A bucket waiting for the hope of a donation to validate it's existence.

Off on my LEJOG trip

I'm off to do my LEJOG trip at the weekend so mostly i'll be posting over at the Buskers on Bikes blog...

www.buskingbikers.blogspot.com

Clipless update

Well I've been using the clipless pedals for a week now, and in that time I've done quite a bit of riding in a variety of styles.

I have done one long ride, several standard commutes and a couple of pootles.

I can confirm my initial thoughts in that it still makes cycling feel easier and I now thin I know why. I'm sure there are forums dedicated to this so I am sorry for repeating the acculated knowledge of the interweb. Being clipped to the pedal encourages smooth actions as you can feel whether you are pushing evenly as the shoe tugs at your foot if gets ahead of the pedal.

On long rides I really noticed less fatigue and a willingness to power out of situations more often. Anyway I think they are here to stay.

A night at sadler's wells

Well I finally got to see sylvie guillem dance. It's nearly 10 years since she did her film for the BBC (evidetia?) and I've missed, been too skint or away every time. Not this time though. There was 1 ticket left at £41 when I checked out the booking site. I took it and immediately felt guilty because I can think of several people that would love to see her too. I clicked 'buy'

The first piece was shit. The second brilliantly weird but I went out to the interval a bit miffed. She hadn't danced yet.

The last segment was just sylvie and a screen. Needless to say I went away happy. Quirky and full of her signature flexible joint movements. A goddess and one that shows no sign of a desire to retire. A head and shoulders above the other dancers tonight and 20 years older. Here's to her carrying on for another 10 years.

Clipless pedals

Well today I finally took the plunge and went clipless. I was a little nervous as it's one of those things that seems to be what separates the newbie from the seasoned tourer.

Jonny had just got some before the Cambridge ride and I was more than a little jealous as I struggled with cages and straps...

I went back to Evans in spitalfields as they'd not tried to upsell me when I went in to try the Honky Tonk.

Once we'd established that I mostly commuted but was preparing for the Lejog ride, the assistant suggested as an entry into clipless pedals an mtb shoe and pedal... Mostly so I can get off and walk.

I was initially sceptical until I realised that the 2nd pair of shoes he showed me I had initially thought of as practical town shoes.

Realising I don't normally wear Lycra into east london for fun he offered to fit them, as the bike must be close by (they have an umbrella stand for bikes... Well that's what it looks like)

After practicing clipping in and out against a wall I set off. Instant massive improvement.

Well happy!

Bring on those hills.

Cambridge to London by velocipede

Well today Jonny and decided that rather than hang around North London we'd cycle back from Cambridge.

To spice things up I thought I'd bring way too much stuff in a backpack and wear cold weather cycling gear. In keeping with the unspoken theme Jonny decided to bring a little less than he needed for the day.

We learned lots of interesting things today like how to swallow thunderflies, people in country pubs and shops are lovely and that we probably wont be going to club x in herts.

Overall a great day out.

Let's hope so...

I've just replaced my stock tyres with Bontrager all weather hardcase tyres. This week we've had a heatwave, a thunder storm, regular rain and some overcast muggy-ness. I only need snow for the full set!

The previous post is the state of my hands after handling tyres that have been on British roads in the rain.

I might need to take some wipes on the LEJOG trip

Grandad's 90th and the steam fair

A lovely weekend all round. It started with a trip to Kimberly near Nottingham for my Grandad's 90th birthday party.. Got to catch up with family, and Sophie got to meet the cousins, aunts and uncles on that side of the family (my mum's)

Managed to get a whole two sundays out of sunday. Breakfast with the family at the hotel. Train journey home. Lunch at callucio's. Swelltering afternoon in clissold park at the steam fair. The bottom picture is from a fortune telling machine that for 1d (google it) would show you a picture of your first born. I also got a mechanical palm reading.

I'm getting what appears to be a shepherdess.

Buskers on bikes press release

For Immediate Release:


(Insert date)



BUSKERS ON BIKES GOING ALL OUT FOR

CANCER RESEARCH UK





Just six months ago, seven strangers met for the first time to plot the magical, musical adventure of a lifetime: to cycle the length of the country, stopping only to pull their instruments from the back of a van and busk for their lives – and for Cancer Research UK.



Last October, Warren Howard, 35 – who, like many in the group, hadn’t approached a bike in anger since his teens – decided to merge his hankering for the open road with his love of music and raise a pot-load of money in the process. Busking Cancer – a musical project launched by Cancer Research with the beautifully gung-ho premise of belting out songs for donations – seemed like the perfect cause. A plea for like-minded recruits went out on the internet – and Buskers on Bikes was born.

On 25 July, Warren, Dom, Jonny, Neil, Dave, Dan and Brian will be setting off from Land’s End with a rambunctious repertoire of rock’n’roll, rockabilly, soul and pop classics, ending their tour 18 days later in John O’Groats. Along the way they will be delighting crowds with impromptu performances as well as performing at planned gigs, too, in which local musicians will join them to knock out a few numbers – and support Cancer Research in the process.

Warren said: “It’s going to be an unforgettable experience – and undoubtedly pretty gruelling, too. The fundraising target is a heady £15,000 – but I’m sure that Buskers on Bikes have the legs, the lungs and the heart to achieve it..!”



Cancer Research UK’s area volunteer manager Felicity Jones, said: “We can’t thank Buskers on Bikes enough for their support. Cancer Research UK has made enormous progress in the fight against cancer. However, we have only been able to do this thanks to the dedication and commitment of our volunteers and supporters without whom we would not be able to fund outstanding scientists, doctors and nurses.”



For further information or to enquire about forthcoming gigs visit www.buskersonbikes.org or call Cancer Research UK 020 7358 9008.





ENDS





For further media information, interviews and images, please contact:



Felicity Jones, area volunteer manager for Cancer Research UK on felicity.jones@cancer.org.uk, 07771 772 321



Warren Howard 07876 684838; nerraw_10@hotmail.com



NOTES TO EDITORS



About Cancer Research UK

• Cancer Research UK is the world’s leading charity dedicated to beating cancer through research.

• The charity’s groundbreaking work into the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancer has helped save millions of lives. This work is funded entirely by the public.

• Cancer Research UK has been at the heart of the progress that has already seen survival rates double in the last thirty years.

• Cancer Research UK supports research into all aspects of cancer through the work of more than 4,800 scientists, doctors and nurses.

• Together with its partners and supporters, Cancer Research UK's vision is to beat cancer.


For further information about Cancer Research UK's work or to find out how to support the charity, please call 020 7121 6699 or visit www.cancerresearchuk.org