still cycling, still in one piece

...though the cheap folding bike might be proving a lemon. 

There's just no comparision between how easy, smooth, rewarding and responsive my trusty old 10 speed is to ride, compared to this new foldie.

The old one was my dad's dream bike - that is, the Al-alloy bike he'd have given an arm for in 1947 as a competitive cyclist, which by mid-80s was perfectly run of the mill. It's now positively old-fashioned-looking, with a modified straight handlebar, and all the signs of benign neglect of 20+ years.

By dint of a couple of weeks' practice, I've shaved 3-4 mins off the trip time on either bike, but the difference in the amount of physical effort involved to push the foldie around vs the old trusty is striking. 

On top of that - danged thing got a flat yesterday on the foldie, almost exactly halfway home. Sigh.

SO: for the duration, I'm on my trusty, and locking it securely at the Tube stop halfway to work. 

If I end up flogging the foldie on the for sale list at work, it won't be fatal. It's not a lemon car or computer, which would have set me back a great deal more.

I haven't been running at lunchtime of late (figuring that 1 hr on the bike roughly equivalent to 1/2 hr running towards fitness regime, if less stressful on the joints) but I'm hoping my stamina hasn't fallen behind as a result. 

At Raglan next week(!) three gents are challenging into the highest level of the rapier academy rankings - includes an hour's worth of fighting all comers. I'm hoping to contribute my share towards these bouts, and not embarrass myself entirely, even if I'm out of fencing practice.

Fab new pub for Londoners

The Cock Tavern just reopened near Hackney Central and what a gem it is! At least to this reviewer.

Beer in the evening opinion

We found it quite by happenstance, when the Pub in the Park we wanted to take guests to was heaving and pounding with music - not really the venue for bringing 3 60-somethings, one of whom is deaf in one ear. :-)

Robert did a very quick recce of the two remaining pubs between us and the train station, and we decided this one was worth a half-pint test. Awesome result.

Aside from the excellent range, and the in-house pork pies, there's a complete lack of: jukeboxes, fruit machines, Sky, big-screen TVs, AND... NO grotty pub carpet. People are welcome to drink, and to talk. How delightful!

I swear half the pubs in England, even otherwise quite  nice ones, all order their  wall-to-wall carpet from the same source - it's typically patterned as if you had a selection of luxurious Persian throw rugs arrayed on the floor. Except you don't - you have grotty pub carpet, that presumeably hides beer and food stains in the pattern. Ick ick ick.

It was very satisfying to take Master Ricard of Sable Tree to a decent English pub (one of the first peers I met in Ealdormere - almost unchanged by age, amazingly) for really yummy English stout. The cider on tap was good for my former coach J and her partner G.

So we're taking a second round of guests there, just to make certain it's as lovely as the first time. Yum.