Author: james

I would have been unable to ride a mile yesterday, being wiped out from my booster jab on Tuesday. But I seemed to have recovered quite nicely when I woke up this morning and I had the day off work, so I decided to have a go at the December Fondo. I chose the time-honoured eastbound route to Eastwell, despite a light wind coming from the west. I estimated that the headwind on the way back would be less strenuous than the hills south of Melbourne on the westbound route (and it wasn’t bad at all, as things turned out).

Definitely wanted an easy bike today and conditions were eminently dry, so I was going to take the Cannondale. But when I opened the garage door I noticed that the Planet X had two frame packs attached already. So I decided to take that, out of sheer idleness.

Last time I was out on it I noticed that the saddle was quite uncomfortable, and when I got back to the garage I noticed that it had tilted up a bit at the front. It’s a single bolt design and had worked itself backwards a bit. I adjusted it back to the proper inclination and thought no more of it.

It was very comfy when I set off today, but 15 miles later it definitely wasn’t. I got off and inspected it near Cotes, and sure enough it had worked itself back to a rather uncomfortable angle. I didn’t have an Allen key on me but out of sheer bloody-mindedness I decided to keep on anyway. I had broken my own rule of never doing a long ride on a bike that’s just been adjusted. And it cost me dear. The rest of the ride was decidedly uncomfortable and the last 20 or so especially were an ordeal.

I shouldn’t really have done this. An ill-adjusted saddle can do all sorts of mischief to your nether regions, including compromising your sexual health. I’m not, I reluctantly admit, much given or sought after for Hunnish practices these days but I shall seek an opportunity to test the reproductive equipment later. I confess it doesn’t stay up as long as it did when I was younger, but I could dig potatoes with it on a good day. Briefly.

Apart from having my perineum ravaged that was quite an enjoyable ride, or it would have been. But I’m happy to have got the complete set of monthly Fondos for 2021. That was the 27th Fondo this year, five of them being 100+ milers.

Back on 62.43. 146 this month, 4896 this year.

https://www.strava.com/activities/6391231105

I got up and started work at 0700 this morning. Sometimes I wake up early, remember that we aren’t in the EU any more, then I’m too excited to go back to sleep. But it was good timing for a well-deserved extended lunch break, because rain was due later in the day and on the whole I prefer cycling in daylight.

I wrapped up warm but it was a relatively mild day and I ended up too hot. I did a fairly standard Twycrosser. Nice diversion from work for a couple of hours.

https://www.strava.com/activities/6362977530

26.32, 166 to do but I’m mostly concerned about getting the December Fondo in.

Dismal wet weather today but it stopped raining in the afternoon. The forecast suggested it probably wouldn’t rain again this evening. The roads were still properly wet when I stopped work at about 4pm. But since I hadn’t been out for a few days I thought I’d go out for a spin anyway. With the self-indulgence of owning too many bikes comes the responsibility of being prepared to sacrifice at least one of them to the elements. The second Boardman was selected for this task.

Unfortunately the rain started again about 20 minutes after I set off, but it didn’t last long. I must admit to being overcome by a “what the smeg am I doing?” moment as I pedalled toward Twycross, with wet leaves and sideways-moving rain blowing around my face. But later on the skies cleared to a lovely starlit night and in the end I quite enjoyed it. Quite a satisfying run out.

The road to Sheepy was closed for some reason so I came straight down the main road to Gibbet Lane. But I extended the ride a bit by detouring through Burgoland and Swepstone, then Ibstock.

Sad to see the Belper Arms at Burgoland with the lights off. Hope someone leases it soon. Nice place with a big beer garden.

https://www.strava.com/activities/6351673781

25.27 miles. 

Very cold today, but I left work early hoping to tolerate 20 or so, to get the last month of 2021 off to a half-decent start. Despite the temperature (about 2C) it was actually very nice out there – bright winter sunshine until sunset.

I wore two pairs of gloves again with a thicker pair as the outer layer. My fingers and thumbs seemed to do a bit better this time, but not much. I also wore a new winter cycling top that I scored from Amazon – a bit like a hiking anorak in bright orange. Mountain Warehouse. Works well enough but doesn’t have side pockets, annoyingly. I bought size M and worried that the arms might not be long enough, because mine are a bit gibbon-esque. But they’re fine.

I set off towards Coalville with the idea of going over to Belton but changed my mind and did a Twycross Bypasser instead. Terrific view from Orton Hill of the skyscraper tops at Birmingham behind the horizon, just to the right of the setting sun. After sunset the temperature dropped another degree and by this time my fingers and toes felt like they’d been bathed in liquid nitrogen.

There were a couple of short stretches of icy road, most worryingly on a shallow downhill bend at Orton. I came round the curve very carefully. But the roads were mostly dry.

Ended up doing 32.06 miles, quite satisfying in those conditions.

https://www.strava.com/activities/6334997925

Much milder today. A bit blowy though, and the roads were damp. I went up through Coalville and Belton to Long Whatton, sharp left to Diseworth and back down Top Brand and Coleorton. Didn’t have much time, but I managed to squeeze another 21.74 miles out of November. Pleasant run out.

Quite a few puddles around but I missed them all. The road surfaces were mostly a bit moist, but not enough to kick up any water.

Listened to the PM’s press conference. They always lift my spirits.

And that takes me to a pleasing 433 miles this month, 4750 this year.

https://www.strava.com/activities/6326628199

I wasn’t going to go cycling today. But it was so sunny and dry out there that I thought I’d risk 20 miles or so, before a sprinkling of snow was due over. The BBC weather forecast page had the snow symbol at 2pm, which I take to mean likely to start between 1:30pm – 2:30pm.

I set off on a Twycrosser at about 11:20. I wrapped up very warm, so much so that I felt a bit like an astronaut embarking on a moonwalk as I closed the back door. I even doubled up the gloves, but within five minutes the cold was biting into the tips of my thumbs. Despite this I did quite enjoy being out in the bright winter sunshine, and I decided to take the Orton detour from Twycross.

I was about five miles from home, at Shackerstone, when the snow started to come down at 1:23pm exactly. Conditions had darkened a bit so I was expecting it. But it was extremely light, like very sparse white dust. Not enough to moisten the ground, or even make spots of moisture on the handlebars. I put my boot down a bit and fortunately it didn’t get any worse – until I was about 30 seconds from my garage door, when it started to thicken a little. It was snowing properly as I locked the garage door, and five minutes after I was back in the house, the air was thick with snow and it was starting to lie on the ground. Not bad timing.

Back on 27.06 miles, 411 done this month. Maybe another 20 on Tuesday depending on the weather.

https://www.strava.com/activities/6317830190

I wanted to do 30 after work and I’d been looking forward to it all day. Managed to leave work early and set off 25 minutes before sunset, in cold winter sunshine. I had a vague, half-formed idea of going out through Coalville and going south, but a mile later I decided to turn back and do a Twycrosser instead. I took a left on Ashby Road and came back via Church Lane.

So I headed west instead. The onrush of cold air as I rolled down Alton Hill persuaded me to keep it shorter than 20 miles. Clearly, it wasn’t going to be an enjoyable ride. By the time I was approaching Snarestone my fingers were positively painful with the cold, so I decided just to come back the quickest way from there. I did detour slightly through Ibstock though, and do a circuit of the village to bump the distance up a bit.

Back on 19.39 miles. That was the third-shortest ride of the year. But – it does take me to less than 300 to go to the big 5K.

Not sure what the answer is, to the cold finger problem. I was wearing pretty decent, substantial gloves. Perhaps I’ll look into the possibility of acquiring some heated ones.

https://www.strava.com/activities/6306368198

A very dry, mostly sunny day but a rather cold one, with a stiff wind blowing from the north. I only wanted to do 30 or so – I hadn’t completely recovered from Friday’s 65 miler, which was unusually climby by my own standards. Decided on a Twycross Bypasser.

Clear view of the skyscraper tops at Birmingham 20 miles away, from Orton Hill. Wished I’d brought binoculars with me.

Surprisingly I picked up a PR on a segment between Sheepy and the A444, despite a headwind over the first part of it – and usually I’d have had a tailwind over the second part, running west to east. I suppose riding a zippy bike helped but I certainly wasn’t trying to break any records. Odd one.

Back on 32.30 miles, 365 done this month. 4682 done this year so without wishing to tempt fate, that 5000 mile target for 2021 is starting to look nailed on.

https://www.strava.com/activities/6288441854

A dry, mild afternoon with low winds from the west was promised, so I took the afternoon off work with the intention of getting another Fondo in, which would take a decent bite out of the remaining distance-to-go.

As the end of the year approaches, I’m conscious that I haven’t really done that many interesting rides this year. I’ve tended mostly to stick to tried and tested routes. I felt the need for a bit of an adventure.

I have, roughly speaking, three westbound routes. The first one which I used years ago for rides to Stafford and Wales goes through Appleby Magna, Clifton Campville, Alrewas and King’s Bromley. That fell out of favour partly because of the state of the roads and partly because it was a bit hilly, and I hadn’t done it for more than two years, maybe three. The second runs north of that and goes through Coton in the Elms, Walton-on-Trent. Barton-under-Needwood and Yoxall.

The third and most recent runs along the (beloved) Flat A Road south of Derby, to the north of both and that’s the one which is favoured now.

So: I decided to go out west to Abbots Bromley via the oldest westbound route, and come back via the second-oldest. I fashioned a route on Thursday night with a new stretch of road to connect the two routes at the western end. I replaced the first part of the outbound leg though with a section grafted on from a version of the Twycross Bypasser.

When I got to Abbots Bromley I stopped to get some food at the village shop there, then after lunch on the bench, continued a bit further to the west for a bit. The simple circular route would have seen me back on a bit less than the regulation Fondo distance. I must say the village looks like a lovely place to live.

This was a lovely day out on a bike. The oldest westbound route is a bit odd in that it starts to feel a long way from home quite early on; a territorial / psychological thing I suppose, but it adds to the sense of adventure. The stretch that I hadn’t done before, between Abbots Bromley and Yoxall was really nice, quiet with some terrific views. Getting dark by the time I made it to Barton under Needwood, but I’d seen all the new bits by then.

Listened mostly to 5 Live, but I finished off the Reacher novel as well. Quite a satisfying climax. Not sure what to listen to next.

One of the most memorable rides of 2021. I managed to recapture a bit of that pioneering spirit of 2016/17.

Back on 64.04 miles. Exactly 4650.0 done this year.

https://www.strava.com/activities/6280212728

A dry evening was promised, and I mounted the Tricross about 25 minutes before sunset. I wanted to do about 40, and the plan was to go up through Coleorton, over Swarkestone Bridge then along the Beloved Flat A Road for a bit.

However not long after I set off I decided I’d take the longer route to Swarkestone Bridge via Top Brand and Isley Walton.

A light drizzle started about a mile after I’d set off, but it only lasted three minutes. Nice and dry all the way after that. Really lovely out there just after sunset, and a full moon provided a bit of illumination on the stretches of road that would usually be pitch black, later on.

A few miles out from Willington on the outward leg, a van pulled up alongside me. The driver then parked up on the road. I stopped in the queue of cars behind him, waiting to pass when I noticed the driver get out. He was walking toward me.

He came up to me and wanted to know if I was going far, and did I know my rear light was very faint? Now I must admit I was using a pretty shitty little strappy flasher, only to run the battery down so I could put a new one in and have it as a spare. I did think it was adequate quite honestly, but nonetheless I thanked him and put the main rear light on; an undeniably bright, high performing AAA-powered unit. He seemed to ignore this completely. Would I like to put the bike in the back of his van, so he could give me a lift somewhere? He wanted to know. He just wanted to make sure I didn’t have an accident, he said.

By this point I was fairly sure he was taking the piss, and much as I was tempted to give it back I decided that the best course of action to defuse the situation was to accept his concern at face value, thank him sincerely and assure him that I’d be fine. I gave him a friendly wave as he passed, a minute or two later. Wanker.

Mostly listened to the Reacher audiobook until (annoyingly) the MP3 player ran out of juice. Then I listened to Lard on 6 Music. Earlier I listened to 5 Live but it was non-stop race-baiting; the cricket controversy of course. Earlier this month the BBC took Michael Vaughan off the air, supposedly to protect their impartiality and yet Rafiq, despite having made serious allegations, has been invited to repeat them ad nauseam without being challenged or held to account for a moment.

Back on 47.24 miles, a few more than I intended for a change.

https://www.strava.com/activities/6272136874