Sponsorship total

Dear all that have sponsored me over these last few months, please accept my grateful thanks on behalf of myself and Guide Dogs for the Blind.

I have with your help far exceeded my initial £1,000 target and in cold hard cash have raised a total of £2,842 which when gift aid is added will mean that in excess of £3,000 will have been raised for Guide dogs.

Many thanks once again

Racing

Highlights and Hindsights

So to conclude this epic adventure and after a period of reflection, I have put together below my highlights from the Jogle and also a short bit about what worked and what didn't and in some cases what I would have done differently with hindsight.

Highlights (in no particular order as all the "good" TV shows seem to say):

1. The allround friendliness of all the people I met on the way, especially those owners of B&Bs who welcomed a weary traveller with such openness and genuine care, the guys I met in the various youth hostels, and in particular those who shared their meal with me at John O Groats when all I had was a meagre few bits of Pasta acquired from the Hostel because the local shop was shut. Special mention must go to Sheila at Bromyard and the guys at Higher Trezion in Camelford

2. The amazing feeling of seeing the sea again just shy of Camelford for the first time since I had left it behind in the far north of Scotland and realising I was close to fulfilling a long held ambition.

3. The Scenery:

From the Highlands of Scotland, Loch Ness and Loch Lomond, and the view looking back down Glencoe,

From the Lowlands, the tree tunnels in the rain above Dumfries and the beauty of the area around Stair,

From the North of England, Carlisle, the border sign just after Gretna, Ullswater, the view back down Kirkstone pass towards Patterdale and the view forward ,looking over Windermere, and in its own peculiar way the beauty of the Runcorn bridge.

From the middle of England, the towns of Shrewsbury, and Ledbury, the peculiar racecourse, golf course arrangement at Ludlow and the views of the Cotswolds.

From the South of England, Bath, the view after climbing for what seemed liked miles over Wells, Glastonbury and beyond, the beauty of the Sea around St Ives, and of course the sight of Land End.

4. The comic moments, such as the looks I got in Tescos at Wick as I strode in for breakfast avec plastic carrier bag overshoes, The fording of numerous streams in the same overshoes with feet in mid air, hoping I made it to the other side, my arrival in Bath to be greeted with 56 stairs to climb to my room, and my near death experience with a golf ball at Launceston or the time somewhere around Tiverton where I passed a sign saying 4 miles to go and then having crossed a bridge that was about 50ft across passing a sign proclaiming 1 1/2 miles to go.

5. All the wildlife I saw, from the numerous buzzards, hawks , herons, etc, to the rabbits, foxes, stoats and various other short legged animals which crossed my path, to the various assorted tourists of which I was one.

6. The feeling of achievement when I conquered Glencoe and in particular Kirkstone Pass.

7. watching the boats go through the lock at the Caledonian canal in Fort Augustus.

8. And inevitably being greeted by my family at Lands End

Hindsights:

What worked from the planning:

1. The booking of the accommodation in advance helped enormously as it gave me the chance to have a definite goal each day and I didn't have to find accommodation at the end of each day. (It was still possible to be flexible - Glencoe being a great instance).

2. Booking the train tickets as early as possible (especially from Inverness to Thurso as there are only 2 bike spaces on each train).

3. The individual maps of each day culled from the largest road atlases I could find, on the whole worked well, though they did lack detail in the major town centres.

4. The amount of kit I took - basically two sets of clothes and a set for the evenings, also the one essential tool was the roll of gaffer tape.

5. Apart from two small problems with signal, using my phone as camera and blogging device worked fine (though you do need someone able to post it for you).

6. The trial days fully laden within training (especially the one were I spent all day in the rain climbing Holme moss and Snake pass) proved invaluable experience and motivational proof that I could cope.

What didn't:

1. Using large scale maps in town centres and in particular entering a town and stopping to sight see or eat as all sense of direction is easily lost.

2. The route using the Runcorn bridge, although practical and can be done, is not a pleasant experience and there is no hiding place from the traffic, nor did there appear to be an alternative route using quieter roads.

3. Pushing lunch further back in the day because you don't feel you are as far on as you should be! The day I pushed on to Stroud instead of lunching at a sensible time in Gloucester is a good example where my legs had had enough shortly afterwards just because I hadn't refueled appropriately.

4. On my daily maps etc I didn't note how far I expected the days ride to be, so in some instances particularly early on I had no idea whether I was near to the finish or not ( eventually I managed to be able to roughly stadge that my map pocket on my bar bag was about 10 miles across and work it out from there).

Others:

So what did I learn from this experience, when you think that I expected it to test me to the limit, give me time to think about the future, and prove to be a big adventure of the kind schoolkids everywhere dream about.

Well it did test me, physically cycling for 70 ish miles a day is not easy especially over hill and dale and at time and time my language as I "encouraged" myself to climb those big hills at the end of the day was somewhat colourful. The splitting of the ride into stages helped, though towards the end I was tiring and to some degree fed up with riding each day.

I have however proved that I am relatively fit as most days I covered the ride in a reasonable 8 hrs or less and was able to get up and do the same thing again the day after.

I've also proved that I can read a road map and successfully negotiate this country of ours safely.

I did find that it was a great adventure, and that the people I met along the way were genuinely interested in what I was doing despite in some circumstances having a very hard time of it themselves. I also noticed that in some senses you can if you wish travel the country almost unnoticed, and as such there is no wonder there are so many "missing" people in the country.

I would say that I didn't have time to ponder my future or anything else as at 70 miles a day you have time to ride , eat and at the end of the day, find something to eat and then sleep.

So if you want to do the ride and see a little more of the country and you are unsupported, take a little longer so your mileage per day is a little less.

One thing I learnt was that when you are travelling and you see a "big " hill in the distance don't worry too much as generally the gradient is far less than you think when you actually get there.

I also learnt that if you seem to be climbing for mile after mile, very soon the inevitable downhill will appear and then your legs will get chance to rest for a while.

I found I had a few basic golden rules which I generally stuck to and they stood me in good stead, firstly have a good breakfast, then stock up on snacks for the day at the nearest shop and for me I ensured I had a larger snack, flapjack or the like every hours riding and something smaller ( a biscuit or piece of fruit )every half hour along with a short stop for lunch, though getting started again after lunch was always a problem if I stopped for more than 30 mins. I then finished every day with a bottle of lucazade sport or the like.Also try and stop for lunch around your normal lunch hour which for me is between 1 and 2pm.

Some days inevitably you feel tired, and don't seem to be getting anywhere fast, just accept it and after a few hours you will come out of the other side, and remember if you have had a particularly bad day, because this is such a long ride, tomorrow inevitably will be totally different.

Remember the sun cream, you will have seen from my blog that even though most of the country has almost drowned under flood water I seemed to dodge the bulk of the rain and when you add the wind over Caithness you will almost inevitably get burnt (especially the tops of your ears) if not appropriately protected.

Would I do it again? you can never say never, but it may be a while,

Should you do it as a solo adventure? well as with everything if you can cope with your own company for a fortnight and have the support of everyone around you then it's fine and I found that side of things never bothered me. At times it would have been good to have someone to drag me over those hills or to the end of the day, but choose your partner(s) well and stick together to make life easier for all of you.

So that's just about all I have to say, other than if you are reading this and are thinking of doing the ride and want to ask me anything please do, and I'll try and respond fairly promptly

THANKS

To finish I would like to thank very sincerely all those who have supported me in any way upon this great adventure, from those of you who have helped raise the sponsorship, to the people along the way and of course most of all to my top team and family who without their support and belief in me this whole thing would not have been possible.

I am deeply indebted to you all

Racing

well and truly jogled

So at 10.56 am i crossed the finish line at Lands End and can now say for all time that I have jogled. The weather was mixed but the greeting was fab I will reflect later on the momentous happenings of the past fortnight.

Final stats 19.85 miles 2.17.20hrs 8.6mph 30.0mph total miles end to end 1009.7 total time 110:08:22 with no punctures.

Mission Accomplished...

...or so we hear!

Reports have been circulating of a man cycling into the sea at Lands End and disappearing into the distance. Rest assured that this was not 'the snake' and that he has successfully completed his mission.

As is always the case the final piece of the jigsaw has disappeared and in this case the blame rests squarely at the hands of the mobile phone operators who have yet had sufficient request for coverage in and around Lands End. Our request for the Racing Snake to 'get on his bike' were met with what could only be described as a 'tirade' and as such the saddle sore hombre will be posting his final part later today.

So near and yet so far!

Stats 61.65 miles 7.23.06hrs 8.3mph 37.0mph 989.8miles 107:51 02 hrs and so my friends you find me a mere 20 or so miles from my destination. After a good breakfast I have meandered my way down the north coast of Cornwall, amused myself by seeing how fast I could go fully laden merely by free wheeling, quite a scary speed to look back on 37mph. And sauntered up a number of testing climbs. I have encountered a few showers but mostly it has been overcast but dry. The scenery at times can be stunning that is if you can see over the field hedges! I spent a few moments this evening watching the sea whilst a busker played his harp for the throng and suddenly realised I was physically and mentally tired which probably means I have been exercising for too long! Forgot to mention yesterday my near death experience when a stray golf ball from Launceston golf club hit the road at some velocity a mere yard and a half in front of my wheels. Good job I didn’t need to react to get out of the way. Anyway it has been reported that the rest of my team has safely landed in Cornwall a mere 12 or so hours after they set off due to the horrors caused by all this flooding. Therefore as long as my bike my legs my brain etc all function we should all be reunited at lands end. Wish me luck!!

Hills and a glimpse of the sea

First things first happy 1st birthday Archie Sam daddy cant wait to see you on Sunday to have party tea! Anyway to the days events which saw me leaving Tiverton under cloudy skies and despite a fairly level start climbing rapidly, well the hill did I made rather slow laboured progress as befits a person close to the end of Jogle. It was a succession of steady climbs all the way to Okehampton where I decided enough was enough and dismounting in disgust went for an early lunch. The day was clearing slowly and a watery sun gradually made its mark. I did watch the rain fall on Dartmoor from a distance. After lunch I carried on again up a continuing succession of hills to Launceston where I finally crossed the border into Cornwall a mere 13 days after leaving John O Groats. Close to the end of a physically tiring day I was briefly refreshed by a glimpse in the distance of the sun shimmering off the sea. I also rode on a road through an old World War II airfield which was a little surreal. I struggled due to trying to be clever to find my B&B so my stats today are officially poor. My last full day of the Jogle begins tomorrow which is quite a strange feeling now that it has finally arrived. To end stats 73.35 miles, 8:30:43 hrs, 8.6mph, 31.0mph, 928miles, 100:27:56 total time.


ps it now looks like the way I have done it will exceed 1000miles so you good people who have sponsored me by the mile had better be getting the old copper jar out for the odd pence you will owe!
ld

Hills and fast roads.

Stats 72.87 miles 7.14.25hrs 10.0mph 33.0mph 854.6miles 91:57:13 hrs Today began with another sun filled morn and a difficult getting out of bed feeling. I was a little stiff in the knees but managed to roll down all those steps to breakfast and boy was I glad I did as I was to be enlightened as to how a real English breakfast should be. Having partaken of organic cereal I was asked whether I would like an egg? Ignoring the number of answers which actually came to mind I replied in the affirmative and was duly served a piece of toast upon which was carefully arranged a fried egg also upon my plate were a sliver of tomato and a rasher of bacon! Needless to say I was underwhelmed by this but in the interests of research ate it. Having said my goodbyes I began my day with a number of long uphill climbs with plateaus of fairly level road inbetween until shortly before Wells I emerged to a rapid descent and a view for miles across Wells, Glastonbury and beyond towards Taunton. At Wells I ventured to the cathedral to have a look see but baulked at the asking price of £5.50 and didnt venture inside. From here I passed through Glastonbury but despite searching couldnt find the arctic monkeys. I was going to take a photo of me by the towns name sign until I realised that it had a smaller sign underneath pointing to me with the word cemetery on it! I continued and passed the worlds end pub which kind of beats Lands End but seeing as I have a date for Sunday it seemed a waste to finish there! Anyway got to Tiverton in record pace overall to be greeted with the comment car crime is a big problem at the moment round here, so its to be hoped my bike is secure! Otherwise it may be shanks pony for me from here to the end.

Sunny days

stats to begin 75.48 miles 8.00.20hrs 9.4mph max 31.0mph total 781.7miles 84:42:48hrs. What began under a lightly clouded sky turned into a scorcher which for racing snakes is not necessarilly a good thing as hydration levels are difficult to maintain especially when travelling country lanes many a mile from shops and watering holes. Sun tans looking good though though a tad ridiculous due to half tanned hands arms and legs and sun glasses lines across my cheeks I'll leave the images to your imaginations! My first port of call was Ledbury and a pretty little town it was too, I then meandered my way to Gloucester passing through a lot of the area we visited on holiday a couple of years back. Having negotiated Gloucester (which with hindsight I should have had lunch at) I pressed on up a horror of a hill to Stroud which all in all was a bit of a nondescript town trying to be a bit arty but with too many unemployed kids hanging around. Having eaten I carried on up another steep hill out of Nailsworth by which time my legs were not thanking me for my choice of lunch. Anyway the sun kept beating down a light breeze keeping the sweat from my brow regular applications of sun cream were made, its a hard life mid jogle. Gradually I climbed over the Cotswolds and eventually wended my way to my accomodation to be greeted with a warm welcome of 56 steps and six flights of stairs to my room. Then I was knackered so I had a cup of tea and an eco friendly shower. Heres hoping the sun shone on you where ever you are. Till the morrow!

Better days

And so my friends you find me this evening sat in a fantastic farmhouse ploughing my way through steak and mushroom pie multiple veg and rhubarb crumble and custard. Following on from my lunch as shown I think no one should have any concerns over my eating enough! Today I set off under cloudless skies but soon ran into a couple of nasty short sharp showers and took the chickens way out and waited till they had abated before moving on. My first major calling point was Shrewsbury, which is a very picturesque old tudor type of town and looked to have plenty to see for a more detailed visit sometime. Here I saw the only other cyclist I saw all day (exiting a bike shop). I then wended my merry way through numerous back roads in rainy climes. Along the back roads one particular one had a number of fords across bulging streams, the sight of me feet off pedals wearing carrier bag overshoes and hanging on grimly must have been at least a little comedic!I ploughed on stopping for lunch at Church Stretton and then made my way to Ludlow. At Ludlow I witnessed the extraordinary arrangement which is the race course and golf course combined with a B road running through the middle. Who gets priority and when was beyond me. From Ludlow I made my way to Tenbury Wells where my road to Bromyard was blocked due to the river having burst its banks and flooded half the town. The diversion took in a couple of big hills just for good measure but even that can't put off a good day. Forgot to mention chased a hare down one of the lanes but obviously racing snakes aren't as fast as tortoises as it got away. Stats 73.36 miles 7.55.47 hrs 9.2mph 27.0mph 706.2miles 76:42:28 hrs

Long days and the lovely Runcorn bridge

Stats 83.87 miles time 9.34.52 av speed 8.7 mph max 26.5mph total miles 632.8 total time 68:46:41. Well thats day 9 finally finished. A day that in all truth I had not been looking forward to saw me wake to a sun filled sky, and I set off for the likes of Runcorn and Chester with good cheer. The first few miles where through pleasant countryside though my legs were trailing me a little as tiredness was never far away. After the first 15 miles I realised this was not going to be a quick day and so lowered my gears accordingly. I soon began to reach the more industrialised parts of the ride and a greatly increased amount of traffic mostly finding myself riding on the hard shoulders of fast dual carriageways. Which is mentally draining, I then came to the Runcorn bridge at which I had to dismount and walk across the pedestrian bit. Now I am not fond of heights and so found this tough forcing myself to keep going and not look down . Anyway I crossed to be met with a large obstacle being that the road I needed was going right and to get there I would have to cross 3 lanes of fast flowing traffic. So I abandoned and went for lunch. Having eaten I slowly found a way to said road and crawled my way through Chester and beyond. My progress was very slow and the sun cracking the flags just this once didnt help. Anyway having spied a fish and chip shop I took advantage of their goods before finally making the last few miles to Hordley. I am now going to bed to try and recover, an exhausted man! 6 stages to go now, I am lower in the country than home so I definitely must be past half way which gives me hope that I can get to the end on Sunday! Ttfn Racing

Detours and uninvited guests.

Today having been awoken by the early morning sunshine over lake Windermere and after being plagued by the snores of the chap in the bunk below during the night, I set off again downhill only to find it very rapidly became an ascent for the first 5 miles or so. However shortly afterwards the lie of the land became a more stable set of low rolling hills as I wended my way towards Lancaster. I passed through the village of Holme, presumably named so after the village not more than 10miles from the pie village. Shortly afterwards I was joined by a friendly local cyclist who rode with me for the best part of 5 miles. He told me that in the 30 or so years he had been riding that area I was the first end to ender he had ever met! My pace over the 5 or so miles he stayed with me was noticeably quicker and I think I definitely paid for it towards the end of the day. He predicted I would get very wet by the end of my ride but I have to say that apart from a short half hour pour it down session it has been topping up the van kind of weather. I arrived unhindered in Lancaster in time for luncheon, and set off again with high hopes of getting out alive from the awful one way system. Have to say failed miserably and equally failed to negotiate Preston successfully at the first attempt. However I have arrived from a rather dull scenery and sights sort of day though I did see some of metal detectors searching a field and was a buzzed by a micro lite which was coming in to land. So thats day eight done it's becoming harder each day for myself and my team to hold it together and not abandon it to be together and I know we all appreciate the help being given directly to Caroline and the boys at home and as such indirectly to me. Stats. 74.22miles 7.34.22hours av speed 9.8mph max 27.5mph total dist 548.8 total time 59:11:49

Border crossing and guests.

Today has been a good day, not only have I crossed the border leaving Scotland behind something I did early this morning by 9.30, I had the pleasure of guests along the way. This gave me a bit of a boost as with the wind behind me I had flown the first nine miles. From then on I travelled fairly rapidly to Carlisle and then onwards south. Post lunch I gradually ground my way slowly to reach Ullswater from where I headed through Patterdale onwards to the Kirkstone pass. Now if that isn't on the list of hills to climb before you die, add it now it's not particularly long but it is deadly being between 1 in 7 and 1 in 5 for the majority of its length. I had arranged to meet my guests at the Kirkstone inn but due to a mix up in communication and some rather pressing engagements with shopping establishments the racing Danny and Jonny show actually met at Windermere youth hostel. Once I had quickly spruced up we retraced my wheels to said inn and over a couple of beers (coke for me) and a plate of food spent a pleasant couple of hours at peace with the world. It was great that these guys made the time to give me a boost in this way and I am honoured they are my friends even if Jonny needs his tom tom to direct him anywhere! Only jealous of his new toy. Anyway about halfway now next major target is chester the day after tomorrow. Stats : distance 64.37 miles time 7.03.39 av speed 9.1mph max speed 29.0mph total distance 474.5miles total time 51:37:27

Friday the 13th!

And now at the end of today, day 6 is complete, I have now spent my last full day in Scotland and like a set of good quality book ends the weather has matched perfectly. In other words it has rained rained and rained some more from about 2pm this afternoon. Needless to say, I got a little damp! The day started in sunshine and after a hearty breakfast I began with a short sharp hill as a wake up call, have to say it didnt work. My mind was not with my legs and in gear for forward motion until around the 3 hour or 25 mile mark. Suprisingly my average speed was hovering around 8.5mph even so. However I fought my way through this patch by literally just accepting it and riding it out. During this period I had been steadily climbing on a number of long winding roads and despite the scenery being pleasant and reminiscent of the Yorkshire Dales it had nothing to grab your attention like the highlands and then the rains came and all I saw were raindrops and wet roads. Initially I had a long period of downhill through a myriad of tree tunnels which Oliver would have loved. Then the rest of what became a long day was basically flat. I arrived at my destination in Annan at about 7.30 having done over 77 miles in the day. One thing I forgot to mention in the highlands were the large number of signs with the following message: road liable to icing. Is it my general state of mind or does anyone else get a picture of workmen rolling marzipan with a big tate and lyle lorry full of icing sat patiently waiting to be spread perhaps with a couple of specialists adding a range of sugar flowers to the verge as a finishing touch amongst the little silver balls. Anyway enough, stats for the day : miles 77.32 time 8.18.53 av speed 9.3 mph max speed 30.5mph total miles 410.1 total time 44:27:48

Paisley and beyond

I'll start at the end of last evening when I had a meal in a converted church. It gave me an idea for what Sean could set up for New Mill church as alternative evening services. Whilst there the remarkable human race showed itself again as the head waitress who looked healthier than I did (not difficult at the end of a days ride) had had a brain tumour less than 10 months earlier. Made me think the jogle is a walk in the park in comparison. So after a restless night due to my room being close to nuclear fusion heat wise I set off under cloud filled skies alongside Loch Lomond passing the international golf tournament where a polite policeman advised me to use the ploughed field described as a cycle path rather than the road, as he stopped me to let the pressing ranks of amateur golfers cross the road. Having followed his advice and got lost down a dead end I decided he could coco and returned myself to the relative safety of the highway.I continued onwards passing through various small towns and the travel lodge in Dumbarton which has the lowest shower in the world (when Bevan and I passed through years ago I had to virtually lay down to wash my hair under it). I then crossed the Erskine bridge passed Glasgow airport and despite one or two minor detours passed through Paisley before having lunch at a small place called Neilston. I then joined the beginnings of the lowlands and sauntered onwards to my final resting place for the evening at the Stair inn. Stats for the day are Distance 68.34 miles time 7.03.38 av speed 9.6 mph max speed 29.0mph total distance 332.8 miles total time 36:09:55

End to enders

For a change lets do the stats first. So todays distance 53.87 miles time 5.20. 17 av speed 10.0mph max speed 29.0mph total distance 264.4miles total time 29:06:17 so after a sumptious full breakfast I set off from Glencoe under a cloud filled sky and climbed steadily upwards towards the summit . It took me about 1 hour and ten minutes in nothing less than eighth gear which surprised me a little as I thought I would be in a very small gear. Having clambered my way to the top and paused briefly to mop the rivers of sweat from my cleavage and check all bodily parts were still with me, I happened upon a chap going the other way who had left Lands End 7 days ago, he asked how far to go and when I told him 220miles a broad grin broke across his face, he seemed to think he was nearly there! He offered to tell me how far it was the other way but I politely declined his kind offer. A mile and a half down the road I passed his mate gamely still plodding on up the hill There is a lot to be said for lone riding when your mate abandons you like that. Anyway I continued merrily on my way and began to see a plethora of end to enders and other assorted tourers. The route although undoubtedly scenic had little to offer in the form of entertainment so left to my own devices I amused myself with assorted melodies from paint your wagon, oliver and my fair lady in my usual harmonious way! At around the 26 mile mark I reached Bridge of Orchy and had originally planned to have lunch here but decided to continue to the next village. A wise choice with hindsight as I killed the last hill of the day and all before lunch. From here on in it was level or downhill all the way passing alongside a sunkissed Loch Lomond all the way toTarbet. I missed my accommodation initially as multimap is about a quarter of a mile out! So that is the highlands done, tomorrow sees me across the Erskine Bridge on my way to Stair, so far my legs are ok just a little saddle sore. Ttfn

A day of positives.

The day began with a dull cloudy sky and the long open road of the great glen before me. Having obtained supplies sufficient to see me through the morning at least I set off alongside Loch Ness. The road although a tad hectic at times and in places quite rough was a pleasant rollercoaster ride of gently undulating hill and dale. As such I made relatively good progress through Invermoriston to Fort Augustus where I was distracted by not only the views across Loch Ness but also for a fascinating 20 minutes watching 5 boats making their way through the locks of the caledonian canal. From Fort Augustus where I may just have seen nessie I continued apace to Loch Lochy. Whilst Enroute I had my wits shattered and tears brought to my eyes by the raf flying 100 feet or so above my head on their training runs. I had lunch sat by the side of Loch Lochy which was pleasant though I do believe a fine seafarer did watch me through his binoculars whilst Afloat for a while (suspicious looking characters racing snakes you know). After luncheon I plodded on and spent a good 15 minutes watching a buzzard circling its nest calling its young just before I got to spean bridge where iI called to see the commando memorial before I headed off via Fort Bill to Glencoe. I am currently blogging from a b & b as the thought of a 3 mile round hike from and back to the youth hostel to get food just wasn't a pallatable thought after a hard days ride. Stats: distance 70.91 miles time 7.30.58 av speed 9.4mph max speed 26.0mph total distance 210.5 miles total time 23.46.00 all in all a day of positives! Tomorrow the first mammoth test Glencoe!

When in rome

I awoke to a beautiful clear sun blessed sky and although clouds have gathered the sun has stayed with me all day to the extent of having to apply sun cream liberally every 500 yards. I now have semi tanned fingers Top half only! The day started after a fullsome full breakfast and I made good progress averaging around 10mph for the first 30 odd miles. Enroute I passed a number of distilleries and though it was rude not to partake had to settle for the attached picture for fear of the local constabulary putting paid to the jogle before it had barely begun. Having travelled by the seashore with the pleasant aroma of sea salt filling my nostrils, I made it to lunch at Alness which was a pretty busy little town. Whilst busy minding my own business I was greeted like a returning hero by a gentleman who informed me that good news was abroad because Jesus loved me before going on to tell me that if I was killed this afternoon on the roads I wouldn't be able to go To heaven as Jesus probably wouldn't let me in! Having survived that bombshell I gingerly beat a retreat and headed off. The rest of the day was generally uphill with little other than more scenic views to report. It was a tad hair raising on my last stretch of the A9 all uphill with too many big lorries for comfort. Eventually I reached Beauly and with a sigh knew that a mere 12 more miles and my work was done. Nobody told me it was 99.9% ascent! Lesson learnt, don't relax until you get to destination. Anyway just had a healthy curry for tea including haggis pakora! When in rome as they say. Stats for the day: distance 67.87 miles time 7.21.09 av speed 9.2mph max speed 30.5 mph total distance 139.6 miles total time 16.15.02 Tomorrow sees me follow nessie towards fort bill and the foot of Glencoe till then..

To begin!

And so this epic adventure begins starting with a monsoon and ending in near perfect evening sunshine. To start let me tell you about John O' Groats. At 8am on a Sunday nothing is open no fanfare no nothing in fact probably the best bit was leaving! Which looking at it is probably the same day in day out. So at around 8.30 the s s intrepid and I began our descent, uphill! Shortly afterwards I had cause to fashion (the soon to be patented) portable waterproof shoe covers from 2 asda bags. I'll tell you one thing I got numerous admiring glances in tescos in wick when I went for breakfast. The day has been somewhat slow due to intrepid and I making a rather too close acquaintance with the caithness wind. My nose and face are currently rather flushed from our meeting. Our travels continued as we were passed by a myriad of motor bikes motor homes etc. It is a bleak area with long stretchs of nothing interspersed with odd hamlets and piles of stones from Ancient times tarted up to be tourist attractions. The sea however is never far from view and the oil rigs can often be seen in the distance. By around midday the monsoon had abated and watery sunshine gave way to a splendid evening. My legs are tender now from the extra battles with the wind and I did doubt whether i would make it before the food stopped being served but a full fat meal currently lines my stomach as I Blog as Imade it with 3/4 of an hour to spare. For the stats people awaiting a late entry in the sweep the stats for day one are as follows: distance 71.68 miles time cycling 8.53.58 av speed 8.0mph max speed 31.5mph tomorrow nessie awaits yippee!!

On the road to the beginning.

So I began my journey (having been waved off at Huddersfield railway station by Caroline) at 10pm last night and after catching 4 different trains, witnessing a stand up fight on the train to Preston and having caused chaos on the same train by semi blocking an exit as too many drunks were lounged within the cycle space, I duly arrived in Thurso this afternoon to be greeted with torrential rain and partial crosswinds. By the way if you are thinking of doing this and travelling by sleeper train, book a berth. From Thurso I set off amid the downpour for John O' Groats and despite the extreme dampness I saw my first scots rabbit and curlew. I also saw some beautiful breakers crashing on deserted beaches and a sign for a place called Ham. I passed the Castle of Mey (the Queen Mothers ex castle) but didn't go in as they were filming antiques roadshow and I didnt want them valuing my bike just yet. Arrived at the youth hostel at 4.30 and set about Getting dry only to find the hostel didnt open till 5. Have since cobbled tea with a little help from other guests and shall shortly sort my maps and kit for the start of the jogle proper tomorrow, till then!

Countdown -1

Well this is my last static blog for a while, as this evening I set off for the far north, so just a few words to say thank you in advance or in arrears to all those who have helped to get me to this position,

Firstly thanks to Wadski for the set up of the blog, thanks to my colleagues at work who have the onerous task of covering my workload for the next three weeks.
Thanks also to Mum, Mum in law and Dad in law for their support so far and of course the expected support they will give Caroline and the boys whilst I traverse the land, and of course last but not least to Caroline, Oliver and Archie for allowing me to desert them in such an obvious fashion.

I have now completed packing, found my tickets etc, so here we go !!!!

Onwards and Upwards!!!!!!!

Countdown -2

Well with less than 24 hours before I begin my journey north before the start of the Downhill bit, a slight amount of nerves are gathering.

The best way I can describe it is that its a bit like the feeling you get if your a sports fan hours before the game and your gut instinct is that your team is going to win, probably against a better team, but your head is trying to maintain a calm realistic approach and say that you may win but your more likely to lose.

I have completed my ironing, collated my extras into a collectible place for the morrow and read my mums tales of daring do from her recent trip to Canada.

All the essentials to a good old relaxing evening.

Which given I came home to see Oliver with a small egg like bruise on his forehead from riding (perhaps I should more accurately say falling off)his bike, without his helmet on is a good job.

Hopefully this isn't an omen for my riding, though of course my measurement of time for the sweep stake is based upon the time the wheels are spinning. Therefore if I am upside down in a ditch and the front wheel is still circumnavigating its axle, time will continue to march on!

Countdown -3

Hurray, my velocipede hath returneth from my local bike shop (Try Cycling in Kirkburton- very helpful and knowledgeable guys who do a hell of a lot of miles a week), having had its pre ride tweak.

I have given it a semi polish, by wiping all the rain off it, good eco warrior stuff not wasting water, and refitted bits like rear light with new batteries, saddle wedge and cycle computer(s).

I have also sorted all my tools, and the bulk of my bar bag, so just about packed then now.

My colleagues within finance are holding a sweep stake for how much actual cycling time it will take me to jogle, and currently we have guestimates of between 99 and 136hours, god help me if they need the tiebreaker question of how many punctures I have, to split them ( currently the worst case scenario stands at 8!).

Anyway two nights from now I will hopefully be sat on a train to Thurso (well Manchester, then, Preston, then Inverness, then Thurso. that's going to be one heck of an adventure just to start.

Tomorrow therefore sees final preparations and a mountain of ironing to sort! Till then I'll bid you goodnight!

Countdown -4

So the days continue to recede, small items of necessity like cycling shorts have been washed, dried and added to my ever growing pile of kit.

Emails have been sent to all my daily contacts informing them of my absence and act of lunacy.

The weather continues to toy with my planning, and my kind sponsors continue to come forward with promises of cold hard cash.

Hopefully my bike will be ready tomorrow and then I can begin the finishing touches of preparation.

Till then I can think of only one sensible plan, practice the mantra, "I am taking each stage one day at a time", have a preparatory beer and sleep till the dawn of a new day!

Countdown -5

And so the countdown begins to the greatest extravaganza the world has ever seen. Nope I'm not referring to the Tour de France starting in London, nor the live earth concerts, but merely catching the train to the start of Jogle.

I have currently a pile of approx half my kit, empty panniers, no money, and no bike (having a little tweak or two prior to departure), and another pile of clothes for my (I would imagine oh too short) sojourn once I get to the end, avec top team and other assorted family.

Just about ready then!

Checking the weather forecast our mighty forecasters currently believe it should be just like OCTOBER, when I set off.
Of course I have only myself to blame, if I had taken the advice and believed all the dark tales of global warming, I would have turned my computer monitor off, and set off in April which apparently was July.
Though I did hear some good news today , apparently we are going to have one beautiful sunny day in July, they think, they can't be sure and they can't tell us which one it will be at this stage because it might already have gone!

Oh well its all Snakes and Ladders to me ;-)

To Pedalo or not??

So with less than a week till I trip the light fantastic to the far northern reaches of these Isles of ours, and a mere week till I prepare for departure on the main event of the Jogle, I am caught upon the horns of a dilemma.

Do I change my stance on the number of waterproof items required for the trip, and include waist length Waders ala JR Hartley and his fly fishing?

Do I merely shrug my shoulders endure the damp, probably develop mildew in places that I can't describe and go with the original plan, or,

Do I visit Pugneys again and ask if I can borrow one of their pedalos, and rejig my route (if necessary) to include a few genuine waterways rather than the simple flooded roads which if the weather continues will be the norm?

If I go and get a couple of earrings put in and have a few two many beers I'm sure I could muster a passable impression of the great Frederico Flintoff , so maybe Pedalo is the way to go.

I have today had my Jogle haircut and was furnished yesterday with additional shirtage for the ride from Capita Hartshead as part of their sponsorship. I believe, I will now, and only now, be able to look the part, rain or shine, night or day for this deepest of mid life crises.

Deadlines

Well with less than two weeks to Le Grand Depart and the start of my downhill madness, I have been brushing up on the lingo, and have learnt the following phrases:

"I'm not lost, I am merely following a slight route correction in order to visit a very interesting landmark which I had not thought to include upon my route in my planning haste."

"I was going to shave my legs but felt I may be a little too aerodynamic for all this downhill riding"

"Isn't the weather splendid for the time of year!"

I will let you work out your own versions of the actual meanings.

Other than that I am now down to a list of essential things to do before you jogle, such as mowing the lawn (if it stops raining long enough), cleaning the car(s), checking equipment including legs, arms and any other necessary items, and of course ensuring my team at work have as little to cover as possible during my absence.

Just hope I don't run out of time and miss my deadlines!

Byways

After an early morning start, on taxi duty from Manchester Airport, I managed late in the day to attach derriere to cycle and in what can only be described as the best of the weather, spent an hour and a half cycling the byways of the Pie Village and surrounding area.

I was chased along for a good quarter of a mile by swallows , newly fledged as they dived for the cloud of midges I attracted. Saw flooded fields , rivers bursting from their banks and cricket fields awash with laying water.

I also saw the field pictured which if you look very carefully you can see a few red flecks upon.

These were poppies amidst the wheat and seemed somewhat appropriate to see in the week when the end of the Falklands war 25 years ago was commemorated.

Unlike Flanders fields, or Iraq, or Afghanistan the road to Upper Cumberworth was thankfully at peace. Though it did make me think of those who are already there or are shortly to go to one of these troubled places and hope that they return in one piece to their families and communities as speedily as their duties allow.

Rain Dances

It appears abundantly clear that a great many of you have been assisting preparing me for my ride, with a rather large amount of rain dancing.

Hopefully you will all have got it out of your systems by the time I set off in a mere 23 and a bit days time and I will be able to proceed in a southerly direction with wall to wall sunshine and ne'er a cloud in the sky.

Sorry, away with the fairies again there for a minute, thinking I was riding southerly in somewhere renowned for good weather!

Anyway training continues apace, though in truth it is winding down a little now as I have very nearly reached my training target of just over 1,000 miles prior to departure. Not bad when you think most of my training has been snatched in one to two hour chunks in the early mornings, with a number of bigger rides interspersed along the way.

A few prerequisites are still to be obtained, like Kendal mint cake for energy enough to give me safe passage when I've left the rest of me 20 miles from the end of a stage. New Batteries for my lights (essential when cycling in the low cloud of an English Summer), and stamps to ensure relevant postcardidge can be dispatched en route and upon conclusion.

I was going to carry a couple of homing pigeons for dispatch of SOS's but thought I may get hungry on the way and defeat the object by partaking of a roast too early in the trip and in any case all the advice I have received is travel light, so have decided to leave them at home.

Mists, Midges and St Pauls

A strangely quiet weekend, without any training due to Caroline being away (remarkably leaving me in charge -and we all lived to tell the tale!). Though you could say Oliver has done some for me, riding quite magnificently, albeit avec stabilisers approx 3 miles round Pugneys lake at Wakefield. I meanwhile was trailing a distant last, pushing the rapidly growing trouble causer Archie after the shadow of his Big Brother whilst he sang some incoherent songs from his position in his pram.

It reminded me of a New Years eve many moons ago, when a group of us were to be found pushing another incoherent soul in a passing wheel barrow up what can only be called a steep hill, whilst festooned in traffic cones and other roadwork paraphernalia.

And everyone wonders were the ideas for Last of the Summer Wine come from!

I have though made up for it by dragging myself onto my bike and venturing out into the mist "early doors" yesterday and for a slightly longer ride this evening along with a rather too friendly bunch of midges.

Quite strange that I had enough energy given that at 9:45 this morning I was partaking of Coffee outside St Paul's cathedral in London having risen early to catch the train down there.

I have (only in the name of research you understand) also partaken of a rather sumptuous Cornish Pasty for luncheon just to ease the obligatory aches and pains incurred on a typically uncomfortable train journey.

Just can't wait for the train journey up to Thurso in a month and two days time! Anyone know if they sell Cornish pasties on First Scotrail?

Mad Dogs and Racing Snakes

To paraphrase a well known saying, "only mad dogs and racing snakes go out cycling in the p**ing rain!"

You may surmise correctly from this, that I spent Sunday on my bike getting more than a little damp.

My route left the Pie village and by back roads over heather moorland to the foot of Holme Moss, (one of those hills to climb before you die if your a mad keen cyclist (just another hill to go over for me then!)), then on downhill to the A628 and then on past the Longdendale Trail to Glossop.

From Glossop (where about the only place open was Woolies) and after having partaken of luncheon, I took the A57 climbing the 5 miles to the summit of my second hill to climb before you die in the day, Snake Pass, ( and yes it damn near did kill me). Then onwards downhill to Ladybower and then over the Strines Moors, returning to Penistone and home.

Surprisingly for a British Bank Holiday it persisticated at a fair rate of downfall for the whole journey, and as a result it took me a sum total of 7 and a bit hours to cover 57 miles.

This, my friends was no fair weather training exercise, in fact I can honestly say I think I will find it difficult to find a consistently hillier ride on my whole Jogle ( especially given its all downhill!), I've had a niggling backache all day today just from having been sat in the same position for mile after mile pedalling uphill. I hope by now you are feeling sorry for me, and admiring my dedication to the cause!

One thing I can say though despite my fears "John Wayne is not at home today" which is a huge positive.

I did learn one or two important facts from the ride which are going to be very useful on the Jogle. firstly my bar bag isn't waterproof in the slightest, secondly mobile phones don't like being that damp, and take approx 24 hours to dry out enough to use again (if you are lucky enough that they do, which thankfully I am) thirdly my panniers and my waterproof jacket are very nearly fully waterproof though my cycling shoes definitely aren't.

6 weeks today I will (touch wood) be sitting eating a well earned meal, at the end of my second day of the Jogle, so if you could all get your prayer mats out and ask for some good weather, a following wind and not too much pollen, and midges, alongside your prayers for those in need in the world, it would be much appreciated.

One thing I forgot to say, was I wasn't alone in my insanity, I saw a large number of drowned rat walkers, three different shooting parties (thankfully not after Racing Snakes) and a couple of other hardy souls on bikes. I am of course expecting to be struck down within the next 24 hours with full blown "Man Flu" for my pains.

Relaxation

As a result of commitments to family matters (playing Cricket at Archie's Christening mainly and stuffing my face with Pork Pie and Christening cake) its been a light week with regard to training so far.

Have to say being betwixt and between "heavy" training and final preparations has meant May has been hard work motivational wise, in the appending derriere to saddle and encouraging legs to join in the rotation of pedals kind of way.

I've just worked out there are 45 days to go before I depart the far north, having no doubt glimpsed the polar ice caps and felt the wind in my face and hopefully the sun on my back as I pass the starting line. So I guess the "hard work" of preparation needs to be finalised very soon.

I can tell you one thing 5.30 am rides, although often great for waking up the mind and the body once upon them, are a pain in the proverbial to clamber out of bed to, so I have to say I have every sympathy with Caroline when she says "I shall be glad when you've finished getting up at this time!".

I am starting to put together my thoughts on necessary kit, thankfully Jonny M has promised to bring fresh supplies of socks if he manages to catch up with me (being the speedster I am!).

I have a plan for a devil of a ride this weekend and really do expect John Wayne syndrome this time, I definitely expect to have to use the lift when I get to work as I'm sure my legs will not forgive me if I complete the ride and then try and use the stairs the day after.

You may guess that I'll let you know how I get on!

Generosity

I have today set a revised sponsorship target of £1,500 as thanks to the large numbers of you who have sponsored or pledged so far I have exceeded my initial target of £1,000 with a full 7 weeks to go before the ride.

I am staggered by your generosity and know that it will be a great additional motivational tool on the days when my head and my legs turn round and say I shouldn't be rolling 1,000 miles even if it is all downhill.

My thanks to you all and please if you can keep spreading the word!

Bulking up!

I have been taking the advice of my earlier erstwhile correspondent this weekend and have mixed a short 20 mile ride, albeit up one of the nastiest climbs in the district, with a little "weight training-" to help my Bulking up. In reality I have been moving about a ton of hardcore sandstone (and no that isn't a euphemism for some new dance craze) from the front of the house to the rear. Thankfully the level of snivels has now reduced to a slow drip so I haven't been too distracted. It has however been brought to my attention that I have omitted a notable event from the route map of stage 13. Sorry Archie not only am I going to not be present on your birthday but I also omitted it in my senility. I hope that you wont be scarred for life by my omission. You'll soon come to discover that us blokes are just about last in the evolutionary ladder for remembering dates. Good to see the monsoon season started this afternoon hopefully this will have run its course before the jogle starts!

Route Launch

With all appropriate, Grand pomp and ceremony, I hereby launch the route, follow the links on the left to try and work out roughly where I should be each day.

My thanks go to Wadski for all his patience and help in production.

Snivels and 32mph hills

You may have guessed from the old title, that, as Oliver would say "I've got a runny nose!"

I appear to have caught a dose of the snivels! Which isn't conducive to training as I spend more time trying to catch up with my nose, than concentrating on the road.

Can't decide whether to blame Jonny M, for twisting my arm behind my back in one of his macho police moves, and dragging me to the ale house on Saturday, Caroline for clearly passing it on! or me for going out without a coat on a chilly windswept Sunday.

Think I'll go with one of the first two, as only a fool blames himself!

The photo is to prove one of two things,

1. that Yorkshire isn't flat, just in case there is anyone reading this that has never ventured to this corner of England.

2. That seemingly innocuous hills can create quite a great deal of velocity, when added to a racing snake on a velocipede.

Luckily said hillock, has a speed limit of 60mph , as it wouldn't look good to be banned from riding for speeding, before the jogle.

I am of course, upon said Jogle, going to aim to break the land speed record for a racing snake on some of the downhills, or else there's no way I will get up the inevitable other side. Just hope there aren't too many chicanes at the bottom of big hills to impede my progress!

Anyway must dash, cos, I've got a .............

Tom Jones Garden Centre

Had to laugh on my way home from work when I passed this, obviously Tom Jones has set up a garden centre in Sheffield.

I'm sure I will see plenty more daft or critically amended signs as I traverse the land in a mere 9 and a bit weeks time.

My thanks to all those of you who have sponsored or pledged to date, as you can see I am creeping ever closer to my target. I'm looking forward to having to revise it so please keep spreading the word if you can.

Cuckoo!

And no, the title of today's blog, is not a reflection of my level of sanity, or (although quite possible) most peoples reaction to the Jogle or indeed a description of a Swiss clock.

It is the sound which greeted my ears as I rode at a leisurely pace upon this mornings ride, passing through High Hoyland and with the view as shown. I hadn't heard a Cuckoo for years probably since I lived in Holmfirth, so it was a really cheery sound.

I have this week purchased my rail tickets to get me to within 20 miles of the start. I leave Huddersfield at 10.22pm on the 6th of July and arrive in Thurso at 2.27pm on the 7th which should leave me a couple of hours to get to John O'Groats and my bed for the night, before Le Grand depart on the 8th.

Now that my friends may well, be a bit Cuckoo. The daft thing is I have 4 tickets for me and 8 for my bike, God help me if I lose any of them.

I have discovered that I am continuing to lose weight, what with all this exercise, and I actually lost 2lbs on my 65 mile ride.

Therefore if you follow the logic of that through I could lose up to 2 stone on the actual Jogle.

Hmmm, need to discover a way of "bulking up" me thinks or I'll never manage to ride on a windy day! Anyone with any sensible ideas please leave me a comment.

You will be pleased to note that the Route is almost ready for production so watch this space as they say, especially all those of you who have mentioned "Cheering me on" as I pass like a blur on my Journey South, or meeting me and buying yourselves a beer and laughing at the "teetotal" John Wayne impersonator at some point along the way.

Definite signs of Global Warming!

And so what is the answer to whether I have been arrested over the weekend for carrying guns for which I am unlicenced. The answer in simple terms, No Six guns required!

I am unsurprisingly a little tender, but not to the degree of Getting off my horse and milking my cow. That will disappoint the guys at work who were looking forward to calling me John Wayne.

Anyway I have continued my training and have discovered definite signs of Global warming. As my Grandad would have said " As ta seen a Swallow? ".
I can this very day answer in the affirmative, which clearly is due to Global warming, no sensible swallow would ever venture this far North at the back end of April would they?

Mind you I'm sure the bluebells being out, the Hawthorn flowering, the fact my two boys continue to grow, the fact the Cricket season has started, the fact our water butt is empty (bring on the hosepipe ban), the fact that the sun continues to shine and that I won on the National, can all reasonably be attributed to Global warming as well, so I won't get too carried away with any pessimistic thoughts , that we're all doomed and the world will end tomorrow, if I don't turn off my Computer monitor at night.

Forgot to mention after my trial run, on Friday I have now surpassed my combined totals for 2005 and 2006 with regard to mileage covered, which is another little tick on the way to the start line. Also tried to explain to Oliver all about the Jogle and that Daddy will be riding his bike for 15 days, think he just about got it, but confirmation will come in just another 11 weeks. Crikey don't time fly when your having fun!

True Grit and the Alamo

Greetings, on this fine and wondrous eve, you find me this evening a tad weary, to the extent that I was falling asleep in the bath (that's all my bathing done for this year, except perhaps on my birthing day).

You will see from the appended photo that I have been absent from my working duties today and instead have been pedalling for Britain.

I have undertaken my first "completed" ride fully laden on full daily course distance for the jogle, a small 65 miles covered in true John Wayne style in a little under 7 hrs.

I have learnt two important lessons along the way, as I have traversed the West Yorkshire Cycle way:

1. Follow the map and not any signposts for said Cycle way

2. If it looks wrong it probably is, therefore hastily retrace ones wheels to a known point, before its a long way back.

You may have gathered I have had one or two trials and tribulations. Getting lost twice in the same way did annoy me a little, but like most blokes, I'm a little slow in learning from my mistakes, and need to do something wrong at least twice before I realise there has to be a better way.

Anyway a hugely positive result both with time and distance as it proves I should be able to do the daily ride. Whether I can walk tomorrow without my six guns is another matter entirely.

Didn't see too many things of note on the ride, though did see two very small ducklings, and crossed a bridge with a plaque upon it remarking that the area of Wentbridge where I had luncheon, is mentioned in an early version of the Robin Hood Legend.

I also saw Bluebells for the first time this year in abundance, not quite fully open but on their way, so for Caroline, I have attached this

Sunny days

A beautiful, spring day has found me adapting one of my early 20 mile rides into something a little longer by combining it with a few other parts of my repertoire, ending up with a 32 mile ride which took me just over three hours.

The picture unfortunately doesn't quite do the windmills justice and neither does it portray the, sumptuous high level of carbohydrate (Caroline says Protein) I consumed as I ploughed my way down the road through the seemingly continuous cloud of midges.

One thing with a road like that, just like the wind I have trained with all year (not the one as a cause of my eating habits but the howling gale of a northern winter) it can only be good preparation, in particular for the Scottish Midgelands.

I seemed to pass an inordinate amount of roadkill today, including Pheasant, Hedgehog (both young and old), Squirrel and Blue tit, perhaps I just noticed it more because I set off slightly later.

I have to confirm that Spring really is sprung as yours truly bared his cycling legs in anger for the premier time this year, though I did regret the long sleeved jersey, the further along I got.

Anyway you may have noticed that the level of sponsorship has shot up this week as I have officially launched the Jogle on an unsuspecting world, by sending numerous begging emails. Thanks to all those who have responded and sponsored or pledged so far, and the rest of you please help if you can, and if not please at least spread the word.

Went to see Thomas Jack today and have to say a handsome, if slightly noizy chap he is, much like his Uncle Racing!

Finally whilst riding I came across this strange sight, Anybody any ideas as to how you get a bike this big? I'm sure I'd get to the end a lot quicker on this.

Wadski Junior

Just found out that Nicola and Wadski have an heir, Thomas Jack born sometime this morning (details a little sketchy) weighing in at a "small" 9lb 5ozs.

Congrats to both on this great news.

2 strips for the price of 1

1st choice kit


To be worn on all occasions except when alternative kit worn.

By the good fortune of the Jogle lasting a maximum 15 days it should mean, by sheer coincidence that I begin and end in the same glorious technicolor.

Still needed home address and name tag in case irrevocably lost.



Shirt sponsorship still available!!!!

Shorts sponsorship still available!!!! (though beware with all this cycling my behind is not a pretty sight!)

Alternative kit



To be worn each alternate day, generally whilst 1st choice kit undertaking cleaning duties.

Now now girls no swooning over my ever so manly figure!!!

P.S you may have spotted this was taken pre lightweight training ride.

Grandads Rabbits

On a bright April Good Friday morn, I set off somewhat hesitantly upon a short ride, round a few minor hills and vales in the shadow of the Pie Village. I say hesitantly as I have been struck down with illness during the week (best guess a form of food poisoning, probably brought on by my denial of use by and best before dates).

It was a beautiful day and within a mile of home the countryside once again sucked me in with the sight of two small and perfectly formed young rabbits sat sedately pondering me with the inquisitiveness and lack of fear that only the very young have. Anyway eventually they turned and loped off revealing they were my Grandads rabbits, as he always claimed the ones with the white tails were his.

The ride took me on a part of my newish elongated hours ride past the Yorkshire equivalent of the CN Tower, admittedly its only about 1/3rd as big but it certainly dominates the skyline more ,and I couldn't help but add a photo to the blog to demonstrate.

P.S. Coming soon ,the grand unveiling of the first and alternative strips for the Jogle so keep watching.

P.P.S It looks like Huddersfield Giants have just broken their duck in Superleague this season 56-12, Thanks Wakey, Wadski will be pleased.

April fool

A "fresh" spring morning has found me like an April fool , aboard my trusty steed, pedalling like a man possessed towards the dawn and the daffodils, hence the picture.

Fortunately I haven't tried to explain the idea of April fool to Oliver yet, as I think it may be a little confusing and it might well end up with me being the fool.

I have followed my route from last week with a few minor hidden extras ( like fruit and "spare" flapjack as well as a few minor detours) and managed to reduce my time on the ride by a whole two minutes.

A rare event occurred last night as we (and I use the we advisedly in the royal sense)for the first time this year, got round to organising a baby sitter (Grandma and Grandad) for the evening and we went out for a very enjoyable high quality meal at the White Heart hotel in Penistone. Most enjoyable must do more often.

Anyway more definitive signs of spring this morning, lots of young lambs gambolling in the fields, including a huge amount of twins. I had to keep going as the thought of mint sauce had me salivating a little too much (sorry all you veggies out there!).

Also Calves bumbling along ,and we have had a couple of bumble bees in the house already, one of which we believe was a Queen (the Crown and the way she "minced" in, kind of gave it away). But the final and foolproof conclusive evidence was the flotilla of Caravans wending its way towards the Motorway for the Easter break.

I have added, because I can and I am after all a bloke, still with a relatively new toy another picture from this mornings ride, taken yet again on my mobile phone.