Tag: commute

November 17th – Passing through Telford near lunchtime, it was a lovely late autumn day. Taking a short cut through Priorslee, I crossed the motorway bridge and was pleased to note the trees were still showing beautiful colours, and the cycleway was still an autumnal Arcadia.

Over the years I’ve given new towns like Telford and Redditch a lot of stick but they can be really beautiful in really unexpected ways.

November 16th – Not sure what this large fungus actually is, but it was handsome and glistening with collected dew and rainwater as I passed through Victoria Park in Darlaston in the early morning.

To my sadness, the fungi haven’t been terribly prolific this year – some did explode into life late, like the fly agaric, but this year I’ve hardly seen any puffballs, very few shaggy ink caps and the brackets seem well down too.

I do hope the unusually dry autumn hasn’t scuppered chances of seeing rosy earthstars at Clayhanger again… 

November 16th – A hazardous time of year, and not just just from the black ice on frosty mornings. Many hazards lurk in the damp autumn waiting to steal the wheels from beneath the incautious cyclist – one of the worst is leaf mulch. Fallen leaves, ground into a pulp by feet and wheels turn to a soapy, slippery grease that makes steering and braking a hazard.Combine this on busy roads with road grime, oil and spilled diesel and you have a real recipe for an accident.

The only answer is to be vigilant, beware of the front brake and take it easy.

November 16th – Also providing colour, and much later than normally expected, the leaves are stunning still.

It’s that time of year when if it rains, many tracks, backlanes and other cycle routes become slippery with leaf pulp, which is treacherous and hard to predict.

The colours were beautiful, even against a threatening sky.

November 15th – There seem to be some species of shrub and tree that are unique to commercial and trading estates, in that you only see them in the borders and copses there. These were in Tipton.

One such shrub is this one: laden with a huge quantity of bright red berries that the birds don’t seem to bother with much, I have no idea of it’s name.

Looks like another bumper crop this year, too.

November 14th – Nearer home, at Fighting Cocks, the moon made an appearance.

It was a beautiful as ever, but didn’t seem that much bigger than usual to me, but it was very bright.

An odd thing, really: Every moon these days is special in some way. I think I preferred it when we just had normal ones!

November 14th – I came through my beloved Shenstone station late, expecting to see the match vaunted ‘supermoon’ – sadly, when I alighted, it was too cloudy to see. 

I consoled myself with the atmosphere of this lonely but beautiful place in the darkness. I love the white light on the steps, and the curious pool of light the car is bathed in.

November 11th – I noted that I was using Specialised Armadillo tyres earlier in the week, and mused if they’d be any good on ice. This morning gave me my answer – they’re crap.

Dashing to work just as the sun rose in the first hard ground frost of the season, I rounded a bend in Darlaston, forgetting I was on an untreated backroad. There was black ice lying in wait.

I went one way, the bike went the other. I came off at about 18mph.

Save for bruised legs and a sore elbow, I’m fine apart from the damaged pride, but I’m going to have to get the studded tyres on as soon as possible. If only to forestall snow…

November 10th – It was a very long, tiring day; I was in work early, and in the afternoon, made a couple of errands by bike in the Black Country and Wolverhampton. Whilst there, I was called back to work take on a very urgent job, so I hopped on the train to Coseley. Sadly, as I boarded the train, it started to rain, and it caught me in a downpour from Coseley to Darlaston.

I found myself starting work again at 5pm, soaking wet and cold. I finally got home around 10.

I love my job but sometimes it’s unrequited.