A non cycling weekend

Well that was the plan anyway. After cycling over 1100km the last 2 weekends this weekend was going to be a non cycling one. I was looking after the kids Saturday and overnight and the 2 eldest came round on Sunday.
While reading the forums on Saturday I started to think about an overnight ride on Sunday starting about 20.00. It wouldn't be so hot and at this time of year it wouldn't be cold either.
Sunday morning I decided to do a route I'd done before via Peterborough and Royston, it was an easy to navigate route as I'd done the first leg to Peterborough a few times. The second leg was even easier as all I had to do was follow Ermine street in a straight line through Huntington to Royston.

I set off just after 20.00 it was still quite hot but the breeze while cycling does tend to cool you a bit, which is ok until you stop. Keep moving was the plan and I didn't stop until I got to Peterborough at 89km. The route was rolling hills all the way starting as soon as you head towards Cranfield then crossing the Ouse valley towards Sharnbrook. It rises again to Catworth and eventually drops down to Peterborough. Despite the hills I got to Peterborough at 23.30 with an average of 28.1kph. The Tesco garage was shut and so was the McD, luckily there's another 24hr garage at Yaxley on the way out where I could fill my bottles up. It was still warm and I'd got through 2 already.

Section 2 was easy, all I had to do was head south in an almost straight line (roman roads tend to be like that) down Ermine street. Again this was rolling all the way to Royston continuously up and down getting steeper as you get nearer to the town.
Another quick stop was had eating the sandwich I'd taken with me as nowhere was likely to be open, and I was away again. The avg speed had dropped slightly on that section to 27.9kph and I didn't think I'd keep it that high as the last bit was hilly.

Setting off again at about 01.40 I decided to take the A505 all the way to Baldock as it was virtually empty apart from the odd lorry. Most sane people were in bed!
I stopped in the garage and got a couple of cans of redbull just to keep the energy up and it was away again through Stotfold and Shefford on a route I've done many times before, and it was autopilot all the way.
As it was early and the roads were still empty I stayed on the A507 past Clophill instead of using the lanes I usually take. Good job too as while riding along I noticed a car in the ditch with it's lights still on.
Fearing the worst I knocked on the window, the woman inside was ok and not hurt but didn't know what to do. I called the police for her and after making sure she was still ok I carried on (The police said this was fine).
Staying on the A507 all the way to Ridgmont for a change I eventually came to the last hill of the ride after Woburn. It climbs gently up and once at the top it's a fast drop down to Fenny Stratford and back home.

I got back at just after 04.00 and on checking my GPS I'd kept the avg speed up and finished with my fastest every 200 ride.
210km, 7.30 moving with a avg of 28kph, my legs were a bit shaky but I felt fine.
The preparation for the 1200 in July seems to be going well. I think I'm fit enough, I'll just have to manage the sleep time and see how it goes.

Route

Altitude graph (click to enlarge)

Snowdon and Coasts 400km 12/6/10

I wasn't sure about doing this ride as I'd heard about Johns rides having a tendency to be hilly. I've done rides in Wales before (BCM600) but so knew I could climb the long drags but wasn't sure about the hills on this one.

The weekend started with a train to Shrewsbury on the Friday afternoon and I found myself sitting in the sun for a few hrs at the village hall surfing the net on my phone.
I got chatting with 3 riders from Yorkshire who turned up and they kindly offered me a lift to the chip shop they were going to for pre ride fuelling.
It was then back to the hall for some sleep before the alarm awoke me at 5.00.

It was a glorious day and the forecast was good, sun and a bit of a N/Westerly wind to slow us down at the start.
This didn't seem to slow the first bunch down though and I managed to stay with them for the first 45km until the climbs at the edges of Snowdonia. I just had to get in a low gear and winch my 16st uphill slowly and try to smile for John with the camera at the top as I went past.
First stop was at Bala 80km in 3.15hrs a couple of Danish pastries + a coffee and I was away again.



The ride climbed again after up and over the bleak open landscapes towards Betws-Y-Coed the day was starting to warm up now and I was starting to feel the heat.
More stops for drink and photo opportunities before the climb past Snowdon and the fast descent down to the next stop at Llanberis




A slight detour took me around the next small hill :-) and back onto the route a couple of km farther along. It then uses roads that I've ridden a couple of times before, but it was nice to ride along there in daylight and not nearer midnight which was usual on the BCM.
This section went well apart from a broken chain (again!!) which was a quick fix, and the ride along the coast past Harlech castle and Barmouth was great in the sunshine with a slight tailwind helping me along.
I sailed straight through Barmouth and across the railway bridge to Dolgellau, where I was surprised not to see any other bikes. I stopped to check the brevet card only to find I'd passed the control (Barmouth)already! I wasn't going to go back so I decided to head for Aberystwyth and ask there what the control was. The plan was to try and get there before Sunset.
There was still a few hills to climb and the last one just before the town was a killer.
I rolled into the control still in daylight at 21.45 (280km in14.45hrs)
The control was in the boathouse of the local club and an excellent spread of food was put on, I did manage not to stop there and start on the cider at the bar and was away again after about an hour for the last major climb of the ride.

The A44 was to take us out of town and at 23.00 on a Sat evening it was more or less empty. It was a good road to use for a night section as it was almost 75km all the way to Newtown without any turn offs.
Another garage control (pies/sandwiches and redbull) had us fed and away again for the last part as the sun was rising through the lanes back to Shrewsbury.
Starting to get tired now I found myself almost falling asleep on the bike, I stopped to get my phone out for some music and tucked in under my shirt.
Playing Metallica full blast as I cruised through the villages and town centre at 05.00 got me a few funny looks, but riding a recumbent I get that anyway :-D
I finally rolled in the finish at 06.00 ready for breakfast and some sleep.
I managed to get about 3hrs before I had to get up for the train home.
The following week was a lazy one off the bike, I took the kids away to Jaywick for 4 days and drunk far too much cider.

312km ride to Yorkshire 29/5/10

As I had no ride planned this weekend I decided to go and visit family up in Wetherby.
I was shifted to work nights so eventually got home at 07.00 , had a couple of ciders and went to bed. I didn't have the kids this weekend as they were at a party.
I thought about leaving earlier in the afternoon but it would have meant getting up there at some daft time in the morning. So after faffing about all day fettling the bike, eating and watching the weather I finally got off my backside and left at 19.00 and headed northwards.
My planned route was to take me through Wellingborough - Spalding - Lincoln - Thorne and onto Wetherby.

I had a tailwind all the way to Spalding and as it was flat my speed was up which meant I got there in about 5hrs. I just missed the doors shutting at the 24hr McD's but as I was on my bike they wouldn't serve me through the window.
Insurance reasons apparently!!
I was prepared and had food in my bag just in case I couldn't find anywhere to eat, so there wasn't a problem, apart from I'll not be using them again.

The wind had dropped now so it was a calm ride over the flat lands of the Lincolnshire fens, this wasn't to last long though as it turned and started to blow towards me instead.
By the time I was at Sleaford it was full in my face and the rain had started, it only lasted a couple of hrs but was hard enough to soak me through. The wind was to stay with me for the last 90 miles though.

I was starting to get a bit drowsy as I was going through Lincoln so stopped for drink and some more food, this kept me going for a while but by the time I got to Thorne I was starting to feel very tired and was looking for bus shelters and benches to have a break on.
I found one just before the M18 the other side of Thorne and had about 20mins rest there.
This seemed to help a bit and I was away again heading for Selby and Tadcaster. I still had the headwind and it did slow me down (even on the recumbent). It was noticeable though how mountain bikes were going even slower than me as I managed to pass them along the way.

It had been flat all the way from Lincoln to Ulleskelf but then it started to get a bit undulating, not much in terms of Derbyshire or Wales but noticeable after 100km of flat.
The last bit through Tadcaster towards Wetherby was hard work but I got there at 11.00 for a total of 15.40hrs with 3.5hrs off the bike.
25.3kph avg is not bad for a 300km ride but it did seem slow at the time.

This next weekend I haven't got any audax rides planned as it's the 1st sunday of the month and I'm out on my local ride. It's also my birthday so I plan to have a couple of ciders instead. I'll see some of you on Sunday for a beer :-D

Bryan Chapman Memorial 600km audax

After last years failed attempt and helping out at the control at Dolgellau I was offered free entry for this years ride. So with the Friday booked off work this year it was that time again to head west towards Chepstow and the start of the Bryan Chapman memorial 600km audax ride.
The train ride via Birmingham went without a hitch and it was a lovely 15km ride to the Severn view travelodge. A walk to the local pub with some other riders for food and a couple of pints and an early night ready for the early start the next morning.

The alarm went off at 04.30 and it was a short ride over the Severn bridge for the start at 06.00. The community centre was packed with about 100 riders waiting for the off and after the quick pep talk by Mark we were off.
The first 75km section over to Bronllys was fast and I found myself near the front of the queue at the cafe, the average for that bit was 28.2kph and too fast for me on a 600 but it was fun :-)

After a quickish stop I was on my way again and took the slightly longer route the other side of the river to Builth Wells, this was suggested on yacf as a better route. As I cycled along it almost traffic free I could see queues of cars and fast overtakes on the main road behind people that took the other route. This was only about 2km longer and had a couple of short sharp hills along the way but was much better.
On through Rhyader and over the hills towards Aberystwyth and the next control for more food to prepare me for the mountains of Snowdonia.
These were to start not far after the stop, once past Machynlleth the road started to climb past Cadair Idris. I'm not a natural climber and it was hard work in the sun winching myself upwards. The descent down to Dolgellau was more fun though and I arrived at Kings youth hostel feeling a bit rough but not too bad.
A change of clothes from the bag drop ready for the evening/night section more food eaten and away again for the top loop.
I was called back as I had missed the turn for the station and Barmouth bridge and a dropped chain off the granny ring had me walking a short section uphill at Penrhyndeudreath.
The climb out of Beddgelert up Pen Y Pas was hard work as my stomach was still playing up just like on the last audax where food seemed to be sitting high up and not digesting.
It did seem like I'd slowed down a lot on this section but looking at the time from 2yrs ago I was only about 15 behind that 314km done and over half way completed.
On with the coat and into the dark as I'd spent far too long at Menia. After about 30 minutes I stopped for a rest in a bus shelter as I was still feeling bad. I felt ok when I stopped pedalling just sick when on the bike.
A stop a bit further down the road for another 20 minutes then it was into the rain for the worst section of the ride over the mountain past Llyn Trawsfynydd reservoir and powerstation.
The rain was getting harder now and I was soaked through and cold.
Add to this tiredness and I was ready to pack it all in when I got back to Kings YH.
The descent off of the top was really bad as I was shivering and finding it hard to keep the bike on the road and myself awake also. I eventually got back there after nearly 12hrs (for 160km) and the first thing I did was put on dry shorts and shirt. Then it was eat and sleep before deciding whether to pack or not.
Managed to get a bed just after 5 as they were vacated by some faster riders and woken up at 7.15 to bright sunshine, some sleep and a couple of bacon sandwiches and I was ready to go again feeling a lot better than I did 3hrs earlier.
Stopped at the garage for drinks before the 1st climb of the day up past Cross Foxes. I walked the last 500m or so of it as did a few others, the top speed of the ride was 92.3kph down the other side on the brakes, great fun.

Following the GPS track I missed the next control at Aberhafesp and had to ask a local where it was. Then it was out through Newtown and up over the highest point of the ride, a bit of an anticlimax after all of the excellent scenery of North Wales. Nether or less it did earn me a great downhill section again as I swooped past groups of riders with a big grin.
It was now into the lanes of Herefordshire and they were crap compared to the smooth tarmaced roads of Wales and slowed the speed down no end.
I was looking forward to a section of rollers later that was fun the last time I did it and I wanted to see how I did on them this year. I hit them fast this year and managed to crest about 3 of them in almost top gear but as they come at about 570km into the ride and it's not advisable to do what seemed like interval training on them. It was fun but my legs didn't like it one bit and I walked the last one at Llancloudy.
So near the end but so far from the finish, the last bit along the Wye valley from Monmouth through Tintern and up to Chepstow is only 25km but the 1.5hrs it took seemed to go on forever.

I got to the finish at at 20.20, 30 minutes faster than last time which was a surprise considering how I felt throughout the night section. I had a moving average of 22.5kph over the whole 625kms which was better than the 19.5 of 2 yrs ago.
So far so good for the 1200 in july.





Day one profile



Day 2 profile

More ramblings

After last weekends 311km ride around Northampton, over the Fens to Red Lodge cafe and with the commute to work. I've managed to put over 1000km on the new bike in the 2 weeks I've had it.
The bike is performing as well as I'd hoped with the new wheels and it seems to climb a lot better than the old frame did, there is no front wheel lift any more and all that's slowing me down now is my weight!!
I'll be in a better position to know how it climbs next weekend after the Severn Across 400km, which goes from just outside London over the Cotswolds to the Forest of Dean, into Wales and back again along the M4 corridor.
Total climb for the ride is listed at 3500m which is not a great amount but there are a few short climbs along the way. I hope to get around in a reasonable time, I'll just have to not chat so much to others at the controls.
There is an option on it to route around the hills/lanes at the end by following the A4 which I may take, I'll see how I feel at the control at Membury services.

Just looking at the calendar and it's only 4 weeks now until the Bryan Chapman 600km ride in Wales, I'll know then how I'm doing and if I'm on schedule for the trip over to the Netherlands for the Lowlands 1200km or if I need more training in the next 12 weeks to get ready for it.

FSoTM ride to Stockgrove

This months first Sunday ride just happened to fall the day after a 24hr 400km audax and I knew it would be a slow one due to it being one of the hillier rides on the calendar.
The ride started at the bandstand on Queensway at the usual time of 10.00.
There was a bit of a chat about the tyres on Emma's bike. She'd got it from Evans and the person in the shop said it would be ok to put narrow tyres on the wheels that were on there.
It came fitted with large tyres which had been replaced with 28mm ones. These were too narrow and had dropped into the rim making a flat spot, I'd have loved to see the Evans employee try to fit his suggested 19mm ones on there!! Emma decided to come along and see how it went.
After about 3 miles though the tyre was flat so Stuart (her other 1/2) went back to help and told us to carry on.
The hills soon came and I definitely felt it in my legs, it was just a constant up and down. The weather was good for a bank holiday weekend and I soon had to stop and take my jacket off.
After a few more hills the cafe came into site and an egg and bacon roll was calling me in.
Stuart was there waiting for us coming in from the other way but Emma had gone home.

We left again to go up the last hill of the ride towards Great Brickhill with the fast drop on the other side back down to Bletchley.

My legs weren't too bad after the heavy weekend but I definitely felt it on a few of the hills.
I put the GPS track into the programme on here and was surprised with the total climbing of 403m in 30km of riding. Below is the chart and map of the ride.



The next one is on another bank holiday weekend and over a slightly longer distance of 30 miles, see you there :-D

The wait starts

After the bike breaking incident on Sat' I spoke to the man from Lt Thetford (Kevin @ D-Tek) to get the ball rolling. Pic's were taken and emailed around the world (Bacchetta HQ, USA) awaiting a response.
I got a call yesterday (Tuesday) saying that I'll be getting a new frame as soon as a new one comes in stock. They should be getting them in this week and it will probably take another 10 days or so to get it shipped over here. There may even be a new front fork thrown in for good measure.
Bacchetta are renowned for their customer service. This is the second time I've had to contact them but I can say that the service I've had from them is second to none.

Now all I have to do is strip the old frame down ready to rebuild the new one replacing parts that need doing on the way. I'm currently thinking about getting a new 700c front wheel built to match the rear and while I'm at it and maybe try some shorter cranks also.

In the time being I'll have to put the pedals back on the trike and have some fun on that instead.

FSoTM ride Woburn via the woods

Last Sunday saw the FSoTM riders do the woods loop again.
I do this ride twice in a year, clockwise and anticlockwise. This time it was the slightly easier anticlockwise.
The weather had been awful again in the week but Sunday turned out to be a nice day, not too cold for this time of year.
Seven of us started from the bandstand for the ride along past the canal and up to the first hill towards Gt Brickhill. Once at the top the route takes a fairly easy undulating path through the villages of Lt Brickhill, Woburn, Aspley Guise and Wavendon before coming back to the estates of MK.
The ride seemed to be going well and we were passed the planned pub stop at least ½hr before planned. So to save us waiting it was decided to carry on and reach one later on along the route.
We then made our way to the pub stop at Caldecotte lake for beer/coffee before we all went our separate ways.

I'd also like to say, It was good to see Margaret waiting to join us at Little Brickhill, she hasn't been on one of my rides since she had an accident back in August 2008 where she was knocked off her bike and hospitalised with a fractured skull amongst other injuries. I'm glad she is still getting out on the bike as a lot of people would be too worried too after such a bad experience.
Keep at it you are an inspiration.

This weekends route can be found here on bikely, as can all my routes if you search for FSoTM or silverbackcycler.

Next months ride will be on March the 7th and will go around the villages to the south of MK including Drayton Parslow, Swanbourne, Dunton and Stewkley.
Hope to see a good turn out.

The Willy Warmer

Sunday saw me out on a 3rd outing of this wonderful route, the last 2 times I've had 1 completion and 1 DNF.
The DNF was because of knee ache caused from the pedals I had on the trike at the time.

The ride starts at Chalfont St Peter, a town in the Chilterns just outside London. My choice this year having no car was to either cycle down on the Friday night have a few beers and stay over in the hall or as it was only 55km away get up early and cycle down.
Although the first choice was very tempting I decided to cycle there and back and make it an Extended Calendar Event 300. I was going to be doing 260km with the ride home after anyway.

My alarm got me up at 03.30 and I was in no rush so was out of the door and getting a receipt at 5.15, allowing myself just under 3hrs to get to the start.
The ride took me through Aylesbury for another receipt and I got to the start at 07.30. Just as everybody was leaving (Message to self, check start time next time) The start was 07.30 not 08.00 oh well.

I was away 5 minutes later after getting my brevet card and riding up the wrong road. GPS works wonderful as long as you are following the track the right way. Luckily I was only 50m or so up the road when I guessed I was going the wrong way.
I'm not mad enough (yet) to enter the "scenic" route that bypasses the towns and takes in some nice hills so took the main road option out through Marlow and Henley. The recent weather meant there was a lot of water and debris on the roads and I was passing quite a few riders that had stopped to fix there tyres.
The hills on the first half didn't seem as bad this time around and I was managing to get up them slowly, as usual on audax rides I find myself yoyoing (sp?) backwards and forwards past the same rider. I'd pass them on the flat or at speed downhill only for them to pass me on the next uphill section, the joy of being a 100kg+ recumbent rider.
I seemed to be doing really well and got to Hungerford (1/2 way) at just after 12.00. I had been trying out some new (for me) energy drink and it was working well as I hadn't wanted any food so far but decided to stop anyway. I just had a bowl of soup and a coffee and was away again 45 minutes later.
I was still going well over the hills towards Kingsclere and got to Winnersh 220km at 16.15. It was starting to get dark now and the temp was dropping so after spending an hr here chatting and getting warm it was back out into the cold for the last section back to the start control.
After crossing the M4 for the 6th time it was over the last few hills along the edge of the Chilterns again to arrive back at the start at 19.15, were I sat chatting again for far too long as per usual. I had plenty of time to do the last 60km home so as long as I got in before the time limit at 02.00 I'd be ok.
I dragged myself away from the warm hall and coffee and headed homeward I was getting a bit tired now and my legs were starting to feel heavy. The chain on the bike had been squeaking since about 3/4 of the way round as it was dry even though I had oiled it before the start, my rear brake had also worn out completely due to the water and grit on the lanes of the first half.
This was slowing me down on the twisty lanes but I got back to the garage to get a receipt at 23.15.

Total distance was 322km with a ride time of 13.10 (24.5kph avg) a max speed of 74.1 and 4hrs 50 sat down eating and chatting.
I've put the gps log of the route onto bikely and after looking at the altitude from the route it's no wonder my legs ached at the end.



The new drink worked well, it was just maltodextrine powder mixed with lucozade sport which I found did me more good than other more expensive drinks I've tried. It mixed well and could hardly be tasted in it. Mind you Lucozade is very sweet so it does need watering down anyway.

200km to Ely

I had put this ride on yacf to see if there was anyone who wanted a ride out as there's not a lot on the calendar this month.
It was a route I've done twice before so knew the route well.

While reading the forum on Saturday I saw a post on there about gps validated rides and free entry to test if it works. Being a tight cyclist the saved £2 went on cake :-D
I sent of my entry form and route by email and got the ok to ride within 30 minutes.

Alarm got me up at 06.30 and was all sorted and out the door by 08.00.
No need to stop at the garage this time for proof of passage so it was straight through MK across junction 14 of the M1 and towards Olney. Again I rode straight through as there was no need to stop and get a receipt. This saved me 15 minutes as I usually by a drink and chocolate.
It was a bit cold today and the northerly was biting. I stopped briefly the other side of Sharnbrook to have a drink and flapjack. Can't drink on the bike as I still haven't put the cages back on there after changing the seat.
1st major stop was at Grafham water cafe for a coffee and sausage roll, just in time as it started raining just as I sat down.

A quick stop as the damp clothes were starting to get cold and clammy, back on with the coat and away over the A1 through Buckland and on to Huntingdon. Another 15-20 minutes saved here as I again rode right through.
Past St Ives up the hill to Haddenham and towards Ely, the headwind most of the way slowed me down slightly but I still got there in just over 5hrs, 107km with an avg of 25.4kph.

Decided to have some food here so it was garage or Little Chef? Settled on the garage food as it was cheaper :-D
Chicken and bacon sandwich and a Mars bar eaten (we cyclist no gourmet food when we see it :-D ) and I was away again, hopefully with a tailwind.
I got the tailwind, but also got freezing cold rain as well. Fun on a recumbent when you can't put your head down and use the hat to protect your face.
Luckily it was only showers that had stopped by the time I got to Wilburton.
Twenty pence lane was the joy it always is with the traffic, everyone seems to be in a rush.
The rolling hills started as I crossed the A14 and passed to the left of Cambridge.
A stop at another garage for a quick drink and comfort break was had before I took my life in my hand in the low blinding sun, worrying that the cars behind could see my. I kept an eye on my mirror and was ready for a quick bailout into the verge if one got too close!

The still rolling roads got more rolling as I neared Gamlingay, another control passed and I was making good time. Stopped at Shefford to top up bottles and drink some energy drink before the couple of mile fast section along the A507.
It was dark now but a lot earlier than expected, and the drink was starting to work.
Passing Clophill and Malden I managed to find some lanes almost all the way to Flitwick where it was back onto the A507 for another quick section.
More rolling hills up towards Woburn and through the deer park scattering deer as I went!

The faeries were hiding in the cattle grids as I passed over them and the second one got me, I always carry spare tubes so it was off with the wheel and insert new tube.
It was starting to get cold stood by the side of the road and I must have looked odd standing there steaming in the cold air pumping my minipump against my leg 10 to the dozen!!.
One car did stop and ask if I was alright/did I need anything. There are some decent people about :-) the rest must have been to scared.

Another 20 minutes wasted there and just up the road as I had to stop again due to the bead not being sat properly on the rim. Rushed jobs by headtorch don't save time whatsoever. Take time and do it properly the first time.
It was then just a ride through the woods and down the duel carriageway back home.

The ride was a fast one (for me) 10hrs with 2hrs stopped. 25.7kph avg.


GPX file was downloaded to the computer and emailed off to Danial, his reply was as quick as the night before and he said all was ok and the ride was off for validation.
That saved a lot of time without having to use stamps and envelopes to post the card off.
If this trial is a success it will save a lot of time in route checking, collecting receipts, and sending them.
I hope it does.

Every morning

Every morning I walk the kids to school, what amazes me is the amount of people who drive their little darlings in when the only live just up the road.
I can pass people getting in their cars on the way, arrive there before they do and while I'm walking back I pass them getting out of their cars afterwards.
The parking is really good as well with people blocking the drop kerbs and parking on paths.
I'd hate to be in a wheelchair going along there and having to wait for the inconsiderate muppets to come back and move their car out of the way.




And don't get me started about the amount of people who I see daily in the procession of cars on the phone. I may sit there one day with a video camera and see how many there actually is.

And breath.......

Ride to Woburn loop via Wavendon

Another instalment of my First Sunday of The Month rides took us the reverse of the February ride around parts of the Greensand ridge through Aspley Guise, Woburn and the Brickhills.

I was awoken by rain battering the bedroom window at 08.00 this morning and did wonder if anyone would turn up today. By the time I'd had breakfast and a coffee it had cleared up and was looking to be a nice day (for Dec' anyway).
Arriving at the bandstand I found another rider there already and within 10 minutes there was 8 of us. A good turnout for a December ride. Last years ride had only me and another rider turn up and IIRC it was -3c and the roads were very icy.
The ride took us through Fenny Stratford and down Simpson road to the canal bridge, the red light caused us to stop but one rider decided to ride "Illegally" on the footpath with a call of "you'll never learn" or some such thing.
We crossed the bridge and turned right as he headed into the distance, he'll never learn :-)

Stopping the riders at the top of the path I went and found him by Caldecotte lake and brought him back on route. After going back to get the others we were on our way again along the redways towards Wavendon.
The ride starts to get hilly after Salford as it goes up past the church in Aspley Guise and the rolling roads to Woburn.
We stopped at the top of most hills for the riders to catch their breath before going again.
Doing the route clockwise is slightly harder as it takes time to get to the top and most of the ride seems to be climbing.
After stopping someone going off route down a big hill (wouldn't want to see him climbing back up again) we found ourselves at the pub in Great Brickhill. The 2 pints were most welcome and so was the roaring fire inside.

It was then on with the jacket as being mostly downhill from then on I knew it would be cold.
As we got back to the Bandstand the group was down 4. The others having taken shorter routes home as we came to the end of the ride.
The gps showed almost exactly 20 miles and 1hr40 moving time, we were out for just over 3hrs.
Another good ride in good company and one new rider who I hope will come along again.
See you all on next years rides.

More ramblings

Another weekend of non-cycling. Family does take priority sometimes :-D
I had the 4 youngest on Saturday, the weather was atrocious but in between showers we walked around to the shop.
As the kids were being blown about I couldn't help thinking "This S'Westerly wind would be amazing if I was cycling up to York now, I'd get there in record time" (for a 250km ride)
This cycling lark does get you like that sometimes, either that or I've completely lost it.
I think the latter applies!!

Spent the morning changing the seat on the Bacchetta Giro26 back to the euromesh seat that come with it. The Optima hardshell seat on there had cracked so needed changing before it fell apart with me being miles away from home.

Just need to sort the rear wheel out now as it's getting worse.
Will be looking at changing it over from 559 (MTB) to 700c (road) this will raise the seat up slightly and may help the problem I have of the front wheel lifting on steep hills.
It may not though and it's probably easier to walk when it gets that steep as my lungs can't get enough in for the exertion and I usually end up a swearing/sweaty/panting heap at the top anyway.
More training needed!!

On another note my bike has just passed the 15000Km mark since I got it 18 months ago.
It's no surprise really that the rear wheel has given up! with a lot of the distance done on very badly surfaced roads and also having to carry my 100+kgs and baggage about.

Upper Thames 200km audax

The new season started last weekend and as I'd one of my local rides to do my first audax was this week.

The Upper Thames ride was the first 200km+ audax ride I ever did and I've done this ride 4 times now. Each time forgetting how hard it actually is.
As it starts at Sonning Common a few km north of Reading at 07.30 I'd decided to book the Friday night off work and cycle down to stay in the Travelodge at the M4 services. These rooms can be had for as little as £10 if booked online in advance, I got one for £20 and was sharing it with another rider.

I left home about midday and headed for Aylesbury and Thame, not wanting to cross the Chilterns too high up I decided to go Via Benson and Pangborne. This wasn't too bad as it only meant climbing halfway up the hills and not having to cycle through Reading town centre.
The rain held off for most of the journey but it was a headwind all the way, the zip on my bag gave up which meant I had to lace it shut with the cord from the top of it. Not very waterproof but it had to do. I got to the Travelodge at about 5pm damp and a bit tired.
In a way the heavy rain at the end of the ride was good, it meant I wasn't going to go down the pub a mile or so away and stayed in the room eating a Burger king royale meal instead. Not sure if that was any better though!!

Alarm was off at 05.45 which was better than the 04.45 that driving there would have meant.
Out into the darkness at about 06.30 through a quiet Reading and up the hill for the start at 07.30. Just time for coffee + biscuits, toast + jam, say hello to friends etc.
Then back out again and away with the bunch of just under 100 riders, most of which left me on the first hill and the start of the climbs through the Chilterns before dropping down from Christmas Common to Watlington at eye watering speed.
The first control was at the cafe at Waterperry gardens Northeast of Oxford where it was just a quick stop for coffee and cake and away again for the next round of hills up to and past Long Crendon and Ashendon but bypassing Brill by going through Luggershall instead.
Comfort break at Bicester services and more drink purchased for the next rolling leg to Chipping Norton. This was the first time I've managed to get there before the chippy shut so it was pie and chips eaten outside the Sainsburys for me :-D

Next leg was again rolling through the Cotswold hills and down onto the flat area past Brize Norton to cross the Upper Thames just south of Bamford. I was going well on this section and was doing nearly 40kph when my rear tyre exploded!
This didn't take long to sort as I always carry spare tubes and bits of old tyre to cover the hole from inside which would otherwise mean a long walk or a damaged rim.
Tube and tyre fixed I was away again with only about 10 minutes stopped.

It was starting to get dark by the time I reached Milton and the garden centre cafe. 1st time I've managed to get here before it has shut and in almost daylight. More coffee and cake consumed.
Coat, gloves, hat + head torch, lights etc put on as it was dark and the temperature had dropped, glad to be moving again as standing about with sweaty clothes on was starting to make me shiver. My GPS didn't like the next section and wouldn't route maybe because of the lanes used at the end not being on there. It kept freezing and the only way to fix it was to take the batteries out and start it up again. Luckily I had a tracklog on there as well as the route so was able to follow it, the route sheet in my bag also helped.

The lanes around Didcot were dark and started to go upwards again as we came back around to the start and re entered the Chilterns.
I was starting to get tired at this point maybe due to the extra kms on the Friday, so I stopped at the start of the last hill for an energy bar (which surprisingly tasted good compared to the usual ones I've eaten) and some drink. Then it was off again for the last few kms to the finish.
I took the main road again this year as I have done every other time, maybe I'll try the quiet lane/hilly route next time. Maybe not :-D

I got back in at 19.30, not the quickest of times I've done this route in but about my usual time out for a 200km ride.
Excellent soup at the finish got me ready for the ride downhill to the station and train back to London.

1st train I missed as I was at the wrong end of the platform :-D never been on one from Reading before. I got on the next one as they are very frequent at about 1 every 5 minutes it seemed.
A quick ride although not the quickest route from Paddington to Euston gps route took me above Regents park and not along the Euston road. Onto the 22.30 Bletchley bound train which was packed just like the tube with no room to move, again luck was on my side and most people got off before I needed to, I had visions of not being able to get the bike past the crowd and having to go all the way to Northampton!!

All in all a good weekend.
Now just need to find a new rear wheel, a new tyre and a new seat (starting to crack) before the ride up to York at the end of the month.

FSoTM ride 1.11.09

A week late posting this as we are now past the 2nd weekend of November.
The forecast was terrible but I thought I'd get up and go down to the bandstand to see if there was any other mad people there.
There were 3 others braving the downpour. Chris, Stuart and a new rider that I've forgot the name of, I'm terrible with names and sometimes can't remember people who have been on these rides for ages :-D

It was still raining at 10.10 and as nobody else had turned up we decided to start.
The route took us south down the A5 to start with and once we got out in the open the side wind and rain combined stung my face and soaked through my waterproofs, good start!
Stuart decided not too be daft and turned round at this point as he was soaked, leaving the 3 of us to carry on.

The ride up through Little Brickhill and Woburn had on and off showers and the wind was sort of helpful, in places pushing us along. Quiet lanes with few cars were fun but the short section of the A507 never is, but there is no other way around unless the mileage is added to.
Arrived at the almost empty cafe at Marston Vale for a coffee and cake stop and it was back on the bikes before the damp clothes made us too cold.

The ride back through Cranfield was interesting and the strong headwind almost stopped Chris dead in places. He had to pedal down the hill!
We didn't stop in the usual place at Salford this time as we decided to get nearer to the finish and stopped at Caldecotte lake instead. This made the 2 pints more enjoyable and it was then only a quick ride back to Fenny Stratford to finish.

GPS log of the route on Bikely.com

Hope to see more out on Dec 6th.

Last audax of the season

After getting rid of my car earlier this year as it was starting to fall apart and would have cost me more than it was worth to fix it. I've had to look at different ways to get to audax rides.
Some can be got to by train but that usually means a change or 2 at London or Birmingham, not much good for early starts or just a day ride.
Some of the closer rides I can cycle to if they are around the 50km mark. This way I can make a 200km rides into a 300km rides. I've done this a few times on Cambridge and Oxford rides.

This weekend I decided to ride over to Stevenage for the 100km Emitremmus Desrever (summertime reversed) a big ride that has been running for 15yrs on the wekend the clocks go back.
My alarm got me up at 06.00 and after faffing I was away from the garage at 7.30 heading for Woburn and Flitwick, past the hills around Sharpenhoe and on towards Hitchen. The GPS worked well and got me around a police road closure without any effort.
The roads got busier as I neared Stevenage but were no different to MK, I hooked up with another rider and he guided me round the cycle paths to the start arriving just after 09.00.

As my start time wasn't until 10.10 I had a coffee and a look at all the bling bikes that were out for the day. The ride starts in groups so not to annoy the local traffic with 300+ bikes on the road at once.
I was in the 4th start group and after a quick photo we were away and quickly out of Stevenage and into the rolling hills to the east. With the GPS bleeping away I hardly looked at the route sheet and was keeping a good pace. At one point though the rider in front turned right and the GPS told me to turn left, I followed it and then right at the next junction, seeing riders ahead I new I was still on route.
At the top of a small hill I decided to stop and remove my long sleeved jersey but had the feeling I'd missed something. Checking my brevet card I found I'd missed the first control, bugger! Back down small hill turn left and then go the way the other rider had up to the cafe and join the long queue to get the card stamped.
Away again and on towards Saffron Walden for the lunch stop, the cafe had a long queue so it was a pasty from the costcutter across the road and a quick getaway. The GPS didn't like the follow road option for the ride back, Probably due to the cycle paths near the end.

The hills kept coming and it was over the highest part of the ride nr Barkway which is always on rides around this area onto the next stop at a village hall in Therfield which was one of the best tea stops I've had on an audax. I believe this one was organised by the local WI and there was a good selection of sandwiches, cakes and drinks.
After dragging myself away from the food it was back out again to find it was noticeably colder, so it was back on with the top and away again.
5 minutes up the road it was on with the jacket as the rain started, thankfully it was just a quick shower and it wasn't needed for long.
Past the info control and onto the cycle paths trying to follow the routesheet (under underpass 19 turn left to underpass 23 etc) would have been ok apart from only underpass 19 had a number on. I did find my way back to the sailing club though and it was a quick coffee and away again for the ride home before it got too dark.

My route back took me back along Stevenages main roads and along the old A1 to Baldock Tesco for a sandwich and drink refill. Only needed to use parts of the A507 as most of the way you can go through the villages next to it.
It started to get dark around Clophill so it was all lights ablaze and onwards, good lights are a must this time of year and the B+M IQfly on the front of my bike is excellent. Along with the head torch other road users must wonder what's coming towards them.
After the short climb and fast descent through Woburn park it was only a quick ride through the woods left to do and I was back at the garage at 18.30.

Next ride will be next weekend with the 30 mile FSoTM ride to Marston Vale cafe and then the new season starts again with a 200 from near Reading.
Lets see if I can beat this years point :-D

More ramblings.

Another few weeks of hardly any cycling here, The usual commute to and from work is all I've done since the FSoTM ride.

While not cycling I've been surfing the net and there's loads to keep busy over the dark evenings
The cycle forums are always good for info and chat. The few I frequent are
yACF Yet another cycling forum
BHPC British Human Power Club
BROL Bentrider online

Some of the blogs I visit (too many to list here)
Yehuda Moon a daily cartoon.
Dave Hembrow an Englishman who now lives in Holland.
Ecovelo Eco friendly cycling
The recumbent blog A blog about recumbents :-)

And more records drop at the velodrome in Apeldoorn, Holland.

I also found a video of myself on the redway photographic project site that I did back at the start of the year.

Next weekend I'm going over to Stevenage for a 100km ride. The ride there and back makes it up to 200km though, so will be my long one this month.
I've not managed to get my Super Randonneur* award this season as I've missed out on a 400km ride. The 3 rides I gave up on would have been ok but that's the way it goes.
This year I've managed to get 34 points with the audax rides I've done, the same as last year.
I was hopping to get over 70 but things were against me this year, hopefully the next one will be better.
The new season starts on Nov' 1st and I've already arranged rides and booked holiday at work up until May already.

* A 200km, 300km, 400km, 600km ride

FSoTM ride to Cranfield

Another month, another First Sunday of The Month ride.

These rides started off in 2002 (pic on right) when I did 4 short rides with the Parks Trust of around 10 - 15 miles. The riders were telling me they would like to do longer ones but the MKCTC rides of 40+ miles were too far and too fast for them.
I decided to start a monthly programme of rides around MK to get people out and show them how easy it was to cycle around MK and the surrounding areas.
Some months when it's snowing or raining I only get 1 other mad person turning up (you know who you are) but usually there's between 9 - 15 riders on a variety of bikes from mountain bikes to recumbents.
It has been known for as many as 50 to come along on the MCR and Winslow rides.

To me these rides are doing what I want them to do, get more bums on saddles. People who were apprehensive about the distance and going out on the roads are now doing the longer rides at the end of the year. They've then started to think about getting a better bike and doing longer rides, commuting and even longer stuff.

This months ride started out from Bletchley as usual and got eventually onto Simpson road after a slight detour as I'd lead the way towards Tesco instead of towards Fenny Stratford which was the way I'd usually go. Past Willen and on through Newport Pagnell, I was shown a new route through there which bypassed the town centre using the riverside path and will use definitely use it on other rides.
It was then along the rolling gentle climb up to Cranfield to then turn into the wind to drop past the airfield and the pub stop at Salford.



Just 1 p#nct#re in the group this time but as it was near the stop Chris decided to just pump it up and fix it over a beer, twice!
The first time we couldn't find the offending object but on better inspection and a pair of pliers a small piece of wire was removed and all was well.
Then down through Wavendon and Walnut Tree and back to the start with only 2 people left. Others took shorter routes home as it was easier and quicker for them.




What I like about these rides they can be adapted on the day if the riders or weather changes, if some are tired we can miss out the last hill or if it's snowing or -2c I'll not take the lanes through the woods etc.
It's also great fun to get out with friends and like minded people.

It would be great to see more people out, so if you fancy a short ride just turn up at the bandstand on Queensway in Bletchley and join us for the ride.
Next years rides

Up to Sunny Scunny

Had the Friday night booked off work and my alarm set for 04.45 on Saturday morning ready for the 3rd annual 600km ride organised over on yACF. The last 2 yrs these rides have been on have had 6-10 people on helping them get their there first SR and others just for the company.
I posted it again this year and had a few interested people but as time got nearer they had to drop out due to "real life" getting in the way. It was only me and Steve Abraham outside the local garage at 6.00 this time for the start.

As it was just us we decided to do a quick ride straight up the main roads through Wellingborough, Kettering and past Corby towards Oakham for the first control. A quick stop at another garage to refill our bottles and onto the windmill cafe at Wymondham.
100km in 4hrs most of which was non stop undulating hills.
The next section started off with more hills but got flatter as we neared Lincoln. We had to walk our bikes again through another closed road where a bridge was being rebuilt.
I managed to snap my chain while negotiating the traffic in Lincoln, but as I always carry a chain tool this wasn't a problem. Apart from greasy hands!

More drink brought and on again along the ridge northwards out of Lincoln, it was getting hotter as the day progressed and I was having my doubts about finishing watching Steve disappear into the distance as I dragged my 16+ stone up another hill.
Uphills always mean a downhill section and it was a fast blast down the A18 into Scunthorpe and into a Morrisons for dinner at 16.00. Back on the bike ready to go, that feels odd! front wheel puncture, bugger!
Back up the hill we'd just shot down but at a much slower pace! as we headed for Caister I could see the ridge ahead with the road up the side of it then the 10% sign!
I didn't walk but it was hard work in the late afternoon sun and almost in the bottom gear. Any slower or more vertical I find the front wheel lifts and I nearly fall out the back!! Lol
Once on the ridge there were great views across the Lincolnshire plains as the sun set.
Another fast downhill and another climb up out of the town to mack up the height I'd lost again.
As darkness fell we got to the flatlands of the fens around Boston where we stopped at another garage for more food, bottle refills and a rest.

It was getting late now and as we left Boston at 22.00 the roads were starting to get empty so it was another A road blast down the A16 towards Spalding and a McD coffee.
Slight mishap while going along there though. One minute I was riding along quite happy then the next I know there's a noise like a tyre scrapping along brick and I fall in the grass verge!
I must have shut my eyes momentarily moved left and hit the kerb, It definitely woke me up.

Quiet lanes towards Wisbech had both of us getting the dozies and a quick stop on a bench at about 1am sort of sorted it. The sky was clear now and the stars looked great from the laidback position of the recumbent. It was getting cold now though.
We eventually got to another garage for more drinks and it was away again to the planned stop at Ely getting there just after 3am.
As the garage was shut Steve put his card in the machine for some money, nothing happened.
I then tried and mine, windows is rebooting. It stayed in there never to be seen again!!

We managed to get 3hrs sleep and were up again at 7 into the chilly, foggy morning and a Tesco breakfast consisting of a cold sandwich and a drink.
Onwards towards Red Lodge Cafe (nr Newmarket) for proper fried breakfast then Northwards to Swaffham. The roads around Brandon were now getting busy and there were a few impatient muppets on the road.
More food and drink consumed sat in the sun watching the good people of Swaffham stare at my bike as they went past. We were across the road eating and Steve wondered if we could set a remote speaker up on them to make a loud bang at the push of a button. May have to try a walkie talkie next time, "this bike is alarmed, step away from the bike".
Another quick blast down an A road, this time the A47 and it was downhill to the next junction and a left turn for Downham market.
As we approached Downham Market the area started to get flat again and after there it was flat, the tailwind in places had the riding speed up to 32kph for fairly long sections.

The rolling hills east of Cambridge and into Bedfordshire were starting to slow me down now and the miles were starting to be felt in my legs. Another quickish stop at Biggleswade and the homeward stretch along the busy A507, not too bad though as it is a very wide road. The climb up through Woburn park was hard but I crested the hill just before a car had chance to pass me, it never made it as I accelerated down at 70+kph.
Downhills are always fun when you've had to slog your way up first.
It was then just a ride through the woods and down the A5 to arrive back at the start garage at just after 19.30.

Cycle comp showed 628km, total time out was 37.5hrs. 10hrs of those were off the bike though. With a ride time of 28.13hrs and an average speed of 25.9kph it makes it my 3rd fastest ride this season, I'm very pleased with that beings as it was a long ride.
All in all a good weekend.

Things learnt,
DO NOT ride a 600+ ride wearing shoes that you brought the day before. They will hurt your feet.

Delivering a lorry to Doncaster

The week started off at work with an email about taking a lorry to Doncaster. Opened MS autoroute to work out the distance back, 210km. A plan is hatched :-)

I emailed them back and said if they pay me 1/2 a day I'll take the lorry up early on Sunday morning with the bike strapped to the back and then cycle home.
I got comments about being mad, but they knew that already and it was OKed.

Was up at 05.00 and out the door just before 6 and rode over to work. I managed to get the bike inside the cab so that sorted the problem/worry of it bouncing down the M1 if I hit a bump.
I arrived at Donny unloaded the bike and went to find the local Tesco's for food.
I was away at 10.20 heading southwards through the town centre and going the wrong way!
GPS's are great if you load the route on to it in chunks of routes of only 50 points and not try to do one route for the whole route.
Didn't hear the thing bleep at me and was further along the road than planned so had a slight detour around past the airport.
Back on route and towards Gainsborough for a coffee then following the Trent towards Newark and a McDonalds lunch knowing the next section was going to get hilly.

Leaving Newark was ok but I found myself on the wrong side of the hill at Belvoir so had to winch myself up towards the castle and around the other side. Wasn't sure if I could get back onto the planned route easily without backtracking as some roads were not on the GPs.
I then saw a sign for the next village so I followed it and was pleased to see the route I should have been on and as I was on top of the ridge it was an easy ride to the next stop at Oakham for the audax staple of garage sarnie and milkshake.

I couldn't be bothered with the lanes towards Desborough so followed the main road towards Corby which is quite rolling! At one point I was doing 80kph downhill and could see the person in the car behind me looking at her speedo and talking to the passenger. The car came past me on the next straight bit with a couple of kids giving me the thumbs up with big grins on their faces.

The roads got a bit busier as I went towards Corby, Kettering and Wellingborough and they seemed to get more hilly as the ride went on.
As darkness fell cars started to give me a wider birth and the rest of the ride through Olney and back through MK went without problem.

Total for the day was 226km (16km over distance for a diy is not too bad) which I did in 11hrs with 2.20hrs off the bike eating, resting at the top of hills and generally faffing.
I averaged 26kph which is slightly faster than the usual speeds and the 2nd best avg this year.
I spent most of Monday eating though! always get "THE HUNGER" after an audax ride.

Now to get ready for next weekends 600km to Scunthorpe, Boston and a loop round the fens. Think I'm looking forward to it! I'd only be drinking at a wedding celebration anyway if I was not out riding! Lol.