomon Quest on rougher ground.

Had an enjoyable and hilly ride out into the wind in bright sunshine. Stopped to film and photograph a harvester which was working right beside the road. A nice tailwind coming home via further shops. I am now eating a dark chocolate muesli bar to fend off tiredness. Cheaper than energy bars, delicious and palatable. No doubt I shall weigh 15 stones by the end of the month but the Cambium will have become an air mattress! I wonder whether Sella-Brooks ever thought of weight grouping their saddles?  What about: Skinny runt, Normal and North American buffalo? Suit yourselves. You will anyway. 21 miles.

Tuesday 8th 46F, 8C, perfectly still and rather misty. Dry, with some sun and wind later. Light winds and sunshine on an early ride.  Roads very quiet. 13 miles.

Wednesday 9th 48-63[?]F, 9-17[?]C, sunny, still and bright. Light winds and sunshine forecast. Off with ye olde Goth bag and Trykit rack and on with the Carradice Junior and pink, HGV sports bag. Off we, jolly well, go!

An almost perfect day for a ride but never really still. I was keeping up the cadence to around 100rpm and climbing well despite the cross headwind. Two peacocks narrowly avoided a collision as they chose my arrival to cross the road. They must not have seen a tricycle before because they were still running when I glanced back.

Sometimes you have to wait 900 years for  the light to be just right.

I supplemented my usual cheese sandwich with several small meuslie bars washed down with apple juice. Again I found the bars made me want to drink more water than usual. I hadn't tried these bars before and, though tasty, would have preferred quite a bit more texture. Muesli was probably an exaggeration despite the wild claims on the box. Nor did I approve of double packaging to hide the truly minute size of the contents!

I risked keeping the Cambium on today but it was a very mixed experience. Despite wearing my best bibs I began to really notice the Cambium after 25 miles. From then on it never really forgave my completely unwarranted optimism. With periods of pain and discomfort not much helped by climbing out of the saddle as often as possible and even getting off far more than I usually do.

I sat beside the sea at Bogense expecting peace and quiet for my packed lunch on a closed road. Only for a tedious bore to arrive in his car, stop right opposite me, throw the door open wide and begin a loud conversation at an IQ level well below 60! Even then I'm being extremely generous. His wife added to the joy by smoking directly upwind of me. It was a huge relief to get going again and head west. I ate my second sandwich standing up in Ore village, church car park where I wasn't troubled by any knuckle draggers. And where I also took the first of only two pictures of the day.

Eventually I reached the main road towards Middelfart. [For which fine name Google spelling checker suggested Delftware!] Fortunately the traffic was quite light and generally well behaved on this pretty, undulating and sometimes, twisty route. The road had just been resurfaced. So I used the traffic lane as much as possible to avoid the usual debris in the cycle lane. No doubt the next ice age will clear these moraines before the council has to.

A spaceman has an intimate moment with bees.

Once I had reached my goal I could start south again with a building, cross to tailwind. Despite the extra nourishment and more frequent rest days I was quite tired towards the end. Perhaps it was all the standing up just to avoid the Cambium?

Reading back through this diatribe it sound as if I didn't enjoy my day out. Far from it. The variety of scenery is always pleasant on the eye and the endless greenery gladdens the heart. If you had to spend five hours on a bike anywhere it would be difficult to beat West Fyn in Denmark for somewhere to do it. I only have to think back to the misery of sharing the roads with the sociopaths in the UK to offer grateful thanks to the God Ra. And boo-sucks to the evil Sella-Brooks for trying [so hard] to spoil it! Only 56, mostly painful, miles.

Thursday 10th 54F, 12C, breezy, bright overcast. Mainly dry but showers possible. Nearly two hour walk through the more distant forest and back along the road. Clomping across stubbly fields saved some time and distance. I saw a dark bird of prey with very long wings and tail soaring over the treetops but it had no obvious markings. Later a white form of buzzard was holding a commanding position on a pile of soil in the middle of a field. It was quite happy to remain there until a crow took off in alarm. Several jays were making a racket in the woods. Finally, a male pheasant was parading his harem of seven females across a large, well trimmed, rural lawn.

Plastered the B17 saddle with Proofide before putting it back on along with the Goth bag and Trykit  rack. Just a short ride today. Easterly headwind going. Tailwind coming back. Only 7 miles.

A single, large animal [?] footprint on a track in in the woods.

The toe of my size 11/46 boot is shown for comparison.
There seemed to be pads like a dog or cat.
Horse riding is banned in the woods.

Friday 11th 53F, 12C, light breeze, bright start but rain and wind promised by lunchtime. Drowned rat alert! The squeamish should probably look away now: 

I had gone 11 miles and was committed to a route which took me directly away from home when it started raining. Before long it was throwing horizontal stair rods as thick as  mist. At times the rain was so heavy and it was blowing so hard that it looked like snow coming off the tops of the hedges. With an inch of standing water in places and just as much flowing downhill there was little or no chance of getting a tan today. I sheltered under assorted trees as it renewed its fury and sogginess at intervals. I was soon wet right through and plodding towards home with a crosswind. It is times the like this when I question the true value of a £15 supermarket cycling jacket. A bin bag with arm and head cutouts would be no worse but for the lack of a zip! 20 miles.

Saturday 12th 55F, 13C, light breeze, heavy overcast, thundery showers possible. Will he or wont he? He did [ride] but it didn't.[rain] Headwind going which made me feel rather tired. Crosswind on my return made me feel like a pro.[cyclist] Lots of SUVs about today including some exclusive examples. One person in his Mercedes minibus thought it would be fun to floor the accelerator in a 30mph zone. It sounded like he managed third before he had to lift off with a noisy crackle. Tuned or badly tuned? Who cares? I expect he/they/it reached 100mph by the end of the straight. I only managed 15 miles and counting.

Sunday 13th 57-61F, 14-16C, windy with heavy overcast. Early rain or showers should clear later. It mostly drizzled until lunchtime. Mid afternoon ride under heavy, grey skies with light winds. Roads and shops very quiet. 22 miles.

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1st September 2015 60mph is the new 40kph.

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Tuesday 1st 62F, 17C, light breeze, heavy overcast. Light showers possible.

Lawnmower on steroids?

How many more Septembers can we each count on? Will we live each September as if it were our last? Will others treat our remaining Septembers with the same [lack of] respect as they do their own? The reason I ask is not some "deep" philosophical discussion on the meaning of life. No, it is far more simple than that: When does another's need for speed exceed my right to enjoy another September?

I was traveling along a major roadworks yesterday. The existing speed limit of 60kph [about 40mph] had been reduced to 50kph [30mph] and even 40kph [25mph] but was routinely being ignored. Yesterday, a dozen excavators twirled on the spot while tipper trucks shuttled back and forth. All this on a road which had been reduced to a single track with temporary traffic lights on long stretches.

Many drivers saw their progress being "unfairly" limited by the "difficult" conditions. But who, with a public show of pure insanity, decided that driving at well above the national speed limit was their absolute right. Should I have a jacket printed up asking about my personal allowance of future Septembers? Or will I become a mere blur as they race past me at twice the speed limit? No police presence = no crime.

Half way into my two hour walk the early clarity was suppressed by misty rain. Fearful that it might become more serious I took shortcuts across stubbly fields. Three deer watched me intently until I took out my camera. That was their signal to vanish into the brush. Walking on gravelled forest tracks, after heavy overnight rain, is very different to dry conditions. It takes on a level of toil not dissimilar to that found on soft, sandy beaches. A fidgety, very dark, almost black buzzard was pouncing on a harvested field. It obviously did not enjoy my presence at its breakfast table and quickly put a great distance between us. Another rest day. After a horribly grey and miserable day the sun finally came out at 19.35.

Wednesday 2nd 55F, 13C, bright but windy. Another windy 15m/s day.[30mph] The garden trees are already rocking at 7am. Blowing a gale for my hour's walk. Partially via harvested fields and some by quiet roads. A solitary bird of prey cried wolf while soaring above its personal copse.

It was blowing an even worse gale with fierce gusts for my ride. The most dangerous part is passing an opening in the high roadside hedges and being blown off course. The faster one rides the worse the effects of a crosswind. On one exposed descent I was hanging right off the side with one hand on the handlebars and the other on the aero bars. Even then I was using a lot of road just to stay on the tarmac. Fortunately the traffic was light on the lanes I deliberately chose to avoid the main roads. Only 13 miles.

Thursday 3rd 61-64F, 16-18C, sunny, but rather breezy, making it feel cold in the shade. Showers possible from lunch time onwards. No walk today. Rode off after lunch in bright sunshine. With the strong wind over my left shoulder I was cruising at between 20 and 23mph. As I began a long climb it started to rain quite heavily. I pressed on in the hope it would go off but it became steadily worse. Soon I was riding through falling stair rods and it kept it up for ages while I plodded on towards my goal. I hovered a while after shopping until it had passed over. Though riding along the main road afterwards was not as lot of fun.  Too many drivers were too thick to go around me despite the enormous width of the road. I chose to cross via a cycle underpass only to find myself riding through six inches of floodwater in the near pitch darkness of the tunnel! Am I having fun yet? The journey was not wasted because I found several items for which I had specifically gone searching. 24 miles.

Friday 4th 50-60F, 10-15C, bright, with a light breeze but still plenty of high cloud lit by the early sun. Showers possible according to the forecast. There is a cool but steady, southerly wind as I use the stubble fields to avoid the head high weeds in the woods. Several birds of prey moved away as I approached the woods. Including one with a huge gap in its wing tip "fingers." Four more birds of prey were soaring and dog fighting above the forest further on. Then a gang of jackdaws was mobbing yet another bird of prey as I made the long descent, back down to the road.  Quite an unusual number of birds of prey for one morning walk.

The smaller birds, which had dominated my walks earlier in the year, have all but vanished along with their songs. I see a few flocks of sparrows now but little else amongst the smaller birds. Though we had a family of wrens in the garden yesterday. They were very close to a wasps nest in a compost heap but seemed not to be bothered.We have been favoured with dozens of butterflies too. The promised showers missed us but they had flooding on the east and west coasts of Denmark. Rest day.

Saturday 5th 52-56F, 11-13C, breezy, very heavy overcast, rain forecast. A period of brightness lulled me into going out. Which was obviously a mistake. Nasty gales as a crosswind made staying on the road a  bit of an effort. Then it started raining... hard. Then it tipped down. Then there were several cloudbursts. I rode for miles into the fierce wind to reach a DIY store only to find that I had missed it by 10 minutes. Who would expect them to close at 1am on a Saturday in late summer? Not me it seems. Now I had a beneficial tailwind to get home but sheets of  torrential rain were crossing the fields to catch me up. I sheltered under several trees in the last ten miles. 22 miles. Did I mention the rain and the wind? Thought so.

Sunday 6th 53F, 12C, heavy overcast and windy. Early showers should give way to some sunshine but it will be spoilt by 30mph gusts. It was still dry but rather windy. Going was with a beneficial tailwind. Coming back the situation was not only reversed but I was now heavily laden. Tragically I had no control over my route. I had planned to head into the wind first but was overruled by the Head Gardener. She can move her compost heap on her own next time! Wasps and all! 14 miles.

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