Mid May but not much riding this month !

There has been a bit to do since we returned from the mainland. House maintenance to organise (seriously leaking shower), medical checks (all well), Magnum fixes, Brompton maintenance and even some social whirl.

Early this week I decided to tackle the front derailleur on the Magnum. The action has been getting heavy and, on my last ride, the effort required to get the chain onto the large ring actually shifted the handlebars – not a good thing to do !

I first replaced the inner cable. This proved to be no good. Still a heavy action and things did feel “gritty” as I pushed the inner through. That must mean replacement of both inner and outer cable is required and I haven’t done that before. A quick check on YouTube (thank you, Park Tool) showed that all components needed are sold in a cable kit. Great. My local bike shop, the very helpful Cycology in Launceston, doesn’t have kits. But wait, they build up the equivalent from components found in a number of drawers surrounding the mechanic’s work area and put them in a plastic bag – so I have a kit! So I came home with outer and inner cable, outer cable ends and little caps for the inner cable to stop fraying. I had previously pulled the old cable off in order to size the new outer cable, so now to replace with the new !

To get the cables and cable ends on correctly took me 4 goes! It really must have been a bad morning!

After getting the above sorted, it was then necessary to route the cable set correctly through the lugs on the frame, curve it up to the front derailleur and add several cable ties to lock everything in place. That took another cup of tea! Finally it was all back in place and the ratty old handgrip reinstalled using some gaffer tape (bottom right). Next job – new handgrips!

Time for a test ride – how would it work? In a word – “WELL !!”, A really light gear change mechanism now. Glad it worked.

Job Done.

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Friday and the usual River Road ride. I realise I have picked up more followers recently and welcome to you all. The first sentence probably doesn’t mean much to you. So – let me explain!

I ride River Road on Friday mornings with a small group based in Deloraine. This Friday there were 3 of us. Sometimes there are quite a few more. The ride is advertised around Deloraine and people come and join us, sometimes. Some people try but don’t come back as they find the ride a bit too hilly for them. Others come along for a while and then look for rides further afield. We also ride further afield but also enjoy the Friday get together.

We are well into Autumn now and as you can see the deciduous trees (crack willow in the picture below) are losing their leaves and single season weeds dying.

River Road is a narrow country road. It is lightly trafficked and most vehicles are driven by locals who know we cycle on Fridays. Local traffic can be augmented by a few visitors who don’t expect us to be on the road. Plus, last summer, log trucks. The first 3-4 kilometers are lightly undulating and usually with a tailwind as you go out – great for warming up the legs. (At the end it can be 3-4 ks into a boisterous headwind.)

Today I set off before anyone else turns up. As I am slower than people on e-bikes and fit people on lightweight bikes, I usually begin 10 minutes early.

Once the paddocks have been cycled, the trees and hill climbing begins. With the trees comes a different sort of bird song. On the flat in summer the Larks abound while today I spotted one fence-sitting Flame Robin. In the trees Kookaburras often have a giggle and many others bird calls can be heard -including the Yellow-Tailed Black Cockatoos. Not much singing today though.

The fog is hanging in although the sun makes a weak appearance now and again.

Today there is no-one catching up yet! I must have set off earlier than usual so I wait a few minutes then turn and head back. About 2 ks back I meet two stalwarts of the group heading out. We waved a greeting and keep going – we should all get back to the Deloraine Cafe at the same time.

In nice weather it is good to sit outside and watch Deloraine pass by. As it was still grey and around 8°C we sat inside for coffee – beside a roaring log fire. A good end to a good ride.

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I must buckle down and sort out some Challenges for the next few months. Over winter I like the idea of day rides in places that will be new to me or somewhere I have infrequently travelled. Hmmm. The first Challenge – prepare a list for the next Blog entry. I can do that !!