Overnight/100 mile ride - newbie advice

in message <[email hidden]>,

(' ') said:

I'm doing the Exmouth Exodus this weekend -
http://www.exmouthexodus.co.uk/ I've never done anything like this
before, so any advice would be welcome.

I'm not too worried about the hills - I climb fairly similar ones on
my commute home at least twice a week. And I'm reasonably confident
about finishing the distance - I did 73 hilly Cotswold miles a couple
of weeks back in 7 hours elapsed time on a less than ideal bike
(nobbly tires, 12 speed lacking hill climbing ratios, not quite the
right size) and was OK and commuted as normal next day.

Things I found from the 73 miler were: I didn't have enough water
(drank over 3 pints when I got back); I didn't have anything like
enough food - the bike computer said I'd used 3,000 calories, which I
take with a pinch of salt, but I didn't eat anything close to that;
set off too fast - averaged 15 mph for the first 20 miles which were
seriously hilly wtih two big climbs, remaining miles were relatively
easier but average dropped to 13 mph. (Speed drop may have been due
to poor eating as well.)

My questions:

1) How much water do I need to carry. Route card shows water stops at
20, 50 (not certain about this one but seems likely) and 80 miles .
Will 2 litres be enough to get me between stops?

That's one litre per ten miles, which would be enough for me. For a ride
like this I'd consider adding some isotonic drink powder - it's a
convenient way of maintaining the sugars and salts that otherwise you lose
during a long period of sustained effort.

Quoted message said:

2) Food recommendations. Presumably some sort of energy cereal bar,
bananas. How many, how often should I eat? I don't think normal hunger
will be a good guide.

Depends on what you like. I find Soreen malt loaves, sliced up, buttered
and then repacked in their original packaging, convenient food on this
sort of expedition. Bananas and figs are also widely recommended, in
moderation. And cereal bars, as you say, are also good.

Energy gels are disgusting but good if you're actually bonking. However, if
you are bonking and need to take an energy gel, eat something else as well
because they don't last long. I also suspect (don't know, I'm speaking way
outside my area of expertise here) that energy gels must play hell with
the bodies insulin regulation mechanisms, so probably ought not to be
overdone.

Quoted message said:

3) Any spares/tools I should carry beyond obvious puncture repair kit/
spare tube and batteries/basic multi tool? For a day time run I
wouldn't bother, but there ain't going to be many cycle shops open in
the wee hours of Sunday morning.

Spare magic chain link. Broken chains shouldn't happen, of course, but if
they do modern chains are damned hard to join properly with the sorts of
tools you can carry with you. But a magic link will get you home.

On a night ride, spare batteries (unless you're sensible enough to use a
dynamo); spare bulbs (unless you're sensible enough to use LEDs).

Quoted message said:

4) Presumably people won't pedal all night without stopping

Why not? As soon as you stop your muscles start cooling (particularly at
night), and that really isn't a good thing. I would advise you to stop for
the bare minimum of time to get your bottles refilled and (if you want to)
slosh a cup of tea down. Better to cycle continuously at thirteen mph than
go off at fourteen mph, stop for tea, get cramp, and have awful trouble
getting moving again.

Quoted message said:

5) I can't imagine falling asleep on a bike, is sleepiness an issue?

Yes. I bonked pretty badly on the last road stage of this year's 7/24, and
I'm convinced that it was sleep, not food, that was the issue - I'd been
careful to eat well through the day. Get as much rest as you can the day
before - ideally, sleep.

Quoted message said:

Any other advice welcome (pre-ride eating?

Large spaghetti meal, optionally followed by rice pud. Plenty of
carbohydrate in your system before you start is half the battle.

Quoted message said:

ride etiquette for this
sort of thing?) as there are probably other questions I don't yet know
I should ask.

If you find a group that's going at your pace, stick with them and do your
share of the work. Cycling in a group is always easier. Don't brake
suddenly when you're on the front!

--
[email hidden] (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/

[ This .sig subject to change without notice ]

Most of this'll be sucking eggs:

Quoted message said:

My questions:

1) How much water do I need to carry. Route card shows water stops at
20, 50 (not certain about this one but seems likely) and 80 miles .
Will 2 litres be enough to get me between stops?

Plenty (tho I never drink enough and suffer for it). Drink before you're
thirsty. Urine colour is the way to tell, and if you're not peeing then
you're not drinking enough.

Quoted message said:

2) Food recommendations. Presumably some sort of energy cereal bar,
bananas. How many, how often should I eat? I don't think normal hunger
will be a good guide.

Carry a 'bonk ration'. Just a small thing full of simple carbs
(chocolate bar is great). This is to get you going if you run out of
energy. Eat something with more complex carbs at the same time to keep
you going or you'll just get a sugar crash.

As to normal food, just eat plenty. Regular grazing rather than heavy
meals is good. I avoid sugary stuff and go for slower burning foods.

Quoted message said:

3) Any spares/tools I should carry beyond obvious puncture repair kit/
spare tube and batteries/basic multi tool? For a day time run I
wouldn't bother, but there ain't going to be many cycle shops open in
the wee hours of Sunday morning.

I carry pump, patches, inner tube/s, allen keys, [censored] spannery thing,
spoke key, powerlink thingy, elastic band, tyre patch. If in the dark,
new batteries in the lights and spares. Some people carry a small
workshop with them. These people are nuts (until you need that chain
whip/headset spanner/TIG welder😉.

Quoted message said:

4) Presumably people won't pedal all night without stopping, but will
they just sit on the verge for a rest? Tea will be provided at 50
miles, but no shelter.

You prolly won't /need/ a rest but it'll make it a lot more pleasant. If
it's cold/rainy don't stop for long or you'll get cold. If you're
shivering on the bike find a cafe/pub quick and warm up there (assuming
you can't just put more layers on). You've got about 10 minutes before
your body thinks you've finished so either make it quick or take your
time.

Quoted message said:

5) I can't imagine falling asleep on a bike, is sleepiness an issue?

Sleep well the night before, and eat+drink well the night before and
during the ride and you should be okay. The least important of these is
sleep - about half of my centuries have been done after a night of
partying - but it's nice to have.

Quoted message said:

Any other advice welcome (pre-ride eating? ride etiquette for this
sort of thing?) as there are probably other questions I don't yet know
I should ask.

Riding in a bunch saves a bit of energy, but don't overlap tyres and
don't brake or swerve suddenly. If you feel ratty eat something - it's
prolly low blood sugar.
Take a baseball/cycling cap to keep rain out of your eyes.
Scoff loads of pasta or similar the night before, scoff porridge or
similar before you leave the house.
Get EVERYTHING ready and laid out the night before.
Don't get drunk the night before.
Double check the route at each turning.
If you've a routecard/map and are riding in a group, doublecheck it at
each turning - groups *always* go the wrong way 'cos everyone thinks
someone else is checking it.
When you change a tube don't forget to run a thumb around the inside of
the tyre to find the thing wot caused it before you put it back together.
Change a tube in preference to using a patch.
Enjoy it! (even the bit around 2/3rds round when you're fed up, cold and
wet).

[email hidden] wrote:

........

Quoted message said:

1) How much water do I need to carry. Route card shows water stops at
20, 50 (not certain about this one but seems likely) and 80 miles .
Will 2 litres be enough to get me between stops?

If not, hopefully you can find a "24 hour" garage if you're anywhere near
civilisation.

/snip

Quoted message said:

3) Any spares/tools I should carry beyond obvious puncture repair kit/
spare tube and batteries/basic multi tool? For a day time run I
wouldn't bother, but there ain't going to be many cycle shops open in
the wee hours of Sunday morning.

* Spare base layer, or jersey, or gillet, or light jacket - for extra warmth
if it turns colder than expected, or if you have to stop and deal with a
problem.

* Park Tyre Boot - special patch for fixing ripped tyres (not tubes).

/snip

Quoted message said:

5) I can't imagine falling asleep on a bike, is sleepiness an issue?

It may be if you don't get enough sleep the previous night/day, or if you
don't consume enough food and drink during the ride. I have almost fallen
asleep whilst cycling before, to the point of eyes closing.

~PB

In article <[email hidden]>,
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

I'm doing the Exmouth Exodus this weekend - http://www.exmouthexodus.co.uk/
I've never done anything like this before, so any advice would be
welcome.

I'm not too worried about the hills - I climb fairly similar ones on
my commute home at least twice a week. And I'm reasonably confident
about finishing the distance - I did 73 hilly Cotswold miles a couple
of weeks back in 7 hours elapsed time on a less than ideal bike
(nobbly tires, 12 speed lacking hill climbing ratios, not quite the
right size) and was OK and commuted as normal next day.

Things I found from the 73 miler were: I didn't have enough water
(drank over 3 pints when I got back); I didn't have anything like
enough food - the bike computer said I'd used 3,000 calories, which I
take with a pinch of salt, but I didn't eat anything close to that;

You don't need to as long as you have a spaghetti dinner the night
before, and a big bowl of porridge for breakfast.

Quoted message said:

set off too fast - averaged 15 mph for the first 20 miles which were
seriously hilly wtih two big climbs, remaining miles were relatively
easier but average dropped to 13 mph. (Speed drop may have been due
to poor eating as well.)

My questions:

1) How much water do I need to carry. Route card shows water stops at
20, 50 (not certain about this one but seems likely) and 80 miles .
Will 2 litres be enough to get me between stops?

Should be plenty, I wouldn't get through that much. Drink little and
often, don't wait until you're thirsty. You might want to take
something like Isostar Power Tabs to add to your water - even if they're
not magic they can make the water more palatable.

Quoted message said:

2) Food recommendations. Presumably some sort of energy cereal bar,
bananas. How many, how often should I eat? I don't think normal hunger
will be a good guide.

I was never a great fan of energy bars - Marmite sandwiches and fruit
cake work for me. Bananas are great. Eat before you're hungry (it
helps to be psychic :-).

Quoted message said:

3) Any spares/tools I should carry beyond obvious puncture repair kit/
spare tube and batteries/basic multi tool? For a day time run I
wouldn't bother, but there ain't going to be many cycle shops open in
the wee hours of Sunday morning.

Spare tyres (folding ones are easier to carry) are good if you run over
a broken bottle - I'd take at least a couple of tubes too. A tool-less
chain link is always worth carrying. Some people like to take a few
spare spokes. Zip ties/gaffer tape/garden wire/string can be used for
some get-you-home repairs. The main thing is to use a tried and tested
bike that's been properly serviced (but not the day before). And spare
lighting bits, of course - I'd suggest a dynamo for regular use with
decent LED battery lights for backup (and in case you need to fix
anything in the dark). Mobile phone, credit card, some cash and some
change.

Quoted message said:

4) Presumably people won't pedal all night without stopping,

Why not?

Quoted message said:

but will they just sit on the verge for a rest?

If the bike's not comfortable enough to sit on you're going to be in
trouble.

Quoted message said:

Tea will be provided at 50 miles, but no shelter.

Wear layers of clothing that you can easily add or remove so you don't
get chilled or too sweaty. A warm hat can make a big difference.

Quoted message said:

5) I can't imagine falling asleep on a bike, is sleepiness an issue?

It is if you ride off the road, or into the path of an approaching
vehicle. Cycling long distances at night can be quite hypnotic. Some
Red Bull or Pro Plus might be useful in an emergency, but I've never
felt the need to try them.

Quoted message said:

I'm doing the Exmouth Exodus this weekend - http://www.exmouthexodus.co.uk/
I've never done anything like this before, so any advice would be
welcome.

Bring your best set of waterproofs, and a fleece to hang around in.
It gets cold in the wee small hours, and you will be glad of them.
Ditto a warm hat. Don't watch the weight too much - you will be glad of
some warm clothes.
On last years Dynamo, I was grateful for a Parrot pertex/fleece top,
so a Buffalo pile jacket or similar would be good.
Bring also a tee-shirt and shorts to change into in the morning and you
will feel a new man. Toothbrush also.

We were desperate for a coffee last year, and couldn't find anywhere to
get one. A Red Bull picked up from a garage was a good pick me up, so I
would suggest a can finds a place in your panniers.

Lots of Sudocreme on the delicate areas.

In news:[email hidden],
[email hidden] <[email hidden]> tweaked the Babbage-Engine
to tell us:

Quoted message said:

5) I can't imagine falling asleep on a bike, is sleepiness an issue?

It can be - a chap managed to fall asleep at the wheel^w handlebars on the
Cambrian 600 earlier this month and took an unscheduled trip into the hedge.
However, that was at about 2 am after having been on the go since six the
previous morning, and it's probably less likely for and evening start,
particularly if you're well-rested before setting off.

--
Dave Larrington
<http://www.legslarry.beerdrinkers.co.uk>
"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from
a yo-yo" - Enoch Root.

Quoted message said:

1) How much water do I need to carry. Route card shows water stops at
20, 50 (not certain about this one but seems likely) and 80 miles .
Will 2 litres be enough to get me between stops?

Should be. I get through about half that amount in cool weather (as it
will be overnight), but more in the heat. It's good to drink regularly,
even if you don't feel thirsty.

Quoted message said:

2) Food recommendations. Presumably some sort of energy cereal bar,
bananas. How many, how often should I eat? I don't think normal hunger
will be a good guide.

I find cereal bars too dry to eat in the saddle; I need to drink at the
same time. I do like buttered malt loaf (I wrap two slices buttered
sides together in a piece of cling film - you can put these where you
can grab them whilst riding and they are very easy to handle without
stopping).

Quoted message said:

3) Any spares/tools I should carry beyond obvious puncture repair kit/
spare tube and batteries/basic multi tool? For a day time run I
wouldn't bother, but there ain't going to be many cycle shops open in
the wee hours of Sunday morning.

I basically carry anything that I think I can use but nothing I can't;
batteries, a couple of spare tubes (out of their boxes to save room and
wrapped individually in thick plastic bags for protection), puncture
kit, tyre boot (never needed one in years of riding until I got a slit
in my sidewall 120km into the 200K I did a couple of weeks ago; luckily
a couple passed on a tandem who gave me one of these which got me safely
to the end), duck tape (a few inches wrapped around a spanner handle
takes no room and is almost no weight - but is invaluable for bodge
repairs on just about anything), cable ties (again no weight or space,
so why not?) and the right allen keys, spanners (only a couple, not a
full set) and screwdrivers for my bike. Of course these go into a bag on
the bike, not a rucksack or jersey pocket.
And a map of the area!

Matt

Matthew Haigh ?@?.? said:

Quoted message said:

1) How much water do I need to carry. Route card shows water stops at
20, 50 (not certain about this one but seems likely) and 80 miles .
Will 2 litres be enough to get me between stops?

Should be. I get through about half that amount in cool weather (as it
will be overnight), but more in the heat. It's good to drink regularly,
even if you don't feel thirsty.

On water - the last time I did a long ride was back in Texas. A group of
us would often go to the long organized rides (100km and 100 mile). We
did the Hotter than Hell 100 (mile) in Witchita Falls in northern Texas
one year. It's named that for a good reason, it's held in August and
it's stinking hot.

I was doing 35 mpg of water on that ride! We all used CamelBaks. I think
even on a long ride over here, I'd probably still use the CamelBak just
because it's convenient and carries quite a lot of water (I think 72oz).
That didn't include the energy drinks that were provided at the rest
stops, either.

I've always found bananas to be one of the best things to have on a long
ride.

--
Yes, the Reply-To email address is valid.
Oolite-Linux: an Elite tribute: http://oolite-linux.berlios.de

Well, I'm doing a 200km overnighter at the end of July. I'm planning to have
plenty of rest beforehand and a good meal of loads of carbohydrate 3hrs
before the start. I'll be well hydrated before the start. I'm also taking
plenty of isotonic liquid and *food*. I'll be eating little & often
throughout the ride and drinking little & often to keep hydrated. Drinking
before starting to feel thirsty is important. I'm planning on taking
flapjacks, little pots of rice pud, energy gels, and something *nice* as a
treat for somepoint in the ride when I feel down and need perking up
mentally, so to speak.

You will burn maybe 400kcal per hour. It's unlikely you can eat that
much, but eat something every hour at least.

It's unlikely you'll be able to inspect the colour of your urine in the
dark by a hedge! Half to one litre per hour may be enough. Overzealous
drinking caused the death of one London Marathon runner this year; if
you feel bloated, don't drink!

Some of the extra water you drank after your last ride probably went
into rebuilding your glycogen stores; each gram of glycogen holds about
four of water; average glycogen stores are 400g and would be associated
with about 1½ litres of water, which you'll have needed to drink.

Eat lots of anything today, especially after you homeward commute ride;
don't start a long ride on 'half-empty'.

Don't start the ride with any known mechanical fault.

Make sure your kit is comfortable and can cope with both a p*nt*r* in
the rain and warm windless conditions uphill.

Eat if you get a p*nct*r*, before you fix it. The food is better
absorbed at rest and a little sugar boost will clear the brain. Your
hands will be cleaner before you start on the mechanics...

Choose food you like and fancy; your tastes and mine might differ. You
won't eat enough of anything which turns your stomach.

It might be best to avoid alcohol tonight.

Caffeine can be a great help on this sort of ride and will not act as a
diuretic if you're dehydrated; consider taking some at or after the
halfway mark. (I wouldn't bother with it at the start.)

--
Helen D. Vecht: [email hidden]
Edgware.

Quoting <[email hidden]>:

Quoted message said:

2) Food recommendations. Presumably some sort of energy cereal bar,
bananas. How many, how often should I eat? I don't think normal hunger
will be a good guide.

Malt loaf! Fig newtons!

Quoted message said:

4) Presumably people won't pedal all night without stopping,

They might well for one night.

Quoted message said:

5) I can't imagine falling asleep on a bike, is sleepiness an issue?

Not when riding, but beware the "I'll just sit down for a moment zzzzz"
attack.
--
David Damerell <[email hidden]> Kill the tomato!
Today is First Thursday, Presuary.

David Damerell said:

Malt loaf! Fig newtons!

And the same to you, sir!

Thanks for all your responses, it may seem like obvious stuff to you,
but it's valuable to me - some of it confirms what I thought, but lots
of new stuff which is great.

I guess the biggest surprise is the lack of stopping - I'm used to
leisurely family/charity rides where the pub lunch is a feature. But I
couldn't really see how you could stop much at night, so I'm not that
surprised. Glad you told me this - I'd have been pedalling along
wondering "When's someone going to suggest a stop?" This leads to
another slight puzzle (not one I'm expecting an answer to). The ride
sets off around 9.30 pm, the cafe booked for breakfast opens at 7 am,
making 10.5 hours. Now I don't really know what average speed I can do
for that length of time, but I was figuring on around 12 mph, which
means around 8.5 hours. Add an hour for short water stops,
disappearing behind hedges, double checking route etc., making 9.5
hours. I don't really fancy arriving on Exmouth seafront with an hour
to kill before breakfast. However, current weather forecast may solve
this for me - it shows a 16 mph headwind through the night, rising to
20 mph on Sunday morning, which will probably add a couple of hours to
my time. A problem for long linear routes, we should be doing it the
other way.

Other useful thing is to take more clothes than I was planning to. I'm
rarely cold on a bike (I have been known to return home from work in
ordinary office trousers, shirt sleeves partly rolled up, no hat,
gloves or jumper - all this at 11 pm in January with frost on the
cars). Weather forecast shows overnight lows of 15.However, when I've
stayed up all night I do get cold in the early hours, so it's easy to
carry a bit more stuff.

Food advice is useful, thanks. Except I don't know what the famous fig
newton is - presumably another name for a fig roll? The malt loaf
sounds good.

Current major problem is my lift home. My partner agreed to pick me
up, after visiting relatives in that general direction tomorrow. It
seems obvious to me that she would take my estate car in which we
regularly move bikes, but she seems to have gone in her own car.
Anybody know if you can actually get a bike in a Ford Puma? And she
doesn't have my fresh clothes for the journey back.

I hope there are bike places available on the trains tomorrow. If not,
it's a long ride back. But at least the wind will be behind me:-)

Right, time for my big bowl of pasta.

Thanks again.

Rob

in message <[email hidden]>,

(' ') said:

This leads to
another slight puzzle (not one I'm expecting an answer to). The ride
sets off around 9.30 pm, the cafe booked for breakfast opens at 7 am,
making 10.5 hours.

That's probably because the organisers couldn't persuade the cafe owner to
open any earlier. I have a 24 hour event which ends every year at a cafe.
I've suggested to the cafe owners that they open early for it. There are
about fifty people in the event, so you'd think that at (say) a fiver a
head for coffee and something to eat it would be worth opening the cafe
up....

But my first riders roll in at about three in the morning, and the cafe
doesn't open until nine.

Quoted message said:

Other useful thing is to take more clothes than I was planning to. I'm
rarely cold on a bike (I have been known to return home from work in
ordinary office trousers, shirt sleeves partly rolled up, no hat,
gloves or jumper - all this at 11 pm in January with frost on the
cars). Weather forecast shows overnight lows of 15.However, when I've
stayed up all night I do get cold in the early hours, so it's easy to
carry a bit more stuff.

I have two garments which are so spectacularly useful I wouldn't now ride
without them. One is a Campag jacket which is officially only windproof
but is actually also pretty waterproof. It's made of extremely fine but
closely woven nylon and packs up into about half the size of a coke can -
but it keeps the wind out absolutely and water out adequately and is a
great thing to pull on when you're cold. The other is a buff - a short
tube of lycra which can be worn as a neckscarf or a hood or a hat, and,
again, keeps one warm out of all proportion to its size and weight.

Quoted message said:

Current major problem is my lift home. My partner agreed to pick me
up, after visiting relatives in that general direction tomorrow. It
seems obvious to me that she would take my estate car in which we
regularly move bikes, but she seems to have gone in her own car.
Anybody know if you can actually get a bike in a Ford Puma? And she
doesn't have my fresh clothes for the journey back.

A bike really isn't very big with the wheels off - I've never tried in a
Puma, but Peugeot 106, Peugeot 207, Citroen 2CV, Citroen AX, Vauxhall
Nova, Vauxhall Corsa all work for certain - and I'm a big guy and my bikes
are similarly big.

Quoted message said:

Right, time for my big bowl of pasta.

Best of luck!

--
[email hidden] (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/

Anagram: I'm soon broke.

leandr42 said:

1) How much water do I need to carry. Route card shows water stops at
20, 50 (not certain about this one but seems likely) and 80 miles .
Will 2 litres be enough to get me between stops?

I plan to carry 4 litres, but I do tend to drink rather a lot. I'll
also be using some of that to make up energy drinks.

I like to allow one bottle for every 10 miles, a bottle being about
660ml. I'll be carrying 3 of those bottles, plus 2 x 1l Platypuses.

My current energy drink of choice is PSP Go. I expect to drink about 3
bottles of it during the EE. I'll start with a bottle already made up,
and I'll be carrying measured amounts of powder in old vitamin pots to
make up more.

Quoted message said:

2) Food recommendations. Presumably some sort of energy cereal bar,
bananas. How many, how often should I eat? I don't think normal hunger
will be a good guide.

Bananas should be an excellent choice. Not for me though, I can't eat
the things. I'll be carrying flapjacks, Nutri-Grains, energy bars
(Maxim) and energy gels. I'll be carrying more than I expect to need
because I'd rather carry a little extra weight than risk running out of
food.

I'll be eating porridge for breakfast and noodles for lunch. Haven't
decided on dinner yet. If I had any sense, I'd be in bed right now
getting a good night's sleep before the event.

Quoted message said:

Any other advice welcome (pre-ride eating? ride etiquette for this
sort of thing?) as there are probably other questions I don't yet know
I should ask.

Given the weather forecast, I plan to carry a complete change of clothes
(except for shoes). If I get caught in a torrential downpour on the way
past Taunton I can then get changed when the rain stops and complete the
ride in relative comfort.

The rain is forecast to be heavy enough that I plan to wear my Gore-Tex.
Unfortunately, the temperature is forecast to be high enough that the
Gore-Tex will be too warm. I can see that I might be changing my outer
layer several times during the ride (my favourite gilet should be
perfect for the bits when it's not hammering down).

I started preparing a list a couple of weeks ago, to make sure I don't
forget anything important:
Lights
GPS
OS maps
MP3 player
AAA batteries
AA batteries
Small screwdriver (for changing batteries in lights)
Compass

Reflective armbands
Reflective ankle bands
arm warmers
leg warmers
GB gilet
Pearl Izumi gilet
Sleeved jersey
Buffs
Knee support
Goretex (if rain forecast)
Waterproof hat

Bottles
Platypuses
Breakfast receipt

Energy Gel
Go
Maxim bars
Red Bull
Ibuprofen
Sun cream

--
Danny Colyer <URL:http://www.colyer.plus.com/danny/>
Reply address is valid, but that on my website is checked more often
"Daddy, put that down. Daddy, put that down. Daddy, put that down.
Daddy, why did you put that down?" - Charlie Colyer, age 2

Helen Deborah Vecht said:

Eat if you get a p*nct*r*, before you fix it. <snip> Your
hands will be cleaner before you start on the mechanics...

I keep a small first aid kit in my pannier. This includes disposable
gloves, which could be worn while carrying out repairs if I could ever
be bothered to get them out. It also includes antiseptic wipes, which I
use to clean my hands if I want to eat after fixing a puncture.

I fitted a Marathon Plus to my front wheel yesterday. I'm not saying
any more than that, I don't want to tempt the PF.

--
Danny Colyer <URL:http://www.colyer.plus.com/danny/>
Reply address is valid, but that on my website is checked more often
"Daddy, put that down. Daddy, put that down. Daddy, put that down.
Daddy, why did you put that down?" - Charlie Colyer, age 2

Quoted message said:

Current major problem is my lift home. My partner agreed to pick me
up, after visiting relatives in that general direction tomorrow. It
seems obvious to me that she would take my estate car in which we
regularly move bikes, but she seems to have gone in her own car.
Anybody know if you can actually get a bike in a Ford Puma? And she
doesn't have my fresh clothes for the journey back.

I hope there are bike places available on the trains tomorrow. If not,
it's a long ride back. But at least the wind will be behind me:-)

Where is home? DW is picking me up from Exmouth. I'm making no
promises, but assuming that I actually get there we should be able to
bring an extra bike (but not an extra body) back to Bristol.

You should be able to spot me easily enough. I'll be the beardy bloke
on the red Street Machine.

--
Danny Colyer <URL:http://www.colyer.plus.com/danny/>
Reply address is valid, but that on my website is checked more often
"Daddy, put that down. Daddy, put that down. Daddy, put that down.
Daddy, why did you put that down?" - Charlie Colyer, age 2

In article <[email hidden]>,
[email hidden] says...
<snip>

Quoted message said:

Current major problem is my lift home. My partner agreed to pick me
up, after visiting relatives in that general direction tomorrow. It
seems obvious to me that she would take my estate car in which we
regularly move bikes, but she seems to have gone in her own car.
Anybody know if you can actually get a bike in a Ford Puma?

I expect so. You may need to remove various bits - wheels (obviously),
mudguards, rack, handlebars, pedals ...

Quoted message said:

And she doesn't have my fresh clothes for the journey back.

Freshen up in the sea? :-)

Quoting <[email hidden]>:

Quoted message said:

Food advice is useful, thanks. Except I don't know what the famous fig
newton is - presumably another name for a fig roll?

Indeed.
--
David Damerell <[email hidden]> flcl?
Today is First Sunday, Presuary - a weekend.