February 2022 Wrap

February started pretty good weatherwise. Sunny, warm days not exceeding low 30°Cs, low humidity and little wind. It doesn’t get much better. Then, later in the month, the air began to cool down. It felt Autumnal. One day I dug out my winter gloves and leggings before riding. Two days later it was back to summer wear but now it’s raining. Nothing like northern NSW or Brisbane, just enough to impact riding plans.

Rides

Ernie, Bluey and I had many local rides in the Norfolk Plains during the month. Initially on Ernie and then more on the trike as I started to prepare for the upcoming “Edge of the World” (EOTW) tour. Then back to Ernie again as the Tasmanian covid case numbers increased. There are a lot of cases appearing in the north-west; exactly where the tour would be. Sadly I have put the tour on hold for now.

I continue to track the covid situation, especially after Australia’s international borders were first flung open to all vaccinated peoples with no quarantine requirements and now to unvaccinated people too.

I thought about and started planning a shorter duration trip. The number of covid cases increased again – so I decided now was not the time. Wait it out.

Luckily the Norfolk Plains rides are full of good views and light traffic so it’s no hardship to keep going here.

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Maintenance

Brompton had some Mountain Drive maintenance to stop some bad noises coming from it and it now seems back to rude health. As I ride I find I am listening for the cracking noises to reappear but, so far, they are staying away.

Bluey was checked over and things tightened up in prep for the EOTW tour. The seat has been rather creaky recently so that was taken out and refitted. This fixed it.

I haven’t yet made up a permanent PAS sensor holder for Ernie. After cable tying the existing temporary setup to stop an annoying rattle, I found the sensor then allowed for continual power provision – none of the stuttering that had occurred before. The slightly loose cable must have been minutely moving the sensor – and it is very sensitive! The setup has to be just right with little leeway. I am still thinking about how to permanently set it up. A 3D printer to print a plastic block to hold the sensor would be useful !

Ernies Mountain Drive still slips a little when under pressure. I got hold of a longer pipe to act as a socket bar extension. It came from the Tip Shop and cost a $1 so, when next I play with the PAS, I will be able to tighten the MD up some more.

I have written before about problems carrying stuff on the Bike E. I had an idea. I have a fly fishing jacket that hasn’t seen much use of late and, just maybe, it would hang on the back of the seat.

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Black and White Photography

The weather was too good to black and white it! I just really like the summer colours in Tasmania so why turn them into shades of grey? Also, a lot of riding was done on Ernie and I haven’t got the room for my big, old Nikon DSLR which I want to use. I did convert a picture or two taken with the phone – one graces the heading of this blog. It would seem that the process to convert images loses some sharpness – or by changing them to black and white am I proving they were not sharp in the first place. To be resolved in 2022.

Ernie M

The little Muppet has been enjoying rides on all 3 bikes.

He seemed quite keen on a bungee jump from the Pitts Lane bridge over the Liffey. Luckily we didn’t have enough bungee cords to allow this – my bike insurance wouldn’t cover accidents and I would hate to report back to Emily that Ernie had damaged himself.

Ride Statistics

Cycling challenge met for February. I had hoped for a final ride on the 28th but wind and rain said “No”.

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Other Things of Interest

I came across this list of ride categories :

It was published by the Orange Mountain Bike Club and is used to help document their off-road rides.

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Plans for March

Well, after the cancellation of the Edge of the World trip I hope to get out to some new or less visited areas for a few day rides. The bikes are ready, I am willing, we just need some gentle Autumn weather to coax me out the door.

’til next time …………………………