Show us your.......newbie progress! [4 Sep 2012 - 4 Oct 2014]

[RWright]

If you can get out only for 10 miles or so whilst its bad it keeps it ticking over. With your mileage it will help too. I did a quick 6 mile test of the front bearing, it all adds up.
My rear tyre.

View attachment 22006

Nigel, I would not ride that tire. Bin it, that kind of thing can put you under a truck.

 

[Mo1959]

Well done on your first metric century Rocky. You have put in a lot of work this past few weeks.
Sorry to hear about your problems with your eye and hopefully you are right and it was just something like an insect. At first the way you described it, I thought it might be the start of a migraine but I presume you didn't go on to develop one?

Weather is atrocious here today. Currently really torrential rain with winds already picking up and supposed to be gale force later. I ain't going out in that. I am actually getting a bit fed up of going out every day anyway and feel I need some time off the bike to recover so I can start enjoying it again.

 

[Nigelnaturist]

Nigel, I would not ride that tire. Bin it, that kind of thing can put you under a truck.

As Mo said well done on your 1st metric century, I hope things are ok with the eye this morning.
I got a continental ultra race (cheap I know but need these wheels too, also have one of this one the front and found it better than the R1), I am sure that if what ever caused the damage, and I think it might have been some brake rub in the early days of the tyre being on.
On the wheel front the front is totally u.s. as the dust cap on the bearing wont stay in place, it drifts away as the wheel rotates an there is a clicking sound (occasionally), again a bit disappointed as I doubt they have covered more tan 6,500 miles (Weinnman XR18's if anyone wants to comment on them)
If it had not been for this I would have passed 5,000 miles yesterday, since I started in June last year.
It that time I have ridden 30.96 days (total ride time) covered 4977.36 miles, @ 13.4mph (last year 13.14mph, this 13.85mph) max sp 34.9mph, an average of 27.35 miles everyday I ride, which was 182 days out of 297 days, a total 212,969ft climbed avg of 1170ft per day ( again more this year than last but but only by 160ft or so), 39ft per mile last yr, 47ft/mile this.
This should be taken with a pinch of salt but from what I could work out I have used 239,149 calories an estimated weight lose (if diet had stayed the same) of approx. 4st 12lb (68lb for or American cousins, and 31Kg in metric money)

 

[Nigelnaturist]

Well done on your first metric century Rocky. You have put in a lot of work this past few weeks.
Sorry to hear about your problems with your eye and hopefully you are right and it was just something like an insect. At first the way you described it, I thought it might be the start of a migraine but I presume you didn't go on to develop one?

Weather is atrocious here today. Currently really torrential rain with winds already picking up and supposed to be gale force later. I ain't going out in that. I am actually getting a bit fed up of going out every day anyway and feel I need some time off the bike to recover so I can start enjoying it again.

It's calm here at the moment, Mo just wish the bike was ok, I could have got out for a quick 20 miles or so.

 

[RWright]

I did some interwebing for black spots, they seem to be common with age but it seems they can also be signs of a whole range of things even up to inoperable brain tumors. I know, some medical chat forums can get way out there very quickly but I think I might play it safe with this and give my blood pressure Dr. a call to check if this might be common with my blood pressure medications then go see an eye Dr. I do feel much better after reading at the Mayo Clinic site but they advise caution and recommend getting it checked out. I had never heard of it before and it gave me a little scare.

I hope the weather gets nice for you soon. I think you can make it on the challenge. I wouldn't hurt myself doing it but I think it is helping my riding. I have been wanting to sort of push my endurance to the next level. The weather here has been really nice for riding. just socks, shoes, riding shorts and short sleeve jersey, plus I am hardly breaking a sweat. I didn't even wear a headband today. I will email the National Weather Service and tell them to send some your way.

 

[RWright]

Nigel, I was going to send you a couple of tires if you didn't get that thing off there. I hope you can get your front hub sorted. The continental should be fine, I hope you get a lot of wear out of it.

 

[BrianEvesham]

Well done on the 100k RWright and fingers crossed for you at the Eye Docs.

 

[Nigelnaturist]

Nigel, I was going to send you a couple of tires if you didn't get that thing off there. I hope you can get your front hub sorted. The continental should be fine, I hope you get a lot of wear out of it.

Thanks Rocky, I can usually stretch to a tyre, it's the wheels that are causing me problems, with everything that changing here, not much free cash, though I can get a R501 for just under £60 for tomorrow, the back will need to wait till next wk, I know cheaper buying in sets, but I cant wait that long if I am to complete the challenge.

 

[Mo1959]

It's calm here at the moment, Mo just wish the bike was ok, I could have got out for a quick 20 miles or so.

I'll lend you a bike if you lend me your weather. Seriously though, hope you get it fixed soon. I am starting to feel like I am not that bothered about the challenge any more. I feel like it is taking some of the pleasure out of cycling by mile chasing all the time. First thing tomorrow morning looks slightly better so I will probably go out but not sure I will go very far.

 

[Nigelnaturist]

I'll lend you a bike if you lend me your weather. Seriously though, hope you get it fixed soon. I am starting to feel like I am not that bothered about the challenge any more. I feel like it is taking some of the pleasure out of cycling by mile chasing all the time. First thing tomorrow morning looks slightly better so I will probably go out but not sure I will go very far.

I know what you mean, but it would nice just to do one, a bit like a 100Km ride ect..
Well I have been offered £55 for the scope from Cashconvertors. which means I should be able to get a set of R500/501 (plus spacer) for tomorrow, from CRC.
Thanks for the offer, would cost me more in travel than the wheels.

 

[BrianEvesham]

I am starting to feel like I am not that bothered about the challenge any more. I feel like it is taking some of the pleasure out of cycling by mile chasing all the time.

Forget the challenge and enjoy your ride, no really, don't let it get to you it's about having fun out there.
(Says the bloke with no Strava of his own).

 

[lavoisier]

I did my first metric 100 today. It was a little breezy in places but not bad at all overall. I had planned a totally different route out around the biggest lake in my area but when I got to the local airport (about 9 miles from home) for a quick look around something happened to my right eye. I started seeing things, a lot of things. It looked sort of like when black ink or black drops of some sort are dropped into water, like those bad guys in the Harry Potter movies when they are coming in to wreak havoc. It was kind of strange. I couldn't really feel that anything had got in my eye so it sort of got me on edge. I was thinking, is this what happens when you have a stroke, then I thought, if so, I hope I only lose memory of bad stuff I don't want to remember anyway. I even find myself strange for having that thought at that particular time. I then thought maybe it is a detached retina, I remember a friend of mine telling me about it happening to her but I forgot the exact details. I was thinking great, just what I need, having to get eye surgery, I hope they can give me 20/20 vision with one of those Lasik machines or something while they are at it. I stopped for a couple of minutes there to collect myself.

I then looked at my Garmin and knew the doctor's office would be closed by the time I could get home and call so I started riding back toward home. If I closed my right eye all the dots and swirls and stuff were gone so I rode like that a little ways, after a few minutes my right eye cleared up some but I could still see a few dots. I didn't want to head out into even more rural area like I was. It was better about 8 miles later so I combined several of the routes closer to home to do the 100k. It wasn't that bad, temperature was great, slightly overcast so the sun was not a problem at all. I got home and put some drops in my eyes (I might put some in my saddle bag ) and things are still a little cloudy but I am hoping it was just an insect that got in my eye and I didn't notice it. I am going to see how it is in the morning and get it checked out if necessary.

A strange way to get my first metric century but I got it.

Very well done under very difficult and harrowing circumstances. Please let us know how the eye is.

 

[BrianEvesham]

Well I have been offered £55 for the scope from Cashconvertors. which means I should be able to get a set of R500/501 (plus spacer) for tomorrow, from CRC. .

Way hay, new wheel on the way then!

 

[Mo1959]

Forget the challenge and enjoy your ride, no really, don't let it get to you it's about having fun out there.
(Says the bloke with no Strava of his own).

Deep down I know this myself. I have been getting saddle sore and an achy back and I must admit it is spoiling my rides a bit. I am as well using this horrible few days of weather we are currently having to have a rest. When I started the challenge I said I would be quite happy with the half way badge and I have done that.

 

[Supersuperleeds]

Deep down I know this myself. I have been getting saddle sore and an achy back and I must admit it is spoiling my rides a bit. I am as well using this horrible few days of weather we are currently having to have a rest. When I started the challenge I said I would be quite happy with the half way badge and I have done that.

I think you have done fantastically well on it so far. It is a lot of mileage to do in a month. If you did it every month you would hit nearly 10,000 miles for the year, which is some serious riding.