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It's Good To Be Back
Blog Date - 27 January 2013
After what is only just less than two weeks of either snow, the threat of snow, ice or the risk of ice...I got back out on the bike today!
First off I had to clear a path out of my back street. At 0900 on a Sunday morning I was a little concerned about disturbing the neighbours so I gingerly used a wooden board and a garden hoe to clear a 50 foot long and 1 foot wide path through the remnants of snow and ice. This completed I gave the 600 the once over and pushed it out from the shed. I got my kit on, remembering what a faff the whole "kitting up" thing is and threw my leg over...the bike.
My cleared path works fine but on the last 3 feet I have to cross a patch of ice to get onto the road. The front wheel twitches and I brace. I move forward. The front slips again so I brace. The front slips onto tarmac. Now the back wheel is spinning. Gentle...spin...even more gentle...spin. I rock the bike then it clears, steps out, I brace, and I'm on the road. 3 feet, 3 feet of slushy ice. There must be a technique, some magic, something, but whatever it is I don't have it. I can't ride on ice.
Once clear of the patchy slush the main roads are acceptable. They're wet and I notice there's very little grip through the bends. Maybe there's still slush hidden between the tiny stones on the road? Surely not, the roads are soaking so any slush will be melted. Maybe there's oil and diesel in the standing water, trapped by ice at the edge of the road? Maybe my tyres are cold? Maybe, and more likely, I'm just out of practice. The solution as always is easy, slow down. The cars of course are oblivious to the feedback I'm receiving from the surface and one or two insist on trying to push me from behind. There's nothing I can do, except slow down a little more so I can be sure not to fall off and end up under their wheels. This frustrates them all the more which pleases me.
I have a good ride on my regular trip to take my lad back home. Apart from one hill road where a couple of remaining drifts mean I have to follow in the narrow tracks left by car tyres the roads are clear. In places I even see a rare thing, dry tarmac! I was beginning to think dry tarmac was a myth, a fantasy placed in my mind by hollywood movies and a distant memory of a summer long past. Yet no, here it is, patchy and cold, but dry never-the-less. As I carefully navigate huge puddles and potholes I dare to dream of spring, of warmth, of sunshine and speeds in excess of 30mph. Alas it is but a dream as I splash through another snowmelt river and dodge a huge patch of gravel.
Reader's Comments
Latchy said :-
Nearly went on my bike to work this morning (Monday) but glad I didn't because the main road that takes me there was like a skating ring littered with crashed cars. It was scary enough in the car.
01/01/2000 00:00:00 UTC
Ren - The Ed said :-
Yeah Monday morning was a bit of a shocker. I rode up my back street thinking all was well. When I put my foot down I almost slipped flat off the bike. The main roads were fine at this end but at where I was working the car park was ropey too. The rain cleared it later in the day.
Hope ur well Latchy...must get round to collating all the CG 125 stuff and putting it on here!
01/01/2000 00:00:00 UTC
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