The observant among readers of this
guff, maybe even both of them, will have noticed the Voodoo has been
missing for a while from my posts.
Well, on a recent ride I thought I
could feel a little sideways play down by my feet and sure enough, a
quick investigation revealed the Bottom Bracket was dickered.
Not a problem though, as I have a
comprehensive collection of knuckle rappers and nut rounders at my
disposal, so it would be just a case of fishing out the old BB,
ordering up the new one and fitting it. With overnight delivery it
needn't be off the road more than a day.
But I was having too much fun riding
Fatso, plus other things got in the way, so it was a while before I
ventured into the shed full of optimism for the task ahead, and with a pocket full of plasters
ready to stem the blood that is usually spilled when I undertake such
ventures.
Unfortunately though, things didn't go
to plan. At all. Firstly the cunning crank extractor tool doesn't
fit. The pin thing is too fat to pass through the threads of the
retaining bolt to the shaft it's supposed to push against. So I had
to wait until my neighbour was free and borrow his. The next day saw
both cranks removed in a few seconds – now we're cooking on gas! Or
not, as then the BB remover tool would barely meet the teeth of the
BB wotsitcalled, due to the crap way it was designed. This toolkit of
mine is turning out to be a big waste of money. So onto the net I go
and order up new BB and crank remover tools.
Meanwhile Craig,
my neighbour, has popped his head round the gate to see how things
were going and if any wounds/sudden amputations incurred were healing
yet, and on hearing the latest tale of woe, got his BB remover and
removed the offending article for me (and boy did he have to give it
some welly to shift the threads, I couldn't have freed them given my
weak back and lack of strength).
So the new BB was ordered up, and I'm
sat here now waiting for it, along with the new crank and BB removal tools, to arrive courtesy of the fine folk at Wiggle.
So I may as well witter on about the
ride I had yesterday morning down to the Tresillian River for a
coffee brewed on the trusty Trangia. Or I would but I've just told
all there is to tell really. I had a ride down to the river on Fatso,
had coffee, rode home again. There, that about covers it. It did
start raining once the stove was lit, so I had to rely on the GoPro
for some of the photos, but that's about all there is to say,
although it was a very enjoyable ride indeed.
So I'll do any wittering in the photo
captions and leave it there. Hopefully the Voodoo will be back in
service this weekend, unless some other hold up occurs that is.
End of the Game near Trevella Stream.
And now a weather update: Woo that's manky.
Beneath the Paddington to Penzance mainline shortly before the long drop down into Tresillian.
Arriving in Tresillian always means tangling with the traffic on the A390. But first, a shot of some wild flowers growing against the old toll house which is currently vacant.
A quick ride along the flat through Tresillian before hanging a left and taking to the riverside path that leads to St Clement.
Pfft! I laugh in the face of danger me... It'll take more than the chance of a tree landing on my head to put me off my ride! (rain might though... ahem...)
This is a favourite spot to plot up and have a coffee, the old boat house beside the Tresillian River. I'd barely got the trusty Trangia lit before it started raining. Thankfully it was only light rain, more of a drizzle at times, so I just stuck with the plan.
Kettle boiled, it was time to savour a Latte Caramel served with a hint of drizzle and fallen tree pollen.
At home I am addicted to my Aeropress coffee maker, it is all I'll drink, but out on a ride I make use of those three in one sachets that can be bought, and I must say, Poundland offers the best variety with all the usual coffees plus Lattes, Cappuccinos and all sorts of other tasty treats available.
Whatever is used though, coffee always tastes better outside, somewhere pleasant, and when done using a camping stove.
The Mini Trangia takes about ten minutes to boil that small kettle, but the turbo gas powered furnaces that some campers use to boil water in a couple of seconds are not what it's all about for me, at all.
Crappy handlebar bag contains the stove and various bits and bobs, but isn't big enough to take the kettle as well. That goes in the rucksack.
Heading back along the path towards Tresillian.
This flowery photo directly above is a bit of a fail, the camera not quite getting the focus spot on by the look of it, but I'll bung it up anyway.
Random drizzlesome shot on the way home.
Only a short ride this one, as I usually go on to St Clement at least, and often further, when I come this way, but given the weather I just headed home again post caffeine.
The map only shows one way travel as I rode back the way I'd come. The numbers are actually miles from the start point. The full map can be found Here
The light rain and drizzle failed to spoil the ride, and once back off the main road, it was all quite peaceful and pleasant riding through the damp countryside, so it was all good.
Now where's my box of bits from Wiggle...
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