I've never seen Sir Paul McCartney in NW8 when cycling on a Brompton!

It would be true to say that I like The Beatles. Perhaps a little more than 'like' would be a better description. A few years ago I did a Beatles themed ride, that I really must repeat sometime soon. Please click HERE for that blog post if interested. 

I lived not too far from the famous Abbey Road Studios right up until I got married and moved out of the family home. Sir Paul McCartney owns a property not too far away from the famous Abbey Road Studios. Zoom forward to the present day and I still find myself in the area quite regularly. In all that time, I have never set eyes on the great one.

Now my mum saw both him and his late wife Linda on more than one occasion. My dad definitely saw Sir Paul at least once. Me...nothing. In addition to this, I have never been inside Abbey Road Studios. The closest I have come was when I was given an Abbey Road Studio mug as a Christmas present. I was of course pleased, but it isn't the same is it!

My association with Brompton Bicycle started over 30 years ago when one was gifted to me. It was red but I convinced myself - even back then - that it was more orange than red. I used that bike almost every day while at university and for the purposes of keeping fit only, I used to cycle past Abbey Road Studios in the crazy hope that I might see Sir Paul going in, coming out or travelling to his property not too far away. As you have read, it did not work. 

What would I say if I were to meet him I hear you ask? I do not know? I would possibly be rendered speechless! I have a sneaking feeling that many of our out there will regale me with stories of you meeting Sir Paul now that I have written this blog post!

In the meantime, I will happily cycle past Abbey Road and occasionally stop to take a photo of one of my Brompton bicycles propped up against the outer wall of Abbey Road. That has just made me think. I have not yet done this with my G-Line! Right, my next ride in about 10 minutes...

Until next time, stay safe out there people! 

Brompton World Championships 2025

Next Saturday is the sporting event of the year for many people - the Brompton World Championships 2025. 

The tickets for race entry sold out pretty quickly but last week a few became available again. A shame that Brompton did not release them earlier as I know several of you out there - including yours truly - made other plans.

The event is at the same location as for 2024, Coal Drop Yards, not far from King's Cross. Its format of 5x laps of the 900 metre circuit remains the same but this year there will be timing chips (a great addition to a few people with perhaps a clipboard in hand furiously trying to take down race numbers). 

It really is a wonderful event and I think that this year - had I been taking part - I might have taken my G-Line. I would imagine that it would be brilliant on the ramp down. Alas, it is not to be.

Even if you are not racing, watching it all is great fun and last year many people did just that. For those of your taking part, enjoy and best of luck. 

If you want to read about my Brompton World Championships for 2024, you can do so by clicking HERE.

Until next time, stay safe out there people 

G-Shock and a Brompton

Many years ago I recall being on a shopping trip with my late mum where I saw a Casio G-Shock Square sitting in a little water tank with bubbles rising upwards. I gazed at it transfixed for a few minutes. I was to be given an updated version of one of these a few years later and I suppose my fixation with all things G-Shock began. For me (and I suspect a few of you out there) the G-Shock does seem to go hand in hand with owning a Brompton and cycling. More so than more expensive brands I could mention. 

In my early 20's I had a couple of watches that were eye-wateringly expensive. I am sure that you can guess the brand. One was a dive version and the other had a second hour hand for telling the time in other time zone. I sold them long ago when Mrs Orange and I moved to our second home. I don't miss them at all. Being mechanical watches they lost/gained a few seconds a day and every now and then required a service that was not inexpensive. Added to this, despite their rugged credentials, they had to be treated with care. I certainly wouldn't have cycle in one. That is where the G-Shock differs. 

I should say that I have only ever bought versions of the G-Shock Square with a five appearing in the thousands column. They are accurate and those that can receive a radio signal, allows the watch to set the time for you in the early hours of every morning. This results in a watch that is never, ever wrong. Most of mine are solar powered so batteries are not needed. I have a few 20+ year old watches that are still doing what they are supposed to do. They are water resistant to 200 metres and some crazy types have taken them down to much greater depths, with their watches being more than able to handle it. Finally, they are shock resistant and can handle just about anything. 

The new kid on the block is very much a nod to the 1983 model. In the photo below it is the one on the left - DW-5000R-1AER. This is quite wonderful and sold out in a matter of hours. It even comes from the Casio factory in Japan where the originals were made. I suspect you might think that the other two are the same. They aren't and perhaps only a G-Shock nerd could tell the difference. 

I recently bought a white version - GW-5000HD-7ER - and it too is rather special, also direct from the Casio factory in Japan. It is heavier than a normal G-Shock and underneath the white bezel it is all solid steel. It is in retina burning white and I love it. 

Naturally, I have a few in orange. I love the way that when on a night ride to the coast it somehow receives the radio signal from the atomic clock in the early hours of the morning, resetting the time.

I do see quite a few cyclists wearing G-Shocks, perhaps more so on those with mountain bikes. I was given an Apple Watch for a present a few years ago but it wasn't a G-Shock. As such I discreetly and gradually wore it less and less. My eldest Orangette wears one of my older G-Shock Squares and I am glad that she does. As for me, they really do complement the Brompton as that go anywhere watch. I have cycled through the night in constant rain and glad I had one of my trusty G-Shocks on my wrist!

Now I have written that, I wonder if there will ever be a Brompton/G-Shock collaboration and subsequent bicycle? What a terrible thought. I will just stick to the watches. 

Until next time, stay safe out there people!