There's no doubt about it, I've been kicking the backside out of it this month and there's no end in sight yet. So far we've had a 300Km Audax, a 200Km Audax, my cheeky little 500 mile Easter Adventure, the 72 mile Brenda Parker Way Run, and this weekend I've managed another 200Km Audax and a Marathon, more of which later.
I'm not sure if I'm getting any fitter, or just more tired as the month has gone on, but either way I've been having a lot of fun, and long may that continue. It does mean though that I'm a bit behind on the blog front. You might have noticed that the normal weekly updates are running a week behind, I'm sure that eventually I'll have a quiet weekend (or a few days at work) and I'll get caught back up, but in the mean time, please bear with me. After all, without the weekend adventures there's not much worth talking about, unless you want to know what I've been watching on TV (not much if you are interested, in fact if it wasn't for “The Emma” I'd probably just get rid of the TV!) So, following the trend of busy weekends and as I mentioned above, this has been another fun filled one, with the 200Km “A Tribute to Alan Turing Audax” on Saturday, followed by the LDWA's Pewsey Downs Around Marathon on Sunday morning. An early escape from work on Friday afternoon gave me the chance to clean and oil my bike, load the van up for the weekend and water the greenhouse, before paying the price of forgetting our wedding anniversary last week, by treating “The Emma” to a slap up meal (Fish and Chips (who said she's a cheap date)) and then immediately afterwards legging it up to Reading ready for an early start Saturday. Although I must admit, that when I said I forgot our anniversary, what I really mean, is “I had absolutely no idea”, which I'm claiming is different to forgetting. To forget surely you've got to know about it in the first place, or that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!
Indiscretions repaid, Saturday dawned dry, but with a strong, cold, North Easterly wind blowing. Not ideal cycling conditions, when a large part of the days ride was going to be across flat, open ground, where the wind would be most unwelcome and blowing straight in our faces. Oh well, at least it's not raining.
Well wrapped up against the Icy chill, I was away by 07:20, heading North from Reading, along familiar roads, working steadily uphill towards Watlington. With the uphill gradient keeping the legs working hard and my heart rate up, which in turn helped keep the chilly morning air at bay, it was a beautiful morning to be out. Low sun shining weekly at this early hour, light dusting of frost in some of the more sheltered dips, roadside trees standing proud with their first bright green leaves of spring and plenty of wildlife, including the now resurgent Red Kites soaring majestically, to catch your attention. Steady progress through the morning saw the miles quickly ticked off, Lewkner, Thame, Edgcott came and went, until Buckingham where a turn to the East bought the full force of the wind to bare! Now, I've said before that I find it a struggle traveling into wind, at the end of the day I'm just not strong enough to push endlessly on against that invisible force, and today was no exception. There's not a lot of choice though and it's going to be a long leg into that wind. Thornborough, Bletchly Park (Home to the Enigma code breakers and the namesake of today's ride ride), through Milton Keynes and onward, until eventually the climb up to Ampthill signals lunchtime, a welcome break and a change of direction.
The mornings efforts had taken their toll though, and as I sat on the floor eating yet more supermarket sandwiches with a fellow rider, it was with a sense of relief that, that leg was now behind us. A sense of relief that was short lived, when I remembered that the afternoon would see us traverse the Chiltern Hills with their leg sapping climbs, en route back to Reading.
Lunch dispatched and legs stretched off, giving them a new lease of life, I was soon back on the road making the most of the remaining few flat miles with the wind now on my back, before the afternoons work began in earnest. From Dunstable it gets lumpy, with a seemingly never ending cycle of climb, followed immediately by descend. Sometimes steeply, sometimes on the verge of what's actually climbable, sometimes gradual and fast, but never flat, still always better than slogging into the wind in my opinion! Slowly though, as the afternoon passes, the miles to go reduce. One more climb, pause at the top to take in the far reaching views, before descending again, steeply this time to pass through a village in the valley floor, and then out the other side to climb again, slowly regaining the height previously lost, and repeat, until the final lung busting climb between Henley and Reading signifies the end of another day. I just need to grab a receipt to prove my finish time from a local shop and I'll be done for the day. Now what to buy to get that much needed receipt? An Ice Cream sat out of the wind, in the late afternoon sun, that'll do nicely, a fitting reward for a hard day out on a beautiful route, along some great roads, passing through a multitude of pretty villages and scenic hilltops. Now what's not to like about that?
From Reading, a quick blast down the M4 saw me in Pewsey, Saturday night, ready for another early start on Sunday morning. I've probably said it before, but there's no doubt that without the van, none of this would be possible.
The freedom to travel, adventure, and explore, is without doubt it's biggest advantage. And whilst it wasn't a cheap project, it proves it's worth every weekend and I couldn't imagine being without it now. (Mind you, replacing it would be even more expensive with the price of vans and materials having sky-rocketed recently). Any way, I digress as usual. Back to the fun and the whole reason for being in Pewsey. The Pewsey Downs Around. An off road trail walk / run, organised and managed by our friends at the LDWA with a variety of distances to suit all abilities. 10, 17, 26 and 33 miles, of which, in an unusual bout of sensibleness, I'd elected to run the 26 mile (Marathon) distance as part of my ongoing Marathon a Month Madness (I bet you thought that I'd forgotten about that stupidity didn't you!). With the early morning sun shining brightly, but that cold North Easterly wind still blowing strongly, it looked like we were in for a repeat of yesterdays weather. Although the wind still makes things hard on the running front, it never seems as soul destroying as it does on the bike.
With a staggered start and enforced control checkpoint times I started towards the back of the field, knowing full well that as a runner I'd be too early at the first checkpoint if I started to early and would end up stood around waiting for the opening time (control times are aimed at the walkers, after all this is a LDWA event). Which is never a good situation as you soon get cold and your legs stiffen up making getting going again hard work.
Starting at the back's never a bad thing though, as you get to say hello to all the walkers and slower runners as you pass, and to me it's nice to see other people out and about, even if it is only a fleeting hello, goodbye as you go past. What a fabulous route though, within a few meters of the start we were off road and onto the footpath network and that's how it remained for 99% of the day. A steep climb within the first couple of miles took us high into the hills surrounding Pewsey, providing far reaching, spectacular views of the surrounding countryside, all of which was beautifully bathed in the morning sun, and although that cold wind continued to do it's best to make the going hard at times, and keep the temperature down, it did little to dampen my spirits on such a glorious morning.
Surprisingly, considering yesterdays efforts, my legs felt pretty good too, and with plenty to see to keep my mind occupied the miles flew by. In fact before I'd even had time to think about getting tired I was approaching the halfway point and the well organised and fully stocked checkpoint at Avebury (home to some impressive stone age monuments and burial sites).
No time for sight seeing today though, there's still a fair few miles to go. From Avebury it's a long old climb to regain the height we lost earlier and get back over those hills, which provided such a dramatic vantage point at the start. The climb seems to go on for forever, but with the sun shining, the skylarks singing in the fields alongside the route and the bulk of the hills shielding us from the wind, it's certainly not a chore today.
Eventually though I reach the top and start dropping off the other side again. Another checkpoint provides the opportunity to grab a bit of fruit cake and chat to the marshal, who magnanimously admits that although the cake is home made, it's not their handy-work. Whoever made it, it hits the spot and sets me up nicely for the last few miles, which takes in a section of the Kennet and Avon Canal tow path.
Hill tops with expansive views, lung busting climbs, quiet secluded valleys, fields of rape in full bloom, skylarks singing, prehistoric monuments and ruins, canal tow path, this routes certainly got the whole lot and despite, by this stage, feeling like my legs want to give up, I almost wish it would never end. But end it does and I've got to be happy with a time of 4:28 for the 27 miles, especially when you consider the my legs have been through a right old workout over the last few weeks (and yesterday) and I wasn't exactly pushing, spending plenty of time stopped, both, stuffing my face full of delicious cake, and chatting to the lovely volunteers who spend so much of their time making these adventures possible.
There we go then, proof that you can ride a hard 200Km Audax one day and run a hilly trail marathon the next. Maybe not an ideal situation but certainly possible and in a respectable time too.
Right, onwards and upwards, I suppose I'd better get my thinking hat back on and dream up something even more stupid than this weekends adventure to challenge myself on!
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Paul PerrattOld enough to know better, young enough to still feel invincible, stupid enough to keep on trying the same thing again and again. Cyclist, Gardener, Runner, Hiker, Cook, Woodworker, Engineer, Jack of all trades and master of none, Anti social old git and all round miserable bugger. Archives
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