Today my StemCAPtain compass arrived, woohoo! I can't wait to mount it onto my bike. It's a bit pricy but I've already ordered three compass bells from amazon that were all broken. It seems impossible to find a mountable compass for a bicycle online, at least one that isn't a cheap Chinese piece of crap that falls apart when you open the box.
The StemCAPtain (ridiculous capitalization..) looks sturdy and solid, it's made of ALUMNUNUMIMM, and actually points in the right direction.
Sometimes I wonder why I bother to program. Cycling is much more fun.
Decided to take the train to Tring today, about a 30 minute trip. One of the best things about this country is that you can just take your bicycle in the train. One of the worst things is that when you get out of the train it's still the same boring shit everywhere.
Still, it's exercise, and preparation for an eventual cycling trip this summer, who knows where. Sometimes I wonder if cycling trips are the only thing I'm ever truly looking forward to in life. Vagabonding is my preferred way of life, perhaps?
Today I took my new bicycle out to Ealing Common, where I used to live, and where my previous bike was stolen. I was meeting my friends for sushi, and I managed to park the bicycle exactly in front of the window of the sushi place. I had a perfect view of my bike, were it not for the fact the glass was strongly matted and I couldn't really look through it. Unless I stood up, because the glass was not matted a bit higher up.
During the few hours that we were there I had to strongly resist the urge to stand up every minute to check if my bike was still there. Even though I locked it very securely, with a superb lock in the proper position and a strong cable around the front wheel so they can't take the wheel off, I still felt very worried. The new bike is way too shiny and is not really fit for bad neighborhoods. Not that Ealing Common is bad, by the way. If anything, Ealing Common is the best area in Ealing because it's full of Japanese people. At least, that's what I told myself to feel reassured.
In the end though, nothing happened, and the bike was still there when we walked out. I think this marks the first time I've parked my new bicycle outside in public while leaving it unattended. It's something I'll have to keep doing to get used to it again. I guess I should think about proper bike insurance..
It was about time. My old pump did not work very well at all, so I finally decided to spend money on a proper one. I can honestly say that I've never had a better bicycle tire pump in my entire life. It's a mouthful: "Topeak Turbo Morph with Gauge". I am pleased.
I tried for ages to overlay my old bicycle (Giant Great Journey 2, 2006 model I think) and the new one (Surly Long Haul Trucker) on top of each other in Photoshop, but no matter what I did, I could not get the perspective right. So here's a regular comparison instead.
Also, drawing a triangle in photoshop is bloody stupid.
Today was a beautiful day so I decided to head north to Watford, which turned out to be real close by. I didn't take a lot of photos along the way, and I think that's because I'm not familiar enough with the area yet. But I had an 'aha' moment today where two distinct areas of roads suddenly linked up in my mind, completing another part of the puzzle that is greater London's road network. I made the mistake of remembering things wrongly the first time I came here, and it's still hurting me. But I'm getting over it.
This is rapidly becoming my favorite path.
I found something interesting today. I ended up in Watford city center, took a wrong turn and drove across a hospital parking lot in the wrong direction, then ended up on a big road that was closed for traffic because it was filled with football supporters and food and drinks stands. The policeman kindly informed me that I could just barge right through there with my bicycle, so I slowly cycled through the crowd, looking around. I guess a football match is the UK's version of Japan's festival. Hm, cute Japanese girls in kimonos or rowdy football fans with weird accents. I think I know which one I prefer.
The canals. For lack of a nicer place, quite nice.
I can tell that my new bicycle doesn't really like to be on non-asphalty roads, even more so than the old one. The tires are just that tad bit too thin and smooth for muddy roads, and the lack of front suspension makes almost any off-road path around here a very bumpy ride. Or perhaps I just haven't cycled enough lately and need to get used to it again. In any case, after leaving the muddy paths behind and finding some open asphalt it really felt great. The bike's made to do asphalt, so I should do a bit more of that next time, just to see how far I can go in a day.
A random park. Behind me were screaming children.
This is what I do in weekends. I've somehow forgotten this after two years of not being in Japan, but this is what I do, and I like it. I cycle somewhere random, take photos along the way and sometimes find interesting things. Then I head home, tired and exhausted, and enjoy a nice movie in the evening while eating snack food from the convenience store. Ah, what a life.
It's perfect. Honestly couldn't think of a better rack shape + size if I wanted to. I don't know how easy it'll be to remove, but I'll just have to try that. I'd like to say that the bike is complete now, but I threw away the broken compass bell, so I have to wait until the new one arrives.
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Today was perhaps the first time I really went out and 'cyclographed' in the UK. It's a bit hard to define why today felt like cyclographing and all my previous trips on my old bike near London didn't feel like it. Mostly it's the environment, I guess. There's less busy streets here, less traffic lights, less buildings everywhere. The roads are winding and you can go a long way without having to stop for anything. At the same time there's those interesting junctions that make you wonder where a road will lead to, unlike closer to the city where everything's square and everything ends up in the same places. And finally, there's the hills.
There's so many hills here, way more than around Atsugi actually. Cycling here is going to make me a lot stronger. There's no mountains though, nor are there massive landmarks that you can use to orientate yourself. I always found comfort in relating my position to some distant mountain or tower, but there's no such thing here. I still have to get used to that.
The bike is good. Everything is working as expected. The weather is getting worse but I don't want to let that stop me. Even though today was massively windy and quite cold, I brought the right clothes and managed to settle into a sustainable pace. I hope I can keep my motivation up through the winter. Then, perhaps in the spring, I can start thinking about the next big cycling trip :)