Bedfordshire Road CC '25' 12/4/15

This event was on the F1B/25, the southbound course starting and finishing near Tempsford (the only F1 course remaining now the Black Cat roundabout has been “improved”. The forecast was really not encouraging: cold and breezy - at least it was a (sort of) tail wind from the south. I had chosen to ride the P5 with the Hed wheels (with a Powertap rear hub) that I used for Wednesday’s club event. In fact, I disobeyed Team Grumpy Rule #2, by tinkering with the bike on the day before, fitting normal brake blocks instead of the carbon-specific cork blocks.

Warming up before the event, I did several accelerations to check the rear wheel was solidly in place. The start crew were very good, particularly the pusher-off, who held riders very steadily from behind. He must have got a bit of shock when I stopped almost immediately after starting, as I pulled my rear wheel and jammed it firm against the brake block. It took two attempts to sort this out, but which time the guy starting behind had passed me. First time I’ve been caught for a minute within 10 metres. After the event, I spoke to the pusher-off who said he’d worried it was something to do with him. Not to worry, it was all my fault!

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Stoke Hammond '10' 8/4/15

This was the first of our evening events in the calendar, and was on the revised Stoke Hammond ’10’ course, which moves the start away from the Kelly’s Kitchen roundabout. It’s potentially quite a quick course, I think, though the short stretch on the outward leg between the penultimate roundabout and the turn roundabout can be a bit challenging, as it’s uphill.

Anyway, it was rather nice evening that followed a very nice spring-like day. We saw more than the maximum field size turn out - 22 riders. I was pre-entered as #7 owing to the fact that I went home from the previous event (the Hardriders) with #7 still pinned to my skinsuit.

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Team Salesengine '10' 4/4/15

This event was my first open solo event of 2015, and was an afternoon '10' held on the F2D/10, a course based on the A428, turning at the junction with the Madingley Road into Cambridge. The weather was pretty cold, with a bit of a stiff crosswind that may have provided a bit of assistance (but not much) on the outward leg. The event also revealed a bit of an issue with the Kask aero hat!I went out to "warm up" near the start, but really only succeeded in getting quite cold! The start is down a road running alongside the A428 dual carriageway, so that provides a useful stretch of road to ride up an down.  The start itself is by a large water tower, and it's only a short distance to the roundabout where we join the sliproad to the A428 - not much time to get up to speed before slowing to take a sharp left. I went off down the sliproad pretty briskly, and just before joining the A428 proper, I looked over my right shoulder to check out the traffic situation. At this point my visor (attached with small magnets) caught the wind and flipped straight off the helmet. This was a bit annoying - I reckoned replacement visors come particularly cheap (an eyewatering £43.99 at Wiggle!!!) and for the rest of the race, my thoughts kept returning to the fate of the visor!Anyway, there was no way I was going to stop to retrieve it and I pressed on. My hands were feeling a little chilly, but apart from that I didn't feel particularly cold once I was riding. The road is a pretty nice dual carriageway course that undulates a bit, so my speed (the only numbers I could read on my Garmin) did fluctuate a bit.The turn is a bit fiddly, but at least my memory of it from previous rides was accurate - a sliproad takes you off the dual carriageway, then eventually to a roundabout that you have to ride all the way round to get to the correct exit to return to the A428. Riding back down to the dual carriageway builds up a fair bit of speed, but fairly soon after, I found myself going inexplicably slowly - presumably a combination of a slight gradient and the headwind.Not much to report on the return leg, other than I got slightly stalled by traffic at the Cambourne junction. But still that won't have represented much of a dent to my time! The it was back to the HQ to see some times, eat cake etc. I finished in 31st place with 22:44, which was a bit quicker than last year's 22:54 (and in similar conditons). Tony was 36th with 23:00. The winner was Jason Boutell with a cracking ride of 19:57.Oh, and after the event, we went off in search of my errant visor. We found it apparently undamaged sitting on its edge in the hard shoulder of the sliproad. So a happy ending, though I'll have to figure out a better way of attaching it in future.[caption id="attachment_3418" align="alignnone" width="1000"] Near the turn, minus visor (Photo: Davey Jones)[/caption][caption id="attachment_3419" align="alignnone" width="640"] Rear view showing the number pocket (Photo: Davey Jones)[/caption]Garmin Trace (no power meter used)Top 36 places (full result here):

PositionRiderClub/TeamMinSec
1Jason BouttellTeam Velovelocity.co.uk1957
2David McGawCambridge CC2004
2Justin LayneCC Ashwell2004
4Mark ArnoldCC Desiragear2025
5Simon NormanArbis-Colbert Cycles RT2027
6Luke HattersleySt Ives CC2033
7Daniel NorthoverFinsbury Park CC2036
8Mick HodsonSt Ives CC2043
9Tom TrimbleCC Ashwell2044
10George FoxKingscliffe Flyers2045
11Daniel BloyTeam Velovelocity.co.uk2050
12Carl WhitwellSt Ives CC2101
13Phil Melling45 RC2103
14Stu WrightCarnac Planet X2120
15Richard HancockSt Neots CC2122
16Jason GreenBedfordshire Road CC2126
17Mathew EleyEly & District CC2127
18Gavin MooreTeam Velovelocity.co.uk2129
19John MulveyCambridge University CC2141
20Robert WatsonNewmarket Cycling & Triathlon Club2150
21Martin ReynoldsCambridge CC2155
22Ryan MorleyFibrax-Wrexham RC2210
23Michael MartinCC Ashwell2214
23Neil WoodDig Deep Coaching - SCU2214
25Gavin AshfieldHitchin Nomads CC2215
26Mark EllisTeam Milton Keynes2226
27Adrian TavernaSt Neots CC2232
28Paul Southern45 RC2233
29Franz FuerstCambridge CC2234
30Robert GoldingEly & District CC2240
31Robert SaundersNorth Bucks RC2244
32Stuart JonesKettering CC2246
33Chris PearceCC Ashwell2247
34Tom SykesEly & District CC2251
35Tim ChildsWesterley CC2252
36Tony ParksNorth Bucks RC2300
 

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Mini HiFi

I have posted before now about the excellent Squeezebox streaming audio system from Logitech that is sadly now discontinued. Since Logitech knocked their line of Squeezebox players on the head, the system seems to continue flourishing, thanks to the open source nature of the server software.

Most recently, the BBC decided to implement a very poorly publicised change to the internet streams of live and listen again radio programmes (see, for example, this blog post).  Within days users of the Logitech Server had access to these streams restored, thanks to the efforts of developers who post on the forums. In contrast, users of just about every internet radio on the market and other streaming systems such as Sonos have to make do with pretty low resolution mp3 streams (and these are not a long term solution).

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Hardriders '20' 29/3/15

It was clear several days beforehand that the Hardriders 20 mile time trial was going to be ridden in seriously tough conditions. And so it proved. On a hastily relocated course (due to roadworks on the original course) involving two laps of the Astwood circuit, seven hardy souls faced rain (heavy at times) and wind (blustery and increasing in force).I rolled up already damp (but not too cold) to what seems to be the new HQ for our Astwood circuit events, the Bikebus cafe, to find several windblown and damp riders huddling for shelter. After the usual chat about how wet it was, the seven riders got themselves sorted out. I ended up as #7, and with no others deciding to brave the elements was the last starter.All too soon, my minute man was off. I took off my jacket, gritted my teeth and listened to the countdown. Then I was off.It always surprises me how quickly one can shrug off adverse conditions. One minute you’re at the start line just getting wetter and wetter, the next you’re off...and pretty soon you’re not actually too cold. Anyway, this was two laps of the Astwood circuit, and soon I was hurtling down the descent before the Astwood climb. I could see my minute man up ahead of me on the climb. But I couldn’t really give it full effort due to the blustery wind, which tended to buffet me rather too much. I got up to Astwood having taken the climb reasonably conservatively. Out onto the main road with no holdups (unlike last week), and I tried to get into a better rhythm.The wind was building a bit, but wasn’t too much trouble with the trispoke. I passed my minute man just before Chicheley. The blustery conditions didn’t seem to offer much wind assistance at all, sadly, but did cause some hairy twitches to the steering as I rode past gaps in the hedgerows. As it turned out, I reached the finish line to complete the first lap in about 24:43, a bit quicker than the single lap event the previous weekend - I was oblivious to this, since I couldn’t read the bike computer! As I rode past the Bikebus, I heard a nice cheer from Bryan and some others, which gee’d me up a bit.The second lap was pretty much the same story as the first - though the wind seemed to have got a bit stronger an the rain stopped halfway through the lap. I finished in 50:14. Despite having passed several riders, I was surprised to find I’d won the event - by 2 seconds from Richard Golding. I repaired to the cafe for a hot cross bun and a double espresso. And some fun banter about “secret training” and comments that I ride a big gear. Usual stuff.The ride home was pretty grim. I wasn’t feeling cold, despite being quite wet from all the rain in the ride up to the event, and the event itself. But the wind had seriously strengthened, and I was having trouble keeping the bike on the road. All in all, though, this was a pretty good start to the club event series - I think maybe my form is falling back into place after February’s nasty cold - my placings have steadily improved through the three club events I’ve ridden so far.

PosNoNameClubLap 1 TimeLap 2 TimeCatVets Std.+/-Vets Std
17Robert SaundersNBRC24.4350.14V5554.57.+ 4 431
23Richard GoldingEquipe Velo/NBRC25.0350.16V4653.30.+ 3.142
31Lindz BarralEquipe Velo25.3251.35S
45Alex HornshawTeamMK26.2153.21V4753.39.+ 0.183
56Mike SmithCorley Cycles26.3853.58Sen
64Graham LineNBRC28.2958.38V5054.07.- 4.314
72Darren HaydonNBRC29.3860.12V4453.11.- 7.015

Time keepers:- Stepanie Cousins & Tony Farmborough (NBRC)

Pusher-off:- Bryan Scarborough (NBRC)

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Astwood '10' 21/3/15

Preparing my bike the evening before the event was quite alarming. Several issues: a locked pedal that required considerable grease injection before it would turn; A rather iffy job of cabling the front mech (presumably dating from the pre-race tinkering before the Duo last year); and a severely rusted chain (presumably I didn’t lubricate it well enough after cleaning up the bike on January 1st). However, all quite easily remedied on a beautiful sunny and warm spring evening.Oh how things changed overnight. The day of our “Come and try it” 10 mile time trial on the Astwood circuit was cold and blighted by a strong northerly wind.  And I nearly didn't make it to the start owing to a black cat with suicidal tendencies that dived under my front wheel on the way up to the race! We'd decided to revise the Astwood course for this event: the revision meant the start was close to the BikeBus cafe - convenient for refuelling after the event, plus it offered some shelter from the elements. The downside was that the start point was fully exposed to the chilly north wind - I suspect I wasn't alone in shivering as I set off.This wasn't the first time I'd raced on the Astwood circuit with a start point that differs from that normally used by NBRC, as TeamMK have used a further variant. But our new variant has the climb to Astwood rather soon after the start. personally, I prefer to get that over and done with as soon as possible. Unfortunately it was made a little less pleasant by the cold head wind up the hill. I could see my minute man in the yellow and blue Equipe Velo strip - he didn't seem that far ahead!As I turned left into Astwood High Street, I was annoyed to see a car backing out into the road. I eased back slightly and followed it to the junction with the A422, where it stopped. And waited. And waited some more. I unclipped and put my foot on the tarmac. And still it waited. After what seemed an eternity, the driver finally drove out onto the A422, leaving me somewhat cross - not helped by my club mates Graham and Dave who informed me it had cost me at least 30secs (actually probably a fair bit less!)...Out on the main road I clipped back in and set off. The wind, though cold and slowing me down, wasn't so bad as to make steering difficult. It didn't seem to offer much assistance as I rode off to turn at Chicheley - once round onto the backroads to North Crawley, there were some really quite quick spells. I motored on back to the finish, which is now interestingly placed just after a small dip in the road. I finished in 3rd place and 1st on vets standard, with a long 24 (see results below).Later in the day, I recabled the front mech, so all is now fine with the P3.

PosNoNameClubTimeCatVets Std.+ / -Vets Std
120Richard WoodArbis/Colbert Cycles RT24.10S
211Simon MossEquipe Velo24.27V4126.04.+ 1.372
312Robert SaundersNBRC24.57V5527.09.+ 2.121
415Glenn TearleTeamMK25.04V4926.41.+ 1.372
513Jason LeeTeamMK25.33V4626.27.+ 0.544
610John BuchananTeam Corley Cycles25.38V4526.23.+ 0.455
71Mick AtkinsonTeamMK25.54V4126.04.+ 0.108
89Leigh SmithAlpha Road Club25.58S
94Andy WickhamNBRC26.03V4426.18.+ 0.157
1017Geoff HicksBeds Roads CC26.09S
1114Andy SmithTeamMK26.50V5727.20.+ 0.306
1221Dave GoodhewNBRC27.41V4126.04.- 1.379
138Phill ElvidgeTeamMK28.24V4126.04.- 2.2012
142Ian Stokes45 Road Club29.19V5527.09.- 2.1011
"16Andy SharpeUnattached29.19S
1619Adriana BorowskaNBRC29.31SL
175Wayne ThomasNBRC29.37V6327.59.- 1.3810
1818Darren Carter-MauldenAmpthill Velo30.37V4226.09.- 4.2814
197Luke DaniellsNBRC30.38V4226.09.- 4.2915
206Matt HollandTeam Corley Cycles31.24S
2123Alexandra KnowlesTeamMK31.33LV5028.53.- 2.4013
223Nicole TurAmpthill Velo32.45LV4028.02.- 4.4316
DNF22Finn HansonTeamMK44.44V5026.45
Time Keepers:- Stephanie Cousins & Tony Farmborough NBRC
Pusher Off & Course Marshal :- Bryan Scarborough NBRC

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Quick Review: Nopinz number pocket

I’ve had a these retrofitted to two skinsuits, less for the supposed 10W aero benefit and more for the avoidance of pin holes in expensive skinsuits, which inevitably shorten the garment’s lifespan.I rode my club skinsuit in a club event, and had my partner put the number in while I was wearing the skinsuit. This was very difficult, and you certainly wouldn’t want to ask someone you’re not intimate with to do this! On the second occasion I was using a Castelli Bodypaint skinsuit, and pushed the number in before putting the skinsuit on. Even that was a bit of fiddle, but mostly because my hands were cold.In use, the number pockets are great - none of that pricking fingers when putting a number on, or pins coming loose while warming up or racing. While the number is held really snug and with no flapping, I’ve no idea if there’s really a discernible aero benefit, but at least the days of pinholes in cycle clothing are receding!

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Quick Review: Kask Bambino aero helmet

Not new to the market, these stubby aerohats were popularised by Team Sky over the last few seasons. Very expensive, particularly when they were first released, Team Grumpy refer to these as “smurf hats” because of the slightly downturned aero tail!I can’t really comment on the helmet’s aero characteristics, other than to say that I would imagine the Bambino might be superior if you do a lot of looking down or around - this pushes the tail of a ‘normal’ aero helmet into the wind. In terms of fit, the helmet is reassuring in how stable the fit is on the head. The visor didn’t steam up, as per complaints of the early versions of the helmet. In use, I was aware of sweat in the helmet, but it didn’t dribble down onto the visor, which remained clear throughout the ’25’. I don’t know if there will be problems when racing in warmer conditions.Team Grumpy bought matte black Bambini - with the mirrored visor as shown above, they really remind me of the Power Rangers (I will leave you to Google that...). So maybe that’s the new team descriptor for them...

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Port Talbot Wheelers 2-up 25 15th March 2015

The Port Talbot Wheelers 2-up '25' has been a regular fixture on the Team Grumpy calendar for a number of years. As usual, the two evenings prior to the event were characterised by conspicuous consumption of Leffe and curry. This was an acceptable preparation, since both members of Team Grumpy had seen their pre-season training somewhat derailed by illness. We also avoided any serious bike tinkering on the day before the race. Indeed, the only issues needing dealt with were (a) Gerry's disc wheel needed to be replaced with his trispoke owing to braking issues, and (b) my left shoe wouldn't clip onto my pedal. This turned out to be due to tiny fleck of mud in the shoeplate springs! Pretty quickly all was in order.This year's event was held on the R25/25, which runs down the A465 dual carriageway from Resolven to its first turn at the Tonna roundabout, back up the A465 past the start to turn left down the B4242, turning at Ynysygerwen to finish some way past the Resolven junction. Usually the dual carriageway section is quickest, with the B4242 being quite slow, owing to its hilly nature.The morning of the event was pretty cold and bitter, despite being far from frosty. But with long sleeved thermal vests under the skinsuits and decent gloves, we were pretty much set. New kit this year included new aero hats and the addition of Nopinz number pockets on the back of our skinsuits. The Nopinz pockets seem pretty good, though getting the number in place is a bit fiddly. No pin damage to expensive skinsuits, though!After a brief warmup, we lined up and were off. Though not before an unfortunate wobble made me think we'd collide. The outbound leg to the first turn was very quick, with a stiff tailwind. We'd planned for me to take some long pulls at the front to avoid Gerry's breathing issues in the cold air - as it turned out, I think I took longer turns at the front throughout the race, Gerry still suffering the aftereffects of his recent cold.All too soon, we reached the first turn, which we rode in good style, and set off back up the dual carriageway into the headwind. For most of this leg, this just slowed us down, but for the last two miles or so, I found my Hed Stinger a bit of a handful. No real difficulty or danger, though. Round the second turn and we joined the hilly road southbound. This part of the course features some shocking road surfaces (on at least three occasions, I heard Gerry grumping about some hole or other that he'd cycled through!), and some pretty stiff climbs. We made good progress to the third and final turn before heading back to finish in 1:03:16.We weren't too disappointed with the time - it's a tough course, and anyway, our 2-up technique was pretty well oiled throughout, with both riders making appropriate accommodation to the strengths of the other. In any event, we were 15th team out of a full field of 60 teams (only three teams didn't start), and won third composite team.[caption id="attachment_3385" align="alignnone" width="1000"] Team Grumpy's first ride of 2015                                       Photograph  copyright Pete Hamer[/caption]Results (first 15 teams)

PosRiderClubTimeN2
1
Matt Rowe & Dani King
N.F.T.O. & Wiggle Honda
00:57:28
1st Composite Team
2
Daniel Gough & Gethin Llewellyn
Swansea University R.T. & "
00:57:58
1st Club Team
3
Jeremy Pile & Justin Walters
V.C.Sevale & Wyre Forest C.R.C.
00:58:59
2nd Composite Team
4
Christopher Jones & Richard Gambling
Ride Bike Wales & "
00:59:00
2nd Club Team
5
Evan Powell & Wayne Thomas
Pontypool R.C.C. & "
00:59:49
3rd Club Team
6
Phillip Tucker & Hefin Evans
Bynea C.C. & "
00:59:58
1st Team With A Junior
7
Andrew Overton & Dave Meacham
Wyre Forest C.R.C. & "
01:00:28
1st Team With A Vet
8
Dave Brice & Emyr John Griffiths
Bynea C.C. & "
01:00:36
2nd Team With A Vet
9
Trevor Lloyd & Nicholas Cleave
Swansea Whs. & "
01:01:21
3rd Team With A Vet
10
Darrel Williams & Craig Jones
Bynea C.C. & "
01:01:57
11
Kevin Bartlemore & Dan Taylor
Acme Whs & "
01:02:04
12
David Crowley & Greg Williams
P.T.W.C.C. & "
01:02:52
13
Alistar James Morgan & Garry Jones
Pontypool R.C.C. & Pontypool R.C.C.
01:03:12
Reserve
14
Nigel Taylor & James Manson
Cardiff Tri & "
01:03:13
15
Gerard Oram & R. Saunders
Bynea C.C. & North Bucks. R.C.
01:03:16
3rd Composite Team

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Stony 11.4 7th March 2015

The first club event for 2015 came around all of a sudden (for some reason, the New Year’s Day ’10’ formally belongs to the previous year’s calendar). It was to be held over at the Stony course, which in the version used by our club is at about 11.4 miles. It’s a tough course, and not one I enjoy, with a lot of climbing in the first half, and as usual, the winter, though mild, has seen further potholes open up, particularly between Beachampton and Nash.Unfortunately, I chose to ride with my deepest section front wheel - a Hed Stinger 90. I say unfortunately because by the time we got out to Stony Stratford, the wind had picked up considerably. The wind also made it feel quite chilly, though actually it was well above freezing. By the time I’d lined up at the start, my thigh muscles were shivering vigorously! Also by the time we were starting, several TeamMK club run groups were coming by, of which more later.Immediately I started, I realised I was going to have problems controlling the bike, at least on the outbound leg. The strong wind was throwing my bike all over the road. As it turned out, I had to keep off the tribars pretty much all the way to the turn. I came up behind the TeamMK club run a bit before Beachampton. Despite a Landrover being held up behind them, they didn’t delay me more than a few seconds. Unfortunately that doesn’t represent much of an excuse! Once out of Beachampton, it was a case of dodging many potholes, whiel gradually reeling in my minute man.I reached the turn after what seemed like an eternity of wrestling with the bike and fighting the headwind. But once round the turn, things were a fair bit different, and I found the going pretty good. There were one or two hairy moments when the wind gusted through gaps in the hedge, but really it was pretty much OK. Well, apart from the moment it felt as though the bike and I got lifted bodily off the tarmac for an instant.Shortly after passing through Beachampton, Jason G. came storming past like an express train, catching me for three minutes. He looks pretty fit, and has already ridden a few event. Gossip has it he’ll be focussing on time trials this year, so we should see some good times from him.Apart from a hairy moment with traffic, that was pretty much it. I finished in a lacklustre 29:42, though frankly I was pleased to just get under 30 minutes! Before the start, I said I was keen to find out if I’d recovered from the hideous cold that derailed my training in February. I have to say that I’m none the wiser given the conditions this morning. Still, at least it blew the cobwebs out of my system before next week’s Port Talbot Wh 2-up ’25’ in South Wales.Equipment note: I rode with a pair of these sunglasses,  complete with reading lens bifocals. These were recommended by Tony P. after the NYD ’10’. I think both Tony and I suffer from age-related problems reading bike computers, and these sort that out quite nicely.Results

PosNoNameClubTimeCatVets Std.+ / -Vets Std
Result of the Medium Gear Event
11John BuchananCorley Cycles32.17V4430.02.- 2.151
Result of the Un-restricted Gear Event
15Jason GurneyArbis/ Colbert Cycles26.32V4530.07.+ 3.351
211Richard WoodArbis/ Colbert Cycles27.31S
38Mark EllisTeamMK28.16V5030.33.+ 2.172
415Rob FletcherArbis/ Colbert Cycles28.30V4430.02.+ 1.323
514Steve TorleyTeamMK28.31S
612James FoxCC Luton28.56S
710Matt WoottonTeamMK29.16S
82Robert SaundersNBRC29.42V5531.00.+ 1.184
97Jason LeeTeamMK30.17V4530.07.- 0.105
106Andy WickhamNBRC30.20V4430.02.- 0.186
114Chris MasonA5 Rangers30.57V4129.45.- 1.127
123Ant SmithTeamMK31.51S
139Wayne ThomasNBRC34.18V6331.57.- 2.218
1413Neill BoddingtonNBRC34.56V4029.39.- 5.179
1516Mike FitsellTeamMK38.01V5230.33.- 7.2810
Time Keepers:- Steph Cousins & Tony Farmborough NBRC
Pusher Off:- Bryan Scarborough NBRC
 

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Samsung Galaxy Note Pro 12.2 - the return of the stylus

So far, I have owned and used iPads (first generation iPad, third generation iPad and a first generation iPad mini for work). I posted previously about my search for a usable stylus for iPad (Smartphones, tablets and styli). This was pretty much unsuccessful: iPad styli were always inadequately precise, either because they had a rubber blob of a tip that mimicked a fingertip, or because the bluetooth system used wasn't precise enough.A couple of years ago, I made my belated entry to the smartphone market, with a Samsung Galaxy Note 2 (I recently updated to a Galaxy Note 4). This device comes with the S Pen, an interesting device that gives a really good screen response when writing. Coupled with excellent handwriting conversion, this meant that text entry by scribbling on the screen was a realistic proposition. Here's a good description of how the S Pen works. Essentially, from that site:

An electromagnetic field is generated from a circuit behind the screen. The S Pen picks this up and uses it to power itself and figure out its position relative to the screen. It sends this, along with information from the S Pen button and the nib at the end, back to the Note.
At that point, it was abundantly clear that my next tablet purchase was likely to be a Samsung Note device. And on a recent visit to a department store I had a little play with a Samsung Galaxy Note Pro 12.2 tablet - and my partner bought one. After a weekend of seeing this device in action, I bought one too - reduced in price to £324. Anyway, for me (and the work I do) this is an iPad killer - for example:
  • Bigger screen, at a very decent resolution
  • Android 4.4.2 (this is like climbing over the wall of the Apple prison)
  • The S pen, which offers realistic sketch pad and handwriting recognition
  • Easier file transfer to and from the device than iTunes allows
  • Ability to add to the 32Gb onboard memory - I added a 64Gb card
  • Most of the apps I use on the iPad are also available on the Galaxy, and those that aren't have perfectly good alternatives
  • You can run up to 4 apps simultaneously onscreen.
This is basically a power user's tablet, and I really can't fault it. But it's the S Pen that really sells it to me. Here's a very detailed review dating from March last year, when the beast retailed at about £649. I think it's a pretty accurate review. I doubt I'd have been keen to cough up £649, but at £324 this seemed a great deal - I presume the discounted price means it's either discontinued or a new model is due shortly.

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Bizarre design flaw in the Cowon X7 media player?

After Apple replaced my 2 gigabyte first generation iPod Nano with a nifty little 8Gb sixth generation model (due to a product recall), I found myself using that in preference to my Cowon X7, even though the latter has 160Gb storage. The consequence of this is that I allowed the X7 to completely discharge.

No problem, I thought, just charge it up again. But no! Things are not that simple. It transpires that the Cowon firmware doesn’t take kindly to a fully discharged battery, and won’t let it charge. I did a spot of Googling, and discovered a suggested solution - to connect it to the charger for a long period - 100h was mentioned.

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New Year's Day '10'

Fortunately, the icy conditions we'd seen since Christmas had warmed a bit, so there wasn't any danger of slipping on ice. But on the other hand, the roads were distinctly damp and there was a very strong and blustery wind from the south. As Steve Abraham was calling in on the time trial (and riding it) as part of the first day of his attempt to beat Tommy Godwin's mileage record (follow his progress here), we had the presence of CNN and BBC Local News together with a large number of cyclists, many of whom decided to take part in the race. The new course devised by Tony Farmborough and Bryan Scarborough was being used for the first time, and this turned out to be something of a blessing, as there was much more space for people to meet and park near the start than at the assembly point for the earlier version. We'd scheduled Steve to start as #1, with NBRC riders starting behind him, though the #2 spot was left vacant. Out on the road, the starting section was really quick, with a stiff tailwind. Of course once we turned left at the first RAB, things got a bit twitchy in the wind, particularly for those riding with aero wheels (such as my H3).It got a little bit more twitchy after the second roundabout where riders turn left to join the main Stoke Hammond bypass, indeed at that point I not only had to dodge a sizeable diesel spill, but found my front wheel being wrenched violently from side to side. This soon passed, but really one needed to pay close attention and try to predict when the gusts might be worst. The new course's turn is one RAB further along that the earlier version of the course, and while this additional section is quite short, it's uphill and (today at least) into the teeth of the wind. After the event, riders were complaining about how slowly they completed that section!Round the turn, and we had a nice tail wind along the bypass before turning right to retrace to the finish. The final RAB sees riders doing a right turn. This did concern some people on safety grounds, but in practice it seemed fine - riders just need to keep an eye out for traffic and move into the right hand lane in good time. The final stretch was tough, into the wind to the finish.All in all a tough morning for a time trial. I think most of the riders felt for Steve, who by the time he started the time trial had already covered 116 or so miles.I finished in 24:55, a measly 1 second behind the winner, Richard Wood. As one wag observed, that probably corresponds to one wobble too many out there in the head wind! Still, I was fastest NBRC rider on the day.

PosNoNameClubTimeCatVets Std.+ / -
126Richard WoodArbis/Colbert24.54Sen
25Robert SaundersNBRC24.55V5527.09.+ 2.14
325James FoxCCLuton25.42Sen
47Lindz BarralUnattached25.51Sen
515Geoff BunyanBossard Wheelers25.52V5427.04.+ 1.12
618Jason LeeTeamMK26.46V4526.23.- 0.23
714Ant NewlandBossard Wheelers26.55V4926.41.- 0.14
84Andy WickhamNBRC27.14V4426.18.- 0.56
920Andy SmithTeamMK27.34V5727.20.- 0.14
108Julian ThrasherLBRCC27.46V4025.59.- 1.47
1121Matt ExleyCorley Cycles Drops RT27.52Sen
1222Chris HopkinsonAPI - Metrow28.04V4726.32.- 1.32
1328Richard GoldingUnattached28.21V4326.13.- 2.08
1411James BarlowLBRCC28.37Sen
159Miles WalkerLBRCC28.59V5226.54.- 2.05
1627Rimas GrigenasUnattached29.10Sen
1716Tom KrauseUnattached29.32Sen
1812Andy MartinLBRCC29.37V4326.13.- 3.24
1913Trevor WatsonBossard Wheelers29.43V5527.09.- 2.34
2010Tom DeprezLBRCC29.58Sen
2124Katja ReitdorfTeamMK30.05LV4428.24.- 1.41
2223David GoodhewNBRC30.07V4126.04.- 4.03
233David PriceNBRC30.12V4726.32.- 3.40
246Neill BoddingtonNBRC31.30V4025.59.- 5.31
2519Darren WinfieldLBRCC32.40V4926.41.- 5.59
2617Clive FaineTeamMK32.46V6828.42.- 4.04
271Steve AbrahamNBRC33.27V4025.59.- 7.28
Timekeepers: Bryan Scarborough & Tony 'Desperado' Farmborough (NBRC)Pusher off: Dick Selley (NBRC)Route Signs: David Price (NBRC) 

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Rune Audio media player

I’m always interested in tinkering with alternative audio usage of my Raspberry Pi devices. As standard, I’m using them as Squeezebox substitutes, running the minimalist OS piCorePlayer, though I’ve also tried Squeezeplug and Raspbian for this. Rune Audio, which I think is derived from RaspyFi as a fork at the time RaspyFi became Volumio (though I may have that the wrong way round), recently released a version 0.3 beta for the Raspberry Pi, so (being naturally curious) I decided to try it out.

[caption id="attachment_3345" align="alignnone" width="1000"] Runeaudio's UI is elegant, clear and simple[/caption]

Rune Audio is managed via a web browser. The picture above shows what the main interface looks like. The bar at the bottom allows you to switch from Library to Playback or Queue (pretty self-evident what those are). Image art is centre stage, with the progress wheel on it's left (big number is elapsed time, smaller is track length), while on the right is the software volume control. The play controls are a little counter-intuitive - this is a screengrab while a track is playing, and I would have expected the play symbol to have been replaced with a pause symbol. Finally, the Menu link at top right is where you access most of the setup functions.

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Duo Normand 2014

This was my second trip over to Normandy in 2014. Along with my Team Grumpy team-mate Gerry, I had a long weekend away to make another assault on the Corporatif category of the Duo Normand.

As something of a prologue to this year’s event, I’d decided to modify my P3’s set up. For the last few years, I’d had flat handlebar extensions fitted to the USE Tula bars, but since getting a Cervelo P5, I’d decided that returning to extensions with upturned ends would be beneficial. I ordered the required replacement parts and set about fitting them. It was soon apparent that I had a problem on my hands - I just couldn’t persuade the left hand extension to go through the base bar. After several days effort, I gave up and reverted to Plan B: to buy a new base bar and use some old Deda GCB extensions I had previously used on a fixed wheel TT bike.

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Team MK 25 14/9/14

The organiser of this event had a bit of a torrid time. The original course was an interesting one, seemingly two and a half laps of the Astwood circuit (as features frequently in this blog). Sadly, roadworks on that course necessitated a course switch to a course based on the Brogborough course*. There was also a second event, a 10 mile one. I had entered because the Astwood course would be good preparation for the upcoming Duo Normand, so I was disappointed in this turn of events. It also meant that the startsheet was the longest and most complicated I can recall, seeing as it was prepared with both courses in mind, and had to describe the route to and from each course from the HQ (Cranfield Village Hall). It ran to an alarming 15 pages!

The revised 25 mile course started at the usual 10 start at the top of Brogborough hill. It proceeded across the Marston Moretaine roundabout to the Wootton RAB (the 10 mile turn), then we were routed over the flyover to a loop running through Wootton to the Marston Moretaine RAB, back to the far turn, another loop through Wootton, back to the far turn, then returning via the Marston Moretaine RAB to finish down the quaintly named Sheeptick lane.

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Stagsden 10 13/9/14

This was the last time trial in the North Bucks TT series (the remaining event is the Hill Clib championship). Three North Bucks riders turned up, to be joined by three others, who must have detected our crestfallen faces! Still, there was a race to be ridden.The Stagsden course is quite interesting, with significant undulations that can be quite disruptive to the riders' rhythm variably depending on the wind direction. This morning, there was pretty much no wind, and the only issues were the drags up to Astwood and Chicheley, which affected both legs equally.I just tried to buckle down and go as hard as I could. I finished in 23:17 to take second place behind Richard Wood. Mind you, the three non-NBRC riders were on road bikes!

Pos

No

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VTTA Championship 25 24/8/14

This event was a re-run of the VTTA men's '25' championship originally run earlier in the season. the event had to be abandoned due to extraordinarily heavy rain mid-way through the event. Talking to riders, it sounds like conditions hd been truly foul with standing water many inches deep in places.  For some reason, the rescheduled event was being held as a morning event - most E2/25 races are afternoon events. This brought with it transport issues. I travelled over with Katja, leaving at about 5am. I thought it prudent to set the alarm on my watch, but unfortunately messed up the watch's setting, so I was woken at 4am, but French time. I found myself awake an hour earlier than I needed to be. Oh well.It was a pretty cold morning, around 8 degrees when we started, and there was a rising wind from the west. Westerly winds aren't usually the best thing for events on the E2/25, so while I remained a bit optimistic about the event, I wasn't really sure how it would go. The E2/25 isn't a course I ride terribly frequently. It uses major dual carriageways, the A14 and the A11, but actually feels pretty safe because there aren't many slip roads, and the roads are pretty wide.I confess to not warming up well - this was mostly due to the fact it was so cold. However, I shot down the slip road onto the A14 and find myself going well at about 29mph. Alas, this wasn't to last as I soon found myself exposed to the breeze. I felt really pretty awful on the outward leg, with my speed dropping each time the road sloped gently up. Bearing in mind the undulations on the course are not exactly steep, this was rather disappointing, and I began to worry about the outcome. By the time I reached the turn, I was feeling quite despondent. I'd tried dropping my gears to find a higher cadence, but each time I did this, my speed fell further so I kept the gears high.[caption id="attachment_3286" align="alignnone" width="474"] At the E2/25 turn. Photo: Davey Jones[/caption]At the turn, I spotted Davey Jones out there photographing riders - I think he was sat in a position to grab photos as riders approached the slip road back down to the dual carriageway.The return leg was (thankfully) quite a bit quicker, as the wind was assisting us. I found myself clocking along at more than 30mph at times. Sadly this didn't compensate for the toughness of the outbound leg, and I finished with 56:40. This was good enough for 30th place out of 118 finishers on actual time, though as I'm not a VTTA member, no result on standard for me!I think it says something about my late season build up of form that I was disappointed with 56:40, back in May this would have seemed an unlikely performance. Perhaps this is a good sign!

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Astwood 10 20/8/14

This was rather a cool evening, cooler than we’d experienced for a while now. Not bad conditions, with only a fairly light breeze. I was hoping for continued good form, though after a couple of hard days at work I wasn’t so sure things would pan out OK. We had a good turnout of 22 riders for this club event.

As we lined up for the start, we were rather appalled to find a small car parked exactly on the line. We quite properly resisted the idea of using the car as a starting ramp, and took the pragmatic decision to move the start a couple of bike lengths forward (the two lads who’s car it was moved it after a bit). There was quite a bit of combine harvesting going on, and at times a large cloud of dust and hay fragments could be seen billowing up from a field just ahead of us. Indeed, some starters appeared to vanish into it!

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Stoke Hammond 10 13/8/14

As the season moves on, we reached the penultimate evening event in the NBRC time trial series with another event on the Stoke Hammond bypass course. A field of 16 riders turned out on a slightly blustery evening of sunny spells and pleasant temperatures. Not too bad for the ride, though I expected a head wind up to the DC section (and I was concerned that my Hed Stinger 90 might be slightly twitchy).

The start was less affected by the windy conditions, at least until after the second roundabout, when the road rises towards the DC section. I kept the effort up, only to be forced to a sudden tub-scraping skid of a stop by a car overtaking me just before the roundabout and stopping! Up to speed again, on the DC, and I could see riders in front of me, getting closer. I was feeling pretty good. Couldn’t read my Garmin other than speed, so I had no idea what HR I was on, as as for recent events was riding mostly on feel.

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