Flat again

Hi,

The latest CTC (Cyclists Touring Club) weekly email reports that if you cycle regular your body will 10 years younger than it otherwise would. Since I begun cycling more regularly last Autumn I have felt better in myself not just physically but holistically and I have dropped a trouser size so most of my trosuers don't fit me apart from my neat new cycling shorts.

So I was already for a quick spin yesterday when I decided to pump up my front tyre which was a bit low. I used Sheila's neat high powered pump and forgot to unlock it from the valve. The valve which was a bit loose in any case broke off and the tyre imemdiately went flat. Oh know!

Well I can get the wheel off and pop round to the local cyclist shop - Ken Fosters' Cyclogist and get a new inner tube. So I turned the bike upside down and tried to get the front wheel off. But however hard I tried using all my might I could not undo the nuts. Nuts indeed! So there was nothing for it but to wheel the bike round to Ken Fosters' sheepishly and get their help. Fine but they could not do it until Monday. I hope this does not happen on my LEJOG trip!

The upside of all of this is that I am going to borrow Sheila's bike which will be interesting as it is about 20 years old but it is a touring bike with drop handlebars. Incidentially I had a useful email from the CTC message board about my LEJOG which I will share in full in another post but the key point is that the writer suggested that I can do the trip on my current bike.

Best to all,

Bill on bike