I mean obviously it's ticked by, second by second but i seem to have missed it all somehow.

Okay, i've had other things on my mind pretty much since Easter but even so you'd a thunk i would've noticed it's passing, but here we are, the last monthly 'bun fest' has gone, the evenings are drawing in, temperatures are tumbling and the trees have started to turn.

The back end of this week has been a bit different to usual weeks, on Thursday, a sunny and almost warm example of October day, a breakfast time decision saw us loading the bikes into Aunty Bev's 'new' wagon before heading north for our first drive 'n' ride trip. As it was a bit last minute, it needed to be quite simple, the Pilot rode along the Gloucester ship canal whilst i did a somewhat longer loop to meet up at a cafe for a spot of lunch. The restricted opening times of our rendezvous point meant my ride wasn't particularly adventurous and with under 2 hours to do it in, a bit speedier than usual!

As an experiment it held up, we'll put a bit more effort into future trips to give us both a bit more riding time with less restrictions, i have a few ideas on that score but the transport worked better than i had hoped, the bikes not needing as much retention as is available which means loading/unloading takes but a couple of minutes.

Friday i felt a bit meh! It was of course a walk day but i was a bit unenthused so ended up doing a very urban loop without so much as a tea stop, despite it being a pleasant day.

The forecast for Saturday looked much the same, a bit of a south easterly wind but otherwise dry and bright, which is why i found myself plugging into a stiff headwind across the Cotswolds to reach Chippenham. A short stop for tea and a bacon sarnie then i started a longer loop up towards Malmesbury before making my way back across the rolling countryside, the wind even giving me the occasional push! 105km and over 800m of up was the result, one of my biggest rides since July.

I did have a bit of a mechanical, the rear disc brake made a loud screech half way around before ceasing to do any stopping whatsoever, the following descents were thus 'a bit interesting' but i made it back just using the rapidly fading front brake. Investigation confirmed my on the fly diagnosis of a pad failure, indeed the whole braking surface was missing from one pad and the other was damaged. Whoever claimed discs require less and simpler maintenance than rim brakes was lying, oh swapping the pads was quick but stripping half the bike to gain access to do the job - well a degree of mechanical knowhow is required, a casual owner would struggle and even with over 20 years experience with them, i don't enjoy the job. Anyway, new pads fitted, brake rebuilt, wheel refitted, a bit of playing with the three adjusting screws (all different head sizes) and the bike was ready to hit the trails again.

Now usually today i'd be resting after that, just fitting in a short walk after breakfast but today being the first Sunday of the month i was up and out to attend the Hill charity bun fest, the last of the year. Maybe it was the grey and damp forecast but numbers were well down on previous events but that meant all the more for those of us who had made the effort! From the seven editions i've attended this year i've spent @ £40, most of which goes to the numerous charities the events support, I'm pretty sure i wouldn't have donated to most of the charities off my own back, but the drip of funds like this is easy on my pocket and conscience! Being fiscally challenged that's very important, my donations to BC are similarly small but regular, if i had more i'd give more, but i don't so i don't. Headline grabbing donations in times of need are all very well but smaller, regular amounts mean the desperate appeals won't happen as often meaning everyone sleeps better.

Anyhoo, todays little outing racked up another 70km and a pro rata climb rate to yesterday, it stayed essentially dry whilst i was out although Aunty Bev got a bit damp on her ride later on.

I've posted the next Gaby chapter, part 8 of book 27, Bad Time. The title is a bit of a play on words but i'm sure you'll figure it out so i won't explain here.

I think this week will be a bit quieter, leastwise i'm not expecting as much action, Wednesday will see more squiggles from MA Bell, but until then,
Wiedersehn,
Madeline Anafrid

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