Tag: grumpy

#365daysofbiking Too low for comfort

Monday, September 21st 2020 – The fascination with other people’s bikes continues, as does the bafflement with some modern bike technical fashions.

In a familiar customer bike shed, a new bike I think might be a Marin is locked with a Poundland cheese string bike lock (but thankfully this shed has a very securely locked door). It’s a nice, fairly high-end equipped bike, with SRAM (that’s Sachs for the oldies) gears. It’s what I would class a ‘forest bike’ – it’s not really a full MTB but not a hybrid. It would be at home on Cannock Chase’s midway trails or rough canal towpaths.

The bike has remarkable gearing arrangement, that’s sadly fashionable – a single front ring, which is tiny and an eyewateringly wide rear sprocket range.

I note it’s been left in the lowest of gears.

Why?

The gearing is utterly rubbish for road use.

I was talking to a pal about this the other day. I’m tying to build a decent derailleur setup at the moment, but there’s no longer the crossover between road and MTB gear sets where you can get a massive range for excellent touring use by mixing and matching. It’s either this stupidity, which necessitates a huge rear mech just waiting to get smashed off by a stump, or the low range and boredom of road group sets.

I know it’s fashion, like the frankly ludicrous fat bike fad, and we’ll swing back to doubles and triples when the spinning kids want to go a bit faster than15mph downhill. But I wish it would pass.

It comes to something when a basic hub gear offers 25% wider range than most mountain group sets.

Rant over. For now.

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#365daysofbiking Truculence

February 2nd – Up by Middleton Bridge, two likely characters loiter and preen on the ice, regarding me with grumpy, truculent eyes.

I feel for the waterfowl this weather, they don’t have much open water, and most of that will be full of Canada geese and Mallards, who are both just shouty, loud idiots and must drive cultured birds like swans mad.

Still, at least that answered the IC scale question well enough…

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June 8th – Passing down Scarborough Road in Pleck, south Walsall I noticed these cats, clearly waiting for the return of their owners from work. The two black and white ones seem to be siblings and clearly aren’t particularly fond of each other; I’ve recorded them studiously ignoring each other before.

I’m intrigued by the grey one, though – I’ve not seen that one before and it looks like a gorgeous cat. 

I was also amused by the disgusted expression of the one in the foreground. If looks could kill….

April 23rd – On the canal at Hopwas, a swan nest. The male was stood on the towpath, alternately preening and scolding passers by, while his partner, safely atop the nest on the opposite bank fussed and turned her three eggs to just the right position before settling back down to watch and wait once more.

Swans are such truculent, fascinating birds.

April 8th – Spotted in the meadow at Waterhouses, this venerable, grumpy looking puss.

Peak District cats are a tough breed, and often look as weathered as the landscape they inhabit. This white cat was just sat, taking the air and enjoying the sun (one presumes, although the expression doesn’t give much away). I like to think it was taking stock, and looking forward to another summer of hunting, stalling territory and snoozing in the sun.

As befits any older cat, really.

November 1st – Also in Kings Hill, a character I see a fair bit, this elderly black and white puss with no teeth. Gummy and grumpy, he’s actually a charming chap when you catch him in a good mood. Today, he was startled by workmen on the Chapel renovation and their grinder, so he wasn’t feeling accommodating, and yowled at me to stop it.

It’s totally unacceptable when your daytime activities are disturbed by workmen.

July 12th – I’ve spotted this apparently elderly lady before in central Walsall, near the college. She has a broken tail and a limp but she seems alert, active and very sharp on her feet. 

She hasn’t previously hung about to have her photo taken, and today, as I pulled up gently on my bike, she gave me 20 seconds before she decided to up sticks and run off, glaring at me.

This is a cat with attitude…

September 22nd – The cat population of the UK doesn’t seem very pleased with me lately. After being scorned by the posh pusses of Lower Stonnall yesterday, today this black and white fellow glared at me from wasteland in Leamore. 

A lovely cat though: love the three spots on the nose and white tail-tip.

I remember when cats used to stop for a bit of fuss. Not at the moment, it seems…

August 29th – My apologies to the toad-phobics, but I had to share this wee fellow. He looks bloody angry and he had a right to be: I was a shade from running him over in the dark on the towpath near Pelsall Road, but a last minute swerve just missed him.

I picked him up and popped him in the grass, annoying him further.

In true laissez-faire toad fashion, he never moved a millimetre on his own.