howies®

My lights busted.

I sent them back to 2Pure and they worked on them but they could not be fixed. They tried hard.

So they sent me a new set which came yesterday, and they really light my way home.

Thank you 2 Pure

I have fallen out of love with the cross bike. Bit heavy, bit slow, bit too drop bar.

I only ever use it to ride to work in ice or snow or when the road to work floods to knee deep.

So during 2 lunch breaks and telephone calls that just require chatter the drop bars got ditched and flat bars, bar end (i have not had a pair of these since my first riser bars in 1995) v-brakes and new grips fitted.

Rode it in this morning and felt that I had a new bike.

Gotta get rid of the kelvar tyres now which feel like riding on deep pile carpet.

While lighting the fire this morning I found an article in a Times mag about the top 30 albums of the last decade, so it’s on the wall and is our playlist for the next few days.

We are working from 30 to 1. Not everyone’s cup of tea, but a nice exercise. I have got a couple that I really not looking forwards to, and some that are great, but very slow for a busy day.

You can see what we’re listening to right now over here on last.fm

**Update: this is the list we’re listening to.**

I had heard the story of Birch creek canoes where originally build by a gentleman called Allan Bridges. His canoes where (amongst canoeists) classed as possibly the best canoes, revered for their superior design because they were a lightweight boat that’s extremely responsive to the paddler. Alan stopped building his canoes in early 2000.

Scott who runs the howies shop in Cardigan is a great waterman came in on Friday saying he had just bought a new canoe. Turns out that recently Allan has taught his son-in-law to build his canoes and Scott had the first one out of the mould.

So this this morning with the 18ft canoe hanging 2 feet out the back of the howies van we headed up the Teifi, and we hit the water at 7.00am and minus 2 degrees and paddled the 7.32 miles to work.

We made LLechryd bridge in good time, took the 2nd from the left arch and shot the “rapids” .

Check out the dodgey “explorer” hats. Elmer Fud and Crocodile Dundee.

When you pass Cillgeran and head into the gorge for about a mile there are no foot paths and no people and no cars and no noise.  It’s a real special place to paddle.  The water was flat calm and the kingfishers provided the colour. It must be 2 years since I paddled to work with David, and something that we never did before he left. So I raised a swig of water to him as we passed his canoe pulled up below his house.

Because the canoe is fibre glass we couldn’t crash over the rocks into the wildlife park, so we had to get out and carry it 100 yards to deeper water. After an hour paddling with my legs tucked under the seat, once I plunged them into water that should have frozen, I was a muscles twitch away from cramp in both legs and once back in the canoe my feet felt like someone had hammered flat. When it came to shallow water again, Scot let me stay in and waded knee deep in his Epic jeans. (It was a product test day cause I was out in my new Quick burst) Look at that lovely woodwork.

even we were amazed by how well they shed water. they were not built to wade!

Even though it really isn’t one, when you paddle into work and reach the final straight you feel like you have had a real adventure. And that’s before work starts.

My life is always too busy now for big adventures, so today felt great to have squeezed one in between lighting the fire, breakfast and work.

And thanks Scott for letting me have the first ride in your very precious adventure craft. May you realise your dream to paddle it in Italy.

ran to work the long way today. mapped it at 10.5 miles. ran it in 1 hour 36.

Running a longer distance from a to b feels more of an adventure with an uncertain outcome than doing a loop.

The first 5 miles on the road were hard and when I got to the bridge at Llechryd bridge I played eeny meeny miney mo to see if it was the shorter road way with hill and no pavement, or along the river over rocks and roots.

I mo’d the long way. I practised what Russell Ashdown taught me about going downhill. Let it all go and run like the wind but there are a few paths through the wildlife park that need a surely planted foot.

And then there is that feeling you get at the end of a long run when you see the finish and the pins and needles wizz up your neck and your empty legs fill and you can smell the coffee.

When I got to work I knew that if I looked in the mirror the image of a tired looking 39 year old wouldn’t tally with the fit 20 year old I felt like.

Next run is in London with Molly who we ran with at the do.

Roars of laughter came across the office cause Jon was working to get this  syphon to flow.

Get a physics student to explain if the picture doesn’t.

chimney fire on the high street this morning.

police, fire and ambulance whilst I bought cake and inhaled smoke.

We rely solely on wood to heat our house, and this weekend the snow is meant to come again.

One of our riders, lee, is also a welder and he has made me version two of a log holder that will clip directly onto my trailer and allow me to saw long branches into logs that then drop straight into the trailer.

The black box section is an old Texaco Petrol station sign.

There is an old Landrover tow bar plate and some old steel rod.  If it works it will remove the need to  collect and load all the cut logs.

winter has filled all my old rear lights with brown water.

Tonight I ride home with the retina burning Nightrider cherry bomb under my ass.

There are only three people who ride on the dark and fast road back to my place.

Keep me safe…-

I am drained from a week of running and riding.

I haven’t slept well due to tight hamstrings.

And this morning I am a little dehydrated.

It was raining hard.

The head wind brought me to a standstill many times and made the whole journey just pain.

I couldn’t spin in the saddle on the hills because you are a fixed wheel.

So I shouted out on the climb my hate for you , I cursed you and regretted choosing you over the bike with gears and it went round and round in my head, I nearly stopped to throw you in the hedge in anger, real tears came to my eyes as I tried to raise the pace over the last climb to work and I walked in soaked with sweat and empty legged.

Today I hate my fixed wheel.