Susie, Rebecca and I were supposed to ride down today, but Susie was feeling under the weather yesterday afternoon, so went to bed early and I started in on (and finished) a bottle of cheap white, only to be woken from my drunken slumber by Miranda later on in the evening.
So, thinking about it, I said that we might not go. I texted Rebecca. At six this morning I woke, Susie said she'd give it a go, Rebecca let us know that she couldn't make it, Susie said that she had only said she would go because she didn't want to let Rebecca down, so I had a bit of a grumpy session and decided to whizz down to East Kent on my own and get back for a late lunch with my girl.......so, left home at 7.15 and got in to Minster at 11.50, and caught the 12.10 back, getting home before 2. About 74 miles in 4hrs 35 including a couple of brief stops for conversations with the local and to fix my new Hope light. The hangover only really cut in when chasing some twentysomething up Shooters Hill.
I've got a new route that cuts out Gravesend, and some of the hills before, and doesn't involve the horrible tarmac of the A226. I've found a new way through Chatham that still takes us up Chatham Hill, but from a different angle, which seems a lot more relaxed. And cutting out the 'bonus' hill makes the ride from Canterbury pretty darn flat, although no less pretty for that. There's room for improvement in Faversham - I had to overtake the same slower cyclist twice, which was v. annoying, but, overall, I think it's there.
So, thinking about it, I said that we might not go. I texted Rebecca. At six this morning I woke, Susie said she'd give it a go, Rebecca let us know that she couldn't make it, Susie said that she had only said she would go because she didn't want to let Rebecca down, so I had a bit of a grumpy session and decided to whizz down to East Kent on my own and get back for a late lunch with my girl.......so, left home at 7.15 and got in to Minster at 11.50, and caught the 12.10 back, getting home before 2. About 74 miles in 4hrs 35 including a couple of brief stops for conversations with the local and to fix my new Hope light. The hangover only really cut in when chasing some twentysomething up Shooters Hill.
I've got a new route that cuts out Gravesend, and some of the hills before, and doesn't involve the horrible tarmac of the A226. I've found a new way through Chatham that still takes us up Chatham Hill, but from a different angle, which seems a lot more relaxed. And cutting out the 'bonus' hill makes the ride from Canterbury pretty darn flat, although no less pretty for that. There's room for improvement in Faversham - I had to overtake the same slower cyclist twice, which was v. annoying, but, overall, I think it's there.
