January 18th – A very cold, hazard-ridden commute as I got used to riding on ice – all be it with ice tyres – again. It takes time to reassure yourself that they actually work.
The road gutters and towpaths had some lurking black ice and it was rather cold.
Still only an IC1 on the fabulous Dry Marland canal ice scale though….
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#365daysofbiking The dark side:
November 2nd – Returning that evening, drained after a heavy, stressful week, I hit the canal.
Riding the canal towpaths after dark requires a couple of things – nerves of steel and a good front light.
The nerves are necessary to spot the familiar hazards of the towpath in unfamiliar lighting conditions – ducks, geese, foxes, cats etc, as well as deep potholes, bumps, wooden trail edge boards and paver edges. It’s also challenging to predict sudden curves in the path you navigate automatically in daylight.
I can also be a bit… lonely.
But I love the mental challenge and peace of it.
August 8th – The rain came in Redditch just as I boarded the train back, and I thought it was probably in for the afternoon. I was however wrong, it seems to have been a narrow band of rain that passed the conurbation, and it approached me once more as I rode back from Shenstone. It caught me in the lanes.
The rain was sweet, warm and enjoyable when it came, following skies that would surely have won an Oscar for best supporting performance.
What wasn’t so great however was that one more, with insufficient rain to wash it away, the roads became greasy, slippery and soppy with the road debris and wash down.
It pains me to say it but we need heavy and prolonged rain to clear this away.
December 18th – Off to Telford again, and caught out by a sharp frost, I nearly lost the bike on black ice, having chosen the one bike without ice tyres as I thought it was too warm.
I’d set out at dawn, and in Brownhills, it wa misty and warm. Unusually, as I got to Mill Green, it was cold, clear and frosty. This was unusual, as normally the reverse is true. Turning into Mill Lane I realised ice was a problem and about 100 yards on I did a series of shimmies that would have please Torville and Dean.
Luckily, I had no following vehicles, and relaxed, I let the bike go where it wanted and gradually let the velocity drain away, before walking back up the lane to the main road.
A close shave, which meant I missed my train; but it did give me chance to catch an icy dawn over Hill Hook.
November 21st – On the streets of Birmingham, the autumn leaves are making for a golden carpet, and as usual, however hard an army of street cleaners try, they fight a losing battle and all one can do is plough through the fallen remains of a summer past and enjoy the sounds, colour and sensation.
There is a downside, however: on urban pavers and country lanes, the leaves will mulch under foot and vehicle wheels, combine with rainwater, road oil and grease, and form a soapy, slippery wheel-stealing goop that will make riding a concentration suck for a few weeks to come.
Every season has it’s hazards.
September 13th – Spotted on the footpath on a Wednesury industrial estate, these giant pine cones. Weighing in I’d guess at half a pound in weight, they’re actually quite sharp and abrasive and I’d not want one to land on my head as it fell from the tree.
Remarkable things, and lots of them; like conkers, at this time of year falling harvests can be the only decent reason to wear a helmet…
January 20th – I was home earlier, but didn’t escape the dark. It was light when I left though, which was something. On the way back I had to call in to Stonnall on an errand, and I came upon a hazard every bit as dangerous as the unexpected black ice that morning; in the blackness of the backlane, the road was flooded to some depth for the full width of the tarmac.
In my bike light, I took the best picture I could, and note that apart from the bike light, this is in total black; a mix of speed and grip-thieving water, marbles and mud just ready to strike out of the darkness.
Thankfully, I spotted it,. But be careful out there. I’h hate to think what this is like if it freezes…
July 25th – A horrid, horrid ride home. I had to take a trip into Birmingham on my return from work, and I caught the train out. On my return from the station, it rained the sort of fine, penetrating rain that searches out every not-quite closed zip and aperture on your jacket, and just soaks you. But far, far worse than being wet were the road conditions.
The first rains after a dry spell are always bad – but if they aren’t heavy, the surface water they precipitate mixes with road grime, tyre detritus, spilled fuel and oils and makes a soapy, foamy, slimy emulsion that steals wheels from under you. I slid a couple of times. I head cars skid at junctions. It was awful.
I was glad to get home, just as the rain stopped. There hasn’t been enough rain to wash this away yet, so watch out the next time we have wet weather.
Be careful out there folks.
October 29th – As I noted a few days ago, Autumn is a beautiful, but hazardous season. The leaf littler on the cycleways is wonderful to look at but very slippery, and is now turning to a very soapy, lubricant mulch. Added into this are small twigs, various needles and fallen berries and fruits, often concealing potholes and other hazards.
I normally mash up here hard and come back downhill even faster, but with conditions as they are, I take this route very gently at the moment, and avoid using the front brake as much as possible.
November 3rd – Just around the corner in Corporation Street, a new hazard to urban cyclists in Brum; tram tracks. With a groove just the right dimensions to swallow and lock my wheels, I rode between the parallel lines with care, remembering the northern European practice of crossing them at oblique angles.
The new tram line is sure to catch a few incautious cyclists though, so beware people. I do like the Metro and support it’s expansion, but this one hadn’t crossed my mind until today.
BrownhillsBob's #365daysofbiking 