Friday Workout

The cycle in this morning was a windy old affair, but the cycle home was pure heaven. I had loads of power and energy in my legs after a lazy week in the saddle so the majority of the journey was spent in top gear and eating the odd midge or fly that decided to fly into my mouth. Tasty stuff.

Looking forward to the weekend, I'm heading down to bike the 7 Stanes with a few mates, I think we're planning on heading for Dalbeattie which is apparently pretty gnarly. Guess I'll be coming back with a few cuts and brusies then. It'll be worth it though, we're all being treated to a monster BBQ chez Hippo at the end of the day - now that really will be worth all the pain.

Weekly Total: 45.55miles
Overall Total: 711.5miles

No bike today, really regretting that decision.

(I finished the book last night - it was brilliant).

Good book and a blast of good tunes

I made the mistake of starting a new book last night, I was lent 'Bringing Down the House' by a friend of mine and was warned that it was an addictive read, obviously I chose to ignore that warning.

Anyway, I woke up this morning and pulled on my cycle gear, looked out the window and saw that it looked pretty nice, weathewise. Then I totally changed my mind and decided that all I wanted to do was to sit down and read my book and listen to a few tunes on the iPod. 30 mins later I was showered, changed and walking to the train station with the excellent Kaiser Chiefs album blaring in my ears.

It was a lovely and relaxed journey in to work and I'm definitely looking forward to the train journey back home (just this once).

Canal Tranquility

Monday morning cycle rides are generally always good, mainly because it gives me a chance to get my head together and work off a little energy before quietly slotting myself into my desk at work and enduring the 7 - 8 hours before its time to go home again.

The cycle in was excellent. Weather was lovely (but too cold for just a t-shirt - as I quickly discovered) and the canal path itself was firm and dry making for a brilliantly fast and enjoyable journey in. No cars, no fumes, no obstacles (even the lock gates were open).

The cycle back home should have been just as much fun. The sun had been shining all day and was still out in force by the time I got changed and started my trek back home. Unfortunately the wind had also made an appearance and, true to my usual run of luck, was blowing directly down the canal, directly against my intended travel direction. It took me at least 90 mins to get home.

Weekly Total: 23.28miles

Run The Road (M77 GSO)

Well we did it.

It took a few wrong turns and one or two scowls and arguments to get us there (my skills as a navigator were sorely tested and ultimately rejected) but we did get there in the end.

Once we'd found a parking spot we managed to unload the bikes without too much trouble, hooked up with Jacqui and Cris (quite literally, as Cris had foolishly volunteered to pull one of the tag-alongs) and then cycled down to the Start/Finish line whereupon we realised that the race had already been started.

The race itself was excellent fun, Cris & I seemed to enjoy weaving the bikes in and out the back markers and both the kids on the tag-alongs seemed to particularly enjoy it when we dropped the gears and cranked like crazy to build up speed. Cris seemed to have the fussier of the two possible passengers as all we could hear throughout the entire 10k distance was 'faster, pedal faster'.

A great day out with friends and family. Lovely.

Hanging Around

I spent last night hanging about in an old church in the middle of Govan. It was a bit of a surreal experience but completely exhilarating at the same time and I feel like I've been cleansed of all my prejudices and that I'm now not as afraid of pink (and indeed the full spectrum of neon colours) as I was before.

The Glasgow Climbing Centre is a converted church which is now a mecca for the Glasgow climbing scene and its brilliant. I spent the evening learning what a belay is, playing with a chalk sack and desperately clinging to wooden walls in the hope that no-one realises quite how scared I am.

The cycle home from Govan was quite enjoyable too. It was dusk when I started the journey and I had to travel down past the Glasgow Science Centre, across the Millenium Bridge then over the Clydeside Expressway up to Byres Road and homeward bound.

No bike today, I need to patch it up a bit before the event on Sunday.

Weekly Total: 44.87miles

Nice to be back on the road again this morning after last week's disastrous turn of events. I seem to have developed a bizarre paranoia of every squeak or rattle on the bike, however.

Weekly Total: 10.51miles

Sunday Drivers

It must be the upcoming Run The Road event, but something strange is happening in the house right now.... everyone is right into their cycling!

I don't think it was my suggestion, but we loaded up the bikes and headed down to the canal path and then went for a bike ride. A lunch time pit stop and then a mad dash back home in the rain made for an enjoyable day out and a few red faces all round. I was particularly impressed that the rest of the brood managed the 5 mile journey without too much complaint!

Weekly Total: 74.34 miles
Overall Total: 621miles

Stressed Fracture

I can't believe it. I can't even begin to explain how this has happened, but I'm seriously disappointed that it has.

I set off this morning (my fourth day on the bike) and have to admit that I was surprised at how good I was feeling. The bike seemed to be working well, legs were feeling great, traffic lights were turning green when I arrived at them - everything seemed to be going very smoothly.

That changed fairly quickly, unfortunately. Approximately 5 miles into the journey, just as I turned off Queen Margaret Drive and onto Great Western Road, there was an almighty clatter and I suddenly found myself hanging over the back of the bike, my bum dangling precariously over the rear wheel. I clawed at the brakes and quickly pulled over to the side of the road to try and work out what had happened. I was particularly curious to know where my saddle had disappeared to.

It turns out that the saddle pin which bolts the saddle onto the seat post had snapped. I've never experienced anything like this before, but I have to feel fairly happy that I only slipped back over the rear wheel and didn't manage to impale myself on a rather uncomfortable looking seatpost!!

The whole incident has reminded me of a particular memory I have of my former mountain bike days, when I was about 19 years old. Back then, I had the pleasure of riding a lovely Specialised Stumpjumper, loaded with top of the range Shimano XT kit. One of the guys I biked with at the time, took it upon himself to stick a rather memorable sticker on my bike and its slogan seems pretty apt in the current circumstances:

"Light ass bike, lard ass rider"

Weekly Total: 69.28miles

Mild Mannered

It was a pretty decent day today, weatherwise, particularly after yesterday's efforts.

The morning journey was a chilly one, my ears kept toasty by my Buff (cheers Chispie) but my peely wally legs going a strange colour of blue in the chilly morning temperatures.

The cycle home was a mild affair. The sky was overcast but didn't appear to be threatening rain at all. The cycling was medium-paced, I'm trying to save enough energy to complete the next two days of commuting so I wasn't trying to push too hard.

Its proving far easier to motivate myself to cycle in each day when I don't try to over think the exercise. Previously I was trying to consider things like the next days weather forecast and this was helping to provide a veritable battery of excuses for not taking the bike. This week I've made sure that my cycling stuff is all prepared the night before and all I have to do is fall out of bed and climb into my bike clothes and roll out of the door. This had made sure that I have even less time in which to come up with an excuse!

Weekly Total: 64.46miles

Weird Weather

The cycle in to work this morning was executed in sunshine while scooching through huge puddles of rainwater. It began to pour the second that I arrived at work and parked the bike.

The cycle home was preceded by an almighty downpour after the whole day had been bathed in sunshine. I duly changed into full wet weather gear and emerged from the toilet cubicle looking rather ridiculous and feeling more than a little stuffy, only to find that the rain had dissipated and there was nowt by glorious sunshine in the skies!!

It was a little warm on the journey home.

Weekly Total: 43.32miles

Wind Powered Too

For a while during my cycle home, I was marvelling at how good I was feeling, how little effort it seemed to require to power my bike along the canal path and what an excellent time I was making the journey in... then I turned off the canal path and was given a sharp reminder of what was had really been providing all the momentum as I was blown across the road and into the oncoming traffic!

A tailwind!

Instead of the usual battle against the wind, the gods had seen fit to ensure that the wind was blowing me home, which is just as well because that last mile home, when I had to pedal directly into the wind, was an absolute nightmare!!

Weekly Total: 22.15miles

Wind Powered

My legs were aching after a brilliant session kiteboarding with Cris and Jim yesterday. I still forced myself to get on the bike and pedal in to work this morning however, even though this time I was cursing the presence of the wind instead of reveling in it as I was yesterday.

Weekly Total: 10.57miles

Last weeks stats:
Weekly Total: 41.98miles
Overall Total: 546.7miles
Max Speed: 33.7mph

Must Do Better

Back on the bike again this morning after a day off due to rain on Tuesday and due to playing squash last night.

One thing that struck me during the journey was that if I am serious about notching up 2005 miles this year, then I'm going to have to start cycling more than 2 days a week. The last few weeks have been a kind of stop / start affair with a lack of resolve having a pretty severe impact in my mileage. Its not because I don't enjoy being on the bike, I love being on the bike. The fact of the matter is that I'm a lazy bastard at heart and the initial thought of pulling on my shorts, dragging the iron steed out of the shed and beginning my 50 minute journey along Glasgow's roads simply incites my brain to argue about how comfortable and warm the train would be, all manner of excuses from the weather being bad, the wind being the wrong direction and the clouds being the wrong colour begin to churn through my head and in all of that, I seem to forget that above all of those concerns, I love cycling my bike.

Time to refocus, time to set that odometer turning, time to stop pandering to those pathetic excuses any more.

Weekly Total: 30.89miles

Mr Grumpy

When I woke up this morning it was pouring, so I made the decision to take the train and leave the bike at home. By the time I'd got showered, dressed and was heading downstairs to get my breakfast, the rain had eased off and the sun had started to make its appearance and I felt extremely frustrated that I hadn't stuck to my guns and decided to brave the weather in the first place. I didn't have enough time to get myself sorted for a cycle in, so it was with increasing frustration that I trudged off to the train station and then sulked my way in to work.

This frustration eased when I stepped off the train, however, as another downpour started almost as soon as the train pulled away. I got soaked during the 5 min walk into the office but this did little to dampen my smug satisfaction as I congratulated myself on making the right choice of transportation.

Now the sun is splitting the skies and I'm back to being Mr Grumpy again. I wish I'd brought the bike.

Tired

Just got home and I feel absolutely knackered.

Its probably a result of the weekend's excesses (it was a damn good weekend) but my legs feel like leg and I just didn't have the energy to do anything more than pedal home slowly. I did manage to miss the storm of hailstones that flashed through the town only 10 mins before I left work, however. Weather stayed fairly dry although it was fairly blustery.

Back on the bike again tomorrow, a good night's sleep should sort me right out.

Weekly Total: 20.25miles

Chilly

Bit chilly this morning, my ears were stinging cold as I cycled in. My bike was on top form, however, thanks to my local bike Guru, Crack Smokin' Pete who will happily fix anything that might be wrong with your bike as long as you ply him full of food and beer. No squeaks, no rattles and both brakes were in great condition - cheers Pete!

Weekly Total: 10.63miles

500 miles.

500 miles baby!! I've cycled 500 miles since the start of the year!

I had to work today, which meant getting in to work for 6.45am. There was no way I could face cycling into work at that time in the morning so I squeezed my bike and I into a taxi and let the compay pay for the pleasure of my attendance. The cycle back home again was divine.

Gorious sunshine, general goodtime feeling as I left work behind and started looking ahead to the weekend and then I noticed that my odometer was creeping up to a magical number. Bring on the summer months!

Weekly Total: 35.06miles
Overall Total: 504.7miles
Max Speed: 31.2mph

Home Again

The ride home was completely uneventful. Legs feel fine, bike seems to be running remarkably smoothly and it was a thoroughly enjoyable, if slightly dull ride home.

Weekly Total: 20.97miles

So good to be back

I was back on the bike again this morning after a prolonged visit to Lazyville. For some reason I managed to keep finding a moderately acceptable excuse to avoid the bike and plump for the train. Thankfully I couldn't come up with an excuse this morning and I had to cycle in and I feel brilliant because of it.