It’s a BOGOF this week folks. That’s a Buy One Get One Free for the uninitiated, and it’s a BOGOF if more ways than one. Firstly we’ve got two weekends of excitement (or not as the case may be) to catch up on, but I’ve also been playing the same game both weekends, so we've got two remarkably similar tales to talk about.
As is often the case at this time of year, we’re in a bit of a lull on the running and Audaxing front. For some reason no one wants to go out to play in January, so it’s a case of making your own fun, and that’s just what I’ve been doing. The big advantage of no one else wanting to go out to play, is that you can get some really cheap Travelodge rooms in January. Fridays are normally cheaper than the other days too (I guess all the workers have gone home and the weekend trippers only want Saturdays) and Fridays in January are often the cheapest of the lot. With not much else going on, that's exactly what I’ve been up to the last 2 weekends. For the grand sum of £65 I’ve had 2 overnight adventures, and whilst a night in the Hammock is always great fun. In the middle of winter, when you don’t know what the weathers going to be doing, a warm and dry Travelodge room is a bit of a winner. Where have I been then? Well, last weekend the services on the A303 above Salisbury, provided the destination, whilst this weekend, the Services at Fontwell on the A27 beckoned.
Neither are particularly attractive destinations, but it’s not about the destination, it’s the ride there and back that matters. It’s dark by the time I get there, and it’s dark when I leave again in the morning at this time of year, so as long as it’s warm and dry, then that’s all I’m bothered about.
Handily, both locations are about 60 miles from work and home too (although Fontwell needs a bit of a diversion to bring the miles up), which makes it a good afternoon’s riding after work on Friday (Friday being POETS day (P**s Off Early Tomorrow's Saturday)), and a pleasant morning ride back on Saturday morning. Meaning I can still be back home in time for a late lunch on Saturday and a bit of pottering around in the afternoon with 100+ miles in the bag. What’s not to like about that then? Well, the only bit not to like as far as I’m concerned was the mean little head wind that blew in my face all the way to Salisbury last weekend, making for a tiring journey. That extra effort was more than made up for by the beautiful sunrise on Saturday morning, and the glorious, spring-like weather, for my journey down to Fontwell this weekend though. That’s enough waffle about that though, suffice to say, the winter Travelodge game is a great way to get away for an overnight in the middle of winter and a great way to see a bit more of our glorious countryside. It’s not the best accommodation, but it’s better than sleeping in a muddy puddle, and if you can find a cheap room, it’s almost rude not to take advantage!
What else have I been up to in the last couple of weekends then?
Well, I know what I haven't done, and that's sit down and go through the seeds that are left over from last year and get my seed order in for this year. It’s only a couple more weeks until the first things will need to get sown so I’d best get on with that little job. "The Emma's" on evenings this week so that'll be a good little job for one evening when I'm "home alone". While we’re talking about the allotment and things that I still haven't done, I really want to take the glass out of the greenhouse roof and clean all the moss and general murk off before the growing season starts and the greenhouse fills up. Typically, on the days I’ve been free and could crack on with it, it’s either been raining or blowing a gale, neither of which are particularly conducive to messing around with big sheets of fragile glass. There's still a few weeks yet before the sowing starts so hopefully the weather will play ball and I'll be able to get that little job ticked off. I really must get on with making some new staging for the greenhouse in the next few weeks too. After 20 odd years of faithful service, the legs on the staging I made when I got my first greenhouse all those years ago finally gave up the ghost when I moved it out of the greenhouse to make way for the Tomatoes at the start of summer last year. I’ve been meaning to get on with it ever since, but like everything in life, other jobs take precedent. I’m almost backed into a corner now though, so I suppose I’m going to have no choice but get on with it in the next few weeks if we’re going to have any veg for the plot come the spring! The reason I haven’t got around to all the things that I should be doing is that I’ve made a start on chipping away at the next big project. If you remember back a few months I picked up a cheap and not very good looking MX5. The original plan being to strip it for parts and use the bits as the basis for a kit car. Having driven it around for a few weeks, I’ve developed a bit of a soft spot for it though and I’m starting to feel sorry for it. As such I’m in two minds whether to strip it for bits, or restore it back to its original 1998 glory. Whatever I decide, there’s plenty of things that I can be getting on with that will be of benefit whichever way the coin falls, and to that end I’ve been hiding in the garage pottering around doing bits on that. And I must say it’s quite therapeutic. Taking something that’s been unloved, putting a bit of elbow grease and effort into it, and starting to turn it around, is quite satisfying. Whatever I end up doing with it, this little project is going to be with us for a while. I’m guessing that there’s at least 2 years of tinkering away between other jobs to keep me occupied, so it’s certainly going to be around as a project for a while!
Oh, and while I was busy running and pottering around in the garage on Sunday "The Emma" was busy too! Bread and Butter Pudding, Pain Au Chocolate and Ginger Biscuits - My favourites!
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Ahoy, Hoy, as they used to say. What's happened to the Summer? We had a few nice weeks in June, and since then it seems to have been either blowing a hooley (whatever one of them is) or damp and miserable. I'm not complaining too much mind you, (although actually I am), because whilst it's not been the best weather for getting out and about, I don't really feel like I'm missing anything. Plus it's doing wonders for the allotment, and I'm not lugging loads of watering cans full of water about! Saturday morning I ventured out into the gale for a few miles on the bike, nothing to strenuous, just a quick 50 mile blast around the local area, but there's a couple of things of the back of that that are worthy of mention. First and most impressively, I ventured out early in the hope that I would miss the worst of the rain that was forecast for most of the day. I got back home just after 11 and just as I walked up the garden path it started spitting with rain. By the time I'd taken my shoes off, it was throwing it down, and 12 hours later, when I went to bed, it was still raining. Now, I don't seem to have been having much luck recently, but maybe this is a sign that my lucks on the change? The other thing from Saturdays ride is the time of year. Now it's nearly the end of July, and as I slogged along with my head down into the howling head wind, I noticed that lots of the fields alongside my route were still filled with unripe cereal crops, and it occurred to me that none of the farmers have started harvesting yet. Now, this seems to back up my theory that we are a couple of weeks behind on the allotment, and so it would seem are the farmers. In fact checking back through the old blog posts for July 2021 and 2022, shows pictures with harvested fields and straw bales for this very same week. So what does that tell us? Well I don't know, but it does seem to confirm that the summer so far has been pretty miserable, and that my previous ramblings about the growing season being a few weeks behind are probably about right. Taking advantage of the wet afternoon I spent the rest of Saturday making jam. That Redcurrant bush I mentioned last week on the Allotment was absolutely laden with ripe currents, just waiting for picking, which is exactly what I did Friday evening. A couple of hours on the plot in the evening sunshine, yielded just over 3KG of Redcurrants from my single bush. Which I think is pretty impressive, and is certainly the most its ever produced. While I was there, there was plenty of other Veg for the picking too, and I returned triumphantly, with a nice haul to see us through the weekend, including the first of the Tomatoes. I've got to add that homegrown Tomatoes are the best thing ever. They're head and shoulders above those tasteless things you buy in the shops. I'll admit that the skins tend to be a bit tougher, but that's a small price to pay for something that actually tastes like it should do, and if you've only got space to grow one thing, I'd say Tomatoes would be the one, probably followed closely behind by Cucumbers. The next question is what to do with 3KG of Redcurrants? "The Emma" came in from work whilst I was sat in the garden destalking them and said "Oh, Redcurrants, yummy" before grabbing a handful and shovelling them into her mouth. I don't know if you've ever tried Redcurrants but they're up there with the sharpest tasting things on the planet, and it only took a few seconds before the look on her face turned from one of joy at having managed to steal some of my treasure, to a look of horror as the sharpness hit her taste buds. That'll teach her! Currents destalked, washed and cleaned, it was into the pot with a couple of spare apples to extract the valuable juice, as step one of the jam making process (Currents have annoying little pips that don't go well in jam, so the best bet is to get rid of them, and just use the juice, I find raspberries and blackberries to be the same). Apart from an accompaniment to roast meats and a tasty addition to the gravy boat, I never really know what to use Redcurrant jelly for. It's a still a bit too sharp for my tastes to spread on toast, and it doesn't really work in the morning porridge, so as a bit of an experiment I've tried Rhubarb and Redcurrant jam this year, alongside the normal plain Redcurrant jelly. I've no idea what it'll be like, but the initial tastes as I was making it seemed promising, and at the end of the day, what's the worst that will happen? Even if it's horrible I've only wasted a bag of sugar and some time (the most valuable commodity of them all), but even if it's too sharp to eat on toast I'm sure it'll add a bit of taste to the Sunday gravy. Watch this space, and if you never hear from me again, it's probably because the Rhubarb and Redcurrant Jam has been the end of me, I'll be sure to report back either way! Despite managing to hide some of it in the jam, I still had a load of Rhubarb left over and no idea what to do with it. I love it simply stewed with a bit of sugar. The only problem with that being that I'll keep dipping in for another spoonful out of the fridge and come dinner time I'm full of Rhubarb. Casting round for other ideas for using it up, I wondered if it could be dried and preserved? A quick Google, seemed to suggest that it could be, but no one seemed to have any use for it once it had been dried out. There wasn't much point in just dehydrating it so the fun of it, so I wondered what would happen if I added loads of sugar to it prior to dehydrating it? There was only one way to find out, and as before what's the worst that will happen? So Rhubarb finely sliced, covered in a good handful of caster sugar and allowed to stew for a few minutes and then into the dehydrator for 18 hours. "What's the worst that will happen"? In this case nothing. It's a taste sensation is what it is! I don't know how well it'll keep, because it's still quite moist, and being covered in sugar it's a bit sticky, but I don't think that's going to be a problem because I can't keep my fingers out of the jar. The best way I can describe it is like those chewy sugar coated sour sweets you get. It's chewy, with a sweet start from the sugar, then the tartness as the Rhubarb kicks in and floods your mouth with sharpness. If I was trying to replicate chewy, sour sweets from home made ingredients, then this would be as close to perfection as you could get. Beautiful! Right, just before I go. I came home from work one day in the week, to be hit by the most beautiful aroma of flowers as I walked through the gate. Sitting in the garden having a post work brew, it was almost overpowering.
And where was this amazing scent coming from? Well, it didn't take long to track it down to a couple of Lilly's that have just bloomed (although that should probably be "had" by now, as they won't have survived Saturdays rain). It's the little moments and things like that, which make gardening and growing things in general so special in my opinion. It's a years worth of nurturing, tending and growing, but when the flowers come out, or the veg is ready for picking, the rewards, smells, tastes and sights, are just so rewarding. And on that note, I'll leave you with a few pictures of the garden, and sign off for the time being. I'm off to Cardiff tomorrow for "The Boys'" university graduation. That's another one that took a lot of nurturing, tending and growing, but he got there in the end, and as with the flowers, it's just so rewarding to see the finished product! A bit of extra added bonus content this week in the form of 2 blog entries in as many days. Having been away Friday night there's a few pictures from Saturdays return journey that are worth sharing, but the weathers made for some interesting running through the week too, so there's a few pictures from then that are also worth a look. So, without further ado, lets just start with Saturdays return home from my overnight and then we'll go from there. Saturday dawned, or it would have, if dawn had actually happened when I got on the road, cold and clear. Well wrapped up against the cold, a heavy frost coated the world, and the early hour left the roads deserted as I left the warmth of my hotel room and headed for home. Progressing sedately through the early morning chill, I didn't have long to wait until the first signs of day started to turn the colour of the Eastern sky from black, through pink and on to a multitude of beautiful pastel colours as day finally broke. There's no doubt that winter days can be some of the most beautiful and Saturday morning more than lived up to that! With no rush to get home, I didn't push too hard, just working hard enough to keep the cold away from my bones, whilst enjoying the freedom that pedalling your bike through the countryside brings. Through Calne, before the early shoppers were even out of bed, a brief stop for porridge and a brew from my flasks at Marlborough, where the energetic park runners were just packing up, and a few cold miles alongside the River Kennet on my way to Hungerford, where the sun broke through the clouds and added its warming rays to the day. A few icy patches on the road between Hungerford and Kingsclere woke me up from my day dreaming and made me pay attention to the road ahead, a clumsy fall at the stage wouldn't have been welcome. A short stop for a sandwich, sat quietly in the churchyard at Kingsclere and then the final few miles home along familiar roads. I'd not been far (just over 70 miles), and I was home again by 13:00, in plenty of time for a few odd jobs and tea with "The Emma", but I'd been out on a winter adventure none the less. The cold wind had stung my face, my fingers and toes had been numb with the cold, but by gosh it was worth it for some of the sights and landscapes those few short hours had provided! Up early on Sunday morning, I was a little disappointed to find another cold and clear dawn. Disappointed you'll understand because I'd cancelled my South Downs Way plans due to the forecast of rain, and at 06:00 it looked pretty dry to me! Oh, well, I'll have a bit of breakfast and a bit of a run and them make the most of the dry weather to get the shoe rack I made months ago outside for a sanding ready for painting (about time too says "The Emma"). Or maybe not, as halfway round my run the skies clouded over and within 10 minutes the hail started coming down, leaving the paths slippery and my fingers cold (again). In fact by the time I got back home the hail had turned to rain and that's how it's stayed all day. I'll grant you the temperature has gone up a bit, but it's still a bit nippy and it's not stopped raining all day. I'll concede that fact that the shoe rack's still no closer to paint that it was in September, but I'm feeling pretty smug as I sit here warm and cosy writing this and not stood on top of the South Downs, wet, cold and tired, with another 2 nights in a hammock to contend with. I mean what sort of a lunatic even considers that idea! I suppose if I'm going to be at home I might as well make good use of the time, and to that end I've ticked off a few more odd jobs. Having eaten the last of the home made marmalade for breakfast, I've made some more. Nothing special, just pre cooked tinned fruit, but it's still a million times better than the shop bought stuff. The worst thing about making marmalade is boiling the oranges for what always seems like weeks to get them softened, so if I can miss out that step then that's a plus in my book. Whilst I was busy making marmalade, "The Emma" was digging in the back of the cupboard looking for something and amongst other treasure unearthed a couple of Kilner jars filled with various spirits and allotment fruits, amongst which was this little treasure. The label says it's White Rum, a bit of Sugar and allotment Raspberries, but more interestingly says I made it in 2016. I'm guessing from the colour of the fruit that any flavour and goodness that those raspberries contained has now well and truly migrated to the Rum, so "The Emma" found a spare bottle and I've bottled it up. Sat at home by the fire with a glass of that over the Christmas period will hopefully be a right little treat. And of course there's always just a little bit too much to fit in the bottle. Cheers! Ahhh, before I go, I've remembered what I was supposed to be talking about now. Chilly running! You might have noticed, and if you haven't I've been rabbiting on about it for the last 2 weeks, but it's been a bit chilly for the last few days. As I've already said though, chilly days make for some stunning views, but how about this winter wonderland from my runs to work and back this week. I'll think you'll all agree that that's worth getting cold for! But not everyone does!
Everyone at work thinks that I'm mad to even consider going outside, and I'm either going to freeze to death whilst running, or that the frost will cause the roads to turn into slippery lava and my bikes going to melt, whilst I fall into the abyss and get eaten by a Yeti! Luckily enough, neither has happened yet. But, whilst I'll continue to sing the praises of the frost glinting back in the light of my headtorch, like a million diamonds scattered across the countryside, the owls and deer watching from the undergrowth as I pass silently past, the sky slowly lightening and silhouetting the bare trees against the coming dawn, and the sheer joy of getting to work refreshed and invigorated. They'll continue to drive, having scraped the frost from their cars for the ten minute commute, got stressed out by the queues and other motorists, and spent the first hour of each day moaning that they've had to park 100 meters from the office. Each to their own I suppose, but I'll take the Yeti's and the lava every day thankyou! Having said last week, that I was going up North with “The Emma” this weekend, a slight confusion on “The Emma's” part (Saturdays party, turned out to be afternoon tea on Sunday) lead to a bit of a change of plan and I've been at home all weekend instead. I'm still not feeling particularly energetic or enthused, so I've spent most of the weekend pottering around and catching up on odd jobs, instead of partying the night away. With the weekend free, the thought of a cheeky overnight "Bivvy" on the bike did cross my mind. But when push came to shove, I just couldn't be bothered, and you know what, having spent the weekend taking it easy I feel considerably better for it. There's no doubt that sometimes a change is as good as a rest, and I often find that spending a few days pottering around, making stuff and generally being productive, is incredibly invigorating and goes a long way towards resetting my batteries. To that end, Saturday morning I crept out early, leaving “The Emma” in bed sleeping off a night shift and spent the morning walking around one of my local off road running routes. I've probably mentioned before that sometimes it makes a refreshing change to walk, and it's surprising what you see that you don't notice when your running. Back home in time for a late lunch, I spent the afternoon, cleaning and servicing more bikes than is strictly normal. My commuting bike tends to take a bit of a hammering, being used and abused in all weathers, and I've finally got round to building a new rear wheel and swapping them over (the free hub on the old one has been on it's last legs for the best part of 6 months and like most things is now a discontinued item, so it was easier to just build a new wheel with a new hub etc than mess around trying to find bits to keep it going). While I had the bike stand and tools out it made sense to give my Audax bike a bit of a clean after it's recent epic outing, and whilst I was at it, the touring bikes been sat looking sad and lonely since my 500K weekend at the end of July, so that's had a bit of TLC too! That's the problem with having multiple steeds (although I suspect that there's plenty of people with more toys than me), they all seem to get dirty together and I'm a firm believer in regular cleaning, maintenance, and lubrication. A clean and oily bike's a happy bike as far as I'm concerned! Sunday morning, I meandered up to the allotment with a flask of tea and packet of biscuits and had a lovely, productive morning, tidying up, pricking out Sweet William seeds and generally pottering around. The Sweet Williams will join the Hollyhocks and Foxgloves in the cold frame for another few weeks, before being planted out into the borders at home ready for some spring and early summer colour next year, joining the Wallflowers that have been sitting patiently on the allotment all summer. The bit of rain we had last week has worked wonders on the allotment too, with everything already looking greener and healthier than it has for a long time. No matter how much watering you do, it's never enough, but a good few hours of rain makes a massive difference. Another bucketful of Tomatoes, a few more Chillies and another Cucumber from the greenhouse and a couple of punnets of Blackberries to join the ones already in the freezer followed me home after my productive morning, and even if I do say so myself, the plots looking really good at the moment! The glut of greenhouse produce needs using whilst we've got it and too that end I made a large batch of Pizza / Pasta sauce last weekend, and this weekends haul turned into roast vegetable soup. Onions, Peppers, Courgettes, Garlic, Chillies and Tomatoes got roasted with a bit of Olive oil and Balsamic vinegar, before getting whizzed down with a bit of Vegetable stock. Delicious! Whilst the oven was on it seemed rude to waste all that heat, so a lemon drizzle cake found it's way in when the veg came out. Delicious too! And whilst that little lot was cooking, the Blackberries got added to the ones from the freezer and a couple of cooking apples to make a few jars of jam. Although I think it's actually a jelly as it's been sieved to remove all those pesky Blackberry pips which get stuck in your teeth. Whatever it is, I know that it's going to be delicious in my morning porridge! Bank Holiday Monday I actually dragged my lazy backside out for a few leg stretching miles on the bike. Nothing too serious, just a local 50 mile loop that takes you around the outside of Basingstoke, picking up a few of the outlaying villages on the way. But I must say that it was lovely to finally get back out again. The late summer sun worked it's magic and rapidly drove the chilly early morning away, and whilst the first signs of Autumn are definitely on their way, it was still more than warm enough. Back home in plenty of time for lunch I spent a few productive hours baking bread to join yesterdays soup for tea, whilst having a bit of a tidy up in the gardens and cutting back the overgrown Honeysuckle that adorns the back fence (wall). And that's it, another weekend gone in a flash. I must say though, that I feel a million times better than I did at the end of last week and I'm really looking forward to getting back to a bit of running and cycling again. It's quite amazing the restorative effects a productive weekend pottering around and making stuff can have.
Roll on next weekend, there's running to do! Your not going to believe this, but I'm not well. Or to be more precise, "The Emma's" given me the lurgey! Not only am I not feeling very good, but that's also put pay to this weekends adventures, and more importantly, left me actually feeling my age. The most annoying thing (apart from it all being "the Emma's" fault, is I'm never not well. In fact I can't remember the last time when I didn't feel well. I'll grant you I have the odd day when I don't feel 100%, but feeling like I do today, never. I've not had a day off work, sick, since 2016, and then it was works fault for pulling my wisdom teeth out, and even then I was only off for one day, and before that, well I've no idea, maybe 2001? Anyhow, the pesky one was away at the Goodwood Festival of speed last weekend whilst I was trying to run a stupid distance and when she came back she had a stinking cold. Not wanting to catch it I've been avoiding here all week, not that that's a bad thing, but it was to no avail and Friday afternoon the lurgey got me. I had planned on doing a 300km Audax on Saturday, with an early start from home, and I even managed to get as far as getting up for a brew at Audax O'Clock (03:30) hoping that I'd be OK, but slunk back to bed half an hour later feeling sorry for myself and shelved all those plans. Never one to sit around feeling sorry for myself though, I've still been pottering around, starting with a bit of Baking Saturday morning in an attempt to use up some allotment raspberries. That's the only problem with the allotment, it's all or nothing and the summer fruit is going full guns at the minute. I've had more strawberries than I can count in my morning cereals for the last month or so, and still made a few jars of jam which will go a treat in my porridge through the winter months, transporting me effortlessly back to those heady summer months. What to do with half a punnet of raspberries though? Well, chuck in a couple of scabby bananas and what have we got? Yep, Banana, Raspberry bread! While I'm on the subject of fruit and cooking, I've knocked up a couple of batches of jam in the last couple of weeks too. Firstly 4 jars of Strawberry, then 2 jars of Strawberry and Raspberry which I'm not too sure about, I think the Raspberries overpower the Strawberries but like most things if you don't try you don't know, and lastly 5 jars of Raspberry and Loganberry. While I'm dragging up random pictures, how about these. Everything on the allotments finally got going and the Sweet Peas are in full bloom. I must confess that I've got a real soft spot for Sweet Peas and whilst they don't last long, the scent and colours are amazing. Just that small bunch is almost overpowering, with just the most amazing perfume and another real smell of summer as far as I'm concerned. In fact, it wouldn't be summer without Sweet Peas, Petunias and Nicotiana's adding their sweet perfume and colours to a summer evening! A few hours on the allotment over the weekend has got everything ship shape there too. I will say that everything is very dry, and despite it seemingly managing to rain most Saturdays, I don't think that we've actually had that much rain this year? Rain or not though, the greenhouse is looking good with the first trusses of Tomatoes setting and we've already had a couple of Cucumbers, with plenty more to follow. The Parsnips and Beetroot which I sowed in late April are starting to get established after a slow start, and I've just sowed another row of Beetroot and Carrot's which will hopefully keep us going into the autumn and beyond. The French and Runner beans are up to the top of the canes and in full flower and it won't be long before we're tucking into the Courgettes. We've been making the most of the Peas and Broad Beans too, in fact Pea and Bean Risotto is another favourite of mine. You just can't beat the taste of a freshly picked and podded Pea, although I've no idea how they get the peas out of the pods commercially as it a right fiddly task. Yes, things are certainly looking good on the allotment front. In other news, being stuck at home with the sun shining I got the paintbrushes out and slapped a coat of wood preservative on the log store that I made at the start of last year (18 months, that's not bad going) and even if I do say so myself it looks pretty good. Unfortunately that made the sheds look shabby, so whilst I had the stuff out, they got a quick going over too. Have I ever mentioned that I hate painting? Well in case I haven't, I do, and it's even worse when your not feeling brilliant! I'm sure you'll agree that it was worth a couple of hours of suffering though. Fingers crossed, by next weekend I'll be fully recovered and back to top form (I need to be as I've got a big weekend planned) and I'll have something better to talk about. But until then, the sun's still shining so I might as well make use of being at home and go and wash the van. At least then when I do get back out, I'll look presentable!
Good news cheapskate, bodging fans, I've fixed the little Peugot (again)(I hope). After it's recent MOT failure for a lack of ABS light, I've done bit more investigating and a bit more learning and narrowed down the source of our problem to the ABS pump. Brilliant, I hear you say, well done and all that, diagnosis is half the battle. Well, that's not quite the case, because a wheel sensor's £10 (which would have been my first guess) and an ABS pump module is closer to £500! and there's no way I'm spending £500 on a car that's only worth that to start with. Luckily, with a bit of digging through the bodgers favourite website (E Bay), I managed to find one with identical part numbers from a car breakers, for the princely sum of £30 delivered right to my door. Now, there's lot's of tales of doom on the internet, and plenty of naysayers, who will tell you that if it's not an identical part, or if it's from a 5 door and not a 3 door, or if the moons in the wrong place, it won't work, or it will be impossible to fit and subsequently you can't bleed the air out of it and all that jazz. But at £30 it's got to be worth a punt, and at the end of the day, what's the worst that's going to happen? It's broken now, so it's unlikely to get any more broken! Anyhow, it turned up courtesy of the postman, just as a got in on Friday afternoon. So, with a couple of hours daylight remaining, I donned by Thermals, Overalls, Bobble hat, and anything else that I could find to brave the arctic gale that seemed to be whistling around the house and set too. Helpfully, the Haynes book of how not to fix your car, says that the ABS module is a dealer only replacement, so that wasn't much help. But, with a careful bit of fiddling and a big bit of bar to undo some of the unions, it was out within about 30 minutes, and in less time than it takes to have a brew, the new one was in. Granted, I'd had to take the headlight out to do it, but that's just par for the course on most jobs. The big problem with these modules seems to be bleeding the air out of them, so with an unusual bit of pre planning on my part, I'd already got as much new brake fluid in it as I could before installing it and cracked off all the pipes to ensure that there was no air in there before plugging it in. And what do you know, plug it in, turn the ignition on and hey presto, the ABS light comes on, runs through it's test cycle and goes back out again, just like it should! Another half hour, dodging the rain showers whilst I fully bled it and put the front end back together again and job done. I've run it round the block for half an hour and run it through the start cycle a few times and all seems to be good. So fingers crossed that's that job sorted and all for the princely sum of £30 and half a litre of brake fluid. "The Emma's" going to whip it back up to the garage on Monday morning so they can redo the MOT and hopefully by Monday afternoon I'll have a nice new, shiny MOT certificate, in my dirty, grease stained fingers! I'm sure that you'll agree that's a bit better than the £500 for a new one, plus diagnosis, plus fitting etc, that it would have cost from the garage. Not only that but this time I know it's actually fixed and not just hidden from view. It does make me wonder if the last person got stung for the full repair cost whilst the cheeky monkeys just covered up the light and pocketed the cash though? You've got to be careful out there people, there's some unscrupulous people around and if your not careful they will have your pants down quicker than you can say "can you fix this for me"! Just in case you haven't already figured it out from the fact I'm wittering on about fixing cars, I've not actually got much to talk about this weekend. That's mainly because, unusually, I've been at home all weekend. I've been away for the last 3 weekends Audaxing and running and contrary to popular belief (and what I try to tell myself) occasionally, even I need a bit of a rest. I'm back on the bike next week and running the one after and then it's Christmas. I need to catch up on all the little jobs that need doing around the place too, more of which later, and pretend that I've actually got a life other than playing out, oh and a wife that I'm supposed to spend some time with. So, a weekend at home it's had to be. Not that I'm missing much, as I'm sat here now (Saturday 07:00) failing miserably to find the enthusiasm to go out for a run as it's sleeting outside! But, whilst I am wittering on about nothing in particular, how about these pictures from earlier in the week. Having dragged my sorry backside out of bed, well before 05:00 the other morning and ventured out into the cold, to run the 10 miles back to work (and I can assure you that the run in to work is worse than the run home. Not only have you got a full day to look forward to and an early start, but getting your legs moving at silly O'Clock's never much fun). I was lucky enough to be treated to the delights of running towards the rising sun, on what was a cold and frosty morning. With nothing but a head torch to light the way, limiting your vision to the few meters around you, and your breath, illuminated like a dragons flame, billowing around you, in the glow of the torch, it's a pretty special time to be out and about. The paths and roads are still quiet, too early even for the commuters, the night animals are making their way back home after their nights out. Deer and badgers crossing the road in front of you, caught momentarily in the beam of the torch, the daytime birds just starting to signal the return of the sun from their hedgerow hideaways and the sky slowly changing from jet black, to pink, to mauve and eventually to the clearest pale blue in front of you. Yes, it's not the easiest or the cheapest way to get to work, running shoes cost a kings ransom I can tell you. But, on a day like that, when the worlds still asleep, the sky's clear, there's no wind and your the king of your own destiny, it's probably the best way to get there and the best start to a day a man could wish for! To be honest there's not a great deal else to report from this weekend. I finally dragged myself out of the house and into the sleet on Saturday morning for an easy 10 mile run around one of my local trail routes and apart from getting a bit chilly it was good to get out of the house and into the fresh air. Saturday afternoon I wandered up to the Allotment for a couple of chilly hours to take the roof off of the fruit cage. I suspect that any snow accumulation on it would be enough to tear it to shreds, so for the sake of an hours work it makes sense to roll it back for the winter and secure it to the frame at the far end. Although there's still plenty of crops still to harvest (Cabbage, Sprouts, Parsnips, Leeks, Beetroot, Purple Sprouting Broccoli, Kale and Chard) the birds don't seem to make much of an impact between now and March, so it's worth rolling back. Plus it gives the birds a chance to get in and hopefully eat some of the bugs that tend to still be knocking around. Whilst I was there I picked, Leeks, Beetroot, the last of the bell peppers and a couple of Long Peppers from the greenhouse and some potatoes, which all roasted up a treat for a tasty tea, along with a nice bit of Pork. It's a shame I've not got space for a bit of livestock, or we could be pretty much self sufficient. There's a couple of Butternut squash that need using up too, so I'll roast one of them in the week which I suspect will go down a treat with a bit of left over pork and a few Baked Beans (homemade of course) for an easy midweek dinner. Yummy! After Saturdays strong winds and sleet showers, Sunday dawned a bit calmer, but still a touch on the chilly side. Putting on my brave face, I ventured out on my bike for a few early morning miles, taking great care to avoid the frozen puddles and areas of black ice created by the cars driving through the puddles and then depositing the water back onto the icy road surface. With the sun shining strongly, it was a beautiful morning to be out, but by golly, was it cold. Even with all my winter gear on it wasn't long before first my fingers and then my toes went numb, making what should have been a pleasant day out into a bit of an ordeal. Not to be beaten though, I plodded my way around 60 miles of glorious Hampshire countryside, and I think that in the whole time I was out I only saw a handful of walkers, a couple of runners and 3 other cyclists, stupid enough to be out. If nothing else though, it makes coming home for a brew and a warm up all the more welcome! And finally! You might remember back in the mists of time that as part of Project Patio I made a Log Store.
Well, you'll be pleased to know that nearly a year later I've finally put a roof on it. I think that I commented at the time "I'll grab some roofing felt next time I'm at the Allotment and pop a roof on it" Apparently great things come to those that wait, or at least dry logs.
A strange thing happened last weekend, which is why there's no Blog entry.
I actually chickened out of an Audax ride! I should have been out playing bikes on Sunday. In fact I'd even got as far as loading up the van and traveling down to the start the night before. But when the morning broke and the weather forecast looked to have come true, I pulled the covers back up and stayed in bed. I must confess that it was absolutely throwing it down and the wind was howling through the trees and power lines. In fact, the roads were littered with fallen branches and puddles the size of small oceans as I made my way back home with my tail between my legs, so maybe it wasn't the best of days to be out playing bikes. The most annoying thing though, was the fact that by lunchtime it had turned into quite a nice day, and had I actually put on my brave face and got out there I'd probably of had a good day! Sometimes though, I suppose it's easy to take the easy option. When the rains being thrown in your face and the winds blowing you across the road it's not much fun. Or is it? It's certainly more of a challenge, and with a challenge comes reward, and the bigger the challenge the bigger the reward! Likewise I know that no matter what the weather, if I actually get out of the house, I'll probably have a good time. Once your wet, your wet. So, why is getting out there in the first place such a problem, why the procrastinating and the finding excuses not to go. Why not just pull on the waterproofs and get out there? If anyone knows the secret to over riding the desire to stay in when it's dark, cold and wet, then please let me know. It's only the start of November and I've already had enough of the winter, and this can't go on! Come on Perratt, get off your lazy arse and lets go and have some winter adventures!
Now I've got my dirty little secret from last weekend off my chest I suppose I'd better make amends and what better way to do that, than with a cheeky 200Km Audax, in the form of the Upper Thames.
But first, lets just back track a few hours, because this week also marked a bit of a landmark in the fact that I ran into work and back for the first time in 8 weeks. It's taken that long for my pesky right foot to feel good enough to risk punishing it with two 10 mile road efforts within 14 hours, but it feels like things are on the mend and I could be back in the game. I'll carry on taking it easy for a few more weeks yet, specially as I've got a 40 miler lined up for next weekend, but I'm hopeful that normal service is about to resume. Anyhow, back to this weekend. With Saturdays Audax starting from Cholsey near Wallingford, I thought that I'd extend the weekend a bit by escaping from work a bit earlier on Friday afternoon and taking the van up to Streatley for the night, and whilst I'm there I might was well take advantage of the trip and get in a few easy walking miles up the Thames path. And jolly nice it was too. It was nearly 16:00 by the time I got there and the temperature was starting to drop off, but wrapped up warm, I probably did 6 or 7 miles through the dusk and into the dark proper, before heading back to the van for tea and an early night. Cold or not, the river bank was quiet and deserted, apart from the plethora of wildlife making ready for the long night ahead. Groups of Geese lifting from the flowing water in formation, a number of Herons fishing for one last meal in the dying light, Red Kites overhead making their way back to their roosts after a successful days scavenging and a single Kestrel, hovering majestically, over the far bank. I don't do as much walking as I should, hopefully there will be plenty of time to walk when I'm too old to run! But, whenever I do pull on my walking boots I come home thinking "I should really do more of that" it's such a nice way to travel. No car's, no peddling, no puffing and panting, just the world moving steadily past with plenty of time to stop and stare.
Right, enough, I'm supposed to be telling you about Saturdays Audax, not wittering on about a load of old rubbish, and it's a good one this too. I'm guessing the fact that I know it's a good one, gives the game away that I've done it before. In fact, this was the first Audax ride I ever did, back in 2017, and I've done it every year since (except last year when it didn't run due to the Covid palaver) and I'm pretty sure that it's rained (normally heavily) every year that I've ridden it too!
Except, this year looked like it might buck that trend, because after a great nights sleep tucked away in the van, the morning dawned still, with a light cloud cover and as the sun came up it cast some lovely Lilac and Mauve light across the sky. A quick visit to the start control to pick up my Brevet card and then on the road before 07:30. An anytime start (between 7 and 8) took care of the normal mass grouped start and ensured Covid safety in this still uncertain world, whilst still giving a bit of normality to proceedings. How long this Covid lark is going to continue for is anyone's guess, but if sensible precautions can help life to continue then personally I'm all for it.
It's a bit of a ride of 3 halves this one, with the first half taking your through the Chiltern Hills with their multiple, short sharp climbs, before moving into the Cotswolds with their characteristic long slow drag hills and descents before a final, mainly flat few miles back to the start. The Chilterns worked their normal magic in the early morning though and it wasn't long before I was puffing and panting my way up the first of the days leg testing hills.
Nothing to stop me today though and after a few hours of ups and downs, the first manned checkpoint hove into view. Not before the drizzle started though! I knew that I should have kept my mouth shut earlier, but then again it wouldn't be the Upper Thames without getting wet! Luckily the rain didn't amount to much, and after a quick checkpoint stop I was soon on my way towards Bicester and the start of the second set of climbs for the day.
This second leg always seems to be a bit of a grind, not only is it somehow all up hill to Chipping Norton, but the wind always seems to be in your face too and just to add insult to injury, it's a pretty long and uninspiring slog of a leg. Finally though, after what seemed like an eternity, Chipping Norton arrived and with it the chance to stop for a few minutes and grab a quick sandwich, along with a receipt as proof that I'd actually been there.
I didn't hang around though as by early afternoon the wind had picked up considerably and had an icey edge to it. It was Ok all the time you were moving, but as soon as you stopped it cut straight through my thin jacket and base layer. Sitting on a bench in the cold eating a sandwich is hardly the height of luxury any way, so within 20 minutes I was back on the road for the final few miles of the Cotswolds and the delights of the final flat run for home.
Tackling the last couple of climbs with the wind in my face to get through Minster Lovell wasn't much fun and a short rain shower added insult to the misery and was made even worse by the sun making it's one and only appearance of the day, adding it's blinding brilliance to the rain as it dripped from my helmet.
Not to worry though, this is the final stretch and within a few minutes the rain had abated and the road flattened out. Dropping of the Cotswolds Plateau it wasn't long before the humped back bridge over the River Thames appeared, somehow signalling that it wasn't far to go now. A Left turn shortly after shifted the now strong wind to my back and with a wind assisted helping hand on flat roads, my speed picked back up to sensible levels for the first time in a few hours.
That bit of wind assistance made a real difference towards the end too and surprisingly, pretty much 9 hours after setting off I arrived back at the start control. Granted I'd probably only spent a maximum of 30 minutes stopped all day, but 9 hours for 130 miles, isn't bad going by any stretch of the imagination.
It's not supposed to be a race though, that's the whole point of Audaxing. It's all about challenging yourself, being Audacious, seeing some new parts of the countryside and having a good day out while your at it. And I'll happily confirm that todays fun was all of those things. Hilly enough to be challenging, rainy enough to get you damp without getting too wet, windy enough to make you think "this is hard work" but still fun enough to be sat with a big smile at the end of the day and the feeling of satisfaction that comes from pushing yourself out of your comfort zone!
Before I go, I've got a bit of a Chilli problem on the allotment. To be honest it's the same every year and I end up with tons of the things that I don't know what to do with. Some go in the freezer for use when cooking throughout the year, some I normally dry for making Chilli oil and some normally get made into Chilli Jam or sauce.
This year though I've found a recipe that just involves wizzing them up, adding a bit of sugar and Cider Vinegar and leaving to mature. And I'll tell you something for nothing, those jars now contain possibly the hottest thing known to man. I'll report back once they've had a couple of months to mature, but I've already got the feeling that this could be a bit saucy! Watch this space!
And finally (I promise), check this bad boy out. Parsnips truly are the roast veg of kings. You can keep your Spuds, I'll have some of this action with my roast please. Especially when it's gone from plot to belly in a couple of hours!
Man, sometimes I think that I should just give up, crawl under a stone and hide until my luck changes. Your not going to believe this one. There I was Saturday afternoon, just about to head out in the van for Sundays Marathon (more of which later), when I jokingly said to “The Emma” I'll see you tomorrow afternoon or in a minute when the van breaks down again”.
So I wander over to the van, stick all my running stuff in the back and think to myself, “I might just check the oil level before I go”. Good idea, I hear you say, better to be safe than sorry and all that. Well, I've still got no idea if the oil levels correct, because the end 4 or 5 inches of the dipstick has snapped off at some point in the last 250 miles and I'm guessing fallen into the sump! I mean seriously, in the last few months I've fitted a new engine and all the consumables that go with that, clutch, slave cylinder, injector, injector bolts, glow plugs, track rod ends, earth leads, water pipe O ring seal, alternator and now the sumps going to have to come off to get the missing bit of dipstick back. “For Fu**s sake” it was only fitted a couple of weeks ago, but I can't just leave the loose bit laying loose and floating around in the sump. Knowing my luck it will either get caught in the oil suction pipe and starve the engine or get mashed to bits by the big end, and end up starving the turbo of oil when the bits block the pipes, either of which are a disaster. So I guess next weeks job is going to be dropping the sump off and hoping and preying that the loose bit stays safely in the bottom until then. I suppose that on the positive side it will give me a chance to have a look at the bottom end and the workmanship of the engine re-builders, although if previous things are anything to go by, I think that I'd probably be better of not knowing!
In other news and before I get onto Sunday's Marathon efforts, I actually had a leisurely day on Saturday. I had planned on getting out on my bike for a few miles in the morning, but I woke up and thought to myself “you know what I'm tired and really can't be arsed, lets just have another brew in bed and head up to the allotment instead”. Now that's an unusual one for me, but I have been pushing it quite hard recently (Sunday will see 3 marathon+ efforts in 4 weeks, plus my normal training schedule) and sometimes it's worth just listening to your body and taking head, so an extra brew it was!
You'll be pleased to know that I didn't spend the whole day just sat in bed supping brews though. Eventually I dragged myself up the allotment for a couple of hours, most of which was spent putting the world to rights with Kev on the plot opposite, but I did manage to get the important job that I actually went up there for done and pick the best part of half a bucket of Tomatoes and a few chilli's and herbs to make into Pizza and Pasta goo.
Back home, an afternoon of cooking provided sufficient tomato goo to fill 10 freezer bags, which should be more than enough to see us in home made Pizza's, Flans and a few Pasta dinners for the rest of the year once it's frozen down.
Whilst we are on the subject of cooking, 2 years ago my first ever blog post dealt with the problem of an overloaded Plum tree and the predicament of knowing what to do with a glut of Plums. Well, if I thought that 2 years ago I had a lot of Plums, that had nothing on this year. To be honest, I don't think that I've ever seen so much fruit on one tree, and it's only a little tree at that, the branches are literally bending under the weight of the fruit on it and unfortunately there's only so many Plums that one man can eat or give away.
Now, I've had a go at Plum jam previously as a way of dealing with excess fruit and it didn't come out too well, not only are they a pain to de-stone, but the skins are tough as old boots once they're cooked too. I'll grant you, that it's a lovely tasting breakfast type jam (Sharp and no too sweet) but the skins are a bit off putting.
As such, I thought I'd try a different approach this time around and mix the Plums up with a load of Snozberries (I don't actually know what these are, but they grow like mad on the allotment and taste lovely, but are too seedy to just eat). Half an hour spent cutting Plums in half followed by a quick boil, a mash and sieving through Muslin yielded nearly 2 litres of lovely fruity juice.
Mixed with an equal amount of Jam sugar and given a good boiling in my “Jam Pan” (Courtesy of the “Old Cheese”) it provided nearly 7Lb's of Jam. Unfortunately, I'd miscalculated slightly and only prepared 6 Jars, so one jar's not been sterilised and the remainder had to go into a spare ramekin. Obviously, these 2 won't keep, so are going to have to get eaten sharpish. Now, that's a shame isn't it. I'm sure it will taste lovely in my porridge on Monday morning and I'm sure that you'll be the first to know if it isn't!
While we are on the subject of Plums and as I mentioned above, this weekend marks the second anniversary of my little blog, and what a project it's become. Back in the mists of time when I first started this little endeavour, it was never going to be the epic tale that it seems to have become. I'd originally envisaged the odd post and maybe a bit of spiel about the Van plan and that was about it.
Over the months and weeks it's actually become quite therapeutic though. Putting your thoughts into words seems like quite a good way to sort them out and gives you a chance to think and reflect on what's gone before and if nothing else my spelling and grammar seems to have improved. I actually found out what a semi colon was the other day and when it should be used and “The Emma” explained “I before E except after C” too. Ok, I'm making the last bit up but it's not far off the truth. I often think that I've not been up too much and I spend too much time sat in front of the TV too, but looking back over the last couple of years it's surprising what I have been up too. I mean, there's been a new engine in the van for a starters, Project Patio has been started and finished, there's A Home Made Christmas, a new job, nearly 30 marathons and ultras, quite a few Audax's, the Coronovirus Kerfuffle, work trips to Brunei, Singapore and Cyprus, 2 years worth of Allotmenting, a couple of thousand miles of running, a bit of walking and a good few cycling miles and that's just for starters. Oh, and an almost weekly blog and the accompanying web pages too (and that takes a bit of work, I can tell you). Its certainly been worth it though and even now, I often flick back to see what I'd been up to in previous months. Maybe, when I'm old(er), Grey(er) and more decrepit than I am now, I'll be able to look back at these pages and think “Yeah, I did manage to cram a bit in, and maybe my time wasn't wasted after all”!
And finally we can get onto the whole point of this weeks missive, the Andover Trail Marathon, 26 miles of off road fun, with a mainly up hill first half, followed by a fast downhill run back to the start. After a good nights sleep in the van (actually it was rubbish with a church clock waking me up every hour and some Owls having a party, but we can't have everything can we), the day dawned overcast, still, and warm, possibly perfect running weather.
With an early start and straight into the uphill, the newly harvested and harrowed fields alongside the trail were still shrouded in the early morning mist, lending an eerie feel to the morning and limiting the visibility to a few hundred yards. A deer leapt from the hedgerow and proceeded in front for a few meters before heading back through the hedge and the narrow lanes were filled with Pheasant and Partridges awaiting their fate in the next few weeks. Through wooded glades and open farmland but ever upwards towards the high point and halfway mark at Combe Gibbet. No view of the surrounding countryside today though with the whole area shrouded in cold, damp mist.
Just under 2 hours to the half way point and that's allegedly the hard bit done, slightly faster than I expected but I'm feeling good so push on. It's not quite true that it's all down hill on the way back, more rolling for the first few miles, but the paths are good and as the morning progresses so the mist slowly burns off and the sun starts to make an appearance.
The running feels good today, just the steady beat of my footsteps hitting the trail and the gentle rhythm of my breathing for company, those that were running in close proximity on the way up, lost some way behind, as the second half progressed. Short road sections intersperse the trail as I pick my way back towards the start, they were right though and it's more downhill than up now, allowing a good turn of speed. At the 22 mile mark I pick up the first of the Half Marathon back markers and whilst they are just plodding along, it's a welcome morale boost to catch and pass them, knowing that I've covered twice the distance in pretty much the same time, is always a good feeling, maybe not so much for those being passed though. A couple more miles and then it really is all downhill to the finish (except for the last bit at the end). 3:37:20 for 26.2 miles, a time which surprisingly was good enough for first place from the 63 starters. I've got to be happy with that and more importantly it felt good too. Beautiful weather, beautiful scenery, a well planned and signposted route and some great people manning checkpoints and aid stations. As early Autumn fun goes, it doesn't get much better than that!
Oh, and having got back earlier than planned from my Sunday run. I managed to retrieve this piece of rubbish on Sunday afternoon. Granted I had to take the sump off to get it back, but at least it's not sloshing around the engine any more!
All this running's alright, but playing bikes is much more fun and that's just what I've been up to this weekend. Sunday morning saw an early start to get myself and my trusty stead, down to the start of The Devils Punchbowl 200Km. Having previously ridden the 100Km route a few times this was a new one for me, but why stick at 100k when you can have double the fun.
Unlike the 100Km which takes a fairly direct route up to the Devils Punch Bowl, the 200Km goes off on a big old loop, working up through the lower reaches of the South Downs National Park before swinging North to visit the Devils Punch Bowl itself, before returning home via the other side of the loop.
With the threat of rain in the forecast I'd packed accordingly, but hoped that it might hold off for the day and to be honest as we set off into the cool early morning air things didn't look too bad. Overcast, cool, but warm enough and wind free at this early hour, good cycling conditions and from the start it looked like this could be a fairly fast route. By the time I'd been on the road for an hour, I'd ticked off nearly 18 miles, which is pretty good going by my standard and had confirmed my initial thoughts, if it continued like this I'd be home in time for tea!.
The first checkpoint at Cocking came and went in a blur of flat fast roads, packed with even faster cars all headed for their own day out at the Goodwood festival of speed. I'm pretty sure that I might have muttered Cocking or words to that effect a few times later in the afternoon too, as Cocking marked the end of the flat, fast easy riding, putting us onto more familiar, rolling territory, as we headed north towards Petersfield. Another quick stop to grab a receipt as proof of passage in Petersfield and then onto the long slog up what was the old A3 towards the Devils Punch Bowl itself. And a right old slog it is too. Not only is it uphill all the way, but it's still a pretty fast bit of road, and just in case that's not enough, it's been resurfaced in the worst surface known to man, Chipseal! Layers of what feel like badly applied boulders, half of which have peeled away, leaving a surface like Brighton beach (all massive stones). Not only is like riding through treacle, making it really hard to maintain any speed, but your constantly at risk of all your fillings being shaken loose too as you rattle over the pockmarked, cratered surface. Eventually though, the next checkpoint at Thursley hove into view and with it the chance for a quick breather and a refill of water bottles and biscuits. A quick sort out of kit, loose a layer, shove a sandwich in my back pocket for later and off again. Up to Farnham for an info control and then the longest leg of the day, heading down towards the motorway services at Pease Pottage for another proof of passage control. I don't mind admitting that I found this leg pretty hard going. There's nothing too steep or taxing to make it hard. But it seemed to be relentlessly up and down. Not enough to make it a challenge or get you out of the saddle, but just enough to get you breathing a bit harder than normal and make it feel like hard work. Time seemed to stand still for a while as I ground my way over the endless hills, constantly weaving like some deranged fighter pilot trying to avoid the enemy, as I tried to avoid the millions of potholes that litter the roads in this part of the country. Swing left, right, left again, can't avoid that one as there's a car behind, brace for impact and hope my wrists, wheels and tyres, survive the battering, and so it goes on. Eventually though the next checkpoint hove into view and with it the chance for an ice cream sat in the sun on a petrol station forecourt. If nothing else this Audax lark is glamorous! That's the back of the beast broken though, and with over 100 miles already under my belt, it's just the matter of keeping going for another couple of hours to get back to the start. Push on then, through some heavy afternoon traffic in Haywards Heath and onward with the South Downs now looming up in front filling my view. Luckily, todays route avoids the torture of pushing over the escarpment and we turn Right at the bottom of the hill for an easy run back to the finish. A shade under the 9 hour mark since setting off and I'm back where we started, with 206 Km (128 miles) on the clock. Just time for a quick brew with the organiser and his glamorous assistant before setting off for home, and whilst I'm stood chatting the rain starts, what are the chances of that? If I'd been a bit slower or stopped for more than the 20 minutes or so that I did all day, I'd have got wet! As it is I've stayed dry all day and had another great day out, you can't say that occasionally the weather God's don't look down favourably on me! âIf only it was a bit more often!
So what else have I been up too this weekend then? Well, for a starters I had a couple of hours on the Allotment before the rain really got going on Saturday morning. As I mentioned last week, things are going great guns.
âThe Tomatoes in the greenhouse are up to the top of the canes and have now been tied into the wires running along the roof to get another couple of trusses out of them. The Cucumbers, Peppers and Chillis are finally flying too, I'd hope that by the end of the week we might finally be picking Cucumbers (and about time too). I'm pretty sure we've had Cucumbers in June previously, but like everything we still seem to be a fair way behind this year.
Tâhe Raspberries are coming into their own too, although the wet weather isn't doing the Strawberries much good, with the fruits rotting off before they have a chance to fully ripen.
Raspberries don't keep very well once they've been picked, so it's always a bit of a challenge to find ways to use them up before they turn to mush. For the last few years I've made Raspberry Gin from the excess, but as the cupboards still full of last years I'm going to have to find another idea for this year. As a starters I knocked up a batch of allotment berry jam, using Raspberries, a few early Loganberries and a few Blackcurrants that have ripened up. A Kilo of fruit to a Kilo of Jam sugar, yielded 2 1/2 jars of Jam. It looks a bit "Pippy" but Raspberries always do, it tastes alright though, so that's a positive. Whilst I had the Jam making stuff out I thought that I'd have a go at Rhubarb jam. I've never tried this one before, but the Internet seems to suggest that Rhubarb goes well with Ginger so what's the worst that can happen? A kilo of Rhubarb, A kilo of sugar, a couple of Lemons, a big lump of grated ginger and a handful of crystallised Ginger and the kitchen was filled with the most amazing aroma. I thought the Strawberry jam last week smelled good, but this knocked it straight out of the park! And I'll tell you what, it tastes pretty fine too! The one and only problem with the allotment is that it's either all or nothing. With a bit of careful planning and regular sowing of seeds you can spread the season out a bit, but it doesn't always work. Despite growing 3 different varieties of Strawberries, which should, in theory, all crop at slightly different times, it doesn't seem to have worked out like that this year and despite trying to eat nothing but strawberries for breakfast for the past couple of weeks, the plants have still been winning. half an hour on the plot Friday afternoon yielded this little lot and there's no way I'm going to be able to plow my way through all of them before they turn to mush. There's only one option then and that's jam. Not that I'm going to complain about that, because come the middle of winter, when it's cold wet and miserable, I'll be able to pop the lid off a jar of allotment jam and dollop it thickly into my porridge, or lather it on to a home made scone, and I'll instantly be transported back to today. Beautiful! |
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
March 2024
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