Unfortunately I drove 6hrs on the motorways on Monday at a constant 70 or 50mph after which the muscle (or tendon?) at the top of the back of my calf was quite painful. In the morning I could only hobble so decided that 40km plus would be foolish and blew out the amigos ride.
Checkpoint
After yesterday’s exertions decided to repeat the North Petherwin-Werrington loop from a month ago to see how I’m doing.
No wind, overcast, not cold. But I did leave the 2kg of D-lock behind which might have made all the difference.
20.2km again, but this time with zero stopping time and a moving average of 17.0km/hr. It is actually only about 250m of ascent so somewhat less hilly than yesterday.
Out with the Amigos
Sudden realisation that there are only two more full weeks before we set off from Falmouth to London, and having been doing route planning over the weekend I find that the first two days and the fourth day look pretty tough.
The Road to London
Here’s the first draft of the route from Falmouth to London with proposed stage towns. Anyone stumbling across this during Feb/March and interested in joining or joining up other rides or doing something in one of the stage towns should contact me by phone/text on 07736 741268 or email rogerco at riseup dot net. If you are part of XR and coordinating a ride you should be aware of the RebelRiders project on basecamp – or email me.
Stage towns: Falmouth depart 8th April, Lostwithiel or Liskeard or Bodmin 8th April, Launceston 9th April, Barnstaple 10th April, Taunton 11th April, Glastonbury (lunch) 12th, Frome 12th April, Newbury 13th April, London 14th April.
First outing of the year
The sun was shining, the afternoon was free, time to unhitch Genie from the turbo trainer, and get out there.
It was ok, legs still working, gears still all ok, front brake a bit soft. Only a short one without a load (although I did forget that I has nearly 2kg of D-lock strapped to the rear carrier).
Just a brief run up to St.Stephens, down through Langore and over the Ottery, up to North Petherwin and back round home again by way of Werrington and Ridgegrove Lane.
Hit bottom gear a few times on the climbs. Dropping down into the Tamar valley the sun had dipped below the hill and lost its heat and I was glad of my windproof good blue cycle top – shout out to the techs in psychology – almost wished I had my gloves with me too.
Only 20.2km and the rolling average 13.2km/hr which seems pretty low with no load, although it was a hilly choice for a first ride of the year. Still, it’ll get better…
Off Again…
Yes! Finally we are planning to get back in the saddle. The Winter is over, I’ve taken Genie out of the turbo-trainer and another ride with the Climate Vision riders is in planning.
This time we are part of the Rebel Riders of the Ecopocalypse and the plan is to ride from Falmouth, Cornwall to London to arrive for the week of disruptive action from April 15th with Extinction Rebellion. Continue reading “Off Again…”
The Big Ride for Palestine – Day 3
Luton to Westminster
Well we made it. Fantastic reception into London down the A5. Cars hooting, people of all sorts cheering and applauding in the shopping streets through Burnt Oak, Collindale, Hendon, Cricklewood, Kilburn and down the Edgware Road. Continue reading “The Big Ride for Palestine – Day 3”
The Big Ride for Palestine – Day 2
Northampton to Luton
Slept well and woke just in time to grab a tea and get dressed before taking the bikes down for the ride into town. Continue reading “The Big Ride for Palestine – Day 2”
The Big Ride for Palestine – Day 1
After a less than perfect night in the van somewhere in the rural hinterland of Coventry that turned out to be sandwiched between the glide path in to Brum airport above and the Westcoast mainline and a surprisingly noisy dual carriageway, we set off in to town for the start. Continue reading “The Big Ride for Palestine – Day 1”
Late Lunch or Early Tea
We had heard good things of the Tintagel Brewery cafe (and also the beer) so since the weekend’s rain has cleared up we thought we’d give it a try. Only 30km away says google – you should do it in a little over an hour and a half. Continue reading “Late Lunch or Early Tea”