Happy Easter All - what has happened to all day Bank Holiday drinking?

Yes, I remember those long weekends fondly - when a bank holiday meant you could meet up with friends, Sunday afternoons being particularly sweet, drink all day & have an extra day to recover. And this year we have been blessed with an extra double bank holiday - wow, what great opportunities for some serious socialising! So what am I getting excited about this bank holiday - it's 2 extra days worth of riding & have got 8am meets planned on Saturday, Sunday & Monday morning.....and all being well, by the time I go back to work on Tuesday, I'll have covered about 100 miles......sounds impressive eh? Well yeah, I'd be the first one to pat myself on the back, apart from the fact that what I'm planning to cover in 3 days this weekend, is just 10 miles over what I'll be expected to cover on Day 1 of 4 consecutive days in exactly 8 weeks and 5 days time - BIG MASSIVE GULP!!!!!! (which happens to fall on our 2nd double bank holiday of the year - see? still no all day drinking - boo!)

So anyway, it's been an eventful couple of weeks since my last post.......with the clocks going forward, I've added a mid-week evening ride to my training "regime" & over the next couple of weeks I intend to increase that to twice in the week. I've been taking my bike to work in the mornings then on the way home getting off the train 20 miles away from home & cycling back. Sounds idyllic on these light summer nights? Well now I've sussed out a route that doesn't entail A roads and dual carriageways in rush hour (yes really), I'm hoping the experience will be much more pleasant than my first attempt.

What I've really been working on this last 10 days or so, if building a loving and ever-lasting relationship with hills, I've tried previously and all attempts have, I've got to be honest, ended in tears, tantrums and frustration. So like any sane person, up until now I have avoided them at all costs - it's amazing how ingenious you become at finding the flattest route from A to B. My theory being, work on getting my strength up & then the hills will be easy......not so. Apparently I have it on authority, that the only way to get better at hills, is to keep doing them, over and over and over again. I knew there must be a downside to my newfound hobby & I guess it's a little late to perhaps find a sponsored bike ride around Holland rather than one that encompasses the North Downs.

The reason for this change in tactic, was my training ride for London to Brighton with Big Foot Bike Club on the 6th May, 30 miles with hills it said on the website - well that shouldn't be too bad (the training ride not London to Brighton obviously!). I'm putting those sorts of miles in most weekends, it'll be a nice social Sunday morning ride.................now I had had a very hectic weekend & my poor body was feeling very tired, but this "bringing up the rear" role on every ride is starting to get a little bit boring. Undulations (you see I'm using the proper jargon now) which I've managed no problem before were like mountains, it was proper embarrassing. Now as I said, I was tired, but my money's on those sneaky marlboro lights I haven't quite managed to pack in since coming back from South Africa, so I only have myself to blame really. So this week I've been back on the straight & narrow, nicotine lozenges and no fags for 5 days......so far there's been no tears and tantrums (which is usually what happens) and Danny's head hasn't been bitten off......but it is early days......again!

Anyway, back to the ride, I can't say it was pleasurable, but there were positives to come out of it. As always, I met some lovely people, one of whom, Steve, I met last year, he was on a high having just completed, what else but London to Paris. I remember thinking he was mad. Anyway, he didn't remember me, as last year I was a beginner cyclist, on an old mountain bike, dressed like a civilian....now I am a serious sleek road cyclist with a top bike, dressed in lycra & two stone lighter (and that is official, as per my weigh in at Fat Club on Wednesday - whoop whoop!)..............actually he just didn't remember me! So I got lots of tips from him & he set my mind at rest on lots of things, hopefully he was being truthful and not just kind. He also reconfirmed that whilst the challenge seems daunting, it's going to be one of the most fulfilling experiences of my life and I can't wait. As hellish as Day 1 sounds, the elation of riding into Paris on Day 4 sounds like something I just can't wait to experience. (clearly that's not me in the picture, but I hope it will be!)

It was Steve, that has also inspired and encouraged me to start to love hills, so if I see him again, we may just fall out! Our training hill was called Hog's Trough Lane.......Hog's Trough Hell more like, they said it was short and steep.......well they were 50% right, it was certainly steep, I would debate the short personally. At the top we were rewarded with a beautiful ride through a lane covered both sides with bluebells.......usually I'd marvel at such natural beauty but today they were lost on me, who gives a s&!t? I was having a heart attack!

So there you go, there endeth the lesson of this week, STOP smoking those fags and START loving hills. Every week I learn something new with this cycling malarky.....I'll keep you posted.

Oh, and by the way, thanks to all that have hit the donate button. I'm up to an amazing £1,135 in lovely donations. My goal is £2,000, so if you're enjoying these posts (or even if you're not) hit that donate button, or email me a pledged amount which I'll collect after the ride - go on, it's for a great cause (see So What's This All About for more details)

Laters
Gillyx