Another milestone

I have been riding the new gravel bike for a couple of months now, and I can’t believe I didn’t buy something similar sooner.

The bike is an Orbea Terra H40, a relatively cheap Tiagra built bike.  This seemed quite heavy at just over 11Kgs, but I suspected the weight was largely due to the own-brand wheels and huge tyres.   I did a little research and decided I could get a new set of wheels and tyres etc. for £400 which would significantly reduce the weight.  However, I decided not to bother as the stock wheels are perfect for its intended use and the gears (really low gears) have enabled me to travel further afield on more hilly terrain with no problem.

I am also having a few issues with my Bianchi winter bike.  It isn’t really a typical winter bike, it is an aluminium Ultegra road bike with full carbon fork; it was actually actually quite a nice bike for 2008.  It has mudguards, but due to the frame clearances the only type that would fit are the Portland Design Works Full Metal Fenders, which were expensive when I bought them, but are now £99.99.  With these attached, I can only fit 23mm tyres. 

Unfortunately, I have broken one of the plastic retainers for the stays; it has resisted gluing, melting and taping, and I have resisted the expense of buying a new set.  After a few weeks of riding the Orbea, I decided that I could get the new wheels and use them for the winter.  I now have a new disc brake winter bike with 28mm tyres to play with.  I have got the weight down to 9.8 Kgs, only 400g more than the Bianchi

Finally, another milestone. I just passed 30000 miles since June 2008 when I started recording rides after I bought my first Garmin.  Its not a lot, especially compared with the (unrecorded) miles of my youth, but there is something satisfying about the clock ticking over.

(edited as this post duplicated a lot from two posts back)