Diary update week 20

This week start with Monday morning and me getting up at stupid o'clock to catch a plane to places foreign. So much for the Bank Holiday. It was not until Thursday morning that I got home and unfortunately work prevented me from getting any exercise. The good news was that I was able to put together my e-mail requesting sponsorship and I was overwhelmed by the response, for all those who have sponsored us - Thank You. If we are still undecided as to whether to sponsor us, I urge you to look at the Chase website - it will be the best money you invest this year!!

Friday I managed to get anyway from work early enough to join the wife taking the kids swimming which was fantastic. Then we all went back to the mother-in-laws and whilst the kids had their dinner I left for home on the bike. It was just over 17 mile which I covered in under an hour on a really nice route, so I was very pleased.

Saturday and Sunday, were the last of the team rides. Unfortunately Rich could not make the ride but everyone else was there. It was a 7 o'clock start on Saturday and we did the normal 150 mile route down to Brighton across to Portsmouth and back to Guildford. We stopped at the same pub as last time where we met Jules and had another wonderful portion of Fish and Chips plus lots of water. Once we had finished the meal it was back on the bikes. John's knee was holding up really well and we made pretty good time. We met up with Jules again at Four Marks were we had the a lovely piece of banana cake and a lot more water.

We got back to Guildford a bit later than we had hoped and after a quick shower we all went over to Simon's for a great pasta meal and then a chat about the event logistics. It was good to have everyone together including Jules and Richard from the support team. It is all becoming much more real. I now flip from being relatively confident to panic about the enormity of what we are trying to achieve. Luckily I feel we all have more than enough motivation.

Sunday, was another 7 o'clock start and we had no drop outs! The plan was to do e's 55 mile route and then go back e's for lunch before doing another 50 miles in the afternoon. Unfortunately, on the ride Henry's knee start to ache. He made the decision to stop about halfway round, which probably a good decision as the last thing to do is aggravate it this close to the event. Then going up a hill Ciaran's back sprocket broke and so he joined Henry in getting a lift back. The rest of us carried on and made pretty good time. We had a great lunch at e's and then it was off for the second ride of the day. The five of us made good time and Ciaran and Jules kept popping at various points on the rode to take photos for the website. Unfortunately John's knee also started to play up, but we made it home without further incident.

So we cycled 250 miles over the weekend which was pretty good going and I feel good, my shoulder aches a bit but my legs feel okay. The count down is on!

Diary Week 6

An interesting week, half term so the kids are off on holiday.
I did not manage any turbo training; however I did manage to cycle to work for one day.
I had the route planned out which kept me off the main roads, and going to work I managed to keep to route no problem. The only thing that went wrong was I lost one of my reflective ankle bands.
On the way back was a different story, my front light went out just after I started to ride and I managed to get lost a couple of times. Some of the roads did not have street lights and so when I car approached it blinded me! Pretty scary stuff. To make things worse I forgot my mobile phone, so I was on my own. Fortunately I managed to get my light working half way through the ride. However, the wife was none too impressed and told me in her own inimitable style that it was a dumb idea riding to work before the clocks change. So I will not being doing that again for a while.
Friday I had the day off - it was great spending some time with the kids. Then in the late afternoon I went to the Nutritionist. It was really worthwhile, I felt I got a lot out it. The plan is to gradually improve my diet, and I am sure the supplements will help.
As it was half term the kids are not swimming on Saturday and Sunday, it means I am not limited to return by a set time. We had guests on Saturday so that meant Sunday for my ride.
It was warm over night and so no problems with frost. I had my route planned to go via Leith Hill - Iain's suggested route. The early hills certainly got raised my pulse. I then followed the back roads to Cranleigh then down to Petworth, back up via Hasslemere and Hindhead before coming back via Cranleigh and Dorking. The total ride was just over 100 miles!!! A real milestone for me, and I managed to do this at an average speed of 14.5mph. I think that as soon as I start to use the "big cog" I can increase this average speed as currently my top speed on the flat is just under 20mph.