Rain!!!

Headhuunter

Did anyone get caught in the torrential rain in London yesterday evening? I was late returning home as I took part in the Standard Chartered City 5k Run and just as I was leaving Central London at about 8.30pm, the heavens opened!

I don't mind riding in the rain, it keeps me cool but everything - my bag, my clothes, my shoes etc are soaked through. This morning when I lifted the bike from it's hook in the shed water actually poured out of little holes in the frame!

prawny

I got a soaking last night on the way back from brum, luckily I saw the forecast in the morning and took my gilet and armwarmers with me phew!

They were still wet this morning though eww, mental note - buy spare armwarmers.

Headhuunter

I find the worst thing is putting wet cycling shoes on the next day. I hadn't brought my waterproof shoe covers with me, not that they would have helped in the sort of rain we had yesterday. I'm sure my shoes will be wet for a few days and will probably start to smell a bit nasty!

prawny

Do you do the stuff with newspaper thing? I stuffed my shoes about 7pm and they were dry a 7 this morning.

I also have a spare pair of shoes just in case 8)

cjcp

You must have been battered by that rain! My Hydrangea and spring onions took an absolute pounding and are struggling to recover.

Newspaper in the shoes.

Greg T

I had to stand by the back door ast 11 last night having a stern conversation with the Dog about him going out for a pee.

He was less than impressed as the rain lashed down and the sky blitzened.

jonginge

I was late leaving work and normally cycle down moorgate on the way home. Got majorly* caught up in the run road closures. It added about 5-10minutes to my journey in a delightful city cycling odyssey. When did it start to rain you ask? Why, when I was in Putney, of course. About five minutes from home. Typisch


* listening to too much eurosport commentary

cjcp

JonGinge wrote:

I was late leaving work and normally cycle down moorgate on the way home. Got majorly* caught up in the run road closures. It added about 5-10minutes to my journey in a delightful city cycling odyssey. When did it start to rain you ask? Why, when I was in Putney, of course. About five minutes from home. Typisch


* listening to too much eurosport commentary

Sorry, I shouldn't laugh, but

Headhuunter

I haven't tried the newspaper thing.... I'll give it a go.

shoulder_of_orion

I was working late last night and left the office at around 9.30pm and got caught in torrential downpour. I actually really enjoyed it as the rain was warm, there was a terrific lightening storm as I crossed the Thames and as I wear full lycra I just get wet. The stuff at the top of my bag was a bit damp but that was just the clothes I had worn and went straight in the wash.

After a 12h+ day cooped up in an underlit, airconditioned office it's good to be reminded of the natural world - I find it invigorating...

The only problem is the shoes, soaked through - when I put them in the dryer this morning it sounded like a zombie was trying to bash down my front door.

jonginge

cjcp wrote:

JonGinge wrote:

I was late leaving work and normally cycle down moorgate on the way home. Got majorly* caught up in the run road closures. It added about 5-10minutes to my journey in a delightful city cycling odyssey. When did it start to rain you ask? Why, when I was in Putney, of course. About five minutes from home. Typisch


* listening to too much eurosport commentary

Sorry, I shouldn't laugh, but

No worries, quite enjoyed it really. Had swapped out the dark lenses for the clears and it was a good job too: last few miles were very dark and the lights went on :shock:

biondino

Last night was excellent but wasn't Wednesday wetter? I got soaked both ways then, but yesterday just a drop or two.

I agree about the invigorating thing, but there are too many downsides for me to see it as a positive, mainly the trickier riding conditions and poorer visibility.

fletch8928

Nappies inside out in shoes. takes no drying time at all. Glad i am off today due to it lashing down up here. going to spend most of the day playing cars, dinosaurs followed by sploshing around and having puddle fights. gotta love the young people

Headhuunter

Greg T wrote:

I had to stand by the back door ast 11 last night having a stern conversation with the Dog about him going out for a pee.

He was less than impressed as the rain lashed down and the sky blitzened.

I love the way "Dog" has a capital letter. Is it's name "Dog"? Oi, Dog, p*ss, now!

Results just in for the 5k race, I did 19:20 ish, my slowest time yet, down 30 secs on my fastest.

Cafewanda

fletch8928 wrote:

Nappies inside out in shoes. takes no drying time at all. Glad i am off today due to it lashing down up here. going to spend most of the day playing cars, dinosaurs followed by sploshing around and having puddle fights. gotta love the young people

Nappies? Me confused.

It's too early in the morning for me

cjcp

Headhuunter wrote:

Results just in for the 5k race, I did 19:20 ish, my slowest time yet, down 30 secs on my fastest.

Stop it. :P I literally have to bust a hump to get 19:50 on a treadmill, while my best time outdoors is 20:43. And I'm a wheezing mess afterwards.

fletch8928

they are perfect. main job for them is to draw moisure away from babies skin, they just seem to drink wet shoes dry

Cafewanda

Oh, right! Thought 'nappies' was a code word for something.

You not nicking baby's supplies are you

Headhuunter

cjcp wrote:

Headhuunter wrote:

Results just in for the 5k race, I did 19:20 ish, my slowest time yet, down 30 secs on my fastest.

Stop it. :P I literally have to bust a hump to get 19:50 on a treadmill, while my best time outdoors is 20:43. And I'm a wheezing mess afterwards.

I was a bit of a "wheezing mess" after the race yesterday, well a heavily breathing mess. That last little uphill on Moorgate to the finish is a killer. In my defence, I didn't manage to get as close to the front as I have done in previous years, so I spent the 1st k or so jostling through the slow people before i could get into my stride. I've also had a slowly healing stress fracture in my ankle so I haven't been able to run as much as I usually do.... Excuses, excuses...

jonginge

Headhuunter wrote:

cjcp wrote:

Headhuunter wrote:

Results just in for the 5k race, I did 19:20 ish, my slowest time yet, down 30 secs on my fastest.

Stop it. :P I literally have to bust a hump to get 19:50 on a treadmill, while my best time outdoors is 20:43. And I'm a wheezing mess afterwards.

I was a bit of a "wheezing mess" after the race yesterday, well a heavily breathing mess. That last little uphill on Moorgate to the finish is a killer. In my defence, I didn't manage to get as close to the front as I have done in previous years, so I spent the 1st k or so jostling through the slow people before i could get into my stride. I've also had a slowly healing stress fracture in my ankle so I haven't been able to run as much as I usually do.... Excuses, excuses...

That's the problem with mass participation starts. Did the london 10k a few years back and it took about 2k before I was running freely. Somehow managed to just scrape the top 200.

iain_j

Happy to report it's rained up north too. Dense drizzle last night and same again this morning. I love it, so invigorating and I arrived at work this morning thinking, "that was bloody good fun"

il_principe

I left the Morpeth just in time to get drenched. Was bloody glad I only live 5 mins away!

Poor old ITB must've got soaked.

iain_j

You know what I love about it too? When you're waiting at the lights with the rain sluicing off you, and you can see the people sat in cars alongside staring out at you, thinking they've got it bad cos they're sitting inside a waterproof metal box with the rain drumming down on its roof so what is that fella doing out on a bike. I love it

Headhuunter

JonGinge wrote:

Headhuunter wrote:

cjcp wrote:

Headhuunter wrote:

Results just in for the 5k race, I did 19:20 ish, my slowest time yet, down 30 secs on my fastest.

Stop it. :P I literally have to bust a hump to get 19:50 on a treadmill, while my best time outdoors is 20:43. And I'm a wheezing mess afterwards.

I was a bit of a "wheezing mess" after the race yesterday, well a heavily breathing mess. That last little uphill on Moorgate to the finish is a killer. In my defence, I didn't manage to get as close to the front as I have done in previous years, so I spent the 1st k or so jostling through the slow people before i could get into my stride. I've also had a slowly healing stress fracture in my ankle so I haven't been able to run as much as I usually do.... Excuses, excuses...

That's the problem with mass participation starts. Did the london 10k a few years back and it took about 2k before I was running freely. Somehow managed to just scrape the top 200.

Yeah that's true. I was able to start in the "sub 21 minute" start bit, but I was at the back of that section and there were some people in that bit who really were never going to do sub 21.... The fastest runner did it in 14 mins and a bit. That's just insane... He'd been back 5 mins, had a wee, a beer and stretched by the time I came rolling through!

Headhuunter

iain_j wrote:

You know what I love about it too? When you're waiting at the lights with the rain sluicing off you, and you can see the people sat in cars alongside staring out at you, thinking they've got it bad cos they're sitting inside a waterproof metal box with the rain drumming down on its roof so what is that fella doing out on a bike. I love it

Yeah I like that too, you almost feel like a hero cycling in the rain, sat at lights while the rain hammers down on you, looking down on all the scurrying pedestrians and wimpy car drivers in their metal shells.

Also the water makes your muscles look more defined! The downside is the higher chance of a p*ncture...

jangle

I cycled my commute of 25 miles yesterday in the rain and was soaked in the first 100m. Passed another roadie halfway back and we exchange stoic but rueful waves. I too forget my waterproof shoe covers and could actually pour water out of my shoe at teh end of the ride!