black | BrownhillsBob's #365daysofbiking

#365daysofbiking Certainly not mad, well, maybe not

Monday March 29th 2021 – When I said here the other day that I’d been riding home all the way from Telford I had a message telling me I must be mad. I strongly disagree. I’m getting more bike/open air time, my mental health is improving daily as is my physical heath. This lockdown porkbarrel will not be in a hurry to depart at my decrepit age, I can tell you. It needs this kind of help.

It isn’t that far. I wouldn’t do it in bad weather, or if very tired. There’s always the rail alternative. and there’s the sights one sees: Like today. Riding near Brewood, the plethora of pheasants were tricky from a safety point of view (they have no road sense) but they are such handsome birds and their antics can be hilarious.

But I had most time for the tiny black puss I met on the edge of a stable yard at Coven: In beautiful condition with the kind of piercing green eyes that make you feel guilty for the sins of your elders. Puss sat her ground (sure she was female) and stared me out resolutely. She was gorgeous.

I got home feeling happier, more relaxed and better physically than I’ve felt for weeks. And only 20 minutes later than had I gone by train, and 30 minutes later than driving.

That’s all win while the weather is so nice.

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#365daysofbiking Crosstown traffic

Tuesday November 24th 2020 – I’ve got hold of a GoPro Hero 9 action camera: The last model I used was the Hero 5, I was never particularly impressed with, so I drifted out of using it.

I decided to revisit ride cams and managed to borrow a Hero 9 from work, and it’s quite a bit more complex and more polished than the 5. I have to work out how best to mount the thing for a start, so this cam is cropped down from a 4k shot in portrait. The image quality considering that is remarkable.

The light balance, exposure and colours are better, and I have to say the image stabilisation is remarkable. It’s really quite impressive. Once I can work out how to mount it on the bike securely in landscape, we’re off on some adventures. Be interesting to see the low light quality, and if they’ve sorted the formerly lousy reliability of the flash card interface.

Here’s an unedited, real time journey from an appointment near the Arboretum back towards work through the ring road of Walsall on a grey, dull Tuesday afternoon. The music is Bent’s lovely bit of electronic blippery ‘Exercise 6′.

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#365daysofbiking – Urbane

April 29th – Also nice to see the return of cats to my world. Largely absent in winter, these indolent, sleepy, warmth loving characters don’t bother so much in winter, but come spring and a young feline’s fancy turns to… Well, lounging in the long grass, hunting things and generally monitoring the human activity of their neighbourhoods.

This urbane and smart black and white puss was on the far bank behind Humphries House and was quite interested in my activities.

Looks like a lovely puss! Someone loves that one very much.

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#365daysofbiking Currant affairs

March 17th – Unable to process the current madness as regards pandemics and panic buying, I find my daily reassurance in the emergence of spring.

At Shenstone, the currant blossom is pink and fulsome once more.

A sadly short-lived bloom, it’s a real harbinger of warmer days to come.

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#365daysofbiking – A new cat of Cathsill

February 7th – Passing through the appropriately named Catshill Junction on the canal near Anchor Bridge, a handsome, dapper puss on the far side of the canal.

I think he’s a new resident. I saw him a few days ago having a standoff with a tabby in the same spot. I’m also thinking I’ve seen him on the towpath side too, which may mean he’s jumping the canal at the toll narrows, or crossing at Anchor Bridge.

Whatever his status, he wasn’t too keen on me taking his picture!

A lovely cat, clearly. I look forward to seeing him more as the days lengthen and warm up.

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#365daysofbiking I love this post

January 15th – Passing through Darlaston’s Victoria Park on a journey back from the hospital in Walsall late morning, I met this tidy, glossy coated very black cat, languid and sleepy on a fencepost at the Wednesbury Road end of the path.

He wasn’t particularly pleased that I disturbed his sleep, but welcomed my chatter, chin and ear tickles, for the first few minutes barely opening his eyes.

A cat of clearly senior years, I think he must live on the new esate over the back.

And adorable, aloof yet affectionate fusspot, whose acquaintance I was pleased to make.

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#365daysofbiking A dark chicken

January 9th – One of the more comedic things about curating this journal and blog is that I comment a lot about a geographical local feature with a very amusing name – the Black Cock bridge. Named after the pub nearby, the Black Cock has long been the source of much schoolboy innuendo and humour, but is actually a decent, old fashioned pub that always looks welcoming when I pass, particularly on a dull winter evening.

It does, of course, have a far cruder colloquial name I shan’t detail.

However, I do love the thought of sweaty-palmed people banging Black Cock into search engines, which then return multiple hits to this journal rather than the desired subject…

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#365daysofbiking Ignorance is bliss

December 4th – Pottering to work on a grey day, I spotted a particularly disdainful puss near Walsall Wood who certainly wasn’t going to give the likes of me the time of day, no matter how I called it.

You haven’t been properly ignored in life until you’ve been ignored by a domestic British cat.

Oh well, looks like a nice puss… From behind.

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#365daysofbiking Disturbing the locals

November 21st – I had to visit a client on the far side of Hortonwood in Telford, and since I’m not keen on riding through that huge industrial estate, I stayed on the train to wellington and rode from there.

It was dry, and there was a cycleway all the way there, pretty much, which was a delight if confusing at times.

Autumn made west Hortonwood look gorgeous – it’s a lot more like Stafford Park on this side, leafy and quiet with lots of small units.

I found a trail into the heart of where I needed to be from the residential area called Trench, and on the way up the leaf-covered byway, I was monitored by this delightful member of the local neighbourhood watch.

That’s a splendid set of whiskers.

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