A Chilly Stove Fail and Some Roadie Chasing.

My bed was lovely, warm and cosy yesterday morning, all the more so for knowing that it was pretty chilly outside. The coldest it has been so far this winter in fact. But, having seen the forecast the night before stating we were in for a sunny, and most importantly, windless day, I had plans to go for a ride. Cosseting though my bed was, there was to be no extended loitering, and so I dragged myself out and into my usual cycling clothes, although this time with the addition of a pair of Long Johns... Embarrassing to admit to wearing, but lovely and warm, just don't get taken to hospital and no one will ever know...

I also added the handlebar bag containing the stove to Fatty, as I thought I might enjoy some warming coffee while out and about.

The target for today was only a modest one – another look at the Watts Nature Reserve just below the village of Shortlanesend. I only discovered this little off road delight back in September, but thought I'd pay another visit to see how things were after all the rain we've had.

Setting off soon reminded me of the delights of riding in chilly weather – a cold face and my ears... oh my word my ears were protesting very aggressively at their lack of protection. But the weather would be warming steadily as the day progressed so I carried on while trying to ignore the pain either side of my head.

The best route takes me past the entrance to Idless Woods, and indeed, I could lop a big chunk off the journey by going through the wood to Idless rather than taking the long way round by road. But, fun though Fatty is in the mud, cleaning him after isn't, and I fancied sticking to tarmac on this ride for most of the trip, although that can be pretty gloopy too.

Tortured ears apart, the riding was very enjoyable, as the weak but bright winter sun cast long shadows across the roads from the hedges and trees, and all was peaceful and quiet. Well until going up the hill out of Idless it was peaceful and quiet anyway. At the top of the hill is a riding stables and this being Saturday morning, a lot of parents were ferrying their offspring to the stables and whole new opportunities for breaking wrists and collarbones. That's assuming they actually reached the stables safely in the first place, the driving along the narrow lane and through several blind bends left a lot to be desired by nearly all the drivers I encountered. Defensive driving seems to be a lost skill for so many these days, having presumably been made irrelevant in driver's minds by all the safety gadgets loaded onto cars now. Time was when a blind bend on a singletrack road would be approached with a deal of caution and a warning blast on the horn, but now it seems most folk just drive through the bends, throttle open all the way and far too fast to stop if they meet someone else doing the same thing coming the other way.

Anyway, driving standards evaluated and suitably critiqued I reached Shortlanesend which is easier to say than it is to type as I get my e's and n's all in pickle.

A quick swerve across the main road and I was freewheeling down the long hill out of the village and past the recently finished estate of new build houses. Pink! Some of the typically boxy new build looking houses are flipping pink! Others are a sort of peachy colour. What an eye sore they all are on the otherwise green hillside.

Hmmmm... it might've been a lovely day for riding, but it was also turning into a day ripe for ranting as various things failed to meet with my approval. But never mind, as I was soon at the Nature Reserve where tranquility was assured and a hot coffee beckoned.

Ah, a photo at last...

 The entrance to the Watts Nature Reserve, easily missed unless you know it's there.

Right... let's see... nature reserve... River Kenwyn... Vulgar Primroses... Marshy bits... dripping wet bits... Good! Nothing about bikes being prohibited... crack on then!

The information boards outside and also dotted around the reserve promise all sorts of interesting beasts and critters, as well as various trees, bushes and other green things to look out for. But, even with helpful prompts, my tree spotting skills are non existent and there were no signs of life to be seen.

I actually got off and walked along the boarded sections as it is a tad embarrassing having your own personal thunder storm following you around, although Fatty makes less noise than the Voodoo did round here.

Off the boardwalk section, crossing a small bridge, and looking rather nervous for some reason.

The paths around the reserve are about half boarded and half natural, but thankfully the latter proved to be largely devoid of sloppy mud, so Fatty stayed fairly clean. After a lap of the reserve, and some run pasts for the camera, I found a nice spot to sit and have a coffee, right beside a babbling stream. Unfortunately this is where things went wrong. The Trangia is Swedish, and if anyone knows a thing or two about cold, it's the Swedes, so I was rather dismayed to find that the stove stubbornly refused to light. It was cold by our standards, but nothing drastic, at a guess four or five degrees, but the Trangia just wasn't having it. I have read they can be fickle in really cold weather, but surely not a problem in our 'a bit chilly' temperatures. I tried every trick in the book, although I did stop short of putting the burner down my trousers to warm it up. So a gas stove is in my cross hairs for my next shot of retail therapy I think.

Despite all the rain we've had recently, the reserve was refreshingly free of mud.

 When I potter along, I really potter... 

Grrrr... 

So, denied my intended Caramel Latte, I set off once more and started the bimble along the lanes towards home, including a goodly cruise along the shared path beside the main Truro to Perranporth road back to Shortlanesend. Back there (I'm not typing it again) I took a different lane back to Idless, and another real treat of a ride. This lane really is a proper back lane that appears to have been built purely to serve one farm. The upshot is it is utterly devoid of traffic, and wonderfully peaceful as it descends through a scraggy wood back to Idless.

The only feature along this stretch of lane was this wheel trim in a small tree. Was it put there or did it land there having flown off? 

From Idless I retraced my outward route back until the junction above Lanner Mill where I opted to go left and past St Allen Church, and back into my home port of Trispen via Truthan. It was going along the latter sections that I spied a fellow bi-wheeler ahead. I didn't really give him or her another thought until I caught another glimpse of them a little further on, and I had gained on them considerably.

What is it about bicycles that brings out the competitive streak in folk? I am the most uncompetitive person on the planet, not to mention also probably one of the least fit and able on a bike, but I still threw another log or two on the fire and got the hammer down – I was going to catch this fellow cyclist! I think he or she was a roadie, flying away from me on the flats while down in a crouch, but on the up hill bits I was reeling them in quite rapidly while they sat very upright, presumably on the tops of the bars rather than even the hoods, and grinding out a higher gear range than I have at my disposal. I don't think whoever it was was in hammer mode like I was, I think they were just cruising, but still - I had to catch and pass them... imagine the shame of the keen roadie being caught and passed by an old giffer on a fat bike of all things! But, sadly, it didn't happen. He or she turned right where I intended to turn also, which meant the chase was still on, but before I could make the turn I had to wait for a tractor to pass that had come up behind me, which set me back, irretrievably so as it turned out, as I couldn't get close enough again before reaching my turning for home.

Hayup... Target acquired, Phasers set to stun, the chase is on!

All in all though it was a good ride, and the enjoyable parts far outweighed the dodgy driving, the ugly new housing, the unwilling stove and the great roadie chase down failure.

These sort of roads and tracks are not at all what a fat bike is meant for, but I still find it a perfectly good bike to ride in such conditions, not being half as draggy as some folk claim, and I'm not bothered by a kilo or two of extra weight at all. I do love the comfort afforded by this bike though – the bars and seating position are just so for me, allowing me to feel I'm sitting in the bike rather than perched on top, and I love the solid, planted, and invincible feel of the ride.

I don't need a fat bike at all, not like some folk in really cold places do, but it is still a heck of a lot of fun, which is what I do need from my riding. I need to ride the other bikes too though, and think I will bar myself from taking Fatty out again for a while just so they don't take root or seize up or something!

Crappy small scale map, but this link may work better Clicky and cross your fingers...

Or it may not work at all as it may require me to be logged in for some reason to see it. People need to share things beyond Faceache and Twitter you beggars!