Paul Petch

Some quick updates

I’ve been busier than a long tailed dog in a room full of rocking chairs the past month or so… with a new job…riding…cooler weather….commuting…. :) But things have kind of settled into a bit of a groove now….. well sort of.

I’m REALLY loving the single speed thang’. Riding it daily to work and then a few nights out during the week is just fantastic fun. I’m actually finding myself getting all excited about it as I sit day dreaming at the desk at work. Put simply- I’m into it. This Tuesday’s night ride was another fantastic experience with no gears. I’ll be wearing 90% merino and smoking a pipe in no time…. he he.

I’ve also picked up a sweet new bottom bracket for the Cove (not that I’m out on it much due to my SS fetish of late) from Hope. It is their new stainless steel bearings version which I’m *hoping* will fix a problem that has become quite frequent- I kill Shimano bottom brackets. This is the second one to fall prey to “crunchy” bearings in less than a year. Once I get around to it… I’ll let you know how it performs. One thing of note is how well made it is…. it is ALL machined aluminum. It is great to see the British can still produce some great kit!

On the warranty side of things I’m currently packing the Lynskey frame up to ship back the the USA as I’ve found what seems be a hair line crack on the right hand seat stay weld- near to where the seat post is inserted. No stress really as the frame has a lifetime warranty, and I trust Lynskey to do the right thing. The biggest pain is having to strip down the bike and then pay for shipping and insurance to cover a value of $3500.00 (yes that is not a typo!). Fingers crossed :)

Keeping on the warranty vibe. I also had some issues with the rear King hub…. it just did not seem to keep tight on the bearings…. after each ride it was a few mm loose. I’d tighten it and ride, to then find it loose again. I emailed King in the USA and after a few emails backwards and forwards- the NZ distributer was invited into the conversation and within a week or so a BRAND NEW axle kit arrived….. free of charge. Not bad for a set of wheels I purchased from Ebay eh? Chris King- you now have a customer FOR LIFE. THANK YOU!

On the marital front, I took Amy (my Wife) to Bottlelake on the weekend for a short ride. Considering Amy has never ridden off road and combine it with a steady 13- 15km return ride to the park, I was very impressed! More importantly, Amy had a blast! She was even saying during the week that she had been thinking about it at work and the feeling of riding the singletrack….. I think I have a winner! :D I’m going to try and get back out there with Amy this weekend too. (that reminds me.. I must get some flat pedals for her!) It is great to see the joy that riding a bike can bring eh?

Oh….. and I just can’t hold back any further…. I’m absolutely loving my Hash browns and organic scrambled eggs as my Thursday eat before I go ride. Yes, that is correct, I’m a true athlete who cares about pre-ride nutrition :D

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Related posts:

1. First post in some time – some updates
2. Some updates
3. September updates
4. Chris King headset & Hope stainless steel bottom bracket
5. April 2009 updates

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 15th, 2008 at 11:51 am and is filed under Misc Ramblings and tagged with bling, bottlelake, commuting, gear, lynskey, single speed. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.