Thank you for reading my efforts people!

I just had a quick peek at my humble blog statistics - something I do very infrequently. The number of people reading my efforts has continued to be ridiculously high. If things continue like this for the remainder of the month, I will achieve the highest number of page views ever. (Well since the last few months where this record has been broken). 

Looking at where the my readers are coming from, there is no surprise that the UK, USA and Germany are pretty high. My readers in the far East - Japan, Philippines, Malaysia, South Korea, Singapore and China are also making themselves known. 

You can also follow me on Instagram (I could do with more followers) where you can see lots of photos on a near daily basis. Find me by typing the following into a search engine @orangebrompton 

Again, thank you all for reading and I hope that you keep coming back.

Until next time, stay safe out there people!

 

Dunwich Dynamo Number 6 Brompton Electric Edition

Yesterday was Dunwich Dynamo number 6 for me. I have always had a love/hate attitude to the Dynamo over the years. I enjoy the ride but the getting back can be a pain. In addition to this, was the obvious issue of whether my knee would cope with another 100 miles? 

There were only two contenders from my Brompton fleet, my Orange Titanium (my lightnest) or my Brompton Electric (much heavier but the option of the motor). The decision was quite an easy one in the end. With the battery placed into the larger Brompton Electric bag, I had plenty of space left over for everything I needed. The extra weight didn't bother me as it rolls very well and the gearing works for hills and flats. Of course, at the push of a button I would have the motor to help!

You will not be surprised to hear that my ride partner was again Geoff. Of all the Brompton peeps out there, I have known Geoff the longest. I doubt whether I would attempt the Dynamo without him - whomever else would be in attendance.

We met outside Liverpool Street station just before 18:00 and after loading the route we headed off. The reason we set off early was simple. It would avoid the rush at the official/unofficial start time. It would avoid the hassles of the official/unofficial start at Hackney Fields. Thanks to Geoff, this start time would allow me to cycle at a measured pace and just enjoy the ride. 

The first few miles getting out of London is rarely fun. Epping New Road - that felt as if it would never end - was horrid. The road surface, how busy the road was and how close some of the cars passed, all conspired to make it rather unpleasant. Once however we got off this road, things got a great deal better. 

Less busy roads appeared and the sun gradually started to set. We cycled past chocolate box houses and little quaint villages where time seemed to have stood still, like old photographs capturing bygones years. 

We stopped only a few times where the scenery compelled us to halt cycling to fully appreciate it - and to capture the moment in a photograph. 

At about 25 miles in, we stopped at Fyfield where the scouts were on hand to replenish water bottles and wonderful food could be purchased for the weary traveller - or in this case not actually that weary Brompton user. We were joined by many other cyclists and a few of our fellow London Brompton crew, who like Geoff and I, were doing their own thing at their own pace. 

Feeling suitably refreshed, we headed off again into the night where the sun was still trying to set. 

The next few miles were like the last few miles - lovely - and in clouds in the distance I thought I saw the flashes of lightning. This kept happening and I wondered if rain would actually fall? The flashes kept happening but no rain fell. Strange. 

Our next stop was the Fox Inn at Finchingfield. We didn't eat anything here but merely had a rest stop. There is a sharp ascent which you can possibly see in the photo below. For this I turned the power on. Ascending it was effortless and my knee thanked me. Once at the top the power was turned off again. For the entire ride up to the 100 mile point I actually used the power only twice for a total of probably less than a minute. Here at Finchingfield and once more at another ascent. As I type this, I do see the stupidity of not embracing the power more but I felt fine no longer using clipped in pedals and by taking things a great deal easier than I might have in the past.  

The weather really does need a mention. It was pretty much perfect conditions. Warm but not too warm. A gentle breeze to our backs. I wore a polo shirt all night and only donned arm warmers and a lightweight jacket once setting off after an extended rest stop. Of all the Dynamo rides I have done, this was the best weather-wise. 

Our final stop was at Gosbeck Village Hall. At this point we were only 27 miles from the the end at Dunwich beach. If we had of headed off quickly we would have arrived very early. Lots of the other London Brompton peeps joined us and we chewed the fat for a hour or so before heading off at one after the other.  

The final push saw the sun on the horizon, the sound of the dawn chorus and that change of light as dawn progressed. 

Once we reached the 100 mile mark, I turned the power on to setting one and left it on until I reached the beach. I am not sure that I needed it, as my Brompton Electric and those 12x gears, were rolling rather well. I enjoyed using it all the same. We even saw the always happy Sam and Jenny cycling in the opposite direction doing the Dunwich double (and over 200 miles in the process)! 

We arrived at Dunwich Beach just after 07:00. My coach with the London Brompton peeps was arriving at 11:00 but poor Geoff was on the coach were you queue with your barcode to get a ticket, then queue with your ticket to get your bike on the lorry and then queue to get on the coach. This took ages and I sat on a bench looking out into the sea watching Geoff's bike and then the bags he would take on the coach while he did all the queuing. 

Once Geoff was in the queue for his coach - that was due to leave at 10:00 we said our goodbyes. Again, I was very grateful for Geoff's company. He could have gone faster but it was great cycling with him for another Dynamo. For me the Dynamo isn't really about how fast you get there, it is more about the enjoyment of a night ride and the transition into day. There is also something about staring out into the sea - even for a fairly short amount of time - after starting out from London that is rather pleasant. 

I retired to the beach and found Mark (King of the hill) and a few of the other London Brompton peeps, in our usual spot. A little after 11:00 we boarded our coach, placing our Brompton bikes (carefully packed in IKEA Dimpa bags) into the boot and made ourselves comfortable. We had two seats to ourselves and once the coach set off, I closed my eyes and got some sleep on and off until about 20 minutes before we arrived at Stratford. 

Unpacking and saying farewells to people, I turned the power on and set my Wahoo for north London. The almost 9 miles were easy and the worst of north London's hills a breeze. Looking down at my Terry Thomas sticker, I considered again whether using the electric motor was cheating. The simple answer was...I didn't care!

The ride was just over 114 miles, not including the ride to the start and from the end at Stratford. I would go as far as to say that this was the most enjoyable Dunwich Dynamo so far. As I type this, sitting in my study at home, I don't really feel as if I cycled over 100 miles yesterday. My legs feel fine and my right knee is okay too. I am convinced that the Brompton Electric helped with this - for the time I used it.

Thanks to the many volunteers at the food stops, the people wishing us well along the way and to Paul of the London Brompton peeps who arranged the coach. Of course many thanks - again - to Geoff for his company. As for my Brompton Electric...I love this bike! Nothing more to say really. I am just having a great deal of fun with it!

Until next time, stay safe out there people!

 

The grave of bare knuckle boxer Thomas Sayers

I have said it many times, Kensal Green is my favorite of all the great London cemeteries however Highgate does come a close second. If you pay a visit you have the choice of two sides, east and west. Lots of the great and the good are buried there, but one particular grave has always been of interest - Thomas Sayers.

Thomas Sayers (1826 -1865) was the last of Britain's bare knuckle boxing champions just before the famous Queensbury Rules came into being. Sayers was 5 ft 8 ins and in his day there were no weight divisions, with fighters going toe to toe anyone. Sayers would have almost certainly gone up against opponents much heavier and taller than he was. Also in his time, fights could last well over two hours!

Born in Brighton he became a national hero and was incredibly famous. After his last fight he retired and gifted £3000 by public subscription (a huge amount for the time) to ensure a comfortable post-boxing life. At the age of only 39 be died after suffering a short illness at 257 Camden High Street. 

His funeral, a week after he passed away, drew a crowd of well over 100,000. It was said that the crowd who accompanied his coffin extended over two miles. Sayers pet dog a large black mastiff called Lion, was chief mourner at his funeral and it is perhaps fitting that he guards his tomb. 

It is very likely that many people who look at his grave, take a photo or perhaps you out there reading this might not have ever heard of Thomas Sayers. There is of course no reason why you should. I do find it amazing that someone so famous in their own time would be unheard of in another. 

Until next time, stay safe out there people. 

There are gates and then there are gates!

London is full of some rather choice locations. Some properties have all manner of steel gates that swing inwards or glide horizontally. There is even one set I have seen in N6 that actually go down into the ground. There are however some that buckle the trend. 

The location will remain nameless, apart from me saying in is in north London. The gates you see below are wooden, original to the Victorian gothic house they lead to and as for the colour...

The photo below is of the pedestrian gate leading to the front door. There is another set, exactly the same to the right. They are also in a vivid blood-orange colour that are so bright they almost glow. Needless to say, I have always loved them in this colour. They have been other colours over the years that have been similar however this incarnation is my favourite. What do you think?

Until next time, stay safe out there people!

Passing the Freud Museum on a Brompton

Part of the joys of owning a Brompton or two - or even more - and living in London, is the fact that you can find all sorts more or less on your doorstep. The other day (when the sun actually came out for once) I was ambling quite happily on my Brompton Electric, revelling in its power in getting me up any ascent. Having tackled some of the finest hills in north London, I headed south towards St John's Wood. In doing so I passed the Freud Museum. 

The museum is at 20 Maresfield Gardens. Freud only lived there for about a year and passed away in this very house. Hsi daughter lived there up to her death in 1982 and a few years later, her wish that the house be converted into a museum was released. 

While cycled up to the house to take photos you can see here, a large group of people of all ages were queuing quietly two houses up? I asked them whether they wanted the Freud Museum to which they replied, yes. I delicately informed them that the museum was a couple of houses up at number 20! What they were doing at their queuing location, I do not know!?

I have only ever been inside the museum/house once and that was very reluctantly and not my choice. As I recall I wanted to go up the road to 2 Willow Road, former home of brutalist architect, Erno Goldfinger. As you might have guessed I am not a particular fan of Freud and have passed his house many times over the years, thinking or saying under my breath, full of s@#t. I wonder what he might have made of that?!

Until next time, stay safe out there people!

Jack Straw's Castle on Brompton Electric

The other day I needed to go to a shop in Hampstead High Street - a location I am not really fond of. To make things a little more palatable, I decided to head past Jack Straw's Castle to see what they have done with the place since I last paid it a visit when it was a pub. 

The journey wasn't going to be far as it was only a little over a mile and a half. It would however involve cycling across the Heath and some of its gravelly paths. Making it safely to the other side I headed up to the location. 

It has been quite a while since Jack Straw's Castle made its transition from pub to - yes you guessed it - luxury flats. (I think it has more than just flats thought I think). Being tea total, a pub is wasted on my for anything alcohol related but I do remember that they did rather good pots of tea, that I happily drank while my friends had something stronger. 

The former pub got its name from Jack Straw, leader of the Peasants' Revolt in the late 1300s. There is almost a little bit of artistic licence on his involvement - if at all - but he supposedly took sanctuary at/near this location before being captured and executed. 

Apart from myself, there have been many famous patrons. Charles Dickens (he really did get about) visited the pub as did Wilkie Collins and William Makepeace Thackeray. Even Professor Van Helsing paid a visit! A shame on several levels that it isn't still a pub but hey that's progress as some people say. 

Until next time, stay safe out there people!

Brompton Electric back from an extended stay

A few blog posts ago you might recall that once I got back from a rather good overnight adventure from London to Whitstable, I discovered that the rear hub wheel (new 12x speed) was well and truly f*#@ed to use common parlance. On 28th May - a day after the Bank Holiday here in the UK - I took it to Brilliant Bikes and left it with them. 

Brilliant Bikes are quite simply brilliant and after a few weeks of chansing Brompton my new rear wheel arrived and was fitted. There was no fuss with Brompton. I imagine the wheel was returned to Brompton, they agreed with my assessment of it and replaced it under warranty. 

Yesterday, I collected my Brompton Electric and after about an hour, I was back into more familiar urban territory. My suspicion is that the old rear hub wheel was just one of those glitches. I have had lots of Brompton bikes over the years and the hub gears do seem pretty bulletproof. 

As it was a lovely day and Mrs Orange and the Orangettes had a place to be, I had a few hours to test out the new rear wheel. I cycled down Swain's Lane, took the photo below and then cycled up it. I marvelled at the ease of it all.

The Brompton Electric does require you to still pedal of course but when the motor kicks in, there is little strain on the knees.

I cycled a few laps of this area and then south through Belsize Park, past Abbey Road and then a circuit of Regents Park. After doing this, I cycled north again to N6. 

It really was a lovely afternoon for cycling and I enjoyed it all. Strangely, I did not spot one other Brompton but when I passed Gospel Oak I have a chat with someone on a rather nice road bike who had been to the BWC last weekend. 

Now I have my Brompton Electric back I could use it for a possible Southend overnight ride or even the Dunwich Dynamo, however, I think that I will almost certainly be using my Orange Titanium for both of those adventures. 

If you want to see lots more photos of what I get up to, you might want to follow me on Instagram. You can also send me a message there too:

https://www.instagram.com/orangebrompton/?hl=en

Until Next time, stay safe out there people. 

Commute to work on a Brompton resumed

If you read my recent blog entry about the Brompton World Championships, you will have read that I used my Brompton to commute to and from work. This has been quite a big thing for me.

It does seem like ages since I used a Brompton to commute to and from work. In fact I haven't even used my Brompton Electric for this. There is a reason for that - a blog entry for another time perhaps!

The route is tried and tested but does involve hills. I have stuck to doctors orders by ascending them slowly and to actually get off and walk if my knee feels too strained. This is slower than I used to go but not so significant to be an issue. (I have missed the Brompton Electric though)!

At work I have a rather fancy and posh cupboard that has a large set of sliding doors to hide away an lock my Brompton safely. 

I have now completed the Ride100 and the BWC on my non-electric Brompton bicycles. You may be asking why I got the Brompton Electric? The simple answer is that some of my cycle rides using the Brompton Electric will be easier by a calendar mile. Mixing this power at the touch of a button along with using one of my human powered bikes, is a win win. I now have the luxury of choosing. 

Until next time, stay safe out there people!

Mr Orange at the Brompton World Championships

The Brompton World Championships has always been an event that brings a smile to my face. I suspect that many had taken the view that it had sadly ridden off into the distance to become mere memories. Wild speculation about its revival was disbelieved. Idol gossip circulated. Rumours started to spread and the notion that like a phoenix rising from the ashes the BWC would return, became a reality. Saturday, 22nd June was that day. 

When the tickets went on sale, I bought one without hesitation. (So much better than the ballots of previous years).  It was then a waiting game for clear details to emerge. The location, Coal Drops Yard near Kings Cross. Five laps of a 900m circuit with ten heats. Excited however, this was drastically to change!

I arranged to meet Andrew, my Partner in Crime, at our usual meeting point nice and early. I took my Orange Titanium with me as it felt the best of my Brompton bikes for the task ahead. I decided to wear my original BWC attire, in honour of the great times I had experienced at these events in the past. As I cycled south from N6 and down Swain's Lane, memories of Blenheim Palace, Goodwood and The Mall flooded back. 

Now, cycling in all this and on an Orange Titaniun Brompton does mean that one attracts quite a bit of attention. It was only about 6 miles to where I was to meet Andrew but I am glad I set off with time to spare. I became the object of several selfies and photo opportunities. 

Making it to the London Eye, my Partner in Crime came into view and we chewed the fat as we cycled up to the BWC venue. It was quite possibly then that the reality hit me with. Should I be there?!

Familiar faces came into view (as did new ones) and we were able to catch up and consider where all the time had gone? We registered for the event by showing our tickets/invitations and I was allocated heat ten - the last group. 

Andrew and I headed onto the track to have a little taste of what to expect. The way to the 'drops' which was a stairway covered over was blocked and would prove to be an interesting aspect of the course. After pinning our race numbers to our respective jackets, more catching up, photographs and greetings, Andrew and I headed for somewhere to get a bite to eat a few miles away. Even this resulted in us posing for photographs. 

The first group of riders got themselves ready and my pearch, near Geoff and his family was ideal. I watched as they were given instructions, parked their bicycles further up the course and had a great view of the 'drop.' 

Drops!!

I enjoyed watching the various heats and the many outfits on offer. I cannot really choose a favourite as so many put in such an effort. 

As the heats progressed something that never happens to me started to take over...doubt, nerves I don't know? As you may had read, my knee had given me enough concern that I bought a Brompton Electric. Following the advice of a specialist, I have changed the way I cycle. Doing so has resulted in zero knee issues. Would taking part in the BWC put me back?

The waiting

As Geoff went out for his heat the voices in my head become so loud as to almost induce me to call it a day and head for the hills. I watched on. 

Geoff looking good

I saw Will Butler-Adams, CEO of Brompton in the thick of it and getting involved in a way that perhaps all CEOs should do. 

WBA in the thick of it

My Partner in Crime did well in his heat and it was clear he had enjoyed it all. 

Been there brother

It was then my turn. I took myself over to the waiting area and steadied my nerves. I parked my Brompton and walked back to the start. My default settings gradually returned as I started to get participants close to me to take steps forward so we wouldn't have to run as far, just for the fun of it. The instruction were given. In 15 seconds we would be off. As long as I was not stupid and just had fun, I would be okay…surely?!

It was a quick heat and I pedalled as fast as I dared. Before my knee issue I might have gone a little faster but not that much. I was pleased that I was still ahead of many riders and after what seemed the blink of the eye, my BWC was over. 

The start position

I had survived, enjoyed it and more importantly it all had no bearing on my knee. It felt absolutely fine. 

 

I didn't make the final but that was never the point. The BWC 2024 was a wonderful event and I loved it - albeit when I got the demons out of my head about my knee. I headed back home, again being the focus of much attention and selling the joys of all things small wheeled to the people I spoke to. Ascending Swain's Lane was tackled slowly and steadily as my two doctors had ordered. 

I would have liked a medal to add to the collection but this year it was not to be. Hopefully if there is another event, maybe there will be one then. (Hope you are reading this Brompton HQ)!!

Many thanks to Brompton and all the organisers. You made it a great event. To my Brompton family out there, keep pedalling and never give up. Today, I actually used one of my Brompton bikes to commute to work on - the first time in several months. I put this down to the BWC on Saturday. 

Until next time, stay safe out there people!