I used to post fairly regularly, but it's only once in a while now that the notion takes me. So, this might turn out to be my first and last blog post for a while!
Since I last wrote, I've started working part-time with Breast Cancer Care which (ironically) meant I had to pull out of the Women V Cancer Cycle Africa challenge in October. Consequently, I kind of lost my cycling mojo a wee bit and haven't clocked up very many miles. However, the few miles that I have clocked up were bagged in some really lovely places and I thoroughly enjoyed every one of them.
Action for Charity, who organise the Women V Cancer challenges, let me defer my place and I'm now very much looking forward to cycling in Tanzania in June - with the glorious added benefit of learning from the experiences of all of my friends who were there when I should've been there last October! The consensus seems to be that the ride was very much tougher than expected. So, I'm aiming to be as fit as possible before I travel to Africa. I'd like to be well prepared for the heat, the distance, the off-road tracks, the lack of sleep, the big hills and anything else that Tanzania decides to throw at me!
I think I'll try to keep a record of my training exploits here during the course of the next 6 months. Like all best laid plans I might not stick to it and, even if I do, it might not make the most interesting read! I'm not going to get too hung up on the prettiness of the prose! It's more about simply sharing my experiences and thoughts as I go along. My bletherings might be of interest to nobody, but it might give me more of an incentive to keep my training up! That's what I'm hoping.
Having a quick look back at last year, I didn't cycle all that often, but when I did I was usually somewhere lovely and usually having a blast. Alex and I decided to make the very most of our 50th birthday year - no big parties but, plenty of lovely get-togethers and adventures with family and friends, a couple of special holidays, some great weekends away and some fantastic rides in fantastic places.
Last year threw us some not-so-great stuff too, but there usually does tend to be some brutal to go with the brilliant. That's just life, and I guess it's what makes celebrating life all the more essential! And, that's something that I do take pretty seriously!
We started our #HavingFunAtFifty last February (I know, I know...succumbing to the hashtag...) when Alex turned 50 and we intend dragging it out for as long as we possibly can!
I thought I'd jot down my favourite 2015 rides (some short, some tough, some at home, some abroad - but all a whole lot of fun):
March
Grand Canyon South Rim - 9.4 and 12.3 miles
Ventura Pacific Coast - 15.2 miles
Monteray - 11.4 miles
Golden Gate Bridge and Sausalito - 18 miles
April
Kippen - 7.6 miles
Bridge of Allan - 25 miles
Kippen - 7.6 miles
May
Glasgow/Bowling canal path - 27.3 miles
Tay Forest/Aberfeldy - 32 miles
Kinbuck - 7.6 miles
Women V Cancer Ride the Night, London - 62.2 miles
June
Birnam/Dunkeld trails - 13.1 miles
Kippen - 8.6 miles
Strathyre/Killin - 32.8 miles
North Third - 14 miles
Round Arran - 59.5 miles
July
Barra - 8.8 and 24 miles
Marlow - 28.2 miles
August
Loch Katrine - 26 miles
Bridge of Allan - 23.5 miles
Coll - 16 miles
Tiree - 14 & 23 miles
December
Lanzarote - 21.4, 27.1, 13.7 & 21.6 miles
Christmas Day at home - 8 miles
Some of my ultra running friends probably ran more miles in a month than I cycled in a year! I definitely need to up the mileage! But, in doing so, I'll be making sure that the pleasure's not taken out of my cycling as I don't ever want it to become a chore.
So, the training kick-starts tomorrow. Come on 2016, let's be having you!
What a lovely preparation for the journey ahead. I have no doubt that you will practice and put as many miles in that you can but I imagine that it is just as important to believe that you can do it, and I know you have oodles of that, which helps you get through just about anything. Your anon pal
ReplyDeleteThanks pal :)
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