Almost now (part 1)

So.. how's the new era going, you might ask, if you were reading..

s'alright.

[end blog]

ah - but there's more to it than that!

I might not be cycling for fun anymore, exactly, but I'm cycling more than I ever did before, because I'm now a cycle commuter!

When I first moved to Manchester, we lived in a rented house in Levenshulme.  Work was in Manchester city centre, about 3.5 miles away.  Driving would've been insane, as the roads are very busy and I'd have to pay for parking, so that was out of the question. Other options were bus, train, or bike.

Buses in Manchester confuse me.  A lot of things up here are cheaper than down south.  Buses aren't one of those things.  They're insanely expensive, very slow, usually crowded, and turn up when they feel like it. The main bus into town is the 192.  They're supposed to turn up every 10 minutes, but this usually translates to 3 buses turning up at the same time, every 30 minutes.

The trains were a much better bet - they were cheap, fast, and turned up every 20 minutes or so.  On top of that, the train station was less than a 5 minute walk from home - closer than the bus stop!  They were sometimes cancelled, but not often enough to put me off.  I took to trains without giving my bike much thought, mainly due to it having a gear changing issue.

But after a few months I realised I wasn't getting much exercise, and I'd put on a stone in weight, so I gave cycling a go.  The ride into work was about 3.5 miles, and was mostly down the A34.  It took exactly 25 minutes.

It was good, for a while, but the A34 is not in good nick.  When the rains came in, and the darkness came earlier, the trips got more and more dangerous. 

oh, nadgers - it's hometime!  I'll have to continue this at a later date.  Don't worry - the stories will get better!  I'm just rushing through the early days.

bye!