I Have a Dream

Day 3

Another day over. This day started in Somerset and ended in Wales.

In the pub tonight looking at the menu I was thinking of how to celebrate being in Wales. I thought I could have sheep, but by the time I had eaten, it was too late!

After yesterday's hell in Devon, I have proof of God's existence & his sick sense of humour. Today should have been an easier day over the rolling Somerset countryside and up the Wye Valley. Instead God turned the wind around to a North / North Easterly wind; thus I had a very strong head wind all day. At times I struggled to reach 10mph on the flat owing to the wind.
I had a stroke of luck after I stopped for tea at a Cider farm. As I was leaving I got talking to a fellow cyclist who lived locally. I rode with him for 10-12miles. He provided me with some shelter from the wind & then gave me directions to get round Cheddar Gorge instead of over it. Sadly I didn't get his name, but he was a proficient runner having won the >60s prize @ the London Marathon. He is also doing LEJoG in July with a big group & proper support to carry their bags.

I eventually got within striking distance of the Avonmouth Bridge cycle route, but then got lost, riding through the Gordano Motorway Service Station & riding away from the bridge. Eventually after a couple of extra miles, I found it & got over it.

Next up was to find the Old Severn Bridge. After using an off road cyclepath for about a mile I got back on route. I found the cycle route across the bridge easily enough. It was a hair raising ride, some 2 miles long. Hair raising as the wind was a cross wind making it difficult to ride across the bridge.


I arrived in Wales around 1630 with only 17.5 miles to cover to get to Monmouth. I was shattered by now though, the headwind and climbing had taken their toll. I limped on to Tintern where I discovered a great little cafe in the Old Station which stayed open late so serve me tea & chocolate cake. This got me over the "bonk" and I was able to carry on towards Monmouth.
I arrived in Monmouth, weary & ready for a shower. However, a glance at my computer revealed I had done a new personal best of 94.1 miles.

This was near to my ambition of riding 100 miles in a day. The evening was glorious, so I explored Monmouth which is beautiful. I brought up my century & did it into a headwind & carrying all my luggage.

I (have) had a dream

Day 4 brings more miles through the Welsh border & the arrival of my parents at the end of the day. Day 5-7/8 will be ridden in the company of my father & my mother driving a support vehicle carrying my bag! This should make the riding easier -hopefully.

Day 4 also brings Day 1 of my son's GCSE Exams, so good luck Tom.
I still say I am not old enough to have a son doing GCSE's!

Thanks to my IT geek for all her help sorting out the blog for me

Today's Data
Distance 100miles
Riding Time 7hrs 47mins
Average Speed 12.9 mph
Distance climbed 6030 feet

Day 2 -Blasphemous Rumours Explained

The Plan

Well day 2 was to be a ride from Cornwall to Somerset if all went well. The hard part was behind me now as I only had about 20miles of the planned 79 in Cornwall.

The challenges for today would be
1) It would be my longest ever ride
2) Fatigue after day 1
3) The first 18 miles to Tavistock which had some steepish hills (I reconnoitred the terrain last weekend when down for Plymouth v Barnsley)

The Reality
1) It was my longest ever ride
2) I did have some fatigue after day 1
3) The first 18 miles to Tavistock were as hard I had expected. Indeed I only average about 12 mph by the time I got there.
4) Leaving Cornwall & entering Devon I encountered something unexpected. Who the hell placed Dartmoor there. I had an 8 mile climb (with several dips & more climbs) to Princetown & Dartmoor Prison @ 1500ft above sea level.

The ride over Dartmoor was the hardest physical & mental challenge I have ever faced. At times I was riding at under 4 mph! Its hard to balance at such a low speed.

The cars that passed me were labouring to get up parts of the climb!

Did I mention the headwind? Even on some of the descents I was struggling to get above 12 mph owing to the headwind.

Remember as well as my bike and my rather large body mass, I also have a bag weighing circa 20 lbs to get up the hills. Its a lot of weight to try to get up against Mr Newton's gravity.
I'm not saying it is steep up there, but I'm sure Sir Edmund Hilary only decided to climb Everest as Dartmoor was too hard!

Having set off at 0830 in the morning, I made a stop in Tavistock for coffee and a sandwich at about 1015 or so. That was 18miles done. I left Tavistock circa 1100 & by the time I reached Moretonhampstead some 21miles (39 for the day) later it was 1415! That is 3 1/4 hours to do 21 miles - very slow.

I left Moretonhampstead's highly recommended Central Stores Coffee Shop & Bakery @ 1500 with 40miles to go to Wellington & feeling very tired. I slogged it to Exeter (50miles). This was a very hard 11miles with some short sharp climbs.

So @ around 1610 I left Exeter with still 29 miles to go to Wellington. Sense would say that I should find a bed for the night, soon. However, being the stubborn pig headed person I am, I was determined to reach Wellington which I did @ 1900.

Wellington is in Somerset, so I started the day in Cornwall, ended it in Somerset having ridden through Devon & over Dartmoor. When I reached the Devon/ Somerset county boundary, I took the obligatory snap which I sent with a caption from the heart. Unfortunately the caption cannot be repeated on this website! It did capture my feelings towards Devon accurately!
Blasphemous Rumours? God does have a sick sense of humour putting Dartmoor on this LEJoG route!

NB Editor - you may have mastered the blog & making posts on here, but you have not mastered the cycling lingo. Devon is not lumpy, its evil and like cycling up mountains! I look forward to lumpy days, they are wishful thinking at present.

Today's Data
79.1 miles ridden
6 hrs 54 mins riding time
11.5 mph average speed
7807 feet climbed today

Blasphemous Rumours

Peter dictated this as he is too knackered to do a full blog today…

Depeche Mode sang ‘I don’t want to start any blasphemous rumours but I think that Gods got a sick sense of humour’. They were clearly thinking of Dartmoor being part of the Lejog route when they wrote those lyrics!

7800 of climbing and 80 miles done has left me knackered and unable to type a full report tonight. I’ve made it to Wellington in Somerset from Liskeard in Cornwall. I will write a full entry hopefully tomorrow, picking on the events of today.

Those who know me wont believe this ….but….I appear to have lost all interest in food! I have had to force myself to eat anything at all today.

Tom has been to see a North East side win something! Congratulations to Witley Bay!

Thanks to my IT geek for posting this for me.


Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…………………

(note from the editor - i.e. Jo building up her part again!)
When Peter finally left Cornwall and Devon behind and made it into Somerset he sent me a lovely picture of the boundary marker with not such a lovely comment on how pleased he was to be leaving those 2 counties behind. Lets just say the comments weren't fit for family reading!!!)

The Long & Winding Road

If the Beatles had visited Lands End to start a LEJoG, then this song would have been called "The long, STEEP & hilly road."
An early(ish) start from Penzance by car (thanks John) to Lands End. The obligatory pictures taken. The arms for the sign belong to the official photographer & are taken home each night. Hence the rather pathetic looking post in the picture.
The official register duly signed, my log book stamped and I was under way at 0726. A very brisk (by my standards) ride back to Penzance (10miles) saw me having tea and a panini for breakfast with John at The Green Bean coffee shop (definitely recommended if you are ever in Penzance.

Leaving Penzance about 0915 the plan was I would ride to Camborne via the back roads, then head for Redruth, and towards Truro. John was going to give me till 12noon then drive after me to meet me for lunch between Truro & St Austell circa 1pm. However by 1230 I was through St Austell, so stopped at a pub waiting for John (his wife Jane & their daughter). I had done 55miles before lunch - already my longest ride since last summer- at an average speed of 16mph.

After a lengthy lunch (no alcohol though) I collected my bags from John (after jettisoning the handlebar bag & some bits of kit). I was now having to ride carrying all the kit I needed. Still it was only 18miles to Liskeard. Surely that would be easy...

Erm think again! It was the hardest 18miles I have ever ridden. I was not only having to use the Granny ring (smallest ring @ front) but also the granny sprocket at the back (largest sprocket). I have never used this Granny gear before - ever! I crawled into Liskeard.

I got a room at the Hotel Nebula, its a twin room, so my bike & I will be cosy in there! Breakfast is to be at 0800 tomorrow but landlady gave me the tour of the kitchen so I can help myself if I want an earlier start. The cost of this luxury? Only 35 of your Cornish pounds.

Today's Data
73.4 miles ridden
4hours 56mins time taken
15.9 mph average speed
Ascended 6454feet (roughly 1/4 of the way up Mount Everest)

Tomorrow's Just Another Day

Well, I made it to Penzance thanks to Worst sorry, First Great Western trains. I decided to take public transport to Paddington so I would not be in full cycling kit on the train. So after taking bike on local train & the Tube, I arrived @ Paddington in time to visit the 1st Class passenger lounge to the horror of the posh people in suits or posh outfits. Was it my multi-coloured cleated shoes clicking on the wooden floor or was it the cycling jacket I had on that shocked them? Surely it was not my putting my bike in the corner of the lounge that horrified them.

When I got on the train, the guard's van is at front of the train & 1st class at the rear. After securing my bike in the full guard's van-6 bikes going all the way to Penzance - the train was ready to depart, so I had to walk through the train carrying my luggage. The guard by the buffet obviously thought I looked out of place to pass him into the 1st class carriages. Obviously my saddlebag & handlebar bag are not in keeping with the leather briefcases & expensive handbags he usually associates with 1st class passengers.

Once seated I made sure to get my money's worth of the complimentary green tea every time the trolley came past!

Its a 5 hour journey to Penzance, 3 hours being from Exeter to Penzance! I always thought Exeter was nearly @ Lands End!

Arriving in Penzance, it was a glorious evening but I resisted the temptation 2 head immediately for Lands End & instead drank even more tea with Jane whilst waiting for John to finish being a Pirate- at least that's what I think he said he was doing.


An early night is called for before setting off on this little ride tomorrow!

Remember tomorrow is just another day.

Go West

Well, my bags are just about packed. Just waiting for the tumble drier to finish, then it will be time to finalise the packing. Put recharged batteries in the GPS, charge up the lights (just in case), and then breakfast and away. No, silly, the GPS , batteries & lights are NOT in the tumble drier.

Like some sad masochist, I have been up since silly o' clock this morning, surfing the net, looking at the route profile for the first few days. It seems to be vertical, apart from the parts that are steeper!

Is it too late to develop swine flu?

Oh well, in for a penny in for a pound.

Seriously, albeit a bit apprehensive and nervous, I am looking forward to this trip. I'm off to Paddington to get the 12:06 train to Penzance. Five hours on a 125 train :-(. At least I am in 1st Class, so will make full use of the free tea and coffee they provide. Then when I get to Penzance, meet up with friends and a curry, before an early night and then breakfast time tomorrow it all kicks off.

So, in accordance with the title of this thread, I am about to Go West!

Anxious

Its now only just over 3 days till it all starts. Scary isn't it?

I'm glad I decided to pack in a minimalist fashion as I seem to be ending up with more and more kit to take with me. What about this and that and this as well. Lots of helpful suggestions from lots of people. I will end up having to take a rain check on some of the items. Will I make the right choice? Only time will tell. Hopefully my credit card can enable me to purchase anything I do not take with me if it proves to have been the wrong choice to leave it behind.

I've decided that I am going to take it easy this week, so not doing much more than the basic 25 mile round commute each day. Time to start putting those last minute plans into action. Must remember to put the bins out this week and ensure all the perishable foods in the fridge are disposed of. I'll even have to remember to ensure there are no dirty cups left to grow mouldy whilst I am away.

I have sorted out arrangements for the night before I start the ride in Penzance with friends. They have even kindly offered to take me down to Lands Ends on Saturday morning and to meet up with me for lunch somewhere on the way. True friends indeed :-).

I've just emailed my cousin to sort out staying with him and his wife one night, its just a shame I am not sure if it will be at the end of day 6 or day 7. I am not setting any absolute distance targets for each day as I do not know how hard I will find it. However, early starts and late finishes will hopefully give me enough time to get decent distances in each day.

I see today that Sir Chris Hoy is planing on doing LEJoG this summer. He is doing a supported ride ( ie got someone to carry his luggage) and is planning on doing it in 10 days. This makes me feel my hoped for 14/ 15 days is optimistic!

Help

Help indeed! I was in Liskeard on Sunday night / Monday morning. I've seen the terrain and am wondering now if I can catch swine flu this week and so have an opportunity to get out of doing LEJoG. I knew Cornwall and Devon were not the flattest counties, but those hills are unneccessarily vicious. It was definitely a case of squeaky bum time.

Well, since my last post, I have just about finalised all my kit. I have even tried packing it in my back to ensure I can carry it all - and success, it all fits in easily enough. The weight of the kit isn't too bad, but it means I will not be taking much in the way of changes of clothing etc - sorry Jo, I'll not be in kit smelling of fabric softener when I meet you.

As always, another May Bank Holiday brings trips away from home, sometimes its football, sometimes its pleasure, but when its football, it is not usually pleasureable at this time of the season.

We went down to Cardiff on Saturday for a friend's 40th birthday party. It was an 80's themed party. I was able to just use my normal wardrobe. I knew having out of date clothing would come in useful one day! I definitely recommendan 80s theme for a fancy dress party - it was a good laugh, and there was some great music as well. Most women wore leg warmers and the like, the men wore a variety of outfits. There seemed to be rather a lot of "Frankie says..." T shirts in evidence. However, the 2 smurfs deserve a mention. The 80s night brought back lots of memories and stories, some of which really should be forgotten. We need a rule like Fight club, ie what happens in the 80's stays in the 80s.

Sadly, Jo & I had to leave early on Sunday morning, so missed the post party drinking session. We were heading off to Plymouth to see Barnsley in their last match of the season. If results went wrong, then Barnsley could be relegated. So we had a 160 mile drive down to Plymouth to get to meet friends in a pub before the game. We made it down to Plymouth before 12noon, found the opub and got a couple of pre match beers in. The football started off badly with Barnsley losing after 12 minutes, but fortunately their rivals for relegation forgot to turn up and were losing their game 3-0 inside 30 minutes, so it meant Barnsley would be safe, even if they lost. By early in the 2nd half, Barnsley were winning 2-1 and with them effectively safe, and Plymouth having nothing to play for, it meant that the rest of the game was just a kick about. Plymouth fans spent 45 minutes doing Mexican waves ( no swine flu worries for them?) and the players seemed to forget football was meant to be a competitive game! Post game we went to Liskeard where our friends had a cottage booked. The cottage comes complete with peacocks, a friendly dog/ horse that invites itself into the cottage. As for the food at the adjacent hotel... it was gorgeous and incredible sized portions. A good night was had by all - especially when we got back from meal, just in time to watch the Championship on TV and see the goals at Plymouth. The only downside to the day was Newcastle putting another nail in their relegation coffin. Never mind, its a trip to Barnsley next season for Newcastle!

Only 3 days of work left now before I set off for Penzance and the LEJoG commences.

The Final Countdown

Well it is now rapidly heading for the start of my LEJoG.

With the bank holiday coming up this weekend, and possibly no riding on Friday either, I am down to 5 riding days before I start. Am I nervous? What do you think?

Are all the preparations completed? Not likely. I still have not tried to see if I can get all my kit in my bag(s) yet. In fact I am not sure I have all the kit I need. I did go out yesterday and buy what may prove to be an essential item- the tub of sudocrem. After posting this entry, I am going to start to round up the items I am taking to try to fit them in my bags.

I did try cycling with a full saddle bag and a full handlebar bag on Friday night and Monday morning to/ from Jo's house from Grantham Railway Station. I have to say I surprised myself and Jo by getting to her house in less than an hour from the station. I thought it wasn't bad as that time includes, getting the bike off the train, fitting the bags to the bike and carrying the bike over the platforms and bridge to the road. It is some 17.3 miles so I was well pleased with that, especially as I usually average about 13mph. It only took me 64 minutes to do the return journey on Monday morning, and that was into a head wind.

As part of my intensive build up to the start of my ride, I am going to spend the bank holiday weekend with Jo, travelling to Cardiff for a birthday party (hello Cathy!), then the next day travelling from Cardiff onto Plymouth to see Jo's beloved Barnsley FC hopefully avoid defeat and thereby retain their place in the Championship. This is essential as I want to visit Barnsley next season when Newcastle are in the Championship. [Memo to Alan Shearer - its about now we need to pick up some points if we are to avoid relegation]. I do hope that drinking lots of alcohol two days running is appropriate training for my ride. Alcohol, travelling and bank holiday weekends go together - as do seaside towns.

Finally, must just say a quick hello to Greg and the rest of the Nash family and remind them that its their turn to visit us on a Saturday night- but we don't serve sausage, egg and chips! Greg is the person that invited me and Tom to watch Orient play one game eight or so years ago and we're still suffering even now. Mind you of late, its been a bit less painful as they have started to win the odd game.

Thank You

Just a short post to give a mention to a few of the people who have helped me to get to this stage- that is the stage of panic and dread that its nearly the starting day and I am not prepared enough.

Firstly, I must give thanks to my son Tom, who would dearly love to be riding with me, but sadly for him he has got his GCSE exams at exactly the time I am doing the ride. Tom is the reason I got into cycling. My father got Tom cycling at the age of about 7, and being the over protective parent that I am, I wouldn't let Tom ride his bike alone on the roads in London, so I got a bike to accompany him. Over the years, Tom has accompanied me on many rides, including several London- Southend rides, several Audax events and general weekend rides around the Essex lanes. Last summer Tom & my father did the C2C ride from Whitehaven to Hartlepool. Tom has never let me hear the end of that and the fact he did it and I didn't. That is probably part of my motivation to do LEJoG.

Next, I must give a mention to my father who has encouraged me to cycle and is a seemingly never ending source of bikes and bike kit. He is even going to travel over from Durham to Wales and ride with me up to the Carlisle or the Scottish borders, and even better has persuaded my mother to drive that part of the route carrying our luggage. Thanks to both of you.

Next, I must say thanks to Les Harrison, a fellow north east cyclist and a friend of my father. Les did LEJoG last summer and his advice has been very helpful, from what luggage to take, what route to follow and how to approach the hills etc.

Last but not least, I must give a big thank you to Jo, my partner for not letting me weasel my way out of doing the ride. She has also decided to give up her time to join me as luggage carrier/ hotel booker etc for the 2nd week of the ride. She has put up with my arranging weekends around cycling- ie getting home late on a Friday/ leaving early on a Monday so I can do extra cycling. She's even put up with my falling asleep on the sofa or in the cinema as I'm too tired after too much cycling. She's a star.

Finally, I got round to putting all the luggage etc on my bike today. I've got the GPS, computer, all set up on bike now. Just got to try packing my kit into the luggage bags now

You'll Never Walk Alone

I have to start today's post by saying that despite it being 20 years ago, the shock and horror at what happened at Hillsborough is still as real as on the day.

As a genuine football fan, it is something that is too close to home. Indeed in 1987, I was at the FA Cup Semi Final at Hillsborough with a pal who is a Leeds fan. We entered the ground that day via the Leppings Lane turnstiles. To then hear two years later that 96 people died at that same end is horrific. It was made all the worse by the police deliberately lying at the time- ie the fans forced the gate open etc- erm no Chief Superintendent Duckinfield, you ordered the gate to be opened, but forgot to direct the fans away from the pen through the tunnel!

I know it is not a cycling post, but it is something that means a lot to this football fan, so please indulge me.

Route Sorted

At last, I think I have sorted out my route- well I've done a first draft of the route at any rate.


It goes something like this...

It Winds from Chicago to LA,
More than 2000 miles all the way,
Get Your kicks on Route 66,
Now you go through St Louis,
Joplin, Missouri,
And Oaklahoma City is mighty pretty,
You see Gallup, New Mexico,
Flagstaff, Arizona,
Don't forget Winona,
Kingman, Barstow, San Bernadino,
Won't you get hip on this timely trip,
When you make that California trip,
Get your kicks on Route 66

Ok, that's not quite the route I have planned to take - been there and done that before- but it did take me 9 years to complete that trip. This trip is hopefully going to take me less time to complete.

I'm heading from Lands End to Liskeard via Redruth and St Austell, then on via Tavistock, Dartmoor, Exeter, Wellington, Taunton and on towards Avonmouth, Aust, Monmouth, Hereford, Knighton, Shrewsbury and Whitchurch.

[Whitchurch, Warrington, Chorley, Preston and onto Lancaster (not the service station) and a night at my cousin's house-[Thanks Andy & Jan]. Thereafter, its Carnforth, but only a brief encounter with the place. Then Kendal, up over Shap, into Penrith, Carlisle and over the border to Longtown.

Next its Gretna, Dumfries and up the A76 to Mauchline. Then its navigate Glasgow, avoiding a kiss hopefully and heading up along the bonny banks of Loch Lomond to Crianlarich then to Fort William, Invergarry along Loch Ness (who will look a bigger mess- Nessie or me?), then its onto Bonar Bridge, Lairg and onto Dounreay (home of the Ready Brek advert?) finally, its along to Thurso and into John o Groats and a well deserved pint. At least this route avoids going via the Isle of Arran.

I'm tired just typing out the route.

I'm trying to get in as many miles as I can, but not getting in as many as I'd like. I've not done more than about 51 in a day this year, but have done lots of back to back 40-50 mile rides albeit half before work and half after work.

I'm not in the final stages of sorting out my kit and loading up the bike to see what it rides like with all my kit on it. I also need to get used to riding a geared bike again, having ridden over 1900 miles fixed so far this year. Its a different experience riding fixed and it takes some getting used to gears again.

Sadly, the only cycling I managed over Easter was 2 sessions in the gym on the exercise bike there - a total of 90 minutes. Its not enough, but there is a limit to how much cr*p TV you can watch in the gym without going stir crazy.

Right- that's enough for now as I need to be up early in the morning to get some miles in before work. This work is geting well in the way of my preparations for this ride!

Downbound Train

Down to only 33 days left to go. The time is rapidly passing by. I set up this blog 3 months ago, and now there is only 1 month until I am due to start.

I have now got my bike serviced and ready to ride. I just need to sort out my kit into the bags and ensure it all fits. I also have to sort out the bike computer. At least, now I am in final stages of bike preparation. I suppose I should actually try putting some miles in on this bike. i have been riding my fixed bike all winter apart from during the snow.

The good news is that this last week, I have actually got some miles in. I have done 50 or more miles each day from Mon- Thurs by extending my commute in the morning and evening. I also did 25 miles into work on Friday. I didn't ride home Friday as I went up to Grantham on the train to be with Jo.

I managed a total of 228 miles Mon - Fri this last week - my highest weekly total ever I think.

I won't ride in on Monday as I will be travelling down from Grantham on the train. Then on Tuesday I won't get a long commute home as I will be heading off to the Orient. No, not the Far East, the Orient I'm going to is at Brisbane Road, London E10. They are playing Leeds. That is the team that won the league in 1973/74 not playing fairly according to (Sir) Brian Clough [ or was it Michael Sheen?] and he was right. Was it only 2001 when they were in the semi finals of the Champions League, and now in the 3rd tier of English football.

Talking of football, my first love seem to lurch from one headline grabbing story to another. After forcing the resignation of the most popular man on Tyneside by preferring the actions of that poisonous little dwarf Denis Wise, Mackem agent Ashl*y appoints a man whose contribution to football is the most swear words in a sentence and having a dodgy ticker. Who then promptly has another heart attack. Ashl*y then leaves us with no manager until the last 6 weeks of the season before appointing a man with no managerial experience at all to try to turn round a rapidly sinking ship. Guess what- we lost again. Anyone joining me to see the Toon at MK Dons in August?

I do have to confess, that I chose to go to Barnsley on Saturday to see their relegation clash with the Scabs of Nottingham Forest. A late phone call on Saturday lunchtime meant a late call up to the prawn sandwich brigade. So after rapidly touting our tickets we made our way into the corporate boxes where a certain Tr*lf*rd Mills popped over to ask why I wasn't at SJP and to remind me that he refereed KK's first game as a player at SJP. That was the game when
"Right on the hour,
You should have heard the din
When Wor Kev had a shot and the crowd sucked it in...."

Anyway, back to cycling... I have to say I wish my route to JoG was as downhill as the football teams I watch. I think I have now worked out a route to get me passed Glasgow or Edinburgh without needing to take a ferry. I will this week try to plot the route on the computer for this section. Once that is done, the rest of the route is easy to plan- it is as there are not many roads to choose from. I intend to have finished route planning by this time next week. I also hope to finalise some of the other arrangements, for example I am hopeful that I may have company for part of the first week as my father is planning to join me on route for a few days riding. Then for the 2nd week, Jo is coming up to Scotland to spend some time with me and to see some of Scotland, so I hopefully will not be alone for the whole fortnight. I still however have to get up those hills....

Down, Down, Deeper and Down

Its not a comment on cycling, or even on my swimming, but it is sadly a comment on certain football teams.

Hmmm lets see Wigan gates of 15,000 and 7th in Premiership. Newcastle, gates of 52,000 and sinking faster than the Titanic. Mike Ashley and his Cockney Mafia aka S*nd*rl*nd Double Agents are doing their jobs superbly. And you thought circuses were no more.... I did think of having the title of this thread as Do you know the Way to MK (with apologies to Dionne Warwick) as its where we will be playing next season.

And as for Leyton Orient last Saturday.....the least said the better.

Cycling wise, I have managed a reasonable(ish) amount of cycling since last week. I managed to ride 44 miles on Wednesday to/from work. I even managed 12.5 miles on Thursday despite driving to and from Dover. I rode over to the LVYCC Committee meeting. I must comment that it is a shame that only 2 of us ride to the meeting and the rest come in their cars. Call themselves cyclists.......

I managed another 40 miles on Friday, a couple of short rides totalling 23 miles over the weekend with Tom and Jo, and then a 40 mile day again today. At least I'm now doing 40miles without too much effort. That must be a good sign.

Sadly, after tomorrow I will not get to ride again this week as I am off to Manchester and not able to take the bike.

Talking about work trips, i have to make 2 comments about my visit to Dover last week.

1. Vera Lynn lied to me. There were no bluebirds over those cliffs
2. I was surprised at how many Polish people were before the courts for customs related offences that day. Perhaps it was Polish day in court. In fact, if the Polish and other East European defendants were not before the court, then the morning's list would have been completed before 11am.

and... talking of the weekend, I drove past Petticoat Lane Market. i have not been to the market itself for many many years. It requires an early start to get oneself down to the market before it gets too packed. From what I remember, it was an interesting morning out. It could be a great day out if one visits the area again in the evening as it is of course also home to Brick Lane and the curry houses there.

Its now less than seven weeks till I am due to start LEJoG. In fact in 2 months time today, I will be hopefully finishing the ride. Its coming round far too fast. I have not even sorted out my route yet, or tried to see if all my kit will fit in my bag etc.

Hopefully by this time next week I will have got closer to being ready.

Bluebirds?

Bluebirds? No, I'm not going to Cardiff, well not this week as far as I know. The title will be come apparent when you read on.

I've actually managed to get some cycling in this last week. i managed around 190+ miles last week in total, being a Sunday ride of 40 miles, 3 days commuting at 40+ miles and one day halfway commuting (I didn't cycle home as I went to Nottingham for the weekend by train). I have then managed another 100+ miles this week so far, but only did 22miles on Monday as I travelled down from Nottingham by train.

Saturday was a chance to catch up with that *ahem* nice Mr Tr*lf*rd M*lls when I went up to Barnsley and showed him a copy of the http://www.nufc.com/ website from the 26th anniversary of THAT Brighton cup tie. He took it in great spirit and kept a copy of the printout for his scrap book. At least he can take a joke.

Anyway, back to the title of this thread....I'm not cycling to work tomorrow as I'm off to the South coast to make an appearance at Dover magistrates' court - purely to observe - honest. Hopefully the court will finish early as I have to get back to London for a committee meeting of Lee Valley Youth Cycling Club in the evening.

Now, how is the planning for LEJoG coming on? i think I have most of the items I need. I have yet to try to see if I can manage to get all my kit into the saddle and handlebar bags.They are rather small bags. Hopefully it will all fit. I may try tomorrow to pack those bags. If the kit doesn't fit, then I am not sure what I will jettison as I am already travelling with as little kit as I can.

The route planning has only got as far as Lancaster so far. I did have the route to Carlisle planned, but forgot to save it on the PC - D'oh! Any ideas on routes North of Carlisle?

Manchester

Mixed emotions today as I've just found out today that I've got to go to Manchester for 2 nights/ 3 days in a couple of weeks time for work.

Manchester is of course where I went to university and is of course the home of great music like The Smiths, Oasis etc. I like the city. The bad news is that it will mean missing another 3 days of cycling as I can't take my bike with me.

Never mind. At least I got to choose the hotel we are all staying in. It is a hotel that has very happy memories for me from my last trip to Manchester for work some 2 years 8 months ago. there is a Wetherspoons pub opposite the hotel that I remember well. I spent a great night in there reading a book on the Manchester gang scene and sending texts that started a whole new chapter in my life....

So far this week, I've only ridden 3 out of four days, but have done at least 40 miles each day I have ridden and it feels good to be getting some semi-decent mileage in again. I have been using the saddle bag I will be taking with me- It seems awfully small to take 2 weeks worth of kit....

I am going to have to try soon to pack all my kit into the saddlebag and the bar bag and see if it will all fit. I will also have to see what it feels like to ride with 2 weeks worth of kit carried on the bike.

I have also started to try to plan the route for my ride. I have done as far as Lancaster, which should take me five days, all being well. I have accommodation there as my cousin is going to put me up for the night- Thanks Andy & Jan :-)

Blue Monday

Well, its not me who is blue today, although my language maybe.

I managed to get 43 miles in today which i was pleased with given the weather was rather windy. I cycled the long way to work, doing 21 miles into a strong head wind, and had a tail wind home. Better that way round than the opposite.

I finally got the chance to use my saddle bag as I now have the replacement bracket for it.I thought I would try riding to work with it for a few days to ensure I have worked out how to fit it and to see how it affects the handling of the bike. It feels odd not to be carrying a rucksack and as I set off both this morning and tonight I had the feeling I had forgotten something. It was just the feeling of freedom from the rucksack straps.

I do have to say that I am starting to panic at how small the saddlebag is. I do not know how I am going to get all my kit in it for two weeks cycling. It is starting to look as if I will either whiff a bit by the time I get to JoG or I will have to try to find a launderette at regular intervals on the way.

No cycling tomorrow as I'm back to the Crown Court sitting at Canterbury for a spot of drug importation, money laundering and the like.

Only 60 days to go

What Difference Does it Make?

This is a question that I'm sure many of us ask regularly.

Well, as far as training is concerned, it makes a lot of difference. I actually got out and rode on a Sunday for the first time in ages. Many thanks to Tom for ensuring I got out and put in some 40miles round the Essex lanes. A lumpy ride in a strong south westerly wind made for good practice. I got to ride my good bike for the first time in months and remembered why I like that bike. It is a shame its not the one I'll be LEJoGing on, but it doesn't have mudguards, or room to fit them. It was a sobering thought to think that after today's 40miles that that is only around 1/2 the distance I will have to do every day for a fortnight.

I have managed to get a few more arrangements sorted out for the ride now. I made a list of all the things i will need to take with me. Then when I remembered how small my Carradice Longflap Saddle bag is, I tried to prune the list, but only ended up adding more items to the list.

I now have my luggage bag(s) sorted, the saddlebag and the handlebar bag. I have also sourced a couple of minor items i need to get and now just have to work out how to use the GPS device and plot my route to upload into it.

Anyone fancy offering me accommodation en route?

I took my touring bike into the bike shop this weekend and whilst looking at what needed doing, discovered signs of fatigue in the wheel rim, so am having to fork out for a new rear wheel. However, better now than finding this out halfway to JoG.

This Charming Man

Another week passes, another week less training time.

As I write this, I've not long got back from my cultural trip back in time to the land that time forgot - yes, the West country. As I said last time, I promised Jo trip to St James's Park, so we drove via SW1 in London and passed that park and Hyde Park as well as we headed for the 1950s. Fortunately, I had my sat nav in the car to guide me. It doesn't express surprise that we pass Swindon and Bath on the M4 going to Bristol to get on the M5. Nor does the sat nav express surprise that the M5 heads to the Midlands as well as to Devon!

The Sat Nav eventually gets us to Exeter in time to check into the hotel, and find a pub or 2 before the game. Its great to find a pub within 50 yards of the turnstiles. It means you can still be drinking at 14:55 and still see kick off. St James's Park can look like this on a match day.

Alternatively, it can look like this.
or this
Guess which one we were at?

The observant ones will note the double yellow lines on the road in the external picture of the ground. These are there to stop the locals blocking the streets by parking their tractors in the narrow streets round the ground. Sadly Darlington came out second best on the day. however the referee deserves a mention as in the 1st half, he gave nearly every decision Darlington's way and in the second half he evened it up by giving every decision Exeter's way. At least Jo was pleased her acquaintance didn't score for Darlington, which was a shame as it could have livened up the game. I did have a moment of panic just before the game when I realised it was almost exactly 30 years ago to the day when the mighty Newcastle went to then 4th division Exeter for a cup replay and in front of the Sportsnight cameras managed to lose 4-0. [Just a thought, it wasn't Tr&lf@rd Mills referring that night was it?]


An interesting night out was had in Exeter, lots to drink, including a pub doing buy one pint get one free on a Saturday night in the main high street. Then there was the nice bar that Jo took me into which had an army theme night and lots of couples making out with each other. i did try to point out that it is more common for couples to be of different sexes. Perhaps Jo will one day explain why and how she sought out the gay bar in Exeter.


Women can be strange creatures, and very unreasonable can't they. I took on board Jo's comments under my previous post about wanting to go to a Michelin restaurant, but she got most stroppy when I took her to the transport cafe at the Michelin tyre centre in Exeter for lunch on Saturday. I had to pacify her by promising her something romantic for later. Every man knows that women like breakfast in bed, so to try to be romantic after our night out in Exeter, I treated her to a meal in bed. Even then that was apparently the wrong thing to do. She said something about eating Chinese in bed in the early hours of a Sunday morning is not romantic. We men can't win can we?


Sunday brought a very long trip home thanks to the reluctance of my motor car to start and the embarrassment for the driver of the breakdown truck when his vehicle also refused to start.


Anyway, what is happening on the cycling front I hear you ask? [Ok, its not you I hear asking, its the voices in my head telling me to start fires that I hear]. Well I managed to cycle Tuesday- Friday to work, but not as many miles as I would have liked, but I did eventually get in over 450 miles for the month. I have purchased a saddlebag now and the support bracket for it as well. however on Friday when I tried them out, it turns out the bracket is broken. A replacement bracket is as elusive as a [insert appropriate comment here]. I have had to arrange to get a different type of bracket and hopefully will have that next week. The saddle bag claims to be 23 litres in size. It looks very small. I'm going to have to travel very light! I'm going to need a change of clothes and a good shave etc when I get to the end of the ride!


I'm still trying to learn how to use the GPS device. Anyone know what the difference between a way point and a route point is? What is a track and what is a route? Tom, you are doing IT at school aren't you? ...I've got a job for you on the weekend...

Time Flies By....

Well, its now only 74 days to go till I'm due to start this ride.

It’s a week since I last posted. I can't believe where all the time is going. It’s been another poor week in terms of miles for various reasons. I managed 30+ on Tuesday, 50+ on Wednesday, 30+ on Thursday and 17 on Friday and 12.5 today.

No riding again on the weekend. However, I have to confess that was my fault. I was encouraged to go for a ride by Jo, who wanted to join me, but the idea of a lie in bed with a pussy or two for company was my choice, followed by a trip up to Barnsley to see them play against Charlton. Must say thanks to John & Sue for letting us watch the game from their box. Sadly, it was only a flying visit to the game and I never got the chance to speak with my *erm *acquaintance Tr&lf@rd M*lls. [I must apologise to those readers who will be appalled at the use of such vulgarities on a blog that can be read by children].

The last few days have brought the reality of this ride closer to home. I am now the owner of a GPS device which I intend to programme with the route I intend to ride. That is if I can work out how to use it. Any younger readers fancy teaching me how to use it.? I used it as a glorified bike computer on Friday (not as a route planner). It told me as i cycled to work along the Embankment that I was at an altitude of -6 feet. I didn't feel that wet though. By the time I rode back along the same stretch of the Embankment on Friday night, it said I was 12ft above sea level! Now I can't recall London having any form of seismic activity on Friday causing the Embankment to raise, so I suspect the atmospheric pressure changed during the day.

Of perhaps more significance, I have just booked my train ticket to get to Penzance for the start of the ride. I decided to splash out and treat myself to a 1st class ticket. The extravagance of it eh? Well it was £3.50 difference between the cheapest 1st class fare and the cheapest 2nd class fare. Oh and I remembered to book a space for my bike on the train. That would be a disaster wouldn't it if I got to Paddington without a reservation and they refused to let me take my bike on the train! BTW John, does Jane know you agreed to put me up for the night? I'm sure she thought she had seen the last of me when you moved to Penzance. I'm convinced that's why you moved there.... At least i won't have to be up early that morning to get an early morning train or to drive miles to the station. I'm cycling into London and across to Paddington to start my trip as I mean to go on.

After reading Tom's dig at me for taking Jo to see Orient play on Valentine's Day, I thought I had better make amends to Jo by taking her away for a romantic weekend. Therefore, this weekend coming I am whisking the lady away to Exeter for a couple of days away. So, I booked the hotel, made all the travel arrangements etc. Imagine how shocked I was to then discover that Darlington are playing at Exeter on Saturday and that Exeter is one of the football grounds I have never visited and need to visit to re complete the 92 grounds. It is the most incredible coincidence and I'm sure Jo will see it that way. For those of you who don't know, on our 2nd date, Jo & I met at St James' Park in London, so what could be more romantic than going to St James' Park in Exeter at the weekend?