70 miles on a beautiful day

Yesterday was time for the 'big one' - a 70-miler to prove that I'm capable of riding such a distance. It was a beautiful morning and I set out at 09.30, heading for East Harling and Redgrave in a big circuit.

Cottages in Half Moon Lane, Redgrave

Called in on friends in Redgrave, but they were out, so moved on to Wyverstone, where Sally Ruthen provided a welcome cup of coffee.
The whole trip took 6¼ hours (on the road), so I'm averaging about 11 miles per hour.
But I've got to do this every day!

Cranking up the training

This morning's ride was 42 miles, a circuit from home taking in Clare, Cavendish and Glemsford.  It took just under four hours; I was pleased with this time as it included a number of stops for drinks of water and for map-reading. 

This photo of Clare Church was taken just before 10.30, as can be seen on the clock, having left home at 08.35.

And who says there are no hills in Suffolk!  Some of those around Hawkedon were quite demanding.

No after-effects either.  No sore bum, just a bit tired.  This sort of ride gives me confidence for the big one.  If I can cycle 42 miles and get back for lunch, I know I can complete 60, 80 or even 100 miles in a day.  Day 4 of my ride will be the longest at 105 miles, but it's almost all on flat Lincolnshire lands.  By then the days will be much longer; I can start earlier and finish late if necessary.

I'm still working on the detailed route maps for each stage (for the Coastrider website).  By tomorrow I expect they will be complete.  Not only will you be able to see the route I'll be taking, at various mapping scales, but you will also see the location of all the 650+ ports and harbours I'll be visiting.  If you click on one of the lifebelt icons, you will be taken to the relevant page of my ports and harbours website.

It's back to the gym on Tuesday, to build up my general strength (and hopefully to lose some weight!)

Training for the big ride

The sun shone on Tuesday, so it was out for a short ride on the new bike; tomorrow it's back to the Gym. Yes, I'm slowly getting into shape for the 6,000 mile cycle ride around Britain's coastline, starting at the end of April.

The bike felt good, quite a change from the knobbly tyred all-surface bicycle I've been using before. The tyres are reinforced, but fairly narrow, making riding on the tarmac surface much easier - and faster.

Donations are rolling in; over £3,300 so far, well over 50% of the target of £6,000. The two charities, The Stroke Association and The Meningitis Research Foundation, receive the donations as soon as they are made. If donors are taxpayers, Gift Aid (at 28%) is added.

I've recently added route maps to the website for each of the 98 daily stages. These can be viewed at various scales by rolling the mouse over the map. The map can also be dragged using the left mouse button.

This Blog is now linked from the website, so I hope friends and supporters will visit often!