a few years ago, i was in sacramento, california attending the north american handbuilt bicycle show (nahbs). a remarkably decent friend of mine, who operates a bicycle hire business further south, kindly brought along a bike for me to ride on the saturday morning. sacramento is blessed with around 34 miles of totally segregated, two-lane cycle track that allows the bicycle aficionado to ride to his/her heart's content for up to 68 miles, without ever coming into contact with motorised traffic.
as we lined up with the local cycle club to head out for a ride, i figured it a prudent step to pay a visit to the toilet prior to departure. the only location i could spy that might offer the appropriate facilities was a nearby fitness club to which i made my way directly. on asking if i might use the facilities, i was presented with a two-page form to complete, indemnifying the club from any misfortune that might befall me during the extent of my necessitous visit. i confess that i originally thought this was a californian prank, but that turned out not to be the case.
i mention this because argyll and bute council, in an effort to reduce costs in the next financial year, have proposed closure of the majority of the region's public conveniences. and by way of lessening the blow, they indicated they would encourage local businesses to make available their own toilet facilities for those who find themselves in dire need. it would be a sad day were i to find it necessary to print out indemnity forms for completion, prior to allowing anyone caught short to use the office's rudimentary facilities at the back of the building.
being caught short as i mentioned above, is a common situation for many a peloton, but in our own case, since we are mostly cycling on the outer edge, 'tis but a mere matter of findng a nearby bush behind which one can answer that enforced call of nature. i realise this is hardly an equitable state of affairs for any female members of the peloton, but in the case of g.c. ristorante debbie's, the fairer sex are mostly conspicuous by their absence.
getting 'caught short' however, has more than one definition when it comes the way of the velocipede. finding oneself on the island's atlantic coast when a heavy rain shower hits from seemingly nowehere would fit the bill most admirably. unlike many a mainland rural idyll, over towards the west provides no shelter whatsoever; through the centuries, the wind has pretty much seen to that. it would therefore be a highly iniquitous situation to venture forth without convenient recourse to some sort of waterproof jacket. the lack of available shelter makes this all the more necessary, for should a mechanical malfeasance inflict the bicycle, that lack of shelter will cool you down quicker than you can say gluten-free mince pies.
the market proffers many jackets that promise varying degrees of waterproofing combined with a natural ability to be scrunched up in a back pocket should push come to shove. the more waterproof, often the harder it is to scrunch to the necessary degree, but we have generally come to the conclusion that we'd willingly sacrifice a smidgeon of scrunching in favour of weatherproofing, a desire that the upgraded version two of rapha's classic rainjacket seems destined to fulfil.
over the past week or so, i've worn the jacket as an outer shell over a pro-team long-sleeve baselayer and core-range winter jacket because, to be quite frank, it's a tad chilly out of doors, not to mention interspersed with chilling and often heavy showers.
embarrassingly enough, on saturday past, after being caught in one of the aforementioned chilling showers, when but a few kilometres from coffee, as i divested myself of the jacket prior to froth-supping, the accumulated rain simply rolled off the surface and onto aileen's recently swept floor.
i don't think anyone noticed.
the most satisfying part of the equation was not only a bone-dry, red winter jacket, but the ease with which the jacket could be stuffed into one of the three rear pockets for the homeward journey. of course, i was once again caught short (in the rainy sense) while riding up foreland hill; retrieving and donning the rainjacket was the piece of cake i neglected to scoff at debbie's.
featuring taped seams throughout and a breathable membrane of apparently excellent constitution, considering the impending weather regime between now and paris-roubaix, a quality rainjacket would seem like a particularly sensible addition to your christmas wishlist. aside from a fully taped full-length front zip, there's also a neat little concealed zipped pocket just above the leftmost adjustable hem cord in which coffee money can be secreted. yes, there will be times when a more permanent arrangement proves necessary, but to paraphrase velominati's rule#12, if you're a uk resident, the correct number of waterproofs to own is n+1.
you know the rest.
rapha's classic rainjacket ii is available in sizes ranging from xs to xxl and can be purchased in dark navy, dark olive or scarily bright red at a retail price of £180.
monday 20 november 2017
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