A summary of this week's trundlings so far; thankfully for the tedium-averse my crap memory has probably edited out a lot..
Monday brought a lovely, sunny morning and a correspondingly pleasant ride in. The ride back was pretty nice too; extended out to about 14 miles albeit with some disappointingly tough / defeatest time on the rings.
Tuesday's journey in was dominated by a surprisingly nice drive - no tailgaters, nobody hammering past on the dual carriageway and cutting infront on the brakes; everyone chilled, attentive and respectful for a change. The only outlier was yet another BMW soft-roader that pulled out infront of me; not dangerously so but close enough that there was a speed difference when I reached them... however this was on a straight, clear bit of road so I just knocked it down a couple of gears and sailed past
I remember awaking quite anxous however felt tangibly better for the ride in.. while I'm sure sitting in traffic on the ring road in the car would have had the direct opposite effect.
Unfortunately the trip back wasn't so great due to the near-constant rain and sporadic, heavy showers. I just wanted to get it out of the way so gave the pub a miss and set off on the most direct route in a period of relative calm; pre-emptively clad in the "waterproofs".
By half way through it'd got a lot heavier and everything was soaked; although once on the last bit of tow path it had eased right off again and I stopped to trim a few more errant brambles - their growth now apparently slowed by the diminishing servings of light and warmth.
A bit further on I passed the summer's previously encountered hot redhead and her unconcerned black lab (who were both as drenched as I was); our interactions this time extending to a brief exchange of vocal greetings
While I'd initially thought she might have been a resident it seems she only passes through; and today her boat was once-more absent from last night's mooring..
This morning I was up at 6 thanks to my crap bladder; attempting to use the time productively by sticking my still-wet shoes in the airing cupboard and waxing yesterday's chain, which had gone decidently ginger and squeaky.
Another lovely morning and pleasant ride that involved some more trimming at the Yarnton end of the tow path. This elicited an acknowledgement from another cyclist I pass regularly from the other direction who apparently also sometimes does similar; as well as an "I wondered who was doing that" from a female-fellow-Brompton rider which was very much appreciated - nice to know that others actually notice the fruits of my efforts.
No sausages today as my digestion is utterly shafted so I'm trying to give it a break with a fast. Was a bit too late to do the extended loop so satisfied myself with a nice chilled ride and a bit more trimming; made more fun by the fact that most was over head and covered in water; rewarding my efforts with a little shower every time I severed another stem..
I managed to avoid the rain but left the bike outside the office; only to find it'd got quietly soaked without me noticing.. so it looks like the chain might be going in the oven when I get home.
Weather looks variable for later so I guess I'll have to take it as it comes.. for now I've just largely been happy for the opportunity to get out in not-utterly-terrible weather while I still can..
although tonight's forecast is similar .
