The weather forecast over the next week or so is a bit dismal so I wanted to do 30 or so after work today, while it was sunny and dry. Quite a strong wind coming from the east though. I set off on the eastbound route with no definite plan.
I did the eastbound route for eight miles, then turned left along Smithy Lane. But when I got to the T junction at Long Whatton I just turned right and joined the southbound route again.
I must say the headwind really was annoying, not only in that it made me work harder, but also in that it made the bike a bit unstable. Quite a stiff breeze.
At Stanford I took a left turn I’d been meaning to try for a while. Nice to do something a bit different I suppose but it was not a pleasant experience overall – an uphill climb combined with a poor road surface and a headwind, and surprisingly popular with the motoring community as well. That took me to Ashby road where I turned left for home. What a relief to have a smooth road and a strong tailwind.
I came back through Long Whatton and down Top Brand. Quite a nice run out in the sunshine over the second half.
I listened to 5 Live, then a Corduroy best-of album called In Mini. Some of their tunes sound a bit like game show theme tunes, but that’s part of the fun.
The weather outlook for today was very promising on Friday, so I booked the day off work to do a long one. The forecast deteriorated a bit over the weekend, but I was undeterred.
I wanted to do at least 100. With the wind coming from the east and the sun due to come out earlier in the day over that way, I decided on the eastbound route. I was up early and I set off at 0745.
On recent long rides I’d suffered cold conditions earlier in the morning to avoid carrying extra clothing with me in a backpack, but I wasn’t going to do that this time. Instead, I adopted a new tactic. I wore overtrousers and a nice warm fleece, but I removed them and hid them behind a hedge next to a public footpath after 30-odd miles. I wrapped them in a sealable plastic bag I’d brought with me for this purpose, then uprooted some long grass to make a sort of camouflage net. This worked very well; in fact when I picked them up on the way back I had trouble seeing the bag for a moment.
I went through Corby Glen and Grimsthorpe this time. Sometimes I take a lower route through Little Bytham and Witham, although I haven’t been that far along the eastbound route many times. I went all the way to Bourne, then onto South Fen Road, onto the Fens. I was quite impressed with myself for finding my way through Bourne without consulting Google Maps or taking a wrong turn.
South Fen Road is an odd sort of place. You feel like you’ve left civilisation, on the normal, non-Fens part of England and crossed into the Cursed Earth. It’s really badly surfaced in places, though not so bad where I took the pic below. It feels a bit desolate, though I quite like that.
I’d done more than 59 miles by this time. I decided I’d keep going until I’d clocked up 60, then turn back. However about two minutes after I took the pic, I noticed that the steering had become a little skittish .. yep, a puncture.
I stopped, upended the bike, removed the front wheel and wrestled off the tyre. Replaced the inner tube, wrestled the tyre back on, pumped it up. I was more than happy with the performance of my mini-pump – although it doesn’t have a gauge I’m pretty sure I got at least 80PSI into the tyre. I didn’t pick the best spot to get a puncture; the grassy area to the side of the road was in reality more heavily populated by nettles than grass, and I had the unwelcome tingle of stings induced by hostile vegetation all the way back home.
I decided to turn back there and then of course, but I was feeling quite pleased with myself until I got to Bourne, and noticed that the tyre was soft again.
What now? I didn’t have another spare inner tube, of course. So I propped the bike up against Boots the Chemist, then did a search for “bike shop” in Google Maps. A bicycle repair business called All Geared Up was located only about a mile away. I pumped more air into the tyre and set off to find it.
As I neared the location, I realised that it wasn’t a traditional bike shop but a regular house on a residential road. I arrived there and rang the doorbell. No answer. WTF was I going to do now?
But a minute later, a friendly chap emerged from a side gate. He explained that he’d been mowing the lawn. Could I buy a couple of inner tubes from him? No problem! He didn’t take cards, but I managed to bank transfer the £12 payment from my NatWest app.
I asked if I could borrow a stirrup pump for 15 minutes, but he opened the door to his garage workshop, told me to put the bike on the stand and fitted one of the new inner tubes for me himself. I must say he managed it a lot quicker than I had, half an hour earler. What a lifesaver. I thanked him and he returned to his lawn-mowing duties.
Fortunately the new inner tube made it all the way home.
The weather was beautiful in the afternoon; warm and sunny. I had a feast at the bench outside village shop at Buckminster 39 miles from home and bought more fluids – my bidon had run dry by this point, so a cold Diet Coke was very well received. I bought myself some chocolate as well, to consume about 15 miles from home. Definitely helps with the gradual homeward climb over the last ten miles.
Back on 120.32 miles, seven minutes after sunset. And that’s a very healthy shot in the arm for the April distance count, which now stands at 453 miles. 1800 done this year.
Over 38,000 miles of riding a bike, I’ve only had a puncture about four times. And yet two of them have been within a mile of the most distant point of unusually long rides, the other one being the first Wales and back trip. That’s unfortunate, isn’t it?
I’d intended to go up toward Newark today, a ride I’ve only ever done a few times. But the weather forecast deteriorated overnight. My best bet for avoiding rain showers was to go south it seemed.
So I decided just to do the southbound route. Fortunately the wind was light enough that I wouldn’t suffer a stiff headwind on the way back. Actually the wind direction was forecast to be unusually changeable today so it was a bit of a lottery in any case.
Cool and cloudy when I set off, but the sun came out intermittently later on. I’m on call at the moment but it’s been very quiet, and I risked doing a half-fondo distance before turning back for home. I offered a conciliatory nod to being on call by turning back at Welford Road rather than going right down to Welford.
The weather was really nice later in the afternoon, making me think – again – that I should have stayed out longer. But at least I didn’t get rained on.
I made a slight modification to the route by taking a longer way through Dunton Bassett. Makes the route a bit simpler and avoids a steepish hill.
Listened mostly to 5 Live, and the Beatles album Help!
Back on 63.68 miles, and that’s a very satisfying 332 done this month so far.
With rain due over this afternoon I decided that a shortish ride over a long lunch break was the best plan today. About 20 miles would do. Just the right sort of distance to test the new (as in inherited from the Cannondale) wheels with newly-repaired freehub now attached to Boardman II.
I did a shortish Twycrosser, 22.50 miles. Sunny and pleasant when I set off, then cloudy later, then about 15 minutes of light rain. Then warm sunshine again. Quite an enjoyable run out, but more importantly – everything’s working properly on the bike. Gear changes nice and slick, freehub engaging and disengaging properly. Very satisfying to do your own modifications, repairs and maintenance when it all works.
The bike does feel a bit different on the Fulcrum 5s. Not faster, not lighter, but a bit more solid. Could be psychological but it does feel like an upgrade.
I didn’t particularly want to do more than 40 miles. A few days ago I was entertaining the possibility of doing a long ride, but the wind was a bit strong for that – and apart from that, I just wanted to kick back and relax this afternoon.
With the wind coming from the south, I naturally set off down the southbound route. When I got to Stoney Stanton after 18 miles, I went straight over the crossroads rather than turning left. I did entertain the idea of going down Fosse Way for a few miles, briefly. But when I got to the main road I turned left to rejoin the southbound route and came back up.
Stopped at the petrol station on the main road to get a packet of Quavers and noticed that they are owned by Walkers, now. I did look for a different potato snack product, just out of a visceral loathing for Gary Lineker, but I couldn’t find one. They all seem to be owned by Walkers now. Oh well.
I also bought a vanilla latte in a can. Turned out to be a bit yuck.
Anyway back home on 40.85 miles. I did feel a bit guilty on the way back not to be doing more in what were very pleasant conditions by then – nice and warm, though I didn’t bother removing my tights – but I’ve done 246 miles this month now and that’s not bad for nine days in. The weather looks a bit unsettled for the next couple of weeks, though.
Sunny day, light wind from the north-west. A bit cool when I got up, though. On a different day I might have attempted another 100 miler, but I may do a long ride on Sunday instead – so I decided a fondo would do.
The wind direction seemed to dictate the Upper Westbound route. Not the most imaginative or adventurous option but I decided to make it more interesting – slightly – by diverting through Wilson on the way back. Not only because it would be a bit different, but because I’d avoid Rotter’s Rise after Melbourne.
Very nice out there and the roads were pleasantly quiet until the A515, going north toward Ashbourne. Bank holiday traffic, I assume. Eventually I got caught in a traffic jam going up a hill, possibly due to roadworks further ahead – but I’d done 30.8 miles by this time, so I turned back.
Stopped for some snacks at the petrol station near Scropton.
What will happen to all the petrol stations once there are no more diesel or petrol vehicles on the road? They’re much handier for cyclists than village shops, because they tend to be open all the time.
Anyway – I came back through Wilson as intended, and unlike last time I didn’t take two ridiculous left turns trying to find my way home. Back on 64.12 miles, and that’s 205 this month already. That was this year’s tenth fondo.
My personal DAB conked out after about 9 miles, just as I was coming into Melbourne. I was surprised, because I thought there was at least another five hours in the rechargeable AAs. So I put two new alkaline AAs in it (I always take spares). Those died after about 30 seconds. I did drop it in the garage but it only took a mild knock. Have I broken it? Will test it later.
I had a new phone with me, one I haven’t installed BBC Sounds or other radio apps on yet, so I put its MP3 player app to work. I listened to
Talc: Licenced Premises Lifestyle Earth, Wind & Fire: The Best Of, Vol 1 Judas Priest: Stained Class Style Council: Confessions Of A Pop Group The Beatles: Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
I doubt I’ve ever listened to five whole albums in the same day before! The Beatles album especially gave me goosebumps. Every time I listen to it, I try to imagine its impact on popular culture on its release. Some of the music journalists of the time had started to suggest that the Fab Four had run out of ideas, that the creative well had run dry, in the months leading to its release. Yet they followed even the brilliant Revolver in the most devastating manner possible by crafting the first progressive music masterpiece. Every single progressive music record, by King Crimson, Yes, Genesis, whoever has Sgt Pepper DNA in it.
I stopped for a bit of a picnic at a lovely spot next to the quarry near Breedon. By this time I was too warm so I removed and backpacked my fleece and cycling tights, making this the first legs-out ride of the year – albeit only about 10% of it was done in that mode.
And I spotted the first discarded knickers of the year, about a mile from Melbourne. Lacy, very brief and a sort of mahogany brown colour. Unusual colour for ladies’ underwear, I thought.
Another dry day. Sunnier than Sunday, a bit warmer and the wind was lighter as well, coming from the south. I got out of work indecently early with the intention of going down the southbound route for 20 miles or so, then back up.
When I got to Stoney Stanton after 18 miles I kept straight on over the roundabout – the usual route for down Fosse Way, although I wasn’t going to do more than another couple of miles. Just messing around. Then at Sapcote I turned right on a whim. Turned for home after 20 miles, though I came back into Stoney Stanton on a different road and ended up taking a fairly busy road back to Earl Shilton, where I rejoined the usual route.
I think I did much the same thing on a ride over the Christmas holiday. A but unfortunate to be doing that busy road during the rush hour, would have been fine on a Sunday, albeit still a bit urban.
A dry day with a decently late sunset and a moderate wind from the east. I promised myself I’d do at least 80 miles, with the thought that I might do 100 if I got up early enough – and if it wasn’t too cold.
I got up at about 0700 and was away on a bike by 0756. I had a simple plan: to do the eastbound route for as long as I felt like it, then to come back roughly the same way.
Because I knew the temperature would improve later in the day and because I didn’t want to carry clothing around in my backpack for most of the ride, I wrapped up relatively light. Intermediate level; a few layers on top and a pair of tights over cycling shorts.
The temperature seemed bearable when I set off but five miles later, on lower ground, I was shivering. Very annoyingly I was uncomfortably cold for the first three hours of the ride. But the sun coming out later on made a big difference. So did the tailwind on the way back.
I took a minor diversion through Rutland and was in Lincolnshire fifteen minutes later, so that’s the last two neighbouring counties boxes ticked for 2023. I’d decided I was going to do at least 100 miles by this time. I turned back after a bit less than 50 miles, because I was going to take a slightly longer route home (through Cotes and Stanford).
I realised when I got to my 21-miles-to-go point that I was still going to be a bit short, so I tweaked the route home by diverting through Wymeswold and Hoton. Actually a lovely quiet bit of road that, well worth doing in any case.
Sunday’s not the best day for a long ride because the shops tend to be closed in the afternoon, but I stocked up at the village shop at Buckminster on the outbound leg. Very useful, well located (40 miles from home) and it has cyclist-friendly benches outside, but they tend to sell “lookalike” products – for example you can buy something that looks superficially like Lucozade Sport in a similar-styled bottle, but it’s really just rather indifferent fizzy orange.
Anyway – that was a lovely ride out. I was especially pleased to be reunited with my Cycling Happy Place east of Waltham and in the end it was worth shivering for a few hours early on to make it over there.
Listened to footy chat mostly, plus commentary on West Ham vs Southampton and some of the first half of Newcastle vs Man United. Both entertaining games. For the first half hour of the ride, I listened to the end of the Australian Grand Prix. Farcical.
I also listened to the fourth Rolling Stones album, Aftermath. What an extraordinary creative breakthrough after their first three albums of R&B covers. Their previous album, released less than a year earlier, had consisted entirely of other peoples’ tunes but everything on Aftermath is a Jagger / Richards original. Equally importantly it’s a much more eclectic and interesting record than the first three, with some really strong songs. Reminds me of The Kinks in places.
With beautiful timing, the AA batteries in my DAB died two minutes after I arrived back at the garage.
The weather forecasters threatened light showers for the afternoon but I was keen to do at least 39 miles, to get the March total up to 300. With the wind coming from the SW, I decided to do a longish version of the time-honoured Twycross Bypasser. So I did, going up to Packington at the top and down to Fenny Drayton at the bottom.
Apart from a couple of brief episodes of very light rain, the weather was lovely – spring-like and sunny. Very nice to go along Mythe Lane again, I haven’t been down that way for a while.
I stopped for a wee and a cheese pasty at a regular off-road farm gate along Fenn Lanes and to amuse myself, I took stock of the various objects littering the ground around me. I saw wood screws, plastic wall plugs, an empty blister pack that once contained Nurofen or similar, a discarded latex glove and six tins of paint with black & yellow tape wrapped round them bearing the words ENVIRO CRIME HAZARD – DO NOT CROSS.
I was going to take Boardman II but noticed that the rear tyre is completely flat. Something else to do at the weekend, then. I took the X.
That was actually a lovely ride out and I wouldn’t have done that route if I hadn’t particularly wanted to do 39 miles. Happy I did. Back on 41.34 which takes me to 303 this month. Given the awful weather and having been out of the country for a week, I’m not displeased with that even if it is below target. I’m ahead of the game in the bigger picture, anyway.
A dry day was forecast for today, and we haven’t had many of those this month.
One of those rare days when the wind was so light that I wouldn’t get a substantial headwind whichever way I went. My first idea was to go down to Welford on the southbound route, but I checked the weather forecast and it was more likely to rain south of here. So I decided to head east. I left work indecently early to do a fondo to Eastwell and back.
I don’t normally like to take a bike that’s just had a new part fitted for more than a short run, but I was curious to see how the Roubaix rode with its new seat post. I took the appropriate Allen keys with me and crossed my fingers. It was fine. Actually I didn’t even need to adjust anything, I seem to have got the setup pretty much spot on. Definitely seems to have improved the ride, as well.
A little bit cooler than I’d have liked, otherwise it was lovely out there – sunny most of the way there and back. I took Narrow Lane to come back via Rempstone and Wymeswold on the way back.
Listened to LBC and 5 Live mostly, but I also listened to Out Of Our Heads – the third Rolling Stones album. Mostly R&B covers again. No original tunes. Certainly no recognisable Stones classics. They certainly took a while to find their voice (although to be fair I think they’d already recorded Satisfaction by this time, but that was released only as a single).
Back well before sunset, which this evening took place at a very agreeable 7:31pm, on 63.02 miles. That was the second fondo this month and I’ve done 261 miles now in March, so it hasn’t been a disaster. Just a disappointment.
