Your ride today.... (part 1)

[ColinJ]

Get well soon. 4000 hilly miles await, @ColinJ !

Cheers!

I am on the mend but it will take a while. It is a pretty nasty bug. I don't think it is bad enough to be flu, but it probably isn't a cold either because my nose isn't affected. Very odd ...

 

[Gravity Aided]

Quite. Best wishes on a full recovery.

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

I knew I should not posted that ... I picked up a nasty bug on my family Christmas visit. I didn't eat or sleep much for nearly 3 days and even now have lungs full of gunk and feel weak and wobbly. No point in messing about riding in icy conditions when I feel like this, so that is my riding done until early in the NY, whenever I feel ready.

Target for 2014: 3,650 hilly miles, 10 miles a day. Achieved: 3,619 miles, 9.92 miles a day.

Not a bad effort considering my recent health history!

Target for 2015: 4,000 hilly miles, an average of about 11 miles a day.

Sorry you're feeling rotten. Definitely the right decision not going out in the icy weather until you've thrown it off.

Good that you got so close to your target and I hope you'll hit the 4000 easily next year.

 

[13 rider]

Short 20 mile loop around wood house eaves and swithland in leistershire in very cold conditions but in glorious sunshine . stuck to fairly main roads due to the icy conditions roads not to bad .bit hairy descending beacon hill staying in the narrow tyres track avoiding the slush in the middle of carriageway .first ride since Xmas nice to blow the cobwebs off and combat the excessive of Xmas. Also had to test ride my cycling socks from Santa(did you know Santa now shops at aldi) socks seem to work ok

 

[dan_bo]

Quick but cold 25 in the near-saddleworth.

Very dicey descending back into foggy Manchester.

 

[Jon George]

Typical - yesterday I begin to feel the effects of the cold after an hour, so, after sticking my head out of the door and deciding it is even colder today, I put on an extra layer. And you've already guessed it - after five minutes I began to overheat! So, I slowed down. Good job, too - there may not be snow on the ground here, but there's some tricksy patches of ice under the shadows. Still, it was lovely 21 mile ride.
The view from near Barham church. (For those of you not familiar with Suffolk, those things in the distance are what we call hills.)

A farm at Henley.

 

[i hate hills]

A first in ages trip out for me today. A 2 to 3 mile pottle around the town. Enjoyed it apart from the biting cold.

 

[Goonerobes]

Much like everyone else today it seems, I managed to find ice on the roads that I took, although in part it was my poor choice of route that was to blame.

To give the sun a chance to melt some of the frost I left it until after lunch before heading out into what started as a bitterly cold breeze on the more open roads, however, once in the cover of the trees it didn't seem as bad & being a lightweight southern softie I was pretty well wrapped up.

I started heading north & into the breeze, up through Landford, Hampworth & Lover (pronounced Lowver by the locals) before crossing into the Hale & Woodgreen areas of the forest which is where the ice problems started as I hadn't ridden this area in the winter before & didn't realise that it was going to be so shady. With much of it on single track descents with blind corners & ice it really was a test of character on whether & when to apply the brakes so this area will be avoided until the cold snap is well & truly over!!

Once back on the more major New Forest roads I was "gritted" twice by the gritter lorries which kind of amused me & with 32 miles on the clock I went home smiling & looking forward to a nice turkey curry.

http://www.strava.com/activities/234167780

One of a few icy descents undertaken today.

Even at 2pm with sunshine there was still plenty of frost in parts.

 

[Glow worm]

I knew I should not posted that ... I picked up a nasty bug on my family Christmas visit. I didn't eat or sleep much for nearly 3 days and even now have lungs full of gunk and feel weak and wobbly. No point in messing about riding in icy conditions when I feel like this, so that is my riding done until early in the NY, whenever I feel ready.

Target for 2014: 3,650 hilly miles, 10 miles a day. Achieved: 3,619 miles, 9.92 miles a day.

Not a bad effort considering my recent health history!

Target for 2015: 4,000 hilly miles, an average of about 11 miles a day.

Sorry to hear that Colin but well done on the miles. I reckon every mile you do there is worth about 6 here in the flatlands!

If it's any consellation, I've been struck by the manflu and unable to go out since Christmas Day. It meant I couldn't see my parents as planned as my Dad's just out of hospital and couldn't risk exposure to any bugs. All in all a crap Christmas but here's to a better 2015! All the best.

 

[PatrickPending]

My ride yesterday again, 67Km down to Monks Kirby, taking in Willoughby Waterleys, Gilmorton, Bitteswell, Ullesthorpe, Claybrooke Parva and Magna, Frolesworth, Ashby Parva, Leire, and then off back. Average temp of 1.1C - bit chilly, did the ride on my hybrid too but such a bright sunny day it had to be done. Photo of the church at Monks Kirby.

 

[Joshua Plumtree]

Face full of grit or salt from a passing lorry on my return ride from the gym this afternoon. Strangely reassuring!

 

[Supersuperleeds]

My ride yesterday again, 67Km down to Monks Kirby, taking in Willoughby Waterleys, Gilmorton, Bitteswell, Ullesthorpe, Claybrooke Parva and Magna, Frolesworth, Ashby Parva, Leire, and then off back. Average temp of 1.1C - bit chilly, did the ride on my hybrid too but such a bright sunny day it had to be done. Photo of the church at Monks Kirby. View attachment 75508

I did a fair bit of that ride on Saturday and today as well.

44 miles in the cold and ice today, leaves me just shy of 70 miles to finish the Rapha festive 500.

http://www.strava.com/activities/234107743

 

[totallyfixed]

Very envious of you lot! Rutland is still snowbound, impossible to even get out on the road we live on, no gritting has been done here except on the major roads. Perhaps just as well as dr_pink has been down with cough and cold which has almost run it's course so we will attempt a short ride tomorrow, I did 50 mins on the rollers and that will have to do. A flavour of what Oakham looked like at 4pm today, first one is our allotment, second is looking out from the allotment.

 

[ColinJ]

Sorry to hear that Colin but well done on the miles. I reckon every mile you do there is worth about 6 here in the flatlands!

If it's any consellation, I've been struck by the manflu and unable to go out since Christmas Day. It meant I couldn't see my parents as planned as my Dad's just out of hospital and couldn't risk exposure to any bugs. All in all a crap Christmas but here's to a better 2015! All the best.

Thanks.

I hope you and your dad are feeling better soon, and yes, let's all hope for a good 2015!

My younger sister made a remark which suggested to me that she thought there was an element of 'manflu' about what I had, which I thought was ironic given that I caught it off a woman (sister #2), who caught it off another woman, and both of them were also laid out by it! Kid sister said that she would just carry on if she caught it ... I think not - I didn't even have the strength left to tear open the packaging of a soluble paracetamol tablet, so I had to cut it out with scissors!

(I am definitely on the mend now though. My muscles have stopped aching and I am finally sleeping through the night again. The old lungs are still congested, but at least I have my appetite back. My sisters knew I was rough when it took me 3 days to eat a modest Christmas dinner, instead of wolfing down a huge one on Christmas Day! )

I'm looking forward to getting back on my bike once the ice has gone and I have stopped coughing.

 

[cosmicbike]

Following my 30 miler earlier in the week, I was left with only 17 miles needed to hit the revised 2400 mile target for the year. Out by around 9 this morning, took it very carefully until I got to the main roads as it was a bit slippery. Struggled to get going, but after 14 miles I felt warmed up enough to pick up the pace a bit. First time out in my new MW81 winter boots, and pleased to report nice warm feet throughout the ride. Stuck to the main roads to start with before ambling into WGP, stopping at the Guards Polo Club to take a photo of a horse

Apparently a gift to Guards Polo Club from La Martina (they run the shop next door) on the bicentenary anniversary of Argentina in 2010.
24 miles by the time I got home, and with a planned group ride on New Years eve I reckon I'll hit the 500km mark for the month too.