We"ve had a summer this year that didn't really get started here in the UK, and this week it felt distinctly autumnal, with drop in temperature increase in winds and the leaves have started to fall.
While i can no longer bask in the glow of the sun, to compensate I've got a new 2 wheeled muse that can bring some sunshine to even the greyest, drabbest British afternoon. Sunglasses are required all year round with this ex team pursuit/funny bike.
The front wheel is a smaller 650c size, and tyres for these are rarer that rocking horse pooh. There are no tanwalls.in 23c or 25c width anywhere on planet earth that i can see, so its black rubber only and even then only in 23c. Its been over a decade since i rode 23c tyres, and London's roads have deteriorated in that time, so my expectations were that my fillings or even whole teeth would be rattled from my skull.
But as it turns out not at all, so credit to the frame builder and whatever assortment of tubing they used for this. its much better than I was expecting, and is in fact a total riot to ride. It's like an enthusiastic dog, throw the ball, throw the ball, throw the ball, come on let's go!!! It' can detect soft pedalling and looks up disappointed as if to say, "really? You can do better than this', they're getting away!" .and when i reply, "it's a car for goodness sake, chill out. It's response is simply "that doesnt matter, we can take it, come on! COME ON! The position is exactly the same as riding on the drops of my Bottecchia, so is not an unfamiliar position for me. No I'd not recommend it for doing a ride like LEL (London-Edinburgh-London) but for blasts of a few hours around town, which is mostly what I do, it's great fun.
This week also marked the beginning of London's mural festival, with new works going up around the city for the rest of September that i shall no doubt visit and share here. And by compete luck the first big mural completed is about 2 streets away from my house. This excellent work is by Spanish artist Sebas Velasco and is called 'a lasting place' named after a song by UK rapper Loyle Carner who was born in the borough I live in and where this is, Lambeth, one of 32 London boroughs. The subject is a local young man in front of a nearby Brixton train line.
As is obligatory on this bike, iI then ride over to east London like my pants are on fire, arriving wide eyed with tongue hanging out like a dog thats had its head out of the car window for the last 50 miles.
Thankfully I find a paste up wall, which is its own riot of color and gives me a good 5 minutes rest to peruse the walls contents like i was reading a paper over a morning coffee..
...before hitting the road again with lo-pro urgency, like being cattle prodded into action!
I stop for some snaps of the vents of the Leadenall Building, known affectionately by Londoners as the cheese grater because.of its shape. These painted vents are also part of.mural festival proving its not just walls that are getting a lick of paint. Artist is Nick Tez.
We set off again, each time I pull away i have to stop myself from doing the time trial beep, beep, beep, BEEP noises out loud, and appearing even more of a fruitcake than I already am.
Like a hot knife through butter, before you know it we're in Camden for final mural of the day, this one called 'a dog in hand'.by D*face.
.. here we go again, ears pinned back were off! From north to west like a neon lightening bolt tearing a hole in the space time continium, I deploy the air brakes and drop out of super sonic speeds at the Natural History Museum, where they have filled the grounds with various tree ferns to recreate the habitat of the dinosaur era....
...and like an ancient prehistoric flower the glowing Pinarello attracts the attention of a grqzing diplodocus...
It will never catch us of course as we are too quick, *boom* and in a blink of an eye we're gone again, warp speeding across town towards home. It's a bit windy for deep rims today...
...but the neon hurricane gets me home so fast I think we've gone back in time and I arrive back younger than when I departed, haha if only
