pure and applied

My new ride?

I may have found my new bike... the Pilen Concept from ADDI design.

The fashionable cyclist

  The fashionable cyclist 
  Originally uploaded by pureandapplied

Every now and then on flickr an image gets a lot of visits and you never quite know why.

This is one such image from my travels in Japan with Siobhan. It has easily three times the visits of what I would regard as more interesting shots, but why fight the crowd.

For me the interest in this image is what it says about cycling in Japan. People don't really get dressed up to go out riding, they get dressed up and then ride their bike to wherever it is they've dressed-up for. Just as many westerners would simply drive, many Japanese simply ride.

Mrs Macquaries Chair

  Mrs Macquaries Chair Panorama 
  Originally uploaded by spud murphy.

Having stayed overnight in Darlinghurst this morning I thought that, rather than taking my usual route from Stanley St up William St and through the city, I would ride to work via Mrs Macquaries Chair.  Because I'm fond of inclement weather I had hoped it would still be raining. Well even so who could complain about it being all clear with a view like this one I found on Flickr.

Continued a lovely ride round through the Domain, past the Sydney Opera House, via Circular Quay, up George St, over to York St, then rejoining my usual route at Market St across the Pyrmont Bridge.

When I have some time I'll put the route on Bikely.com, put some photos of my own on Flickr, and make a little coffee table book out of it all for you for Christmas.

A New Rear

A few weeks back, after having had five flats in two weeks, and having read Lelak's posts on her several flat tyres, I decided to run a Schwalbe Marathon Plus on my rear wheel.

A Marathon Plus costs just a bit less than a new Bridgestone for my Corolla... but I love my Scott MTB more, and in any case changing two flats on Pyrmont Bridge Road in the wet, and barely making it to the school in time to pick up the kids will put one in mind of this sort of extravagance.

"Punctures become obsolete with the MARATHON PLUS!" is a big claim though, so I've waited an extra week or two before enthusing. Of course it's tempting fate (which is to say 'a tyre-shredding on the roads of Glebe and Pyrmont') to endorse a tyre like this, but bugger it, I'm that happy with my new slick

My only other fear was that having gone from a 2" profile to 1.75" (the Monkey's didn't stock the fatty), the bike might handle a little too sharply, but I needn't have worried - it's all very solid.

In other tyre news: after years of injuring my arm and my dignity with a nasty little hand pump comprised of one too many moving parts, I recently upgraded to decent floor-standing pump - a Joe Blow Sports. It's good for AFL balls too!

On the road 80psi is like having new legs. Look out damianm - you'll need every ounce of advantage that fancy road bike can give.

Although I suspect going from 20psi to 80psi is most of the reason my old rear tyre let through so many sharps, I wouldn't recommend running Continental's 'Town and Country'.

low maintenance - Things that go bump in the night

Ouch - my mate Lela landed on the gravel commuting home. I've had a few scrapes like this myself. Though since I've been on the 1.75" tyres, and been more cautious in the gravel (oh - and in the wet and at roundabouts with adverse camber and also made sure my tyres are properly inflated), I've managed to keep my arse on the seat. Fingers crossed. Get well soon Lelak.