It certainly was cold out there when I mounted the Boardman at about 5pm, but to make matters slightly worse, the forecast had added mist and fog to the mix. But I’d wrapped up warm so I thought I’d see how far I’d get.
I set off on a Twycrosser, but detoured Heather Lane by going down to Ibstock. Sharp right from there to Heather and from there, the standard route down to Twycross. I went all the way down to Pinwall and Ratcliffe, which I haven’t done for a while.
I was quite pleased to find that my tactic of wearing humble Tesco joggers over my cycling tights was definitely helping to keep me warm. Also quite pleased that the fog and mist were very light. Enough to catch the beam of the front light, but not enough to hamper visibility or make my clothes damp.
Up the A444 from Sibson as usual and I was thinking of taking in Gibbet Lane but on a whim, I decided to take a left to take me back to Sheepy. From there I did my ride to Sheepy in reverse. Back through Ibstock again, though I took Pisca Lane instead of Mill Lane.
Really enjoyed that one. Feels like a bit of an achievement to do 33.42 miles at 1 degree C in the dark.
Perhaps I’ll do a wholly post-sunset Fondo before long. Lord knows the sun sets early enough at the moment.
I listened to Drive then the Monday Night Club on 5 Live. Always enjoy Chris Sutton’s contributions. And I was decently entertained until the inevitable, inevitably one-sided discussion about BLM, which would have made my blood boil if I hadn’t been so cold.
106 done this month. 5991 this year.