Why I don't like cycling on busy - or main - roads

I don't like cycling on main - or busy - roads. We live in a lovely wee rural village however, unless we put the bikes on the roof of our car and head off somewhere else, we have no option but to ride on some fairly busy main roads. None of which have cycle lanes.

We're allowed to do that. There isn't a law against us cycling on the roads. But lots of people are irritated by the fact that bikes are allowed to share the roads with cars. And that's absolutely fine.

It's absolutely fine not to like stuff, or to feel irritated by things.

I myself hold my hand up to sometimes feeling irritated when I see a cyclist up ahead when I'm behind the wheel of my car...I also sometimes feel irritated when I see a tractor up ahead, or (I'm not proud to admit) occasionally even a learner driver. Tsk, I have to slow down and wait (im)patiently for a safe opportunity to pass and add a whole probably nothing on to my overall journey time! What a pain!

But, just because I feel irritated doesn't mean I do stuff that might kill the person on the bike, or in the tractor or behind the wheel of the learner car.

Sadly, there are a few folk who are a bit more than irritated and they deliberately try to edge cyclists off the roads. They really don't like cyclists. They hate that cyclists are on the road and want to push them off! I was in the back of a taxi one evening and the taxi driver told me that he deliberately drives too close to cyclists because he 'fucking hates cyclists'. So, I know that these people do exist.

But most people aren't like that. Thankfully. I'm sure that even most people who 'fucking hate cyclists' don't try to knock them off their bikes.

There are some people whose irritation turns to frustration and they'll lose sense of when's a safe opportunity to pass a bike. They might wait, then get fed up waiting and squeeze between the bike and an oncoming car. That's scary when you're the one on the bike.

And there are lots of people whose irritation doesn't turn to frustration. They wait patiently for a safe moment to pass and genuinely think they're leaving enough space when they overtake and would be horrified if they knew that they'd actually nearly knocked a cyclist off their bike and possibly nearly killed them.

I was probably one of those folk before I started cycling. I had no concept of what was a safe distance to leave between my car and a bike when I was overtaking*. My bad.

Of course, there are lots of drivers who always leave a big gap between their car and the bike they're passing. Thank you all! I love you!

This morning a driver nearly knocked me off my bike. It was really scary. I didn't fall off but I wobbled, a lot. The thing is that the driver, I like to think, probably wasn't deliberately trying to knock me off my bike while he was speeding past me on a big wide road with plenty of space to move out. He probably just didn't realise that he was so close. Or, he maybe did realise that he was close but thought that the teeny space between us was a safe enough distance to leave.

I really hope he wasn't someone who hates cyclists so much that he deliberately tries to knock them off their bikes. I hope he wasn't that taxi driver on his day off.

I'll never know. But I do know that it was a pretty close call and I do know that if he'd been a smidgen closer I would've been off my bike. I might have been writing here tonight about some pretty nasty injuries I'd sustained.

Or I might not have been here to write a post at all.

And that's why I don't really like cycling on busy - or main - roads.

* According to the Highway Code you should 'give vulnerable road users at least as much space as you would a car'

Why Cycle Africa? Reason 1: Safari

It's nine weeks today till I fly out to Tanzania to take part in the Women V Cancer Cycle Africa challenge. Help ma boab!!! To take my mind off thoughts such as: 'I've not done enough training...Help!' and 'Will I collapse in a heap in the heat..?' and 'Will my bum be hardy enough...?', I thought I'd focus instead on some of the reasons why I decided to attempt this challenge in the first place, one blog post at a time:

Reason 1: Safari!

I'm sure I'm not the only person who's signed up for a challenge with a bit of an ulterior motive behind it, but I do feel a wee bit guilty about this one! I mean, of course I want to raise money for three superb cancer charities, raise awareness about signs and symptoms and push myself with a long bike ride in the process - but it was the word 'SAFARI' that really attracted me to this challenge.

I've wanted to go to Africa to see the big wild animals for as long as I can remember.

When I was little I'd ask my mum and dad if we could go on safari, but it was just a wee bit out of their price range, so a trip to Blair Drummond Safari Park and a cone in Callander had to do.

When I got older, going on safari was still really out of my price range, and my dear other half's heart was never really in it anyway, or my children's:

'You don't fancy going in a big aeroplane to see lions and elephants and monkeys and giraffes doing their thing out in the wild...??' '

'No mum, why would we want to do that when we live a mile from Blair Drummond and can see lions and elephants and monkeys and giraffes doing their thing from our car then have a shot on the bumpy slide and then have a cone in Callander..??'

This goes some way to explaining why none of my kids were ever really bothered about having a pet...

So, when I was cajoled into having a look at the 'Cycle Africa' challenge by some of my WvC pals who'd already signed up, I didn't really pay much attention to the part that said, '...350km in challenging conditions over sometimes difficult terrain...' or the part that said, '...you have to raise a minimum of £3000...' or '...you'll need all sorts of jags that are sore and cost a few bob...' or '...you'll wild camp...!!' and so on and so forth.

But, I did see 'Africa', 'raising awareness', 'cycling', and, of course, 'SAFARI!'

It was a done deal.

I am, of course, paying for the one day safari *myself and I'm really hoping that seeing some of those big animals out in the wild will live up to the dream I've had ever since I was a wee girl - and, of course, be just a wee bit more exciting than a day trip to Blairdrummond...

*Just to reassure everyone who donated their hard earned coffers - all of the cash you donated went straight to the charities and none of it's paying for any of my costs, such as travel, bike hire etc :)

Two muddy days in a row

At last, I made it out on my bike for two days in a row for the first time this year. Hooray! Even though they weren't the longest of rides, I found them both quite tough.

Saturday's cycle was a really short one (8 miles round trip to the next village from ours for a pint) and Sunday's was just a wee bit longer (22 miles round trip from Callander to Mhor 84 for a coffee and scone) but they both involved a fair bit of rain and mud. And pedalling though the mud - especially when it's uphill and especially when you're on a hybrid with not-so-serious-grip - makes for a fair old work-out! The pint/coffee/scone were essential for keeping the energy levels up...

I might not have cycled very far, but I do feel like I managed a fair bit of training. And, I did have a fair bit of fun in the mud along the way...

Ploughing through the mud for a pint

A longer outside cycle at last

An outside cycle at last

Parkrun walking

I love the whole concept of Parkrun. If you're not familiar with the initiative, it started in 2004 by a guy called Paul Sinton-Hewitt when he set up a regular 5k Saturday morning timed run in Bushy Park, London.  The run was open to anyone, it was free and organised by volunteers. The idea was such a good one that it soon spread, and one event became many all around the UK. Within a few years, Parkruns were being set up all over the world and now there are over two million registered global Parkrunners.

The events are still all set up and organised by volunteers, and still free. As long as you're registered on the Parkrun site and you've been given your own unique barcode, you can turn up at any Parkrun in the world on a Saturday morning and run. And, usually within an hour or so of your run, your 5k time is available either by text or by logging on to the Parkrun website.

There's a degree of friendly competitiveness between some of the runners, but these events are for anyone, at all levels of fitness. Some people take under 16 minutes to finish, some take over 40. It really doesn't matter. It's all about your own goals, your own challenge - and simply being out in a park in all weathers on a Saturday morning with a bunch of like-minded folk. And, it's all about feeling like you're part of the global Parkrun family - whether it's your first or fifty first run. We've been to a fair few parks on a Saturday morning over the course of the past few years, all over the UK, and we've always found the people to be friendly, welcoming and encouraging - whether we're in Scotland in a park close to home, or a wee bit further afield.

I'm not a registered Parkrunner because I don't run. I usually tag along just to be out in the fresh air, have a wee wander, watch the running fraternity in my family and give the runners a wee cheer on. But, these past few weeks I've been getting a bit more involved and I've been briskly walking while the runners run. I've been logging my distance and time on Strava and trying to push myself on to be a little bit faster each week (no, I'm not serious about stats, honest...!). Yesterday morning in Perth I even found myself pushing on with a little jog towards the end of my walk (I'm not really supposed to run but sometimes it's just too tempting!!) - and it's the first time in all the years of going along to the Parkruns that I've actually felt like a bit of a Parkrunner.

So, the next step in my training plan might just be to register for a barcode and actually join in with the Parkrunners on a Saturday morning! We'll see. First, I'll need to check that the volunteers wouldn't mind hanging on a bit longer for their well deserved coffee and cake at the end of the event while they wait for a newbie Parkrun walker to cross the finish line...

Spinning some not-so-serious stats

Well, that's January been and gone and I didn't sit on my saddle outdoors once. However, I did manage to do some other bits and bobs of training that should hopefully boost my effort to be fit enough to meet the Cycle Africa challenge in June:

• Spinning:  14 classes (approx 11 hours of sweaty burling to the beat)
• Other Classes: 2 Body Balance (hardly worth mentioning, but 2 hours is 2 hours!)
• Walking: 6 Park Walks plus various other short walks (approx 22 miles of wanderings)
• Morning Gym: 8 mornings (approx 2 hours - major fail - of creaking and cracking)
• Turbo Trainer: em, 15 minutes... (going red in the face for listing this one, but 15 minutes is better than no minutes...!!)

So, it's not exactly elite athlete stuff, but then, I'm not an elite athlete.

And I'm not too worried that I've not been outside on my bike once yet this year (the last time was a gloriously muddy cycle on Christmas Day with Alex and Ross) - I'm paying no heed to those members of the cycling fraternity who hold the view that you're not really a cyclist unless you're out in all weathers at all times.

I guess my attitude is that if you sit on a saddle and pedal you're a cyclist - whether you do it sometimes or all the time, in nice weather or all weathers, to win races or to fetch the paper.

And, as you can see from my 'stats', my record-keeping pretty much matches my attitude to training: I seriously want to do it, but I don't want to take it too seriously.

Having said that, I've stuck my 'training calendar' up on the fridge and I'm gravitating towards the highlighter pens...watch this space for a much more colourful - and maybe even a wee bit more serious - February fitness file!

Having a spin-tastic time

So, I've become a bit of a Spin Freak over the past couple of weeks. Since the beginning of January I've been to 11 spin classes. I said in a previous post that I much prefer cycling outside, but I'm actually getting just as big a buzz from being indoors; spinning and sweating in the semi-dark beside 39 other folk burling their legs and swiping their brows in time to the loud and catchy beat beside me!

It's a different kind of not-so-serious time in the saddle, but it's great fun - and great cross-training - all the same.

Other training over the past couple of weeks has consisted of a couple of 'Park Walks', some Morning Gymnastics (as predicted previously, definitely not every morning!!) one very short session on the turbo trainer and a couple of body balance classes.

I'm pleased to be nearly at the end of January and still as keen to train - the new year burst of motivation is hanging on in there! And, with this mild weather we've been having of late, I might even venture outside on my bike very soon!

Though, it might be hard to find the time to fit that in while I'm having such a spin-tastic time...!

Morning Gymnastics in a cooler climate

I've mentioned in previous posts a place called Club La Santa. It's a holiday come sports resort in Lanzarote and our family fell in love with both the resort and the island when we first went there in 2006. I can't relate to the 'Lanza-grotty' reputation that this beautiful little island seems to hold for some. La Santa sits on the north coast and its surrounding volcanic landscape, crashing waves, sandy beaches, rocky outcrops, hills, sunsets, sunrises, little villages, local people, sea-food and, of course, the plethora of sports in the resort itself are just some of the many reasons why we love it.

One of the staples of La Santa Sport is 'Morning Gymnastics'. The name's a wee bit misleading as it's really just a dynamic stretch routine, and you definitely don't have to be an inspiring Olga Korbut to take part!  Every day, guests at La Santa gather by the pool at 8am and follow the same 15 minute routine set to the exact same music that they've been using for the past 30 odd years!

Now, some may think it a bit sad, but sometimes I do Morning Gym at home. I only had to download the music (from an old video of the routine I found on Youtube) as I know the moves off by heart. Over the years, I've gone through phases of doing it in our living room religiously every morning to not doing it at all.

But, now that I'm training for Tanzania, I intend doing Morning Gym every morning. OK, that won't happen. Now that I'm training for Tanzania I intend doing Morning Gym as often as possible. It's a great way to stretch everything out and a great way to start the day. Especially when another member of the Milne clan joins in, as sometimes happens!

Some days, like today, it might be the only training that I do. But something's better than nothing - even if that means playing to the same tune every single morning...