Triggermortis's log

triggermortis

I've been following a few peoples logs on here and most make interesting reading, so I apologise in advance for any tediousness in my own effort.

I have a different cycling routine to most people on here in that I work away from home a week at a time, on night shift. As I share a house with other lads, we have been going out mountain biking for the past 3 or 4 years in the Dutch/Belgian border - specifically Maastricht area. This has peaked and troughed over time, but has recently been more of a trough and so I decided this January to get a road bike to use at home on my week off, so that when we did go mountain biking, my natural slug-like performance might be enhanced. Also, I need to shed some weight and generally occupy my time during a week off.

I don't have any sort of computer on my mountain bike (Giant VT2), so I can't accurately say how far I go, but most spins are 1-2 hours, 3 max and it's 95% off road. I always thought Holland and Belgium were flat, but now I know!

I've got to like the road bike more than I thought I would and am already window shopping for an upgrade (wife depending...) and have started to make my spins to around 50Km, with my furthest so far being 80Km, although my usual Ashbourne, Kilshane, Swords Manor is 35Km and I've got that down to 1hour 10.

I don't have any particular goals as yet, just getting out and enjoying the ride is enough for me. I have a young family and am away a week at a time so I think my other half would not be too keen on me putting too much time into something else, but as I'm mid 40's I need to do something active.

Been out on the Giant this week, but blew my rear tyre (UST) and nowhere has been open to get a repair kit due to some bizarre Dutch festival/hooley that's been going on here since Sunday.

Should be home Sunday night so will be out on the roads then - need to get some miles in as I've entered the Meath Heritage 100Km in a months time..

piobhan

sounds good, your getting some different scenery! look to hearing more from this

Inquitus

triggermortis wrote: »

I've been following a few peoples logs on here and most make interesting reading, so I apologise in advance for any tediousness in my own effort.

I have a different cycling routine to most people on here in that I work away from home a week at a time, on night shift. As I share a house with other lads, we have been going out mountain biking for the past 3 or 4 years in the Dutch/Belgian border - specifically Maastricht area. This has peaked and troughed over time, but has recently been more of a trough and so I decided this January to get a road bike to use at home on my week off, so that when we did go mountain biking, my natural slug-like performance might be enhanced. Also, I need to shed some weight and generally occupy my time during a week off.

I don't have any sort of computer on my mountain bike (Giant VT2), so I can't accurately say how far I go, but most spins are 1-2 hours, 3 max and it's 95% off road. I always thought Holland and Belgium were flat, but now I know!

I've got to like the road bike more than I thought I would and am already window shopping for an upgrade (wife depending...) and have started to make my spins to around 50Km, with my furthest so far being 80Km, although my usual Ashbourne, Kilshane, Swords Manor is 35Km and I've got that down to 1hour 10.

I don't have any particular goals as yet, just getting out and enjoying the ride is enough for me. I have a young family and am away a week at a time so I think my other half would not be too keen on me putting too much time into something else, but as I'm mid 40's I need to do something active.

Been out on the Giant this week, but blew my rear tyre (UST) and nowhere has been open to get a repair kit due to some bizarre Dutch festival/hooley that's been going on here since Sunday.

Should be home Sunday night so will be out on the roads then - need to get some miles in as I've entered the Meath Heritage 100Km in a months time..

If you ever want some company for a midweek spin, give me a shout, I am just at the end of the Rathbeal road, 12 odd km from Ashbourne and go out 2/3 times a week for an hour or so in the evening after work.

triggermortis

Inquitus wrote: »

If you ever want some company for a midweek spin, give me a shout, I am just at the end of the Rathbeal road, 12 odd km from Ashbourne and go out 2/3 times a week for an hour or so in the evening after work.

I might just take you up on that, although I'm usually out on the bike during the day while my son is at creche and my wife is at work.
Would make a change from my usual routine and haven't cycled with anyone else yet - might also help in my navigation skills as I've found that I know very little about my immediate home area!

triggermortis

Just back from 2 hour spin taking in most of the hilly areas by me - some of it was still wet after the torrential rain here earlier in the week, so it made for hard going in places (max HR was 96% and average was 80%)
No bike issues today apart from my rear brake took a while to be any use, might bleed it later.
Friday is usually the main day for hitting the trails as we have to shift from night shift on Thursday night to day shift on Saturday, so I'll probably suffer tomorrow.

triggermortis

Didn't get out yesterday as got called into work, but did the same route as Thursday again today after an early stack from work. More rain made a few parts hard going and there were more people out walking so I got held up in places.
Still, home tomorrow night so shall be out on the roads next week

triggermortis

Just back from my first spin on the road bike in 2 weeks. Decided on a change of scenery as the weather looked ok do went Ashbourne/Swords/Malahide/Howth and back. Total distance was 68.67Km and took me 2hr27 - average of 28Kmh.
The part from Malahide to Howth seemed longer than it ever has in the car, although the headwind didn't help (but was good on the way back!)
My bike has developed an annoying creak now which I think is related to the left pedal/crank arm as I tried unclipping each foot in turn and only get a noise while the left pedal is being pushed. I stopped at Richies bike shop in Swords on the way back and they had a quick look and tightened my cleat. It was ok until about halfway home, then started creaking again. I was too tired to go back, so I might get it looked at tomorrow.
Almost done 1000Km on this bike now (997) so I'm pleased with that. I only got it at the end of January, so it's 5 months old and I can only ride it half the time. Plus I've managed to lose half a stone since I started doing this, without much change to my diet

triggermortis

Just a quick spin to Swords and back today to get the creak looked at.

32.49Km in 1hour09, ave speed 27.9 no HR today as didn't bother.
It was wet and windy when I left Ashbourne so put the long tights on and my shiny new raincoat, but after 15 mins I had to stop and take the coat off as there was no rain and I was melting.

On the way back it lashed down so the coat went back on, but I should have put shorts on as I was too hot all ride.

Shop took my pedals off, took out the crank and cleaned it all up, re-lubed it all and put it all back in one piece - for free. I did get my bike fitted there and bought a coat, but I'm impressed with their service so I'll be using them as often as I need them. No more CRC for me!

triggermortis

Bit of a longer spin today as I'm trying to up the time I'm out a bit before my first 100Km attempt later this month.
Route taken - Ashbourne/Oldtown/Naul/Balbriggan/Swords/Ashbourne.
Distance 60.17Km
Time 2 hours 5 min
Ave speed 28.6Kmh
Ave HR 78%
Max HR 90%

insinkerator

Good luck with the 100k attempt. Going to be trying it myself this week

triggermortis

insinkerator wrote: »

Good luck with the 100k attempt. Going to be trying it myself this week

Good luck to you too. Is it an organised event you're doing (which one if so) or a group or solo spin?
My attempt will be the Meath Heritage 100Km spin on 24th July

insinkerator

Nah, nothing as fancy as an organised spin. My average speeds I would reckon are too low for any of that. Need more training and my new bike before i chance my arm at that.

Most likely will end up doing it myself, might be able to rope a friend into it.

triggermortis

Had a day off yesterday and nearly had another one after the first 5Km today - legs felt quite weak and I just didn't feel like doing much.
Decided to keep in Meath today, as I live there, and wasn't really sure where I was or where I was going a fair bit of the time.
Went north up the N2 as far as the Ratoath lights, left to Ratoath, Right onto Dunshaughlin, straight on through the lights as far as Dunsany, then left back in a loop towards Dunshaughlin again. The last bit was a newish road, quite wide and exposed to the wind and rain that seemed to be following me.
Didn't see another sole on a bike until I was back in Ratoath, so cheered myself up with a (probably) over-exuberant wave.
Total for the day 48.76Km in 1 hour 42 for an average of 28.8Kmh. Ave HR79% max 89%.
Total for the week 210Km, which is a new record for me. Annual total 1138Km

triggermortis

Back out after a couple of days rest (if you can call taking a 2 year old to the zoo a rest!) and got a new toy to play with
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/98396487

Been toying with the idea for a while and decided to bite the bullet and get an Edge 500 - partly due to my lack of any speed/dist data for my mountain bike and partly because I like gadgets.
I left my old cycle computer on for today to see how it compared and it reckoned I had done 55.15Km, so that's nearly a 2% difference so I'm guessing all my previous totals are out by that amount...ah well.

In the first 5 mins of my ride I had a road rage incident with some woman in a Saab. She overtook me and barely 20 yards later decided to turn left. Only, she stopped and waved frantically and erratically. I managed to stop behind her, and as I went round the right side of her she started yelling out the window that she was stopping to let me go - even though there wasn't enough room and it would have meant going past on the kerb side of her.
I told her she should obey the rules of the road and carried on my way. She then followed me for 2-3 Km out past the golf course and came alongside me with her nearside window down shouting that she was only being nice and some other nonsense. She then finally overtook me and slowed down to 10-15Kmh forcing me to wobble along behind her while she tried to spray me with her screen washers! At the junction, I turned left while she waited to turn right, shouting more abuse at me. She really had issues!

Anyway, drama over, I wasn't too sure where I was going yet so I headed towards Swords then turned off for Oldtown and Naul.
Usually coming into Naul I come to a T junction and do right but I decided to go left towards Drogheda. Not sure that was a wise decision as the hill there nearly killed me, although as I got to the top a bloke driving towards me in a white van gave me a big thumbs up, so that made the climb worth it. There was another steepish climb (for me) not long after that and I have to admit I used the granny ring on my triple for the first time ever there.
Wasn't too sure of where I was at this point but followed any sign I saw for Drogheda and then ended up in Duleek??!
Anyway, just shy of 2 hours so wasn't too bad - just wondering how well the edge will do when I fit it to my mountain bike this week. Off to Belgium tonight so I'll find out soon enough

Dermot Illogical

triggermortis wrote: »

I left my old cycle computer on for today to see how it compared and it reckoned I had done 55.15Km, so that's nearly a 2% difference so I'm guessing all my previous totals are out by that amount...ah well.

I wouldn't worry about it. Your old computer might be the more accurate of the two. I can never get the garmin to give me the same result twice over any given journey, and when I upload the gpx file to runkeeper or mapmyride I get a different time/distance again. They're never too far apart, but never match either.

triggermortis

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/98885933

First time out with the garmin on my mountain bike. It was kinda drizzly at the start but nothing compared to the downpour on Monday, and as I didn't get out yesterday due to a heavy night shift, I had to do it today.
Trails were quite muddy in places but somehow managed to keep upright - although I did get stung to bits as there is a lot more growth in the nettles and brambles with all the rain. It was too warm for long tights and I had to take my coat off after the first hill. Also had problems seeing with the drizzle on my glasses, so just took them off.
Looking at the map, I never realised how often I cross the Dutch/Belgian border. Did cut my ride a bit shorter as I've things to do, but I'm happy with the garmin.

triggermortis

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/99295511

Wasn't too sure where to go today so just waited until I was on the bike and decide once I got going. Didn't feel great at the start and it was warm so decided to do the usual loop we used to do as I'd no idea what the distance was. Never timed it properly either but it was usually around the hour and 15-20 min mark, so I was pleased to get round in an hour dead today, without feeling particularly good most the time (legs feel quite heavy after the muddy ride the other day)

triggermortis

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/99788152

More or less the same as last time, but went along a dry stream bed (that's not too dry at the moment!). Very wet in places and came off a couple of times. Lots of people out walking or on horses so got slowed up a lot.
Home caked in mud so kinda looking forward to being back on the road bike next week

triggermortis

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/100476591

Nice steady ride out to Howth and back

triggermortis

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/101356009

Did the Meath An Post 100Km - the farthest i have ridden in one go to date.
Didn't really know what to expect as this was my first event and have never ridden in a group of any kind before.
I signed in on Saturday to avoid the rush - didn't work as everyone else had the same idea and the sign in boards were too low so you only realized that each table was an alphabetical order when you got to the front of the (wrong) queue, due to the number of people there. Signs on posts instead of table fronts would have been better. This, as it turns out, is my only gripe about the whole event.
As I arrived in trim on the Sunday, the 160Km lads were on their way and all I saw were team/club kits so I felt slightly relieved I'd decided on the 100Km route.
Parked up and got ready on a side street as my cars satnav wasn't up to getting me to the official car park and headed off for the start.
The first 5 or 10 Km was spent moving ahead mostly as there seemed to be quite a few people who I wouldn't have imagined would be there - some of the bikes (and riders) were in a shocking state, but then who am I to judge??
Sheer numbers on the road kept the speed down at the start and this didn't help the downhill part of Tara where I was on the brakes more than I'd have liked. I spent a while trying to find someone of a similar speed to keep with and didn't really manage that for a while. My average in the first 20 or so Km is around 30Kmh and if I pushed to someone who was around that speed, by the time I caught them, they'd slowed or I couldn't catch them without putting more effort in and as I had a way to go, I didn't want to go too fast at the start.
The water stop was at 50K and I'd spent most of that time on my own apart from a few odd words with those around me. I didn't stop for water as I was doing ok at that point and I think that helped as things thinned ot a bit for a while.
Me and another guy took turns leading until the food stop at 70Km and that wasn't too bad - my first real experience of what it's all about.
The food was good, chilli rice, tea and carrot cake. Had seconds of the cake before getting back into it. My friend had met up with his mates and so was stopping longer so I headed off alone again, after getting rid of my arm warmers finally.
The pace had definitely quickened for some at this stage and I hugged a couple of wheels for a bit to keep my speed up until a group of a couple of Swords guys, 2 girls plus one other flew past me and the two guys I was following latched onto them and all were gone up the road.
I ended up following a guy on a red Planet X bike that creaked annoyingly and finished in 3hours 26 in the end to the sound of Queen blasting 'We Will Rock You".
I'd say that the cycling bug has definitely bitten now and I can't wait to do another event like this. It was very well run - I didn't have to stop at a single junction on the whole ride.
Any suggestions for where I should go next?

triggermortis

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/101894212

Back to mountain biking for a while now. I'm doing a weeks overtime next week so it'll be a 3 week stretch of off road biking.
It rained here a lot last week but had been dry for a day or two so I was hoping that the trails would be quite dry - wrong! My newly washed shoes now look worse than before their annual spin in the washing machine.
I had meant to do the exact route I'd done 2 weeks ago to compare the garmin readings, but I forgot which way I'd gone last time and guessed wrong.
Legs a bit achy on the inside of my thighs now - might need to adjust the saddle height. I'd not moved this in 4 years as it was grand, and when I first got the road bike and had that fitted, my mountain bike suddenly felt uncomfortable. I've already moved the seat up a bit once but it's still not 100% yet.

triggermortis

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/102557836

Bit of a mixed up route today - did some parts backwards to what I normally would - one hill in particular I've only ever been down before and now I know why!!
Bottom bracket is giving up the ghost, so I'll soon be on my 4th one. Typically the guy I use over here has just gone away on holiday until 12th Aug so I might try and get one and do it myself - or ride it until it fails and wait for him to get back and do it for me.
It was warm today but still a lot of wetness about from the amount of rain here recently. Hopefully it'll dry up more.

reilig

triggermortis wrote: »

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/102557836

Bit of a mixed up route today - did some parts backwards to what I normally would - one hill in particular I've only ever been down before and now I know why!!
Bottom bracket is giving up the ghost, so I'll soon be on my 4th one. Typically the guy I use over here has just gone away on holiday until 12th Aug so I might try and get one and do it myself - or ride it until it fails and wait for him to get back and do it for me.
It was warm today but still a lot of wetness about from the amount of rain here recently. Hopefully it'll dry up more.

How long does a bottom bracket last you?

Inquitus

triggermortis wrote: »

Any suggestions for where I should go next?

Orwell Randonnée next weekend in Wicklow
Martin Earley Tour of Kildare 100km on 14th August
The An Post Sean Kelly Tour is on in Waterford 28th Aug 90km or 160km flavours.

Those are the upcoming ones near to me that I am thinking of doing.

Aside from doing more events, joining your local CC would probably be a good way to move things on.

triggermortis

reilig wrote: »

How long does a bottom bracket last you?

I've had the bike five and a half years now and I only get to use it every other week. I helped in the destruction of the first bottom bracket by using a power washer to clean the bike (lesson learned) and that was about 18 months in.
The trails here are quite sandy and the lads I ride with have all replaced bearings, bottom brackets etc, but I'd say I'm out on the bike more and I'm probably heavier and I've changed more bits - chain rings, chain, cassette, bottom brackets, as well as upgraded a fair bit - wheels, forks, brakes. My bike is a bit like Trigger's broom (Only Fools And Horses) at this stage

triggermortis

Inquitus wrote: »

Orwell Randonnée next weekend in Wicklow
Martin Earley Tour of Kildare 100km on 14th August
The An Post Sean Kelly Tour is on in Waterford 28th Aug 90km or 160km flavours.

Those are the upcoming ones near to me that I am thinking of doing.

Aside from doing more events, joining your local CC would probably be a good way to move things on.

Typically, I'm working every one of those dates. I think there was something on on the 21st Aug but with me being away so much lately her indoors has arranged a big soireé on the 20th so I'd not be in much of a fit state for the bike then.
I have thought about joining a club, but my available time is more daytime every other week at the moment and we are also hoping to move out to the sticks in the next 6 months.

triggermortis

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/103817806

Did a quick loop on Monday - had a dodgy stomach so cut short what I was going to do. It's still not 100% now so did 45 mins on the turbo trainer today. Work has been brutal the past 2 nights so that's not helping with my motivation.

Took a couple of pics to show some of where I go.

triggermortis

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/104015671

Managed to get lost in the woods today - it's an area I've been a few times with others and just followed so I've not been noticing when and where to turn. Every one of the few times I've been there on my own I managed to get lost - today totally. At one point I lost the trail. Parts had so many fallen trees I was walking and climbing more than riding as there was no way over, under or round them.




Feeling better after my stomach troubles and so might go for a longer spin tomorrow - depends if I am working nights tomorrow night or days on Saturday.
Also, put the saddle up a bit more - about 15mm - and it feels better on my legs now.

triggermortis

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/104710053


Finished work early today so managed to get out for a couple of hours nearly. Decided to explore for somewhere new to ride - there looks to be good wooded areas the other side of the river (Meuse) so I went for a look.
Found a decent trail or two after getting slightly lost and riding round sone cement factory or something. Don't know if I could find where I went again if I tried and not sure of how to find the good bits and miss the bad ones. I'm sure my Garmin could come in handy here but I've not the first idea how to use it properly.
Anyway, not all bad as there was a stiff headwind all the way back from Maastricht (which I wasn't heading for in the first place) so I went for a couple of refreshing pints and a feed before coming back to the house. Not in work until tomorrow night again now so might get out again tomorrow if the weather holds.

triggermortis

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/105664883

Finally managed to get out for the first time this week. Work has been mad and then I got sent to Bologna for a job for a day. Had a few beers this morning when we got in so wasn't in the best shape at the start of my ride, but soldiered on. Took it easy today as I fancy a longer one tomorrow. Coming to the end of my 3 weeks away now so starting to look forward to getting on the road bike next week (in my new Sky shorts if they arrive in time!)

triggermortis

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/105916860

Managed to get out for a longer ride today. Was going to further but the bottom bracket is really giving out now so I cut things short. Very wet and muddy which made for hard going in quite a few places and had a few falls into the bargain. Nothing serious, but every time I seemed to land in nettles!
Just glanced through the Garmin log and my heart rate was higher than I've recorded before. Maybe I need to set it up properly.
Off to order a new BB now, and a few other bits and bobs no doubt....

triggermortis

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/107702763

Finally managed to get out on the bike for the first time this week! After 3 weeks of off-roading I was keen to get on with some bigger distances and speeds. Monday was supposed to be a ride day, but my wife found a house she wants us to rent in Monaghan so we went to look at that. Looks like I'll be finding new routes in hillier terrain as we're off in 2 weeks time now!
Wednesday and Thursday were written off as I had to fly to the UK and pick up her new car and bring it back on the ferry, so it was all down to today to get out.
Didn't really know where to go when I set off but decided on Howth as it's a decent ride out. Last time I went I did the short and steep hill first and so this time I decided to go up the longer side. I've seen people post times for this climb, but I haven't figured out how to time it on my garmin yet. I'll put the data into strava later and see what it gives me - I remember seeing something on that site last time I was there.
Anyway, was feeling good as I came into Swords so decided to head round the airport and back home along the old N2. The wind just seemed to pick up as I got a sudden loss of energy so my average time really slumped there. My garmin logs 'laps' every 5Km and if I'm on the flat I like to see each lap around 10 mins to give me an average speed of 30Km/h. This 'lap' around Swords was 14 mins - around the same time I took going up the hill in Howth!! I decided it was time I used the energy gel I've had in my pocket for months and not used and it definitely helped.
Saw quite a few cyclists out around Howth / Sutton - even one wearing a boards.ie jersey, and got waves back from most.
My new Team Sky bib shorts arrived yesterday so I wore them today - nice fit and comfortable enough. I thought the padding seemed thinner than my other shorts, but the was no loss of comfort. A good deal indeed!

reilig

triggermortis wrote: »

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/107702763

Finally managed to get out on the bike for the first time this week! After 3 weeks of off-roading I was keen to get on with some bigger distances and speeds. Monday was supposed to be a ride day, but my wife found a house she wants us to rent in Monaghan so we went to look at that. Looks like I'll be finding new routes in hillier terrain as we're off in 2 weeks time now!
Wednesday and Thursday were written off as I had to fly to the UK and pick up her new car and bring it back on the ferry, so it was all down to today to get out.
Didn't really know where to go when I set off but decided on Howth as it's a decent ride out. Last time I went I did the short and steep hill first and so this time I decided to go up the longer side. I've seen people post times for this climb, but I haven't figured out how to time it on my garmin yet. I'll put the data into strava later and see what it gives me - I remember seeing something on that site last time I was there.
Anyway, was feeling good as I came into Swords so decided to head round the airport and back home along the old N2. The wind just seemed to pick up as I got a sudden loss of energy so my average time really slumped there. My garmin logs 'laps' every 5Km and if I'm on the flat I like to see each lap around 10 mins to give me an average speed of 30Km/h. This 'lap' around Swords was 14 mins - around the same time I took going up the hill in Howth!! I decided it was time I used the energy gel I've had in my pocket for months and not used and it definitely helped.
Saw quite a few cyclists out around Howth / Sutton - even one wearing a boards.ie jersey, and got waves back from most.
My new Team Sky bib shorts arrived yesterday so I wore them today - nice fit and comfortable enough. I thought the padding seemed thinner than my other shorts, but the was no loss of comfort. A good deal indeed!

I found the sky shorts very comfy compared to my old ones - maybe my old ones were cheap ones, but the sky shorts definitely have thinner padding. I've never had bib shorts and the bib keeps them in place nicely.

triggermortis

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/108513657

Had planned a longer spin this morning as I'm off to work for a week this evening. Almost got as far as Dunsany when I heard my phone beep for a text message so had to come back home.
Not a lot to say about this ride as was only just getting into it when it was over. Felt quite tired at the start and it took a while to get into any sort of rhythm but that was probably due to lack of sleep last night.
Got a new bottom bracket to fit to the mountain bike this week, but hopefully get out on it at least once.

triggermortis

I have done a big fat zero cycling this week for a number of reasons......

my bottom bracket on my mountain bike has now seized and is no good to man nor beast... took the whole thing to my local LBS on wed but he was shut... phoned and he told me to bring it in on friday - good enough for me, until I found out at last minute that I needed to go to an interview on friday..in Zurich..... accepted new job and have to do a course for 5 weeks starting on 12th so not much, if any cycling to be done then..

End story.. taking MTB home to get fixed and after course is over I'll see what bike goes where..
In an ideal world I'd have 2 bikes in Zurich and 2 at home... any suggestions???

At the moment I don'y know what riding is around my new areas of Monaghan or Zurich. It will take some time to suss out both, but don't want the expense of moving one bike and then changing my mind later and swapping over..

Question is.. where would you place each bike..and why???

insinkerator

Just to make your life that bit easier, Bikes from what I have heard aren't that expensive to ship. You check them into oversize for something in the region of ~€40? Or so I'm told anyway. Might make your decision that bit easier...

triggermortis

I'm not worried about the cost of moving my steeds about as I have that covered, just don't know which one is going to serve me better in each location at the moment. I'll just have to wait and see

triggermortis

I'm back! (briefly..) After nearly 2 months with no bikes due to moving house and job and training courses etc, finally got out for a few spins.
1.http://connect.garmin.com/activity/124212632
found out just how hilly it is round here! No major mountains or anything but there isn't many flat bits. Don't really know where I'm going yet so this was just a jaunt to Ardee and a loop back home.

2.http://connect.garmin.com/activity/124212563
This was a miserable day - wet and cold - found my shoe covers to be totally inadequate so have now got some better waterproof ones. The rain stopped at one point and it was quite nice until I got stuck in a heard of cows moving along a road. They weren't sure of me and stopped moving if I stopped so I had to creep along with them so as not to spook them - weird for a cityboy like me! Called into my sister-in-law for tea and back home again.

3.http://connect.garmin.com/activity/124212477
Dry but cold and my phone kept ringing so I stopped a few times to answer it or reply to texts and it didn't help me keep warm. I'm putting it on divert from now on when I'm out!

4.http://connect.garmin.com/activity/124212413
My first ever time on my mountain bike in Ireland. I've had this bike 5 years now and never had it at home so this was a novelty. Just a look around the local area. Funny thing is, I'm used to riding this bike abroad so whenever I hit any roads I found myself riding on the right hand side - especially the smaller country lanes. I've never done this on my road bike, even on the same lanes!

triggermortis

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/124755506#

Found a decent enough loop that might become a regular, and has me going through 4 counties.
Had a look around some woods near Cabra Castle, hunting for some mountain biking.
It was warmer than I thought and so I was a bit over-dressed at the start, and because I went out later than usual, I didn't eat properly before going out and was running on empty by the end.
My average time seems to have slowed a bit but part of that I think is due to spending 7 weeks off the bike, 5 of those drinking and eating too much on a course, and my new area is more hilly than the last one. I'm used to having a gradual warm up on the bike but now I have to work harder from the start. I'm sure I'll get used to it..

triggermortis

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/125985006

Got out today after missing yesterdays good weather due to my wife being off work sick. Definitely more windy than I like, especially the first half of the ride.
No dramas and apart from the downhill stretch with no wind where I managed 53Kmh for a while, it really wasn't too much fun today

triggermortis

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/126365533

Been working up to this route the past couple of weeks and today was a nice day for it weather wise. 67Km and didn't see another cyclist. In fact I haven't seen another cyclist since my move - just as well I got my boardsie jersey!

shaneward2004

You should give this route a go.

http://app.strava.com/rides/1215543

triggermortis

Looks like a more serious climb there than I'm used to! I've been over to Kingscourt a couple of times but then turned left for Ardee.
The area is new to me so haven't risked getting lost yet. I'm going to be away most of the next 2 weeks now so that should give me food for thought - also need to suss out how to load the route into my Garmin 500

shaneward2004

triggermortis wrote: »

Looks like a more serious climb there than I'm used to! I've been over to Kingscourt a couple of times but then turned left for Ardee.
The area is new to me so haven't risked getting lost yet. I'm going to be away most of the next 2 weeks now so that should give me food for thought - also need to suss out how to load the route into my Garmin 500

You can save the route to .gpx from my link above and import the file to ur 500 from the garmin site.

You should do the Kingscourt hill to warm you up before you head over towards Ardee

triggermortis

I'll try loading the route and see how I go - starting to get used to the hills around here a bit now and used to using the gears a lot more than before!
Not sure when I'm going to get out next at the moment, but I'll definitely try that route - although it'll take me a while longer than you did it in.

triggermortis

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/130106262

Got this route from shaneward2004 and managed to figure out how to get it into my Garmin and use it - with a bit of fiddling.
The day didnt start too well. I got ready and was just onto the road outside the house when I looked down and realised there were no bottles in my carriers. Doh!
Back to the house to see the key still hanging in the door where I'd left it Doh (again!)
After 20 mins it began spitting rain and I realised I'd left my coat at home DOH!!! Luckily it didn't rain much and I think I would have cooked if I had the coat on anyway.

This route has more hills than I'm used to and this is my first time on the bike in over 2 weeks, but this is my only chance to get out for a week now so I decided to see how it went.
It took me a while to figure out the Garmin as I'd never used this function before, and I was starting off of the route, but once I got on the route, it all worked pretty well. Only 1 bum steer, but that was early on so may have been my reading of the screen. I didn't look at my usual screen of times and speed the whole trip as I didn't want to miss a turn and I don't really know the area, but this made a pleasant change.
The hill into Kingscourt did more than warm me up! It tends to go on a bit and I wasn't moving fast enough to clear the fog from my glasses, so I took them off for a bit and they were next to useless when I got to the top due to the rain and fog so I used that as an excuse to stop and clean them.
I knew there was a big hill on the route but the weather meant I couldn't see it coming - quite low fog and patchy rain - but I soon felt it.
After that it wasn't too bad - a couple of times I ran out of gears but only for short periods, the big hill (don't know the name of it yet) was a long slow slog.
I think what I should have done when I got to Baillieborough is taken a direct road to Shercock instead of looping through Canningstown. The weather was ok and the roads were better then I expected - apart from in the towns - but as I left Shercock I felt quite drained. In fact not long after this point my Garmin beeped at me that my virtual partner had finished - while I had 9 odd Km still to do - plus the extra bit from Carrick to my house which is a slow uphill plod for the main part.
Anyway, I made it back and was grateful for buying some recovery shakes as my legs haven't felt this bad after a ride before.
I'll definitely be doing this loop again - it wasn't too hard to navigate and on a better weather day the scenery might be better. Thanks Shane.

shaneward2004

Nice going on the route, the long slog is called Loughanlea there are some pretty nice views from up there on a nice day. We sometimes take the route over to Shercock too depends on time etc. You will be flying up those hills in no time Ive only been cycling since June so if i can get up them you will have no problem at all.

triggermortis

shaneward2004 wrote: »

Nice going on the route, the long slog is called Loughanlea there are some pretty nice views from up there on a nice day. We sometimes take the route over to Shercock too depends on time etc. You will be flying up those hills in no time Ive only been cycling since June so if i can get up them you will have no problem at all.

I've been on my road bike since Feb - but it's been more off than on the past few months due to a new job and training courses, but I'll be back to week on week off shifts from this week, so I hope to get more done.
I wouldn't mind having your times on the hills after only a few months out.
Cheers for the route again - I'll definitely be doing more than once again.

triggermortis

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/133022105

I was beginning to think I wasn't going to get out this week at all! Got home last Tue night to find my son was too sick to go to his creche, so I had to keep him home with me.
Picked up a new bike last Thursday to take out to Zurich with me to commute in and out of work (thanks bogmanfan!), sorted a minor issue with a spoke nipple lost inside the rim and was hoping to go for a spin.
Lad was well enough (and sick enough of looking at me) to go to creche today, but then lads turned up to sort something on the house so I had to stay put until they were done.
As soon as they were done, I went and got new gloves and pedals, came back and got changed. Was just about to throw my leg over the bike when the phone rang - a delivery man looking for directions from the town. He must have had lunch before driving out as I dont live 45 mins from the town!!
Finally got out on the bike and was impressed with how well it goes - I think I might keep this one here and take the Cube to Zurich now. This had carbon forks and a Tiagra compact set-up, while the Cube has a triple Sora and alloy forks.
Got a bit of fettling to do to get it a bit more comfortable but it's not far off

triggermortis

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/135367162

Finally got out for a proper spin today. I did go out last Wednesday, but only did 20Km as my back wasn't feeling the best.
As my last spin was cut short, I put the energy drink I made in the fridge as I hoped to get out on the Friday. This didn't happen as I had baby-sitting duties and today I made the mistake of taking this drink out with me.
All was going well to start, the weather had brightened up and the rain had stopped, so I chose a less hilly route to help my back and set off.
I'm now riding the Boardman I bought off bogmanfan as it has better equipment than my Cube (Tiagra/105 and carbon fork as opposed to Sora and Alu fork) plus the brakes are better and it has mudguards fitted. I'm still getting used to the gear controls and I think I need to change the stem as I'm getting neck and shoulder pains as I think the bars are too low.
Anyway, got to about 40K - probably the furthest point from home when I nearly wretched after taking a swig of my drink. After that, I couldn't stomach any more of it so I binned it. Luckily I had a bottle of water with me as well, so that got me home but I have been burping ever since, with a taste of stale hi-5 berry each time. Lesson learned.

bogmanfan

Glad you're enjoying the Boardman mate. The bars are quite low as standard on those, so might be worth your while seeing about maybe adding another spacer to the headset as well?

triggermortis wrote: »

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/135367162

Finally got out for a proper spin today. I did go out last Wednesday, but only did 20Km as my back wasn't feeling the best.
As my last spin was cut short, I put the energy drink I made in the fridge as I hoped to get out on the Friday. This didn't happen as I had baby-sitting duties and today I made the mistake of taking this drink out with me.
All was going well to start, the weather had brightened up and the rain had stopped, so I chose a less hilly route to help my back and set off.
I'm now riding the Boardman I bought off bogmanfan as it has better equipment than my Cube (Tiagra/105 and carbon fork as opposed to Sora and Alu fork) plus the brakes are better and it has mudguards fitted. I'm still getting used to the gear controls and I think I need to change the stem as I'm getting neck and shoulder pains as I think the bars are too low.
Anyway, got to about 40K - probably the furthest point from home when I nearly wretched after taking a swig of my drink. After that, I couldn't stomach any more of it so I binned it. Luckily I had a bottle of water with me as well, so that got me home but I have been burping ever since, with a taste of stale hi-5 berry each time. Lesson learned.