kids towed behind in the trailer and all other such duties, no matter how seemingly inappropriate are dispatched without so much as a whisper from my exclusive metal beast of burden. My sole BoB has been multi-tasking with some authority for a little while now.

When #1 bike first stepped up to the rigours of full time commuting the hoops were dressed in a pair of quite expensive and fast rolling, Kevlar beaded hardpack tires. But on one particularly memorable ride home from work I got a record number of flats (averaging one every two miles folks). Those prized puppies basically got shredded on the less than rubber friendly streets of East London and I was not a happy camper after that longest of commutes. New rubber was required and a little exasperated with having made history of such a treasured pair of tires I next tried a set of heavy, no nonsense, steel beaded, commute specific variants. And they’ve been good and very robust (touchwood) though they are maybe not so fast or lively either.

Unlike my bike I am prone to laziness and having street rubber on my MTB saw offroad activity suffering a significant tailing off. Weekend or opportunistic post work “grab” rides weren’t happening and all because I didn’t have the energy or industry to swap a humble pair of tires over. Towing the trailer offroad with street rubber was doable as I necessarily stayed to well-groomed bridlepaths to winch the junior Birches around and whilst it’s always good fun it’s not exactly an adrenalin rush.

Being lucky enough to live in a corner of East London bordering Epping Forest means I have 6,000 acres of history, sylvan beauty and sinuous singletrack under half a mile from my front door. Yet the Forest’s more exciting trails and I were becoming a little estranged, like a neglected love affair and all because of my idleness. Hmm I had to be more attentive and Summer (that other seasonal lover) was getting on. Before she breathed her last warm, seductive breath of the season, tippy-toeing south with the Swifts and Swallows I really had to make efforts to address the separation issues before my legs and lungs forgot how to ride singletrack.