Chris here and getting this one in today before it has to become month notes. The last three weeks have flown and there hasn’t really been much time to reflect and record what we’ve been up to. Alongside the regular client work we have been getting ready for a special Halloween parade wiith our friends Katumba Drumming and Peloton

A group of regular Joyriders lead by Danny on the DogShow trike paraded down Bold Street for a post-apocalyptic bike ride. MCQN provided the lights with My Bike’s Got LED kits. Along with a fire breathing bat and the Katumba drummers we paraded down Bold Street, Church Street and Paradise Street. Finishing outside John Lewis for a drumming and dance finale.

As well as the lights on his bike Adrian was sporting this excellent light up suit for the event. Using more flexible LED strips, expertly sewn by Robotorium and a MbiGL board he had a boiler suit suitable for any post-apocalyptic occasion.

Special mention to Jackie who created some additional effects using segments to create this spectacular effect.

At the heart of this light show was the My Bike’s Got LED board. An ESP8266 running WLED with onboard power management for use with Li-Ion/LiPo batteries.

In keeping with the advice from the wise Giles Turnbull, I thought it would be useful to record a little bit of what didn’t go quite as well too.

“The best way to write weeknotes is as a genuine personal reflection of the week. Allow them to be personal. Allow thoughts and feelings to creep in, alongside news. Be open, be candid, be the sort of refreshing honesty that most colleagues are yearning for. That will result in excellent weeknotes” - Tips for writing good weeknotes

So, all the above turned out really well and was well received but it’s worth capturing a little of the frantic paddling by MCQN beneath the surface. We had sufficient boards and components to make up all the kits we needed. We used a new brand of solder paste and hit some snags with the reflow process leaving a lot of reworking to squeeze in.

Lessons learned for me were, if you’re using a new brand of solder paste don’t assume the heating profile for reflow, and complete a single test board committing all the available stock.