AKA Bob
Riding a folding bike far too much of the time...
- Location
- Reading upon Thames
Then again it might be very pleasant to have a football free week...
FNRttC The Fridays tour 2014
- Thread starter mmmmartin
- Start date
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ianmac62
Guru
- Location
- Northampton
I have a football-free week every week as I'm a season-ticket holder at Northampton Town FC. We play hoofball. On the other hand, last Saturday - by winning 3 - 0 at Dagenham - we came out of the bottom two for the first time since September. Now a win v Oxford Utd at home on Saturday (or at least to perform as well as Wycombe Wanderers) and we maintain our league status!
Very interesting spending a few days in Bristol, where Rovers have the same number of points as NTFC. First time I've entered a cathedral and the verger, asking where I've come from, has immediately talked about football. Ditto at Colston Hall.
Andrew Br
Still part of the team !
- Location
- Chorlton Cum Hardy
You didn't say at the sign-up that we needed to have a "personality" mmmmartin.
I'm going to have a work on developing one.
Witty repartee (whatever that is) first and then I'm going to practise spontaneity.
That, coupled with a few beers, should do it I reckon.
.
I'm going to have a work on developing one.
Witty repartee (whatever that is) first and then I'm going to practise spontaneity.
That, coupled with a few beers, should do it I reckon.
.
Andrew Br
Still part of the team !
- Location
- Chorlton Cum Hardy
Another thing while I'm thinking about it:
Isn't it better to load the bikes alternately direction of travel/backwards so they can pack together more easily ?
That's what we generally do when we're locking the bikes up or loading them in or on the car.
FWIW, the pedals come off Helen's bike and mine fairly easily so that should help a little.
.
Isn't it better to load the bikes alternately direction of travel/backwards so they can pack together more easily ?
That's what we generally do when we're locking the bikes up or loading them in or on the car.
FWIW, the pedals come off Helen's bike and mine fairly easily so that should help a little.
.
OP
OP
mmmmartin
Random geezer
Yes, that's how I did it. Pedals off makes little difference as you can arrange the pedals so they fit in the gap in the frame of the other bike.
Oh, and I am now the proud owner of a rather spiffing Audax England long sleeve jersey, having seen yours.
lilolee
Guru
- Location
- Maidenhead
Yeah, I'll go the beer route to "personality"
OP
OP
mmmmartin
Random geezer
In other news, the recce team is all fired up and ready to go, Sudocrem packed and everything. The weather forecast says when we get off the ferry on Saturday morning there will be something called Averses with added Rafales of 65kph. It improves in the afternoon though, when we are promised something called Risque de grele, plus the Rafales of 65kph, obvs. However, the probability of "gel" is 0%. Not sure what all this means but I'll be with Gordon so it'll all work out OK. Probably.
EDIT - and the crossing will be good, because apparently the sea will be agitee, localement forte au large le soir. Whatever that means. The vent will be renforce, and the visibility will be reduite sous la pluie. So that's all right then......
PS I have packed some longjohns. Just in case. Oh - and budgie smugglers.
EDIT - and the crossing will be good, because apparently the sea will be agitee, localement forte au large le soir. Whatever that means. The vent will be renforce, and the visibility will be reduite sous la pluie. So that's all right then......
PS I have packed some longjohns. Just in case. Oh - and budgie smugglers.
Last edited:
AKA Bob
Riding a folding bike far too much of the time...
- Location
- Reading upon Thames
[QUOTE="PS I have packed some longjohns. Just in case. Oh - and budgie smugglers.[/QUOTE]
Hope there is no photographic proof......
Hope there is no photographic proof......
OP
OP
mmmmartin
Random geezer
Recce update.
Day one.
Despite, or perhaps because of, the fact that we had three GPS units, two sets of detailed maps and a tablet loaded with maps for the whole of France, plus Gordon's route cards, we managed to make a right pig's ear of the exit from Caen. However, this proved to be an opportunity because we also discovered an absolutely superb and completely flat route that we will use on The Real Thing.bingo!
Route finding has gone pretty well and the road surfaces are good and roads are very quiet.
there are a handful of long hills but they seem to be at a pretty easy angle.
after the last hill of the day there is a fantastic swoop down into a small river valley.
we approached the long cycle track with some trepidation but were delighted to find that the surface is excellent and it provides a very flat and very fast way through the very lumpy hills and brings us straight to the front door of the hotel in Domfront.
so all going very well despite the calvados in the afternoon coffee stop.
as an added bonus i am sure you will all be delighted to hear that gordon and i are in a room that has a hair dryer.
Day one.
Despite, or perhaps because of, the fact that we had three GPS units, two sets of detailed maps and a tablet loaded with maps for the whole of France, plus Gordon's route cards, we managed to make a right pig's ear of the exit from Caen. However, this proved to be an opportunity because we also discovered an absolutely superb and completely flat route that we will use on The Real Thing.bingo!
Route finding has gone pretty well and the road surfaces are good and roads are very quiet.
there are a handful of long hills but they seem to be at a pretty easy angle.
after the last hill of the day there is a fantastic swoop down into a small river valley.
we approached the long cycle track with some trepidation but were delighted to find that the surface is excellent and it provides a very flat and very fast way through the very lumpy hills and brings us straight to the front door of the hotel in Domfront.
so all going very well despite the calvados in the afternoon coffee stop.
as an added bonus i am sure you will all be delighted to hear that gordon and i are in a room that has a hair dryer.
lilolee
Guru
- Location
- Maidenhead
Of course one must maintain certain standards
Andrew Br
Still part of the team !
- Location
- Chorlton Cum Hardy
Within the bounds of propriety, I'm struggling to think how they could abuse the hair dryer.
Please don't enlighten me.
.
Please don't enlighten me.
.
Flying Dodo
It'll soon be summer
After yesterday's damp arrival in Brighton, the hand dryers in the toilets just past the cafe were used extensively to dry out soggy clothes. Or so I was told in the pub.
OP
OP
mmmmartin
Random geezer
Great fun, flatter than yesterday, but we found a terrible cycle track that looked good on the map but had been chewed up by horses' hooves. We won't be using that.
More fun ensued when Alex had a puncture, but as it had stopped hailing by then we were cheered up a bit. The headwind continued though, and for added variety it rained very heavily on and off. However, when Alex had his second puncture it was quite sunny, so we're in a good mood. Imagine our joy when his third puncture arrived in bright sunshine! Our delight knew no bounds. Furthermore, I was so distracted by this, and mesmerised by the pretty river we were riding alongside (see comment about sunshine, above), that I quite forgot the small matter of navigation. Imagine our unbounded delight when we found we were in the centre of the town and the hotel was back the way we had come. Such fun! Good humour was maintained throughout and we even remembered to ask for a brush to scrape the crap off the bikes. Oh, and the hotel is on a bit of a hill. We were down by the river when we realised this. Uphill is good. It makes you stronger.
Off now to get p!ssed, eat and sleep. More joy tomorrow. Weather forecast is much better.
More fun ensued when Alex had a puncture, but as it had stopped hailing by then we were cheered up a bit. The headwind continued though, and for added variety it rained very heavily on and off. However, when Alex had his second puncture it was quite sunny, so we're in a good mood. Imagine our joy when his third puncture arrived in bright sunshine! Our delight knew no bounds. Furthermore, I was so distracted by this, and mesmerised by the pretty river we were riding alongside (see comment about sunshine, above), that I quite forgot the small matter of navigation. Imagine our unbounded delight when we found we were in the centre of the town and the hotel was back the way we had come. Such fun! Good humour was maintained throughout and we even remembered to ask for a brush to scrape the crap off the bikes. Oh, and the hotel is on a bit of a hill. We were down by the river when we realised this. Uphill is good. It makes you stronger.
Off now to get p!ssed, eat and sleep. More joy tomorrow. Weather forecast is much better.
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