Continued teething troubles
with the Trelock LS906 bike –I pro suggest the OEM wiring isn’t helping. Sure,
it will reach the hub and lamp but that supplied is designed for hub to fork
crown drilling.
Dropping by some Coventry bike
shops drew a blank, so I’ve acquired a decent length of Bush & Muller,
which I’m hoping will sort it once and for all. Either way, this proved the
ideal opportunity to see how the SP hub performs with my Exposure revo mk1,
since I already had a revo wiring kit waiting in the wings.
The Revo is beautifully made,
delivers a really pure, useable arc of light from 5mph and a maximum output of
800lumens. Hands-down the best dynamo lamp I’ve used to date. Good enough for
moderate trail action too, although think rough stuff touring, not race-pace
cross country mtb antics. If that’s your bag, something like the Sigma Buster
2000 https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/sigma-buster-2000-light
might be a better bet.
Some have criticised Shutter
Precision hubs on the basis that servicing and bearing replacement are factory
only affairs. However, Ison Distribution, their UK importer can take care of
this. Lloyd Townsend also reminded me that factory returns are pretty standard
for any modern “Ship in a bottle” dynohub system.
The SP family come with a
two-year warrantee, which would cover such eventualities. Nonetheless, the hub
shell is joined together in the centre. Accessing the internals demands
specialist tooling.
Aside from the clocks going
back and another birthday, autumn has gained on us somewhat. Temperatures have
tumbled top their seasonal average and the lanes carpeted in a greasy top layer.
No such thing as the wrong weather, so long as you’ve got the right kit. Bib
tights, gloves, jerseys, jackets and overshoes solve comfort conundrums.
Decent tyres, such as the 35mm
Scwalbe Marathon GT provide excellent cornering prowess, puncture protection
and grip but iced bovine and equine dung can still induce the odd, unpleasant
loss of traction. Something I was reminded of while hustling along at 23mph on
Monday morning.
A minor shimmy followed and I
turned back to see and indeed document! I’ve also had a very rude reminder
regards pad replacement. 30mph along a local 1in7, I applied the fixed’s front
stopper.
Lovely smooth action, those
Jagwire pro road are really impressive but we’re not scrubbing off any speed…
“F**king Aiiiiiiidaaaaaaaa!” Having made it round the final bend in one piece
and begun the ascent, I made a mental note to strip, inspect and ultimately,
replace the Spyre calliper’s pads. Swap complete and 10minutes enthused testing
hence, I can confirm that grabbing a handful has the potential for lifting the
rear wheel.
Whisper it but I’ve also been
donning a bit of day glow. The green BBB flexribbon is also surprisingly
extrovert in overcast conditions, yet without screaming “winter-bike”. As might
be expected, especially given the seemingly perpetual fettling, the dimpled
texture is starting to cultivate a slightly grimy patina. Will be interesting
to see how well it responds to washing and what the sudsy stuff/elbow grease
ratio will be.
Some riders have an almost
pathological dislike of fluorescent kit and at the other extreme, others,
including the UK government, are advocating compulsion.
Day-glow and day flash light
settings have their merits, within reason. However, a lot of motorcycles and
cars, are hard-wired to run side-lights. For a time, this made motorcyclists in
particular, more conspicuous. However, as these become ubiquitous, other
traffic becomes accustomed and the same myopia returns.
I was hit from behind while
sat at the lights, on a borrowed Kawasaki GT750…
The shaft driven tourer was
deep red, as were the lights. Dressed like an extra from Mad Max, this and a
white helmet did not stop a woman plough her vehicle into me. Thrust into the
flow of traffic, I groped desperately for the kill-switch. By now fuel was
oozing from a ruptured tank and my leg was trapped beneath…Apparently, the
woman, in her 20s claimed she did not see me…
My hunch that parliament is
coming under pressure from technology companies who are developing automated
“driverless” vehicles. I suspect their sensors are only able to register riders
wearing hi-viz…
Farfetched? Well no, not
really. Many courier/logistics companies will only hire self-employed drivers,
this relieves them of a wider duty of care/responsibility for driver conduct.
This leads me to this week’s
title, “Play misty for me”. Aside from the misty, murky mornings, I am being
pursued by someone who has developed an extremely unwelcome and slightly
unsettling infatuation, which is anything but reciprocal.
I have taken various
approaches, subtle and direct, yet ultimately compassionate. I have even
insisted she see this as an opportunity to develop herself and address some
underlying issues, which have underpinned a set of behaviours for many years.
Other people cannot fix us,
the desire to change, possibly heal has to come from within. If contact,
electronic, or postal persists, I will resort to a more formal method of
restraint. Now on a lighter note, I’ll leave you with some curious frames and
some appalling arc.
