Bike build phase 2

Today hasn't all been domestic bliss, cats (on knees) and tea. Oh no there has been some serious bike building going on.

I have already written about this once but not here, kind of as a therapy to make me feel more sound about things. It doesn't need to be in my blog as it wasn't a thoroughly pleasing experience and eventually I dropped the bike into the shop to do some more rigorous installation than I was prepared to tackle myself. As soon as I did, I felt better and picked up the bike on Wednesday, leaving me 2 whole days to recover before tackling stage 2.

Here's the highlights though: whilst most people save for their retirement, I have just bougt mine.  I don't just mean that in some whimsical kind of, "this is a comfy bike that, as mid life crises go, will last me forever" kind of bike I also mean that as in, "at least if I still haven't paid my mortgage I can still ride off into the sunset with a tent" kind of way.  I hope that gives you an idea how precious it therefore is.

I also think that, whilst you get to 'know' a bike by building it, you don't get to love it yet. This is difficult because during a build you can still go through some traumatic times together - especially if you're trying something new.  You have to exercise patience and faith and hope you don't break anything.

Love comes after miles and miles of shared and hopefully comfortable experiences.  All I have for now is a reassuring knowledge that I totally nailed internal cable routing for the first time. I am still waiting for bits for my brakes but my gears are now spinning and hopefully I have mastered the comfortable part.

I have balanced in a doorway and rolled forwards out of control (damn those brakes) and now I will, very sensibly, put it away for another day before I mess something up.

His name might be Dignity (yes as in the Deacon Blue song) and for some reason, yes this bike is a bloke.

This adventure is the beginning of something beautiful (and I didn't even swallow any small parts).

I am Triathlete

I have been gramgineering my bike.

Thanks to Mr Threadgold I have replaced the spacers on my steering tube. The old fat chunky one is replaced with a lightweight machined-down version and the skinny over-size one that came of TSK's mountain bike is replaced with a titanium one.

My ride to work was 2 minutes faster than fastest (at this time of year) and i wasn't even trying. This is due to the tri bars and not the 2.?g saved on my spacers. My ride home was decidedly slower since I went out of my way to look for one of dad's gloves lost on Sunday's walk. It was very satisfying being in plus temperatures, happily foraging around for gloves by the glow of my bike light, not actually worrying about getting cold.

Tomorrow I have to "pop" down to Gloucester for a morning meeting before winging my way back to Sheffield for step class and my podiatrist fitting in the evening. I am deffinately going to need my Friday afternoon off. So much for cunning plans to work on my house when I'm down there. I won' t even get to swim in the nice quiet pool or take a run up big old Birdlip hill. I will be looking forwards to new feet in the evening though.