Thursday 13 March 2014
A trip to Bamburgh Beach
As I've been off on a week's hols this week and the weather was so nice, I decided to have a look-up to Bamburgh beach and just have a bit of a mess around on my Fat bike.
Tuesday 11 March 2014
If you go down to the woods today you might see an amputee
Well I've had the most enjoyable couple of days, playing down local woods on my bike. I'm off work for a week so decided to try and get out as much as possible and lets face it the weather has been fantastic.
Monday 10 March 2014
I think I'm back lol
If you are a follower of my blog, you can always tell what sort of a mood I have been in, judging by how much I post. As you can tell of late I have been in a rather lazy, can't be arsed, need to get motivated type of place. Yeah! I feel guilty, however I realise sometime I just need to give myself a break and do what feels right for me, rather than feeling I'm letting anyone down.
So anyway I have been out on a small biking adventure so thought I'd share some video and images.
I'm not going to write a really long story as to be honest all it was, was a very pleasant ride out, a bit of a weird day weather wise, gloomy then getting out.
I was knackered after today's outing, just shows I'm getting on, and all this not doing much after finishing work each day has a huge impact on my fitness. Oh and I can tell things have changed shape wise with my stump due to me sitting around too as today I was rather sore where my socket had rubbed.
When I got home I took a few pics of Mr Hinks my dog so decided to pop them on at the bottom, rather than make another post.
More pics and no me boring you to death with my ramblings lol
So anyway I have been out on a small biking adventure so thought I'd share some video and images.
I'm not going to write a really long story as to be honest all it was, was a very pleasant ride out, a bit of a weird day weather wise, gloomy then getting out.
I was knackered after today's outing, just shows I'm getting on, and all this not doing much after finishing work each day has a huge impact on my fitness. Oh and I can tell things have changed shape wise with my stump due to me sitting around too as today I was rather sore where my socket had rubbed.
When I got home I took a few pics of Mr Hinks my dog so decided to pop them on at the bottom, rather than make another post.
More pics and no me boring you to death with my ramblings lol
Thursday 23 January 2014
So sorry been neglecting my Blog a little, but I'm back now
Hi guys, thought it was about time I came out of hibernation and started updating my blog. Yeah it will probably be same old, same old, however some people must find it relatively interesting as I see I have had over 16,000 views. Now if I could just get a quid for each view I could definitely make my life more interesting and therefore write more interesting stuff in return. Anyhoo as that's not going to happen you will just have to make do with what I'm currently up to.
So holidays over I'll admit I don't particularly enjoy the festive season. I have my own reasons, however I don't think it should be cancelled as I know there are lots of people who love this time of year. For me what with the dark mornings, cold weather and what not I find myself withdrawing and become less motivated.
Yesterday was only my second time out on my bike this year. I have to admit I thoroughly enjoyed my mini adventure, doing a few small loops of a local wooded area. The trails were pretty sketchy in places as there were deep gulleys caused by all this rain we have been having lately. My wheels got stuck in these channels and I thought I was going to come off on a few occasions. It's scary as you want to turn and are just stuck following the direction of the washed out route.
I think what made my day so much more fun was the fact I was wearing my new Shimano MT 91 Boots. You see normally when I'm out in the wet my feet or should I say "foot" gets wet and from there I gradually get colder and colder. Well not yesterday. These Shimano boots are superb I love them, so easy to get on and off what with the "Hiking boot" lace up design. The soles are Vibram and offer great grip and they are SPD's so brilliant for me as I have to clip in, in order to keep my prosthetic foot on my pedal.
I took a few pics yesterday and was quite happily plogging through puddles and even climbed onto a fallen tree trunk which was quite slippery without incident, which is a bonus as usually when I attempt stuff like that I go arse over tit lol.
I attempted to get some video footage yesterday too. I decided to try and use my Wizmount back pack and whilst it's a good piece of kit I wasn't too happy with the shaky GoPro footage. I guess you can't really expect the backpack to stay real still, as you will see as my helmet is bobbing around due to me being out the saddle and pedalling quite hard. Never mind huh! I think you will get an idea of the places I was riding in the short movie.
On my way home I came across quite a few ponies which have been introduced onto Quakies Fells. I asked my dad what type they were and he seems to think they are Dartmoor ponies. I think Quakie ponies sounds much better
Oh and I have to say a special thank you to both Kath and Kedan Griffin at Bike Bag Dude, who very kindly sent me a bag for my Sandman. I had it stuffed with gear yesterday, so much so that my bike looked slightly pregnant. The bag is fantastic, kept all my stuff bone dry. When I eventually got home my bag had turned from a rather clean looking white with green trim, to a decidedly dirty muddy looking thing strapped to my bike. All i did was whip it off, take out my stuff and then bang the bag in the wash with my slightly dirty clothing. The bag has come out like new, which is more than can be said for my Troy Lee Lumi shorts which have had to be put in a bucket of Vanish to try and get them clean. I think the power of pink may fail on this occasion lol.
So holidays over I'll admit I don't particularly enjoy the festive season. I have my own reasons, however I don't think it should be cancelled as I know there are lots of people who love this time of year. For me what with the dark mornings, cold weather and what not I find myself withdrawing and become less motivated.
Yesterday was only my second time out on my bike this year. I have to admit I thoroughly enjoyed my mini adventure, doing a few small loops of a local wooded area. The trails were pretty sketchy in places as there were deep gulleys caused by all this rain we have been having lately. My wheels got stuck in these channels and I thought I was going to come off on a few occasions. It's scary as you want to turn and are just stuck following the direction of the washed out route.
I think what made my day so much more fun was the fact I was wearing my new Shimano MT 91 Boots. You see normally when I'm out in the wet my feet or should I say "foot" gets wet and from there I gradually get colder and colder. Well not yesterday. These Shimano boots are superb I love them, so easy to get on and off what with the "Hiking boot" lace up design. The soles are Vibram and offer great grip and they are SPD's so brilliant for me as I have to clip in, in order to keep my prosthetic foot on my pedal.
I took a few pics yesterday and was quite happily plogging through puddles and even climbed onto a fallen tree trunk which was quite slippery without incident, which is a bonus as usually when I attempt stuff like that I go arse over tit lol.
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| YooHoo! |
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| I love my new boots |
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| My Nates certainly helped today |
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| Nice n scenic |
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| My Bartlett Tendon, complete with new, slightly scuffed Cam |
I attempted to get some video footage yesterday too. I decided to try and use my Wizmount back pack and whilst it's a good piece of kit I wasn't too happy with the shaky GoPro footage. I guess you can't really expect the backpack to stay real still, as you will see as my helmet is bobbing around due to me being out the saddle and pedalling quite hard. Never mind huh! I think you will get an idea of the places I was riding in the short movie.
On my way home I came across quite a few ponies which have been introduced onto Quakies Fells. I asked my dad what type they were and he seems to think they are Dartmoor ponies. I think Quakie ponies sounds much better
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| Quakie Ponies |
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| a Quakie Pony, a bit like a Dartmoor but different |
Oh and I have to say a special thank you to both Kath and Kedan Griffin at Bike Bag Dude, who very kindly sent me a bag for my Sandman. I had it stuffed with gear yesterday, so much so that my bike looked slightly pregnant. The bag is fantastic, kept all my stuff bone dry. When I eventually got home my bag had turned from a rather clean looking white with green trim, to a decidedly dirty muddy looking thing strapped to my bike. All i did was whip it off, take out my stuff and then bang the bag in the wash with my slightly dirty clothing. The bag has come out like new, which is more than can be said for my Troy Lee Lumi shorts which have had to be put in a bucket of Vanish to try and get them clean. I think the power of pink may fail on this occasion lol.
Friday 15 November 2013
Attempted Klunking this afternoon
After finding an ex-demo Transition Klunker on PinkBike, asking a few questions from the seller, about the bike I then decided to go ahead and purchase it and give it a go.
The bike arrived late yesterday afternoon, it looked like new, though I was a little disappointed in that the frame had been scuffed. I think this was done in transit by the courier to be honest as where it's marked, well you wouldn't normally expect to find paint chipped off. When I looked at the bike box I saw that the rear spindle of the wheel was poking through the side of the box and I think what must have happened is the other side of the spindle had scuffed the bikes frame. Ahh well what can you do huh?
The bike is a really pretty Orange type of colour, sometimes appearing reddish depending in what light you see it in. I think what I'll do is have a scout around for some nail varnish that is of a similar colour and do a quick repair, there are only a few chips after all.
I got in from work around 12:30pm'ish, got ready, put one clipless pedal on the right side of my bike and a flat on the left and set off..."Oh crap this coaster brake is going to take some getting used to" I thought to myself as I approached the first junction of our street and went for the brake levers which don't exist on this bike. First mistake...you don't stop well if you are trying to rally to a stop downhill and not pushing down backwards with at least one foot. A tad hard for me as I need my good leg down to balance me, yet can't push down and back with my prosthetic limb unless it's just in the right position.
Anyhoo I rode through our estate and headed over to South Moor Park...Next thing I notice, mainly because my leg and stump are killing me, working overtime is "My God" what size front and rear cogs does this thing have. I'm used to my Single Speed NS, yes it isn't exactly easy, but dear me I've only done about a mile or two and I'm wrecked.
At the end of South Moor park I get off my new steed and almost puke...Jeez that was hard work. If I'm going to persevere with trying to ride this bike I need to change the cogs, no kidding it feels like riding up hill all the time lol.
A quick few photo's and then I push the bike probably about another mile...It's up hill this bit honest. By now I am proper hurting. My stump feels like it's going to explode and I have the worst phantom pain in my imaginary foot. Maybe pushed it a little to hard.
Whopee on to a nice flat bit of road, this is more like it. I have made the concious decision, yeah think I'll maybe fit a front brake and definitely see about changing the gearing. My thoughts are interrupted and move onto other thoughts when I see this lass in front with the most spectacular rear end...WoW now that's nice. In the meantime I forget about the coaster rear brake, go to stand on the pedals and turn to look around to see if the front looks as good as the rear. That's when I put the weight on the pedals backwards and this sends me to a sudden stop. The ground broke my fall... Ok just pretend like I meant that to happen. I'm now nursing a huge lump on the back of my left ankle, the other legs fine it didn't feel a thing. Oh bikes ok too no more scuffs so that's good.
Got home, a bit sore and popped the bike into the bike stand and removed the front chain ring. It's a 44 tooth. Checked the rear it's a 18. So anyone reading this that would like to pitch in with ideas for something a little easier that would be great. I don't want to be spinning, however need to be able to pedal more than 5 miles lol
The bike arrived late yesterday afternoon, it looked like new, though I was a little disappointed in that the frame had been scuffed. I think this was done in transit by the courier to be honest as where it's marked, well you wouldn't normally expect to find paint chipped off. When I looked at the bike box I saw that the rear spindle of the wheel was poking through the side of the box and I think what must have happened is the other side of the spindle had scuffed the bikes frame. Ahh well what can you do huh?
The bike is a really pretty Orange type of colour, sometimes appearing reddish depending in what light you see it in. I think what I'll do is have a scout around for some nail varnish that is of a similar colour and do a quick repair, there are only a few chips after all.
I got in from work around 12:30pm'ish, got ready, put one clipless pedal on the right side of my bike and a flat on the left and set off..."Oh crap this coaster brake is going to take some getting used to" I thought to myself as I approached the first junction of our street and went for the brake levers which don't exist on this bike. First mistake...you don't stop well if you are trying to rally to a stop downhill and not pushing down backwards with at least one foot. A tad hard for me as I need my good leg down to balance me, yet can't push down and back with my prosthetic limb unless it's just in the right position.
Anyhoo I rode through our estate and headed over to South Moor Park...Next thing I notice, mainly because my leg and stump are killing me, working overtime is "My God" what size front and rear cogs does this thing have. I'm used to my Single Speed NS, yes it isn't exactly easy, but dear me I've only done about a mile or two and I'm wrecked.
At the end of South Moor park I get off my new steed and almost puke...Jeez that was hard work. If I'm going to persevere with trying to ride this bike I need to change the cogs, no kidding it feels like riding up hill all the time lol.
A quick few photo's and then I push the bike probably about another mile...It's up hill this bit honest. By now I am proper hurting. My stump feels like it's going to explode and I have the worst phantom pain in my imaginary foot. Maybe pushed it a little to hard.
Whopee on to a nice flat bit of road, this is more like it. I have made the concious decision, yeah think I'll maybe fit a front brake and definitely see about changing the gearing. My thoughts are interrupted and move onto other thoughts when I see this lass in front with the most spectacular rear end...WoW now that's nice. In the meantime I forget about the coaster rear brake, go to stand on the pedals and turn to look around to see if the front looks as good as the rear. That's when I put the weight on the pedals backwards and this sends me to a sudden stop. The ground broke my fall... Ok just pretend like I meant that to happen. I'm now nursing a huge lump on the back of my left ankle, the other legs fine it didn't feel a thing. Oh bikes ok too no more scuffs so that's good.
Got home, a bit sore and popped the bike into the bike stand and removed the front chain ring. It's a 44 tooth. Checked the rear it's a 18. So anyone reading this that would like to pitch in with ideas for something a little easier that would be great. I don't want to be spinning, however need to be able to pedal more than 5 miles lol
Wednesday 30 October 2013
Huge thanks to Kath N Kedan over at Bike Bag Dude for my new bike bag
Firstly I have to say a
huge thank you to my friend Ade for taking the time out along with his
son Jordan to pop down our local mud covered woods to try and grab a few
shots of me out playing and showing off my new Bike Bag which I
received from Kath N Kedan and their company Bike Bag Dude.
Ade had a few problems what with me wearing dark clothing, well I wasn't going to put my Sunday best on I mean the whole place was clarty as owt man. And with the Bike Bag being white, then the day was dull so natural light was cut out, well you get the idea, basically it wasn't the ideal lighting conditions and I think Ade did well to get any shots at all. Me I had tried earlier in the day and well mine came out shit! No literally I took a few photo's of my Sandman next to some horse manure lol.
Anyhoo I have decided to pop few images on my blog, there's a few more over at Ade's Flickr page, it can be found here : http://www.flickr.com/photos/ade-the-tog/sets/72157637133203986/
So thanks Ade and Jordan, as usual we had a laugh. Oh and as for my Bike Bag Dude Bag it's awesome. I tried to keep it as clean as possible. I'm sure you will be seeing it featured in a lot more of my adventures, it's really handy as I can now carry stuff that's easy to get to, saves having to keep taking my back pack off. The quality of the bag, the fit,design,feel and looks are all awesome.
Thank you Kath N Kedan www.bikebagdude.com
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| BIKE BAG DUDE |
Ade had a few problems what with me wearing dark clothing, well I wasn't going to put my Sunday best on I mean the whole place was clarty as owt man. And with the Bike Bag being white, then the day was dull so natural light was cut out, well you get the idea, basically it wasn't the ideal lighting conditions and I think Ade did well to get any shots at all. Me I had tried earlier in the day and well mine came out shit! No literally I took a few photo's of my Sandman next to some horse manure lol.
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| Who is that masked man? |
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| Should have gone to Spec Savers |
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| Just Playing |
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| Those Nate's look huge |
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| Well Chuffed with my new Bike Bag Dude bag... |
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| Sploooooosh! Well that didn't stay clean long |
Thank you Kath N Kedan www.bikebagdude.com
Saturday 26 October 2013
I need to win the lottery or something to feed my passion, relieve my boredom and keep me feeling young
I guess this is a kind of a wish list of bike porn, with me it's never ending I always see something I want, it's becoming an addiction. My problem like so many others is lack of funds...Ahh well I can dream and I may just have a flutter on the Lottery lol.
"Oh yes you will be mine"
My next play thing I saw a little while back. I have now got my son Kyle hooked on the idea of getting one of these rides. He wants a bike to do his local commute to Uni and back and this I think is the ideal cruiser. Not only that in your spare time you can head off "Klunking"
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| Holdsworth Professional Limited to 150 World Wide |
"Oh yes you will be mine"
- Based on the classic Holdsworth Professional - retro looks with modern design
- Limited to 150 for the world
- Full, polished Campagnolo Athena groupset
- Steel is real - but this one has a carbon fork too
My next play thing I saw a little while back. I have now got my son Kyle hooked on the idea of getting one of these rides. He wants a bike to do his local commute to Uni and back and this I think is the ideal cruiser. Not only that in your spare time you can head off "Klunking"
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| Kyle's after a Gangster Green |
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| I quite like the look of Klunking Ain't Easy orange |
Small outing, small Blog
Just had a quick blast out today, knew the woods I intended riding would be pretty hard going after the recent rainfall. I wasn't wrong. Good job I had my Surly Nate's fitted to my Sandman as it was pretty sketchy in certain places. On a normal bike I would have been bogged down and pushing the majority of the way. The area's where there was no natural cover like beside the farmers field and the breaks between the trees the mud was about 6 inches deep.
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| " Holy pile of steaming horse Shit Bat...Errrr Sandman! |
Monday 14 October 2013
A huge thank you to my good friend Ade for all his support
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Thursday 10 October 2013
A visit to Hamsterley Forest...WoW it was Brass Monkeys
As I drove home from work yesterday I checked out the sky in the general direction of Hamsterley. Thinking to myself "Mmmmm a session at the gym lifting weights and getting all sweaty" or a nice fun filed afternoon riding down trails surrounded by beautiful scenery. That was it mind made up.
I had spoken to my mate Ade earlier in the week and asked if he felt up to it did he fancy taking a few shots of me whilst out on my bike. It's always better to get someone who can actually use a camera and knows what they are doing, rather than me setting my camera on a 30 second delay then trying to time it just right for a ride by lol.
I also wanted to try and get some nice shots to pass on to Brian and Pace Rehabilitation who have both been fantastic in their support of me. I know it's not much in the way of payment for all they have done, but at least they can see I'm putting their prosthetic components to good use.
So I called in to Ade's and he said he was up for a look out...Perfect. I told Ade I wouldn't be long and set off to get my gear ready. Well an hour and twenty minutes I was ready... Had a bit of a nightmare finding stuff.
My dad had decided he fancied a ride out so he came along, bringing Mr Hinks too, WoW family affair lol.
We had just pulled out the corner of our street when Ade rocked up along with his son Jordan and so we set off for Hammers.
Inside the car the weather looked gorgeous, the sun was shining and there were blue skies. We arrived at Hammers and I opened my door and OMG it was FFFFFFF!!! Freezing. Very windy too. The car temp gauge read around about 8 degs C, however what with that wind it felt much colder. Never mind here now so may as well have a bit play. It was then I discovered I'd left my XC helmet...aww crap. Good job I'd brought my full face.
I hadn't rode up at Hamsterley for ages so just hopped on my bike and set off down the Red Trail. WoW his was totally different to what I remembered it, some canny drops and ups n downs. I got to the bottom in what seemed a matter of no time and rode along to the hut then turned left and headed up the steep hill. I was on my NS Soda, which is quite heavy and only has 10 speed gearing and was quite chuffed that I got 3/4 of the way up the hill. I even passed a couple of fellow bikers who commented saying "hey have you got a motor hidden on that thing" lol. I wish I was flippin knackered.
I then caught up with Ade and Jordan, my dad was off somewhere exploring with Mr H. We had a nice slow walk down the trail and picked some nice places to get a few shots. It was difficult for Ade as the sun was really bright and behind me in each shot as I rode down.
Finally as we were getting real cold by then I decided to have one last ride down the trail wearing my new WizMount. Again I think I've misjudged the camera angle, this is going to take practice lol Never mind will keep trying.
Hopefully Ade will have some canny photo's for me and I'll post them and add them to the end of this blog. Until then here's a short movie of me coming down the trail.
I had spoken to my mate Ade earlier in the week and asked if he felt up to it did he fancy taking a few shots of me whilst out on my bike. It's always better to get someone who can actually use a camera and knows what they are doing, rather than me setting my camera on a 30 second delay then trying to time it just right for a ride by lol.
I also wanted to try and get some nice shots to pass on to Brian and Pace Rehabilitation who have both been fantastic in their support of me. I know it's not much in the way of payment for all they have done, but at least they can see I'm putting their prosthetic components to good use.
So I called in to Ade's and he said he was up for a look out...Perfect. I told Ade I wouldn't be long and set off to get my gear ready. Well an hour and twenty minutes I was ready... Had a bit of a nightmare finding stuff.
My dad had decided he fancied a ride out so he came along, bringing Mr Hinks too, WoW family affair lol.
We had just pulled out the corner of our street when Ade rocked up along with his son Jordan and so we set off for Hammers.
Inside the car the weather looked gorgeous, the sun was shining and there were blue skies. We arrived at Hammers and I opened my door and OMG it was FFFFFFF!!! Freezing. Very windy too. The car temp gauge read around about 8 degs C, however what with that wind it felt much colder. Never mind here now so may as well have a bit play. It was then I discovered I'd left my XC helmet...aww crap. Good job I'd brought my full face.
I hadn't rode up at Hamsterley for ages so just hopped on my bike and set off down the Red Trail. WoW his was totally different to what I remembered it, some canny drops and ups n downs. I got to the bottom in what seemed a matter of no time and rode along to the hut then turned left and headed up the steep hill. I was on my NS Soda, which is quite heavy and only has 10 speed gearing and was quite chuffed that I got 3/4 of the way up the hill. I even passed a couple of fellow bikers who commented saying "hey have you got a motor hidden on that thing" lol. I wish I was flippin knackered.
I then caught up with Ade and Jordan, my dad was off somewhere exploring with Mr H. We had a nice slow walk down the trail and picked some nice places to get a few shots. It was difficult for Ade as the sun was really bright and behind me in each shot as I rode down.
Finally as we were getting real cold by then I decided to have one last ride down the trail wearing my new WizMount. Again I think I've misjudged the camera angle, this is going to take practice lol Never mind will keep trying.
Hopefully Ade will have some canny photo's for me and I'll post them and add them to the end of this blog. Until then here's a short movie of me coming down the trail.
Sunday 6 October 2013
Out and about on My NS Analog SS
Mmmmmm what to do I thought... I know I'll reset my GoPro and go for a nice relaxing ride out on my Single Speed and see what sort of image quality I can get, as yesterdays footage was a bit pants.
I had myself a zig-zag up to my Aunt and Uncle's in Annfield Plain. I Hadn't seen them since I got back from my holidays. When I arrived my other auntie was there too . My Aunty Ann, so we had a right old gossip and a catch up. I even got treated to some fruit pie and custard, well worth the ride out lol.
I've decided to write less and basically let the video I shot show you my route lol
Oh and I made a cock up with my camera too shooting in 960 instead of 1080 so it was in 4:3 LoL
I had myself a zig-zag up to my Aunt and Uncle's in Annfield Plain. I Hadn't seen them since I got back from my holidays. When I arrived my other auntie was there too . My Aunty Ann, so we had a right old gossip and a catch up. I even got treated to some fruit pie and custard, well worth the ride out lol.
I've decided to write less and basically let the video I shot show you my route lol
Oh and I made a cock up with my camera too shooting in 960 instead of 1080 so it was in 4:3 LoL
New friends,new places and unforgettable memories.
Well I'm back from my holiday's and what a holiday. Actually it's funny, as in weird saying holiday as my last one was when I was around 14 or 15 and that was only a school trip to London. This time around I ventured a little bit further afield and chose The US of A as my destination.
I'm going to try and write not so much that I bore you all, however enough to tell you about the fantastic time I had.
I took the 4th of September off work, this was my get everything sorted day, packing my new hard case and trying to get it under 23 kilo's was errrr interesting. I had already done a dry run a few days earlier and discovered that the new size medium case I had purchased wasn't quite big enough after I bust the zipper... Oops! So I had to go out and buy a larger case.
On the morning of the 5th my dad took me to Newcastle airport. My flight was quite early and we got there in good time. I said goodbye to Mr Hinks and my dad came with me into the airport. I headed for check in. Everything went according to plan, which is quite unusual for me lol. And so I said bye to Ern and I set off up the escalator to departures.
I found my way around Newcastle airport reasonably well,finding where I would board my plane without incident and just waited to be notified when it was time to board. Boy I was nervous, though not as much as I expected. I mean this was a huge thing for me full of firsts. I've never been abroad,I've never flown (well apart from a quick jaunt in a helicopter doing some ariel military type manoeuvres) and I've never been away from home for quite so long.
My plane arrived I got on,stowed my bag in the overhead compartment,strapped in and prepared for my first flight, which was to be Amsterdam and Schiphol airport. The take off was scary yet exhilarating and after the initial buzz I soon settled in feeling comfortable and excited about my adventure. It was a very pleasant flight over and the landing was nice and smooth, a slight bump as the plane set down on the runway. Hey there's nothing to this flying stuff I thought.
I'm going to try and write not so much that I bore you all, however enough to tell you about the fantastic time I had.
I took the 4th of September off work, this was my get everything sorted day, packing my new hard case and trying to get it under 23 kilo's was errrr interesting. I had already done a dry run a few days earlier and discovered that the new size medium case I had purchased wasn't quite big enough after I bust the zipper... Oops! So I had to go out and buy a larger case.
On the morning of the 5th my dad took me to Newcastle airport. My flight was quite early and we got there in good time. I said goodbye to Mr Hinks and my dad came with me into the airport. I headed for check in. Everything went according to plan, which is quite unusual for me lol. And so I said bye to Ern and I set off up the escalator to departures.
I found my way around Newcastle airport reasonably well,finding where I would board my plane without incident and just waited to be notified when it was time to board. Boy I was nervous, though not as much as I expected. I mean this was a huge thing for me full of firsts. I've never been abroad,I've never flown (well apart from a quick jaunt in a helicopter doing some ariel military type manoeuvres) and I've never been away from home for quite so long.
My plane arrived I got on,stowed my bag in the overhead compartment,strapped in and prepared for my first flight, which was to be Amsterdam and Schiphol airport. The take off was scary yet exhilarating and after the initial buzz I soon settled in feeling comfortable and excited about my adventure. It was a very pleasant flight over and the landing was nice and smooth, a slight bump as the plane set down on the runway. Hey there's nothing to this flying stuff I thought.
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| Newcastle Airport and me messing with my phone |
Hedley Hall Woods, experimenting with my WizMount
Had a really fun ride out today. I didn't go too far just over to Hedley Hall Woods, thought it would be a good place to try out my new WizMount Backpack. I have to say whilst the day was fun I was very disappointed in the footage I got.Oh it wasn't the WizMount it was my new GoPro Hero 3. When I got it home and had a chance to look at the video it appeared quite blurry and washed out. I haven't experienced this with my GoPro Hero 2, well apart from when it used to get misted up, however I bought some little de-mist pads and haven't encountered the problem since.
I've read a few forums and they suggest updating the firmware on the GoPro, so I have done that tonight. Guess I will see how it preforms on it's next outing.
Back to today, the woods were great fun, mind you I should have had my Surly Nates on as I was slipping and sliding all over on my worn Larry's, guess it added to the fun in a way got some nice skids and kind of made me work harder on the hills.
I managed to fall off twice today, once whilst stationary and not paying attention. I couldn't clip out and was over on my prosthetic side and once as I leant under a tree branch and my camera mount got stuck. It was canny funny really as it pulled me straight off my bike. No harm done to either rider or bike, Oh and my Bartlett Tendon stood up to the fall as well as being caked in mud.
Got home around 2:30'ish I think and gave both my bike and BTK a hose down. I then re-lubed my Bartlett Tendon. Trying to really look after this one, not that I didn't with the other. It's just I think sand got into the main shaft of my other knee and destroyed the frame. Brian was good enough to replace my knee with one of his own whilst I was away so I can continue to ride and have loads of fun like on today's adventure.
I've read a few forums and they suggest updating the firmware on the GoPro, so I have done that tonight. Guess I will see how it preforms on it's next outing.
Back to today, the woods were great fun, mind you I should have had my Surly Nates on as I was slipping and sliding all over on my worn Larry's, guess it added to the fun in a way got some nice skids and kind of made me work harder on the hills.
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| Not a bad day for a bit play on the Sandman |
Got home around 2:30'ish I think and gave both my bike and BTK a hose down. I then re-lubed my Bartlett Tendon. Trying to really look after this one, not that I didn't with the other. It's just I think sand got into the main shaft of my other knee and destroyed the frame. Brian was good enough to replace my knee with one of his own whilst I was away so I can continue to ride and have loads of fun like on today's adventure.
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| Looking through my Oakley's |
Wednesday 25 September 2013
A little video riding in Logan Utah with fantastic friends
I know this isn't the best video in the world, it wasn't planned. Basically my friend Mark strapped my new Hero3 on to his bike and we just rode and enjoyed the day and boy did we enjoy the day. This was one of those days that I will forever cherish, great trails,beautiful scenery and terrain and awesome friends.
Monday 26 August 2013
Rode to Hedley Hall Woods and had my breakfast
I haven't been up to much this weekend the weathers been a bit pants and I've been feeling shall we say a little less motivated.
Anyhoo got up this morning and seeings as I'm off work and the gym is closed so I can't fit in my regular session I decided to head out for a short ride over to Hedley Hall Woods, take a spot of breakfast and try and get used to taking a few shots with my new camera.
Anyhoo got up this morning and seeings as I'm off work and the gym is closed so I can't fit in my regular session I decided to head out for a short ride over to Hedley Hall Woods, take a spot of breakfast and try and get used to taking a few shots with my new camera.
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| Excuse the helmet hair... |
Saturday 10 August 2013
Neglecting my blog
It's been a while since I blogged, this isn't because I have been busy doing nothing, No it's more a case of I've been busy doing lots of stuff, however most of it I haven't got images of and well it's rather boring just reading.
My holiday is just about all sorted, off for a rather exciting trip to the U.S.A. I have a few minor things to do, stuff like getting my phone unlocked...well actually seeing if my phone is unlocked in the first place, as I bought it from the Carphone Warehouse and the nice girl I spoke to in the shop said 99% of their handsets are unlocked when you get them. I need my phone unlocked so that I can pop a US SIM card in, and this will allow me to use my phone at a cheap rate. I'm useless with directions so will no doubt need Google Maps to navigate around, and the data usage can be ever so expensive.
Looking forward to my trip away, all sorts of emotions going on, mainly excited, however also a tad nervous. Just hope my fitness level will be up to the demands of riding in the U.S with my friends out there.
Completed a 47-mile ride to the coast and back today on my Sandman, boy I was wrecked when I got in. Just trying to improve on my fitness. I'm trying to ride as much as possible, and I'm also attending the gym 3 days per week. I don't appear to be putting on much muscle, however have shed a few pounds, though from where I don't know. I still have more of a mini keg, rather than a six-pack lol. Maybe it's off my stump, as my bloody prosthetic leg keeps coming off. At the moment I have had to put some laminate flooring underlay inside my socket, and it's stuck in place with Duct Tape lol.
Anyhoo onto something with pictures. Last week I met up with my friend Ade down at St Mary's, and he very kindly took some shots of me out playing on the beach and splashing around in the water on the causeway. As usual, my Bartlett Tendon was up to the job and preformed flawlessly.
It was a beautiful day, nice cooling breeze blowing from inland. Bonus, only fell off my bike once today, slight scuff on my elbow. It's murder when I fall to my prosthetic side, as I just can't unclip to get my leg down and save myself. Worst thing is when I know it's going to happen. Usually you just hear me say "OH Crap"... then I'm off, falling on whatever lol. Actually fell off today when coming back from today's outing. My own fault, I was too busy looking around to see where the ambulance siren was coming from and hit a kerb, lol.
Huge thanks to Ade.the.Tog and his lovely wife Amanda oh and my support team (Ern my dad) We all had a really enjoyable day.
Photo's property of Ade.the Tog
My holiday is just about all sorted, off for a rather exciting trip to the U.S.A. I have a few minor things to do, stuff like getting my phone unlocked...well actually seeing if my phone is unlocked in the first place, as I bought it from the Carphone Warehouse and the nice girl I spoke to in the shop said 99% of their handsets are unlocked when you get them. I need my phone unlocked so that I can pop a US SIM card in, and this will allow me to use my phone at a cheap rate. I'm useless with directions so will no doubt need Google Maps to navigate around, and the data usage can be ever so expensive.
Looking forward to my trip away, all sorts of emotions going on, mainly excited, however also a tad nervous. Just hope my fitness level will be up to the demands of riding in the U.S with my friends out there.
Completed a 47-mile ride to the coast and back today on my Sandman, boy I was wrecked when I got in. Just trying to improve on my fitness. I'm trying to ride as much as possible, and I'm also attending the gym 3 days per week. I don't appear to be putting on much muscle, however have shed a few pounds, though from where I don't know. I still have more of a mini keg, rather than a six-pack lol. Maybe it's off my stump, as my bloody prosthetic leg keeps coming off. At the moment I have had to put some laminate flooring underlay inside my socket, and it's stuck in place with Duct Tape lol.
Anyhoo onto something with pictures. Last week I met up with my friend Ade down at St Mary's, and he very kindly took some shots of me out playing on the beach and splashing around in the water on the causeway. As usual, my Bartlett Tendon was up to the job and preformed flawlessly.
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| Messing about on the rocky outcrop just before the tide came in |
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| WoW! The rocks were slippy where the seaweed was |
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| Splish Splash |
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| This was so much fun Wheeeee!!! |
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| More Fun |
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| Oh I do like to be beside the seaside |
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| On the causeway as the tide was coming in |
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| Playing in the water |
Photo's property of Ade.the Tog
Saturday 13 July 2013
Nice ride out on my Soda...
I must have done well over 30 miles today on my NS Soda. I've been having a bit of a nightmare with various gps cycling apps on my phone, problems with them not saving my workouts/routes. Strava being the most annoying app so far. It tells you to click save, however when you tap the icon the bloody thing won't save. So that got deleted for the 2nd time. I then gave Map my Ride a go and same type of problem. I had rode 13.33miles when I stopped in at my aunt and uncles for a nice can of pop and a little bit of something to eat. It was then I noticed the Map my Ride app had paused and when I went to restart it the dam thing didn't save my previous route. Needless to say I wasn't going to fanny on with it so just hit the trail without monitoring my mileage, who cares anyhoo I wasn't in a race, just out for a nice ride out and a spot of fun.
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| AyyyyUp!!! |
Wednesday 10 July 2013
Maybe I need to man up
So hey Hi there. It's been a while since I posted, not because I haven't been doing stuff, or because I don't love you all. No it's just I either haven't taken my camera or I've felt it wasn't terribly interesting the stuff I have been doing, well apart from my first experience at canoeing up in the Lake District at Lake Ullswater on Sunday with friends. That was rather enjoyable and a real giggle.
I've also started back at my local gym after a pretty long lay off, when I say long I mean years. In fact I think I still had my own leg last time I visited a gym so it must be at least 8 or 9 years. WoW it was hard work going back. I'm definitely getting old as I ached for days afterwards, feeling better for it now and starting to get the swing of things. My aim is to trade in my mini keg for a six pack, so at the moment I'm eating healthy, visiting the gym regularly and continuing to ride my bikes at least twice per week, oh and of course doing my new job, which I'm continuing to love by the way.
And so we get to the title of my latest blog... I've been informed at work I need to think about putting some holidays in, before March next year. Now this is pretty alien to me I don't really know what a holiday is, the last one I had was a trip to London when I was like 14 or something with the school. I can remember getting terribly homesick lol. As I got older I found myself in a relationship quite young and had children and the whole having to pay bills and work so never got round to taking a holiday. And then as most of you know I was ill for a long period so just couldn't go away.
Now however I have no real ties and whilst I don't have a great deal of spare money I could treat myself if I really put my mind to saving for a little while. I have my passport and I dare say they would allow me to leave the country with my fake leg, so I could quite literally book a flight and be off. Now to the tricky bit, where to go and what to do. I'm a singleton who has never travelled. The only flight I have had was in a MOD helicopter which was doing manoeuvres at the time when I worked for a casualty simulation agency and that scared the hell out of me. Now I don't expect some Boeing flight Captain to be doing loop the loops, that's not what really scares me it's the fact I'm going to be going all by myself, yep that's right just little old me, on me todd, uno, yep 1, ALONE... Errr Hello. Anyone who knows me knows I'm a kind of walking disaster area and anything that can go wrong, well most probably will. In a foreign country I can't just ring Ern and get him to come pick me up. So maybe if I do decide to take a trip it will help me man up as it were,any problems I come across I will have to solve myself, well me and Google as I intend taking my phone of course.
Anyhoo really all I'm doing here is kind of talking out loudly to myself and letting you in on a few of my insecurities...This is just floating around in my head at the moment. Who knows I may find myself a brave girlfriend who will help me over come my fears and hold my hand on trip away... Either that or it's just me and Teddy off on a really scary adventure lol
I've also started back at my local gym after a pretty long lay off, when I say long I mean years. In fact I think I still had my own leg last time I visited a gym so it must be at least 8 or 9 years. WoW it was hard work going back. I'm definitely getting old as I ached for days afterwards, feeling better for it now and starting to get the swing of things. My aim is to trade in my mini keg for a six pack, so at the moment I'm eating healthy, visiting the gym regularly and continuing to ride my bikes at least twice per week, oh and of course doing my new job, which I'm continuing to love by the way.
And so we get to the title of my latest blog... I've been informed at work I need to think about putting some holidays in, before March next year. Now this is pretty alien to me I don't really know what a holiday is, the last one I had was a trip to London when I was like 14 or something with the school. I can remember getting terribly homesick lol. As I got older I found myself in a relationship quite young and had children and the whole having to pay bills and work so never got round to taking a holiday. And then as most of you know I was ill for a long period so just couldn't go away.
Now however I have no real ties and whilst I don't have a great deal of spare money I could treat myself if I really put my mind to saving for a little while. I have my passport and I dare say they would allow me to leave the country with my fake leg, so I could quite literally book a flight and be off. Now to the tricky bit, where to go and what to do. I'm a singleton who has never travelled. The only flight I have had was in a MOD helicopter which was doing manoeuvres at the time when I worked for a casualty simulation agency and that scared the hell out of me. Now I don't expect some Boeing flight Captain to be doing loop the loops, that's not what really scares me it's the fact I'm going to be going all by myself, yep that's right just little old me, on me todd, uno, yep 1, ALONE... Errr Hello. Anyone who knows me knows I'm a kind of walking disaster area and anything that can go wrong, well most probably will. In a foreign country I can't just ring Ern and get him to come pick me up. So maybe if I do decide to take a trip it will help me man up as it were,any problems I come across I will have to solve myself, well me and Google as I intend taking my phone of course.
Anyhoo really all I'm doing here is kind of talking out loudly to myself and letting you in on a few of my insecurities...This is just floating around in my head at the moment. Who knows I may find myself a brave girlfriend who will help me over come my fears and hold my hand on trip away... Either that or it's just me and Teddy off on a really scary adventure lol
Saturday 22 June 2013
Ern's cunning and devious plan failed!!!
I was in two minds as to whether to go for a ride on Friday, you see I haven't exactly been feeling motivated at all this week, no biking adventures or any other kind of adventures really, well not unless you count taking 2 wrong turns, one on the way to the Freeman hospital on Monday when I had to attend the Limb Centre and then another on the return back to work.Omg my sense of direction is atrocious I really hope I don't get reincarnated as a homing pigeon. I have just been coming in from work and lounging about. I know I shouldn't do it as it leads to me beating myself up over not doing enough and being lazy. I quite often feel like I'm not only letting myself down, but also all these people that have this perception that I'm always up to something or another.
Anyhoo I decided I was going to go out, it was Global Fat Bike Day after all and my good friend Ade had offered to very kindly take a few shots of me out riding.
Anyhoo I decided I was going to go out, it was Global Fat Bike Day after all and my good friend Ade had offered to very kindly take a few shots of me out riding.
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| Looking through my rear |
Sunday 16 June 2013
I ask myself why???
As the title says I ask myself WHY? ...Why when I go for a night out with friends do I end up drinking alcohol, when I know the consequences. I readily admit I can't handle my drink, after a few bottles I can start to feel the effect and inevitably theses effects then go on to stay with me for days afterwards. It's not just a hangover, oh no I always end up feeling like crap,dehydrated,feeling sick, lethargic and generally just Urrggghhhh!!!.
On Friday night I had been asked to a surprise night out for Annie a friend and work colleague. Now I know this will sound strange as the night planned was a hen do that wasn't a hen do for Annie. You see the majority of people I work with are female and I was asked to come along as it was everyone from work. It was weird, yet very entertaining sitting amongst this large group of women, who I have to say are all absolutely lovely, yet at times can be a little bonkers, in a good way of course.
Initially I had planned to be sensible and just drink coke. I mean I can have just as much fun without being intoxicated, however everyone else was drinking so I decided to let my hair down and cave in to peoples requests to get myself a "proper" drink. So off I trotted to the bar and bought myself something that though I don't enjoy the taste of I can tolerate and has the desired effect of getting me off my face and that was a pint of cider.
And so my downward spiral began. In the back of my mind I steeled myself and told my subconscious "don't give in to the temptation of hitting the shorts" as when I start on the Red Bull and Vodka's well that's it game over. I was very well behaved and actually managed to stay on cider all night. Well that's not strictly true as Alvin a very nice lad who joined us later in the evening bought us all a round of some absolutely terrible concoction. I think it was Absinthe,quail egg,chocolate liquor and some sort of stout...Omg it was foul...no pun intended on the quail egg. I necked it as quick as I could and held my nose whilst doing so, then had a quick swig of my bottle of cider. Within a few minutes I swear I could feel the effect of that yucky drink,as my head was swimming.
All in all had a fab night, really enjoyed meeting some new people and having some very interesting conversations. Oh and Annie's puppy Badger who she had brought along was so cute and I have to say very well behaved. I feel very lucky indeed to have been welcomed into my new job, my work colleagues treat me as if I have been there years and it's great being part of the gang.
Night almost over we all arranged our way home, phoning for taxi's, or in my case I rang The Ern. We said our goodbye's and I headed off down the pub's stairs. It was a kind of winding staircase and as I got to the bottom flight of roughly 6 to 8 steps I don't know what happened but I missed a step and ended up stumbling and then jumping around 4 steps, landing at the bottom. A quick look round to see if anyone had noticed my errrrr moves...Phewww that was close, got away with it. Well apart from the barmaid who was trying to keep her laugh in as she sat on one of the sofa's. A quick confident smile which was like "I meant to do that" and I quickly made my exit. Ern picking me up just over the swing bridge and off home and straight to bed.
Saturday saw me not getting up until around 13:30 and feeling as I knew I would like Poo. So just a day of lounging about.
Sunday which is today as I'm writing, well I got ready and headed off out on my NS Soda. Boy I'm struggling. I'm sweating like hell, have no real energy and though I have my camera with me I can't be arsed to really set it up proper. I have a little bit play down my local woods and try and use my Go Pro to take a few pictures, rather than a video.
The pictures come out about as well as I'm feeling. I then head off to do a short 7 mile circuit, taking in a few hills.
I get home and I'm knackered. You see this is what drinking alcohol does to me, hence why I usually only drink once or twice every 2 to 3 years, it takes me that long to forget how bad it makes me feel lol.
On Friday night I had been asked to a surprise night out for Annie a friend and work colleague. Now I know this will sound strange as the night planned was a hen do that wasn't a hen do for Annie. You see the majority of people I work with are female and I was asked to come along as it was everyone from work. It was weird, yet very entertaining sitting amongst this large group of women, who I have to say are all absolutely lovely, yet at times can be a little bonkers, in a good way of course.
Initially I had planned to be sensible and just drink coke. I mean I can have just as much fun without being intoxicated, however everyone else was drinking so I decided to let my hair down and cave in to peoples requests to get myself a "proper" drink. So off I trotted to the bar and bought myself something that though I don't enjoy the taste of I can tolerate and has the desired effect of getting me off my face and that was a pint of cider.
And so my downward spiral began. In the back of my mind I steeled myself and told my subconscious "don't give in to the temptation of hitting the shorts" as when I start on the Red Bull and Vodka's well that's it game over. I was very well behaved and actually managed to stay on cider all night. Well that's not strictly true as Alvin a very nice lad who joined us later in the evening bought us all a round of some absolutely terrible concoction. I think it was Absinthe,quail egg,chocolate liquor and some sort of stout...Omg it was foul...no pun intended on the quail egg. I necked it as quick as I could and held my nose whilst doing so, then had a quick swig of my bottle of cider. Within a few minutes I swear I could feel the effect of that yucky drink,as my head was swimming.
All in all had a fab night, really enjoyed meeting some new people and having some very interesting conversations. Oh and Annie's puppy Badger who she had brought along was so cute and I have to say very well behaved. I feel very lucky indeed to have been welcomed into my new job, my work colleagues treat me as if I have been there years and it's great being part of the gang.
Night almost over we all arranged our way home, phoning for taxi's, or in my case I rang The Ern. We said our goodbye's and I headed off down the pub's stairs. It was a kind of winding staircase and as I got to the bottom flight of roughly 6 to 8 steps I don't know what happened but I missed a step and ended up stumbling and then jumping around 4 steps, landing at the bottom. A quick look round to see if anyone had noticed my errrrr moves...Phewww that was close, got away with it. Well apart from the barmaid who was trying to keep her laugh in as she sat on one of the sofa's. A quick confident smile which was like "I meant to do that" and I quickly made my exit. Ern picking me up just over the swing bridge and off home and straight to bed.
Saturday saw me not getting up until around 13:30 and feeling as I knew I would like Poo. So just a day of lounging about.
Sunday which is today as I'm writing, well I got ready and headed off out on my NS Soda. Boy I'm struggling. I'm sweating like hell, have no real energy and though I have my camera with me I can't be arsed to really set it up proper. I have a little bit play down my local woods and try and use my Go Pro to take a few pictures, rather than a video.
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| Not the best shot in the world, but hey you get the idea :) |
The pictures come out about as well as I'm feeling. I then head off to do a short 7 mile circuit, taking in a few hills.
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| Heading up towards the wind turbine on the top road at Craghead. |
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| Some beautiful foliage and flowers about at this time of year |
I get home and I'm knackered. You see this is what drinking alcohol does to me, hence why I usually only drink once or twice every 2 to 3 years, it takes me that long to forget how bad it makes me feel lol.
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