Buoyancy Aids

The long holiday weekend and lockdown presented the ideal opportunity to setup the Redshift Sports Suspension Seatpost and take the Holdsworth for a 7am blast, on Easter Saturday. 20 miles confirmed that I’d set the saddle height just a fraction too high, putting unwelcome strain on my knee joints. However, my pre-load guesstimate was bang on.  

A gentle, progressive sag and return, no power-sapping “Pogo stick” bounce… I slid a 5mm hex key in the binder bolt, then eased the post down by 4mm-perfect. Balmy weather turned Bandit by the mid-afternoon, so I’ve switched back to my Univega for daily social distancing. The weather has veered between 20 degrees and a blustery 10. Conditions that call for a more flexible approach, in terms of clothing. 

Early mornings have been the order of my routine. Therefore, three quarter lengths such as these Primal are perfect. Cooler and I default to a long sleeve base layer and a jersey cum jacket. Milder, I reach for a middleweight training jersey, such as this Prendas Ciclismo Paris Bordeaux Long Sleeve Jersey https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/prendas-ciclismo-long-sleeve-jersey. 

Just now, I’m staying with full finger gloves and alternating between the buff cap (photo) and This Scimitar Recycled Neck warmer, which, rather like the Original Buff can be worn in several ways. https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/scimitar-recycled-neck-warmer  

Despite a generous thatch, I’m finding the Buff Cap a little too airy when battling icy blasts, leading to the occasional “ice cream” headache when scorching along exposed descents. 

Nonetheless, in milder weather, it seems a superior alternative to the traditional race cap. 10 days in, it’s still smelling refreshingly fragrant too... These are also easier to shove in a jersey pocket, when not required.   

30 years back, I was rotating my oval rings and indeed, pouring scorn on the concept. Fast forward to the present, I’d never suggest going oval across the fleet, or otherwise proclaim elliptical as the Holy Grail. In some instances, those running a front mech may need to raise theirs and make similar, small adjustments.  

However, the 15% ovality and 38 tooth Raval ring has certainly transformed my Univega’s gearing from nearly-there, to tailor-made. There is a slight period of adjustment in muscle timing but it’s loosely comparable with that experienced, switching between fixed and freewheel transmissions.  

I’m also trying to steamroller my butt’s specific contours into THAT saddle.  

It had fooled me into a false sense of security after a few hundred. One that was only realised when I switched to my fixed gear winter trainer and the Swift pattern (that has been sat on for many thousand miles). On current progress I’m reckoning a further 300 miles should prove the turning point.   

Despite my best efforts, the Tom Tom Bandit Action Camera Bracket’s infuriating low-level rattle has returned, along with some slippage. I tried to bolster the bracket’s ball joint with Thermoworx Whitemorph https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/thermoworx-whiemorph  but it’s not held firm. Helmet rather than bar mounting may be the only solution.   

As an interim measure, I have resurrected this Geonaute G-Eye2. It’s a 1080HD Go-Pro homage, with some nice features, although it’s not as comprehensive, or user-friendly as the Aperman A80 4K Action Camera https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/apeman. The lack of a preview screen is another minor niggle of mine, but preferable to the Bandit’s noisy and slightly sloppy bar mount. Looks like it should cadge a lift on a Go-Pro type bar/stem face mount, much neater... 

Elsewhere, I’ve concluded switching to the Vee Rubber Zilent, on my fixed gear winter/trainer was a smart move.   Steve’s been relatively impressed by these inexpensive Lifeline Essential Armour Commuter tyres. https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/lifeline-essential-armour-commuter   

Superficially, they are clear nods toward Schwalbe Marathon Plus https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/schwalbe-marathon-plus-tyres and none the worse for it, although you’re limited to 700x32 or 35mm widths.   

I’ve also invested in this fresh batch of tubes too. Well, at 99p each, it would’ve been rude (not to mention silly) not to! 

In The Buff (Beware The Ides of March)

I am of course referring to the Uber versatile microfibre Coolmax polyester multifunctional headwear, not some subversive form of racing or lewd, “hacked” images supposedly compromising some Z list zombie.

This clever little do-rag has been with us in ever evolving guises since 1992 and can be worn in a variety of fashions-from the classic Marco Pantani "pirate" or Robert Shaw “bind your skull together” bandanas to flowing Lawrence of Arabia/ French foreign legion fashion to hide helmet hair or indeed protect against sun/heatstroke. This season’s fibres have been tweaked to block 95% of UV rays, while providing even greater odour control, courtesy of a silver yarn (if it works well in short inserts then it’ll do its thing pretty much anywhere!).

They’ve also added a nifty neoprene visor to proceedings, which doesn’t detract from the garments classic ‘stuff in a jersey simplicity and works rather well beneath classic road shaped helmets, sheltering eyes from the sun’s glare and winter’s wrath. Talk of the devil. He’s been making a swift; callus return following a few days’ bright spring-like conditions and local authority/highways agencies have been gritting fervently too, so I expect to see well dressed winter dobbins plodding on obediently for several weeks yet. 

Chrome is a slippery customer, quite popular on older steel trainers but contrary to popular opinion, extremely vulnerable to winter’s worst. Assuming you didn’t want the stained, distressed look or the hassle of regular waxing, a decent finisher could preserve forks under a durable powder coat lacquer (two-pac would be a good choice if you weren’t assured of the electroplates’ pedigree).

£10 upwards is a guide price, assuming no other prep’s required. DIY acrylic stuff works well enough on small areas such as carrier stays but simple economics says outsourcing is the best option- it’ll be applied in a sterile environment and won’t wrinkle, peel or yellow over time. I was recently writing a magazine feature about winter riding in its most holistic sense and had cause to query Justin (Burls) re Old faithfuls’ present spec, since it’s in many respects the archetypal winter trainer. Aside from this and friendly, generic catch ups, he happened to mention some very exciting titanium stuff on the brew, including forks- more about this when I’ve seen them in the flesh. 

Spring remains a busy time for builds n’ makeovers. However, there’s no shortage of Stetson wearing lassoers jumping on the specialist finisher/ powder coating bandwagon. Take this 6061 Cross-country MTB frameset with fresh polar white livery- cursory inspection suggests bubbles have formed during liquefaction in the curing oven-a particularly common but easily corrected fault that occurs among non ferrous metals. However, in this instance, overly aggressive application of/blast media has blown holes through the thin walled tubing. Prep elsewhere is equally slapdash-choked bottom bracket threads and head tube over spray is inexcusable, even by job lot standards.

Maybe its coincidence but there seems more riders than usual on the roads this past week or so, which is always heartening and raises issues of greeting etiquette. Notions of us all being “one big club” are perhaps, somewhat naïve-why should we wave inanely at perfect strangers. However, a reciprocal nod or similar acknowledgement is nice. 

Spain was passionately pro cyclist at one point but a new set of draconian legislation has been rolled out in their parliament. This might sound of little consequence to the UK were it not for the sudden emergence of fringe, single issue groups capitalising on voter indifference, or resentment towards mainstream, established parties. Little is known about their underlying agendas/ beliefs and what this means for a nation and its people…I for one am very perturbed. Cycling could then be banned from public roads, passed through on inaccurate road tax rhetoric; the national minimum wage could be circumnavigated or indeed abolished by use of unpaid internships to name but a few sinister scenarios. 

Ending on a more cheerful note, I’ve been recycling an old set of well travelled Schwalbe; most notably turning them into these voluptuous mud flaps. Cutting through the casings and to size was a doddle once I’d sawn through the folding Kevlar beads-sturdy kitchen scissors did the trimming. Mudguard mounting proved strangely convoluted though. I’d hoped to drill through the chrome plastic before pop riveting the flap in situ but those tough carcasses proved too thick. Eventually I bolted them aboard with stainless steel hardware and 10mm nut, trimming the former with croppers and filing flat. Being brutally honest, shop bought would’ve been more cost effective but there’s something deeply satisfying about making bespoke stuff from reclaimed scrap.