The 2025 Half Century (50km or 50 mile) Challenge Chatzone.

[ColinJ]

I have fallen for the hidden tailwind trick before. I once did a really fast ascent up the A58 from Littleborough, not realising that it was very wind-assisted until I turned at the summit and then found it harder to ride down the hill!!

Expanding on that...

The big hills round here are very exposed to any wind. Normally, it is very obvious because of wind noise.

With a tailwind at exactly the speed that one is riding at though, there can be an eerie silence. There might be clues in roadside vegetation (or leaves on the road at this time of year) or (these days here) spinning wind turbine blades, but the biggest clue is that one has suddenly developed the climbing ability of Pog, or a fairly fit rider on a decent e-bike!

 

[Jon George]

Expanding on that...

The big hills round here are very exposed to any wind. Normally, it is very obvious because of wind noise.

With a tailwind at exactly the speed that one is riding at though, there can be an eerie silence. There might be clues in roadside vegetation (or leaves on the road at this time of year) or (these days here) spinning wind turbine blades, but the biggest clue is that one has suddenly developed the climbing ability of Pog, or a fairly fit rider on a decent e-bike!

Normally, I get very suspicious when I find I'm progressing along the roads around here like I'm superman, but not today. I can be quite susceptible to enjoying a ride.
Every cloud though: I did a closer inspection of the bike I used (I realised from the sound it was making that the chain needed re-waxing) than I usually do, to see if I could add a bit of extra free assistance, and discovered one of BB bearings feeling slightly stiff. Over-haul before the winter sets in is now on the Things To Do List.

 

[Jon George]

Postscript to previous post. Chain waxed; BB bearing replaced; jockey wheels cleaned; Pully for front derailleur un-seized and greased. Test ride was like being on a new bike. Wonderful.

 

[ColinJ]

I called in at my LBS today to check on progress with my CAADX fork replacement. That should be sorted out in the next few days, at which point my best bike will be put away for the winter.

The CAADX is a great winter bike because it has the longest possible mudguards for almost complete protection, and disc brakes to save the wheel rims from being ground away by salt and grit.

Armed with that bike I hope to significantly exceed the single 50 km ride needed in December to complete the 2025 challenge.

 

[bluenotebob]

Just setting down a marker that I did 56km yesterday – on two bikes with a short break for a sandwich between rides. I wouldn’t normally count this as a qualifying ride but looking at the weather forecast – wind, rain and thunderstorms until at least the 20th November – I may, in extremis – have to fall back on this as my November qualifier. But hopefully I won’t and the weather will be a bit kinder.

By early evening yesterday, I’d dragged myself over 10,000km in 2025 and managed to bump my annual metric Eddington up to 53km. I only discovered this in October and I wish I’d known about it earlier. But there’s always next year to try and get it up towards 60km.

Only a few weeks shy of my 73rd birthday and I’ve just signed up for another new bike. It’s a LaPierre/Crosshill gravel bike and will become the seventh in my ‘fleet’. I already have a very good gravel bike – the KTM X-Strada – which is great for towpaths and gravelled Greenways but is a bit slow on other surfaces with her chunky 40mm tyres. The new bike will have 32mm Continental ‘Speed’ tyres and should be better adapted to local muddy lanes and the leaf/acorn/branch/chestnut strewn local Voie Verte (currently ankle-deep in leaf slush).

I should take delivery of the new bike between the 17th and 20th November, and photos will follow in due course. I also hope that she’ll get in a 50+km ride before the end of the month.

 

[Jon George]

It's been over a year since I last strung together three rides in a week that were nearly 40 miles in length each and it will be a surprise to absolutely no-one that having a bike with fresh BB bearings and other parts serviced aids in achieving this.

This at Coddenham.

 

[ColinJ]

I called in at my LBS today to check on progress with my CAADX fork replacement. That should be sorted out in the next few days, at which point my best bike will be put away for the winter.

Sorted!

I picked the bike up this afternoon. The new fork is all carbon fibre, whereas the old CF fork had aluminium steerer and dropouts. The bike is still quite heavy, but a little lighter than before. I don't mind the weight on a winter bike though.

It turned out that the lower headset bearing was iffy so that has been replaced too.

I had already upgraded the STI controls from clunky old 10-speed Tiagra (with exposed cables) to 10 speed 105 (cables under bar tape). The gear shifting and braking are a great improvement over what I had to put up with previously.

I just have to put the front mudguard back on now, then I'll be ready for mucky Yorkshire/Lancashire roads over the next 4 months or so.