My new commuting bike.

[Jefferson Meriwether]

Back in November a widowed friend of my parents gave me her husbands Raleigh Courier for free as it was just sitting in her garage gathering dust. She said I could either do it up and sell it on E-Bay or do it up and keep it for myself; suffice to say I'm keeping it for myself. I haven't dated it yet but I think it's only about 10 years old at the most.

I got two new tyres for it as the old ones were perished. I also put two new inner tubes on it; one day I'll get round to testing the old ones & see if they're good. The chain snapped one day when I was giving it a test ride up my street. Rather than buy a chain and fit it myself I booked it into my LBS and asked them to give it a full service. I just collected it today; apart from a new chain all it needed was a new indicator chain. I rode it home from Colyton & it was a pretty good ride despite the saddle being a bit low; I'll need to raise it a bit before my commute tomorrow.

I wasn't sure how I'd cope pootling up Bos Hill seeing as it's only a 3 gear but didn't have any real problems getting up in 1st gear; it would have been a bit easier if the saddle had been a bit higher. I'm sure I'll cope fine commuting to Bridport and back on it. One down side was that as I was approaching the outskirts of Lyme I was going up a slight hill in 2nd and the chain started to skip a bit. I'm not sure if it was because I wasn't properly in 2nd gear or if there is some kind of problem; hopefully it was the former. I'll have to see how it goes. One slightly annoying thing was the chain started to skip a bit just as I was setting myself up to safely scalp 4 cyclists in one fell swoop. (Some people might say it's a good thing I didn't get to scalp 4 in one go.)

I've given Him the UNoriginal name of Sturmey as it's got a Sturmer Archer hub. Korma is no longer going to be my commuter bike; she's just going to be for my leisure cycle rides. So yeah, I'm looking forward to tomorrows commute I'm going to give myself a bit of extra time because I'm half expecting the hills to be a little bit more challenging.

 

[Nigeyy]

Doesn't exist without pictures...

 

[Jefferson Meriwether]

Pics will be posted in the next day or two

 

[Easytigers]

Would be really interested to see it...get those pics up!!!

 

[Peteaud]

Those hills in Lyme are killers at the best of times.

 

[Jefferson Meriwether]

They certainly are killers aren't they. I've often said that with cycling in Lyme you either get fit or give up. Just been out for an evening bimble along the backroads of Uplyme; Springhead Lane got the better of me. At least I did better than when I first started cycling; I didn't have the stamina to even cycle to Uplyme then.

I've decided I'm commuting the back roads for a little while as they're not quite as hilly as the A35 so I can bimble along. Plus they're nice & quiet so I'll have piece and quiet if I have to walk a bit. I'll soon have the umph to tackle Chideock hill on Sturmey. I certainly admire people who ride fixies.

 

[Peteaud]

They certainly are killers aren't they. I've often said that with cycling in Lyme you either get fit or give up. Just been out for an evening bimble along the backroads of Uplyme; Springhead Lane got the better of me. At least I did better than when I first started cycling; I didn't have the stamina to even cycle to Uplyme then.

I've decided I'm commuting the back roads for a little while as they're not quite as hilly as the A35 so I can bimble along. Plus they're nice & quiet so I'll have piece and quiet if I have to walk a bit. I'll soon have the umph to tackle Chideock hill on Sturmey. I certainly admire people who ride fixies.

I would keep of the A35 anyway.

uplyme is stunning scenery, and the hills are worth it for the views.

 

[Jefferson Meriwether]

I don't mind the A35 myself; I've been cycling along it for about 15 months in all.

The views definitely make the hills worthwhile. I love cycling up Woodhouse Lane towards Trinity Hill and seeing the views across the valley towards the Viaduct.

 

[PaulSB]

I had to Google the bike as u didn't know it. Found this for you:

http://www.cyclechat.net/threads/freecycle-raleigh-courier-rebuild.86236/

 

[biggs682]

nice to hear 3 speed bikes still going strong i used an elderly Phillips 3 speeder for commuting machine for ages very enjoyable

 

[Jefferson Meriwether]

Went to take pics this afternoon & my tempermental camera decided it wasn't going to work at all. I've finally decided to get a new one as it's so unreliable, plus the pics are more often than not poor quality. Ah the joys of cheap and cheerful cameras. Pics will appear eventually, honest

Had a nice commute to work and back through the countryside yesterday. The commute in was only about 10-20 minutes slower than it would have been on my road bike. I ended up covering the evening shift at work so set off home about quater to ten. There were a couple of areas where the surface water was just starting to freeze & my wheels slipped a tiny bit. I also stopped for about 5 minutes and just enjoyed staring up at the stars, making the most of the clear sky and lack of light pollution.

I might possibly have the odd moment when I grumble about only having 3 speed but it's safe to say this bike is for keeps; I've no intention of getting rid of it.