Titan yer tummy
No meatings b4 dinner!
- Location
- Beckenham, SE London
On Wednesday on my ride home I got absolutely soaked. I have to say it was one of my most miserable commutes. I am generally pretty immune to the weather when cycling but Wednesday’s downpour really got through to me. When I got in I was absolutely sodden. Not a single part of my kit was spared. Much of my stuff was still wet when I set off on Thursday morning – yuck!! I absolutely hate being wet but when cycling I am usually much less concerned.
I have only managed three cycle commutes this week. A meeting after work on Tuesday and a funeral on Friday has disrupted my cycling routine. I am working on Saturday and I am sill considering cycling but it will be a late finish and I don’t really like the late rides, plus I have a lot of stuff to bring home because on Wednesday me and the missus are having a holiday. Sadly not a cycling holiday, my long suffering wife is actually unable to ride a bike (and has never shown any inclination to learn).
Anyway we are chucking our green credentials (I’m not sure we ever had any) out of the window and flying to the Caribbean; Cuba to be precise. All inclusive in Varadero.
“Pin yer ears back Fidel the Brits are coming.”
I can’t wait to get stuck into the exotic Caribbean cuisine, sangria, golden rum, sun soaked beaches and Havana cigars (although I don’t drink or smoke any more). This is my first holiday with my wife, only married 27 years you see. So we think we are about due.
I phoned the bank during the week to find out about what currency to take. Glad I did! I was ready to pack my wallet with US dollars – can’t go wrong with the old greenbacks methinks – WRONG. In Cuba you actually cannot use anything American including Dollars, American Express traveller’s cheques and, if your bank is deemed to be American, your debit cards won’t be accepted either. Pretty peculiar for a country that cites tourism as one of its principle sources of income.
To top it all apparently we will still be in the hurricane season so that may put the sousing I got on Wednesday into perspective.
All in all I’m just a little nervous about the whole expedition, though it’s all inclusive so if the worst comes to the worst we will just stay in the complex and endure a hectic schedule on the sun lounger. Nasty! (or under the umbrella).
I wonder if it might be possible to hire a bike. I may yet get my fix of cycling; who knows. Perhaps we could hire two and I could coax Mrs Tyt onto 2 wheels. Hmmm… perhaps not.
Talking of bike hire, I told you in one of my previous missives that I had signed up for the London Cycle Hire scheme for days when I didn’t commute on my own bike. I must say I was more than a little sceptical about the scheme generally and my participation in it particularly. On Tuesday I actually used the bikes for the first time and I must say on balance I was pleasantly surprised. The bikes are functional and certainly enable easy inner-city mobility in a surprisingly convenient way (though I have to add that at going home time the racks were empty and I had to walk to the station). But all in all I am impressed.
I shall close now and you will have to manage without me for a couple of weeks but I am sure Arch, BenScoobert and jdrussell will keep you all amused in my absence. To say I shall be thinking of you would be a little disingenuous. Sun, sea and sand here I come!!
Stats:
This weeks stats from the VDO C5
Commutes: 3Commutes this year: 124
Commuting miles: 69.39
Commutes per week in 2010: 3.2
Commuting miles in 2010: 2362.08 (corrected to 2253..23)Public transport costs: £21.78 (includes a black cab fare)
This weeks stats from iphone
Activity: cycle
Count: 6
Total distance: 68.3 miles
Total time: 6:35:56
Total climb: 2881
Average dist: 11.38
Average time: 1:05:54
Average climb 480
Average speed: 10.36 mph
As ever
Tyt 632
I have only managed three cycle commutes this week. A meeting after work on Tuesday and a funeral on Friday has disrupted my cycling routine. I am working on Saturday and I am sill considering cycling but it will be a late finish and I don’t really like the late rides, plus I have a lot of stuff to bring home because on Wednesday me and the missus are having a holiday. Sadly not a cycling holiday, my long suffering wife is actually unable to ride a bike (and has never shown any inclination to learn).
Anyway we are chucking our green credentials (I’m not sure we ever had any) out of the window and flying to the Caribbean; Cuba to be precise. All inclusive in Varadero.
“Pin yer ears back Fidel the Brits are coming.”
I can’t wait to get stuck into the exotic Caribbean cuisine, sangria, golden rum, sun soaked beaches and Havana cigars (although I don’t drink or smoke any more). This is my first holiday with my wife, only married 27 years you see. So we think we are about due.
I phoned the bank during the week to find out about what currency to take. Glad I did! I was ready to pack my wallet with US dollars – can’t go wrong with the old greenbacks methinks – WRONG. In Cuba you actually cannot use anything American including Dollars, American Express traveller’s cheques and, if your bank is deemed to be American, your debit cards won’t be accepted either. Pretty peculiar for a country that cites tourism as one of its principle sources of income.
To top it all apparently we will still be in the hurricane season so that may put the sousing I got on Wednesday into perspective.
All in all I’m just a little nervous about the whole expedition, though it’s all inclusive so if the worst comes to the worst we will just stay in the complex and endure a hectic schedule on the sun lounger. Nasty! (or under the umbrella).
I wonder if it might be possible to hire a bike. I may yet get my fix of cycling; who knows. Perhaps we could hire two and I could coax Mrs Tyt onto 2 wheels. Hmmm… perhaps not.
Talking of bike hire, I told you in one of my previous missives that I had signed up for the London Cycle Hire scheme for days when I didn’t commute on my own bike. I must say I was more than a little sceptical about the scheme generally and my participation in it particularly. On Tuesday I actually used the bikes for the first time and I must say on balance I was pleasantly surprised. The bikes are functional and certainly enable easy inner-city mobility in a surprisingly convenient way (though I have to add that at going home time the racks were empty and I had to walk to the station). But all in all I am impressed.
I shall close now and you will have to manage without me for a couple of weeks but I am sure Arch, BenScoobert and jdrussell will keep you all amused in my absence. To say I shall be thinking of you would be a little disingenuous. Sun, sea and sand here I come!!
Stats:
This weeks stats from the VDO C5
Commutes: 3Commutes this year: 124
Commuting miles: 69.39
Commutes per week in 2010: 3.2
Commuting miles in 2010: 2362.08 (corrected to 2253..23)Public transport costs: £21.78 (includes a black cab fare)
This weeks stats from iphone
Activity: cycle
Count: 6
Total distance: 68.3 miles
Total time: 6:35:56
Total climb: 2881
Average dist: 11.38
Average time: 1:05:54
Average climb 480
Average speed: 10.36 mph
As ever
Tyt 632
