February 2013 in the Life of Ben (Blog)
26th Scalextric Club (26th February 2013)
My first time trying the Formula 1 class at the London Scalextric Club. We did 4 minute races so I think we were only running 4 lanes.
The motors and drag from the magnet means a different controller is needed but I didn’t have one! Struggled to control the cars all night.
In the last race I borrowed a different car from Steve, with a more conventional motor. Found this delightful to control and had my most enjoyable F1 race. Also set my fastest ever lap time with this car!
Brown Lane
Winner did an amazing 35 laps with a mere 6.36s as his fastest time!
| Fastest Lap | 7.84s |
|---|---|
| Laps: | 27.00 |
| Position: | Probably last! |
| Crashes | Probably a lot! |
White Lane
Acheived a 2nd place on the lane we generally consider the easiest to drive. It is central in the 6-lane track.
| Fastest Lap | 7.52s |
|---|---|
| Laps: | 29.30 |
| Position: | 2nd |
| Crashes | Not sure |
Blue Lane
Really struggling to drive the cars with this controller.
| Fastest Lap | 7.56s |
|---|---|
| Laps: | 26.00 |
| Position: | Last? |
| Crashes | A lot! |
Yellow Lane
Got taken out and suffered some slow marshalling – a rare event at this club, I hasten to add. Leader was only 1 lap ahead.
This was my race with the more controllable car, it was a McLaren.
| Fastest Lap | 7.16s |
|---|---|
| Laps: | 30.10 |
| Position: | 2nd |
| Crashes | 1 |
25th Scalextric Club (19th February 2013)
Grand Touring cars tonight at the London Scalextric Club. My favourite class as the cars look so good and so varied.
Using 5 lanes this evening for 3 minutes per race.
I forgot to note which lane I was on! We had started a bit late which meant I had to be quick between races to jot down my performance stats into my phone.
Unknown Lane
Leader got 19 laps with 8.97s as their fastest lap. Long way ahead of me!
| Fastest Lap | 9.67s |
|---|---|
| Laps: | 15.55 |
| Position: | 5th |
| Crashes | Not sure |
Unknown Lane
Lots of crashes from everyone in this race!
| Fastest Lap | Not sure |
|---|---|
| Laps: | 15.00 |
| Position: | Not sure |
| Crashes | Too many! |
White Lane
Close race. I was behind someone but managed tofight back and make a clean overtake to get the podium. Now that’s motor racing!
| Fastest Lap | 9.66s |
|---|---|
| Laps: | 17.80 |
| Position: | 3rd |
| Crashes | 0! |
Unknown Lane
Terry won this race. I got lapped but managed to keep his pace after that. He was probably coasting by then, to make sure of his position. Another podium for me.
The extra half lap on the previous race is partly due to my crash. Marshalling takes 3-10 seconds and the laps are just under 10 seconds. White is an easier lane so that probably made a bit of difference, too.
| Fastest Lap | 9.45s |
|---|---|
| Laps: | 17.00 |
| Position: | 3rd |
| Crashes | 1 |
Unknown Lane
Another awesome clean race between Bob and I!
| Fastest Lap | 9.67s |
|---|---|
| Laps: | 18.20 |
| Position: | 3rd |
| Crashes | 0? |
Finals!
We had the mid-way break and the committee worked out the running order and lane choices for the club’s mini tournament format, which they call ‘Finals’.
It’s a knockout competition where only 1st and 2nd go through to the next round.
I didn’t record my performance data as the format moves between races very quickly.
I got to the 3rd part of the finals format, though! Was racing with ultimate concentration and driving super clean. Very proud of my performance tonight. Really feel like I’ve moved up a level.
Weighing Loose Change (16th February 2013)
Saving 100g from your pedals is undone if you carry £1 in loose change rather than a single £1 coin.
170g of loose change added up to £1 in my wallet.
A £1 coin by itself weighs about 10g.
You can save 160g for free by using larger denominations of coinage. No need to spend that extra £50 next time you buy pedals or handlebars or whatever!
Weight Weenies
Less measurable qualities are often more important than weight.
Comfort
The main one, imho. That aids efficiency and endurance. Obviously it makes you more eager to ride than use other methods, too!
Reliability
A close second. Frequent detours past the bicycle shop add a much larger time penalty than carrying extra kilogrammes would, let alone extra grammes. You might have to leave your bicycle there for a whole day, losing you maybe an hour from using public transport.
Frequent bicycle shop repairs mean extra cost on top of the extra cost of the lighter component.
Set It and Forget It
Components which keep their adjustment for months at a time save the amount of fine-tuning and home servicing. This all takes time.
If your brakes need 20 minutes of attention every week then you are losing 5 minutes on each working day of commuting. That extra-aero tuck is more than undone by adjuster screws which vibrate loose and locknuts which don’t grip tight.
My old 10-speed caliper brakes have proven this to me! The unbranded dual pivot setup on my Secteur hold themselves in perfect position for a month or two at a time.
All brakes and gears drift a bit during the start of their life as cables stretch, housings loosen up and the parts bed in. Once that phase is over everything should stay put. If it keeps needing your attention, that’s time you are losing from your commute.
Fore-Warned is Fore-Armed
You have to read reviews from ordinary customers to stand a chance of discovering the reality of living with specific components ahead of purchasing them. It’s often pot luck but some brands are more reputable than others – try to find forums where mechanically minded cyclists discuss these kinds of things.
Professional reviews generally don’t cover this unless the component is severely flawed, such as Kryponite’s feeble D-lock frame bracket.
Then again, if you spend 8 hours researching the best brakes, how will you earn back all that time? The brakes would have to work perfectly for 25 weeks to earn back the 20 minutes per weeks required from wonky old 10-speed brakes. But any modern brake is going to be much better than that.
So these small differences soon end up ‘in the noise’ for day-to-day riding. They aren’t worth losing sleep over. After all, when can you earn back that time? c{¦¬p
24th Scalextric Club (12th February 2013)
We raced 5 lanes at London Scalextric Club. Tonight was the Classic and Can-Am class.
Yellow Lane
Drove neater than the pair behind me to a deserved podium…even if I do say so myself!
| Fastest Lap | 9.70s |
|---|---|
| Laps: | 17.60 |
| Position: | 3rd |
| Crashes | 1 |
Red Lane
For the first 3 laps I was close to 2nd place!
| Fastest Lap | 9.40s |
|---|---|
| Laps: | 15.90 |
| Position: | Not sure |
| Crashes | Lots! |
Brown Lane
Great distance but only got 4th place! Very strong competition in this class.
| Fastest Lap | 9.33s |
|---|---|
| Laps: | 18.35 |
| Position: | 4th |
| Crashes | Not sure |
Red Lane
A marshall fumbled my one small crash, other than that a nice race.
| Fastest Lap | 9.48s |
|---|---|
| Laps: | 17.80 |
| Position: | 3rd |
| Crashes | 1 |
Blue Lane
My crash was small and towards.
Had 2 near misses during the race. They were heart-stopping moment because I realised the mistake just an instant after I made it. At that point it’s just luck whether the car stays on and I was lucky twice.
| Fastest Lap | 9.45s |
|---|---|
| Laps: | 18.20 |
| Position: | 3rd |
| Crashes | 1 |
Finals!
We had the mid-way break and the committee worked out the running order and lane choices for the club’s mini tournament format, which they call ‘Finals’.
It’s a knockout competition where only 1st and 2nd go through to the next round.
I didn’t record my performance data as the format moves between races very quickly.
Unfortunately I crashed out of a narrow lead in the semi-final. Finished it 3rd so missed being able to compete in the grand final for the evening.
Haircut 17 (8th February 2013)
Forgot to add this entry at the time. Found it in my calendar but have no notes about it.
Was probably a bit of neatening up and thinning out to make cycling with a woolly hat a bit more comfortable.
The bottoms of my ears got a bit cold after this haircut, now I think about it! Winter just kept on going…the first Summery days of the year were right at the start of May 2013.
23rd Scalextric Club (5th February 2013)
NASCAR night at the London Scalextric Club!
My favourite class of all as everyone races the club’s set of 6 cars. Each car has a dedicated lane. It’s a level playing field so a true test of driver ability.
We were a bit short on people tonight as it’s not part of the championship. So we have 3 drivers on at a time, with 1 clear between each of them. They do a 2.5 minute race then shift over by a lane for the next race. The next drivers go on after that.
This way we can use all the lanes, have full marshalling and still finish at a decent time. It also means the cars don’t bump each other, unless you get one very sideways!
Green Lane
Didn’t like this car at all!
| Fastest Lap | Not sure |
|---|---|
| Laps: | Not sure |
| Position: | 2nd |
| Crashes | Not sure |
Brown Lane
Liked this car but crashed too many times.
| Fastest Lap | Not sure |
|---|---|
| Laps: | Not sure |
| Position: | 2nd |
| Crashes | Not sure |
White Lane
| Fastest Lap | Under 10s |
|---|---|
| Laps: | Not sure |
| Position: | Not sure |
| Crashes | Not sure |
Blue Lane
| Fastest Lap | 10.12s |
|---|---|
| Laps: | Not sure |
| Position: | 2nd |
| Crashes | Not sure |
Yellow Lane
| Fastest Lap | 10.22s |
|---|---|
| Laps: | Not sure |
| Position: | 2nd |
| Crashes | Not sure |
Red Lane
As this was the final race I had time to jot down these details into my phone.
| Fastest Lap | 10.24s |
|---|---|
| Laps: | 13.90 |
| Position: | 2nd |
| Crashes | 1 |
Clipless Bicycle Pedals (1st February 2013)
Bought my first pair of clipless pedals today, the Shimano M324 combination pedals from Wiggle to be precise.
One side uses the MTB SPD system, where the mechanism is on the pedal and the shoe just has a simple cleat. Mountain cycling shoes feature thick tread and the cleat sits within this, letting you walk around with clip-clopping on the ground.
The other side is a normal flat pedal, so I can use regular shoes until I decide which clipless shoes I buy.
Was easy enough fitting them to Secteur. So far, so good!
Bought my first Clipless Cycling Shoes (6th June 2013)
Took the plunge and bought some old stock Mavic Cruize from Cycle Surgery in size 11.
The fit is perfect. They have lots of mesh cooling which are helping to keep my feet much fresher than when I wore regular shoes during last Summer. They still get hot but nothing like they used to. A big improvement.
The shop fitted the cleats for me, free of charge.
I loosed the pedal clipless tension almost to the minimum. The instructions warn that unwinding it beyond the minimum actually removes the mechanism entirely so I was sure to avoid that!
They are pretty easy to get in and out of. Hardly needs any force to unclip but I do have to remember to twist, not simply pull or try to slide off the pedal.
Although I’m hardly pulling on the pedals, it’s helped to break my bad habit of pushing with both feet. My muscle selection is a bit more accurate now so I release fully on the upstroke.
My feet track the pedals better now, think I used to squidge and squirm around on them before. The hard sole provides great support for pushing and winding.
Overall I’m really pleased with them. The clipless thing is still new to me but I’m getting the hang of it. The shoes are just what I was hoping for.