I thought I would ride the Tissington Trail but not on the Delite but the Birdy. As it is an old railway line it is relatively flat and therefore suitable for a none powered bike.
I had arranged to go with Lynn who bought an AVE bike with a front hub motor when I went to OnBike to test out what was available. I didn't at that time manage to find something that felt right but Lynn did.
Although the start of the trail is in Ashbourne, 11 miles away I was not sure where the start was and so had a dummy run. I had not used the Birdy for a few days so was surprised when the speedo thing didn't function, I checked the battery on the sender unit but still no go, so off I went.
The bike is surprisingly comfortable, more so for a folder with small wheels. But as with all Riese & Muller bikes it has full suspension and it glides over uneven surfaces. Stopping to admire the view and to have a spot of lunch I inadvertenly left my sun glasses on the bench. I realised when a fly took up residence in my eye so I immediately returned but they had gone.
Back home I thought I would sort out the speedo thing only to find the battery and cover missing, mustn't have refitted it correctly but I have a wired one to fit, except the wire isn't long enough to follow the convoluted front forks due to the way it folds.
Answer, to cut the wire and insert a bit more. Some of you may know what's coming; it isn't wire but what looks like fibre optic. So another for the bin as I cant rejoin it.
Two computers ruined and glasses lost, so not a good day at all. All quality stuff from Aldi too, what will tomorrow bring?
I have ordered a Garmin so hopefully these little problems are behind me.
The next day, after inflating her tyres we drove to Ashbourne and used the free car park by Hombase. Much better than the £4.50 at the official car park and as we are going on a bike ride what's a another mile or so.
To get onto the trail you go onto the Council car park and under the tunnel, a bit dark when you have extra dark glasses on due to loosing my others. But unlike a lot of things, the light is visible at the of the tunnel, just aim for that and off we go.
For an old railway line that is supposed to level, more or less, I had a lot of peddling to do. That's the object of a bike ride, but I am used to the ups and downs and electric assist. Made me think of d8veh's 'when your legs get tired', had I a throttle it would have got used. That is why, being a lazy sod, I don't go for them, and it makes me peddle.
Lynn kept up with me on the return, she took a while to regain her confidence, and it was none stop. We had two breaks on the outward part of the journey, the thought of the bacon bap was to compelling to ride passed one of the rest stops.
Anyone wanting a traffic free ride through the countryside could do worse than these trails. The Birdy coped very well with the mostly limestone surface as the full suspension just floats the bike over the bad parts. We did 37 miles there and back, that's more than I have ever done on by Delite in one day.
Will I do it again, you bet I will, but next it's Monsal Trail, near to Bakewell.
I had arranged to go with Lynn who bought an AVE bike with a front hub motor when I went to OnBike to test out what was available. I didn't at that time manage to find something that felt right but Lynn did.
Although the start of the trail is in Ashbourne, 11 miles away I was not sure where the start was and so had a dummy run. I had not used the Birdy for a few days so was surprised when the speedo thing didn't function, I checked the battery on the sender unit but still no go, so off I went.
The bike is surprisingly comfortable, more so for a folder with small wheels. But as with all Riese & Muller bikes it has full suspension and it glides over uneven surfaces. Stopping to admire the view and to have a spot of lunch I inadvertenly left my sun glasses on the bench. I realised when a fly took up residence in my eye so I immediately returned but they had gone.
Back home I thought I would sort out the speedo thing only to find the battery and cover missing, mustn't have refitted it correctly but I have a wired one to fit, except the wire isn't long enough to follow the convoluted front forks due to the way it folds.
Answer, to cut the wire and insert a bit more. Some of you may know what's coming; it isn't wire but what looks like fibre optic. So another for the bin as I cant rejoin it.
Two computers ruined and glasses lost, so not a good day at all. All quality stuff from Aldi too, what will tomorrow bring?
I have ordered a Garmin so hopefully these little problems are behind me.
The next day, after inflating her tyres we drove to Ashbourne and used the free car park by Hombase. Much better than the £4.50 at the official car park and as we are going on a bike ride what's a another mile or so.
To get onto the trail you go onto the Council car park and under the tunnel, a bit dark when you have extra dark glasses on due to loosing my others. But unlike a lot of things, the light is visible at the of the tunnel, just aim for that and off we go.
For an old railway line that is supposed to level, more or less, I had a lot of peddling to do. That's the object of a bike ride, but I am used to the ups and downs and electric assist. Made me think of d8veh's 'when your legs get tired', had I a throttle it would have got used. That is why, being a lazy sod, I don't go for them, and it makes me peddle.
Lynn kept up with me on the return, she took a while to regain her confidence, and it was none stop. We had two breaks on the outward part of the journey, the thought of the bacon bap was to compelling to ride passed one of the rest stops.
Anyone wanting a traffic free ride through the countryside could do worse than these trails. The Birdy coped very well with the mostly limestone surface as the full suspension just floats the bike over the bad parts. We did 37 miles there and back, that's more than I have ever done on by Delite in one day.
Will I do it again, you bet I will, but next it's Monsal Trail, near to Bakewell.
