Tough at the Top

Yesterday we went out to watch the British Road Racing Championship which was being held near York. It was a real treat to see Britains top riders suffering on the same hills that I suffer on every week! It was a really good field which included some of Britain's top international riders such as David Millar, Mark Cavendish, Roger Hammond and Jeremy Hunt. It was a good course and we managed to see the race 9 times in all during the day. It was very agressive racing right from the start and at the end Rob Hayles emerged a worthy winner.

Its been another frustrating week for my training. I came back from my weekend at Wakefield Police College with another cold, my colleagues really are an unhealthy bunch! So I've been off the bike all week and still have a hacking cough. I'm off to Berlin for a few days tomorrow for a holiday with my son so I'm hoping that by the time I get back the cold will have gone and I will be able to get some serious training in before we set off for Paris. Only 23 days to go. Am I panicing? Of course I am!

Does My Bum Look Small in This?

Its been a very windy day in Yorkshire today and I've really got blown around on my training ride. I did 68 miles today which in the wind felt more like 100. I went out through the Castle Howard estate (picture above) and up to Kirbymoorside and Helmsley. I then came back through Ampleforth,Coxwold, Crayke and Tollerton.

I thought that I was being shot at on the first part of my ride as I could hear lots of gun fire as I rode along. I then realised I was cycling alongside an army training area and they were obviously having shooting practice today. Then I was cursed with a puncture as I came out of the Castle Howard estate. I was doing about 30 mph down a hill when I hit a pothole and the front tyre immediately lost all its air. So after a roadside repair I was on my way and the rest of the ride was fairly uneventful although I suspect I may have done some damage to the front of the bike, I will need to get that checked out.

Mrs Claudius made quite a dramatic observation as I was getting dressed the other morning. "I think your bum is getting smaller" she said. I have to say that I agree with her, my trousers seem to have a lot more room in them round the back end just lately. It must be the result of all those hours in the saddle. Why is it that we always lose weight from the wrong places? I didn't particularly need to lose any weight off my bum but could really do with losing some off my stomach. There's no justice in the world! Now I know that a number of you have been concerned about my aching bum and I am pleased to report that the situation is much improved. I think the new saddle and new shorts have helped. Also I finally took the brave decision to "go commando" which a number of people had recommended. I must admit that I thought that there was something slightly obscene about not wearing anything under your shorts but it really does make them much more comfortable.

I'm off to "vicar school" tomorrow at Wakefield Police College so I won't be able to do any cycling this weekend. I'm really looking forward to catching up with my friends who I haven't seen since Easter.

And finally, a joke from my daughter, A man goes into a fish and chip shop with a large live fish under his arm. "Do you sell fish cakes?" he asked the owner who replied "of course". "Oh good" said the man pointing at the fish, "because its his birthday!"

Now It's Getting Serious

The good news is that my cold has finally gone and I've been able to get some serious training in this week. I did 26 miles last Sunday followed by 46 miles on Tuesday. I decided that it was time to do two long rides in succession so yesterday (Friday) I did 56 miles and today I have done 70 miles. Todays' ride was a good one. My wife took me up to Hawes in Wensleydale in the car and I cycled back from there. Its a lovely route passing through Wensleydale and pretty towns and villages such as Askrigg (where All Creatures Great and Small was filmed), Bainbridge, Leyburn, Bedale, Thirsk and Coxwold. The village in the photos is a place called Crakehall which is between Leyburn and Bedale. Its a typical English village, even down to the men playing cricket on the village green. Its been hard going today though as my legs were very tired from yesterday and its been quite a hilly route. I averaged 15.7mph for the 70 miles which I was really pleased with, its been quite a confidence boost.

Last Saturday saw one of the more unusual events in York's social calendar when the third annual naked cycle ride took place. About 100 people took part to protest against the world's dependency on oil and the car culture. They rode naked around the city centre much to the bemusement of the tourists. And before you ask, no I didn't take part, I like to have something between my bum and my bike saddle' even if its only lycra!

PS. Doorman Priest thinks that I've made this up about the naked bike ride. If you follow this link you can read about it yourself.

http://www.yorkpress.co.uk/search/display.var.2327309.0.naked_ambition_of_green_cyclists.php

Back in the Saddle Again

Well its been a frustrating time the last couple of weeks as my cold has stubbornly refused to go away which meant that I couldn't do any training. Finally last Wednesday I started to feel a little better and managed to do 13 miles on the bike followed by 26 miles on Thursday. I'm still not feeling 100% though so I'm having to take it steady and not ride too hard, its a good excuse to avoid the hills for a while. Its not really been great for the training with only 45 days to go until we set off for Paris.

I've entertained myself during my lay off from training by watching the Giro D'Italia bike race on television. The Giro is the Italian version of the Tour de France and lasts for three weeks. Its a really tough race with some incredibly hard mountain stages. I really take my hat off to the riders, I just don't know how they get up some of the hills. It was a good year for the Brits with the highest number of British riders there have ever been on the Giro. And whats even better the British rider Mark Cavendish won two stages of the race, the most stage wins a British rider has ever won on the Giro. The overall winner of the race was the Spaniard Alberto Contador. His team was only invited to the race at the last minute and eight days before the start he was lying on a beach on holiday when he got a phone call to tell him he was racing. So I suppose I shouldn't complain about lack of preparation for my ride.

Bruce Springsteen was excellent last week. He played a great set which unfortunately didn't include Thunder Road but was still brilliant. My hearing hasn't been very good this last week and I can't decide if it a side effect of my cold or the after effect of the Bruce concert.

Today has been really hot in York so we had a drive to Beningborough Hall (see picture above) which is a stately home about ten miles north of York. Its a really nice place with lovely gardens, well worth a visit iif you are ever passing this way.