Old Git On A Bike battles with the wind (2000 miles ridden)

Old Git On A Bike

I hope these photos from todays ride are clear enough, on this old desktop they look a bit dark and grainy, but on the new laptop they are excellent.

At the end of St Leonards promenade, the tarmac cycle path gives way to the pebbles, shingle and sand along this track, it used to be terrible riding along here when I first moved to the area, and again after the storms messed a lot of it up, but it's not too bad now with a lot of it compacted, though there are still some deep sandy/pebbley areas and uneven track:



At the end of that straight track, you reach this small cliff, around this bend is a short stretch of track before hitting another cliff, these are called Glynn Gap:



Looking back towards St Leonards in the distance:



After the second cliff, that brings you out at the bottom of Galley Hill, you can either go over it or go around the sea wall at the bottom of the cliff, I went over it today:



This is the view from the top of Galley Hill looking towards St Leonards:



This is the other side of the hill going down towards Bexhill On Sea promenade, which is where I was headed:



The white building is part of De La Warr Pavilion along De La Warr Parade:



After reaching the end of the promenade, you follow the road along until it turns in to Cooden Drive, follow that road to the end, take the next left which takes you along Herbrand Walk:



Carry on along there until you come to a level crossing, go over that and keep going until you hit a big roundabout which is around 4 miles away along quiet country back roads:



Turn left when you hit the roundabout, then carry on along that road, and about 3 minutes later you see the archway entering the outer keep of Pevensey castle:



A photo taken from the footbridge over the moat:



Crossing over the moat takes you to the inner keep of the castle, you can either view the inside from there, or pay to go in if you want to climb the battlements and look at things close up, I chose to take a couple of photos without going right in, some large cannon balls or projectiles for a catapault type machine:



A cannon from some time in history, I couldn't get to read the information plaque:



A photo of the castle entrance with my bike in view:



Photo from a different view showing the castle corner tower:



A view of the moat looking towards the footbridge:



A closer photo of my bike sporting the new saddle bag and frame bag to carry my camera, punture repair kit, tools, bananas etc:



I then rode over to Herstmonceux Castle, which was about 4 miles or so away, photo of the bike at the entrance:



This is as far as I got along the driveway, all I could see were the observatories and the science centre, if I wanted to see the castle which is hidden away behind a forested area down the track, I would have to pay, so, time to head back towards Pevensey and them home:



On the way back I passed through the village of Wartling, it's very quaint there, I had to go and take a lookat the old church, most of it is from the 13th century, with parts of it dating back to the year 1090:



From the opposite angle:



And lastly, the noticeboard outside the church:

Saltybob

8) Please to hear you've not given up riding.

Nice photos. I can't imagine some of those beach areas will be good to ride on?

dunker

nice photos m8 that shingle looks hard work i reckon i'd dodge that everytime well done for riding it!

Old Git On A Bike

@ Dunker & Saltybob, yeah, it's a bit of pain on that shingle/pebble track at times, it has got better than it was, you notice it most when the wind is in your face, like it was today.

I rode over to Polegate today via Pevensey and Stone Cross, I didn't realise it was going to be so hilly around there, I thought it would be flat like Pevensey is.

My legs were still sore from yesterday after having those 5 days off, so I was regretting it a bit when I saw the first hill, and another, eventually, I got to the entrance to the Cuckoo Trail, now that I know where that is, I am setting myself a little challenge for July, which is, ride the 15 and a half miles to the Cuckoo Trail, ride the 22 miles of the trail, and then ride home again for a round trip of 53 miles, I have plenty of time to increase my mileage before then to train for it, I'll make sure I do it on a calm day as it was terrible coming back today, wind in the face all the way back, log for today:

May 23rd

Top speed 31.5 mph (long downhill road)
Avg speed = 13.0 mph
Distance = 32.12 miles
Time 02:28:09

Pulse before ride = 60 bpm's
Pulse after ride = 106 bpm's 6:45pm
Pulse 10 minutes later = 92 bpm's 6:55pm
Pulse 20 minutes later = 88 bpm's 7:05pm
Pulse 60 minutes later = 80 bpm's 7:45pm

Total miles ridden = 774.14

[edit]

I took 3 photos showing the start of the Cuckoo Trail today, the information sign is the start and the track is right next to it, not sure where the one with the steps goes to, I could have gone along the track a bit, but I thought I would leave it for another time:

deafasapost

having read through this, you are a credit to yourself matey, not only have you got fitter and lost a shed load of weight, your dedication is second to none, big thumbs up from me

Notnormal

Only just seen this thread and wanted to say congratulations. Just goes to show you don't need to spend a fortune on all the latest kit and upgrade your bike every 30 seconds. You can just get out there enjoy yourself and make a life changing difference to your health and fitness in the process. Keep up the good work.

CleggyOK

Wow!!! My assault has just turned up.
Spent the morning putting it all together, and added my Topeak Mudguards, cateye 1100s and a couple of other things I bought for it and took it out for a spin!

First off I cant belive how light it feels compared to what Ive ridden in the past!!! The shimano Deore gears are really smooth and all in all its a very comfortable ride!

It looks great too, so once my legs and back arent aching from pushing it too far liftin stuff at work Ill hit the road properly with it :-D

OGOAB: Those pics look like you have some lovely places round your way to cycle :-D
Im going to look now to see what trails I can find in my area.... getting a bike bag and maybe a bike rack for my car so I can just get on the train and go out into derbyshire if I need to :-D

john74

nice one cleggy thats exactly what i started on i covered over 12000 miles on it and still sold it on and i believe it is still going.

CleggyOK

can anyone suggest a decent quality - and also a decent looking stand for my bike??!

To me it seems a bit of a naff thing to ask advice on, but I think maybe I ought to have one on, I dont like the thought of having to lean it where there is no racking, so a fairly big footed bike stand would be a good option to prevent scratching my bike to bits!!!

Also, Im kind of lost in the maze of Bike computers on the market!!!
I cant decide whether I should go for something with a heart monitor / calorie calculator on it or not. Ive seen something on ebay, its claims to be a 32 function wireless cpu with heart monitor, calorie + Kgs burnt calculator as well as some other features, also its backlit and its only £24.99. Now to me that sounds all too good to be true!

32 function on ebay!

Also, Ive looked into the Cateye Micro, which comes in at £24.98, also on ebay. Now I know all about the quality of Cateye, and for £25 there is everythin I would expect from a cycle computer, but no heart monitor ( i really dont expect a functioning one for that price anyway!). That leads me to believe the other may be too good to be true, or probably wont function very well at all in terms of monitoring my heart rate etc

Any ideas :-)

CleggyOK

wow :-D

Its nice to meet someone else who has one / had one ;-D

I had doubts about buying a CBR at first cos of things I had read about them (peoples opinions on them being a cheap tacky brand), but then again for what it costs I thought it ought to be a decent bike, and Im not dissapointed :-D

Reason I posted in this thread is cos I saw OGOAB had a CBR and wanted his opinion on the quality of them, so its great to hear yours lasted well too :-D

Ive spent nearly 650 on stuff includin the bike so far, such as some high quality lights and a lot of security both portable and fixed at home, so Im gonna make sure I look after and respect the bike as long as I own it :-D

Megatron-UK

I think it's less about the brand of bike you have, but the fact that you get out there and use it; in that way OGOAB is definitely inspiring a number of people on here! Well done!

CleggyOK

True, true - the brand of the bike wasnt really the issue here... If I was looking for branded bikes then Id have stumped up the cash from my saving for an Orange or a Trek or something else. I was just worried first off that the bike might not be built to last after reading some negative remarks on another forum.

Its just good to know from someone who has owned one that they are well built and last well... puts my mind at rest to be honest! If I hadnt heard from OGOAB in first place that he was happy with his then I would have still been waiting to order now!

Ive only had a mile or so on it so far, but it is lovely to ride and I really dont know what I was worrying about :-) Just waiting for some good weather now so I can start towards my weekly mileage target of 50 for now :-D
____________
Just found out my bike has been fitted with a set of Quad QHD-1 disc brakes. It was supposed to come with hayes hydraulics on it, they never notified me of any difference in brakes.... but which is better - I know nothing about brakes or bikes in general... Im just picking up information as I go along :-D

john74

the quads are hydraulic too. and have had a good review but which is better im not sure.

Andy B

The Quad's are great brakes, better modulation (not as sharp & bitey) than the Hayes, the Hayes are also good brakes, but very on/off in their feel.

A mate had the Quad's on his Claude Butler Cape Wrath (£500), I was very impressed with them.

I have Hayes Nines on my Full Susser, I like the on/off feel of them (Guess I'm a weirdo, eh!)

Andy B

Megatron-UK wrote:

I think it's less about the brand of bike you have, but the fact that you get out there and use it; in that way OGOAB is definitely inspiring a number of people on here! Well done!

Indeed, it's not what you ride, it's how you ride

I've ridden some awful bikes back in the '80's (Raleigh Mustang for instance!)

Old Git On A Bike

I took a nice leisurly ride over to Sovereign Harbour in Eastbourne and the surrounding area today, it was my longest ride so far. It's a nice looking harbour and housing development they have over there, I was surprised by the size of the place, I would have taken more photos, but my damn camera batteries ran out :x, I'll upload the few I did take, later on, log for today:

May 24th: No riding, very gusty, winds up to around 30mph

May 25th

Top speed 24.8 mph (flat cycle path & road)
Avg speed = 12.9 mph
Distance = 35.30 miles
Time 02:43:16

Pulse before ride = 64 bpm's
Pulse after ride = 110 bpm's 8:35pm
Pulse 10 minutes later = 94 bpm's 8:45pm
Pulse 20 minutes later = 88 bpm's 8:55pm
Pulse 60 minutes later = 82 bpm's 9:35pm

Total miles ridden = 809.44

[edit]

The view from Sovereign Harbour beach with Bexhill On Sea in the distance:



A small yacht entering the outer harbour with the new housing development in the background:



One of 2 old Martello towers on the beach here, both are in a state of disrepair :



Same one again with the bike in shot:



The Sovereign Harbour yacht club with Eastbourne Lifeboat station behind it:

CleggyOK

Bad news

I noticed my back wheel was stiff when I first got the bike (I assumed cos it says it need "running in" for 10km..... turns out my rear disc brake is ceased partially..... the wheel is now completely locked!!! Also looked at the way its cables are ran across the top of the cross bar and theyre not running where theyre meant to, with brake cables wrapped twice around gear cables instead of running through the clips along the cross bar like they should :-(

Very very unhappy that its been put together so badly, so trying to argue it with the supplier to get it sent back and exchanged... not the best start is it :-(

Old Git On A Bike

@ Cleggy, that's a bit of a downer, mate, I read somewhere on the forum of someone who had a proper expensive mountain bike, they put it in for repair and they didn't notice when it came back that the gear and brake cables were twisted around each other like you describe on your bike, there is always one idiot in every workshop/factory. When you finally get the bike back, start a new topic and keep a training log like I'm doing

I haven't been out for the last 2 days, the weather has been pretty lousy around here a lot of the time, very windy at times and raining, today was also blowing a gale up to around 30mph, but it's dropped considerably this evening, so, I had a chance to get out and do a few miles along the promenade, hopefully, I can get out for 30+ miles tomorrow, depending on the weather, log for tonight:

May 26th & 27th: No riding, lousy weather

May 28th

Top speed 23.6 mph (flat cycle path)
Avg speed = 14.8 mph
Distance = 10.33 miles
Time 41:52:5

Pulse before ride = 58 bpm's
Pulse after ride = 96 bpm's 11:01pm
Pulse 10 minutes later = 80 bpm's 11:11pm
Pulse 20 minutes later = 78 bpm's 11:21pm
Pulse 60 minutes later = 72 bpm's 12:01am

Total miles ridden = 819.77

kingderham

Old git i ,wanted to know what cycle computer do you have? and what energy drink do you use please ?

Old Git On A Bike

Hi Kingderham, I use a cheap bike computer from Halfords, this one:

12 Function Bike Computer

As for energy drinks, I don't use any ready made commercialy available drinks, I have only recently started taking a bottle of drink out with me on rides, now that my distances have increased. My bottle consists of a bit of fruit squash, some orange or apple juice and a bit of salt, then top it up with water.

You can find some homemade energy drink & snack recipes on this site that might be of use to you:

Homemade Energy Drinks & Snacks

kingderham

Thanks old git

Old Git On A Bike

Just in from my ride, this was my longest yet at just over 43 miles, bloody lovely weather today, could have done at least another 10 miles, my legs felt fresh as anything, but I had no water left for the last hour or so of the ride, so I had to head home as I was thirsty.

Where I've missed several days riding over the last week or so due to my mum being over and the bad weather, I put a few of pounds in weight back on, I was 12 stone 8 and pounds before my ride today, when I got back, I was 12 stone and 1 pound :shock:, of course, that will be mostly through sweat loss, but I was quite shocked to see that much dropped on a ride, I'm now re-hydrating, my stomach feels a bit cramp like at the moment.

I went just beyond Eastbourne pier at a nice leisurely pace, then a couple of coppers on mountain bikes stopped me and said there is no riding allowed on the promenade, so I stopped there, took a few photos and headed back, I'll post a few photos later on, log for today:

May 29th: No riding, it rained through the afternoon and I just couldn't be bothered in the evening

May 30th

Top speed 29.7 mph (long downhill road)
Avg speed = 13.7 mph
Distance = 43.17 miles
Time 03:07:49

Pulse before ride = 66 bpm's
Pulse after ride = 102 bpm's 8:45pm
Pulse 10 minutes later = 92 bpm's 8:55pm
Pulse 20 minutes later = 84 bpm's 9:05pm
Pulse 60 minutes later = 90 bpm's 9:45pm (pulse increased a bit)

Total miles ridden = 862.94

[edit]

Some photos from along my ride today, these are not the clearest, that's due to me taking them on the macro setting, which I had been using to take close up shots of bees and flowers, then forgot to change the setting for these shots:

View of the beach and Eastbourne pier:



Looking in the opposite direction:



Another Martello tower with the bike and the pier in the distance:



3 random shots of Sovereign harbour in Eastbourne:







2 shots of a river down an off road lane close to Pevensey:






Bees in flight and flowers:

Saltybob

I like the first bee picture. The focus really brings the bee and flower to the right, out of the picture. 8)

gk141054

kingderham wrote:

Old git i ,wanted to know what cycle computer do you have? and what energy drink do you use please ?

Check out Sainsburys... I picked up a wireless cycle computer (all the functions of the one Old Git linked to) for £5!!!

dunker

from 3 mile rides in january/february now on to 40+ mile rides, that's some brilliant progress mate! hurrah saturday, sunny, dry, breezy! off we all go out

Old Git On A Bike

Cheers Dunker, yeah, I'm coming along nicely now, onwards and upwards mate 8)

I missed all the good cycling weather on Saturday and Sunday, I was sick as a dog all weekend with my stomach ulcers killing me, then I felt too weak to go out yesterday after hardly eating anything over the weekend due to said ulcers and stomach acid. I felt ok to get out tonight and really pushed myself harder, after not being out for a few days, the old legs were hurting after 3.5 miles, but doing some sprints soon sorted that out, I was keeping the pace pretty high and averaged 15mph for the 11 miles, I'm very pleased with that as it's the best average speed I have done when doing my 10 miles or so night rides, the best previous was 14.9mph.

The weather forecast is supposed to be low winds tomorrow, so I am going to try to go beyond Eastbourne and reach the top of Beachy Head further down the coast, that should be about a 50 mile or so round trip.

I am starting a set routine for June onwards, which is to do at least one 50 - 60 mile ride per week and add 5 miles to the distance every 2 weeks, or sooner if I feel I can do it sooner, gradually increasing the distance over several months until I can hopefully hit the 100 mile mark for a single ride, that's my goal, the other rides in the week will be around 30 - 40 miles, and night rides of between 10 - 15 miles used as speed sessions.

May 31st & Jun 1st & Jun 2nd: No riding, I was sick with my ulcers over the weekend and didn't feel like riding yesterday

Jun 3rd

Top speed 24.2 mph (flat cycle path)
Avg speed = 15.0 mph
Distance = 11.06 miles
Time 44:11:4

Pulse before ride = 66 bpm's
Pulse after ride = 116 bpm's 11:14pm
Pulse 10 minutes later = 90 bpm's 11:24pm
Pulse 20 minutes later = 82 bpm's 11:34pm
Pulse 60 minutes later = 74 bpm's 12:14am

Total miles ridden = 874.00

Old Git On A Bike

I didn't get to do my long ride today, the wind was blowing fairly hard, gusting up to 20mph from the west, meaning I would have been riding in to it all the way to Beachy Head, and I didn't fancy a battle with the wind after having had those days off over the weekend, I would try again tomorrow as it's supposed to be a very low wind, but it's my boys 7th birthday tomorrow as well, and finding a suitable time time to get out will be awkward, anyway, I just had a run over to the end of Bexhill and along the promenade here, log for tonight:

Jun 4th

Top speed 26.2 mph (cycle path & road)
Avg speed = 14.4 mph
Distance = 14.65 miles
Time 01:00:49

Pulse before ride = 66 bpm's
Pulse after ride = 102 bpm's 10:03pm
Pulse 10 minutes later = 86 bpm's 10:13pm
Pulse 20 minutes later = 80 bpm's 10:23pm
Pulse 60 minutes later = 74 bpm's 11:03pm

Total miles ridden = 888.65

Old Git On A Bike

I went out today with the intention of doing the long ride, but the bloody head wind was doing me in right from the start, so much for the forecast low winds, it felt worse than yesterday, by the time I got to Pevensey, I'd had enough of it, so I started making my way in the opposite direction towards Battle as I hadn't been along that road before, I got a fair bit along the road before turning back to the Pevensey roundabout and headed home from there, got my 30 miles in anyway, that will do for now, tomorrow is another day.

I have not seen much worth taking a photo of on my last 2 rides, I have startled a couple of herons in roadside streams, but they are gone in a flash, I did take a photo of an old church I pass on my rides, I only noticed today that it was the first Norman church built in the UK in around 1090, I took a few shots of it, I'll post them later, log for today:

Jun 5th

Top speed 28.3 mph (cycle path & steep road)
Avg speed = 13.6 mph
Distance = 30.68 miles
Time 02:14:56

Pulse before ride = 64 bpm's
Pulse after ride = 100 bpm's 9:00pm
Pulse 10 minutes later = 86 bpm's 9:10pm
Pulse 20 minutes later = 78 bpm's 9:20pm
Pulse 60 minutes later = 78 bpm's 10:00pm

Total miles ridden = 919.33

[edit]

Some photos from todays ride, the original 11th century entrance to St Mary church in the village of Westham, East sussex:



4 other shots showing side view, another doorway added at a later stage and a shots of the tower:

FSR_XC

Amazed at your progress.

Well done.

I feel quite ashamed at the moment as you have done a lot more miles than me this year - and if you keep going at this rate, I'll never catch up.

Bossangel

I am in awe old git. I too started in january with short rides xc and last night managed my first through the 20 mile barrier. I go out 3 times a week but you are making amazing progress