On Rain

I hate the rain. I mean sure plants need it to grow, but if I could control such things, nothing would fall from the sky when the temperature is below about 5 degrees above freezing (so no ice or snow on the roads) and it would never rain during the day - more riding time!

Yesterday morning both the Weather Network and Environment Canada's weather models predicted no rain for the whole week. How much things change. About an hour before it was time for me to saddle up and mount a beautiful (clean) black Specialized Roubaix I looked out the window and saw some ominous grey clouds to the south. Now here's a silly question, why bother checking the weather? I mean, if its going to rain, too bad, it's not like I have a spare car I can drive home. Anyway I checked two different Doppler radars hoping that maybe one was stale data. No such luck, a cloud about 100km long and perhaps ten wide running from the south shore of Lake Ontario up north of Oshawa was working it's way north west from New York towards Toronto.

So much about that weather is just wrong. Usually the wind blows from the north west, so that cloud should have been moving away not closer. Anyway I started for home and probably made it 20km before the rain really started hammering me hard. (Of course I go south east so I was basically moving right towards the storm.) At first it was just irritating, it's cold and my face is getting wet, then almost suddenly the ground went from moist to soaking wet. Soon water had penetrated my shoe covers, then shoes and socks so my feet were cold. Water was soaking down my jacket leg warmers so instead of providing warmth my clothing was actually making an unpleasant situation dreadful.

I stripped off my clothing by the washing machine in the basement, when I took off one of my shoes and put my foot (still wearing a sock) on the floor I left a big wet foot print. Taking those wet socks off was a very nice experience. Later that evening I took some images of my ride, Jordan, she is in very bad need of a very serious cleaning.

Yesterday I decided that since I will be stuck at home, (I'm on call), the whole weekend I might as well clean my ride. Well suddenly I have no choice. So here is my revised plan.

1. Over the course of the week I want to clean the brake hoops (the part of the wheel rims where the brakes make contact) and the tyres. (Make sure there is no glass or metal embedded in the tyres.)


2. Also during the week clean the chain, first use a chain cleaning kit and a simple degreaser, then go nuts, take the chain off and put it in a bottle and use a naphtha based solvent.


3. Leave the chain to dry (allow the solvent to completely evaporate) over the course of the week.


4. On Saturday take Jordan apart completely and clean all parts. I even take the chain rings off the cranks and clean the chain ring bolts. (I will keep the bars, headset, brakes, deraileurs and levers together, as it is a lot of effort to retune the cabling - I'll replace the cables at the end of season anyway.)


5. On Sunday, or if I am making good progress on Saturday I will put Jordan back together. With, hopefully some images of a stunning black and red bicycle that makes grown men (at least one grown man) drool.

Apparently for mountain bikers, mud is a badge of honour. Mud, if you ask me, is ugly. Mud ought to be the symbol of a construction sight, or maybe the trenches of World War I, not a badge of honour.


How on earth am I going to clean all this damn mud?


I need a power washer, I guess.


Sigh.


I love this down tube, when it is clean there is something really pretty in a big fat down tube. Right now, not so much.


Arrrrgh!