For some reason my flat has been a haven for flies today and batfink was too busy air drumming to Pantera to catch them so i had to step up and get them myself.

I managed to rack up 3 – Nil vs. the flies.

Also… my hands are messed up! Years of playing drums and more recently, fixing bikes seem to have ruined them :(

I love the commitment that my girlfriend and vegetarian friends have towards being veggie. My willpower is terrible and i’m a sucker for suede so i’d probably fail pretty quickly if i did make the transition to vegetarian.

I also ride motorbikes and the best protection on a bike is unfortunately leather. If i was to become veggie, i would have to rethink what i could wear to protect me.

This isn’t to say that i wouldn’t maybe try it in the future, but if Haribo and Bacon are off the cards, i don’t think it’d be an easy transition.

Ask me anything

Thursday last week saw me in another sitting with the amazingly talented Gre Hale.

I’m in the middle of a sleeve from him and it’s looking awesome… so far there’s probably about 7 hours or something like that been put into it, and it’s not so far off being finished now.

Love it! and i can’t wait to go back and get the whole thing completed! Bigger (scabby) picture on click through.

I am officially bike obsessed, there’s no other way of dealing with it other than just coming out and saying it… I AM OBSESSED. I do nothing else on the internet in my spare time other than scooting about looking at the next best/most recent bicycle related component/frame/wheel whatever.

+ More

When i think back to my early days of riding bikes, there was one thing that has stuck in my head and that is Chub Hubs from The Hive… for some reason (probably the obscene size), they stuck in my mind and i’ve wanted one ever since.

Fortunately for me, my good friends and local bike shop, Hewitt Cycles, have just started stocking Chub Hubs and i can now say that they’re more awesome in real life than i could have imagined.

Just look at them!

They weigh next to nothing and their physical size is something incredible, they’re in the same region as Rohloff hubs or some of the older coaster brake hubs. But instead of having a load of technical jiggery pokery inside them, it’s an aluminium hub with a carbon shell around it, coupled with some mega-high flanges.

This hub is strong, i can tell that already. I’ve done a few miles on it and pulled some daft speed skids and i can feel that the rear wheel of my bike is a lot sturdier and a lot more responsive. Granted, i have an NJS Chain, Cog and Lockring, but i think that just adds to the whole strength feeling that i can feel in my legs.

Paul (owner of Hewitt cycles) is an amazing wheel builder and he built the Chub Hub to a Campagnolo Delta rim with 32 double butted, black spokes and we gave the wheel a 25c Gatorskin Hardshell. The grip is awesome and so is skidding this thing, it whips out as much as i want it to but without feeling like i’ve lost it at any point.

This hub is amazing, i recommend it to everyone. It compliments my new bike better than i could have hoped. With that thought… here is my new Hewitt A6N track bike. It’s 55cm, full aluminium frame with carbon forks and that beautiful wheel on the back.

I took it out into Avenham Park this morning to get some of the standard ‘Bike Porn’, type photographs.

Massive thanks to Paul Hewitt for building the ‘dream wheel’ and an amazing frame for me, The Hive for making the Chub Hub, Continental for creating the best tyre, the only tyre, the Gatorskin! and even more thanks to my lady for putting up with me constantly harassing her about bikes (when i can tell deep down inside that she hates them).

I’m a bit slow to catch onto things sometimes so when i came across Issuu, i was pretty happy. Turns out everyone has already heard about it. Anyway… here are some of the things that i’ve recently found on Issuu that i’m reading through at the moment!

For those of you who know me personally, you will know of my obsession with hats, no matter what weather or time of year, i have a hat on. To add to this collection, my lovely girlfriend bought me an awesome new hat yesterday. I’ve tried on so many different brands of hat in this style and none have looked right on my massive, orb of a skull, but this Brixton Rift was beautiful. Get one from Scene in Preston!

Definitely some quality finds this week. Bikes again, but this time we have a lovely picture of Stephanie Clerkx from the Quick Step racing team, an awesome looking big cat and some Tour De France injury.

I keep saying it but, massive thanks to Jasper for creating AYSIM!

Click through to see the scrapbook this week!

Whilst i’m back on with this blog at the moment… it’s about time that i put out another one of my weekly scrapbook posts. It’s been far too long since i’ve done this, but i’ve still been adding images onto the scrapbook. Go take a look by clicking through the image to the right, the title up above or the link below! Enjoy :)

MORE!! :D

• Spent endless time with my lovely girlfriend
• Chilled out with my friends (who i realised that i don’t spend enough time with)
• Organised a bike race which went beautifully
• Eaten far too many McDonalds
• Rode bikes more or less every day
• Had a haircut (well 2, i had to ween myself into getting 2 years of growing cut off)
• Made some new friends
• Bought new clothes
• Turned 23
• Played 2 gigs with my band
• Found a raft
• #rrc
• Painted a drumkit
• Played on a BMX track
• Fanta Beach
• Got sunburnt
• Drunk tons of coffee
• Stripped a bike frame
• and had a BBQ

It’s been amazing and the people who made it happen know who they are! I wish that it could last longer but i’ve got to pay the bills so it’s back to work on monday for me and if i’m honest, i am looking forward to it, in a really weird way… I think i’ve got a different outlook on my life right now. Things don’t just happen unless i personally try to make them; the race that i organised has proven this… nothing ever happened in dreary Preston regarding the fixed gear lifestyle that i’ve taken up, and me putting on a race has shown me that, i can actually do things when i put my mind to it.

I am going to avidly try to change the way i look at life from now on and if something is getting me down or if something isn’t working, then i will have to do something to change that.

Time to go to the shop to get some food for tea.

Enough of my thinking too much :)

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