samuri.co.uk

Bike: lemond
Distance: 85 miles

Forcast said windy and sunny, it sure was windy but didn’t see any sun….until I got home obviously. But a whole load of stuff happened between then and then, lets recap though.

My Lemond has been playing up a bit recently, so I polished it all up, greased and oiled the moving bits, tuned the tunable bits, really made sure it was in tip top shape. I took it out the other night and it seemed to work fine, mostly, bit of ghost shifting but I put that down to stretching cables and other similar driftung forces experienced on a bike.

Set off this morning, bit cold and wet but with a brisk tailwind I flew down to Liverpool. About half way there it started ghost shifting again, under load normally. It worked OK in big and third so I left it there. It got worse though so I started checking the drivechain out as it was spinning away and I saw a chink in it’s movement. The chain was bent. I stopped for some crisps (you’ll note this is the only time I ate during the whole ride), checked it out and sure enough, one side of the chain had broke, ten minutes later that bad link was out and finally my bike would work perfectly.

Nope. Still playing up. This frustrated me for quite some time and after about 55  miles, I’d had enough, turned right into the headwind and aimed for home, I’d had enough. Bang goes my century. I’m coming through Preston and it starts properly playing up. Any load at all on the pedals and it changes gear or dumps the chain. I stop at some lights and press on the pedal, the entire BB moves about 2 inches….errrm, that’s not right. Now I’m scared, there’s clearly something fundamentally wrong with my bike and I’m 25 miles away from home. i’m too worried to check so mince through Preston and start climbing, in very first gear, up into the hills that will take me to Wigan.

I finally stop for a look…..oh dear, there’s a humungous crack running right the way through my seat tube and down tube above the BB shell. I stop a few more times during the remainder of my 12mph average gay boy limp (up till Preston I had been averaging over 18mph) and the cracks are growing, sharpish.

The last time I check this chap comes over and starts chatting. Claimed to be a time trial record holder. ten miles at 23 minutes or so in Southport, he seemed to know what he was talking about, have to look him up. I roll very gently down into Wigan and then pander along the canal to home. Surprised I made it, the crack is almost all the way round now. Last ride ever on the Lemond.

R.I.P