Another mild evening, another opportunity to bag another 30-odd miles. A moderate wind was coming from the south. I thought I’d go up and west along the A road, although of course this would mean a bit of a headwind over the last few miles.
However – once I was over Swarkestone Bridge I decided to go the other way and penetrate Derby from the south. I took Infinity Park Way, leading to the Rolls-Royce test centre and Aerospace Campus. RR has a lot of real estate over there, it’s no wonder they’re the city’s largest employer.
Rather than come back the same way once I reached the test centre like I have in the past, I followed a signpost into the city centre. From there I just kept going, following my nose. A nice feeling to be back in Derby. I’ve been feeling quite nostalgic about the place recently. Although despite having lived there a total of 12 years, I had no idea where I was. At one point I saw a place called Oakwood Nursery. Could I possibly have found my way to Oakwood, the part of Derby where I’d bought a house in 1991? Surely I couldn’t have, unless I’d pedalled through a worm hole?
I hadn’t, it was just the name of the nursery.
Anyway I found my way to a crossroads with a busy main road. I looked right, and saw the “Spider” – the name given by Derby folk (hi) to a roundabout with pedestrian bridges crossing it. I knew exactly where I was then, and a left turn took me straight back to Swarkestone, three miles later. I came back home through Belton, Thringstone and Coalville for a change rather than straight down Top Brand and Coleorton.
I saw a dead crow hanging in a tree near Donington Park. It was suspended by its head, claws dangling. I suppose it must have died in the tree then got its head caught in a branch. Bit of an eerie sight.
I heard my phone ring in my pocket just after I crossed Swarkestone Bridge on the way up. I ignored it, because I’m not on call. But I stopped to check MS Teams on my phone anyway. I saw a message from an HR operative at our head office in Massachussets, asking me to call her.
Uh oh.
I sent back a message to say that I was out on a bike, could she email? “Please call me when you have five minutes”, was the reply. I called her there and then by the roadside, slightly hesitantly. She was phoning to apologise about something. She’d given an award for something to someone else called James in the company when it was intended for me, because she got our surnames mixed up. I laughed.
Looking at the track on Strava I didn’t penetrate Derby very far, but I did visit a part of it (Boulton) where I’d never been before. Perhaps I’ll work out a route that takes me to my old house, it’s not easy though to avoid dual carriageways.
Back on 39.0 miles, which my spreadsheet tells me is the median distance so far this year.