Ace ride on Saturday with some of the Epping Crew, really hurt my legs which was weird couldn’t work out what was happening after being fast on the cross bike. I’m putting it down to an off day and not quite getting the position on my Chameleon dialed just so.
Post clean yesterday I had a tinker and things now seem a lot better which is a bit of a relief although it’s no replacement for just getting hard miles in on that bike.
Still I’m up to my Folks place in just over a week and I’m guessing that big hills and a ride over at Hamsterley every day should soon pick up my fitness a bit, I’m loosing weight but my climbing is no better so I’m thinking that I may have to start making sure that my commute takes in Highgate Hill every day, I’m expecting it to hurt but I’m guessing that more miles with extra hills should work wonders…

Well today was my first day back on a bike after 8 days off with a painful back and just generally feeling really tired, all I can say is it was great, it felt good from the moment I got back on the Scott, especially with me sorting the position whilst I was off. I felt good by the time I got to work and super alert all day apart from at lunch time when my stomach was busy digesting my sandwiches.
The ride home was super fast despite being caught in a heavy shower, nothing hurt at all everything just clicked, but what’s amazing is the total lack of fatigue I got home without any malaise or lactic and I was pushing hard, I reckon I can push a lot harder tomorrow and go faster which will be ace.
It’s shown me that taking time off for a proper rest is well worthwhile and next time I should perhaps leave it a bit less than eight months.

Well first things first a big congratulations to Jac and Twinkly Dave for their respective third places in the solo categories, that’s really well done people truly chapeau.
OK so I turned up on Sunday afternoon with Rob, and  it had rained pretty heavily for the day and a half beforehand so the course was pretty claggy and it looked like carnage  on the race course. So we’re now into the usual round of moaning about the course and the conditions. Perhaps if you don’t like racing in the wet or mud perhaps you should consider road racing on the continent in the summer, that way your sorted, funnily enough an attempt was made to organise a 24 hour road race thing and there wasn’t enough interest staggering when you see how many people complain about the mud and the course at MTB events. Surely being a mountain biker involves being able to cope with horrible grim trails and conditions, really a whole bunch of people just need to TTFU. Racers get on with it, it’s the people who use it as a social and then complain that the riding is rubbish, just don’t ride and save yourself the entry fee or alternatively why not organise a weekend away riding fun trails somewhere else with friends. It’s racing if you go to race it’s going to hurt just put up or shut up….

I choose not to race because I don’t like grim conditions or hurting so for me bobbing along on the Sunday afternoon gave me the ideal opportunity to see friends and have fun, why not try that instead of moaning eh…..

Looks like I’ve cracked it, I can fit loads more bikes in the flat by hanging them from the beams and the best thing is Megan’s given it the OK because it means more space in the spare bedroom, happy days are here again, so that’s space for another cross bike, a 29er a 69er, a road bike, oh dear………

Start Slide Show with PicLens Lite

I went to Afan last weekend with friends, it was fabulous, really good fun we laughed and giggled and drank beer and generally relaxed and enjoyed being together and not having anything to do other than have fun with bikes.
What I have realised is that I’ve fallen completely out of love with trail centres, I suspect it might actually be just an inabillity to ride rock and damp trails, I’m so use to just buff fast flowing woodland trails that anything other than this pushes me way outside of my comfort zone, I can’t even cope with the shaley surfacing that’s used, but as soon as it gets natural my speed goes up.
I’d like to go away with friends again next year but I want to go somewhere, where I actually feel comfortable and fast on the trails rather than somewhere I struggle. I know this is no way to improve my riding but I’m not bothered about that I just want to zip around fun woodland stuff rather than have to negotiate big rocky things that scare me.
A big thank you to Rob, Phil and Tim for making it a fabulous weekend from start to finish, maybe I’ll feel like riding next week, I don’t think I’ll touch a bike this week.

Do I have a yearning for a nice steel fully rigid 29er singlespeed, I think I need Simon and Chris to kick me in the nuts before I go mad with the credit card…..

Well after Nenthead I’ve seemingly only had time for commuting I might get a spin in tomorrow night, still riding at the weekend and then next week there’s four days of fun to be had Welshside in Afan.
I really can’t wait to be honest it’s kind of killing my inspiration for riding locally though knowing that I’m going to be carving down mile after mile of glorious Welsh singletrack.  I don’t think riding get’s much better than when you get cramp in your legs from long downhills and just standing and throwing your weight about.
In other news I’m also a qualified first aider which is handy.

Well I’ve had a lie in and not done anything it’s quite nice, I’ll nip out and see Adam M for a beer at the start of the Dun Run in a couple of hours, ace, I’ve slept late and eaten bacon and drunk gin rather decadent really, nice to let my body have some recovery.

Well that was glorious, I’m still not sure why I took a bike, but Nenthead carnival was great really good fun the first one for years apparently. I’m hoping that the village made enough to pay for the things they wanted to buy for the kids, the deserve too.
Leaving London to visit a place which is still a community is really fantastic and an opportunity I feel incredidbly privileged to have access too, it’s a real joy.
So a huge thank you to Andy and Theres for putting us all up and putting up with us your hospitality was just magic and a big thank you to Nicky and Phil for driving me up there, I’m looking forward to next year already.