Wasn't sunny, in fact it was more like a windy week in October....sigh. To round up my week then... Monday I did a couple more miles on the rollers while the heavens dropped yet more rain; whilst on Tuesday I actually cycled to our local office which, despite only being a round trip of 5 miles or so, was a right pain due to the wind.
http://www.bikehike.co.uk/mapview.php?id=13426
Wednesday.... didn't bother going out; whilst on Thursday I thought...hell, I need a new bike and headed to Wolverhampton to look some over....hummmm.
I quite like the Specialized Scetur Triple but, and its a big but, the new 2010 version isn't available until October which really isn't on. I quite like the Giant Defy 3 but the shop I went to doesn't sell them: sigh, and the Trek 1.2 (nice colours). Going to look again tomorrow.... the wife asked why I need a new one....sigh....cause I do!
Today then...well I need to go to the Post Office which is less than a mile away, so went the long way around!!!! What can I say about the ride...well, I tried to get up Hyde Lea Bank again...and managed ¾ before the lungs and heart gave out and I had to stop...one day you will be mine Hyde Lea Bank....one day!
The rest of the ride was enjoyable although I was buzzed by a tractor who just had to overtake whilst I was doing 18mph.... up hill!!!... and the road was a little muddy in places. There wasnt much traffic which was nice, until I got back to the A449 but then its a Friday afternoon so I should expect that.
http://www.bikehike.co.uk/mapview.php?id=13426
I was quite impressed with my average speed....10.4mph and thought my maximum speed of 56.9mph was, well frankly unbelievable!
Well that's a month over and I do feel fitter... I wonder if I made my targets?
Friday 31 July 2009
Sunday 26 July 2009
The Great British Summer...
A few facts: This month: July, there have been 19 days (out of 26) on which it has rained with a total of 8cm (or about 3 inches worth) falling out of a total of 30cm in the year so far... so, about a quarter of the years rain has fallen from the sky this month. So, would you be surprised to hear that we had early 1cm of the wet stuff today...no, thought you wouldn't be.
So, what does a bloke who hates cycling in rain do? Well.... I suppose he could get his rain jacket out and just go for it but that's not going to happen as I am still too fat to fit in it. Instead, and after spending £100odd quid for them, why don't I go on the rollers.....
Hummmm.... I tried them the other day and found them really difficult to use but after preserving, I did manage to do three miles on them with a maximum speed of 14.3mph and an average of 8mph. Got to say however, that cycling 3 miles on them was harder than doing 30 miles on the MTB! Blimey, if I can get used to them, I will get fit!!! Oh, good news is that I have learned how to balance on them so happily, I don't always have to lean on the wall!
Oh, I can also see why “they” say you should have a ran running while on them...blimey, you get hot!
So, what does a bloke who hates cycling in rain do? Well.... I suppose he could get his rain jacket out and just go for it but that's not going to happen as I am still too fat to fit in it. Instead, and after spending £100odd quid for them, why don't I go on the rollers.....
Hummmm.... I tried them the other day and found them really difficult to use but after preserving, I did manage to do three miles on them with a maximum speed of 14.3mph and an average of 8mph. Got to say however, that cycling 3 miles on them was harder than doing 30 miles on the MTB! Blimey, if I can get used to them, I will get fit!!! Oh, good news is that I have learned how to balance on them so happily, I don't always have to lean on the wall!
Oh, I can also see why “they” say you should have a ran running while on them...blimey, you get hot!
Birmingham to Stafford.
As you might know, I have set myself the target of “doing” Birmingham to Stafford this month after falling short of such a ride a couple of weeks ago due to rain. Well, as the weather was okay yesterday, I decided that I didn't have any good reason not to!
So, the ride...well, I got to the Station in plenty of time but forgot to go to the cash machine...something I regretted later and got on the 6.41am: blimey, the train manager was chatty! She thought it was funny that someone would get the train into Birmingham and then cycle back. I told her that if she saw me at a station trying to get the train back after bottling it, she should refuse to allow me onto the train.
Humm... they have spent quite a bit of money around Gas St Basin and it was full of boats, strangely though, I didnt actually see any sailing along until just before Wolverhampton! It was a bright and sunny day, which was nice, although the wind did pick up later. I made reasonable progress making it to Wolverhampton (15 miles) in about 2 hours.
Wolverhampton...ah....shit hole. I had two incidents of note whilst pending through. Firstly, there are some new flats built right by the canal which had they been in London would be worth £400-£500K each but in Wolverhampton, they were built and owned by a Housing Association. Sooooo, they were full of twats including the group of morons who thought it was funny to shout abuse at me. When I ignored them, they decided it would be funny to throw a bottle of pop at me, which missed but didn't please me somewhat! Tosser. I could rant here about bringing back National Service but wont bother.
Then, after a couple of texts I was cycling through a Oxley Park...the canal doesnt have a path at this stage so you use the parks path...when I came up behind an old bloke. Now rather than asking him to step aside, I decided it was better if I went around him....mistake!!!! I did not notice that the grass was very waterlogged and hit a puddle of mud at around 10mph.... over the top I went landing heavily in the mud. The old bloke came up to check if I was okay: which I was, and then said how polite I had been to try to go around him and how sorry he was that I had fallen off. He did agree with me however, that it must have looked funny this fat bloke flying through the air.
I was quite happy when I got off the canal path as its a bit claggy and difficult to roll. Once back on tarmac I made good time to Penkridge where I thought I would stop and get a quick sandwich but...sigh, the towns cash machine wasn't working!!!
Well, the last five miles should have been a struggle but to be honest, I didn't really notice them and made the final “climb” into Stafford without a problem. So, 30.1 miles (and no, I didn't add the 0.1miles just to make it look even more impressive!) in just over 4 hours. (forgot to add, the cycle to the station, so that's 31. 6 miles!!!)
http://www.bikehike.co.uk/mapview.php?id=13000
So, the ride...well, I got to the Station in plenty of time but forgot to go to the cash machine...something I regretted later and got on the 6.41am: blimey, the train manager was chatty! She thought it was funny that someone would get the train into Birmingham and then cycle back. I told her that if she saw me at a station trying to get the train back after bottling it, she should refuse to allow me onto the train.
Humm... they have spent quite a bit of money around Gas St Basin and it was full of boats, strangely though, I didnt actually see any sailing along until just before Wolverhampton! It was a bright and sunny day, which was nice, although the wind did pick up later. I made reasonable progress making it to Wolverhampton (15 miles) in about 2 hours.
Wolverhampton...ah....shit hole. I had two incidents of note whilst pending through. Firstly, there are some new flats built right by the canal which had they been in London would be worth £400-£500K each but in Wolverhampton, they were built and owned by a Housing Association. Sooooo, they were full of twats including the group of morons who thought it was funny to shout abuse at me. When I ignored them, they decided it would be funny to throw a bottle of pop at me, which missed but didn't please me somewhat! Tosser. I could rant here about bringing back National Service but wont bother.
Then, after a couple of texts I was cycling through a Oxley Park...the canal doesnt have a path at this stage so you use the parks path...when I came up behind an old bloke. Now rather than asking him to step aside, I decided it was better if I went around him....mistake!!!! I did not notice that the grass was very waterlogged and hit a puddle of mud at around 10mph.... over the top I went landing heavily in the mud. The old bloke came up to check if I was okay: which I was, and then said how polite I had been to try to go around him and how sorry he was that I had fallen off. He did agree with me however, that it must have looked funny this fat bloke flying through the air.
I was quite happy when I got off the canal path as its a bit claggy and difficult to roll. Once back on tarmac I made good time to Penkridge where I thought I would stop and get a quick sandwich but...sigh, the towns cash machine wasn't working!!!
Well, the last five miles should have been a struggle but to be honest, I didn't really notice them and made the final “climb” into Stafford without a problem. So, 30.1 miles (and no, I didn't add the 0.1miles just to make it look even more impressive!) in just over 4 hours. (forgot to add, the cycle to the station, so that's 31. 6 miles!!!)
http://www.bikehike.co.uk/mapview.php?id=13000
Aldi and weekly round up.
Well, it was Thursday morning and Aldi have special offers on some cycling equipment including some cycling shoes which look interesting, so a quick ride first and then some shopping.
http://www.bikehike.co.uk/mapview.php?id=12831
Nothing special about the ride, apart from the large amount of cow poo on the cycle path near Gnosall...nasty stuff!
So, did I get my shoes...yes, and they work quite well.
Other cycle related stories...well, cycled to the Post Office on Tuesday adding about 1.5 miles to my monthly total: why do I always face queues when I go there and my cycle rollers arrived. I have managed to do half a mile on them...blimey, they are hard to use! Finally, I had quite bad back pain at the moment brought about by a trapped nerve in my lower back...sigh.
http://www.bikehike.co.uk/mapview.php?id=12831
Nothing special about the ride, apart from the large amount of cow poo on the cycle path near Gnosall...nasty stuff!
So, did I get my shoes...yes, and they work quite well.
Other cycle related stories...well, cycled to the Post Office on Tuesday adding about 1.5 miles to my monthly total: why do I always face queues when I go there and my cycle rollers arrived. I have managed to do half a mile on them...blimey, they are hard to use! Finally, I had quite bad back pain at the moment brought about by a trapped nerve in my lower back...sigh.
Sunday 19 July 2009
Sunday 19th
Well, with 27 miles in my legs from yesterday, you would think I would be a bit reluctant to go too far today as, well I am not that fit am I. You would be right but I had a nagging wish to make it 50 miles this weekend...so, that's what I did.
It was quite early with rain expected, so I took the road bike which is considerably quicker than the MTB and just for a bit of difference, I decided to use the road instead of paths for part of the trip...that was fun getting up to 28 miles an hour....okay, I was going down hill at the time. My average speed was a disappointing 9.8mph: must make 12 miles an hour as an average before long.
Anyway, the trip down to the M54 junction was fine and in the end I did 24 miles, making 51 miles for the weekend. I am feeling a bit sore around the neck but that's expected really.
Here is the route.
http://gb.mapometer.com/en/running/route_206653.html
It was quite early with rain expected, so I took the road bike which is considerably quicker than the MTB and just for a bit of difference, I decided to use the road instead of paths for part of the trip...that was fun getting up to 28 miles an hour....okay, I was going down hill at the time. My average speed was a disappointing 9.8mph: must make 12 miles an hour as an average before long.
Anyway, the trip down to the M54 junction was fine and in the end I did 24 miles, making 51 miles for the weekend. I am feeling a bit sore around the neck but that's expected really.
Here is the route.
http://gb.mapometer.com/en/running/route_206653.html
Saturday 18 July 2009
Yartley Bank ha ha ha
Everyone has there nemesis... Superman has Lex Luther, Gordon Brown has Tony Blair... I have hills! I hate them as, well to be honest despite losing 17lb, I still am not powerful enough to get up anything but the shortest hill without panting. So..today I faced a major nemesis.... Yartley Bank.... a magnificent 140 foot climb!!!
Lets rewind a bit...how comes I ended up climbing it; well, I was planning to get the train into Birmingham and riding back from there but the first 200 yards put a stop to that idea! Blimey, was it windy and did my back hurt when I hit a couple of lumps in the road! Nooooo, not going to risk being stuck miles from home, so instead I decided to go somewhere more local...and flat. Shame is, I ended up on the Stone road feeling crap but needing to keep my average miles up, so much against my better judgement, I ended up in Stone.
Now, there are 3 ways back from Stone: back along the A34 and up Yartley Bank; along the canal or along the Green Lane to Gt Bridgford and back. Well, I discarded the canal idea as I didnt know how my back would put up with it and, sigh, couldnt find the green lane, so I ended up back on the A34....glup!
So, what was Yartley Bank like? Well, I peddled all the way to the top but lets be honest, I did stop once to get my breath back. I do like the back road to Marston as, apart from one other cyclist, it was completely empty!
Well back onto the ring road and then along the canal to the otherside of Acton Tressal before coming home. Er.... I thought this was going to be a short ride??? 27 miles! That's the longest I had done this year.
http://gb.mapometer.com/en/cycling/route_206162.html
A few stats:
Weight Loss: 17lb
Total Distance this month 133 miles (against a target of 220, so 87 miles to do)
Average Distance (without trips to the shop rides) 21 miles against a target of 18 miles.
Not Bad.
Lets rewind a bit...how comes I ended up climbing it; well, I was planning to get the train into Birmingham and riding back from there but the first 200 yards put a stop to that idea! Blimey, was it windy and did my back hurt when I hit a couple of lumps in the road! Nooooo, not going to risk being stuck miles from home, so instead I decided to go somewhere more local...and flat. Shame is, I ended up on the Stone road feeling crap but needing to keep my average miles up, so much against my better judgement, I ended up in Stone.
Now, there are 3 ways back from Stone: back along the A34 and up Yartley Bank; along the canal or along the Green Lane to Gt Bridgford and back. Well, I discarded the canal idea as I didnt know how my back would put up with it and, sigh, couldnt find the green lane, so I ended up back on the A34....glup!
So, what was Yartley Bank like? Well, I peddled all the way to the top but lets be honest, I did stop once to get my breath back. I do like the back road to Marston as, apart from one other cyclist, it was completely empty!
Well back onto the ring road and then along the canal to the otherside of Acton Tressal before coming home. Er.... I thought this was going to be a short ride??? 27 miles! That's the longest I had done this year.
http://gb.mapometer.com/en/cycling/route_206162.html
A few stats:
Weight Loss: 17lb
Total Distance this month 133 miles (against a target of 220, so 87 miles to do)
Average Distance (without trips to the shop rides) 21 miles against a target of 18 miles.
Not Bad.
Rollers
....well, after lots of moaning and following the agreement of “her in doors,” I finally brought myself a set of rollers to ride when its raining, or when I generally don't want to go out for some boring reason or otherwise. I'll let you know how I get on with them as I understand they take some getting use to.... lets hope I don't fall off!!!!
Stafford Road Club: Senior Section..
Just realised, I haven't written up last Sundays ride!!! How remiss.
Well, after the long 25 mile plus ride, I wanted to do a short one just to keep my legs moving as they were somewhat sore after the pounding they took 24 hours earlier, so off on the mostly flat route down to Gailey I went.
The ride is quite simple so I went on my road bike: something I haven't used much this year. Blimey, you do notice the weight difference between that and the MTB I have been riding. Its also much quicker getting me to Penkridge in less than 25 minutes... I know thats not brilliant in the scheme of things, but good for me.... lets put it down to the wind which was blowing a gale again. I hate the wind.
Anyway, this is the route
http://gb.mapometer.com/en/cycling/route_202723.html
The trip back was unremarkable until I reached the last climb into Stafford: up and over the railway line and then after dipping back down. Why you may ask, well while I had stopped for a quick drink what seemed to be the senior section of Stafford Road Club came by. Now, I have about 20 years on them so I thought...lets tag onto the back of them and get a tow up the hill....hahahahahahaha..... they left me for dust!!!! I still have a way to go before I can keep up with people 20 years older than me....sigh.
Nevermind, it was a nice quick ride.
Well, after the long 25 mile plus ride, I wanted to do a short one just to keep my legs moving as they were somewhat sore after the pounding they took 24 hours earlier, so off on the mostly flat route down to Gailey I went.
The ride is quite simple so I went on my road bike: something I haven't used much this year. Blimey, you do notice the weight difference between that and the MTB I have been riding. Its also much quicker getting me to Penkridge in less than 25 minutes... I know thats not brilliant in the scheme of things, but good for me.... lets put it down to the wind which was blowing a gale again. I hate the wind.
Anyway, this is the route
http://gb.mapometer.com/en/cycling/route_202723.html
The trip back was unremarkable until I reached the last climb into Stafford: up and over the railway line and then after dipping back down. Why you may ask, well while I had stopped for a quick drink what seemed to be the senior section of Stafford Road Club came by. Now, I have about 20 years on them so I thought...lets tag onto the back of them and get a tow up the hill....hahahahahahaha..... they left me for dust!!!! I still have a way to go before I can keep up with people 20 years older than me....sigh.
Nevermind, it was a nice quick ride.
Saturday 11 July 2009
Birmingham................
So, what to do on a Saturday? Well go for a ride to Birmingham of course! Silly question.....
Well is it really? Hummmm....as you will know, I hate cycling in the rain so when the weather forecast changed from dry, to wet and back to dry...then wet and sigh... dry-ish... I thought...bugger the weather man, I am off out!
So, off I went in what should only be described as “mizzle”.... a sort of wet drizzle which gets everywhere....nevermind I thought... it would be dry by 10am and then I would dry up....am I allowed to swear here???? It basically rained the whole way. Sigh.
The ride... unlike Wednesday when I “blasted” down to Penkridge, this time I took my time making it in 35 minutes... its a bit difficult when you can't really see where you are going and then on to the Wolverhampton in about 90 minutes. Now, I have done the ride to Wolverhampton before but the locks into down don't get any easier! Never done the rest of the route although I have seen from the train....
Hummm...what can I say about the canal path from Wolverhampton to Birmingham? Well, it goes through some derelict areas of old factories and some of the paths were getting muddy. I did enjoy walking through the Coseley Tunnel which at 320 yards long was too dark to cycle.
So, did I get to Birmingham.... sad to say with about 4 miles to go I decided that I was too wet to go on so climbed the hill to Smethwick station and got the train home. I am sure if it wasn't raining I would have made it.
Anyway, a 25 mile ride is the longest I have done so far but, did I enjoy it....hummm, sort of.
http://gb.mapometer.com/en/cycling/route_202070.html
Interestingly...it took me 3 hours 30 to cycle there...and only 40 minutes to get the train back...sigh,
On a more positive note, the cycle from the station back home was no bother. I thought I might have been tired, but it wasnt really an effort.
http://gb.mapometer.com/en/cycling/route_202077.html
So, 26.5 miles in one day... not bad.
Well is it really? Hummmm....as you will know, I hate cycling in the rain so when the weather forecast changed from dry, to wet and back to dry...then wet and sigh... dry-ish... I thought...bugger the weather man, I am off out!
So, off I went in what should only be described as “mizzle”.... a sort of wet drizzle which gets everywhere....nevermind I thought... it would be dry by 10am and then I would dry up....am I allowed to swear here???? It basically rained the whole way. Sigh.
The ride... unlike Wednesday when I “blasted” down to Penkridge, this time I took my time making it in 35 minutes... its a bit difficult when you can't really see where you are going and then on to the Wolverhampton in about 90 minutes. Now, I have done the ride to Wolverhampton before but the locks into down don't get any easier! Never done the rest of the route although I have seen from the train....
Hummm...what can I say about the canal path from Wolverhampton to Birmingham? Well, it goes through some derelict areas of old factories and some of the paths were getting muddy. I did enjoy walking through the Coseley Tunnel which at 320 yards long was too dark to cycle.
So, did I get to Birmingham.... sad to say with about 4 miles to go I decided that I was too wet to go on so climbed the hill to Smethwick station and got the train home. I am sure if it wasn't raining I would have made it.
Anyway, a 25 mile ride is the longest I have done so far but, did I enjoy it....hummm, sort of.
http://gb.mapometer.com/en/cycling/route_202070.html
Interestingly...it took me 3 hours 30 to cycle there...and only 40 minutes to get the train back...sigh,
On a more positive note, the cycle from the station back home was no bother. I thought I might have been tired, but it wasnt really an effort.
http://gb.mapometer.com/en/cycling/route_202077.html
So, 26.5 miles in one day... not bad.
Road bike
Why am I writing about a five mile ride? I mean, its hardly the Tour de France is it? Well, the reason I am mentioning it is that its the first time in ages I have been out on my road bike....
http://gb.mapometer.com/en/cycling/route_201427.html
It was fun and not at all difficult.... I averaged 10.1 mph with a top speed of 22.5mph.
http://gb.mapometer.com/en/cycling/route_201427.html
It was fun and not at all difficult.... I averaged 10.1 mph with a top speed of 22.5mph.
Tail wind and fit young men
So, what does a strong tail wind, a warm evening and fit young men in lyrca make..... yep, my evening ride on Wednesday and blimey, what a ride!
As you might know, I don't normally go out for a ride of an evening being more of a morning person but, as the need to reach my target for the month stands before me like a, er stand before be looking high thingy.... not good at this writing lark: sorry, and the fact that I was home alone for the evening with nothing on telly meant that I was tempted to go out for a quick ride.
And blimey, what a quick ride it was! (when I say quick, I mean quick by my standard and not by anyone else's standards...sigh).
Anyway, off I went with the view of getting to Penkridge as quickly as I could.... partly brought on by the tail wind blowing off the mountains.... okay, no mountains but it was coming from the north which was just what I needed and the fact that Stafford Road Club were doing a time trail along the route I was taking....hence the fit young men in lyrca.
Well, 25 minutes to cover the 5 miles to Penkridge is certainly the fastest I have ever done the ride.... that works out as 12mph... but its a little disappointing but not unexpected, then the aforementioned fit young men in lyrca flew past me hardly trying... oh, I thought I was going to catch one of them up when I realised he wasn't actually in the race but was a bloke in his 60s... oh and then he stopped mucking around and disappeared into the distance. Sigh.
Feeling good I expended the ride to Four Ashes which I made in around 45 minutes for the 9 miles. Not bad at all for me.
Coming back was a little harder as it was now into a headwind and, well I was a little tired. I still managed to make the hills over the railway line with no read problem.
A good ride: 18 miles in 1 hour 50 minutes.
http://gb.mapometer.com/en/running/route_200620.html
As you might know, I don't normally go out for a ride of an evening being more of a morning person but, as the need to reach my target for the month stands before me like a, er stand before be looking high thingy.... not good at this writing lark: sorry, and the fact that I was home alone for the evening with nothing on telly meant that I was tempted to go out for a quick ride.
And blimey, what a quick ride it was! (when I say quick, I mean quick by my standard and not by anyone else's standards...sigh).
Anyway, off I went with the view of getting to Penkridge as quickly as I could.... partly brought on by the tail wind blowing off the mountains.... okay, no mountains but it was coming from the north which was just what I needed and the fact that Stafford Road Club were doing a time trail along the route I was taking....hence the fit young men in lyrca.
Well, 25 minutes to cover the 5 miles to Penkridge is certainly the fastest I have ever done the ride.... that works out as 12mph... but its a little disappointing but not unexpected, then the aforementioned fit young men in lyrca flew past me hardly trying... oh, I thought I was going to catch one of them up when I realised he wasn't actually in the race but was a bloke in his 60s... oh and then he stopped mucking around and disappeared into the distance. Sigh.
Feeling good I expended the ride to Four Ashes which I made in around 45 minutes for the 9 miles. Not bad at all for me.
Coming back was a little harder as it was now into a headwind and, well I was a little tired. I still managed to make the hills over the railway line with no read problem.
A good ride: 18 miles in 1 hour 50 minutes.
http://gb.mapometer.com/en/running/route_200620.html
Monday 6 July 2009
Sunny Sunday....
Or so the lying bastard…sorry Weather Man said. So, how comes then before I had even made 2 miles, I was wet to the skin??? Sigh.
Now, I normally hate rain as being a glasses wearer, I can’t see what I am doing…is that a lorry or a bus shelter????....... but, I decided to carry on and hope it passed by…which eventually it did. Oh, and my rain jacket…sigh. I knew I had put on weight but it didn’t fit and I managed to break the zip doing it up…sigh. I suppose I should buy a new one…. Which fits but it seems they don’t do them in really fat bloke side (although I lost my first stone this weekend!!!!).
So where did I go? Here
http://gb.mapometer.com/en/cycling/route_198185.html
It’s a very straightforward ride with no major problems on it….its just slopes and cycle path most of the way. Two things impressed me however. Firstly, why do all the “fit young men in lyrca” around here only ride black “Giants”? Everyone who past me was on one!!!! Secondly, I managed to get up the hill back into Stafford without stopping (at mile 16. Its not much of a hill…perhaps 50 foot but after a ride of that length, I would normally be knackered). That did please me.
Well, 41 miles over the weekend has left me a bit sore, but quite pleased really.
Now, I normally hate rain as being a glasses wearer, I can’t see what I am doing…is that a lorry or a bus shelter????....... but, I decided to carry on and hope it passed by…which eventually it did. Oh, and my rain jacket…sigh. I knew I had put on weight but it didn’t fit and I managed to break the zip doing it up…sigh. I suppose I should buy a new one…. Which fits but it seems they don’t do them in really fat bloke side (although I lost my first stone this weekend!!!!).
So where did I go? Here
http://gb.mapometer.com/en/cycling/route_198185.html
It’s a very straightforward ride with no major problems on it….its just slopes and cycle path most of the way. Two things impressed me however. Firstly, why do all the “fit young men in lyrca” around here only ride black “Giants”? Everyone who past me was on one!!!! Secondly, I managed to get up the hill back into Stafford without stopping (at mile 16. Its not much of a hill…perhaps 50 foot but after a ride of that length, I would normally be knackered). That did please me.
Well, 41 miles over the weekend has left me a bit sore, but quite pleased really.
Miles
No, not Miles Hunt, (was going to put a long list of "Miles" here but couldnt think of any of them) but the miles I did over the weekend… a grand total of 41 of them! No wonder this morning why my neck and back feel a little sore....
Well, I can see you are getting all excited waiting for me to tell you all about the two rides I did….. blimey J. Saturday first then.
My plan on Saturday was to get up nice and early and head to Birmingham but in the end, I didn’t roll out of bed until just after 7, so missed the start time (Its more the return time I was thinking about as I was planning to get the train back and by 11 to 12am, they might be busy and difficult to get my bike on). So instead I thought…lets go to Newport along the Greenway…..
The Greenway, or the old Stafford to Wellington railway line closed in the 1960’s and slowly, has been turned into a cycle path….well at least as far as Gnosall. That bit of the route is easy (if a little bumpy over the first few miles) with a slight up hill slope (perhaps a 50 foot “climb” over 3 or 4 miles…. You do notice it when you come back down as you can pick up some speed….. However, when you get to Gnosall, the path hasn’t been “made” so is only followable where people have walked.
So, out of Gnosall the first stretch is fine as dog walkers use it so the path is solid if a bit muddy at times (???? How can it be solid and muddy….. I know what I mean!). There is a lovely bit when the track goes under the A518 with a very high bridge and a sandstone cliff…. I will work out how to put pictures on here one day. The next bit is also fine for a mile or so until you hit them….. the loose gravel (or more likely ballast). Its horrible and deep and impossible to cycle through. So much so, people have made a separate path around this section which is also a bit nasty as there are loads of tree roots to bounce over.
The last section… blimey, its rough! Indeed, its difficult to find the route as not many people walk it and the grass which covers it was about 3 foot high! Speeds drop considerable over this section…not that I go very fast anyway!!!.... and I dropped as well when I hit an unseen muddy patch and came off over the right side. (add embarrassed icon here). I managed to displace the handlebars and get loads of crap in my gears which took ages to clean out. Oh, and I also banged my left knee…. But I landed on my right side????? Can’t work that one out.
Well got to the end of the track…about 11 miles from home, in just under two hours. I know that’s not great but I think it took me about 10 mins to get the bike fixed after my “crash.” I didn’t go into Newport as I will leave that reward for another day.
The ride back was difficult to start with due to the problems above, but once the other side of Gnosall I could pick up speed as outlined above.
Here is the route. Total time out…3 hours 45. Total cycling time. About 3 hours 20 mines.
http://gb.mapometer.com/en/cycling/route_197804.html
Well, I can see you are getting all excited waiting for me to tell you all about the two rides I did….. blimey J. Saturday first then.
My plan on Saturday was to get up nice and early and head to Birmingham but in the end, I didn’t roll out of bed until just after 7, so missed the start time (Its more the return time I was thinking about as I was planning to get the train back and by 11 to 12am, they might be busy and difficult to get my bike on). So instead I thought…lets go to Newport along the Greenway…..
The Greenway, or the old Stafford to Wellington railway line closed in the 1960’s and slowly, has been turned into a cycle path….well at least as far as Gnosall. That bit of the route is easy (if a little bumpy over the first few miles) with a slight up hill slope (perhaps a 50 foot “climb” over 3 or 4 miles…. You do notice it when you come back down as you can pick up some speed….. However, when you get to Gnosall, the path hasn’t been “made” so is only followable where people have walked.
So, out of Gnosall the first stretch is fine as dog walkers use it so the path is solid if a bit muddy at times (???? How can it be solid and muddy….. I know what I mean!). There is a lovely bit when the track goes under the A518 with a very high bridge and a sandstone cliff…. I will work out how to put pictures on here one day. The next bit is also fine for a mile or so until you hit them….. the loose gravel (or more likely ballast). Its horrible and deep and impossible to cycle through. So much so, people have made a separate path around this section which is also a bit nasty as there are loads of tree roots to bounce over.
The last section… blimey, its rough! Indeed, its difficult to find the route as not many people walk it and the grass which covers it was about 3 foot high! Speeds drop considerable over this section…not that I go very fast anyway!!!.... and I dropped as well when I hit an unseen muddy patch and came off over the right side. (add embarrassed icon here). I managed to displace the handlebars and get loads of crap in my gears which took ages to clean out. Oh, and I also banged my left knee…. But I landed on my right side????? Can’t work that one out.
Well got to the end of the track…about 11 miles from home, in just under two hours. I know that’s not great but I think it took me about 10 mins to get the bike fixed after my “crash.” I didn’t go into Newport as I will leave that reward for another day.
The ride back was difficult to start with due to the problems above, but once the other side of Gnosall I could pick up speed as outlined above.
Here is the route. Total time out…3 hours 45. Total cycling time. About 3 hours 20 mines.
http://gb.mapometer.com/en/cycling/route_197804.html
Targets.....
Yes, I l know we are supposed to hate targets (boo….bad things targets…. I mean, why on earth should we want to know Government departments are producing results… I mean, a private company would never set targets for its workers to achieve would they…..sorry rant over)… but I wanted to set myself some to achieve. So…what did I manage then?
Well in June I managed a grand total of 180 miles more than double what I did in May, with my average ride (excluding short shopping trips) was just over 15 miles… up from 13 the month previously. My longest ride was the Tissington Trail ride I did at 22 miles.
This month (July) then, I have set myself the target of 220 miles and an average ride of 18 miles. I want to do at least one and perhaps two 30 mile plus rides. It’s a tough target but why not eh.
Well in June I managed a grand total of 180 miles more than double what I did in May, with my average ride (excluding short shopping trips) was just over 15 miles… up from 13 the month previously. My longest ride was the Tissington Trail ride I did at 22 miles.
This month (July) then, I have set myself the target of 220 miles and an average ride of 18 miles. I want to do at least one and perhaps two 30 mile plus rides. It’s a tough target but why not eh.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)