London to Cambridge Cycle Ride 2008

I did it, I completed the London to Cambridge Cycle Ride 2008 in 4 hours 19 minutes.

I would like to thank everyone that supported me, helped me, gave me advice and sponsored me, you know who you are. I would especially like to thank Yvonne for putting up with me through all the training.

The day before the cycle ride I made some fruit smoothie, to build up my energy, I ate mostly all day carbohydrates, I had plain porridge with a banana chopped into it, for lunch wanted to have a jacket potato, but had to eat out and ended up having sausage roll, and a shared baguette with butter. For tea I had Tuna pasta salad with a side order of new potatoes cooked in minted oil (in the microwave not deep fried).

I bought some carbo tablets and sports powder to add to water for energy, also come carbo gel.

We went to bed just before midnight as I needed to make sure I had everything, I am a person that believes in 'just in case' I tend to over pack rather than travelling light. I packed my bicycle pump, mini bike tool kit, puncture repair kit, 2 spare inner tubes, waterproof trousers, waterproof jacket, tracksuit bottoms (in case it was a cold day) clothes for after I finish, sandwiches, carbo tablets, sports powder and carbo gel all in my pannier.

The following morning woke up at 4:30am, rechecked everything in the pannier, and the things I was going to have on me or my bike like padded cycling shorts, cycling top, helmet, shoes, socks, MP3 player, water bottle, money, cash card, keys and mobile phone.

We packed the things and children in the car and put the bike on the cycle carrier and set off. We got there in plenty of time and I unloaded my bike and we started packing it in bubble wrap, to protect it for the journey. I had to then stand in a queue for 30 minutes to pack my bike in the lorry.

Eventually I packed my bike and got on the bus, we must have waited there at least an other 30 minutes before setting off. We were meant to start the ride at 7:30 am but we did not arrive there until 8:30 am.

After unpacking my bike, removing the bubble wrap, going to toilet and getting ready it was nearly 9:00 am. I got my map and went to the starting line.

When I set off it was an easy start as we were on normal roads in traffic, so a leisurely 12 mph, we then got more into the country and we could speed up a little. I still wanted to keep my speed around 15mph as I didn't want to burn myself out like I had done previously.

The road was more hilly than I was used to being used to Cambridge which is the flattest place on the earth, but it was not more than I could handle. After about 13 miles I got to the first refreshment stop, so I finished my drink and locked my bike up and went to buy some water. They had sold out of bottled water but I was welcome to use the garden tap, which I did. I put some sports drink powder into it and set off again.

At 19 miles there was a grassed playing fields where you could sit down and relax, again they didn't sell bottled water, so I bought a sandwich and a pint of orange squash. I sat down eating and drinking for about 10 minutes then I set off again.

At about 20 miles the road got really hilly and I was starting to struggle a little, the good thing is the more you climb the more you can coast down the hills. I decided to use the coasting down the hill as my break, so I would be happy coasting down at 15 - 23 mph and having a break rather than pushing it and getting up to 25 - 28 mph and not resting.

I kept going until about 33 miles in and had a drink break, where I finally could buy some water, so I bought 3 bottles of water. I felt ill and was close to passing out from the lack of water and a temperature of 32 degrees Celsius. I put one bottle of water in my empty water bottle, the other one I drank straight down and the other one I put into my pannier.

After this I continued and it the further I got the easier it was to continue. At 50 miles in it had a 10 mile count down, this was great, however, I thought this was a 55 mile cycle ride not a 60 mile cycle ride. It is only 5 miles but that could be the difference between being able to finish and not being able to.

During my cycle ride there was a "30 miles to go" sign "20 miles to go" sign. but from "10 miles to go" sign it counted down each mile. This was great because it spurred me on as for a mile I was saying to myself "only x miles to go now".

I was so happy when I saw the "Welcome to Cambridge sign". As I got closer and closer there were more people that started clapping and cheering as we passed. It was a great feeling, and the people lined the streets near Midsummer Common.

When I reached Midsummer common, I passed through the finish line I received a certificate to say that I had done it and a bottle of water, I could have done with the water earlier, but never mind.

I then spent a couple of hours in Midsummer Common with my family, it was a great day. It was a fantastic experience, I would recommend any one to do it, and I would certainly do it again. I felt tired and sore for the rest of the day, but the next day I felt good and cycled 13 miles to collect sponsorship money.

I will add some photographs to this blog but my card reader cannot read the card with the photos on, I will have to add them later. During the ride I made a video that I will post a link to on when I have put it all together.

All together I have raised over £400, thank you to everyone.

Unfortunately, I cannot post any more photographs on this blog, I must be up to my limit, but please see my facebook (http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=730690708) for the photographs from the london to cambridge cycle ride

I can go the distance

Last weekend was the last opportunity to cycle a long distance, so last Saturday I set out to go as far as I could, I was disappointed that I got very tired and wanted to turn back after a couple of miles. I had not cycled much for a month before this, so I thought all my hard work was in vain.

I managed to struggle but when I got home I had managed 20 miles.

I was very disappointed with this so Saturday I decided to Carbo-Load and try some of the things that I was told. So on Sunday, I set out to do over 4o miles. I got to 22 miles and was not feeling that tired, so I stopped for lunch. I set out again, it was tough at first to re-start but before long I back in my stride.

I went from my house to Landbeach, Waterbeach, down by the river to Chesterton, Newmarket Road Park and ride, then to Swaffham Bullbeck, Swaffham Prior and on to Reach, then a couple of miles on the wrong road and back (oops), then back to Swaffham Prior, Swaffham Bullbeck, and to Chesterton, Waterbeach, Landbeach, Milton, Milton Road Cambridge where I used to work, Histon, Oakington and back home.

When I got home I had managed 51.8 miles and I had enough energy to continue my day, I was a little tired but not as bad as I expected to be.

Hopefully the cycle ride tomorrow will go as smoothly.

Is 35 miles my limit

I tried to cycle as far as I could, I cycled out on national cycle route 51. I got about 17 miles out and felt really ill.

I had to return, by the time I got back I had done 35 miles, but I was exhausted, I spent the afternoon laying down as I did not have any energy.

Yvonne cooked a nice roast chicken for dinner, I only had enough energy to only just eat it. After that I felt much better and I was OK again.

I was worried about the London to Cambridge cycle ride coming up and I could only just make 35 miles, I had to do an extra 20 miles on the cycle ride.

I was talking to people about this and the reason was diet. I only had some serials for breakfast and I set off for my ride at lunchtime, so I had no carbs. I also spent the first 5 miles at over 20 mph, so I burned all the energy that I had very quickly. I also did the whole trip without stopping.

For the London to Cambridge I am Carbo-loading, which means that I am spending the whole of today eating carbs for every meal. In the morning I will take some energy food with me like bananas and energy bars, and I may stop for come lunch, and have a couple of peanut butter and jam sandwiches. But just as important, when I set off I will pace myself and try to stick to 15mph. Hopefully this should work.

Last chance to sponsor me

Tomorrow is D-day, so as you know I will be cycling from LONDON to CAMBRIDGE 2008, which is 55 miles to raise money for Breakthrough Breast Cancer and would really welcome your support, either to be there at mid-summer common, Cambridge tomorrow afternoon, or to sponsor me.

Please take a moment to sponsor me if you have not alread. It's really easy - you can donate online by credit or debit card at the following address:http://www.justgiving.com/breatnacAll donations are secure and sent electronically to Breakthrough Breast Cancer. If you are a UK taxpayer, Justgiving will automatically reclaim 28% Gift Aid on your behalf, so your donation is worth even more. Please join me in supporting Breakthrough Breast Cancer and a fabulous cause. London to Cambridge cycle ride tomorrow,

To see more about the London to Cambridge Cycle ride 2008 please visit http://www.bike-events.com/Ride.aspx?id=158

Breakthrough is the UK's leading charity committed to fighting breast cancer through research, campaigning and education.Their essence comes from the thousands of people who are committed to a single vision - to work for a future free from the fear of breast cancer. http://www.breakthrough.org.uk/

Donating through this site is simple, fast and totally secure. It is also the most efficient way to sponsor me: Breakthrough Breast Cancer will receive your money faster and, if you are a UK taxpayer, an extra 28% in tax will be added to your gift at no cost to you.So please sponsor me now!

Many thanks for your support.

120 miles in a week

On may bank holiday I did the Cambridge to Reach Cycle ride which is a return trip of 20 miles, as I cycled to Reach via Cambridge from my house it turned into 38 miles.

This was the first time that I had cycled with other people, the pace was very slow but it did not seem as long as 38 miles all together.

When I got to Reach it was great as they had a fair, the mayor threw pennies to the peasants (old tradition). The best thing about it was that as I arrived on my bike I saw my family and friends greeting me.

I can only imagine what it is like to have my family and friends greet me when I finish the London to Cambridge, the thought of that will spur me on.

The cycle ride to Reach introduced me to to the national cycle routes, they are really good and plan out a known cycle route. I took that week off work and cycled everyday, I ended up cycling 120 that week.

No time to write

Sorry, I have not written in this blog for a while, I have been busy with a lot in my life lately. I have a new job in London now. So getting ready for that has been pretty hectic.

I have some stuff to write from May, but the truth is apart from cycling to work and back, between bad weather and being busy, I have not done that much more cycling lately.

The London to Cambridge Cycle Ride is looming, although I think I will make it, I wish that things had been a little different and that I had the time to cycle more and write in this blog more.

I am now staying in a room in a shared house in London during the week and going home at weekends. It keeps me pretty busy. I do not have my bicycle with me. but I will pick it up this weekend.

I will write more soon...

Feeling Guilty

I feel a little guilty as I have not cycled as much this month as I have previously.

I have tried to cycle to work as much as possible, although one week I was ill and only managed two days that week going to work on my bike.

I have a cycle ride to Ely in two weeks so I need to step the gear up a bit again, less excuses, I need to be able to do the distance. I will do a better job from now on, that is why this month is a little lacking on the blogging front. I cannot wait for decent weather to start, I can then do more at weekends.

Here's hoping.

SPD Pedals

When I bought my new bike it came with toe clips on the pedals, I have been trying to get used to the toes clips for 3 months. One of the straps on the pedals broke on Thursday and I have been thinking of getting a set of new pedals.

I have been looking into what type of pedals to get and a lot of people like SPD (Shimano Pedaling Dynamics) pedals. Basically you have a pedal like the one in the picture and you have special shoes that have cleats on the bottom. The cleats on the shoes lock into the pedals making your pedalling more efficient as essentially your feet are stuck to the pedals. To release them you have to rotate your heal outward and you can then lift your foot off the pedal.

Andy at work recommended Shimano A520 pedals which are SPD pedals. I ordered them and they came with the cleats. After I received them I went to the cycling shop to buy shoes to put the cleats in.

I needed to buy a special spanner to fit the pedals as I didn't have one that would fit. The pedals are too narrow for you to use an adjustable spanner, as I scratched my pedal stems trying this.

When I received the pedals and spanner, Andy helped me fit them. It is important to use non-ceasing grease to make sure that you can get the cleats out of your shoes and the pedals off again.

Once they were fitted it was a learning curve trying to use them, you have to think in advance of stopping to make sure that you unlock the foot that you will be landing on. I have been assured that eventually you get used to it and it comes naturally.

Since getting the pedals I have only fallen off once, this was because someone in a car tried to knock me off and I had to swerve to avoid them, as I was falling I managed to unlock my foot, but hurt my leg in the process. If you are thinking of getting these, I would think why you would need them. If you are travelling quite a long distance e.g. several miles with very few stops, I would recommend them, however, if you plan on just doing city cycling it would not be advisable as you would have to keep locking and unlocking your feet every few minutes.

You can get pedals that are normal pedals on one side and SPD's on the other side. I would probably recommend these for most people as you do not need special shoes to use them.

Think carefully before doing it. I would not go back now, but given the choice again I would probably get the double sided pedals instead.

Sonic Boom Birthday

Last Sunday was my birthday, so on Saturday I went to the cycle shop and bought a track pump with a gage, as my bike tyres seemed to be very low. When I bought the pump I asked the guy that sold me the bike what my bike tyres should be pumped up to. He said that he thinks it is 85psi but it says on the side of the tyre.

I have been told the the more you pump up your tyres the easier it is to ride, and the less effort it takes, so I planned to inflate them as high as possible.

On Sunday I was doing some bike maintenance, I got my bike out of the garage and realised that I had a puncture in the front tyre. Perfect time to try my new pump. Swapped the inner tube with my spare one and I checked the tyre and it said max 85psi, so I thought the guy was right, I pumped it up to just over 80 psi then started to fix the puncture in the other tyre.

I then heard what sounded like a sonic boom, and the front inner tube had exploded with such force that it blew the tyre off the wheel. I wondered if I had inflated the tyre too much. When I removed the inner tube it had a split right down it.

The first puncture was called a snakebite puncture and it is when you get two holes about equal distance apart on your inner tube, this is due to your inner tube hitting your wheel whilst you are riding. the inner tube gets trapped between the wheel rim and a curb or something. I repaired this then but it back on the bike and pumped it up, I learned from the last time and pumped it up to 70psi, this is 15psi off the maximum.

As I was putting away my tools and I heard another sonic boom sound, the other inner tube had exploded. I didn't want to keep going through inner tubes without a reason, so I drove to work on Monday and took my wheel, two burst inner tubes and the pump with me. I took them back to the shop for an explanation, they tested the pump and said that the gage was 20psi out. So when I thought I was pumping up my tyre to 80psi I was actually pumping it up to 100psi. No wonder it exploded. The said unless you spend a lot on a pump the gage is usually inaccurate and used for a guide. He gave me another pump that he said was about 7 psi out and told me to inflate my tyres to 60psi, which should be enough.

I felt quite nervous pumping up the new tyres and ended up pumping them up to 50psi, on the ride to work this week they seemed slightly lower than I would like them, so I think I will take it up to 60psi.

Good Friday, Bad Catholic

Good Friday seemed to be nice weather, a little windy but not more than I could handle. As I was not at work I decided to try out the unorganised cycle group on Friday lunchtimes (http://www.camcycle.org.uk/events/) By the time I could set off I was late. I went to meeting place as fast as I could (http://www.camcycle.org.uk/map/location/8526/) but I was not fast enough and arrived there 10 minutes late, my average speed for this 7 mile trip to the meeting place was 16.4 mph.

When I got there I decided to explore some of the cycle routes down by the river, I cycled around for about 5 miles. I then decided to set off and return via Waterbeach, down by the river route.

During my return trip I thought I was going to be blown into the river Cam a few times, the wind was beginning to really blow hard. Once I got to Waterbeach, the wind was blowing against me so hard that I went down to 8 mph.

I decided to take refuge in a pub called 'The Bridge' I went in and realised that they had a marquee with a mini beer festival and a hog roast. By this point I was starving, so I decided to get a hog roast dinner and an ale.

I went in the marquee and they had a bouncy castle, I decided to phone Yvonne (my wife) and ask her to bring the kids. We ended up spending most of the afternoon there.

After a couple of pints, a hog roast dinner and one and a half giant hot dogs and some shared crisps, Yvonne reminded me that I am a catholic and it was Good Friday and I should not be eating meat. I decided it was time to go. Thank you Emily for taking this picure and making the chefs stand there for a minute while you were taking it.

Yvonne brought the cycle carrier and offered to transport me and the bike back. I would feel like I failed if I had had excepted, so I set off by myself and the wind started blowing really hard. Then the rain started and the 5 miles journey ended up taking me 30 minutes of hard cycling. I wonder if someone was trying to tell me something. I ended up cycling 21 miles all apart from the last five miles were great, the last five miles was just exhausing, when I got home I was freezing and tired.

It is a good job I cycled so far on Friday as this weekend we have seen high winds, hail, heavy rain and even half of Sunday was snowing so much we had a white covering and the kids had a snowball fight outside, This picture was taken Yesterday, by late afternoon all the snow had gone and apart from a few little patches you wouldn't have known it had snowed. Fabulous weather from mid-March.

Catch up

Last Weekend

Last weekend I didn't do any cycling as it the weather was so windy it would have been a mistake to try to cycle anywhere. I had a break from it and I am glad I did.


Last Week

Last Monday was the first time that I did not cycle into work, as it was incredibly windy and stormy. It was so bad that lorries were being blown over on the M1 and M11. It was a good decision because of that it meant that I had to do a little more cycling at the weekend to make up for it.

I did make good use of my waterproof over trousers towards the end of last week. It just meant that I only cycled to work 4 days last week.

Make your own Electrolyte Sports Drink

People that do a lot of sports tend to buy expensive electrolyte sports drinks to help them compete at their optimum performance. I got a tip from a book that you do not need to buy expensive sports drinks, you can make your own.

I am not saying that this will do everything that an expensive sports drink does, but it will help and at a fraction of the cost. The point of a sports drink is that it replaces the fluids that you loose in your sweat through your training. These are mainly water, sugar and salt.

You can easily make your own sports drink by filling your water bottle with fruit squash and water all you have to do then is to add a couple of pinches of salt.

This will help, obviously if your sports give you an edge over your competitors then continue. However, if you want a cheap drink that will replenish you as you fluids while you train, this may be for you.

Hope it helps

There are interesting things to see on a cycle ride

Last Saturday was a lovely day, so I decided to go for a river cycle ride, to Waterbeach down by the river, to Cambridge and back.

I set off with very little, a little hardcase strapped to my pannier with a waterproof jacket and a puncture repair kit in, and onto my bike was a pump and my water bottle filled with my electrolyte drink (see my other blog post on how to make it).

I set off cycled to Waterbeach, whilst going through Waterbeach I saw a Church that I have seen a few times before, but I never stopped, so this time I decided to stop and take some pictures of it.

I set off again and rode down the little path next to the river Cam, I found that although I was only on a thin path I was able to take some video of the ride. About half way down there I saw a rowing boat race and decided to take some video of it (click here to download it). It was very good timing, that I was riding down there at exactly the same time as it began. I stopped for a while and then I needed to continue, so I did.

I cycled to Cambridge and then on the way back home I went over a bridge that is quite steep. I am quite used to going over this bridge the amount of times that I have done it. I remember the first time I went over it, I really struggled. Cambridge is the flattest place on the Earth, so I have to find some hills to practice on, if not I will not have any hill practice for the London to Cambridge Ride. So, when I approached the bridge I decided to cross it 20 times, I managed 5 times, I think I will have to build up to 20. Some people thought I was crazy and I crossed the bridge 5 times in the time it took them to cross it on foot once.

After that I rode home and did some weight work. All over body conditioning is very important, if you do not just want to loose weight but also gain muscle too.

I am not paranoid but...

Last week travelling to work and back I discovered that a lot of people are either ignorant or they just don't know what wing mirrors are for.

When I cycle down the street there is always one or two vehicles that are so close to the pavement it makes it impossible for you to pass them. If you park that close you are likely to get your car damaged by cyclists trying to get past, cyclists also have no registration plates so if they kicked you car as they pass and you are stuck in traffic there is nothing you could do. It is just not worth it, be nice to cyclists and they will be nice to you.

There was one car last week that came right up behind me and then beeped his horn whilst over taking so closely he was about a foot from me. That got me a little concern as I shook my fist at the git, if I wasn't as stable a rider I would have come off my bike. Why would you do that to a cyclist, that could have very easily ended in disaster with him being so close.

The weather last week was so cold that my face was freezing all the way to work, I thought I would have got frost bite. It is March, when is the weather going to improve. I cannot go cycling as far as I want to because of the wind and cold, as they make it quite uncomfortable.

Friday was the worst day of the week for me, I checked the met office weather forecast for the day it showed sun, sun, sun all day. I got ready and got my bike out of the garage and noticed that the ground was wet and it had been raining, but it was not raining at the time, so I thought it must have been raining over night and it has stopped now. There were no rain clouds in the sky, so I set off.

I was cycling for 5 minutes when it started drizzling a little, It was freezing rain with the cold wind blowing against me. My forehead was freezing so I had to pull my skullcap down to protect me forehead. After cycling for about 15 minutes it just poured it down so I continued. By the time I got to work I was freezing and soaking wet. My trousers looked like they were two-tone khaki. I had to wear some over trousers that I had whilst my trousers dried on the radiator, so that I didn't catch a cold.

My trousers dried in an hour or so and I didn't have any meetings, so I could get away with waring plastic over trousers for that time. I will wear my over trousers if there is even a sniff of rain in the air.

Cycling in the rain with wet trousers and a very cold wind makes you feel terrible, it is not very nice and I would do anything to avoid it again.

The sun was out all day on Friday apart from that, it was a lovely day with a very clear sky. As I was leaving work on Friday I looked at the clear sky and wondered how the weather could have been so bad today.

When I was half way home, it started pouring down again. The perfect way to end a perfect day. When I got home my trousers were two-tone again, not as bad as that morning but still not nice.

I cannot wait for the good weather to come.

Just another week

I cycled to work all of last week. Nothing eventful happened. I have found that the more I cycle the easier I find it. I think nothing about cycling to work, it just feels very natural now and it would probably feel strange and somehow wrong to drive to work.

Last weekend there were gale force winds that nearly blew our house down, so I decided against cycling, Yvonne would not have thanked me either as it was Mother's Day and today is Yvonne's Birthday, Happy Birthday Yvonne.

Need to get back on course

After being on my course in London last week, I was limited to how much training I could do. So, this weekend I decided to make up for it by riding for about 25 miles. I re-attached the tube on my hydration pack and tested it was not leaking.

It was pretty cold so I wore my tracksuit over my cycling gear and set off. The wind was blowing against me, but it was only mild wind. By the time I got to about 10 miles away the wind was blowing against me so hard that I found it hard to breath. I had gone from doing 19 miles per hour down to doing 8 miles per hour so I continued to 12 miles. I decided to turn around at 12 miles so that my return 12 miles would make 24 miles which was fine.

I turned around and instantly got a boost with the wind and I was riding up to 25 miles per hour, I was trying to get over 30 miles per hour so that I would trip the 30 mile per hour sign that comes on when you do more that that speed but 25 miles per hour was my maximum speed.

About 5 miles further and the wind had changed course and was once again strongly blowing against me until it got me back down to 8 miles per hour. I made it back after cycling 24 miles in 1 hour and 33 minutes. At this rate I will be able to do the London to Brighton in less than 5 hours.

My maximum speed was 25.6 miles and my average speed ended up to be 14.6 miles per hour. Considering the wind was so strongly blowing against me for a lot of this journey, I didn't do too bad.

If you want to see more pictures of my cycling you can either see my photo galleries on Facebook or see my pictures on Flickr (
http://www.flickr.com/photos/23774591@N08/).

Always dark

Last week

As I was on a course in London last week I didn't cycle to the station everyday. I drove in on Monday and Thursday as my wife was not at work and I could therefore take the car.

When I did cycle, I had to get up at 5:30am so that I could get the early train at 7:15am. it took me about 35 minutes to cycle the 8.5 miles to the station but it was very dark at that time of the morning. On the way back it was about 6:30pm so it was also dark on my return.

Remembering what had happened the previous week I had to be very careful as it was very icy, and my back wheel was skidding quite a few times.

On Friday, I was tired from the course and all the travelling though the week and I was riding on autopilot. We had finished earlier so I managed to get back to Cambridge by 5:30 so it was just getting dark, so I decided to go home the longer way.

It is on windy roads without any road lights but I thought I would be OK as it was not dark yet. In the 15 minutes it took me to cycle from the station to the roads with no street lights the sun had gone completely but I had no choice, I had to continue. I have good lights on my bike, I was wearing a high-visibility back pack and a reflective harness, so it was not too bad. Although the roads that I used were very long and out of the way I was surprised how much fast traffic it had. I just took it very carefully and it was not too bad, thankfully there were only cars on that road and I was obviously visible enough. I will not do that route again after dark, it is not worth it.

Neither wind, nor rain, nor sleet, nor snow...

Two weeks ago

The last couple of weeks have been interesting. I have cycled through all weathers. I have learned how to cope with it, it is not great but necessary. Freezing fog was terrible, I took these pictures just before I entered the freezing fog, and I am glad I did, once I entered the freezing fog I could not see anything. For a couple of days the freezing fog stayed around and it made cycling difficult and dangerous.

During the week I had to work late, this meant that it was dark by the time I got back home. With the temperature being so low it was also very icy. On the way back one evening I got dazzled by a car's headlights and I must have hit something like a stone because I lost control of my bike whilst doing about 12 miles per hour, I knew that I was going to come off the bike as I could no longer control it, so I had to make a decision either to fall left, onto the road or to fall right on to grass, possibly some concrete or metal fence posts. I took this option and hoped for the best. I landed in some bushes and grass. Managed to get up and ride home. I had some cuts and bruises but it taught me to be more careful especially after dark.

Last week end I wanted to push myself, even though it was very cold I wanted to do around 30 miles. Unfortunately, by the time I could leave it was getting dark so I decided to do 10 miles instead and would try to get back before it was dark. I set off with my hydration pack on, I got about 4 miles and stopped to take these pictures. I was freezing and as I took my camera out of my back pocket of my cycling jersey I realized that my hydration pack had been leaking onto my spine at the small of my back. So I decided it was time to return home so I only ended up doing 8,5 miles. I have never felt so cold in my life, all of the way home the freezing wind was blowing against my back making the situation even worse, I have never been so glad to have a hot shower. I later found out that the hydration pack was fine, but it needed the tube fastening back in as it was no longer a tight seal.

Hydration is vital!!!

It is important to keep hydrated when you are riding for a long distance. The last couple of long rides, I have had to stop each time I wanted to have a drink of water. The problem is it is difficult to take the waterbottle, remove the dustcap take a drink then replace the dustcap and return it, with one hand whilst trying not to crash your bike into the nearest ditch. The last time I rode 22 miles in one go I only ended up drinking 0.5 litres of water. This could not continue for long.

So, I heard about hydration packs, you wear them on your back like a back pack and you have a tube to drink out of. I got a reletively cheap one to try it out, which carries 2 litres of water, and the best thing about it is the further you go, the more you drink, the lighter it gets.

Someone at work told me about a route that takes you down by the river, it is 15 miles long and takes you on all different types of roads and tracks. I decided to try it out today, and also try out my new hydration pack.

It was a very nice day, the first day I can don my lycra with no track suit over the top. Summer gear all the way. I set off and it was a warm day with a cold wind, but I continued. I took the wrong road at one point but a few minutes later I was on the right track. A few miles in I saw the river.

The track down by the river was about 6 miles and it was fantastic, I then realised why I was doing this whole thing, it made it all worth while. It was a very good recovery ride, you could not do that route quickly as you have to avoid pedestrians, joggers, other cyclists, and people fishing. It was a really good relaxing ride, I recommend people to find your own routes.

I got into cambridge and back on the roads and back home. The whole ride was relaxing it was 15 miles, but I took my time with it, it ended up taking me 1.5 hours. I will definately be doing that trip again.

What does't kill you will make you stronger

Just over a week ago, my wifes car had break problems, which will cost a bit to put right. So she has borrowed my car and I have started cycling to work on a daily basis.

I have discovered that I can cycle in the rain and cold but the one thing that makes things difficult is the wind. I have had a few cases where the wind was so strongly pushing against me that it has taken me twice as long to get to my destination, and by that time I was exhausted.

Last week I was travelling along an 'A' road and a large lorry coming in the opposite direction had so much force that pushed against me it nearly threw me backwards off my bike.

The last occurance of this was the day before yesterday when an articulated lorry overtook me fairly close, as it passed me the part of the trailer in between the wheels formed a vacume and I had to struggle against the force until it had passed.

These are some of the challenges that I have had to face with the invisible forces. I don't want to experience anymore servere weather like storms, ice or being pelted by large chunks of hail. Hopefully I will not have to worry about them, the more the weather improves as we leave winter behind.

Although my challenges are in the summer, I cannot only ride in nice weather. If I did, I may not be able to handle the wind blowing against me, rain or any other forces we may encounter.