jimmythecuckoo's blog

As years go 2011 was a pretty monumental one in our house... and when I say house, I mean houses.

A change in role at work, a move of home and then within four weeks our first baby. All within 12 months and one week of getting married... bullets have left guns slower than that but throughout all of the chaos and settling in, I still maintained a bit of fitness and enjoyment on my bike.

After a couple of seasons on a upward trajectory, friend of this website Albert Timmer has had a poor time of it in 2011.

The Dutchman became a favourite after I spent a pleasant afternoon at the side of the road with his family watching him speed by in the Catalunyan stages of the 2009 Tour de France. Regular readers will have enjoyed posts mentioning the great man in the past.

As a loyal Bianchi owner of 4 years now I look forward to their infrequent owners club updates. The emails are written in what we call at work "Italish", a bizarre hybrid of the two languages.

The owners club hasn't really changed my life or my use of the bike. Maybe if owners got discount in the branded cafes they were rumoured to be opening a while back I would be more interested.

A nice celeste mug brimming with hot chocolate might secure my next bike brand decision.

So after the MAMIL come the ROGUES (Random Old Guys Using Excess Speed).

My Sunday morning ride had started like so many others trundling along Yaxley Broadway to the lights as a sort of warm up. I love riding the single speed in the winter. The workout feels so much more pure and brutal than on a geared bike and some of the short sharp climbs around our locality suddenly become relevant. They don’t when you have numerous cogs to get you out of trouble.

There have been some 'crunchy' deals coming out of Planet X and On-One the last few weeks.

Sub £20 merino, great value wheelsets etc. etc.

But the email that just dropped in my inbox left my jaw on the floor.

Buy one bike, get one free...

I repeat

Buy one bike, get one free...

Click here.

Does this show a sense of desperation in the bike industry or is it true deck clearing for new ranges and innovation?

To start with I was a little bit disappointed that we wouldn't be seeing Bradley Wiggins tearing it up on local roads. But his ride so far in the Vuelta has allowed me to forgive him for not turning out!

Geraint Thomas was on the start sheet but having studied his Twitter page it was clear he was stuck in some airport somewhere and his plans changed.

I have blogged in the past about the success of our little local cycling group Yaxley Riders.

It all started as a means of getting riders interested in cycling who didnt want to jump straight into the organised club concept.

A secondary purpose was that it enabled riders from the South side of Peterborough to form their own community, website and message board as both of the main clubs were based a way across town.

We have done pretty well and sold a number of jersies and had a couple of socials in the local pub.

Its a bizarre question to ask at a time when social unrest and thieving are dominating the news wires and headlines.

I was, like many others, quietly surfing through internet cycling forums when I saw the various threads kicking off about a pricing error at Oakley’s custom website.

Sunday morning rides don’t come much fresher and windier than yesterday and it was after a severe panelling from a headwind that I headed back towards Peterborough Business Airport via Conington Church.

Yes, Peterborough has a “Business Airport”. Its not much but we are proud of it.
But it wasn’t the prevalence of single engine Cessna’s struggling to take off and land in the wind that caused me to stress out on this Fenland bimble. It was the horse rider I gingerly tried to overtake safely with little or no chance.

No chance?

It's been a while and many brands and models have been considered but I have finally lashed out for a new bike.

Of the major choices I was swayed by the Revolution brand at Edinburgh Bicycle Co-Operative and their road/sportive models. This was based on my successful purchase of a single speed from them last year.