again, been a while! i'll try and keep it short and sweet, as i can't really be arsed. wish we could host photos on here :(
anyhow. 3 newsworthy items. a) 2 new bikes. my old marin has been built up into a really shonky single speed. needed a mtb in york so i don't have to fag around with bikes on trains so much. using an old mech to tension, although it needs perfecting, and h/set won't stay tight for some reason. rigid too, so when i get a chance to ride it, it should be a laugh. also converted to the 'dark side'. a giant OCR somethingorother is in my possession, and its a better laugh than some may admit! b) off to bikevillage again this summer for a week with the uni mtb club. as i'm 'group organiser' i get 50% off too, which is nice : ) i'll be getting the beers in though : ( c)racing. 2 so far, a BUSA (37/124 iirc) and a SXC (20/27 iirc). fell 4 times in BUSAs, so feel i should have done better (was lapping at around 25th place pace), and sxc had loads of fast boys, so not bothered that it wasn't a great position. i tried my hardest, and thats what matters, right?! also down for SSMM this year in a team. should be a laugh.
been a while! not done too much riding unfortunately... exams and holidays you see... did a few local rides at the beginning of the year, and last weekend (or the one before, cannot remember) went to skye with the mounatineering club. obviously was meant to be mountaineering, but me and the mountaineer president prefer riding... so we took bikes instead. well, we were thinkng of following a 50km MBR route, but having seen the weather conditions, we decided it would be a bad idea. we were corect. we did a 15km route instead, and i can safely say it was the most epic (sic) 15 km i have EVER done! took us about 3 hours, included a hell of a lot of walking through hub deep snow, and around 40 mins trying to sus out where the hell we were - should probably have taken the route description with us, but tha would have been cleaver! still, the 7 mins of fully rideable singletrack was fantastic, despite getting a pinch puncture. loads of wide drainage ditches on skye! again, totally overwhelmed (sp) with how brilliant lycra is! next day was quite a long ride, although mainly road. 4.6 miles off road over a col. the climb was mucho techinal, lots f walking again, and the descent was definitely the most techy descent i have ever ridden in the uk. well, i say 'ridden', what i really mea is scoot along for a few meters, get off, pick up the bike, walk, and get on. ad finitum (or whatever that bloody latin phrase is). after we passed some walkers ("that looks like jolly good sport!") the riding became possible, and was fantastic again, save for the inevitable wide drainage ditches.... new brakes working well, but want to put a 203 rotor on before we go to the alps with bikevillage. going to lagan wolftrax this weekend and then somewhere else on the sunday as a mtb club trip. will be nice as its my bday on the sat :) new shoes and over shoes coming in the post! ooh, had an amazng ride after exams, with the ground nice and frozen. just like the summer only cold and dark = perfect! will write again soon
Hungry monkey 'now with custom graphics'
