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Film Review - Ride of My Life: The Story of the Bicycle

I saw this film at the Leeds Bicycle Film club a while back. (I think I’ve posted about the film club before, but in case you missed it, here is the link: http://leedsbicyclefilmclub.com/

This is a pretty good documentary about one man’s quest to build a custom bike out of the very best parts. It’s an interesting story that visits some great characters in the bike trade along the way. I’d reccomend seeing it, or there is also a book version I think, so that’s probably good to. And, if you live in Leeds, come along to the Bicycle Film club, it’s pretty fab! x

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What’s turning my pedals - January

So - I have mainly been writing my PhD thesis, hence the distinct lack of posts. But, I’ll try and be a bit more regular. And here are a few of the things that I’m enjoying this month.

For Christmas, I got the Leon Vegetarian Cookbook, and I’m really enjoying cooking lots of delicious new things from that. My current favourite, I think, is their squash and bean stew.

I just recently finished reading ‘A Brief History of Seven Killings’ by Marlon James, which won last year’s Man Booker prize. Set in Jamaica and the USA over several decades, it tells the stories of the gangs of Kingston, and the attempted assassination of Bob Marley. This is a complicated, extremely violent and VERY long book, but totally worth it, I loved it. I was gripped throughout and I would definitely recommend it. 

I got a Fairphone! I’ve been waiting a long time to get a new phone, my old one was dying, and I’m really pleased with it. Find out more about Fairphone here: https://www.fairphone.com/

And finally, I could write a blog about January and not share one of my favourite Bowie songs. I was so saddened by his death. He will be missed by so many. So here is Heroes.

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View is an illustration found on It’s Nice That’s profile of the work of Swede Jeff Östberg.

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New year hopes and dreams!

Ok, as the year draws to a close I’m going to reflect on 2015 and look towards what 2016 may bring, both for cycling and the rest of my life!

At the start of the year I wrote a post that said my hopes were to cycle more with Valley Striders and go on an Otesha cycle tour. I have ridden with Valley Striders a bit but definitely want to do more next year. I didn’t make it on an Otesha tour due to work situations which meant I couldn’t commit the time, but maybe this year... who knows?!

In the coming year, my cycling goals are to do a triathlon, hoping to enter York triathlon in April. I also want to go on an international cycling adventure. This is intentionally vague because I have NO idea what job I’ll be doing, therefore how much time/money I’ll have, but I definitely want to go on some kind of trip, probably to somewhere in Europe. 

Other than cycling related things, my main goal for 2016 is to finish my PhD!!!!! So, if the blog goes quiet, which I know it has been a little quieter than usual the last couple of months, it’s because I’m off in a PhD thesis hole, but I’ll be climbing out of it at some point and hopefully I can keep up the cycling chat anyway!

I hope that 2016 brings you health and happiness, and if you are a cyclist then lots of beautiful sunny days of riding.

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A festive treat to myself... I bought a Garmin! Hoping the weather will be good enough to take it on a ride in the next few days! Look out for my Garmin buyers guide coming soon!

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So I bought this today... Triathlon 2016...

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'cycle on your bicycle, leave all this misery behind'

I love the sentiment in this line from this week's Bicycle Tune, this is Painkiller by Turin Brakes

I hope you like it

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The People’s Climate March

Apologies - this is not a cycling related post, but it is about the environment, which hopefully, as someone who is interested in cycling, you might be interested in too!

Over the next fortnight, world leaders will be coming together in Paris to negotiate a climate deal that will (hopefully) be legally binding and ambitious. This weekend, people all over the world will be marching to call for this and to show those leaders that we are watching and we demand action. I will be at the march in London, details are here: https://www.facebook.com/events/516078015212179/

There is also a march in Leeds and lots of other events happening in Yorkshire, which you can find out about here: http://fortheloveofyorkshire.org/

I hope you can get involved.

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I got the Isle of Wight, where will you get???? I’d rather be in Yorkshire!

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What’s turning my pedals - November!

It’s November. It’s getting all dark and gross (sad face). But here are some things that are turning my pedals and getting me through.

I went to the Sculpture Park a couple of weeks ago (I know, here she goes on another sculpture park rave) and I saw the poppies installation. It’s really beautiful and worth checking out but they’ve been super busy, so if you can visit on a weekday I would.

This cake. It’s my favourite cake to make and eat, it’s pretty easy and it uses up ripe bananas, so give it a go: http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/black_banana_cake_52982

A heads up, it’s the climate march next weekend (29th November) in London. If you can make it to show that the world is watching Paris and demanding a deal then check out the information here: https://www.facebook.com/events/516078015212179/

This video makes me smile! It’s from the Pixar movie, Big Hero 6, which is great, so if you haven’t seen it, go check it out, it’s very heartwarming and lovely.

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Winter’s coming!

Winter is fast approaching, mudguards are compulsory on club rides, and the roads are pretty slippery. So I've been winter proofing my bike. I’ve bought new tyres this year, my old ones were ok, but my new ones have grip (what a novelty!) and I feel that I will be more confident going out in poorer conditions with these ones. Getting them fitted was challenging, getting tyres on and off is a pain! But look at my bike now! All ready for whatever the weather throws my way!

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Bicycle by Dana Sink.

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WOW!!!!!

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The Near Miss Project

Near Miss is a research project at the University of Westminster exploring the incidents that affect cyclists, which aren’t accidents and wouldn’t otherwise be recorded or reported. The project started last year, by asking cyclists to fill in a one day travel diary about their experiences and it’s happening again!

It’s a really interesting project, you can find out more about it here: Near Miss first year report

I’ve filled in my diary for this year about my journeys on the 20th October. I actually had a pretty uneventful cycle to work and home again, my only incident being some confusion with some pedestrians on a shared use bridge, but nothing too scary or annoying.

Anyway, I would encourage you to find out more about the project, it’s super cool, and get involved if you can too!

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What’s turning my pedals - October

OCTOBER! Autumn is here and it’s beautiful! Here’s what’s been turning my pedals this month.

The Rugby World Cup is in full swing and it’s brilliant! Sadly all the home nations are out, well, there are only Southern Hemisphere teams left. But it should make for some cracking semi-finals and final.

H is for Hawk - I just read this wonderful book by Helen McDonald. It’s a beautiful and heartbreaking book about grief and falconry, a strange, but fabulous mix. Check it out!

I’m all about autumn vegetables and stew at the moment, enjoying all the wonderful squashes and tasty treats that go with them. Nom nom nom. And now it’s getting colder I’m appreciating a warming cup of tea too!

So I’ve been a bit busy in PhD land which means I haven’t been doing to much exciting but I hope those things are interesting for now!

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Foggy!

It has been SUPER foggy in the mornings recently in Leeds, which set me thinking, what precautions should you take when cycling in the fog?

At first, I was a bit scared about cycling in the fog, it was super dense and I was a bit worried about being visible enough. But I’ve just bought some new, bright, rechargeable lights, and having them set on flashing they are pretty great. I had read something online that said that high vis jackets aren’t much use in the fog, but I certainly felt safer being as bright as possible.

Another thing to remember about fog is that it’s REALLY COLD and you get pretty damp. I was ok in shorts when I went out because the fog burnt off pretty quickly but it was still chilly and maybe an extra layer is needed when it is foggy.

But I think that generally it is ok to cycle in the fog. Just be extra careful and remember that cars might not see you so easily.

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PANTS

Saddles, and saddle soreness, have been recurring themes in this blog. But what I didn’t know till recently was that you are not supposed to wear pants with your cycle shorts! This is a tip I’ve picked up from Total Women’s Cycling. It feels weird at first but the point is that the chamois in the shorts is designed to be directly against you, and wearing pants underneath increases the chance of uncomfortable rubbing. And the times that I have been out without pants, it has definitely been better. So, if you have problems with saddle soreness, and you are still wearing pants, try going commando, it definitely makes a difference!