R.I.P. Volt

It was a sad journey home tonight. Not because of any bad weather (it was a bit windy but nothing too bad). Not even because of any idiot drivers (they were mostly very well behaved). No, I was downcast because I had to say farewell to my trusty front light which had been my reliable companion for 2 years. I didn’t even get to say a proper goodbye…

The unfortunate incident happened before I had even left the work car park. Cars were queuing to get out (seems like there is a mad dash at 3:30) and I had to overtake them on the right hand side. There are pretty serious speed bumps in the car park and I had to go straight over the top of one as the cars were in the way. The bike made a right clatter and I remember thinking, “Ouch! Oh that sounds like something fell off.”

Stupid me was in too much of a hurry to get going that I didn’t stop to look. The bike was still handling OK and I was on a tight schedule to get back for nursery. It was only 1 mile down the road that I looked down at my bars and saw the sad looking mount, now bereft of it’s daily companion. There would not have been time to get back to the car park and look for it.

If anyone from my work happens to be reading this and hears of a light being found, please let me know! I’ll have a look tomorrow morning as well although chances are it’s been squashed under a big 4×4 by now…

The light that should sit there is a Cateye Volt 100. Although by no means high performance it was reliable and efficient. I used it as a backup / blinking light and for this it was perfect. I find a blinking light helps to make me visible, especially when in the mix of city streets with all the traffic and other lights all around.

This one was especially good as I could charge it up at the weekend and know that it would last the 10 hours needed for the full week. I’d picked it up for a bargain £8.07. No doubt that it gave me value for money!

Last Farewell (by Linda Ori)

I was looking for a suitable tribute to make to the Volt and came across this poem. It’s an excerpt of the first 2 verses and I think perfectly sums it up:

Don’t grieve for me, now I am gone
You knew I could not stay –
The road was rough, I was too weak
To last another day;

I knew my days were numbered, 
Although to leave was sad –
So many lovely memories
Of everything I had.

Moving On

In the same way as my glove drawer is well stocked (Predictably Unpredictable) my light drawer also has plenty of spares in it, so I will be fine for back ups. I’ll need to go and switch the mount now though as the current one doesn’t fit the others.

The good thing is that days are becoming noticeably longer now, with only a short time at both ends of the day needing the lights to be on.

It was a surprisingly cold morning again today and I took the precaution of walking my bike out of the estate again because of an icy street. Although cold it was a stunning sunrise:

Unfortunately, the rest of the week looks like it is going to be very stormy. Winds of 40-50mph are forecast from Tuesday and set to last all the way to Fri. Mixed with a cold rain it could be a challenging week to get through!

Oh well, it’s a good thing I like a challenge…