Things Change and Stay the Same

image from the tentacles of the magnificent octopus

With upon us, I would like to wish everyone a happy, healthy, safe, exciting and all around fulfilling New Year, full of cycling and all the other things you enjoy.

I've been trying to think of "resolutions" for next year pertaining to this blog, and in the process I am realising that I don't have any. This may not sound very exciting, but more than anything I would like for things to remain as they are: to ride bikes, learn more about bicycle design, overthink everything as usual, make mistakes in the process, and write about it all without getting overly self-conscious about how silly I might sound. This year I was upset and surprised when two of my favourite bicycle blogs were discontinued. But I also understand why it happened, and I can easily see how the same could happen here. For that reason I feel that it is especially important to keep things low key and not overextend myself. This is something I will try to bear in mind throughout .

Other than this, I am quite happy to keep it open-ended. I have been cycling for transportation more or less daily since the start of this blog, and over time I've become increasingly interested in roadcycling. Within these two realms there are so many possibilities for exploration, that I feel as if I've barely scratched the surface. My interest in bicycle design continues, and it's been fascinating to learn about materials and methods of construction other than the lugged steel I love. There's just... so much to it all! As new people get swept up into this obsession every day, there are also those who've been at it for decades - no less enthusiastic now than they were in the beginning. I hope that will be me in future.

I've had some requests for a New Year's cocktail like last year, and so I offer you the following:

The Slideways:. real pomegranate juice. dry champagne or white sparkling wine. gin (of course). small lime. sprig of mint. ice

In a cocktail shaker, combine ice, 1 shot of pomegranate juice, 1 shot of gin, 2 shots of champagne, and a generous squeeze of lime. Keep a tall champagne glass in the freezer to give it that frosted look. Strap the cocktail shaker to a rear rack of a fixed gear bicycle, then pedal forward and backward, rapidly changing direction. Unstrap the shaker. Remove champagne glass from freezer and pour in the contents immediately. Garnish with mint. Recline on your bicycle, side-saddle, while drinking and listening to this. Repeat as necessary.

A hat tip to Andy Arthur for his adorable illustration of my clumsy bike handling skills, and my sincere thanks to everyone I've crossed paths with via this blog in - be it virtually or in person. A Happy New Year to all!

Castle Bytham - Pickworth - Clipsham - Castle Bytham

On a fine day, still a tad sticky underfoot. With Gordon, Maureen, Barry and Eddie. 10.6 miles.





We set off from Castle Bytham, taking the footpath which goes past the Castle pub, then the church and the cemetery, which has the sign 'Welcome to Castle Bytham Cemetery'!

The path skirts the graveyard and then comes to open country. There was a pretty cold, though southerly, wind.





The fields were a bit muddy, but the path was fairly straightforward, though we did deviate slightly before reaching the Clipsham Road. On the other side the path led past School Farm - though it looked as though it had been neither for a very long time.

We could see the remains of a small triangular opening in one wall - but I clearly didn't put it in the pic

Onwards and south we trudged, until we reached Holywell quarry, where we followed the path just fine until it seemed to head into a wooded gully, which was a little too wooded. We took an easier route slightly to our right, coming out just a little off track, before reaching the Holywell Road.



The path continued as a bridleway leading gently uphill towards Pickworth Great Wood.




Looking back towards Holywell quarry



From here to Pickworth the path was clearly marked - through the wood and over the fields to emerge beside Manor Farm. We turned left to have a look at the arch, which is all that remains of a church from the 12th, 13th or 14th century. The present owner came out and chatted to us about it.











The present church is very plain and was built in 1821.

We walked straight past the limekiln this time! It was only when I read the Pickworth link that I realised it claims to be where the poet John Clare worked for a while.

Here's one I took earlier (18 Nov)

Once again the path was clear, heading slightly north of west, and just after crossing a narrow band of trees we decided to stop for a break - there was a convenient fallen tree.

It was just after this that I went off track (in spite of warnings that the track has been diverted!). When I look at the garmin trace on the map link below, it's obvious that I went too far to the west (left) of the wood. Much better to have stuck closer to the edge. Another excuse - we were a little distracted by one of the less welcome sights of this part of the world - the hunt were out as well.





An extra half-mile or more added on to the walk, but with the aid of Barry's grid refs and compass bearing, we found our way through Clipsham Quarry, which is marked as 'old' on the map, but is in use.



From here to Clipsham things went smoothly again, but as we were behind schedule - we're such timetable-dependent people especially when we're hoping to reach the pub in time for lunch - we decided to give the Yew Tree Avenue a miss this time.

We reached Clipsham just opposite the Olive Branch pub, and turned right, walked round the bend to the left and turned left - after a little while we turned right and followed the route I had already walked on Nov 18th. The route is clearly marked from near Clipsham Court, and goes behind Clipsham House, then crosses fields in a north-westerly direction and reaches Addah Wood. It runs alongside then turns right into the wood, and after a while left (north) through Lady Wood. The path runs fairly close to Stocken Prison perimeter.

We came out of the wood, and once again my map-reading proved less than perfect. Now I can see that the contours mean the path runs along the bottom of the dip!

A slightly slippery footbridge - at least if your boots are muddy.

If there was a waymarker, we missed it, and added another half-mile and at least 50 feet of climbing to the route. However, it was not difficult to find our way back to the track, which then goes under the disused railway to the Castle Bytham Road. A short uphill walk and we were in the village - just too late for a pub lunch, but fortunately the tea room in the village hall is open until 3 on a Thursday. Very much appreciated by all of us.

The 45 Minute Mystery

The furthest I typically travel for transportation is about 10 miles from home, and over time I've noticed something kind of funny: It takes me around 45 minutes to get there pretty much every time, no matter what bike I am riding. I have done the ride on several upright bikes, road and touring bikes, mixtes, single speeds - and it's always the same. If I happen to be a little slower or faster on any given day, it seems to depend more on traffic patterns than on the bike I am riding.

This is not to say that some bikes are not faster than others; clearly there are enormous differences. But when riding for transportation through densely populated areas, I find that more often than not these differences simply do not matter. Because I follow traffic laws and stop for red lights and stop signs, being on a fast bike just means that I am riding faster between those enforced stops. Maybe once in a while I'll make a green light that a slower cyclist would not, but somehow it averages out and in the end I don't really "win" any time.

Of course there are other benefits to being on a faster bike. Hills are easier. Accelerating is easier when going around obstacles or starting from a stop. All things considered, I prefer to commute on a bike that is fast - as long as it's also upright, comfortable, and fully equipped for transportation. But the faster bike does not deliver me to my destination any sooner; the 45 minute rule always applies.

Ostria Restaurant Dinner in Votsalakia

Eating out in Samos Island, Greece is very cheap, you spend approximately 30+- euros for 2 pax (1 starter + 2 mains + 2 drinks). We normally have coffee somewhere else at a lounge or bar. Thus, we ate out every night (we still have a week to go to enjoy this island!) and I will be posting all our dinners (and lunches) at different restaurants.



Hopefully, those who stumble upon this blog whilst planning for their prospective Samos holiday will have an idea where to eat and what to expect. My way of giving back to travellers and holidaymakers out there.



First night dinner at Ostria Restaurant



We were quite intrigued with this restaurant because you cannot see the dining area except for a pathway leading to the beach. The pathway is partly covered with vines crawling on a trellis with grapes hanging from it. The restaurant is indeed located on the sea side which makes it very attractive and quite romantic as well.













The restaurant has no website but it is listed on Trip Advisor, go here: Ostria



Kambos area (Votsalakia beach) in Marathokampos municipality is small so it is easy to find this restaurant as it is located on the main town’s street.



Special menu of the day



We ordered their special menu of the day that includes a Greek salad. Dutchman, the Burger special with Tzatziki, and moi, the Grilled Dorade Fish (gilt-head bream or bream fish) special with lemon sauce. Of course, a quarter Samian white wine for me as well. Samos has its own wine culture and is quite famous locally.











Food here is quite good. Not a fan really of French fries but I loved my Grilled Dorade fish. 4.25 stars out of 5. The ambiance here at the restaurant is fresh and lovely. They also gave us free coffee to close the dinner. In Samos, all restaurants give you a surprise free thing after dinner. The surprise vary per restaurant!



Beach view



But what we really enjoyed most were the beautiful views, and oh, the sunset! So relaxing...









If in Votsalakia - Kambos area, don’t miss this restaurant, for lunch or dinner.



More food posts coming!

Old English vs New English

When I first posted about buying my vintage Raleigh Lady's Tourist, a reader commented that it looks like "the Pashley's grandma" and I replied that they were indeed pretty similar. But after riding the vintage Raleigh around on a daily basis for the past week, I no longer think so. Sure, the overt similarities are there: the loop frame, the upright sitting position, the enclosed chaincase and the general aura of lady-like stateliness. But the ride quality is so very different, that I was compelled to conduct a more thorough comparison.

Those of you who "know bikes" can probably see straightaway that there are significant differences in proportions and angles. The vintage Raleigh's seat tube is considerably more slack (leaned back) than the Pashley's. In the photo above, this difference is undermined by the fact that I've shoved the Pashley's saddle all the way back on the rails in attempts to replicate the other bike's geometry. But if you try to block out the saddle and just look at the seat tubes, you can see it. The other major difference, is that the vintage Raleigh is "all weels", with a relatively short headtube. The Pashley has much smaller wheels and a tall headtube.

Here is a close-up of the wheels and head-tubes, with my body in between for a sense of scale. If you think there is not much difference between 26" wheels and 28" wheels, look again! The vintage Raleigh's wheels are monstrous compared to the Pashley's. Traditionally, both men's and ladies' English Roadsters, as well as Dutch bikes, were built with 28" wheels. However, lately a number of bicycle manufacturers - including Pashley, Velorbis and Retrovelo - have been fitting the ladies' models with 26" wheels, believing this to be a better proportioned choice. I am not sure whether I agree with them. What do you think?

Additionally, there is more space between the saddle and the handlebars on the vintage Raleigh than on the Pashley. The difference is not quite as drastic as the angle of this photo makes it seem, but it is there.

The stem and handlebars are not part of the frame itself, but differences between them should still be noted. The Pashley's stem is taller and has an additional upward-sloping extension (like the Nitto Dirt-drop/ Periscopa stem), to make the handlebars higher. The vintage Raleigh has a classic stem with a horizontal (flat) extension, which positions the handlebars slightly lower. The handlebars themselves are different as well: On the Pashley, the gripping areas are flared outward more than on the vintage Raleigh.

As you may have noticed in the undertones of the past several posts, I prefer the vintage Raleigh's geometry to the modern Pashley's. Of course the Pashley has superior gearing and brakes, but the vintage Raleigh puts me in a more comfortable sitting position, and is faster and lighter than the Pashley. Yes, the 40-year-old clunker is faster and lighter - isn't that just bizarre? I can easily ride it for 30+ miles without being out of breath, whereas on the Pashley I often feel tired after much shorter trips. I am not certain which aspect of their anatomical differences accounts for this. It cannot be due to the 28" wheels alone: Batavus and Gazelle have 28" wheels and I find them to be slower and less comfortable than my Pashley.

In an attempt to make my Pashley more anatomically similar to the Raleigh DL1, I have made some changes: The saddle has been raised and pushed back on the rails as far as it would go, and the handlebars have been tilted downward. I did not take a "before" shot, but on this photo from a few months ago you can see the difference.

The Pashley does feel more comfortable this way, and my leg is almost entirely extended on the pedal now while still enabling me to touch the ground with the tip of my toe if need be. However, the Pashley is still as difficult to accelerate as it was prior to the changes. Hmm. If I had a magic framebuilding wand, I would build a bicycle that would replicate exactly - and I mean exactly! - the frame geometry of the Raleigh DL-1, while adding modern brakes and gearing. As far as I am concerned, the perfect bicycle already exists; someone just needs to start making it again.

Eye to Eye

Good-Bye 'Blueskies' ...Hello Blueprints

A couple of days ago, Seymour Blueskies packed up his things and went home with a very nice couple. I bid him farewell as I fondly recalled our times together.



From the start, my intent had been not to keep the vintage Trek, but to learn what I could from it, then move on to explore other bicycles. It was around this time that I recognised having two categories of bikes: a few that I "truly owned" and others that I considered transient and experimental. But experimental for what?



It took me some time to acknowledge that I was "seriously" interested in bicycle design, and acquiring theTreklast summer coincided with that realisation. I began to learn about bicycle history and frame geometry in a more systematic manner, to formulate ideas about the relationship between form and function, and to apply my previous training (in psychology and neuroscience, as well as art and design) to the realm of bicycles and cycling. I realised that the reason I keep acquiring more bikes, is not because I necessarily want to own them personally, but because I want to try out new ideas and to learn new things - then share the results with others. I enjoy the process of conceptualising a bicycle, then bringing about its existence and the result being successful. Now if only there was some way to do that over and over again, without ending up in financial ruin or with a hoarding disorder... Oh, I know: I could design bikes for other people.



After saying good-bye to Seymour Blueskies, I stopped by to see Bryan at Royal H. Cycles - with whom I am now collaborating on a bicycle. How on Earth did that happen? Well, funny story... You see, in this post about a month ago, I expressed a desire to try a bicycle with traditional randonneuring geometry (à la Jan Heine), and received some suggestions as to how this could be accomplished. There wasn't an easy way; these bicycles are rare. But one idea was that I could design the bike myself - and an intrepid reader was prepared to commission just such a bicycle from Royal H should I feel up to the task. And so here we are. The plan is that I come up with the specs, we discuss, Bryan builds, and we'll see what happens.



As this project begins and the Bella Ciao project nears completion, I am filled with nervous energy and self-doubt all around. I know my weak points: I am not an engineer and I am not a framebuilder. But I am perceptive and increasingly knowledgeable in other ways that are essential to bicycle design, and I do feel that I can collaborate with others to create something special. It's possible that I am over-reaching, that it's all too soon. But life is short and you never know unless you try. So I'm trying.