Off on a tangent ... a testing time

For a change from my usual bike blogging, I'm going to bang on a bit about one of my other interests / passions, watches, and more specifically, accuracy of watches.


I have a number, which I'm not disclosing, of watches ranging from a Timex Ironman (a plastic cased, quartz watch I wear when cycling - lots & lots of useful functions), through an assortment of Seiko chronographs from the 70's, a few Omegas, a Longines, a Rolex, a Graham, a Maurice Lacroix, and a few others. I'm not going to declare the total number, and i'm not going to list the entire collection here. Hey, someone from robmyhouse.com might be reading this.


Inspired by a recent post by The Sydney Tarts, I asked myself "which is the most accurate?", along with "how accurate is accurate?" and "what level of inaccuracy am I prepared to put up with?"


Let's start with "how accurate is accurate?". To be a COSC (Contrôle Officiel Suisse des Chronomètre)  Certified Chronometer (watch latin for "an expensive watch that should keep time") a mechanical watch must be accurate, over a period of days, in a variety of positions, to plus or minus 3 seconds.


24 hours in a day, 60 minutes in an hour, 60 seconds in a minute equals 86,400 seconds in a day, so we're aiming for 0.003% (or better).

What am I prepared to put up with? Well, that's a good question. I tend to change my watch on at least a daily basis (yes, sometimes more than once a day), and any given watch is typically in 'rotation' for about a week at a time. By which I mean, I've got three or four that I'm wearing "this week" and each will be worn three or four times in a fortnight then put away. Some (favourites or new watches) last longer in rotation, some head back to the cupboard a little quicker (I'm fickle).

While a watch is in rotation, if it's not being worn, and an automatic (most are) I'll manually give it a few winds or shakes - to keep it going - at least daily. I had a winder but it broke, can't be fixed, and I've not got around to replacing it.

I set my watches to the speaking clock, and check them against the time pips on ABC radio.

After that LONG WINDED preamble, I'd say that plus or minus 10 seconds against the time pips is accurate enough. Any less, I'm happy; any more, I'll mutter under my breath about inaccurate watches and then reset it.

Which is the most accurate? I've devised a round robin elimination process to try to work out which is the most accurate of my time keepers:

1. Set to the speaking clock on 5 minute intervals, i.e.: it's easier to set on a 'full' 5 minute mark than it is to set to say 8:57 pm.
2. No more than three in rotation at any one time (quartz excluded).
3. Not on the wrist for less than 4 hours, or more than a day at a time.
4. When not being worn, must be wound (manual watches) or wound/shaken (gently please) once a day
5. At the end of seven days (168 hours, 10,080 minutes or 604,800 seconds - give or take), whoever is closest to the pin, wins.
6. Repeat for another week with three more, and for a third week with the last three.
7. Don't bother with pieces like that Seiko I know keeps crap time.
8. In the event of a tie, I'll come up with some sort of arbitrary way of assessing, like "which looks best with a pair of jeans?"

Having set the rules (and I'd welcome any input), heading to the starting gates for the first week are ...... The big guns of my collection: Early 90's Rolex GMT Master II (movement? anyone?) 2009 Graham Chronofighter GMT Big Date Oversize (inhouse - I think - movement: G1733) and my new Longines Master triple date moon chrono (inhouse movement L678).

And of course I'll be twittering observations and updates, using the hashtag #watchtest

Quick update - thanks to the encyclopaedic knowledge stored in @twinck's head, I can advise the Rolex has a 3185 movement, the Graham is running a valjoux 7750, my longines is keeping time with the mightly valjoux 7753.

The end of FebSober & a day in Marysville

I had a pretty good run on the bottle over Jan - when we were in Byron Bay, Sarah & I enjoyed the cocktail hour just about every day. Don't get me wrong, we weren't lolling about drunk 7 days a week, but let's just say, we were in a good paddock.

I'd heard about FebSober (aka FebFast) where people give up the demon drink for a month. Some for charity, some for health, so just for the challenge of it. I suppose if you're stopping doing something enjoyable for a month, Feb makes sense - pick the month with 28 days, rather than 30, or worse, 31.

To add to the challenge (as if we needed it) we started on 27 Jan  - we had a group of friends around for a wonderful afternoon on Australia Day, and the next morning FebSober started, a few days early.

It's been a bit of a challenge - probably no point doing it if it wasn't - and we've had a few funny looks from friends, wondering what was going on. But not really a hardship.

My cycling has been a little messy the last few weeks - I've lost a little motivation (nothing to do with FebSober) and I'm carrying an injury (a wart on my left big toe that rubs against my cycling shoe. But it only hurts on the downstroke). And I just haven't been in the mood to knock out big rides.

Friday night I had one of those nights where you can't get to sleep. Wide awake until 2am, and then finally drifted off, only to be woken - not at all refreshed - at 5:30. Stumbled out of bed, quick coffee, dressed and into the car (packed the night before) to collect one of my cycling club buddies, Jeff, at 6:00.

I found his place (only one wrong turn) and we had his bike loaded and back on the road for the drive to Marysville by 6:10. It was great to see so many cars on the road with bikes on roof racks first thing in the morning, all heading to the same place.

We were there just before 8:00, and found Brian's place easily. Brian is also a club member, and very kindly offered the use of his weekender to a hoard of 20 of so of us as a meeting point.

After some car unpacking, local anaesthetic cream for my toe, and last minute gear fiddling, we were in the start area by 8:20.

Other than the 20 of so Maccabi members that I knew would be there, in the crown of 500 ~ 600, I spotted (or was spotted by) another dozen or so people that I knew.

The first wave of 50 or so were sent off at 8:30 - on the dot - I was in the third wave a few minutes later.

I was planning to ride 160k - the first 120 was a loop up through Alexandra & Elidon then back to Marysville, and then a 40k sufferfest out to the top of Lake Mountain and back.

I settled in very easily with a fast bunch, and knocking off the first, easy, 15 or so kilometres at an average of 40kph. Then I dropped my bottle (putting it back in the cradle after a drink) and had to stop to pick it up. Yesterday was NOT the day to ride 120k - or even 12k - with no water.

Bottle recovered, I tried to get back onto the fast group, but they were gone.

So I cruised along waiting for the next bunch to catch me, and then hopped in with them - Shane (our club president) & Jeff were in this group, and I ended up riding the rest of the day with them.

We struggled on the climb from Alexandra to Eildon, although the views from the top were wonderful, and the very fast, very technical descent was amazing - my heart rate was nearly as high, from excitement, going down the hill as it was from effort going up the hill.

Another water & snack stop in Eildon, and as ever on Cycle Sport Vic events, the fruit cake was brilliant - it might be only Black & Gold brand, but it hits the spot. I tried to get some more cream for my foot, but the chemist didn't stock it, so I had to ride on in growing pain.

We worked really well as a three man team from Eilon to Taggerty. Rolling turns off the front, nobody talking much, each lost in their own thoughts and coming to grips with the ride.

It was hot.

The roads in that part of the world are dead. They're hard, and a bit bumpy, and they take it out of you. By this stage we'd agreed that we were stopping at 120k - it's so much easier to pull out early when you don't have to make the decision on your own!

Taggerty saw us downing Neurofen - my for my toe and Shane's back was playing up by this stage - nothing like athletes in the mid 40s, is there. The drugs did their job almost instantly, and I was pulling the other boys along at a reasonable pace.

Until I got out of the saddle to kick it up a gear, and as my right leg pushed down, my right calf said "fuck you, it's cramp time". So for the 20k from Taggerty to Marysville, I was on the edge of cramping. Push a little harder, and feel it start to happen, back off a little and I was 'fine' again.

An interesting balancing act.

And to keep me moving, I decided that if I got back to Marysville a) without having to stop and b) without external assistance I was going to have a beer as soon as I got off the bike.

We crossed the line, rolled in to the finish area, I got off the bike, walked into the supermarket's liquor department and grabbed a stubby of Crown. I don't think a beer ever tasted as good.
  

Tonight's traffic & my commute

I've been enjoying a bit of cycle-commuting over the past few weeks ... it's not far from home to work, and about the same distance back at the end of the day. Fairly flat terrain, so the single speed is an easy ride.

And the traffic isn't too bad.

A few days off the keyboard

Yes, I've had a few days off the keyboard, but not off the bike.

It was a great week on the pedals last week - I ticked the front climb, up the switchback road, of Arthur's Seat off my "to do hill rides" list. Now I've go to go back and do it another 3 or 4 times (to learn the climb) and then do it against the clock.

Good easy Aussie Day ride with a mate. We sort of did a 50 something kilometre inner city cruise.

Wednesday morning I slept in (shock!) but did a great indoor ergo trainer session Wednesday night at Ridewiser, Thursday was an easy Beach Rd session then a brilliant massage Thursday night.

Friday is my current day off - and I needed it.

Saturday was a HUGE session up in the hills around Eltham. It might have only been 80k but we climbed 1,300m and most of it was STEEP (check out the route & profile here); and Sunday morning I did a crit racing skill session, although I decided not to race - mainly because of the howling Northerly: it wasn't a day to be dropped on the back straight.

Total distance for the week was 340k, which i'm happy with, but I'd like to be doing closer to 400.

Happy riding!

A sunny day

It rained yesterday morning, so I didn't ride. No, that's not quite right - It bucketed down.

It was really cold this morning (way too cold for January), so I didn't ride.

So I decided - despite the nasty looking clouds - that I'd cycle commute today instead of exercycling.

Home to the office, office to the city and back (twice - once for a meeting, the other time for lunch), nice cruise of a ride home in glorious sunshine along Chapel St - dinging the bell at pedestrians - then a quick ride to Prahran pool (back to Chapel St) for some laps (maybe I used to be, but I'm not really a swimmer anymore) and back home again.

So about 30k for the day.

Not like the 150k I did last Saturday, not enough to keep me in race condition, but I still enjoyed it.

The man with the hammer

I've learnt a new cycling term.

In English when you can't go any further, and just one more pedal turn, one more km, or one more hill is too much, you've hit the wall. It's certainly not exclusively a cycling term, you say it just about to anyone, and it's sort of obvious what you're talking about.

In French (no, I'm not going to write in French), the man with the hammer hits you, or you're attached by the witch with the green teeth. I'm sorry, maybe something is lost in translation, but a witch with green teeth? Doesn't make any sense to me.

The man with the hammer does. He's the bugger who hides around the corner and as you go past whacks you between the shoulder blades to make sure you can't go any further. I think his brother, or maybe his cousin, is the brickie who builds the wall that people hit.

I headed out with my usual Saturday group this morning - great to see everyone after a month away, swap a few stories, and just have some general chit chat. 30 or so kilometres into the ride, most of the bunch turned around - family commitments, someone had to do some work, the usual excuses.

So then we were three.

Another 15k or so up the road, one more turned. So then we were two.

I wasn't expecting to ride more than 80k, maybe 90, but as I didn't have anything to do for the afternoon (other than this post), I kept riding.

We did some good climbs out the back of Frankston. We had a coffee in Mt Eliza, then started riding again, both feeling fresh. Great climbing up the highway behind Mt. Martha. We decided to turn around when we got to Dromana - maybe 75k from home. We kept riding, and chatting, and enjoying the day.

Then Shane flatted. He fixed the flat, but it happened again 10k later. He didn't have another spare tube, mine didn't fit his bike. So he called a cab and headed for a bike shop in Frankston.

Then there was one.

Some days riding can be hard, but it's always harder on your own. In a group you always have someone to share the pain with. Someone to follow, or someone to follow you, on a tough climb.

I had my own company for the next 50k. And I was running out of steam. Half a Powerbar, quick stop at a Service Station to refill my bidon, and off again - but a little slower than I would have liked.

I struggled the last 25k ... even the small hills felt huge. The man with the hammer took a few swings at me .... he missed. But I know he's out there somewhere.

Traffic, Byron style

As anyone who's every tried to tackle Beach Rd heading North through St. Kilda on a weekday morning knows, sometimes traffic means you have to slow down, or worse, stop.

And sometimes you just have to stop, smile and say "good morning ladies".