Hi To all. I'll just take a minute to let you know a little about myself. It all started about 12 years ago when my little boy was born with goldenhar syndrome. The symptoms vary from child to child but to give you some idea here is the link to the website http://www.goldenhar.org.uk/. If anyone kindly wishes to sponsor please go to http://www.everyclick.com/goldenhar_jog2le_sponsored_cycle Thank you.
Previous my partner had done a charity bungee jump and managed to raise just over £500 for the group from friends and family. I always wanted to do something for the group but could never come up with an idea. An idea sort of came about three years ago when we had a family holiday in Scotland. On a family day out we decided to visit John O'Groats. When we got up there, it was deserted with just a few cars and people walking about but we did manage to see four cyclists complete their end to end journey. Quietly they took their photos with mobile phones and headed slowly towards their support vehicle for there long trip back. At the time I felt there should of been more of a welcoming committee for there great achievement but there was nothing. I did say to my partner if ever I did the end to end cycle I would probably start here at John O'Groats and go down to Lands Ends (Something I said at the heat of the moment) would never of dreamed that three years on I would be about to embark on this once in a lifetime opportunity. It was a sealed deal with no turning back when we mentioned it at a Goldenhar weekend over a loud speaker. Two other parents very kindly and bravely put there names forward to embark on this challenge with me. That was October 2010. So this May 28th 2011 is the day we set off on our journey . Hoping to do it in 10 to 14 days :O)
In the photo is myself Craig and my son Byron
A big thank you to http://www.soccerprint.co.uk/ for donating and printing the tshirts.
Richard and Graham will introduce themselves on here soon but in the mean time I will let you all know where I'm at so far. Below I will show you the bike I have built up from scratch that I'm using for the JOGLE run. It was a specialized bike that was rescued from a rusty end in someone's back garden. The items I had to replace or change was :-
1) Forks were alloy/steel and were split and rusty. Replaced with Carbon MicroTech Cyclo Cross forks with new light head set also. These lighten the bike up but also helps takes the shock on the road surfaces. They are also more Aerodynamic for less wind resistance. Was given advice to stay well clear of front and back suspension because they take too much energy out of the pedals and only really suited for off road use.
2) Replaced Gear/Brake levers to Shimano Rapid fire. The old ones felt worn and much of the click was more or less non existent.
3) All cables including outer cables replace.
5) Titec Carbon End Bars. Light and give another riding position on them long long journeys ahead, also gives added power for them steep hills.
6) Specialized Carbon and Bontrager Carbon Bottle holders. Light and to carry two 750mls bottles as plenty of fluid intake is a must.
8) New Brake pads as old were worn badly. Stops on a pin now.
9) Light weight quick fit Sky Blade mud guards.
10) Specialized Body Geometry Comp Saddle. Old seat was split and rotted. Kept the suspension seat stem on though for them bumpy cycle tracks.
12) Light alloy tubed pannier to carry them pannier bags for all gear needed for the long journeys.
13) Bike computer to tell MPH, Distance, Average speed, calories etc ......
The bike was purchased for spares or repair in November last year and was completed the end of January this year. It spent its time for 3 months in boxes in the shed whiles I source all the parts I needed for the build. eBay was my best friend for this grabbing good quality parts for bargain prices. Every nut bolt bearings was taken off, cleaned greased and put back on and renewed when needed. Front Specialized crank was in good mechanical order but needed cleaning and rings resprayed. Drallier, back wheel chain and wheels was degreased cleaned then regreased and put back on. New headset put on and a new bearing seat for forks with bearing as Cyclo Cross Carbon forks didn't fit frame until this was done. Every trace of rust was banished and bike rides like new ready for it's journey across the United Kingdom.
My training so far
While waiting for bike to be completed I kept up with a lot of gym work at my local gym. With advice, I've started a workout plan which included a lot of upper body strengthening, arms lower and upper back etc . The main class I did and still do there is the spinning classes about three or four times if you count the back to back class. The classes have helped with my cadence and hill climbing I think but will have to sacrifice a few classes later on and gym to get the hours in the saddle as that's the bigger killer.
So far Cycle rides done :-
This is what I can remember but bear in mind some rides have been a while back so trying to remember what some average speeds may be a bit off by .1 or so. Will keep exact data for next ones as soon as I'm up to date with blog and will read straight off bike computer after every cycle.
First bike ride was through Fradley ( Local to where I live ), over the Chase into Rugeley over Blithfield Reservoir, Abbots Bromley, Hill Ridware, Kings Bromley, Alrewas back into fradley then home. This I did with a chap called Pete from gym. He is a very keen and professional cyclist and a superb guy who is doing a cycling event in 5th June called the Dragon Ride in Wales. He offered to take me out for my first cycle ride. All I can tell you is TALK ABOUT JUMPING IN THE DEEP END .....lol...... . No cleats, No previous experience in long distance cycling and trying to keep up with a machine pro machine cyclist was madness . 33.8 miles later I walked in the house like an A frame almost crying from the heat and pain from me buttocks and my legs felt like jelly. All my partner could do was laugh as I tried to sit down in the arm chair while letting out whale like noises :0( . Now advice from a guy in a cycle shop I sort of remember saying it's the time in the saddle you have to conquer......He was not kidding. He also said you have to give it time to break in your saddle. (That's if the saddle doesn't break me first). Get yourself some cleats as well he told me before I left the shop. So the first painful ride was 33.8 Miles with an average speed of 12.5mph.
The second ride is what I call around the block which is Fradley, Rugeley then back into lichfield 16 miles without cleats on shoes as not arrived from eBay by then, but a little better on bottom, maybe the lack of miles had a good part in it but all the same a little improvement as I managed 16 miles in an average speed of 13.1mph.
This other bike ride I was looking forward to as my cleats had arrived and wanted to try them out. Couldn't believe the difference so so much better. Now before I start I had listened to stories about cleats, one in particular that Pete had told me about him at some traffic lights the first time he wore cleats. He had stopped not realising he was clipped into pedals and to get out you have to twist left foot outwards before you stop so you can put foot down to stablelize bike and yes you guessed it, he didn't and he stopped and just fell side ways onto road still connected to bike in front of all the cars lol. I did laugh when he told me hehe. So any way I was not going to do that so I practiced at every junction unclipping just before I got to every stop.
So I did Fradley, Rugeley, over the Chase through Burntwood and into Lichfield and that was 27miles with an average speed of 14.3mph . Was well chuffed that the cleats was giving me more power to pedals and now I was sharing my down strokes with my up strokes so less energy was being used. Fantastic you'd think but all was not plain sailing. Lets rewind back to cleats, the time I laughed so hard at Pete and then me thinking that will never happen to me . WRONG :0( . On the way into Lichfield I was soooo please how things had gone and things couldn't have gone better. Now going into Lichfield coming from pipe hill, to all you people that know there has been a new island and road built with nice soft mud around the path ready for the nice spring grass to start to grow (bearing in mind we were in winter still). Now I was coming down the road and coming up to the island feeling on top of the world when my phone rang so I pulled up to the path with my phone to my ear and stopped . !!!()()@!!! I'd forgot still clutching my phone I just dropped like a stone to one side and was still connected to bike. Now I love my bike but I think that day I took it to another level because not only was I stuck with my bike in-between legs, one hand in the air with phone in it and moving back and forth to get out didn't look too good. :0( . By then I heard horns blowing and visions of drivers and passengers bellowing with laughter. And do you know what was worst. It was a little past twelve so I had picked the dinner time rush traffic to have a bigger audience :0( never never again will I make that mistake . Despite all that, cleats are good and a must and still wouldn't be with out mine :0) .
Did another bike ride the same route as on my first but on me own. Nothing much happened. Bum less sore and managed to do 34.1 as I took a wrong turning but still did it with an average speed of 14.5mph. And no more problems with cleats as it's now second nature to unclip. :0)
This bike ride same as above but I left to late afternoon, temperature dropped and got dark. Was doing great as average speed was 15mph but the last 8 miles in dark was bad and even with bike lights still had to slow down incase of pot holes so average dropped to 14.6. But still pleased as seems to be getting a bit easier.
This was my personal best :0). Went out with Pete the cyclist again but this time it was not going to be for a few miles. Weather was the best we'd had in ages so we took advantage. Did four counties which was Derbyshire, Leceistershire, Warwickshire and Staffordshire. 55 miles in and started to flake a little but stopped at a lovely coffee shop for a mug of coffee with five sugars and biggest chocolate cake I'd ever seen. Had midget gems beforehand to keep going and orange juice in both bottles. Seem to have a sugar addiction every time I'm out. Anyway after coffee and cake it seemed to give me the extra boost I needed to get home and did 75 miles with an average of a little over 15mph (don't have exact as reset computer since but I remember 15 in it ). Started to get a bit sore and a bit of numbness below but after a shower and food and rest I was fine after couple of hours.
This particular time Pete brought his mates along who are also professional cyclists. Think he must be getting confidence in me able to keep up with the big boys lol. So there was me (Craig2) Pete, Richard and Craig1. The reason why there training is more intense is because they are training for the Dragon Ride on the 5th June in Wales this year http://www.wiggledragonride.com/information.php. We went on a route which was almost the same as above but a little less. It was great in a group as the lads taught me the art of tucking in behind someone's wheel to save energy. This works on the principle of the front rider taking the force of on coming wind resistance while the other person behind has very little also the front seems to drag you along a little and you use they say 10% less energy. It does seem to work but I think I need a little confidence to get close to someone's wheel doing around 20+ mph. This cycle was cut short as Richard broke a couple of spokes and it was about to rain. We managed 65 miles at a average 15.5mph. They would of done more on there average but waiting for a beginner like me would of slowed them down but they didn't seem to mind and said I could come on the next one so I couldn't of been that bad I hope. :0).
Did another Blithbury reservoir one and managed over 15mph average at the same mileage as my first one 34 miles. Love my shoe's SPD Pedals and my bike is running a treat. Topped over 43 mph coming down a hill over the chase then lost a bit of bottle and slowed down as I thought about face planting into the road and put me off lol.
Today went over to Tamworth, Elford, Alrewas, Fradley, Kings Bromley, Hill Ridware, Abbots Bromley, over Blithfield Reservoir, into Rugeley, through the Chase towards Cannock then headed back towards Lichfield going through Burntwood. Covered 50 miles. Was going to do more but ran out of water. For some reason I drank more. Tried a mates house and was out so ended going to a shop for a little bottle of water thinking that was enough. I downed the whole lot in one but soon became a bit dehydrated so headed home. Was glad really to get home a bit early. I had planned to do 70miles. But still a good result as I had done 50 miles with an average speed of 15.5mph.
This was next day after my 50 miles. Wanted to see if I could push myself so went out with Pete for a long run. We almost did the four counties like before but route was tweaked about a bit which was great as we missed out a couple of main roads. This day was superb lovely weather with beautiful scenery but best of all we did 70 miles at an average speed of 16.1mph. We stopped at a beautiful cafe at the side of a canal for a cup of tea and a toasted Teacake with loads of Jam. Really enjoying it now. Bum still gets a bit sore but always seems to recover quicker now.
Not really cycle but just to let you know managed a double spin class today after that cycle above. Just to see if I could do it and did but had to have next day off for recovery. Think I need it as body feels it's done too much :0(
Weavers Hill
Went out on me own today. Combined cycle routes from past to make me own up infact weather wasn't bad at all and had a little sunshine. I made my way to Fradley, Hill Ridware, Abbots Bromley, Uttoxeter, then did a loop back into Abbots Bromley then Hoars Cross and headed back to Fradley. Found it harder to get the mileage in doing route myself. So easy to follow and let other people lead and work out the route and also the added push to keep up puts the average mph up. The mileage covered was 47 miles at an average speed of 14.9mph, max speed 33.2mph and took 3hours 10mins. Loved it though but need to improve on my direction as I got lost a couple of times :0) .
24/03/2011
This day was my best and was really proud of it. Went out with Pete again. Not sure about route but it was Fradley, Abbots Bromley, Uttoxeter then it was sort of the four Counties combined. The most important was that the weather was superb and we managed to do 86miles at a average speed of 16.4mph, max speed was 38.6mph and it was done in 5hours 14mins. Sooo tired but was chuffed to bits :0) Oh yeah forgot to say ....fell off bike again.... Pete had gone past a turning and stopped on a main road to turn around but because it was sudden I forgot my cleats and yes I plummeted to the ground on a grass verge ..Was lucky as it was a soft landing but not so lucky as a few people was around and Pete couldn't resist a little laugh :0( . Stopped only once for a cup tea and energy bars. Another beautiful day of sunshine :0) :0) :0) :0)
26/03/2011
This was a cold cold day and miss judged the clothing as I wore my shorts, base top and T-shirt cycle top. No over shoes either. They did say on weather forecast that the temperature was going to be 10c but don't think it went above 3c :0( . It was too late to turn around so had to bare the pain. Went out with the Dragon ride cyclist and boy I was pushed to my limit. It was almost the same route as above but at a faster pace. Stopped off after 40 miles at a cafe for tea and a egg and bacon sandwich or should I say a door stopper or a jaw stretcher ..... IT WAS HUGE lol. After coming out of the warm cafe the outside temperature seemed worse and was sort of regretting the stop. Cold and full with food we carried on and managed to do 87.92miles at a average speed of 16.9mph in 5hours 10mins. Was so sore as made the mistake of wearing pants under my shorts and they rubbed like hell!!. Glad they pushed me further as on the day of challenge I can slow my speed making it easier and we will be having more breaks as well :0). They're Dragon ride challenge is about speed and a huge amount of miles in just one day but ours is going to be miles spread over 10 to 14 days but it doesn't hurt to do there training as more is better than less I should think. But really proud of what I had done just hope next time it will be warmer :0( .
28/03/2011
On me own today and went out and tried to add to my own route I did not so long back. Instead of going towards Fradley I did Whittington then travelled towards Tamworth into Elford then straight towards Fradley, Hill Ridware, Uttoxeter etc ..... Lovely day but cold in the morning so this time I came over dressed lol. Think I sweated pounds off me this time... I did try and get my miles up but ran out of ideas where to go so only did 57.64miles at a average speed of 15.4mph in 3hours 44mins. The pattern is I do more when in a group as I have to try and keep up with them but on me own my average goes down. I would say though that even this average speed may be too much on the days of challenge as I had to push a little to get this one out. Loved it today and soreness has gone down a little from 2 days back as well. :0)
31/3/2011
Went and done my very first cycle route i did over Blithfield Reservoir to see how much I have improved and managed to do 34.29 miles in 2hours 12mins with an average speed of 15.5mph. It was so windy though so had a bit of a workout heading into the on coming wind but still pleased with results. :0)
2/4/2011
Today I went out with the lads and broke the 100 mile barrier. So So pleased but So So tired at the same time lol. We sort of did bits of all the routes above with loads of loops in the ride. Bit windy and cold in the morning but sun came out in the afternoon and the layers of clothing starting to come off later in the day. Brought a gel saddle cover just incase but it stayed on the pannier and didn't use it, the other cyclist wanted to lob it over the hedge as it's not cool in the cycle community apparently lol should of put in on really :0) . In all though we managed to do 104.28 miles in 6hours 16mins with an average speed of 16.6mph . Did a max speed of 37.4mph when I over took them all but that was only because I took them by surprise. They soon over took me though , making it look like I was standing still :0( . Had one stop at 70 miles for a well earned bacon and egg sandwich :0) . Need more stops i think when we do the JOGLE as my legs feel like jelly at moment with a few aches and pains but all be worth it in the end. :0) :0) :0)
04/04/2011
Went out today over to Uttoxeter way. Started off mild then went windy and rain started to fall . Wind was blowing the rain hard into my face and a waterfall was forming off my helmet , with no water proofs on either :0( . I was about 25 miles away from home so had to grin and bare it . My average was above 16mph before then but it soon dropped , giving me a taster of what it is going to be like on bad days of our journey. It did stop after about 20 mins giving me chance to dry off but started again on the last 10 miles towards home. Oh yes dropped phone so stopped to pick up and yes thick me again forgot about cleats and fell beside a ditch .Why oh why do I still do it after all this time :0( . Lucky no cars was about so no pride lost and quickly got back on bike. I managed after all this 55.87miles with an average speed of 14.6mph in 3hours 50mins . Was glad to be back but I think next time remember my water proofs and listen to the forecast :0) .
06/04/2011
Lovely evening so we decided to go out on the bikes . Went towards Ashbourne going through Sudbury, the weather was superb and decided to go around the back of Measham and Pete did a bit of a detour for a bit of hill climbing (more like a mountain though :0( ). The sun was out and there was no rush. Managed to do 67.9 miles at a brisk 14.7mph average. All together it took 4hours and 37mins.
09/04/2011
Absolutely loved today . Infact I didn't know that we had such outstanding views so near on our own doorstep. Today was I pure hill climber. Pete and Richard wanted to do this as part of there training for the Dragon run in Wales. Richard was stopping quite near anyway in his camper van with his family , just below what they call The Roaches. We decided to put the bikes in our cars and set off to where Richard was stopping. We climbed our way up towards Buxton and turned off to a HUGE hill called The Cat And The Fiddle and the reason for the name was because a pub on the very top before the decent was call The Cat And The Fiddle :0) . Was so tempted to stop for a pint but they just cycled past :0( . After the decent it was what seemed to be more climbing than ever. With the odd flat and little decent on the way we made our way past Buxton then another route taking us back towards The Roaches. We did do a stop halfway at a cafe for lunch :0) . It felt as though we had done 100,s of miles but going up these HUGE hills our average got pushed down as the speeds was not going much above 6mph. My legs did take a beating , the tendons at the back of me knees felt tight and started to ache :0( . I did enjoy it all the same though and it sort of gave me a taster of what we will expect on our JOGLE journey , especially through hilly Devon and Cornwall . We managed 55.9 miles , an average of 13.1mph in 4hour 17 mins in the saddle. Painful but well worth the training :0) .
On the way to The Cat And The Fiddle
12/04/2011
Mixed some routes together today and decided to head towards Burntwood over the Chase then into Lichfield to Kings Bromley and then into Fradley. I did go for a spinning class as well just before at the gym. Finished a bit early as had Mercury newspaper coming over to cover the story of our journey so in all managed a distance of just 32.8 miles at an average of 16.2mph in 2hours 2 mins . Small ride but pleasing results :0)
13/04/2011
Had an hour to spare just before taking our little soldier to hospital so went for a blast out on the bike. 48 minutes later got back home and managed 13.8 miles but at a good average of 17.1mph. Wonder if I could do that on a 30 + miles ride ?? . I,ll have a good go next time :0)
16/04/2011
Today went out with Pete and Richard and headed towards the back of the Weavers towards Ashbourne and then decided to cycle through the national park over there. Another very outstanding day with views to match. The camera kept coming out at every opportunities I could get , infact I sort of had a feeling I was on a tourist holiday lol. One hill we climbed was a monster but I had a plan that I would let them go first then let them get tired before we reach the top and then unleash my extra bottom front cog and overtake them at last minute :0) . So I did and chain came off and being again stuck to bike with cleats I had no choice but to fall side ways in a babbling mess :0( . I heard laughter then "can't stop were on a hill", they did however stop at the top for me but by then my pride was very much dented with my failed attempt lol. We had a stop at a beautiful setting over looking a hillside for a cup of tea and a bite to eat before we set for home over the national parks. Really enjoyed today and also managed to overtake the two of them coming back through Sudbury on the flat reaching around 38mph :0) . The end result with lots of hill climbing was 86.6 miles at an average speed of 15.1mph in 5hours 45mins in the saddle. Splendid day and really fallen in love with cycling :0) .
Forgot where this was but breath taking none the less :0)
Superb downhill . At last its all flat :0)
Half way up hill after fell off . Serves me right for trying to race Pete
and Woody up the hill :0(
18/04/2011
Today we decided to go towards Uttoxeter taking our normal route through Fradley , Alrewas , Kings Bromley, Hill Ridware, Abbots Bromley . Five miles before Uttoxeter we took a left into Kingstone then headed towards Hixon to Coalwich , Great Haywood , Tixal, Milford . We climbed a hill into Brocton where I took some superb pictures of a family of Deer grazing on the chase. We carried on to Pie green and decided to stop off at Brindley Heath for a bite to eat. After a 15 min break we headed towards Slitting mill over the chase and climbed out going up Stile Cop hill into Upper Longdon , from there we headed back into Rugely but turned off just before to head over Blithfield Reservoir. Over the Reservoir we then went back into Abbots Bromley but decided to turn left just after to into Hoars Cross to save repeating some of the route. After that we headed towards Kings Bromely and back towards Fradley through Curborough and back home. Weather was spot on for cycling and enjoyed the different route we took :0) . Managed 83.7 miles with average speed 16.0 mph in 5hours 14mins.
British wildlife at it's best :0)
Today we decided to go towards Uttoxeter taking our normal route through Fradley , Alrewas , Kings Bromley, Hill Ridware, Abbots Bromley . Five miles before Uttoxeter we took a left into Kingstone then headed towards Hixon to Coalwich , Great Haywood , Tixal, Milford . We climbed a hill into Brocton where I took some superb pictures of a family of Deer grazing on the chase. We carried on to Pie green and decided to stop off at Brindley Heath for a bite to eat. After a 15 min break we headed towards Slitting mill over the chase and climbed out going up Stile Cop hill into Upper Longdon , from there we headed back into Rugely but turned off just before to head over Blithfield Reservoir. Over the Reservoir we then went back into Abbots Bromley but decided to turn left just after to into Hoars Cross to save repeating some of the route. After that we headed towards Kings Bromely and back towards Fradley through Curborough and back home. Weather was spot on for cycling and enjoyed the different route we took :0) . Managed 83.7 miles with average speed 16.0 mph in 5hours 14mins.
22/04/2011
Set off today in the afternoon so decided a nice flat course into Market Bosworth. Started by going into Whittington , Elford , Clifton Campville , No Mans Heath , Orton On The Hill , Twycross , Bilstone , Market Bosworth , Barten In The Beans , Back into Bilstone , Sheepy Parva , Orton On The Hill , Newton Regis , Seckington , Thorpe Constantine , Clifton Campville then back into Whittington and back home, The weather was great again but the only thing I can say is that we may of stopped to long on our break as my legs went to sleep and never seemed to wake up on the last 30 miles on the way home. Bit of a struggle but got there in the end. Overall we travelled 67.3 miles at a average speed of 16.1mph in 4Hours and 10mins . Still glad I went out and this time and took more note of my route. :0)
29/04/2011
Went out today on a planned Monster ride and didn't,t feel up to it . This I think was my worst ride out , not due to the course we did but due to me. As you can see I had a bit of a break in-between because kids were off school and food take outs were more frequent with day outings thrown in. The same with the gym as well as that took a back seat . The first thing I did two days ago was to get back into the gym and book 3/4 hour spin class with 30 min on the exercise bike and finished with hour and a half doing chest , back and stomach exercises in the main gym. Then the day before the cycle I did the same with extra sit ups and extra weights on the bench press . With me this is normal as I go into guilt mode when coming back to gym after a break. I try and make up with what I have missed out on the last few days but this was the first time I had done it with a big cycle the next day . . .BIG BIG mistake as I found out :0( . Started off in the morning feeling aches and pains all over body and even said to partner that morning I didn't feel up to it but as it had been planned and meeting place set up I thought should be ok when I get into it, maybe I can cycle through the pain barrier and be ok after 20 mins or so. I Couldn't of been more wrong :0( . First 20 miles felt awful and got left behind so many times, seemed like i was playing catch up all the time . Normal hills seemed 100 times steeper and was forever dropping it down to my bottom front cog. 30 miles in and Pete and woody stopped and waited for me to catch up. They sort of knew some thing was up at the start and by this time asked if I was ok I told them that my heart and body wasn,t in it today and first time in the history of my cycling I was thinking of calling it quits today and heading back home :0( . The thing though as they explained is that if I was to go back now with the 30 miles I had done and the 30 miles back that would be 60 miles so see just to see how I go and they would reduce speed and tweak the miles down a bit. I did carry on but also felt a bit of guilt as well for holding them back , also they were on top form today so more guilt. Anyway it was painful but carried on and cycled to Carsington Water , turned left towards Middleton , Longcliffe , then cycled towards Ashbourne but diverted towards Bottomhouse , into Cheadle and then to be honest after that I took no notice of the route as I was done in and body just went into limp home mode. I remember Pete stopping at one point asking me if I wanted to take a photo of a beautiful scenery but I think I replied @'#)(! the scenery and would of probably lobbed my camera at it anyway lol . Also before all this I had fallen off my bike down a lane having to stop for a farmer turning into a farm, I did unclip left cleat to balance bike by putting left foot down but I leaned to the right for some reason and as that was attached still and had no choice but to plummet to the ground in a babbling mess again :0( . Woody did say he would buy me some stabilizers due to the amount of time I spend on the floor chewing gravel . Infact I think I should start another sponsor form instead of my JOGLE ride and get people to sponsor every time I fall off , think I may get more money that way :0) . Anyway back to the ride >>>>> LOTS and LOTS and LOTS of hills later and four 750mls bottles of juice with a shade of miles taken off the ride we did get home and hats off to Pete and Woody they did wait for me and were very patient and was sorry I had held them back. To top it off just for good measure as well ,when turning into my road near the Dr Johnson pub a friend Dean called me over with my daughters best friend in hand and asked how I was and how many miles I had done , I told him and my words sounded slurred due too how tired my body felt at this point. I made my excuses to get off and as I did he asked me how's my kids and partner , with this I stopped to answer but ...NOT AGAIN I forgot I was clipped in and WOLLOP I was on the floor again :0( . With lots and lots of people around I picked myself up quickly . Dean did ask if I was ok but as soon as he knew I was ok that concerned voice soon turned into bellows of laughter , infact he said his belly was hurting and had never seen anything so funny in his life. My pride hurt but chuckling to myself I headed towards home first limping then a slow ride with my chuckles turning into whimpers as the pain set in my knee, i also noticing blood seeping through my trousers . So with a small gash in my knee , body drained of every ounce of energy and feeling like a prize prune with what had just happened , I returned home to tell the whole story to my partner . One good thing was the chinese meal i had waiting for me when i got back :0) .
The best bits of the day were :- (1) The nice town we stopped in for lunch (2) The Sausage roll and poached eggs on toast I had. (3) The clear roads we had to cycle on due to the Royal Wedding that was on . (4) I did it and still lived to tell the tale :0) .... The bad bits :- (1) All above :0( ..... Lessons learnt :- (1)Do not doing an immense workout at the gym before a monster ride. (2) Do not fall off infront of crowds or people I know :0).
All in all though I managed 102.1 miles with an average speed of a spot on 14.0 mph in 7.17mins. Very very tired and was glad this one was over :0(
Took a couple of pictures at start but reminded me how far we had come and how far we had to go :0(
Weyhey a downhill :0) to go with the 50 plus uphills we had :0(
4/5/2011
Did the first bike ride I did at the start of my training which was Fradley, Hansacre, Rugeley, Over Blithbury reservoir but instead of turning right into Abbots Bromley I did a left towards Uttoxeter and then a left hand turn towards Kingstone to loop back towards Abbots Bromley around the back of Blithbury reservoir , into Abbots Bromley, Hill Ridware, Kings Bromley, Alrewas , Fradley, back into Lichfield . Today’s weather was just right and managed 46.2 miles in 3hours at an average speed of 15.4mph. Looking forward to cycling out with Richard in 3 days time who I’m doing the John O’Groats to Lands End cycle with. :0)
7/5/2011
Went out with Richard (Rider No 2) today and decided to show him some proper hills and boy did he suffer lol. Never did it on purpose but as an eye opener as he has no hills where he lives. Off we set into Fradley then onto the A515 towards Ashbourne but turning left off the a515 into Sudbury, into Doveridge then we turned left at the island towards Montgomery, Marston then over cross roads into Rocester , Over the river into Ellastone then at the junction we turned right onto the B5032 towards Mayfield but then took a left into Stanton but this was a BIG HUGE CLIMB and was a real test for Richard :0) sweating puffing panting and nearly chucking up we reached the top. Oh I forgot to say that fromSudbury Stanton Lichfield . Home at last :0). Richard did say it was a bit of an eye opener but was glad he had done it. In all we were cold tired and still damp but we were please that we made it with weather against us and still able to tackle the hills with a decent mileage. We did an impressive 75.2miles in 5hhrs 45mins in the saddle at an average 13.1mph which isn’t that bad if you consider the wind against us, the hills and the rain :0)
11/5.2011
Decided to do a cycle with Pete today. The weather threatened to rain a few times but only managed to dish out a few spots as we diverted away from the gloom of the clouds. Can't remember the exact course we did but all I know it was around the Market Bosworth area that we had done in a previous cycle. Not a bad ride and managed 61.2 miles in 3hours 50mins at an average speed of 15.9mph :0).
12/5/2011
Today I wanted to do the same route I did with Richard (Rider No 2). In fact it was the same as the rain started in Sudbury and the wind got up to speed and I had not brought me wet gear again as the weather said 19 degrees :0( . I got so soaked and wanted to ring home for partner to pick me up but the problem was I took a wrong turning and was lost me self :0(. Where I went wrong was aboveStanton
Richards favorite . The last bit of Stanton hill :0)
16/5/2011
Same route as above. Today was dry and cloudy but the winds were up still and I had to battle against on coming winds sometimes. Not a bad ride and was dry so a lot happier. Managed to do 70.7miles in 4hours 48mins at an average speed of 14.7mph. :0)
Threatning rain . View before dropping down into Ellastone.
17/5/2011
Decided to do the same route again as I love theStanton
19/5/2011
Not a good ride today as a disaster happened :0( Went out with cyclist Pete and decided to do the Cheadle route I normally do backwards but with some alterations on the way. Started off by going through Fradley then going towards Hoars Cross and into Abbots Bromley. From then we headed towards Marchington then somehow by going through loads of lanes I’d never seen we ended up on the A522 in between Uttoxeter and Cheadle. Into Cheadle we had that 3 mile climb out that I normally fly down on my normal route :0( It seemed to go on for ages and had a good long deserved rest at the top near the cross roads where Ellastone meets up coming from stoke. We then decided to take the road going back down the climb towardsAlton Towers Thorny Lane Burton Hospital
Painful but fixed up a treat :0)
21/05/2011
My bike was taken to the bike shop for a service yesterday and to get gears set up just in case that was the reason why it threw the chain. Today decided to take my chunky mountain bike out instead as the other will not be done until Tuesday. We went out towards Market Bosworth but only for a short ride. The bike I was on felt like I was riding on a Bouncy Castle with a bag of spuds attached, seemed I was constantly pedalling like a mad man and was always trying to play catch up with Pete with no avail. The bike was clearly made for off road and with the wide tyres I might have well bounced around. The ride was not enjoyable at all and cycling with just two fingers and a thumb on my left hand was not the best of things to do, also bad finger started to throb with pain a bit :0( . This ride was a short 61 miles and no other readings as computer on other bike which is still in shop for a full service before the big Journey :0)
25/05/2011
Went out today for my last time before the big day, only did a 60.5 mile run at an average of 16.1mph in 3hours 46mins. Went towards Market Bosworth which was a pretty flat but the winds held us back , on one road particular we normally top 24 /26 mph but on this day with winds we could only do 11mph :0( but what a work out . And there you have it all training done and looking forward to the JogLe journey :0).
I would like to thank all of you for your support up to now and in particular Pete and woody who has been a big part in training me up. Also a big thank you to Kerry (The spin class tutor) for the champagne cakes and music choice she held for me today in spin class lol. And the most important the biggest thank you to my partner Sarah who has organized it from the start, making mine and Richards training a lot easier to concentrate on.
I will open a new Blog for the actual journey and description pictures and videos will be updated daily as we go along. Many thanks again and byeee for now from my training blog :0)
Set off today in the afternoon so decided a nice flat course into Market Bosworth. Started by going into Whittington , Elford , Clifton Campville , No Mans Heath , Orton On The Hill , Twycross , Bilstone , Market Bosworth , Barten In The Beans , Back into Bilstone , Sheepy Parva , Orton On The Hill , Newton Regis , Seckington , Thorpe Constantine , Clifton Campville then back into Whittington and back home, The weather was great again but the only thing I can say is that we may of stopped to long on our break as my legs went to sleep and never seemed to wake up on the last 30 miles on the way home. Bit of a struggle but got there in the end. Overall we travelled 67.3 miles at a average speed of 16.1mph in 4Hours and 10mins . Still glad I went out and this time and took more note of my route. :0)
29/04/2011
Went out today on a planned Monster ride and didn't,t feel up to it . This I think was my worst ride out , not due to the course we did but due to me. As you can see I had a bit of a break in-between because kids were off school and food take outs were more frequent with day outings thrown in. The same with the gym as well as that took a back seat . The first thing I did two days ago was to get back into the gym and book 3/4 hour spin class with 30 min on the exercise bike and finished with hour and a half doing chest , back and stomach exercises in the main gym. Then the day before the cycle I did the same with extra sit ups and extra weights on the bench press . With me this is normal as I go into guilt mode when coming back to gym after a break. I try and make up with what I have missed out on the last few days but this was the first time I had done it with a big cycle the next day . . .BIG BIG mistake as I found out :0( . Started off in the morning feeling aches and pains all over body and even said to partner that morning I didn't feel up to it but as it had been planned and meeting place set up I thought should be ok when I get into it, maybe I can cycle through the pain barrier and be ok after 20 mins or so. I Couldn't of been more wrong :0( . First 20 miles felt awful and got left behind so many times, seemed like i was playing catch up all the time . Normal hills seemed 100 times steeper and was forever dropping it down to my bottom front cog. 30 miles in and Pete and woody stopped and waited for me to catch up. They sort of knew some thing was up at the start and by this time asked if I was ok I told them that my heart and body wasn,t in it today and first time in the history of my cycling I was thinking of calling it quits today and heading back home :0( . The thing though as they explained is that if I was to go back now with the 30 miles I had done and the 30 miles back that would be 60 miles so see just to see how I go and they would reduce speed and tweak the miles down a bit. I did carry on but also felt a bit of guilt as well for holding them back , also they were on top form today so more guilt. Anyway it was painful but carried on and cycled to Carsington Water , turned left towards Middleton , Longcliffe , then cycled towards Ashbourne but diverted towards Bottomhouse , into Cheadle and then to be honest after that I took no notice of the route as I was done in and body just went into limp home mode. I remember Pete stopping at one point asking me if I wanted to take a photo of a beautiful scenery but I think I replied @'#)(! the scenery and would of probably lobbed my camera at it anyway lol . Also before all this I had fallen off my bike down a lane having to stop for a farmer turning into a farm, I did unclip left cleat to balance bike by putting left foot down but I leaned to the right for some reason and as that was attached still and had no choice but to plummet to the ground in a babbling mess again :0( . Woody did say he would buy me some stabilizers due to the amount of time I spend on the floor chewing gravel . Infact I think I should start another sponsor form instead of my JOGLE ride and get people to sponsor every time I fall off , think I may get more money that way :0) . Anyway back to the ride >>>>> LOTS and LOTS and LOTS of hills later and four 750mls bottles of juice with a shade of miles taken off the ride we did get home and hats off to Pete and Woody they did wait for me and were very patient and was sorry I had held them back. To top it off just for good measure as well ,when turning into my road near the Dr Johnson pub a friend Dean called me over with my daughters best friend in hand and asked how I was and how many miles I had done , I told him and my words sounded slurred due too how tired my body felt at this point. I made my excuses to get off and as I did he asked me how's my kids and partner , with this I stopped to answer but ...NOT AGAIN I forgot I was clipped in and WOLLOP I was on the floor again :0( . With lots and lots of people around I picked myself up quickly . Dean did ask if I was ok but as soon as he knew I was ok that concerned voice soon turned into bellows of laughter , infact he said his belly was hurting and had never seen anything so funny in his life. My pride hurt but chuckling to myself I headed towards home first limping then a slow ride with my chuckles turning into whimpers as the pain set in my knee, i also noticing blood seeping through my trousers . So with a small gash in my knee , body drained of every ounce of energy and feeling like a prize prune with what had just happened , I returned home to tell the whole story to my partner . One good thing was the chinese meal i had waiting for me when i got back :0) .
The best bits of the day were :- (1) The nice town we stopped in for lunch (2) The Sausage roll and poached eggs on toast I had. (3) The clear roads we had to cycle on due to the Royal Wedding that was on . (4) I did it and still lived to tell the tale :0) .... The bad bits :- (1) All above :0( ..... Lessons learnt :- (1)Do not doing an immense workout at the gym before a monster ride. (2) Do not fall off infront of crowds or people I know :0).
All in all though I managed 102.1 miles with an average speed of a spot on 14.0 mph in 7.17mins. Very very tired and was glad this one was over :0(
4/5/2011
Did the first bike ride I did at the start of my training which was Fradley, Hansacre, Rugeley, Over Blithbury reservoir but instead of turning right into Abbots Bromley I did a left towards Uttoxeter and then a left hand turn towards Kingstone to loop back towards Abbots Bromley around the back of Blithbury reservoir , into Abbots Bromley, Hill Ridware, Kings Bromley, Alrewas , Fradley, back into Lichfield . Today’s weather was just right and managed 46.2 miles in 3hours at an average speed of 15.4mph. Looking forward to cycling out with Richard in 3 days time who I’m doing the John O’Groats to Lands End cycle with. :0)
7/5/2011
Went out with Richard (Rider No 2) today and decided to show him some proper hills and boy did he suffer lol. Never did it on purpose but as an eye opener as he has no hills where he lives. Off we set into Fradley then onto the A515 towards Ashbourne but turning left off the a515 into Sudbury, into Doveridge then we turned left at the island towards Montgomery, Marston then over cross roads into Rocester , Over the river into Ellastone then at the junction we turned right onto the B5032 towards Mayfield but then took a left into Stanton but this was a BIG HUGE CLIMB and was a real test for Richard :0) sweating puffing panting and nearly chucking up we reached the top. Oh I forgot to say that from
11/5.2011
Decided to do a cycle with Pete today. The weather threatened to rain a few times but only managed to dish out a few spots as we diverted away from the gloom of the clouds. Can't remember the exact course we did but all I know it was around the Market Bosworth area that we had done in a previous cycle. Not a bad ride and managed 61.2 miles in 3hours 50mins at an average speed of 15.9mph :0).
12/5/2011
Today I wanted to do the same route I did with Richard (Rider No 2). In fact it was the same as the rain started in Sudbury and the wind got up to speed and I had not brought me wet gear again as the weather said 19 degrees :0( . I got so soaked and wanted to ring home for partner to pick me up but the problem was I took a wrong turning and was lost me self :0(. Where I went wrong was above
16/5/2011
Same route as above. Today was dry and cloudy but the winds were up still and I had to battle against on coming winds sometimes. Not a bad ride and was dry so a lot happier. Managed to do 70.7miles in 4hours 48mins at an average speed of 14.7mph. :0)
17/5/2011
Decided to do the same route again as I love the
19/5/2011
Not a good ride today as a disaster happened :0( Went out with cyclist Pete and decided to do the Cheadle route I normally do backwards but with some alterations on the way. Started off by going through Fradley then going towards Hoars Cross and into Abbots Bromley. From then we headed towards Marchington then somehow by going through loads of lanes I’d never seen we ended up on the A522 in between Uttoxeter and Cheadle. Into Cheadle we had that 3 mile climb out that I normally fly down on my normal route :0( It seemed to go on for ages and had a good long deserved rest at the top near the cross roads where Ellastone meets up coming from stoke. We then decided to take the road going back down the climb towards
21/05/2011
My bike was taken to the bike shop for a service yesterday and to get gears set up just in case that was the reason why it threw the chain. Today decided to take my chunky mountain bike out instead as the other will not be done until Tuesday. We went out towards Market Bosworth but only for a short ride. The bike I was on felt like I was riding on a Bouncy Castle with a bag of spuds attached, seemed I was constantly pedalling like a mad man and was always trying to play catch up with Pete with no avail. The bike was clearly made for off road and with the wide tyres I might have well bounced around. The ride was not enjoyable at all and cycling with just two fingers and a thumb on my left hand was not the best of things to do, also bad finger started to throb with pain a bit :0( . This ride was a short 61 miles and no other readings as computer on other bike which is still in shop for a full service before the big Journey :0)
25/05/2011
Went out today for my last time before the big day, only did a 60.5 mile run at an average of 16.1mph in 3hours 46mins. Went towards Market Bosworth which was a pretty flat but the winds held us back , on one road particular we normally top 24 /26 mph but on this day with winds we could only do 11mph :0( but what a work out . And there you have it all training done and looking forward to the JogLe journey :0).
I would like to thank all of you for your support up to now and in particular Pete and woody who has been a big part in training me up. Also a big thank you to Kerry (The spin class tutor) for the champagne cakes and music choice she held for me today in spin class lol. And the most important the biggest thank you to my partner Sarah who has organized it from the start, making mine and Richards training a lot easier to concentrate on.
I will open a new Blog for the actual journey and description pictures and videos will be updated daily as we go along. Many thanks again and byeee for now from my training blog :0)
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