Carry Freedom Y-Frame Large

After various recommendations and a demo by David Gardiner, I decided to try using a trailer instead of pannier racks this year. Also, I had to return something large to someone on the other side of town, so enter the Carry Freedom Y Frame with its large capacity and superb build quality (which you do pay for, at circa £200 delivered).

That's a 100*80*50cm chest of drawers and fairly heavy. Thoughts on the trip after the break...

Volt 50 on Fuego and storage switcharound

Just put the trainer tyre on my Fuego to get some training in and to try and figure out what's up with my knee, despite the time constraints of the overtime at work. In order to fit the trainer and bike on the floor this means I've had to move the Brompton onto the wall hook. From the desk it appears to float eerily:

More after the jump.

Endura Stealth Lite Biblongs & Cat Eye Volt 50

One (probably) last post on new Endura gear! Replacing my waterproof trousers is the last bit I needed to do to be more recumbent friendly in the winter. Complementing this was a Seal Skinz Belgian style cap, which is also ostensibly waterproof and very warm.

It turns out I'm less fat than I thought I was, fitting into the large rather than the extra large. It was about 6 or 7 degrees today (light wind, sunshine, no rain) so I went out for a test ride on the Brompton after I'd made my purchases.

(video and pictures after the jump)

Endura Deluge Gloves

Carrying on with the Endura theme, I got myself a pair of Deluge gloves to replace my old, no-longer-waterproof Gore gloves (seeing a pattern here?)

My hands get very cold in the winter, so in the past I've used a pair of Pearl Izumi Lobster mitts, which are fantastically warm, but not waterproof as I found out to my regret on last year's Christmas ride.

Tomorrow should give me a good chance to test them, as it'll be both cold and wet while I'm out, according to the forecast.

Endura Stealth Jacket

Hammerhead got funded and met the stretch goal!

I visited Edinburgh recently for a film festival and got to catch up with David from Laid Back Bikes as well as pay a visit to the local bike shops.

Riding in the rain and Hammerhead

So I've bitten the bullet and funded Hammerhead. They're pretty close to their goal with 10 days to go at the time of writing. One thing to be aware of is the $20 shipping charge outside of the US, which it would have been nice if they'd mentioned on the front page!

Here's hoping it succeeds so I can have a play with it.

Today's ride was a miserable wet mess. My aging Gore-Tex paclite is now basically dead and gone, as is my hat made of the same material and my gloves lines with it. Last Christmas my big trip was a complete washout from start to finish, I thought that my waterproofs at least lasted a couple of hours in those conditions, but they seem to have deteriorated in the meantime.

So I'm after a new jacket, hat, gloves and longs this year. I think I'm going to plump for the 'nuclear option' for jackets, the Rapha Hardshell (I can now smell smoke, wallet probably just burst into flames) and a set of Endura Stealth waterproof longs. My Berghaus trousers are still waterproof I think, but they have a wide ankle that will let water in on the recumbent and also get caught on the derailleur stem.

Going to be an expensive winter!

Longer Christmas Prep Ride: Return of the Recumbent - with added turn-by-turn

After a week of shame, I returned to Lincolnshire to fetch my bike:


I tried a different route enabled by the BikeHub app on my phone which does route planning and offers turn-by-turn navigation. This had mixed results. Most of the time it really helped navigating little villages and unnamed links on a route with far too many turns to memorise (well, for me).