Its never rains ...
[ posted by Iain Monday, April 25, 2005 ]
Well it looks like I spoke too soon [
wear and tear ]. I thought I'd got away with only having to buy a few bits and pieces this month but I gave both of my bikes a thorough service yesterday and whatever was holding the freewheel together on my Cannondale rear wheel has now been washed away. It is definitely on its last legs. Still, I have never been a big fan of Cannondale's own Coda components so this is a good opportunity to get a Shimano replacement that I hope will last a little longer. I noticed it during on the ride to work this morning when it started clicking and knocking and by the time I got home this evening it was clanging like a one man band.
Apart from the whirr of a perfectly setup drivetrain I don't believe there is such a thing as a good noise on a bike. There are noises that aren't indicative of any problem or damage but they're not GOOD noises, everyone would prefer them not to be there. For me for a long time this noise was the squeak of my Look cleats against the sole of my shoes. No matter what I tried nothing could get rid of it and it drove me mad. And its not just amateurs and cyclotourists that get knocks and squeaks. I remember on the Pampeago in the 2003 Giro after the crowd had settled from seeing the front runners fly past a climber came up ahead of the autobus. Because he wasn't particularly famous his efforts were not accompanied by the screams and shouts reserved for the Pantanis and Simonis but by the rhythmic squeaking of his Look cleats on the soles of his shoes.