What’s going on, last week I was out in shorts on the Start Of Summer Audax and by Thursday it's snowing again. What is quite interesting (well I think it is) is the fact that that's not unusual. Scrolling back through my photos, we had a light dusting of snow laying on the 12 April last year, and if I remember correctly, we had a similar situation in 2019. If nothing else it certainly keeps you on your toes, cold toes at that.
Anyhow, enough random rambelings, there's better things to be talking about than the weather. Mainly the 3 Down Audax. 300Km of cycling fun from Chalfont St Peter on the outskirts of London, down to Fordingbridge in the New Forest and back again, taking in some of the Highlights of the Chiltern Hills, Test Valley and the New Forest on the way. Now what's not to like about that?
With an early start scheduled for Saturday morning I took the van up Friday night and found a cosy little spot to spend the night close to the start location. The first signs of the day that lay ahead came when the alarm rudely woke me from my slumbers at early O'clock. Peering skywards through the skylight whilst I waited for the kettle to boil, I discovered my view obscured by a thick coating of frost which is unusual. Racking my brains I couldn't think of an occasion before when the skylight had been that heavily frosted in the morning. Best get an extra pair of gloves out!
Brewed, breakfasted and layered up in all the clothes I had with me, when I did finally venture out into the still dark morning, my initial fears were instantly confirmed. It was blinking freezing! A quick ride over to the start location to collect my Brevet card, a few minutes catching up with familiar faces and on the stroke of 06:15 we were off. First port of call, Pangbourne for breakfast, well second breakfast, but then you can never have enough breakfasts can you! On quiet roads, still devoid of traffic at this early hour, the miles ticked rapidly along. An hour in and reaching for my water bottle for some liquid refreshment I was in for a surprise. As my frozen fingers bought the bottle to my lips nothing came out? Closer inspection showed that the top of the bottle had frozen solid, with the outside and bottle cages covered in a good layer of ice where drips of water had frozen on the outer surfaces too. Well, that explained why my fingers hurt and my toes felt like icicles then! With regular finger shaking to keep the blood flowing through my fingers and working my legs hard, the temperature was just about bearable, but certainly not pleasant or tropical. Eventually though, as we pushed South, the sun started to come up and with its weak early spring rays, started slowly warming the frosty dawn air. Pangbourne soon arrived and after a bit of help from the nice man checking us in to get my Brevet card out of its plastic bag (despite my valiant efforts I just couldn't grip it with my frozen fingers) it was into the warm village hall, to be treated to a hot brew to wrap my chilly fingers round, and beans on toast to keep the hunger pangs at bay, all kindly laid on by the lovely people from Reading CTC cycling club. I didn't hang around at Pangbourne, just long enough to get slightly warmer, and was soon back on my way, heading for the the next checkpoint at Longstock. These are familiar roads, passing along some of my regular cycling routes from home and that familiarity allows time to relax and let your mind wander a bit without having to constantly check where you are and where your supposed to be going. Through pretty Hampshire villages, along quiet country roads, it wasn't long untill we picked up the picturesque river Test Valley for the final run into Longstock, where with 100km down there was a real treat awaiting us. Possibly the finest and largest serving of carrot cake that I’ve ever witnessed, washed down with yet another brew.
Mid-morning by now, I took the opportunity to shed my inner gloves and one of the two base layers that I was wearing, but despite the sun shining brightly in a clear blue sky, it was still bitterly cold in the wind. Fully fortified on carrot cake (if I’m honest it was a bit too much and I spent the next 30 minutes feeling a bit sick, not that that will ever teach me!) I pushed on South, quickly heading on to less familiar roads as I approached the New Forest.
Wild ponies, cattle roaming free, families of wild pigs wandering the verges in search of tasty morsels, wide open moorland and picturesque ancient forests, there’s a lot to like about the New Forest, and surprisingly, for small country roads, and Hampshire in general, the roads are remarkably smooth and pothole free, making cycling a real pleasure. By 13:00 I’d reached Fordingbridge and the halfway point. A quick sandwich stop, killing 2 birds with one stone in the form of lunch and a proof of passage receipt and I was soon on my way again. Heading North and making my way back to the start. The run back across the open sections of moorland was a bit off a slog, with that cold North wind blowing straight in my face. Get down low and push on though, it’s not going to be for long and I’ll soon be back in the shelter of the country lanes as I head towards Alresford for the next scheduled stop. Again, I’m soon back on familiar roads, and after a brief stop in Alresford to sort out kit and get some calories on board I’m soon heading back towards home. A brief pause as I crest the hill overlooking Basingstoke to grab a picture to send to “The Emma” with an “I can see you, stop sitting around” tag line, and onwards into the now late afternoon sun.
Winnersh, and the final checkpoint of the day, was a welcome stop when it finally arrived, and I joined a couple of others grabbing a sandwich and making ready for the final dusk/night section at the local supermarket. Batteries changed in my lights, head torch fitted to my helmet and those layers I removed earlier refitted, I’m back on my way as soon as I can. It’s too cold to stand around and getting colder by the minute as darkness descends.
An intentional close pass (I know it was intentional as the back seat passengers were looking back to see my reaction as they passed) and nearly getting caught out twice by cars overtaking and then instantly turning left across my path, put a bit of a downer on things as I headed through Maidenhead in the growing dark. I’ve put up with far worse though and a bit of poor driving from a few idiots wasn’t going to put a damper on my day. One last push through quieter roads and with fingers and toes fully chilled once again I was soon rolling back into the village hall at the start/finish location. Another warm welcome, hot brew and fantastic jacket potato with vegetarian chilli, nicely filled a gap as my fingers slowly thawed and tired legs finally relaxed. Just under 15 hours total time from start to finish, of which I’d guess nearly 14 hours was moving time, is a time for the distance that I’m more than happy with. But it’s not about the time or the distance (193 miles if your interested), it’s all about having fun, being outside, making the most of our great countryside, and seeing some things that I wouldn’t have seen by sitting at home. Eating cake, meeting new people, shared experiences with those others foolish enough to undertake these adventures, and most importantly making memories. And if that’s the criteria that I’m measuring things by (which it is) then Saturday was a resounding success! Bring on the next one.
I know that the last few weeks blogs have been a bit cycling centric, it’s just the way it works out I suppose and there’s plenty more to come. That’s not all I’ve been up too though. Seed sowing on the allotment is in full swing and I got a couple of rows of potatoes planted out on Sunday afternoon, along with some more Broad Beans and Parsnip seeds. I’ve also replaced the plastic sheeting on the cold frame which had gone brittle and opaque through UV degradation, and slapped on a couple of coats of wood preserver whilst I was at it.
The gardens are looking great too for the time of year, with Daffodils still in bloom and Polyanthus adding a welcome splash of colour. Things are certainly looking good in 2022 so far, although my outstanding job’s list seems to be growing by the minute, so at some point I’m going to have to have a weekend at home to catch up. It’s not happening any time soon though as there’s still plenty of exciting adventures to come
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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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