Mice Log Star Date 79 in the cold

11.39 miles with an average speed of 11.2, max speed 18.4  A trip to the shops on the Brommie in very cold weather.

This caught my eye

Mice Speediest Moment Star Date 78

Tuesday 19th March Mice Star Date 77. 15.17 miles, average speed 6.9 mph, top speed 26.41!! 

26.41mph on the Brommie!! Admittedly it was down a hill with the wind behind me! As I saw it appear on the Cateye I laughed out loud!

A trip to the Post Office on the Brommie.

Mice Star Date 77 Monday 18th March 11.30 Miles, ave speed 9.6, max speed 15mph in 1hr 10.
  
A day of errands, interspersed with pedal power across London with a friend.   
And Cake!

What a day!

Sunday 17th March in a Downpour on the Brommie!

11.20 miles 18.6 max speed. 1hr 19. Star date 76 Even though it started tipping it down about 10 minutes into my ride, I just didn't care.  If you can find the right kit that allows you to stay dry and keeps you warm then it's as easy as riding a bike!

Keeping the extremities of the body warm and dry are crucial.  I have leather boots that are half a size bigger than my normal size to allow for thick socks and I always keep a spare pair of socks with me.  The same for gloves, always a spare pair too.

But gloves are a bit of a hit and a miss. A blue Gore pair keep my hands warm if the weather is above 5 degrees and I'm just pootling.  If it is less than that and it is raining the pink Goretex ones are so far the best.  They only keep the rain out if you can pull your sleeves over the top of them (not always easy) and they don't stop your hands from sweating.  Once you have taken them off - to eat something or use your mobile - putting them on again is unpleasant but doable.  I also have a pair of woollen Altura ones but if they get wet they are no good at all.  

And you can't always believe what you read.  At the Bike Show I bought two pairs of Pro Equipe gloves which say they are perfect for 0 degrees. Poppycock!  They are completely useless and will be worn as a summer glove, or a lining in the winter, if that.

Waterproof over-trousers are an item in the winter I don't leave home without.  And they were not the cheapest.  Mine are Goretex Pactlite, they breathe a little bit although it does depend on what you are wearing underneath them and how much pedalling you are doing. They do keep you bone dry.   

If I'm in jeans, I only wear them when the rain is heavy and constant. Cycling in wet jeans is a very unpleasant experience as Denim is heavy and cold when it is wet and takes ages to dry out. Yuk Yuk Yuk!

For long rides, when I'm wearing cycling leggings and I am not pedalling very hard, I can wear the overtrousers all day without a problem. But up hills or where it is a bit of a workout, I take them off as I just overheat.

But the cheaper ones don't breathe at all which means you sweat like there is no tomorrow and you are better off without them than with them.   It is a bit of hit and miss, we are all different and our body thermostats all work very differently.  Some of my cycling friends wear over trousers for all their winter rides and have no problem at all. 

Mice Log 75 19.18 miles around Brighton.

Saturday 16th March. Ave speed 8.8. Max speed 22.7.  Wind factor - gale force!

Who could imagine that riding a bike was such fun.  Truly!  All year round too!  Since the clocks fell forward in October I have ridden my road bike once.

The alternative bicycle in my world is a Marin.  Apparently a mountain bike frame in aluminum, with a rack, mudguards, 28mm tyres and a stand! A work horse.  A bike I can leave outside a shop locked up for a couple of hours whilst drinking cappuccinos or doing errands without worrying whether it has been nicked.  I don't care what anybody says but bike theft is rife.

Today was a ride with friends around Brighton on our hybrids.  Advanced planning with Southern railways websites keeps the price reasonable albeit a bit early.  At 0857 I met up with a friend at Brighton Station and we headed towards the sea.  Not quite that simple!  The wind was so fierce that the sea looked angry - it was wild.  The force of the gale was so strong that we didn't actually make it to the seafront, we headed inland instead. 

Cycling sometimes on the road and sometimes on the cycle paths where the hazards of both were prevalent.  Stroppy, unthinking drivers passing too closely on the road, offset against the litter, broken glass, potholes and rubbish surface of the cycle paths.  

We did try out a new design where the cycle path runs behind a bus stop instead of in front of it which was interesting.  It keeps you out of the traffic but I am not sure how good that is around pedestrians running for a bus in rush hour.   And I am not sure how good it is for the driver as it fuels their "Good. Cyclists out of my way" mentality. 

 

Our target destination was a lovely manor house that is home to a squadron of chefs who produce absolutely delicious food all day long.  Eggs Benedict in front of a log fire.  How could cycling be this good?  It was all so relaxing that we were still there at lunch time when our numbers increased to three.

About four hours and several meals later we headed out in to the wind. It hadn't dropped at all!  We weaved our way towards something called Devils Dyke which I had been led to believe was flat.  Apparently it may be flat at the top but it is not flat in the getting there.

On the way there, we cycled up a busy main road, popping on and off the accompanying and equally rubbish cycle path and I wondered what on earth I was doing cycling up this thing, this steep, no-cleats climb on my hybrid.  And it wasn't anywhere near Devils Dyke. Somehow I made it to the top - which was at least a whole 50 metres of steepness!  At the top I found myself looking at a sign that said Ditchling Road. It could have been worse - I thought.

 

 

From this great height I could look across and see Devils Dyke.  Err, no  thank you! Not today!  Woop Woop we headed back to Brighton instead. On the way we did another classic thing whereby my hosts took me to somewhere near where they live that they had never, ever been to before! Classic!  

 

Brighton Velodrome! And not only that but the oldest velodrome in the country! How amazing was that?  Well we couldn't resist a lap or two even on our hybrids.  As I cycled round (being overtaken about three times by Giorgos Hoy) I could hear the sound track from Chariots of Fire - no - Hybrids on Fire as we hurled around breaking record after record!

 Eventually we managed to tear ourselves away - not least because we were hungry.  We hadn't eaten for at least two whole hours! Into Brighton  city centre, saw the football stadium, then via the Pavilion to a lovely Italian Pizzeria where I learned the history of pizza.  It was invented during the Second World War when someone (yes, in Italy) was asked to produce a meal for some starving soldiers, at no notice and with no food. In a panic the only available ingredients of mozzarella, salami and olives were placed on a dough and baked in the oven. 

Amazing how the pressure of having to produce something special resulted in such a stalwart and internationally renowned addition to our culinary world, consumed by millions every day, even today.  

As if enough food hadn't been eaten... pudding was enormous!

 These Hybrid days are all about the bike, the food and the friendships.  As for the laughs - too many to count.  Awesome day.