Apollogy Project ready to roll

The Brooks B17 special arrived today and is now installed on the Apollogy, so as of today I'm prepared to call the project completed (mostly). Impatient as I am, I took it for a run to Shellharbour last weekend with another (uncomfortable) saddle and despite the pain I was really happy with the way the old girl tracked and road. She seems very well balanced, predictable but responsive. As a bonus, nothing broke or fell off, so I was very happy.

It has been a long time since I've sat on a fast bike and I can see many more miles a coming in the next few months.

The Vittorio Randonneur 700c x 28 tyres roll beautifully and the new SPD pedals are a huge improvement over the old toe clips and straps. The gearing is working well though perhaps a bit too tall. I am planning a ride to Stanwell Park this saturday so will see how the saddle breakin goes.

While there is still much more to do and bits to save up for (Son generator hub for a start) its goof to have got to the point where its rideable again. I'm looking forward to having some adventures on her again.

Dharawal walk to work recce

In October a group of us from work will be walking to work on National walk to work day 5 October 2007. We will be walking from Wollongong across the Dharawal nature reserve to Wedderburn in Campbelltown a distance of about 15 kms.


IN preparation for the walk a couple of us did a reconaisance (by bike) of the route on Saturday. The Dharawal is a bete noir of mine, having bitten off more than I could chew (or drink) last summer. Middle of winter though is a different story and it was a pretty good ride on mostly well groomed management trails.

The hardest bit is the descent and climb out of the Georges River at the flying fox weir, very steep and I had the uncommon experience of slowly falling off my bike thanks to a stuck cleat. Gillian, my riding buddy for the day hadn't been on a bike for years and was a real trooper, especially on the return leg which was mostly uphill. A profile of the route is on stepwhere - the walking equivalent of bikely.

We will be raising money for the Cancer Council, so if anyone wishes to sponsor us, drop me a comment.

In other news, the Apollogy project snails along. I now have a new 700c x 28 rear wheel of medium quality, new 7 speed cluster, new SPD pedals and a new chain with one of those fancy separator links. I am still waiting for the Brooks special saddle which they tell me is coming soon, any day now in fact. The friction shifter is all rebuilt and working a treat, but I'm still having trouble finding appropriate fenders.

The other big decision is tyres. Everything seems fast and skinny these days and finding a tyre over 25mm is getting harder. I'm think at this stage that I'll go for Vittorio Randonneur as they're available locally and seem pretty good though their are some schwalbe tyres that may be just the ticket. Problem is finding them.

Ride to Shellharbour

Glorious day on saturday 14th and joined the IBUG riders for a trip down to Shellharbour using the coastal cycleway. 5 of us met at Le Vendi's at Belmore Basin and struck off south under glorious winter clear skies with a light southwesterly headwind to keep us honest.

It was a great day for cycling and we saw lots of others out on the track. It is almost possible to ride on cycleways the entire distance to Shellharbour and the Shellharbour City Council are currently considering plans for the Barrack Point link that will add another headland to the trip. Even though I have cycled south a few times in the recent past, this trip with my new friends openned up a few less travelled ways. The coastal cycleway has to be one of the great cycle rides in Australia, the contrast in environment, natural and man made are profound and there's always something to look at. Its also mostly flat so its accessible.

Stopped at Shellies cafe for refreshments in Shellharbour before heading back, a bit pushed for time but with a tailwind to help us along. By the time I arrived home I had clocked up 70km's which was a bit further than I thought we'd go, but felt great all the same.

Unfortunately I didn't take the camera so have no photographs. Next time......

Apollogy coming together

Decided to join the IBUG easy ride to Ruby's cafe at Bulli this morning. Glad I went. Sun shining on the ride north - gloomy, antarctic conditions coming back - things change really quickly. But it was great to be out again after all of the lousy weather the last few weeks or so.

In other news, the Apollogy project continues albeit slowly. Most of the bike is back together with a variety of reused bits. Its starting to come together nicely I think. I took it out for a cautious spin around the block (only the front brake was fitted) and nothing fell off so I'm counting that as a success.

A few unforseen problems have emerged. Couple of broken spokes on the back wheel which on closer inspection I find is an older 27 inch wheel so I will probably replace it in the short term. Also the nylon friction washer in the downtube shifter has collapsed and a replacement part is no longer available.

That's it in the front left.

I'm working on fabricating one out of some nylon rod or part of a chopping board depending on what is easier to find. In the absence of a lathe I hope that I can mount it in the chuck of my power drill and turn one out. We will see....

The Brooks B17 Special (black) is due for delivery sometime in this month. Still looking for mudguards.

Budding constructeur...?

The weather has been awful the last few weeks so as an alternative to actually riding anywhere, I've been watching the paint dry, cleaning parts and putting together a shopping list for the Apollogy project.

One great find on the net, is the latest Brooks saddles catalogue for 2007. I'm after a B17 special and will be asking my local bike shop to order one in for me - not sure of the colour yet honey is just ahead but the green one is pretty special. I'm hoping that the Brooks saddle will fix my numbness issues that arise every now and then.

I've also been pricing a Schmidt 28 dynamo hub. They're pricey at about $300 (plus the rest of the wheel), but desirable and probably the best solution for long audax rides. Cheeky transport in Newtown supply the SON and build the wheels. I have wired up the frame following the respray, so it should look neat.

The only other new bit will be mudguards. Hammered Honjo's would be lovely, but am not sure if they are available in Oz. Will research further but probably end up with the SKS thermoplastic ones with stainless steel fittings.

Apollogy - painted!

Ok the colour is on and despite the not so good photograph I'm pretty happy with the results.

Must be patient now while the paint hardens before adding as much clearcoat as I can to keep it shiny. I am currently experimenting with decal designs identifying the APOLLOgy branding - so that should keep me distracted long enough to let the paint dry.

Royal National Park - Lady Carrington drive Ride

The Royal National Park in southern Sydney (or northern Wollongong) is the second oldest national park in the world and it makes for some pretty fine riding. I decided to catch the train up from Wollongong and ride into the park from Heathcote, scoot along Lady Carrington drive and follow Lawrence Hargreave drive and the coastal cycleway back to home to Wollongong. The first part of this ride was a modifcation of the trip found in Bruce Ashley's Cycling Around Sydney and it's a pretty popular place to ride.

After catching the 7.48am train to Waterfall and changing for Heathcote, I got on the bike at 9.15am and headed off down the management trails to Farnell Ave and the entrance to the park. Met up with a few other riders who helped me out with directions. The steep descent down to Audley was great if a little cold and some guys I met rider out recommended that I leave my gloves on.

Lady Carrington drive starts at Audley and is closed to cars - only bikes and walkers are allowed and you follow the Hacking River south through a range of flora - quite a few red cedars. At one point, hurtling along I startled and was startled by a Lyre Bird running across the track in front of me. To9o slow for the camera unfrotunately but it was only the second Lyre Bird I've ever seen in the wild.

I stopped for a break and some dates at the end of Lady Carrington Drive were it joins the Lady Wakehurst Drive before climbing (slowly) up out of the park. It was still fairly early and only a few motorcyclists roared by. The southern end of the park is pretty popular as a tourist drive and can be tricky in places for cycling.

Stopped for a well earned coffee and energy drink at the Otford Pantry before heading down Lawrence Hargreave Drive and the coastal cycleway from Austinmer to Wollongong. The whole route is on bikely and I recommend it