Week 3 - Solo Rider

Monday

Work, weight lifting

Weight training, no junkfood, no alcohol

Tuesday

Work, weight lifting

Weight training, no junkfood, no alcohol

Wednesday

Cycled to work, weight lifting, beer!

Weight training, no junkfood, alcohol

Thursday 

Work, weight lifting, wine!

Weight training, no junkfood, alcohol

Friday

On Friday, Lucy and I finished work at 4pm and then raced home to meet Debbie at our place. Then I dropped them both at the train station before setting about an hour of weight training. In the last two weeks I've done 10 hours of weight training. I sometimes think I can see a difference already, but that's probably just because I feel so good at the moment! I seriously doubt there would have been any noticeable physical change in my appearance yet.

Later, I got a call from Lucy and Debbie saying that that the concert had gone on longer than expected and I was to collect them from Birmingham City Centre! I jumped in the car and set off. With road works at the bottom of Broad Street, the car's sat nat couldn't cope and I was left to find my own way to a particular pub. I found the ladies sharing a bottle of white and looking quite happy! I got us home just after midnight.

Weight training, no junkfood, no booze

Saturday

The weather was really rather cold. There was frost and ice outside my house.

The road directly outside my house this morning

The lads were riding without me today because I had promised to ride with Mark this morning and then take Mouse to the optician. (We're not riding tomorrow because Storm Isha is due to sweep across the UK!) I messaged everyone to discuss the weather conditions. Unfortunately, Roger is not well enough to ride at the moment. James and Jonnie decided to ride despite the ice and frost about the place. It would have been Mark's first time riding in SPD clipless pedals but I cancelled the ride. I deemed it too dangerous.

Later on, after Mouse and I had been to the optician, I noticed that things had warmed up and the roads looked a lot better. Mark agreed to meet me in the afternoon and we set off into the lanes. I was impressed with his bike control and confidence. The new pedals didn't faze him in the slightest! He clocked up 17 miles at 12.4mph. He's getting there!

Later in the afternoon, I taught my Karate lesson. We did a good warm-up, had a good time on the pads, and did lots of basics up and down the room. Unfortunately, kata didn't go well - I'm the only black belt in the room and couldn't figure out a way of teaching all the new kata to everyone at the same time. Some of the Saturday students only attend my lesson, so they rely on me to teach them what they need to know. I'll have to get my thinking cap on.

After a meeting with Sensei Gary, I headed home for homemade curry and a few beers!

Cycling, Karate, no junkfood, beers

Sunday

I had to do it. I needed to follow the training plan and couldn't bear the thought of not doing a ride which the lads had already completed. I jumped on the bike a little earlier than usual and headed out into the wind. At this point, where I live, Storm Isha wasn't much of a problem. It was a bit windy, definitely, but dry and a lot warmer than it has been lately. The first 20 miles was into a head wind and I had to work really hard to maintain a decent average. I managed to tuck in with a small group of four riders who were going my way. I tooled along with them at 16mph for a little while, but when the road went up I couldn't hold their wheels for long and they dropped me.

One of the things I noticed about riding solo was the amount of talking to myself that I did! If another rider had caught up with me and sat on my wheel, they would have thought I was a complete nutter (and they may have been right...) I talked to myself for a lot of the ride. I remember saying things such as:

"Come on, you have to dig in now."

"How much do you have left in the tank?"

A respectful Audi driver!"

"My bum is killing me."

Such nonsense helped me to keep the pressure on into the wind. Descending down through Binton was a bit sketchy because Storm Isha was now a strong cross wind trying to press me into hedges and houses. When I turned left into Luddington, it was bliss! With the wind now helping me, and the road relatively flat, I just cruised along at 16mph enjoying the scenery, I didn't want it to end!

I got to the cake stop well above the target average. I enjoyed the cake and coffee, had a chat with Jane, and then produced my secret weapon for the Mad March Hare: I have bought a pack of High 5 energy powders to mix into my bottle water. I poured one of these into my freshly filled bottle and then headed back out into the wind.

The remaining 18 miles were an effort, but with the wind behind me, it was a lot easier than it had been getting to Luddington. The energy drink tasted nice, didn't have any adverse effects and I finished it before I arrived at Jonnie's place. Jonnie and I enjoyed a different kind of energy drink before I completed the final 0.8 miles home. 45 miles at 13.8mph, 2000ft of climbing.

In the evening - homemade lasagne and more beers!

Cycling, junkfood, alcohol