First Ride

Finally got out on the bike! The weather has marginally improved, with a few bright spells and only a drop or two of rain, although we woke to a fresh covering of snow at the top of the nearby peaks and up towards Avoriaz.

Today was spent doing 7 runs of Le Pleney, which continued to dry throughout the day, getting faster, but also rougher. It hasn't really changed much, except for the removal of that silly double nearish to the top. The 10% has also got no less scary...

A guided tour of The Barn

Ok, so here is a little guided tour of the Barn. Apologies for the old man style commentary. Shame it wasn't sunny so I could show you the views, but at least you get to see the luxury I'm living in!

EDIT: The video seems to be not working, hopefully this is a temporary issue...
RE-EDIT: Here is a temporary version of the vid

On the road to Morzine

I made it! I am alive and well, only one slight hold-up, other than that, the journey wasn't too bad. It definitely gets more interesting as you get into the mountains. However, for me, so did the weather.

Then came the climb up into Morzine, in the cloud, which my little car didn't enjoy as much as I did, probably used a tonne of fuel to get it up there, but mountain roads are simply amazing to drive, even in a little old car in poor weather.

The video isn't that interesting, but there's a little of me driving, and something about a hairy dog that I'm sure you'll want to hear about. I forgot to video me at the tolls, as that was probably interesting to watch me scrabble to the other side of the car, sorry folks.

And now I'm here, it's been raining a lot. I want it to stop as there are some outdoor jobs that need doing, and I need to go shopping and get my rear wheel sorted.

Tools at the Barn

If you're staying at the Barn with Riders Retreat, and planning on bringing your own tools with you, it might be useful for you to know what will already be here in my toolkit. All guests can borrow any of my tools, if they're not lying around, just ask!

So here is a list of tools which I will be bringing:

-2 allen key sets of mediocre quality
-bb and crank bolt tool for hollowtech 2 cranks/bb cups
-ISIS bb tool
-Square taper bb tool
-Old skool crank puller
-Cassette lockring tool
-Chainwhip
-Pedal spanner
-Cable cutters
-T25 tool for disc rotors
-Shock pump
-Some screwdrivers
-A little spanner that should fit the nuts on orange shock shuttles (fits my patriot 66 at least)
-A chain tool
-Some tyre levers if I can find them all
-Grease, loctite, and some chain lube (though this is likely to get used quick so I might hide it!)
-A file
-Anything else you can see in the photo, a few bolts, might even have a few half used brake pads lying around

That should be everything, I'll see what else I can find that might be useful for guests. Hopefully knowing what is here already will help you keep the weight down to keep the airport staff smiling in case you were going to be brining a suitcase of tools.

There is also an assortment of tools at each of the Riders Retreat chalets, along with a workstand and a pump to add to my list aswell, so don't fret if you can't fit all your tools in.

BarCam

This started out as a bit of a joke, 'I know, I'll attach a camera to my bars!'. But then I realised I had an old camera and a child inside me that wanted to do arts and crafts...

So I made a little cradle for the camera, zip tied it to the bars and there it was: BarCam V1. It needs some adjusting and altering, and I need to think about my cables, though I've run out of zip ties for now. Something else to buy then.

Organisation, decals, bits and bobs

Well I'm back from Uni so getting on with sorting myself out. Ferry is booked, car is booked to go in for a service and the bike prep has begun.

Still on the to do list is to get a satnav, get some European breakdown cover and get a green card to go with my car insurance. It seems like I've left a couple of bits to the last minute, but I'm still feeling like my organisation is going ok.

To get things started, I've applied the decals I got from Regal Graphics which are looking good. I've also got my bits and bobs together. Still to buy are some frame bearings and shock bolts, and then get my wheel built up onto the new hub.

Practice

There's about three weeks till I'm heading out To stay in Morzine with Riders Retreat. I've been trying to get out on my bike as much as possible so today I headed out to the local BMX track after doing some laps of the campus.

Also to try and remember what it's like out there I've been watching loads of videos of riding out there. Check out the one below.