100 Miles in 2 Days!!

Just a quick update for anyone reading at home... We have cycled 100 miles in the last two days and we are still alive! There have been some tough moments, but overall it has been lovely. I am typing from our gite in Lanmodez and tomorrow will be a rest day exploring a nearby island...really looking forward to a rest from the saddle!! I cannot upload pictures here and all the keyboard characters are in the wrong place, so I will stop there and do a full update when we get home!

Sunday Struggle and a loaded ride

Following a busy week with no mid-week training and a late night on Saturday after the quiz, we determinedly fought off our longing to stay in bed and dragged ourselves up to join the Sunday ride from Clyst St Mary to Killerton. We'd not done this route before but thought it would be a nice morning ride to keep us ticking over...

...unfortunately the lack of mid-week training and our overall tiredness really showed. Even on the flat along the river heading into the wind we were feeling tired and struggling to get going. I would probably have decided to go on our own ride at our own pace had Bob not cycled past us (twice!) on the way to the start route and alerted everyone to the fact that we were (very slowly...) on our way. The ride began with some steep ascents along a route we'd often cycled in the opposite direction, but never tried doing backwards. It's definitely harder this way round! As well as struggling up the hills, I also felt really wobbly going downhill and on the first big descent had to stop and steady myself briefly before continuing on. Robin did a great job of keeping an eye out for us and encouraging us along, but I was all too aware that the rest of the group were steaming ahead and constantly having to stop and wait for us. The climb from Clyst Honiton up to the Broadclyst turning wasn't as bad as I expected and I was glad that the route seemed to be flattening out a bit. Having only ever driven to Killerton on the main road before, I had no idea where we were cycling and I was delighted to find that we were soon on the familiar road up to the National Trust property.

It was a truly gorgeous day but we decided to sit inside in the shade to enjoy our tea and flapjacks. It was great to see Stephanie again and discuss our upcoming trip to Brittany and what we're planning to pack. Stephanie is amazingly organised and had already packed over a week ago and tried riding her bike with her panniers. I duly noted that we should try and do that before we set off on the trip.

Everyone was heading off in different directions afterwards, so we decided to head back home and spend the afternoon packing. We attempted to follow the route back home and almost got it right, but I think we took a more direct route and found ourselves in the centre of Broadclyst rather. No matter though as we knew the way back to join the road back through Clyst Honiton. As we got back to Clyst St Mary we decided we'd extend our ride a bit further and go out to Topsham to have lunch on the quayside. It was a perfect day for it and we got in the mood for France by enjoying some nice fresh bread with some brie. After the morning, this was just what I needed to convince myself that cycling's not so bad after all! We didn't get round to packing in the afternoon, as the weather was just too nice so we headed out for a stroll in the sunshine and an ice-cream. Time to chill out in the sunshine is just too precious to miss...

So having finally packed some stuff in our panniers on Monday we set out last night for a test ride with fully loaded panniers. I found this absolutely fine on the flat sections, but it wasn't quite such an easy ride once we hit the hills. It could just have been that we've not been training as much recently, but we really struggled with the climbs. There were a couple of occasions when I came very close to getting off my bike and pushing it up the hills, but somehow found the strength to keep pedalling until I reached the top huffing and puffing and with my legs complaining loudly. Unfortunately I didn't have the nerves of steel needed for the descents the other side and twice I had to stop and get off my bike as I felt so unsteady and convinced I was going to end up in a heap in the hedge! I can only hope that there aren't too many steep hills in Brittany! I had another issue trying to get going on a hill and also had a near miss when I got off my bike to take a photo of a lamb and misjudged the weight of my bike, almost ending up on the floor with my bike on top of me. I think the weight could take a bit of getting used to...I just hope I can get used to it before I start getting tired and losing my ability to react quickly!

On the way back we bumped into my stepmum, sister and their dog Shadow. My sister has just learnt to ride a bike and seems to be doing really well, so I warned her that it could become a bit of an obsession and lead to ridiculous challenges like the one I'm facing now! We gratefully accepted some encouragement and wishes of luck for the trip and headed back home for a well earned dinner.

Anyway, there's not much more we can do now - except that I need to stop writing this blog and get some sleep! (Who booked us on a ferry that requires us to leave at 5am?!?) I don't feel I'm entirely ready for a grand tour, but I'm as ready as I'm going to be and I'm hoping it will be a great experience and a fun adventure, even though I know it's going to be hard work and pretty painful at times (or possibly constantly after day 2!) The highs and lows will all be posted here...watch this space!

Quiz Night

Just a quick post to say a huge thank you to everyone who came along to our French themed quiz night. It was great fun to organise and everyone seemed to have a good time. Congratulations to Jeign Craig and her team 'Les Baguettes' who won and well done to everyone who took part - all the teams did really well, especially on the anagrams, which resulted in a 6 team tie-breaker question! We raised just over £200 from the event, which is fantastic and a great boost to our sponsorship so far.

My life seems to consist of training and sleeping and on the days when we have a day off from training I feel too tired to do anything! Last week we spent two evenings in the gym trying to build up our fitness and then on Saturday it was back on the bikes.

After a late night leaving do on Friday night, we finally set off at midday on Saturday armed with Pippa's directions for her Madhatter ride. We had no intention of getting round the whole route as we just wouldn't have time to complete it, but we hoped to get a good few miles in before home time. The first section of the route was really lovely and we had quiet roads and wide lanes to cycle through and I felt like I was coping comfortably with the hills, which was great! I hadn't realised that we would cross the top of Woodbury Common on the route to Otterton Mill and the climb up to the Common was the first to make me dig in and I was really beginning to look forward to our lunch stop. The views from the top of the Common were glorious and it was a great quick stretch to ride along. However, I was rather terrified by the time we came down to our turning for Otterton Mill. I'd been going faster and faster down the road and it felt like the bike was really sliding around beneath me. I'm not good at going fast! It was a relief to turn off the main road, but we were soon confronted by another steep downhill section. As we turned a corner we could see flood signs and water across the road at the bottom of the hill and despite braking as hard as I could, there was no way I could have stopped. Luckily when we got there it was only a very shallow stretch of water across the road and we passed through perfectly safely, but I'd had visions of ending up in a soggy heap at the bottom. A narrow escape and a clear sign that my brakes still need a bit more adjusting!

From there we followed signs to Otterton Mill where we stopped for a fantastic lunch. I've never seen such a huge jacket potato and with all the side salads too, it would have easily fed both of us! After refuelling and resisting the temptation to stock up on chocolate brownies (due to the fact that we had a perfectly good packed lunch in our panniers!) we headed back out to the bikes. When I rejoined Ant after using the facilities, he had just been chatting to a chap who'd turned up on the same bike as his...who turned out to be my tutor from University! It's a small world and it seems that everyone cycles these days!

From Otterton Mill we had a good run to Ottery St Mary and both still felt ok, but as time was ticking on and we needed to be home for guests in the evening, we decided to consult the map and plan our route home. We couldn't quite work out all the different roads leaving Ottery (which my old work colleagues will laugh at, as I could never find the route back to Exeter through the one way system!) so we decided to stick with Pippa's directions up to Feniton and to cut across to Talaton from there. Finding the way was easy enough, but the hill up into Talaton came close to defeating us. There were a couple of occasions where I really thought I'd have to get off and walk, but somehow we both managed to push through and make it up to Talaton. We stopped briefly outside the pub to check the map before making our way over to Broadclyst. The route to Broadclyst was surprisingly tiring and the wind was determined to slow us down! After another quick stop in Broadclyst to apologise to our guests and let them know we'd be a bit late back, we continued on our way back. We were both tired and hungry by now and the hills combined with the battering wind as we headed into Exeter were wearing us down. The relief of seeing our road was dampened when a car went to pull out at the bottom and I struggled to brake in time. I've tried my brakes on our hill many times before and usually it's fine, but after a full day of cycling my hands were tired and aching and I just didn't have the strength. Luckily the car saw me coming and stopped, but it was another tense moment and a final reminder to do something more drastic about the brakes.

On Sunday we joined Don for the CTC ride out to Bickleigh. Lyndsay joined us at Stoke Canon and we found we had lots to chat about as she teaches at the school I used to go to. We had a nice leisurely ride through the lanes chatting to one another, but as we joined the main road, we were also joined by rain and we all made a beeline for the dry and the promise of a nice cup of tea at Bickleigh. I made up for the previous day with a well-deserved chocolate brownie! We had a rather extended coffee stop, possibly due to the weather and possibly due to lots of people deciding to drive and not being in a hurry to get back on their bikes! It wasn't quite such a leisurely ride back to Exeter. Don set a fast pace and as I struggled to keep up, I began to fear that our imminent trip to Britanny may be rather beyond me! We said goodbye to Don on the Quay and headed home for lunch. Phew! I was relieved to learn on Monday that after leaving us, Don had been tired too and had caught the bus the rest of the way home...perhaps there's some hope for us after all!

A week of ups and downs

I've had my new bike for a week now and it's been a week of ups and downs, but ultimately pretty positive. We had a bit of a disastrous attempt at a ride last Sunday when we tried to follow a map towards Uffculme. Sadly we spent the morning taking a couple of wrong turns, going round in a circle and finding ourselves back between Woodbury and Woodbury Salterton when we were aiming for Aylesbeare! We were both feeling tired and rather wind beaten, so we headed to the park in Woodbury to have our lunch and then came back home again. My arms and shoulders were hurting and I was really struggling with the brakes, having a couple of hairy moments when I really couldn't slow the bike down at all, as well as a few entertaining moments where I'd just overshot where I was aiming to stop! I tried to tell myself I'd done ok given that I had a new bike and was getting used to it, but I actually felt rather disappointed and defeated. Later in the evening we decided to try and drive the route instead so we'd know where we needed to go next time. Even in the car we got a bit lost a few times and by the time we'd done half of the route, we were feeling so tired and hungry we found the nearest main road we could and headed back home! The route seemed to go on forever even in the car, so I think we were being a bit ambitious on this occasion...

We took a day off on Monday to enjoy the bank holiday. I felt we should be cycling again, but also felt in need of a rest. Sometimes it seems really hard to get the balance right. On Tuesday we had plans for later in the evening, so we decided we'd just do a short ride but with a big hill. We headed along the river, up to Topsham Road, then up Pynes Hill and up around the back of the Estate. I coped surprisingly well with the climbing on my new bike, apart from a moment when I changed gears in the wrong direction! Amazingly I managed to stay on the bike, keep cycling and recover the situation, but it really slowed me down. After all the climbing, we inevitably had a big downhill to come. Normally I would look forward to such a reward, but with my not very effective brakes and the down all being in one very steep hill, I had a horrible descent and was rigid with fear by the time I got to the bottom. I had tried stopping so I could get off my bike and walk down the hill, but I couldn't actually apply the brakes enough to stop. It was clear I needed to do something about this and soon!

So - into the Bike Shed I went on Wednesday lunchtime and they fitted some shims for me. These bring the brakes a bit nearer and make them easier to reach. However, after riding my bike home, it was already clear this wasn't enough. So in again I went after work on Thursday and this time they loosened off the brakes for me. I'm pleased to say this has made the bike more managable and I'm now much more confident going down a hill. I still have to work hard if I want to stop, but at least I know I can stop when I need to!

With the bike back in my good books again, we decided we should try and get a couple of decent rides in over the weekend. This was slightly ambitious given that we'd stayed up late to watch the election results on Thursday and then went to a birthday party on Friday night. We didn't really get moving before lunchtime on Saturday and we both still felt really tired, so we decided we'd take the familiar route out to Bickleigh and then try a longer ride on Sunday. It felt like we'd been really fast on our route, but sadly neither my watch nor the GPS reading seemed to agree! We had been cycling into the wind a lot of the way though, so that's my excuse! Luckily we avoided a downpour, despite extremely threatening clouds and a few drops of rain that seemed to indicate we were about to get soaked. As usual, we had a lovely stop at Bickleigh, this time staying inside in the warm, before heading back home again.

Today we went to join the CTC ride for the first time since my accident. I was rather apprehensive about joining the group as I wasn't sure if we'd be able to keep up with everyone. I'd had a restless night too and had woken up at one point due to a pain in my left wrist. Fortunately, the thought of doing the ride was worse than the reality! It was only a small group as there was also a 'Bluebell Ride' today, so 5 of us set off from Broadclyst. For the first part of the ride I felt quite comfortable and really pleased to be out riding with the group again. I was struggling a bit to keep up as I was nervous along the gravelly twisty lanes, but on the whole thought I was doing ok. However, climbing the hill into Talaton nearly finished me off and if the rest of the group weren't stopped at the top of the hill waiting for me, I would have got off and walked. Feeling red in the face and completely exhausted, I hoped Escot was just round the corner. To be fair, it pretty much was, but there was another small section of hill to climb first and once more, I really thought I was going to have to get off and walk, but somehow managed to push on through and make it over the brow of the hill. From there it was all downhill to Escot and a very welcome cup of tea and delicious slice of chocolate cake.

Over tea Mike gave us some tips on our training plan and on pedalling technique, which were very gratefully received. I feel like we're at a stage now where we can take this information on board which is great. When we first joined the group we didn't really have a clue about cycling and we were a bit overwhelmed by everyone's advice on what sort of bikes we needed and what we should be doing. Now with a bit of experience under our belts and much more suitable bikes, everything makes a bit more sense and the whole world of cycling doesn't seem quite so alien! I still haven't got over the fact that I found myself in a bike shop after test riding a bike saying 'it was ok, but it just feels a bit slow...!' I never would have said that when I first started cycling! Pippa also kindly offered to send us details of a route to Uffculme which gives directions, so hopefully that will help next time we find ourselves helplessly meandering through the lanes in East Devon!

From Escot, we took the easy option and Bob kindly led us on a nice leisurely ride to Tipton St. John whilst Mike, Pippa and Robin headed off to do more miles on a hillier route. We seemed to be at Tipton in no time and enjoyed our packed lunches at a picnic table in the park. Bob told us tales of his End to End ride, during which he impressively covered the Isles of Scilly and the Orkneys. At one point we were joined by a friendly alsation. Not long after this his owner came along and started chatting to us about the park. It's owned by the community who rallied round and bought it from the council to ensure it's future. It was a lovely spot and as requested, we left some coins in the collection box as we left.

I was somewhat dreading the cycle back from Tipton as I didn't really know how hard the route back would be and I'd not cycled this far since getting back on the bike. The fact that a road on our route into Aylesbeare was called 'Aylesbeare Hill' did give us an incling that it must be hilly enough to warrant naming it so! This was a bit of a long slog, but after that, the rest of the ride was down hill or pretty flat and rolling, so it was a pleasure to find ourselves at the airport so soon. At Clyst Honiton we said goodbye to Bob who was heading back to his car in Broadclyst and we called in at my mum's to request a cuppa. We found her doing some planting in the garden, but luckily she was happy to come in, wash her hands and make us a lovely cuppa. She also gave us a nice big cheque towards our sponsorship money, which was wonderful - thanks mum!

Dragging myself out of the comfy sofa, we cycled back through Clyst St Mary and home. Although I was feeling tired on the last stretch, I was also delighted that we'd managed such a good day of riding. I'm not entirely sure what route we cycled, but having a guess at it on bike hike, we seem to have covered around 36miles, so that's not bad going. I was quite pleased that we'd covered 62 miles in total this weekend, but then it's hard to stop that nagging voice in my head which says: 'but you've got to do 87miles on the first day of London to Paris...'

Welcome to Trixy the Tricross!

Ok, so Trixy isn't a very imaginative name for my new bike, but it stuck and I kind of like it, so Trixy it is. I picked up my new bike yesterday and we went out to do a short test ride in the afternoon. I'm delighted to say I love it!

Sitting drinking a cup of tea, I tried to steel myself for the first ride. The rain was pouring down outside and it wasn't inspiring me, but I was determined to go out regardless. Luckily by the time we were ready to go and I had packed and fitted my panniers to the bike, the rain had stopped. After a couple of rides up and down the road and quick stop for Ant to readjust a pannier, we headed off towards Topsham.

We set off via Old Rydon Lane so that I could try out a bit of a hill and make sure I was happy with the gears and set up before doing a longer ride. It felt like we were in Topsham in no time and when we got back to Countess Weir we decided we'd go on down to the Turf Locks, despite the impending grey clouds that were looking ever more threatening. On getting to Turf the clouds were looking like they were ready to burst, so we had a very quick stop and headed back towards Exeter and the more promising lighter skies.

My new bike makes such a difference and I am delighted at how lovely it is to ride. I can't wait to get out and do more cycling today! There are a couple of teething problems. I'm struggling to brake fully, which is a bit of an issue! It's difficult to bring the bike to a stop if I'm on a downhill, so I either need to get a lot stronger, or to make some adjustments. My neck, shoulder and arms are also rather sore from the very different riding position. However, I'm pretty confident that I'll get used to this and it's not putting me off going out again. We're hoping to do a much longer ride today...so watch this space!