Mandragora
Senior Member
I've been riding bikes all my life, but I'm suddenly feeling like a beginner at this whole 'cycling' thing, if you know what I mean...
I treated myself to a new bike about 18 months ago, and from there the bug has really taken hold. I'm loving it, though still pretty timid about riding in traffic and really pretty slow (nothing new there - I did athletics as a child, and I've come last in races all over the Northern Circuit). We're miles from anywhere, so there's no club that I could join easily, even if these ancient legs were up to the challenge of group cycling. In a rush of misguided enthusiasm a couple of months ago, I persuaded a friend to sign up for the Nello http://forcecancercharity.co.uk/fundraising/the-nello-charity-cycle-ride and we'd train and prepare together. She hasn't done much of the 'training/preparing together' side of things,but I've been happy to work independently, knowing that we'll work together in the last few weeks, help each other along, etc etc.
So, I've been gradually building up the miles, learnt all about 'cadence' (what a shock that was! My legs sulked for a week when they realised how fast they were supposed to go, just to hit a fairly paltry 70-74) and even braving the traffic as I've ridden around parts of the route. Fast forward though, to this week, and my friend *suddenly* realises she's double booked herself that weekend, and now can't do the event at all. She's been suspiciously quiet about the whole thing for a month or two, so I'm not hugely surprised to be honest.
Which brings me to the reason for this thread and this posting. I'm on my own, in the middle of nowhere, getting myself in the right frame of mind to give this a good old go. I don't mind going it alone, but I think that if I set myself up here with an online 'diary' where I log the rides I'm doing, how they're going etc etc, I will be able to have a record of the work I'm doing, and hopefully get some sort of sense of progress, no matter how snail-like and slow it seems to be.
Mon 4th May:
Total distance: 32.07 miles.
Route : Loop including Cruwys Woods, Morchard Bishop, Morchard Road and return.
Time: 2:43:47
Av speed: 11.74
Weather: Fine, no wind.
Traffic: Almost none (Bank holiday) - no worries.
Cadence: aimed for 70-74*
(*Achieved often enough, though issues with computer and bike light meant I couldn't get cadence reading when light was on. Have now switched light position, so hopefully resolved).
I treated myself to a new bike about 18 months ago, and from there the bug has really taken hold. I'm loving it, though still pretty timid about riding in traffic and really pretty slow (nothing new there - I did athletics as a child, and I've come last in races all over the Northern Circuit). We're miles from anywhere, so there's no club that I could join easily, even if these ancient legs were up to the challenge of group cycling. In a rush of misguided enthusiasm a couple of months ago, I persuaded a friend to sign up for the Nello http://forcecancercharity.co.uk/fundraising/the-nello-charity-cycle-ride and we'd train and prepare together. She hasn't done much of the 'training/preparing together' side of things,but I've been happy to work independently, knowing that we'll work together in the last few weeks, help each other along, etc etc.
So, I've been gradually building up the miles, learnt all about 'cadence' (what a shock that was! My legs sulked for a week when they realised how fast they were supposed to go, just to hit a fairly paltry 70-74) and even braving the traffic as I've ridden around parts of the route. Fast forward though, to this week, and my friend *suddenly* realises she's double booked herself that weekend, and now can't do the event at all. She's been suspiciously quiet about the whole thing for a month or two, so I'm not hugely surprised to be honest.
Which brings me to the reason for this thread and this posting. I'm on my own, in the middle of nowhere, getting myself in the right frame of mind to give this a good old go. I don't mind going it alone, but I think that if I set myself up here with an online 'diary' where I log the rides I'm doing, how they're going etc etc, I will be able to have a record of the work I'm doing, and hopefully get some sort of sense of progress, no matter how snail-like and slow it seems to be.
Mon 4th May:
Total distance: 32.07 miles.
Route : Loop including Cruwys Woods, Morchard Bishop, Morchard Road and return.
Time: 2:43:47
Av speed: 11.74
Weather: Fine, no wind.
Traffic: Almost none (Bank holiday) - no worries.
Cadence: aimed for 70-74*
(*Achieved often enough, though issues with computer and bike light meant I couldn't get cadence reading when light was on. Have now switched light position, so hopefully resolved).
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