It was a bit cold, so……

….I thought it best to go out on my bike and take some pictures (of my bike and aircraft).

With the lack of any decent snow this winter I couldn’t wait to get out and test the winter tyres I bought 2 months ago. The did offer grip so happy with the purchase. Anyway, pictures….

cold bike

As you can see, there’s a fair bit of snow building up around the brakes – which makes them unusable. However a short trip on a slushy road soon sorted that out.

So time for a few winter aircraft shots…..

baby Air France A318)

Thomas Cook 757 - reverse thrust

So there you go, winter and some images what more could you want?

Cycling to Work

Not sure if I’ve mentioned it before, but for the last 4 (might have been a bit more I should’ve kept a note!) months I’ve started to cycle to work. I did a little bit last year, but I’ve been cycling for a good 3 months now. Only got soaked once, which on reflection isn’t too bad. In fact I’ve probably got caught out more when on the bus or train to be honest.

A couple of things have come out of it. First off, on balance I think it’s saved me money. My weekly transport costs used to be either £40 in petrol, or around £15 for a combination of bus/train. My bike…….

The Beast

….is getting on a bit, so I’ve spent a little on maintenance.

Last year I bought some road tyres around £40, a new rear wheel this year £40, Mudguards £20, Light £30 and clothing around £100. So roughly around £230 in bits so divided over 16 weeks it’s a little under £15

The second benefit has been weight, despite me still eating rubbish I managed to loose a stone. Which to be honest is probably worth the £230 alone.

I do feel better for it and enjoy cycling through the endless queues of stationary traffic on the roads. I hope to continue throughout the winter probably purchasing some winter shoes and some water proof leggings (hoping that Aldi have another Bike offer to be honest). Also should add the bike really could do with a service. I think the crank bearings have seen better days – that said I’m hoping to pick up another bike (second hand) via a friend of a friend. So that might mean I can rest the old Marin for Spring/Summer duty.