I was forced to stay home this weekend, specifically within easy reach of the toilet, but managed to get some decent rides in during the week.
On Wednesday I got the train from Taunton to Castle Cary and cycled home via Sherborne, clocking up 72 miles of hills, descents and cake. I'd hoped to avoid the rain but it was a bit wet in the morning - not enough to water the crops or gardens but more than enough to leave the roads greasy just as I was approaching some decent downhills.
Behaved myself but managed 38mph down Rock Hill which (kind of) made up for it.
Stopped at the War Memorial in Sherborne. Had to play with the settings as the light wasn't helpful and neither was the proximity of the road, hence the odd angle.
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Thankfully these clouds were heading in the opposite direction to me:
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I caught a glimpse of this view as I was merrily making my way along the flat and slammed on the brakes to go back for a better look. An elderly couple passed in their car and stopped to see if I was ok, having seen my bike abandoned on the verge.
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That was my longest ride for a while so I don't know what inspired me the following day to get up and do it all over again, accumulating 68 miles over the Quantock Hills and surrounding countryside. My sit bones were vigorously complaining by the time I got home. Actually, no - they started with 20 miles to go.
Once up in the hills, I stopped to admire this herd who were loving the good weather and plentiful supply of grass:
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Saw this lady and thought of
@skudupnorth
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I've no idea why this church in the sleepy Somerset village of Stogursey was flying the Saltire.
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Once my sit bones started to make their feelings known, I opted for the easy way home and headed along the Bridgwater-Taunton canal instead of back over the hills. It's not really the easy option as the surface is horrible, especially on the road bike, but it's flat. I actually couldn't stand it for more than a few miles so as soon as I could, I left it once I'd bypassed the worst of the climbing and took to the tarmac once more.
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I was absolutely shattered by the time I got home but knew it was worth it as my total for the year to date crept up to a shadow over 4000 miles.