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Cycling log - random events in the day of a cyclist II

Well it it could be worse Steve, it could have been Currie.

The sole purpose of Currie is to keep the riff-raff away from Balerno.

Do you ever take the dog when you cycle or is the dog wise to that one?

I've not tried it yet although I have bought one of the things to (supposedly safely) attach the dog to the bike, however given how strong he is I expect to end up on my face a lot when he sees squirrels etc.
 
I am exceptionally fortunate to live in Balerno, which is on the very edge of Edinburgh

I am familiar with the area as I spent three years a the nearby Heriot Watt Riccarton campus in the 70s. For my last term and a half I cycled into the Grassmarket daily. It was quicker than the bus. I had a bit excitement when I lost the front end turning on wet cobbles.
 
I’m sure it suffers it’s fair share of rotten weather where cycling is not advisable ;)

I enjoy mountain biking more when the weather is horrible! It's particularly nice in the snow:

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Very pleasant for night rides (which I used to do a lot):

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There are some days where it's a bit more hard work to enjoy it of course:

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I am familiar with the area as I spent three years a the nearby Heriot Watt Riccarton campus in the 70s.

I used to work out of an office in the research park at Heriot Watt for quite a few years, and they were also one of my customers.

For my last term and a half I cycled into the Grassmarket daily. It was quicker than the bus. I had a bit excitement when I lost the front end turning on wet cobbles.

I managed to fall off one of my motorbikes on cobbles that, as well as being wet, were doused in cooking oil that had leaked out of a bin. Fortunately it was at off-road bike (a Honda CRM250R that I used to race occasionally) so the only damage done was to my pride, as there witnesses!
 
Here's a shot of me, yesterday at the downhill trail at Samerberg, South Germany:



OK, OK it's not me, it's my son, but you get the picture.

And full disclosure, we used the chairlift to go up the mountain, although I did see the occasional brave soul pedalling up!
 
Just had a look at the Strava flyby's from yesterday's ride (I find them useful for finding new routes) and noticed that a couple of the young lads I passed on my ride were towards the end of a 151 mile gravel bike ride with 5175m of ascent, which included quite a lot of proper off-road stuff including part of the routes at Glentress. Impressive, especially as they still looked fresh as a daisy when they I saw them! One of the lads I see out quite a bit and he races cyclecross.
 
Does anyone struggle with riding/exercising in the evening? It really messes with my sleep, oddly. I don't know how, or if, I can combat it.

When I'm well rested I sleep like a log, honestly it would take the house falling down to wake me, I'm usually out like a light until the alarm goes off but if I do some hard exercise after about 7pm then I'm tossing and turning all night and feel dreadful the next day, which is why I've been riding either morning or early afternoon whilst on furlough but going back to work has thrown a massive spanner in the works.
 
Does anyone struggle with riding/exercising in the evening? It really messes with my sleep, oddly. I don't know how, or if, I can combat it.

When I'm well rested I sleep like a log, honestly it would take the house falling down to wake me, I'm usually out like a light until the alarm goes off but if I do some hard exercise after about 7pm then I'm tossing and turning all night and feel dreadful the next day, which is why I've been riding either morning or early afternoon whilst on furlough but going back to work has thrown a massive spanner in the works.
I find this, in normal times I do some quite hard training rides on an evening but always struggled to sleep.

My best guess is adrenaline overload.
 
Does anyone struggle with riding/exercising in the evening? It really messes with my sleep, oddly. I don't know how, or if, I can combat it.

When I'm well rested I sleep like a log, honestly it would take the house falling down to wake me, I'm usually out like a light until the alarm goes off but if I do some hard exercise after about 7pm then I'm tossing and turning all night and feel dreadful the next day, which is why I've been riding either morning or early afternoon whilst on furlough but going back to work has thrown a massive spanner in the works.

This topic is covered in Why We Sleep by Mathew Walker. It has to do with the amount of time it takes the body to cool down (apparently, it takes ages - not just five or ten minutes after coming to the end of the exercise session), and spending more time in well-lit environments, unless you're running in the dark; darkness and a drop in temperature are the two key ingredients for facilitating the onset of sleep. And then there's usually a nibble of some sort afterwards, which upsets your natural sleep cycle. There may be other reasons why it's not a good idea to exercise in the evening, I can't remember. But Walker is clear that exercising at night will make it harder to fall asleep at a reasonable hour. The big caveat is: what is a reasonable hour? I'm a morning lark so exercising at night is bad news for my sleep pattern, but for a night owl who stays up well past midnight, the effects probably won't be as bad, if even noticeable.
 
I tried clipless pedals for the first time this morning. I got some of those shimano spd commuter pedals which are flat on one side.

They were easier to clip in and out of than I imagined. Definitely easier than toe clips which I've used in & off over the years. They felt reassuringly secure, and the float was nice.

The big bonus was how easy it is to bunny hop.

Overall I rate them 9/10.
 
I tried clipless pedals for the first time this morning. I got some of those shimano spd commuter pedals which are flat on one side.

They were easier to clip in and out of than I imagined. Definitely easier than toe clips which I've used in & off over the years. They felt reassuringly secure, and the float was nice.

The big bonus was how easy it is to bunny hop.

Overall I rate them 9/10.

Yep, I only started using SPDs about three weeks ago, firstly on my road bike, but now on my MTB too. No going back. So bloody easy to use that I can't understand all the fuss. But I'm keeping my old Wellgo MG-1 flat pedals just in case!
 
I simply cannot exercise well in the morning. The evening is far better for me and I always perform better, always have done. When I worked shifts, I’d get home at midnight and particularly in the summer , go out for an hour on the bike. Home, snack, shower, out like a light. I guess we’re all different.
 


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